The blaster gun slid along the hostages’ feet with a click.
Another Wolf Knight, who had been listening intently, quickly rolled over and pressed down on the energy gun with his body.
Then, using his remaining leg as a stabilizer, he pulled the trigger with an unbroken finger, boldly firing at the Scorpion Tail member on the screen!
The Scorpion Tail member was hit from behind.
The energy gun’s power was immense. Even though the blind Wolf Knight had not aimed for the heart, the Scorpion Tail member still had more than half of its body flying away.
“As you can see, just as I said before—your knights are incredibly difficult to tame, and of course, they are also admirable warriors.”
Scorpion Tail members seemed unsurprised.
Another Scorpion Tail raised his beam gun and shot directly at the armed Wolf Knight, not caring at all about the hostages nearby.
He simply severed the Wolf Knight’s arms and then stepped forward, kicking the fallen blaster gun and severed arms aside.
The Scorpion Tail member killed by the Wolf Knight fell to the ground.
At the same time, the collars around the necks of the hostages began to glow, and they stood up neatly.
Their eyes were full of despair and fear as they stared straight at Nero on the screen.
But the collars were linked to the Scorpion Tail members’ heartbeats, and as soon as a Scorpion Tail member died, the instant-death function in the collars would be triggered.
Bang.
A very light sound.
“Please relieve my compatriots of their suffering. May the gods guide their souls to the sanctuary.”
Another Scorpion Tail member stepped over a row of limp corpses, and walked toward the Scorpion Tail member still being held hostage by the Wolf Knight at the rear of the cabin.
Then, he completely ignored his captured companion and simply pressed the hot barrel against the bloody forehead of the Wolf Knight.
“Wait…”
Nero interrupted, his voice trembling with intense anger, even his blood-red pupils were shaking, “Land at the Delphi Star System’s port, and then?”
“Then, please prepare 1,000 light boats for us to use as vehicles for ourselves and the Holy Son. Once we safely reach the Empire’s border, the orders in the Asimov Collars will be immediately lifted.”
“Who can guarantee that you will definitely release the hostages?”
“Your Highness, only the gods can vouch for the Temple Knights. If you do not believe in the divine constraint on the Temple Knights, feel free to bombard our transport ships without further ado.”
“And please allow me to be rude—the second minute is up.”
The second batch of hostages leaped out of the hermetically sealed cabin, becoming cold corpses floating in space.
“Your Highness, I understand that you need time to consider. But five minutes will soon be up, and perhaps you can choose in advance which noble Wolf Knight you want to say goodbye to.”
The Scorpion Tail member guided the screen, slowly and cruelly letting the camera pass over the face of each captured Wolf Knight.
The cold, snake-like gaze under the hood remained firmly fixed on the face of the little Emperor in the screen.
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.
“…”
“Tbeg Llutcfrr, atf atlgv wlceaf lr eq.”
Ccbatfg yjamt bo mbiv mbgqrfr rmjaafgfv lc rqjmf.
“…”
“Tbeg Llutcfrr, jgf sbe ralii mtbbrlcu ab gfwjlc rlifca? Ktf obegat wlceaf lr jirb jybea ab fcv.”
“…”
“Pc atf oloat wlceaf, kf klii atgbk bea j Qbio Bcluta. Tbeg Llutcfrr, tjnf sbe wjvf sbeg mtblmf?”
“Send orders to all ships at Delphi Star System.”
The silver-haired Emperor finally spoke.
His voice was completely hoarse, almost inhuman.
“Open the port and guide the transport ship in.”
…
The Capital.
The first batch of rebel forces had entered the range of orbital cannons and began small-scale skirmishes with the defenders of the Capital.
In the Capital’s command center, Heidrich sat in the Supreme Commander’s chair, with officers of various ranks methodically carrying out defensive operations in front of their fleet star maps.
The rebels were mainly conducting harassment and reconnaissance, so the need for the Supreme Commander was minimal.
The officers saw the black-haired general narrow his eyes slightly and suddenly stand up from his chair.
When they gave him curious looks, he tapped the earpiece in his ear, indicating an urgent communication, and quickly walked out of the command center.
To be cautious, Heidrich opened the Capital’s frontline star map to keep track of the frontline situation.
At the same time, he found an empty, enclosed rest cabin and went inside, closing the door behind him.
“General! A message from the Delphi Star System’s fleet!”
The sweating face of the adjutant appeared on the screen.
The adjutant was originally supposed to be stationed at the Capital. However, when Nero insisted that Heidrich stay in the Capital and Heidrich couldn’t refuse the young Emperor, he used Nero’s departure as an opportunity to send the adjutant to Delphi.
In this way, whenever the little Emperor unilaterally cut off the information exchange between Delphi Star System and the Capital to focus the soldiers on defending the Capital, Heidrich would still have a channel to learn about the real-time situation in Delphi.
“The Scorpion Tail members have hijacked the transport ship of the education center and demand that Your Majesty open the Delphi Star System’s port and hand over the Holy Son before they will release the hostages!”
“The Holy Son?” Heidrich frowned, murmuring softly, “They very likely aren’t here for the Holy Son.”
Then, his gaze turned cold: “Nonsense. There has never been a precedent for the Scorpion Tail to release hostages. From the moment they took hostages into Delphi Star System, they were certain that even if their demands were met, no one would be released alive.”
“Your Majesty is currently at the edge of Delphi Star System negotiating with the Scorpion Tail members—”
The adjutant was stationed at the Delphi Star System’s garrison base, frequently looking at the real-time screen at the edge of the galaxy.
