Time: 2 days

  before fleet boarding.

  A hidden red envelope popped up in the

  corner of the holographic screen. "New Encrypted Message Received.

  Source: Dark Web Node."

  Karl opened it. Only one line of text

  appeared: "Contract signed. Effective immediately."

  Karl’s fingers tapped the table

  unconsciously twice. He took a deep breath and ordered in a low voice: "Mother,

  forward the confirmation of this Contract to Dr. Irene Zhang using my DNA

  encryption. Tell her to send the agreed coordinates to the other party."

  "Command confirmed. Encrypting...

  Sending... Sent successfully."

  Time:

  Countdown to Gemini Sector - 30 Days Location: Military Prisoner

  Transport Ship (Hades Formation)

  Karl received a message from Marcus Drake

  through a secret channel. The location for the transaction had been set: Keres-7

  It was a gray, dead star along the route,

  perpetually shrouded in clouds of concentrated sulfuric acid. Only the

  underground black market ports flickered with the neon glow of greed—a paradise

  for criminals.

  The cargo—the latest batch of "Elysium

  Echo

  Karl knew it was impossible for him to pick

  up the goods himself. Once he stepped off this heavily monitored ship, he might

  never come back, or he would meet with an "accident" in the void.

  So, who to send?

  Two candidates floated into his mind.

  The first was Tyler Hayes, the Security Platoon Leader. According to the military promotion

  ladder, a Vice Commander usually required the seniority of a Colonel, yet Karl

  was excessively young. Admiral Heinrich Brenner had promoted Karl under the

  guise of being "alumni," but there was a knife hidden behind that

  gesture.

  Drake paved the road in the shadows;

  Brenner arranged the pieces in the light. If anything went wrong during the

  weapon handover, or if the disposal process for the old equipment wasn't clean

  enough, Karl, as the Adjutant, would be the perfect scapegoat

  Hayes was respectful to Karl, never

  disobeying an order, perfect like a walking military rulebook. But every time

  Karl turned his back, he felt a chill on his neck, as if stared at by a viper.

  Hayes had been parachuted into this unit a few years ago. His file was blank,

  his conduct low-profile, but he was dangerous to the extreme.

  The second was the Guard Chief. A social butterfly who danced well with everyone. He was only

  responsible for the cell blocks and escort channels, reporting to Karl every

  time the cells were opened. He was extremely skilled at figuring out what

  people wanted to hear, blowing small matters into extravagant tales without

  being annoying. But he was too noisy. He couldn't keep a secret.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  Karl sat in the dim lounge, fingertips

  tapping the table rhythmically. He felt like he was sealed in a box where no

  light could enter. Sand was seeping in through the cracks, burying his mouth

  and nose bit by bit. His chest began to feel tight, his knuckles ached from

  tapping, his breathing grew shallower, and sweat trickled down his back.

  He stopped his hand and opened the drawer.

  The oval metal sphere lit up, projecting a photonic image into mid-air.

  "Brother, do you remember when we were

  little? Mom always took you and me to the museum..." Annie’s figure

  shimmered in the light and shadow, her smile pure. "I saw those exhibits

  about Old Earth, especially the pyramids... I've always thought, if one day I

  could be an archaeologist, I hope to find my own pyramid in this sea of

  stars..."

  Karl’s throat felt squeezed by an invisible

  hand, making it hard to breathe. She wasn't his birth mother, but she was the

  woman who gave him the warmth of a "home." She didn't live to see

  Annie grow up, didn't live to see Annie wear a wedding dress.

  If he died, would he go to Crowley

  to face judgment in Hell? Or confess to his mother in God's Heaven?

  Drake used Karl to gain jurisdiction.

  Brenner used Karl as a shield. Everyone was calculating him, using him. He was

  like this butterfly imprisoned in the metal sphere; no matter how hard he beat

  his wings, he couldn't fly out of this cage.

  Call for help? To whom? To God? If God

  truly existed, if He was omnipotent, why didn't He open His eyes and look at

  this prison ship floating in the darkness? Look at these helpless people?

  "Who can I trust?" "Who

  would dig a handful of earth for me?"

  Make a deal with Crowley? What did he have?

  Money? Fame? Those were jokes in Crowley's eyes. The only thing of value might

  be his own soul.

  "If my love and concern for Annie is

  the last shred of light in my heart... would Crowley accept this trade?"

  Time passed in chaotic thoughts. The ship

  vibrated slightly, and the lights flickered briefly. Suddenly, "Mother's"

  voice broke the dead silence:

  "Karl, Engineering Captain Yuri

  Volkov requests a comms connection. He wants to discuss maintenance matters

  regarding the ship's weaponry."

  Yuri Volkov.

  Karl’s finger froze.

  This man was the most unique anomaly on the

  ship. As an engineering captain, his obsession with mechanical structures

  bordered on madness. But more than that, he was a fanatical believer in God

  He often said that everything in the

  universe—the rotation of galaxies, the vibration of atoms, the gravitational

  constant—was a masterpiece of Intelligent Design. If there were even a

  tiny deviation, the entire universe would collapse instantly. He scoffed at

  atheists, saying those people were like apes from Old Earth trying to play

  Blackjack with their claws, attempting to understand the rules of poker.

  Volkov had a family. Two newborn daughters

  who smiled cutely in videos. His wife was an artist who loved playing the piano

  and dancing.

  Karl looked at the rotating image of Annie

  in his hand, and a crazy, bold idea formed in his mind.

  If Volkov saw Annie... saw those abilities

  that violated the laws of physics... what would the man who held "God's

  Precision Design" as truth think? Would he think she was a devil? Or...

  Would he think she was a Messenger of God? A golden "Stigmata"

  left by the Lord in the chaos?

  If it was the latter... Then, could this

  man, who valued faith more than life, complete this shady transaction for him?

  Could he secure those modified weapons without anyone knowing?

  Karl stared at the flashing

  "Connection Request" on the holographic screen, his eyes gradually

  turning deep and dangerous.

  "Mother, put him through."

  -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  【Epilogue】

  (Crowley's Monologue)

  Karl von Reiss. You are examining your net. Do you want to use this net to catch

  yourself, to linger on in your last gasp? Or do you want to catch billions of

  souls, to ignite the entire universe for that faint glimmer of light?

  No matter how you cut this, blood will

  flow. The moment you decided to sell your soul to faith, you were no longer a

  chess player. You became the chessboard

  I look forward to your choice.

  (End of Chapter 122)

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