Xyrin Empire

Milia is a very special person. Although all signs indicate that her race is an ordinary human, we all know that this little girl has a very extraordinary background. The biggest difference between her and regular people is that while normal people only enter the little box in the end, she, in fact, came out of the little box at the very beginning...

Alright, I know that saying this now might seem a bit inappropriate.

But looking at the metal box in front of me, glowing with a faint blue light, I really couldn't help but have so many unreliable and absurd thoughts flash through my mind — how strange and wonderful is this world, you know?

"Are you kidding me?"

I pulled the corners of my mouth, gesturing at the box that was about a meter long, then reached out to compare it to Milia's head. Of course, despite joking about it, I was well aware that Uncle Zaku had no reason to fool people about such a matter.

"Why," Milia rolled her eyes, slapping away the hand on her head. She showed little respect to either of my identities — as her lifesaver big brother and the legendary Imperial Leader, "Stop comparing, I was just a little one back then."

I chuckled and withdrew my hand, but speaking of it, even the current Milia could fit into this box quite comfortably, probably hugging her knees and getting in easily. This girl was so skinny and tiny, she looked like she wasn't well-nourished. If it weren't for her always rosy cheeks and vibrant spirit, I might have suspected Uncle Zaku was an evil queen with broken ribs in his past life...

Have I gone off-topic again?

Uncle Zaku's face was filled with a nostalgic expression as he started reminiscing about how he found Milia in the ancient relics, while absentmindedly polishing the shiny metal box until it reflected his image. Watching this, I basically understood why this thing looked so pristine, though I still had no idea who washed his clothes.

"You've heard me talk about that situation before. After Rudav had ruled the world for many years as the Holy Pope, Biluna and I revisited the place, hoping to find some answers from the ruins that once changed everyone's fate. During the first expedition, the Adventure Team met with an accident near the core area of the relics, Biluna and I got hurt, and Rudav and the others were burnt to death on the hanging bridge. But the second time, when Biluna and I returned to that area, we found that the guarding devices seemed silent. Thinking back now, it was probably because we had both been 'changed,' making the relics mistakenly think we were one of their own..."

Seeing the deep immersion on Zaku's face, I sat upright, ready to hear the senior recount their glorious past once again in a lengthy narrative. I even prepared tea and peanuts, taking out a deck of cards to play solitaire with Milia. Then I just heard Uncle Zaku sigh with a voice filled with vicissitudes: "So the two of us smoothly reached the core area and found Milia."

I was in the middle of shuffling cards and froze upon hearing this: "...That's it?"

Zaku nodded: "That's it."

I jumped up abruptly: "No way! What about the crucial process? You just got to the core area and then directly saw Milia's box (at this time Milia kicked me under the table)? What about the battle? The mechanisms? The ancient guardian beast? The life-and-death farewell between you and Biluna? More importantly — how did you find Milia's box (another kick) and figure out how to open it? How come all these crucial details are missing?"

Uncle Zaku scratched his head awkwardly, seemingly apologetic for disappointing the audience: "That's exactly what happened; the door to the core area opened after the last fire spray through the pipes. The only guardian inside was a mouse, which Biluna scared to death with a shout. Oh, and I had a bit of tinnitus, which was the biggest damage I suffered. Milia's box (why didn't she kick me this time?) was placed right in the center of the room, surrounded by mechanical devices all focused on that thing, making it hard for us not to notice. As for how it was opened..."

Uncle Zaku paused dramatically, looking very proud of himself. Immediately, Milia showed a disgusted expression and hurriedly said: "Stop showing off. At that time, I kicked the lid open myself, and you yelled even louder than Biluna. You both had tinnitus for three days afterward!"

I looked at Milia, standing barefoot on the sofa, pointing angrily at Uncle Zaku. The expression on the face of the untidy-looking Uncle being pointed at was even more shocked than mine. Zaku gurgled twice in his throat before exclaiming in surprise: "You actually remember things from back then?!"

Curious, I glanced at Zaku. It seemed there were some unknown secrets between this "father-daughter" pair?

Milia jumped off the sofa, looked up at the sky for three seconds, seeming to struggle with how to explain the matter, then clasped her hands together and gave Zaku an apologetic look: "Well, I'm sorry, Uncle. Actually, there are some things I kept from you... I've had a complete memory since I first awoke, and I also understood a lot, but... well, at that time, I couldn't be certain if you could be trusted, so I tried to act like an ordinary child."

