For the first time in his life, Audrose felt a little disheartened by the sudden arrival of work.

But a grave matter like "changes in the war situation" could not be delayed. This was his responsibility as the Imperial Marshal.

So Audrose only hesitated for a second before gently withdrawing his other arm that was holding the little slave, and turned over to get out of bed.

Without making a sound.

After leaving a message for the little slave on the message pad, he pulled out the formal attire he needed to change into from the wardrobe and quietly left the bedroom.

......

Including changing clothes and rushing over, Audrose took a total of less than half an hour to reach the palace.

The Emperor who sent him the message to go to the palace arrived even later than him.

The Emperor should have rushed back from Aegeanro in a hurry, without even having time to change into a set of formal clothes. He came to see Audrose directly in the same casual outfit he wore in the morning.

Without any pleasantries, the Emperor directly presented to him the urgent intelligence he received.

The highest level of encrypted intelligence directly bypassed the Marshal who was on leave and was sent to the Emperor's personal terminal.

The Delaire Empire had constant border conflicts, but most of these conflicts were not with other countries, but with the beast hordes entrenched on the edges of the Starlight Domain.

These beast hordes were originally inhabitants of other star domains, but as those star domains gradually lost vitality and the planets became uninhabitable one by one, driven by instinct, these beasts began to expand towards the remaining star domains.

In fact, the intelligence of these beasts was not high, at least far inferior compared to humans, but their physical strength was very high. It was difficult to damage them with ordinary weapons, and only mechs and starships had the power to fight them one-on-one. Among them, a rare type of high-level beast could only be directly confronted by S-class and above mechs.

Not to mention their vast numbers and reproductive capacity that was who knows how many times stronger than humans. After one batch died, another batch would immediately take over.

They were like a swarm of locusts that could never be eradicated, causing endless wars wherever they went.

The Delaire Empire was just one of the countless victims on their expanding front lines.

Some countries with insufficient armed forces would be wiped out by the beasts in an instant, without even having time to call for help. The Delaire Empire formed a timely alliance with the three neighboring empires and established a tight border defense line. Its situation was a bit better. Although the conflicts were constant, the defense line was never breached by the beasts, and the domestic situation was quite stable.

After reading this freshly released intelligence report, Audrose's brows furrowed deeply.

Although the beasts were troublesome, they were not always so powerful. In the long confrontation, people slowly figured out the patterns: their combat power was strongest during their breeding season, but there would be a noticeable period of weakness after the breeding season.

A month ago, it was the recent weak period for those beasts stationed outside the defense line. Audrose united the allied forces and employed a new tactic, taking advantage of this opportunity to shatter half of the beasts' nest.

This was a victory of great significance, because the blow dealt during the weak period would also impact their next breeding season. Not only would the borders be peaceful for a long time, but the pressure would also be greatly reduced when the next breeding season of the beasts arrived.

It was precisely because of this victory that the borders entered a rare period of peace, allowing Audrose to take leave and return to the capital star with peace of mind.

But now—

"The B01 defense line has been breached?"

The border defense lines consisted of four major regions, ABCD, representing the four allied countries. The Delaire Empire's defense line was located at the outermost edge, with the designation A. Although the B01 defense line that was declared breached this time did not belong to their area of responsibility, it was the junction between their defense line and that of the neighboring country. If proper measures were not taken, their country's defense line would likely be the next to suffer.

This was really too strange. In theory, the beasts should not have the ability to cause trouble for the next three years, so how did they suddenly launch such a fierce attack and break through the defense line?

Thanks to the timely alliance, the defense lines in their star domain were quite solid. Although they had never been able to repel the beasts, breaches were rare. The last time a defense line was breached was due to a major mistake in troop deployment by a commander of an allied country.

The Emperor nodded and transmitted a video to his personal terminal, saying in a deep voice, "The attack happened very suddenly, within three hours. Our monitoring system at A88 recorded part of the process. You can take a look."

