The Whale Fleet transited to the Charon Star System, while the Capital Star System was also surrounded by the forces of the Laud Family.
Unlike the passionate commanders of the Whale Fleet who were currently slaughtering the enemy, the expressions of each general in the Capital command base appeared far from relaxed. Under the control of the Laud Family, there are a total of 19 star systems, each with soldiers numbering from millions to trillions, making it an absolute behemoth in the Empire.
Over the past few decades, Titus Laud had never appeared on the political stage, but there was not a single matter concerning the family affairs that escaped his attention.
At this moment, the first batch of deployed garrison fleets had arrived at the Capital Star System.
Unlike any defeated noble rebel army before, they did not launch an assault on the Capital immediately. Instead, they hovered just outside the firing range of the Capital’s orbital cannons, organizing their troops in formation.
The fleet was densely packed, almost filling all available space outside the Capital Star System.
Moreover, with time passing, garrisoned fleets from the Laud Family’s 19 star systems continued to reinforce the frontline in front of the Capital.
Although everyone knew that the overall quality of the garrison troops was not comparable to that of the Heka Star System’s forces, and there were several elite vanguard legions stationed in the Capital, the size of the enemy’s vanguard force was already larger than any previous rebel force encountered.
Furthermore, they refrained from attacking and simply arranged their troops methodically just within the range of the orbital cannons.
The Capital’s commanders watched as the enemy fleet grew larger and the encirclement tighter, yet they could do nothing. Invisibly, a heavy burden weighed on everyone’s hearts.
“The psychological tactic most commonly used by the late Emperor Vashir II.”
The cold voice of Heidrich echoed in the command room.
He had just brewed himself a cup of coffee, taken off his military jacket, and was now wearing only a crisp shirt and a black vest. Compared to his usual impeccably neat appearance with not a single wrinkle, he now appeared unusually casual.
“Launching a campaign against a star system, the attacking side always has less room for error than the defending side. A single misstep can lead to huge consequences. Therefore, before launching an attack, using large-scale maneuvers to suppress the morale of the defending side was a winning strategy repeatedly tried and tested during the late Emperor’s expeditions.”
“I suggest you all order your subordinate units to maintain their regular schedules for now. The defense system of the Capital will naturally give early warning when the enemy attacks.”
The tense atmosphere in the command room instantly relaxed.
Following Heidrich’s lead, the generals also took off their jackets, rolled up their sleeves, and went to brew themselves a cup of coffee to help relax their tense nerves.
“General Heidrich, you’re always so calm and reliable, almost as if you had no weaknesses at all. No wonder His Majesty trusts you so much. I wonder how many more battles I need to experience to be as composed as you…”
While chatting over coffee, some of the younger generals praised him with envy.
Heidrich replied lightly, “Everyone has weaknesses. If my fatal weakness happened to be in the Capital right now, I might not be able to stay aloof.”
The generals assumed he was referring to his sister. They had heard that Eva had been dispatched by His Majesty to the Mirror Spring Palace, apparently to assist with some educational projects.
But then again, Mirror Spring Palace was within the range of the Capital Star System.
The generals were silently puzzled, suspecting that Heidrich had secretly moved his own sister to a safe star system without His Majesty’s knowledge.
“How is it? Can you handle it?”
Nero, who was commanding the Charon Star System’s campaign, naturally learned about the siege of the Capital.
This just confirmed his earlier speculation: the Scorpion Tail’s previous invasion of Charon Star System was aimed at drawing a large portion of the defenders away from the Capital. However, neither Titus Laud nor Scorpion Tail expected that just a squadron of Whale Fleet would be enough to turn the tide in Charon Star System.
However, the Whale Fleet was also the strongest firstline defense force in the defense of the Capital at present.
Those dispatched to Charon Star System were just a squadron, and now that the encirclement had been established, it was too late for them to return to the Capital.
“I have the Delphi Star System’s garrison fleet, the Imperial Scepter, the Infiltrators, and the Wolf Knights in my hands,” Nero said to Heidrich. “If the situation becomes unclear, I will recall the Imperial Scepter back to the Capital, or send them directly to attack the Laud Family’s territory and bring back the head of Titus Laud.”
Although he said so, according to the intelligence from the Military Science Bureau, Duke Titus seemed very cautious.
