Chapter 588 - 588 A Serious Talk with Liesel’s Father

"Avery, do you know why I didn't become a mercenary like most of the rest of my family?" Liesel's father asked once it was just the two of them.

"No. Liesel never told me and I never asked. I just knew that you stepped away from the path when you were younger and moved towards engineering instead."

"That's right. I was always good with my hands. I could disassemble a laser rifle and put it back together faster than any of my peers. But my talents in the field aren't why I chose to pursue it. Most of us that bear the name Kaizer have a knack for being fighters and leaders and are trained from when we're young. I was no different in the beginning."

Liesel's father recounted bit and pieces of his youth to Avery, and a lot of it was similar to what Liesel had described about what she went through. Though, her father did not have to deal with any of harassment Liesel had.

"There were two things that changed my path. The first was Elise. She's the daughter of a members of my father's crew, and there weren't that many kids close to our age so we naturally ended up playing together. It did not take me long to realize that I had feelings for her, and thankfully she felt the same way. "Liesel's father said, wearing a slight, nostalgic smile.

However, his expression became serious again just a moment later.

"The second person that changed me, was my older cousin. He was considered the best of our generation, and when he set off to rise through the ranks and make a name for himself as is family tradition, we all thought he was going to do great things. And he did for a time."

"I kept track of his progress and exchanged messages with him regularly. Then one day around five months since he left, the communications stopped coming. At first, I figured he was just busy or maybe in an area with a lot of interference. But after another couple of weeks, word got back to us. He had gotten tangled up in an emergency mission to fight space monsters attacking the station he was at. From the accounts I heard from others and the recordings I saw, he fought valiantly and saved a lot of lives. In the end though, he was overwhelmed and his ship torn apart."

"He was hailed as a hero, and his sacrifice and achievements celebrated. It was tragic that he was gone, but he had lived up to the name Kaizer. Still, he was dead. No amount of acclaim or accolades after the fact was going to change that. His parents might have been proud of what he did. Except their son was still gone. I watched my uncle who always seemed unshakable weep for the first time at the funeral. That's when I understood that Elise, and later when Liesel was born, what was truly important to me."

Avery did not need to think particularly hard to understand what the man was getting at.

It was not cowardice or fear of dying that had made him give up on becoming a mercenary.

Instead, it was the love for his wife and daughter. He did not want to get killed and leave them alone.

Death was a possibility for even the strongest and most prepared mercenaries.

Avery still vividly remembered the titanic monstrosity that he and the rest of Zefield's expedition had encountered.

There were things out there that just could not be beaten.

Even Zefield, a seven star mercenary with the moniker, Fiend Hunter, had been incapable of fighting against that creature. It had taken everything that they had just to run away.

Of course, while Liesel's father might not have been a combatant, he was still the chief engineer on a mercenary vessel. That came with risks of its own.

Yet, before Avery was able to point his out, Liesel's father seemed to have read his mind and answered before Avery could ask his question.

"Obviously I know that there are still dangers even if I'm not out there fighting on the front lines. My older sister is capable and a good leader, but sometimes things don't go your way. Perhaps the enemy massively outnumbers you, or they have powerful weapons that we unaccounted for. Over the years, we've had a couple of close calls. We've always pulled through though, and I believe the support I receive here not just for me, but also my wife and daughter are more important than the relative safety we might have elsewhere."

"Something that I've learned is that nowhere is truly safe. You never know when space monsters or pirates might attack. Or when a hostile state will start a war. There's danger everywhere, and I'd rather be around people I can trust to have my back than someplace else."

Avery did not really disagree with anything that Liesel's father had said him.

Nevertheless, he doubted that the man was just telling him about himself to try and get to know each other.

It was clear that he was trying to make a point.

"While I do respect your decisions, sir, if you are trying to convince me not to be a mercenary anymore, that's not going to happen. It's what I've decided that I want to do. And it's not really about fighting or seeking thrills. I enjoy having freedom and the ability to do what I want. Ever since I first left the station that had been my home and flew out amongst the stars, I knew that that was what I wanted. Being a mercenary gives me the freedom to go where I want when I want to.

"I also can't deny that we've helped a lot of people along the way. It's not really my main goal, but it does feel nice when people thank me, and I know that I've protected them from space monsters or saved them from pirates. Plus, being a mercenary gave me the opportunity to earn enough money to pay for the treatments my father needed. If I had stayed home, safe on the station I grew up on, he'd probably be dead right now. So no matter what, I have no intention of giving up what I do." Avery said, making his position clear.

He carefully watched to gauge Liesel's father's reaction.

For a few seconds he thought that his words might sour the relationship, that his father-in-law was truly dead set on getting him to give up the mercenary life.

That was not it though.

"You seem to have misunderstood me." Liesel father said with a chuckle. "I already spent years trying to get my daughter to follow a different path. She can be a stubborn sort, just like I believe you are. I could give you the most impassioned, tear-filled speech of my life and it would not change a thing."

Before he continued, Liesel's father's face became more serious as he looked directly into Avery's eyes.

"What I'm trying to get at, is that I want you to think about what's really important to you. I can tell that my daughter loves you and you've returned her feelings. I think that you're both still far too young and I don't like that you're in a relationship with two other women."

"But I already know things will go down if I disapprove too strongly and try to break you both up. Liesel already picked you to be her future. She made that abundantly clear when she sent us her messages and didn't come back. It would only strain the relationship we have with her if Elise and I tried to force her to leave you. And I've already confirmed that my worst fears about you were just that. But that hasn't changed what really worries me, however. I'm afraid that you're going to get my daughter killed."

Liesel's father recounted his perspective of the battle that they had just fought against the Zatis Consortium.

When he and the other forces of the Kaizer fleet arrived along with the Alliance Police, they found Avery's ship under heavy fire and likely just minutes away from being destroyed.

Had they arrived just a little slower or had the forces of the Zatis Consortium fought a bit harder, there was a good chance that Avery's company would have been wiped out. With Liesel being among them.

"I get that no jobs are going to be entirely safe. That's the nature of being a mercenary. But as the leader, you are the one making the ultimate decision on what missions your group takes. You already told us that you were working for Cerise Gunvald and that you had earned billions of Krenin.

"While that is great, were all the risks you took worth it? How much money does it take for you to tip the scales of protecting the lives of your loved ones and crew. I can't stop you from doing anything. But next time, I want you to think about what's really important. Money comes and goes, but lives don't."