Chapter 43: Thanks to nature’s bounty!

Chapter 43 Thank You, Nature’s Gift!

Xiao Chuzao got past the sour phase—though to be fair, the fruit meant for cubs wasn’t terribly acidic.

Packed with nutrients and lacking a proper substitute, it had become a regular item in Xiao Chuzao’s fruit basket.

The expectation was for the cub to nibble on it when he could, though occasionally he’d luck out with a sweeter one.

But ever since the little one realized Amos would silently eat whatever sour fruit he was given, most tart offerings found their way into Amos’ stomach.

Today, however, the cub hadn’t expected to be tricked.

Clutching his spectral bear, the little one glared at Amos with big, watery eyes full of betrayal.

Having ‘teased’ his cub, Amos remained unfazed under the Crown Clan’s collective gaze—yet those accusatory eyes made even this decisive emperor feel uncharacteristically guilty. He dug into the cub’s snack pouch and slipped a candy into Xiao Chuzao’s mouth.

The cub kept up his wordless protest, still formulating his complaint, when suddenly sweet fragrance touched his lips.

Instinct took over: “Awoo—”

Coming to his senses after swallowing, he blinked dumbly at Amos.

His chubby cheeks puffed out as he clutched the vibrant fruit bearing both their bite marks. After consideration, he decided the bribe didn’t absolve the crime. Still glaring while suckling the candy, his milky voice protested, “Daddy, it’s sour!”

Waving his little hand with the incriminating fruit, his garbled accusations continued even as he snuggled his small frame into Amos, spectral bear still securely hugged.

Too precious.

Every Crown Clan member turned to watch.

With the 9th Army handling escort duties and navigation requiring no royal input, they had nothing to do beyond initial orders.

Their gatherings usually revolved around pollution reports, faction developments, or emerging Aberrant Beast Legions—making this domestic scene a rare diversion.

Hale sat ramrod straight in aristocratic attire, golden tassels accentuating his elegance. Though not looking directly at the cub, his head tilted slightly.

Frey nursed his coffee while Fei Man lounged on a sofa, staring unabashedly. An Ya tapped intermittently on her smart tablet between glances at the drama.

To the Crown Clan, Xiao Chuzao was impossibly tiny.

His fruit-waving, candy-muffled whining resembled a spoiled cub’s tantrum—a far cry from the cautious newcomer they’d first met.

Any witness would feel their hearts soften.

Amos suppressed a smile before leaning down to make quick work of the offending fruit from the cub’s hand—seemingly large in those tiny palms, yet gone in three bites.

An Ya stage-whispered, “Brother Amos, that was so mean.”

It reminded her of his casual, easygoing trickster side—a personality buried after losing the previous Crown Clan generation, when a cloud of negativity settled over their race, hiding who they really were.

But hearing this, Xiao Chuzao automatically looked over and murmured in defense,

“No he’s not...”

"What?"

The little one still had the candy in his mouth, his voice soft. As the starship had not yet left the Saint Cas imperial star region, the rapid atmospheric entry created some ambient noise. Even the sharp senses of the Crown Clan couldn’t quite make out what the little guy had said.

Amos looked down at the child.

The little one blinked at the fruit pit. He tossed it into the trash bin, then fished out a pale yellow fruit and took a small bite.

Then, he held it up to Amos’s mouth.

Was this one sour too?

Feisty, aren’t you?

Amos thought to himself, leaning down obligingly to take a bite.

A burst of sweetness flooded his mouth, washing away the sourness of the previous fruit.

Amos, who had been fidgeting with a metallic quill in his hand, paused.

"Daddy, this one’s sweet. Better now, right?"

Xiao Chuzao leaned against Amos, his eyes curving into happy crescents.

So well-behaved.

"How can he be this sweet—was there some kind of sedative in that last fruit?"

Fei Man, who had been watching the whole time, muttered under her breath, her gaze fixed intently on Xiao Chuzao.