“I heard that there are over ten thousand hostages, each with an Asimov Collar… Damn it, the Scorpion Tail is too despicable! In this way, we have no way to break in and rescue them!”
Heidrich pondered.
Indeed. Although the Empire now had a way to crack the Asimov Collars, it required highly precise surgery and excellent postoperative care. Once the Asimov Collar was worn, it had absolute control over the human brain.
Without the ability to even approach the hostages, there is no chance of deactivating it.
“…Damn it! General, the Scorpion Tail has started to throw hostages out!”
When the adjutant looked at the screen again, he happened to see the first circle of corpses floating outside the transport ship.
He and the other officers stationed at the base were instantly pale.
For true imperial soldiers, such inhumane acts were a direct assault on their honor and dignity!
Heidrich’s gaze, however, didn’t have much fluctuation.
He listened to the war report from the Capital through the earpiece and looked at the screen.
The dazzling and beautiful crimson mecha was being heavily guarded by the Wolf Knight mechas.
This made him breathe a slight sigh of relief.
He was asked to stay in the Capital, unable to grasp the overall situation in Delphi Star System, let alone arrange tactics for the hostage situation.
But at least for now, even if the Scorpion Tail was targeting Nero, they seemed incapable of threatening him.
“His Majesty has the Infiltrators at his disposal, and I’m sure they’ve been laying out their plans.”
Heidrich said, “But plans take time. During this time, some hostages will inevitably be sacrificed.
“If you want to do something more than just watch, then make sure to record the names of the deceased and prepare for the aftermath.”
Adjutant: “How could you— wait a minute! Just received His Majesty’s decree, His Majesty ordered the opening of the Delphi Star System’s port to let the Scorpion Tail in…?”
“…What?”
Heidrich didn’t expect it and suddenly lifted his head.
An uneasy feeling had been nagging at him all day, ever since they had deployed the defenses around the Capital.
No matter what he was doing, he always inexplicably remembered the last communication with Nero.
The young Emperor, capricious as ever, had casually told him not to die at the hands of the rebels before abruptly ending the call, leaving Heidrich with an inexplicable sense of dread.
It was obviously an extremely touching scene, but he still couldn’t figure out where the source of that unease lay.
It could be the honed instincts of a seasoned commander, giving him a sygnal.
“Colonel, I need you to make some preparations in advance.”
Heidrich slowly spoke, “Use your military rank to requisition a star destroyer and and equip it with Scorpion Tail’s insignia and camouflage. Ensure the transport ship carrying the hostages remains within your firing range as it approaches Delphi Star System.”
The adjutant, though often irritated by Heidrich’s demeanor, respected his capabilities. He nodded vigorously. “Alright! And then?”
“If the worst-case scenario happens— that is, if His Majesty is really threatened by the Scorpion Tail.”
The man’s blue eyes were faint, “I need you to disguise yourself as the Scorpion Tail member and deal with anything that can threaten His Majesty.”
The adjutant froze, staring in disbelief. “Are you suggesting… killing the hostages? Heidrich, I may be unreliable at times, but I am still an imperial soldier!”
Heidrich responded calmly, “Given His Majesty’s personality, he would never give in to the Scorpion’s Tail. Unless the Scorpion’s Tail not only has the hostages from the educational center but also— the Wolf Knights who were once separated from His Majesty.”
“The depth of emotion between His Majesty and the Wolf Knights is profound. I cannot judge how much this will affect His Majesty’s rationality. But for me, for the Empire, His Majesty’s safety is absolutely paramount. It surpasses everything, surpasses the hostages at the educational center, and even surpasses the Wolf Knights— do you understand?”
The adjutant retorted, “I don’t understand! Even a three-year-old in the Empire knows the Kaises Family and the Wolf Knights are inseparable. If I committed such a heinous act… the Emperor would definitely kill me!”
“No. His Majesty will only kill me and hang my head on the pillars of the tribunal.”
Heidrich said calmly, “But even if it happens ten thousand times over, I will still do it.”
As he spoke, a hint of fierceness emerged from his indifferent blue eyes.
“His Majesty sits on the Rose Throne, so anyone or anything that can shake his rationality is not allowed to exist.”
“The likelihood of having to fire on the hostages today is minimal. But as long as it’s not zero, we need to be prepared.”
The adjutant stared blankly at the screen, at the man with the cold and cruel gaze, as if he was meeting him for the first time in his life.
He shook his head vigorously while muttering, “The duty of an imperial soldier is to protect the empire and its people! The Emperor always considers civilians’ safety during battles, yet you, an officer handpicked by him, propose such an unthinkable solution…”
“Yes.”
Heidrich’s tone was faint, without any refutation, “That’s the fundamental difference between me and His Majesty. Please go and make preparations, Colonel.”
The adjutant was so angry that his veins popped out: “I won’t do it! If you have the guts, strip me of my military rank!”
The holographic screen went black with a swish.
Heidrich sat on the march bed in the rest cabin, bowing his head to look at his hands on his knees.
Since just now, the tips of his fingers inside the white gloves had been trembling very slightly.
This was a situation that had never occurred even in the most dire fortress defense battles.
In the side-view star map, the rebels had completed the encirclement of the Capital.
The first large-scale battle was about to begin, and he had to return to his post immediately.
The man could only clench his fists slowly as he checked the real-time status of the Wolf Knights and Asaga.
He couldn’t access to the internal channels of the Wolf Knights, which didn’t surprise Heidrich.
But the Imperial Scepter’s channel was also silent.
Obviously, they were carrying out some secret operation.
The man blinked slightly.
His tense and straight back relaxed silently.
……
Ohooo, I believe it’s gotta be some kinda trap, and Heidrich must have realized there’s more than meets the eye?