Cannon fodder in the Interstellar

Hebrew Adam fearlessly leaped through the air to catch Ruo Manni. If Ruo Manni hadn’t quickly pulled out a capsule apartment from her jade pendant space and thrown it to the ground, the impact would have been much worse. The expanding capsule apartment absorbed some of the force, but given that Hebrew was only at the early stages of Level 6 as a martial artist at the time, he would have been seriously injured without it.

Even so, because they were falling too fast, the capsule apartment had just begun to expand and couldn’t fully offset the impact. As a result, Hebrew Adam’s legs were mildly fractured upon landing, while Ruo Manni, cradled in his arms, only suffered minor scrapes.

On another occasion, the two were both badly injured in a massive explosion, and they were soon pursued by a large group of enemies. Despite being in pain, Hebrew Adam silently endured it, lying to Ruo Manni by saying he was only lightly injured. He carried Ruo Manni, who had hurt her leg and couldn’t move swiftly, out of danger. In the end, due to severe blood loss, he was forced to lie in a medical pod for a full day and night to recover.

Such a young man, despite any flaws he might have, was undeniably courageous, intelligent, and resolute.

So why, in the novel, was he portrayed as such a hopeless playboy, a person who couldn’t be shaped into anything useful? No matter how Ruo Manni looked at it, it didn’t seem like he was the same person at all.

However, Ruo Manni was certain that Hebrew Adam wasn’t someone who had transmigrated or reincarnated. In the past, due to the stark differences between Hebrew Adam and the character in the novel, she had suspected him of being a reincarnator and had tested him many times. As a result, Ruo Manni was sure that Hebrew Adam was a genuine, native individual.

No matter which lifetime, Hebrew Adam was a native of this world, yet the vast differences between his two lives made it hard to believe they were the same person. The more Ruo Manni thought about it, the more suspicious she felt about the whole situation.

It was during the time when Hebrew Adam had carried Ruo Manni to safety that, while sitting by his recovery pod waiting for him to heal, Ruo Manni once again pondered this inconsistency. Suddenly, an idea flashed through her mind. She recalled certain scenes from the novel and realized something new.

Upon closer examination of a few specific scenes in the novel, they now appeared to hint that the eldest prince had intentionally shaped Hebrew Adam into a playboy in his previous life.

Even if the eldest prince wasn’t a reincarnator in his previous life, with his intelligence—capable of finding a path for humanity even in the most desperate situations—turning his younger brother, who was in his rebellious phase, into a spoiled and irresponsible person would have been easy. His methods were likely so clever that even Queen Amber didn’t notice.

In this life, however, the reborn eldest prince had changed significantly in both mindset and strategy. For him now, the survival of humanity was likely the top priority, with the battle for the throne becoming secondary. After all, if the nation fell and the people were lost, what use would it be to rule an empty shell of a kingdom?

In such a future scenario, especially for someone like the eldest prince who has been reborn, it’s certain that he would be extremely protective of talented individuals.

Because of the scheming in his previous life, the eldest prince must have known that his younger brother was not actually incompetent and that with proper nurturing, he could become capable. Therefore, he worked hard to steer his younger brother away from the path of a playboy, which is why the second prince in this life is completely different from the one in his previous life.

Although Ruo Manni felt that her thoughts were somewhat conspiracy-driven, she believed that because of Queen Amber’s ambition, the eldest prince’s best option for a peaceful succession was to not have to kill his brother, but rather to raise him to be someone who couldn’t accomplish much, which was the best choice he had.

Ruo Manni didn’t think that the eldest prince’s actions in his previous life were cruel or heartless; instead, she lamented that Queen Amber was consistently self-destructive in both lives. Her actions had harmed the second prince.

In the video, the press conference officially began. The eldest prince, Xiahai Adam, and the second prince, Hebrew Adam, both dressed in matching princely ceremonial uniforms, walked up to the podium one after the other.

Ruo Manni didn’t know what others were thinking; all she knew was that she couldn’t help but become a fan.

Both princes, in their royal military uniforms, were tall, handsome, and strikingly good-looking.

“The eldest prince is really so handsome! He truly is the man that all the girls in our Gus Empire want to marry,” Sheila said, starry-eyed.

Ruo Manni noticed that Tamaki Kazia was looking at her with a sour expression but didn’t say anything. He just stared hard at Sheila, but the lovestruck girl was completely oblivious to it.

“Is that really the case? I haven’t heard anything about it,” Ruo Manni asked eagerly, as she hadn’t seen any discussions about it online.

“You’ve been stuck on that desolate star for so long; how would you know anything?” Sheila scoffed. “Besides, the eldest prince is your cousin. No matter how outstanding he is, it doesn’t concern you—you just have to stand aside.”

Ruo Manni was at a loss for words after Sheila’s jab hit home. Her ultimate idol, whom she had adored in both lives, had turned out to be her own cousin. She couldn’t even articulate the mixed feelings inside her.

If he weren’t her cousin, given her current status, she might have had a chance to pursue him and play out a prince-and-princess romance. Unfortunately, there was never any opportunity from the very beginning.

Wait, there is still a chance! If she wanted a prince, there was also the second prince, who at least had no blood relation within six generations and was a distant cousin five thousand miles away. Ruo Manni suddenly had a lightbulb moment, as if her mind had been poisoned, and thought of this scenario.

Ruo Manni looked at the video of Hebrew Adam standing side by side with the eldest prince, and she noticed that he was even slightly taller than the eldest prince. Although he was still under twenty and technically a minor (I’ve forgotten what age I set for adulthood earlier, and I can’t find it, so I’ll clarify here: in this world, both men and women come of age at twenty), his handsome face no longer showed any signs of boyishness. Instead, he appeared calm and composed, and his demeanor bore a striking resemblance to that of the eldest prince.

As the eldest prince, Xiahai Adam was the first in line to the throne and had already grasped real power. It was no surprise that he was the first to speak, and the discussion revolved around him.

The eldest prince’s voice was steady and powerful, perfectly matching his image. His speaking style was formal and official, yet it conveyed a sense of stability and reliability.

During his speech, the eldest prince solemnly acknowledged that most of the content in the scandalous posts was true. He also shared the information the empire had about the Yunkai people that could be disclosed.

The eldest prince confirmed that there was substantial evidence of the Yunkai people planning to attack the Gumera star region. To avoid causing panic among the populace, the empire had chosen to keep this event under wraps. Initially, they had planned to disclose this information to the public after all their preparations were complete. However, since it had been leaked prematurely, the empire was forced to revise the public announcement date.

Upon hearing the eldest prince confirm the existence of the Yunkai threat, the crowd at the live event displayed serious expressions. This was indeed a heavy matter, and even those who were psychologically prepared felt a weight in their hearts.

Even those like Ruo Manni, who already knew the inside story, felt serious and heavy-hearted after hearing the eldest prince’s speech.

However, the audience present did not show any signs of panic or anger due to the empire’s previous concealment. Instead, they accepted this shocking event with a surprisingly calm attitude.