"Gothic Fleet Glory Codex"...?
The Rear Admiral pulled out the book, his gaze rapidly scanning the pages as his fingers moved.
Creak—the door was gently pushed open.
The old butler brought in stimulating tea as per Rear Admiral Alexander Hood's instructions.
"When did Farida return?" The Rear Admiral, still flipping through the book, stopped on one particular page.
"The young lady returned last night, but she went out very quickly. She's been home for a while now," the old butler replied respectfully.
"Who did she return with at the time?"
"Alone, sir. Is... something wrong?"
"Did she enter my study?"
The old butler's hand, placing the tea, froze in mid-air, but then quickly resumed its motion.
His master's words were clearly not a question; it seemed he had already discovered something, and covering for the young lady would be futile.
"I didn't see it with my own eyes, but the young lady should have come in."
"Are you sure she didn't bring anyone back?"
The old butler looked up, terrified.
"Sir, I truly didn't see anyone."
"Farida found Admiral Spire's only living descendant." Alexander looked at the illustration and description of the Chief Lord's Ring on the page, a bitter taste rising in his mouth.
That was the Hood Family's reluctantly concealed shame; two seasoned old generals, for a newly appointed colonel, had contributed the first Chief Lord's Ring in hundreds of years, and the sum of their battle achievements was not even as high as that colleague's.
If this book had been tampered with, and the person who discovered it was Thomas Kirkland's son, then it would be obvious what they were looking for in this book.
"Spire... are you referring to that... hero Admiral of the Gothic War?"
"So I want to know what she did during the time she was back. It's not peaceful outside right now..."
The man looked at the old butler with sharp, hawk-like eyes.
—
What Rear Admiral Alexander Hood didn't know was that the person who had trespassed into his study had already arrived above this massive floating platform, and was in a manor diagonally opposite, only 10 kilometers away from him.
"You've worked hard, Commodore Peru. I didn't expect you to come personally," Horatio said, sitting in the comfortable seat of the shuttle.
"I also didn't expect you to be there. You lived there for eight years; you must have some feelings for it, right?"
"Yes, I thought I'd go back and see it before enrollment," Horatio said with a smile, now only able to respond in accordance with the Commodore's wishes.
"Speaking of which, I still remember how anxious your parents were when they learned of your accident. Your father had just been promoted to Colonel Captain not long before, and during the Gothic War memorial ceremony, he placed the Chief Lord Captain's Ring awarded by the Navy Department on your hand."
The man sat on the luxurious soft seat next to Horatio, eyes closed, slowly fanning himself with a Navy bicorne hat.
"Your parents had something to do; I was the one who put you on the shuttle back then. Who knew that conspiracy would happen, changing the trajectories of many of our lives? And I wonder if Thomas was bothered by this incident, which is why he..."
"Sir, what exactly happened to my father? Lieutenant Sterling told me..."
"We've arrived. Let's go eat something first, Mr. Horatio."
The man opened his eyes, smiled at Horatio, then stood up and walked to the automatically unfolding stairs.
"This is PW1-A-13 Sky Garden, the largest area underwritten by the Navy Department. Five of the six Chief Lord Captains of the Gothic Fleet currently reside here," the man introduced to Horatio beside him:
"This is my home, that's Admiral Rodney's official residence, and connected to that is the Hood Family brothers' residence. Then over there is Lord Captain Elphinstone's official residence. Your father should have had one too, but he made his warship's bedroom his home."
Horatio gazed at Rear Admiral Alexander Hood's official residence in the distance. The entire mansion was brightly lit, and among the lights, there should have been the glow from Farida's room.
He felt a surge of emotion. When he came last night, he was still a death row inmate globally wanted by the Adeptus Arbites, forced to sneak into a private residence.
And now, he had actually become an Imperial Army soldier.
Standing openly on the garden helipad of an Imperial Navy Commodore.
The Guards on both sides snapped to attention, shouldering their rifles, and saluted Horatio and Commodore Peru.
Commodore Peru waved his hand and led Horatio towards the main entrance.
In front of the pristine white Victorian double doors, footmen and maids stood in two rows, bowing to their master and esteemed guest.
Horatio experienced such noble treatment for the first time, and a strange, light-headed sensation inexplicably arose in his heart.
He looked up, his gaze falling on the platform outside the main door, where a graceful, voluptuous woman stood, with a girl clutching her arm who must be her daughter. She was dressed in a respectable yet understated English maiden style, wearing a soft, snow-white ladies' wool wide-brimmed hat.
Both mother and daughter had beautiful faces. The girl had her mother's glossy, dark brown hair, and her demeanor was elegant, poised, and sweetly charming.
"You've worked hard, my two beauties." Edward handed his velvet bicorne hat to the approaching valet and unfastened his Navy greatcoat, handing it to another footman.
Then he raised his hand to introduce Horatio beside him.
"Thomas Kirkland's son, Horatio Kirkland."
"Oh, what a handsome boy! When he grows up, he'll probably be even more handsome and taller than Captain Thomas," the lady praised with a smile.
Then Edward introduced the other two masters of the household to Horatio: "My wife, Madame Mengsha, and this is my daughter, Thei, who just turned 15 this year."
[Ah. Is she already 15?]
Horatio thought, looking at the little girl in front of him who looked only twelve or thirteen.
The girl smiled, looking at Horatio with sparkling golden eyes, meeting his gaze.
Suddenly, the girl's gaze fell on Horatio's lower abdomen.
Horatio followed her gaze downwards; it was a large patch of bloodstains that had already dried to a dark brown, acquired while rescuing the Bread seller earlier.
"We miss your father very much. He used to visit often back then; he's been dealing with our family for over a decade, hasn't he?"
"Twenty years," Rear Admiral Edward corrected with a polite smile.
"I crashed into the Lower Hive eight years ago and lost all my previous memories, so I don't remember what my parents looked like," Horatio said with a bitter smile:
"I apologize for visiting in this state; I'm not very clean."
"Mr. Horatio participated in a heroic act of rescuing the injured in the Vegas District. How could we mind the bloodstains on him?" Edward interjected.
"The God-Emperor approves of you, sir." The girl praised with a soft, smiling voice:
"I was once a scout; not everyone has the courage to help blood-soaked victims. I've experienced it and know how much courage it takes to take that step."
"Thank you, Miss."
Horatio bowed, straightened up, and said, "It's a pleasure to meet you."
"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Mr. Kirkland. You seem like a very interesting person."
Horatio smiled in response.
"Stay here tonight after dinner. I'll take you to Loyalist Academy tomorrow morning," Edward nodded.
"What an unyielding child, come in, don't be shy. You must be hungry after such a long and tiring journey. My dear wife had the Chef prepare a lavish feast since early this morning; it smells wonderful."
Madame Mengsha, with a graceful gait, linked arms with her daughter, and the four of them walked into the main hall of the official residence.
Of course, having a good, undisturbed meal was only one aspect.
His most fundamental goal in coming here was to wait for Commodore Peru to speak with him privately.
He had too many questions he wanted to ask this man.