Chapter 47.1
At this moment, on the screen above the square, Nie Huaiting appeared serious, Klimo maintained his usual demeanor, while Hodgkin, without a care in the world, waved cheerfully to the crowd.
As Lu Fenghan watched the images on the screen, he realized that it had been several years since he last saw Nie Huaiting. The last time they met was when Nie Huaiting visited the front lines to inspect the Expeditionary Force. Since he was the Commander-in-Chief, it was his responsibility to receive him.
Compared to then, Nie Huaiting now showed clear signs of aging, with deepening lines on his face. His stern and unsmiling expression could easily intimidate a crowd, even in a kindergarten.
Lu Fenghan recalled his own childhood bravery. When Lu Jun had just passed away, Nie Huaiting came to him, offering to transfer guardianship to him. Lu Fenghan had one condition: no change to his name or surname.
Nie Huaiting agreed, saying he hadn’t thought of having multiple brats anyway.
And then, Lu Fenghan followed him.
Over the years, there hadn’t been much affection between the two. Their relationship was more hierarchical than anything else. Nie Huaiting stayed in the capital star, leaving the front line in his hands. He shouldered this responsibility, that’s all.
Stepping forward, the Secretary-General delivered his speech.
Meanwhile, on Fontaine-1, off-duty personnel gathered together to watch the celebration ceremony broadcast.
Someone muttered, “Only three more days until I rotate back to the surface. When I get back, I’m treating myself to four meals in a day. I’ll make sure to try out all the new eateries in Leto!”
“Four meals? Can’t you just enter the holographic system and indulge in virtual dining?”
“Would that be the same? Sure, my taste buds and olfactory nerves would experience it, but in reality, I’d just be consuming air! It lacks any sense of authenticity!” The person sighed. “Why does time pass so slowly?”
Someone nearby comforted them, “Think about it, when you return to the surface, all the merchants will still be offering discounts. How fortunate.”
As the Defense Chief of Fontaine-1 passed by, he heard the conversation revolving around food and couldn’t help but start calculating when he would get his turn to rotate back to the surface.
He still owed Lu Fenghan a drink.
Entering the Defense Command Room, Huo Yan saw two personnel chatting together. He tapped his finger against the metal wall. “What about discipline?”
Noticing Huo Yan, the two individuals hastily took their seats. One of them sheepishly explained, “My wife just gave birth to a lovely baby girl. My family sent me photos and videos, and I can’t help but keep looking at them.”
As a member of the Expeditionary Force’s Single Dogs Association, Huo Yan couldn’t help but wonder if the toxic singlehood of the Expeditionary Force had infected him. Yet, he couldn’t help but envy. “Today is the Foundation Day. Your daughter is very clever, coming into this world on this very day.”
Just then, an observer exclaimed in surprise, “Defense Chief, unidentified flying objects detected within radar range!”
Huo Yan’s eyebrows raised. “Details!”
The observer’s voice trembled suddenly. “There… there are too many!”
Sensing something amiss, Huo Yan strode over in long strides. On the radar screen, countless red dots appeared within the detection zone—only unregistered starships would appear as red in Fontaine-1’s radar.
Nearly a hundred red dots formed a wedge shape, as if suddenly appearing in space, boldly and continuously approaching Fontaine-1.
No, not Fontaine-1, but moving toward Leto!
Huo Yan’s pupils dilated. He almost shook as he pressed the button, issuing a fortress-wide alert of enemy attack while ordering the communicator to contact Leto.
The next moment, the communicator’s voice rose, “Communication is cut off! We’ve lost communication with the base!”
Huo Yan abruptly turned. “How was it cut off?”
The communicator quickly replied, “Leto unilaterally severed our communication lines!”
Huo Yan closed his eyes.
When he opened his eyes again, his voice regained its composure. Over the fortress’ broadcast, he ordered non-combatants to take cover immediately, while combat personnel were to swiftly report to their stations, putting the entire fortress on high alert.
The observer’s palms were sweating profusely. “The enemy is advancing at an extremely fast pace, already within one hundred and eighty firing ranges!”
“Space pirates wouldn’t have such a large force. It’s the rebels who have come,” Huo Yan stated with certainty.
He dared not contemplate how the rebels, stationed on the front line in the Southern Cross Region, managed to bring their starships in such vast numbers to the Central Region.
He dared not ponder why there hadn’t been any warnings along their long migration route.
He dared not consider whether someone within Leto had shut down all external communication interfaces.
The observer reminded once more, “Within one hundred and fifty firing ranges!”
Standing tall, Huo Yan solemnly announced throughout the fortress, “The enemy hasn’t bypassed us. It means they intend to sweep us clean before attacking Leto. At this moment, there are no reinforcements, only us. Everyone, in one minute, write your farewell letters. We may be facing a desperate battle.”
No one spoke over the channel.
There was a faint sound of sobbing, quickly stifled.
Huo Yan’s voice grew grave. “Passive surrender is a path to annihilation. If we fight with all our might, there may still be a glimmer of hope for survival! Heed my command, everyone—”
Leto.
