Paranoid Alpha Chapter 36: Seizing Power

Chapter 36: Seizing Power

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: CaiCai

Fifteen days after the chief disappeared. Triss Federation Headquarters, Council Election Hall.

Sunlight streamed through the semi-transparent dome into the hall, casting a dazzling brilliance. Despite the splendid ambiance, the atmosphere inside the hall was unusually noisy.

Various factions argued incessantly, deviating from the military’s anticipated scenario. As the quarrel escalated, the council chamber even erupted with strong alpha pheromones.

An omega female senator, enraged at the scene, exclaimed, “What are you trying to do?! Planning a military coup?!”

“Mind your language,” a gun-toting alpha said coldly. “We’re only tasked to maintain council order. Please stay calm.”

“According to the emergency plan, even if all council members die, it still wouldn’t be the military’s turn to take office!” a youthful vigor-filled member of the council pointed at the military representative, yelling, “Where’s Dale? Why did only half the troops return from the exercise, and the rest were taken to military prison by you? What exactly are you planning?!”

“Lyss colluded with the Imperial Crown Prince, resulting in half our fleet being destroyed,” the military representative responded stiffly. “Marshal Dale’s whereabouts are unknown, suspected to have been shot down by the enemy…”

“Was it the Chief and Chris colluding, or was it Dale conspiring with the Empire?” an elderly but serious voice interrupted, immediately silencing the uproar in the hall.

“…Speaker Burke,” the military representative’s tone suddenly turned cold. “What do you mean by this?”

Burke didn’t even look at him. The elderly Beta remained unaffected by the pheromones in the chamber. “Regardless of who did what, put away the pheromones now. The council is not a place for military recklessness. I’ll say this only once.”

Several military personnel’s faces darkened. One soldier, holding an ion gun, was about to act, “You old—”

“Put away the pheromones,” Hilton, who had been silent throughout, suddenly spoke. “Anyone emitting pheromones will be executed on the spot.”

The impertinent soldier’s face stiffened, reluctantly putting down the ion gun and retracting the pheromones.

“Speaker Burke,” Hilton stood beside the central podium, overlooking the entire council. “According to Triss Federation law, every citizen has the right to vote and the right to hold an elected position, am I right?”

Burke glanced at him indifferently. “What are you trying to say?”

“Just now, Mr. Jexi said that even if all council members die, it still wouldn’t be the military’s turn to take office,” Hilton calmly retorted. “Isn’t that biased?”

“Everyone has the right to vote, but everything must follow the procedures. I believe everyone came here for this purpose,” Burke walked slowly to the central podium. “As per Federation laws, when the chief is missing or deceased for fifteen days, the interim elections start immediately. Representatives and candidates, please return to your seats and maintain order.”

The members in the hall quieted down upon hearing this, and after a long silence, they returned to their respective seats.

The military personnel remained unmoved. After a pause, Burke turned to Hilton. “Marshal Hilton, please follow the council’s process.”

“Sorry,” Hilton shook his head. “Given the current situation and threat level, the Federation may need to activate wartime policies. Holding interim elections now does not comply with the Federation Constitution, in the military’s opinion.”

The female senator, who had just sat down, stood up again, slamming the table. “Constitution—Do we need you to decide that?!”

“Based on the present circumstances and danger level, the military has decided it’s necessary to activate wartime policies,” Hilton stepped up to the central podium, finally revealing the true intention. “The interim elections are postponed. From now on, the council is under martial law, and we’ll start forming an interim government.”

The hall fell into a noisy uproar again. At this moment, Burke turned slowly, calmly looking at Hilton. “Young man, you’re simplifying matters too much.”

Hilton abruptly turned around, but before Burke could ask, a familiar voice suddenly interrupted his oath-taking. “The interim elections are canceled. Hilton Tyrian is relieved of his position as Vice-Marshal.”

At that instant, the entire council hall seemed as if it had been paused. Everyone froze in their tracks, and Hilton’s unfinished words got stuck in his throat.

In the ensuing silence, clear footsteps resonated from the main entrance.

Hilton, shocked, looked up. The panicked and frightened members turned their heads simultaneously.

The grand doors of the council hall swung open, and an omega dressed in military attire, resembling a god-like figure, walked in against the light. The council’s spotlight shone on him, emphasizing his pure white wolf ears, revealing his identity and status.

Everyone stood still, stunned. Nobody expected Lyss to return alive, and he appeared completely uninjured, as if he had quietly sat there, observing the farce enacted by these people for days.

