VAP - Chapter 107
Chapter 107: The Federal Marshal's Journey is the Sea of Stars (3)
“Hello, viewers in front of your screens. I’m Elda, a reporter for Radiant Military stationed on the Capital Star.”
On the translucent, light-blue screen, the female reporter with fluffy red hair smiled, her tone light and cheerful.
“I’m sure you all know which big shot I’m interviewing today, right? That’s right, she’s the Federation’s First Marshal, Sheng Xuejiu!”
Yue Du was looking down, reviewing data on Sentinels and Guides. This information would be considered completely classified to ordinary people, but even though she currently showed no signs of awakening, getting it wasn’t difficult—after all, at her core, she was still a System.
As she read, she devoted part of her attention to the female reporter on the screen.
It was a live StarNet broadcast.
It was categorized under the political and military channel, yet the stream’s popularity was a huge cut above the peak popularity of the entertainment channel at the same time. Looking at the bullet comments scrolling rapidly across the bottom of the screen, more than half were anticipating Marshal Sheng’s magnificent beauty.
Yue Du sighed silently.
As expected, no matter the era, it was all about looks.
The interview was taking place at the public reception office of the Capital Star’s military district. Elda pushed open the door, and the first thing she saw was the woman sitting behind a large desk.
Indifferent, pure black eyes, a neat military uniform, and her signature long, pale gold hair scattered casually, so brilliant it was dazzling.
This was Sheng Xuejiu.
As the Federation’s First Marshal, Sheng Xuejiu should have been on a border planet fighting the Zerg. However, it was currently a low-frequency period for Zerg activity, so she had returned from the border to the Capital Star and would likely remain in the military district for the next few months.
“It’s such a pleasure to meet you, Marshal Sheng.” Elda proactively extended her hand.
Sheng Xuejiu grunted in acknowledgment, her eyes lifting slightly. “A handshake won’t be necessary. My time is limited. What do you want to ask?”
Elda: “…”
Although she had long known the Marshal had a bad temper, such a direct refusal still made her freeze for a moment.
The reporter naturally withdrew her hand and sat down opposite Sheng Xuejiu.
Yue Du’s attention shifted completely from her data to the screen. The live footage, recorded by a camera drone, was much more vivid than a poster.
Suddenly, the screen showed a close-up of her profile. The contrast between her pure, deep black eyes and her pure, cold white skin made it impossible to look away.
The bullet comments refreshed even faster.
“Aaaaaah, I could stare at Marshal Sheng’s face for eight lifetimes!”
“This is what they call ‘could live off her looks but insists on using her strength...’”
“Marshal Sheng, Marshal Sheng, look at me!! Excuse me, do you still need a Guide? The kind who is well-behaved, sensible, not clingy, and good at mental soothing—”
These were hardly the kind of comments a proper military interview should have; it was basically just genuine, heartfelt fangirling.
Yue Du snapped the file shut and listened intently to the interview.
Sheng Xuejiu was clearly not invested in this interview. Her answers were as brief as could be, but fortunately, they were all to the point, so the reporter’s efforts weren’t a complete waste.
For example, the situation at the border was indeed somewhat volatile. The Zerg Broodmother had vanished without a trace, as in previous years, but the King Zergs had remained behind. The situation was still under control.
For example, in two months, it would be enrollment day for the major Sentinel and Guide academies on the Capital Star, and the Marshal might attend in person.
Furthermore, the Marshal had returned to the Capital Star and would not be leaving for six months, but this was not due to the effects of mania or fugue states; her mental state was perfectly fine.
Almost all Sentinels could exhibit symptoms of mania or fugue, and the more powerful they were, the more susceptible they were.
If a Sentinel without a dedicated Guide fell into a state of chaos and disorder, the probability of them recovering was even lower than the probability of awakening after the age of eighteen.
Sheng Xuejiu was a Sentinel without a Guide.
Many people were secretly worried about her mental state. There had been conspiracy theories that Marshal Sheng had returned to the Capital Star because a fugue state had made her unable to remain on the battlefield, forcing her to be sent back.
Now that they knew the Marshal wasn’t ill, everyone could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
After the serious questions were over, Elda glanced at the camera drone and asked, “Marshal Sheng, you must know that this interview is being broadcast live on the StarNet. Fifty million viewers within the Federation are watching right now. Is there anything you’d like to say to them?”
Elda opened her own screen and showed Sheng Xuejiu the constantly refreshing bullet comments.
Sheng Xuejiu glanced at it, her expression blank. “Oh.”
