I worked the terminal, still savoring the lingering satisfaction of the Super-High Heat Rebake Pizza settling in my stomach.
A full stomach always cleared my head.
There was "delicious food" to be found in this colony, provided you looked hard enough. That realization alone was a massive relief.
"Lucia, run a search. 'Transport Requests,' category: 'Fresh Food.'"
"Understood. Accessing the Mercenary Management Organization database... Search complete. Listing relevant entries."
Lucia projected a holographic window into the air.
The logic was simple: if we took a job transporting ingredients, we might be able to negotiate for a portion of the cargo as a fringe benefit. At the very least, it would help us build connections with the producers.
I thought it was a brilliant plan—two birds with one stone.
"...Hmm. These conditions are way too strict."
The requirements for every request displayed were highlighted in glaring red text.
Requires Environmental Maintenance Level 5 Compatible Cargo Block.
Limited to vessels equipped with Freshness Preservation Field Generators.
Must comply with Biohazard Countermeasure Regulation Class A.
"The environmental maintenance level of this ship's cargo blocks is currently rated at Level 2," Lucia stated flatly. "We do not meet the requirements for these contracts."
Mina leaned over my shoulder and let out a whistle.
"Level 5? Forget it, Akito. That weird industrial cooling unit we have is barely Level 0. Even if I modded the hell out of it, there’s nothing I could do. Level 5 gear is only found on specialized transport ships, Regular Army medical frigates, or the high-end storage vaults of ultra-luxury liners."
"Installation of a dedicated sector would be necessary," Lucia added, bringing up a catalog to deal the finishing blow. "Referencing market prices... a used General Cryonics Co. GC-5000G costs approximately 300 million credits. Our current funds are insufficient."
Three hundred million. There were so many zeros that for a moment I thought the terminal was glitching.
"I figured as much," I sighed.
Transporting fresh food—specifically the "Genuine" stuff like real vegetables and meat—through the void of space was no small feat. It wasn't just a matter of keeping things cold. You had to block radiation, perfectly stabilize humidity and atmospheric pressure, and use a freshness preservation field to essentially halt cellular degradation.
To pull that off, you couldn't just shove a retrofitted container into the hold; you had to replace an entire section of the ship with a specialized, high-tech block.
"Suddenly, that fifty-five-million-credit kitchen quote seems like pocket change."
"It is estimated that these transportation costs account for approximately seventy percent of the markup on fresh food," Lucia noted.
Mina and I shared a look. That price tag was enough to buy a decent small cargo ship outright. It was a different beast entirely from a kitchen renovation. Since it was essentially a high-tech cousin to a life-support system, the cost made sense, but that didn't make it any easier to swallow.
"I'm convinced. No wonder genuine vegetables cost a fortune."
It wasn't something a bottom-tier mercenary could even dream of touching. Back when I had tried to "magic-mod" an industrial cooling container into a makeshift refrigerator and failed, this technical wall and the staggering lack of funds were the ultimate reasons why.
"...What now? Give up on the food transport route?" Mina asked.
"Yeah. It’s way beyond our means right now."
I closed the window without hesitation. There was no use dwelling on the impossible. However, it was too early to fall into despair.
"Think about it, Mina, Lucia. Our goal is to eat delicious food."
"Correct," Lucia said. "Master’s objective is the 'ingestion of meals containing fresh ingredients,' not 'entry into the fresh food logistics industry.'"
"Exactly. We’ve already seen that as long as we’re in this colony and have the credits, we can find decent food. There’s delivery, and I’m sure there are hidden gems if we look."
"...True."
"So, instead of killing ourselves trying to move the ingredients, shouldn't we just work a normal job and earn the money to buy them?"
Mina stared at me blankly for a second, then burst out laughing.
"Pfft... Hahaha! What is that? After all that, you just come to a perfectly normal conclusion."
"It is a rational judgment," Lucia affirmed with a straight face. "Purchasing finished products is over five hundred percent more cost-effective than constructing a dedicated logistics line for personal consumption."
It was a simple truth. If money could solve the problem, then all we had to do was make money.
I reset the search filters and started scrolling through the list again. Fresh food was off the table, but this ship still had a massive cargo hold, fully maintained armaments, and an elite crew. There were plenty of other jobs.
