First Interstellar Guide Chapter 20: Mission Accomplished

Chapter 20: Mission Accomplished

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Zhu Tianyi had been suspicious of Yu Ran for some time. Not long ago, an officer at Base B73 died in a “falling accident,” followed by two sentinels on the spaceship who died from “mutual harm during a dispute.” The investigation reports provided by Kane and Kroger had no issues, especially with the last two victims. The evidence chains, including weapons, fingerprints, signs of struggle, etc., were very complete.

On the surface, it seemed like a series of coincidental events. However, three consecutive bizarre deaths of sentinels all related to the mining accident, from Zhu Tianyi’s years of experience in handling cases, he knew that this matter was definitely not that simple.

Every time Yu Ran “coincidentally passed by” but had no alibi during the incident, became the person he suspected the most—Zhu Tianyi had a bold guess in his heart, perhaps Yu Ran wasn’t as innocent and harmless as he appeared, but rather a Guide with hidden strength, possibly an S-class or even a super S-class Guide. This was the only way to deceive Kroger’s mental interrogation.

Today was the first time he had seen Yu Ran. To his surprise, Yu Ran’s expression and demeanor showed no signs of guilt. Even Zhu Tianyi couldn’t detect any flaws in his innocent, bewildered eyes.

Upon hearing Zhu Tianyi’s request, the little white fox on Yu Ran’s shoulder pretended to tremble in fear.

—This Black Spider actually made it recite the whole thing?

Fortunately, it had been present at the scene as a stand-in for its master. Yu Ran had no idea what Professor Morvi had said. But the little white fox knew. The memory of an S-class spirit body was hundreds of times stronger than that of an ordinary human. Let alone reciting the speech, even if it were asked to write the speech backwards, it could do it flawlessly.

But Yu Ran was a C-class guide. The memory of a C-class guide was several times that of an ordinary human. Reciting text, after reading it twice, was enough to remember it. However, the speeches at the opening ceremony did not require memorization, and many students wouldn’t even listen carefully, let alone expend mental energy to remember it all.

If he were to recite it word for word, it would raise suspicion.

Yu Ran communicated with the little white fox in the mental world, “You repeat it, and I’ll recite it. I’ll deliberately get some details wrong.”

The little white fox recited the speech in its mind, and Yu Ran pretended to carefully recall for a moment before beginning to recite, “Dear teachers and students of the Guide Academy, good morning. I am Morvi, and I am honored to be a special guest at the 300th anniversary opening ceremony of the Guide Academy. When I came to Sanctuary to study, I was already 20 years old. I awakened later than all of you, and my mental energy is not as strong as many of you here. Fortunately, I am a growing guide…”

He scratched his head, making an effort to remember, “I forgot the next few sentences, and then Professor Morvi said… that students with lower mental energy test scores should not be discouraged. You possess stronger memory, comprehension, and emotional perception abilities than ordinary humans and can excel in many areas…”

Yu Ran was like a diligent student being called upon by the teacher to recite a lesson. He didn’t recite it word for word, with many words wrong in the middle, and some difficult sentences missing, but the general meaning was correct. “Wishing all students success in their studies and a pleasant two years at the Guide Academy. Thank you!”

After Yu Ran finished reciting, he looked up at Zhu Tianyi and whispered, “I only remember this much… um, why did you make me recite Professor Morvi’s speech? What happened?” The young man’s eyes were innocent and curious as he looked at Zhu Tianyi with trepidation.

Zhu Tianyi was speechless.

Beside him, Kroger coughed and said, “It’s nothing, just routine questioning.”

Zhu Tianyi said lightly, “You can go back. Bring out the roommates who sat with you during the ceremony.”

Yu Ran nodded blankly, “Oh, okay.”

He turned and went back to the classroom, calling out three roommates.

Zhu Tianyi asked, “Did Yu Ran leave during the opening ceremony this morning?”

The roommates all shook their heads, “No.”

Kamiya was very firm in saying, “Ran-ge had been sitting next to me, and I was chatting with him from time to time.” Zhu Tianyi gave Kroger a glance. 

