Limited Ambiguity Chapter 18 Part 2

Chapter 18.2

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The space fortress floated on the outskirts of Leto. Compared to the capital star, it appeared no more than dust motes drifting in space, crafted from high-density composite materials, overall presenting a grayish-black hue, yet adorned with a rather beautiful name—Fontaine-1.

To get to Fontaine-1, one needed to board a specialized small starship at the starport. As the starship took off, the ground shrank continuously. The moment it entered space, everyone’s ears were faintly silent.

Ye Pei clung to the porthole, peering outside excitedly. “Are we about to enter Fontaine-1 soon?”

Professor Fu, understanding the excitement of students experiencing their first time entering the space fortress, patiently explained, “That’s right. Once the starship enters Fontaine-1’s capture range, we’ll be engulfed by it, much like a whale swallowing a small fish in the ocean.”

Xu Min was a quiet boy, silently observing the scenery outside the porthole, while Mondrian was discussing with Professor Fu about Fontaine-1’s capture method.

Lu Fenghan stared out the window, finding it hard to muster any interest. Floating aimlessly in space for nine or ten years, no one would experience any emotional fluctuations anymore.

It was only in the moment the starship broke away from the gravitational pull of Leto that he felt a familiar sensation, momentarily making him believe he was back on the frontline of the Southern Cross Region.

Beneath his feet was the bridge of the command ship, with a fleet arrayed behind him, ready for battle.

Qi Yan’s demeanor was even more subdued than Lu Fenghan’s. He leaned against Lu Fenghan’s shoulder and fell asleep.

Ye Pei chuckled and joked that Qi Yan must have been too excited to sleep last night.

Half an hour later, the starship entered Fontaine-1’s capture range. As the portholes gradually filled with the looming gray-black colossal metal structure, the cabin trembled slightly. Then, a mechanical prompt sounded, “Docking successful, all personnel inside the cabin, please prepare.”

It was also at this moment that Qi Yan woke up.

Rubbing his eyes, he asked Lu Fenghan, “Are we there?”

“We’re here, we’re here,” Ye Pei eagerly answered. “It’s a pity you just dozed off. Seeing Fontaine-1 up close is truly spectacular. No wonder the Leto Daily once described it as a floating black crystal in space. Look at its metallic shell, so technologically aesthetic!”

Hearing this from the front, Professor Fu laughed. “It seems that Ye Pei is quite interested in aerospace materials?”

Ye Pei quickly pledged her loyalty. “No, my passion will always be artificial intelligence!”

Everyone burst into laughter.

The cabin door opened, and a worker in a blue uniform entered. “Hello, Professor Fu, and greetings to everyone from Turan Academy. Welcome to Fontaine-1! My name is Lin Jia, your guide for this visit.” Her light golden hair was tied into a high ponytail. She lowered her voice and said with a smile, “Ten years ago, I was also studying at Turan.”

Ye Pei exclaimed joyfully, “So you’re a senior! Thank you for guiding us!”

Lin Jia: “This time it’s a visit, but who knows, next time we might be colleagues. Many people inside the fortress are Turan graduates.”

Professor Fu was escorted away for a meeting as soon as he disembarked from the starship. Meanwhile, Qi Yan’s group followed Lin Jia into the open areas of the fortress.

On the right side of the corridor were transparent glass walls, offering a view of distant stars and various instruments floating near the fortress.

Holding a cup of coffee, Lin Jia explained, “During peacetime, the fortress is mainly used for research, space experiments, and monitoring. In wartime, it can transform into a movable artillery platform. However, despite the ongoing standoff between the front line and the rebels, the capital star has remained untouched by the flames of war, so Fontaine-1 has never had the chance to enter the battlefield.”

She gazed at the dark expanse of space outside the fortress. “Remaining untouched by war is undoubtedly the best outcome. Fortunately, the Alliance has the Expeditionary Force.”

Lu Fenghan heard this statement without much reaction.

This was merely the bottom line adhered to by every former commander of the Expeditionary Force—to keep the smoke and flames of war away from the Alliance’s stars.

Qi Yan stared at the faint light outside the glass wall, the description of “movable artillery platform” by Lin Jia triggering a faint memory. “Near Fontaine-1—”

He stopped abruptly.

Near Fontaine-1, there was a deactivated military long-range jump point. Initially, the Alliance positioned Fontaine-1 here partly due to security considerations—

To prevent anyone from using this jump point to threaten Leto’s safety.

