After leaving the Technical Department, Lu Fenghan remembered Lorenz’s dark expression and a faint, secret sense of delight rose within him. Immediately afterward, however, he suddenly realized that he seemed to be acting a little… childish.
As they passed a porthole, Qi Yan noticed it at once. “The Chanyuan fleet is gone.”
Outside the command ship, the fleet that had originally been floating quietly in place was nowhere to be seen.
“Magelyn and the others were assigned patrol missions, so they’ve temporarily left. The Dingyuan was recalled temporarily; normally, it patrols the border.”
Qi Yan was not familiar with the situation on the front line. “There won’t be any battles for the time being?”
“That’s right. Over the past few days, we pushed the battle line from York Star all the way to Lisbon Star and now we’ve directly crossed the Qiandao Star battle line. There are more than a hundred planets and over twenty rare mineral stars that need to be sorted out and placed under defense. The offensive was too rapid, so it’s easy for something to slip through the cracks. Especially the mineral stars. They were taken from us before and now we’ve taken them back again. Odin will send people and transport ships over again.”
Ever since the beginning of Earth’s interstellar age, space had naturally become humanity’s mineral reserve. Even now, two hundred years later, traveling between planets to conduct exploration and mining remained one of the foundations upon which human survival and technological development depended.
Lu Fenghan remembered the way several people under his command had looked as though their eyes were glowing green. “They all love patrolling the star regions. One way or another, they can always find quite a few supply stations set up by the rebel army. The supplies inside are often left behind because they didn’t have time to evacuate them, giving them a chance to pick up the leftovers.”
Seeing how attentively Qi Yan was listening, Lu Fenghan glanced sideways at him and asked with a smile, “You really like hearing about these things?”
Qi Yan nodded, the loose strands of hair falling over his forehead shifting slightly with the movement. “Anything related to you, I want to hear it all.”
Lu Fenghan’s smile deepened.
After a few more steps, he looked toward the darkness of the distant starfield. “But the next battle won’t be too far away.”
Qi Yan followed his gaze. “Because the rebel army won’t tolerate you advancing step by step?”
“Of course.” There was a hint of sternness between Lu Fenghan’s brows. “Ever since Astral Era 145, the rebel army and the Alliance have merely taken turns gaining and losing the upper hand. Either the east wind overwhelms the west wind, or the reverse happens. This region of space we’re in now has fallen into the rebel army’s hands several times and it has also been trampled beneath our feet several times.”
“It’s the same as when the Alliance gained the upper hand because of the central control system you created but within a few years, the great defeat happened and the rebel army once again pressed forward aggressively.”
Qi Yan spoke. “You want to?”
The corner of Lu Fenghan’s lips lifted, his sharpness fully revealed, his voice carrying absolute certainty. “Yes. I want to.”
Both of them understood the words the other had left unsaid.
I want to advance thousands of miles without stopping and completely destroy the rebel army’s Divine Court amid the smoke of war.
I want to end this long, drawn out war.
I want to stop the countless sacrifices.
I want the words “rebel army” to eventually become nothing more than history, their meaning weathered away into dust by the relentless current of time.
This was the ambition of Lu Fenghan, the Alliance’s prospective major general.
July 14 was Lu Fenghan’s regular day off.
It was rare for him to take off his military jacket and regulation shirt and change into a gray trench coat. The cold, fierce aura of gunpowder and smoke that normally clung to him was softened considerably. Lu Fenghan was already tall and long legged and once he changed clothes, the proportions of his figure appeared even more striking. As usual, he headed toward the kitchen to see what there was that Qi Yan could eat today.
Halfway there, he ran into Vincent, who was hurrying along.
As the commander in chief’s adjutant, Vincent had been so busy coordinating matters up and down these past few days that he had barely had time to stop and breathe. The moment he saw Lu Fenghan, his eyes lit up and he hurried over, immediately beginning his report.
“Commander! Captain Magelyn has sent back a report. The remaining forces of the Rebel Army’s Eleventh Legion have been wiped out, including one medium sized ship and three small ships, along with various weapons and supplies.”
Lu Fenghan continued walking as he issued his approval. “Mm. File it.”
“Captain Duchamp reports that jump channel Y377 is unstable and requests assistance from the Technical Department.”
“Contact Lorenz and have him arrange it.”
“Lorenz is complaining that the Technical Department is running out of espresso.”
Lu Fenghan stopped in his tracks. “Do you really need to bother me with something as trivial as that?”
Vincent felt that his commander seemed unusually irritable today. After a beat, he answered the question he had just asked himself. “I’ll contact the Logistics Department and have them replenish the Technical Department’s espresso supply.”
Lu Fenghan gave him a look that clearly said, “Continue.”
Afraid that his superior would think him incompetent at his job, Vincent hurriedly picked out the matter that was actually important. “Captain Long Xiyun discovered a base during his patrol where the rebel army has been ‘preaching’ to civilians in the Southern Cross District.”
Calling it preaching made it sound rather pleasant. Put more bluntly, it was brainwashing.
Lu Fenghan spoke. “Tell Long Xiyun to see if he can pull out more melons by following that vine. If he can’t, clean the whole place out.”
