VFMESR Chapter 2

The Burke Star in the book is a mysterious one, tucked away deep in the cosmos. It holds power equal to that of the Charles Star and is abundant in mineral resources. The original owner was ‘invited’ there because Burke Star threatened to stop supplying minerals. Additionally, the original owner didn’t hold a high position in the eyes of King Charles, which set the stage for the entire interstellar saga, and the wars that would follow.

When it was time for a meal, Brian followed the usual protocol and headed to the dining room to take food for the hostage.

The route they took was a private passage from Burke Star to Charles Star, kept confidential by the military. To prevent leaks, Colonel Rita had assigned Brian to guard them all the time. Apart from mealtime, Brian hardly left Jiang Ling’s room.

As a young soldier, Brian was on his first mission and approached it with seriousness and dedication.

At this point, other soldiers were also dining in the restaurant, watching Brian as he packed three dishes and a soup for the hostage. They teased him, “Brian, we heard that this prince has quite a list of demands, is that true?”

They were all afraid of trouble, so when they found out that Brian had been assigned by the Colonel to guard the hostage, they breathed a sigh of relief. Even though the hostage was now a prisoner beneath them in Burke Star, Colonel Rita had ordered to fulfill any of his requests before sending him safely to the royal palace.

“Hmm,” Brian replied absentmindedly.

He carefully selected two meat dishes and a vegetable dish in the restaurant, making sure to provide a well-balanced meal. People without spiritual powers had weaker resistance without a balanced diet.

“I’ll propose to the Colonel to switch places with you,” a kind-faced, older soldier suddenly spoke up.

He had heard that this hostage had a bad temper, and Brian was a new recruit. In case he offended the hostage, they couldn’t be sure if His Majesty would sacrifice Brian for the sake of the relationship between the two nations.

Upon hearing this, Brian finally looked up. He had a youthful yet determined face, with well-defined facial features. He opened his lips and said two words, “No need.”

The others clicked their tongues, thinking he had a stubborn temperament.

After packing the meal, Brian was about to leave the dining room, and as if by accident, he asked, “What do you think will happen to Prince Jiang Ling when he arrives in Burke Star? How will His Majesty deal with him?”

Colonel Rita wasn’t in the dining room at the moment, so the conversation became more casual. Everyone expressed their opinions, but there was a common theme.

“It’s unlikely to end well. The second prince of Charles Star got into the Holy Dan Academy. That’s a big threat to us, so His Majesty will use this hostage to balance things out.”

“Our relationship with Charles Star has never been friendly.”

“This prince has no spiritual talent…”

Brian listened to half of their conversation and then left, his face not looking particularly relaxed.

When he arrived outside Jiang Ling’s room, Brian knocked on the door twice before entering. Inside, the hostage, whom others had described as having a horrible character, was wearing a brown sweater. He had a book on his knees, flipping through it page by page with a serious expression. His fingers were fair and slender, occasionally pushing up his glasses.

The glasses on his high nose bridge were a pair of frameless reading glasses that Brian had managed to find after searching for a long time.

This book was somewhat similar to their modern encyclopedias. Even though Jiang Ling possessed the memories of the original owner, he wasn’t a native of this world. So, on the premise of ensuring that his requests were not excessive, he had found a way to get Brian to fetch several books for him.

Signal reception was poor on the warship, and besides the essentials, logging into the star network was not allowed. Moreover, Jiang Ling didn’t have his own account on Burke Star, so he could only pass the time by reading books.

He was currently reading about some professions in the interstellar realm.

Although the original owner was set as a powerless waste, in reality, a significant portion of the population in this interstellar world is just ordinary people without any spiritual talents. They lead ordinary, happy lives just like people in the modern world. It’s just that the original owner’s royal identity made him appear exceptionally useless.

Among the remaining half of the population who possess spiritual talents, there are various levels, ranging from SSS to D. These individuals have more career options. For instance, those with high spiritual power often choose to become mech pilots, as they can join the military and use this as a means to elevate their social status, especially for those with ordinary family backgrounds.

However, Jiang Ling’s gaze was fixed on a different profession – a spiritual therapist. In this world, medical technology is highly advanced, and most physical ailments can be treated. However, the existence of spiritual powers has given rise to a new profession.

Jiang Ling felt that this profession had a similar essence to his original one, and he needed to find a career for himself to make a living. 

Spiritual therapists have high social status and receive good treatment; it’s definitely a popular profession in the interstellar world. Unfortunately, this profession requires spiritual power to practice.

“Prince Jiang Ling, it’s mealtime,” Brian placed the lunchbox on the table and stood by the door, not closing it. His gaze rested calmly on Jiang Ling, who was his official duty.

Jiang Ling had slowly grown accustomed to being monitored by Brian. However, unable to see the outside, Jiang Ling had no idea how many days he had spent on the warship.

