The boundaryless baby voice, this time, did not fade quickly but echoed for a long while.
As a result, whenever Hel tried to sink into depression, that voice cut him off; whenever he started to fall, it interrupted again.
Usually, Hel would be locked in anguish and unable to sleep for ages.
Yet at least, in the old days, he could sleep a bit at night. Now? He stared at the ceiling until dawn—
Studying in the middle of the night?? Studying all night long?!
How much must these kids suffer?!
What parent is so malicious?!!! Not even he would be such a devil! Where are the child protection laws?! Someone punish this parent, now!
But maybe it was because his crown was breaking, but hadn’t yet fallen to despair, that Hel, after a sleepless night, was actually in surprisingly decent shape.
When the voice finally stopped, Hel still didn’t move.
He had no idea why this was happening, whether it was an illusion or some technological trick, but he didn’t have the energy to find out.
He just leaned against the wall, unmoving, and slowly closed his eyes.
*
After sunrise.
The cub was taken by Amos to the council palace.
Lately, Amos always had the little one with him.
After all, no teacher had been found yet, and the cub had nothing else to do, only exploring the world with curiosity.
So, even in meetings, Amos made sure the cub played within the reach of his own mental strength.
For the Crown Clan, this was somewhat improper—ever since the cub had gone missing, Amos had swept the entire palace with his mental strength, prompting more than a few Crown Clan to resist angrily.
Even back when the habitat planet still existed, Crown Clan upbringing always emphasized independence and strength.
Yet Chu Zao was only five, with no exposure to Crown Clan education, gentle and mild, with little aggression. Amos, with no experience raising such a cub, had tried to mold him into what he thought a cub of this age should be, which led to various crises.
Amos’s methods were heavy-handed, but Chu Zao bore it with quiet gentleness.
While the adults met, the cub sat on a plush rug in the next room, playing with all the little toys Grandpa Mori had prepared.
Not long ago, Kaman was formally re-entered into the records.
Now, between meetings, he felt the force of Amos’s overbearing mental strength and jabbed Meilun.
“I always wanted to say—Hasn’t His Majesty gotten a bit too uptight about Zao Zao lately?”
Meilun glanced at him.
“That’s because you have no cubs and have never lost one—honestly, even though it was an accident, whenever I look back, I still can’t help checking Zao Zao’s whereabouts, let alone Amos.”
Meilun patted his shoulder.
“The Crown Clan of Amos’s generation never raised cubs—I always thought their instincts had atrophied, and now they’re just barely catching up. Suddenly going all in like this, well, here we are. It’s okay, I bet as Zao Zao gets more capable, Amos will loosen up a bit.”
“You’re not wrong, either—by the way, any news about those two from the Keben family?”
Kaman tapped the table lightly.
“They’re exactly the issue we once feared most—”
He meant Job and Joshua; the Keben family now only had these two. Tragedy had struck all at once, wiping out most of their family in a single day.
Fate hadn’t destroyed them—it had been their own emotions first.
“Who knows, secret monitoring,” Meilun shrugged. “Actually, Zao Zao is old enough to start some basic combat training. I bet Amos has the same idea. On the other hand… the most fitting teacher would be Hel, right? Even if there’s only one of the imperial tutor family left, their methods are still solid.”
Hel’s family had been the Dwight family’s chosen teachers for generations; both Hel and his father had taught Amos.
“Can’t be done, I think? Hel’s issues aren’t just about the crown…”
Kaman frowned at the mention of Hel.
“That man won’t hesitate when the time comes… he’ll end it all, no looking back.”
Meilun: “…You’re right.”
This council’s agenda was simple.
Mainly an international summit in two weeks. The galaxy was vast and lush in parts, with regions nowhere near Holy Cas, and an immortal-led alliance group embroiled in its own upheaval. Unlike Holy Cas, they never matched the combative strength of the Crown Clan, and now a new, aggressive power was emerging—its leader, Lin Yuan, was fiercely strong-willed, cocky, brazen—threatening to shift the balance entirely. In a galaxy this big, surrounded by pollution, there were always unknown forces resisting.
