Chapter 75 Prophecy: "Why do you hate Asta so much?"...
A week after Dawn Star was occupied, the Alliance President visited the Chaotic Starfield and met with the mercenary commander on Undying Star. After three days of secret meetings, the Alliance and the mercenaries reached a "Strategic Cooperation Agreement." Manra, through agents of the Security Bureau, roughly understood the key points of this cooperation:
The mercenaries provide the Alliance with Star-Splitter missiles, fifth-generation Sunrise ships, and a military squad of 5,000 men to help the Alliance build its defenses.
The alliance will invest 500 billion star coins in the Chaotic Starfield over the next ten years for upgrades and construction in the three major sectors of energy, healthcare, and infrastructure, and will also reduce export tax rates on several major commodities.
There's also a rumor that a mercenary special operations team has arrived on the Alliance's western front and will cooperate with Alliance forces to retake Dawn Star.
"The think tank had already analyzed the possibilities for the first two points before their meeting, so we were prepared. Regarding the several major commodities for which tariffs on the Empire would be increased, the Minister of Trade met with the Business Alliance yesterday..."
"Dawn Star only has 10,000 troops. The mechanical army has suffered heavy losses in several battles, one of their supply lines has been cut off, and Prince Similan has also sustained minor injuries. I want to replace him, as he is likely to face Yi Lan later. My replacement is General Qi Yu. She has fought Yi Lan head-on before and should be able to hold him off for a while." After reporting, the commander-in-chief of the Second Army proposed replacing Similan.
King Scolag II was silent for a moment, then said, "Appoint General Qi Yu as the temporary commander of the Sixth Army, replacing Similan. If he disagrees, enforce it. Transfer five FH12 transport planes from Tslan to the front line to maintain the mechanical army's supplies as much as possible. If five are not enough, transfer transport planes from neighboring planets. The fact that the supply line was cut off so quickly means that Yi Lan has already arrived at the front line. Please be cautious and minimize the losses."
...
"Is another war about to break out?" Shi Wei gently massaged the back of Sklag II's neck, looking at his tired face with concern.
The man didn't intend to hide it from her. She had been right next to him during the call. He took her hand and kissed her fingertips, then said in a hoarse voice, "The mercenaries and the alliance have put aside their past grievances and are going to join forces to deal with Manra. Similan played well in the last match, but Dawn Star can't be defended."
"Did Yi Lan come in person?" Shi Wei asked.
“Yes.” Sklag II sighed. “The tens of thousands of people in the Similan Islands can’t stop him. I know he doesn’t want to step down, otherwise they wouldn’t have come to ask for my opinion. But he is too young and has no chance against Yi Lan.”
Shi Wei paused for a moment, understanding the man's meaning, and whispered, "I'm sorry, it's all because of me..."
The man turned around and pulled her into his arms, interrupting her and saying, word by word, "It has nothing to do with you. Manra has been fighting the mercenaries for so many years. They would have fought even without you. It's just that I pushed him to his limit last time, and this time I'm going to get my revenge."
Therefore, Similan is in great danger. Although they were once friends, since the surprise attack on the Deep Blue battlefield, the two have no friendship left. If Similan is not replaced and faces Yi Lan head-on, Similan will only face death.
"The battle on the Deep Blue Battlefield also had some psychological impact on Similan. He knew he was no match for Yi Lan, yet he refused to retreat. This kind of mentality will definitely be exploited by the enemy on the battlefield... I can't just watch him die." His Majesty's voice was low, and he was also very helpless.
There are only a handful of generals in the entire empire who can deal with Yi Lan, you could count them on your fingers, and he himself is probably the only one who can defend Dawn Star.
“It’s no use holding out. I can’t stay there forever. If I don’t let him get his revenge this time, he’ll bite you like a mad dog.” The man rested his head on Shi Wei’s shoulder, inhaling the fragrance of her hair, and exhaled deeply.
Shi Wei sensed a hint of sadness in his voice. Nothing is more cruel than a powerful emperor watching his empire crumble.
As he himself said, he could no longer wage a war to revitalize the empire.
"Perhaps my method is wrong too. The source blood will eventually dissipate, and no one can escape the laws of historical cycles." The man's voice was very low as he held her tightly, looking somewhat vulnerable.
Shi Wei felt very sad. She hugged him back. Just watching him deal with those things made her feel tired, let alone him who was actually in that position.
Making one wrong decision will make you a sinner against the empire, and all the previous efforts and the struggles of generations will turn to ashes.
“It’s okay, you’ve done very well.” Shi Wei touched his face and said, “Back in the Chaotic Starfield, Yi Lan said something similar, that the mercenaries were down to a third less than before. I told him, ‘It’s alright, you weren’t the only one who lost.’”
The man chuckled softly, the sound reverberating against her collarbone. He looked up, a hint of amusement flashing in his sea-blue eyes: "You might as well not comfort him at all."
This was the first time Shi Wei had brought up the time she spent in the Chaotic Starfield.
He was actually a little surprised.
Shi Wei sighed: "Yeah, after I finished speaking, he acted like he'd been slapped in the face and just shut up."
