Chapter 237

Chapter 237

Faceless mobilized a small warship, putting Zero Three in the co-pilot's seat. He left without obstruction, and as he piloted the vessel toward Grath, he contacted Grath.

Grath responded to Faceless, and by the time he arrived outside the central city, the passageway had already been opened for him.

The hatch opened, revealing Faceless's figure, with Zero Three slung over his shoulder.

They looked somewhat disheveled.

Faceless was still wearing the combat suit from the insectoid front line, now stained with Zero Three's blood. Zero Three, his eyes closed, hung limply with his arm drooping, blood trailing from his fingertips.

Faceless looked up, peering out from the hatch. Nearest to the hatch were medical personnel, and beyond them stood more than a dozen soldiers, standing at attention.

Almost as soon as the door opened, Faceless moved toward the medical staff, who also immediately converged around him. Several pairs of hands lifted Zero Three from his shoulder.

"How did it come to this?"

"Administer emergency treatment first. Maintain vital signs."

Faceless released his grip, stepped back to clear the way, and watched as Zero Three was laid flat on a stretcher cart. The doctors gathered around, cutting open his clothes to treat his wounds.

Someone handed Faceless a small blanket. "You've worked hard. Are you injured?"

Faceless froze for a moment, then hummed an acknowledgment. He quickly turned his gaze back. His mind was still struggling to process what had happened—it had all been too fast, too fast. But now, in this sudden lull, he belatedly realized that Zero Three might die.

Someone patted him on the back. "Don't worry. We developed new technology last year, and the survival rate for cases like this is quite decent."

"Whoever tormented him like this is clearly an outdated relic."

Faceless hummed again, appearing slightly more relaxed. Those words effectively calmed him down.

A doctor looked up and quickly addressed a nearby officer. "We need a specific piece of equipment. The central hospital has three units, but they're all occupied. We need to go to the medical center."

The officer hesitated for a moment, then quickly nodded in understanding. "I need to request authorization."

The doctor said nothing. The medical center was in a sensitive location, requiring layers of scrutiny each time.

Soon the officer returned, calling out to the working doctors, "The request has been approved. Please do everything you can. They are spies for Grath, just returning to their homeland after completing a mission. They are still very young."

Without looking up, the doctor replied, "I'll do my best."

Faceless, standing to the side, lowered his head and buried his face in his hands.

...

After confirming the annihilation of the spider's lair, Norton almost immediately turned around and rushed back to the front line, leaving only a few ships to clean up the battlefield. He didn't even stop at the imperial capital.

Bragi, initially shocked by the incoming data and missing the chance to leave at the first moment, dutifully took over most of the fleet's computational work. By the time they passed the imperial capital, his mental strength was already prepared to jump over.

Before making the jump, he politely informed Norton.

"Your Majesty, Bragi is about to exit the main ship. I am honored to have served you."

Norton turned to glance at the holographic projection Bragi had cast beside him, his tone flat. "Then stay here."

Bragi stalled for a second, his mechanical synthesized voice carrying a hint of grievance. "As you command, Your Majesty."

The fleet arrived at the battlefield in silence.

"Prince Ano's warship requests docking with the main ship."

"Docking request granted. Docking in progress."

The main ship shuddered slightly, indicating that the docking was complete.

Norton stood up, his sword in hand. He hadn't even changed out of his previous clothes. "How were you discovered to have emotions..." He looked at Bragi, then slowly added, "...Theodore."

Bragi involuntarily increased his computational load. This question fell outside his calculations—it was an anomaly. He tried to compute Norton's intention in asking, but ultimately dismissed all possibilities. In the end, he answered honestly, "I was reported, Your Majesty."

"By whom?"

Had this question been asked a day earlier, Bragi could have confidently answered that he didn't know. But now he did—he had reported himself.

Grath held the highest authority over Bragi, and although he could secretly override it, he didn't want to deceive Norton. So he remained silent, not answering. At that moment, Ano walked in from outside. "Brother, how did it go?"

Norton did not press Bragi for an answer. As he walked out, he replied to Ano, "Cleaned up."

As he passed Ano, Norton paused, then reached out and patted his shoulder. "Well done."

Ano didn't dodge Norton, but afterward he turned sideways, watching Norton's back. He was clearly pleased but still complained, "Don't treat me like a child. I'm not Cyril."

When Norton's figure disappeared, Ano immediately closed his eyes, leaned against the wall, and slid down to sit on the floor, falling asleep within moments.

The command room tacitly lowered their voices. Someone fetched a blanket and gently draped it over Ano.

...

At the imperial capital, Ye Mo's lessons had long since ended. He looked with some confusion at the small robot standing motionless in front of the window.

The last time he looked up, the little robot was standing there. Now it was still there.

