“We heard from our comrades who died in Charon Star System that Your Highness said that the Empire never negotiates. But please suspend the Imperial Scepter’s intrusion for now. Once there is any rescue attempt or if it is discovered that any of us are harmed, the hostages’ collars will activate the instant-death command.”
A member of Scorpion Tail whispered softly.
Upon hearing this, Asaga, who was preparing to infiltrate, suddenly tightened the control stick, stopping all actions of the mecha.
The veins bulged on his sturdy arms.
“You are courting disaster.”
Nero’s gaze remained calm. “In the battle of Charon Star System, you never expected to be annihilated by the Whale Fleet, resulting in the loss of hundreds of thousands of starships on the frontline. Even if Titus Laud allocated a large number of troops, according to my understanding of you, Scorpion Tail’s current combat strength is unlikely to exceed that of a fleet.”
“Your Highness, your judgment is accurate. If it weren’t for the heavy damage suffered in our territory, we would never have wanted to meet you in this way.” Another member of Scorpion Tail spoke. He raised his eyes from under his hood, and there was genuine regret in his eyes.
“When Your Highness was captured at the age of 10, you were already capable of killing for survival. Such strong courage and spirit, surpassing any child trained by the Temple Knights in a thousand years. We abhor Caesar and his bloodline, but we were deeply impressed by Your Highness at that time. If it weren’t for the Wolf Knights risking their lives to protect you, we originally planned to recapture you and nurture you into the most outstanding knight in history after treating your foot injury. Escort you to adulthood, and then ascend you to the Rose Throne. At that time, the Kaises Royal Family and the Temple Knights would have an unprecedented reconciliation, and all previous hatred and disputes would vanish into thin air.”
Nero remained silent.
All he heard was a slight hitch in the breathing coming through his earpiece.
It wasn’t surprising.
He had never mentioned to the White Wolf Knight the fact that he had killed someone at the age of 10.
Considering the knight’s character, it was likely that the clumsy wolf was currently overwhelmed with shock and guilt.
“Now that we have accepted the employment of Titus Laud, and have gone to great lengths to communicate with you, it is not our intention to take your life. If we can achieve our goal, we will break our contract with Titus Laud and swear before the gods, that until the last of us is summoned by the Lord, we will never set foot in the Galactic Empire again, and disappear from the galaxy forever.”
Nero still didn’t speak, just waiting silently.
“First,” the member of Scorpion Tail said on the screen, “we will take away the Holy Son.”
Nero interrupted coldly: “Absolutely impossible.”
“—Second,” the other party seemed not to hear, “we will return what belongs to Your Highness.”
The Scorpion Tail member muttered something quietly through the internal communication of their team.
Soon, a column of Scorpion Tail members came up from the bottom of the ship, each carrying something on their shoulders.
They came to the screen and, like throwing goods, casually threw the things on their shoulders to the ground, emitting a heavy dull sound.
Nero narrowed his eyes slightly. Judging from their appearance, these should all be living people, numbering about twelve or thirteen.
However, they looked like they had endured decades of brutal torture and torment, with no intact skin left on their bodies.
One of them was thrown closest to the screen by a Scorpion Tail member. Because his limbs had been disabled, he looked like a headless insect, using his head to support his body and struggling to avoid his injuries as he flipped over.
Nero’s gaze swept over these people, unable to identify their identities from their horrifying appearance, and then lifted his cold red eyes again.
“It is obvious that eight years have been a sufficiently long time for you, for us, and for them. Your Highness’s return to the throne, forgetting them, is quite normal. To show our sincerity, please allow your fleet to receive DNA samples and compare them with the Empire’s database.”
In front of the screen, a Scorpion Tail member collected living samples from the captives and then released small unmanned aircraft from the transport ship to send the samples to the direction of the Delphi Star System’s fleet.
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.
Ktf Gfiqtl Vajg Vsrafw’r oiffa mjealberis gfmflnfv atf rjwqifr jcv atfc delmxis yfujc atf GRC afralcu qgbmfrr.
“Tbeg Llutcfrr, ralii ecjyif ab gfmbuclhf atfw?” Ktfgf kjr j ojlca tlca bo gfugfa jcv vlrvjlc lc Vmbgqlbc Kjli wfwyfg’r abcf.
“Sluta sfjgr jub, lo atfs tjvc’a rjmglolmfv atfwrfinfr ab rjnf sbe, Tbeg Llutcfrr kbeiv tjnf ibcu yffc atf wbra ibsji rfgnjca bo atf Kfwqif.
