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Eclipse Hunter

Eclipse Hunter

Eclipse Hunter

Author:
Yu Wo 御我
Genre:
Action Comedy Drama School Life Sci-Fi
Renew:
Vol 5 Chapter 2
Update:
08-15-2023

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Description
Chapter List

Eclipse Hunter summary: The life of a cyborg, programmed to protect his overprotective older brother and ordered to conceal his ident.i.ty from his cla.s.smates.Part serious, part comedy; plot deepens as it goes on.

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 3 END ********************
Chapter 4 END ********************
Chapter 5 END ********************
Chapter 6 END ********************
Chapter 7 END ********************
Chapter 8 END ******************** -
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 4: Devil’s Love
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 7 END *******************
Chapter 8 END *******************
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 1Translator: Mochipanda, LilsxD, YihnfulProofreader: Wryn, Catchkatch, NoobzillaDevon took a sip of his coffee and grimaced at the bitter taste. The coffee had been brewed for far too long; it was too bitter even for him, who was accustomed to the taste of black coffee. The acrid taste only served to worsen his already foul mood. Looking up, he snapped at the conference screen. “I don’t care what the public is saying, or what underhanded measures are required; Yue Baylian must be destroyed.”The face on the screen belonged to Kyle, otherwise known as the right hand man and secretary extraordinaire, of the Solaris Emperor.“However, the Lunaris Alliance has skillfully manipulated public opinion by spreading unfavourable and exaggerated rumours of our tactics. They have even lead the other cartels into believing the Solaris Federation intends to absorb them, with the destruction of the Lunaris Alliance as the first step. Unfortunately, if we were to make a move on the Lunaris Alliance now, other groups may start retaliating.”“Hmph. It seems Yue Baylian is well aware that a mere Lunaris Alliance is unable to withstand my vengeance.”Devon was not surprised by Kyle’s report. After all, the Lunaris Alliance had traversed the economical world for a relatively long time, and was a forerunner among trade conglomerates. It would be unusual if they were unprepared for Devon’s retaliation.Musing, he asked, “What was the public’s reaction when my headquarters were bombed?”“We followed your orders for transparency and made every effort to reveal the suspicious details of the incident to the public. However, the other groups were still reserved about it.”Devon frowned for a moment, quickly deducing the reason.“I would adopt a conservative approach, too, if I were them. Although our rivals want to take over Solaris Federation’s position, killing me is definitely one of the worst ideas. If the economy were to collapse as a result, it would take years to recover. Even if they somehow succeeded in replacing Solaris Federation, their profits might not necessarily be greater than their current revenue.“And Yue Baylian has always been a skillful strategist, so no one would believe he would be clumsy enough to shoot himself in the foot while trying to a.s.sa.s.sinate me. And the grudge between the two of us... if even I forgot about it, other people probably did too.”I don’t get it. I really don’t get it! Devon rubbed his temples. His memory had always been better than most, and even if he was bad at remembering people how could he forget about someone who had been pursuing him for eight years?A few people had pursued him in the past, but there had never been one who had persisted in courting him for eight years.“Kyle, you’ve worked for me for seven or eight years now?” Devon voiced his idea to his secretary. “Do you not have any impression of Yue Baylian pursuing me?”“Solaris Emperor, even though I’ve handled many matters for you, that is your personal business, excuse my candidness, but you have always disliked others meddling with your personal affairs,” Kyle replied truthfully. “You’re right. Youngsters always dislike others prying into their relationship issues. I regret it now, of course,” Devon cursed. “In the future, keep a digital record of all the love letters, gifts, and the like from my suitors,” he ordered. “Notify me should any contain a hint of obsession so I can deal with her or him as soon as possible.”“Yes, Solaris Emperor.” Kyle nodded slightly, adding another note to his routine tasks.“We were just discussing the…”“Gege.”Daren peeked his head in from the doorway. “Are you busy?” he asked hesitantly.Devon answered with a gentle smile on his face. “Busy? No, it’s outside office hours.” He discreetly switched off the conference screen, completely disregarding Kyle, who was still awaiting orders.Daren bounced into the room holding an ornately carved black box inlaid with red jewels. He placed it on his brother’s desk. “Gege, I found this box in your room. What is it? Can I have a look?” he asked, br.i.m.m.i.n.g with excitement.Looking at his little brother’s smiling face, Devon smiled. Without even taking a clear look at the box, he answered: “Of course you can. If you like it you can have it.”Permission granted, Daren opened the box with child-like glee. The first thing that caught his eye was a silver BHP handgun, lying among the bits and pieces inside. The model and design was ancient. It was obvious it had several years behind it.Daren quickly lost interest after playing around with it for a moment. The handgun was nothing compared to the many guns in his room.He picked up another item from the box; a beautiful, crystal clear, crescent-shaped necklace.“Is this Gege’s necklace?” he asked curiously.It was only then did Devon realise the box held items of sentimental value to him. He had not recognised it straight away because he hadn’t taken the box out in several years.He stared at it distractedly. It had been a present from his father for his 10th birthday, reputed to be a priceless antique that had been pa.s.sed down from generation to generation. Initially, his father had been hesitant about giving such a important family heirloom to Devon at such a young age, but eventually he had caved under Devon’s constant begging…“Gege?”Devon came back to his senses and turned to see his brother’s look of confusion. He hastily glanced at the necklace. “No, it’s not mine.” he replied, shaking his head.He frowned at the crescent moon necklace before saying “I can’t remember whom it belongs… Ah, wait a moment, a crescent moon shaped necklace? Perhaps it was Yuer’s necklace.”“Who is this Yuer1?”“That is a long story…”Devon furrowed his brow, but when he lifted his head he saw Daren looking up at his with wide eyes, the picture of an innocent child waiting to be told a story.Too cute! cried a voice in Devon’s head. Dar! How can you be this adorable?Thus, the good brother started to tell his story.“It all started when I began junior high. I had decided to discontinue home schooling in favour of enrolling in a school.“Back then, I was still young and ignorant. I disliked having a bunch of bodyguards trailing behind me. So, on the first day of school, after taking great pains to lose all my bodyguards and the chauffeur, I walked to school by myself.“Who would have known that I would get targeted by street thugs and cornered in a dark alley even before crossing two streets?”“A brat who goes to an elite school like yours should at least have a few thousand dollars on him. Us brothers are a little short on money. How about lending us a few notes? Young Master,” the leader of the thugs asked, chuckling menacingly.A few of the thugs kept stealing jealous glances at Devon’s expensive school uniform.“I don’t have any cash on me,” Devon answered mildly. He was telling the truth; he never had any cash on him, just a Solaris credit card.“How could you not have any?” the p.i.s.sed off street thugs demanded.“Stop lying,” the leader challenged. “I can tell with one look that you’re a filthy rich brat.”Devon shrugged his shoulders. “I do have money; I just didn’t bring cash. Do you accept credit cards?” he asked.“...Are you messing with us?”“No, I would never do that. If you accept credit cards, then hurry up with it. I’m going to be late for cla.s.s.” Devon answered impatiently and wrinkled his brows. 　　“You little jerk…”When Devon saw the fist flying towards his face, he raised his eyebrows. “You want to punch me? It just so happens that I’ve never been punched before. Might as well make an experience of it.”Mid swing, the thug seethed with rage at Devon’s arrogant reply. “Good! I’ll beat you to death today,” he screamed, swinging furiously.Just before the fist could collide with his face, Devon noticed a shadowy figure through the corner of his eyes charging toward them. He raised his eyebrows without a word, watching calmly as the girl rushed over. She wore a long, traditional skirt, kicking out as she slashed her whip and thrashed the thugs till they cried for their mothers. Sobbing, they scrambled out of the alley.What a fearless girl. Devon smiled faintly and applauded as though he had seen a brilliant show. “It was really nice watching you. You fighting style is so graceful, like a dance.”The girl laughed heartily. “You’re pretty interesting. You actually want to experience the feeling of being hit?”“Can’t I?” Devon chuckled. “There’s always a first for everything.”“Of course you can. How about a taste of my whip?”“Sure.” Devon answered with a smile and leisurely waited for the blow.The girl raised her whip in all seriousness, but the blow never fell. After a moment, she burst out laughing.“Forget it,” she said. “How can I bear to hit you when you’re smiling at me with such a pretty face?”Devon’s smile deepened. “You’re pretty too, Yuer.”“Why did you call me ‘Yuer’?” the girl asked, a bit surprised.Devon pointed at the girl’s chest. “Because there’s a crescent moon on your clothes.”“So that’s why… I thought you knew my name,” Yuer muttered.“Huh?”“Nothing. I can’t bring myself to hit you. So, how about we watch others take a beating? There’s a place nearby holding a combat tournament and the preliminary matches are on right now.”Today’s the first day of junior high, but… Devon shrugged his shoulders.“Okay, let’s go,” he said nonchalantly.“That was how I met Yuer. After that, every day she sent me flowers, and if I wanted to meet and play with her, I would place the flowers on my windowsill. When night fell, she would be waiting for me at the back gates.”Devon faintly smiled. Those really were crazy times.They repeatedly stayed out all night, even when they had to attend school and learn the ropes of the business the next day. If it hadn’t been for his youthful exuberance and stamina, he definitely would have collapsed.“I want to meet Yuer-jiejie, too,” Daren requested excitedly.Devon shook his head. “It’s impossible. One day Yuer suddenly disappeared. She never sent me flowers again and even when I signalled with my own flowers on the windowsill, she still didn’t appear… It was strange.”He lowered his head and murmured, “But from the moment we first met until she disappeared, I don’t remember her ever giving me this necklace. Could it be that it’s not hers?”Then have I just recounted my story for nothing?“Solaris Emperor, please excuse my interruption.”Devon jumped at the sound of Kyle’s voice, but Daren reacted swiftly and pressed the b.u.t.ton to activate the conference call screen. He cheerfully greeted the other party.“Kyle-ge, good evening.”“Good evening, Young Master Daren,” Kyle cordially returned.Devon looked at the communication switch and realised he had only turned off the screen and hadn’t actually hung up. Kyle must have been waiting patiently during the entire conversation, in case anything else was required of him.“Kyle, what is it?”“May I be allowed to inspect the necklace?” Kyle asked respectfully.Not waiting for Devon’s reply, Daren immediately raised the necklace in his hands.“I’ll let you see it, Kyle-ge,” the boy said.Kyle scrutinised the necklace for a moment, quickly concluding, “Solaris Emperor, this necklace is the family heirloom that Yue Baylian gave to you when he confessed.”“What?” Devon frowned as he stared at the necklace. So, Yue Baylian really did give me a necklace?“Please take a look at this, Solaris Emperor. The traditional dress you believe Yuer wore––was it similar to this?” An image of a traditional Chinese-style robe with a short coat attached appeared on the screen.“That’s right! Yuer wore the same type of dress,” Devon confirmed, reminiscing.“Solaris Emperor, this isn’t a dress. This is a traditional robe and b.u.t.toned jacket that is worn by men. It is also the traditional clothing worn by Yue Baylian’s family.”“What?” Devon Solaris was stunned.“According to my reasoning, Solaris Emperor, your first love Yuer is Yue Baylian himself,” Kyle reported delicately. “However, he wore a traditional robe that may be mistaken as a dress by modern cultural trends, and combined with his feminine appearance, so...”“Wait a minute!” Devon protested, alarmed. “If he was Yuer how could I not recognise him when he confessed to me?”“In my opinion, he may have wanted to blend in with social customs, or create a formal atmosphere when he made his confession. So he approached you in a western suit, and may have cut his hair. Again, excuse me for speaking bluntly, but your powers of recognition have always been less than perfect. Coupled with the fact that you were constantly worrying about Young Master Daren being missing, you were unable to determine that the man confessing to you was actually Yuer.”Devon Solaris frowned, deep in thought.“Find me a photo of Yue Baylian wearing that... whatever-you-call-it dress!” he ordered. “Robe.”On screen, Kyle ducked down and punched some b.u.t.tons. The image of a stunning beauty wearing a glamourous, long, traditional robe appeared on screen. Despite having a beautiful face, it was obvious from his physique that the person was a man.“Ah!”The moment he saw the photo, Devon recognised him. This person had a stronger build and was more masculine than the Yuer from his memories, but the similarities in the face were obvious. Devon covered his mouth unconsciously, trying to suppress his shocked exclamation.Yue Baylian really is… Yuer!
