Is Unlocking the Stellaris Tech Tree in Star Rail Really Okay? [277]

Unlocking [Basic Armaments] granted access to four possible military traditions: [Main Force Assault], [Entrenched Defense], [Balanced Warfare], and [Mobile Guerrilla Tactics].

[Main Force Assault] focused on overwhelming firepower, engaging the enemy head-on. With sheer brute force, battles could often be decided in one or two decisive engagements.

[Entrenched Defense] revolved around constructing powerful space fortresses as defensive bastions. Most traditions in this category enhanced the number of outposts that could be built within a single star system, allowing for attritional warfare against enemy fleets.

[Balanced Warfare], as the name suggested, offered a mix of offensive and defensive bonuses. It provided moderate boosts to both fleet construction and fortress defense, though not as significantly as the previous two paths.

[Mobile Guerrilla Tactics] relied on extreme speed and long-range attacks to harass and disrupt enemy movements. Many of its bonuses also improved orbital bombardment capabilities, allowing ships to devastate planetary surfaces as they passed by—before slipping away unscathed.

The question of which strategy best suited his current military forces would determine which tradition Chen Lin should prioritize next…

A slight tug at his sleeve abruptly pulled Chen Lin from his thoughts.

He turned to find Clara looking up at him, her face filled with worry. She bit her lip, the picture of delicate distress—anyone would have found it hard not to feel protective of her.

Chen Lin crouched down and ruffled her hair.

"What’s wrong?"

"Big Brother… are we…"

"Are we?"

"Are we going to war?"

Ah, so that’s what this is about…

Wait.

How did Clara know he was planning to seize resources from neighboring systems?

Other than Phantylia, he hadn’t shared this information with anyone yet.

And technically, it was still in the planning phase—whether those nearby star systems even contained rare resources was still uncertain. They would need scientific expeditions to investigate before confirming anything.

He had planned to assign Seele the task of using [Imaginary Phase Space] to cloak their research vessels—tomorrow.

So how could Clara possibly know about this already?

Chen Lin chuckled, teasing, "And how did you come to that conclusion?"

"Because up until now, you've only focused on internal affairs. But… just now, in class! You spent so much time discussing diplomatic strategies between interstellar civilizations."

"I didn’t understand all of it, but that map you showed us—it had to be a modified version of the current Jarilo Sector’s political layout, right?"

Clara lifted her head stubbornly, her face unusually serious as she laid out her analysis.

She’s sharp.

Her judgment was spot on.

Jarilo had only theoretical military doctrine to support it. So far, their armed forces had done little beyond military exercises and the occasional pirate suppression campaign.

Their generals severely lacked real combat experience.

And a commander’s experience was crucial—affecting everything from fleet efficiency to morale.

With the L-Gate nearing activation, Chen Lin desperately needed an opportunity to get his forces battle-ready.

Even though he could control the overall strategic layout of a war, provide extensive intelligence, and direct macro-level fleet movements—

When it came to actual combat execution, everything depended on his admirals and ground force commanders.

In reality, launching a war was far more complex than simply F2-A’ing a deathball into enemy territory.

Weapon technology, public support for war, alloy production capabilities—any one of these factors could change the course of a battle.

The L-Gate would contain hostiles. That much was certain.

The Stellaron Hunters’ prophecy, the traces of war between the Kruz and the Zroni Civilization—all of it pointed to the same conclusion.

Technology would take time to develop.

Alloy production had to expand gradually.

His military leaders needed hands-on experience…

Step by step, he analyzed the situation.

And of all these variables, the one he could most immediately influence was his own people's willingness to fight—and the watchful eyes of those who coveted Jarilo.

Before the real war arrived, he could engineer a small, calculated conflict to boost morale—

A demonstration of Jarilo’s military strength, proving to its citizens just how powerful their forces had become.

At the same time, this would serve as a warning to any outside factions with ill intentions, ensuring they thought twice before interfering while he focused on the L-Gate.

And if he played his cards right, even struggling civilizations might be tempted to seek Jarilo’s "protection"—providing valuable resources in exchange.

Even the worst-case scenario would force potential threats into a wait-and-see approach, reducing the risk of sabotage during his preparations.

A win-win situation.

Except… he had forgotten something important.

Clara had always been softhearted.

She had never liked violence.

Before the Express had arrived on Jarilo-VI, she had devoted herself to mediation, tirelessly working to reconcile conflicts between the Robot Settlement, the homeless, and the Lower District residents.

"Yes," Chen Lin admitted.

Clara hesitated, then murmured, "The factions that you assigned to Bronya and Pela in the simulation… they correspond to the two civilizations in our sector, don’t they?"