“Soldier Brian, may I ask how much longer it will be before we reach Burke’s Star?” Although it might not be much better there, at least it would be more comfortable than being confined to this room.

Brian blinked his eyes and remained silent for a moment before replying, “We will take you to report to the monarch immediately.”

His gaze seemed to penetrate the sturdy wall of the warship, straight to Burke’s Star. After answering, Brian continued to watch Jiang Ling eat, his expression somewhat melancholic, as he calculated the remaining time.

The warship landed on the soil of Burke’s Star, and for the first time in many days, Jiang Ling saw daylight. However, as the day descended into evening, the setting sun hung low in the sky, casting a stunning red hue.

In order to bring the hostage back to the palace to present to the monarch today, Colonel Rita promptly led Jiang Ling into the palace.

Brian followed the other soldiers and returned to their unit, only when he saw that the tall and refined figure had completely disappeared from view did he hurriedly catch up.

In Brian’s heart, the person he admired most was their monarch, although he had never seen him in person. However, today, for a brief moment, he had a change of heart.

He hoped that their monarch’s usually decisive and cruel character… wouldn’t be used too quickly on Jiang Ling.

A magnificent palace.

All the guards trembled outside the door, their legs weak. They knew that their monarch’s mood was especially bad now. The air was filled with the terrifying fluctuations of his volatile spiritual power, which was utterly terrifying.

Colonel Rita bit his lip, hesitated for a moment, knowing that he had chosen an inopportune time, but still loudly announced outside the palace, “Your Majesty, Crown Prince Jiang Ling requests an audience.”

After what seemed like an eternity, a hoarse and weary voice came from inside, “Come in.”

Jiang Ling followed Rita through the door, but he didn’t see the appearance of the monarch who was rumored to be ugly.

In front of him was a black silhouette.

The owner of the silhouette was sitting in a wheelchair, with pale, unhealthy hands hanging loosely beside it. Below the pants, his legs were so thin that Jiang Ling couldn’t imagine what the legs of a monarch born with muscle atrophy¹Muscle atrophy is the wasting or thinning of muscle mass, where muscles appear smaller than usual due to a lack of muscle tissue. It can be caused by the disuse of muscles or neurogenic conditions. looked like. He could only see the person’s black hair spinning, strangely soft in the dim light.

If he hadn’t seen a trembling figure kneeling at Chu Wenyu’s feet.

The man on the ground was sweating profusely, his hands trembling uncontrollably. He clenched his teeth, his expression twisted in pain. Judging by the reactions of the guards outside, it seemed they were also affected by the spiritual power.

From his attire, it was evident that his status was not low.

Jiang Ling took a quick glance and immediately thought of the original owner’s fate. He withdrew his gaze, not intending to confront Chu Wenyu at this moment.

The details in the original book were not very detailed, but the original owner hadn’t received the ‘lunch’ so quickly, so Jiang Ling wasn’t too worried.

Suddenly, there was a crisp sound in the air, followed by an explosion, and the teacup shattered on the floor.

The man on the ground turned his head in fear, feeling a burning pain where he had been hit. He watched the teacup beside his feet with trembling lips, not daring to make a sound.

“Trash.” 

The voice of His Majesty, who struck fear into the hearts of many, was not as rough as one might imagine, and it even sounded somewhat pleasant. However, the man kneeling at his feet felt a chill down his spine.

Even though he knew that His Majesty was not angry with him, the tall and burly Rita shivered, and his eyelid twitched.

Chu Wenyu looked at the tall man kneeling on the ground like a timid mouse, raised his eyelids gloomily, and coldly told him to leave.

The man wiped away his cold sweat and hurriedly rolled away.

After some time, it seemed that His Majesty had just realized that there were others present, and he turned around.

Jiang Ling raised his head and recited the draft he had prepared in his mind, word by word, “Charles Star, Jiang Ling, pays respects to Your Majesty.”

The monarch’s upper half of the face was adorned with a silver-white mask, with residual crimson in his eyes, likely a physiological state caused by his recent anger.

Only a snow-white chin and red lips were exposed. Looking at the lower half of his face, he resembled a vampire from ancient legends.

Chu Wenyu lazily rested his chin on his hand, looking at this humble visitor. He curved his lips, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes.

“Welcome to Burke Star.” His voice was magnetic and tingling, exuding an air of indifference.

His pupils were as black as obsidian, reflecting the highly perplexing face of Jiang Ling.

Tsk, who would have thought that old man Charles would have such a distinctive son.

Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters.  (๑>ᴗ<๑)

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  Muscle atrophy is the wasting or thinning of muscle mass, where muscles appear smaller than usual due to a lack of muscle tissue. It can be caused by the disuse of muscles or neurogenic conditions.