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Chapter 827  Target

"You speak the Thilku\'s language," Khan exclaimed, studying the soldier.

That conclusion was natural for Khan, but the soldier couldn\'t help but feel surprised. His expression didn\'t betray anything, but Khan had noticed that detail anyway.

The soldier\'s surprise would be even greater if he knew the truth. Khan could smell the difference between the current and previous concerns. It was almost night and day in his eyes, allowing him to reach that conclusion.

"Yes, My Prince," The soldier admitted. "I am educated in a variety of alien languages."

"And?" Khan asked.

"I mean no insult, My Prince," The soldier replied. "However, I wonder if playing into this ploy is wise."

The soldier\'s concern was reasonable. He didn\'t want Khan to ignore the issue, but there were better ways to tackle it. Khan\'s relationship with the Empire granted him access to immense support. He could easily contact Lord Exr and receive proper authorizations and reinforcements before dealing with the issue.

Moreover, entering the Empire\'s domain without invitations or warnings would break several interspecies agreements. Khan had special privileges, but the act would remain political, making repercussions unavoidable.

"I\'ve been invited," Khan firmly stated. "I plan to answer."

Khan\'s answer ended the discussion. The soldier apologetically lowered his head, and his companion imitated him out of comradery. The Thilku eventually gave the military planet\'s coordinates, and Khan sent his men away to relay the message and have some privacy with the alien.

"[I heard about your might, Blue Shaman]," The alien announced as soon as privacy arrived. "[The stories don\'t do you justice]."

Khan ignored the compliment and pretended to inspect the alien while retreating into his thoughts. He checked his condition, calculating how long it would take him to recover fully. By the time the ship reached the secret planet, his legs would still be injured, which wasn\'t ideal due to the impending battle.

"[Why did you betray the Empire]?" Khan asked. His curiosity about the topic was genuine. In his mind, it was strange for members of such a proud species to break bad.

"[I followed My Lord\'s orders]," The Thilku explained.

"[Lord Exr\'s orders]?" Khan questioned. "[Lord Rsi\'s]?"

The Empire had more Lords, but the location limited the answer to those two options. Lord Rsi\'s superior could have a hand in the ploy, but Khan didn\'t find that hypothesis reasonable. He was too small for figures close to the Thilku\'s Emperor to get involved.

"[My Lord doesn\'t have a crown yet]," The Thilku revealed. "[But he will soon]."

The matter instantly became more complicated. The Thilku weren\'t known for their interest in politics, but ambition was a natural feeling. Few of them could resort to dark strategies to appease it.

\'A Thilku striving for Lordship?\' Khan wondered. \'Under Lord Exr\'s nose?\'

Truthfully, Khan didn\'t know enough about the Empire\'s politics to develop reliable mental simulations. His ignorance prevented him from understanding whether the ploy against him was reckless or a standard practice among the Thilku.

Still, Khan couldn\'t let the matter rest. He needed to handle it because it was an insult to his authority. Moreover, the Thilku had awarded him a cape, and dealing with criminals would match their customs.

"[How would attacking me help him get a crown]?" Khan questioned.

"[Achievements breed glory]," The Thilku explained, "[And you are famous, Blue Shaman]."

Khan understood that point better than most, but another detail captured his attention and affected his mood. The Thilku felt unable to breathe as Khan opened his mouth to address the idea.

"[Am I being used here]?" Khan asked.

Khan almost couldn\'t believe he was considering that possibility. He could understand attacks on his persona meant to remove him from specific environments. However, thinking that some parties only wanted to exploit his fame for personal reasons made him livid. He wouldn\'t be treated as a simple pawn in someone else\'s game.

"[Th]-," The Thilku muttered, gasping for air. "[There are two factions at work here. That\'s all I know]."

"[What did your faction think when it involved me]?" Khan asked.

The Thilku knew the answer to Khan\'s question. Still, he also realized Khan wouldn\'t like it. The alien hesitated, but remaining silent felt impossible before that piercing gaze.

"[You were a suitable target for My Lord\'s career]," The Thilku replied. "[That\'s all]."