Chapter 2 Translator: Yihn Proofer: Arc, Catchkatch Devon held onto the black box long after his little brother Dar, the ever obedient child, had already gone to sleep. After a long pause, a sigh finally broke the silence. “Bill.” “Yes, Solaris Emperor?” Kyle asked. Since he was never the one who pressed the ‘end call’ b.u.t.ton, Kyle was still waiting on the line. “What do you think I should do?” Devon held the crescent moon necklace before his eyes, swinging it to and fro. It sparkled like the smile of his first love. “I do not know.” Kyle kept to his duties and didn’t give a response. He understood that it was not in his job description to answer the question. And he knew that the Solaris Emperor didn’t really want his answer, he was merely thinking out loud. "Oh, it all happened so long ago. After hating me for all this time, how could he possibly forgive me so easily, especially after hearing such a ridiculous explanation?” Devon idly poked at the necklace. Kyle quietly waited on the other end of the line. “Punishing him a little for revenge will be fine, but you can forgo the matter of destroying him,” Devon said faintly. “I take it that I owe him that much.” “Yes.” Devon pressed a b.u.t.ton and ended the call. He gazed at the necklace he’d been holding in his hands for some time, before returning it to the box and closing the lid. But as he caught full view of the box, he could not help staring at it and grazing his fingers gently over the red jewel. Father… Devon closed his eyes and slowly reclined in the chair. “Wouldn"t it be great if Mother hadn’t died, or if you hadn’t hated Didi? Then we would have been a happy family…” he murmured. ******************** “Bye, Papa Avery. I’m going to school now.” Daren kissed Theodore’s cheek. With the haggard look on his face, glazed eyes, and a cup of coffee in his hands, Theodore would have been arrested for drug abuse if a police officer had caught a glimpse of him. Ezart yawned widely and examined Theodore. “Has he gone crazy?” he concluded bluntly. “Papa Avery isn’t crazy.” Leaping to Theodore’s defence, Daren struggled to explain. “Papa works every day, late into the night. But Gege has given him instructions to wake up early every morning to say goodbye and see me off for school, or Gege will kill him. That’s why Papa doesn’t have much energy in the mornings.” “Your dad’s pretty over the top,” Ezart replied disapprovingly. “He’s already so old yet he still stays up all night. Your brother, too. n.o.body your age says goodbye to their families before leaving for cla.s.s anymore.” The moment Ezart finished speaking, a certain drug addict suddenly sobered up and looked around. “Who? Who said that I’m old?” he roared. “…Your dad woke up.” “En…Bye, Papa Avery. I’m going to school now.” Daron embraced Theodore once more. “Oh, so it’s Dar.” Theodore stared blankly at the two students, a little confused. When did I get to the front door? Why do I have no recollection of it at all…? But, for the sake of self-preservation, he bid farewell to Daren just as Devon had instructed. “Be careful on your way to school.” “Let’s go already,” Ezart declared impatiently, and set off first, using big strides. Seeing this, Daren anxiously hurried after him, shouting, “I’m coming! Wait for me, Ezart!” “Teenagers are so full of energy…” Theodore leaned next to the door, took a sip of his coffee and exclaimed like an old man as he watched them leave, one after the other. Not long after setting off, the big guy up ahead reverted back to his usual lazy self, slowly taking each step. Daren didn’t react in time and had already rushed past him by several meters before realising. He hurriedly retraced his steps and drew up alongside Ezart. “There’s a practical lesson later. Remember to let Dark Sun into the battle simulator; I want to have a battle with him today.” Even though Ezart looked as though he was just saying it casually, the sharpness in Ezart’s eyes revealed his eagerness to duel with Dark Sun. “Hmm?” Caught off guard, it took Daren a while before he remembered. Ever since Ezart, Elian and the others had found out about his ident.i.ty as Dark Sun, and were threatened by his brother to keep their mouths shut, everybody had simply proceeded to treat him and Dark Sun as two separate individuals. Daren remained the delicate young master, while Dark Sun was the bodyguard. That was the consensus everyone had reached. “But, Elian-gege said he wants to fight with me…with Dark Sun today.” “What!” Ezart complained. “Didn’t he duel with you last time already?” “But you had a duel the time before, too…” Daren’s voice gradually got softer and softer. “That’s right! So it’s decided. It will be my turn this time round. No more grumbling,” Ezart said a.s.sertively. “Oh,” Daren answered blankly. They continued walking until they pa.s.sed a toy store. Stopping abruptly, Daren pulled at a corner of Ezart’s shirt. Ezart glanced sideways at Daren, bemused. “What is it?” he asked. “We’re going to be late if you don’t walk faster.” Pulling his pink, heart-shaped console from his bag, Daren gazed at the shop with sparkling eyes. “I want to buy Xiao Ai’s newest software update that’s just been released,” he declared. “…You’re still playing with that? And even getting the newest software update?” Ezart looked at the console incredulously. Daren’s face crumpled at his words, portraying a look full of disappointment. “I can’t...buy it…?” he asked, voice small. Here we go again! I can’t refuse him when he looks at me with those puppy-dog eyes! Ezart helplessly face-palmed. “Anything, anything. If you want to buy it, just do it quickly or we’ll be late for cla.s.s.” “It’ll just take a moment. Ezart, you have to wait for me, okay?” Daren rushed into the toy store as soon as he had consent, knowing that Ezart didn’t have the least bit of patience when waiting for others. He had to finish making his purchase quickly or else he’d get left behind. Once inside the toy store, Daren had intended to pounce on the counter and demand the latest software update, but he was forced to stop when he saw another customer already at the counter. He became fl.u.s.tered and didn"t know what to do. But the sharp-eyed shop a.s.sistant recognised this generous customer and greeted him with a beaming smile. “Is there anything I can help you look for?” “I-I want this newest program update, the one from the television ads.” Daren raised his game console. “Where Xiao Ai can eat gourmet foods from different countries, have makeup and lots of clothes to change into, and can even raise a pet,” he recited the lines he had heard from the ads, all in a single breath. “Virtual Lover 8.0 software update, right? Please wait; I’ll get it for you momentarily.” The a.s.sistant started searching under the counter the second he finished speaking. "Okay." Daren replied, waiting. “The Virtual Lover game. Such a childish game really suits you.” Daren was taken aback by the comment, but then he realised it was the customer by the counter who had said it. Even though he had spoken, he hadn’t even turned around to face Daren. “Ah…Shain Baylian, you came here to buy toys, too?” "I"m buying models!" hissed Shain Baylian. He whipped around and glared at Daren, before giving Daren"s Virtual Lover console a look of disdain. "I have no interest in childish toys," he scoffed. “Models? Is that kind of toy fun?” Daren asked curiously. “Models are not toys!” Shain Baylain growled in exasperation. “En?” With a blank look on his face, Daren asked, “But isn’t this a toy shop? Doesn’t it only sell toys?” “Of course not, you blockhead! Don’t lump together the things I buy with your toys.” "Please, please, don"t make a fuss, customers," the shop a.s.sistant interjected, hastily trying to mediate the situation while still under the counter. "We are indeed a toy shop, but we sell models as well.” Tilting his head, Daren thought about it for a while, before smiling. "So it’s like that. I didn"t know toy shops also sold things besides toys," he said. Hearing this, Shain Baylain rolled his eyes at Daren and stepped away from him. He continued flipping through the catalogues, not wanting to be a.s.sociated with the boy. The a.s.sistant heaved a sigh of relief when the two customers did not end up quarrelling. "So, do you want to look at the models, too?" he asked Daren with a professional smile. I am a little curious...No, I can"t! Ezart is still waiting for me outside! Daren shook his head and pulled out his card to pay the bill. “I’ll take a look next time; my friend’s waiting for me outside,” he quickly replied. A wide smile spread across the a.s.sistant’s face when he caught sight of the credit card. Bowing deeply, he said, "Of course, I shall complete the transaction for you right away. If you have the time, feel free to visit and browse the selection of models our toy store offers." Watching from the side, Shain Baylian gave the a.s.sistant a confused look. The level of respect the a.s.sistant gave Daren was too excessive; even he had never been treated so reverently. He couldn’t help glancing at the credit card the a.s.sistant was holding. With one look, he stared so hard his eyes almost fell out. He simply could not believe that this fool of a boy actually possessed the highest level of Solaris credit cards. Credit cards like this were very rare; less than one hundred cards were in circulation, and each and every one of their owners were famous figures. But this guy in front of him…he wasn’t world famous; people at the Academy hardly even remembered him. An impatient bellow came from outside just as Daren finished signing the receipt. “Dar, are you done or not?” “I’m coming, I’m coming!” Daren grabbed the software disk and his card and rushed to the door. He suddenly remembered something and paused just inside the doorway. Turning around quickly, he called, "Bye, Shain Baylain!” Although Shain Baylain kept his face stoic, he nodded his head. After all, he didn’t know who was backing this guy, but he was almost certain they were very powerful. After his farewell, Daren quickly ran out of the store with Ezart’s loud voice resounding faintly from outside. “You’re so slow. Today’s practical lessons are first and second period. I don’t want to show up late; I’ll have less time to fight with Dark Sun…” “It’s not going to happen. You always lose to Dark Sun within the first five minutes, Ezart.” “Shut your mouth!” “Oh, okay.” Dark Sun?! Shain Baylian rushed out of the toy shop at the sound of that name. But by the time he was outside the topic of Dark Sun had pa.s.sed, and Ezart and Daren were talking about whether or not to eat supper. He looked uneasily at the two’s backs. “That idiot is actually related to Dark Sun?” he asked himself doubtfully. Owning that Solaris credit card, one of less than a hundred issued, and a.s.sociated with Dark Sun…Could that blockhead Daren be related to the Solaris Federation? Shain Baylian stared at two boy’s backs as they walked away. His eyes revealed the whirlwind of thoughts running through his mind. “Anybody there?” he called quietly, after a long moment. “Here!” Three of his followers leaped from the shadows in the street. They bowed their heads respectfully, awaiting orders. “Old Weirdo, go now and report to Father that I discovered a cla.s.smate who may have connections to Dark Sun and the Solaris Federation. Ask him to lend me the newest modified human.” Brooding for a moment, he added, “I want a technician, too, to help me modify some things.” “Yes, Young Master.” The shortest, ugliest of the three me men pressed his fist to his hand, bowed, and left in a flurry. Shain Baylian lingered outside the toy store for a while more before going inside one last time. He tossed a credit card to the shop a.s.sistant. “Give me a set of the Virtual Lover game. The same model as that brat just now.” ******************** Standing with Ezart at the plaza of the battle simulator, Daren could see from his face that Ezart was bursting with the desire to battle. Daren could only comply. “Ezart, why don’t you go in first? I’ll come and find you all later,” he said. “I’ll be waiting for you! In the meantime, I’ll exchange some blows with that woman, Eloise,” Ezart decided, before entering the battle simulator without looking back. I should find a place to change into Dark Sun’s clothes now, then. Daren grabbed his school bag and walked to a patch of relatively dense woods inside the campus. There he would remove his uniform, put on his silver visor and become the mysterious pro fighter, Dark Sun. Elian had already reported to the princ.i.p.al that they could not bring Dark Sun along because he was too skilled for them, and was unwilling to meet with the princ.i.p.al. However, it seemed that the princ.i.p.al refused to give up, installing numerous cameras around the campus just to find out Dark Sun’s whereabouts. Thankfully, Elian and the others had revealed the cameras’ locations to Daren, and had even helped him find a place to change. Although Daren appreciated their help, at the same time he couldn’t help thinking that there wasn’t really any more need for him to change into Dark Sun…except that Elian and Ezart were both battle maniacs and always asked him to spar with them in the simulator during practicals. Of course, they couldn’t have a duel every practical lesson or it would surely be discovered by the princ.i.p.al that Elian and the others have had contact with him. At the same time, he couldn’t enter the simulator with Ezart either, for fear of his connection with Dark Sun being discovered.　　 Daren became increasingly worried as he thought of all this. “Hopefully other people won’t discover that I’m Dark Sun, or Gege will definitely get angry,” he said, frowning. He took off the uniform, revealing the red tights underneath, and put on his silver visor. Stuffing his uniform in his bag, he hid it in the bushes, finishing the procedure of becoming Dark Sun. “Huu, the expression, expression!” Daren closed his eyes and smacked his cheeks. Gradually, the innocence in his face disappeared, replaced by…No, there was absolutely nothing replacing it, his face just lost all emotion. Even when they were open, his eyes no longer showed any trace of humanity. Heartless and cold-blooded, an inhuman person. This was Dark Sun. The mission: enter the battle simulator and duel with Ezart and Elian. After confirming his mission, Dark Sun briskly walked out of the woods, heading straight for the battle simulator. However, before he had gone far, he heard his name being called. At the same time, a crowd had started to follow him. Although they stayed at least ten steps away, Dark Sun did not permit people to follow behind him because that was a place where the eyes could not reach. With the number of people following him growing larger and larger, Dark Sun finally stopped in his tracks. He felt that they had reached a potential threat level. He turned around and faced them, contemplating. Although these people had yet to launch any attack, the act of following him had already set off alarm bells in Dark Sun’s mind. His instinct was to attack, in order to disperse the crowd… You can’t! They are all my schoolmates; don’t hurt them. Daren’s thoughts suddenly interrupted Dark Sun’s train of thought. Dark Sun stopped mid-action, silently looking at the crowd. Since he couldn’t attack first, he would wait for the opportunity to take action. The crowd was made up of numerous small groups, murmuring. “Dark Sun! He turned around.” “Super cool.” “It’s Dark Sun; he’s finally here. I’ve been waiting for him for three days. He’s really strong in battles.” “I wonder if he’d be willing to sign an autograph for us?” Dark Sun stood there for a moment, before deciding that the crowd had no intention of attacking or harming him. He turned back and continued to the battle simulator. But once his back was turned, he immediately sensed someone getting closer. Whipping around, Dark Sun silently extended his steel nails. “Ex-excuse me. Would you please sign this?” A timid-looking girl holding a picture walked over. She was so fl.u.s.tered her whole face was red, and a few girls were cheering for her in the background. Looking at the girl, Dark Sun concluded that her mini skirt and tank top did not leave any room to conceal weapons. Also, her build and muscle development weren’t enough to represent a danger to him, and, in his mind, the soft-hearted Daren had already agreed to it. Dark Sun retracted his nails and quietly took the photo, only to see that it was actually a photo of him fighting in the battle simulator. After signing his name, his handwriting so neat that it looked like it was typed out by a computer, he pa.s.sed the photo back to the girl. “Th-thank you!” Excited and embarra.s.sed, the girl ran back to her group after receiving the photo and the girls giggled hysterically. Dark Sun immediately turned back to continue on his combat mission. But just as he turned around, he felt someone approaching again. However, this time there was not only one, but several of them. Immediately, the alarm is his head went off and his steel nails extended once more, sharp as knives. As he turned back, he slipped into his combat stance, prepared to engage the enemies. Standing behind him were approximately thirty people, all holding up a photograph. “Please give me your autograph!” they requested respectfully in unison. Dark Sun was rooted to the spot, stunned. Even though he wanted to execute his combat mission the emotional part of the brain once again relented. He could only stop and take the pen and photo nearest him and sign his name, Dark Sun, once again. Since it’s just signing autographs it won’t take a lot of time, and I’ll go look for Ezart and the others afterwards, Daren thought. When he finished signing the first photo and raised his head, the thirty people had become a hundred. ******************** “Dar, that little...!” Ezart furiously punched the wall at his side. “How dare he stand me up!” he roared. “Even Elian has been summoned by the princ.i.p.al. It’s so boring! We should just leave, Eli.” Bored out of her mind, Eloise was sitting cross-legged on the floor, poking holes into the stone floor with her finger. Eli looked askance at the two of them and then lifted his head and looked at his surroundings. Once it had been a bustling shopping street, but now it looked like a ruin. Because of their restlessness from not seeing Dark Sun, it had suffered devastating damage at the hands of these two, where, of course, the other students in the battle simulator had also perished. “Let’s get out,” Eli could only suggest. “I’m leaving to reckon with that brat Dar,” Ezart snorted coldly, ignoring them and leaving by himself. “Hey! You’re not allowed to bully my Dar.” Eloise hastily stood up and hurriedly ran after him while Eli, naturally, could only follow behind. “I wonder why the princ.i.p.al was looking for Elian?” Eloise asked, after she caught up with Ezart’s pace. She turned to Eli. “Moreover, he didn’t ask for the two of us. Usually the three of us work together.” “I have no idea,” Eli answered honestly. “Really, what if Elian completes one more a.s.signment than we do? Won’t he be graduating earlier than us?” Eloise grumbled, pouting. “No way am I letting him graduate by himself! We have to ask him to help us complete another a.s.signment before letting him graduate!” “We’ve already finished one a.s.signment more than him.” “Eh?” Eloise spun around and stared at Eli. “How can that be?!” she gasped. “Last time, for the mission with Dark Sun where we were only a.s.signed to collect his information, while Elian was a.s.signed to bring Dark Sun to the princ.i.p.al.” Eli glanced at Eloise. Apparently his partner hadn’t even clearly understood the parameters of the mission. “I reported to the princ.i.p.al that I couldn’t read Dark Sun’s thoughts, that he wasn’t thinking like a human, and that could be counted as having collected Dark Sun’s information,” he explained. “So it’s like that,” Eloise answered blankly. After a moment she cried out. “My goodness! Then wouldn’t it be us who needs to help Elian complete an extra mission, then?” “I don’t think he needs our help,” Eli stated coldly. Just as the three of them stepped out of the gym, which was also the giant battle simulator, Ezart, who was walking ahead, abruptly stopped in his tracks. The two at the rear inadvertently b.u.mped into his back, grimacing in pain as their noses were almost broken by the impact. “Why did you stop so suddenly?!” Eloise cried angrily while rubbing her face. “What the h.e.l.l is this?” With a strange expression, Ezart pointed straight ahead. Only then did the two of them realise something was wrong. The intensity of the crowd was as per usual, but