Counterfeit Hero

The entire Saleria Fleet was devoured by the bandit army. Fang Xiang had no choice but to compromise before the stubborn Fatty due to the current predicament of the Longbow Fleet. After all, her previous proposal was just a hopeful attempt, and with Fang Xiang’s wisdom, she wouldn’t refuse cooperation spitefully if she failed to secure her goals. In fact, she had already prepared herself to join the Leray Forces when Chekov presented the fleet modification plan.

However, Fang Xiang did not come out empty-handed. All these conditions were established based on one agreement—if after half a year, the Saleria Longbow Fleet discovers major strategic and ideological differences with the bandit army, the Saleria Fleet could choose to depart from the bandit army.

In Fang Xiang’s view, half a year was just enough to complete the fleet modifications. Furthermore, this condition, without any evaluation standards, was almost entirely dependent on her whims, making it essentially unrestrained.

As a negotiation tactic, Fang Xiang intentionally proposed this impossible-to-accept harsh condition, hoping to extract some compromise from Fatty during their stalemate.

Unexpectedly, Fatty agreed to her condition without hesitation. Subsequently, Fatty consistently used phrases like ”Anyway, if you think we’re wrong, you can leave anytime.” and ”Given this condition, how can you not see our sincerity?” to press her, causing Fang Xiang to lose her negotiation bottom line completely.

After the negotiation ended, Fang Xiang angrily left the control room, delegating all subsequent tasks to her deputy. She simply couldn’t face that detestable face on the communication screen anymore.

After hours of confrontation, Fang Xiang realized that from beginning to end, Fatty was controlling everything. That despicable, shameless, hypocritical, feigned ignorance, unmanly, fat, unscrupulous, and vulgar dead Fatty was an extremely cunning scoundrel!

Staring fiercely at the reconnaissance ships tirelessly flying outside, Fang Xiang swore to make Fatty pay half a year later!

Fatty cared little about all that. He had no time to waste on extra chatter with that pretty Saleria lady. As for their choices in half a year… damn it, he’d deal with it then. Turning off the communicator, Fatty’s face lost its feigned ignorant look, his expression turned steely as he stared at the interstellar map, his fists clenched tightly—time was running out for him.

Just two days ago, the news of Leray’s Transformation finally reached Mars Free Port.

President Hamilton and Admiral Mihailovich were detained, Congress forcibly dissolved, the entire Leray was now completely under the control of the coup-driven Tri-Party Alliance.

This news left Fatty’s mind blank at the moment.

This was a disgraceful coup. Such a coup inflicted far greater damage on Leray than the Western Alliance’s attacks.

Currently, Leray was in utter chaos. The military, political circles, major corporations, financial groups, and even ordinary Leray citizens were split into two factions, attacking each other. The Atlantis Star Domain controlled by the former ruling party and the Central Leray Star Domain controlled by the Tri-Party Alliance were at odds. Besides verbal criticisms, the forces under both sides clashed in small-scale battles at the Jump Points between the Newton Star System and the Central Star System.

Such battles were erupting across Leray Capital, Free Star System, and everywhere.

Although Free Star System Military District Commander Hansford meticulously planned the arrests of hundreds of former high-ranking military leaders, quickly gaining control of most of the troops stationed in the Central Leray Star Domain, numerous mid to low-level officers still attempted to resist.

To consolidate their rule over the Central Leray Star Domain, Brody and Hansford began massive political and military purges while hastening negotiations with the Western Alliance, aiming to trade control of the Central Star Domain Jump Points for Brody Regime’s status within the Western Alliance.

After gathering all obtainable information, Fatty was so furious that he almost smashed everything within reach. At that time, Markovich, Helen, and various faction leaders saw the terrifying bloodshot eyes in Fatty’s gaze.

No one dared to disturb him. In that office, he resembled a wounded Fierce Beast.

That day, Markovich and all the Leray-origin bandit soldiers stood silently and rigidly in the hallway outside the office for the entire day.

No one understood Fatty better than they did. When he led a Destroyer unable to return to Leray, poured his heart out in the Free World, struggling bare-handed to carve out a foothold, to hold off the Suss Empire for Leray, to contribute even a bit to the wartime effort, those damn spineless traitors stabbed him in the back!

That stab was so deep. Pain to the bone.

Three years of war, tens of millions of Leray warriors who died on the battlefield, countless desperate moments, countless turnarounds, every occupied planet, every burnt city… the sacrifices of the Leray people were so easily nullified by those vile, traitorous politicians!

And all of Fatty’s efforts and hardships in the Free World were on the verge of being completely ruined just as the dawn appeared!

”How dare they!... How dare they!... How… dare they…” That day, everyone could hear the low, repetitive voice from the closed office. There were no tonal fluctuations, yet this voice was far more heart-wrenching than cries and roars in everyone’s ears.