"It seems Baldy is doing alright; he's kept the starship under control."
A short while later, Kamin entered the black market through the passage. He had come here to continue investigating the matter of the black robe. Their captain had been visibly in a bad mood these past two days, so Kamin didn't dare to get close.
He set up a signal transmitter and broadcast the signal used by the regiment for communication. He didn't expect to receive a reply, but he suddenly received a message from Baldy yesterday.
In their group, Kamin was in charge of sourcing the goods, while Baldy was in charge of selling them, often piloting their starship around the black markets of various planets.
Seeing that he was about to see another brother, Kaming was extremely excited. He imagined how the brothers would reunite and cry their eyes out after seeing Baldy, and he would definitely give him a big hug!
Give me a hug!
hug……
Kamin saw a rice dumpling bound tightly with its legs and feet tied up...
The zongzi was very large, not only tied tightly but also with its mouth completely blocked.
Kamin circled the rice dumpling once, then circled it again.
He stroked his chin, muttering to himself, "My dear Baldy, do you know how worried I was about you after the accident? I thought and thought, and the cruelest scenario I could imagine was you accidentally falling into space and exploding on the spot..."
Kamin sighed deeply: "I never expected you to be playing bondage games here!"
After saying that, he couldn't hold back anymore, put his hands on his hips and laughed loudly: "Hahahaha, you little bastard, you've actually met your match!"
Kamin showed no concern for his colleagues and instinctively reached for his personal terminal to take a picture, only to find that the terminal had already been removed when he touched his wrist.
"Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!" The bald man's eyes widened in anger, and he writhed on the ground in rage, but he couldn't say anything. His face turned red from holding it in, and his head looked like it had grown a size larger.
"I understand, I understand. You must also want to capture this moment so that your brothers can reminisce about it years from now."
Kaming smiled.
He remembered there was a batch of old-fashioned video recorders in their starship's cargo hold, and he walked toward position number three with a sly grin.
Looking up and seeing the wide-open window and the starship's cargo hold, Camin realized something was wrong and hurriedly ran back to untie the ropes binding Baldy.
"What happened? You were kidnapped, fine, but why did you hand over the password?"
"Pah!" Baldy was heartbroken by Camin's utterly heartless behavior. "Open your damn eyes and look! Is this opened with a password? It's like uninstalling the window!"
Camin was startled and saw the cannon barrel lying on the ground. He immediately cursed, "Damn it, have we been robbed?"
It's no wonder Cumming was surprised. In all his time as space pirates, he had always been the one robbing others; this was the first time he had ever been robbed.
Baldy threw the rope aside and sneered, "Damn it, you'd better untie me sooner, or we might still be able to catch him. By the time you've finished kicking him while he's down, he'll be long gone!"
Kamin leaned closer to the window, glanced at the signs of violent dismantling, and couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement: "Wow, what kind of humanoid weapon is this? You can't find many like this in the entire interstellar space..."
He paused, then remembered his purpose for coming here, and asked Baldy, "Did he steal the robe that can conceal mental waves, the black kind?"
How did you know?
It came to me without any effort at all.
Camin tapped his palms, not bothering to explain to Baldy. He asked about the man's features, then instructed Baldy to keep an eye on the starship before hurriedly leaving through the passage.
According to Baldy, the people who stole the robes had only been gone a short while, and there was only one route from this space station to the capital planet. Chasing after them now might allow them to be caught.
Even if we can't catch the person, it would be good to put a tracking device on it!
Their boss's recent erratic behavior is definitely related to this person who bought the black robe. Regardless of the consequences, let's send the message over first, otherwise, if Levi's mood worsens, he might just impulsively blast the capital planet to smithereens.
Kamin's plan was sound, but he overlooked a heartbreaking fact: humans and humanoid weapons are not the same species.
The hatch connecting the spacecraft and the space station slowly closed, and Kamin sat in the pilot's seat, changing the flight destination to the route to the Imperial Capital.
After a slight jolt, the bright red aircraft landed steadily from the side into the center of the flight path.
Kamin, eager to catch up, slammed his hand on the accelerator. He hadn't yet recovered from the excitement of his impending victory when he looked up and realized something was wrong…
The aircraft's dark side windows honestly reflected the view behind it.
A person shrouded in black robes stood behind him, staring at him coldly.
Roy Palace.
In an empty room containing a psycho-wave analyzer, Lanny climbed out of the instrument, pale-faced and feeling dizzy and nauseous.
This feeling is very similar to the aftereffects of a space jump. Lanny had only experienced one space jump in his first eighteen years, but in the week or so at Roy Palace, he experienced one or more of the same thing every day.
"Won't this cause any harm to my body?" Rangnick couldn't help but wonder.
In fact, he had noticed the problem a few days ago and resolved every night to mention it to His Highness the next day, insisting that they absolutely not use the device again.
He had read the instructions for the instrument; the test subject had to remain calm, and if he resisted, no one could force him into the instrument.
Unfortunately, after seeing the Crown Prince the next day, Lanny felt completely unable to refuse His Highness's request.
Staring blankly at the murals on the ceiling, Lanny, for the first time ever, began to doubt whether lying and staying at Roy Palace had been the right decision. He knew they weren't looking for him, but for a mysterious man in black robes, and he himself had absolutely no recollection of telling any of those stories.
He was impersonating the man in black...
But when he thought of the handsome and gentle Crown Prince, Lanny felt he had done the right thing. If he could maintain the Crown Prince's favor, he could stay in the Royal Palace indefinitely, and perhaps even join the Imperial Family.
Lanny simply couldn't resist such a temptation.
As he was pondering this, Lanny heard the butler's summons.
The elderly butler stood outside the door, his eyes filled with a hint of disapproval and regret. He said, "Mr. Lanny, His Highness the Crown Prince requests your presence in the reception room."