every one of them was queued up in meandering lines. Something had gone wrong somewhere. “Wow, there are so many people queuing up! I want to queue up, too!” Eloise started to panic, afraid that it would end before her turn. “Do you know what this queue’s for?” Ezart asked dubiously. “How would I know? If there’s a queue, just line up for it! We might get some amazing things!” Eloise answered naturally. With that said, she abandoned the two of them, rushing to find the end of the queue to line up by herself. “You…” Ezart was speechless, watching Eloise as she rushed away. “Dark Sun,” Eli said suddenly. “What?” Ezart turned around and looked at Eli. Why had this enigma suddenly said ‘Dark Sun’? “They are mostly calling for Dark Sun in their hearts,” added Eli. This queue is because of Dar? Ezart looked at the queue with a complicated expression. Even though he wanted to investigate how the queue was related to Dar, he had no desire to join the queue, which had no end in sight. Just as he was thinking of simply finding out where the queue started, to cut in or something, Eli started moving forward slowly. “Where are you going?” Pointing at Eloise, who had found the end of the line and was waving vigorously at them, Eli made a simple statement. “Queue up together?” “…I have no interest,” Ezart snapped. Anyway, even if all these people were his enemies, with Dar’s skills none of them could harm him. It would be more practical for him to go back to the cla.s.sroom and have a nap. Just as he was turning to go, he heard Eli say one word. “Wait.” “What do you want?” “Elian is calling for me; he’s in the crowd.” Eli’s eyes scoured the crowds in search for his partner. "El1? Wasn"t that guy summoned by the princ.i.p.al?” Furrowing his brows, Ezart glanced at the crowd. Could that guy Elian be queuing, too? That was a bit too ridiculous! “The princ.i.p.al, mission…” Frowning, Eli struggled to read Elian’s thoughts in the crowd, muttering what he could read. “Dark sun...caution.” Hearing this, Ezart and Eloise looked at each other. “The princ.i.p.al’s mission is related to Dark Sun this time?” they said in unison. “He wants us to warn Dark Sun,” said Eli, nodding his head. After being partners with him for so long, even with just a few words he could roughly understand what Elian meant. “But who knows where that guy is! Besides, just relying on Elian still won’t grant them the ability to touch Dark Sun.” Ezart remained unconcerned. Elian had challenged Dark Sun many times in the past, which had always ended in failure, failure and more failure, just like him. At most, he could endure for five minutes, while Elian could only endure three minutes. However, Eli shook his head. “The princ.i.p.al knew Elian couldn’t defeat Dark Sun. He wouldn’t send him by himself,” he explained. “Even with helpers Dark Sun, that guy that who dislikes fighting, will definitely escape. If he sets his mind on running who could hold him back?” Hearing this, even Eli nodded in agreement. Dark Sun’s strength was obvious to them. But now it was Ezart who didn’t want to leave. “But there’s going to be a good show to watch now, so I might as well watch it and then have a nap,” he muttered. “…” “Eli, let’s just go. We’ll take a look at the front.” In one swoop, Ezart lifted Eli and started walking to the front of the queue. Lining up? Not a chance! Seeing them, Eloise stepped out of the queue as well and jogged up to them, all the while scolding. “Hey! Why are you two not getting in line? It’s really rude to cut in line!” “I’m not even in the queue. Can’t I just watch from the sidelines?” Ezart replied mockingly. “That…” Eloise frowned. It seemed like n.o.body would say that was unreasonable. “Eloise, the princ.i.p.al has once again set a mission with Dark Sun. Elian wants us to go and warn him first,” Eli reported responsibly. “Ah?” Stunned, Eloise answered with gasp. “Let’s go then; the person at the front of this line should be Dark Sun,” she said. “What? How did you know…” Ezart and Eli were startled. “The people queuing were talking about it. They’re queuing for Dark Sun’s autograph!” “Then why were you in line?” Ezart asked in disbelief. “I want to have his autograph, too! Can’t I?” Eloise fanned the five photographs she got, grinning. “You see, these people have even shared some photos of Dark Sun with me. He looks so handsome in it!” That’s not the problem! Dark Sun is obviously Daren, so you could just get him to sign it later, why do you still have to queue… Ezart face-palmed once again. Eli had no reaction; he was already used to it. While the three of them were dawdling around, the one caught in the crowd was almost bursting with anger. What the h.e.l.l?! I told them to go and warn Dark Sun, yet they’re still chatting over there! Elian was on the verge of an aneurysm. “Your face is becoming so stiff, Elian. You better not drag me down later!” an icy voice called out. “I’m terribly sorry. It’s just that I’m getting tired of waiting,” Elian turned his head and broke into a charming smile. “Will this do? Sin?” The person next to Elian, sporting a short black haircut and the face of a gentlemen, had such piercing green eyes that it almost looked like they stared right through people. He was as tall as Elian but was more slender, so, it was difficult to tell his gender at first glance. “Are you two a couple? You look really well-matched!” a young girl asked with a red face. Her friend discussed the pair. “The girl’s so pretty and the guy is so handsome! But the girl seems to be taller…” Elian broke into a bitter smile. “Ha ha! It’s not like that. ‘She’ is a guy and we’re just friends,” he explained. “Wah! Boy-on-boy!” “Just like a pair of handsome guys you can only find in manga!” “I wonder who’s the top and who’s the bottom?” “It goes without saying. One look and you can tell that the reddish-brown haired one is more masculine; it must be him on top.” “What did you say?!” Sin dangerously narrowed his eyes coldly. “Did you just say I’m below Elian?” he demanded. “Don’t. Don’t get angry. Sin, what they’re saying is ‘top’ and ‘bottom’, not about who’s better in terms of skills!” Elian quickly tried to meditate; he couldn’t let Sin start a fight. This guy had no idea what mercy was. Once he was provoked he went straight for the kill. He was basically the type of dangerous person who should be locked in jail with a note saying ‘Danger! Never to be released’. “Did you all just say I’m beneath Elian?” Sin completely ignored Elian’s words; his hands were already resting on top of his weapon, waiting for the moment they replied yes. He would destroy them, together with Elian. “You’re on top!” the girls replied in unison, under Sin’s dangerous glare and Elian’s constant discouraging winks. Seeing this, Elian could finally breathe a sigh of relief. “Hnn! I am indeed the strongest.” Sin shifted his hands away from his weapon and glared at Elian, before declaring, “No matter if it’s you or Dark Sun, I’ll always be above you all!” The girls looked at him, eyes shining with admiration. One after the other, they started talking about it. “Whoa! He even wants to fight Dark Sun!” “Is it a love triangle?” “Or is it one tackling two?” It’s not worth fighting over! Sin, you totally don’t understand what the girls mean by ‘above’ and ‘below’… Elian felt like crying even more now. “Spotted the target! Hey! You better not drag me down.” Sin sneered at Elian, and in a blink of his eye his expression softened. His eyes were no longer as piercing as they had been; they became just as captivated as the surrounding admirers’, changing instantly from a terrifying person to an avid fan. “Sin! You have to keep in mind that the princ.i.p.al does not want Dark Sun to be killed,” whispered Elian. “Shut up!” Elian smiled bitterly. Perhaps, by asking him to be Sin’s partner, the princ.i.p.al basically just wanted him to prevent Sin from killing Dark Sun, instead of a.s.sisting Sin in attacking Dark Sun. After all, this guy, Sin, was most adept at a.s.sa.s.sination. *************** Eclipse Hunter v03c02 END *************** 1 Note: "El" is a nickname for Elian. -
Chapter 3Translator: LilsxDProofreader: Arc, CatchkatchHow come Ezart and the others still haven’t come over to warn Dark Sun? Elian thought desperately.At the least, Dark Sun has already signed over one or two hundred photographs. After all that, regardless of how sharp his awareness might be, I’m afraid he’s bound to have let his guard down. Not to mention, the princ.i.p.al is pretty sneaky.Right after he saw the situation going on in the plaza, the princ.i.p.al had called Sin and him urgently. He had even created a chance for them to go undercover as a part of the crowd to find the best chance to launch a surprise attack.He looked around his surroundings. Sin and he weren’t the only ones there. There were many others from the Elite Combat Section lying low, all of them ready to surround and ambush Dark Sun, closing off any opportunity to escape. It seemed like the princ.i.p.al had put quite a lot of money into this.“Please sign this for me!”By now Sin had already worked his way to the front of the line, right in front of Dark Sun. Dark Sun was the same as usual, never showing any emotions. In comparison, Sin was smiling and holding up a huge autograph board and pen to give Dark Sun.Is Sin planning on ambushing Dark Sun while he signs the autograph?Elian furrowed his eyebrows. That is definitely a good opportunity…After all, if you’re signing an autograph your concentration would be on writing and nothing else. The large autograph board also helps block Dark Sun’s vision. Seeing this, if I really let Sin’s ambush succeed, allowing Dar to be injured, then this situation could really become dangerous. In any case, I haven’t forgotten that the person supporting Dar from the shadows is ‘that person’. I have to think of a way to warn Dark Sun…G.o.d! Haven’t those three come over yet!?However, before Elian even had the time to confirm it, he saw Dark Sun reach out his hand to receive the autograph board in Sin’s hands. It was impossible for him to warn Dark Sun directly, since the princ.i.p.al was definitely using cameras to observe the developing situation. If by chance he informed Dark Sun, he would definitely be closely watched by the princ.i.p.al afterwards, making the state of affairs even worse.As Elian was in a bind, Dark Sun’s hand reached out but stopped just before taking Sin’s autograph board. Instead, he slowly raised his head and looked at Sin and Elian with his face maintaining no expression whatsoever. This made it impossible for him to discern what Dark Sun’s actions meant.Did he notice there’s something wrong? Elian thought delightedly.He opened his mouth and said in a flat voice, “You guys…”“Dark Sun!”Dark Sun stopped mid-sentence and turned his head towards the direction of the voice. It was Eloise’s voice, so Dark Sun–or rather Dar–turned his head and looked towards it without thinking. He saw Eloise, Ezart, and Eli running towards him. Eloise looked panicked, and even Ezart was frowning.Oh, no! I forgot about our meeting… Dar became fl.u.s.tered, and, in that moment, Dark Sun’s personality changed to Daren Solaris.Now!Sin’s face still wore a smile but this time he silently kicked out the knife in his shoe and charged towards Dark Sun, successfully piercing his knee…Seeing Dark Sun’s figure immediately stoop down, he felt exhilarated. I actually got him!“Ha!”Sin haughtily laughed at his accomplishment and in that same moment he ruthlessly charged towards Dark Sun’s other leg. But Dark Sun had already been tipped off by the last attack. He dodged to the side in a flash, but because of the effects of his knee injury, Sin managed to draw a streak of blood on his thigh.This is bad! With one of his knees damaged, Dark Sun won’t be able to use his superiour movement to deliver attacks. Elian’s face paled. Like this, with me and Sin’s joint attack on Dark Sun, coupled with the other members of the Elite Combat Section surrounding them…even if it’s Dark Sun, there’s no escape!Just then, the campus loudspeakers suddenly announced a broadcast.“Good afternoon, students. I am Princ.i.p.al Antonias. We are now undergoing a battle exercise with the Elite Combat Section. If you are not an Elite Combat Section student, please do not join the battle, and leave the plaza’s central circular s.p.a.ce.”The students began chattering and grumbling. “What’s happening? It took me so long to work my way up to the front!”However, under the orders of the princ.i.p.al, everyone obediently left the central s.p.a.ce and went to stand at the rear of the plaza to watch.At this moment, the Elite Combat Section students hidden in the crowd came out. They broke into pairs and formed a circle, each team standing at the hour marks of a clock. There were twelve pairs, so with Sin and Elian in the middle, it made a grand total of twenty six people.“T-t-the entire Elite Combat Section…has been mobilised?” Elian gasped as he looked around him.Including Eloise and Eli, there would be twenty eight people. Even though they were still missing two people, those two were rumoured to be in the middle of a secret mission. No one in the Elite Combat Section had seen them before.The princ.i.p.al relayed more orders. “Eloise and Eli, move to the team in the 3 o’clock position. Ezart, leave the central s.p.a.ce.”Ezart frowned. Seeing Dark Sun’s injured knee and the surrounding members of the Elite Combat Section, numbering twenty eight and more students, he snorted.“Interesting. I’ve always wanted to fight against the Elite Combat Section and see who’s stronger!” he said.After he finished speaking, he stubbornly remained in the middle of the plaza, pounding his fists eagerly with hands already equipped with battle gloves.Elian secretly cheered on Ezart’s actions. But clearly the princ.i.p.al was prepared for something like this happening. The loudspeaker sounded again.“Any students not belonging to the Elite Combat Section who choose to remain in the centre of the plaza after the next ten seconds will be expelled!”Ezart and Elian were both startled by the words, especially Ezart, who was suddenly undecided about whether he should leave.Regardless of the order, the battle in the plaza couldn’t wait ten more seconds. Sin had already unleashed his attack. His leg moved so fast that it left an afterimage. The knives attached to the front of his shoes were extremely sharp and so deadly that Dark Sun was forced to use his injured leg to handle the superior speed he needed to dodge the attack. But, because of his leg injury, his ability to evade attacks properly was compromised several times and he was forced to use his hand to block.Dark Sun’s nails had been extended long ago, sharp as knives. While he was blocking Sin’s leg attack, he planned to use his nails to attack his leg and hinder his opponent’s movements. During one of Sin’s attacks, Dark Sun clawed and destroyed the fabric of the pants covering his shin. But what he heard was not the sound of a sharp knife slicing through flesh, but the sharp, ear-piercing sound of steel clashing and sc.r.a.ping against steel.In the end, after several sharp and piercing sounds rang out, the two men engaged in battle broke apart. Sin began laughing hysterically. On the other hand, Dark Sun remained unaffected, with no expression on his face.Everyone focused their eyes on the situation. On the floor lay a few long, broken nails with sparkling metal fragments on them. Everyone looked at Sin’s leg in shock. But they didn’t see the skin dripping with blood they expected. Instead, they saw a plated boot. Apparently Sin didn’t only have a trick in the toe of his boots; it turned out that the entire boot was a weapon. And, looking at Dark Sun, they could see that his left hand had three broken nails. The two fingers that were unaffected were the two that couldn’t deal damage by themselves: the ring finger and the pinky.Against the thick and solid plate boots, Dark Sun’s nails were just too thin. There was no way to pierce it, which was clear from the fact that they broke in their first encounter.Sin didn’t give Dark Sun a moment to breathe. He immediately rushed in to attack. This time, Dark Sun decided not try to fight him head on. He chose to let loose his superior speed to dodge the attack. If it really became impossible for him to avoid the attack outright, he would evade the knife and proceed to attack Sin’s flank, aiming for his calf. But it didn’t matter whether he used his speed to dodge or if he used his instantaneous movement to avoid the knives’ attacks, it was obvious that it increased the stress on his injured leg. If he were a normal person he would have been rolling on the floor writhing in pain already. However, he didn’t even let out a whimper of agony. To the spectators, the two that were battling before them didn’t seem really human at all…As the two in the middle were engaged in a heated battle, on one side Ezart had reluctantly moved towards the outside of the grounds under the threat of being expelled if he had not left after ten seconds. He stood firmly in place at the boundary between the inside and outside grounds, with his eyes focused on the battle going on before him.Elian’s face turned white. He never thought that Dark Sun would actually be lose. The surprise attack at the beginning had affected his abilities too much. Dark Sun had always relied on his perfect and accurate movements as the basis for his attacking and dodging. Therefore, the moment his joints were injured, it affected Dark Sun much more than it would others.By now Eloise and Eli had already moved to the 3 o’clock position. Their faces paled as they watched the battle scene unfold before them, but they didn’t know what they could do to help the situation.Then, a moment later, Eli suddenly froze for a second. He lowered his voice and whispered to Eloise. “Dark Sun he…he’s talking to me…”“What? What did Dar say?!” Eloise asked frantically.“Avery, Scythe, Reaper.”“What’s that? I only understood the Avery part. He’s Dar’s Dad, right?” Eloise said, furrowing her eyebrows.“Eloise, call me so I can pretend to pick up and then leave to make a call and inform Avery of this,” Eli whispered.“Okay.”As soon as Eloise finished listening to his instructions, she secretly reached her hand into her pocket and dialled Eli’s number on her phone. Before long, Eli’s phone rang. He apologised to the students of the Elite Combat Section near him and walked to the side. Of course he wasn’t answering a phone call but instead hurriedly calling Dar’s house.At the same time Eli was making a phone call, Sin hastened Elian to take action. “What are you doing? Hurry up and come aid me!”Hearing Sin rush him, Elian’s heart skipped a beat. However, on the surface, he presented a calm demeanour. “I thought that you wanted to have a one-on-one battle with Dark Sun. Didn’t you want to prove that you’re stronger than Dark Sun?” he asked.“If you win, then you’re strong. Whether it is one-on-one or being surrounded by numerous enemies,” Sin said impatiently.This guy has no fighting spirit at all! Elian secretly scolded him in his mind.Nevertheless, he could only bear this and move to flank Dark Sun. Otherwise Sin and the princ.i.p.al would definitely begin to doubt and suspect Dark Sun’s and his relationship. Then Daren would be suspected, since he was always hanging around them but right now he hadn’t appeared at all. Additionally, Daren and Dark Sun had the same hair colour; it would be difficult for them not to notice the similarities.Dark Sun and Daren Solaris were the same person. The only reason this hadn’t been discovered yet was because no one had compared the two. The moment that they were suspected to be the same person and were measured up against each other, he would definitely be exposed. After all, they were the same person. Whether it be their hair colour or body shape, they were exactly the same.At that moment, Dark Sun drew back and turned his head to look at Sin and Elian coming towards him. Just when Sin dashed in to attack, not caring about any consequences or responsibilities, Dark Sun opened his mouth.“I’ll see the princ.i.p.al.”The second he spoke, the broadcaster blasted through the speakers. “Stop, Sin!”The leg that Sin was using to kick Dark Sun stopped abruptly, with the toe of his shoe only ten centimeters away from Dark Sun’s face. Although his leg had stopped moving, his facial expression couldn’t keep up, making his cool face to look distorted. It looked like he was forced to suppress the fiery battle spirit in his heart. But, in the end, he still slowly lowered his leg back to the ground.“Elian and Sin, bring Dark Sun to the princ.i.p.al’s office.”