Great! I'm surrounded by villains!
Chapter 272 - 191 - : The Last Ranger

Chapter 272: 191 Chapter: The Last Ranger

The Fortress Number carried too many negative records related to cosmic pirates, so after discussion, everyone decided to stick with the name Ranger. The original Ranger was parked in the flagship’s hangar, ready for emergencies.

The proposal for the "Hyperion" made by Duan Mingyuan was once again rejected due to copyright and other issues.

After Actus and the cosmic pirates were defeated, the Summit members on Mechanical Star could finally catch their breath.

So many things had happened in just one day, putting them through several close calls with death. Several times they were nearly gone, but they were firmly pulled back by the Blue Star people.

The Blue Star people were very good at playing resurrection matches.

This news spread quickly and became a label for the Blue Star people in just one morning.

Before this, not many had a clear understanding of Blue Star; they only knew that its chefs were somewhat skilled, with many major banquets in the universe catered by chefs from Blue Star.

The entries for the Blue Star people on the knowledge network were also updated, stating that most Blue Star people were born in harsh environments and learned to master resurrection matches from childhood, making every adult a master at it.

If your next opponent in a resurrection match is from Blue Star, then congratulations, your resurrection schedule will be significantly delayed.

"Did you see their gazes? Those directors are now itching to immediately pass the proposal for Blue Star to join the Summit so that you guys can bolster the Summit’s presence,"

Earth Wolf Twelve said. If he remembered correctly, on the day Duan Mingyuan and his group arrived, the directors couldn’t avoid them fast enough, fearing to bring trouble to their planets. If it weren’t for all that had happened on this day, the prospects for Blue Star’s proposal to join the Summit would not have been optimistic.

Now it was the Chamber of Commerce’s turn to have a headache.

With Actus and the Oasis Guild done for, their prophecies about the "Cocooning" of Mechanical Star had also been invalidated. Backed by the Blue Star delegation, other planet directors dared to boldly cast a dissenting vote in the subsequent meetings.

He could see the color drain from the faces of the Chamber envoys, yet they still had to put on a smile in public.

It was not often that the Shan Clan people botched an attempt and came out worse for wear.

As a newcomer on the Ranger, Earth Wolf Twelve had been quietly observing the team atmosphere aboard the ship, which differed from any place he had previously been.

Logically, in any fleet, the captain has absolute authority, but on the Ranger, that wasn’t the case.

The Third Prince consulted others for big and small matters, and the plans he proposed for a library and a bar were also put on the schedule. After a brief conversation, Earth Wolf Twelve realized he had a lot in common with the captain — first of all, they were both faithful readers of "Universal Beauty Appreciation Compendium."

Unfortunately, the Third Prince was somewhat similar to Duan Mingyuan; he, too, often had a little tail following him around.

In terms of status, Cai Die was the housekeeper of the Ranger, reportedly also the Third Prince’s personal maid. However, it was this maid who, when he and the Third Prince were engrossed in discussing "Universal Beauty Appreciation Compendium," yanked the prince’s ear from behind and dragged away the captain, who grimaced in pain.

The little Fox Demon around Duan Mingyuan would not perform such explicit actions, but she constantly clung to Duan Mingyuan’s arm to proclaim her sovereignty, even using her body to block between him and Duan Mingyuan, full of wariness, clearly seeing him as a lecher sneaking onto the Ranger.

This was an unfounded accusation, seriously undermining his reputation as an interstellar cowboy.

He just liked to linger in bars more than others, fond of flirting with the girls he met on the way, not turning away those who showed him interest, and enjoyed reading books like "Universal Beauty Appreciation Compendium"...

Earth Wolf Twelve didn’t understand; in what way did he appear to be a lech?

"Old Duan, tell me, how am I lecherous?"

Taking advantage of Jiuyue leaving to fetch something from the room, Earth Wolf Twelve voiced his soul-searching question.

"The proposal to build a library is good; you really should read more books to pass the time."

Duan Mingyuan wasn’t accustomed to the cavalier lifestyle of interstellar cowboys, nor was he keen on building a bar aboard the Ranger.

"You might not believe this, but I’ve loved reading since I was a child."

Earth Wolf Twelve crossed his arms proudly and boasted, "Back when I was in the Rangers, I was the one who loved to read the most, but I was illiterate, didn’t like dense text, so I preferred books with lots of pictures."

It was related to the customs of Hot Sand Star.

There were no bookish nerds on his planet; as the supply center of the entire star system, the planet was a mix of various powers, and a small misstep could lead to a firefight. Sitting an hour in a house in town, a fight could break out outside five times – there was no chance to indulge in reading.

"I enlisted at 14 and have been fighting battles ever since."

