After that, everything went by in a flash.
Personnel from the military boarded the Range Falcon, cuffed me, and took me into custody. Eva and Cassandra, however, weren’t treated the same way.
"Ms. Eva Beastol and Ms. Casey Lancellia, correct? The President has prepared a room for you two to rest in. Please follow us."
A handsome elf, dressed in an immaculate officer’s uniform, greeted them with a graceful bow.
They were welcomed as honored guests of the Astoria. Meanwhile, I was being dragged away like a common criminal.
Although I wished they had treated me the same way, I guess that was asking for too much.
The Range Falcon was towed toward the nearest substation—the Trivalane Military Hub.
It was a massive space station orbiting the sixth planet of the Astoraxia-001 Star System, positioned at the very center of the entire galaxy.
Right, the wormhole we took led straight into the heart of enemy lines! But what bothered me was that they had already known about our arrival before we exited the wormhole, and they had even surrounded the exit point!
After docking, Eva and Cassandra were escorted elsewhere, while I was guided through an endless maze of metallic corridors. The Military Hub was so massive that I nearly felt dizzy trying to memorize our path.
We eventually reached the top floor, where two lizard-like soldiers shoved me into a holding cell before slamming the door shut behind me.
A few moments later, the handcuffs around my wrists loosened and fell to the ground with a clatter.
"Dumb lizards..." I grumbled, rubbing my wrists as I scanned the room.
The accommodations were shockingly luxurious for a prison cell. The furniture, commodities, and ergonomic design were on par with those of a five-star hotel.
"...Why the hell does a place like this even exist?"
Before I could dwell on it further, a knock echoed from the door, dragging me back to reality.
I turned to the intercom, wary, and pressed a button to check the outside feed.
"What the fuck do you want?" I growled sulkily.
The screen flickered, revealing a man with silvery-gray hair tied into a topknot, adorned with a golden hair clip. His sharp green eyes could cut through someone’s soul, and the deep frown on his face made me feel like I had already done something wrong—even though I hadn’t.
But more than anything, the face itself made my stomach churn.
It was like looking at Gerard’s reflection in a distorted mirror.
My breath hitched, my mind reeling in panic.
"P-President Astoria?!"
The door slid open, revealing the man I least wanted to meet right now—the one person equivalent to Trinity Star Online’s Final Boss.
Gerard Astoria’s father. The current President of the Astoria Conglomerate—Anderson Phi Astoria.
His sharp eyes narrowed even further as he glared down at me.
"So you won’t call me ’Shitty Father’ like usual?" he said coldly. "As Supreme General Leytoni mentioned… it seems like you’ve changed. A lot."
I blinked.
’Supreme General Leytoni?’
The name was completely unfamiliar. But the title—Supreme General—jogged my memory.
That psychotic elven general.
The same scary bastard Eva nearly started a war with back when she picked a fight with a pig general!
If President Astoria had received word from him, who had a high probability of having figured out my identity, then…
This man wasn’t treating me as his son. He was treating me as "someone" who had his son’s face.
A cold sweat trickled down my back as I quickly switched gears.
I knelt, lowering my head like a knight before his liege, and spoke with perfect humility.
"Pardon my rudeness, President Astoria. I... I go by the name Arthur Grail, and..."
I launched into the most convincing act of my life, carefully weaving the "truth" into my words.
President Astoria didn’t move. He simply listened, his expression unreadable, his gaze unwavering. I felt as if I were under a microscope, being dissected.
Minutes passed in suffocating silence after I finally finished my story.
Then, at long last, he spoke.
"Do you think I don’t have a grasp of your activities?" His voice was low and cutting, like a Damascus knife slicing through flesh.
"I have been monitoring Gerard’s every action ever since he stole the Range Falcon."
Hearing his words, my blood ran cold.
"We have complete knowledge of your situation—except for one moment about a month ago, when your signal disappeared for a full day."
"...!"
That day.
The day Gerard drifted alone in deep space. The day he was switched out for me.
I had no answers for what happened at that moment. Even I didn’t know why Gerard had been out there alone—or why I transmigrated into his body.
President Astoria extended a hand.
He patted my left shoulder—a rare gesture of acknowledgment—as a thin smile crossed his lips.
"I may not have been a good father, but I can still recognize my own son." He paused. "And whatever the reason… for now, you are my son. And for that, I am thankful."
I stiffened.
"President…"
He knew.
