BATTLE FOR STARS

Just before they passed through the Stargate, an urgent message appeared in Belina's notification panel.

She blinked, and the contents were projected directly onto her retina. After reading it quickly, she immediately understood why it had been marked as urgent.

It was an order recalling Claudia to the front lines.

Claudia was not actually a member of the Mayflower Fleet. She was a commander serving with a frontline fleet. She had only traveled to Earth this time because of Belina's personal request, helping bring the princess home.

Now that the mission was complete and the situation at the front had grown increasingly tense, the military command wanted Claudia to return as soon as possible.

“Cousin, how should I reply to this?” Belina asked, waving her hand. The message instantly appeared as a holographic projection in the room.

“If we hadn't been delayed on Planet Boman, I would've returned a long time ago,” Claudia replied.

“Has the situation on the front become even worse?” Belina asked.

She had been away for more than two years and was no longer fully informed about the progress of the war. Still, she knew that the past few years had been far more turbulent than the centuries before.

“Yes,” Claudia said grimly.

“We're probably facing the most aggressive offensive in the last thousand years.”

She then began explaining the history behind the conflict.

Historically, the Hill Empire had fought three major wars against the Confederation.

The first occurred before the Hill Empire even existed.

At the time, various nations across the star region competed for resources on the frontier worlds, exploiting them for their own benefit. Eventually, the inhabitants of those worlds rebelled.

The resistance was fierce.

Unfortunately, their forces were scattered and lacked unified leadership.

In the end, the uprising failed.

Many survivors retreated into more distant regions of space.

From those exiles, the Hill Empire was eventually born.

The second conflict took place shortly after the empire's founding.

Seeking revenge for past grievances, the Hill Empire launched a large-scale counteroffensive.

The sudden attack caught several nations unprepared. At the time, the Confederation had not yet been formed, and the individual states suffered a series of defeats.

Eventually, however, technological disparities and the later creation of the Confederation forced the Hill Empire to withdraw.

The third conflict occurred over a thousand years ago.

An emperor of the Hill Empire became obsessed with the idea of unifying the entire star region under one banner and launched a massive campaign of conquest.

The war ultimately ended in a stalemate.

But peace never truly followed.

Over the centuries, fighting continued to flare up and die down. Numerous conflicts erupted throughout the frontier regions, though no major wars broke out.

At least not until recent years.

“The scale of a war isn't determined by how much territory is captured,” Claudia explained.

“It's determined by how many military forces are committed.”

“After all, occupying a worthless star system doesn't mean much.”

For a long time, conflicts between the Confederation and the Hill Empire had been relatively limited.

Most engagements involved fewer than a hundred starships—usually no more than a single Task Force.

But over the last few years, the number of ships involved had increased dramatically.

Battles involving more than ten thousand starships were no longer uncommon.

“The war hasn't reached the point of total annihilation,” Claudia continued, “but both sides realize the intensity is completely different from before.”

“Especially since the Hill Empire's latest target is Epsom.”

“Epsom?” Belina frowned.

“One of the most important systems in the Duir Republic.”

Epsom was one of the Duir Republic's most valuable star systems.

Its worlds contained massive reserves of the rare elements required for starship construction, nano-armor manufacturing, and countless advanced technologies.

Molybdenum for electromagnetic cannon barrels.

Gallium for stealth materials.

Beryllium for advanced bonding compounds.

Additional molybdenum for armor production.

Dysprosium and cesium for permanent magnets.

Niobium for cyborg body components.

And many more.

“If the Confederation loses Epsom,” Claudia said, “overall starship production could drop by more than twenty percent.”

Ding Yufei couldn't help asking,

“You all control so many star systems. How can you still be short of rare elements?”

“The answer is simple.”

Claudia smiled.

“First, they're called rare elements for a reason. No matter where you go, they're uncommon.”

“Having a large number of planets doesn't guarantee abundant deposits.”

“Second, you have no idea how much material goes into a starship.”

She gestured toward the fleet outside.

“The smallest military starships aren't measured in tons.”

“They're measured in millions of tons.”

“Larger vessels can easily exceed ten million tons.”

“And Carriers are far larger still.”

“The demand for rare elements is absolutely enormous.”

“Starships are really that large and heavy?” Ding Yufei asked skeptically.

“Of course.”

Claudia laughed.

“It's like standing aboard a cruise ship and looking at another cruise ship nearby. It doesn't seem particularly huge.”

“But if you view that same vessel from a small boat, it suddenly looks like a giant.”

“Besides, military starships are very different from civilian vessels.”

“Combat ships are designed to survive close-range nuclear detonations.”

“They require exceptionally thick armor and incredibly robust structures.”

“That's why the hulls are so massive.”

“You should know that constructing a single starship is a process measured in years.”

As expected of a career officer, Claudia managed to explain everything clearly in just a few sentences.

“Can't you manufacture those rare elements through other methods?” Ding Yufei asked.

Surely extraterrestrial technology could do more than simple mining.

Belina answered this time.

“Let me give you an example.”

“On Earth, couldn't people synthesize salt through chemical processes?”

“They could.”

“But when oceans are full of salt and natural salt deposits are everywhere, who would bother?”

“The most important thing is that Epsom's resources are extremely easy to extract.”

“Alternative methods are slower, more expensive, and less efficient.”

“I see.”

Ding Yufei nodded.

What he didn't know was that Hill Empire starships were actually lighter than Confederation vessels.

Their armor was thinner.

To maximize production numbers, the empire intentionally reduced the mass of individual ships.

The result was higher casualty rates.

But more ships meant more firepower.

And manpower was the one thing the Hill Empire didn't lack.

It was an empire with a population of one hundred billion.

“The Hill Empire's policies have become increasingly aggressive over the last few years,” Claudia said, steering the conversation back to the original topic.

“At this point, further escalation seems unavoidable.”

“What new policy have they introduced?” Belina asked.

She had spent the last few years on Earth and hadn't been paying attention to political developments.

“A new military merit system.”

“A military merit system?” Ding Yufei looked confused.

“It means rewards based on battlefield performance,” Belina explained. “But haven't they always had something like that?”

“They have.”

Claudia's expression darkened.

“But now it's become far more extreme.”

“How extreme?”

“In the past, military achievements earned extra pay and maybe a medal.”

“Now they're openly announcing that destroying one Confederation starship earns an immediate promotion of one rank and a reward of one hundred thousand Bilirs.”

She paused before continuing.

“And they've gone even further.”

“Confederation soldiers can be exchanged for money.”

“The more heads you bring back, the larger the reward.”

“One hundred kills earns a promotion.”

The room fell silent.

Even Ding Yufei could immediately understand the consequences of a policy like that.

It wasn't merely rewarding victory anymore.

It was encouraging slaughter.