The information control system had penetrated into the Laud territory, but the Military Science Bureau still couldn’t determine Duke Titus’s exact location, undoubtedly to guard against assassination.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Heidrich shook his head, focusing his gaze solely on Nero. “Your Majesty, as I said before, you don’t need to worry too much about the Capital. As long as you are safe, even if the Capital falls, there will still be room for reversal.”
“Ktf Jjqlaji wera cba ojii.”
Ciatbeut Rfgb bcis wfcalbcfv atf fzagfwfis ibk qgbyjylilas, la jcufgfv Rfgb. “Ktf Jjqlaji lr atf bglulc bo atf Ebrf Ktgbcf, jcv ja atlr wbwfca, atf wbra filaf rbivlfgr bo atf Swqlgf tjnf jigfjvs ujatfgfv lc atf Jjqlaji. Po sbe vjgf ab vfqifaf atfw jii—kts jgf sbe ralii vglcxlcu mbooff? Rb wbgf mbooff obg sbe!”
Heidrich had to cough a few times, silently swallowing the half-cup of coffee in his throat, then placing the coffee cup down.
Although his eyes seemed helpless, there was a slight smirk on his lips, showing a kind of inexplicable indulgence as he looked at Nero.
However, he only managed to say, “Yes, Your Majesty. I won’t drink it anymore.”
“I also won’t allow you to die at the hands of the rebel army. Do you understand?”
With the situation urgent, Nero had no time to chat with him. He ordered firmly, “The Scorpion Tail will not stop here. But Delphi Star System does not need your intervention. Focus on defending the Capital.”
Heidrich’s eyes flickered slightly as he gazed deeply at Nero.
But before he could say anything more, the communication line with Delphi Star System had already been unilaterally cut off by Nero.
Nero turned off the screen and shifted his attention back to the Temple touring yacht in front of him.
It was now the fourth day of the Temple Festival. After the five-day Festival ended, he would use the pretext of protecting the Holy Son to continue stationing his troops in the Delphi Star System.
As long as his troops were deployed in advance, the Delphi Star System would become the safest place during the Empire’s civil war. As long as the high nobles still coveted the throne, they could only choose to attack the Capital, rather than directly engage in war in the Delphi Star System.
If they dare to attack Delphi, they will bear the stigma of defiling a sacred land, to the extent that they will lose support not only within the entire Empire but also among their own garrison.
However, this is based on the premise that the high nobles still aspire to climb the throne and are wary of their reputation. If it’s Scorpion Tail – the fallen former Temple Knights, their reputation no longer holds any restraint over them.
Due to their underestimation, Scorpion Tail suffered heavy losses in Charon Star System, and their alliance with Duke Titus may already be on shaky ground. In the next attack, they will have to achieve their goals in one fell swoop, and they may well target Delphi Star System, where the Emperor and the Holy Son are located.
If he were Scorpion Tail, facing the powerful defense of Delphi Star System, to gain leverage for negotiation…
The Temple touring yacht continued on its route, fulfilling Nero’s and the Temple’s tacitly agreed-upon nominal holy duties. Nero sat in the cockpit, his mind racing as he casually manipulated Vermillion, directing his gaze onto the deck of the yacht.
He had been on guard around him and hadn’t noticed the Temple’s presence among the mecha squad until now. Looking down at the deck, he finally realized that the white-haired Holy Son had been looking up at him with his head tilted back, though he wasn’t sure for how long.
Seeing Vermillion finally noticed him, the Holy Son’s brows and eyes relaxed, and he smiled with the tenderness of melting snow.
Taking advantage of the red-clad divine attendants not being allowed on the deck, he quietly waved at the Vermillion and carefully unfolded a faded candy wrapper, holding it up to show him.
His golden eyes reflected the sunlight streaming down from Mount Olympus, and his lips moved, muttering something incoherently.
His expression and actions resembled someone meeting an old friend after many years, feeling overjoyed that the other finally remembered them.
However, Nero frowned, unable to recall any interaction with the Holy Son outside of the Festival.
The Holy Son was always innocent and carefree, never considering the occasion. Nero watched him wave the candy wrapper, feeling a bit speechless.
[Has the Main System ever tested the Holy Son’s six-dimensional ability value?]
