TCPUAAV Chapter 2

 

A deafening explosion reverberated through the ship, accompanied by violent tremors as red warning lights flashed incessantly.

 

“Your Highness, the distress signal has been intercepted. We cannot contact the Baghdad[mfn]Yup, it’s literally written in the raws like the actual capital[/mfn] District garrison.”

 

“Your Highness, Colonel Asman has fallen in battle, and the escort fleet has been annihilated.”

 

“Your Highness, the ship’s shields have been breached. The right-wing fuel tank is damaged, and fuel is leaking…”

 

“Your Highness…”

 

Chaotic voices clamored to report, blending into a distorted cacophony that felt like it would burst eardrums.

 

An unexpected assault by a fleet of interceptors—a premeditated ambush. In this isolated and desperate situation, there was no choice but to fight to the death. Outside the porthole, fire and explosions painted the void of space. The remnants of royal escort ships, emblazoned with the imperial crest, floated silently amidst the dark cosmos, though blood and flames still raged within.

 

“Boom—”

 

Another deafening blast sent a surge of scorching heat crashing toward Rong Heng. Under the extreme temperature, he had no time to react. He could only watch helplessly as everything—people, objects—was consumed into stardust and reduced to nothingness…

 

“Don’t be scared,” Ruan Shiqing murmured, cradling the puppy close to his chest in a soothing embrace.

 

It had been an entire night since he’d brought the injured pup back from the depths of the junkyard. From the latter half of the night into the morning, the pup’s body had trembled incessantly, its temperature steadily dropping. Ruan Shiqing had cleaned and dressed its wounds as best he could. Now, all he could do was hold it close and pray it would survive this critical juncture.

 

His slender hand rested gently on the puppy’s head, stroking down its back in soothing, repetitive motions.

 

Startled awake from a nightmare, Rong Heng’s eyes snapped open, and an overwhelming sense of danger engulfed him. Instinctively reacting to perceived threat, he struck out—

 

Only to find his wrist unexpectedly caught in a bite. The slight pain, instead of alarming Ruan Shiqing, brought him immense relief. Using his free hand, he tapped the pup lightly on the forehead and said with a smile, “You’re finally awake.”

 

The puppy stared at him with large, wet, deep-brown eyes. Its fluffy head was slightly disheveled from the earlier commotion, but the mess only enhanced its charm.

 

The more Ruan Shiqing looked, the more the little pup reminded him of Snowball, his old pet. Unable to resist, he gave it another affectionate rub. “Why don’t I call you Snowball from now on?” he suggested softly.

 

To Ruan Shiqing, Snowball felt like a gift from this strange, unfamiliar world—something real to anchor him amidst the uncertainty.

 

Rong Heng froze, staring blankly as the boy petted him with unrestrained delight. Realizing that he had bitten the boy’s thin wrist, his mind stalled.

 

Not that his furry face could adequately convey the shock and awkwardness he felt.

 

Ruan Shiqing, unaware of the turmoil in the pup’s mind, continued happily rubbing its soft fur, inwardly exclaiming: My pup is so adorable!

 

The pup: …

 

Taking in the boy’s scrawny, yellowed arm, Rong Heng couldn’t help but wonder how long it had been since he’d bathed. Disgusted, he released his bite and spat twice.

 

Ugh, dirty.

 

Still oblivious to the pup’s disdain, Ruan Shiqing misinterpreted the gestures. Seeing its small tongue flicking out repeatedly, he thought the pup feared being abandoned and was trying to win his favor. His heart softened further.

 

A little thing this young, already knowing to please its owner—it must have suffered a lot before.

 

Moved with pity, Ruan Shiqing immediately dismissed the idea of leaving the puppy alone in the temporary shelter. Tying the hem of his coat securely, he gently tucked the pup inside, close to his chest.

 

Rong Heng: …

 

Completely enclosed within the coat, his nose filled with the unfamiliar scent of the boy, Rong Heng squirmed uncomfortably. He could feel the warmth of the boy’s body with every slight movement, a closeness that not only felt invasive but also stirred a long-buried sense of unease.

 

As the distinguished crown prince of the Galactic Empire, Rong Heng had never experienced such intimate contact with anyone besides his mother—not even in his childhood.

