Being pulled onto the Major General’s body, tightly embraced by him, and affectionately having his head patted and his cheeks rubbed left Miao Te somewhat confused. However, before he could even show his bewildered expression, those thin lips that were close to his ear softly whispered a few words.ย
“Pretend to sleep.”
The words were barely audible, so faint that they seemed to vanish into his ears the moment they left those thin lips
The teen turned his head, looking at the eyes of the person holding him.
The Major General rubbed the hair on the back of Miao Te’s head with his hand and looked down at him. The scattered strands of jet-black hair fell over his eyes, obscuring them from view, except for Miao Te, who was nestled in his arms could see his expression.ย
His slender phoenix eyes were slightly narrowed. Although his actions appeared affectionate, the sharp upward curve at the corners of his eyes revealed a hint of cold, murderous intent.ย
Miao Te’s eyes shifted slightly, and he suddenly understood something.ย
This Major General suddenly made such an uncharacteristic move, clearly intending to put on a show for someone.ย
But since there was no third person in the room, the only possibility was that someone was monitoring the room.ย
… It wasn’t hard to guess who could have installed surveillance in this room.
So that’s it. It was because he realized they were being monitored that the Major General wanted to appear as if he was indulging in pleasure and debauchery even in a moment of crisis…ย
Pei, Pei, Pei![1]
Nonsense! If the Major General’s current behavior counts as debauchery, then what role does that make him in all this? A wicked concubine?
Pei, Pei, Pei!
The teenager, who had unintentionally ended up insulting himself, quickly adjusted his thoughts. His jet-black, bright eyes looked at Taylor, and after blinking a few times, the urge to struggle faded away.ย
Knowing he wasn’t cut out for acting, and to avoid anyone reading his thoughts through his eyes, he simply closed them, rested his head on the Major General’s shoulder, and curled up obediently in his arms like a little kitten.
It felt a bit uncomfortable.
Miao Te, playing along with the Major General’s act of indulging in pleasures, closed his eyes and thought to himself with some dissatisfaction.ย
There was nothing he could doโafter all, the Major General had a great physique and high muscle density.ย
As he was thinking this, a sudden rush of warm air brushed past his earโthe breath from Taylor’s nose and lips, right next to his ear.
The teenagerโs body suddenly tensed up, feeling goosebumps rise all over.ย
He couldn’t handle the man breathing on his sensitive ear like thatโ
Miao Te tried hard to suppress the goosebumps and the tingling sensation on the back of his head, and tried not to open his eyes, and even buried his face in the crook of Taylor’s neck.
He was afraid that someone would notice his stiff and uncomfortable expression, but he didn’t realize that by burying his face, his mouth and nose ended up right against the Major General’s skin.
As he breathed lightly, his warm breath brushed over Taylor’s half-exposed collarbone.
It tickled a little.
The black-haired Major General thought so but didn’t try to correct the teen’s posture in his arms. Instead, he gently ruffled the soft hair of the person in his embrace.
He glanced at the floating metal half-ring on Miao Te’s neck, the silver-blue glow illuminating his pupils.
Then, his long eyelashes drooped as he closed his eyes, maintaining the intimate posture of holding the person in his arms, as if he too had fallen asleep.
The room fell silent, with only the faint blue light flashing intermittently from the metal ring on the Major General’s wrist…
***
An hour later, it was already late at night.
Although lying on the Major General’s body was uncomfortable, Miao Te still managed to doze off, unable to move with his eyes closed.
The young Major General, who was leaning against the headboard with Miao Te in his arms, also had his head lowered, eyes closed, and remained motionless, only the sound of his steady breathing indicated that he seemed to be in a deep sleep.
Suddenly, a spark of fire lit up.
Almost in the next second after the fire ignited, there was a loud explosionโโ
The room was instantly blown to pieces.
It was almost instantly engulfed by scorching, fierce flamesโโ
The two people inside were reduced to nothing in that instantโโ
But that was not the case.