"That’s right."

"I heard that the IPC is trying to purchase those civilizations' planets… so, they’re the target?"

"They are."

"Big Brother… you think this isn’t right, don’t you?"

Chen Lin had never lied to his own people.

There was no need to hide the truth.

So when Clara’s analysis aligned perfectly with reality, he began to consider how best to explain the gravity of Jarilo’s current dilemma.

Negotiation and diplomacy took time—time they no longer had.

A major war was on the horizon, and there were two civilizations, right in the middle of Jarilo’s territory, that could switch sides at any moment.

They were landmines waiting to explode.

Chen Lin needed to eliminate them before they became a threat.

His mind worked rapidly, crafting a logical, reasonable explanation to help Clara understand why preemptive action was necessary.

But before he could speak—

Clara hit him with something that shook him to his core.

"I agree that they pose a serious internal threat, but… but we need a justified reason."

"If the IPC loses its investment because of us, they might start spreading rumors that we go to war recklessly… and that could bring us even more enemies!"

Chen Lin: "???"

What.

Wait. What?!

This was not the reaction he had been expecting.

He had fully anticipated Clara to oppose war altogether—

To argue against violence, fearing the deaths of innocent people.

She had always been compassionate—the kind of person who would do anything to prevent suffering.

Instead, she was…

She was reminding him to get the IPC out of the picture before attacking—to minimize diplomatic backlash.

Chen Lin, mouth halfway open, suddenly found himself at a complete loss for words.

…What the hell is happening tonight?

"Big Brother… you know what’s behind that gate, don’t you?"

"It’s an enemy. It has to be. Right?"

"Most likely. And a strong one, at that."

Chen Lin frowned. "How did you figure that out?"

"A few days ago… I intercepted a signal. From inside the gate."

Back when Chen Lin had led an expedition into the Machine City, Clara and the other scientists had been relocated to the Upper District’s research zone.

Once Saik had been discovered—and the underground Machine City was deemed non-hostile—the researchers returned to their posts.

It was then that Clara noticed something strange.

The device she had installed on the Stellaron had intercepted a long, garbled transmission from inside the L-Gate.

She had immediately assembled a team to decrypt it.

What they managed to reconstruct was a mere seven-second audio file.

At first, all they heard was static—an eerie, grating noise, devoid of recognizable speech.

But when they filtered out the interference…

There was nothing.

Silence.

Clara had listened to that recording ten thousand times—but found nothing of value.

Or so she had thought.

But now, as she listened to Chen Lin’s lecture on diplomacy…

Something in her mind suddenly clicked.

Connecting the policies Chen Lin had laid out across various fields, Clara found herself arriving at a bold hypothesis—one with no concrete evidence, but a gut feeling nonetheless.

What if that mysterious audio recording wasn’t just random noise?

What if it was the result of something being hit by a weapon and exploding—a spatial shockwave, accidentally intercepted by her device?

There was no way to verify this yet. It was just a theory.

But when Chen Lin explicitly confirmed that a formidable enemy awaited behind the L-Gate…

Everything suddenly made sense.

To Clara, Chen Lin had always been a kind, gentle person.

He had never abused his military strength to oppress others. If anything, he was always committed to resolving conflicts through peaceful means whenever possible.

Otherwise, back during Cocolia’s rule, he wouldn’t have let himself be driven into the Lower District—even when he already had several massive warships at his disposal.

If Cocolia’s regime hadn’t lost its mind and conspired with the other noble families to eliminate him, he never would have retaliated so fiercely in the end.

It was their own cruelty that forced his hand.

When Jarilo-VI was annexed into the Empire, things had taken a turn for the better.

Their technological level had advanced to the point where they could access interstellar networks, allowing Clara to learn about the histories of other civilizations—and witness firsthand just how dark and treacherous human nature could be.

Before, her world had been small.

The Robot Settlement was her home, and the people in the nearby town were simply Belobogians to her.

The true enemies had always been the monsters that crawled out of the Fragmentum—which was why she had worked so hard to prevent the already-dwindling Belobogian population from turning on each other.

But now…

Now, her home was much larger.

The nobles’ oppression and the harsh living conditions of the past were long gone.

She was no longer just a girl from the Lower District.

She was Jarilo’s Chief Scientist—one of the leading scientific authorities in the Empire.

To Clara, she was now an Imperial citizen first, a Jarilo native second, and an organic human last.

Her perspective had expanded—no longer limited to a single settlement, but encompassing the entire Jarilo Sector.

Even though she disliked conflict, if anyone threatened the home she loved—

She would not hesitate to protect it.