Audrose received the video and watched it in silence.

Massive figures sneaking in the deep night, occasional flashes of scarlet light, orderly breaking through one by one...

This was a planned and premeditated attack, with an intelligence that didn't seem like something the beasts could do. Although the video was incomplete, after watching it, Audrose still confirmed this point.

After a few seconds of pause, Audrose said with certainty, "Something is off about these beasts."

If these creatures with tough shells could have this level of intelligence, he wouldn't have been able to lead the troops to shatter half of their nest.

The Emperor said bluntly, "After preliminary analysis, the border researchers believe the beasts have evolved."

Audrose's eyes slightly darkened.

"...This evolution should be individualized. The behavior of the beasts in the video shows obvious signs of being controlled. We suspect that some of the beasts have undergone mental evolution. They made plans and then controlled and commanded the lower-level beasts, using the B01 defense line as a test point to launch a precise strike," the Emperor added.

Audrose remained silent for a long time.

For the beasts to have undergone mental evolution—even if only a very small number—everyone knew what that meant.

The beasts with just tough shells were already troublesome enough. The Empire had to invest a large amount of funds and military power every year to ensure the safety of the defense lines. Now that the beasts had evolved, the difficulty of guarding the borders would undoubtedly increase dramatically.

Moreover, to what extent had they evolved? Would this evolution continue to spread among the beast hordes in the future?... These questions would all become a blade hanging over the Empire's head, ready to fall at any time.

Audrose said, "I understand. I will return to the border immediately."

The Emperor said, "Tomorrow afternoon, a large supply fleet will depart from Planet Felirio towards the border. The Marshal can go with the fleet."

Audrose nodded, "Yes, Your Majesty."

The supply fleet had its own dedicated routes and moved at a decent speed. By accompanying the supply fleet, he could also ensure the fleet's safety along the way.

At six o'clock in the evening, the Imperial leadership convened on schedule. After the Emperor presented the intelligence and video, the council unanimously agreed to send additional personnel and weapons to the border.

......

When the meeting ended and Audrose returned to his residence, it was already ten o'clock at night. Su Duan had finished his dinner under the dragon's supervision, taken a walk, and washed himself clean. He was now kneeling in front of the cabinet, his little bottom sticking out as he busied himself with something.

Hearing the sound of Audrose entering the room, the little slave's jet-black head alertly turned around, his body still maintaining the kneeling posture.

Audrose's gaze lingered for a few seconds on that particularly round and perky area due to the posture. Finally, he reached out and stroked the slave's soft hair, asking in a low voice, "What are you doing?"

Su Duan said very softly, "Organizing the clothes."

Audrose had left in a hurry today, so the wardrobe was slightly messy. With nothing else to do, Su Duan tried to tidy up Audrose's wardrobe.

...Only it seemed he hadn't unlocked the housekeeping skill, as the more he organized, the messier it became.

Audrose glanced at the cabinet, which looked even more chaotic than when he left. After a few seconds of silence, he decisively skipped over this topic. A few more seconds of silence later, he asked, "What did you have for dinner?"

Su Duan thought for a moment and earnestly recited the names of a few dishes.

Actually, he had been eager to eat the nutrient solution, but Audrose's spiritual body insisted that eating vegetables would be better for him, so he could only stare longingly at the nutrient solutions in the spatial ring.

Audrose pulled him up from the ground, naturally patting the non-existent dust off his bottom and legs, and said, "I will set off for the border tomorrow."

As expected, Su Duan didn't notice that he had been taken advantage of, his attention entirely captured by Audrose's last sentence: "So suddenly... is there going to be a war?"

Audrose led him to sit on the edge of the bed and replied, "Not necessarily. There have just been some unexpected situations. We'll have to wait until we get there to assess."

"War," Su Duan said, "...is very dangerous."

He had seen human armies battle before. Each clash was accompanied by the fall of countless lives. No matter how powerful, no one could guarantee their safety in the midst of a melee full of weapons. When the armies dispersed, all that remained was blood and corpses. The stench of blood and death would linger in the land for decades.

