TN: And we're back! sorry for the week long hiatus, it was not intentional since I had to get my right leg in a cast after tripping 3 floors down a stairwell (like an idiot ://) and be unable to use my PC setup upstairs BUT I should be OK now.
Anyways, Thanks for Arcanic Madness, WeissAkumu and WolfWTF for becoming as Supporters!,
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Aventurine's voice drifted over faintly. "Tell me—is my life enough?"
Jade nodded. "Enough. Of course it's enough. But…"
If it was a favor of this magnitude, then naturally no price would be too high.
But that sentence didn't carry only one meaning…
She asked curiously, "You mean the people of Sigonia-IV once saved you?"
The unspoken implication was clear—what methods could people from a place like that possibly have to save you?
"A bowl of water." After that flat statement, Aventurine let out a teasing smile. "Just a bowl of water. Do you think that's enough? Giving a bowl of clean water to someone about to die of thirst—that counts as a life-saving grace, doesn't it?"
With that, he patted his chest and said with fervent conviction, "Galaxy Rangers always repay their debts. Even a drop of kindness must be returned with a spring—so the favor of an entire bowl of water naturally deserves overwhelming wealth in return!"
After that impassioned declaration, his tone drooped again. "But well… just like you said, hardly any of us are willing to do business the way the Corporation does. Working a regular job is out of the question, so most of the time we get by on bounty commissions."
"Lately there haven't been enough interstellar fugitives for us to catch, so financially speaking… we're a little strapped."
"Ahem—not much. Just a little."
That "little" meant already being unable to support two completely non-combatant ordinary humans.
Listening to his momentum collapse like a landslide, the corner of Jade's eye twitched. "Haha. Haha. Well, that's really a pity."
She was utterly speechless, both in her heart and on her lips.
Still, she had to admit—this really was the Galaxy Rangers' style.
Grudges must be repaid, favors must be returned. Even when reduced to utter destitution, honor always came first.
Under normal circumstances, such an overwhelmingly "ranger-like" reason would have instantly made Jade, a corporate executive, lose all resonance and curiosity.
But this time was different.
Jade pinched her smooth chin and smiled mysteriously. She didn't think this explanation was false—but it was highly likely a smokescreen he had deliberately created.
And she had already completely seen through the true reason behind this transaction.
That reason was… saving the Silverchain Galaxy.
There was no mistake. This was a completely inverted pawn transaction.
The so-called collateral—the Silverchain Galaxy itself—was the ranger's true objective; while the compensation he demanded—the luxurious lives of those two women—was merely a distraction.
With this line of reasoning, he had dumped the burden of saving the Silverchain Galaxy squarely onto the Corporation's shoulders.
It had to be said—this plan was meticulous to an extreme.
Not only did he rescue the Silverchain Galaxy from the ion storm without spending a single credit, he even conveniently gained some profit along the way. Even though he gave that profit away as charity, it didn't change how flawless the plan was.
In the end, the one who truly reaped boundless gains without capital wasn't the Corporation—but this so-called "ranger."
"Heh." Jade let out a faintly mocking laugh. She was absolutely certain her deduction was correct, though she had no intention of exposing it.
Partly because the pawn transaction had already been completed, and partly because it truly had resolved the Corporation's urgent crisis.
As long as there were profits to be made, she was more than happy to play deaf and blind.
She said to Aventurine, "Alright, Mr. Ranger. Leave your contact information so we can coordinate follow-up matters. Otherwise, we'd never be able to find people as elusive as you."
But Aventurine shook his head. "No. There's no need. This is our first contact—and our last. Take good care of those two. Twenty years from now, if they want to leave with someone, do not place any coercion on them."
"If there's nothing else, I'm hanging up. Goodbye."
"Wait!"
Hearing how decisively he was about to disconnect, Jade grew suspicious again.
Could it be… that I was wrong?
She pressed on. "You're not afraid we'll go back on our word?"
"Of course not!" Aventurine sounded utterly relaxed in the face of her feigned threat. His voice was calm and profound. "Because we're the same. We're both extremists. We don't bind ourselves to ordinary moral standards—but once we acknowledge a principle, we'll defend it to the death."
That was precisely why he had chosen Jade. To her, the rules of a pawn transaction were iron law—even the power bestowed by Diamond paled in comparison.
"Alright. Goodbye, Lady Jade. Perhaps we'll meet again very soon."
"Hello? Hello?!" Listening to the beep beep beep of the disconnected call, Jade irritably tossed the communicator aside.
Being dissected so thoroughly by a complete stranger was truly infuriating.
But… he wasn't wrong.
Jade folded her arms and faced the floor-to-ceiling window.
The skyscrapers of Pier Point scattered the brilliance of the setting sun, illuminating her boundless ambition.
A pawn contract, once forged, is like flowing water carving mountains and forests—no one can shake it, save for time itself.
…
"Holy—hell~~"
Aventurine struggled up from the floor, rubbing his aching neck. As he surveyed the overly "modern" surroundings, he blanked out for a moment.
Only after looking outside the window did, he realize that [Zafkiel's Twelfth Bullet - Yud Bet] had already worn off.
He had just finished testing the effects of the combined [Reiji Maigo], and he was currently aboard a starship returning to the Luofu branch.
"Miscalculated. I should've fired it while lying on the bed."
Even with his formidable strength, lying face-down on an icy, rock-hard floor for two hours without preparation was still inevitably uncomfortable.
Suddenly, he muttered to himself in confusion, "Huh? Didn't my whole body time-travel? It wasn't just my soul—so why do I still get a stiff neck?"
"That is because, in order to ensure the continuity of your 'existence,' WE 'smoothed out' the fluctuations of time and spacetime."
A majestic voice rang out by his ear, raising goosebumps all over Aventurine's body.
Exposed?
"Who are you?!" He spun around abruptly, but there was no one beside him.
After a brief moment of thought, he asked respectfully, "Is it the Aeon of Equilibrium above?"
HooH's voice poured directly into Aventurine's mind. "Yes. Human, your actions were successful. Your objective has been achieved."
"Mm!"
This time, Aventurine finally erupted with joy.
His plan had truly succeeded! He had saved his family, dragged them back from the severed river of time!
"Then what about me? If I wasn't born on Sigonia-IV, how did I become one of the Ten Stonehearts?"
Just how much of history had changed—had he really gone from a slave who clawed his way upward to a bona fide rich young master?
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