By the time they reached the kitchen entrance, Vincent was still intending to continue with his report. Lu Fenghan lifted his chin slightly toward him. “Have you forgotten what day it is today?”
The question left Vincent looking utterly bewildered. After a moment of hesitation, he cautiously asked, “Commander, is it your birthday?”
Lu Fenghan pointed at the civilian clothes he was wearing. “Today is my scheduled day off.”
Vincent looked even more confused. “Commander, you actually have scheduled days off?”
“…”
Seeing Vincent’s reaction, Lu Fenghan suddenly remembered his own working habits in the past. He could have been named the Expeditionary Army’s model worker without the slightest problem.
He patted Vincent on the shoulder. “Things are different now. Put away your recording board. If there’s anything you need, go to Erich. Unless it’s an emergency, don’t disturb me.”
Remembering that Lorenz had been using his personal terminal to contact Qi Yan and discuss various problems with him these past two days, Lu Fenghan added another instruction. “And while you’re at it, tell Lorenz that knowledge gained through his own independent thinking and sweat is more valuable.”
Because Mykono Star was relatively far from the star at the center of its system, its average annual temperature was not particularly high. Although it was already the end of summer and the beginning of autumn, the wind had begun to carry a distinct chill.
Lu Fenghan had deliberately found a beige trench coat for Qi Yan. Underneath it, he had chosen a white sweater with a high collar, which made Qi Yan’s face look even cleaner and more refined.
After leaving the spaceport, Qi Yan walked side by side with Lu Fenghan along the bustling streets, still feeling a little unaccustomed to it.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen this many people.”
Lu Fenghan casually reached over and straightened the collar that had folded up against Qi Yan’s neck. “Me too.”
Pojun, who was temporarily residing in Lu Fenghan’s personal terminal, spoke up as well. “I’m different. I’ve never seen this many people before.”
That was technically true. He had spent half a year on Chenxi Star and after returning, he had remained aboard the starship the entire time. Still, Lu Fenghan had absolutely no sympathy for him. “You can be quiet now.”
Pojun replied, “Understood, General. I am perfectly aware that my presence will disturb your date.”
Lu Fenghan thought, Good. At least you know.
The two of them walked along the side of the street. Their striking appearances and figures naturally drew quite a few glances from passersby.
Lu Fenghan brought up the plans for the day. “Mykono Star has a local specialty called starflower mushrooms. Noodles made by grinding them into powder are supposed to be very good. We can go try them.”
“Okay.” Qi Yan kept his hands tucked into his coat pockets, still feeling a little cold. He asked Lu Fenghan, “Have you been to this planet before?”
“No. This is my first time here too.”
As a commander in chief who almost never took leave and who worked diligently and conscientiously, Lu Fenghan could describe the strategic deployments of this entire star region and he could calculate this planet’s security index in three seconds but when it came to good food, beautiful sights, or fun things to do, he knew absolutely nothing.
The only reason he knew that Mykono Star had starflower mushrooms was because he had pretended to be casually listening to conversations throughout the command ship and extracted the information from them.
Seeing the tip of Qi Yan’s nose take on a faint pink hue from the cold wind, Lu Fenghan reached over and took his hand. The moment he touched it, he felt how chilled it was. Without hesitation, he simply held it and slipped it into his own coat pocket.
The sudden warmth made Qi Yan shiver. Somewhat uncomfortably, he lowered his gaze toward the fallen leaves beneath his feet but his fingertips instinctively curled deeper into Lu Fenghan’s warm palm.
Lu Fenghan could not help remembering when they had been on Leto. They had temporarily boarded a starship to travel to Woz Star and Qi Yan had told him that because of the dangers involved, aside from the Lagoon Nebula, Leto was the only place he had ever been.
Qi Yan held an immense curiosity about this world.
Looking at the beautiful outer corners of the eyes beside him and the frost white skin along his neck, Lu Fenghan tightened his fingers around that slender hand.
I want to purge the rebel army.
So that you can freely and peacefully do the things you want to do and go wherever you want to go.
So that no matter when or where, you will never be frightened, never be afraid, never find yourself in danger and never be threatened.
This was Lu Fenghan’s ambition.
✦ ✧ ✦
Vynellia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
The Realm’s ancient scrolls mention something called… “buy them a coffee.”
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
← PreviousNext →
ChaptersChapter 50 · I am Pojun.Chapter 51 · Unable to deceive oneselfChapter 52 · Resurrected from the deadChapter 53 · Hello, General!Chapter 54 · My hand is injured.Chapter 55 · Come to my place.Chapter 56 · First VictoryChapter 57 · Self-introductionChapter 58 · Never changedChapter 59 · One reasonChapter 60 · Gentle and restrainedChapter 61 · Only you are allowed.Chapter 62 · To the Souls of the FallenChapter 63 · His reliefChapter 64 · His ambitionChapter 65 · Date TimeChapter 66 Part 1 · Abducting PlanetsChapter 66 Part 2 · Abducting PlanetsChapter 67 · Did not leaveChapter 68 · Perceiving EmotionsChapter 69 · My own effortsChapter 70 · Bright FlameChapter 71 · Dress codeChapter 72 · Take me with you!Chapter 73 · MirageChapter 74 · I’m used to it.