Aussen Outer Wilderness.
It was here on the edge of human expansion that a ruthless pirate band had made their lair. No state would ever deign to try to tackle them. It would never be worth it.
Qwattor may not be the only substantial world on this hinterland, but still, no venture would ever risk confronting the menace hiding in this unknown expanse of the void.
The cloud of nebulae, the asteroid field, the remnants of a supernova… Countless shadows provided the outlaws with hideouts from which they could base their vicious raids.
Only the bravest of surveyors came out there for legitimate reasons. The previous Krul state had planned to claim this forbidding impasse, and if not for their untimely demise, maybe indeed some of those unknown worlds could be graced by little bits of human development.
Grimmseiter. The name of the pirate armada hiding in said Wilderness. They were a consistent plague that stunted Qwattor's development, raiding the planet almost on a monthly basis.
With no navy to put a check on them, they had grown into an immense force that will continue to bring ruins in the years to come.
"Two years ago they launched a major raid on Qwattor City. It was catastrophic, with thousands of casualties, not including the kidnapped victims. My father was only a surveyor, but he knew of the danger of the Wilderness he was surveying. So since the beginning he already outfitted the Kyffhäuser with heavy weaponry," Wilfred paused before looking up at the sky above.
He was probably imagining the ship he remembered from his memory, flying in the sky above Qwattor City.
"He knew he could be useful for repelling the raiders. That was why he joined the Volunteer Defense Force in the fighting, shooting down the enemy flyers. I remembered it vividly, to this day."
"That must be quite a scene," Milanor commented.
"Yeah, must be. I would never know for certain though. He refused when I told him I want to join him aboard," he smiled sadly.
"I'm sure no parent would want to put their son in certain danger like that."
"I know that. He was always like that. He never allowed me to join him whenever he went to survey a truly unknown territory. Whenever we went together, it was always when he was sure the place would be safe."
Milanor smiled when he heard Wilfred reminisce about his father. He felt the same way when he was still together with his parents.
A little kid he was back then, but he never recalled any time he ever felt truly in danger. They always kept him safe, even with their reckless behavior.
"So then…" Milanor hesitated.
"You know it. He was shot down by one of the larger enemy ships. The Kyffhäuser exploded in the sky, not much of it remained," Wilfred said while staring at the sky.
"I see…"
He never expected the person they were looking for had already died two years ago. A hero he was, certainly, but it seemed not many people remembered him. It was sad to think about.
'But, Boss Hein… How did you not know this…? He never knew the story of such an amazing man? No, actually, it must just be that his documents were outdated. I wouldn't put it past him. Dammit, dude…'
The four of them then continued to silently walk toward their destination, the storage area.
Milanor had asked Wilfred to tell him about his father if he didn't mind it. Before he started though, Miledi had suggested if he would be willing to tell them while heading toward the other place they wanted to go, which was the storage area.
He said he didn't mind and also would guide us toward it as he knew the location.
And so here he was walking beside him and listening to his story, Naya and Miledi following behind them.
"Anyway, Mr. Milestone, that's what I can tell you about my father. So, uh, why are you looking for him in the first place?" Wilfred turned to him. It sounded like he was pushing himself to be bright to escape the somber mood.
"Yeah, about that…"
The situation had gotten complicated. They were looking for Captain Karl because it was said he made contact with the professor. That was around six years ago, four years before his death. Now they had a real risk of the information being lost forever.
"Your father might have met the person I've been looking for. We wanna ask him about that." It was Naya who answered.
"Huh? So you're saying you're looking for my father because he knew the actual person you're looking for?"
"Haha, something like that," Milanor shrugged his shoulders.
"Sir Wilfred, do you know if your father ever met a young woman named Lavi?" asked Miledi. She had completely disregarded Wilfred's request for a less formal address.
"Lavi? A young woman…" He furrowed his brow. Milanor didn't think he would know anything with that bareback information.
Six years ago Wilfred would be in his teenage years. Late teens if he were older than his estimate from looking at him now. He figured he was no older than his mid-twenties.
"A young woman in her early twenties. Brown hair, medium length. Medium height also. Likely wearing a lab coat. Speak with Centurion accent," Naya described as she did with Boss Hein before.
Wilfred didn't reply and said nothing, looking at Naya blankly. "Wil?" Milanor called to him.
"A-Ahaha! Lady Lavi!? You're totally talking about Lady Lavi!" he suddenly shouted with animated laughter. The sad look he gave off earlier was completely gone.
"L-Lady… Lavi?" Milanor was confused.
'What's with the title? It's uncanny hearing someone else address a person like Miledi.'
