The interceptor-class ship that Emery and his pack were on had been traveling for several days through the dark and hollow outer space. Flying at steady lightspeed towards the sector where the Magus Academy was located.
Since Emery still needed to try to hide his identity as much as possible to evade any risk of being exposed. For that reason, he took the long route with their spaceship, away from any known Magus Alliance outposts, and avoided using the long-distance teleporter.
Thus, it took Emery and his companions a long 13 days of travel to reach their destination.
Before heading to their objective , Atrium, the planet where the Darkness Institute lies, Emery understood he had to be thoroughly prepared and gather all the information about the current situation. Hence, he was planning to head for Zodiac City first.
At the moment, Emery was sitting in the pilot's seat with Annara standing next to him.
"Approximate distance 3,52 lightyears until Zodiac City, bearing 108. With 8,0 warp speed, we should be reaching our destination in 13 hours and 15 minutes," Emery reported the current status, before taking a glance at Annara to see her reaction.
"Yes, you got it right."
Heaving a sigh of relief, Emery muttered under his breath. "Great."
Throughout the journey, Emery didn't waste his time in vain and spent it learning about how to operate a spaceship, reading the charts that appeared on the ship's device screen, and understanding more about traveling around the Magus Alliance universe; the customs, the rules, and learning how to avoid the nearby enforcers.
After all the things that had happened to his life, Emery had finally had enough and decided to stop being ignorant about the Magus Universe, going ahead and absorbing all the information he could get his hands on.
The sight of Emery putting so much effort into his decision, after what he had just been through, couldn't help but make his companion worried about his condition. Finally, one person felt compelled to act; Tatyana slowly approached him.
"Brother, how about taking a break first? Let sister Annara take over the ship while you rest," said Tatyana in a concerned tone.
While his fingers were still busy fiddling with the control panel, Emery casually glanced at the fox girl with a smile. "There's no need. We only have 13 hours to dig for any information about our destination. I need to be thorough."
Realizing Tatyana's concern, Emery promptly added, "Don't worry.. I am fine."
Unfortunately, as much as Emery tried to act as if he was fine, his bond with the pack made him unable to fully hide his true feelings.
Everyone knew that Emery kept himself busy on purpose, for one reason only... It was to keep his mind off the serpent girl. Feeling the deep despair in their Alpha, Tatyana could not hold back her tears from falling.
"Just let him be," said Morgana who could feel his feelings the most.
As for Annara, because of her relationship with the white-haired girl, the bat girl felt the same feeling of loss as Emery. Hence she also kept herself busy by following through all Emery's requests.
"There are three dozen habitable planets near the Magus Academy. Although Zodiac City is not the closest to our destination, it is certainly the safest place to enter undetected."
There were two main reasons as to why Zodiac City was chosen among the many other planets as the place where they prepared themselves before going to Atrium planet.
The first obvious reason was because they were a crew composed entirely of half-blood individuals. As for the second, they knew the city well and had many allies and contacts who could help them.
Annara however firmly reminded the others. "Remember, do not make unnecessary contact with anyone once we arrive. Even though we will be in friendly territory, we still want to keep Emery's identity and mine a secret."
In fact, Annara was at greater risk of being captured when exposed since she was one of the famous fugitives in the Bloody Incursion event 4 years ago. She was also highly wanted by the Harlight family for having publicly murdered one of their noble princes.
Because of that, she needed to hide her identity in various ways, one of which was by putting on makeup.
"Huh!! Remind me again why I agree to this? I really wish I have your ability," complained Annara when she was put on makeup by Tatyana.
Emery could say nothing but smile wryly at her words and the resentful look she threw as he changed his appearance using his [Shapeshifting] ability, taking on the identity of Evan Valerious once more.
After several hours of voyaging by the spaceship, Emery and the others finally arrived at Zodiac City. The beginning of their next act before visiting the Magus Academy.
"Specter 1183, you have been granted entry. Welcome to Zodiac City."
The spaceship soon landed at the airfield on the outskirts of the city. The five of them were all checked thoroughly upon getting out and setting foot on the planet by a group of Zodiac City guards.
"We have some business deals around this galaxy, but we prefer to stay here amongst our kind," Emery explained his purpose for coming to the guards as part of his cover.
It was the most common situation for those of half-blood to stay in Zodiac City, and with their identification intact without any problems, they were all finally welcomed into the planet.
When they finally entered the city streets, Emery said, "Alright, let's follow the plan."
Although Annara had been following the Ouroboros' intelligence to learn about the place, it was always better to get the latest updates directly from the scene. Therefore it was decided that everyone would split up, visiting their known places in search of information.
As for Morgana, instead of going out to explore new places, as usual she stayed close to Emery.
Though she had toured Silvermane City and Ouroboros, this was the place where she encountered so many peoples with different distinctive features gathered in one place; hybrids and half-bloods.
While Morgana was enthralled by the new experience, Emery on the other hand was unable to enjoy the sight.
The place carried too many memories of her. It was as if he could see the figure of the white-hair girl standing among the masses, calling out to him with her foul mouth as she dragged him around.
It was at this moment that Morgana called on him, bringing him out of reverie back to reality.
"Enough thinking about her… I am hungry… feed me," said Morgana while throwing a sharp gaze at him.
Emery looked at the girl's serious face with a smile "Alright… Let's go."
It's probably time to make new memories.
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