He knew I wasn’t Gerard.
And yet, he still accepted me.
I shook my head, trying to clear the haze of relief creeping into my chest.
The man before me was no fool.
He had accepted that I wasn’t his son…
But I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.
Like I was a kid being offered candy—while slowly being guided toward a markless van.
---
After my short talk with President Astoria, I was informed that I’d be confined to this room for the next 50 hours.
In short, my—or rather, Gerard’s—punishment for stealing the Range Falcon amounted to a single day of room confinement.
It was an absurdly lenient punishment, no matter how you looked at it.
Though I was concerned for Eva and Cassandra, I had no access to the outside world. Even my personal terminal had been neutralized—the entire room was completely disconnected from the intranet.
Having no other choice, I could only pass the time idly.
Every ten hours, a maid arrived to deliver my meals.
I was honestly fascinated by the fact that it was actual food—not some weird, portable food pack that you had to drink, ones we usually have in stock onboard the Range Falcon.
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Because seriously, food isn’t something you drink. It’s something you eat!
Anyway, thanks to the delicious meals, I managed to accept my confinement without much resentment.
During the hours between meals, I spent my time reviewing the data I had saved on my terminal.
In particular, I focused on researching End-Game level artifacts.
Not all of them were scattered in unknown, unreachable locations. Some were already circulating in public—but the issue was that they were either:
Owned by troublesome people.
Being auctioned for absurd prices.
"Hmm?"
As I sifted through my mental archive, my eyes suddenly landed on a particular entry that made me flinch.
"This is..."
I carefully scanned the article, ensuring I wasn’t misreading it.
[---
Event: Aegis Grand Prix
Summary of Content: An annual event hosted by the Aegis Star System of the Cranmajia Galaxy. For this year’s race, the grand prize is a mysterious ship module excavated from Sector-1904 of the Franet Cluster. The module is suspected to be of ancient origin and is currently undergoing appraisal. Please wait for further details.
---]
"The GP event?" I raised a brow, confused.
This event was part of the game’s main storyline, true. However, it should have taken place during Chapter 6—which was supposed to be two years from now.
The Aegis Grand Prix was an obstacle race where only Frigate-class vessels could participate. The track spanned approximately 15 AU long, and all teams had to navigate it using everything they had at their disposal.
But of course, since it was a race, attacking opponents was strictly forbidden. It was a competition of pure piloting skills and speed—with a sprinkle of luck thrown in.
"But since I’ve already memorized the racetrack, I can basically claim victory—even with a default Hauler Frigate."
Among all frigate types, a Hauler was the slowest, operating at roughly 80% of the speed of other classes.
Anyway, the competition was set to start in two days (or 70 hours, to be specific), meaning I didn’t have much time left. If I wanted to join, I needed to acquire a frigate, modify it, and register it—all within the time limit.
"Oh, right! We have Eva’s ship!"
Eva still owned her Hunter Frigate, a balanced ship that, even without modifications, had a fair shot at winning!
And as the saying goes: Strike while the iron’s hot!
Without hesitation, I tore a page from the notebook beside me and grabbed a pen from the tableside drawer.
I quickly scribbled down a message for Eva, detailing all the necessary instructions.
Of course, I made sure to emphasize the grand prize’s value, ensuring I had her full attention—like dangling a carrot before a horse.
With this, she’d definitely take action.
"Aaaand done!"
I stood up, rushed to the door, and knocked. Yeah. I was knocking on my own door—from the inside.
"Yes, Young Master?"
A lizard-like guard stationed outside promptly opened the door. He kept a wary stance, his scaly finger resting on the Rifle-style blaster’s trigger—though at least it was pointed at the ground.
’He wouldn’t shoot me if I acted up, would he…?’
A dark thought flickered across my mind for a moment before I shook it away.
Instead, I quickly extended my hand, offering the folded page. I took a deep breath before speaking.
"Please deliver this note to Eva. Tell her it’s from me, and that it’s an urgent proposal she wouldn’t want to miss!"
The guard carefully accepted the note, unfolded it, and skimmed through its contents.
After a brief moment, he nodded.
"Understood, Young Master. I’ll deliver it promptly."
With that, he stepped back and closed the door once more.
"..."
I stared at the door, lips pouted.
I was kinda hoping he’d leave it open… So that I could "accidentally" step out and go exploring, but...
"...Never mind."
I turned around, returned to my bed, and took a nap.