Today, another aircraft arrived outside Roy Palace.
This aircraft was the complete opposite of Kamin's. Kamin's was incredibly flashy, while this one was remarkably understated, with only a symbol embedded in the front of the fuselage indicating that it was a public aircraft used by imperial officials.
Two people disembarked from the aircraft. One was slightly shorter, with a fair complexion, and looked quite young, but also rather timid. Burke remembered him; he was the one who had stayed at Roy Palace for a week after the M13 gathering point fire, his legs trembling like leaves when he left.
His name was probably Dud, and his position was unremarkable.
Burke glanced at the other person who had come down first.
The man was tall, with a serious expression and a few gray hairs at his temples.
"Oh, what's gotten into you that even the Home Secretary has come?" Burke greeted him, though he smiled, his demeanor not particularly friendly.
This Minister of the Interior, Mullin, was quite familiar to the military personnel. This was thanks to the commander of their First Army Corps, both of whom were identical in their cold and serious demeanor.
Unfortunately, Mu Lin, who is the same age as Qin Chu and the other two, is always inferior to Qin Chu, the younger generation, in terms of air conditioning. As a result, he gets so angry at every meeting that he turns red in the face and gets nicknamed "Red-Headed Brother" by his military personnel.
With most officials now trapped in the virtual world and the prime minister still asleep, this red-haired man has become the highest-ranking official.
Mullin nodded to Burke, but then frowned.
“Lieutenant General Burke, your mission is to provide close protection for His Highness the Crown Prince, not to stand guard outside the door.”
Go to hell.
Burke cursed inwardly.
The cabinet has no control over the military. If their marshal hadn't passed away last year and General Qin Chu hadn't yet received his medal, it wouldn't be Mulin's place to tell him where to stand.
Thinking of Qin Chu, Burke frowned slightly, a hint of worry flashing in his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.
A forced smile appeared on his slightly chubby face: "Your Excellency, you need to ask His Highness the Crown Prince about this. I don't want to stand outside in the sun either."
On the empty airway not far away, a bright red aircraft was parked at the emergency landing point.
Qin Chu looked at the miniature scene on the screen and frowned slightly after seeing Mu Lin lead his men into the Roy Palace.
"Sir, you said your purpose was just to hitch a ride... So can you let me go now?" Kamin was tied to the back of the seat, looking like he was about to cry.
Qin Chu completely ignored him, instead pondering whether she should go see Levi as usual today.
The presence of cabinet members made him somewhat apprehensive.
Camin sighed and groaned behind him.
People should face reality. If even their captain can't find someone, how could he possibly find them? When encountering someone like this, one should run away as fast as possible, instead of trying to subdue the man in black robes when they see him board the aircraft.
He glanced again at the cold, expressionless person in the driver's seat and muttered under his breath, "Is this a ride-sharing? This is clearly a carjacking."
Qin Chu sneered: "Yes, we also need to kill them to silence them."
Kamin: "..."
Kamin: "Everyone has unexpected accidents when they're out and about. Isn't hitchhiking normal? It's perfectly normal! I love giving people rides on the street; I'm just that helpful."
Qin Chu glanced at him as if he were an idiot, then opened the hatch and got off the aircraft.
Although there is some danger in contacting cabinet members now, he cannot simply leave his body from last time at Roy Palace.
Burke had just seen the two cabinet officials inside when he saw a man in black robes walking towards him.
After several meetings, although the man in black robes was mysterious and strange, Burke gradually became familiar with him. This time, he even had the mood to joke, "It's been over a week, and you've grown back? Are you under some kind of curse, like you get shorter when you lie?"
Qin Chu, hidden beneath his black robe, glanced at him speechlessly, clearly unwilling to acknowledge that this was his subordinate.
But he didn't say anything in the end, nodded and entered the Royal Palace.
Qin Chu had a good sense of direction. Although the old steward wasn't there to guide him this time, he still managed to find the central reception room in the vast palace.
The furnishings in the reception room of the Royal Palace were not much different from the last time I visited. On the wall facing the exit, there was an antique clock with its second hand ticking away.
Levy sat in the main seat, resting his forehead on one hand, listening listlessly to the two cabinet officials in front of him.
Unruly curly hair cascaded down his head, half-covering his forehead and cheeks, casting dark shadows. A smile still lingered on his lips, and his gaze remained largely unchanged, yet an unsettling aura emanated from him.
Mullin was alright, still able to maintain his speaking speed, but Duds next to him was already trembling again.
This trembling appearance seemed to amuse Levy. He turned his blue eyes around, stared at the timid cabinet official, and gave him another smile.
This time, Dudley sat down on the ground with a loud thud.
Home Secretary Mullin frowned but ignored him, continuing to say to Levy, "Your Highness, Ms. Caroline has been at Roy Palace long enough. I think you should put her back to work during this time."
"Oh? What if I don't want to?" Levi straightened up, then lazily sank back into his chair, smiling with his eyelashes half-lowered. "Doesn't the Crown Prince have any special privileges? I want my future Crown Princess to stay here with me, is that not allowed?"
He had barely finished speaking when a cold, indifferent voice rang out: "What Crown Princess?"
Levi paused, slightly opened his eyes, and saw that the person who had stood him up last time had finally reappeared in front of him.
"You..." He finally straightened up properly this time, looked Qin Chu up and down, and said, "What do you take this place for? You come and go as you please?"
Although it was meant to be a reprimand, the smile in his words was quite obvious, even giving Lord Dudley, who was sitting on the ground, a faint feeling of being bathed in a spring breeze.
He subconsciously turned his head to see who the crown prince was talking to, but as soon as he saw a figure in black robes, he heard a cold voice retort: "My fault? Who's been making a fuss about this?"
Levy: ...