Chapter 31
Chapter 31
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: The Emperor's Rescue
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Gavin stared in shock, wedged inside the cockpit. Through the shattered steel frame, he gazed at the Warden, and in a daze, he suddenly had the illusion that the Emperor would turn back, give him a thumbs-up, and flash a brilliant grin with perfect white teeth.
But Dean, Charlie, and Claire were instantly stunned. Charlie's trembling voice crackled over the earpiece: "That's a 3... 3... 3S mech?! The m-military...?!"
"It's the Golden Warden," Dean murmured in a trance, "His Majesty the Emperor..."
Thankfully, Gavin's illusion was just that—an illusion. The Emperor didn't turn around. Instead, he fired off an air cannon with majestic flair. A roaring gale whooshed up, hurling the two C-grade mechs into the sky. The swarm of gold-devouring bugs scattered in an instant, spinning dizzily in the air for a moment before buzzing off into the distance.
A thundering group of Imperial Guards came charging down the main path, shouting, "Your Majesty!"
"Chase them!" The Emperor retracted his air cannon and bellowed in fury, "Where did all these gold-devouring bugs come from? Find out for me, now!"
"Yes, sir!" Half the guards thundered back, powering up their mechs one after another before flying off.
...
The turnaround from peril to safety was too abrupt; the students were still reeling. Fortunately, the Imperial Guards were well-trained. Several rushed forward immediately, spraying alkaline agents over Riot and Profound Ice to neutralize the bug acid coating the mechs' surfaces.
Then a few elite guards in sealed combat suits forcibly pried open the cockpit. The airtight hatch had been corroded to tatters, practically nonexistent; it clanged heavily against the hull with a single push.
"Hurry! Pull out the cockpit!" "There's a technician pod too! Careful not to touch the bug acid!" "Alkaline spray—grab the alkaline spray!"
The technician pod was dragged out like a massive metal axle by a group of burly Alphas. It crashed to the ground with a boom. Someone immediately blasted alkaline mist at the hatch amid billowing clouds of white vapor. More guards in sealed suits battered open the technician pod door and hauled Gavin out from under the twisted, deformed seat in a frantic scramble.
It all happened in under thirty seconds. Gavin's knees had gone numb from being stuck so long; he nearly stumbled upon landing.
"Careful!" An Imperial Guard captain steadied him just in time, then barked over his shoulder, "They're out! All casualties rescued!"
A collective sigh of relief rose from nearby—Gavin strained to look up and saw the Imperial Guards had set up a perimeter fifty meters around. Principals like Caroline and Dana clustered outside the line, their faces etched with visible relief.
Only Caroline's brows were furrowed tight, her gaze anxiously fixed on Gavin.
"The arena was swept clean dozens of times! You tell me—where did these gold-devouring bugs come from?!" The Emperor's roar suddenly erupted nearby, silencing everyone in fear. "—Don't give me any nonsense about coincidence. Investigate! Send more men! A near-extinct species suddenly swarms out by the thousands—what other secrets is this forest hiding from me?!"
The Minister of Education, who also chaired the competition committee, was a white-haired old man trembling like a leaf. "I... I'll contact the forest patrol team right away..."
"Go to the military! Deploy special agents!" The Emperor's voice was practically a roar. "No one rears gold-devouring bugs targeting students—you don't get it yet?! You fool!"
A sharp crack rang out as some clueless official scurried up with a cup of tea, only for the Emperor to snatch it and smash it to the ground.
"Y-Your Majesty..." The chairman was on the verge of tears, but the Emperor just snorted coldly and strode toward the crowd.
The Guard captain stepped forward at the right moment, cautiously reporting, "Your Majesty, all students have been rescued."
"Mm-hmm," the Emperor replied absentmindedly. "Any injuries?"
"Minor ones only. The mechs took heavy damage."
"Pause the competition for now. Have the royal technicians repair them first."
With that brief order, Claire, Dean, and the others exhaled in unison. Claire and Charlie were fine—their mechs belonged to the school; they could just swap for new ones and keep competing. But Riot was Dean's personal mech. If it was scrapped, he was truly done for.
