Void.
In the depths of space, an Imperial official fleet—not particularly large in scale—was slowly advancing toward the third planet of this star system.
At the center of the fleet, surrounded by clusters of frigates and destroyers, a massive Star Destroyer cruiser bearing the insignia of a planetary governor in the official communication frequencies of the Sacred Selene Empire glead like a long, tapering cone of white crystal. Its elegant lines radiated a gentle glow into the cosmic void.
At this mont, inside the sleeping quarters near the ship’s primary bridge.
"Mmmh~"
Warm, pleasant air filled the room. On a carved four‑poster bed in blue and white, veiled in light gauze, a thick and soft mattress lay beneath rumpled blankets. From within them peeked clusters of fluffy, ssy long white hair.
Though scattered and tangled, it did nothing to conceal its natural beauty.
Strands of straight white hair slipped out from beneath the blanket, shining with a gentle radiance like sunlight. Like a shimring galaxy, they flowed down from their owner’s slender shoulders as she rolled around, spreading out in irregular fan‑shaped waves like unfurled cloth.
"i... mmm... I want to eat so badly... gotta eat until I’m full... grilled at that tastes like beautiful girls, pizza... wahh... my sister juice... and without Bronya stealing it... i’s..."
A soft, delicate murmur, though slurred.
Like a wriggling white fluffy dumpling, the white‑haired girl extended both hands in claw‑like motions as if kneading sothing vigorously. Half asleep, she babbled dreamily. A sowhat lewd expression appeared on her pretty little face. Her moist lips parted slightly, trailing threads of silvery drool.
Beep beep—
Until the sound of a certain alarm—one extrely sensitive to anyone afflicted with the dreaded "blanket sealing syndro" of morning laziness—suddenly rang out.
The white‑haired girl instantly jerked upright like a flopping fish.
"Waaah!"
She opened her eyes in the warmly lit room, bathed in gentle blue light. The extravagant, grandiose Roman‑Gothic aesthetic favored by a certain supre monarch—fond of lavish, flamboyant displays—had not left many traces in this chamber.
The girl rubbed her eyes with a sleepy frown, then revealed a pair of ocean‑blue eyes frad by thick, long lashes.
"i?" she mumbled.
She turned over and reached to the side. The firm yet soft, graceful body that had been there was already gone. Only faint fragrance and lingering warmth remained in the air.
She had never been the type who woke up and imdiately beca fully alert. As her mind slowly cleared, the fragnted mories of last night’s indulgence finally connected.
We really did play way too late yesterday...
The white‑haired girl stared blankly at the empty space beside her for a second. Then suddenly she lunged forward like a hungry tiger.
"Hehe... i, my i..."
Still wrapped in the blanket, she burrowed forward, wriggling around inside it.
Just then—
"Kiana... how long do you plan to keep lazing in bed?"
An exasperated voice called out from outside the bed curtains. The bedroom door opened, and a tall, graceful figure stepped inside. Her shadow fell over the bundled white‑haired girl.
Peeking her head through a gap in the curtains, Kiana looked at the dark‑purple‑haired woman holding a spatula and gave an embarrassed grin.
"We played too wildly and too late last night..."
"And you still dare say that!"
Two horn‑like protrusions that faintly carried the aura of lightning were now retracted on Raiden i’s head. Her smooth dark‑purple hair was wrapped in a white headscarf. Dressed in a pure white chef’s uniform, with a half apron tied around her elegant and curvaceous figure, she narrowed her long charming eyes in irritation.
"Get up!"
With one hand she yanked Kiana’s blanket away. Seeing Kiana imdiately cover herself top and bottom as if about to scream, i snorted dismissively.
"Enough already. Stop covering up and get dressed and wash up quickly. It’s not like I haven’t seen it before."
"Don’t tell that after I left for such a short ti, you—Planetary Governor Kiana—have already degraded to the point where you can’t even dress or wash yourself. Reduced to one of those useless, big‑bellied corrupt officials in soap operas."
Like a nagging housewife, Raiden i pointed accusingly at the ssy bed.
"Look at this. I’ve only been gone for a mont. The pillows are everywhere, the blanket’s taking up half the bed, and the bedsheet has been bullied all the way to the foot."
"That’s not true! Big‑bellied and all that—I’m clearly not fat at all. Without i’s sister juice I can’t eat well or sleep well. I’ve gotten thinner..."
"Shut up!"
"Don’t keep everyone waiting..." i muttered tiredly, rubbing her forehead. "Honestly, does this ever end? It’s not just the two from back ho anymore. Now Durandal and the others are here too. A whole bunch of freeloaders waiting for to cook."
After saying that, i covered her face and walked out of the room. Passing through the heavy tal doorfra, she murmured under her breath.
"Kiana, honestly..."
Her gaze drifted downward toward the ample curves beneath her collarbone, where faint reddish marks had only just begun to fade.
Terrible sleeping habits.
Hugging, rubbing, kneading... and grabbing all night long...
This is going to explode.
