BATTLE FOR STARS

As he fretted, a sudden, sinister idea flashed into Lev's mind. Though it seemed terrifying, he began to consider it seriously. Perhaps this was the only way to resolve the current situation.

“You, come here,” Lev said after a moment, fixing his gaze on Newman.

Newman hurried over.

“Like this…” Lev whispered his plan to Newman.

“You really intend to do this?” Newman finally heard the whole plan, a look of hesitation and unease on his face.

“Do you have a more reliable solution?” Lev asked, looking at him.

Newman shook his head.

“Then get it done quickly. This time, handle it carefully—no mistakes!” Lev scolded, frustrated that he always had to clean up after these people.

“Understood,” Newman nodded.

“Wait a moment.”

“What is it?”

“The batch of hyper-realistic robots—do not sell them externally. I want to keep them for several key department leaders,” Lev instructed.

“You mean the hyper-realistic women?” Newman asked.

“Yes,” Lev nodded.

These hyper-realistic female robots were highly sought after in the Hill Empire and could fetch a fortune. Lev had originally planned to sell them privately for profit, but due to this situation, he would now use them to grease the wheels with influential officials.

In the Empire, hyper-realistic robots were generally forbidden unless special approval was granted. More importantly, the Empire’s own robots, both in appearance and function, lagged far behind the Confederation’s models, several generations outdated.

The Confederation’s hyper-realistic robots were almost indistinguishable from humans. They could cook, eat, work, get up and sleep like humans, use the restroom, accompany you during the day, and fulfill personal needs at night. They even had their own “emotions.”

Without prolonged exposure, it was impossible to tell whether they were human or robotic. Their design in loyalty and user experience was near perfect, far surpassing the Empire’s models.

Especially in intimate services, they felt even more realistic than humans. Astonishingly, these robots could display a variety of personalities in bed—wild, shy, refined, rebellious, and more—offering a dizzying array of experiences.

Thus, these hyper-realistic female robots were highly coveted within the Empire. Even the wealthy often struggled to acquire one. For the truly powerful, they could assign a “status” to a robot, allowing it to accompany them at all times.

Although it pained him, Lev had no choice. Once his plan was executed, many would inquire about the incident. While the Confederation could not directly intervene, they would certainly attempt to use connections. Even if Lev’s operation was meticulous, some gaps were inevitable. Without offering favors to key department personnel, he could not smooth things over. This was the only option.

“By the way, keep two for yourself and me,” Lev finally told Newman. He had wanted one for a long time, but his income had not allowed it. Since this operation was particularly bold, he deserved a personal benefit.

“Understood,” Newman’s eyes lit up. He knew exactly what this meant. Especially since he would get one as well, his earlier frustration melted away, and he hurried off to handle the task.

---------------------------------------

Meanwhile, on Violet, the capital of the Kramic Kingdom, a lieutenant colonel responsible for royal security was seriously discussing matters with a first lieutenant.

“Is this the Hill Empire’s final response?” the colonel asked.

“Yes, they sent an official communiqué, along with some videos,” the first lieutenant replied.

“I’ve seen them. In the videos, Arthur and Caroline admit to being Confederation spies—but that’s complete fabrication. Why would a royal family member spy for the Hill Empire? Even if true, they wouldn’t need to escape prison, only to be killed midway by automated security!” The colonel slammed the desk in anger.

“I could produce a thousand such fake projections. They treat us like fools!”

“But that’s the official report. Since three weeks ago, when the Security Bureau took control on Elwin, we have had no further information on them.”

“Any other updates?”

“A little. Our investigation found that many goods sent to Elwin were disposed of by local security at extremely low market prices, and most buyers were department heads.”

“You already reported that. Anything else?”

“One thing: among the goods delivered by the Unicorn, a batch of hyper-realistic robots was set to a special mode. I don’t fully understand the mode, but I’ve uploaded all information to your platform for review.”

“What special mode?” the colonel wondered. He waved the first lieutenant away. “Understood. I will check it myself.”

After the lieutenant left, the colonel examined the unknown mode. Still puzzled, he contacted relevant departments. After gaining clearance to access top-secret files, he finally understood.

This was a secret of the Kramic Kingdom’s hyper-realistic robots. Each robot could be designed with countless modes, but in practice, it was fixed to a single personality. This was for both commercial profitability and realism: to experience different personalities, customers would need to buy multiple robots. Large differences in personality within one robot would feel unnatural and unrealistic.

These robots were expensive, either custom-made or sold with a preselected mode, permanently locking all other modes.

Beyond all personality modes, a hidden “surveillance mode” existed.

Developed for special purposes, this surveillance mode never appeared publicly. When a robot was activated in a commercial mode, this hidden mode was forcibly deleted. This prevented clients from discovering that the robot could secretly gather information, protecting the company’s reputation.