“Yes,” the two replied in unison. The only difference they showed was that Elian’s face was smiling and Sin’s was sullen.As for Dark Sun, after he finished speaking he didn’t open his mouth again. As Elian moved forward towards Dark Sun, displaying an inviting gesture with his hand, Dark Sun silently followed behind, while Sin followed behind him.The Elian walking in the front may have been smiling on the surface but on the inside he was desperate to find a way out of this.The moment Dark Sun enters the princ.i.p.al’s office, like a tiger’s lair, he would unquestionably have no chance of escaping. And the princ.i.p.al doesn’t like taking no for an answer. Looking at how he deployed the whole of the Elite Combat Section in order to capture Dark Sun, it’s obvious that he wants Dark Sun no matter what.The princ.i.p.al wants to possess Dark Sun…But Dark Sun only listens to the Solaris Emperor’s words. G.o.d, please don’t let this lure the Solaris Emperor out. Otherwise the situation will become more serious than I can even imagine. The Solaris Emperor’s wrath is not something little Yelan Academy can take on.********************Ring…Ring ring…Avery was currently in his science lab. His experiment had progressed to a very important stage. He carefully dropped one drop of the brown liquid onto the petri dish that had a kind of meatball-looking, unknown substance squirming around on it. The instant the liquid dropped onto the meatball, it stopped squirming around for a second and then immediately began to wriggle around crazily.Ring ring…“It seems like that was too high a dosage…” Avery stared unblinkingly at the meatball struggling. His facial expression revealed a bit of his vexation.Bang!The meatball in the petri dish struggled wildly for quite a while before it suddenly exploded, causing tiny pink pieces of meat to spray all over the experiment table.Ring ring…“This is really troublsome…It seems like this drug’s effect may be too strong. It can only be used once on the parental substance and then the substance will be destroyed. I don’t know how I should change it. Should I decrease the dosage amount or weaken the drug’s concentration? I wonder what would lessen the damage to the parental substance…”Ring ring…Ring ring? What does that mean? Avery stood there dumbfounded, wondering what it was. Then, after thinking for a while, he finally remembered.“Ah! It’s the phone ringing!” he exclaimed.It’s not Devon calling home, right? Avery’s face darkened suddenly at the thought.He immediately rushed out of the isolated science lab, not realising that he was still holding the measuring gla.s.s in his hand. He dashed into the adjoining room and picked up the phone in a flash.“h.e.l.lo! This is Avery speaking.”“Uncle, you finally picked up the phone…” Although Eli wasn’t sure anymore if there was any use in him picking up now.“Unc-what?!”Avery’s face twisted for a moment. Uncle? I’m only in my early 30s! How could I be called an uncle!?“Uncle, Dark Sun’s in trouble.”“Idiot, call me Big Brother…What? Something happened to Dar?” Avery’s heart jumped in fright. Why has something happened again?Eli briefly informed him about the situation. “In the end his heart’s voice conveyed Uncle’s name and the words ‘scythe’ and ‘reaper’.”“Call me Big Brother!” Avery frowned. “I understand. I’ll come immediately; meet me at the school gates.”“Okay,” Eli replied simply and hung up.After disconnecting, Avery hurriedly raced upstairs to where Daren’s weapon exhibitions room, battle training site, marksmanship training site, and more were located.He scanned everything to his left and right and quickly found the suitcase containing the Reaper’s Scythe. When he reached his hand out to grab the case he finally realised that he had been so frantic that the measuring gla.s.s he had been holding was still firmly grasped in his hand, the brown liquid inside it swirling around.Luckily it didn’t spill…He put the gla.s.s down and proceeded to pick up the Reaper’s Scythe while talking to himself.“Dar’s school life sure is colourful! It seems like Devon has been going about this too carelessly. His brother never had the potential to be a normal person.”********************Dark Sun was silent. During the whole incident he had only said he would be willing to see the princ.i.p.al, and then had quietly left, following Elian and Sin. No one in the crowd had any idea what he was thinking, causing some to even think that maybe he had chosen to slaughter the princ.i.p.al directly instead.In truth, this decision was not chosen using Dark Sun’s rational thinking but using Daren Solaris, who acted according to his emotions.Dar’s reasoning was extremely straightforward and simple. He believed that as long as he clarified things with the princ.i.p.al, that he told him he only followed his brother, and that he refused to join the Elite Combat Section, then everything would be solved and the princ.i.p.al won’t look for him again. However, Dark Sun only thought of this as his last resort. If the other side refused to surrender it would be quite difficult for him to get out of the situation, considering the damage his knee joint had suffered and the fact that he didn’t have the Reaper’s Scythe with him.But his emotions won out against his logical reasoning. Daren stubbornly thought that it would be okay as long as he explained everything to the princ.i.p.al. He believed that the princ.i.p.al wouldn’t force him to do things against his will. As his rational thinking and emotive side came to completely different conclusions, Daren chose to follow his brother’s words and went with his emotions.This was the reason Dark Sun obediently followed Elian and Sin to the princ.i.p.al’s office. He had no idea that he had made Elian and Eli worried to death. Elian was intimately familiar with the princ.i.p.al’s personality; he wasn’t the type to easily give up in any situation. If Dark Sun were to enter the princ.i.p.al’s office it would be practically impossible for him to leave.At that moment, Eli was troubled by the fact that he had finally reached Avery, but, now that Dark Sun was about to enter the princ.i.p.al’s office, he and Eloise had no way of actually getting Avery to the princ.i.p.al’s office.This is too terrible! everyone thought.But Dark Sun wasn’t aware of their worries at all. He followed Elian all the way to the princ.i.p.al’s office. Actually, instead of an ‘office’, it was more like an entire building. On the surface, this building was the Elite Combat Section’s cla.s.sroom, but everyone knew that the Elite Combat Section never went to cla.s.s. Therefore, this building was actually the princ.i.p.al’s office, delegated for giving the Elite Combat Section missions.The three of them entered the building one after the other. The entire building’s security was extremely tight, as it was only possible to go in with the special cards held by Elite Combat Section students. Elian took out his card and swiped it. After that, he pressed his thumb to the fingerprint recognition device, and only then did the building’s large door open.The moment Dark Sun stepped into the building he naturally scanned his surroundings. He noticed that just the entrance and the lounge had at least ten security cameras, which could rotate three hundred and sixty degrees. There were many cameras out in the open, and many hidden. And, looking at them, it didn’t seem like the building’s walls were made out of normal reinforced steel and concrete.Instinctively, Dark Sun wanted to escape while the door was still open, but this was once again prevented by his emotions.Thus, the three finally arrived at the highest floor, consisting of the princ.i.p.al’s office. Once the door opened to the princ.i.p.al’s office, Dark Sun once again saw the Princ.i.p.al Antonias who had appeared when he first entered the battle simulator. He was sitting next to a coffee table, leisurely pouring tea. The second he saw Dark Sun and the others, he immediately smiled broadly.“Dark Sun! You’re finally here! I’ve been waiting for you for so long!” Antonias greeted him happily. “Come here and sit down! Let this old man see what a handsome young man you are!”But Dark Sun stood quietly at the entrance. If it was possible, Dark Sun wanted to quickly explain everything to the princ.i.p.al and then leave. He was planning to do exactly that.“I have a Master. I don’t want to enter the Elite Combat Section and I request to take my leave.”“…”It wasn’t only Princ.i.p.al Antonias who was shocked. Even Sin, who was always eccentric and behaved oddly, looked sideways at Dark Sun. This guy’s fighting capabilities are completely inversely proportional to his speaking ability, he thought.Elian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Dar… he thought. When you don’t say anything, you’re only seen as cold and indifferent, but the moment you open your mouth people can immediately recognise that there’s something wrong with you…“Don’t be like that. Is it too much to ask for you to sit down and have some tea with this old man?”As expected of the princ.i.p.al, he only stood there dumbstruck for a moment before he regained his composure and quickly changed to a face full of smiles. Still beaming he tried to pull Dark Sun over, but Dark Sun evaded him by dodging to the side. If it wasn’t necessary Dark Sun didn’t want to have any physical contact with anyone, since it could be extremely dangerous. Additionally, after being surrounded by Sin and the others earlier, he had become extra cautious about these things.“Just sit down, Dark Sun. I mean, it’s not like you can leave at the moment, correct?” Antonias said cheerily, glancing down at Dark Sun’s knee. Although the blood had already dried, his wound still looked rather hideous.Before, in the plaza, if it weren’t for his wound Dark Sun would have chosen to turn and run, rather than remain entangled in a fight with Sin. But, considering the circ.u.mstances, with his knee being wounded Dark Sun’s speed had taken a heavy blow. It was highly probable that Sin would have taken the chance and executed a crippling blow to him if he were to turn his back. He hadn’t had the choice of turning around to flee back then.The situation at hand had become much more disastrous. This room was perfectly enclosed from the inside while Sin and Elian guarded the door, so the only way to escape was to perhaps capture the princ.i.p.al and use him as a hostage to force Sin and Elian to move out of the way.Sit down and listen to what the princ.i.p.al has to say first! Daren Solaris shouted persistently in his heart.So Dark Sun decided to sit down. The princ.i.p.al smiled as he followed and even pa.s.sed a cup of tea to him. Naturally, Dark Sun didn’t appreciate his actions and the cup of tea sat on the table untouched.“I wonder who has the wonderful good luck of being able to hire such an amazing fighter as you,” Antonias said, not minding Dark Sun’s rude gesture one bit. He spoke as if he were an old neighbourhood man talking to a teenager.He didn’t know what Antonias was planning, so Dark Sun made sure to watch his every movement.“I have nothing to say,” he was his only reply.“Why did you come to Yelan Academy? It wasn’t really to use the battle simulator, right?” Antonias chuckled a bit. “A fighter like you should be really busy, right?”However, Dark Sun ignored Antonias’ speech. “What do you want?” he asked in a straightforward manner.“You really do get straight to the point.” Antonias sighed in admiration. He stopped his gentle and warm act, and switched to the demeanor of a businessman.“Then I won’t waste our time with small talk. Ten missions. If you can do ten missions for me, you won’t need to pay school fees and I will give you your graduation certificate. All graduate students of the Elite Combat Section in Yelan Academy are given the highest priority when they are entrusted with missions to complete for the school. Don’t you think these conditions are excellent?”Nevertheless, Dark Sun didn’t show any reaction.“These conditions are really very good. The other Elite Combat Section students have to carry out thirty missions in order to graduate. If they were to fail a mission, they would have to carry out three additional missions as well. But I believe that you will not fail any, so I won’t add that condition.”“No,” Dark Sun rejected his offer without even considering it.“If you have a certificate from Yelan Academy as a graduate of the Elite Combat Section, it’s practically guaranteed that wherever you apply for as a bodyguard, you’ll definitely get a position as team leader at the very least.”At this moment Elian, who was standing near the door, showed a strange expression.Headmaster! he really wanted to say. The conditions you’re offering are really good but unfortunately the person in front of you is the Solaris Emperor’s younger brother. The Solaris Emperor’s doting affection for Dar has already reached the point that, no matter what Dar wants, he will give it to him. How could Dar possibly care about a graduation certificate or special privileges? In this world, I don’t think there is anyone who would dare to hire the Solaris Emperor’s younger brother as his bodyguard, right?“No.” Dark Sun remained firm in his decision.By this point princ.i.p.al Antonias seemed at his wits end. He raised his offer again.“Eight missions; the other conditions remain the same.”“No.”“Six! I can’t give you any fewer than that,” Antonias said his limit in one breath. This should be around the number of missions the Academy has been delegated that students have failed because of the high level of difficulty.Dark Sun said each word distinctly to make his point clear. “I only listen to my current master’s orders.”Antonias didn’t seem to know the meaning of rejection; he continued bargaining, trying to persuade Dark Sun.“It doesn’t matter. I’m not in any rush. When does your contract as a bodyguard end?”Dark Sun remained silent for a moment. “When I die,” he replied.His words stunned Antonias, and he didn’t know how to respond.Even Sin couldn’t help but clap his hands, thinking how admirable it was. How straightforward!“You can’t accept any other jobs?” the princ.i.p.al asked, refusing to give up.He had no choice. Some a.s.signed missions were much too dangerous and difficult for students to undertake. But if he didn’t get them completed, then Yelan Academy’s reputation would fall rapidly. Now that he had actually found a student with the same fighting capabilities as Sin he couldn’t just let him go. He had to try his best to persuade him. If he and Sin were to work together on a mission nothing would stand in their way, no matter how difficult the mission may be.Even if it was Antonias, if Dark Sun were to reply straight away with the word ‘no’ the princ.i.p.al knew he wouldn’t be able to sway him. Then today’s events would most likely come to an end. But, unexpectedly, influenced by his emotions, Dark Sun hesitated. He had qualms about whether or not he should lie to the princ.i.p.al.This second of uncertainty gave Antonias a chance to realise that it wasn’t that Dark Sun wasn’t able to do side jobs, but just that he wasn’t really willing to.“Five missions. And I won’t ever investigate your private matters, and I will remove the surveillance cameras I installed within the Academy.”Dark Sun thought about it. If it was like that, then it wasn’t like he couldn’t do it. If the princ.i.p.al stopped investigating Dark Sun’s true self then that would make Daren Solaris much safer. After all, if he were to continue monitoring Dark Sun there was a high probability of the princ.i.p.al finding out that Daren Solaris was actually Dark Sun.Dark Sun chose to accept, but with one condition. “The missions that I don’t want to accept, I won’t accept.”“It’s a deal!” Antonias hurriedly promised.********************“Dar, is it all right for you to accept the princ.i.p.al’s missions?” Elian asked worriedly.A line of people stood at the school gates waiting for Avery, who was about to arrive to pick up Daren Solaris and go home. As for the reason why he was leaving early...it was to give Avery time to fix up Daren’s knee wound before Devon noticed, of course, thus avoiding the calamity of all the Yelan Academy students never being able to come to cla.s.s again.By now Dark Sun had already reverted back to the appearance of Daren Solaris. “It should be all right. As long as…Gege doesn’t find out,” he replied quietly.This response really makes us feel very worried! everyone thought, laughing bitterly inside.“Your dad is here,” Ezart said lazily, pointing towards the school gates.Everyone’s eyes followed and they looked over. There, an extremely desperate Avery got out of a taxi with a large suitcase held in his hands. As he jumped out of the taxi he naturally looked toward the school gates and found a line of people there, including Daren.Seeing a seemingly safe and sound Daren, Avery stood there confused, clutching the case.Elian patted Daren Solaris’ back. “Hurry up and go over. Your father must have been so worried,” he said.“Yes!” Daren Solaris turned his head and said his goodbyes with a smile. “Goodbye Ezart, Elian-ge, Eloise, and Eli.”“Goodbye, Dar…” everyone said one after another.Suddenly Eli’s expression changed. “Uncle! Danger!” he shouted.Everyone was a bit stunned, not really understanding what Eli was talking about. The only one who reacted immediately was Eli’s partner, Eloise. The moment she heard Eli’s words, Eloise instantly ran towards the grounds outside the school, where Avery was standing.“Huh?”Avery was suspicious as he saw Eloise suddenly rushing towards him. His suspicion didn’t last long, however, as a motorbike zoomed up right in front of him. There were two people on the bike and they were both clad in leather jackets, leather pants and full face protective helmets, making it impossible to see their faces.Then the person sitting at the back punched Avery in the stomach, making him pa.s.s out. The rider grabbed him with one arm, using his other hand to hold the suitcase that was in Avery’s hands.“Hya!”Eloise had finally reached them, and without further ado she used all her strength to kick the rear rider’s side, hoping to kick him off the motorbike. The kick definitely hit him straight on, and, with her power, even if it was an elephant he should have fallen off. But the rider didn’t move an inch, instead gunning the accelerator as though he were unaffected.The moment he gunned it, the motorbike sped away like lightning. Eloise chased after it for a few steps but soon realised that it was impossible for her to catch up. She was forced to unwillingly give up.“Papa Avery!”At that moment Daren sped after them, refusing to give up chasing after the motorbike. This burst of intense movement made the wound on his knee instantly open up, making blood flow down his calf and onto the street, spilling as he continued running after them.Elian hurriedly rushed up and grabbed hold of Daren, stopping him from going any further.“Dar, don’t chase after him. It’s impossible to catch up.”“No!” Daren said, struggling with all his strength. “Papa Avery has been captured! I need to rescue him!” he shouted.“Dar…” Looking at his frenzied and frantic manner, Eloise also felt desperate, wondering how she should comfort him.Smack!Ezart slapped Daren hard in the face. It had so much power that Daren immediately fell to the ground on his bottom. As Daren sat on the ground, he couldn’t quite believe he had been hit. He held back his tears and raised his head, looking at Ezart with a dumbstruck expression.But Ezart shouted down at him instead. “What are you looking at me for? Hurry up and call your brother; that would be more useful in this situation! Call him right now!”“Oh. Okay.”Daren quickly reached for the phone in his bag and punched in his brother’s number. The moment it went through, he shouted in tears. “Gege, Gege!”“Dar! What’s wrong? What happened?” Hearing Dar’s cries, Devon became fl.u.s.tered.“P-Papa Avery has been captured!”The phone went silent for a minute. “Are those four cla.s.smates by your side?” Devon asked.“They’re here…” Daren replied, wiping away his tears.“Push the loudspeaker b.u.t.ton. I need to speak with them.”“Okay,” Daren said obediently, pushing the b.u.t.ton.“The four of you will immediately take Dar home and guard him closely. Don’t leave him for a single moment, and don’t leave the house.”******************** Eclipse Hunter v03c03 END ******************** -
