File 06: There’s No Way My Former Classmate Could Be a Councilor
Shaun Lyatt
Seven days after the [Nova Festival] on the planet Lysio.
Having enjoyed my holiday while getting maintenance done on my ship at my base planet Orlangea, I was at the counter ready to take on a new job.
“Here, a celebration for your promotion.”
“Oh! I’m glad you remembered ♪”
Sasara smiled and quickly stashed away the box of Princes Marie cake and homemade cookies I handed her under the counter.
The receptionists around us were staring at her series of actions, making me feel an inexplicable sense of dread.
“Well then, these are the available jobs for now.”
The request list Sasara showed me had a wide variety of requests.
The most numerous were [fresh products] and [daily consumables]. [fresh products] required refrigerated/frozen facilities, suiting ships that could move quickly.
The [fresh products] and [daily consumables] transportation requests coming here were for individuals or companies – things like [mail orders] or [hotel amenities].
Next were [raw materials] like fibers, ores, and wood chips.
For these, cargo capacity was key. Sometimes small quantity requests came in, but they were usually large loads.
Then there were [industrial parts].
Among the requests I handle, these had the highest ratio.
From those, I selected a small quantity of [ore], the so-called [rare mineral/rare metal], headed for the capital Voldar.
Then a call came through to the phone near Sasara.
“Yes, this is delivery reception…Yes…Yes? That’s urgent…Yes…Understood, I’ll let him know.”
After ending the call, Sasara made a difficult expression and beckoned me over.
“What’s wrong?”
“Well, actually there’s been a mandatory request for any ship able to carry passengers to Voldar to do so immediately.”
“What’s that about?”
It was an odd story.
At this hour, regular passenger ships should be operating, with plenty headed for the capital planet Voldar.
“It’s a mandatory request from a councilor, so we can’t refuse.”
Ah, that single line made me understand everything.
The Galactic Republic’s councilors come in three types: mediocre, capable, and incompetent. This inconvenience must be from one of the incompetent or mediocre ones.
“What a pain those bigwigs can be…”
“But there’s compensation, so please?”
“Can’t refuse it, can I? Fine.”
“They’re probably already headed for your ship.”
Though I was reluctant, if it’s mandatory there’s no choice.
After checking everything, I hurried to the docking area.
“You’re late!”
“Huh?”
“How dare you keep Master Lunache waiting!?”
As soon as I arrived, a young man with green hair and a well-formed face faced me defiantly and suddenly started yelling at me.
I swear I didn’t dawdle on the way.
I came straight here to the docking area as soon as I heard about it.
“It should go without saying you need to be ready before Master Lunache arrives! Not even two seconds of waiting!”
The moment I heard that, I could feel the blood rushing to my head.
As if I’d just sit around waiting for them!
If they had set a proper appointment time and made me wait 10 or 20 minutes, I could understand getting scolded. But being suddenly forced into this job and coming in a straight line, only to get yelled at for being two seconds late? Only an idiot would do that.
“Whatever, just launch the ship already!”
“My apologies, but I haven’t loaded the cargo yet.”
“Don’t mess around! You’d make Master Lunache wait even more?”
This guy’s an absolute moron.
This ain’t the Galactic Empire, so don’t go throwing around made-up crimes that don’t exist in Republic law!
Ignoring him, I started loading the cargo.
“Hey you! Launch already…”
“That’s enough!”
The woman nearby stopped the man who seemed about to strike me.
“Assistant Counselor James Handsclift. We’re the ones imposing on him by boarding his ship. I won’t allow any more insults.”
“Hmph…Understood, Master Lunache.”
At the woman’s admonition, James immediately reacted by standing at attention and saluting.
His attitude, actions, and words were very familiar to me.
Lilyna Freemax of [Angel Delivery Service].
A lesbian who loves the leader Viora Zaval and never allows anyone other than her comrades near her.
His attitude, actions, and words were exactly like hers.
In other words, this assistant counselor was undoubtedly a devoted follower of this female councilor.
After James bowed his head, the councilor woman spoke to me.
“Allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Wiltia Lunache, serving as a councilor for the Galactic Republic.”
Since the councilor woman seemed somewhat reasonable, I courteously greeted her back.
“I’m the cargo transporter Shaun Lyatt.”
“Yes, I’m aware ♪”
“”Huh?””
However, her response left both me and James stunned.
James quickly recovered though and asked her about the details.
“Master Lunache! Why would you know about some lowly snail like him!?”
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However, the councilor ignored James.
“It’s been a while, Lyatt. Don’t you remember me?”
She had black hair and sharp eyes.
A well-formed face. A transparent-sounding voice.
She may have appeared in the news as a councilor, but this felt…older…
“Ah…I remember now! You were my classmate in the first and third years of middle school – Wiltia Lunache!”