However, that wasn’t something he needed to know at the moment.

While the others listened to Lin Jia, Lu Fenghan’s attention was on Qi Yan. “What’s wrong?” 

Qi Yan shook his head. “Nothing.”

“Alright, next is free time. Your personal terminals will receive a map of Fontaine-1. The white areas are open to the public, but the red zones are off-limits. If you go there,” Lin Jia added with a smirk, “it’ll be considered as stealing Alliance secrets, understand?”

Several students were startled and quickly assured they wouldn’t step into the red zone.

Lin Jia was satisfied with the intimidation effect. “Also, there’s the issue of accommodation. Professor Fu will be staying overnight in the fortress, so you won’t be able to return to Leto. However, I forgot to ask for specific personnel, so as it stands now, there are five of you, and I’ve only prepared four single rooms in advance.”

The extra person, of course, was Lu Fenghan.

Qi Yan: “He’ll share a room with me.”

Lu Fenghan couldn’t help but glance at Qi Yan.

Whether it was on a starship or in a fortress, every inch of space was precious. They’d love to fold space to make every square meter count for ten. In such situations, rooms were often cramp and beds even narrower, barely accommodating one person.

If he were to share a room with Qi Yan…

Lin Jia nodded. “Alright, that’s settled then. The room locations are also marked on the map. You’re free to plan your time from here on.”

After Lin Jia left, Ye Pei, as the team leader, asked for everyone’s opinions. Mondrian and the others wanted to explore further, but Qi Yan, who had stayed up late the night before and felt drowsy, decided to go to the room for a nap first.

Following the map’s directions, Qi Yan opened a door using his personal terminal, and Lu Fenghan stepped in with him.

The room was well-equipped with a small table, a single bed, and a particle cleaner.

Water storage in space was not easy, and the fortress was no exception. There were no lavish water showers. Instead, they used particle cleaners for bathing, commonly referred to as “dry cleaning.”

It cleaned very effectively, but lacked the ritual and comfort of traditional bathing.

The room was cramped, and as the door closed, Qi Yan had the unsettling sensation that the entire space was filled with Lu Fenghan’s aggressively dominant aura.

Qi Yan found the bed and lay down, but within seconds, he sat up again.

Lu Fenghan looked puzzled. “What’s wrong?”

Qi Yan: “The bed is too hard, and it’s very noisy.”

The various mechanical systems in the fortress continued to operate, perhaps unconsciously ignored by those who had been inside for a long time, but to newcomers like Qi Yan and his group, it was akin to noise pollution.

He knew it.

Like performing magic, Lu Fenghan produced a pair of noise-canceling earplugs and inserted them into Qi Yan’s ears.

The next moment, Qi Yan’s eyes brightened. “I can’t hear anything now!”

Lu Fenghan then sat on the narrow single bed and patted his thigh, gesturing for Qi Yan to lie down.

Qi Yan hesitated as he looked at his thighs, but after a few seconds, he succumbed to drowsiness.

Slowly lowering himself onto the bed, he rested his head on Lu Fenghan’s thigh, feeling his warmth seeping through the fabric.

Qi Yan took a soft breath.

Enveloped by Lu Fenghan’s powerful presence, he felt a comforting sensation as if he was soaking in warm water.

Though the bed remained firm, perhaps it was the man’s aura that made him feel so at ease. Soon, Qi Yan closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

In the familiar white noise, Lu Fenghan rested his eyes until he was startled awake by a notification on his personal terminal.

For a moment, he was disoriented, thinking he was on a frontline starship. But the heaviness on his thigh snapped him back to reality.

Vincent sent a voice message, “I finally remembered to ask if you have money to spend now? Prices in Leto are so high. Do you need some support?”

Money?

Lu Fenghan instinctively glanced down.

Qi Yan had already fallen asleep, nestled on his thigh, his right hand loosely clutching a piece of Lu Fenghan’s clothing, as if that would help to offset the anxiety of being in an unfamiliar environment.

Upon careful recollection, Lu Fenghan realized that he hadn’t had the chance to spend a single star coin during this time— the house he stayed in belonged to Qi Yan, the car he drove was Qi Yan’s, and even his clothes and food were provided by Qi Yan.

So, he truthfully replied, “I’m being taken care of.”

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