CH 63

“Don’t kill me, don’t kill me! I don’t know anything!” A filthy and disheveled star pirate hid in the lowest, most despicable brothel of the Sinful Star. Sitting by his bed, a half-naked prostitute screamed before her throat was slit, splashing blood onto the star pirate, freezing him with fear.

Little did he expect that even hiding here wouldn’t save him from the mysterious figure who had been relentlessly pursuing their star pirate gang.

Ever since he learned of the unexplained death of General Pei, who was taken hostage by the star pirates, the entire empire believed it was the gang’s act of revenge. It left him bewildered as one by one, his comrades in the star pirate gang lost contact and seemed to vanish, including those high-ranking pirates.

But the death of General Pei had nothing to do with their star pirate gang. After the death of Star Pirate King, Ke Yan, the higher-ups in the gang had long abandoned that spaceship and certainly didn’t possess the capability to acquire a planetary explosive energy source of that level. Yet, now the imperial public opinion was overwhelmingly pointing fingers at their star pirate gang.

Even a fool could see that there was definitely a conspiracy at play. Someone wanted the renowned General Pei, with the empire’s illustrious reputation, to be sacrificed and burdened the star pirate gang with such a huge blame, causing them to disappear one by one out of fear.

And now, it was his turn.

The star pirate’s eyes widened like those of a stunned bull, blood splattering all over him.

Eddie Claude hatefully wiped the blood splatter off his face with a delicate white handkerchief. He turned to his attendant behind him, his haughty brows raised, and said, “Dispose of this thing and create the illusion that these star pirates have fled to the Federation out of fear.”

“Yes,” the attendant replied with utmost respect, and soon two more people arrived to clean up the star pirate’s body thoroughly.

The smart brain transmitted a message.

[You have a communication waiting to be answered.]

With a disgusted look in his eyes, Eddie Claude walked out of the filthy street. Merely stepping on that worn and filthy road, who knows how many years it hadn’t been cleaned. The pristine white soles of his shoes were instantly soiled. The air was filled with the stench of poverty and decay, making him wish to return to the Claude family mansion immediately, clean it from top to bottom, and discard all the clothes that had been dirtied today.

The native inhabitants of the Sinful Star around him cast a contemptuous gaze at Eddie Claude and his companions, who concealed their appearances. It was the arrogance of nobles and upper-class individuals. Even the whitest bosom of a Beta prostitute in the dingiest brothel couldn’t compare to how snowy their boots were. They feared that these wealthy and noble heirs had come looking for excitement with some background.

Those few people surrounding him were presumably his bodyguards. These kinds of aristocratic heirs were not to be trifled with, and he couldn’t afford to provoke them. With greedy eyes, they cast a few glances at the expensive gemstone buttons on Eddie Claude’s attire, pretending to casually pass by.

Eddie Claude paid no attention to these lower-class fools. He glanced at the incoming call on his phone and saw that it was from Charles Claude, the head of the Claude family and his father. Furrowing his brows, he answered the call.

“Hello, father, do you have any orders?”

Charles Claude deliberately lowered his voice and anxiously looked around, giving the appearance of a timid and weak individual. If it weren’t for the fact that the previous family head was his biological father, it’s doubtful he would have ever had the opportunity to lead the Claude family.

“Eddie, how did you handle that matter?”

Eddie Claude despised his father’s cowardly and incompetent appearance. Now that the threat posed by Pei Zhaozhou, who was their greatest concern, had died in that deliberate accident, the Claude family had the support of the second Prince Kyle and his maternal clan. As long as Prince Kyle eventually ascended to the throne, it would be the time for the Claude family to rise. There was no need to be timid anymore.

However, considering Charles was his father and the current Prince Kyle still leaned towards trusting this foolish and indecisive father, Eddie Claude still maintained some superficial respect.

“In response, Father, I ensured that the tasks ‘he’ assigned were completed to the best of my abilities. So far, I have dealt with the last remaining star pirates. By releasing news of their escape to the Federation, the Imperial Ministry of Foreign Affairs will undoubtedly force the Federation to hand over the perpetrator who killed General Pei. Even if the Federation wants to comply, it will be impossible. At that time, we will shift the public’s anger towards the Federation, elevating General Pei’s case to a diplomatic conflict between the two nations. There will be no further attention given to investigating the cause of General Pei’s death.”

Eddie Claude’s eyes darkened slightly, and a smug smirk appeared on his lips, as if he exuded a confident and composed air of having everything under control.

Initially, Charles Claude was fearful and apprehensive, afraid of exposing any traces that could link them to the death of General Pei. The enraged Imperial population would surely tear them apart, and even their noble titles would be of no use. 

This time, the Claude family took enormous risks. The planetary-level bombs were strictly controlled dangerous weapons within the Empire. To obtain them, they went as far as covertly collaborating with undercover agents embedded within the Empire and connecting with high-ranking officials on the Federation’s side.