 

As he grew older, the formidable power of the Ymir[mfn]I know that in the synopsis on NU, it’s Yomir, but I felt like Ymir sounded cool with the transliteration[/mfn] race drove others to keep their distance. Rong Heng had long grown accustomed to maintaining space between himself and everyone else, even comrades who fought alongside him on the battlefield.

 

Instinctively, he wanted to be angry, to teach this audacious boy a lesson.

 

But when he raised his paw, all that emerged was a soft, pink paw pad.

 

The paw rested against the boy’s chest, where he could feel the warmth of his body, the steady beat of his heart, and the sharp outline of his ribs.

 

This brought to mind their earlier encounter. The boy had likely been drawn to the crash site by the commotion, hoping to scavenge food or valuables. By all appearances, he was a destitute, wandering youth with no guarantee of tomorrow.

 

Barely able to feed himself, yet he still took in a stray pup.

 

Though Rong Heng felt a sense of humiliation, he couldn’t deny the truth: the boy saw him as nothing more than an abandoned dog.

 

The Ymir were an ancient race, their history predating even that of the Galactic Empire. They possessed extraordinary longevity, unparalleled strength, and astonishing natural talents. However, they had one glaring weakness: Ymir cubs were incredibly frail and incapable of defending themselves. Without the protection of an adult Ymir, it was almost impossible for a cub to survive alone.

 

This vulnerability made Ymir cubs unremarkable in their youth. With white fur, brown eyes, and barely visible horns, they could easily be mistaken for weak and ordinary creatures. Only upon reaching maturity would they begin to shed their disguises and exude the majestic aura of an adult Ymir.

 

This was not a flaw but an evolutionary adaptation—a survival mechanism. Ymir, whether in their growth stage or adulthood, could revert to their cub form in times of life-threatening peril, concealing themselves as helpless infants to escape danger.

 

But for a species as inherently proud as the Ymir, this ability was considered a disgrace. No Ymir who had reached maturity would willingly acknowledge their childhood state, let alone revert to it. To them, it was an ignoble relic of the past, an embarrassment to be buried and forgotten.

 

Given the choice between facing death and reverting to cub form, no Ymir would choose the latter.

 

Rong Heng was no exception.

 

When he returned to the shuttle, his intention had been to hide in the sealed pod and recuperate. With his remarkable healing ability, ten days of rest would have restored half his strength, enough to leave the area.

 

But his injuries were far worse than he had anticipated. Overwhelmed by survival instincts, he unconsciously reverted to his cub form while unconscious. By some twist of fate, he was rescued by the stray boy with whom he had briefly crossed paths.

 

Rong Heng glanced upward through the collar of the coat, catching sight of the boy’s gentle expression. He hesitated, then reconsidered his stance.

 

Fine. When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

 

The Empire’s crown prince had vanished after an ambush before his coronation. The vultures in Sikkim would undoubtedly be circling, their schemes already in motion. Lying low might not be a bad idea; it might even allow him to watch them tear each other apart.

 

The thought of the ambush in the Baghdad District brought a fleeting trace of anger to his eyes, but he quickly masked it. Lowering his gaze, he smoothed his rumpled fur before settling back down.

 

The pup squirmed nervously inside the coat for a moment. But after sensing no immediate danger, it obediently lay still.

 

Ruan Shiqing, observing from the corner of his eye, was utterly smitten.

 

My pup is so cute!!!

 

Unable to resist, he pulled the zipper down slightly, reached in, and gave the pup a vigorous petting. Despite knowing the dog couldn’t understand him, he explained, “Don’t be scared, Snowball. Daddy’s taking you to buy something yummy. You must be hungry, right?”

 

Rong Heng, fluent in ancient human languages: ?????

 

Snowball? Who are you calling Snowball? And who the hell is your son?!

 

This was beyond tolerable. Grinding his teeth, he growled at Ruan Shiqing in irritation.

 

If it had been an adult Ymir growling, the sound alone would have terrified the boy into submission.

 

But as it was, the growl came from an injured Ymir cub. The result was a soft, feeble whimper—a plaintive little “awoo~” that reached Ruan Shiqing’s ears like a sugary plea.

 

Ruan Shiqing: !!!

 

My pup just whined adorably at Daddy! So cute! QWQ

 

Rong Heng: …

 

…

 

Ruan Shiqing left his temporary shelter with the disassembled components from the crashed aircraft and his new puppy snugly tucked in his coat.