“Now that we have the opportunity to meet Your Highness, we also want to prepare a humble gift for Your Highness. Before searching the residence, we didn’t hold much hope. Unexpectedly, of the knights captured back then, twenty-three are still alive after eight years.”
As Scorpion Tail member spoke calmly, he continued to observe Nero’s face under his hood, not missing any subtle expressions.
Perhaps even the gods could not have predicted that the young prince, who cried over a scratch and fainted repeatedly from the pain of a severed foot, kept alive with stimulants, would now become a resilient and cold Emperor.
Even if he was suddenly struck in the most fatal place, the eyes of the silver-haired Emperor showed no sign of wavering.
However, those lips, always tinged with rose color, had indeed betrayed him—
“We indeed favor loyal and brave warriors, so after capturing them, we tried various ways to erase the heretical thoughts implanted by the Kaises.
“Asimov Collars can only give us physical puppets. Without allegiance from the soul, they are meaningless to the holy cause.
“Your knights—please forgive me, Your Highness—are the most unyielding alpha wolves, so they had to endure the harshest tortures.”
A Scorpion Tail member squatted down, lifting the head of a Wolf Knight slumped in front of the screen to show his empty eye sockets and toothless mouth.
“Your Highness, what kind of belief do you think could sustain them for eight years, living like pigs and dogs?”
As he narrated, Scorpion Tail member’s tone was mechanical and cold, but his hooded, vicious gaze never left the silver-haired Emperor’s face.
“Your knights never deigned to speak to us, so I can only speculate.
“Perhaps deep down, they still hoped to see you again. They longed to see their little master grow into an adult, surviving only for this belief.
“Do you think this is the case, Your Highness?”
The crimson mecha hovered in space for a long time, seeming to have stopped even its core engine.
The White Wolf Knight’s mecha, which had always guarded Vermillion from the side, suddenly subtly raised its hand to block the crimson ship’s abdomen.
The DNA test results were in.
The captives in Scorpion Tail’s hands were indeed the Wolf Knights who went missing during Nero’s escape.
“Please hand over the Holy Son to us, Your Highness. This is our only request,” Scorpion Tail member said.
“After obtaining the Holy Son, we will faithfully fulfill our promise, release the hostages and the Wolf Knights, and never set foot in the Empire again,” Scorpion Tail member added.
The silver-haired Emperor in the light screen remained silent.
After a long while, he slowly moved his pale lips, his voice no longer as cold and decisive as before, but rather low and hoarse, like that of a seriously wounded patient:
“…Impossible.”
“We are extremely fortunate that your knights haven’t been rendered deaf,” he continued.
The Scorpion Tail member did not become enraged, but simply lowered its head, speaking gently to the captured Wolf Knight:
“Sir Knight, this is the voice of the young prince. He has grown up. Can you hear it?”
When the Wolf Knight was brought in, his eyes were blind and severely damaged, but there was still a sense of confusion and vigilance on his face.
However, he now relied solely on his hearing and was aware of the situation in real-time.
So he lay there like a true corpse, completely unresponsive, not giving the Scorpion Tail member the slightest chance to continue threatening Nero.
“Forgive me for any offense, Sir Knight.”
The Scorpion Tail member reached into the Wolf Knight’s maimed limbs, slowly grasping the broken bones.
The Wolf Knight tightly closed his mouth, not uttering a sound of pain, but the physiological reactions caused by the intense pain could not be suppressed by even the strongest will.
Soon, his tortured and heavily injured body began to convulse uncontrollably.
“…Stop.”
Hearing the strained voice from Nero’s throat, the Scorpion Tail member complied, quickly withdrawing his blood-drenched hand.
When he turned back to the light screen, his tone was slightly softer than before, almost coaxing:
“Your Highness, I know of the deep bond between you and your Wolf Knights. You do not have to endure such heartache, your Wolf Knights do not need to suffer further torment, and the students and teachers in the education center on the transport ship do not need to experience the pain of separation from their loved ones.
“We only wish to fulfill the duties of the Temple Knights.
“The Temple is no longer the holy place it once was, it has long been corrupted by Caesar’s sinful blood and tainted by the greed of the cardinals. We want to rescue the Holy Son from this evil place, just as your Wolf Knights risked their lives to rescue you from Rupert’s hands.”
“… ”
“Your Highness, please allow us to enter Delphi Star System and take the Holy Son with us.”
“… ”
“Your Highness, our losses in Charon Star System have been heavy, and we are now at our last resort. Please do not remain silent any longer.”
The Scorpion Tail member once again reached toward the Wolf Knight’s maimed limbs.
