Chapter 107: You’ve Wanted This, Haven’t You?
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
“This mecha’s maximum flight speed under one G of gravity was twenty kilometers per second. It took thirty seconds to accelerate from zero to top speed, which only placed it in the middle ranks among mecha. Compared with armed aircraft, it lagged far behind.”
In the assembly bay, the feline mecha—or perhaps it should now be called leopard-shaped—stood fully reassembled and tuned. Zhou Yunchen and Lu Yao packed their gear, brought Torque, and climbed into the cockpit.
Zhou Yunchen shifted back into his snow leopard form. Lu Yao fastened a specially designed helmet over his head, pressed electrodes along his spine, and finally slid a finger-length sensor needle carefully into the base of his neck.
The snow leopard flicked his tail. Lu Yao steadied it with one hand while adjusting the final insertion. “Once we leave the base’s protection zone, the star pirates’ global monitoring systems will detect me and close in. Their Viper-class fighters can reach a top speed of thirty-five kilometers per second. They’ll overtake us quickly. A battle is inevitable.” The snow leopard turned his head to look at Lu Yao.
“I’ve already explained the weapon systems on this mecha,” Lu Yao said. “You’ll manage, won’t you?” The snow leopard padded closer, gave his cheek a single lick, and then nodded.
“Good.” Lu Yao gazed into those pale gray eyes and patted his plush cheek. Preparations complete, the massive leopard mecha rose from its crouch. Each pawstep shook the ground, knocking dust from the walls as it strode forward. Three great doors opened in sequence, and the metallic beast, built of mismatched metals yet fused into one seamless whole, climbed upward into the sinkhole above.
Sunlight struck it at once, heating its armor until it glowed. The metal leopard kicked back with its hind legs, crouched low, then unleashed its strength in a tremendous leap. Blue flame burst from its elbow thrusters, hurling the machine skyward in an instant. Shockwaves churned the dust into a towering cloud, blooming like a lotus flower and drowning the pit below. From far behind came the Oasis’s voice: “Farewell, Mr. Lu Yao. I look forward to meeting you again.”
The metal leopard pierced the clouds, racing toward space. The base shrank to a speck below, the horizon curved, and the blackness of the cosmos revealed itself above. The mecha pushed harder, accelerating to break free of the planet’s pull. Then, without warning, it twisted midair, rolled once—and five brilliant sparks flared across its hull. Lu Yao and Zhou Yunchen had been discovered. The star pirates had greeted them with a salvo of five cruise missiles. Alarms blared in the cockpit. The radar filled with warnings. Viper fighters were closing in fast.
Zhou Yunchen drove the mecha toward orbit at full speed. Three fighters pursued, dodging missile debris and the leopard’s bursts of electromagnetic fire, pressing in with relentless precision.
The original cat-shaped mecha had carried no weapons. While hiding in the base, they had found no chance to purchase ammunition. Lu Yao had rerouted the power systems, fashioning electromagnetic shells and light weapons to serve in battle.
One Viper drew too close. The leopard mecha spun, its long tail crackling with magnetic force. With a single sweep, it cleaved the fighter clean in two.
Another Viper fired a round, only for the leopard to swat it aside with one paw, sending it tumbling into thin clouds before detonating. The enemy pilot jerked in shock. He had never seen a machine slap an attack away. What kind of defense was that?!
The remaining fighters avoided direct combat, coordinating with ground batteries to unleash a storm of fire. The mecha’s defensive field flared under the barrage, its integrity dropping fast, forcing Zhou Yunchen to thread between gaps in the assault.
It didn’t matter. They were almost there. The atmosphere thinned, space lay just ahead. The metal leopard pushed to its top speed, streaking like a meteor into the freezing void. The roar of battle vanished, replaced by silence. Behind them, B13 glowed as a yellow-brown sphere.
The Vipers had not yet caught up. Lu Yao exhaled—only for a searing blast to slam into the leopard’s waist, shattering its faltering shield.
A massive warship loomed into view. The instant the mecha broke free of B13, it had flown directly into the pirate vessel’s trajectory. The dark barrels of its cannons aligned on the leopard, smoke curling from their muzzles. The Vipers’ sudden gaps in fire had been a trap. The Black Sea Star Pirates’ warship had been waiting.
The metal leopard bared its fangs and roared in silence. It tore apart two Vipers with its claws, explosions blossoming like silent suns. Then it turned its fury on the looming warship.
The warship surged forward. The leopard leapt aside, arching its back in a defiant challenge. It never touched. A thunderous blast shook the void as a torpedo slammed into the pirate vessel, ripping it open in flames.
Through the blaze emerged the colossal Rover-class starship, gliding steadily toward the leopard. Heavy guns thundered again. Vipers swarming the mecha were swept aside, shattered into debris that spiraled down into B13’s atmosphere, burning like falling stars.
Dozens of allied ships and fighters launched from the Rover, chasing the fleeing pirates. The leopard, carried by momentum, rolled into the starship’s docking bay, crashing and tumbling like a giant cat in a too-small box.