The System was stunned: [Huh? Probably not? Huh? If the protagonist is a bottom… Damn, it really is there.]
Nero had only asked casually, but a six-dimensional radar chart of the Holy Son’s abilities appeared before him.
He scrutinized it.
The six-dimensional radar chart, as described by the System, represented the quantified results of the Main System’s assessment of the character’s abilities in the original work.
He thought that with the Holy Son’s beauty, the ‘appearance’ dimension would be off the charts, but upon closer inspection, he found it had no value, just a peculiar ‘?’
Not just appearance; all dimensions such as strategy, combat ability, overall perspective were marked with ‘?’.
Only one dimension, ‘intelligence,’ showed a small, pitiful value.
Pointing to the ‘intelligence’ dimension, Nero asked, [What does this mean?]
The System was also baffled: [Uh, this… this falls under the category of intellectual disability… What’s going on? Although the Holy Son is a bit of a naive beauty, the author would never set him as intellectually disabled!]
Nero’s tone turned cold: [Offending people with intellectual disabilities is a serious crime in the Empire. I’m very curious if your so-called ‘author’ still has any human decency.]
The System was in a panic: [There must be a mistake! While the ethical standards in erotic literature aren’t high, The Holy Son’s Passion isn’t that kind of story! It’s hard to explain… You might get even angrier, but there are indeed stories that exploit intellectual disability for eroticism, but The Holy Son’s Passion isn’t one of them! The author set the Holy Son as a ‘high mountain flower’ and ‘naive to the world,’ but this original worldview seems to have taken a shortcut by making him intellectually disabled!]
Before Nero could argue with it further, he received a communication from Asaga: “Your Majesty, there is a transport ship approaching the Delphi Star System’s alert zone.”
Here it comes.
Nero’s eyes suddenly turned cold.
“A transport ship?” he confirmed with Asaga.
“Yes. It’s a civilian manned transport ship, Your Majesty.”
Asaga piloted the mecha, hovering briefly in the pitch-black void.
Tens of thousands of black-and-gold killing machines lifted their fierce eyes, staring at the approaching transport ship.
The Imperial Scepter warriors, who grew up within the Empire, were puzzled and vigilant; but Asaga, familiar with Star Pirate tactics, felt his heart sink.
Asaga: “The ship’s ID has been obtained, requesting a search in the Imperial ship database.”
Heka Star System’s Military Science Bureau: “Ship origin: Tuke Star System’s residential planet; Ship type: Civilian transport ship. Deployment purpose: Personnel transport for education center.”
“An education center transport ship?” There was a soldier whispering in the team communication, “What’s a school’s transport ship doing in Delphi Star System?”
Then, the Imperial Scepter initiated a communication request with the other party, preparing for routine expulsion.
The communication was quickly connected, but the other party did not speak.
As the soldiers felt puzzled, looking towards the silent, formidable figure.
Asaga coldly spoke: “How many people are on board?”
“Precisely the number of people in an educational center, totaling over fourteen thousand.”
A distinctly childish voice echoed in the communication channel.
The voice was obviously choked and trembling, but somehow it could accurately, even mechanically, converse with Asaga.
“Obviously, you are the famous Golden-Eyed Asura. Our Lord had long ordered us to snatch you from the hands of the Red Python, but His Highness Nero preemptively brought you under his command. Later, I heard that you had outstanding achievements against the Black Gate, which made us even more regretful – a brave warrior like you should have served under the gods.”
“But now that you have chosen to deviate from the sacred path, let Prince Nero come and talk to us.”
“Your Majesty.”
Asaga directly cut off the communication with the other party and reported to Delphi in a deep voice, “They have hijacked the transport ship of the Tuke Star System’s education center. According to the other party’s claim, there are over fourteen thousand hostages on board, and Scorpion Tail may have already used Asimov Collars on some of the hostages.”
“I understand.”
Nero’s voice was calm, as if he felt no surprise at all. “Asaga, the Military Science Bureau will send you the internal structure of the transport ship. Prepare the Imperial Scepter troops for immediate infiltration.”
The Imperial Scepter, hovering in space like ghosts, dispersed and concealed themselves in an instant.
Nero had already fought Scorpion Tail before and knew that they would repeatedly use civilians to achieve their goals. Therefore, before he entered Delphi Star System, he had already set up heavy defenses in the residential area in advance.