Even as she complained internally, a faint blush spread across Raiden i’s jade‑like face. The corner of her lips curved into an expression that was hard to tell whether it was reproach—or sothing else.
"You’re not being very honest." Suddenly, a familiar female voice filled with teasing sounded out.
Leaning lazily against the wall, the rcenary woman lifted her head from beneath her hood. Rose‑colored eyes glead as she held a tray carrying steaming teacups. She casually picked up one cup of black tea and handed it over.
"You two really get along well," she said in a strange tone.
"Is this what pretty girls call bedroom fun? How nice~♪"
"What nonsense are you talking about? And Natasha, where did you learn that kind of tone...?" Goosebumps rose on Raiden i’s skin as she eyed the rcenary suspiciously.
"Ha... fair enough. You’ve never gone there. One of World Serpent’s old cadre training facilities. There was a pink elf lady inside—very enthusiastic. I quite liked her. Sha she’s been dead for tens of thousands of years. The facility disappeared along with World Serpent anyway... never mind that."
"Mm." i nodded slightly, mories surfacing.
Back then, she had indeed nearly entered that so‑called World Serpent cadre training facility. But the sudden attack by the Imperial army interrupted everything. She had been defeated and captured by General Budo of the Imperial forces, while the Lord of World Serpent died under siege.
All of that was in the past now...
"Tsk tsk. Being a planetary governor sure is nice. This job is way more comfortable than crawling through ice and snow or fighting across star systems with fire raining everywhere like we used to. Ever thought about transferring?"
"No interest. I don’t want anything to do with political scheming," Raiden i answered decisively.
After all, her experience as the daughter of the president of Corporation—
—After all, her experience as the daughter of the president of Corporation had taught her enough.
When she was young, her father, Raiden Ryoma, had been falsely accused and exposed in a scandal involving alleged financial fraud. The board of directors dismissed him, he was thrown into prison, and the family’s reputation plumted overnight.
She herself was dragged down with it. Friends and close girlfriends who had once been inseparable imdiately revealed their true faces—taking every opportunity to kick her while she was down. Insults, exclusion, rumors, bullying, silent treatnt...
She still rembered it vaguely.
Sure enough, places like the military—more straightforward environnts that admired strength and rit—suited her far better.
"All right, you really do match my temperant, partner," Natasha said.
"Oh? You never thought about retiring and transferring to sothing else?"
"Nope. My dear Lady i, I’m not like you. I’m just a rcenary. If I don’t do this kind of work, the only thing left is opening a bar or running a bounty guild on the underground network. My old trade—but does the Empire allow legal underground guilds? I don’t want the lunatics from the Inquisition watching ."
Raiden i and Natasha walked side by side as the latter spread her hands.
"The kids like Senti have grown up. Education costs money. Early investnts cost money. Buying all kinds of equipnt costs money. Interstellar shuttles are essential. Intelligent servitors, quality living equipnt... all of that costs money. Building my island villa costs money too."
"Now isn’t the ti to rest. I love the Imperial army—great salary and allowances. Even if I die, I’ll die in it. Retire? At most I’ll move to the second line, join the reserves for a while, and when I’m short on money I’ll switch back to active duty."
"Don’t say unlucky things like dying."
"All right, all right... i, you really are suited to being a housekeeper."
"Shut up!"
The two old friends—who had t in World Serpent, forged bonds there, and later fought side by side in the Imperial military ranks—continued bickering as they arrived at the dining area of the sleeping quarters.
Imperial military standard ships were quite large. The compartnts near the primary bridge essentially all belonged to Planetary Governor Kiana. Since old friends like Raiden i had co over, it was natural for them to stay together.
Even if another dozen people joined them, it still would not feel crowded.
After all, not everyone possessed Selene’s ability to sleep alone on a grand central bed in a magnificent palace hundreds of ters tall and covering several hectares—and still fall asleep soundly without feeling the least bit lonely or eerie.
"Good morning, Miss i. Lady Natasha."
When the tal door of the dining area opened automatically, the first thing they saw was a pair of straight legs in high heels standing on the polished floor.
A perfect maid dressed in a black rose-thed maid uniform had clearly been waiting for so ti. Holding the hem of her skirt, she perford a graceful curtsy, shapely legs bending slightly, a refined smile on her lips.
"It seems Lady Kiana was quite exhausted last night. Let Rita guess what the two of you were doing—"
Faced with the teasing smile of the gray-haired woman, Raiden i’s face imdiately flushed red.
"Durandal, control your maid," i said, though she was not entirely without counterasures.
"Rita."
At once, a gentle and helpless voice called out, stopping the maid who had practically grown little devil horns from her head.
"Yes, Lady Durandal."
Watching Rita imdiately return to pouring tea and serving pastries with practiced motions—dutifully acting as a maid—Durandal could only smile and shake her head. It was Rita’s hobby, and she could not change it.
"They really do co in pairs," Natasha remarked knowingly.
Quite tactfully, she did not take the seat beside Raiden i. Instead, she sat next to the immortal Fu Hua, who was calmly drinking tea and slowly eating pastries.