 

During his first few days in this world, everything had felt unreal, as though he were wandering through a hazy dream. The environment and the people were nothing more than fleeting impressions. This time, stepping outside again, he finally had the presence of mind to marvel at the alien strangeness of it all.

 

The vast expanse of the junkyard stretched endlessly before him, the first thing to catch his eye. Looking upward revealed the source of the endless debris—countless transport ships hovered above, their bay doors wide open as they poured out streams of refuse.

 

In just the few seconds Ruan Shiqing spent observing, several ships finished unloading and departed, quickly replaced by others.

 

The sky was a thick haze of gray, and the constant rumble of ships unloading and machinery operating filled the air with ceaseless noise.

 

Despite the harsh environment, the junkyard was bustling with people. Many were scrambling to sift through the newly dumped trash—an assortment of metal waste ranging from damaged vehicle hulls to unrecognizable scrap metal parts.

 

Looking further out, Ruan Shiqing spotted enormous towers and slowly turning wind turbines. He surmised that behind the junkyard lay an energy conversion facility, designed to process the metal waste into usable energy. Without such a system, this method of dumping would fill the entire planet in no time.

 

After a brief pause to take in the sight, he continued onward.

 

Two burly men with black bear ears brushed past him. Their unusual appearance made Ruan Shiqing pause, and he couldn’t help but glance back. The two men turned around at the same time, and one of them, transforming his hands into bear-like claws, raised a fist in a mock-threatening gesture, his face twisted into a menacing grin.

 

Ruan Shiqing remained expressionless, calmly turning back, but his hand slipped inside his coat to pinch his puppy’s soft ears.

 

Rong Heng: ?????

 

What’s his deal?!

 

Since arriving in this world, Ruan Shiqing’s worldview had been shattered repeatedly, leaving him more or less unfazed by the bizarre. Carrying his puppy without a trace of panic, he strolled through the junkyard, deep in thought about how to sell his scavenged parts for money and food despite the language barrier.

 

However, there was no sign of a market or even anyone openly buying scrap in the visible area.

 

As he puzzled over his next steps, a tap on his shoulder made him turn around. A tall, thin man with half his face covered in red scales grinned at him, his forked tongue flicking out like a snake’s.

 

Ruan Shiqing took an instinctive step back, but the man’s hand clamped down on his shoulder—not hard, but firm enough to prevent escape.

 

“Where did you find those?” the man asked in a low voice, his slit pupils darting to the parts Ruan Shiqing held: a heat vent, a cooling shield, and a fuel atomizer nozzle.

 

These items were unremarkable, most aircraft were loaded with them, they were parts that wore out and needed to be replaced often, so they weren’t that expensive. What caught his attention was the engraved falcon pattern and the number on it.

 

NAX06-R9. That number belonged to the Silver Falcon, the latest high-speed shuttle produced by Naxi[mfn]So it’s Naxi or Nakhi, written like one of the ethnic groups recognized by China. Don’t worry, it’s not like the other n a * i word that is not something good to be named like lmao[/mfn] Corporation. Every component, from the drive system to the smallest parts, was exclusively designed and manufactured by Naxi Corporation. Sleek in appearance, exceptional in performance, and prohibitively expensive, the Silver Falcon was immediately sold out upon its debut.

 

Owners of the Silver Falcon cherished it like a prized gem. How, then, had its parts ended up on this remote trash planet? And how had this boy coincidentally scavenged them?

 

The man’s thoughts raced to the explosion he had heard two nights ago. If a Silver Falcon had crashed and its wreckage landed in the junkyard, it would explain everything.

 

The boy before him must have stumbled upon the wreckage but, not recognizing its true value, had only scavenged some unremarkable parts. If he could locate the shuttle and dismantle its drive system and engine, selling them on the black market would guarantee a fortune.

 

His breathing grew heavy as he imagined the possibilities. Seeing that Ruan Shiqing remained silent, he tightened his grip slightly and asked again, “Where did you find those?”

 

 

 

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I hope some parts weren’t too confusing! For some reason the author just jumped from their POVs without much difference? But anyway it’s so funny and cute that Ruan Shiqing thinks of the lil ferocious cub as a little puppy~

 

Thanks for reading!