Kroger looked at the three of them, saying, “Don’t worry, I’ll check if your mental landscape has been damaged.” Colored butterflies flew into the mental landscapes of a few little guides — goldfish swimming in a fish tank, a little teddy bear running in the yard, and a rabbit timidly curled up on the lawn.

These three students were all Class C guides, with very low mental energy. And precisely because their mental landscapes were so small, Kroger could see clearly at a glance — the three of them had not been subjected to mental attacks. Kroger shook his head at his superior and whispered, “They’re telling the truth; Yu Ran was indeed sitting beside them all along.” 

Zhu Tianyi looked at Lu Zexuan and asked, “General Lu, what do you think?” 

Lu Zexuan said lightly, “Director Zhu, it’s your prerogative to suspect anyone. I’m just assisting in the investigation, no need for me to express an opinion.” His compatibility with Yu Ran was as high as 98%, so it was not appropriate to either speak in favor of or suspect Yu Ran.

 Zhu Tianyi didn’t ask further and turned to Kane, saying, “Continue to investigate other senior guides.” Then he reached out his hand, “Thank you for your cooperation, General Lu.” 

Lu Zexuan shook his hand, “You’re welcome. I hope you find the truth soon.”

Zhu Tianyi took his two subordinates to question other guides, while Lu Zexuan turned and left. After walking a few steps, Lu Zexuan suddenly stopped, turned around, and looked back at the classroom — Yu Ran, being the tallest, was seated at the back row, listening attentively to the homeroom teacher’s lecture. His expression was so earnest, his gaze so focused, and the little white fox on his shoulder, now that Zhu Tianyi and the others had left, also relaxed, spreading out its fluffy tail and obediently staying by its owner’s side.

An orphan with both parents deceased, a sincerely diligent student, and a hardworking little guide. How could he stealthily steal data from the Sentinel Academy library without anyone noticing?

White Eagle analyzed in his mind, “He was at the ceremony the whole time, never left. Besides, I know the little white fox; it doesn’t have invisibility abilities. Moreover, Yu Ran can’t fly, with his physical condition, how could he climb walls, open windows, and steal data in mid-air?” 

The conjecture of the spirit body, to some extent, represents the subconscious cognition of the owner. Lu Zexuan looked thoughtfully at Yu Ran and said, “…This incident shouldn’t have anything to do with him.”

Previously, three Sentinels died mysteriously, and Yu Ran had passed by the scenes each time. Zhu Tianyi suspected Yu Ran, evidently believing he had motives for the crime, making it impossible to completely clear his suspicion. However, today’s events couldn’t be linked to Yu Ran. So, after questioning him, Zhu Tianyi left.

Inside the classroom, Yu Ran sensed the departure of the two S-class Sentinels, finally feeling relieved — he possessed two spirit bodies, Nine-Tailed Fox and White Fox. He knew this secret was known by only three people, so it wasn’t surprising that Zhu Tianyi quickly ruled out his suspicion, and Lu Zexuan’s doubt towards him also visibly lessened.

Yu Ran actually left the scene. But he left behind a spirit body disguised as himself, constantly observing the scene. In other words — he could split his mental energy, allowing the White Fox and Nine-Tailed Fox to perform two tasks simultaneously.

This mission smoothly passed inspection, and next, Zhu Tianyi should focus the investigation on “invisibility abilities”, leaving himself temporarily safe. Yu Ran looked up at the platform and continued to listen to the homeroom teacher’s lecture.

As Yu Ran expected, after questioning other senior guides, Zhu Tianyi immediately convened the top brass of the Guide Academy and Sentinel Academy to the conference room for a discussion. Both President Xie and President Kelly didn’t look pleased. Kelly’s black panther was restlessly swishing its tail beside her, and she frowned, asking, “Director Zhu, what happened that requires investigating so many teachers and students?”

Zhu Tianyi calmly said, “Data from the Sentinel Academy library has been stolen.” 

