Miss Star, spoiled by her father and brother

Chapter 642 Escape Pod

The starship stopped less than thirty meters ahead. The mercenary leader ran at full speed, his adrenaline soaring to its limit. Finally, he leaped and closed the hatch, keeping the laser outside.

"Boss! Open the door! I'm here too!"

"Boss! Please! Open it now..."

The mercenary leader ignored the pleas for help and cries for help from his brothers outside. He knew that hiding in the starship could only save their lives temporarily, and they were still far from being truly safe.

Fortunately, he was cautious by nature and kept a secret from everyone.

The cries for help outside quickly subsided. The mercenary leader got up from the ground, walked around the messy pile of Ula grass, and went to the starship's cockpit.

After quickly setting his destination and activating the autopilot function, he headed towards the lower level of the starship.

Hidden there is his life-saving device—an escape pod—which he purchased at great expense.

It is embedded in a rocket-shaped launcher, resembling a capsule, and is made entirely of Parker alloy, the hardest alloy in the universe. Even when cutting along the seams, it would take a laser drill working non-stop for three days to break through.

The interior is lined with high-density, flexible cushioning material, providing excellent support so that even in turbulent conditions, the person inside will not feel any jolting.

In addition, the life support system inside will release vaporized spray when the detection value reaches the red line, allowing the medicine to be absorbed by the body through the respiratory system and skin.

Depending on the customized features, such an escape pod can cost anywhere from ten million to over one hundred million Star Dollars.

The mercenary leader also considered that he was still young and would be making a living from this job for a long time to come, so he gritted his teeth and used his savings to buy one.

Before going down to the basement level, the mercenary leader passed by that pile of Ula grass again.

The thought of losing everything on this trip, including his wife and money, and squandering half his life savings, made him feel uneasy. Surely he should be compensated with something?

With a swift turn of his toes, the mercenary leader went back, picked up two pots of Ula grass, and carried them into the escape pod.

The starship started according to the programmed sequence and took off.

This scene was immediately captured by the Empire's fleet.

"Hey—still trying to run?"

The starship's weapons crew quickly aimed, but did not fire immediately.

Below is a cliff face; the soil and rocks cannot withstand the power of a weapon of mass destruction. Once it explodes, it will inevitably cause collapses, landslides, and other disasters.

Sifuss forbade it from the beginning.

All the soldiers waited patiently, until it rose to a relatively safe height, a height that wouldn't affect the ordinary people below—

Several homing missiles were launched simultaneously, and a huge explosion resounded through the sky.

The target starship lost its balance, and multiple systems began to sound alarms, yet it continued to rise. Judging from the way the hull was shaking, it wouldn't survive the second wave of attacks.

The soldiers were prepared to send him to his death in the sinking of the ship.

"Farewell, little deserter."

The soldier, with a confident smile on his face, pressed the launch button, but the next second, that smile turned into astonishment.

They watched helplessly as, just as the second batch of missiles was about to hit, a dark object was ejected from it and disappeared into the sky like a shooting star.

"General! Someone has escaped in an escape pod!"

Even without reporting it, the people in the command center saw this scene.

"They actually have this kind of equipment?" Kane asked in surprise. "They're quite afraid of death."

"General? Should we handle this?" The sergeant awaited instructions from Siforth.

"Don't worry about him."

"Yes."

This result was not unexpected to anyone.

The escape pods are small in size but have enormous external thrust, resulting in very high acceleration at startup. This is unmatched by any self-starting flight system. Moreover, their starship is still relatively stationary. By the time the speed increases, the escape pods will have long since disappeared.

However, this does not mean that the escape pod cannot be intercepted. Its approximate route can be simulated based on its flight path, and by deploying defenses in advance in front of its likely path, it can be stopped by external force.

However, the price to pay for this method is too high, and it's not worth it compared to a worthless life.

The present moment is the priority.

With the threat of hostages gone, the Imperial soldiers, no longer hesitant, worked with Black Knight and their "undercover teammates" to quickly complete the "cleanup" operation below.

Yves looked up at the sky, his hands hanging at his sides clenching quietly: "General Seifert, I have fulfilled your request as agreed. Now, can you let us go?"

Upon hearing the name, the federal soldiers bristled like hedgehogs, warily shielding Yves behind them and staring intently upwards as if facing a formidable enemy.

"Your Highness! We'll cover your return to the starship! Just like that person before, you can do it too!"

Yves made no move. He knew that if Siforth was determined to kill, they would have no way to escape.

A similar tactic might work the first time, but it might not work the second time, especially against someone as cunning and calculating as Siforth.

The chaos on the battlefield gave that person an opportunity. Now that only their group remains, with so many guns around, there's no chance for them to slip through.

Yves was filled with trepidation; their lives and deaths were entirely in the hands of Siforth.

If he breaks the contract...

To die at the hands of such a person is not a waste of his talent.

In those few seconds waiting for a reply, Yves had already begun to reflect on his not-so-long first half of life. Until Siforth's voice rang out, granting permission.

At that moment, Yves felt an inexplicable surge of gratitude.

"Of course, I keep my word. You and your men can leave now."

"But when you get back, I hope you know what you should and shouldn't say. Otherwise, I can't guarantee you won't run into trouble again someday."

Yves took a deep breath, stared intently upwards for a few moments, then turned and walked toward the starship.

The soldiers followed him, retreating while maintaining vigilance.

Even after leaving the atmosphere of Planet Goodell and entering outer space, everyone still felt it was all very unreal.

"He just let us go like that?"

"Don't let your guard down. There might be ambushes along the way. We must remain vigilant until we enter the Federation's star system," Yves said solemnly.

"Yes!"

"Your Highness, what did you experience inside? How could it be Sifus!"

"Yes! If we had known it was him, we would never have agreed to let you go up there. It's too dangerous!"

Yves pinched the bridge of his nose: "I underestimated him before. Seifer is a very complex person. If I could, I really wouldn't want to fight him again."

"Your Highness, please don't think like that! He's just relying on his military advantage this time. If we were on the same scale, the outcome would be uncertain!"

Yves smiled wearily: "Perhaps."

"By the way, do you still have the bamboo tubes you're carrying?"

The soldiers felt their pockets and each pulled out several bamboo tubes about two fingers wide.

Pulling out the stopper, a strange yet fragrant medicinal aroma quickly filled the entire space, making one feel refreshed and relaxed.

This was scavenged from the indigenous people before reaching the final source of raw materials.

Children aren't so tight-lipped; with a little manipulation, a threat, or a bit of coaxing, they'll confess everything.

Thinking about how he had killed so many people in the mountains without searching them, Yves felt as if he had lost billions.

Fortunately, it wasn't a complete waste. These serums, which are used up little by little, at least provided some psychological comfort.