The Real Daughter Just Wants to Pilot Mechas - Chapter 43

“What’s wrong?” Yan Chang jumped when all the windows around them suddenly closed. He quickly turned to Jiang Momo.

Jiang Momo closed her eyes. “Jiang Zhang was just at the window.”

She figured Jiang Yingying might have gone back crying after being forced into the Solo Soldier Department and given how the Jiang family always blindly protects their own, they’d definitely come looking for her. She really didn’t want to get tangled up with those so-called family members any more than necessary.

So annoying.

“Then let’s leave quickly.” Yan Chang started up the spaceship. “Let’s go see the ocean. I have a private island in the central sea zone with some small wild animals. Girls usually like them.”

Jiang Momo turned her head. “Small wild animals? Are they tasty?”

Yan Chang: “…Not really edible.”

“Like alien beasts?” Jiang Momo was curious.

As far as she knew, the only animals considered inedible by people on the Capital Star were alien beasts.

“They’re tiny, cute little pets,” Yan Chang said, gesturing. “They look like a cross between rabbits and cats, about palm-sized, and no aggression.”

Jiang Momo made a vague noise of acknowledgment.

Then they’re not very interesting.

***

At the edge of the island, Jiang Momo lay on a reef, gazing up at the starry sky with a rabbit-cat creature nestled in her arms as she gently petted it.

“How is it?” Yan Chang sat down beside her, sounding a bit like he was showing off.

Jiang Momo said, “Fluffy and very cute.”

She had never seen such a tiny fluffball before. It was not even the size of a palm, warm and soft. Just petting it put her in a better mood.

“If you like it, you can take one back to keep,” Yan Chang offered with a smile.

“No need. I’m not good at taking care of animals,” Jiang Momo replied.

Back on the desolate planet, she had tried raising small alien beasts but none had lasted more than a week before dying.

“Fair. These little things are delicate and timid, it’s hard to keep alive.” Yan Chang didn’t push. He turned to glance at the forest behind them. “E Mingjun went to catch one to play with and still hasn’t come back. I’ll go look for him.”

“Okay, I’ll just lie here for a while,” Jiang Momo said, resting one arm under her head and closing her eyes.

Time passed.

The steady sound of the waves suddenly shifted slightly.

Jiang Momo stood up immediately.

A dark shape was approaching slowly over the water and then suddenly surged out of the sea.

It was an alien beast with a hard gray-white shell, about the height of three adults. Its eyes glowed like huge yellow headlights and its mouth filled with protruding fangs.

It opened its mouth toward Jiang Momo, about to roar, but then lowered its head, locking eyes with her.

It seemed to suddenly sense danger and ultimately didn’t make a noise.

Jiang Momo stood still, fists clenched, staring the massive creature down with killing intent. In her mind, the weak point of the alien beast appeared automatically.

Three inches down from the center of the back of its neck.

With the right strength, one blow could disable or kill it.

But she had no intention of making a move.

She wasn’t wearing her mecha exoskeleton. If she fought, the best she could do was seriously injure it. If she failed to take it down in one hit and it went berserk from the pain, things would get a lot harder.

They stared each other down for a while. In the end, the alien beast backed down first. It clearly showed signs of fear, clawing at the ground with its four limbs, before turning and diving back into the sea.

Jiang Momo estimated the time. “Eight minutes. Was it because I was uncertain? That’s a lot slower than before.”

Back on the desolate planet, her standoffs with alien beasts never lasted more than three minutes. Either they tucked tail and ran or they thought they could beat her and rushed to attack, only to be killed instantly.

“Who said there are no alien beasts on the Capital Star? I’d better start carrying my mecha exoskeleton again when I go out.” Jiang Momo rubbed her chin. “I wonder if E Mingjun and the others ran into the alien beast. They’ve got mechas, so they should be fine.”

The island returned to peace.

Jiang Momo picked up the little creature that had played dead in fright at her feet, gently cradling it in her arms and patting it soothingly.

Soon, the sound of spaceship engines echoed through the sky.

Jiang Momo snapped her head up.

“…Are Yan Chang and E Mingjun ditching me and going back on their own? Oh, no, they’re not.”

Dozens of ships rapidly approached the island from the sky and came to a stop surrounding her.

A squad of soldiers in uniform quickly disembarked, forming a circle around Jiang Momo.

Jiang Momo was completely confused.

‘What is this situation?’

Soon, someone came to clear it up. A man in a distinctly different uniform stepped into the circle and stopped in front of her.

“Hello, I’m Major General Lu Feng of the First Military District of the Capital Star. We detected rare signs of alien beast activity on the Capital Star, so we’ve come to carry out a mission.”

“It went back into the sea,” Jiang Momo said, not good at dealing with people. She pointed to the water.

“Our signal detected you alone with the alien beast for eight minutes,” Lu Feng said.

Jiang Momo nodded.

“You don’t seem to be injured?” Lu Feng’s cold eyes scanned her up and down, his expression serious.

Jiang Momo felt his gaze and it made her a little uncomfortable but she still answered, “No. The alien beast didn’t seem like it wanted to attack me. It just stood there for a while and left.”

“Why didn’t you stop it?” Lu Feng asked.

“What?”

