Legacy of the Void Fleet

Chapter 428: Ch

"Please proceed along the designated pathway and do not deviate from it. Also, wait for the stargate to fully activate before proceeding further." She spoke calmly and without hurry.

Standing perfectly straight with her hands clasped loosely behind her back, she showed just how relaxed she was. But at the same time, she carried the focus and bearing of an elite, along with the aura surrounding her.

The duke knew she had never possessed such qualities before.

After all, she was barely above twenty-two years old, still a university student just like his daughter. And yet, after merely a month, she had become such a different person. Still, as far as he could tell, she was undoubtedly the same Celest, which only added to his astonishment about what could have brought such startling changes within such a short period of time.

He even noticed there was no tremor in her anymore.

Gone was the submissive posture she always carried, nor was she averting her eyes the way she used to whenever she stood in his presence alongside his daughter during their visits to the ducal estate before everything happened not too long ago.

Instead, she was now meeting his gaze with the bearing of someone of equal rank.

And the thing was, he could tell it was not done purposefully to display superiority or arrogance before him. It felt completely natural to her now.

Which unsettled him even more.

As he looked at her, he could not help, nor would anyone in his position, but think about what she, and perhaps even his daughter, might have gone through to become someone entirely different, as if they had gained a lifetime of experience within just a few months and matured far beyond their age.

Such a process generally took years and certainly did not happen like this.

Thinking of this, he could not help but clench his fists as worry filled his heart.

Seeing that the duke remained standing in silence and made no gesture to confirm her instructions, Celest spoke once again.

"Lord Duke."

Only then was the duke able to pull himself away from the internal battle raging within him. At this moment, he did not even know what he should do, or rather, whether he could even do anything at all.

Shaking those thoughts away for now, he decided that reaching Vivian and meeting her was the priority. Everything else could be thought about afterward.

With that in mind, he spoke.

"Ah... yes. Yes, we will follow the designated pathway given to us."

Celest gave a small nod in acknowledgment and added calmly,

"Lady Vivian will greet you on the other side."

Saying that, she directly cut off the communication channel.

Back within her own flagship, she looked toward the fleet belonging to the duke as it moved closer to her position, a thoughtful expression appearing on her face.

She had never imagined that one day she would stand in a position where she had the chance and opportunity to be on the same level as an Archduke of a powerful, old, and well-established Tier-3 power.

The thought filled her with pride.

Even more so because she knew that the opportunity itself had come from being near Vivian, while her own talents and hard work had allowed her to rise into the position of Vice Admiral of a fleet.

Only she truly knew the hellish and hardcore trials she had gone through, along with the missions she had completed within the Galactic Domain. At certain points, she had even reached the brink of despair.

And only by clawing her way back, along with a bit of luck, had she finally managed to reach this position.

It might sound easy, or perhaps harsh, when spoken aloud, but the process had been anything but easy.

In truth, it had been far harder than anyone could imagine and even more time-consuming.

It had taken her over one hundred and thirty-five years of struggle, training, and relentless effort to reach this rank, defeating hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of fellow competitors along the way to secure this position.

And now, standing here, she could not help but feel that all of it had been worth it.

She could only imagine the expressions Marquis Valentine and his group would make when they finally faced her again. For the troubles and harm they had caused to her family, they would certainly have to pay for it.

After all, it had been personally promised by Imperial Emperor Kallus. She still remembered his words during her promotion ceremony, which had been held in the very presence of the emperor himself.

"You will not have to wait long before you are given your chance for revenge and the opportunity to settle your karma with your previous state. Only then will you become free from the ties that may hold you back from progressing further above."

His words had not been long, but the meanings behind them were deep and numerous in their own way.

She simply sighed, filled with high expectations, and focused once again on her work as she noticed a new presence appear on the detection equipment in front of her.

Not long after, one of her subordinates announced,

"Vice Admiral, the current Empress of Elfenheim, along with her legion, has entered the star system. They have been intercepted by one of our smaller battle formations and a battlegroup and are currently being guided here in an organized manner. Should we send a request for direct communication?"

"Hm... do that."

Celest nodded her head and prepared herself to greet the Empress of the Elf Empire. She remembered that the empress had once been her own ruler. Though not anymore, as someone serving under an emperor of equal standing, she still needed to show proper courtesy as his subordinate.

At the same time, back aboard a massive dreadnought-class ship, Empress Valoria Silverleaf, Guardian of the Tree of Life and Protector of Elfenheim, could be seen seated upon a throne seemingly woven from branches and living vines that emitted a soft greenish hue.

"Empress."

One of her loyal subordinates approached the throne and stated respectfully,

"We have received a communication request from the Void Fleet. Shall we accept it?"

To which Valoria simply nodded. "Of course. Connect them."

Immediately, a holographic figure materialized before her wearing the distinctive uniform of the Void Fleet military.

"Ahh." But the moment Valoria got a proper look at the figure, she could not help but let out a gasp of astonishment.

Before she could even speak, Celest calmly and warmly said with a slight bow,

"Representing our emperor, I am pleased to welcome you here and thank you for gracing our empire with your presence, Empress Valoria."

"We are extremely pleased and thankful that you could take your precious time to participate in this ceremony, which is extremely important to us and the Void Fleet as a whole. Your presence makes it even grander, and for that, once again, we are deeply thankful."

Only after saying that did Celest straighten herself fully and raise her gaze toward Empress Valoria.

Valoria, meanwhile, was still in a state of absolute astonishment.

Finding someone of her own race here was already shocking enough, but what stunned her even more was that this person was serving another state, one that currently shared a strange relationship with Elfenheim, a relationship that could be considered both friendly and unfriendly at the same time.

And not only that.

The person standing before her was clearly part of the upper echelons of this newly established powerhouse, one that already seemed to stand several steps beyond ordinary Tier-3 states and perhaps even beyond some Tier-3 superstates.

The realization sent shockwaves through Valoria despite the impassive expression she maintained on her face.

But what truly confused and unsettled her, much like it had the Archduke earlier, was the way Celest spoke.

She referred to Valoria as a guest to a human faction while completely detaching herself from her old homeland, without even the slightest trace of longing toward her former motherland.

Which made things difficult even for Valoria herself, as she could not help but wonder what had caused Celest to become like this.

But pushing those thoughts aside for now, her mind rapidly moved toward even more important and burning questions.

How was this person even here? who is she?

And how had she climbed the ranks to what was, if Valoria was not mistaken, the position of Vice Admiral, an extremely supreme and influential rank?

And perhaps most importantly, just how long had she been part of the Void Humans to act this naturally and with such deep respect toward the power she had integrated herself into?

Naturally, Valoria wanted to ask all of this and dig to the very depths of the situation.

But knowing her position, and more importantly the purpose of her visit here, she could only purse her lips and swallow those questions for the time being.