Wendy Chase meticulously examined the starship from top to bottom.
She looked at Zachary in astonishment: "This… starship was assembled from those three… T2 Hyena, T2 Gray Wolf, and T2 Devil Crocodile?"
She realized why this starship gave her a sense of déjà vu: its hull bore a 90% resemblance to the T2 Devil Crocodile-class Medium Interstellar Battleship. And the weapon modules on it were very similar to those of the T2 Hyena-class Medium Interstellar Destroyer, and also… All in all, this starship had too many characteristics of those three starships.
"That's right," Zachary admitted openly.
The matter of the T3 Blizzard-class Light Interstellar Battlecruiser could not be revealed yet, but the fact that he had assembled a starship himself could not be hidden. Because there were exchange records in the starship warehouse, and combined with Zachary's upcoming duel with Victor Hargrove using this starship, anyone with eyes could figure it out.
"You've been assembling this starship here for the past half-month? When did you learn starship assembly?" Wendy looked at Zachary in disbelief.
Disassembling three starships and assembling them into one starship was no easy feat; most importantly, it had to be ensured that all modules of this starship could actually be activated!
Zachary pointed at the starship, smiling. "I have many secrets. Besides the courses for our Commander Department, I also secretly learned some starship engineering on my own."
"And this is my first starship. I'm naming it Blizzard Zero!"
Because it was a simplified version of the T3 Blizzard-class Light Interstellar Battlecruiser, using the name "Blizzard" felt somewhat inappropriate. So Zachary simply created a separate name: Blizzard Zero.
"Blizzard… Zero?" Wendy mumbled the strange name. What exactly was this starship, which looked like an Interstellar Battleship, yet also like an Interstellar Cruiser, and even had the style of an Interstellar Destroyer?
"Are you sure it can really be activated? Zachary, I know your feelings for Jessica Shae. But that woman is really not suitable for you. Don't hang yourself on one tree.
"And you know the situation of our territory. It wasn't easy for the two of us to use the last of the territory's savings to become students at North Starship Military Academy. Only if we graduate successfully can we hope to revitalize the territory. You don't want your title to be revoked by the Imperial Army, do you?
"If you get expelled… you… you wouldn't be able to face… Mom and Dad's spirits in heaven, right? And sister's sacrifice…" Wendy glared at Zachary resentfully.
Then Wendy directly grabbed Zachary's wrist: "I'll go ask my best friend for help. She comes from a prominent family. Let her negotiate with Victor to cancel this duel."
But Wendy couldn't pull Zachary. Instead, Zachary actually stepped forward and picked up Wendy in a princess carry.
"You… what are you doing…" Wendy's cheeks flushed.
"To see my starship." Zachary said no more, carrying Wendy and running toward the starship's hatch.
They passed through the somewhat old corridor inside the hull and arrived at the Bridge—which was the 'brain' of this starship. The Bridge was not very large, only about a hundred square meters. Because it hadn't been activated, the Bridge was pitch black.
Zachary put Wendy down, walked alone to the Captain's chair, sat down, and placed his hand on the right armrest of the Captain's chair.
Detecting highest authority…
Starting identity verification…
Captain… Zachary Chase… identity verification complete…
A floating crystal console rose in front of Zachary, and he pressed a few buttons on it.
Starship activating…
Starship main control system activating…
Starship energy system activating… 10%… 30%… 60%…
As Zachary officially activated this starship, the Bridge's lighting system began to activate, and the entire Bridge brightened. Immediately, this behemoth began to revive!
Starship propulsion system automatic detection in progress… Detection complete… Running well…
Starship weapon system automatic detection in progress… Detection complete… Running well…
Starship… … …
Mechanical voices echoed on the Bridge, one after another.
Zachary's first starship was officially awakened!
All starship functional modules running normally. Starship energy remaining: 19%.
Zachary joyfully pumped his fist. Although he had the technical skills, truthfully, he couldn't guarantee 100% success. Unexpectedly, it succeeded on the very first activation.
"It actually activated…" Wendy also hadn't expected it.
"How is it? Isn't it great?" Zachary got off the Captain's chair and placed his hand directly on Wendy's shoulder, like a brother. Although they were siblings, due to Wendy's consistent excellence, sometimes it felt more like an older sister and younger brother dynamic.
Wendy rolled her eyes: "Even if it can activate, what then? What about its combat power? Can it perform in actual combat? These are all questions. I heard that Victor's starship is a T2 starship. Are you sure your assembled starship can win? Don't let it fall apart before the fight even begins."
"Little sister, why don't you believe your big brother? Forget about whether it can win—in ten minutes… I can take down Victor's T2 starship!" Zachary confidently crossed two fingers, making a cross gesture.
"Hmph… ten minutes… I never realized you liked to brag so much before." Wendy gave Zachary a sidelong glance, not believing a word he said.
"What's more, there's only you on this starship, no crew members at all. How will you fight?"
Clap!
Zachary suddenly clapped his hands, his eyes shining: "How could I forget this? No wonder I felt like something was missing when I activated the starship just now."
Wendy covered her head, utterly despairing of her older brother: "I'd better go discuss with my best friend how to handle this matter."
"Wendy, where can I find crew members the fastest?" Zachary looked at his sister eagerly at this moment. Modifying and disassembling starships, he was good at that. But when it came to things like this, Zachary really had no idea.
"You haven't even thought about these things, and you're still thinking about a starship duel?" Wendy was speechless but still explained to Zachary: "Crew members generally come from three sources.
"One is students from other departments of the Starship Academy. Besides the Commander Department that you and I are in, the Starship Military Academy also has various other professional departments.
"Two is to recruit some veterans who have retired from the Imperial Army. These crew members are fine in terms of operation, but raising these veterans costs a lot of money.
"Three is some less legitimate channels for crew members, such as those who used to be in gray areas—like pirates, slaves, and so on.
"Actually, the academy also provides channels for crew recruitment. You can connect your ID card to the academy network; there are dedicated channels there."
Zachary rubbed his chin and, almost without thinking, asked: "Which one is the cheapest?"
Wendy rolled her eyes, but she also knew that Zachary didn't have much money in his pocket.
"The cheapest are, of course, some slaves. These slaves are generally prisoners of war, and some of them were originally starship pilots. However, due to loyalty and status issues, many people are reluctant to use slaves, at most assigning them the lowest-level jobs—like work on the Bridge, and also…" Wendy was speaking when—
Zachary had already connected his ID card to the academy network and found the slave option in the corner of a crew recruitment channel.
After clicking, a series of slave lists appeared.
After a quick scan, Zachary's eyes suddenly fixed on the slave list, as if he had discovered some treasure!
"This is it!" Zachary clicked a redemption option without hesitation.
Because his academy points were exhausted, Zachary paid with his own account this time.
"What… what did you do?" Seeing Zachary close the holographic projection interface with a satisfied look, Wendy had an ominous premonition.