Chapter 4 Translator: Souldead, Yihn Proofreader: Arc, Catchkatch Half protecting and half shepherding, the four forcefully escorted Daren home. Not long after, Devon Solaris also arrived, entering through a secret tunnel into the living room, only to find his brother curled up on the couch, bawling his eyes out. Elian, with a bowl of clear water, was cleaning the blood from Daren’s thigh and knee. Seeing Dar’s tears and the b.l.o.o.d.y tracks on his legs, Devon’s heart constricted in sorrow and in anger. Sorrow at Dar’s reddened eyes, and anger at how, despite being under his protection, Daren was made to cry once again. It didn’t matter if it was Avery’s kidnappers or his own clumsy, ineffective self; everyone deserved to die. “Gege!” Daren, finally noticing that his brother had come home, sprung up and leaped into Devon’s arms, crying. “Gege, Papa Avery– h-he’s been kidnapped!” Devon nodded, tenderly wiping away his brother’s tears with a handkerchief. “Don’t worry Dar. Theodore will be back soon,” he replied. “I’m okay, Gege,” Daren tried valiantly to wipe away his tears. “Don’t mind me. Hurry and rescue Papa!” “It’ll be okay, just you see. Bill is already searching for clues.” Devon frowned. The situation wasn’t hard to understand. The kidnappers were most likely Yue Baylian’s men. Only he could have discovered Avery’s existence from the cyborg incidents. To think, just as he was about to go easy on Yue Baylian and let him be, something like this happened. The Solaris Emperor chuckled coldly. Had his way of doing things been too lax lately, soft to the point where people had forgotten where the Emperor’s cruel and ruthless reputation came from? Heh... Elian and the others felt a chill creep down their backs as they heard the Solaris Emperor laugh. “Dar, Hurry up and give your brother a hug so he’ll stop laughing like that,” they whispered quickly to Daren. “Oh?” Daren didn’t understand. Was the way his brother smiled weird? He often laughed like that... But since everyone asked him to, Daren went and embraced his brother obediently. The hug did indeed recapture Devon’s attention, and the chilling grin disappeared immediately, replaced by a gentle smile as he patted his brother’s head. “Do not worry. I have sources everywhere in this city. They won’t be able to take a step without me knowing. You just stay quietly at home and wait for news, okay?” Hearing this, Dar asked in a small voice, hesitating, “Gege, I can help. Last time, too, I...” “Last time?” Devon asked with an even bigger smile. “You mean the time you had Avery and Bill keep me in the dark while you snuck out to destroy the cyborg manufacturing laboratory, nearly making me send them to meet Satan himself?” “...” The group had a moment of silence for those two unfortunate souls. Daren bowed his head; he almost couldn’t face his brother. “Don’t worry, Dar. It’s not for nothing that I am called the Solaris Emperor. No matter who the opponent is, this time I won’t let them go until I have destroyed them and everything around them.” Devon said matter-of-factly. “I don’t want anyone destroyed. I just want Papa Avery to come back...” Daren replied in a tiny voice. “I will have Bill prioritise Avery’s rescue over everything else.” Daren nodded his head, but he was still very concerned. His brother was always pointing a gun at Papa; their relationship was always difficult. Devon really didn’t act like he would try very hard to save Avery. “Daren, you stay at home. I will have my people guard this place.” Devon set his hands down on Dar’s shoulders and repeated earnestly, “This time, you are not--I repeat not--to run around outside. I forbid you from using Dark Sun’s ident.i.ty to kill, and I also forbid you from getting hurt. Do you understand?” Under his brother’s stern gaze Daren could only nod in agreement, even if he did want to sneak away and rescue Avery. “I understand, gege.” ******************** The first thing Avery became aware of when he woke was the pain in his abdomen, then the ache throughout his whole body. He’d only just thought of shifting his position when he discovered he couldn’t move an inch. Evidently, he had been tied up, and, judging from the coldness pressed against his wrists, it was with something metal. He opened his eyes but could see nothing but darkness. He’d also been blindfolded, then. “Although we X-rayed you and have determined that there are no enhancements to your body, it is still better to err on the side of caution. Wouldn’t you agree, Doctor Avery?” Avery turned towards the voice instinctively. Turning his head, he immediately deduced that this low, coa.r.s.e voice was not the kidnapper’s real voice: it had been altered by a machine. “Especially when the opponent is the Solaris Emperor. Then we would need to be twice as careful.” Avery remained silent, noting that the kidnapper already knew his name. It wasn’t unexpected, especially if they already knew what he looked like. They would only have to do a little research to find out his ident.i.ty. At the same time, the kidnapper said that he was up against the Solaris Emperor. Avery was ninety percent sure that the attack was from the cyborg organisation. Of course, the Emperor had many enemies. There was a good chance his guess was wrong, but he instinctively sensed he was right. “What do you want me to do?” he asked. “Ah, you don’t have to do anything. Just being our hostage is enough.” “Really?” Avery replied dismissively. “Obviously you haven’t been up against the Solaris Emperor for very long, or else you would know that that person has never cared about anybody else. Looks like instead of using me as a hostage and negotiating with that person, it would be better to talk to me directly.” His captor chuckled. “Ha! You’ve already been captured. What else is there to talk about?” “Dark Sun was my creation,” Avery replied calmly. After these words there was a long silence from the other side, then explosive laughter that seemed to echo forever. “That is indeed something to talk about. Help me create another Dark Sun; I can give you anything the Solaris Emperor can.” “Instead of building a second Dark Sun, I think it might be better for me to overhaul your robots,” Avery responded. “Dark Sun is, without a doubt, a perfect creation, but the money and time spent making him was exorbitant. Money shouldn’t be a problem, but you, the Solaris Emperor’s enemy... do you have the time required for me to create another Dark Sun?” “How long would it take?” the other asked, seemingly out of curiosity. “The last time took eight years. This time I would need at least five, and there is no guarantee of success.” “Hmph! If you can’t build another Dark Sun then why do I need you? Robots, I already have.” Avery knew exactly how to deal with this type of merchant. They only cared about fast and easy profits, so they would definitely be hooked if he made a tempting enough proposal. “Give me two of your cyborgs and half a month. After my alterations they will, by working together, be able to defeat Dark Sun.” Silence again, but Avery wasn’t worried. Even though he couldn’t make a second Dark Sun, if two robots could defeat Dark Sun together there would be no need. “How do I know you’re not lying?” the man finally asked. “Why would I?” Avery laughed. “Working under the Solaris Emperor or working under you; what’s the difference?” he said helplessly. “Oh, right. My condition is an unlimited budget for experiments and a completely stocked laboratory.” The man laughed. “You’re a realistic man, Mr. Avery. I will give you two weeks. After that, I will see the two robots capable of beating Dark Sun.” “No problem,” Avery agreed, but in that instant what filled his mind was a smiling face calling him Papa Avery. ******************** Devon walked back into his office. As usual, Kyle was sitting off to the side, using his computer to issue the commands necessary to administrate the operations of this enormous organisation. “Where is Avery?” Kyle raised his head and gave the answer he had prepared. “Yes. Mr. Avery is being held at the Lunaris Group’s underground laboratory. It’s in the suburbs, not far from here. Although we can definitely recover him, we cannot guarantee Mr. Avery’s safety.” Devon Solaris frowned. “Has the Lunaris Group made any demands?” he asked. “No, sir.” Devon sat beside the desk and remained silent for a long time, drumming a slow rhythm on the tabletop. “Are there any of my spies in that lab?” “No. Everyone in that laboratory is a genuine expert.” “Tell me the best way to resolve this situation,” Devon demanded darkly. Kyle glanced strangely at Devon. Normally the Solaris Emperor didn’t need any advice, but this time he demanded it bluntly. Regardless, Kyle obediently relayed the information. “We will advance with the intent of rescuing the hostage. If the rescue attempt is unsuccessful the new goal will be to kill the hostage. Regarding Master Daren’s maintenance...” Devon glanced at Kyle frostily, and the latter realised he had made a mistake the moment the words left his mouth. Although he instantly broke out in a cold sweat, he continued without any change in expression. “Any problems Master Daren will have in the future will be taken care of by a medical team consisting of newly-hired professionals. There shouldn’t be any problems with maintenance and first aid as long as they do not involve any of his enhancements.” Kyle finished talking, but Devon did not respond. The former could only continue his work on the computer. In the short time he had been talking with the Solaris Emperor the mail requiring his reply had increased ten fold. After a few minutes of contemplation, Devon could not deny that Kyle’s proposal was the most logical for this situation. Even he had wanted to try a rescue... Having the attempt succeed would be the best outcome, of course, but if a rescue were impossible they had to kill Avery. After all, Avery knew too many secrets about Daren. At the same time, it would be a serious problem for the Solaris Federation if his skills were to fall into someone else’s hands. But he couldn’t do it! Devon sighed. “Dar really does like Avery. If Avery died he would be devastated,” he said. Kyle, still working, replied reflexively. “After a while he will forget.” But Devon frowned. “It doesn’t matter if he forgets or not, Bill, I already said that I would never make him sad.” “Of course.” Kyle dutifully stopped working, and waited calmly for the Emperor’s orders. “Make Avery’s rescue your primary goal. No matter what the cost, you must rescue that man.” “Yes, sir. Please set the limit on the highest acceptable cost.” “Do not place Daren or me in danger,” Devon stated, then frowned. After thinking a moment, he added, “Also, do not compromise your own safety.” “Understood.” Kyle nodded. Devon’s tone suddenly sharpened. “And send the best and most highly trained teams to guard my home. If Daren leaves the house you stick to him like glue. If the teams allow Daren to be hurt even slightly, they will pay with their lives.” “Yes sir.” ******************** Ezart strolled lazily towards Daren’s front door and pressed the doorbell. Naturally, the person who came out wasn’t Avery, but a nameless bodyguard. Taking in Ezart’s appearance, his expression immediately became wary and his tone unfriendly. “What do you want?” “I’m bringing Daren his homework,” Ezart replied testily. “Ezart! Is that Ezart?” From behind the man came the sound of hurried footsteps, then Daren’s calls. The guard was pushed aside. Even though he was determined to remain between the two, Dark Sun’s strength was no laughing matter. Daren shoved him aside easily. Not being able to do anything else, he could only say, “Y-Young Master, please, we haven’t inspected this person yet.” “You! Go away!” Daren shouted at the man resolutely. Huh. Since when did he become so rude? Ezart raised his eyebrows, but didn’t say a word. However, the guard stood his ground, determined to do his duty. He turned toward Ezart and spoke with the frankness of a solder giving orders. “If you are in possession of any weapons hand them over now.” Ezart shrugged dismissively and took off his boxing gloves, throwing them to the guard along with his backpack. “Is it alright now?” The man examined the bag, but didn’t find anything dangerous. He then scanned Ezart from top to bottom, but the boy’s clothes were too simple: just a t-shirt and jeans. He might have been able to hide a small knife close to his body, but it would be impossible to conceal a gun. To the guard team members, in concealed posts around the mansion, a dagger was in no way a threat to the Young Master’s safety. As a result, the man returned the bag to Ezart and allowed him to enter. Of course, he didn’t fail to stick close to the two boys. “Hmph!” Daren, looking none too happy, dragged Ezart towards the living room. “After several days of not seeing you at school, your temper sure has grown.” Ezart measured him up with a strange look in his eyes, as if he didn’t recognise the person in front of him. “Have you decided to stop being your brother’s good little boy? Daren’s face stiffened. “I don’t care about gege. He doesn’t come home, and he won’t let me rescue Papa,” he answered stubbornly. So the kid has some fight in him after all... Ezart scratched his face. Wasn’t he a goody two shoes before? They had only walked through the entrance and down a short corridor, but they had already pa.s.sed a dozen guards, all armed to the teeth. Each one was obviously a specially trained bodyguard, a soldier capable of precise and deadly movements, and each one was standing still with vigilant expressions. It transformed the perfectly normal house into a battlefield. Ezart, more and more confused, finally gave Daren a shove. “Hey! Are you rehearsing a military parade?” He hadn’t even finished his sentence before the bodyguards moved as one well-oiled machine and aimed their guns at him, provoked by his push. But the boy showed he was worthy of the name Plague G.o.d at Yelan Academy. Ezart, unarmed and with a dozen loaded guns pointed at him, showed no sign of panic. With his hands still crossed over his chest, the only clue the he was aware of the guns aimed at his vitals was his raised eyebrows. “Put down your guns! No one is allowed to hurt Ezart!” Ezart hadn’t reacted, but Daren yelled at the surrounding guards like an angry cat with it’s fur standing on end. But the guards didn’t move until the guard who let Ezart in gave the signal. Then, moving in sync, they all put down their guns and returned to their original positions. Furious, Daren dragged Ezart to the living room at a run, without a glance at the guards. Once in the living room, Ezart sprawled on the sofa without a hint of courtesy. “What’s going on in your house?” he asked idly. “Gege said these people are here to protect me,” Daren explained gloomily, sitting down beside Ezart. “Protect? You?” Hearing this, Ezart threw back his head and roared with laughter. After a moment he managed to choke out a response. “Depend on those guys with the guns? They’d better not come running to you, begging you to protect them when the time comes!” Daren tilted his head and imagined those alert, gun-toting soldiers crying for help. His anger disappeared immediately and he couldn’t hold back a giggle, glancing at the soldier standing by the living room door. There was no way he hadn’t heard Ezart comment, but his stoic face showed no emotion, and his back was still ramrod straight. Seeing this only made Daren giggle louder. “Here! Your homework.” Ezart pulled a couple of wrinkled and bent notebooks from his bag. Daren hastily accepted the work. Even though homework was normally pretty boring, at least it was better than staying at home and doing nothing. He opened his notebook, only to find a piece of paper wedged between the pages. On the paper were a few lines of writing. No matter how he looked at it, the handwriting was too neat to be Ezart’s. However, reading between the lines, Daren quickly discovered that this was Elian’s doing. After a few lines of niceties, he got straight to the point. The princ.i.p.al had already given Dark Sun his first a.s.signment. Furthurmore, this mission was time sensitive. Elian was powerless to do anything but notify Daren to find out if he would accept or decline the request. Daren sat thinking for a while. Although he was originally coerced into joining the Elite Combat Section by the princ.i.p.al, he really wanted to take the a.s.signment, as it had already been a week since his brother had forbidden him from leaving the house. Spending every day cooped up with these emotionless soldiers was agonising. If he could just leave the house once, then nothing else would matter. But his big brother definitely wouldn’t allow it. “Why the long face?” Ezart pinched Daren’s cheeks and pulled. “Gege won’t let me rescue Papa Avery, or go outside.” Daren pulled his cheeks away from Ezart’s fingers and rubbed his face, grimacing in pain. Ezart pulled his hand through his messy hair and shrugged. “It’s useless. Who told your Papa to get kidnapped? It’s been six, seven days already and still no news.” Daren shook his head in agreement, certain he was right. “There must have been news, it’s just that Gege isn’t telling me!” he said. Ezart shrugged again. Daren looked at the guards, rigidly standing to attention at their posts. He couldn’t mention anything about the princ.i.p.al’s missions in front of these people. Otherwise, if his brother knew that the princ.i.p.al had ordered Sin and Elian to gang up on him, and forced him to accept five missions, who knew what the Solaris Emperor would do to Yelan Academy... “Let’s go down to the bas.e.m.e.nt. There are toys there we can play with.” “Toys?” Ezart didn’t bother to hide his disgust. “Having Xiao Ai isn’t enough for you? You’re not a kid anymore, but you’re still playing with toys…” That said, he suddenly paused. Wait a second! According to his previous inference, this guy’s mental age was probably around ten years old?! Daren shook his head vigorously. “That’s not it! They’re different from Xiao Ai,” he explained. “They’re things like guns, grenades, battle simulator devices and various other tools, like night goggles and universal keys.” “... How are those toys.” “Let’s just go, Ezart.” Daren stood up, trying to forcefully pull Ezart up, too. But seeing the other boy, with his uninterested manner, he could only hint at his plan. “Let’s go talk about El-gege; I miss him.” “Oh,” Ezart replied, and leisurely stood up. Just as Daren was about to explain that the armchair was the ‘elevator’ to the bas.e.m.e.nt, a guard who was standing at the door spoke aloud, stopping them. “Please wait a minute, Young Master. For your safety, I’ll have to forbid you from taking others to the bas.e.m.e.nt, filled with weapons.” “It’s just Ezart. It’s fine!” Daren insisted. “If you don’t believe me you can ask Gege. Gege will surely let me take Ezart down.” The bodyguard frowned when he heard that, and whipped out his phone at once to consult with his higher-ups. He briefly outlined the situation to his boss, then handed the phone over to Daren. The boy took the phone, filled with unease, afraid that his brother would not allow him to take Ezart to the bas.e.m.e.nt. “Dar.” Devon’s voice, sounding slightly tired, came from the phone. “I’ll let you bring Ezart, but you’ll have to promise me something. You have to promise that you absolutely will not allow yourself to be harmed in any way.” “Oh. Okay,” Daren nodded. “Don’t worry, Gege. Ezart can’t beat me,” he added rea.s.suringly. Ezart, who heard that, petulantly rolled his eyes at Daren. Twice. “That’s good. If you want, you can also let him stay over,” Devon generously offered from the other end of the line, thinking if Ezart slept over and kept him company at home, then Daren wouldn’t think about secretly going to rescue Theodore. Having received Gege’s consent, Daren pa.s.sed the phone back to the guard, only to see him repeatedly replying, “Yes, yes,” into the phone. Daren tugged Ezart and explained how to use the elevator. This time, the guard made no attempt to hold them back. Once they were at the bas.e.m.e.nt laboratory, Ezart wasted no time in asking, “Hey! Are you going to accept the mission from the princ.i.p.al or not? El, that guy, wants me to give him an answer tomorrow. If you’re not going to take it, the princ.i.p.al’s going to ask him and Sin to do it.” Daren nodded. “I want to accept, but Gege won’t let me to go outside,” he said. Ezart scratched his head. “Your house looks just like a military camp! If you sneak out, your brother will definitely know. I think you’d better not accept it. Your brother’s wrath is not an ordinary kind of inconvenience, you know…” “But I really want to go outside…” Daren’s voice got softer and softer, his face full of disappointment. Ezart rolled his eyes. “You just want to go rescue your dad, right?” he snapped. Hearing that, Daren was silent for a moment, before he obediently admitting it by nodding. “Ha! Even I could easily guess that; surely your brother would realise it, too, with