The hunting planet Baltica sat in a forgotten corner of Parcion.
It was a frozen land, draped in snow for the better part of the year. We survived by growing what few crops we could during the fleeting spring and by hunting beasts to sustain ourselves.
That was the sum of our existence.
I, Helga, was one of those hunters.
It happened one day, just after I had brought down a deer. I had pierced its heart with a single shot. My old rifle, a family heirloom, was still warm in my hands.
Deer are a blight on the mountains if left unchecked. They devour everything, stripping the sparse grass and even the bark from the trees. If their numbers grow too high, the mountain's bounty withers in the spring, and the population of predators surges. They have to be culled.
Using a pulley and rope, I hoisted the carcass upside down to slit the vessels in its neck. The blood of these deer was pungent; I had no choice but to let it drain into the snow. If I left the meat out too long, a bear might catch the scent—though that would be its own kind of opportunity.
Once the carcass was bled, I loaded it onto the trailer hitched to my snowmobile. In the village, the harvest would be shared. The elders would butcher the meat and cook it for everyone. We were poor... though we were so isolated we didn't even know what poverty meant.
That was our life. Until that day, when the world changed.
A transport ship appeared in the sky with a thunderous roar, descending near the village. The sheer noise sent every animal fleeing into the deep woods. It was a massive nuisance.
The men disembarked from the ship, landing right where I had been hunting. They introduced themselves as Parcion Government Officials. They were pale, spindly men who looked like they had never performed a day of manual labor in their lives.
Several more people followed them down. They looked like representatives of the Parcion Religion. I felt an immediate, unprovoked revulsion toward them. But one does not defy officials. I agreed to guide them to the village.
"I smell the stench of beasts," one of them remarked.
We raised livestock; of course it smelled. If the odor offended him so much, he should have allocated the budget for a fully automated Livestock Factory. It wasn't our fault the government had refused us.
"You there—is there no temple in this village?" asked a man who hadn't even bothered to give his name, his voice dripping with arrogance.
I answered quickly, wanting to give him no reason to find fault with us. "We have been submitting requests for over a hundred years, but construction was always denied."
"I see. An Apostate Settlement, then."
"I see"? That wasn't our responsibility. The Parcion Religion had been incredibly stingy about building a temple here. Records showed we had negotiated countless times, sending as many bear pelts as they demanded, yet no temple was ever built. We were left to mimic the rites of the Parcion Religion using whatever books we could find.
In truth, I doubted God existed at all.
"By the way, you are quite tall. Are you one of those inferior species?"
It was an insult I hadn't heard in a long time. If he hadn't been an official, I would have shot him where he stood.
"I wouldn't know, sir. This planet is at the very edge of governed space. Most people in the village don't even know what race they belong to."
"Hmm, a failure of education. Tell me, what university did you attend?"
"Forget university, I haven't even received compulsory education." The government had consistently refused to build a school here, too.
"Is there not a Correspondence Course?"
"We don't even have communication equipment."
"I see. It seems you people are nothing more than a flock of fools and laggards, fit for nothing but being ruled."
My blood boiled. What was this man saying? We were like this because the government had abandoned us.
"This is perfect. You, pour me a drink."
"I cannot," I refused flatly. I was a hunter, not a barmaid. If he wanted someone to wait on him, he could find a volunteer. It wasn't going to be me.
"Does a mere inferior species dare to refuse me?"
"No, sir. It's simply that I am a hunter. I have meat to provide."
"Hmm. Do the men not hunt?"
"My family has been hunters for generations. We know these mountains by heart. An amateur would just get lost and die. If I don't go out, I won't be able to provide food for you officials."
"Is that a threat of rebellion?"
"No. I am simply stating a fact."
Fortunately, the official didn't seem to be the persistent type. He spat one last insult and let me go. I led them into the village and handed them over to the village chief.
"I'll be returning to my mountain hut now," I told the chief. I could have gone to my house in the village, but I wanted to get as far away from those men as possible. If they tried something in the middle of the night, it would be unbearable.
Though it was already dark, I pushed through the cold toward my hut. On the way, my snowmobile's headlights caught a set of fresh tracks. Human boot prints. They led straight to my mountain hut.
Another intruder?
I loaded my rifle and approached the hut on foot. To my surprise, the windows were glowing with light from within.
"Who's there!" I shouted, aiming my rifle as I kicked the door open.
"Fuheeeeeeeee! It's so coooooooold..."
Inside was a young man. He looked half-frozen, huddled by the hearth where he had lit a fire. He didn't look frightened when he saw me.
"Ah, are you the owner, sir? Sorry about this! I came for an inspection, but I got separated in an accident..."
Was he with those officials? No, he was a different breed entirely. He was muscular—likely a soldier or a fellow hunter.
"My communications are out, so I couldn't call for help. And for some reason, the temperature regulation on my Combat Suit failed. Look, I'm sorry for trespassing. I'll pay you for the trouble, I promise."
"I... I see. That's fine, but..."
"Oh, the potatoes are ready. Want one?"
He didn't seem like a bad person. He had helped himself to my aluminum foil, wrapped some potatoes, and roasted them in the hearth. He had even used my tongs and plates. It was so brazen I could only laugh.
"I'll go get some salt and butter," I said.
"Thanks a lot, sir!"
"I'll brew some tea as well."
"You're a lifesaver!"
I poured the tea and gave him some of my late father's clothes, urging him to change. I hung his gear near the fire to dry. He placed his gun on the table with total unconcern and went to wash up. He was incredibly defenseless.
"Man, that really hit the spot." He came back grinning. He had a bright, incredibly friendly personality.
"My father's clothes seem a bit large on you."
"No way, they're great! I'll definitely repay this favor♪"
The two of us ate the potatoes in silence for a moment. It wasn't a bad way to spend an evening. As we ate, I tried to probe into his background. His tone was casual, almost like a child from the village, yet there was an unmistakable air of nobility about him. He was a strange man.
"Are you an official from Parcion?" I asked.
"No way~. I'm actually a soldier from Chronos."
"Chronos? Why is the Chronos Army in Parcion?"
The young man looked at me with genuine, heart-felt shock. "Wait... do you not know the situation from these past few months?"
"No. Communications don't reach this planet. Did something happen?"
"It's a bit awkward to explain, but... Parcion is gone. It's been annexed by Chronos."
"I beg your pardon?"
"Lepsitol's Bubble Burst caused a total economic collapse, and Parcion got dragged down with them. The Parcion economy is finished... Chronos is just the one cleaning up the mess."
The technical details went over my head, but I understood the core of it: Parcion had fallen. For some reason, I felt I could trust him more than the men I'd met earlier.
"But I just finished guiding a group of officials from the capital to the village!"
"Ah, them! Those are the pirates we've been chasing!"
"P-Pirates?! Then, who are you...?"
"I forgot to introduce myself. My apologies! I'm Leo. Believe it or not, I'm a Chronos Army Officer."
The man flashed a bright smile and gave me a thumbs-up.