C5

"What's up with you, you're not like you're usual self?"

I whispered to Aurora softly who was standing with her long legs at shoulder width apart and her hands behind her back next to me dressed in a white jacket, pencil skirt with white stockings, and black high heels which were the Navy's standard service uniform just like mine except that I had pants tucked inside my knee-length black leather boots.

"You may not know this since you're an orphan but unlike you my family ..., well let's just say that the front line isn't doing good and I'm..."

Aurora whispered back so quietly that except me none else could hear it.

"Hey as long as you're with me I won't let anyone touch a hair on you're body plus I know about the front line more than you do"

I whispered back as I grabbed her white glove-covered trembling hand with mine the same way clothed as hers without her permission.

Feeling the size, grip, warmth in my hand and hearing my voice which had no signs of false bravado Aurora immediately calmed down.

"Thanks..."

Aurora whispered back as she quickly lowered her head in order to hide the slight blush on her cheeks which didn't go unnoticed by me.

It seems like this chick isn't as cold as she appears to be.

Wait how the heck does he know more about the front line than me, he is an orphan from the slums isn't he, he said it himself, didn't he?!

Aurora couldn't help but look at me with questioning eyes.

After all, such news was bad for humanity's morale and it would do no good for UNOE to disclose it, it would only destabilize the government and spread chaos all over Earth if people knew that it was only a matter of time before humanity gets exterminated or enslaved.

So all the news front the front line would first go through a thorough screening and only those that didn't have a negative impact on society would get broadcasted by news channels.

Although in the eyes of citizens, the UNOE was pushing back the empire one step at a time the truth was that it was the complete opposite.

When humanity United itself through diplomacy and began to colonize star systems left and right after discovering the existence of a hyper lane network which was basically like a human's blood vessels spread out through the entire body.

It allowed a spaceship to travel from one-star system to another with the help of hyperspace drive which basically allowed a spaceship to travel from one star system to another one in a matter of days.

But there is a catch once you enter the hyperspace network you can't move even a millimeter from your original direction and you can neither accelerate nor decelerate.

So as long as an enemy knows that you're coming over it's basically a death sentence.

According to the bald people a.k.a the scientists, the hyperspace network was either a product of a super-advanced civilization that for some reason decided to create it or it just formed naturally.

As for the theory that it was created artificially even after more than thirty years, the big-brained people still can't come up with the answer to that, so the current mainstream conclusion is that well maybe the super-advanced Xenos just had too much free time on their hands and were bored as f*ck.

For a while everything was going quite well for mankind but only after a few years they encountered the empire who are a bunch of feudalist assholes.

And in space as long as the one who occupied the territory first is weak like the UNOE then the only result is to obediently clean up their necks and willingly put them under the executioner's blade.

So In the following twenty years, the UNOE could only retreat system after system while fighting battles that resulted in defeat each time.

Until humanity was left with taprib solar system and the solar system that they started with and a single fleet out of 5 it had at its peak.

And later as everyone already knows the empire came knocking down on humanity's door, everyone thought that this was the end but the current marshal who had just become the admiral of the First Fleet later renamed the home defense fleet used the Kuiper belt.

Together with the defensive network installed in it, to force a 3 times larger and almost 3 levels superior enemy to retreat from the solar system at the same time burying almost 70 percent of the enemy's spaceships inside human space and inflicting damage of varying degrees to the spaceships that successfully escaped.

In truth, the enemy could have won if they really wanted to but it seemed like they weren't too keen on paying too big of a price and the marshal used that to his advantage.

According to the president's think tank and UNOE intelligence a.k.a Intel pukes, the enemy is busy fighting a few other civilizations and at the same time has to keep a Garrison force in order to monitor the civilizations that they already conquered rebels which will happen as soon as the empire starts showing signs of weaknes.

So it's not that they can't clean up humanity now but it's that they're waiting for reinforcements in order to pay as small a price as possible.

On another note logically humanity should have acquired a lot of tech from the destroyed warships but sadly the enemy warships had in built instructions in their operating systems to completely blow themselves up after completely losing combat effectiveness.

So no matter how the big-brained people pulled their last remaining hair they had no technology to reverse engineer on their hands.

Once the ceremony began it didn't take long for my name to come out.

"Cadet Dracula Von Death!

"I!"

I answered as I snapped to attention.

"Report to the Marshal!"

"Yes, sir!"

As the cadets and instructors watched me climb up the stairs they couldn't help but start discussing among themselves in hushed voices.

"Von Death? Since when does the terror have a middle and last name?"

"Don't ask me it's the first time I hear about it"

"Wait Von Death?! Don't tell me the terror is related to that VON DEATH!"

Once someone pointed it out the cadets couldn't help but start overlapping the marshal who was also dressed in a white service uniform with a bunch of medals figure with Draculas but no matter how they tried they just didn't look anything alike.

"Wait don't tell me the marshal is going to award him himself?!

Someone once again pointed out causing everyone to become dumbfounded after all it wasn't strange for the marshal to attend the graduation but to award a cadet himself so far it was unheard of.

But thinking back to the talent that Dracula displayed it didn't seem so far-fetched after all he wasn't called the terror of the academy for no reason.

"Sir marshal cadet Von Death!"

I reported myself while facing my now-adopted dad as I brought my right hand to my white service cap.

The Marshal couldn't help but nod in approvement as he looked at Dracula.

Hmph! My son is really good.

The marshal who wanted kids but couldn't have them because he was infertile and even with current medical technology had no hopes of becoming a father was secretly overjoyed for having a son overnight.

Of course, the marshal thought about adopting one a while ago but because of the war, he didn't have time to raise one.

After all, all lifeforms wanted to leave something behind after they died so it's no surprise that the marshal was overjoyed that an outstanding talent like Dracula will carry on his name.

The marshal thought as he turned around and picked up the medal from the tray held by the Dean and put it on Dracula, then he punched the medal with his fist but I didn't move an inch causing the marshal's smile to become even wider.

"Congratulations son! Starting today, you are an official officer of the UNOE navy!"

The marshal said loudly with emphasis on son as he patted my shoulder causing the audience to erupt.

"Son?! I heard it right, didn't I?! The marshal called the terror his son?!"

Almost everyone exclaimed the same but as they did they couldn't help but nod proudly as if they solved a super secret mystery while at the same time dozens of scenarios of how the marshal didn't want Dracula to get preferential treatment in the academy just because he was his son so he purposely forbade him from revealing his last name and even fabricated an entire back story for him appeared in their heads.

Hearings this my black lips couldn't help but start twitching.

"Too soon old man..."

I whispered out through gritted teeth as I watched the Dean doing his best to hold in the laughter.

"Oh sorry, it's too soon huh?"

The marshal whispered back while embarrassingly scratching the back of his head.

As for the audience, it didn't take long for someone to notice that the medal on my left chest is that of a Captain!

An 18-year-old becoming a Captain from the get-go?! What kind of joke is this? But once again considering Dracula's talent the audience chose to accept it after all they were already stunned silly by the turn of events but If Dracula was one of those good-for-nothing young masters who only got all the good shit because of their dadys then they surely would protest after all no one would want to be put under command of someone like that.

It didn't take long for the dead pin silence to get replaced by deafening applause after all they were all human so the more heaven-defying Dracula was the better it was for them after all humanity was at its wit's end.

[Ding]!

[Congratulations to the Host for completing Task 2]!

Aurora was shocked down to her core because unlike everyone she knew that the marshal was infertile and didn't have any children after all her mother was the UNOE prime minister stared at Dracula on the stage she spoke softly with a voice that only she could hear.

"Just who are you really?"