It did not take much time for his first meeting with his core advisors about his new expedition to hit a stumbling block. Ves already took into account that the risks of approaching the active frontlines of the invasion would be greater. The chances of encountering enemy elements, both human and alien, were significantly greater. However, the possibility that General Verle brought up was highly realistic. As much as Ves wanted to deny or downplay this risk, he had looked up enough news to know that plenty of scavenger fleets met their untimely ends at the hands of frontline alien fleet elements! This was also the reason why many of the most powerful pioneering fleets chose to keep their distance from the frontlines. The toughest and most intractable fleets fielded by the nunsers and the puelmers had developed a terrible reputation among the pioneers and frontiersmen. The nunsers fielded massive 'ships' that were also concentrated in huge 'fleets' that were more like floating cities! The puelmers adopted a similar approach but concentrated more on equipping their ships with advanced technology rather than aiming for maximum quantity. Regardless, any ordinary pioneering fleet that got targeted by the nunsers or puelmers rarely managed to get away! Ves fell silent as he idly stroked Lucky's back. The cat had grown a lot more concerned as well when he heard the new plan. "Meow meow." "I'm working on it. Let me think." As Ves tried to come up with an answer to the problem presented by General Verle, the Director of the Black Cats took the initiative to speak her thoughts. "While I have my own doubts about this new venture, we can significantly decrease the risk of encountering unpleasant surprises by beefing up our scouting operations." Calabast said. "If you study all of the cases where pioneering fleets were struck down by frontline alien troops, you will find that the former never put much effort into scouting and risk assessment. They only dispatched a perfunctory amount of scouting vessels to neighboring star systems and did not thoroughly research the alien territories they intended to strip of valuables." This was not necessarily because the scavenger fleets were led by stupid or incompetent leaders. Their means were just too limited. The availability of starships was still horrendously limited, which meant that any new arrivals would find it incredibly difficult to expand their initial fleets. Without access to enough wealth, military strength, influence and allies, there was no way for these fresh pioneering fleets to convince a shipyard to accept their order. This left these groups in a tight spot. They could either make do with what they brought over from the Milky Way, or they could risk everything on a single throw of the dice and head towards danger in the promise of obtaining a huge haul of precious materials and advanced alien tech. As Ves recalled the articles that he read, Calabast indeed made a good point. The majority of pioneering fleets that got suckered by alien warfleets were incapable of deploying scouting ships. Without spreading enough corvettes and other observer ships to neighboring star systems, it was much harder to gain an accurate impression on how many enemies might be lingering in the region! The situation was much different to the Golden Skull Alliance. "We are in a much better position in this regard, Ves." Minister Shederin Purnesse provided his opinion. "Our recent successes have raised our profile and made us much more reputable in the eyes of major players. It has become significantly easier for us to commission ship orders at shipyards that previously closed their doors to our inquiries. While we are unable to order any capital ships from them, it should not be troublesome to commission modest batches of corvettes." Ves looked surprised. "Is that true?" "More vendors are willing to do business with us." Shederin confirmed. "It's not just us. The Cross Clan have also found it a lot easier to place priority orders at major shipyard companies. Everyone is eager to please an ace pilot, you see. At the very least, these people do not want to leave an impression that they deliberately snubbed the Cross Clan due to petty reasons. There is no way to predict the reaction of an ace pilot that has a well-known history for being volatile and impulsive." In other words, now that Patriarch Reginald Cross had grown into a big and powerful bully that could always decide to flip the board if he got triggered for whatever reason, a lot of companies took the initiative to offer their tribute through this manner! This was the benefit of acquiring a notorious reputation! "What of the Glory Seekers?" Ves curiously asked. "Since the local shipyards are already beginning to offer their services to us and the Crossers, I don't think they have much capacity left to help our remaining allies." "The Glory Seekers have their own channels, Ves. The Hexer colonies may be overwhelmingly preoccupied with building up their settlements, but now that they have overcome the initial hurdles, they are much more secure in their own positions. That means that the Hexer dynasties are becoming more willing to supply the Glory Seekers with mechs, starships and other war materiel." "Interesting. I did not expect those arrogant and selfish Hexers to forgo the opportunity to strengthen their own positions by agreeing to donate to a common cause." Calabast chuckled. "Don't get fooled, Ves. The Hexers are well aware of how vulnerable they have become now that they lost the support of their enormous holdings in the old galaxy. They are also clever enough to understand that our commitment to them is not as great now that we no longer need their help to survive and grow stronger. The best way for them to maintain active and friendly relations with our clan is to pump up the Glory Seekers so that the