"I had a feeling when you said the name… But it's really about her! Man, how long has it been…?"
"You know her personally?" Naya asked with shock.
"Yes! I owe her so much."
Milanor urged the four of them to move aside from the pedestrian traffic so as to not block the road. It seemed Wilfred had important information to tell them.
"First, let's make sure we're not talking about a different person here. Naya," he gestured toward her to take out her photo.
She showed Wilfred the professor's appearance as she was six years ago.
"I knew it! That's exactly her! Only scientists and weirdos would ever come here wearing a lab coat, right?"
"T-That so…?" Milanor wasn't sure about that opinion.
Thinking about it, it wouldn't be that strange that he could have a chance to meet her if she was having business with Captain Karl, his father.
He was already a teen or late teen at the time and might have been helping his father with his work.
That said, Milanor didn't expect this development. His reaction indicated he knew her far more than just as his father's acquaintance.
"I actually met her first before father. She was looking for an experienced pilot, preferably one who owns the ship himself. I told her about my father, and she said, 'Perfect then!'"
"Hmm? Does that means you already worked here at that time?" Milanor inquired.
"Yeah. Only as an apprentice mechanic though. I was just getting started back then. All the adults were very busy, see, and they pushed this 'bothersome woman who kept getting in the way' over to me, a newbie."
"…That sounds just like her," Naya muttered in a low voice.
"So you were saddled with this strange lab coat-wearing woman. Uh, what then?"
"As I told you, she was looking for a ship captain. My father perfectly matched that description of hers, so I brought her to him. I was called back to the yard as soon as I was done introducing them though, so I had no idea what they were discussing."
"Ah, dang… That's a bit disappointing."
There was a chance that this first discussion had a very important clue about the professor's true goal.
"She'd stayed here for a few days, didn't she? What she'd been doing that whole time?" Naya questioned. Milanor could sense a subtle zeal in her that he only rarely felt since they met.
"That's the part that I know the most! After the first meeting with her, my father had asked me to guide Lady Lavi around the city, since she was rather, uh, clueless. I used my day off to help her around," Wilfred looked back toward the yard with sentimental eyes.
"I told her many things about life in Qwattor and about the city itself. And in exchange, she told me about her knowledge. I was surprised at how much she knew. I thought her lab coat was some sort of fashion statement, but she really was a scientist."
"You're saying that you briefly studied under her, is that it?"
"Yes, maybe that's what I wanted to say. She knew so many things that I would possibly never know because of all the limitations in Qwattor. She told me about the many wonderful things in the wider galaxy.
"She even taught a friend I brought along medical science which she always wanted to learn. My biggest gratitude was when she taught me about robotic engineering. As an aspiring engineer myself, that was a very valuable lesson that I always kept close to heart."
Milanor glanced toward Naya during a short break in his storytelling. She caught his eyes and they both looked toward her sling bag, where her animatro—ahem, robotic lynx—was sleeping.
"So that's what you mean by owing her a lot? Although it was only for a short time, she taught something valuable," Milanor abridged it for him.
"That's right. If I ever had the chance, I want to thank her again. I wanted to express my gratitude for the lessons she told me," Wilfred declared.
There was something in what he said that concerned him. "So after she left here… You don't know where she went?" he voiced out his assumption.
Wilfred looked down and seemed to be contemplating. "The last time I saw her, it was with my father. I think she was asking him to bring her somewhere. A few weeks after they departed, my father returned," he looked up back at us. "Alone," he finished.
Milanor could see in a corner of his vision Naya making a difficult face.
"…You didn't ask him where they went?"
"Of course I did. But he won't tell me. He never did. I brought her up in conversations sometimes long after that but he still won't tell me."
Something must have happened wherever on this place they went. The group could only speculate, however. The one man who knew the circumstances had long gone.
"My father… he was a truly kind man. I never believed that he abandoned her or did something to her, never. I'm sure there was a reason." Wilfred looked Milanor in the eye. "Hey, Milestone. Why are you looking for her?"
The captain turned his eyes away from him and looked toward Naya. She was the one who would be the best at answering this question.
"We had a promise," she began. Surprised, Wilfred turned to her as well. "There was something we wanted to find together. She went ahead of me, but I want to catch up. I want to find her to tell her how I feel."
Wilfred stared at Naya even after she was done with her answer. This was the first Milanor had heard of this too.
'Promise? Does this have anything to do with that Last Treasure thing she told me about earlier?'
"I don't quite understand… But… Alright," Wilfred looked like he had decided something, internally. "So, uh, we're going to the depot area, right? Come, I'll show you."