Earth Wolf Twelve felt that understanding each other was the first step to mutual trust. He had once fantasized about life after retirement. Rangers from Hot Sand Star usually pack up and leave town, seeking a secluded place to live in hermitage, with very few finding companionship.

And now, he had become the only ranger from Hot Sand Star in this universe.

"What about you? Now that we’re going to be comrades, there’s no need to be secretive. What did you used to do, and who taught you all these skills?"

Earth Wolf Twelve rarely admired anyone, but he genuinely respected Duan Mingyuan’s abilities. He opened the conversation, "When I first joined the Rangers, I was so young that the old hands made fun of me every day. The only reason I trained so hard was to beat them all one day."

"You’ve been to Blue Star, so you should know that the customs there are much more simple and pure," Duan Mingyuan said. "Go to school, take exams, work after graduation, it’s pretty much like that."

His past life was far less colorful than that of a ranger on Hot Sand Star.

However, this was not necessarily a bad thing, as the vast majority of people on Blue Star would never have to experience blowing someone up or being blown up by someone else.

"True, I’ve been to so many planets and few are more boring than your place—of course, I’m talking about Siyang City. I’ve heard that there’s a place on Blue Star called Cloud Sea Academy, and there are many Monster Girls in the hills behind it. I’ll have to see it with my own eyes when I go to Blue Star this time."

After talking with the Third Prince, Earth Wolf Twelve had a new life goal.

To be honest, it was impossible not to envy Duan Mingyuan.

Who wouldn’t want to marry a beautiful Fox Demon wife and take her home?

In his leisure time, he could also hold that fluffy tail in his hands and play with it. Having the mindset of self-reliance in providing for oneself, Earth Wolf Twelve decided he too would go to the hills behind Cloud Sea Academy to search for the feeling of romance.

His name contained "wolf," so it should make him feel close to the Monster Girls of Blue Star.

"Aside from these, don’t you have any grander goals?"

Duan Mingyuan sighed.

He felt that life’s ultimate goals shouldn’t be about getting some fries at the dock or such minor things.

"A grand goal?"

Earth Wolf Twelve looked up at the deep blue sky. He hadn’t thought about these questions for a long time, or rather, he had put everything out of his mind after the rangers were annihilated on a ’Cocoon’ planet.

Bar hopping, getting hopelessly drunk—days passed in a blur.

He didn’t even have his own flying gear, so he was employed by the Shanqi Commerce Association. Without this identity, as a wanted criminal by the Universe Company, he would find it difficult to move an inch in the universe.

He was the kind of person who would set off alarms simply by entering an airport terminal, so what life goals could he possibly have?

But on further thought, leaving the Shanqi Commerce Association to become a member of the Ranger was not entirely about reconsidering re-employment.

"You helped Mechanical Star avoid the fate of ’Cocoon’ transformation."

Even though the Shanqi Commerce Association insisted that the true effect came from the great secret treasure left by the first great craftsman, Earth Wolf Twelve was convinced that Duan Mingyuan played an indispensable role.

This planet, reborn with new life, reminded him of some past promises.

For example, he had promised his ranger brothers and sisters that one day he would get a flagship for them and then return to Hot Sand Star to uncover the real truth behind the ’Cocoon’ transformation.

Even as interstellar cowboys, they loved their home planet.

After defecting from the Universe Company, that wish became distant, and even if he returned to Hot Sand Star, the rangers no longer existed. Earth Wolf Twelve used to think that no one besides the people of Hot Sand Star would want to return to the Dead Star, a planet completely ’Cocooned’ with no signs of life.

"Back when I was with Universe Company, I followed a lot of research on the ’Cocoon’ phenomenon but never got a clear answer. When I was on missions on planets about to ’Cocoon,’ I tried to collect a lot of local intelligence but ended up with nothing."

Earth Wolf Twelve earnestly said, "I have a feeling that if I just stay on this ship, maybe one day I’ll understand the reasons behind the planet ’Cocoon’ transformations."

"And then what?"

"Then, it will be time to go our separate ways. Every job has a retirement point."

He paused for a moment, speaking softly yet firmly, "Then I’ll go back to Hot Sand Star, to fulfill those promises I once made."

"Good luck to you."

"You too."

The two of them exchanged a smile.

Earth Wolf Twelve felt that Duan Mingyuan probably needed luck more than he did, "After the Sixteen Star Summit is over, the Shanqi Commerce Association will surely see you as a thorn in their side. They’re not easier to deal with than a ’Cocooned’ planet."

"Since they dared to directly encourage pirates to take action against council members, would they care about a dissenting vote at a meeting?"

Duan Mingyuan was not surprised.

"They don’t care, but it could delay the merger of the company and the chamber to some extent. In the words most favored by the Shan Clan People, ’Time is money, my friend.’"