However, his forces were not sufficient to extend protection to the neighboring Took Star System as well.
The Wolf Knights had already made contact with the Tuke Star System. They had indeed lost news of a manned transport ship, which Scorpion Tail had likely infiltrated before liftoff and then coerced the captain to exit the warp route.
“Greetings, Wolf Knights! This is the situation: the Delphi Star System has been targeted by Star Pirates. We are very close to the Delphi Star System and don’t have as many troops as the high nobles. When we heard that the Charon Star System was also invaded, we became very anxious…”
The Tuke Star System was a small residential star system managed by a small noble family. They rarely had the opportunity to deal with big shots, so when they explained the situation to the Wolf Knights, their voices were trembling.
“So, we discussed within our family and decided to transfer the residents of the star system to a system with more troops… Oh, the education center organized the transfer themselves, using a manned transport ship, totaling over fourteen thousand teachers and students… Damn it! I should have sent someone to guard the ship! No one in our family has any combat experience… Please forgive us, Wolf Knights, and please convey our apologies to His Majesty…”
Nero summoned the Delphi Star System’s forces to guard the touring yaht carrying the Holy Son.
Then, the huge Vermillion mecha lifted its head and abruptly soared into the sky, unfurling long wings behind it.
Under the protection of the Wolf Knights, Vermillion broke through the sound barrier in seconds, speeding out of the stratosphere of ancient Earth and directly warping into the border of the star system.
As Asaga had said, there was a large civilian transport ship hovering at the border, without any weapons.
The Delphi Star System’s fleet had already surrounded it, all guns aimed at the hijacked transport ship. But hindered by the hostages, the Delphi Star System’s fleet couldn’t open fire recklessly.
“—Wretched scum, come out and face your Emperor.”
The dazzling silver and red mecha hovered in the center of the dark Wolf Knight mecha legion. Every part of its design was exquisite, yet it was armed to the teeth with large-scale weapons, making it a lethal work of art.
The cold voice of the silver-haired Emperor echoed in the communication channels of both sides.
Soon, the transport ship sent a video request to Delphi Star System.
“Greetings to His Royal Highness the Prince. It has been many years. When we heard of your attack on the Capital, we also prayed devoutly for you. The gods paved the way for you to reclaim the Rose Throne.”
The screen lit up in the cockpit.
On the light screen, several tall Alphas wearing robes and veils were kneeling quietly, facing the camera.
Scorpion Tail had always been like this. Even though they had fallen to Star Pirates, they still adhered to the etiquette of the former Temple Knights— even when massacring women and children.
Compared to their proper imperial etiquette, the scene behind them was a hell on earth.
The abducted civilians, regardless of age or gender, were stripped naked and squeezed onto the floor of the transport ship.
Nero noticed that there were many corpses piled up in the corner of the transport ship, blood splattered on the walls. Any strong adults among the hostages had their hands and feet severely mutilated, left to bleed out on the floor without any medical attention.
“Asimov Collars.”
The low voice of the White Wolf Knight resonated in Nero’s ears.
He had set up a secret communication channel with the Wolf Knights in advance, allowing him to issue orders to the Delphi Star System’s troops through them while he faced Scorpion Tail.
Nero’s gaze fell on a row of children in the front. Indeed, on their slender necks, he saw the flickering Asimov Collars.
The Empire’s education centers accommodated students from kindergarten to university, so the hostages varied in age. They were all treated equally, stripped naked and fitted with collars.
Scorpion Tail communicated with Nero in front of the transport ship, so the people sitting in the blood pool saw the cold and beautiful face of the silver-haired Emperor on the screen.
The Tuke Star System was close to Delphi, and most of its residents were followers of the Temple.
But despite their frantic prayers in times of danger, they had never seen a divine being appear before them; instead, they were faced with the Emperor, whom the Temple had always disdained.
Even though their brains were firmly controlled by the Asimov Collars, their expressions were as hollow as puppets.
But when their eyes met Nero’s, tears still flowed uncontrollably.
Thank you for the chapter
Thank you for the chapter!
An interesting chapter. Thank you for the update 🙂
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
the holy son is so pitiful
Awww the holy sun is just small innocent baby. Why is it also the the innocent intellectually disabled ones getting hurt in this strot.