The doctors did not pose any restrictions on the number of gummies Ye Muo could have as long as he had at least two per day.
Therefore, Norton turned a blind eye if Ye Muo was greedy and had one or two more. He’s been much stricter with the child ever since he ate half a jar in one sitting and couldn’t eat properly for several days.
Ye Muo had only been able to get two gummies from Norton recently, no more no less. He already gobbled up today’s share this morning.
He stopped crying now that Norton had made an exception, but he still insisted the man carry him.
He didn’t go back down to play on the floor because, as far as he knew, he had just gotten a shot and had to be carried.
Adlet handed Norton the lion plush Ye Muo had brought out this morning. The child whined quietly as soon as Norton’s hand left his back.
Norton could only resume patting him on the back.
Adlet also withrew and quickly packed up Ye Muo’s things. “Allow me, Your Majesty. It’s time for you to take His Little Highness for his nap anyway.”
Norton inclined his head slightly before taking Ye Muo back to his room. Adlet lightly set down the items he was carrying before leaving the room. Now Norton and Ye Muo were alone again.
Ye Muo yawned. He didn’t forget to remind Norton, “Muomuo’s candies, Daddy.”
Norton set him on the bed with a sound of acknowledgement, “I’ll give them to you tonight.”
Ye Muo was relieved. After all, Norton had never lied to him.
Then the child seem to recall the injustice he had just suffered. He leaned closer to Norton and insisted the man pat his back some more. Actually, as the weather was gettin warmer lately, he hadn’t needed to sleep in Norton’s arms for quite some time.
Norton obliged him without saying a word.
The room quickly quietened down until only Ye Muo’s relaxed breathing could be heard. Norton patted the back of Ye Muo’s hands slower and slower.
Ye Muo always needed his afternoon nap, and Norton always kept him company. However, this routine took up some of his precious spare time. Adlet often worried Norton was overworking himself and suggested several times that he could look after Ye Muo or set up a small bed for him in the study.
But Norton didn’t think any of that was necessary. In fact, these moments let him relax more than ever.
During these moments, he coudl temporarily set everything else aside and just be a father looking after his child
……
The central operal house of a certain junk planet in the Exile Sectors.
Above the opera house were staggered steel beams on which many instruments used on stage were installed. Most of the time, the setup was concealed with holographic projections.
Yet because of this, it became excellent cover at times.
03 casually strolled down a metal beam only the width of his hand to join Faceless.
Faceless was crouched against the wall with one hand holding onto an indentation as he peered down. Lifting one foot, he landed lightly on the stage.
Faceless suddenly shifted and gestured towards 03.
The entire stage became dark as soon as he finished.
Faceless and 03 acted almost simultaneously.
The audience in the theater only heard a few muffled sounds. When the lights came on again, a scream from the second floor. Everythign fell into chaos after something fell to the ground floor.
The ground floor audience all stood up. “What happened?”
“Someone’s been attacked?”
“He’s dead! Who is it?”
“I-it’s the minister…”
The minister was the supreme leader of this planet. He got his name due to his position in his homeland.
“What the hell? Was it the galactic pirates? Didn’t they take the money?”
“The minister is dead! This place is no longer safe!!”
The audience in the opera house fought to flee the building.
Naturally, none of them were residents of the Exile Sectors. They came here from various countries in search of amusement and were all powerful, wealthy figures.
After all, it was convenient to do anything your heart desired in an insignificant, lawless place like the Exile Sectors.
Faceless and 03 had long withdrawn. They walked through the crowd clad in black robes and quickly met up with the agent sent to retrieve them.
They got into a hovercar.
Faceless was expressionless. Blood could vaguely be seen underneath his robe, but it wasn’t his.
Perhaps due to the impending Plague, all countries including Grantz seemed to be prioritizing deploying their forces and protecting resources and civilians. For the first time, Arachnid did a 180 and stopped carefully concealing its existence. They were now almost brazenly taunting everyone with their actions.
Take for example the latest orders issued to all members of the organization– taking over as many habitable planets in the Exile Sectors as possible. If a takeover wasn’t possible, they were to try and establish an alliance.
