I Am The Swarm-Chapter 521: Talent

At this point, the Swarm’s opponents had officially shifted from the Koya Alliance and the Locke Mutual Aid Society to the Interstellar Technological Confederation. Although the former two were originally part of the Confederation, there were still some differences.

The biggest change was that the decision-making layer of the coalition had been completely replaced. The Swarm’s previous information channels had been pushed to the margins, leading to some delays in intelligence.

To regain the previous level of intelligence, Luo Wen would need to put in some effort.

Fortunately, the reason there were no “insiders” in the new decision-making layer was not because they had become resistant to the Swarm Network’s infiltration, but because they had been on the move for the past few decades, making it difficult for the Swarm to establish contact with them.

Now that they had come into contact with the Swarm, it was only a matter of time before “insiders” appeared.

Even though there were no “insiders” at the highest levels of decision-making, any actions they wanted to take would still have to go through the layers of command below.

This included the management systems of the Koya Alliance and the Locke Mutual Aid Society. As the local powers in the front-line territories, almost all orders required their cooperation.

Both of these organizations had already been infiltrated by the Swarm. What they knew, the Swarm also knew. Therefore, while there was some delay in obtaining the latest information about the coalition, the impact was minimal.

Through both conventional and unconventional channels, the Swarm had learned about the coalition’s preparations. As time passed, the coalition noticed that the Swarm was only gathering troops and showed no signs of launching an attack. The number of troops on both sides continued to grow, facing each other across a front line spanning more than a dozen star systems and tens of light-years.

“According to past patterns, the Swarm should have set out a year ago. But they still haven’t made a move,” said one foreign representative, who hailed from a mid-rim civilization. He had been on the move until now and had never actually encountered the Swarm. All his knowledge of the Swarm came from videos or written materials.

“Isn’t that to be expected? The Swarm isn’t stupid. If I were them, I wouldn’t attack either,” another foreign representative shrugged. He was also from a mid-rim civilization. “But at least they have some self-awareness and didn’t get carried away after defeating a few weaklings.”

“We’re all allies here. That’s not a very nice thing to say,” another foreign representative chimed in, noticing the darkening expressions of the outer-rim civilization representatives in the meeting room.

“Ahem, let’s discuss how to deal with the Swarm. We’ve just arrived and have no experience. We hope you can share some advice.”

“To be honest, we don’t have much experience fighting the Swarm either. In this regard, it’s up to the Locke Mutual Aid Society to provide guidance,” the Koya Alliance representative smoothly shifted the focus to their old rivals.

The Locke Mutual Aid Society’s representative was an old acquaintance, General Viller of the Troi civilization. During the previous front-line battles, when he learned that the Swarm forces sent to LKDW265 and 267 had appeared outside the LKDW262 and 263 star systems, he knew the coalition was doomed.

He acted decisively, immediately disengaging from the war and seeking out Difeck. After explaining the situation, he tried to convince Difeck to flee with him. However, Difeck was still the commander of the coalition at the time and naturally couldn’t abandon his troops to go along with Viller’s plan.

But as it turned out, Viller’s judgment was correct. The Swarm lived up to his expectations and successfully crushed the coalition. Fortunately, he had planned an escape route in advance and managed to save his own life by taking a detour with Difeck during the retreat.

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Although Difeck survived, the crushing defeat of the coalition required someone of significant stature to take the blame. As the commander of the coalition, Difeck was the most suitable candidate.

Along with Difeck, several other commanders were also held accountable, including General Yalito from LKDW262 and the two leaders from LKDW263.

Their removal, however, inadvertently highlighted Viller. Viller, who had previously represented the Locke Mutual Aid Society in inviting the Swarm to join the Interstellar Technological Confederation, held a high status and wielded real power. However, during a period of dormancy, he had been sidelined by Difeck, who held a grudge against him.

But as the saying goes, “A blessing in disguise.” Without actual command authority, Viller successfully avoided the blame and even rose several ranks, becoming the representative of the Locke Mutual Aid Society in dealings with numerous mid-rim civilizations.

However, his expression was dark at the moment. He had just been subtly mocked by a mid-rim idiot and then tripped up by his old rival. Anyone in his position would be in a foul mood.

But compared to the conflict with the Swarm, these verbal jabs were trivial. The Troi fleet that had been annihilated at LKDW262 consisted largely of his former subordinates. While he didn’t have deep emotional ties with most of them, even the small fraction he did care about was enough to elevate his hatred for the Swarm to the maximum level.

Therefore, he was genuinely committed to contributing to the Confederation’s efforts against the Swarm.

“The Swarm must have an incredibly talented design team because the appearance of their combat units makes you feel disgusted, ferocious, brave, and so on. Some even find them cute or silly, but you would never associate them with intelligence.”

“Before engaging the Swarm, I conducted a survey on people’s first impressions of them. Many believed that mere beasts were nothing to fear. I don’t know if this is some kind of psychological suggestion the Swarm’s appearance imposes on other intelligent beings, but honestly, I used to think the same way. Perhaps some of you here also held that belief before hearing my words, and maybe even now, some of you still feel that way. But I must emphasize that the Swarm is extremely cunning. Compared to their other traits, their intelligence is the most terrifying aspect.”

Hearing Viller’s words, many of the foreign representatives, including those from mid-rim civilizations, grew more serious. Viller’s words hit the mark. Just a minute ago, they had indeed thought the Swarm was nothing special. Now, they wondered if they had been influenced by some kind of suggestion or manipulation.

“They seem to possess a special ability, always able to foresee events and plan ahead. Actions that seem unrelated at first always end up being connected in some miraculous way. Therefore, every move the Swarm makes must be carefully analyzed, and we must consider the bigger picture, not just focus on a single battlefield,” Viller continued, ignoring the reactions of the foreign representatives…

Later, Luo Wen learned some details about this meeting and was surprised. He hadn’t expected any foreign beings to understand the Swarm so well. This was indeed a lapse in his work. Such talent needed to be dealt with promptly.