"Lucia, boot up the trade computer. Scour the requests for the neighboring industrial system, Hephaestus. Sort by highest payout."
"Search parameters accepted."
"Also, look for high-volume jobs that seem like they're piling up. If someone’s offering multiple small lots, tell them we can take the whole load at once. And don't forget to ask for a premium on top as a handling fee for the convenience."
Lucia’s eyes flickered rapidly as she crunched the transaction data.
"Acknowledged... Search complete. A high-value contract for 'Precision Equipment Parts Transport' has been flagged. The client is struggling to secure transport and is seeking a large-scale vessel for a single bulk shipment."
I pointed at the screen. "That's the one."
The reward was solid, but that alone would leave the Sperm Whale’s cargo hold mostly empty.
"Alright, that’s our main contract. Now, did you find any smaller jobs headed for Hephaestus?"
"Yes. I have contacted multiple brokers regarding 'Regular Postal Container Service' and 'Daily Necessities Transport for Settlements' for bulk consignment. Three companies have granted immediate approval. Combining these, the load factor reaches forty percent."
"Good work. That'll be our pocket change for the trip."
It was nonsense to head to a destination with only one contract. Carrying nothing but air didn't pay the bills. The golden rule of the transport business was to pack as much as the ship could hold.
"And now for the main event. Lucia, analyze the current market rates. What can we buy cheap here and sell for a killing over there?"
Mina’s eyes went wide. "Wait, you're not just taking the requested cargo?"
"You're too innocent, Mina. We still have sixty percent of the cargo hold left. Letting that space go to waste is a sin. Even the professional merchant fleets do this."
"Analysis complete," Lucia reported. "The Hephaestus System is currently undergoing a massive plant expansion. Consequently, demand for luxury goods among the laborers is surging. Specifically, the prices for synthetic alcohol, tobacco, and entertainment data chips have skyrocketed. Compared to the purchase price in this colony, we can expect a profit margin of approximately fifteen to twenty percent on-site."
"Twenty percent? That’s a healthy margin."
Even in the space age, the way laborers on industrial planets wanted to drown the stress of their harsh environment in booze and smoke hadn't changed. Personally, I didn't care much for the taste of alcohol beyond whether it got me drunk or not, but the world was full of people who cared deeply about brands and origins.
They probably made basic synthetic swill on-site, but goods brought in from a "Commercial Colony" carried a brand value all their own. Plus, alcohol was a heavy liquid. With the transport costs factored in, the further you went toward the frontier, the more it was treated as a premium luxury.
In short, if we bought in bulk here and hauled it there, we were guaranteed to turn a profit.
"Alright, it's settled. We're filling the rest of the hold to the limit with booze, tobacco, and the latest entertainment chips."
"...Akito, are you really a mercenary? You're acting like a total merchant."
"A mercenary does whatever it takes to survive. Besides, with the Sperm Whale, we don't need to hire escorts. That makes this a high-margin, low-risk job. If we play our cards right, we might even find some local delicacies to bring back as souvenirs."
I tapped the acceptance buttons in rapid succession and had Lucia process the orders with the wholesalers. A one-week round trip. Between the contract rewards and the trade profits, we’d be bringing in a massive haul.
"If we keep this up, that fifty-five-million-credit kitchen might not be such a distant dream after all."
There weren't many people who had a ship this size for private use. A massive transport ship was practically a cheat code for making money. Once again, I felt a surge of gratitude for the Sperm Whale's potential.
"This is the one. Prep for departure."
"Roger that," Mina said, grinning. "Hehe, I thought our first real job would be some boring transport run, but I guess we're going into the peddling business."
"Don't knock it. This is exactly what a successful mercenary looks like."
"All applications submitted," Lucia reported efficiently. "Commencing cargo loading and departure sequence."
Adventures were well and good, but you needed a stable life and a solid nest egg first.
For the sake of our next delicious meal, it was time to put in some honest work.
Now then, what shall we do for the next colony?
If you enjoyed this chapter or are looking forward to the next one, please leave a "★" rating!
It might just help Akito's dinner get a little bit of an upgrade tomorrow. Thank you for your support!