It was like being a military brat from a powerful family, raised under strict expectations with no fancy clothes as a kid or luxury cars later, but on your eighteenth birthday, your family hands you a fighter jet and says, "Work hard to become a fighter pilot!"
—How could he not treat that jet like his own life?!
Dean's heart, lodged in his throat, finally dropped back into his chest. He nearly collapsed but remembered to maintain military composure in public. Spotting the Emperor approaching, he snapped to attention, chest out.
Claire and Charlie saluted sharply too. All three chorused, "Your Majesty!"
Gavin: "..."
Dressed in a tight-fitting suit, forehead bleeding, looking utterly disheveled, Gavin leaned against the roadside curb and fixed the Emperor with a cold stare—an expression laced with an indescribable subtlety.
The Emperor glanced sideways at the Alpha students, murmuring vague acknowledgments, then casually lifted his head—his eyes locked onto Gavin's. He froze.
Gavin: "..."
Heinrich: "..."
In that instant, fireworks exploded and bells pealed; the shadow emperor possessed him!
Five decades of political intrigue-forged acting prowess converged in that single glance!
"How are you here?!" Heinrich exclaimed in disbelief.
"It's you, isn't it?!" Gavin shot back, brimming with suspicion.
A chill wind swept by, question marks popping up over everyone's heads.
It proved that the hero-save-beauty trope was timeless—two centuries ago, Marshal Celia had saved the near-dead Aaron and Heinrich, subjugating the two military academy rookies beneath his lofty, godlike military boots; two hundred years later, Heinrich saved the life-hanging military cadet Gavin with thunderous, domineering might, binding Gavin firmly...
Firmly...
The Emperor stared fixedly at Gavin, then whirled and demanded, "Why is he competing?!"
The crowd erupted in murmurs; Caroline broke out in instant cold sweat.
The clearing was secured by the Imperial Guards, everyone crammed outside the perimeter, too far to catch the Omega pheromones wafting from Gavin's blood. They buzzed with shocked uncertainty.
"How could you let him compete! Outrageous!" The Emperor marched toward Gavin and snapped, "Come with me!"
Gavin felt no instinctive awe toward Heinrich, but rationally, he knew this was the Emperor—escalating wouldn't end well. As emotion wrestled reason, Heinrich had already seized his hand tight and dragged him into the Guard ranks.
Dean and Claire whipped around in unison, incredulous: "Your Majesty?!"
Gavin's fingers tightened. Heinrich turned his head, meeting his icy gaze head-on.
In that moment, his profile perfectly overlapped with Celia's, just like the marshal's intimidating stare back then. The Emperor faltered inwardly for a split second, but raw masculine instinct overpowered him moments later. He looked down imperiously at the students:
"—What?"
Those two simple words brimmed with unmistakable threat.
"Your Majesty..." Claire, bold as he was, started to speak but was instantly quelled by the intense Alpha aura exploding from the Emperor. Dean froze too, cold sweat soaking through his layers.
The aura reeked of clear violence and hostility—the Emperor, the Emperor was threatening them!
Not as a superior, but as a mature, powerful male in heat for mating, treating them as rivals!
"I..." Claire stammered into the deathly silence around them.
"Something to say?" Heinrich asked coldly.
No one replied for a long moment; all the Alphas clamped down their auras tight.
"—I wouldn't think so."
The Emperor gripped Gavin's wrist and strode off arrogantly.
By now, no one cared about scores anymore. The principals returned to the VIP box in stunned suspicion, sneaking loaded glances at Caroline the whole way. Veterans of politics that they were, no one dared blurt out questions; they all wisely stayed silent.
Mechs Riot and Profound Ice were carted off for repairs, injured students taken for treatment. Armed Imperial Guards tracked the gold-devouring bugs, the entire competition venue shrouded in heavy tension.
Meanwhile, the prelim passers gathered in the hall, hurriedly refueling while nervously awaiting the semifinals.
Upstairs in a certain VIP box, Heinrich slammed the door shut with a bang and whirled to pin Gavin with a glare: "—What's the deal with those two Alphas?"
Five seconds of silence later, Gavin asked dubiously, "What's the deal with that swarm of gold-devouring bugs?"
Heinrich: "..."
Here it came! The main event!
The Emperor perked up, his lifetime of political performance peaking in full display!
