The stars, but they become the gray wind

"If...if Gilfias or I die in the assassination today, what will happen next?"

"It's much worse than you can imagine, believe me... You don't want to know, and the probability of that future is getting smaller and smaller. Of course, the probability of moving towards that future is still not zero."

"Okay, I've said everything I need to say, and it's time for me to go. But before I go, I'll give you one more piece of advice."

"Pure rationality doesn't exist. Sensibility is also a form of rationality. This applies to everyone and everything, including us. We are even more emotional than much more backward beings like you."

"Even He is the same. Otherwise, how could there be all kinds of life on the Sky Star?" Yuki added silently in his heart.

"Well... we'll see each other again. This won't be the last time I see you humans. I hope you can break the vicious cycle of history that countless civilizations have been unable to escape. Otherwise, I'll only witness your demise in the future."

After Yuki finished saying this, a vortex-shaped micro wormhole with rippling water opened behind him, and then he disappeared into the closed portal.

Reinhardt, who had been prompted several times by the other party in the room, fell into a deep silence.

On the dark side of an asteroid several astronomical units away in the space where the Vulture City Fortress was located, which Reinhard's entire fleet had not noticed, Yuki, who was teleported directly from the Vulture City Fortress back to the Time Infinity, planned to have a good "talk" with the unlucky merchant ship crew who had been left alone in the hangar of the spaceship.

…………

"Captain! There's someone outside... outside!"

"?!!"

Gonif hurriedly threw away the compressed biscuits in his hand and ran to the monitor screen. A girl with purple hair and delicate features, who looked like she had walked out of a fictional fantasy story, appeared outside the spaceship. The girl seemed to see Gonif observing her through the monitor outside the cabin, and looked up at the monitor outside the spaceship.

"Everyone, now that you are on my boat, how about coming out and talking to me?" Yuki said in the tone of a host.

"Is she... one of those aliens?" Gonny was a little unsure how to react to this young woman, whose appearance was even more exquisite than the most beautiful female celebrity he had ever seen. He had always believed that non-human extraterrestrial life forms would be covered in slime or tentacles, or have a pair of enormous eyes and a head disproportionate to their bodies. This "alien lady" on the surveillance camera clearly looked beyond his expectations.

The overly delicate girl on the monitor screen stretched out her hand and snapped her fingers, and all the hatches on the Beluska that were originally locked to the outside were opened.

"Captain, what should I do?"

"What else can we do? We're on someone else's ship, so we can only depend on what they say. She easily hacked into our ship's control system and opened all the hatches. If she really wants to do something to us, we won't be able to resist. We might as well go out and meet them first."

"First mate, you come with me. The others stay on the boat. Remember to be polite when we meet. I don't want them to think we're offending them."

Chapter 235: A Historic Meeting (6000 words)

Gonif swallowed nervously and looked at the exquisite purple-haired girl in a long dress standing outside the cargo hold door of the Beluska. As a shrewd businessman, Gonif was very good at observing people's expressions, but he had no idea what the mysterious alien girl was feeling not far away. She just stood there motionless, watching him and the first mate getting off the spacecraft. Behind the girl, there were two things that looked like some kind of spherical robots floating in the air, staring at Gonif and the first mate with their equally emotionless inorganic eyes and sensors.

"Dear... uh... Miss?" Goniff plucked up his courage and tried to greet the other party.

"I think I've figured out the reason why you're there."

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

"You only dared to sail your ship into our territory because of the high reward paid by Lord Fesha Lubinski. Am I right?"

"Excuse me, how did you..." Gonif was already sweating all over. He didn't expect that the first time he saw the other person, his underwear had been stripped off.

"Reading the memories in a few human brains is not a difficult task for us."

"What's more...some guy was smart enough to install this on your spaceship?" Yuki walked to a shell under the Beluska as if nothing had happened.

Yuki stretched out a hand, spread his five fingers, then clenched his fist and punched the titanium alloy shell under the Beluska.

