Chapter 115: Exile Through the Cosmos

Chapter 115: Exiled to the Universe

The infirmary remained quiet. Liu Shaoyu sat in his original position, having not moved for a long time. Finally, after a lengthy silence, Thomas finished recounting everything.

"So, so much has happened," Liu Shaoyu whispered to himself. Although Thomas’s logs were fragmented, they were still far clearer than his own memory.

It was also through Thomas that Liu Shaoyu learned how Miss Dong had rescued him. Was it truly a coincidence, or was he just incredibly lucky? Liu Shaoyu mocked himself. It seemed he really was fortunate. But the reason behind all of this... Liu Shaoyu felt a headache coming on as he tried to piece it together.

"Mr. Liu Shaoyu, the Captain requests your presence in the lounge," a soft voice transmitted. Liu Shaoyu snapped back to reality.

"Thank you, I'll be there immediately." Liu Shaoyu acknowledged the message and followed the guidance toward the lounge.

"Feeling better?" As soon as he entered the room, Liu Shaoyu heard that familiar voice again.

"Much better, thank you. If you hadn't rescued me, I don't know if I would have survived." Liu Shaoyu now knew from Thomas that his stasis pod had been damaged; without someone coming to his aid, his life would have truly been in jeopardy.

"You're welcome. It was no trouble at all," Miss Dong replied.

Regardless of what she said, Liu Shaoyu kept this favor in his heart. Calculating carefully, this Miss Dong had now saved him twice.

"Where are we now?" Liu Shaoyu was deeply concerned about this, as so much must have occurred during his long period of unconsciousness.

"The Blaybandy System, on the periphery of Federation territory," Miss Dong answered after glancing at her terminal.

As she spoke, Thomas marked their location. He was currently unable to connect to the Federation network.

"Why are we here at a time like this?" Liu Shaoyu was not only confused as to why Miss Dong had appeared here, but even more perplexed as to why he himself had ended up in this remote region.

"The Bounty Hunter Guild—something happened. You didn't know?" Miss Dong answered, then paused, a look of doubt crossing her face as she realized something.

"As you can see, I've been in that state for quite some time," Liu Shaoyu replied with a helpless shrug.

Miss Dong looked enlightened, thinking to herself that she had been so troubled by recent events that her own mind was clearly not functioning at its best.

"Are you... on a mission?" Liu Shaoyu asked again.

The question struck a nerve. Miss Dong looked up at the ceiling. "A mission? We can't carry out any missions anymore."

Liu Shaoyu frowned, pressing further, "Is it that serious? What happened?"

"It's complicated. I don't know what kind of agreement the Council reached with the military. All the armaments of the Bounty Hunter Guild have been requisitioned and reassigned. Most have been sent to the front lines," Miss Dong said slowly.

"So, are we heading to the front lines now?" Liu Shaoyu asked.

Miss Dong shook her head in disappointment. "What kind of war can a single ship fight? Heh."

Liu Shaoyu could hear the deep helplessness in her tone. However, he was barely able to look after himself, let alone help his savior. A silence fell over the room, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.

"Where is your fleet?" After a long while, Miss Dong suddenly asked.

Liu Shaoyu, who had been lost in thought, was caught off guard. "My fleet... I don't know." That was all he could answer.

"Actually... I'm currently on the run. You know? The kind where you're being hunted!" Miss Dong suddenly changed the subject.

Liu Shaoyu looked at the expression on her face and replied, "I know. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been rescued by you."

"That's true! But I’m still better off than you, at least... this ship is still intact," Miss Dong said, gesturing around the room.

Liu Shaoyu sensed her melancholy, but he felt he was in even worse shape. He wanted to offer comfort, but he didn't know where to begin.

"How did you end up like this?" Miss Dong asked once she saw that Liu Shaoyu’s emotions had settled.

Liu Shaoyu knew this question would come eventually, but it was difficult to explain, as he remained confused himself.

"I'm not entirely sure. Most of the time, I was in the state you found me in," Liu Shaoyu shrugged helplessly. After all, if he told someone he had been betrayed by a five-person cell, no one would believe him.

"I saw that the stasis pod was military-grade. Was it the enemy?" Miss Dong began to theorize.

Liu Shaoyu had noticed that detail, too. The wreckage confirmed that those who had rescued him were indeed military personnel. But... could the five-person cell have caught up? If so, why would they leave him behind while everyone else was sacrificed?

Liu Shaoyu shook his head, unable to make sense of it.

Seeing his state, Miss Dong understood that he was just as baffled as she was.

"Where do you need to go? Shall I take you there?" Miss Dong continued.

Liu Shaoyu smiled at her. "Aren't you on the run?"

"True, but if it's on the way, I could give you a lift. Anyway, I... don't really know where I'm going either." A sense of lost direction permeated her words.

Although Liu Shaoyu desperately wanted to return home, he knew from the star map that their current location was far too distant from Dragonet Star. Furthermore, since Miss Dong had revealed her own precarious situation, Liu Shaoyu had no choice but to remain on this ship for the time being.

The state of war alert had not been lifted, and no one knew when it would be. Most people had grown accustomed to this, except for those whose livelihoods depended on space travel. It was said that the Interstellar Express Company was on the verge of bankruptcy, but that was beyond Liu Shaoyu's control.

In his current state, Liu Shaoyu could not use any communication functions; all messages were blocked. Naturally, he had no way of knowing what was happening on Dragonet Star.

"Alert: subspace fluctuation detected," Miss Dong's personal terminal chirped.

"What's wrong?" Liu Shaoyu noticed the change in Miss Dong’s expression.

"They're on our tail again. We have to run," Miss Dong said resignedly. Her voice lacked the urgency of a true emergency; it sounded as if this were a daily occurrence.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Liu Shaoyu felt like a freeloader, though he didn't realize that to everyone else, he was merely a survivor rescued from the void.

Miss Dong assumed he was just being polite and naturally felt he should continue resting.

"No need. We won't engage them directly. We'll just outrun them." As she spoke, she moved to leave the lounge.

"Who... are they?" Liu Shaoyu asked.

"Them? I'll tell you when I get back." With that, Miss Dong walked out of the room, leaving Liu Shaoyu with a final smile.