Him and their stars.

Chapter 2076

The moment Jaeger Sobyk connected to the communication link sent by the captain, he suddenly realized that this must be breaking news from the edge of the Spiral Grand Cross Nebula and the Femo Nebula.

The small outpost that the empire built was a full 40,000 light-years away from here.

This means that the guy was clearly using the valuable military source mass wave data to watch the Alliance's news!

Moreover, it was the news channel X broadcast by the Nephelion Star Network, which had already been banned by the Empire.

Labor and management are busy fighting a war of words with the crows in the courtroom. Labor and management have held a hundred review meetings and submitted countless proposals in two months, all to protect anti-establishment elements like you!
Sobek now felt that all his efforts had amounted to protecting a dog, but he still clicked on the news link that seemed anti-establishment and walked toward the bridge, cursing under his breath.

Suddenly, a semi-transparent window appeared at the edge of his field of vision. On the now-stabilized image, a young reporter wearing a space military protective suit appeared, his face filled with barely suppressed excitement.

His background is a busy cruiser bridge and a huge tactical star map.

"Dear viewers! Less than an hour ago, at the edge of our beautiful Helix Nebula, the Guardians of the Alliance finally achieved a glorious and decisive victory!"

That said, even now, this huge spiral Grand Cross Nebula has been a "paradise" for criminals and underground organizations. The Spiral Nebula route is one of the busiest trade routes in the universe, and of course, it is an ideal place for pirates to live in. So what is so beautiful about it?

However, the argument that the Nebula's environment was too complex to suppress bandits became unconvincing after the Snake Cave was captured.

In this way, the pirate problem in the Spiral Nebula becomes truly terrifying to think about.

Sobek couldn't help but cry out in his heart: This interstellar shipping industry? This universe? This world of bipolar control? How can we, the ordinary working people, endure this? Shouldn't we smash this old world and build a new one?
...Well, I, Old Solskjaer, am already a lieutenant general with an annuity, a title, a manor, and an estate. I am already a beneficiary of this old world.

Jaeger Sobek now understands that he is, after all, a man with a family business and a carnivore, and he can't shout out in the real world. So he can only cry out in his heart about this turbid and evil world.

Meanwhile, in his line of sight, the Alliance reporter was also shouting, "For a long time, we have been cracking down hard on certain nations that have repeatedly violated the sovereignty of the autonomous city-states of the Spiral Nebula and threatened interstellar trade and shipping! The Free Galaxy Alliance will always be the guardian of shipping and trade in the Milky Way Galaxy, and the beacon of democracy and freedom!"

Then, the screen cut to a slightly shaky battle scene. Although it wasn't very clear, you could still see countless beams of energy slicing through the dark starry sky.

Further into the distant sky, flashes of explosions could be seen, along with the faint outlines of ships and space stations.

Of course, these are all fleeting glimpses, and they appear to have been somewhat processed. I feel that if the images were too clear, it would make many people feel awkward.

"Look! This is the power of justice! Before our Alliance's newest warships and well-trained soldiers, no matter how ferocious the evil forces, they are utterly defeated. And our fearless Alliance soldiers are pressing their advantage, expanding their gains, and will surely wipe out all evil from this star system!"

The reporter shouted twice more in a frenzy, then handed the microphone to an Allied officer next to him: "Colonel Toppin, please say something to us..."

Before the reporter could finish his opening remarks, the colonel snatched the microphone from him. His expression was faintly powerful, but his tone was solemn and cautious: "The sovereignty and interests of the Free Galaxy Alliance are inviolable in any way, but we always exercise restraint. We are always the beacon of democracy, civil rights, and freedom in the entire universe, and the guardian of free shipping and trade. We are simply maintaining maritime security!"

"Maintaining navigational safety." The reporter repeated, eyes wide, seemingly still not understanding the situation.

“Yes, yes, this is absolutely not war.” The colonel’s expression remained impassioned, but he said in a monotone, emotionless tone, “We reiterate that all conflicts are avoidable, and we urge everyone to return to the negotiating table.”

Sobek frowned slightly.

He could sense it. The Alliance was still calling for love and peace, and freedom of navigation, in the center of the universe, just like before, but the underlying message was different now.

However, things have indeed changed in this world.

The alliance, which had been timid for a year and was seen as weak and easily bullied by the arrogant Imperial Army, had now launched an attack on the Imperial fleet in Canchuan. Now, they were even more relentless, tearing everything down all the way to the Estai base.