She would see those who posed a danger to the Empire as nothing more than the Fragmentum creatures she once fought against.

Clara pressed her lips together.

To her, Chen Lin must be feeling incredibly conflicted about implementing war policies.

Someone as peace-loving and kind as him would never make such decisions lightly.

So…!

She had to remind him.

If he couldn’t bear the burden of these choices—then she would help carry it for him.

She would lighten his guilt, take the initiative where he hesitated, and make the difficult decisions that weighed on his heart.

"Clara will work hard too!"

"Clara and Sister Serval already have several new weapon designs in progress. We've discovered some interesting interactions between quantum energy and exotic particles that allow them to coexist and generate high temperatures… but there are a few problems we wanted to ask you about, Big Brother."

Just as Clara was about to discuss her research in more detail, footsteps echoed from outside the room.

Phantylia had returned from escorting Topaz back to the hotel.

A pair of fox-like ears peeked through the doorway.

Noticing that only Chen Lin and Clara were inside, Phantylia’s lips curled into a sly grin.

"Oh my~ Good evening, Lady Clara~"

"Ah—!"

Completely focused on her conversation, Clara hadn’t noticed her surroundings—and Phantylia’s sudden greeting startled her.

Turning around and seeing that it was just Phantylia, she quickly raised a hand in response.

"Good evening, Sister Phantylia."

"Apologies for interrupting, but… might I borrow the Lord for a moment? Just need to report a few things."

Phantylia shot Clara a knowing wink.

"Then Clara will head back to her room first, take a bath, and review some notes… Chen Lin-gege, can Clara bring the data to you later?"

"Of course."

The Qlipoth Fort had more than enough space to spare.

As a high-ranking scientist of Belobog Research Institute and one of Jarilo’s leading scientific minds, Clara would occasionally visit the palace to report key project updates to Bronya or Pela.

As such, she had been provided her own personal residence within the palace grounds, which was maintained by dedicated staff.

As soon as Clara left, Phantylia wasted no time.

"My Lord~ It worked! She's walking right into the trap~ Hehehe~"

A wicked grin spread across Phantylia’s face, filled with an undeniable sense of delight—like a predator who had finally set its fangs into prey.

"I guarantee it. Once the company finds out, they will push her forward like a flood, forcing her into a role she never wanted. And when suspicion and power dynamics shift so drastically… a rift will form between them."

"Just thinking about it makes my tail twitch with excitement~"

Chen Lin tapped his fingers on the desk, his voice calm but firm.

"Tell me the details."

"You didn’t let me ask earlier—so I assume now’s the time?"

"Of course, of course~"

Phantylia rubbed her hands together, grinning like a scheming fox.

"We discussed quite a bit, but the most important part is this: I’ve gained a degree of trust from her."

"Unfortunately, she’s quite tight-lipped. I only managed to confirm that the company has launched a special project dedicated specifically to you, with her as the lead director."

"Money is just a tool, not the goal itself~ Hehehe… That director lady may seem tough on the outside, but people like her? They’re the easiest to manipulate."

"All it takes is the right push. If I can shake her absolute faith in the company’s integrity, I can create a growing divide between her ideals and reality. Once that gap forms, peeling away her defenses will be effortless… and once she’s vulnerable, she’ll make a mistake."

Chen Lin raised an eyebrow.

"And how exactly did you go about this?"

Phantylia’s eyes gleamed mischievously.

"Simple. I planted a little suggestion in her mind."

"If she thinks back on our conversation… she’ll inevitably come to a rather entertaining conclusion—"

"That you, my Lord… are a hopeless womanizer, and that she is your next target~"

"When she reports this to company leadership, they won’t pass up such an opportunity. They’ll use her as bait."

"After all, what’s one person compared to the profits at stake?"

"We won’t have to do a thing. The company itself will tear down its own sacred image in her heart."

"And when someone falls from such a great height of disillusionment… they tend to make very poor decisions."

"At that point, my Lord, all you need to do is let her burn that trust to its fullest extent. Then… I’ll personally bind her with the Ambrosial Arbor, transforming her into a perfect puppet~"

Phantylia placed her hands on her hips, beaming with pride as she laid out her master plan—completely oblivious to how Chen Lin’s expression had gradually darkened.

His gaze grew sharper, his face increasingly unreadable.

And with every word she spoke…

His face only grew darker.

---

T/N: oof but HOLY SHIT CLARA idk why but i had goosebumps on the everything clicked part LIKE WHY?

This is a fan translation of 在星穹铁道点群星科技树真的没问题吗? by 杏雨诗韵 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!