When the Federation’s higher-ups learned about their plan, they harbored deep resentment towards General Pei, who had previously eliminated numerous Federation commanders and soldiers. They still vividly remembered that General Pei, who instilled fear in the enemy on the battlefield, hadn’t retired due to combat with an enemy nation but had fallen victim to internal strife. And there were people who wanted to completely destroy General Pei.

Unbeknownst to them, the people of the Federation applauded. Even after retiring, Pei Zhaozhou established the Blue Air Mech Company, which developed mechs that surpassed the Federation’s current technological level. Many commanders and soldiers bore the accumulated injuries caused by Pei Zhaozhou’s development of the new mech models, which had a power rivaling that of the famous General Pei’s personal involvement on the battlefield.

The Federation looked at the Empire’s mechs with seething hatred, coupled with an undeniable envy. When they heard that General Pei’s biological mother was a Federation citizen and that they had once captured her, they never expected this woman to possess such a strong character.

Ever since General Pei’s biological father died in battle, she was driven away from Pei Zhaozhou, who was still young and immature at that time, by the Pei family. They thought this fragile woman wouldn’t cause any trouble. However, when faced with their captive, they threatened her to let her son, Major General Pei, who had become the enemy of the Federation at that time, to surrender voluntarily.

Unexpectedly, when the guards weren’t paying attention, she hid the spoon that came with the meal and discreetly swallowed it, escaping the watchful eyes of the cameras. By the time they discovered it, she was already dead.

Now that the person was no more, the Federation was afraid that if Pei Zhaozhou found out about his mother’s murder, he would seek revenge even more fiercely. Fortunately, they managed to completely cover up and conceal this incident. Pei Zhaozhou still remained unaware since he hadn’t seen his mother in over a decade. He believed she would live a better life after leaving him in the Federation.

The Federation tried various means but couldn’t bring down Pei Zhaozhou. They even resorted to collaborating with the Zerg, but in the end, they were repelled by the mech battalion led by Pei Zhaozhou, suffering heavy losses.

Seeing how providing some high-impact weapons to the nobles of the Empire could kill the very threat they dreamed of killing, the Federation’s high-ranking officials must be waking up with laughter.

“Well, that’s good. I was afraid something unexpected would happen before the end,” Charles Claude sighed with relief.

Eddie Claude proudly laughed, “Father, do you still not trust me, or even Prince Kyle?”

“It’s not that,” Charles Claude replied.

Upon hearing his eldest son’s confident tone, Charles Claude felt an inexplicable unease, as if it was unnecessary. However, even the greatest threat, Pei Zhaozhou himself, died in that unexpected incident. Along with numerous imperial soldiers and surviving passengers, they wiped out even the star thieves who might have known the truth, leaving no one in the world who could know the truth.

Who would fear Pei Zhaozhou, who vanished without a trace, not even leaving a speck of ashes? With no parents or relatives, the Pei family had long regarded him as an outsider. Pei Zhaozhou was all alone, his reproductive ability damaged, devoid of descendants and close kin. Who would bother to investigate the truth for his sake?

Would it be the imperial population who benefited from his favor?

Eddie Claude’s eyes flashed with contempt, and a smirk of mockery and arrogance formed on his lips.

Now, he would return to the imperial capital with deep regret and tell the people the ‘truth.’

The revered and admired Major Pei died at the hands of a group of star thieves, and this group of star thieves vanished into the Federation without a trace.

Eddie Claude had prepared himself in advance to face the public and wear an expression of sorrow and regret when delivering the tragic news.

As he watched the sad and melancholic faces reflected in the ship’s interior mirror, Eddie Claude contemptuously let out a twisted sneer.

“Eddie Claude, you seem to be very excited.”

A strange, clear and magnetic voice, with a calm and icy tone, sent a chill down the spine. It felt as if being observed by some divine figure or Buddha statue, making the heart feel empty and cold.

“Who… who are you?” Eddie Claude furrowed his brow, staring intently into the deep blue eyes resembling Prince Kyle. The chilling coldness in the depths of those eyes sent shivers down his spine. The exceptionally handsome man…

“Why are you here on my spaceship? What about the guards?” Eddie Claude’s gaze froze, and a sense of anxiety pierced his heart. His nerves tightened in vigilance as he faced someone who had appeared unnoticed on his heavily guarded ship, with none of his trusted guards sensing anything.

Suddenly, fear surged within him, and his steps involuntarily began to retreat. His eyes were secretly observing, like rats in an underground sewer, hiding in the corners with those cunning crimson eyes, waiting for the opportunity to escape.

Si Huaixi’s cold, indifferent, sea-blue eyes stared at him, with a slight glint of icy danger lurking within, like a thousand miles of frozen sea harboring infinite turmoil and the imminent destruction of ships.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

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