Norton stopped in place after disembarking from the ship. His gaze lingered on Sylvia for a moment before shifting to the sword embedded in the ground.
The Grantz flag flew tall above.
The others filtered methodically out of the mothership. They remained quietly to either side of the ship.
Lakely stood by the mothership with Derek. He mimicked the man and straightened up. He had ended the livestream back when he was on the ship.
Now, with Xavier and the other Grantz so close by, his eyes couldn’t help but drift their way.
Norton stepped towards the deeply embedded sword. Ye Muo instinctively followed.
Sylvia intervened before Ano could try and stop him. She wordlessly shook her head before turning to watch Norton and Ye Muo.
Lakely was rooted in place. He had already forgotten to be nervous. He watched on as father and son were haloed in the dying rays of sunset.
Norton got down on one knee. He clasped the hilt of the sword before glancing at Ye Muo.
After a beat, Ye Muo also got down on one knee. Norton then let go.
Following Norton’s guidance, Ye Muo gradually grasped the sword hilt. He glanced at the man, unsure of his intention.
Norton wordlessly covered Ye Muo’s hand with his own, much wider hand. He pulled the sword free with Ye Muo’s hand in place.
Small pieces of dislodged rubble scattered across the ground.
Norton let go once the sword was out. Ye Muo was a bit confused as he held it, but he didn’t panic because Norton was here.
Norton quietly told him, “Your name and today’s date will be engraved on this sword.”
He stood up. When Ye Muo followed suit, he turned to Sylvia and approached her at a measured pace.
The soldiers at the dock saluted in unison, loudly proclaiming, “May imperial glory endure, and Grantz forever be immortalized!”
Their volume could be considered deafening even in this open space.
Norton strode ahead, seemingly unaffected by the commotion.
Lakely took all of this in with wide eyes.
Secretary-General Lin stepped forward to relieve Ye Muo of the sword, which he handed off to a nearby soldier.
Ye Muo finally ducked around Norton to go hug Sylvia. “I missed you.”
Sylvia embraced him with a smile. “I missed you too, Xavier.”
Something about the scene just now resonated deeply with Lakely. He was still reeling from it all when Derek imperceptibly jabbed him in the side. “It’s time for us to go.”
Only now did Lakely realize that the troops around them had started filing out at some point.
He quickened his pace to rejoin the main force with Derek. Even now, he couldn’t help but sneak a glance at the Grantz as he passed by, only to meet eyes with Sylvia.
Sylvia was still hugging Ye Muo. She noticed Lakely passing by over his shoulder and called out, “Please wait.”
Derek stopped first, followed by Lakely when he eventually realized who the Empress was speaking to.
Sylvia’s voice was as gentle as ever, “If I’m not mistaken, you don’t seem to be a Grantz soldier.”
Some of the Grantz also casually looked over.
Ye Muo poked his head out from Sylvia’s arms too.
Lakely nervously performed the standard Alliance greeting under their gazes. “Yes, I’m from the Keller Federation. I came t-to…”
Derek bowed his head. “Your Highness, this is Lakely. We went out with the cleanup crew for regular extermination, only to run into His Majesty and return halfway.”
Sylvia seemed surprised to hear that. Her smile became more sincere. “Apologies, I mistook you for an enemy. I remember extending an invitation to you, Lakely. You’re a remarkable child. Our ancestors once lived in the same galactic region under one civilization. I’m very glad to meet you.”
She was so amicable that Lakely grew flustered. “The honour is all mine, Your Highness. I’ve been looking forward to making good on that invitation. I would love to take a look at your gardens if that’s possible…?”
Derek noticed how Ano discreetly removed his hand from the hilt of his sword.
Sylvia huffed in amusement, “We can certainly arrange for that today, and my invitation still stands. Consider today a separate, informal occasion as an apology for my assumption earlier.”
……
In the end, Lakely and Derek were invited to have dinner with the Grantz.
Sylvia could tell Lakely was on edge during the meal and offered him the opportunity to tour the gardens he had expressed an interest in.
Ye Muo raised his hand and looked at Sylvia expectantly. “I can show our guest around.”
He had snuck many curious glances at Lakely throughout the meal already.
Sylvia huffed in amusement. “Don’t forget, you still have to bring the sword you removed this morning to the treasury later.”
Ye Muo paused momentarily, “Perhaps our guest would like to see that place too.”
Sylvia shook her head but indulged him nonetheless, “If he agrees to, yes.”
Lakely immediately declared solemnly, “Of course! It would be my honour!”
“That means I won’t be able to go with Xavier…” Ano grumbled.
He shut up when Sylvia sent him a look. Norton had been monitoring the entire Grantz palace with psychic power since his return. The Grantz were sure Ye Muo would be safe here.
Secretary-General Lin fetched a box and displayed its contents to Ye Muo. The two characters of his name had already been engraved on the hilt.
Ye Muo picked it up somewhat casually and approached Lakely. “Let’s drop by the treasury first.”
Lakely and Derek obviously had no objections. They trailed behind Ye Muo and Theodore, who had joined them. His sheer white hair almost seemed luminescent in the dim hallway. Soon, the lights all turned on.
Ye Muo broke the silence first, “I remember you, you know? You watched me a lot back on the Central Planet. I could sense it.”
Lakely was so nervous he started stammering, “I, I didn’t know you could–”
Ye Muo flashed a smile at him. “Just a few times, really. I’m not as strong as Father and the others. Theodore showed me many of the videos you made for me. They’re so cool that I can match up sometimes.”
