Author: 唇亡齿寒 / Lips Gone, Teeth Cold
Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/
Chapter 36
His face felt itchy.
It was also wet, with a faint stinging sensation.
Something was licking his face. This guy’s tongue had barbs, making it extremely rough. Damn it, stop licking, he doesn’t taste good!
Joshua abruptly opened his eyes, and what he saw was Schrödinger’s furry face. Its whiskers twitched, and its amber eyes, with pupils shaped like ovals, almost filled the entire eyeball, making the black cat look pure and innocent.
The assassin glanced outside. The ruling star of the night sky had already moved past the zenith, so it was probably around 9 AM standard time. Judging by his usual schedule, he had obviously overslept. “Are you waking me up?” he asked Schrödinger.
“Meow.” The black cat meowed, turned, and ran out the door.
The assassin stared blankly for a few seconds before suddenly realizing something was wrong! His arms were empty. There was nothing there but air! Where was Alois? Where had Alois gone?! Before he closed his eyes, he was still lying in his arms. How could he be gone as soon as he opened his eyes?
Joshua hurriedly jumped out of bed, barely managing to dress, and rushed downstairs. The living room on the first floor was empty. Schrödinger’s black tail flashed in the kitchen door crack, and the sound of frying food came from inside.
He pushed the kitchen door open with a bang, startling the person inside.
“Good Lord, you scared me to death,” Alois said as he turned around. He was wearing a beige apron, about to crack two eggs. “You’re awake?” He glanced at Joshua’s messy hair and clothes with suspicion.
“Mm.” Seeing that Alois was fine and standing there, Joshua sighed in relief. The panic on his face vanished completely, with not a trace left. “I overslept,” he said.
“Oh, me too.” Alois put the eggs into the frying pan, expertly lifting the pan. “Did you sleep well last night?” He blushed as he asked this, luckily facing away from Joshua, so he couldn’t see.
“Mm.” The assassin replied. “I dreamed of you.”
Alois’s hand shook, nearly tossing the frying egg. Luckily, he was facing away from Joshua! The young man thought again, the designer of this house was really considerate!
The microwave on the cabinet next to them dinged. Schrödinger circled the oven, seeming to know it was done heating, scratching the oven door nonstop.
“Move aside!” Alois shooed the cat away, opened the microwave, and took out the plate of grilled fish from yesterday. The fragrance was overwhelming, making Schrödinger’s eyes glaze over. Alois placed the plate in a corner of the kitchen, and the black cat immediately pounced on it, devouring the fish.
After taking care of the cat, he hurried back to the frying pan. “You go wait in the living room. Breakfast will be ready soon,” he said to Joshua.
“You can cook?” The assassin leaned against the kitchen doorframe, watching the busy young man with interest.
“Duh, it’s just frying an egg. Anyone can do it!”
“Well, I can’t.”
Alois rolled his eyes at him.
“You look good in an apron.” A warm smile appeared on Joshua’s lips. “But you look even better in a spacesuit.”
This was his heartfelt compliment. The pilots’ spacesuits were form-fitting, and the high-temperature and cold-resistant tough material outlined Alois’s body from head to toe, especially the perfect curve of his waistline, always provoking wild thoughts.
Alois blushed and retorted, “I look better without it!”
“Ah, your eggs are burning.”
“…Shit!”
So, that day’s breakfast was two burnt fried eggs. For the first meal Alois made personally for Joshua, it couldn’t have been worse, Alois thought despairingly.
“Bah! Having something to eat is already good enough, stop being picky!”
Joanna glared at the whimpering Pavlov, who, after leaving behind Chef Celia’s delicious food, was strongly protesting against the bowl of dog biscuits in front of it. The restaurant waitress served the captain matcha cake and then turned to toss a small sausage to the big dog.
“Stop feeding him. He’ll get fat!”
“Captain, you should use that advice on yourself.”
“Hmph!” Joanna buried her head in the cake, selectively ignoring the helpless smiles of the restaurant staff.
Leonard’s image appeared opposite her. The AI had changed into a white robe today, looking very much like a church priest. “Good day, Captain.” He clasped his hands inside his sleeves.
Joanna glanced at the pitch-black sky outside, not understanding where the AI saw the “day”. Probably, lifeforms like them living in the virtual world could only rely on standard time to calculate time, she thought sympathetically.
“I have good news for you.” Leonard rested his chin in his hand. “A merchant ship belonging to the Dowlan Company is transporting a batch of gems to the Free City-States, passing about one light-year from the Flaming Twins.”
“Is this something that needs to be reported?” Joanna dropped her fork. “Brothers, grab your gear and go!”
“Robbery? How to rob?”
At 10:20 AM standard time, Alois was studying how to use the household robot, and Joshua, sent to wash dishes, suddenly heard Titia burst in, shouting loudly, “Come on, boys. It’s time to make a name for ourselves!”
“Is the Empire Army attacking?” Alois stuffed the manual into the robot’s belly.
“We’re going to rob!”
So, the two were dragged out of the house without further ado, heading towards the spaceport amidst the base’s alarms. The Lady of the Night had docked at the port for less than a day and had to set sail again.
“Robbing is just like eating. Once you do it, you’ll know how.” Titia and Alois boarded the preparation cabin, while Joshua went in another direction, assigned to the vanguard team.
After hurriedly changing into spacesuits, Alois was still confused. “I still don’t understand how to rob.”
“Let me put it simply.” Titia climbed into her beloved “Fran”. “Follow orders in all actions.”
That was straightforward enough. Military academy instructors taught the same way. Alois climbed into “Doro” (he didn’t know when everyone started calling it that), and started the system.
Captain Joanna, responsible for command, thought robbing was a very simple matter, much easier than fighting a war, even when facing a ship with heavy weapons. Her plan was even simpler: First, the Lady of the Night would warp to the vicinity of the merchant ship; second, the fighter jets would launch and destroy the merchant ship’s beam cannons; third, the vanguard team would board the merchant ship, threaten the crew with force, and Leonard would take control of the merchant ship’s systems; finally, they would drag the loot and captives back home.
Of course, she would never simply tell others her plan. In the bridge, Joanna always remained calm and composed, issuing one order after another, making many people mistakenly believe she must be contemplating complex tactics.
The Lady of the Night ended its warp, and the radar showed traces of the merchant ship. They weren’t far apart. If the Lady of the Night advanced at full speed, they could catch up within ten minutes. “Don’t reveal your identity.” Joanna ordered. “Fighter jets, destroy the merchant ship’s weapon systems!”
The control console faithfully transmitted her orders to the four pilots. Alois put on his spacesuit helmet, and the control panel appeared. The cockpit trembled slightly, a precursor to the launch system. He pulled up the control lever, whispering, “Doro (a shiver ran through him as he said the name), Alois Lagrange, launch!”
The fighter jet was catapulted into space.
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