This time, Xiao Chuzao didn’t even dare to meet Fei Man’s eyes. He shrank back, clutching his little basket of fruit, shrinking fully into Amos’s side. Aside from his still perked-up wings, he even hid his tiny halo this time.

Fei Man: "..."

No!

This wasn’t the plan!

"Your Majesty, we have now left the Saint Cas imperial star region. Civilian ships rallying nearby are requesting to merge with our formation."

Ye Ming, the commander of the 9th Army, hurried over.

Amos responded, "Granted."

After speaking, Amos reached out and lifted Xiao Chuzao toward the observation window.

Xiao Chuzao instinctively wrapped his arms around Amos’s neck as the special-material window lit up with a projection of the starscape outside, as if the hull had vanished into the cosmos.

Amidst the deep sea of stars, the massive starship of the Saint Cas 9th Army, emblazoned with its insignia, loomed. The little one’s eyes slowly widened in awe.

Not far away, another fleet stretched out in the distance.

Unlike the military starships, these ships were lightly armed. Their hulls bore the vibrant flags of the Saint Cas Empire, rolling forward like a stellar wave, merging seamlessly with the imperial fleet. Countless voices rang out from the signal reception chamber of the command center.

"This is the Seastar Merchant Vessel, now in position. Hail to you—we pledge all to uphold the glory of Saint Cas!"

"The Stardust has arrived at the designated coordinates. We pledge our loyalty to His Majesty Amos—may the Empire and the Crown endure eternally!"

"The naval academy's training frigate has arrived at the designated position. We vow to defend the Crown Clan to the death!"

"......"

Amos stood there, the Crown Clan members behind him rising to their feet. They gazed at the shrinking image of Saint Cas's imperial homeworld, but no one responded.

Xiao Chuzao was still too young. He had never truly integrated with a large group before and couldn't fully express his feelings now—it must have been awe-inspiring. In the silent vastness of space, countless voices echoed.

Until the final transmission came through.

The voice sounded somewhat excited.

"Saint Cas Mineral Planet, Mining Vessel 78 has arrived at the designated position, ready to bring glory to the Sacred Crown!"

The little one placed his small hand on the cabin wall. Hearing this voice, he looked up at Amos.

"Papa, it's Uncle Qingfeng and Auntie Qingyu."

Wen Qingfeng and Wen Qingyu were clearly representing several of Saint Cas's mineral planets at this multi-nation, multi-faction summit.

Amos nodded.

"We'll arrange a meeting later."

"Mm-hmm."

Xiao Chuzao nodded and turned back to the viewport.

"Old Man Mori said the courtyard's still too cold for potatoes. Algae doesn't know if they've replanted them yet."

Saint Cas's official announcement prohibited all vessels from the navigation lane. The fleet navigated the starry expanse, occasional radio chatter breaking the silence.

Xiao Chuzao watched until exhaustion overtook him, curling up on the small sofa Amos had provided.

Surrounded by the Crown Clan who worked quietly at their stations, they occasionally glanced up at the child as if drawing energy from his presence. The atmosphere remained unexpectedly harmonious.

The sleeping child clutched his spectral bear, nuzzling against its form. Too young to comprehend the devotion surrounding him, he simply knew—this place felt right.

Xiao Chuzao had never found any place better than Saint Cas.

*

Meanwhile, in orbit around the neutral world hosting the summit...

The insurgent fleet from the Bael Union had arrived.

Bael Union revolutionary leader Lin Yuan sat elevated on his command platform.

He lounged against the plush backing, eyes narrowed, examining a flask of rust-colored gas.

"This is it? The catalyst that activates that peculiar element effective against the Crown Clan?"

Opposite him, a hooded operative from the Hymn Organization stood with arms crossed.

"Indeed. Though our initial preparations were detonated prematurely, we've long had contingencies in place. Amos has proven more resilient than projected. After such psionic upheaval, he should have succumbed weeks ago. Yet no reports have emerged from Saint Cas—though we can't discount their censorship apparatus. Regardless, once deployed during galaxy-wide live feeds, the Saint Cas tyrant's mental collapse will spread beyond their stellar network controls."