The Secretary-General’s speech wasn’t particularly lengthy, but due to his slow pace, it still lasted about fifteen to twenty minutes.
Its content was similar each year: reminiscing about the past, strengthening unity, discussing the Alliance’s achievements for the year, boosting morale, and finally looking forward to a brighter future, hoping for a better Alliance.
Even though the format of the speech had remained unchanged for many years, those present still felt excited, like Xia Zhiyang, whose small flag in hand was about to leave a blur in its wake.
Next was Klimo’s speech.
Klimo, dressed in the uniform of a four-star general, maintained a somewhat serious expression. After his opening remarks, he focused on discussing the frontline situation and indicated that due to the new war circumstances, the military would make some necessary policy changes. However, regardless, the priority would always be Alliance citizens.
Nie Huaiting began listening with his head bowed, but later, perhaps unable to bear it, he simply closed his eyes.
Lu Fenghan felt the same way, thinking that Klimo’s lengthy speech could be summarized in just one word — nonsense!
He muted Klimo’s voice and leaned in to ask Qi Yan, “Feeling tired?”
Qi Yan’s skin, exposed to the sun, appeared even paler. He gently shook his head. “Not tired, just a bit stuffy.”
Because the surroundings were too noisy, the two spoke very close to each other.
So close that Lu Fenghan noticed at a glance that Qi Yan’s earlobes had turned pink again.
Intentionally, Lu Fenghan leaned in a bit closer. “If you’re tired, you can lean on me.”
Qi Yan dared not meet his gaze. He felt as though Lu Fenghan was exuding some kind of gravitational pull. He just responded, “Okay.”
At this moment, there seemed to be a layer of damp soil in his heart, where sprouts were about to burst forth and grow wildly.
And Lu Fenghan’s mood quickly improved.
It was unclear why, but he felt… exhilarated.
Like when he ranked first in every subject at the First Military Academy. Or when he first received a first-class merit after joining the Expeditionary Force. Or when he was promoted to brigadier general, his shoulder epaulettes changed to a silver star, and he became General Lu, while his father, General Lu, had to step down as “Old General Lu.”
No, this feeling of exhilaration was a bit different.
At that moment, Lu Fenghan felt a tug on his sleeve. He turned his head to see Qi Yan pointing at his wrist.
His personal terminal was lighting up.
It was from Vincent.
“What’s happening?” Lu Fenghan inquired.
Vincent’s tone was grave. “Commander, I just discovered something suspicious. Upon further comparison, I discovered that some of the information that I, or rather, the Military Intelligence Bureau, has been receiving has the exact same frequency bands!”
Lu Fenghan immediately grasped the situation.
There was only one scenario when the frequencies matched— all of this information was forged!
Vincent spoke rapidly, “The moment I realized something was amiss, I ran an experiment. As expected, Fontaine-1 sent a routine security update to Leto every fifteen hours. Just three minutes ago, their message arrived. However, when I attempted to establish a return connection, it failed.”
“Explain clearly!” Lu Fenghan demanded.
Vincent took a deep breath. “Leto’s external communication channels have been severed! I’m unable to pinpoint the exact time of the disruption, but I can confirm that all the information— every piece received by Leto and by our system— is fake! Someone is pretending to be Fontaine-1, sending us fabricated messages to maintain a false sense of peace!”
Meanwhile, on the screen above the square, Nie Huaiting opened his eyes, his gaze sharp.
Lu Fenghan could almost be certain that Nie Huaiting also knew about this news!
Fontaine-1.
Once hailed as the “floating black crystal in space” by the Leto Daily, Fontaine-1’s black metallic shell was now a tattered remnant, a stark reminder of its former glory.
The fortress, tilting and worn, rotated slowly around Leto.
Inside the fortress, Huo Yan lay in a pool of blood, his legs contorted from multiple fractures. A gaping wound the size of a fist adorned his waist, surrounded by fallen comrades, blood seeping into the ground.
He coughed repeatedly, crawling on the ground, struggling to reach the communication console.
The communications officer was already dead. Huo Yan, hands braced against the table, felt each drop of cold sweat trickle down from the pain. He incessantly pressed the button, signaling “enemy attack” to Leto, yet each attempt seemed futile, disappearing into the void without a response.
After dozens, perhaps hundreds of attempts, Huo Yan’s fingers spasmed, unable to hold on any longer. He collapsed to the ground, completely drained of strength.
The outer shell of Fontaine-1 had been shattered, revealing a glimpse of the pitch-black universe through the cracks, distant stars faintly visible.
He slowly scanned the dead colleagues around him.
Finally, he opened his personal terminal and, in an encrypted channel, wrote his last message.
Though it was uncertain whether it would be seen by the other side.
“Pick up your weapons and protect the stars behind you.”
“Commander, I have not dishonored our mission.”
Exhausted, Huo Yan rested for a long time before continuing:
“Fontaine-1, the entire fortress, falls in sacrifice. May the survivors cherish life.”
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