She was a genius who joined the student council right after entering the middle school I attended, becoming student council president from the second year until graduation.
I’d completely forgotten.
“Correct ♪”
Upon hearing my answer, the councilor woman smiled happily.
In contrast, her assistant wore a displeased expression.
“L-Master Lunache? Why would you allow this snail to address you so casually?”
“We were classmates back in school.”
Ignoring the counselor assistant’s protests, she smiled at me.
“But still! There’s a difference in status now! Master Lunache is a councilor! This guy’s just a lowly cargo transporter!”
“It’s thanks to transport workers like him that the Republic’s logistics are maintained. Mind your words.”
“My apologies!”
When the assistant made the rude remark, the councilor admonished him, making him immediately apologize – a classic back-and-forth.
But then an unnecessary comment was added.
“The apology isn’t for me.”
At Lunache’s words, he looked as stunned as if scolded by a goddess. The next moment, he glared at me with an indignant expression:
“I-am-very-sorry!”
He apologised with full reluctance.
“Alright alright, don’t worry about it.”
“What? Then there’s no need to apologize!”
Ugh, I’d love to just eject this guy into the vacuum of space.
“Tch…Whatever, just open the entrance already!”
“Per spaceport rules for cargo loading/unloading, no one besides the workers is allowed on the ship during that process.”
In other words, to prevent stowaway hijackings or accidents.
“What!? You’d make Master Lunache wait here!?”
“You’re the ones who came here before the loading even started!”
For someone boarding a cargo ship, you’d think they’d expect that much.
“It’s spaceport regulations. We can’t just break them.”
“Ye-Yes!”
And as expected, with a single word from the councilor woman, the assistant immediately changed his attitude 180 degrees.
Eventually, the cargo loading finished.
Since it was just a small quantity of rare minerals, it could be loaded onto my ship and the process was quick.
“…Loading complete. All systems check…Thank you for waiting, please come aboard.”
“Hmph…Finally…Come, Master Lunache!”
And so, the three passengers boarded the ship.
Then, predictably, the assistant immediately started making unreasonable demands.
“How shabby…Hey! Where’s Master Lunache’s room?”
“Those two over there are the bedrooms.”
“What about upstairs?”
“That’s my private quarters.”
“About as spacious as this lounge area?”
“More or less.”
“Very well, that will be Master Lunache’s room then.”
At those words, I seriously questioned this James Handsclift’s sanity.
“Are you insane? My private quarters means the captain’s quarters! No matter who the passenger is, surrendering the captain’s/admiral’s quarters is forbidden! It’s explicitly stated in space navigation laws!”
This seems to have originated from an old ship tradition on planets, with the idea that [On a ship, it must be clear who has command authority. Otherwise, the ship will lose its way]
according to an old Imperial proverb that goes [Too many captains will run the ship aground].
Even if it’s the Republic Chancellor or the Galactic Emperor aboard, it’s forbidden to demand or surrender the captain’s/admiral’s quarters.
Originally this only applied to military vessels, but at some point it seems to have been added for civilian ships too.
Apparently, Galactic Imperial nobles are all eager to become ship or fleet captains/admirals.
Supposedly they want to use the Galactic Navigation Laws to experience having better quarters than even the Emperor.
“As a councilor, I cannot simply break the law.”
At Lunache’s words, the assistant clicked his tongue but stopped protesting.
“In that case, Master Lunache will use this bedroom, and I’ll take the one next door. You, bring our luggage to the rooms. And you’ll sleep on the sofa.”
“Understood.”
It seems he’s having the maid-like woman in the suit do the heavy lifting while making her sleep on the sofa.
A far cry from the previous passenger Karis Vrbia, in the opposite sense.
In conclusion, this James Handsclift aide is the worst.
When I told it would take three days to arrive, and he said,
“Master Lunache is very busy! Cut two days off the schedule!”
After I set sail and entered hyperspace on autopilot, leaving the cockpit, he said,
“Hey you! What have you been doing? Don’t you have Master Lunache’s tea ready?”
So I brought out tea and cookies,
and he said,
“These cookies are your handmade? How dare you serve such dubious things!”
Among other things,
And then he said:
“The sofa cushions are bad! Unsuitable for Master Lunache to sit on!”
and
“Hey you! What’s with that bathroom? It’s so shabby for Master Lunache to use!”
and
“You’ve prepared Master Lunache’s favorite Château Courgrewestre from the Planet Le Bucole, right?”
and
“It’s outrageous to serve Master Lunache food made by the likes of you! At the very least, you should have a chef onboard with three Milky Way Michelin stars!”
and
He barged in uninvited, yet was overbearing, self-centered, and extravagant – a triple whammy of annoyances.
However, the highest-ranking Councillor Lunache didn’t complain once.
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