"Fascinating."

Lin Yuan chuckled from his throne-like perch.

The governing systems of Bael Union and Saint Cas Empire differed fundamentally.

The Bael Union doesn’t have an emperor—just a President. They’re no refugees begging for the long-lived race’s protection. The whole nation’s drowning in class struggles and infighting. Even though it’s a union, it’s still crawling with old and new nobles. The Spirit Eye Clan—those long-lived freaks—are the Bael Union’s hereditary Presidents.

But the Spirit Eye Clan’s been whittled down to half its numbers in attacks. Over the years, the Bael Union, originally held together by shared interests, has fractured from within. Most of ’em slunk off to hide on backwater planets, and under Lin Yuan’s coordination, the Hymn Organization picked ’em off one by one. Now there’s just one bloodline left.

The Bael Union’s territory still under the Spirit Eye Clan’s grip? Just the main planet and a handful of nearby backwaters—a speck compared to Lin Yuan’s domain.

This time, the old man sent his only kid instead.

"I’ll hold up my end of the deal. Broadcasting the Saint Cas Emperor’s shame galaxy-wide and messing with his head will give my expansion plans a nice boost. Didn’t expect the Spirit Eye rats to show their faces, though—guess I’ll be taking their main planet too while I’m at it."

"Never forget—they’re long-lived for a reason. Stole power from the gods themselves. We can’t afford to screw this up."

The Hymn Organization’s boss got to his feet.

No way he was joining Lin Yuan’s fight. He’d watch from the sidelines.

Last time, they’d botched the hit on that Crown Clan brat, and Saint Cas had buried the story. This time? The Emperor’s guards would be swarming. Their only shot was snuffing out that little Crown seedling during Amos’s meltdown.

Under his hood, his eyes lit up with a smirk as Lin Yuan kept ranting.

"Relax."

He gave a low, nasty laugh.

"I’ve got more troops lying in wait—stir up the Crown Clan, wipe out that Spirit Eye bastard, and get the footage rolling. You’re already working on that surviving Crown pest, right? To break a nation, you gut its culture and crush its spirit. With what we’ve got? This’ll be a cakewalk."

"We’ll see."

Somewhere in the void:

*

"Ugh, why the hell aren’t we there yet? Three days my ass! It’s been another three!"

The Saint Cas Third Army drifted through the stars, hopelessly lost.

Finn Dwight—his beard so thick you could lose a hand in it—slammed his fist on the war table. He clawed at his scalp, then tore off another chunk of the battered edge. The thing looked like it had gone through a woodchipper.

Wrecking the table seemed to calm him—for about two seconds. Then he burst out laughing.

"Damn it, every route’s locked down with pollution barricades! Did we take a wrong turn into the apocalypse? Can’t even get a damn signal out! Amos’ll have my head! Like I *wanted* to get lost?!"

Leading an entire army home weeks late?

Might as well be mutiny.

Gods know I’m loyal!

Finn tugged at his hair—what was he forgetting?

Between the navigation nightmares and the comms blackout, that crucial detail had slipped his mind.

His adjutant didn’t even blink.

Finn Dwight—the Crown Clan’s resident loose cannon, his temper flipping on a dime. Laughing one second, raging the next. His raw power made him both asset and liability, and his chaotic energy was downright contagious.

The Saint Cas Third Army never stood a chance.

The adjutant wiped his sweat.

"It shouldn’t be. Could it be interstellar signal interference? We forced our way through a heavily contaminated zone and got hit by alien creatures. Your Highness, let me check if the sensors got damaged in the collision."

Finn gave a tired wave. "Go, go."

Before he finished, the Third Army’s commander marched up.

"Your Highness Finn! We’ve spotted a rogue planet ahead with unknown troops stationed on it. They’ve fired warning shots at us. Should we scout it out?"