Zaku was stunned for a moment and then suddenly shouted: "Back then, you hadn't even opened your eyes! You were only a few days old!"

Milia just laughed awkwardly: "It seems I did a successful job of pretending. Uncle, back then you wore a dirty black leather jacket, and Biluna used a light saber. The Radiant Glory was the airship you were on, and on the way back, the airship's engine had insufficient power and needed a weight reduction. You threw away the heaviest component, which was the main engine, then you crashed with the help of three auxiliary engines near the town where we now live, while Biluna scolded loudly. After landing, the airship's rudder was ruined. I remember all these things clearly, and I almost couldn't hold back my laughter at that time, but you guys didn't notice. Later, I thought you were good people, and I wanted to tell, but I never found the right opportunity, then I felt it wasn't a big deal and never mentioned it until now. Uh, Uncle, are you alright?"

Zaku squatted down, looking ashen, muttering like Xiang Lin: "No wonder when I secretly tricked you into drinking wine you bit people, when I tricked you to smoke you set my clothes on fire, and when I hid your candy I couldn't find my keys, if I accidentally broke your toy, not even fifteen minutes later I'd find the car out front missing every wheel..."

I listened beside them, sweating profusely. Did these two fight atop the Forbidden City gate in their past lives?

The way I looked at Milia had changed a bit; I realized this might be the most terrifying prodigy ever. Having a complete memory even in her infant days, devising a plan within minutes of "birth" to protect her secret — pretending to be a regular infant, and sticking to the normal growth trajectory of a child for years until everyone was used to her being a little genius. She likely understood the Mobran language the moment she was born and knew clearly the catastrophic mistake of throwing away an airship's main engine — otherwise, she wouldn't have stifled her laughter back then. This is not just an issue of intelligence; I almost believed Milia had been created by the Mobrans from the Ancient Era as a superhuman.

However, I've also considered another possibility—for example, that Milia is the only surviving ancient Mobran, and the ancient Mobrans, modified by the Old Empire, were stronger than modern humans. But this conjecture doesn't explain how she carried so much knowledge from birth; ancient Mobrans were indeed a bit stronger than moderns, but not to this extent.

Moreover, her realization within minutes of awaking from the Life Cabin that only pretending to be an ordinary infant could protect herself implies one thing: in her pre-installed knowledge base, "normal" infants weren't like her. She must have been aware of her uniqueness and thus consciously altered her behavior. Bringing together these suspicions, I can only conclude one thing: Milia might have been created by the Mobrans from the Ancient Era.

Indeed, this explains why such an enormous ancient relic was specifically made to house this small "infant box." Milia was truly important.

Milia has always been an astonishing child, and Uncle Zaku knows this deeply. In this world, those who can use an Ancient Weapon are rare, and Milia possesses the same powerful abilities, if not stronger. Additionally, given her age of fourteen, it suggests that Milia is extremely outstanding in all aspects, far surpassing modern Mobrans. However, the real situation with Milia turns out to be even more outrageous than what Uncle Zaku had imagined. Squatting with a pale face for several minutes, I felt he was rather shattered by this revelation, and it made me quite empathetic: knowing that someone assumed to be a close kin had been concealing things from him since the beginning—this psychological blow...

"Girl, do you know where I keep my private savings?" Zaku suddenly looked up, his expression revealing tears.

"Yep." Milia nodded.

"I'll give you a fifth, just don't tell Biluna, alright?"

"Okay." Milia nodded.

"Why does a little kid like you need so much money!"

"I know exactly when and where you secretly watch Biluna bathe, and I even have photos!"

"...Deal."

I was dumbfounded.

What are these two made of?!

After a brief spat, the brief tension between Milia and Zaku vanished instantly, returning to a state of intimacy. The frustration on Zaku's face a moment ago disappeared like an illusion, as if the big secret Milia revealed a minute ago didn't exist to him. I looked at them, surprised, and finally tugged at the corner of my mouth: I had underestimated the bond that formed between these two after living together for over a decade.

Ever since the day Zaku brought Milia out of the relics, he's known he's raising an extraordinary "daughter," so Milia could talk about anything and he'd likely accept it quickly.

Then I steered the conversation back to the main topic and first asked Milia a few questions.

Mainly about the knowledge in her head. Of course, if possible, I also wanted to know if she had any information about ancient Mobra history. After confirming she had a lot of pre-installed memories since infancy, I was filled with anticipation about what was in Milia's little brain.