“Marshal Dale, Vice-Marshal Hilton, Colonels Harris, and Mahal…” Lyss enunciated each name from the list Lu Xingye had given him, “colluded with the Empire, betrayed us, and conspired to subvert the Federation government, disregarding the safety of the people and the prosperity of the Federation.”

Hilton abruptly turned and shouted to the people around him, “Take action—”

Before those around him could move, a particle beam suddenly pierced his neck. His voice ceased abruptly, and Hilton stared in shock at someone in the distance. He raised his hand in disbelief to touch the bloodied hole in his neck, then fell to the ground, filled with resentment.

Lyss calmly lowered the ion gun, walking silently toward the central podium.

The hall was filled with armed soldiers, astonished at how the marshal, who had just been passionately speaking moments ago, was now lying in a pool of blood. A few who quickly regained their senses raised their ion guns, but to their surprise, when the gun barrels heated up, nothing happened.

Several bewildered soldiers looked at their gun barrels incredulously, then suddenly glanced around, realizing that most people were too shocked to notice their actions. Following suit with the others, they reluctantly set their guns down, afraid to take further action.

A heart-stopping moment ensued.

Lyss walked alone through the council hall. Facing an omega who had just shot a marshal, hundreds of heavily armed soldiers surprisingly laid down their firearms, silently allowing him to approach the central podium.

Those who had previously harbored deep disdain for Lyss displayed even greater shock than the rest of the crowd. They seemed entirely unable to fathom why he was still alive.

Lyss stood at the central podium, Hilton’s body, still warm, lay at his feet. The crowd, stunned into silence, surrounded him. After surveying the room, Lyss declared, “Triss is now in a state of war. All autonomous military powers are hereby brought under central control.”

His resounding words echoed in the council hall. It seemed as though Lyss was the only one who could make a sound. Not a single person voiced opposition, including the remaining military personnel.

Triss, which had been thrown into chaos due to the chief’s disappearance, restored order overnight. The populace suddenly received news of Lyss’s return, even without fully understanding the political intricacies, knew that prosperity and development followed Lyss’s leadership.

The public displayed unparalleled enthusiasm. Previously military-leaning media outlets promptly shifted their stance, exposing various internal military issues and high-ranking officials that had been involved in attempts to subvert the federation.

Public opinion surged with many passionately demanding a public trial for these traitors. The council had no choice and yielded to public opinion, announcing an open trial for all involved in the military coup would take place in three months.

But there were more individuals needing judgment.

After dealing with military affairs, Lyss, who had been engrossed in work, was finally forced to lift his head from the numbness that engulfed him.

The belated pain spread to his heart, but the most evident change in his body was the gradually increasing appetite and a slightly protruding abdomen.

It was time to address this issue.

The Military Medical Center, where Lyss had been treated, saw the doctor attending to him calmly rise from his seat, seemingly anticipating something.

“You are suspected of illegally disseminating Federation secrets to others. Come with us,” they said.

Inside the interrogation room, the doctor looked at Lyss sitting in front of him, surrounded by several officials, and confessed to his own crimes without hesitation. He admitted to selling Lyss’s physiological information to someone from Starfall Sea, and as for the price…

“What was your purpose?” the interrogator furrowed their brows and asked. “You shouldn’t be lacking money.”

“The reason I betrayed my oath as a doctor is that my career couldn’t flourish in the fertile soil of Triss,” the doctor calmly replied. “But in Starfall Sea, it could.”

Perplexed, the interrogator was about to ask further when Lyss suddenly spoke up. “What do you mean by your career?”

The doctor didn’t immediately respond to this question. Instead, he asked Lyss, “Chief, what do you consider life to be?”

Lyss answered, “Life is an open system capable of energy metabolism, responsive to stimuli, and capable of reproduction.”

Directly staring at Lyss, the doctor asked, “Then do you believe that data can form life? Or can life be replicated by data?”

This question seemed to touch upon one of the greatest taboos in the interstellar world. The people around immediately changed their expressions, but before Lyss could respond, one interrogator warned, furrowing his brow, “Eli Melz, don’t divert the topic. Please answer the question directly. Why did you give the secrets to Starfall Sea?”

The two engaged in the conversation didn’t pay any attention to him.

“Any system that meets the above conditions can be called life,” Lyss replied, looking at the doctor.

The doctor suddenly smiled. “Including the child in your belly, almost three months old?”

The secretary, who was ready to take notes, suddenly stopped, and the room fell into silence. Realizing the meaning behind the doctor’s words, everyone turned in shock towards Lyss.

“Of course,” Lyss replied calmly and openly, “including my child.”

Author’s note:

Chief: Yes, I have a child.

Everyone present: ?