Elda waited and waited. “So, what would you like to say?”
“What I want to say is ‘Oh.’ Nothing else.”
…A living conversation killer.
Sheng Xuejiu seemed impervious to both gentle persuasion and threats. Her face was cold, and she was impatient with conversation.
Elda had a headache, worried the interview wouldn’t be long enough. The instinctive admiration for beauty and respectful fear of the First Marshal she’d felt before meeting her had now mostly transformed into helplessness.
She tried to use the Guides in the comments who were frantically expressing their affection as a topic, but the Marshal remained indifferent.
Aren’t you a Sentinel?
Don’t they say that the stronger the Sentinel, the more they crave a Guide?
You don’t look the least bit interested!
The female Sentinel standing nearby, also in uniform and looking like an adjutant, shrugged and gave her a look that said: The Marshal doesn’t like interviews. This is just her temper. Please bear with her.
Elda: “…”
As a reporter, this was the kind of interviewee she feared most. No wonder her seniors had all looked at her with such melancholy and sympathetic eyes before she left.
Elda made a swift decision and pulled the adjutant into the conversation, which finally livened up the atmosphere a little.
She was having such a hard time.
Several seconds after the broadcast ended, Yue Du realized she was still looking at the screen, even though it had already returned to an empty, light blue.
After reviewing the data, Yue Du was certain that with her abilities, she could disguise herself as an outstanding Sentinel in all respects. As long as no Guide tried to perform a mental soothing for her, no one would notice anything was wrong.
However, with technology at its current level of development, there was, of course, equipment that could detect the physiological differences between Sentinels, Guides, and ordinary people.
This equipment was basically only used during registration as a Sentinel or Guide. That wasn’t a problem; as a System, she could solve it by hacking the internal network.
Disguising herself as a Guide, however, would be more difficult. It was very hard for a System to simulate the method Guides used for mental soothing.
The mind and the brain had always been delicate things. Cases where they were completely destroyed by a small mistake were not unheard of.
Since she could disguise herself as a Sentinel, there was no need to take that risk.
Yue Yao had just graduated from high school and was about to enter a higher academy for further studies. She hadn’t filled out a single application yet.
She applied to the Sentinel major at the Capital Star’s First Military Academy.
The interview had mentioned that Sheng Xuejiu was paying attention to academy admissions. What’s more, the First Military Academy held its freshman military training at the Capital Star’s military district every year. This was another good opportunity to get close to the host.
Currently, among the human population, the ratio of Sentinels and Guides was stable at around seven percent, nearly the same as the ratio for the people of the Spiral Star System.
The number of Sentinels was almost three times that of Guides. With such a disparity, many Sentinels who weren’t strong enough were unable to bond with a Guide.
Sheng Xuejiu also had no Guide, but she did not belong to the ranks of the weak.
She had never received mental soothing from a Guide, yet she had never shown any signs of losing control. Despite this, the characteristic trait unique to Sentinels—irritability—was still on full display.
This day was enrollment day for the Capital Star’s First Military Academy.
Sheng Xuejiu was lounging lazily on the sofa, looking at her optical computer.
She lived in the Sentinel dormitory building in the military district. To accommodate the overly keen senses of Sentinels, the soundproofing here was excellent. The walls, doors, and windows were all made of the most advanced materials, guaranteeing that not even the sound of gunfire from the adjacent training grounds could be heard.
Marshal Sheng lived alone, doing whatever was most comfortable for her, and had decorated the place like an empress’s bedroom.
A communication request suddenly popped up on her optical computer. It was from her adjutant, He Yin.
Sheng Xuejiu accepted it casually.
“Marshal, have you forgotten your schedule for today?”
Sheng Xuejiu raised an eyebrow. “Do I? I’m on leave today.”
“You’re on leave because of this arrangement—”
He Yin was on the verge of tears.
Before being promoted to Sheng Xuejiu’s adjutant, she had always idolized her. Such a beautiful, powerful, cool, yet gentle person—she was a role model for all Sentinels!
She hoped that one day she too could become someone like the Marshal.
And the result? On the very first day He Yin came into close contact with her as her adjutant, that perfect image collapsed like an avalanche.
Her stunning beauty was real, but the woman couldn’t be bothered to maintain it. She wore her hair down every day because she was too lazy to tie it up, and she always wore her uniform because she was too lazy to buy clothes!
Her invincible strength was also real, but she was always looking for people to spar with in the combat simulator. After completely dominating them, she would even taunt them. What happened to being gentle and considerate to her own people?