how well he knows your personality. I’m thinking the main purpose for those people he a.s.signed upstairs is probably to keep an eye on you. Otherwise you would definitely sneak off.” Shocked, it was then that Daren realised the truth. “Ah! So it was like that. Gege is so crafty!” he exclaimed. “That’s why you’d better abandon your thoughts of sneaking off, and just obediently wait for your brother to rescue your dad,” Ezart said casually, as he languidly strolled about in the room, browsing through the various types of firearms in the display cabinet. Nevertheless, Daren was still very worried. “But Papa Avery isn’t Brother’s father, and Gege almost always points a gun at Papa and threatens to kill him,” he replied. “I’m scared that Gege won’t seriously try to rescue Papa.” “Uh… That’s true, too. Your family’s relationships are just too complicated.” Ezart shrugged and pointed at the firearms in the cabinets. “Hey! Do these guns really work, or are they only for display?” Nodding, Daren answered. “The guns here can all be fired, and the cartridges are right next to them.” At the mention of firing them, Ezart unceremoniously pulled open the display cabinet and took out a heavy-duty firearm. Even though he seldom used a gun, with a few practises he roughly understood how to install the clip and load the bullets. Having loaded the bullets from the box next to it, he carried the gun to the shooting range in a grand manner, and took a shot without even putting on the headset designed to prevent hearing damage. Ezart, who hadn’t adjusted his stance, stumbled back a step from the force of the gun’s recoil. And, of course, the bullet that was fired didn’t even graze the edge of the target sheet. But he didn’t mind. A laugh erupted from him and he cried, “Ha! Firing this gun is pretty refreshing!” That said, he tossed the gun to Daren. “Let’s see you fire a few rounds.” “Okay.” Daren nodded. Holding the gun correctly in the standard grip, he walked to the firing station. Readied, he lifted the gun and fired without hesitation. His actions were so natural, like he had been born with the ability. And a second after the gun fired a fist-sized hole appeared in the exact center of the target sheet. At the sight of that, Ezart whistled. “This gun’s firepower’s not half bad.” “Yeah, but the number of bullets it carries is too few. I’ve always wanted to improve it, but I haven’t found a way yet.” “Heh! Why don’t you fire a few more rounds? You made it look so easy. I might possibly learn it after observing for a few times.” Ezart raised his eyebrows in an insufferably arrogant expression. Daren smiled. “Alright,” he replied. Just like that, Daren and Ezart took turns firing a few rounds each. Naturally, Daren had a one hundred percent probability of hitting dead center, while Ezart’s probability remained zero. “Hehe. Ezart, you didn’t even hit it once.” Seeing that, Daren grinned. Ezart fired again, but the target sheet remained spotless. Irritated, he threw the gun to Daren. “Like I care. Can’t I just shoot for the h.e.l.l of it?” he retorted. “Sure.” Catching the gun, Daren turned his attention back to the target sheet and began firing. Although Daren’s actions were as beautiful and accurate as before, Ezart had already become tired of watching. Looking around, a cup on the table caught his eye, containing a liquid that looked a lot like c.o.ke. Seizing the cup, he drank it all down in one gulp. “Ha! The flavor’s not bad, just slightly bitter. Hey! What kind of drink is this?” he called out. “Drink?” Slightly surprised, Daren stopped firing and turned around. “There are no beverages in my house, only plain water and the coffee Gege and Papa Avery drink,” he explained. “Do you want some water or coffee, Ezart?” “Then what’s this? Coffee? It doesn’t taste like it.” Raising the cup, Ezart frowned and inspected it. “Such a strange cup; it even has measuring marks,” he criticised. Daren stared at the cup woodenly. “You’re right, the cup really is strange. It looks like one of Papa Avery’s measuring cups for his experiments…” he said. Having said that, the two of them suddenly quieted down and fixed their eyes on the cup together. They came to the same conclusion at the same time. Ah! This cup does not only look like a measuring cup, it is a measuring cup… Wait, a measuring cup?! They looked at the measuring cup dully, which only had a few drops of the unknown brown liquid pooled in the bottom, while the rest… had all been drunk by Ezart! “Ezart!” Terrified, Daren shrieked, “Quick, quick! Throw it up!” “It’s already been a while since I drank it. What’s left to vomit?” Ezart roared in disbelief. “Why is a measuring cup your dad uses for experiments here with you? And what the h.e.l.l was even in this cup?” “I have no idea!” Daren panicked. He had no clue as to what he should do. Normally, Papa Avery’s experiments were totally una.s.sociated with words like ‘safety’. Daren’s brain unconsciously recalled the tragic appearance of the corpses that were unable to reincarnate in the lab. Would Ezart end up like that, too? I don’t want that! As his thoughts whirled, Daren grew more and more distressed. Ultimately, Daren could only harden his heart and clench his right fist, before he punched Ezart straight in the stomach. A unexpected punch right to his gut–and a pretty heavy punch at that, due to Dar’s anxiety–made Ezart drop to the ground, throwing up endlessly. “Vo-vomiting it out is good.” Daren heaved a sigh of relief at the sight. This way, Ezart probably wouldn’t become like those corpses in the lab. As Ezart puked, he still occasionally lifted his head and glared at Daren, threatening. “Urgh, you d.a.m.n brat, are you tired of living?… Urgh! Something will be wrong with the world if I don’t kill you later!” Even though he was scolded, Daren grinned. The fact that Ezart still had the strength to scold him meant that he should be fine now. Daren lightly patted Ezart’s back, trying to ease his breathing, which, of course, earned him a few eye rolls from the other, free of charge. “I’ll go bring you some water to gargle.” Daren, under Ezart’s baleful glare, tactfully withdrew his hand and walked to the water cooler in the corner of the room. While filling a cup, he suddenly heard some weird moaning and groaning sounds. Daren immediately stopped what he was doing and whipped around to see that Ezart was still in the same half kneeling position, but had stopped throwing up. Even though the retching had stopped, his shoulders were heaving and, looking closely, Daren could even see that Ezart’s body was trembling slightly. Daren shouted in a strangled voice. “Ezart?” “Uhh...” However, Ezart had not even raised his head; it was like a reflexive response from hearing one’s name. After his reply came a series of m.u.f.fled groans. Daren blankly held on to the cup, unsure if he should continue getting water or go back to check on Ezart. While he was frozen with indecision, the situation suddenly changed. Ezart abruptly raised his head and howled at the ceiling. There were madness written on his face. His eyes rolled back, showing the whites. His eyes gazed at nothing, like he was only semi-conscious. “Ezart?!” Frozen, it wasn’t until the cup fell from his hand and smashed to pieces on the floor that Daren suddenly came back to his senses. By then, Ezart was clutching his head and rolling around on the floor in agony. Daren wasn’t sure if he was imagining it, but he saw Ezart’s muscles writhing and distorting… As moments pa.s.sed the squirming and distortion of Ezart’s muscles became worse, his roar grew increasingly intense, and there were no words that could describe the pain on his face. He kept thrashing around on the floor. In the end, Ezart was so deformed his entire being looked just like a lump of dough being kneaded. “Ezart… Ezart!” Daren sobbed. Daren had rushed to Ezart’s side by then, but he had no idea what to do. Hugging Ezart desperately, he could only think of trying to apply pressure to the places that were out of shape, hoping fervently that it would lessen Ezart’s pain. After a long time–Daren didn’t know how long–had pa.s.sed, Ezart finally quieted down. His muscles had stopped squirming abnormally, and what had once been deformed had returned to normal. However, he looked far from fine, with his flushed red skin and the fact that no matter how Daren called out to him, there was no reaction. He was unconscious. “Ezart. Ezart?” Daren carefully inspected Ezart. His friend’s chest was heaving; he didn’t need to check there to know he was still breathing. The main concern was that he wouldn’t wake up, no matter how loud Daren called him. By then, a guard had come down. “Young master, dinner has been prepared,” he dutifully reminded him. Hearing his voice, Daren blankly lifted his head and looked at the soldier, tears streaming down his face. “I can’t seem to wake Ezart up. What should I do?” he asked, dazed. ******************** Eclipse Hunter v03c04 END ******************** -
Chapter 5 Translator: LilxD, Souldead Proofreader: Arc, Catchkatch “Dar…” When Devon rushed back home, he only had eyes for his beloved little brother, who was leaning against the side of the bed. On the bed lay Ezart, with his eyes firmly closed and his skin abnormally flushed. As he took another step forward, Daren became aware of his presence. He picked himself up and turned his head towards Devon, rubbing his eyes tiredly. “Gege,” he greeted, melancholic. Devon crossed the room to him and tenderly patted his didi’s head. “How is Ezart?” “The doctor said that Ezart’s state seems to be similar to cases of stimulant overdose.” Daren turned his head back to the unconscious Ezart. “The doctor also said that because he doesn’t know what Ezart has taken he doesn’t dare recklessly prescribe any medicine for him. He fears that it could produce more problems. We can only wait for the test results of the substance inside that cup before proceeding with his treatment. For now, we can only let Ezart continue sleeping.” “Then don’t worry too much, Dar. According to Gege’s experiences, as long as they don’t die immediately, people will usually survive.” Devon glanced at the boy on the bed. “Especially this guy,” he murmured. “His body is so tough. No matter how you look at it, he’s like a c.o.c.kroach that can’t be killed.” “Really?” Daren asked as he raised his head, face filled with hope. “Of course!” After Devon earnestly nodded his head to his little brother, he immediately urged Daren, “You should hurry up and sleep, too. Look at your eyes; they’re so red. Tomorrow, I’ll get the other three to keep you company, okay?” “They can?” Daren asked, surprised. “Of course they can,” Devon smiled as he conceded. “Otherwise you’d be bored staying at home by yourself, right?” “Yeah, yeah!” Daren nodded fervently. “Gege isn’t home for most of the time, Papa Avery isn’t here…” he said quietly. “Ah! Papa Avery! How is Papa right now? Gege, have you rescued him yet?” “No, I haven’t,” Devon replied, a bit embarra.s.sed. “Ah…Is that so? Then, Gege, you need to keep on doing your best.” Daren lowered his head. He stretched out his hand and straightened Ezart’s blanket, and then walked past his brother with an extremely disheartened expression. Devon reached out his hand, hoping to pat his little brother’s shoulder. But whether it was a coincidence or on purpose, Daren leaned to the side, evading his hand and walking past. D-Dar... Devon stood there, frozen, with his hand still in the air. In his whole life he had never felt a sense of defeat from anyone. However, at this moment, his little brother’s actions of disappointment had dealt him such a strong blow that he simply stood there, rooted to the spot. However, as Daren reached the door, he suddenly paused. “Dar, what’s wrong?” asked Devon, thinking it was strange. “Gunshots…” Daren had only begun his sentence when the door to the study room suddenly crashed open. In the same instant, Daren’s nails subtly, silently lengthened. The moment the intruder stepped through the open door, Daren’s hand stabbed towards their neck at lightning speed. As his nails grazed the outermost edge of the person’s skin he noticed the face and froze. He didn’t pierce the skin, but he didn’t move his nails away, either. The intruder instinctively wanted to speak, but the moment he opened his mouth his neck muscles moved. This made him immediately aware of the touch of metal at his throat. From the stinging pain in his neck, he didn’t doubt for a second that this thing could slit his throat and instantly take his life. His eyes widened, looking at the fragile boy in front of his eyes. The boy’s expression revealed a sense of calm that not even a well-trained soldier from the Delta Forces had. Indeed, he could even say that this was the face of a cold-blooded killer. “It’s a bodyguard…” Daren muttered. Even though he was a bit reluctant, he moved his hand away. “What is happening?” reproached Devon, as he finally comprehended the situation before him. He was enraged, seeing that his little brother had almost killed someone again. Hearing Devon question him in such a reprimanding tone, the guard instantly stood up straighter to report. “Reporting: the enemy has invaded. Solaris Emperor, please take cover in the hidden room.” Hearing his announcement, Devon was silent for a moment. After he nodded his head at the bodyguard, he turned toward his younger brother. “Dar, carry Ezart and follow me.” Instinctively, Daren wanted to argue with his brother and say that he wanted to go and help as well, but after he heard Ezart’s name, he turned his head to look at the unconscious boy lying on the bed. After quietly picking him up, he stood beside his brother. Devon glanced at Daren sideways and sighed with relief in his heart. Lucky that Ezart is out for the count, otherwise I really wouldn’t have any excuse to persuade Dar not to partic.i.p.ate in this battle. However, the enemy had actually found their way to this location, proving that the information he had gathered in the past few days was real. Avery… Have you betrayed us? If Dar were to know of this, he would be brokenhearted, right? Thinking up to this point, Devon’s heart felt a wave of discomfort. But I should stop worrying about this right now. The most important thing at this moment is to withdraw to the secret room before Dar is forced to hurt someone. He moved towards one side of the room and lifted a small painting off the wall. Behind the painting was a numeric keypad. After he swiftly pressed the twelve numbered key-code, the wall suddenly transformed into a single leaf door that opened to a smaller pathway, narrower than the entrance. From the side, it could be seen that the door was three hands thick. “Dar, come over here.” Daren obediently followed his brother’s words and pa.s.sed through the pa.s.sage entrance, holding Ezart. This wasn’t as simple as it sounded. Ezart had an extremely muscular and brawny kind of build and the entrance was much narrower than normal doorways. If worse came to worst, he would have really had to shove and squeeze the boy in his arms through the entrance somehow. After Daren walked a ways down the hidden corridor he came to a staircase sloping downwards. He descended into the stairwell, and, after walking for a few minutes, he finally made it to the bottom of the flight of stairs. At the bottom he found himself walking into a room filled with high tech equipment. One entire wall of the room was dedicated to an enormous screen and in front of this screen was a machine panel filled with b.u.t.tons. The only thing inside the room that wasn’t a machine was the single bed in the corner. There was also another door at the other end of the room that was probably an exit to outside the building. He placed Ezart on the single bed and turned his head to see that his brother and that bodyguard had already entered behind him. Devon had even begun operating the machine panel in front of the screen. Right after he pressed a few b.u.t.tons, the entrance they came through closed without a sound. Seeing the door closed, Daren then finally, desperately said, “Gege, I can…” “You can’t! You’re not allowed!” Devon said without turning his head. Hearing his brother’s words, Daren could only respond with "okay", not daring to ask anymore. Devon turned on the screen, immediately dividing it into eight frames showing the situation in every corner of the house. They could see the battle taking place in the frame showing the front corridor. On the screen, the bodyguards were equipped with many lightweight and heavyweight weapons, and were expertly aligned in their formations. They were as strong and as st.u.r.dy as a brick wall, blocking their invaders. In addition, the rounds of bullets fired were intensely concentrated, making it enough to annihilate the majority of any group of intruders, even if they had been a team from Delta Force. However, the opponent consisted of merely two people, and, looking at them, it seemed like they weren’t hurt at all. The two figure’s movements were so fast they seemed inhuman. More than that, their movements weren’t limited to the ground; their feet ran over not only the two walls either side of them, but had also shifted to the ceiling several times, as if gravity had no effect on them. They moved continuously, running in all directions: up, down, left, right. Even the highly trained bodyguards murmured, “These people are not human at all…” Devon furrowed his brow. Although he wasn’t someone who really bothered with the notions of combative fighting, he could still see that these two’s movements were extremely familiar. Daren stared at the screen. The more he looked at them, the stranger he felt. Finally, he couldn’t help blurting out, “Their movements are really similar to mine.” Devon’s face tensed up, and the bodyguard beside him subtly revealed a look of hesitation, as if he couldn’t believe the words he had heard. Although he had known of the young master’s exceptional skill, he never thought that it would be to this inhuman degree. “Why are their movements so similar to mine? They weren’t like this before,” said Daren questioningly, as he kept his eyes fixed on the screen, allowing the microchip in his brain to a.n.a.lyse and determine the percentage of their similarities. “Dar!” Devon calmly called out, trying to get his brother’s attention. Once Daren heard his gege’s call, he stopped his a.n.a.lysis and turned his head to face him. As for this older brother, he then lied to his little brother without batting an eye. “Just now, I think I heard Ezart groaning and asking for water. I think you need to go over and pour some for him.” “Really?” Although Daren hadn’t heard anything, he still turned around and walked over to the bed worriedly. He closely examined Ezart’s condition, but it was evident that he still remained in a deep sleep; even his position on the bed was the same and hadn’t changed at all. While Daren did this, Devon immediately shifted his hand and turned off the screen. Then, he pretended to be annoyed. “Oh no! Something is wrong with the screen.” Daren leaned his head over to take a closer look at Ezart. He had just determined that Ezart hadn’t moved an inch when he heard his brother’s words. He couldn’t help but turn to look at the screen. It had really turned off, leaving only a black screen. “Tell the others outside to inform me immediately if there is any change in the situation,” Devon ordered the bodyguard standing to the side. “Yes, Sir,” the guard replied, grabbing the radio at once and notifying his comrades outside. Devon walked towards the bed and patted his brother’s head. He tried to comfort him. “Don’t worry, Dar. This room is very st.u.r.dy and solid. Even if those two have extraordinary capabilities and defeat all the bodyguards, it is impossible for them to get in here.” Especially since Avery doesn’t know this room’s pa.s.sword. “Okay,” Daren nodded. “Report: there is a change in circ.u.mstances,” the bodyguard suddenly announced. Devon frowned. “Say it!” he ordered sharply. “The enemy cannot break through our formation and have started to withdraw.” Devon’s eyes sparkled in delight. The other side is already retreating? This is great news! At least we have endured through one possible crisis without Dar going out to fight. “For tonight, strengthen the amount of forces in the night watch, and escort us back to the headquarters tomorrow morning,” he ordered the bodyguard. “Understood, Sir.” Devon reached out a hand and patted his brother’s head indulgently. “Dar, Gege will definitely protect you,” he said, with a determination that bordered on the sinister. Hearing it like that, Daren could only nod his head obediently. Brother… But I want to protect you, too.