Almost at the same moment, the faint spark of light appeared. The young Major General, who had been motionless for an hour and seemed to be in a deep sleep, suddenly opened his eyes.
The deep blue pupils became incredibly sharp the moment they reflected the flicker of flames.ย
The sharpness in his eyes emitted a chilling and terrifying coldnessโโ
As the entire room shattered into pieces, the metal ring on his wrist suddenly burst into a bright light.
Up until that moment, the ring had been emitting a faint blue glow, and everyone had believed that it was due to mental harmonization.
But nowโ
The light particle shield, which had been accumulating energy for an hour, was suddenly activated at the moment the room exploded, forming a circular light screen that enveloped Taylor and Miao Te, protecting them from any harm.
After the devastating explosion, the vicious flames followed, rushing towards them fiercely.
Amid the deafening roar and vibrations, the teenager suddenly woke up. He turned his head and was immediately stunned.
He just stared wide-eyed, foolishly watching as the scorching flames were about to engulf him in the next second, the fiery tongues nearly reaching the tip of his noseโย
Suddenly, the world spun aroundโโ
The young Major General holding him leaped into the air before the flames could swallow them both.
Miao Te opened his mouth but didn’t have time to scream as Taylor had already jumped down from the midsection of the several-hundred-meter-high tower with him.
The wind howled past his ears, with a fierce gust tearing his hair into disarray from below.ย
The feeling of free-falling from such a height made Miao Te feel like his heart was about to leap out of his throat.
He instinctively clung tightly to Taylor like a drowning person, tears streaming from his eyes.
The terrifying sensation of complete weightlessness made him want to scream, but the last bit of reason in his mind told him that if he shouted, it would alert the enemyโโ
But the fear that made his heart want to burst out was so overwhelming that he could hardly hold back his scream. When he opened his eyes, he saw the young General’s pale neck right in front of him.
Almost without thinking.
He bit down!
Hard and fierce, he could almost taste the blood spreading in his mouth.
And that bite finally kept him from crying out.
The Major General, who had leaped from hundreds of meters in the air with Miao Te, was already planning to cover the teen’s mouth, but before he could, the little one buried his face in his neck.
A sharp pain came from the Generalโs neck as the teen bit down hard.
The sudden pain made Taylor frown, but he didn’t have time to pull the biting little one away.
The wind howled past the young Major General’s cheeks, and his jet-black hair was whipped wildly upwards.
He held the teen in his arms with one hand, staring coldly at the rapidly approaching sand with no change in expression or fear in his eyes.
As if the person about to be smashed into a pulp wasn’t himself, the expression on the man’s handsome face remained calm to the extreme.
In the final second before they hit the groundโ
Taylor suddenly extended his left hand.
The metal device encircling his left arm instantly activated with his movement, suddenly heating up.
A fierce blast of air shot out from the heated metal device, so powerful that it instantly shredded the sleeve on his left arm to pieces.ย
It was precisely the recoil from this powerful blast of air that instantly counteracted his falling speed, pushing him upward a bit instead.ย
Then, he twisted his hand, shifting to hold Miao Te horizontally with both arms, his figure nimbly flipping in the air before his jet-black boots landed heavily on the golden sand.
The force of his landing was so heavy that nearly half of his boot sank into the sand.
***
From the explosion to the landing, less than a minute had passed, but to Miao Te, it felt like an eternity.
When the Major General set him down, he was completely dazed and his mind was blank.
Holy crap, this bungee jump was way too intense!
Jumping from several hundred meters highโ
He was so scared that tears burst from his eyes!
The teen turned his neck with a creak, looking at Taylor with tearful eyes.
Your Excellency, Major General, youโre naturally gifted and strong, you can play like this, but with my small arms and legs, a couple more times and Iโll be deadโ
He wanted to spit out a stomach full of complaints, but no sound came out, as his lips were still trembling with fear, unable to utter a single word.
