Path to Becoming the Greatest Space Mercenary

The next day, Avery and Liesel headed back to Brunhilda's ship to meet with the woman herself.

This time Avery had not fretted about what he was going to wear or if he would make a good impression.

From what Liesel's father had told him yesterday, he got the sense that this meeting would be more work related rather than family trying to catch up with each other.

Liesel's aunt most likely cared about the fact that he was the leader of the Asteria Mercenary Company than that he was Liesel's husband.

That's why he was wearing his light combat gear and had his laser pistol attached to his belt.

This was basically what he would wear whenever he left his ship to go around a station.

Not fully decked out in gear like he was expecting to get into a fight, but certainly well-equipped enough to be ready for one.

Liesel was dressed similarly, and they both looked like typical mercenaries.

"My aunt is very strong-willed. Don't let her push you around." Liesel said while the Dauntless was docking with Brunhilda's vessel.

"Don't worry, I won't. I'll be treating this just like any other meeting with any other high-ranking mercenary."

When the airlock doors opened up, Avery saw that four individuals were waiting on the other side to escort them.

It was a far cry from yesterday when it was just Liesel's parents.

No one was showing any hostility, but the two men and women sent to escort Liesel and Avery were taking their jobs seriously.

"Anneleise, Heidi, Gerhard, albert, it is good to see you all again. I assume that you've been well?" Liesel said with familiarity.

"We have been. Plenty of high-profile jobs and interesting locations to see. I wish you had been there for them. But I know that you've picked your own path to go. It's a little late, but congratulations on your marriage." Anneleise said, clearly the one in charge of the group.

The four members of Brunhilda's crew then began escorting them through the ship to the captain's office.

Along the way, the woman named Hedi, who had a freckled face and short purple hair took a position right next to Liesel and began whispering to her.

"How is Casey doing? She sent a few messages telling us what she's been up to and that she's doing fine, but I wanted to ask you just to make sure. I know that if that girl was actually struggling, she would try to cover it up to not worry me."

Avery listened to their conversation and found out that Heidi was actually Casey's mother. It seemed that she was concerned for her daughter.

"There's no need to worry. Casey is doing perfectly fine. She asked about coming over for a visit herself, so I'm sure she'll tell you more of what's going on when she comes over to visit." Liesel said reassuringly.

This appeared to take a weight off of her best friend's mother. It was only natural that she would be worried about her daughter suddenly leaving everything else behind while following Liesel.

Avery leaned over and quietly told Liesel that Casey could return home if she wanted to,b ut Liesel just shook her head.

Apparently, her friend enjoyed the freedom of being on Avery's ship without having to think about her parents watching over her every action.

She had also gotten into relationships with a few male and female crew members. It seemed that she was having plenty of youthful fun as part of Avery's crew that she would not have been able to do aboard the ship she had grown up on.

'Huh. I hadn't really pegged her as that type, but I guess I don't know her all that well. Probably something I should rectify since she's Liesel's best friend.' Avery thought as they made their way through the ship's corridors.

Soon they were just outside of Liesel's aunt's office.

Once the doors slid open, Avery's eyes were drawn to the immediately to who he was certain was Brunhilda.

Only a single look was enough for Avery to know that she was Liesel's father's sister.

She had a muscular build and was a few centimeters taller than Avery was.

Her fiery red hair was tied back in a bun, and her characteristic red eyes that all of the members of the Kaizer family had seemed to look straight through Avery.

"Liesel, it has been too long. Come give you aunt a hug."

With arms open wide, Brunhilda beckoned Liesel to embrace her.

Without any hesitation, Liesel strode into the room and wrapped her arms around her aunt.

While their relationship might have had some intricacies, they were still family who loved each other.

"And you must be Avery. I can already see why Liesel took to you. It might be our first time meeting, but come and give your new aunt a hug as well." Brunhilda said, arms still outstretched.

This came as a surprise for Avery, as he had not expected the woman to be quite so friendly. At least not towards him since this was the first time they were meeting and in a way, he ruined her plans for Liesel.

Nevertheless, he did not want to come off as cold or rude, so he accepted the welcoming gesture from his aunt-in-law.

'Yep, they're definitely brother and sister.' Avery thought as he felt Brunhilda squeezing him with enough force to crack a normal person's bones.

Just like Liesel's father, she seemed to be testing his strength in a similar manner.

Brunhilda was actually stronger than her brother though. Which when Avery thought about it, made sense.

While Liesel's father was undoubtably bigger, he had not received quite as extensive physical augmentations.

He was an engineer after all, while Brunhilda was the leader of her own squad within the Kaizer Fleet. She was a combatant through and through, and had the power expected of someone in her position.

Fortunately, Avery was durable enough to withstand the woman's crushing embrace.

"Oh, aren't you a tough one! I can see why Liesel became infatuated with you. If I was thirty years younger, I might have considered pursing you myself."

Avery was not sure how he liked the predatory gaze in the woman's eyes and swiftly moved several steps back after they had finished getting each other.

"Go ahead and have a seat. Are there any refreshments that the two of you might want?"

Brunhilda offered them all manner of drinks, most of which were acholic.

While Avery was about to decline, Liesel gave him a quick signal with her eyes encouraging him to accept her aunt's hospitality.

Soon they each had drinks in front of them that they were sipping away at while conversing.

The topics to start with were fairly mundane.

Brunhilda just wanted to get to know Avery better, as any aunt would when meeting their niece's husband for the first time.

Eventually the conversation moved towards how Avery had ended up becoming a mercenary in the first place.

"I got lucky. It was probably like a one in a trillion chance that I discovered the SCXD-011. If that had not happened, I'd still just be a salvager still hanging around Yuson II."

"Oh, I wouldn't sell yourself too short. A lucky encounter does not make a good mercenary. It took talent, drive, and vision, to get to where you are in such a short amount of time. With a quality ship, anyone can be an average mercenary. But it takes a lot more than that to become great."

"Considering your achievements, I'd say that you're already amongst the best. Plus, I've heard that your soon to be receiving a promotion to the next rank. You'll be a six star mercenary just like me. Fully on your own merits and in less than three years. Those are the makings of the top mercenary of your generation."

Avery was not averse to Brunhilda's praise.

She was an accomplished mercenary herself, and hearing that she approved of him and the work he had done made him feel proud.

Of course, she began asking for some details of some of his greatest victories, so Avery told her a few stories.

He did not just want to talk about himself though, so Avery asked Brunhilda about her own start and some of her adventures.

She had been a mercenary for more than twenty times as long as Avery had, so she had plenty to talk about.

Naturally, there were some funny stories about Liesel's childhood thrown in here and there. With a few extra embarrassing ones that Avery had not heard about before.

However, the innocuous chatter between family members did not go on forever.

Eventually Brunhilda broached the topic that Avery and Liesel had been waiting for.

"You know, the two of you have a lot of options for the future. You've come far but take it from someone who has been in the business for decades, there is still plenty out there for you to see and experience. And not all of it is good."

"The galaxy has been getting more dangerous in recent times. This war against the Dramid Alliance and Zatis Consortium is only the latest major event to break the peace. I've heard whispers and seen hints of something big on the horizon. I'm not sure exactly what's going on, but people in high places are preparing for something. When things do eventually take a turn for the worse, it's nice to have allies you can count on. You never know what might be waiting just around the corner."

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