Soil stained with the smell of blood and dampness was not suitable for plant growth, especially for spiritually awakened plants. If they absorbed nourishment with a murderous aura for a long time, it would damage their spiritual power. So every time Su Duan saw traces of an army encampment, he would run far away.

Audrose did not refute him, because even he had suffered life-threatening injuries on the battlefield.

He only said, "It will all pass."

Su Duan nodded, looking up at him with eager eyes and asked, "Can I go with you?"

Audrose fell silent.

Actually, on the way home in the starship, he had considered this issue.

He absolutely did not feel at ease leaving the little slave alone at home. The spiritual body could not be separated from its master for too long. More than three days would put a strain on the spiritual domain. He could not possibly make decisions and go to the battlefield in this state. Just the time it took to get to the border was far more than three days. So if he left the little slave at home, it would mean the little slave was out of his protection.

He could entrust Su Duan to Avid's care... but Avid's work was not much easier than his own when he was busy from dawn to dusk. How could he have the energy to take care of all aspects of the little slave?

Moreover, he still remembered clearly the last time Avid's dragon tried to sniff the little slave. So after briefly considering this method, he completely gave up on it.

Although objectively speaking, the danger level at the border was much higher than that of the capital star, at least there his dragon could follow and protect the little slave most of the time, which made him feel more at ease than leaving Su Duan in the capital.

Even if the severity of the war was more serious than he anticipated, as long as he made proper arrangements, the little slave in the rear could be safely evacuated even if the front collapsed.

So for Su Duan's question, Audrose actually already had an answer in his heart—

There was still one problem, though.

He removed his hand from Su Duan's head and slowly moved it down to grasp his thin shoulders. Looking down at him, he said, "If you want to go... you must be branded."

Su Duan was stunned for a moment before realizing what he meant by "branding".

He scratched his cheek and said softly, "I thought you had forgotten." Audrose had stopped others from branding him twice, so he thought the matter had passed and he didn't need to be branded.

Audrose patiently explained in a low voice, "If we stay in the capital star, it's fine not to brand you. But the border check is strict. If you're not registered in the system, you may be attacked as an intruder at any time. There's no time to get you an ID now, so... you can only go as a slave."

Su Duan continued to scratch his cheek. Reason told him that what Audrose said made a lot of sense, but he couldn't bring himself to agree.

It wasn't that he was afraid of pain. He just vaguely felt that after being branded, the gap between him and Audrose would grow larger and larger.

A warm palm gently covered the top of his head. Audrose said, "We'll use a material that can be washed off. When we come back, I'll help you remove it, okay?"

Su Duan blinked and asked, "It can be washed off?" The system had told him that once the material used for slave branding in this world was applied, it could never be removed.

Audrose said, "The research institute has developed a new material. During detection, it produces the same wavelength as the original material, but it can be washed off with a special reagent. The phase three clinical trial has passed. It is scheduled to be completely replaced nationwide by the end of the year. We can use it first."

In the interstellar era, the slave system was actually a regression of civilization. The Empire had long intended to abolish this system, which was why the research institute had developed this seemingly useless new material.

As long as the policy changes, the registered identity can be changed at any time. All along, the heaviest thing that binds the slaves is the slave brand that can never be washed away once engraved.

It's just that reforms are always difficult. The slave system has continued to this day, naturally with its vested interest groups. These vested interest groups are very large, and most of them are powerful nobles, so the process of abolishing the slave system is bound to be long and difficult.

Just like the promotion of this new material, although it has been researched for a long time, due to various practical constraints, it is already the best result if it can be implemented by the end of the year.

Su Duan said, "...So that's how it is."

"Alright then." He emphasized, "Be sure to wash it off when we come back."

Audrose kissed his forehead, a hint of laughter leaking from the bottom of his eyes, and said, "Okay, I'll have Avid send the materials over."