While the above information has been kept secret from the public, it certainly couldn't be kept from a high-ranking general like him.

Moreover, with such big news, even if a lockdown is implemented, how long can it last?

It's important to understand that while the Ester base was only a small forward supply depot, it was still a semi-permanent space facility. To have it demolished wasn't just kicking Marshal Ester in the backside; it was slapping the Privy Council in the face!
However, even with this development, the Alliance colonel's speech still seemed to leave room for interpretation. This is quite intriguing.

...Hey, whether there's room for maneuver or not, is it my place to worry about this?

Sobek felt he understood. Whether the Alliance reporter on the screen understood was hard to say. In any case, he nodded excitedly at the camera and said seriously, "In short, at this moment, on the border of the Spiral Nebula and the Femo Starfield, glory belongs to the Alliance! This is Nephi Star Network reporting, war correspondent Jeton Waterdon, bringing you a report from the front lines!"

The news footage switched back to Nefi's studio, where the heavily made-up host wore an overly exaggerated, business-like smile, as if a few more wrinkles would squeeze out a lot of powder.

In front of her sat a row of well-dressed, supposedly famous military and political experts, all wearing the same smiles.

So, Nefi's studio was instantly filled with a triumphant air, which made Sobek a little dizzy. He found the sight of a group of sanctimonious men sitting in a row, all wearing fake smiles, simply unbearable to watch.

However, if you put yourself in the other person's shoes, this is all understandable.

So, what will be the outcome of this war? Although they suffered many losses at the beginning, everything changed completely after Prince Brunhilde made the brilliant move of launching a surprise attack on Cerk.

We had been marching towards victory. We had conquered the community and the Earth; the alliance was trapped west of Canchuan, unable to cross the line. This double sense of accomplishment should have created a dreamlike, blissful time. But why did it suddenly turn out like this?
All of this is simply because of that person's existence, isn't it?
In the blink of an eye, this man, who had lost the defenses of the city, had directly entered the heart of the empire and was now only a step away from the Heavenly Realm.

For a thousand years, when has the Galactic Empire ever had its capital threatened by foreign powers?
Jaeger Sobek sighed. He now felt that if it weren't for the actions of his "old friend," the arrogant imperial rulers probably wouldn't have taken "originality" seriously. After all, there had never been a shortage of fashionable "progressive" ideas among the people of the empire, but the self-important military nobles of Tirello never paid them any attention.

This speaks volumes about their ability to even allow some aristocratic sons and elders to form "progressive" political clubs.

If it weren't for that person and Yuan's arrival, the empire's pride might have continued into the next millennium.

For the empire, Yulian was nothing but progress and change... ah, I mean, the source of all the turmoil.
Now, he was getting closer and closer to him. He was being investigated, yet he was still required to lead the fleet in pursuit. In such a vast Galactic Empire, did any general possess such unwavering loyalty? As Sobek pondered these thoughts, he noticed the bridge was already upon him. His old "comrade-in-arms," ​​Viscount Sellu, the fleet's chief of staff, had already approached, her face showing concern: "Done? Didn't they give you a hard time this time?"

Sobek did say something fair: "They were actually quite polite this time, and there shouldn't be any more difficulties in the future. Besides, they were just following orders. As for the privy council members, they are all panicked and under a lot of pressure."

The viscountess looked at her "commander" with a pained expression: "You're just like that, sir, too gentle and too gentlemanly. But most of the imperial nobles aren't gentlemen; they're just bandits in crowns. If you're too easy to talk to, you won't survive in such an ugly society."

She seemed completely unaware that she had included herself and all her family members in her insults, and continued indignantly, "A general like you, a flower of glory, a wolf of dawn, is the pillar of the Imperial Army's younger generation. If you become a member of the original faction, will there be any trustworthy people left in the entire Empire? This is an insult to the Empire's renowned generals!"

Sobek wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling a little guilty and with rather complicated feelings.

When he was still under investigation, his only thought was to clear himself of responsibility and be a loyal servant to His Majesty the Emperor. However, after he was truly "innocent," he felt inexplicably lost and disappointed.

Before he could say anything more, Miss Serlu across from him said, "In short, the Court of Justice has overstepped its bounds. We should initiate an impeachment proceedings against them in the Senate!"

"Us? How could I possibly have connections in the Senate?" Sobek felt that the Viscountess always had some unrealistic fantasies about him. Just as he was about to say something, he saw her turn to the person next to her and say, "Isn't that right, Miss Navigator?"

