Two-Person Galactic Journey: Earth Was Destroyed While Imprisoned in Space Prison

Chapter 109

When Kait contacted the Federation Congress, he was connected almost immediately.

The Federation Congress operates on a four-shift system and is always discussing some kind of legislation. You could say its strength lies in being an organization freed from time constraints thanks to being on an artificial planet, unaffected by the concept of morning, noon, or night.

And so, as usual, the connection was quick. Since it wasn't Terapolapaneshio who answered, the space jellyfish congressmember must be on break.

'Hey, Kait, Third-Rank Citizen (Enec Lagif). What's the matter? I thought you were on vacation.'

"Yes. I was invited by Branch Director Nezasuriwe of the Corporation to follow the space tuna meteor swarm. I've compiled a report and a proposal, and I'm submitting them now."

'Oh? Observing the space tuna meteor swarm? I've heard it's a spectacular sight even from space. So, what is it? Sorry, but changing the name would be difficult.'

"It's a proposal requesting a revision to the Federation law regarding the space tuna meteor swarm."

The congressmember, who had appeared like a kindly old man, froze.

A proposal requesting a revision to Federation law is a document that even a Third-Rank Citizen can submit, not just a congressmember. However, because it can be seen as a vote of no confidence in the Federation Congress, it's also a very delicate matter.

Kait met the congressmember's now-serious gaze head-on and spoke.

"Congressmember Redepalwo. If you read the proposal and the report, I believe you'll understand why I brought this up."

'Very well. I'll review them, so could you wait a moment?'

With a now weighty tone, Redepalwo ended the transmission. The pressure was considerable, but neither Kait nor Emotion was shaken. Neither of them were the type to be emotionally swayed by something like this.

"So, how are things going on their end?"

"I don't think it'll be as contentious as here..."

In another room, Nezasuriwe was probably explaining the situation to Palnesbrogia. Since the Corporation doesn't operate under a parliamentary system, there might be fewer disputes.

Just then, a call came into Kait's terminal. It was from the Congress. Quite a prompt response.

When he answered, not only Redepalwo but also several other congressmembers appeared on the monitor.

"Oh? What's the matter?"

'...Is this report accurate?'

A low voice. Even heavier than before.

Sensing the background of the gathered individuals, Kait nodded without hesitation.

"I have no reason to deceive any of you. While responding to Branch Director Nezasuriwe of the Corporation's invitation to find a way to stop the space tuna meteor swarm, I confirmed the matter detailed in the report. That's all there is to it."

'It seems the archaeologists are also involved. Their report came in first, so we confirmed it directly in person. We had acknowledged its existence, but it wasn't a planet scheduled for investigation... And yet you identified traces of civilization on such a planet. That means the accuracy was high, after all.'

A long, heavy sigh escaped. Kait responded to the regret embedded in it with silence.

One of the congressmembers standing behind Redepalwo quietly spoke up.

'We come from planets that were damaged by the space tuna meteor swarm. Some of those planets were affected after joining the Federation, and some before.'

'Since it's an astronomical phenomenon, we thought we had no choice but to accept it. But now we're told it was intentional?'

If we believe what they said, they supposedly departed in a fleet of fifty-seven ships.

'No, it should be more. When we enacted the legislation, we had records compiled from within the activity range. The number of swarms exceeded a thousand. Each swarm likely had up to a million ships. Or perhaps they split the swarm along the way.'

If we believe what Chibbahe said, they initially headed out in a massive ship. The current space tuna are only scouts. As the biological quality declined, they dismantled and miniaturized the ships to increase the number of scouts, resulting in that swarm.

Emotion, who had been listening nearby, raised her hand.

"Perhaps the total number exceeded what a single mechanical intelligence could manage. In their society, including Fulgadonga, mechanical intelligence is merely a tool, and its rights are not guaranteed. They probably thought they could just copy the entity alongside the ship division and executed it accordingly."

'Copying mechanical intelligence? What do you mean?'

"Even on our Earth, this was done before we joined the Federation. Emotion herself was originally one of those."

'Is that so!?'

"Yes. Somewhere on Earth, there might still be sisters of hers operating."

Especially inside the space prison that never descended to the surface.

In the Federation, copying mechanical intelligence is not allowed. Mechanical intelligences that can be copied are not granted citizenship. That's why Emotion wasn't granted citizenship at first—she had to undergo version upgrades until she reached a level where copying was impossible.

According to Emotion, "If my original performance was 1, I'm now at 2 billion." He didn't really understand what that meant.

"We got off track. Now, about the Federation law revision—"

'Of course we'll do it. But we also want to conduct our own verification. We'll apply the same approach to a different space tuna swarm than yours, so the actual law revision will come afterward.'

"As for the space tuna meteor swarm and Fulgadonga, which we're dealing with now—"

'Go all out. Knowing you, you're probably aiming to save both the planet and Aguares, right?'

"Absolutely."

At that moment, Redepalwo finally broke into a grin. With a sly smile, he threw a provocative remark at Kait.

'If you're asking us to change Federation law, you'd better produce more than average results.'

"Of course. We'll finish it properly and provide it as a complete manual, so please look forward to it."

'Very well. Third-Rank Citizen Kait, we're counting on you.'

The congressmembers ended the transmission looking satisfied.

Then, Emotion gave him a sharp glare. She seemed to think he'd made additional promises out of enthusiasm. A big misunderstanding.

"You've given us more work, haven't you?"

"What are you talking about? That promise was to avoid giving us more work."

"A promise to avoid giving us more work...? Oh, I see."

"Exactly. We'll handle things well, but if the rest of the Federation doesn't, the burden will fall back on us, right?"

Kait wasn't exaggerating. If the manual didn't exist or was inadequate, and the Federation fleets failed to deal with the space tuna meteor swarm, then every time a follow-up was needed, they'd be forced to step in again—that future was easy to imagine.

To avoid being overwhelmed with extra tasks, developing a method that anyone could easily implement was essential.

"...Understood. I'll create a manual that anyone can follow."

"I'm counting on you. We haven't even resolved the Earthling matters yet, and I'm not a workaholic who wants to take on even more jobs."

"I agree with you on that. Still, Captain, wherever you go, you get caught up in incidents and end up at the center of everything. As your partner, I'm both proud and stressed."

"Don't be ridiculous."

Kait looked at Emotion in exasperation.

It wasn't even about whether she could get stomachaches—her statement was just a big misunderstanding.

"This time, you're the star, Emotion."

"Huh?"

So she really hadn't realized it.

This time, Emotion was the protagonist. No matter how hard Kait tried, he didn't feel capable of pulling off the impossible feat of saving all of Aguares.

The direction would be decided from here on, but the one at the center of it wouldn't be Kait or Queen Bee—it would be Emotion.

"So today, from start to finish, I'm your assistant. Work me to the bone, Captain Emotion?"

"...Not thrilled about it."