To avoid raising alarms, the eting was wrapped up within just two hours. The leaders agreed that all further detailed planning would be conducted through the long-distance mana communication network in the form of secure docunts. Any remaining discussions would be handled through that thod to avoid the risk of having all Conclave civilizations' leaders gathered in one place or being unavailable at the sa ti without an officially declared eting.
This decision stemd from the possibility that enemy spies had already infiltrated other territories, or even so lower-level governnts, granting them potential access to sensitive information if such etings beca lengthy or occurred too frequently, especially when they were kept secret from the rest of the Conclave.
Although the complete operation plan had yet to be finalized, one key decision was already made: the operation would begin two months from now. This tiline was chosen carefully, it was soon enough to reduce the risk of exposure, yet long enough to give every civilization within the Conclave ample ti to mobilize their fleets and position them at pre-assigned locations before launching a joint counterattack.
………………….
{Sir, all of the Conclave leaders were not logged into the VR during the sa two-hour window. Only now are so beginning to return, while others are still offline,} Nyx reported. It was a rare occurrence, rare enough that she deed it important to inform Aron imdiately.
Nearly all of the security protocols used to protect the private star systems or planets belonging to Conclave leaders were wrapped in layers of encryption using quantum entanglent and quantum key distribution. These systems were considered virtually tamper-proof; any unauthorized attempt to access them would imdiately alter the quantum state, thereby exposing the breach attempt to the defenders.
Because of this, the Terran Empire had deliberately refrained from spying on the Conclave leaders within those protected VR zones. Their strategy was to wait patiently for the other side to grow complacent and let their guard down before attempting any infiltration.
As a result, the only data they had regarding the leaders in these protected zones was a binary status: whether they were logged into the VR or not. Nothing more, nothing less.
"Has this happened before?" Aron asked, pausing mid-report reading, sensing the potential implications.
{Not once,} Nyx replied, imdiately pulling up a chart. {There has never been a ti when all the leaders were offline simultaneously. At least ten are always online, regardless of the hour. So either this was a strange statistical outlier… or they deliberately coordinated to et outside of the VR to avoid surveillance.}
She projected the data onto the screen, a tiline showing leader login patterns across months, clear, consistent, and now broken by this unusual gap.
"Even if it's just an outlier, we need to have so evidence of it happening. Look deeper into it and see if there's anything out of the ordinary," Aron said, tapping his finger lightly against the table, his thoughts already turning.
Several possibilities crossed his mind. It could be related to Dreznor's situation. Or perhaps it was a eting to coordinate joint demands on the Empire regarding the wormhole lanes. It might even be an attempt to push for the Empire to join the Conclave… or it could be about sothing else entirely, sothing unrelated to the Empire.
{I'll try to find out if anything out of the ordinary is happening through our little protagonists who are in positions of influence,} Nyx replied, instantly creating a sub-instance to begin investigating.
Aron kept tapping the table, the rhythm steady, his brows furrowed in thought. After nearly a minute, he finally spoke, "I can't say for sure why, but I have a feeling this is important. If we're not careful, things could spiral out of our control."
{If you're feeling that way, I'll raise the situation's priority level,} Nyx said, taking his words seriously. While she and her sister AIs lacked intuition, they had long since learned to trust Aron's. It couldn't be explained, couldn't be calculated, but it had warned them often enough to be taken seriously, even if it wasn't always reliable.
Aron chuckled softly at her reaction, but said nothing to counter it. After all, if he was right, it was better they acted early. And if he was wrong, well, it was still better to be prepared than to have a nagging concern gnawing at the back of his mind.
……………
While Aron and Nyx were discussing, another conversation was taking place deep within the Bilakis Civilization's capital star system, a mber of the Conclave.
Inside a colossal palace that served both as the residence of the Bilakis leader Kumakar and the central seat of his governnt, a man in casual clothes entered without passing through any inspections. No guards stopped him. No questions were asked. He walked straight toward the leader's office.
"He is waiting for you. You may enter," a servant said with a bow, her hand gesturing toward the door.
The man didn't acknowledge her. He simply pushed open the heavy door and stepped inside, closing it behind him.
THUD!
A dull sound echoed through the office as the man dropped to the ground in a deep prostration, his body motionless as he lay flat on the floor.
"I have a task for you," Kumakar said without lifting his eyes from the docunts in front of him.
The man remained still and silent, showing no reaction.
"I want you to instruct the pirate groups under your control, scattered across various civilizations, to prepare for coordinated attacks on the wormhole gates and the VR network towers. They are to be ready within two months. But they are not to act until I give the order."
He paused for a mont before continuing.
"Make sure everything is done in secrecy. No unnecessary attention. Their ships should carry the transponder signatures of the civilizations they operate in, but not so perfectly forged that suspicion won't arise if they're captured. Make it ssy, but not stupid."
Still, the man said nothing. His prostration didn't waver in the slightest.
Finally, Kumakar looked up from his desk, his eyes settling on the man.
"As per our agreent, if this mission is completed to my satisfaction, this will be our final transaction. Our deal will be concluded. You may go."
The mont the words left Kumakar's mouth, the prostrated body began to wither. Muscles deflated as if all the fluid had been sucked out. Skin shriveled, and the body collapsed into a brittle husk, silent and lifeless.
"It's as grotesque as ever… but a very useful card for my revenge," Kumakar muttered, his eyes fixed on the corpse with a cruel, satisfied smile. His plan was finally taking shape. If everything proceeded as he intended, the blow would be devastating enough that the Empire wouldn't bother with reason. They'd accuse the entire Conclave of conspiracy. Especially since the attacks would coincide with the scheduled deploynt of the joint fleets.
He pressed a button on the intercom. "Co and clean the body."
A few monts later, a team of servants entered silently and removed the corpse, leaving without a word.
Alone once more, Kumakar returned to his docunts. This ti, the smile never left his face.
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