Chapter 6 Translator: LilsxD, Yihn Proofreader: Arc, Catchkatch The moon hid behind drifting clouds. The quiet of the dark, sleeping city was broken only by the occasional phantom bark or whisper, and the noise of vehicles zooming by. A garbage truck was parked in the narrow alley between two buildings. Papers littered the ground, blown about by the wind, and on both sides of the building were old, dilapidated iron doors that looked as if they had stood untouched for a long time. In this seemingly impenetrable darkness, one of the metal doors silently opened. Amazingly, such an ancient, rusty door made not a sound as it swung ajar. Anyone watching might fear one of the city’s wandering spirits was opening it... However, the next second a person in red tights and a silver visor walked out, carrying a huge bag with slight bulges outlining the shape of firearms. Although this person was obviously not a spectre, his movements were so nimble and silent that he moved like a ghost. The man slowly closed the iron door. With a slight turn of his head to observe his surroundings, he began calculating. From Theodore’s morse code message, the time was set for three days from now. So, where should he go for now? He would have to find a place where his brother wouldn’t find him. He couldn’t use Gege’s credit card for anything like a hotel room, but sleeping in the park wouldn’t work either, even if he didn’t use the card. As long as it was in a public place, his brother would definitely find him immediately. Despite that, he hadn’t been to many places before, outside of home, the Solaris Headquarters, and the school. Since the first two were off the list, what was left was… the school, then? “The school... Princ.i.p.al…” he mumbled. “The Princ.i.p.al’s office!” At the thought of the Princ.i.p.al’s office, no longer undecided, he immediately started running. But this alley had only one exit and his only way out should have been to turn left. However, he didn’t go either left or right but—upwards! He took two running steps forward, before he kicked off from the wall and landed, perching, on top of the second storey window. With a flip, he landed on the second storey window sill and, in a twisting motion, he swung down to hang from the overhang by his hands, before, with a kick to the wall, he propelled himself up to the third storey window. He used this complicated series of moves to climb higher and higher up the building. 　 He stopped at the fifth story, just below the top floor, and leapt onto the opposite building. Using a combination of jumping, running, climbing and crawling, he advanced forwards along the buildings’ walls. As he ran, he avoided the top and bottom floors where he could, because he knew that surveillance cameras would be installed there, allowing Gege to track him easily. The cameras’ blind spots were only between the top and bottom storeys, so as long as his shadow was not captured on film his brother would never be able to trace him. Apart from these surveillance cameras, he had also left the mobile phone his brother had given him at home. Even though he had not checked the phone, he guessed that it would definitely have some sort of tracking device attached. After travelling in the gravity-defying way for a short while, he could see the school’s campus in the distance. He quickened his pace, and before long Dark Sun was already on a rooftop garden of a building next to the school. Then, after carefully scrutinising the surroundings, and locating the surveillance cameras, he easily avoided detection as he jumped down onto the darkened school grounds.　 Because of the Princ.i.p.al’s promise to remove the surveillance cameras on campus, Dark Sun crossed straight through the centre of the campus and headed directly for the Princ.i.p.al’s office. Arriving at the Princ.i.p.al’s office—or, rather, the ‘Princ.i.p.al’s building’—he turned and rummaged in his backpack, pulling out a card. It was the card he’d received when he agreed to accept the Princ.i.p.al’s missions, and doubled as Dark Sun’s ECS ident.i.ty card. He fought the urge to laugh as he thought about how he was only one person but had two Yelan Academy student ID cards. At a swipe of his card, the huge doors beeped and swung open and he entered the building. Amazingly, even though it was deep into the night, a couple of people were still there, patrolling or sitting in front of a computer monitoring missions. Neither of them paid any attention to the other, and neither of them turned to take a look even when the door opened. It made him, who was originally tense at the sight of other people, relieved. Un.o.bserved, he then went to one of the computers in the lounge with the intention of arbitrarily searching for information to kill some time until the Princ.i.p.al arrived. Casually opening a web browser, he saw the daily news alerts. The top headline was The Stormy Battle Between the Solaris Group and the Lunaris Group. Daren couldn’t help but click on the link to read. Once the page loaded, it showed both Devon Solaris and Yue Baylian’s photograph. In Devon’s photo, there was even a cigarette dangling from his hand and his head was tilted upwards slightly, with a lofty expression that made him look like he was looking down on the whole world. The image of Yue Baylian stood to attention, revealing a slightly thoughtful smile and there was even the word ‘VS’ in the middle of the photos. “Gege…” Daren looked at the picture. His heart ached a little as he imagined his brother finding out he was gone. What would his reaction be? … Ah! At the thought that he would be unable to see his brother for several days, Daren felt a bit lonely. Without thinking, he automatically pressed the b.u.t.ton to print. After printing out Devon’s photo, he carefully looked at it for a moment before folding it a few times and putting it in the pocket close to his heart. Wait for me, Gege! Once Dar has rescued Papa Avery, our home can go back to the way it was!
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9 Translator: Aoi, LilsxD Proofreader: Arc, Catchkatch, Wryn Yue Baylian indolently lay on the chaise, holding on to the television remote as he channel surfed. “The global economic situation looks pretty normal. It seems like your fabled secretary Kyle really is competent. He could actually stabilise the situation even though the both of us are missing.” Devon Solaris sat on another chair, leaning against the backrest in a relaxed position. A cup of his favourite black coffee sat on a coffee table at his side. Besides the shackles restraining his feet, the scene looked extremely normal. It was as if two friends were sitting in the lounge drinking tea and watching TV as they chatted. “Of course,” he coldly replied. “How could I have chosen a second-rate secretary?” “Uh huh! Maybe it would be alright even if you didn’t return?” A tinge of malice crept into the corner of Yue’s eye. “Since it seems as long as Kyle is there, it doesn’t matter whether the Solaris Emperor exists.” Devon ignored him, despite the provocation. He proceeded to peruse a book laying nearby. Seeing this, Yue’s flirtatious smile suddenly went wild as he s.n.a.t.c.hed and threw the book across the room. “You’re not allowed to ignore me, Dev! You know what the consequences are!” he shouted. Devon’s expression changed as the thought of the consequences made his heart ache. Dar… “Okay! What do you want to say?” Yue revealed a victorious smile and went back to reclining on his chaise. “Why do you trust Kyle so much?” he asked curiously. “Aren’t you afraid that he will take this chance to betray you? For all you know, he might have already given up on the search for you.” Devon snorted. “Because he’s sick.” Yue’s expression soured suddenly. “It seems like the Solaris Emperor is not even willing to tell me a story!” he said, his voice cold. Devon rolled his eyes. Annoyed, he replied, “I mean Bill has an extremely rare genetic disease.” “Oh?” Yue was momentarily stunned. He had not thought that was what Devon meant. He thought it was an excuse Devon invented to blow him off. He could not help but ask more. “Even if he has an illness, what does that have to do with his loyalty to you?” “Every day he has to take medication to manage his illness. If he were to not take the medication his body would gradually calcify. Within a year, his body would be completely calcified, like a living statue. It is impossible for him to remain alive with that degree of calcification. In the final three months, when his organs begin to calcify, he will die.” Yue frowned unconsciously upon hearing about this fearful disease. “Only I have the medicine he requires. Every six months, I give him half a year’s worth of medication,” Devon continued impa.s.sively. “You’re threatening him. If he doesn’t stay your loyal secretarial dog, you won’t give him medication?” Yue chuckled. “You’re so ruthless, Dev!” Devon harrumphed. “He has no right to complain. Just the research and development for the medication cost me billions. Even if he were to be a secretary for ten lifetimes he still wouldn’t be able to repay me!” “You put it that way, but it’s not like you only invested in the medication for his sake, right?” Yue smiled. “If you were to put that kind of medicine on the market, how could you not recover the billions?” “It’s impossible to put it on the market,” Devon said coldly. “This genetic disease is extremely rare. There are less than three incidences a year. In addition, the shelf life of this medication is a short six months. Coupled with an extremely complex manufacturing process, and ingredients that are difficult to source, the production costs of six months worth of medication is already around ten million. How many sufferers of this disease do you think could afford medication fees of twenty million per year? Therefore, even if I didn’t monopolise the manufacturing of this medication, Bill couldn’t possibly afford it.” Yue did not know whether to laugh or cry. “So that’s how it is. He is a secretary with a base value of billions, with an inflation rate of twenty million each year?” Devon corrected him with a serious tone. “It’s thirty million per year; I give him a salary as well.” “You’re making me jealous! Back then, you didn’t care about me nearly as much, even when you still saw me as Yuer!” A puzzled yet slightly suspicious look pa.s.sed over Yue’s face. “Why are you willing to invest billions on a secretary? I’m really curious, Dev,” he asked. Even though he was being forced into this conversation, Devon could not help but reminisce about the past. A bit annoyed, he began narrating. “He was originally my personal secretary. I interviewed him myself. Initially I thought I had found a highly competent secretary, but then, afterwards, I realised that he was an agent sent by my father, from the very beginning. He even lied about his name being Bill.” So you know his name isn’t Bill... Yue could not help but raise his eyebrows. He was rather surprised by this discovery. “Maybe it was divine punishment. One day, he suddenly fell ill. As a swan song, he confessed that he had been sent by my father.” Devon grew silent. Not only Avery, but even Kyle had once been a traitor. He forgave Kyle back then because he had not yet ascended the throne as the Solaris Emperor and could still make decisions based on his likes and dislikes. Even if he were to make mistakes, his father would take care of it. However, he could no longer do that. I have already risen to the pinnacle; all the consequences of my decisions must be borne by me. No one has the power to help me fix my mistakes anymore.Therefore, Dar, Didi! Please understand and forgive me. Gege stands at the apex but I am not my own man. I did not mean to lie to you. I must kill your beloved Papa Avery not because I hate him, but to preserve the order and discipline required for the Solaris Federation’s continued prosperity, and for your protection. Thus, this rule cannot be broken! “I want to see my brother.” Devon frowned. One thought of Dar and he became so worried that he needed to see him. Yue raised his eyebrow. “Didn’t you just see him this morning?” “I want to see him now!” he shouted, furious. “He is my brother; even if I were to see him ten times a day it still wouldn’t be enough.” Yue rolled his eyes. He could not stop himself from teasing. “Why don’t you ask other people who have siblings: who else needs to see their brother at least ten times a day? They probably wouldn’t even be bothered enough to take a glance.” Devon was silent. He finally raised his head and looked at Yue. “I’m worried about him,” he beseeched. “Ah! Only when we’re talking about your brother do you show an expression other than your standard look of superiority and arrogance! Okay, okay, how could I possibly deny you, Dev?” As Yue was speaking, his fingers inched towards a few particularly messy strands of Devon’s hair. But Devon turned his head to the side and avoided them. But Yue was not angered as he withdrew his hand. There are still many more chances for things like this. Being too hasty will only make my plans backfire. “Let’s go see Didi.” “He’s my didi, not yours!” Devon barked. He hated it when others tried to encroach on his big brother status. “Yes, yes, yes! To see your little brother, alright?” Yue laughed coquettishly as he lead the way, while Devon followed behind. The two of them stepped out of the lounge into a corridor suspended in midair like a miniature suspension bridge. Devon stepped onto the bridge and peered below. Under his feet lay dense jungle vegetation. When he looked into the distance, he was completely surrounded by the sea. This place was truly a small island. Yue had erected lodgings on three hills, connected by suspension bridges. The main residence was in the centre, flanked by one for the modified humans and the other for... “We’re here, Devon.” Devon shook himself, and immediately rushed inside the residence. Dar... It was as if he had entered an ancient mausoleum. The dome-shaped roof, walls and ceiling were decorated with exquisite frescoes. A gigantic crystal sarcophagus was placed in the centre surrounded by four ‘tomb guards’. The only anomaly was the complex network of high-tech cables and tubing running beneath the sarcophagus. Devon rushed straight to the transparent crystal sarcophagus, where he could clearly see the person laying within. It was a youth clothed like a young prince. Even his hands were covered with finely embroidered white gloves. His soft, shiny, closely cropped silver hair framed his face. His features were refined and elegant. It was a pity that his eyes were firmly closed, making it impossible to discern the beautiful colour of his eyes. Although the scene looked dazzling at first glance, a closer look revealed the thick shackles securely binding the neck, waist, wrists, and ankles of the prince to the sarcophagus. Devon heaved a sigh of relief after seeing that Daren was lying untouched in the sarcophagus, the monitor indicating stable vital signs. Even though he knew that he could not touch him, he still placed his hand on the lid as he stared at his beloved brother. At that moment, the lines on his face relaxed; there was not a hint of cold-blooded ruthlessness. Yue greedily drank in the rare gentleness of the Solaris Emperor’s face for a long minute before he was finally willing to speak. “So that powerful Dark Sun is actually this cute. No wonder you dote on him so much.” Devon snorted, “Of course. Dar is the cutest boy in the world. When he’s sleeping he’s cute, and when he’s laughing he’s even cuter. If he were to open his mouth and call out ‘Gege’ it would be so cute that you could melt.” Only you would melt away... Yue was between laughter and tears. If anyone were to hear these words, they definitely would not believe that this person was the cold-blooded and ruthless Solaris Emperor! “Is Dar really all right?” Devon asked with a bit of unease. “When I fainted, wasn’t he seriously injured?” “You’ve asked a hundred times already! Relax! I have already allowed the modified humans to take care of his injuries before I placed your precious didi in this s.p.a.ce hibernation capsule.” “You shouldn’t have ordered the modified humans to attack him.” Devon’s face darkened. Every time he thought about Dar getting beaten in front of him, his heart would ache and his limbs would tremble. Yue already knew how to handle this man’s brother complex by now. He quickly apologised in a gentle tone. “So-rry~! I won’t ever hurt Didi again. Look, haven’t I allowed him to wear these beautiful clothes and sleep in this beautiful place? It suits him well, right? “We’ll stay here from now on. Your brother won’t ever be hurt again. Isn’t this for the best?” Dar won’t ever be hurt again... Devon placed his hand on the crystal lid, feeling torn. Within the enormous office, there were two desks. The large black desk in the center of the room clearly belonged to the boss, but was unoccupied at the moment. The other desk was white and placed perpendicular to the other. This seat was not empty. Kyle was dressed in a crisp suit as he sat perfectly straight, working away with a solemn expression on his face. Although someone was in the office, only the tap tap tap of extremely fast typing could be heard. The man’s eyes were glued to the computer monitor. There were ten conversation windows and ten doc.u.ment files opened on the screen. It was a mystery how he managed to talk with so many people and handle all those files simultaneously. In addition, the names of the conversation windows were rather unusual. There was Secretary 1, Secretary 2... All the way to Secretary 10... Kyle was addressed as the Head Secretary. A minute later, the office that had been filled with only the sounds of typing was suddenly filled with music. It was coming from the small clock on the table. The clock was the shape of a cube and roughly the size of a fist. The surface was polished to a bright sheen, and was carved from a kind of black rock-like mineral. Time to take some medicine. Kyle pulled the clock towards him and pressed the ruby ornament on top. The clock opened up with a click, and dozens of green pills came into view. On closer inspection, a portrait on the clock face could be seen. The subject looked around twenty years old, his handsome features and arrogant expression captured vividly. His ruby eyes were even more beautiful than the real ruby ornament. Kyle unconsciously let his mind wander. Solaris Emperor...