“I said, why didn’t you stop it and hold it off until we arrived?” His tone was a bit aggressive.

“Me? Stop it? How?” Jiang Momo frowned. “And how was I supposed to know you were coming?”

“You walked away unharmed from a face-off with an alien beast, so you clearly have the ability to stop it,” Lu Feng said. “Do you know how many people on the Capital Star could die because you let it go?”

Jiang Momo let out a sarcastic laugh. “So you’re not chasing the alien beast, you’re here to give me trouble?”

Just as she finished speaking, a low rumble echoed from the distance.

“Of course we’re already in action,” Lu Feng replied.

He looked extremely unfeeling, his pale blue eyes radiating nothing but mechanical coldness. “Come with us. We need you to provide some things.”

Jiang Momo was not-so-politely invited aboard a warship, blindfolded, and taken to a military base.

When the blindfold came off, she was already sitting in a small room.

It was a run-down room, with no decorations or furniture. There was just a table and chairs in the middle where Jiang Momo was sitting.

“You’re a mecha piloting student. Do you remember the first rule of the mecha pilot manual?” Lu Feng took off his white gloves and left them by the door, then slowly walked over to stand in front of Jiang Momo.

Jiang Momo’s gaze moved from his military boots upward, stopping on his face. “No, I’m a teacher in the Mecha Manufacturing Department at the Central Mecha Academy.”

As she spoke, she noticed a sparkle flash in those light blue glassy eyes. He was smiling.

“You’ve come all the way here and you’re still lying?” Lu Feng curved his lips.

Jiang Momo leaned back in her chair, eyes turning cold. “You can check.”

Lu Feng wasn’t fazed. “We are checking.”

“Then there’s no need to ask me. Just wait for your results.” Jiang Momo looked at her empty wrists, crossed her arms, and stayed silent, a clear nonviolent noncooperation stance.

Soon, a soldier rushed in from outside and whispered something into Lu Feng’s ear.

Lu Feng’s expression changed instantly.

“You’re really a teacher?” he asked.

“Of course,” Jiang Momo replied.

“But I remember manufacturers aren’t allowed to pilot mechas.” Lu Feng placed both hands on the table and stared at her with cold eyes. “So how did you survive eight minutes with an alien beast without a scratch?”

“What are you implying?!” Jiang Momo leaned forward, eyes locked on his. “Don’t tell me you think even the alien beasts have human accomplices these days?”

“What you used to survive could be critical for the Federation,” Lu Feng said, his icy blue eyes just inches away. “Do you realize how many lives that could save?”

“How did I survive?” Jiang Momo stared straight into his eyes. “Just like this.”

“What?”

An hour later, Jiang Momo was sent back to the academy.

She honestly felt like the night had been surreal. She faced off with an alien beast for eight minutes but had to endure a human officer’s interrogation for over thirty.

And now she understood why people thought there were no alien beasts on the Capital Star. She had to sign over thirty confidentiality agreements alone!

At the academy gate, Yan Chang was pacing anxiously, while E Mingjun leaned against the stone pillar with eyes closed.

“Master!” Yan Chang spotted her first, pulled E Mingjun, and ran excitedly toward her.

“You two didn’t go rest?” Jiang Momo asked.

Lu Feng had told her that her friends had been informed and returned but didn’t say what exactly they told them.

“We were waiting for you! Jeez, you got selected for a military open-day visit and didn’t even tell us. I was dragging you around wasting time and when they saw you hadn’t arrived, they sent a warship to pick you up. How was it? A warship must feel way better than a regular ship, right?” Yan Chang chattered, “No wonder everyone says our capital’s military is the most humane and warm-hearted!”

Most humane? Warm-hearted?

Jiang Momo’s head was full of question marks.

“What’s wrong, Master? The visit didn’t go well?” Yan Chang asked, noticing Jiang Momo didn’t look happy.

“It went great!” Jiang Momo gritted out.

Yan Chang blinked. “Huh? But you look…”

“I’m just tired, so I look drained. I’m actually thrilled inside,” Jiang Momo replied.

Yan Chang hesitated.

‘Master didn’t look tired. She looked like she was about to punch someone.’

“Then rest early. It’s chilly at night, don’t catch a cold,” E Mingjun said.

“Okay, see you tomorrow.” Jiang Momo nodded, said goodbye, and walked to the teacher’s dorm.

As soon as the door closed in front of her, she threw herself on the bed, dragged out a spatial compression storage box, and was about to pull out her mecha exoskeleton.

[Momo, don’t take it out yet! You just signed confidentiality agreements. You might get monitored if you touch that.] Little Eight stopped her.

Jiang Momo tossed the box on the bed. “How could they do this?! Most humane and warm-hearted, my *ss!

“But,” she cooled down, “don’t you think they’re being overly paranoid about the alien beasts?”

[While we were at the military base, I snuck into their intranet. It said that in recent years, alien beast activity has been rising again, with frequent sightings on the Central Star System.]

“How frequent?” Jiang Momo asked.

[Records show about ten per year,] Little Eight replied.

“Per year?!” Jiang Momo was shocked.

On the desolate planet, there were more than ten alien beasts every single day.

[Yep, per year,] Little Eight confirmed.