Kelly’s expression changed — she actually didn’t know the content of the data. As a newly appointed dean of the Sentinel Academy, Kelly only knew that it was a top-secret experiment conducted by the military at the Sentinel Academy. Five years ago, they archived the data and locked the 15th floor of the library, strictly guarding it. The number of people who knew about this matter was extremely limited. Who could have stolen that data, and for what purpose?

Thinking about this, Kelly felt a chill down her spine. Zhu Tianyi continued, “I’ve asked both deans here because I need a certain document.” He paused, then shifted the conversation, “Do you both know about invisible guides and invisible sentinels?”

Kelly nodded and said, “Spirit bodies like chameleons, geckos, and other sentinels are adept at camouflage, able to change their body color to blend into the surroundings, creating a visual effect of invisibility.”

Xie Shiyi quickly added, “Among guides, this ability is extremely rare. I know of no more than ten individuals. Typically, spirit bodies like orchid mantises, ladybugs, and other small insects can erase their presence from the consciousness level, protecting their owners from being detected.”

The invisibility principles of sentinels and guides differ. Sentinels blend into the surrounding environment to become invisible, but sounds like breathing and footsteps may still be detected; guides, on the other hand, make themselves automatically ignored from a consciousness level, making guide invisibility more advanced compared to sentinels’.

Zhu Tianyi produced a document, “This is the highest investigation order jointly signed by the Federal President’s Office and the Federal Military Department. I hope both deans will cooperate in retrieving the data of all graduates and current students over the years, compiling a list of sentinels and guides with invisibility abilities for me.”

The two deans glanced at each other. To steal the data under the noses of so many people, “invisibility abilities” were key. Director Zhu’s investigation direction wasn’t wrong.

After a brief conversation, the two deans went back to organize the data, while the three members of the Investigation Division simply stayed at the reception hotel of the Sentinel Academy.

On the way back to the hotel, Zhu Tianyi asked Kroger, “When you interrogated Yu Ran initially, did you notice anything unusual about that white fox?”

Kroger carefully recalled the scene at the time, saying, “Nothing unusual. The White Fox had just awakened as a spirit body and was startled by my butterflies; Yu Ran almost had a mental breakdown.”

Zhu Tianyi, lost in thought, stroked his chin, “The White Fox is a healing-type spirit body and doesn’t have invisibility abilities… It seems that this incident isn’t related to Yu Ran. However, we can’t rush to close the case on the three deceased Sentinels. Let’s broaden the investigation and re-examine everyone at Base B73.”

Kane and Kroger nodded in unison, “Yes, Director.”

***

At noon, Yu Ran and his roommates finished lunch and returned to their dormitory together.

Kamiya pulled Yu Ran aside mysteriously and asked, “Ran-ge, were those people from the Investigation Division today? Why did they call you out? They even asked us if you had left.”

Yu Ran scratched his head in confusion and chuckled, “I don’t know either, it seems they were investigating some case.”

Kamiya scoffed, “It scared me; it’s the first time I’ve seen an S-class Sentinel.”

Yu Ran changed the subject, “I want to take a nap, I still have to set up the classroom in the afternoon. Do you guys want to take a nap too?”

Kamiya said, “Then I’ll also take a half-hour nap!”

All three roommates went back to their rooms to rest, while Yu Ran entered his room and locked the door behind him. The moment he entered, the smile on his face quickly disappeared, and he sat on the edge of the bed with a cold expression. He took off the necklace around his neck and skillfully opened the pendant with a specially made metal probe.

He took out a miniature communicator and sent a row of codes, “I’ve obtained the data, when do I give it to you?”

The other party quickly replied with a row of garbled characters, “One month later, at the Twin Charity Gala, place the chip on the ceiling inside restroom door number 3.”

Yu Ran replied, “Understood.”

After ending the conversation, Yu Ran frowned thoughtfully. A charity gala? That’s where dignitaries and nobles gather, and many S-class guides and S-class sentinels will be present. How can a Class C guide like him get in? It seems he’ll have to rely on General Lu with a compatibility of 98% to help him.