Chapter 10 Translator: Fly, Yihn Proofreader: Arc, Catchkatch, Wryn “Dar... Dar…” Devon cried out. His heart ached as though it were breaking. Turning around, he glared at Yue Baylian with his bloodshot eyes and bellowed, “What exactly have you done to Dar? All you wanted was to see me suffer in pain, wasn’t it? You didn’t really kill him, did you?” “I...” Yue Baylian could no longer grasp the situation. He had originally thought that the mastermind behind the explosion was Devon. However, the Solaris Emperor had practically fainted in fright when he realised the explosion came from the Dome which housed his little brother. That was followed by a heartbreaking cry for his brother. It was impossible for him to feign that. Impossible! “Dar! Dar...” Devon stumbled towards the Dome, the place where Daren had been. Yue Baylian hastily pulled him back. “What are you doing? The drawbridge has already been destroyed in the explosion. It is impossible for you to cross!” “Don’t hold me back. I am going to look for Dar!” Devon flailed wildly in an attempt to escape Yue Baylian’s grip. His strength was so great that even Yue, who had been trained in martial arts for years, almost failed to keep his grip. In desperation, he knocked Devon unconscious with a blow to the back of the head using the hilt of his knife. Yue laid Devon down on the couch before turning to face what was left of the Dome. “Dark Sun, what exactly are you up to?” he muttered in bewilderment. “But even if you did manage to survive the explosion you would have lost your mobility. Not to mention the fact that you were already seriously wounded beforehand.” Yet he was unable to relax just yet. Dark Sun was definitely behind the explosion. Although he was unclear on the other’s motives, he was sure that Dark Sun would not leave Devon in the lurch and escape by himself. Therefore, all he needed to do was to stand guard at Devon’s side. After ordering the cyborgs to keep a watch on their surroundings, Yue slowly lowered himself onto the couch. He looked down at Devon who was still unconscious, reaching out to caress his silky blonde hair. Entranced, he whispered, “Dev, I will never let you go. Never.”
Chapter 31
Chapter 1 Lesson 1: Solitariness, aside from making friends Translator: Irid, Ryuuku Yukigami, Wryn Proofreader: Arc, Catchkatch, Wryn “Dr Avery, I’m heading off to school. Bye.” Daren Avery looked the picture of a model student as he waved goodbye to Theodore, with his immaculate hairstyle and backpack. As for Avery, he had the haggard look of a barely functioning drug addict, as was his early morning characteristic. He reflexively waved his unoccupied hand upon hearing the words ‘school’ and ‘bye’. “Bye Dar; be careful,” he wheezed. Daren saw Ezart leaning against a nearby fence the moment he walked out the door. He trotted over immediately. “Morning Ezart!” he greeted. “M-hm,” Ezart grunted in response as he chewed a piece of toast. After a prolonged silence on their way to school, Daren quipped, “You’re really early today.” Ezart gulped down his toast and wiped his mouth. “It’s because of your recent weirdness,” he grumbled. “Your dad asked me to watch you closely, making me wake up at an unG.o.dly hour. You’re just a little quiet; nothing exceptionally weird. I have no idea what they’re paranoid about!” Daren came to an abrupt stop, looking at the shop by the roadside. “Wanna buy an upgrade chip?” Ezart knew without looking that it was the toy store where Daren bought all of Little Ai’s upgrades. “Models...” Daren murmured. “What?” Ezart did not hear him. Daren became silent. Instead of repeating himself, he shook his head. “I don’t want to buy an upgrade chip. I want to go to school—I can’t be late.” “It’s still early!” Ezart scratched his head. Seems like other than being quiet, this guy is a little off. He hasn"t displayed that ‘puppy dog eyes’ look recently... But no point over-thinking it. He grabbed Daren by the arm and dragged him towards the toy store. Daren tried to shake Ezart off. “I want to go to school to study seriously. I can’t be late,” he declared solemnly. But Ezart held on tight. Based on his current strength, Daren could not shake him off without hurting him. “Just a quick look. We won’t be late!” Ezart continued to drag him. He was originally a weirdo with monstrous strength, but after accidentally ingesting Dr Avery’s experimental strength-enhancing substance, he was now packing the power of a tank. In addition, his speed and reaction times were vastly different from before, so now he truly deserved the t.i.tle of Hercules reincarnate. However, Daren was no small fry. As a result of seven year’s worth of extensive modifications by Dr Avery, he had an alter ego that was completely different from his nerdy appearance—Dark sun, the ultimate cyborg. So Hercules and the strongest cyborg Dark Sun became locked in a struggle in front of the toy store. “Stop! Please stop!” The store attendant begged repeatedly without daring to approach either of them. Ezart was straining so hard veins were standing out on his neck. On the other hand, Daren was also in unspeakable agony. Although his strength was incomparable to Ezart’s, he was adept at maximising output by utilising every single part of his body in the battle for supremacy of strength. Only the resulting agony felt like being steam-rolled repeatedly by a tank. Both of them turned towards the store attendant, simultaneously biting out, “Whatcha... want?” The store attendant pointed at their feet in distress. They looked down and released each other at the same time, skidding several feet due to the sudden loss of resistance. A new, ten centimetre deep depression with multiple cracks had appeared in the concrete slab below them. Ezart was silent for a moment before he glanced at the displeased store attendant. He shoved the person beside him. “Hey! Your brother will pay, right?” Dark Sun fished out a credit card from his shirt pocket.
Chapter 2 Lesson 2: Escape, aside from confrontation Translator: Irid, Proofreader: Arc, Catchkatch, Wryn “How is Dar’s condition?” Theodore asked as he attached electrodes to Ezart’s body. “The same. That kid is throwing a huge temper tantrum this time,” Ezart replied as he reclined lazily. “This time it isn’t just a temper tantrum,” Theodore sighed. “Why do all of you like denying it so much?” Ezart asked. “The way I see it, he’s just throwing a temper tantrum. All you have to do is coax him a bit, and after some time everything will be fine!” Theodore laughed bitterly. If only it was really that easy. “As for you guys, leaving this thing that looks so much like Dar in the house can’t be too good, right?” Ezart scrutinised DS II. This... ‘thing’ is practically identical to Dar. “That won’t be a problem; there’s no way you would confuse him with Dark Sun. DS II is a clone. He does not have a brain, so to speak, and his skull contains only computer chips, so he’s completely different from Dark Sun, whose foundation is human. Even if one day DS II crashed suddenly and claimed to be Dark Sun, an x-ray would easily clear things up,” Theodore flippantly replied. “That’s not the problem…” Ezart scratched his head, unable to put the reason in words. He just thought this situation seemed really weird. Seeing two Dars was already quite weird for Ezart; when Dar looked at himself standing in front of him, he must have felt exceedingly strange! Ring ring… “Phone!” DS II called out. Since he happened to be right next to the phone, he picked it up. Smiling happily, he said, “h.e.l.lo, this is the Solaris Residence. DS II speaking.” Devon’s face appeared on the telephone screen. At first, when he saw Dar’s adorable smiling face, Devon’s heart leapt violently in what was almost pure ecstasy, believing that Theodore had finally succeeded in bringing Dar back… but after the next sentence, he realised that it was DS II. He froze and his joy quickly faded. Suddenly, his heart contracted painfully. “Gege, you’re okay, right?” DS II’s eyes were wide, his face full of concern. Hearing the word ‘Gege’ only made Devon’s heartbreak worse, and he reached out a hand to turn off the telephone screen. The sound of “Solaris Emperor” drifted through the phone. That was Kyle’s voice, and his tone was extremely strained. ”Gege, gege, you’re okay, right?” DS II asked worriedly, his eyes immediately reddening. “I’m fine, fine.” Devon turned the screen on again as he replied with these words. His face was as white as a sheet, but his expression was still as haughty as usual. He threw a glance to the side, saying coldly, “I don’t need to take any medicine. Just continue doing your job, Bill.” “Gege, are you alright?” DS II tilted his head as he asked, eyes flushed red, expression pitiful. Devon looked deeply into that face, and sighed. “DS II, leave us for a bit and let me talk with Avery.” “Okay.” Theodore braced himself as he walked over to the telephone. Devon did not bother to beat around the bush. “How is Dar’s condition?” “Same as usual.” After Theodore said this, he didn’t dare look at the screen to see how ugly Devon’s expression had become. Devon was silent for some time, his pale face darkening. ”Should I put you through to Dar?” At that moment, Theodore only wished to see less of the Solaris Emperor. Devon lifted his head and had just opened his mouth when… “Solaris Emperor, it is time for your conference.” Devon quieted, then said, “There’s no need to put me through to Dar; I’ll return home in a bit anyway. Is Ezart there? Just have him stay a little longer. It’ll be fine for him and Dar to go to school together tomorrow.” “No way. At night I have to fight in the arena.” Ezart replied without a hint of social grace. “You’re not allowed to bring Dar with you to fight in the arena! It’s too dangerous!” Devon ranted furiously. Ezart snorted. “Even if I wanted to bring him now, do you think the present him would come willingly?” “Ezart!” Theodore hurriedly tried to interrupt his words. Don’t remind the Solaris Emperor of Dar’s current condition… Devon was silent for a moment. In the end he just replied emotionlessly. “I’m going to attend the conference.” And with that, he hung up. “Can’t you even hold back from saying two sentences?” Theodore almost sounded like Eloise when she wailed. After a moment, he laughed bitterly. “You’re not afraid of him, but I am very afraid,” he said. Ezart gave the doctor a contemptuous look. As he tore off the electrodes from his body, he said, “Are you done with the checkup? I told you I’m doing great, but you still insist that I come every three days.” He clicked his tongue irritably. “I’m in a hurry today, so I’ll be leaving.” “Wait a second!” Theodore howled. “Just let me experiment for a bit!” “… Experiment?” “I mean, examine a bit.” Theodore used his most innocent expression as he corrected himself.
Chapter 3 Lesson 3: Loathing, other than liking Translator: LilsXD, Wryn Proofreader: Arc, Wryn Dark Sun halted at the door to the headmaster’s office. He was no longer dressed as a well-behaved and obedient student. He had changed into red, tight-fitting clothing and jeans. Naturally, he was also wearing a visor to cover his face. He politely knocked on the door. Immediately, an abnormally friendly voice called out, “Is that Dark Sun? Come in quickly! Hurry now!” Dark Sun entered as bidden. The moment he stepped inside, he immediately went on high alert. The headmaster was not the only one in his office. There were at least 20 more people inside. Aside from the person sitting in front of the princ.i.p.al with his back to Dark Sun, the rest were standing in two rows. The four people standing closest to that person were wearing very formal black suits. The rest were wearing uniforms. Whether it was for battle or exercise, the uniforms looked very easy to move around in. They also carried rifles with formidable firepower on their backs while two pistols hung at their waists. Dark Sun guessed that they would definitely have knives and other weapons hidden away, but he was unsure whether they were concealed inside their jackets, strapped to their ankles or in the pockets on their thighs. Perhaps they were hidden in all those places. In other words, these people caused Dark Sun to go onto high alert. All of them were fighters, and they were fully equipped. If they all became enemies for Dark Sun, even he would have a hard time. Dark Sun stayed put at the entrance. “Dark Sun! Quickly, come inside! This kid, why are you so scared of strangers?” Headmaster Antonias enthusiastically waved his hand for him to come in. Seeing that he would not budge, he hurriedly chided him in a soft voice for being afraid of strangers, in case his actions offended the important guest. Dark Sun refused to move. He could not allow himself to step into a place he regarded as dangerous. He did not care whether it was polite or not. Antonias’ smile froze in place. He emphasised, “Dark Sun, this is the man that I mentioned to you before. He is the one who possesses the most beautiful voice in the world, Mr. Lance! Have you forgotten? Come over, quickly!” Dark Sun silently stood at the entrance. He was unwilling to take another step. Antonias’ complexion became blacker than the bottom of a pot. *Clap, clap, clap!* Lance stood up and turned around. He wore an ornately styled white suit. Around his neck was a silvery white scarf, and his hair cascaded down past his waist. His skin was as fair as his clothes. If he were to stand under a light, his whole being would become luminous. He cast a critical eye over Dark Sun, scrutinizing him from top to bottom for a long moment. After he had seen enough, he smiled. In a tone that bordered on breaking out in song, he said, “As expected of someone I’ve had my eyes on. Hair the colour of the moon, an extremely slender physique and that uncompromising arrogance to further accentuate your detached poise. Ah! Beauty that is unparalleled!” Antonias’ face twitched. Although listening to that made his whole body break out in gooseb.u.mps, as long as the VIP was happy, everything was good! As long as he’s happy! Dark Sun critically observed Lance as well. His clothes were rather complicated. It was not suitable for battle and had no areas to hide weapons. The condition of his skin was very good. There were no signs to show that he had experienced strict battle training. After an X-ray examination of him, he found that there was no metal on Lance’s body. He was not a modified human. In conclusion, this person did not pose any threat. As if he was trying to show that he was a friendly being, Lance took the initiative and walked towards Dark Sun with a smile. He lightly and gently sang as he said, “Don’t be afraid! There’s nothing scary about me! Although my reputation can be a bit intimidating, look! I, as a person, am not scary at all. I’m not scary at all, am I?” Antonias’ face twitched again. Does this guy have to talk as if he is singing? It made gooseb.u.mps that had not appeared for over ten years, erupt on his ageing skin. “How sad. This child is so beautiful yet he is only a subordinate. Ah! Such a pity, such a waste.” After Lance finished his high-pitched speech, he changed to dulcet tones, “Child, do not worry. Even if there is no one to love and appreciate you, you still have me, Lance!” Once the microchip discerned that Lance was not a threat, Dark Sun did not pay any attention to Lance. However, because of these words, Dark Sun suddenly changed his focus back to him. Lance saw that Dark Sun was paying attention to him and felt especially good about it. His expression was especially gentle. However, Dark Sun then took his eyes off of Lance and looked at Headmaster Antonias. He questioned in a business-like voice, “Is the protective service beginning today?” Before Antonias could even respond, Lance interrupted. “Such a pitiful child. Are missions the only thing you care about? Are you not able to see the beauty of this world?” Lance shook his head and sighed. Although he was referring to the world, his hand was placed on his chest, as if implying that he represented the world. Dark Sun did not have any intention of answering Lance. He kept looking at the headmaster, reminding him that he needed to respond to his question, “Antonias.” Shouldn’t you at least call me Headmaster? Antonias muttered in his heart as he answered, “No. Mr. Lance only came to handle some procedures beforehand. Tomorrow will be the official start date. I wanted you to meet Mr. Lance for a bit today.” “I have met him.” After Dark Sun finished speaking, he turned around and left. He did not show any respect to those in the room. Antonias awkwardly said, “Mr. Lance…..” “It’s fine.” Lance showed a compa.s.sionate smile sighing, “I understand. This child is filled with pride and lacks the presence of love in his life. But it doesn’t matter because there is music! Beautiful music will definitely change him. In this one month, my music will definitely fill his heart with love.” Antonias arranged his facial muscles back into a smile as he said, “Definitely!” “Well then, I will see you again three days from now, Headmaster Antonias.” After Lance left, Antonias slumped onto the headmaster’s seat. He covered his face and sighed dejectedly. “This is bad. Although on the surface, Dark Sun seems to ignore everyone, he never particularly hates any one person. So why is it that this time he seems to particularly hate this guy? He doesn’t even want to look at him….. How is he going to carry out this mission? He won’t leave Lance to die on purpose, right?” At this point, he murmured quietly, “But that guy is really detestable. Even though he seems to try and help others, his words lean towards being more hurtful and stinging…. This won’t do. I need Elian to pretend to be Dark Sun’s good friend and frequently visit Dark Sun to have a ‘chat’. Ah! Ah! I should make him pretend to be Dark Sun’s zealous fan that refuses to be more than half a metre away from Dark Sun! Only then will I be able to rest a.s.sured!” Antonias immediately pressed the broadcast b.u.t.ton and called for Elian to come.
Chapter 4 END. Notes 1. (刀子嘴豆腐心) Lit.Knife mouth tofu heart. Describes a person who would be verbally harsh, but actually very soft hearted.
Chapter 5 END
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter Eight – Besides correct judgment, there is also compa.s.sion
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45

Hot Genres

Crafts, Hobbies

Virtual Reality