Author: 唇亡齿寒 / Lips Gone, Teeth Cold
Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/
Chapter 41
The Lady of the Night, the Aphrodite, the Princess Sophie, and the Romantic Exile were speeding through the Second Sea of Death, heading towards the Windless Zone. Since Joanna’s escape, this was the first time the fleet’s four main ships had set out simultaneously, marking an unprecedented event in five years.
Of course, the enemy they faced this time was stronger than ever. They weren’t the usual pirates, but the fleet led by Major General Darius Bayes, nicknamed the “Whip of Judgment”. When Leo detected the flagship “Sword of the Queen” on the sensors and identified the fleet, Joanna sighed in relief but also felt a surge of intense unease.
In the past, when she served the Empire, she had met Bayes several times. Back then, Bayes was not a Major General—not even officially ranked—but a cadet in the military academy. In her impression, he was a stern, uninteresting person, whose mind probably contained nothing more meaningful than “loyalty to the Empire”, “defeating enemies”, and “climbing the ranks”. As colleagues, their battlefield cooperation was excellent, but privately, their personalities clashed. As an enemy, Darius Bayes was terrifying. Sometimes his actions were predictable due to his narrow focus, but other times he was unpredictable, like a chessboard full of variables or a sealed candy box where you never knew the next flavor.
No matter what, Joanna acknowledged Major General Bayes as a troublesome enemy. “I never expected him to be the one attacking,” she said, sitting in the command chair, resting her chin on one hand and tapping the armrest with the other, speaking with a tone of helplessness. “No matter how you look at it, the admiral has more important things to do, like taking down Prince Sori, arresting Duke Winnet, or conquering the Federation to unify the galaxy. These tasks are clearly more critical than chasing space pirates. What game is he playing?” She fell into confusion.
“Our fleet will leave the First Sea of Death and enter the Windless Zone in an hour,” Leo reported. “The enemy will leave the Second Sea of Death in three hours.”
“So we still have time to arrange our formation?” Joanna’s eyes scanned the three-dimensional simulation of the fleet, showing a total of thirteen ships, including the main and escort ships, forming a snake formation carefully navigating the star sea filled with old mines and gravitational vortices. The simulation marked dangerous areas in red, which the fleet cautiously avoided. Joanna clicked on the map, zooming out to show the entire Flaming Binary Star System. Milantu was far from the fleet, appearing like a small marble on the map. Two Sea of Deaths surrounded the two stars, with the safe area between them known as the “Windless Zone”. The Second Sea of Death was surrounded by many quantum interference devices, blocking communication between Milantu and the outside world to prevent information leaks. The limited communication channels were strictly controlled by Leo.
This simulation map was part of the data Leo had when acquired. According to the AI, these were advanced technologies discovered by ancient colonists, transmitted back to Old Earth before the first Galactic War, and later brought back to the colonies by Earth survivors. Five years ago, Joanna relied on this map to safely land on Milantu and establish a pirate base. It wasn’t surprising that Leo could get this map, but how did Darius Bayes get the related data? Did he make a deal with the Neo Athens Academy?
The more she thought, the less she understood!
“Leo, order the entire fleet to slow down. We can’t confront the enemy in the Windless Zone. The disparity in strength is too great. We must use the Second Sea of Death as a barrier,” Joanna commanded.
No response.
“Leo? Are you malfunctioning?” The pirate frowned. The AI didn’t respond to her command!
“Sorry, Captain. There was a small issue.” After a while, Leo replied, “Some viruses were detected and being cleared.”
Releasing viruses to paralyze the enemy’s computer system during a battle was a common information warfare tactic, although not honorable, but surprisingly effective. Joanna never worried about her ship’s computer getting infected because they had the most advanced AI in the universe!
“Was it Darius who released the virus?”
“Not yet identified. But it doesn’t affect operations.”
“That’s good. Was the previous order conveyed?”
Leo hesitated. “What order?”
Joanna was momentarily speechless.
“Uh, really sorry! There was a little glitch. I didn’t hear it…” The AI was extremely nervous about its dereliction. “Please, please repeat the order, Captain.”
Joanna mechanically repeated the previous order, but she didn’t hear herself speaking. Her unease reached its peak. In her years of dancing with death in the military, this was unprecedented.
“Darius Bayes?”
In the rest area of the Lady of the Night preparation bay, the waiting pirates were chatting casually while flexing their muscles. They had just learned the enemy’s identity, and Major General Bayes’s name caused a ripple in the room. Some girls were excited. “He’s the Empire’s most handsome soldier! And he’s nobility, young and high-ranking, like a fairy tale prince!”
The men collectively expressed disdain. “Tch, this prince rides not a white horse but a ship with laser cannons.” Errol said, earning an elbow strike from his sister.
“You’re just jealous,” the female mechanic taunted the brother, rolling on the ground and clutching his stomach. “Just admit it.”
“If you like him so much, why not marry him?” Udino retorted.
“Oh, I wish, but he wouldn’t fancy me.” The female mechanic stuck out her tongue. “Haven’t you dreamed of marrying a beautiful princess?”
“Of course not…” Udino glanced at Titia’s face and immediately said seriously, “Never thought of it!” He was then knocked down by his sister. “No ambition!” Titia scolded.
“Enough.” Alois sipped his coffee and interjected. “Darius Bayes isn’t as cute as you think.”
“You know him?” The women’s eyes lit up, expecting some juicy gossip from Alois.
But the anticipated young man only said lightly, “He was a year behind me in military school. He was talented, but also the most obnoxious, unfeeling, and unlikable brat I’ve ever seen.”
Titia’s mouth formed an O shape. “Alois, I didn’t know you had such a past!”
I’d rather not have it. Alois rubbed his forehead.
“Attention all units! Attention all units!” Leo’s voice interrupted their pleasant conversation. “The entire ship is slowing down. We will confront the enemy at the edge of the Second Sea of Death. Prepare for battle!”
Alois threw his cup into the storage box, quickly stood up, and walked towards the preparation bay exit, with Titia following him. Errol and Udino got up from the ground as if nothing had happened. The others left through another exit, heading to their posts.
The time was 15:00 on July 14, 1416, Galactic Standard Calendar. The Battle of Milantu was about to begin.
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