Faceless and 03’s mission was the assassinate the individuals wielding actual power on each inhabited planet. What came next was none of their concern.
They had already gone through similar routines several times.
In the Exile Sectors, there were few people could gather enough influence to become the ruler of a planet. Even fewer had clean hands.
Faceless felt not a shred of guilt or unease. Like him, these people were the most disgusting of filth. They should have known karma would catch up to them one day for their heinous acts.
03 couldn’t care less about things like this. The rationale of the strong exploiting the weak was common sense to him after spending his entire life in the Exile Sectors.
The hovercar transported them to the port where a starship was ready to depart.
Faceless and 03 boarded the starship.
Faceless seemed a little anxious as he remained a step before 03.
Faceless casually wiped the blood splatter on his cheek with theback of his hand. He had removed his robe as soon as he came inside. It could neutralize scents and conceal their bloodstained clothing, but it impeded his movements somewhat as well.
Yet as a result, their appearance fresh off a mission was fully exposed.
Faceless simply ignored the shocked looks he was attracting and continued to hurry down the corridor. He paid no mind to the familiar sight of everyone scrambling to get out of his way.
Behind him, 03 raised an eyebrow. He had removed his robe early on as well, as he cared not for what others thought of him either. However, Faceless wouldn’t have acted like this in the past. He would cover every inch of himself like he was a creature that would die when exposed to sunlight.
03 followed Faceless back to their room. By the time he entered, Faceless was already seated properly on the sofa with a holographic screen open in front of him.
He didn’t activate privacy mode, so 03 simply walked up behind him to take a look. It was a video of Ye Muo. The little guy was in someone’s arms, leaning over their shoulder with big, fat tears rolling down his cheeks.
03 raised an eyebrow. “He’s quite cute when he cries.”
Faceless frowned instead and expressed genuine worry, “He’s afraid of injections.”
Faceless immediately clicked replay once the video ended.
03 raised an eyebrow as he kept watching. “But he didn’t actually get a shot? He’s just confused by his memories while cocooning. It doesn’t even hurt, but he has the face to cry and ask for candy. Spoiled much?”
Faceless earnestly explained on Ye Muo’s behalf, “Adults must have told him he gets candy after receiving a shot, so you can’t call him spoiled for that. He’s always been a good kid.”
……
The doctor arrived after Ye Muo woke up from his nap. Today happened to be the date of his checkup.
After what he had gone through earlier, Ye Muo was nervous as soon as he saw the doctor’s white lab coat. He looked like he was about to cry again and latched on even harder to Norton. His feet curled up whenever the man tried to set him down.
Norton could only hold him during his examination. Fortunately, Ye Muo was as cooperative as ever with the doctor aside from refusing to be set down.
The doctor ran through the familiar battery of tests and quickly produced the results. “His cocooning period is past the halfway point by now, Your Majesty. His Little Highness’ psychic power will be particularly active for some time. Some deep rooted memories will continue to surface until his psychic power stabilizes.”
He continued, “It’s important to note that, at this stage, not only will His Little Highness slowly recover his memories up to the present, particularly impactful memory fragments may continue to surface when he’s older. Some cocooning individuals will never experience this while those who do tend to experience it frequently. His Little Highness may feel like he is the one experiencing those moments, or he may believe it to be a third party.”
Norton expressionlessly continued to regard the doctor.
The doctor swallowed dryly. “Please ensure he receives enough nutrients. His Little Highness will undergo a rapid growth spurt once his psychic power is stable. He’ll be more prone to hunger than usual, but rest assured his current state will continue for a while longer. I’ll prescribe some supplemental nutrient solution as usual. That should be all.”
Norton finally inclined his head slightly before shifting his gaze to Ye Muo.
Ye Muo understood that he didn’t need another shot and quickly perked up. His feet started swaying. “Muomuo will take the medicine. Muomuo doesn’t need shots.”
The doctor nodded as he selected various nutrient solutions and remarked out of habit, “Of course, you’ll have to receive injections of nutrients if these supplements aren’t enough.”
Ye Muo’s feet stopped swaying.Â