King Sklag II nuzzled her neck, looked at her fair cheeks, and asked, "Are you and him a better match than I am?"
Shi Wei was startled and quickly denied it, saying, "How could that be? If it were more than 70%, he would rather kill me than hand it over to you."
"That's true." The young emperor hooked a strand of her hair that was hanging down and slowly twirled it around his fingertips.
That means the match rate has been tested.
If the success rate exceeds 70%, there is a high probability of having offspring who inherit a high concentration of the original bloodline.
For Yi Lan, blowing him and Shi Wei up in the Zhongsi Fortress was the best option.
But he chickened out, or perhaps he softened his heart.
"If I had actually pressed the button that day, and you and I had died together, would you have hated me?" This question had been lingering in Sklag II's mind all these days, and he only dared to ask it today.
Shi looked at him with surprise, not understanding why he would ask such a question.
"Will you hate me?" His sea-blue eyes looked at her, and Shi Wei could read a hint of nervousness in his gaze.
She sighed and said, "Why should I hate you? It was that lunatic Yi Lan who insisted on kidnapping me. Why should I hate you? Besides, I'm already very happy that you came to save me."
Despite carrying such a heavy burden, he still disregarded his own life and risked everything to penetrate deep into the Grasshopper Fortress headquarters to rescue her.
She was already very touched.
Especially after hearing that line: "I'll die with her, she won't blame me."
He didn't have to come at all; he could have negotiated slowly. Even if the negotiations broke down, the public wouldn't blame him.
But he still risked his life as quickly as possible, betting on Yi Lan's compromise.
The man held her hand, their fingers intertwined, and said, "If I hadn't insisted on keeping you here, you wouldn't have caught Yi Lan's attention, and you wouldn't have been in danger time and time again... All your misfortunes are my doing."
He has always felt guilty for not protecting her.
Shi Wei felt that some things had to be made clear. She never expected that Sklag II would have such a vulnerable side deep down—sensitive and humble.
Did she have such a big influence on him?
"If we really have to go by that, then it's all Decari's fault. It's all that bastard's fault for insisting on giving me the chip," Shi Wei joked. Seeing that the man in her arms didn't laugh, she said helplessly, "Or it's my own fault. I insisted on coming to Manla for tourism, and as a result, I fell into such a big pit."
The man laughed and couldn't resist kissing her lips. Their lips and tongues intertwined, making sticky, wet sounds. When he released her, Shi Wei was already having trouble breathing, but she heard him say, "Then you have to blame Asta. If it weren't for her, you wouldn't have come to Manla."
(Asta: You can blame me for this???)
As a loyal fan of Asta, Shi Wei sternly criticized the man's wrong attitude of taking his fan behavior too seriously and said, "Without Lord Asta, there would be no you."
“Okay.” The man leaned closer, looking like he wanted to kiss her again.
Shi Wei quickly dodged away, cupped Sklag II's face in her hands, and asked the question that had troubled her for a long time: "Why do you hate Asta so much?"
He didn't seem like the kind of arrogant monarch who looked down on Omegas. Shi Wei felt that he admired Asta, but for some reason, he would show disgust every time Asta was mentioned. At first, he pretended to be very good, but after Shi Wei noticed, he stopped pretending altogether—he had already taken down the Asta statue in the garden and replaced it with Shi Wei's.
Although the statue was moved to Bailu Palace despite Shi Wei's strong opposition, Shi Wei could still see her own face through the window of her bedroom every time she woke up.
King Skolag II was reluctant to answer the question, but Shi Wei was staring at him, so he had no choice but to say, "On my twentieth birthday, she woke up once, ran out of the monument, and gave me a birthday present."
"What gift?" Shi Wei asked curiously.
Judging from his tone, he doesn't seem like a good person.
She saw the man remain silent for a long while before slowly saying under her expectant gaze, "It's a prophecy. It says you will be 'separated from your wife and children, and live a life of loneliness' in the future."
Shi Wei was completely stunned.
She had always thought Asta was a cheerful and kind-hearted god, and Shi Wei was happy for a long time to know that she still existed.
"Really? Really?" Shi Wei's voice trembled as she finished speaking, only then realizing she had said something pointless.
Queen Eve is dead.
The conflict between Similan and Cyril has become public knowledge.
Her heart felt as if it were being squeezed, and she began to have difficulty breathing. King Sklag II quickly released his spiritual power to soothe her emotions.
Shi Wei hugged him tightly.
“No, no.” She repeated over and over, as if to comfort him: “She’s just trying to scare you. You’re hailed as the man most like Sklag I. She wouldn’t be so cruel to you.”
But she couldn't stop trembling whenever she thought about everything he had experienced over the past century.
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Author's note: I only mentioned the male protagonist's real name once here. All along, he has been "Sclag II". He carries too much on his shoulders, so much so that being a love-obsessed person is a luxury for him.
Meanwhile, everyone's happy to see Lanbao next door become love-struck, because finally someone has cured her mental illness, creating a stark contrast [eye roll].
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