She was naturally addressing Miss Hermisa Therider, the fleet's chief navigator. The latter was actually a stargazer and occult advisor, but the viscount deliberately used what sounded like the lowest-ranking title, a subtle way of being cunning.

Fortunately, Miss Hoshimi didn't seem to mind. She simply maintained her expressionless face and calmly said, "Sure. It's time to give the Inquisition some trouble."

The "we" the Viscountess referred to were her own family, the Marquis of Seretti, and the Marquis of Seredel, who came from a family of star-seekers. These two long-established noble families could indeed influence the Senate to some extent.

If more than thirty elders are willing to sign a petition, it will be enough to cause some trouble for the court.

“However, the court just recently arrested more than twenty elders with primary color tendencies,” the Star Judge added.

"So what? We shouldn't act rashly?" The Viscountess was taken aback.

"No, this is precisely the time to act rashly! Eighty percent of the elders have noble titles, and who isn't related to them? How can they be afraid of a mere court?"

"I see. Since things have come to this, why not just make the struggle clear? Is that what you mean?"

Miss Hoshimi nodded expressionlessly, then gave a thumbs-up to her distant cousin. Then, seemingly sensing Sobek's dazed gaze, she turned to her commander and gave him a nodding gesture of encouragement.

Although the other party was expressionless, Sobek could clearly feel a kind of evil fire burning in the other party's eyes, so intense that it made him shiver on the spot.

What's even more terrifying is that it wasn't just her; even the Viscountess seemed to have figured something out, and she was even more agitated than the Star Seer.

...What, what exactly is going on? I just got my "innocence" cleared!

"Don't worry, you've landed, so nothing will happen anymore." Miss Hermisa noticed her commander's doubts again and adopted a rare gentle tone: "I can see your achievements. Commander, chaos is the ladder to progress!"

"Progress?"

"Yes, progress in every sense of the word."

Considering that this guy's tone was now almost like a charlatan, Sobek had no choice but to close his ears and pretend he didn't hear it. He finally remembered that he was still the fleet commander, so he walked over to Captain Pegsey and patted him on the shoulder: "How's the situation?"

The captain gave a knowing smile that only the two of them could see: "The Estai base has been completely demolished. Under the watchful eyes of the Allied fleet, our forces have all withdrawn from the Spiral Channel. Actually, the casualties weren't great; there are only a little over 200 dead so far, but the insult is extremely strong. This isn't just kicking the Privy Councilor's ass; it's clearly slapping His Majesty the Emperor in the face!"

"What are you gloating about?" Sobek nearly fainted from shock. So all those reports I wrote, all those so-called review meetings I participated in, were just to protect a traitor like you!

"I'm asking about our fleet, where are we?"

The captain quickly transformed from a gloating anti-establishment figure into an outstanding elite officer, solemnly stating, "Emperor's Road, DF-177 system. We haven't encountered any Zerg units along the way. The last suspected Zerg target was signal 782, which we detected 12 hours ago."

There were at least double-digit Zerg swarms scattered throughout the Wanfan Sector, resembling... well, more like a deluge of excrement. What was once a prosperous, densely populated sector of the Empire suddenly felt polluted, the entire sector almost turning green.

However, the swarm problem was not Sobyk's primary objective.

"At the current pace, we'll be entering Shengyuan in three more days," Sobek said, frowning as he calculated.

The captain nodded.

"You're moving too fast! How can you maintain your combat effectiveness like this?"

"All the space stations along the way have been doing their best to provide us with supplies and maintenance, saving us a lot of time. And we have enough personnel to rotate shifts... Uh, speaking of which, sir, I have a feeling you want us to slow down?" Captain Pegsey looked at Sobek, a hint of malice in his eyes, and lowered his voice, saying, "It's no longer possible to passively avoid battle. Leaving aside Vice Admiral Nobof, Duke Barryon and Marshal Betaway's fleets are also behind us."

Who the hell wants to avoid war? Who the hell wants to be passive? Sobek rolled his eyes viciously.

So, how far are we from that person's fleet?

Just as he was mustering his courage to ask a question, the bridge rang with a communication alert, which came from the neighboring Dragon Ship, the Yijian.

When the communication was connected, the person who appeared in the window was not Viscount Shamaine as he had imagined, but another "old boss," Duke Gary Bayne.

When did this person get from the Libra to the Dragon Boat? They're so lively!

The Duchess wore an impeccable, warm smile and said gently, "You've had a good time, Lord Sobek. Oh, by the way, you can now address him as Earl of Moonlit Hill."