Golden Skull Alliance will always possess a Hexer presence." "That's quite smart and far-sighted of them. I did not expect them to be able to do this." Ves mildly replied. "Losing the Komodo War has given the exiled Hexers a powerful reality check. A lot of hardliners have been pushed from positions of power while more pragmatic and adaptable female leaders have risen up. Many dynasties are cognizant that they cannot act as extreme as before." "Back in the Komodo Star Sector, the Hexers used to be the biggest fish in the pond." Minister Shederin illustrated. "Here in the Red Ocean, they are medium-sized fish at best. No matter which pool they choose to swim in, they will always live alongside other fish that are no weaker than them despite the fact that the Hexers have evacuated from the Komodo Star Sector in good order. Throwing around their weight will only unite every group in the Magair Middle Zone against them. That is what they must avoid at all costs." Both Calabast and Shederin tracked the progress of the Hexer colonies quite closely. It was quite interesting to hear their perspectives on how different forms of pressure had forced the escapees from the Komodo War to become a lot more likable and diplomatic. Ves welcomed the changes. He designed the Superior Mother with the express purpose to deradicalize the Hexers as much as he could get away with, but it was never quite enough. He hoped that the threat of becoming a pariah in a place where they could not afford to make too many enemies would finally normalize them to a level where they became tolerable. He turned his attention back to closer concerns. Whatever happened to the Hexers these days did not concern him all that much anymore. "So if I am understanding this correctly, we will soon be able to acquire enough starships to form an extensive scouting contingent, is that correct?" "That is… correct, sir." General Verle admitted. "The ships do not need to be large, expensive or powerful. It is already enough that they can travel ahead of our main fleet and warn us of any nearby threats in advance. This will significantly increase our ability to avoid dangerous enemies before they can ever get near." Ves thought of a possible concern. "These scout ships will have to brave the frontier alone, though. They may be quick and agile, but if any enemy manages to get within range, there is little these flimsy corvettes can do to survive an encounter. I'm afraid our scouting contingent will suffer extensive losses over the course of our next expedition." "That is an acceptable price." General Verle stated. "It is always more preferable to lose a corvette that is crewed by a dozen clansmen at most than be forced to resist an ambush by a major alien fleet that we weren't able to foresee. Trust me, the Larkinsons crewing our scouting vessels will gladly do their duty even when they fully understand the dangers that they must brave." "I will take your word on that, general." The four Larkinson leaders continued to discuss the other aspects of Ves' bold plan for their next expedition. Though there was no way to mitigate every possible risk, the plan became a lot more feasible after the inclusion of a few more measures. Calabast especially found it important to raise her voice this time. "Information is power, Ves. I have always told you that because many people constantly have a tendency to forget about this truth." "You have made that point clear to me already. What do you want this time?" "I need more funding and allowances to expand the Black Cats." She plainly stated her demands. "Hasn't the recent funding increases been enough for you to expand our spy department?" "This is different, Ves. We have invested much of the money and resources that we have received from the clan into building up local and regional spy networks. We have spread an extensive amount of agents and informants throughout Davute and many other star systems. It costs a lot of effort and money to do the job correctly. If you want our Black Cats to increase our ability to collect vital intelligence on the less-explored star systems that are closer to active war zones, then we must expand in a different way." Ves sighed before waving his hand. "Fine. You will get your funding. It is not a big deal to give you an extra 100,000 MTA credits. The only thing I ask is results. You and your Black Cats have overlooked numerous dangers in the past. I'm aware that is because your means were much more limited then, but we have no excuse this time." His strategic partner smirked. "Don't worry, Ves. Previously, it was difficult to do much because we were constantly on the move while working with limited resources. This time is different. We aren't short on funds and we still have plenty of years to make proper and adequate preparations. Trust me when I say that I do not want to make another major blunder. Not when my life is on the line as well." That was one of the more positive aspects of keeping everything important in a single fleet. Every core member of the Larkinson Clan was on the same boat, both literally and figuratively! Any mistake they made would directly impact their chances of surviving the upcoming expedition. As Ves thought about other matters, Shederin brought up another major point. "This is a major development, Ves, one that will affect our entire clan as well as our closest allies. If you want everyone to work towards your goals in a united fashion, then you will need to drum up strong support. One of the ways you can do that is by naming our upcoming operation. Have you come up with any suggestions that you like and can effectively communicate what we will embark upon in a couple of years?" "Hmmm… let's call it the Trailblazer Expedition. This time, we must truly venture closer to the territories that have yet to be plundered and occupied by other human forces."