Chapter 1

A major case had occurred in the central district.

Several hovercars bearing police insignia were parked outside the entrance. The area had already been cordoned off, and a dense crowd gathered beyond the police line, peering in and whispering among themselves.

“Something like this could actually happen in the Imperial Capital.”

“Poor thing. He’s covered in blood.”

“He spent the whole night with his mother and the killer’s bodies.”

Ye Mo stood at the foot of the steps, held behind the cordon as part of the murder investigation.

His mind was completely blank. He looked down at his hands in a daze. They were a child’s hands, stained with blood, with thick, dried blood caked beneath even his fingernails.

Was this a dream? It had to be a dream. How strange. Why would he dream something like this?

People in black uniforms and white gloves moved in and out of the house. A few of them had finished collecting evidence and were talking beside a hovercar.

“The killer’s identity has been confirmed. He was a prisoner who escaped while being transported. He’d been on the run for two days. He was probably desperate, so tonight he broke in to rob the place and targeted this mother and child.”

“Both the killer and the mother are dead. Our preliminary assessment is that the mother fought fiercely with him. They both suffered fatal injuries and died at the scene.”

He paused and sighed, his gaze settling on the child standing in the open space nearby, his expression complicated.

The child was very small, standing there barefoot. His body and half his face were smeared with blood, and it was impossible to tell how much of it was his. Bruises of all sizes covered his exposed limbs, stark against his fair, delicate skin.

They were used to seeing murder scenes and had long since grown numb to them, but even so, they couldn’t help feeling a little shaken this time.

“That child must have watched his mother die. He’s only three or four, isn’t he? So little. He’s about the same age as my youngest daughter.”

“Hasn’t the medical team arrived yet?”

To avoid causing further injury, they generally couldn’t treat the wounded at the scene themselves.

“They’re still on their way. I just asked, and they said that judging by the pictures, the injuries seem to be external. If there are no broken bones, we can do a little first aid ourselves.”

The group fell silent for a while, then ended their discussion and walked over to Ye Mo. One of them brought a blanket and carefully draped it over him.

Ye Mo didn’t react at all. He just kept staring blankly at his hands. They were coated in dried blood, as were his fingernails, his chin, and his pajamas, whose original color was no longer visible.

The man paused, then took a towel from a colleague and gently began wiping him clean.

“How old are you this year? Three or four?”

It was a language he had never heard before, yet he could understand it.

Ye Mo slowly looked up at the man wiping his hands. The man wore the same uniform as the people who had set up the cordon, a style resembling a military uniform. On his chest was a badge depicting a sword intertwined with flames, an emblem Ye Mo had never seen before.

The man’s hand paused, then he gently wiped the blood from Ye Mo’s chin.

He continued,

“Are you hungry? Would you like some milk?”

Ye Mo’s gaze passed over him and came to rest motionless on a spot.

The man turned and followed Ye Mo’s gaze. It fell on his mother, sealed inside a body bag.

He wrapped Ye Mo in the blanket and picked him up. Fortunately, the child was still young. He would have time to forget this nightmare of a night.

Cradled on the man’s shoulder and wrapped in the blanket, Ye Mo watched the house grow farther and farther away. His pale face was turned toward his mother in the body bag, a woman he had never even met. His limbs were icy cold. This wasn’t a dream.

Someone had really died. The blood was real, and so was the body.

The crowd suddenly grew noisy and parted to open a path.

Several men stepped over the cordon and strode toward them. They wore black military uniforms edged in silver beneath standard-issue military cloaks. The man at the front took out his credentials, and the man carrying Ye Mo and several of his colleagues immediately saluted.

The newcomer returned the salute, then said, “I’m Ye Zhiyuan, this child’s father. You can verify my rank.”

He held out his hand.

“Give him to me.”

Ye Mo was passed from one embrace to another.

Holding Ye Mo, Ye Zhiyuan stared at the bloodstains below the steps and stood there for a while. He was handsome, and his thin-rimmed glasses gave him a refined appearance, but at that moment he looked stern and cold.

Only when Ye Mo unconsciously curled up did he lower his head and wrap the child completely in his coat. Then he turned and walked toward the hovercar.

The car was warm. He set Ye Mo on the small table inside and unwound the blanket. After carefully examining him from head to toe, he picked him up again and handed him a box from the seat beside them. Inside was a doll that looked very soft.

Ye Mo glanced at the doll, then looked up at Ye Zhiyuan.

The car door opened, and another person climbed in, carrying a thick stack of documents.

“Sir, there’s nothing unusual in the prisoner’s background. He was a star pirate who escaped while being transported. This appears to have been an accident.”

“Are the results of the investigation in?”

“Yes. Nothing particularly unusual came up. The criminal’s mental power was originally B-rank, but his brain had been severely damaged. There was also residual mental power at the scene. The victim probably only had a chance to fight back because the criminal was injured.”

Ye Zhiyuan’s heart gave a heavy thump. The Grance Imperial Family had always been renowned for its exceptional mental power.