"—You think that had anything to do with me? Releasing bugs on purpose to attack students, then swooping in at the last second to play hero—just to impress you?"
His voice rose sharply, every word dripping authority: "Why would I do that? I'm the Emperor! There are countless ways to win an Omega's favor, but I would never endanger imperial citizens to do it!"
"As lord of the Empire, safeguarding every citizen is my duty! To risk students' lives for some petty desire—what kind of man do you take me for?!"
—Those words didn't just ring true; they struck straight to Gavin's heart.
Gavin hesitated, his tone softening a bit: "But..."
"The fact you were in danger is entirely your own fault!" The Emperor cut him off sharply. "Omegas are forbidden from high-risk activities, yet you hid your identity and entered a competition way beyond your capabilities! You even nearly got your teammates killed!"
Gavin: "..."
Poor Gavin could fight on battlefields, repair mechs, heal the wounded, hunt and cook—master of every skill under the sun—except sophistry, where Heinrich had him dead to rights:
"What if I hadn't been there today? What if no one arrived in time? On the battlefield, teammates' lives are linked to yours—any wrong decision endangers others! —Do you have any idea how irresponsible that is!"
Gavin: "............"
"You must withdraw from the competition immediately! Royal Academy's disqualification for falsifying entries—right now!"
The Emperor turned and swept out, but after two steps, as expected, Gavin called, "Wait—"
Right on cue.
Heinrich paused, eyes narrowing slightly.
"The bugs have nothing to do with me. Forcing me out is unfair." Gavin paused, then couldn't hold back: "This competition's well within my abilities. If not for my teammates, I'd have gotten out on my own ages ago!"
"I doubt that," the Emperor said coldly.
"You're just targeting the Royal Military Academy..."
"No. I'm judging impartially."
The Emperor turned, locking eyes with Gavin. The air crackled with tension.
Five seconds passed.
Ten seconds.
Fifteen...
The Emperor finally realized Gavin had gone off-script again.
"Ahem!" He cleared his throat, composing himself: "I know this competition means a lot to the Royal Academy—though I did want to impress you, rules are rules. If I change them on a whim and word gets out, the fallout..."
It was artfully phrased. What Heinrich really meant was this:
I know the Royal Academy doesn't want to lose its spot—it's no big deal, just sending a fragile little Omega to impersonate an Alpha in the mech league. As for the rules? A word from me fixes that; as Emperor, don't I have the power for a little inconsistency?
So the issue isn't breaking rules—it's whether it leaks. But in this box, it's just us two. You won't blab, so whether it spreads is up to me.
If you want me to keep quiet, easy: I said I wanted to impress you, right? Do something to show you're impressed, and I won't say a word!
—On the surface circuitous, but really, Heinrich was just stirred up by the thick hormonal scent from Gavin, itching for a little advantage.
Couldn't blame him—blood still streaked Gavin's temple, uncleared. The Omega pheromones wafted like melted aphrodisiac, lingering thickly in the cramped box, leaving the Emperor parched and blood surging...
Heinrich's throat bobbed. His face remained stern and calm: "I'm the Emperor. I must lead by example. If anyone learns I broke the rules..."
"That's not the point," Gavin frowned. "Didn't you sneak into the lab that day and see what I can do?"
That "sneak" cut deep; Heinrich choked, then sneered: "You think you're a match for me?"
"...I'm not?"
Silence blanketed the box. After a beat, Heinrich smiled faintly and unclasped the gleaming Warden from his wrist.
"Three moves. Land one hit on me, and you win." He stepped back gracefully, tossing the Warden to the floor with a clink: "You're unarmed. I won't take that advantage."
Faint clamor drifted from the hall below; the room felt deathly still, even heartbeats audible.
After a long moment, Gavin narrowed his eyes. "Anything goes?"
Heinrich shrugged indifferently. "Anything goes."
Their gazes clashed across the space—one wary, one brazen. Five seconds later, both tensed and lunged forward like lightning, charging straight for—
"Warden!"
Two equally potent mental forces slammed together, barreling toward the black bracelet on the floor!
The Warden, caught off guard by their perfectly synced trickery, shuddered under the tug-of-war, its mind collapsing into yet another impossible dilemma.