The teen could only look at the Major General with tear-filled, dark eyes, his look full of accusation.ย
But the person he wanted to accuse wasn’t even looking at him. Instead, they tilted their head up, gazing at the gaping hole in the middle of the tower that had been blown apart, and the flames pouring out of it.ย
There was a frightening cold light in the young Major General’s slightly narrowed almond-shaped eyes.
It wasnโt just this spot; several other spires had also exploded, clearly indicating that the perpetrator didnโt want anyone to realize that these explosions were specifically aimed at him.
Taylor didnโt hesitate any longer. He quickly turned around, pulling Miao Te into the shadows with him.
With everyoneโs attention focused on the flames of the spires, it was the perfect time for them to disappear. He didnโt think that those who wanted him dead would believe he had truly perished in the explosion.
Perhaps they wouldnโt realize it immediately, but the footage of him leaping down from the air would likely be discovered soon. So the next step was to…ย
Find a temporarily safe hiding spot, the black-haired Major General concealed himself in the shadows. He raised his hand, and the metal ring on his wrist emitted light, projecting a small three-dimensional holographic screen in front of him.
He wasnโt contacting Via. Any message sent from Mia Star to space(T/N: space internet, I donโt know any term for that.) was likely being closely monitored. If he contacted Ishtar, his location would be immediately exposed.
Moreover, he had already informed Via of the potential attack.
***
“Whatโs the status on Ishtar?”
“Everything is normal, Lord Taylor.”
“En, Iโll return to the ship the day after tomorrow.”
“Yes, Lord Taylor, I will arrange for someone to meet you.”
***
Taylor wasnโt one to waste words, so if it wasnโt a special situation, he wouldnโt have specifically added โIshtarโ before โWhatโs the status.โ
Mentioning โIshtarโ was a coded signal for the entire starship to secretly prepare for first-level combat readiness.
Clearly, although Viaโs expression didnโt change at the time, he understood what Taylor meant, which is why he didnโt follow his habit of addressing him as โYour Excellency, Major General,โ but instead called him โLord Taylor.โ
At the same time, โreturn to the ship the day after tomorrowโ implied that those targeting him would act by tomorrow at the latest.
When Taylor was speaking with Via, Robin was initially somewhat uncooperative, but later he calmed down and became compliant.
Clearly understanding the hidden meaning in his Boss’s words, he deliberately teased about the relationship between his Boss and Miao Te, throwing in a few suggestive remarks. This was all an effort to make the enemy lower their guard.ย
With Robin’s skill, he should be able to escape the room before the explosion.
The reason why Taylor opened the communication at the risk of being found is …
[I will arrange for someone to meet you.]
Snowy static flickered across the screen, the lines distorted briefly, and a choppy, intermittent voice came through.ย
โMaโฆ Majoโฆ Major General, Sir?โย
It was a mechanically altered voice, making it impossible to tell whether it was male or female. The voice was choppy as if it were heavily disrupted by interference.ย
Taylor hummed and said in a deep voice.
โSend it over.โย
“Yes.”