The Thilku almost expected his life to end at that moment. Yet, Khan didn\'t attack. The thought crossed his mind, but his anger was better used on a different target.

Khan had more questions for the Thilku, but they suddenly lost value. He stormed out of the cargo area and entered the bridge. The two soldiers there straightened their backs and announced his arrival, but he headed directly for the pilot\'s console.

"Move," Khan ordered, and the pilot instantly stood up, bowing once Khan took his place.

Khan gave no warnings before stepping on the pedal. The ship was already on the right course, so he only needed to accelerate to get to the secret planet faster. The vehicle automatically compensated for the sudden burst of speed, but Khan\'s crew suffered anyway.

The ship reached its peak speed, leaving Khan with nothing to do. Yet, he didn\'t move from the pilot\'s seat as wild emotions raced through his mind. His rational side had broadly understood the situation, but he couldn\'t help but let his unreasonable parts win.

It stood to reason that both parties involved in the ploy had acted out of personal interests. Even humankind\'s greatest figures couldn\'t have important Thilku on their payroll. That species didn\'t work like that.

Thomas and anyone involved with him had probably exploited the wannabe Thilku Lord to ruin Khan\'s status. He was the target of that party, but his anger only cared about the opposite side.

Khan owned a planet, a species, a scientific field, a revolutionary drug, and a big chunk of a noble faction. His reach affected most of the influential and wealthy organizations inside the Global Army, but that wasn\'t the end of it. He also touched on multiple alien species, making him an overall important figure.

Khan was often blind to his relevance and greatness, but that ploy had crossed a line. Someone had thought he could be used. Someone had treated him as a mere nobody, and Khan needed to show how wrong that was.

The ship took hours to cross the quadrant and reach the prisoner\'s coordinates, but a small planet eventually appeared on its scanners. The menus recorded its position, adding it to the known map of the universe and highlighting potential political problems, but Khan temporarily ignored them.

Approaching the planet\'s atmosphere revealed more details and triggered a reaction. A series of Thilku ships rose to intercept Khan\'s vehicle, forcing him to pull the brakes. He stopped into the enemy encirclement, and communications soon reached the main desk.

"[You are trespassing]," A robotic Thilku voice resounded throughout the bridge. "[State your name and purpose]."

"[Prince Khan]," Khan promptly replied. "[Blue Shaman. I\'ve been invited]."

The Thilku ships went silent. Minutes passed without additional communications, inevitably adding tension on Khan\'s bridge. Yet, a message eventually arrived.

"[Follow us]," The robotic alien voice ordered, adding a series of requirements to the message. n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Khan inputted the requirements into the ship\'s autopilot and left his seat. The scanners went dark, and the same went for the rectangular canopy at the bridge\'s end. The crew was flying blind, but Khan calmly took his position before the cargo area\'s side doors.

The slow descent felt endless, but Khan\'s crewmates mustered their courage and created an orderly line behind him. Everyone waited for the landing to unfold, which took place in a few minutes.

The side doors eventually opened on their own, and a metal ramp stretched into the new environment. The heavy stench of synthetic mana invaded Khan\'s senses, but he immediately stepped forward, uncaring about the rows of troops waiting on the other side.

The planet had deployed an entire company to welcome Khan\'s arrival. Almost two hundred Thilku had gathered before the ship, with many wielding rifles and other firearms.

The scene could make anyone tremble in fear, but the environment ended up claiming the crew\'s attention. The place was heavily metallic, with tall buildings stretching in every direction. The ship had landed in a highly technological city, and the soldiers couldn\'t help but spot the bigger structures in the distance.

Massive platforms with big weapons of various kinds grew in different but precise locations in the city. They were so tall that the human crew could inspect them with their naked eyes, hinting at worries the scanners\' short study had sparked.

Those huge structures had the explicit purpose of taking down incoming ships, no matter their size. Adding the armed company and the prisoner\'s revelations to the equation led to a simple conclusion. The Thilku were preparing for war, and the planet\'s location pointed at only one possible target: humankind.