Chapter 254

Chapter 254

When Norton and the others left, Faceless relaxed slightly.

But he was still nervous, pressing tightly against the wall, instinctively staying in a blind spot—Xiaoyuan is coming.

In fact, Faceless had been mentally preparing for a long time. Ye Mo had told him a few days ago that Ye Zhiyuan and Ye He were about to rotate off the front lines, and Adelaide immediately said that since the warships had to transport Bug Crystals anyway, they could have Ye Zhiyuan and Ye He land at the docking area near Grath Palace.

Ye Mo cheerfully praised Adelaide a lot.

At that time, Faceless simply couldn’t refuse. It had already taken all his courage to decline Ye Mo’s invitation to explore Grath’s secret passages.

What's more, Zero Three refused to come with him no matter what. Faceless secretly grumbled to himself, then dejectedly squatted and curled up.

Ye Mo helpfully moved a decorative potted plant over to hide Faceless from view.

He had already gotten used to Faceless always hiding in corners.

Unless it was dark, Faceless would never show himself. He was like a shade-loving plant—a little too much sunlight would make him wither. Sometimes it looked a bit odd.

But Ye Mo still really liked this uncle. Faceless would tell him stories about his mother, never treating him like a child or brushing him off, and he seriously considered everything.

And Ye Mo felt a sense of responsibility toward Faceless. Although Faceless looked tough and wasn’t weak in combat, once you got to know him, he was like a wary little animal—easily unsettled and in need of comfort and protection.

Ye Mo, already used to shielding Faceless at all times, thought indulgently.

The little robot followed behind Ye Mo and reminded him, “The target warship is about to arrive. It has entered the port and is landing…”

It spitefully stayed silent, only transmitting information through the equipment on Ye Mo. Ye Mo moved to the railing, while Faceless remained oblivious, still crouched in the corner, tangled in his thoughts.

Ye Zhiyuan and Ye He, who had just stepped off the warship, had already spotted Ye Mo waving his hand high and were coming over.

Ye Mo excitedly gripped the railing with his hands. “Ye He!”

Hearing this, Faceless stiffened visibly. He stood up as if to come out, but after a few seconds, he gave up and crouched back down in defeat.

Ye He quickened his pace and hugged Ye Mo across the railing.

Ye He rarely initiated hugs like this, so Ye Mo calmed down. “Brother, Mom misses you a lot. She said she’ll make your favorite dishes tonight, so come home early.”

“Mm.”

“I miss you too. Brother Ye Yun will come home.”

“Mm.”

Ye Zhiyuan stopped a few steps away and watched them.

Then he looked toward the corner. After staring for a while, he climbed over the railing, stopped in front of the potted plant, and said helplessly, “Brother.”

Faceless stiffly rose from behind the plant, keeping his eyes fixed on the ground.

Ye Zhiyuan scrutinized him for a moment, then reached out and slowly embraced him, gently patting his back.

“Come home, Brother.”

After a long moment, Faceless finally replied, his voice a little choked. “I’m sorry, Xiaoyuan.”

Ye Zhiyuan felt a dampness at his neck and sighed.

Over the years, he had indeed hated—hated for a long time. At one point, what he hated most wasn’t even the mastermind behind the Ye family’s rebellion back then, but this brother. The more he had once loved him, the more he later hated him.

Unforgivable—just for such a ridiculous reason, he had so easily chosen betrayal.

Hating when his sister died, hating when he held the infant Ye Mo, hating when he was mocked and scorned. For a time, Ye Zhiyuan blamed Ye Huaiyuan unfairly for all his losses and suffering.

Ye Zhiyuan had imagined many times: if he ever saw Ye Huaiyuan again, he would drag him to his sister’s grave, make him kneel, and cut off his head.

But the first time he saw Ye Huaiyuan at Grath Palace, aside from the rekindled anger, there was only relief—relief that he was still alive.

Ye He had already finished talking with Ye Mo and now stood nearby with him, watching. There was no emotion in his eyes.

To him, Faceless was just a stranger.

Ye He was essentially quite cold and detached. He only cared about his family. Even with family, as long as they were alive, he usually didn’t care much. People should be responsible for themselves, and he neither understood nor wanted to understand the grievances of the previous generation.

He was like a lone wolf, never part of a pack. In his territory, only prey and occasionally family were allowed.

Ye Mo was like a lion cub that Ye Zhiyuan had rashly brought back. The lone wolf watched from afar, aloof, respecting boundaries without interfering, not baring his fangs but not welcoming him either—just warning him to stay within his bounds.

So when that little lion stumbled into the territory, the territory owner unceremoniously knocked him over, forcing him to expose his soft belly. With claws and sharp teeth, he left a harsh lesson on the still-soft cub. The furry cub was startled and scared, fur bristling, yelping as he ran back to Ye Zhiyuan. But not long after, he started poking around again, still not learning his lesson.

Ye Mo suddenly moved, and Ye He looked down. “What’s wrong?”

Ye Mo said softly, “Brother, I forgot to introduce you—this is Theodore, the one I mentioned in my letters.”

Theodore stepped forward and lowered his voice too. “Hello, I’m Theodore. Nice to meet you.”

Ye He nodded at Theodore, his expression relaxing and unconsciously softening.