The cockpit spun. Lu Yao’s vision reeled, his body tossed against the cabin walls. When the chaos finally settled, he found the snow leopard sprawled beside him, equally dazed. Lu Yao crawled over, reached out, and rubbed his ear. “It’s over,” he whispered. “We’re going home.”
In the tumble, the snow leopard had gotten his neck and limbs tangled in a mess of cables. Pinned belly-up like a housecat caught in yarn, he could only stretch out his tongue to lick Lu Yao’s cheek. “Aowu…”
Lu Yao tried to untangle the wires that had wrapped the snow leopard in a hopeless mess, but it was a hopeless tangle—he couldn’t find a clear starting point. He called for Zhou Yunchen to shift back into human form, hoping it might make the wires easier to handle.
However, Zhou Yunchen’s human body was even larger and more muscular. The wires, which had loosely draped the snow leopard, now dug deeply into Zhou Yunchen’s form, pressing and imprinting shapes along every visible and hidden contour.
Zhao Minghe was the first to reach the docking bay, climbing onto the mecha to assist. As the hatch opened, he almost froze, stunned by the scene before him. Li Mo, rushing behind him, collided with his back, nearly sending both of them tumbling inside.
“What happened?” Li Mo rubbed his nose, concerned. Behind them, a group of medical staff watched anxiously.
“Nothing… nothing at all,” Zhao Minghe said, spreading his arms to block entry, preventing anyone from stepping in.
He found himself observing the strangely intimate, almost secretive scene unfolding before him: the bound Lu Yao, the snow leopard-like Zhou Yunchen restrained in a military uniform, and the tense, flushed expressions on Lu Yao’s face. Even a man of Zhao Minghe’s virtue couldn’t stop his mind from conjuring odd, unintended thoughts. Especially with Zhou Yunchen wearing a military dress uniform while tied up—did he… plan this all along?
“Cough, cough,” Zhao Minghe coughed lightly, forcing Li Mo to step back, and asked one of the medical staff for a pair of scissors.
Finally, the scissors were handed up to Lu Yao, who carefully cut through the tangled wires and freed Zhou Yunchen. Aide Zhao, stationed at the hatch, blocked any prying eyes, preserving the General’s privacy.
Li Mo, taller than Zhao by a head, peeked over Zhao’s shoulder and witnessed everything. He hesitated, words caught on his tongue, leaving only a subtle sigh behind.
Zhou Yunchen and Lu Yao were first taken to the medbay to ensure neither had sustained injuries from the impact. Once cleared, plans were set to return to the fleet ships and depart the Nameless Star Region.
During the staged battle between Li Mo and the fleet’s ships, a Silver Halberd Fleet battleship had been destroyed. Zhou Yunchen had mobilized the Hermes-class mother ship and five escort ships. Zhao Minghe was approved to lead two escorts to assist Li Mo in pursuing the remaining Black Sea Star Pirates, while the remaining ships waited near the star gate for the General’s return.
The mother ship dispatched smaller vessels for rendezvous, but no one had anticipated a mecha accompanying them. The R68-class shuttles could not accommodate the leopard-shaped mecha. Zhou Yunchen had no choice but to separate temporarily from Lu Yao, piloting the mecha alongside the fleet.
The remaining electrode wires, spared from Lu Yao’s scissors, were just sufficient to maintain flight and control.
Lu Yao, holding Torque, boarded the R68 and settled into the shuttle’s lounge. The ship’s AI offered entertainment options. “No need,” Lu Yao replied quietly.
A few minor cuts and bruises marked his forehead. Torque, sensing the smell of medicine, nestled obediently in Lu Yao’s lap, refraining from moving. Lu Yao ran his fingers through the cat’s fur, soothing it.
During this time, perhaps due to the harsh climate on B13 or excessive stress, Torque’s fur had begun falling in clumps. Lu Yao worried it might end up bald.
His black hair swayed in front of Torque’s eyes. The kitten instinctively swatted, pulling a few strands free in an instant. Lu Yao froze.
Hair loss was common in the mecha industry, but Lu Yao was not one of those affected. His long, black, thick hair had been the envy of many designers. How could it suddenly fall out?
His gaze snapped to the leopard mecha flying nearby, piercing the metal shell as if trying to see the snow leopard inside. He considered carefully: Had the snow leopard shed fur recently? If so, perhaps the base’s water or food had caused all three of them to shed.
Golden sunlight reflected off the mecha’s armor. The fleet had already passed the star system behind them; the glow came from the star gate ahead. The massive ship hovered silently at the gate, awaiting its master.
Suddenly, a brilliant blue light shot across the darkness. The ship’s bridge sounded alarms, shields activating to maximum. A high-energy photon torpedo approached, glittering like a diamond. Its power was enough to pierce even a mecha’s strongest shields.
The leopard mecha accelerated to evade and immediately connected to the R68’s communications channel, directing the shuttle to find cover. As the characters flickered across the screen, Lu Yao’s vision was assaulted by a blinding surge, his sight warped. The photon torpedo, however, targeted none of the active ships. It struck the star gate directly.
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