The Holy Chalice Clan, foreseeing calamity, had dispatched elders to meet with Holy Cas, hitching a ride with the Dwight family’s only female member, Feiman Dwight, and the Fourth Army’s fleet.
Amos sat in the main seat, Frey beside him, an empty chair between them, then the high-ponytailed, black-uniformed Feiman, with Anya at her other side.
Feiman was standard-beautiful—taking after their mother, her captivating eyes full of emotion, but her personality standoffish like their father, quiet and unsociable, preferring to command the Fourth Army against monsters, rarely at the palace.
She seemed calm—if not for how often she checked the time, or glanced toward the door.
Since arriving, Feiman had done a mental strength check, followed by meetings.
She’d received news—about… a cub.
A cub?
Crown Clan with a cub?
Feiman couldn’t understand, but she could sense a weaker presence in the adjacent room.
She’d even gotten a present ready.
When the meeting ended, Amos was first to rise and leave.
A Holy Chalice elder followed, frowning and quick, waiting until only Crown Clan remained to speak up.
“This new Boel Alliance issue—we suspect the Hymn Organization’s hand. As a hidden race, we must again warn the Crown Clan: being a benevolent tree hastens your demise.”
There was a faint, all-knowing arrogance to his voice.
“You should act as the Holy Chalice Clan— uninvolved in the affairs of others, keep your hearts cold, learn from the lessons of the past—”
In the hall, royal guards stood by.
None were Crown Clan; after the last incident, security was tighter.
On hearing this, they subtly tightened their grip, eyes downcast.
The next second—Amos’s mental strength sword was at the elder’s throat.
The elder’s words stopped dead. A gasp, then terror—nobody saw Amos move.
Amos’s face was cold, even cruel, and impatient.
This Emperor had been in a volatile mood; only the lack of major crisis kept him stable.
“Show some respect for my people and my race. I am not my father—I have never had patience.”
The Holy Chalice elder dared not speak.
As the sword at his throat dissolved, they, having brought news of the summit, quickly took their leave.
When all was quiet, the usual Crown Clan didn’t react; Feiman looked around.
“Brother Amos.”
Her voice was chilly, like water on stone.
“Didn’t you say you rescued a cub? I brought him the latest mech suit. I remember kids liked these when—”
She was cut off by a faint click.
Several Crown Clan looked over.
The side room door opened quietly.
Half of Chu Zao’s face peered out, soft black curls and a glowing golden halo preceding him.
Amos’s face instantly softened: “Zao Zao.”
“Papa!”
The cub scampered in, hugging his ghost bear. Standing with all the tall Crown Clan, he looked miniscule.
“Papa, are you done yet? Where are we going?”
He looked around at everyone: “Grandpa Meilun, Grandpa Kaman, Uncle Frey… Uncle Anya… er…”
He peered in confusion at Feiman.
Feiman froze, motionless.
Amos squatted: “We’re heading to the training ground. Your body’s much better, so it’s time to learn some moves—just some easy exercise.”
Then he remembered.
“This is your aunt, Feiman.”
The little cub grew a bit shy, hiding behind Amos, staring at her.
Feiman outwardly calm, inwardly screaming—this small????
Where’d brother even pick this up????
Oh, man! Oh, man!!!
“Sis, don’t you have a gift?”
Anya might not be loved by the cub, but at least got called uncle. He blinked, nudged Feiman.
—A mech? This cub probably won’t like it.
Someone else to share family awkwardness with?
“Ah… Yes…”
Feiman numbly took out a massive mech from her spatial device.
Far too large for the little one. The cub blinked at it blankly.
Feiman: …Looks like the wrong size.
Then she saw the little one’s eyes blink again.
He hid behind Amos and softly said, “Thank you, Aunt Feiman.”
Not just tiny and adorable, but polite too.
Feiman froze even harder.
Her face looked colder.
“Majesty, I have things to take care of.”
She left in a blink, leaving the cub confusedly glancing at Amos.
Amos scooped up the cub, headed to the training room.
The others stayed, caught up in duties.
Only Meilun grinned: “Don’t mind, Zao Zao, your Aunt Feiman’s just shy.”
The cub blinked blankly: ?
Feiman hurried away, only stopping when no one was around, then squatted in a corner, face in her hands, ears bright red.
