Chapter 286: Eat... Can't Afford It?

Holding the electronic file in her hand, Helian looked down, then glanced up at Gentiane and Kalina in the holographic image.

The two, under Helian's expressionless gaze, straightened their backs nervously... hoping nothing would go wrong. After all, they had nothing to do with Sangvis Ferri!

"Okay, I know about it. Remember, if any other commanders ask, tell them to come directly to me. That's all for now, you both can get back to work. By the way, Gentiane, regarding the order you placed with IOP earlier, my suggestion is to first dispatch a few Dolls from headquarters. Otherwise, it'll take a long time for IOP to complete the order."

Helian put down the electronic document and addressed the two, but at the end, she suddenly mentioned the Tactical Doll order that Gentiane had reported three days ago.

"Huh? Oh, no problem on my end, as long as there are Tactical Dolls to replenish them." Hearing Helian bring up the order, Gentiane was stunned at first, but then nodded.

She had no idea what kind of Tactical Dolls would be delivered for the IOP order, but it was different when they were dispatched from headquarters. At least, she could request the type of Tactical Dolls she wanted, and as long as there were available dolls at headquarters, they could be dispatched immediately.

As for the level of the Tactical Dolls that wasn't something one could control. When dolls were dispatched from headquarters, they were assigned based on availability. After all, there weren't many idle high-level dolls at headquarters.

It seemed that having dolls dispatched directly from headquarters was a special privilege given to her by Helianthus. Other commanders likely didn't receive such treatment.

At least during her training, she had never heard of a situation where someone could immediately request the type of Tactical Dolls they wanted upon taking command.

Hearing Gentiane's response, Helian nodded, saying nothing more, and hung up the call.

Once Helian's holographic image disappeared, Kalina and Gentiane breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, Renault had informed Helian about the situation in advance. Otherwise, if Helian or any other commanders had asked about it, they wouldn't have known how to respond.

Just as the two exchanged glances in silence, feeling relieved, Papasha and her men, who had been waiting outside, poked their heads through the door.

"What's up, Papasha?"

"Well, Commander, if Commander Renault's railway is truly passable, can we occasionally head over there for a meal or something?"

Of course, food wasn't Papasha's main concern. The real reason was that the box of vodka Simonov and her friends had given her before leaving Renault on Monday had already been consumed...

Gentiane didn't care for vodka. And with a whole week left before the next supply from headquarters, if she wanted to drink again... she'd have to wait.

As for why they didn't just head into the nearby city like MDR and her team did...

Well, since Gentiane hadn't said anything, how could they just run off-base and wander around?

Papasha was still deep in thought when Gentiane, upon hearing his suggestion, suddenly choked and immediately thought about the MREs at her base...

While some of them were overly sweet, overall, they were okay.

However, while MREs might be fine in emergencies or for short-term missions, having to eat them every single day...

"Didn't headquarters provide us with any regular food or supplies?" Gentiane rubbed her temples, asking Kalina helplessly.

"For now, no. Only when we report a need does headquarters distribute anything..."

Hearing this, Gentiane's eyes lit up, "Is it too late to report it now?!" After eating MREs for a week, not only were the Dolls fed up, but even she could hardly take it anymore!

"Of course, it's not too late, but the specifics depend on the base's budget." Kalina scratched her head, already starting to calculate how to allocate the base's budget.

"Then what are we waiting for?! FN-49! Quick! Take inventory of everything missing from the base kitchen. Then, you guys think about what you want to eat and put together a list!"

"Oh!" Upon hearing Gentiane's command, a group of Dolls gathered at the door cheered and rushed toward FN-49, then ran toward the kitchen.

While running, they chatted and discussed what ingredients they needed to order.

"How about sausages and beer?"

"And snacks!"

"We definitely need vegetables!"

"Wait! And I want vodka!"

Listening to their conversations fade away, Gentiane lowered her head, pinching her chin as she started to think about what food—no, supplies—they needed.

Currently, in this base under S09's jurisdiction, although all kinds of equipment were available, the supplies in the warehouse were very scarce. Previously, it hadn't been in use, so the warehouse only had long-term storage items like ammunition and emergency food.

If more Dolls were stationed in the future, these few things obviously wouldn't be enough to support long-term operations here.

And the most important thing was... "Kalina, what's the total budget for the base?"

"Let me check. The budget for the entire S09 area is about 14 million per month, but we also have to cover electricity, water, and gas bills for the entire base. Plus, we need to account for the salaries of the Dolls, your salary, my salary, and Commander's salary. After deducting all that... we still have about 8 million left."

Hearing this, Gentiane felt somewhat relieved. 8 million wasn't a small amount. At least it could ensure the Dolls at the base had basic living standards.

There might even be some surplus for a reserve fund...

"But Commander, you've just placed an order for five Dolls with IOP. We need to deduct 4 million for manufacturing costs, and then there are the monthly transportation costs for materials... We probably have less than 3 million left..."

With every word Kalina said, Gentiane's expression darkened. By the time Kalina finished, Gentiane's face was as black as charcoal, like she was wearing a mask of despair.

These days, food prices were no joke, especially when transporting supplies across regions. The cost increased exponentially!

Especially since Griffin couldn't use trains to transport materials, they had to rely on heavy trucks for delivery.

But that only meant the transportation costs would skyrocket!