Only her ruthlessness when killing Zerg matched her rumored image, although sometimes He Yin felt the Marshal’s expression when looking at humans and the people of the Spiral Star System was no different from when she looked at the Zerg.
Her idol had fallen.
Now, He Yin was used to it. She did her job as an adjutant, and when she saw young soldiers who looked up to the Marshal, she would even wear the expression of one who had been through it all.
You’re all still too young.
But this time, He Yin couldn’t remain calm.
“Marshal, you have to know, you explicitly mentioned the military academy’s enrollment day during your interview with Radiant Military. The entire Federation knows you’ll be there today. You can’t…”
Sheng Xuejiu remained slouched on the sofa, unmoving. “However, the word I used was ‘might.’ Might. I didn’t say I definitely would.”
He Yin: “Marshal!”
This wasn’t the time for word games! The First Military Academy had already made all the preparations!
But she didn’t dare press her too much; Sheng Xuejiu’s temper could hardly be called good. Especially on the battlefield, the ferocity with which she killed Zerg… it wasn’t mania, but it was worse than mania. It was terrifying.
He Yin sighed and began to consider what excuse to give the military academy.
Suddenly, Sheng Xuejiu spoke.
“Fine, I’ll go.”
He Yin reacted quickly. “That’s wonderful! The welcome ceremony is in three hours. I’ll send a flyer to pick you up right away.”
Sheng Xuejiu: “Mm.”
She ended the communication and stood up, bored.
Why had she decided to go after all?
Probably because of a so-called Sentinel’s intuition. Whatever, it wasn’t like she had anything better to do.
At the same time, Yue Du walked through the military academy’s gates.
Today was enrollment day.
Nominally, it was enrollment day, but in reality, the theoretical exams and re-examinations had already been completed on various planets. Those who passed were prospective cadets, and they were here on campus for the final selection and the welcome ceremony.
The final round of selection was a meeting between the instructors of each major and the students. It was basically just a formality; very few were eliminated.
Yue Du had registered as a Sentinel a month ago.
Those parents of hers, who rarely came home, heard the news and even made a special trip back to celebrate.
The two of them were overjoyed, especially Yue Yao’s mother, who said with tears in her eyes, “I knew Yao Yao would awaken. As expected of my daughter.”
If Yue Du had previously held reservations about the information Yue Yao had left on the StarNet—regarding all her parents’ faults—then after seeing them in person, she was finally certain that their feelings for “Yue Yao” were indeed not deep.
The fact that their daughter had awakened as a Sentinel made them more jubilant than their daughter herself. The husband and wife were more like business partners than a family living together.
Weak family ties were not uncommon in this era.
After Yue Du registered, the Capital Star’s First Military Academy sent a confirmation verifying her eligibility to apply and informing her of the preliminary exam time.
The preliminary test was a theoretical exam conducted on the StarNet.
The re-examination tested physical fitness, with requirements that differed depending on the major.
The Sentinel major had the highest physical fitness requirements—after all, Sentinels themselves were physically stronger than ordinary people.
Yue Du passed everything. A check of her composite score on the official website showed she ranked fifteenth in the Federation, and she had received her acceptance letter ten days ago.
Originally, she had planned to score somewhere in the middle, but due to a miscalculation, her results ended up in the top twenty.
It was a small hassle, but it didn’t matter, so Yue Du didn’t think about it anymore.
She walked toward the assembly point indicated on the notice.
“The Marshal is coming today…”
“I’m so nervous. Do you think she’ll notice me?”
“The chances are slim. The Head Guide has been publicly pursuing her and hasn’t gotten a response, right? Let alone ordinary Guides like us.”
“Maybe the Marshal likes women, that’s why she ignores him.”
The ones speaking near Yue Du were two girls in uniform. Judging by their tone, they were probably upperclassmen from the Guide major, and also admirers… or rather, devotees of Sheng Xuejiu.
Listening to them, Yue Du felt a strange sensation.
This was the first time she had so clearly realized that the host had many, many real-world admirers.
In the previous two worlds, Nai Yin’s reputation across the continent was poor, while Yun Yijiu was too high and unattainable. Others always regarded them with more fear than respect, let alone admiration.
Qi Jiu’s situation was different from those two. She was too lazy to be famous, so few people knew her, and she had few admirers.
This time, the host was the Marshal of the entire Federation. In an era with a highly developed information network, no matter how tyrannical and terrifying she was, there would still be countless people who genuinely loved her for her legendary deeds. Oh, and her face. It was mainly her face.
—For example, Yue Yao and these two upperclassmen from the Guide major.
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