Ahhhhh—so small! Like something you could pick up, so soft…
Still wearing a stern face, she felt her heart thumping madly.
What is this feeling?
He even said—Thank you, Aunt Feiman.
Eee—heehee.
*
Elsewhere in the galaxy, amidst chaos and turmoil—
Boel Alliance.
Apart from the capital and a few satellites, the revolutionaries led by Lin Yuan had taken nearly everything.
“Be careful of the Crown Clan.”
In a hidden meeting room, several hooded figures conferred.
“Intelligence says they have a cub. If raised as emperor, that’s another hundred, maybe hundreds of years of Crown Clan rule.”
“What’s to be afraid of?”
The young man in dark blue uniform at the head of the table was arrogant and wild.
“I just destroyed one immortal race; back when the Crown Clan were many, sure, nobody would touch them, but now they’re finished, Holy Cas is dying, and I’ve even got some footage… Sure, their mental strength is strong, but not as ridiculous as they say.”
He pressed a button, bringing up footage on the screen.
At the eye of a storm, a Crown Clan member whose crown was almost completely shattered struggled—remarkably, he did not self-destruct, somehow holding on, fighting beast after beast in a madness that wouldn’t end, until exhaustion, his body unrecognizable under blood and filth.
But Lin Yuan, far from Holy Cas, had little true sense of what the Crown Clan could do.
The hooded crowd seemed to mock his naïveté but didn’t stop him—the Hymn Organization loved to stir trouble for immortals, and splitting the Boel Alliance was almost finished. Lin Yuan was nearly useless now; they had no plans to let him see just how terrifying the Crown Clan could be.
To be afraid was to hesitate.
So, this cocky youth, who’d nearly wiped out an immortal race, mumbled,
“How pitiful.”
Lin Yuan turned to the conspirators who helped him fracture the Alliance: “Need a coordinate? I can send it.”
*
Holy Cas Imperial Star, training field.
Amos eyed the cub, uncertain.
For the Crown Clan, even at this age, basic combat skills were expected.
But as Amos met his cub’s round eyes, he couldn’t remember how he’d learned to fight.
He only recalled skirmishes in childhood, swarming his father to snatch whatever he held.
Practice, pain, and scrapes taught you how to dodge, how to attack.
Hesitating, Amos beckoned the child.
“Zao Zao.”
“Hmm?”
The little cub glanced back to check if his ghost bear was lying properly.
Hearing Amos, his small head turned, halo wagging.
Amos raised a bright little gem in his palm.
“Try to take this from Baba.”
“Why take it?”
The cub hesitated.
“Why not just give it to Zao Zao?”
That little face was too cute.
Amos nearly cracked.
Probably his teaching method was flawed.
Still, better to act than stagnate; letting the child move was healthy.
“If you can get this, tonight Baba will take you outside the palace for a look, how about it?”
The cub’s eyes lit up.
He’d always been curious about the world outside.
He quickly limbered up.
“Baba, Zao Zao’s ready! Any way is okay?”
Amos nodded, watching his little cannonball charge.
But he was just too small, too slow.
Amos mainly wanted him to exercise, and even held back to help.
He knelt to meet the cub’s assault.
As the little one ran, his halo twinkled and flickered overhead.
Amos, holding out a hand, gently blocked the child, slowly lowering him, feather-light to the floor.
Flat on his back, Chu Zao blinked at the ceiling.
He rolled up, Crown Clan rivalry flaring.
“Zao Zao again!”
This parent-child tussle lasted half an hour. At last, the little cub was pinned so many times, flapping his wings, clinging to Amos’s arm like a baby sloth.
Amos, one hand holding the gem high, crouched and laughed at the cub.
“Zao Zao, what are you—”
“Wah!”
The cub didn’t stop, but opened wide and bit Amos’s face.
Amos froze.
The cub seized the chance to touch the gem, eyes shining, his halo wiggling, wings fluttering—Zao Zao did it! Praise Zao Zao!
Amos, coming to, touched the tooth mark on his face, still wet with baby drool.
Any method was allowed—but Amos had not expected such filial piety to result in a bite to the face.