After the voice on the other side finished speaking, the communication was cut off, but the screen didnโt disappear. Instead, it began spinning rapidly, forming a three-dimensional diamond shape. Light dots started filling the diamond from the bottom up at a swift pace.ย
Miao Te, who was cautiously kneeling behind Taylor, watched for a moment before realizingโthis was just a progress bar.ย
Sure enough, once the three-dimensional diamond was filled with light dots, it shattered instantly, and then quickly reassembled into a three-dimensional map floating in the air.ย
โSirโฆ proceed toโฆ the red markerโฆ shuttleโฆ please hurryโฆ hurryโฆ the city defense forcesโฆ are mobilizingโฆ hurryโฆโย
The intermittent voice abruptly cut off, severing the connection completely. Taylor’s hand moved slightly, and the three-dimensional map instantly shrank to the size of his palm, hovering above the back of his hand, flickering with a faint blue light.ย
During his earlier communication with Via, he had subtly hinted at the current crisis. Viaโs mention of โarranging people to meetโ meant that he would mobilize those who were already stationed on Mia Star, including operatives who had infiltrated the Mia family itself.ย
To avoid revealing his location, he couldnโt contact the Ishtar directly, but the spies stationed on Mia Star could seize the opportunity to contact him. The message just relayed by the spy was clearโthey had placed a shuttle in a hidden location… Well, given the circumstances, this was likely the best they could manage within the limited two-hour window… Perhaps most of the spies had already been exposed due to this incident.ย
And if those spies were captured, the shuttleโs location would likely be exposed as well. Therefore, he had to race against time, making it to the shuttle and returning to Ishtar before the location was compromised.ย
He glanced once more at the flashing red dot on the miniature map, his lips tightening slightly.ย
โStay close to me,โ he instructed the person beside him. As he turned to stand and prepare to move out, he was met with the sight of the teen’s fluffy, jet-black head right in front of him.ย
The teenager was crouching beside him, busy with something.ย
Not long ago, to counteract the force of his fall, he had used the device on his left arm to release a powerful burst of air pressure. The fierce, wind-blade-like pressure had instantly shredded his sleeve and sliced through the skin on his left arm, leaving it bloody and torn. But time was too tightโhe hadnโt had a moment to tend to his bleeding arm.ย
At this moment, however, most of the deep, bloody gashes on his exposed left arm had been tightly bandaged with strips of cloth.ย
Earlier, while he was communicating with the spy and focused on examining the map, he had felt the teenager beside him repeatedly squeezing his arm. He had assumed that the teen was simply scared and clutching at him out of panic, so he hadnโt paid much attention. He hadn’t realized that while he was preoccupied with the communication, the teen had been busy bandaging the wounds on his left arm…ย
En, although the way the wound was bandaged was quite clumsy.
Just as Miao Te was about to tear another strip of cloth from the hem of his shirt, a hand reached out and grabbed him. He looked up and met the gaze of the young Major General. Those deep, dark blue eyes seemed to hold the vastness of the universe within them, clearly reflecting his face.ย
“Do not worry.”
Fine strands of jet-black hair fell across his pale skin, and despite the dust and bloodstains, they did nothing to diminish the young Major Generalโs almost mythical, elf-like beauty.
After saying those words, he turned his head and stood up. Still holding the teen’s hand tightly, he pulled Miao Te up with him.ย
He stepped forward, his head already turned, revealing only a glimpse of his cheek framed by the scattered black strands of his hair. His expression was hidden, but his voice could be heardโlow, as always, with a cool, emotionless tone that gave nothing away.ย
However, at that moment, his voice carried a subtle, almost imperceptible gentleness.ย
He said, โAs long as Iโm here.โย
Ohโฆ if you say so, Major General, then I guess I wonโt worryโฆย
***
Wait, there seems to be something wrong …
Obediently following along, hand in hand with the Major General, Miao Te began to ponder.ย
These words sound so familiar.
It seems like he has often heard these words before…ย
โฆ
โฆ.
โฆ..
Whoa, whoa, whoa![2] Lines like these are always spoken by the male lead to the female lead in dramas and movies!ย
Even if you, Major General, are the protagonist with a halo, how do I look anything like the heroine?!ย
And most importantly–
Usually, the protagonist who says something like this is sure to survive until the end, but the person being told this almost always dies in the last few minutes of the movieโย
So, Major General, is it really okay for you to raise such a flag that guarantees your survival while dooming me to death?!
***
[1]ๅธๅธๅธ ,sound of spitting or making a spitting gesture. In context, itโs often used to express strong disgust, disdain, or rejection. It’s like saying “Ugh!” or “Nonsense!” with emphasis.
[2]ๆฆๆฆๆฆๆฆ(cฤ cฤ cฤ cฤ) T/N: I actually donโt know how to translate this.
***
Translation by NightOwll
***