With the power provided by the nanomechanical body that is tens of thousands times greater than that of humans, the titanium alloy shell several centimeters thick was easily deformed by Yuuki's fist. Then Yuuki grabbed the edge of the deformed titanium alloy ship board and tore it off with his bare hands. Under the stunned gaze of Gonif and the first mate, Yuuki took out a square metal box with a flashing red indicator light from the hull pipe under the torn titanium alloy bed board.

"The military-grade ship tracking device will regularly transmit the status information of the spacecraft and its specific coordinates."

"Your spacecraft has been sending signals outwards the entire time, and the one remotely monitoring your spacecraft is that self-righteous autonomous lord."

Looking at the seemingly fragile girl in front of him, who tore off a piece of armor plate from the spaceship with her bare hands, Gonif found that he had misjudged the situation again. The seemingly weak alien girl in front of him had the ability to crush his head with one hand. Moreover, Gonif was also annoyed that his ship had been installed with a positioning tracker without his knowledge. However, he did not dare to vent his anger in front of the alien girl, for fear of offending her. If he made her unhappy, then he would be in a desperate situation.

"Please believe us on this... We were also forced to do this. Moreover, we had no idea that that cunning bastard Lubinski actually installed a tracking device on our spacecraft."

"But it's true that you accepted the payment from that bald guy, right?"

"Please believe me. If I hadn't accepted it, I don't know if I could have left the house safely."

"You're quite honest, trying to survive. From what I can tell from your memory, there really isn't a big problem... But, you're quite brave to come onto our territory for no apparent reason and even attract a troublesome creature."

Yuki used a holographic projection on a drone to play the video of the Time Infinity rescuing the merchant ship Beluska from the Night Fighter, as well as the video recording of Gonif meeting with Rubinsky at his residence earlier.

Gonif was already sweating profusely as he realized that what the other party had just said about having the ability to read human memories was not a lie.

"That bald guy is quite self-righteous...does he think we'll just take the bait if he throws it?"

"It's fine if you plot against other humans, but you even plot against us. This is literally courting death."

"With your little tricks, even if we don't have the technology to read each other's memories without any obstacles, we can still guess it."

"That stupid bald guy has been addicted to the game of finance and capital for too long, right? Does he think that just because he has wealth, he has everything? His wealth and resources are nothing in our eyes." After Yuki finished speaking, he noticed that the legs of the first mate next to Gonif behind him were trembling a little.

"Don't act so scared. I have no ill will towards you. After all, you are just bait that guy used and discarded."

"What really disgusts us is that self-righteous bald guy who is deeply connected to a certain religion."

"Is he really so stupid as to think he can control everything? That's the funniest joke I've ever heard in my life."

"He's serious about playing tricks on a civilization with a closed time-like curve computer?"

"You're taking advantage of the unilateral information disparity and transparency, yet you're still trying to profit from us. Is your self-proclaimed lord's brain okay?"

Gonif was completely stunned and didn't dare to move. The other party had a very clear understanding of the sponsor of his trip, and he had been completely exposed. This was completely incomprehensible to Gonif, but thinking that the other party might really have the technology to read human memory at a glance, Gonif had to accept the reality that his information had been unilaterally transparent. All he was thinking about now was how to safely leave the other party's territory.

"Of course I'll let you all go, but I hope you can give me a message on behalf of that annoying bald guy."

"Don't think you can control the entire society just because you have the support of some annoying religious force. Whether it's Feisha where you are or the so-called religion that supports you, to us, they are nothing more than ants that can be easily killed."

"Please help me convey this message to that bald guy. As for your personal safety after you leave and return to Feisha."

"This... is not necessary, right? The safety of a few unknown people like us is not something that someone like you should worry about." Gao Nifu was so scared that he refused repeatedly.

"I also want you to pass on a message. Ensuring your safety on your return trip is just a piece of cake. What's more... it happens to be on our way."

"On the way?"

"To be more precise, there's another person going your way."

"As for who he is, you will soon find out."