A moment of deathly silence passed, and then the heavily scarred body began to convulse violently again, creating a dreadful thumping sound on the floor.
“…I said, stop.”
Nero’s voice finally began to tremble.
He couldn’t even bring himself to look at the light screen anymore, his gaze falling somewhere beside it, his fingers on the control panel also unconsciously tapping anxiously.
Despite his royal upbringing allowing him to maintain a semblance of composure, his now completely pale face and slightly trembling lips exposed too much emotional information to the Scorpion Tail member.
Several Scorpion Tail members exchanged glances under their hoods.
They had received intelligence from the Red Python that Nero had disguised himself as a Scorpion Tail member to infiltrate the arena and had taken Asaga with him, saving a former Wolf Knight in the process.
This detail was enough for them to deduce that the Wolf Knights who had been by his side since childhood must be Nero’s Achilles’ heel.
But it was a pity.
Even they knew that once one ascended to the Rose Throne, one could no longer afford any weaknesses.
But if it weren’t for the fact that the Royal Family members had been wiped out by the rebels, how could this little prince, who even shed tears for the tragic death of civilians while imprisoned as a child, inherit the throne?
“Your Highness, please forgive us, we really don’t have much time left. Perhaps from now on, if we throw ten hostages out into space every minute, and a Wolf Knight every five minutes, it will help you make a decision faster?”
“Do you really think that after taking the Holy Son from Delphi, you can safely leave the Empire’s territory?”
“Without your orders, we would definitely not be able to leave safely. Therefore, please allow us to land at the port of Delphi Star System first. After welcoming the Holy Son on board, we will arrange for the return of the hostages ourselves.”
“… ”
A longer silence ensued, but it was expected.
The silver-haired Emperor in the light screen was obviously still trying to maintain his composure, but every microexpression betrayed the fact that his mind was in turmoil.
Because Scorpion Tail member placed the captured Wolf Knight in front of the camera, Nero’s gaze occasionally touched him. Nero reacted as if he had been burned, causing him to look away and be unable to turn back for a long time.
His fingertips were also tapping frantically on the control panel, clearly trying to think of a way out of the current situation.
“Your Highness, one minute is up.”
The Scorpion Tail member naturally wouldn’t give him time to consider a strategy.
At the command of the Scorpion Tail member, the collars on the first row of hostages began to glow.
Despite tears still lingering on their faces, they stood up from the ground expressionlessly and walked towards the back of the transport ship.
Nero suddenly turned his gaze back, his eyes redder than blood.
He opened his mouth slightly, but couldn’t say anything. He watched helplessly as the ten hostages disappeared at the airtight cabin door.
Soon, the outer hatch of the transport ship opened.
When the human body was exposed to outer space without protection, blood could provide oxygen for up to 15 seconds. Therefore, everyone surrounding the transport ship could clearly witness the movements of the hostages as they leaped out into the extreme environment of outer space.
As the pressure difference caused their blood to boil and evaporate, within ten seconds, the leaping hostages rapidly shriveled, becoming cold, floating blocks of ice.
The Scorpion Tail members collectively knelt down and bowed their heads, praying for the souls of those stone-like bodies in space.
After the prayer, one of the Scorpion Tail members returned to the light screen.
“Your Highness, the second minute is starting. The fate of your people and Wolf Knights is in your hands, and we hope that your heart, as solid as a rock, will be moved by them. The Empire will not condemn you for your compassion. Please hand over the Holy Son to us.”
As his words fell, a sudden change occurred in the cabin!
A severely injured Wolf Knight who had been lying at the rear of the cabin suddenly launched an attack—
He violently knocked down one of the Scorpion Tail members with a gun and used a ruthless chokehold to subdue him!
Ah… this was a difficult chapter……. But as brilliant as always……..
I think this has been the hardest chapter to read up till now
I think this IS the hardest chapter to read up till now 😞😓😔
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
My head is spinning, so creepy QwQ
Thank you.
Once I will understand how comment section is working Q_Q
LOL
these so called “temple knights” are so foul!!!! literally the scums of the earth!!!
ahhhhhhh 😭 i hope the entire Scorpion Tail group experience the same torture they did to the Wolf Knights!!!
Thank you for the chapter
You’ve always been ruthless, Nero, don’t fail us now 😖 remember the trolley!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA 😭😭 I’M CRYING. MY HEART IS ACHING FOR THOSE WOLF KNIGHTS😭😭
This was a crazy to read chapter, and even harder to go through 😭😭
Ahhhhhhh, I got so used to this being updated everyday it’s killing me 😭😭😭