Ye Mo also had a precious nanny robot, an old-fashioned short and round model.

To Ye He, both Ye Mo and Ye Yun had been actively accepted into his territory. Ye Yun was bound to him by blood he couldn’t cut off, plus Mrs. Ye’s request, so he had no choice but to take him in. After adapting, he gradually took on the role of a big brother.

As for Ye Mo, he was initially excluded from Ye He’s territory but had unknowingly crossed the boundary step by step without either of them realizing it.

By the time the territorial lone wolf came to his senses, the territory was already filled with the scent of that little lion. The oblivious cub had been rolling around everywhere with his silly brother, even sleeping in the grass. After observing for a while, the lone wolf finally decided not to drive him out again. Instead, he carried both the little wolf and the fluffy lion cub back to the den, gently licking the wounds he had once inflicted.

…

Sylvia was waiting for them in the dining hall. When Norton and the others came in, she looked up and scanned them, nodding at Deenlie. “Where’s Ye Mo?”

Arnold said with a hint of sourness, “Cyril couldn’t sit still as soon as he heard Ye Zhiyuan was coming back.”

Adelaide, while setting out the dishes, translated for Arnold: “Prince Ano is a bit jealous. When he came back, the little prince didn’t go to pick him up.”

Back then, Norton was watching Ye Mo very closely, so Adelaide hadn’t disturbed them.

Arnold sat down, retorting, “I am not.”

Sylvia set down her teacup. “Arnold, grow up. You’re not a child anymore. It’s one thing to squabble with your siblings, but Ye Mo is still so young.”

Deenlie sat beside Sylvia.

She looked at him. “When will Herli and the others return?”

Soon, once the process of joining the Star Alliance is complete, they would need to prepare for the Resource War. Time was tight, and Grath was already preparing.

“Let them stay out there for a while longer. They’ve been arguing these days about who will go with the eldest brother to the Resource War. If they come back, it'll be troublesome.”

Deenlie didn't even want to log onto the channel anymore.

Sylvia dropped a sugar cube into her teacup. "What, you don't want to go?"

Deenlie said meaningfully, "If only I could."

Although he never held back in a fight, he wasn't about to compete with the younger ones, and he wanted to help Norton carry the load.

She looked up. "Grath isn't so far gone that it'll collapse without you all around. You're all heading out."

During the conversation, Norton and Arnold also took their seats.

Arnold raised his hand. "Then who's staying in Grath? We promised Gu Chuan we'd help him with a tournament."

Sylvia remembered this and wanted to curse. "Right, so I spent a lot more time arguing with them over the details, trying to make sure it doesn't affect our schedule."

"And for the Resource War, to keep it fair, fighting under a different country's name is a huge hassle—you'd have to immigrate, let alone switch back again."

She couldn't help glaring at him. She and her team had rushed to study the clauses and found that they could skip the adaptation period and participate directly, then discussed how to handle the previous commitments.

These Graths never think before they act; they just agree to everything.

"We finally negotiated that our obligation ends once we get them to the third round."

"I checked; we share the same origin, and as new members, we can provide limited assistance without immigration. If we fail, it's a breach of contract. If we succeed, they'll pay us extra resources. That's no big deal. Secretary-General Lin and his team will take care of the rest."

Secretary-General Lin adjusted his glasses and nodded to Sylvia.

There is a rule in the Star Alliance that new members can engage in limited mutual assistance with countries of the same region or origin during the Resource War. This rule is meant to help new members adapt faster without affecting the final outcome. It could be used here.

The assistance limits are very strict, down to the exact number of people and gear allowed.

As for the Graths themselves—Secretary-General Lin looked at Arnold stretching in the dining room, at the slightly fierce Deenlie, and at Norton at the head of the table...

Every one of them could single-handedly turn a battle.

...

Wandering Star Region, Star Alliance.

Someone leaned back in their chair. "Finally got it done. And fast. It's either no one shows up, or they all come at once."

With that, they let out a long breath. "That's good. We'll make it in time for the Resource War. For a big event like this, I've gotta be there live."

The man next to him was looking through files—about this star region, about Grath. He had been the first one here to receive Grath's application and had developed a strong interest in this country.

Hearing that, he looked up. "Well, when the alpha wolf makes a move, the rest of the pack doesn't need to wait."

His companion slumped back in the office chair. "You're still looking into Grath?"

"Yeah. I think they might be the next Orolia."

"That's a bit exaggerated. Orolia joined the Star Alliance late and developed more slowly, but they had decent strength to begin with. Their development in all areas is good, and they have exchanges and cooperation with many strong nations. They have solid foundations. Many people didn't know about them before they joined, so their rise seems rapid."

The companion sat up seriously. "Almost all of this star region outside is occupied by terrifyingly large numbers of insectoids, cut off from the outside world. Frequent Insect Tides have slowed their technological development, and the isolation has made it impossible to communicate with other countries. They had to develop on their own. It was Keller who expended enormous resources to trace their origins, and with the Star Alliance's support, a passage was established. Only then could we come here. Insect Tides are frequent, resources are scarce. What kind of country could come out of a place so brutal and barren?"

"Surviving in such a place takes all their effort. There might be strong individuals or geniuses, but there is absolutely no possibility of them being the next Orolia—unless a miracle happens."