Fu Hua said lightly, "Perhaps this is what it ans to cherish mories. After a brief reunion, we will soon part again. Then we look forward to the next reunion."
On the square dining table, the dishes Raiden i had cooked had already been arranged by Rita—an assortnt combining Chinese, Western, and Japanese cuisine. Everyone present was a Valkyrie, so there was no concern about whether the food was greasy or not. Eat until full. Cook whatever you like.
The dozens of dishes i had carefully prepared beca today’s breakfast—or rather, brunch.
"Whoa—wait for , wait for !"
Not long after, accompanied by the bowing gestures of cleaning robots, a figure rushed into the dining area like a whirlwind.
The white fitted coat and trousers had been put back on. Her tall black military boots were firmly laced as well. Dressed once again in the attire of a planetary governor, Kiana still looked heroic and spirited.
But her behavior...
"It’s toast pizza! Slightly burnt just the way I like it—i really understands !"
"Stop ssing around. Eat properly."
"Okay."
During the al, everyone chatted about the past and present, laughter filling the room.
"Bronya still hasn’t arrived. So slow. Forget it, we’re not waiting," Kiana huffed.
"Don’t worry, Kiana. I asked Sushang to pick them up," Fu Hua said. "Bronya isn’t a governnt official right now. A ga company—she, Seele, Liliya, Rozaliya, and the others have a lot of procedures to deal with. Not as quick as we are."
"Class Monitor, I heard you created a new Ki technique during battle again this ti?"
"Mm. The Otsutsuki clan—their Byakugan and Rinnegan abilities. They are powerful, but many of their techniques are skill-based. After dozens of battles, I broke through during a life-and-death fight against an elder of the main Otsutsuki family. Several planets in that star system were destroyed during the battle."
"Speaking of the Otsutsuki, I actually know one," Durandal said. "She was sealed by her own descendants for a thousand years. Quite pitiful. She will probably beco a legitimate mber of the Empire’s Otsutsuki clan. If such a transcendent divine race were wiped out by Her Majesty purely because of appetite, that would be a bit of a pity."
"Oh... i and Natasha, what interesting things happened during your last mission before vacation?"
"Don’t ask. You wouldn’t like it," i replied.
"Just suppressing rebellions. Executioner work," Natasha added bluntly.
Raven tactically cut in.
"We’re all adults here. Everyone’s ntally prepared. Honestly i, you don’t have to treat Kiana like a child—she’s a governor now... cough. As for the specific details of that kind of thing, we won’t go into them."
"OK, I get it," Kiana said.
...
Biting into a fried chicken drumstick while reflecting on everyone’s growth and changes, Kiana suddenly noticed a report docunt on the display screen. She quickly signaled the intelligent servitor to adjust the observation window.
Clang!
The inner and outer orichalcum armor plates of the floor-to-ceiling observation window on one side of the compartnt slid open, revealing a water-blue planet slowly approaching the fleet.
At this mont, in low orbit around the planet, several destroyers and strike cruisers belonging to the local exploration fleet under Kiana’s Colonial World II–202149 had already begun descending into the atmosphere.
Through split-screen holographic projections, everyone could clearly see the planet’s surface.
Aside from precise surgical bombardnt strikes carried out by their side against certain military bases and nuclear retaliation facilities, many large cities had already fallen completely into chaos.
Riots. Looting. Ard civilian warfare. And so infected individuals whose bodies were crystallizing—tearing or scraping off the crystal growths themselves, leaving bloody flesh behind. In the worst cases, entire bodies had turned into fragile crystal structures.
Regardless of the tragedy unfolding.
There was no doubt this was a planetary industrial civilization possessing nuclear weapon manufacturing capability, exoskeleton remote-control combat armor, satellite-based orbital weapons, and visible void genomics research.
For the governor’s current ho planet under Kiana’s authority, it represented a valuable supplent for developnt.
"Kiana, you’re using our vacation to make us work for free," Durandal said with a smile. "Not bad. You’re starting to look more and more like a proper governor."
"Not at all..." The white-haired dumpling shook her head repeatedly.
"Anyway, staying in Marley is boring. I already showed you around Paradis Island. The Eldians’ Titan transformation isn’t that interesting once the novelty wears off. You’ve all tried the vertical maneuvering gear too."
"You were the ones who said you wanted to see the private exploration fleet I’ve been tinkering with," Kiana continued.
"So I let you join in. We rolled dice to determine the coordinates. Who knew the numbers everyone rolled would actually lead to a location with a response—an entire universe with life."
"It’s more than all the results I got from earlier exploration combined..."
Scratching her head, what could Kiana say? Her luck was just that bad.
Durandal changed the topic.
"Do we have any Valkyrie units deployed down there?"
"Let check... Susannah and Alvitr."
"Oh? Lady Durandal, they’re juniors from our forr Immortal Blades squad," Rita said, imdiately interested when she heard the familiar na.
"If it’s them, we should properly inspect the results of our juniors."
—
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