Lakely eventually calmed down and replied sincerely, “No, all I did was discover you first and introduced others people to you.”
Ye Muo shyly changed the subject, “We can head to the gardens after putting this away. Pangzhua’s out there too. It just came back, so maybe its parents will bring the entire pride to visit. I can show you all the things I planted out there too.”
Then everyone fell silent. Their footsteps echoed through the hallway. When they crossed a room to the adjacent hallway, Lakely’s gaze was subconsciously drawn to the portraits hanging on the far wall.
There were names inscribed beneath each portrait, all sharing the surname Grantz. A range of years was also provided. Lakely ran some calculations and realized none of them were older than 50. Most only lived to their 30s.
A chill crept into his heart.
Ye Muo glossed over it, “These are our ancestors.”
The atmosphere became solemn.
They arrived at the armory a few minutes later. The doors opened once Ye Muo verified his identity.
A spacious room with high ceilings was revealed. Aside from the display cases filled with swords of various shapes and sizes to either side, countless more were mounted on the racks on every wall.
Stepping foot in here was almost disorienting.
At the very back was a high platform bearing an empty case.
They tacitly stopped at the steps and watched Ye Muo climb up.
Ye Muo carefully set the sword down. Next time, this sword would be moved to one of the racks and a new sword would take its place.
As Ye Muo turned away from the case, he happened to catch sight of Yinghui on a nearby stand.
“So this sword is stored here too? I thought Father would continue to use it.”
Lakely also looked over. “Is this the sword His Majesty Norton was using today?”
“Yes, that’s right. Do you want to see it? Isn’t it beautiful? I didn’t know it was used as a witness sword.”
Ye Muo said, grasping the hilt. Theodore immediately went over to help Ye Muo take the sword off the stand.
Ye Muo shifted his hand to check the name and date inscribed. He paused. “This dates back to the old calendar.”
Ye Muo glanced around the hilt. “There’s no name? Did no one use this sword?”
He tried probing it with psychic power. Thread after thread ensconced the blade as he tried to check how many users it had.
However, Ye Muo never expected his psychic power to mobilize completely in an instant.
Before he could react, a strange sense of weightlessness overwhelmed him.
Theodore had a clearer perspective as an AI. He interpreted every aspect of the world as data since he awoke his psychic power. He saw Ye Muo being enveloped by psychic power before time itself stagnated.
Then, they were transported elsewhere.
Ye Muo opened his eyes to darkness. He felt like he was falling from a height, soon touching down on the ground. The impact wasn’t bad, as if a pair of hands had lifted him up at the last minute. However, he had landed on a steep slope and soon began to tumble uncontrollably down a grassy plain.
By the time he stopped, he came face to face with bayonets. One blade was aimed right at his neck.
There were houses in the distance. Thanks to the faint light coming from that direction, he could make out the group of armed people surrounding him with wary expressions.
It was then that a small figure darted out from the slope Ye Muo had tumbled down, distracting the group for a moment. It hopped on Ye Muo with hackles raised, hissing and feinting viciously towards the others.
Some of the people around Ye Muo backed away, only to complain moments later, “Huh? It’s just a white cat.”
“Forget about it. It’ll all be over soon anyway.”
“That’s not for you to decide.”
“Call the chief over.”
Ye Muo’s fingers curled slightly as he discreetly surveyed his surroundings. The holomind attached to his wrist could shift into a dagger near instantly.
He didn’t recognize this place. Thankfully, Theodore’s presence here kept him grounded for the most part.
A gentle voice nearby interrupted their conversation. “What’s going on here?”
The crowd made way as they talked over one another. “We caught someone.”
“Doesn’t look like he’s from around here.”
“There’s a feral cat with him too. He must be an offworlder. No one here would have the resources to raise pets.”
A young man with a coat over his shoulders slowly made his way over. He carried no weapons, just a lamp. Ye Muo saw him before he did. He adjusted his posture, ready to take the other party hostage at once.
The light of the young man’s lamp eventually reached here. “A child, no less.”
He sized up Ye Muo. “How did you get here?”
Ye Muo warily shook his head slightly, not looking away from the man for a second. “I was already here when I regained consciousness.”
“Then do you know where we are?”
Ye Muo shook his head again. The young man looked at him with resignation and pity, as if he was looking at a small animal that had died on the side of the road. “You’ve been cast into purgatory, offworlder.”
“Put the weapons away and shackle him.”
He then turned to Ye Muo. “I can’t trust you yet. Only when I’m sure you’re harmless can I return your freedom to you, okay? Please try to understand how troubling it is for a child to suddenly show up at our doors.”
After several seconds of eye contact, Ye Muo nodded. He scooped Theodore up with one arm and rose to show he would cooperate.
Theodore’s fur slowly flattened in Ye Muo’s embrace. He was still wary, however. This place was alarmingly outdated with almost no access to the network. He had yet to obtain a single piece of info. Even the Exile Sectors weren’t this closed off.
Now that there was time to breathe, Theodore poked his head through the crook of Ye Muo’s arm and tried finding clues in the sky above. As long as they were in a region of the galaxy he had recorded, he could use the constellations overhead to identify which planet they were on.
Theodore’s data proceeded to stagnate. Not because of the operations involved, but the shocking conclusion. He knew as soon as he glanced at the sky above that something was very wrong. The answer was simply inconceivable– they were in Old Grantz.
