Chapter 29
Chapter 29
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Chapter 29
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The first time in his life that Heinrich "had an idea," he led Aaron and a bunch of marshal's guard troops in a political mutiny. They forcibly confined Celia to the planet White Swan, and in his name, issued a declaration of rebellion to the Alliance Council, proclaiming the establishment of a dictatorship to end the chaotic Alliance rule.
The mutiny was meticulously organized and thoroughly prepared, with the only flaw being that they underestimated Celia's combat prowess when enraged. As a result, it ended in disastrous failure, and the whole group was captured. Later, Celia planned to execute them, but when the moment came, he couldn't bring himself to do it. In the end, he had no choice but to exile them to the remote, desolate outer river star systems.
This failed political mutiny was later dubbed the "Chenqiao Mutiny" by historians. It gave Celia the first harsh lesson of his life—mercy is a liability. If he had cleanly beheaded Heinrich back then, the galaxy would never have seen the rise of that evil entity known as the Gemini Empire.
The second time Heinrich "had an idea" was during his exile in the cold, barren outer star systems, where he was doing hard labor. He led the masses of political prisoners in chopping down the jailers, rising up in revolt, and founding the initial Imperial Army.
Historians described that day like this: "...It marked the beginning of the Empire's glorious campaign, with countless stars trampled beneath their feet. The Gemini Empire launched a century-long war against the Alliance, ultimately achieving great victory..."
Of course, the history books didn't mention the scene of a bunch of laborers huddled in a leaky shack, shivering as they plotted their rebellion. The so-called "countless stars trampled beneath their feet" was really just a pile of moldy hay underfoot to keep out the drips. Nor did the history books record that before this "great victory," this Imperial force spent eighty years being chased like stray dogs by Celia—sometimes fleeing so hastily they didn't even have time to put on their pants.
The third time Heinrich "had an idea" was on a certain spring night when he had a dream... Naturally, this dream wasn't recorded in the history books. If it had been, it probably would have read: "A great romance began here. Amid the long march, two equally noble souls found kindred spirits in each other, forging a profound bond!"
—The reality was that Heinrich had a wet dream. It went on endlessly until he clearly saw Celia's face beneath him, at which point he jolted awake in a full-body cold sweat.
After waking up, he lay in bed, suddenly feeling as if a brand-new door had swung open before him. An "idea" formed unbidden in his mind:
Since I can confine Celia (failed), coerce him (also failed), and lead an army against him (failed yet again), why can't I make him my mate?
I'm an Alpha, he's a Beta—legally, we're allowed to marry, and physiologically, he can even conceive. We're a match made in heaven!
From then on, Heinrich threw himself into his ambitions with renewed vigor, refining his strategies tirelessly. Not only did he achieve total victory in the ninety-third autumn of the Galactic War, founding the Gemini Empire, but he also remained the galaxy's top diamond bachelor for fifty years—until the fifty-first year, when he finally sank his teeth into the marshal's neck.
—This goes to show that Heinrich was a man who could achieve anything he set his mind to. Once he "had an idea," no matter how many setbacks (or embarrassments) he faced along the way, he would inevitably turn it into reality.
In the forest of the Royal Military Academy's competition arena, the morning sunlight filtered through the treetops, dew making the green leaves sparkle even brighter. Distant birdsong filled the air, refreshing the soul.
Claire returned from washing up by the river to find his technician and Dean sitting on the clearing, gnawing on roasted wild rabbit paired with juice. Gavin sat on Luanzhu's shoulder, buried in reading parameters.
"...You guys let him hunt and cook alone again?!"
The bumbling technician Charlie flushed red and bowed his head. Dean, already unfazed, said coolly,
"Don't want any? Then scram."
Claire hesitated for a few seconds, but in the end, his shameful appetite overpowered his pride. He grabbed a rabbit leg and sat down to eat.
This was their fourth day traveling together. Without Gavin, Claire's team would have been gravely injured and out of energy by the second day, forced to withdraw from the competition with their wrecked mechs.