Inside an Imperial standard battleship sailing towards the entrance of the Iserlohn Corridor, Admiral Merkaz silently watched the Iserlohn Corridor entrance getting closer and closer on the star map. For this battle-hardened veteran, there was no place for him in the current Empire. Before the Vulture City Fortress was occupied by Reinhardt's side, he had once planned to shoot himself to give himself the last bit of decency and dignity. As a result, when he took out the pistol in the room and prepared to commit suicide, he found that the battery of the pistol had been taken away by his adjutant, Major Schneider. As an adjutant who had followed him for many years, Major Schneider had long seen through Merkaz's thoughts and removed the battery of the laser pistol that Merkaz carried with him in advance.

After preventing the old man, who had treated him so well over the years, from committing suicide, Schneider offered Merkaz a suggestion: since Merkaz was unwilling to pledge allegiance to Reinhard, why not seek political asylum from the Alliance? Merkaz ultimately accepted the suggestion, and the two, along with a small number of soldiers and officers from the fortress, boarded one of the remaining Imperial-standard battleships within the fortress and headed for Iserlohn, now occupied by the Alliance, to seek political asylum. It was rumored that the renowned Yang Wei-li had recently been appointed commander of Iserlohn, following a major purge and shakeup of the Alliance's military and political leadership. Merkaz was eager to meet this talented young Alliance general.

Just when Merkaz's spaceship was about to reach the entrance of the Iserlohn Corridor, the radar operator on the bridge suddenly reported a piece of news that made everyone on the ship nervous.

"An unidentified ship appears 8 light seconds ahead!"

"What? How could this place possibly..."

"Zoom in the image and confirm the type of the enemy ship." Merkaz signaled his adjutant to remain calm.

"The ship doesn't meet the specifications for the corresponding type? What's this?!"

"That's right, the spaceship from the mysterious alien kingdom that appeared in that desolate black hole galaxy." Merkaz calmly followed up his adjutant's words. Merkaz had heard about the astronomical anomaly wormhole that suddenly appeared in a desolate galaxy and led to an alien kingdom, but seeing the spaceship from the alien kingdom here was completely beyond Merkaz's expectations.

"Report, the other party has sent a communication request!"

"Get in."

The face of a young girl who looked quite delicate and beautiful to Merkaz appeared on the big screen. She glanced at everyone on the bridge, then focused her gaze on the old man standing in the center of the bridge.

"Merkatz, right? A man whose family's lives were threatened by those unscrupulous nobles, forced to join the United Nobles. But unwilling to stay in the Empire controlled by Reinhard, he plans to seek political asylum in the Alliance?"

As soon as they met, Yuki immediately revealed all the information he had about the old man in the communication, causing Schneider, Merkaz's adjutant, to look slightly unhappy.

"Excuse me, Your Excellency, what are your thoughts on these matters?"

"I don't have any ideas... I just feel a little sorry for you, so... do you want to help?"

Yuki's completely unexpected words stunned all the officers and soldiers on the bridge, including Schneider.

"At your speed, it will take at least three days to reach Iserlohn Fortress, right? How about shortening your journey?"

"With the technical strength you possess, you don't actually need our consent at all, right?" Merkaz, who had been silent until now, suddenly said.

"That's true, but out of courtesy, I think it's better to ask you a little."

"So, do you guys need me to help you speed up a little bit?"

The officers and soldiers on the bridge all looked at Merkaz, the backbone of the entire ship.

"Since you, the honorable lady, are willing to come here in person and offer a helping hand to an old man like me, I shall be grateful for your kindness."

"Well, get ready."

"The enemy ship has disappeared!" The radar operator on the bridge reported loudly to Merkaz.

The next second, the Time-Like Infinity, with a length of nearly three thousand meters, appeared on the port side of the battleship where Merkaz was riding, amidst a burst of blue light from Cherenkov radiation.

The very next moment, everyone in Cambridge saw an incredible sight. The starry sky outside Cambridge began to distort, and all the outward signals were reflected back as if they had hit something.

