BATTLE FOR STARS

This was a stretch of deep blue ocean, incredibly calm and beautiful. A small island-like resort hotel floated over the water, more than a hundred meters in the air, everything exuding an air of tranquility.

Suddenly, an elliptical spacecraft intruded into the space, circling twice before descending directly onto a spot on the island.

The door of the craft popped open lightly, and a blonde beauty of about twenty-five or twenty-six emerged, dressed in military uniform, radiating elegance and command.

From her uniform, it was clear she was a lieutenant in the Confederation army. She shook her long hair gently, glanced around, and then walked straight toward the center of the island.

Before long, she arrived at a thicket, where a fifteen-year-old girl was sleeping soundly among the bushes.

The lieutenant didn’t approach immediately. Instead, she pulled a small box from her pocket. Soon, it emitted a loud clattering sound. The young girl slowly opened her eyes, brightening as she recognized the source: “Cousin, what are you doing here?”

“Princess, it’s time to wake up; it’s already afternoon,” the lieutenant said with a smiling gaze.

“Come and pull me up,” the girl said, pouting, stretching her hands, acting coquettishly.

“I don’t want to fall into the pool,” came the calm reply from the lieutenant.

“Fine, you caught me,” the girl admitted, rolling over. With a wave of her hand, the bushes vanished. A closer look revealed that the girl was lying on an air mattress, floating in the middle of a giant swimming pool, while the lieutenant stood less than half a meter from the edge.

“Princess, this device of mine is military grade; your little tricks won’t fool it,” the lieutenant said, pointing to the retinal display in her eye.

The girl lay comfortably in the pool, wearing nothing but a thin scarf. Her private nap had been interrupted, but she lightly moved her fingers, and the air mattress floated to the poolside.

“Cousin, how do you have time to come visit me here?” the girl asked as she got out of the pool and draped a simple nightgown over herself.

“In a few days, I’m heading to the border for a mission. I heard you were vacationing here, so I thought I’d drop by,” the lieutenant replied cheerfully, helping the girl to a nearby lounge chair.

“You’ve risen quickly in the past few years. Now a lieutenant… you must be commanding a ship by now?”

“Just promoted. I’m currently the commander of an assault ship.”

“The border’s been busy these past few years, hasn’t it?” the girl asked.

“Yes. The Hill Empire’s provocations have been frequent, but the Confederation has tried to avoid conflict, even giving up some planets to prevent a larger war,” the lieutenant explained.

The girl pondered. “Our kingdom’s manpower is still that scarce?”

“Scarcer than before. The more frequent the wars, the more people we need,” the lieutenant said with a smile. “You know, the more comfortable life is, the less people want to take risks.”

“So that’s why Father arranged your marriage to the Harris family?” the girl frowned.

“They’ve developed a new information transmission method, supposedly unbreakable and hard to interfere with. If the fleet adopts it, we could greatly reduce onboard personnel, and the military even plans to develop an unmanned fleet.”

The girl chuckled. “Unbreakable? Does such a code really exist in the universe?”

“The tech department has verified it. For now, it’s unbreakable,” the lieutenant replied.

“Still using marriage to secure alliances? Just one word from you, and Father could cancel the order. Yet a rebellious Hill family here makes so many demands,” the girl said indignantly.

“It doesn’t matter. Some people just trust the old-fashioned marriage guarantees. Even if you gave them a whole star system, they’d still feel insecure,” the lieutenant reassured the princess.

Her brothers… “With so many wives, which of them haven’t faced similar situations? I’m just a collateral branch, so marrying into them doesn’t matter. Maybe that Harris heir is just my type.”

“You must be joking,” the girl said, disbelief on her face.

“Of course. I haven’t even seen him. If I’m not satisfied, they at most get one of my eggs. What else could they have?”

“Having part of yourself taken by others… feels strange,” the girl muttered, unwilling to accept it.

“Don’t be so sentimental. Things might not be as bad as you think.”

“Maybe…” The girl’s frown deepened.

“What’s wrong?”

“An urgent message just came in—from Planet 1573.”

“1573?”

“Known as Earth. I knew you’d be interested, otherwise why would you change your name to Yang Xi after returning, instead of Claudia?” the girl said mischievously.

“I just liked the sound. My official name is still Claudia; Yang Xi is just a private nickname,” the lieutenant explained.

“Fine, I won’t pry into your secret. But do you want to see the message from 1573?”

“If you’re willing, show me,” the lieutenant said expressionless.

“Alright, it’s nothing important.” The girl waved her hand, and a screen appeared between them, displaying an application.

The lieutenant quickly skimmed it. “It’s from someone named Ding Yufei, requesting medication for a local disease, spinal muscular atrophy, for his classmate… Am I right?”

“Exactly,” the girl confirmed.

“Who is Ding Yufei?”

“That’s another secret of mine,” the girl said, smiling.

“Princess… How will you respond? This medicine is common here, isn’t it?”

“Yes, but by regulation, outsiders can’t use it. Last time an exception was made. This time it’s a classmate, a female classmate—no, it’s not approved.” She stamped the screen with a denial symbol, and the screen disappeared.

“You’ve already made an exception before… You must be quite close to this Ding Yufei,” the lieutenant’s smile hinted at something.

“Yes, we’re close, but I won’t tell you,” the girl said, hugging the lieutenant’s waist as they playfully wrestled.