But now, their injuries were under control. They ate and drank their fill every day, and miraculously, their mech energy had lasted this far. Their firepower reserves could even hold out until the end of the first round.
At first, Claire was amazed. Then incredulous. Then numb. That senior tech major Charlie had curiously followed Gavin for two days, trying to learn, but couldn't figure out how he repaired mechs at all and finally retreated in tears.
In any case, they had survived—and had a real shot at making it through the first round. That was the key point.
"Most teams are nearing the forest edge today. The competition should end by sunset. The highest score on the board right now is 27,500 points, then 20,000, and 19,000. Only five teams are below 3,000: a few perennial bottom-feeders from the military academies, the Sector Military Academy, and us."
Dean spread out the map and looked toward Gavin, who didn't even lift his head.
"Those schools doomed to get eliminated in the first round aren't a threat, but that Beta girl from the Sector Military Academy is a real problem. For now, she's our biggest enemy."
Silence fell around them.
Claire finally caught on.
"What about us?!"
Dean pretended not to hear. Claire exploded and lunged at him, only for technician Charlie to desperately hug his leg.
"Stop! Stop! Don't be impulsive—!"
Gavin finally looked up from the computer.
"The kidnappers are our real biggest enemy. Opponents are just opponents."
He slid down from the mech's shoulder. Luanzhu obligingly reached out to catch him, gently lowering him to the ground. Gavin walked over and casually circled a spot on the map.
"Here."
"What place?"
"The must-pass route out of the arena. Most teams will go through this path. We take the high ground, snipe high-scoring teams along the way, then exit the arena once we're done."
Charlie, having barely restrained Claire, asked, drenched in sweat,
"How do you know it's a must-pass?"
"Because I know."
Gavin folded the map with a sigh.
Facts proved him right. There were plenty of paths out of the forest, but only a few wide enough for mechs. Some were blocked by swamps or lakes, and all factors combined meant most teams chose the one Gavin had picked.
Battlefield terrain analysis was a required course at the military academy and essential knowledge for military officers. But cadets had never seen real combat, so they could only memorize textbooks—and panic when faced with reality.
Luanzhu lay in ambush on the cliff heights, spotting a battered red mech passing through the valley below. It leaped down in a flash. The red mech heard it and fled, but Luanzhu descended like a god from the heavens. A white flash ended the fight.
"Three thousand six hundred."
Luanzhu's score came over the public channel. The opponent crawled out of the smoke, shaking his fist in fury.
Then a distant boom echoed—Claire had chopped down some unlucky passerby. Four thousand two hundred points secured.
The valley below was littered with opponents ambushed successfully by Luanzhu and Xuanbing, mech parts scattered everywhere. From afar, it looked like a massive metal junkyard. Soon the public channel updated the rankings: Luanzhu and Xuanbing had climbed from the bottom to mid-pack. Xuanbing scored a bit higher, thanks to Claire's brutal fighting style.
"We can go now!"
Charlie's excited voice came over the comms.
"Come on, Claire—our score's solid for the next round!"
"Wait a bit longer."
Claire said impatiently.
"But the mech already..."
"I said wait!"
Charlie muttered but fell silent.
Everyone knew what he meant—Xuanbing was heavily damaged, energy nearly depleted. Lasting this long was a miracle. Thanks to Gavin guiding them to hide their tracks these past two days, they hadn't taken more damage from fights. Now they could pick off these no-name small fries, jumping from the bottom to mid-pack.
Making the next round was guaranteed, but Claire was proud and ruthless. He refused to settle for mediocre points exiting the arena.
"Twelve thousand is plenty. Who knows if the next opponent..."
Charlie scanned around, then asked curiously,
"Why are all these mechs so beat-up?"
Indeed, every mech they'd encountered so far was heavily damaged—some missing side wings, some with ruined chest armor, the worst stripped of all firepower gear. The damage looked exaggerated. Sure, C-grade mechs brawling could do that, but everyone being this wrecked felt off.
"End of their rope, probably."
Dean pondered, then hesitated.
"Maybe the forest fights were brutal these past two days. We've barely fought, so ours looks fresh..."