The cub, sitting in Amos’s lap, stared curiously at the gem.
But he’d had plenty of exercise; a little more each day and Chu Zao wouldn’t get uncomfortable.
Amos gave the gem to the cub.
He glanced around the training room; the cub’s pinyin book was there too, as he’d been practicing, though not yet writing.
After a brief rest, Amos thought of something, picked up the cub.
“Baba?”
The cub looked up as Amos walked out, hinting that his ghost bear should come too.
When Zao Zao hugged the bear, its two pockets were perfect for storing the pretty gem.
He watched Amos walk out, asking curiously, “Baba, where are we going?”
Amos turned down a side passage.
It was the only open way after all the security locks.
Amos hesitated briefly.
He told the cub, “To see Baba’s old teacher.”
Old… teacher?
“Mm. To train us, he used to live near the training room.”
Amos spoke as they walked.
“But he lost his beloved, his friends, and… his wings. Baba hasn’t seen him in a long time.”
Wings?
The cub’s eyes went wide, peering at Amos.
His own little wings twitched subconsciously.
Did he mean what he thought?
Amos carried him to a quiet villa. Through huge windows sat a pale man, eyes closed, as if lifeless.
At a sound, the man slowly opened his eyes, those crimson, crazed irises meeting Amos’s gaze.
Hel stared blankly at Amos and the cub in his arms.
He didn’t understand the situation.
But he didn’t want to understand.
A… Crown Clan cub?
He didn’t care how such a thing appeared—it didn’t matter to him.
Why come here?
Majesty, there’s no point in seeing me; I’m only alive for my beloved, lost everything—even a whole body. Awaiting self-annihilation. Years ago, he’d never have imagined he’d end up here.
He’d lost all value as a Crown Clan member, Hel closed his eyes again.
The cub clung to Amos’s neck, watching Hel—a sadness in the air, like losing something precious; Baba… seemed sad too.
Amos watched him for a moment, sighed, and, meeting the cub’s gaze, let the child down.
He took the ghost bear as the cub moved.
Then saw the little one roll two balls of snow into a snowman, adding two ears—making a little snow-bear, just like Amos once showed him. The child left it at the window.
“Baba—”
His little hands frozen, he reached up for a hug.
Softly, he said,
“Baba gave Zao Zao a ghost bear to keep company; Zao Zao made a bear, to keep company for Baba’s teacher.”
Amos paused, then smiled, looking at his old teacher for the first time in years.
“Teacher Hel, this is my cub, Zao Zao. I just wanted you to meet him—goodbye, teacher.”
Amos left, holding the child.
Hel’s withered mental energy thread silently wound around the cub’s little halo.
Hel slowly opened his eyes.
He looked at the odd, lopsided bear at the window, his eyes hollow, lost.
Amos’s cub? That handiwork was as ugly as his old student’s…
Still so naïve.
But now none of it had anything to do with him—
…Wait.
Hel’s reactions were slow, but—
He glanced after Amos.
That voice—from before… why did it sound so familiar???
Had he heard it somewhere?
Meanwhile, Amos carried Chu Zao back; the child, still eager to learn, laid over Amos’s chest, softly singing his pinyin song.
So, inside the villa, with the melody ringing in his mind, Hel tried to think of something else and finally gave up—driven to his wits’ end, he pushed out the door.
“Amos!”
Hel, for once, was on the verge of losing it; the phonics song and its tones had set up a magic loop in his brain.
Hoarsely, he called out to Amos as he was about to leave.
Amos turned. He froze.
—Hel had come out?
But… what was with that look?
The cub, still singing, saw a grey thread attached to his own halo.
Chu Zao: ?
Why is that on Zao Zao’s head?
Hel’s hoarse voice rang out: “I just want some peace here. I don’t know how you did it, but, Your Majesty, I’m begging you, please don’t let him keep singing in my head…”
Hel hit a wall, for he saw the cub take off his own halo.
Hel: …?
“Papa—Zao Zao’s halo has a weird string on it.”
Chu Zao held up the halo for Amos, who had long since grown numb to the cub’s removals.
Hel withdrew in awe and confusion: ………
?????
Don’t call me teacher, you’re my teacher.