Chapter 93: The Purpose of Battleaxe Military Industries

"Hey, why did you suddenly pull back?"

Rupprecht, pulled back a few steps by Lin Lan, looked at him with confusion, not understanding his cautious behavior.

The dragon girl wasn't aware of the conflict between Lin Lan and Battleaxe Military Industries.

"Those mechs are my enemies. But shouldn't this be under Tian'ou's management? How can they swagger in like this?"

Although Lin Lan questioned out loud, he was already considering multiple possibilities in his mind.

The direction these mechs were heading wasn't towards his port area but towards the city center of Lihu County.

Lin Lan speculated that the most likely scenario was that the Battleaxe Military Industries' troops were not targeting him specifically.

Instead, they had come here to target Tian'ou.

The current Tian'ou agent in Lihu County, Sun Dewang, who had been exiled, was clearly unaware of the arrival of the Battleaxe Military Industries' troops.

This already confirmed Lin Lan's suspicion.

"Enemies? Hmph, just some junk metal. Watch me tear them apart."

The dragon girl flipped her pink hair with a proud sneer, eager to act.

But she wasn't joking.

Lin Lan had already noticed that these mechs from Battleaxe Military Industries were not the cube-powered mechs from Dongyun City.

As a Tier 5 Research War Cruiser, Rupprecht could probably easily tear apart this army on her own without needing to summon her terrifying three-headed dragon battleship.

"Hold on. We don't know how many troops Battleaxe Military Industries has sent or what their objective is."

Lin Lan stopped Rupprecht and, with a cold gaze, looked at the slowly advancing mech troops:

"I intend to bury every single one of these Battleaxe Military Industries troops here in Lihu County."

"This isn't a place where they can just come and go as they please."

Lin Lan decided to change direction with Rupprecht and head to the Navy Department office.

Since Battleaxe Military Industries had arrived, they certainly wouldn't leave easily. With only Rupprecht by his side, Lin Lan decided it was best to stabilize the situation first.

He believed that Sun Xiaozhu should have already been informed about the Battleaxe Military Industries entering the city. Lin Lan needed to ascertain the total strength of the enemy troops.

He had no interest in understanding the attitude conveyed by the Navy Department.

In Lihu County, he was in charge, and the far-off sky and distant emperor seemed to be his reality.

Just then, his phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, it was Sun Xiaozhu.

Well, he had grown accustomed to life without a phone. Why go to the Navy Department office in person when a direct call would be so much more convenient?

"Commander, so you really are in the inner area of Lihu County. Someone reported seeing the ship girls in the inner area this morning. It's you after all."

Sun Xiaozhu's voice came through, making Lin Lan frown slightly:

"Let's not discuss that. Explain to me why the troops of Battleaxe Military Industries have suddenly shown up at our doorstep?"

There was a burst of noise on the phone, followed by Sun Xiaozhu's frustrated tone as he complained to Lin Lan:

"The troops from Battleaxe Military Industries arrived suddenly in the afternoon."

"Tian'ou's personnel were executed on the spot if they put up any resistance, with no mercy."

"Our Navy Department office isn't fully repaired yet, and it's now turned into a refuge for Tian'ou personnel." 

"I don't know what conflict arose between Tian'ou and Battleaxe Military Industries, but they suddenly turned hostile."

Hearing Sun Xiaozhu's words, Lin Lan deduced the situation.

Just as he had expected.

Battleaxe Military Industries likely aimed to seize Lihu County during Tian'ou's administrative paralysis.

In the United Orlan Republic, county-level administrative management is handled by a consortium.

Places with "city" in their names are major cities, like Dongyun City or Yunhai City.

While their control extends to suburban counties, transportation issues often make timely management difficult.

Major cities are usually managed by two to three consortia working together.

Unless it's a stronghold like Yunhai City, painstakingly managed by Tian'ou for centuries, a single consortium can't manage all aspects of a large city effectively.

When two consortia manage a city together, it leads to conflicts between them over interests within the city.

The Battleaxe Military Industries troops that arrived are likely from Dongyun City.

"The current stance of the Navy Department is to let us observe the situation and not take the initiative…"

"Observe what? Do you think Battleaxe Military Industries is going to play nice?"

Lin Lan interrupted Sun Xiaozhu's words directly, dismissing such meaningless talk.

Among the five major consortia controlling the Orlan United Republic, Battleaxe Military Industries' jurisdiction is the most chaotic and has the worst security.

Their philosophy is that as long as they have strong military power, everyone else is just an object of exploitation.

Moreover, Battleaxe Military Industries is at odds with the Navy Department, unlike the more cooperative Tian'ou Group, which occasionally requires the Navy Department's assistance for escort missions.

Battleaxe Military Industries' strength mainly lies in military and industrial fields, especially in mech technology. 

Although their mechs are far inferior to ship girls, they compensate with sheer numbers and shorter construction times.

This makes Battleaxe Military Industries the most unruly and unreasonable of the five major consortia.

"Forget about the Navy Department for now. Your radar is still operational, right? Report on how many troops Battleaxe Military Industries has sent this time."

Lin Lan had no hope for the Navy Department's directives. 

Without a carrier ship girl on hand, he had to rely on the radar at the Navy Department office for intelligence.

"There are currently two Battleaxe Military Industries units in the inner area." 

"Both are purely mechanized mech coordination units, positioned to the north and west of the city center. I'll send you the coordinate map."

After hearing Sun Xiaozhu's response, Lin Lan pondered for a moment, then turned to the impatiently fidgeting dragon girl, Rupprecht.

He looked at the map sent to his phone and his expression grew colder.

It seemed that Lihu County was destined for unrest today.

Lin Lan told Sun Xiaozhu through the phone:

"Remember, all the issues that happen today are caused by the Sirens. No matter how the Navy Department questions you later, stick to this story."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Ignoring Sun Xiaozhu, Lin Lan hung up the phone.

With the current strength of Battleaxe Military Industries, there was no need to return to the port area first.

Rupprecht alone would be enough.

"Finally decided to see me in action?"

Seeing Lin Lan's cold expression, Rupprecht, as his ship girl, immediately understood it was her time to shine.

"Don't leave any survivors among the armed personnel and mechs. Try to keep the noise to a minimum. Thank you, Rupprecht."

After Lin Lan finished speaking, the pink-haired dragon girl pulled out a pair of sharp, oversized scissors, nearly as tall as she was.

The tip of the scissors was engulfed in orange flames, warping the surrounding air with intense heat.

"Just wait here. I'll be back soon~"

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