"?"

Finn looked up.

"What kind of planet is that?"

"A rogue planet."

"A rogue planet with troops shooting at us without even saying why?"

Finn was fuming.

"What backwater did we stumble into now?"

But since they’d already diverted course to head straight for the neutral planet hosting the multinational conference, anyone camped here, hiding their identity and shooting first, ain’t friendly.

Finn’s combat reflexes kicked in. He slashed a hand through the air.

"Screw it. Since when do we play nice? Blast ’em!"

Meanwhile, a Bael Union rebel squad was lying low on the rogue planet, watching the stars.

"Any movement? Did the intruding fleet leave?"

"Should be gone. No signals detected."

"Good. Keep the commander updated. Stay quiet. If anyone gets close, try scaring them off. Stay under the radar."

The squad leader barely finished when their hideout blew apart with a thunderous boom, flames erupting everywhere.

"What’s happening?!"

"Enemy attack! Quick, call the commander!!"

"Comms are dead!!"

No signals? That means one thing—they’d gone dark.

After the infrastructure was wrecked, a huge force loomed on the horizon.

On the staticky scanners, the unidentified fleet suddenly lit up with tiny crown emblems popping up—

"Holy hell—it’s the Crown Clan! Saint Cas’s army!!"

Finn finally stepped off the starship and gave the wreckage a kick.

So, where did they bring him to?!

"Prince Phineas, the captives are all here—"

"Prince Phineas, we are verifying their identities, but one thing is certain: the small leader has been begging for mercy, claiming that they have seen other Crown Clan Princes."

Phineas: ?

What?

Am I encountering another strange situation??

*

The Saint Cas fleet will take a day and a night to reach the neutral planet.

After a day and a night of rest upon arrival, various meetings will commence.

The Saint Cas team has already landed and is now resting in the designated Saint Cas area.

Compared to the lively live broadcasts from other parts of Saint Cas, the Crown Clan's presence is much more low-key.

News about Little Chu Zao has not been officially released yet, which, of course, is due to the Crown Clan's various considerations. It's not just about the safety of the little one, but also how to announce it properly. They have thought of many ways to make the announcement, but none seem formal enough.

This is the only offspring to appear in the Crown Clan after several hundred years, a precious little Dwight, the clan's vulnerability, hope, and treasure.

There is no longer any dispute about this.

Thus, when disembarking the starship, the sleeping little one was secretly carried away by Frey.

Amos briefly appeared in the live broadcast and quickly left.

Here's the edited translation incorporating the expert suggestions:

The representatives from Saint Cas attending the conference were not disappointed but rather excited.

Not everyone gets to see His Majesty.

"But... after His Majesty, what are we to do? We no longer have a Little Highness..."

One well-mannered merchant sighed, speaking to his colleague from the merchant association beside him.

"I can't even imagine."

"The Crown Clan's His Majesty and Highnesses must have their reasons. Back then, some doubted how our empire was structured, but now the Saint Cas Empire stands as the strongest and greatest empire."

Someone nearby added.

"Don't speak such discouraging words at a time like this. Look at the representative from the mining planet—so young, yet with such capability. Heroes come in all ages."

Little Highness?

Yes, they had seen him. The Little Highness even ate the potatoes he offered.

The Little Highness was a brave and adorable Little Crown Clan—nothing made them happier than this.

Wen Qingfeng grinned goofily, and Wen Qingyu elbowed him.

Then, with a gentle smile, she started chatting with those around her.

The Crown Clan's residence was away from all the noise. Xiao Chuzao had been curiously gazing at the starry sky from the starship, using the available materials to learn various astronomy basics from Hale. In the end, he hugged his ghost bear and slept like a log.

Xiao Chuzao woke up to the commotion outside.

He had been woken up by the noise.