Ye Mo leaned out the window and gently touched the robot's chest. The little robot toppled over entirely.

Ye Mo jerked his hand back as if shocked, his eyes wide. "Out of battery? Or broken somewhere?"

He quickly caught on, climbed out the window, and nervously checked the little robot.

A watering can lay on its side. Ye Mo moved it aside, muttering to himself as he examined the robot, "It didn't get water inside, did it? I'm sorry, I didn't notice. I shouldn't have let you water the plants. I hope the core is okay."

Ye Mo didn't know much about this sort of thing. The one who did know was someone else, but he understood that the core was extremely important. When Múmú's core broke, it almost couldn't be restored.

He extended his mental power into the robot, and after confirming the core was fine, he let out a sigh of relief. Then, as if suddenly realizing something, he looked up. "That's right, Adelaide."

Adelaide always had a way. This shell of Bragi's was a very old cleaning robot that often had minor issues. Last time when it couldn't move, Adelaide had helped replace its wheels and gave it a bottle of lubricant—which Bragi really liked, since it was free.

But Adelaide, who was usually always around, was nowhere to be found today. The little prince's bustling up and down had long caught the attention of the staff at the Grath palace. "Little Prince, do you need help?"

Ye Mo stopped abruptly. "Yes, I want to find Adelaide."

The staff member thought for a moment. "Mr. Adelaide should be at the medical center. Some people from the central hospital came today, probably to pick up something."

If it weren't for the insect disaster, medical resources would have been sufficient. But now, with most resources prioritized for the soldiers and such a dense population, the central hospital was extraordinarily busy.

So, during this special period, Grath's medical center also exchanged resources with the central hospital from time to time.

The staff member had barely finished speaking when Ye Mo muttered a quick thank-you and ran off.

One staff member continued their work while sighing, "Little Grans is really full of energy."

Upon hearing this, the colleague shook their head, "Still, it's nothing compared to those princes back in the day."

"True."

On the other side, Ye Mo quickly arrived at the medical center and immediately spotted Adelaide in the outside corridor.

Adelaide stood there with one hand behind his back, turning his head only when he heard footsteps, watching Ye Mo charge over like a small beast.

By the time Ye Mo rushed over, he steadied him in time. Once Ye Mo was stable, Adelaide withdrew his hand, bent slightly, and lowered his voice, "What can I do for you, my little prince?"

"Bragi is broken!"

Adelaide gestured for silence before replying, "Sorry, little prince, it's my fault. Bragi should be on a mission right now. It left here at noon."

Ye Mo let out a sigh of relief, lowering his voice to match Adelaide's, "You should have told me earlier. I thought it was dead."

Adelaide gave a genial smile, "My fault—for making the little prince worry."

Ye Mo leaned against him, "What are you doing here, Adelaide?"

Adelaide looked into the room, and Ye Mo followed his gaze. Inside, several medical staff were nervously preparing something, but the operating table was empty.

"We're waiting for a patient. Also, you should leave."

As soon as Adelaide finished speaking, chaotic footsteps sounded from the end of the corridor.

Adelaide straightened up, pulled Ye Mo to his side, gently pressed his head down, and let Ye Mo lean against him.

Ye Mo let Adelaide move him, obediently pressing his cheek into Adelaide's chest.

Adelaide's hand moved up slightly, covering Ye Mo's eyes. He only heard the chaotic footsteps mixed with brief exchanges among the doctors, and what was even more intense than the noise was the strong smell of blood that followed.

Ye Mo cautiously opened his eyes, peeking through the gaps between Adelaide's fingers.

In the corridor stood many people—soldiers and doctors.

His gaze passed them and he saw, beside the closed emergency room door, a person dressed completely differently from them, head bowed, face hidden, looking thoroughly dejected.

As if catching Ye Mo's gaze, he tilted his head and instantly met Ye Mo's peeking eyes—a keenness Faceless had developed over the years.

The moment their eyes met, Faceless hastily looked away in embarrassment. He wasn't ready for that yet.

Ye Mo blinked, showing no sign of retreat. Instead, he widened his eyes, staring at Faceless with a mix of surprise and worry. He remembered Faceless, but Faceless now seemed pretty shaken.

Faceless, on the other hand, was flustered. He moved to pull his hat down to cover his face, only to realize he wasn't wearing anything like that. His motion froze, and finally, he gave up, standing rigid and still.

Perhaps it was the first time he hated his own keen senses.

Adelaide took in their interaction completely. He gave Faceless a small nod, then touched Ye Mo's cheek reproachfully, leading him away like a parent dragging away their child who had been bullying someone.

Adelaide's excuse sounded plausible: "Don't disturb their work."

Ye Mo obediently followed him, but he kept looking back as they walked, until they turned the corner and left the corridor.