However, this situation only lasted for less than 20 seconds before the starry sky outside the spacecraft returned to normal. What appeared before their eyes was the Iserlohn Fortress, a spherical artificial celestial body with a diameter of 60 kilometers that was extremely familiar to many officers and soldiers present.

…………

"What was that just now?" Major Schneider had not yet recovered from the strange physical phenomenon.

"Some kind of ultra-long-distance jump technology whose principle we don't know, and it can achieve a direct and precise jump to the front of Iserlohn Fortress." The knowledgeable Merkaz said calmly.

"This is truly...unprecedented technology." Major Schneider exclaimed as he looked at the Iserlohn Fortress that was almost within reach.

"If humans had this kind of technology, perhaps they wouldn't be in the dire situation they are in now?"

"Major Schneider, even with more advanced technology, things like this between the Empire and the Alliance will still happen. Perhaps with the help of more advanced jump engines, these conflicts can be delayed and covered up, but some things are ultimately unavoidable."

Because of the two warships that suddenly appeared in front, a shrill alarm sounded in the command room of Iserlohn Fortress. Yang hurriedly put on his hat and ran into the command room of the fortress.

"An unknown spacecraft, number two, appeared 1 kilometers ahead of the fortress."

"How could it be so close to a warning and reconnaissance satellite?"

"All surveillance satellites detected no traces of jumps or navigation, and no alarms were issued. The two ships appeared in that location suddenly."

"what?"

"I'm here. What happened?" Yang Weili adjusted the military cap he put on hastily and asked the sergeant on duty in the fortress control center.

"Two spaceships suddenly appeared ten thousand kilometers ahead of Iserlohn Fortress!"

"Turn up the picture and zoom in."

After seeing the appearance of the two spaceships clearly, Yang recognized the distinctive shape of the Time-Like Infinity and breathed a sigh of relief. However, when he looked at the other spaceship, his brows furrowed again, because it was an Imperial battleship.

At this time, a communications technician sitting at the operating table below pressed the communicator on his ear, as if he received something, and then he reported to Yang.

"The other party claims to be Lieutenant General Merkaz from the Empire and requests political asylum from us."

This communication immediately changed the atmosphere in the command room. Everyone was very confused as to why an imperial general would seek political asylum from the alliance at this critical juncture.

"It seems to be going well," Yuki commented after hacking into the fortress's surveillance system and witnessing the meeting between Yang Weili and Merkaz.

"What are you going to do with those guys on your ship?"

"Send him back to Feisha directly. Let them give that stupid bald guy a warning. If he doesn't listen, or if the Earth Cult behind him dares to do anything."

"We had no choice but to send him and the other guys from Earth to hell. Sometimes, these intelligent beings have this problem. Only when they feel pain do they know what not to do."

"We've confirmed the identities of all high-ranking Earthlings in Feisha. With just a flick of our finger, those guys will instantly lose consciousness. Or, even more ruthlessly, we could just make their heads explode in public. The former is relatively mild, while the latter, while a bit bloody, will be a better deterrent to those pesky guys."

…………

"He might be able to help you later."

Yuki said to Yang Weili on the screen.

"Can I assume that your word 'maybe' actually means 'certainly' or 'inevitably'?"

"That's not the case. The direction of history and civilization is often determined by the choices of individuals and groups of intelligent creatures. We don't deliberately observe your future. Our deliberate observation will only lead your future to a certain fateful mechanical determinism."

"So at least for now, your future is still uncertain. You are still in a state of being both dead and alive, just like the cat in the box."

"This won't be the last time we meet. If there's a chance we meet again, one of us would like to tell you a story."

"story?"

"Aren't you a history buff? You'll probably enjoy this story. It's about the past history of a real civilization in a certain universe."

"In some ways, this civilization's past is quite similar to the present Alliance and Empire."

"And they also faced almost the same difficulties as you do now at some point in their history."

"But they somehow managed to escape this predicament and became one of the most advanced and powerful super civilizations in the universe."

"Then can I know how that civilization got out of the predicament?" Yang was very curious about this, but Yuki on the other end of the communication shook his head.