The little one sleepily climbed out of the soft bedding, letting out a soft yawn. Still half-asleep and dazed, he hugged his ghost bear, his naturally curly black hair sticking out every which way. His big eyes were misty, and his fair skin was flushed pink. Hugging the ghost bear tightly, he stretched his tiny arms and legs with all his might, his tiny halo lighting up atop his head.

Zao Zao waking up—

What's happening?

Hearing the commotion inside, the fighting outside stopped for a moment before a soft knock came at the door.

"Zao Zao, are you awake?"

It was An Ya's voice.

Amos hadn’t returned yet, and Frey had left to cover for Amos. Hale sat in the living room sipping tea, leaving Xiao Chuzao’s two people he liked least—Fei Man and An Ya—arguing at the door over who should knock.

What a mess.

Hale blew on his hot tea, took a sip, and sighed.

"Zao Zao's awake."

A sleepy voice came from inside the room.

"I told you, he'd been asleep for so long, he should be awake by now," An Ya said.

He opened the door.

Fei Man, her face cold, pushed forward grudgingly.

Then they both froze.

Usually, the Xiao Chuzao they saw was one that Amos had fixed up—since Amos also had naturally curly black hair, he was skilled at dealing with Xiao Chuzao’s hair and was accustomed to fixing his wings after waking up. So, the Zao Zao they usually saw was always put together.

But now, the little one, who had just woken up and stretched, looked a complete mess.

His black hair was all messed up, his little wings messy, and his expression still dazed, as if he hadn’t fully woken up yet.

Seeing them, his wings instinctively tucked in slightly as he hugged the ghost bear tighter and took a small step back.

With a sleepy voice, he called out, "Auntie... Uncle...?"

Fei Man: ...

Oh my god, this is the sight I’ve been waiting at the door for!

Fei Man pushed past An Ya and strode inside.

The icy beauty began rummaging through her pockets, pulling out some candy.

Her deep-set eyes looked intense no matter what she did.

"Zao Zao, look, Auntie brought you some candy."

An Ya: ...

An Ya pushed forward.

He was not to be outdone.

"Your uncle prepared these for you—two bags!"

Fei Man: ...

"Your auntie has more here—three bags!"

"Then I have the fourth bag!"

The Crown Clan's weirdly intense competitiveness was on full display at this moment.

—who knew they just wanted to secretly score points by handing over candy to the little one?

Xiao Chuzao stared at the growing pile of candy bags on the blanket. For a five-year-old, this was such a huge temptation—

But he had promised Daddy, and Mr. Hale had told him these were all sweet traps. He wouldn’t—

The little one finally couldn’t resist, reaching out and pouncing on the candy bags, blinking his big eyes.

—Meow! Thank you for nature’s bounty!

An Ya and Fei Man were about to fight.

And An Ya was clearly no match for Fei Man, who was clearly winning.

Suddenly, a pair of hands reached out, yanked An Ya and Fei Man, and dragged them unceremoniously to the door before tossing them out.

Amos stood at the doorway, who had appeared out of nowhere. He then looked at Xiao Chuzao, buried in the candy pile inside—just how much candy had those two troublemakers hidden on themselves?

Xiao Chuzao looked back and forth between Amos and the candy.

Finally, Amos held out his hand, and Xiao Chuzao handed him a bag.

Xiao Chuzao pouted, puffing his cheeks.

"Daddy, are you gonna take them all?"

An Ya and Fei Man had already been ordered to stand in timeout facing the wall.

Hale, holding his cup over there, was trying hard not to laugh.

"King Amos, you’re being the bad guy now."

Confiscating the little one’s candy and tricking him into eating the sour fruit.

Amos collected another bag of candy, replying with lazy indifference, "Hmm."

But the little one suddenly scrambled up.

"Not mean."

"Hmm?"

Amos instinctively looked at the messy-haired kid.

Watching him stand on the blanket, hugging his ghost bear plushie, this time ignoring the candy. The little one first turned to Hale to refute, then looked at Amos with an uncharacteristically serious look.

"Daddy not mean—daddy best daddy—Zao Zao loves Daddy the most..."