Ye Mo was having trouble holding the box. It slipped halfway out of his arms and slid beneath the seat. Ye Zhiyuan retrieved it for him and sighed inwardly. He was still so small. Ye Zhiyuan was just too tense.

The Empire had always pursued star pirates without regard for whether they lived or died, using extremely brutal methods. It was common for prisoners to lose limbs, and overwhelming them with mental power was routine.

Especially since the current Emperor favored crushing his opponents with mental power on the battlefield. The practice had spread through the ranks, and the entire Imperial Army had become notoriously ruthless. It was hardly unusual for prisoners to be injured.

“Take care of the victim’s funeral arrangements for me.”

Ye Zhiyuan gave a few simple instructions and ended the conversation. Then he lowered his head and looked at Ye Mo.

Ye Zhiyuan didn’t brush Ye Mo off just because he was a child. On the contrary, he treated him with great seriousness.

“You may not remember me. I’m your father.”

Ye Mo tilted his head up.

Ye Zhiyuan paused for a moment, then reached out and covered Ye Mo’s eyes. His gloved hand was a little cold. Ye Mo heard him speak in a nearly emotionless voice, as if he were giving a report.

“Your birth was my mistake. Because of that mistake, you’ll have to be more obedient than other children. People will downplay your existence, and you won’t receive the attention or honors you deserve. Your circumstances will be harder than those of other children, even though you haven’t done anything wrong. But you can ask me for help. Within certain limits, I’ll help you.”

Ye Mo sat quietly in his arms, listening. Then he suddenly spoke.

“Mom.”

Ye Zhiyuan’s voice was calm.

“She’s dead. That was my fault, too.”

“We’re going home.”

Just a few minutes later, the hovercar stopped in front of a villa. Ye Zhiyuan carried Ye Mo across the courtyard and up to the entrance. From outside, they could hear faint laughter and conversation. He hesitated, set Ye Mo down, opened the door, and gently nudged him forward.

In the living room, Madam Ye sat on the sofa with a child of eight or nine standing beside her. Another child, a little older than Ye Mo, sat on the carpet playing with a toy car.

“You’re back. You promised you’d make dinner tonight. Honestly, we’ve been waiting for you before we could eat.”

Madam Ye looked up, saw Ye Mo, and stood.

“Whose child is this? How did he get into such a state? Ye He, go get the first-aid kit.”

“What happened? Tell me, sweetheart. Come here. How could you let him walk over by himself? He can barely walk properly.”

Madam Ye grew anxious and hurried over to pick Ye Mo up, setting him on the sofa.

Ye Zhiyuan lowered his head, avoiding her gaze, and said quietly,

“He’s my child.”

Madam Ye froze and straightened up.

“What did you say?”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’ll give you a chance to explain.”

Ye Zhiyuan lowered his head even further.

“I’m very sorry.”

Madam Ye glared coldly at Ye Zhiyuan and slapped him.

Ye Zhiyuan’s head turned to the side. He took the slap without a word.

“Where’s his mother?”

“Dead. It was today’s case, a home invasion and robbery.”

Madam Ye slapped him again, then continued questioning him.

“Were you always in contact?”

“No. Aside from the child and the monthly living expenses, there was no contact.”

Madam Ye asked one question and slapped him once.

“One last question. Did her death have anything to do with you?”

“No. It was an accident.”

After hearing his answer, Madam Ye finally said,

“I’m very angry right now and don’t want to see you. I’m going to bed. I’ll decide later what to do with you.”

With that, Madam Ye turned and went upstairs. Ye Yun, who had been sitting on the carpet, followed her with his toy car.

Ye Mo sat on the sofa. Ye He had already brought the first-aid kit over. When he saw Madam Ye go upstairs, he set the kit on the floor and followed her.

Ye Zhiyuan picked up the first-aid kit, took out some medicine, and knelt on one knee in front of Ye Mo to tend to his wounds.

“There are plenty of empty rooms in the house. You can choose one for yourself. I’ll have it furnished like Ye He and Ye Yun’s rooms.”

Ye Mo’s exposed limbs were covered in bruises. Ye Zhiyuan had examined them earlier. They looked bad, but his experience told him they weren’t too serious. They were all external injuries. The worst was his forehead, which had bled quite a bit, though the bleeding had stopped.

After treating Ye Mo’s arms and legs and bandaging his forehead, Ye Zhiyuan began to unfasten the pajamas, whose original color was no longer visible. But when he exposed Ye Mo’s upper body, he froze. Layers upon layers of scars covered the child’s small chest, which rose and fell faintly.

Some of the scars were new, but most were old. Even a veteran who had fought in countless battles wouldn’t have so many scars that refused to fade.

Ye Zhiyuan’s expression turned cold. His gloved hand gently brushed over the wounds, and Ye Mo flinched at the slightly chilly touch.

“Don’t be afraid.”

He watched Ye Mo and only then realized that, compared with other children his age, Ye Mo seemed far too quiet and obedient. For a child so young, that alone was abnormal.

“I’ll call a doctor and have them come over.”