But this anticipation was unfulfilled. It seemed that the passage of time might have damaged the seal of the life cabin. Milia admitted she actually doesn't remember anything about the ancient times. What she has is not knowledge but a rapid identification ability. She can quickly reorganize the information she collects and compare it to a vague subconscious database, allowing her to learn things exceedingly fast. However, according to Milia's description, this database is more like a common knowledge repository storing only basic knowledge.

"If I did remember something important, I would have told you already,"

Milia said to me with a slight embarrassment, "Since arriving at the Mist God Star, I've been searching my brain, but I really haven't found anything."

I was slightly disappointed, which meant I didn't need to ask another question.

Originally, I wanted to know if Milia had any "missions," like stopping the Revenge Army from going berserk in the future.

You see, the ancient Mobrans and Xyrin Apostles (considering the exquisite workmanship of the life cabin, I think Imperial Technicians must have been involved in its creation) collaborated to create such an advanced system and relics, transforming an infant into a mobile database and sealing it away. No matter how you think about it, this device shouldn't simply exist to give Zaku a loli to raise, right?

But seeing Milia's state now, it seems we won't get an answer to the second question either: She probably doesn't know why ancient Mobrans created her.

"Milia, I'm afraid we need your cooperation for a checkup."

I thought about it and made the request to Milia, who unexpectedly had anticipated it and nodded readily. Only Uncle Zaku suddenly got anxious, "Hey! Wait, at least you need my consent as her guardian, right? Checkups don't sound like a good thing!"

Milia and I ignored him.

After leaving Milia's dormitory and arranging for someone to take her to the research institute later, I shared what we knew with Sandora and asked about the metal container we found earlier on the Brown Earth Star. If the container on the Mobra Main Star had Milia, does the one on the Brown Earth Star have her twin?

Sandora paused slightly and then brought up another matter: "Ah Jun, do you think the Revenge Army spent so much just to seize a container?"

I was taken aback and immediately understood her meaning.

"Are you saying their target is the person in the container? Milia?"

This suspicion is very direct. Initially, I considered it, but no matter how you look at her, Milia seems just like an ordinary girl. She's a bit stronger than a normal Mobran but nowhere near an Imperial Officer. She knows a lot, but she's best at repairing old machines and dismantling her car's wheels. So far, no one has discovered any other talents in Milia, so I subconsciously overlooked certain things.

At this point, Sandora's reminder finally connected two things for me: Lin Xue's prediction and Milia's origins.

I think I know where Milia's absolute importance in the future lies: not in whether she's useful to us, but in whether she'll fall into the hands of the Revenge Army!

"We must immediately increase the guards and protect Milia well," I quickly stated in the spiritual connection, and Sandora agreed. Although we don't yet know what unexpected mission this seemingly ordinary Mobran girl might have, based on the principle that if the enemy wants to do something, we must prevent it, since the Revenge Army wants to seize Milia, we have to ensure she's protected!

"However, just increasing surveillance is probably not enough," Sandora added, "The Revenge Army was willing to exchange an entire fleet to capture one person, indicating Milia is far more significant to them than the entire mother ship fleet's annihilation. I suggest temporarily elevating her security level to match ours and having her reside in the core area of General City, with the Royal Guard taking over."

"Alright, now Milia receives the highest treatment among civilians," I smiled and said, "What about the other container? Have we opened the one we seized from the Brown Earth Star?"

"Taville is at the research institute, preparing to open it. Its lock mechanism is still intact and uses old Empire's advanced technology, shielding from almost any scan. Previous attempts almost destroyed the container's interior. She's about to try the last unlocking method; if that fails, we'll have to dismantle it by force. If there's another artificial human like Milia inside... Hmm, I'll inform her to prepare an emergency medical system. This destructive dismantling might harm the life form inside."

I thought again and added, "It's best to prepare a milk bottle and diapers—uh, does Taville know how to feed a baby?"

Sandora was immediately stunned; even in the spiritual connection, I sensed a string of ellipses from her thoughts. Then our Queen hesitantly echoed, "Uh, Ah Jun, so we also need to prepare a nanny first?"

"...I'll have someone bring Biluna here; she has experience."

Even though the possible "Milia sister" might also be a superhuman filled with knowledge upon emergence, you can't deny her infant physique. To put it this way, young Milia, though adept in a dozen languages, still wet the bed until she was several years old... (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)