Xuanbing thudded down and rummaged over an opponent. Moments later, Claire said oddly,
"This damage looks like ours—heavy connector cannon?"
Charlie noticed too.
"Heavy connector cannon—C-grade mechs equipped with those?! Could it be the kidnappers—"
"The kidnappers attacked these students? And they all escaped, so they're injured?"
Claire said incredulously.
"Is this... still kidnappers? Or did someone else hit them with heavy connector cannons?"
Everyone was baffled. Even Dean had Luanzhu squat down and forcefully flip the red mech over.
The defeated pilots, furious, dove back into their cockpit and sent a comm request right away.
"—What do you think you're doing?!"
The red mech lay supine on the ground, Luanzhu bent over gripping its waist—the two steel giants pressed close. The angry questioning came through the earpiece. Gavin suddenly couldn't help but smile faintly.
Claire asked sharply,
"What're you smiling at?"
"Nothing."
Dean, puzzled, accepted the comm honestly.
"Your damage doesn't look like C-grade mechs did it. I want to see what happened. Were you attacked?"
"Damn it, don't rub it in!"
The other side snapped furiously.
"We were fine, about to exit last night, when out of nowhere this armed hovercraft pops up! Bombed us and bolted! If not for that, how'd we get hurt? How'd you get to act all cocky? Pisses me off!"
Dean and Claire exchanged a glance, pressing urgently.
"Armed hovercraft?"
"What? You didn't run into it?"
"We... did. So it's not just us..."
"Lots of teams did!"
The other said irritably.
"East forest last night—nonstop chaos. Bomb and run, couldn't catch the bastards! I'm protesting to the committee once we're out. Even if it's part of the event, they can't just add stuff randomly, right? Heavy connector cannons on C-grades—aren't they afraid of killing someone?"
Dean stared in shock and suspicion, instinctively glancing at Xuanbing.
By now, his doubts matched Claire's and Charlie's: They'd thought the kidnappings targeted only the Royal Military Academy. But if everyone suffered, things got murky.
Was it really a competition phase? Those trained, ruthless kidnappers—committee staff?
"We got hit the first night too..."
Claire started, when Gavin suddenly roared,
"—Watch out!"
Xuanbing spun and drew its blade in an instant. A black shadow flashed before them—"Boom!" The earth shook.
A black mech giant loomed overhead, its left arm round shield jammed between Xuanbing's blade. Its right arm reared high, fist smashing down toward Xuanbing's head!
If that landed, a man would burst like a melon, a mech's cockpit explode. At the critical moment, Luanzhu dashed forward, drawing its blade mid-air and slashing lightning-fast at the black mech's raised arm!
The slash was perfect, timed to the millisecond. Though Gavin orchestrated it, it looked like the two mechs had drilled it thousands of times: Xuanbing blocked the left arm, Luanzhu the right. In a blink, they'd sever the ambusher's arm in half!
But in that split-second as the blade fell, one of the defeated students screamed,
"—Lasgard?!"
A piercing "shrieeeek" rang out, deafening. Luanzhu froze mid-motion, halting abruptly.
"...Luanzhu?"
Dean said in disbelief.
"Luanzhu?!"
In the technician pod, Gavin jerked his head up.
On the screen, at the black mech's shoulder, a ponytail girl reached out in the gale, fingers splayed wide, hovering before Luanzhu's massive forehead mental bolt interface.
Her face expressionless, frame slender, she locked eyes on it—her gaze brimming with immense power.
"...I see."
Gavin murmured.
Now he understood why Edna was so desperate not to lose, even faking the roster to force him to team with Dean. This year, their old rivals from the Sector Military Academy had a genius who could mentally control mechs.
A once-in-a-century marvel—the last to pull that off was Alliance Marshal Celia.
Gavin sighed deeply. On the screen, the black mech retracted its fist. Twin rail cannons rose from under its mechanical arm. It still pinned Xuanbing firm, but the dark muzzles now pointed straight at Luanzhu's head.
Author's Note:
Today my boss said to me, "Don't work so hard..." I was instantly overcome with emotion, tears streaming down...