Volume 3 Chapter 1Translator: Mochipanda, LilsxD, YihnfulProofreader: Wryn, Catchkatch, NoobzillaDevon took a sip of his coffee and grimaced at the bitter taste. The coffee had been brewed for far too long; it was too bitter even for him, who was accustomed to the taste of black coffee. The acrid taste only served to worsen his already foul mood. Looking up, he snapped at the conference screen. “I don’t care what the public is saying, or what underhanded measures are required; Yue Baylian must be destroyed.”The face on the screen belonged to Kyle, otherwise known as the right hand man and secretary extraordinaire, of the Solaris Emperor.“However, the Lunaris Alliance has skillfully manipulated public opinion by spreading unfavourable and exaggerated rumours of our tactics. They have even lead the other cartels into believing the Solaris Federation intends to absorb them, with the destruction of the Lunaris Alliance as the first step. Unfortunately, if we were to make a move on the Lunaris Alliance now, other groups may start retaliating.”“Hmph. It seems Yue Baylian is well aware that a mere Lunaris Alliance is unable to withstand my vengeance.”Devon was not surprised by Kyle’s report. After all, the Lunaris Alliance had traversed the economical world for a relatively long time, and was a forerunner among trade conglomerates. It would be unusual if they were unprepared for Devon’s retaliation.Musing, he asked, “What was the public’s reaction when my headquarters were bombed?”“We followed your orders for transparency and made every effort to reveal the suspicious details of the incident to the public. However, the other groups were still reserved about it.”Devon frowned for a moment, quickly deducing the reason.“I would adopt a conservative approach, too, if I were them. Although our rivals want to take over Solaris Federation’s position, killing me is definitely one of the worst ideas. If the economy were to collapse as a result, it would take years to recover. Even if they somehow succeeded in replacing Solaris Federation, their profits might not necessarily be greater than their current revenue.“And Yue Baylian has always been a skillful strategist, so no one would believe he would be clumsy enough to shoot himself in the foot while trying to a.s.sa.s.sinate me. And the grudge between the two of us... if even I forgot about it, other people probably did too.”I don’t get it. I really don’t get it! Devon rubbed his temples. His memory had always been better than most, and even if he was bad at remembering people how could he forget about someone who had been pursuing him for eight years?A few people had pursued him in the past, but there had never been one who had persisted in courting him for eight years.“Kyle, you’ve worked for me for seven or eight years now?” Devon voiced his idea to his secretary. “Do you not have any impression of Yue Baylian pursuing me?”“Solaris Emperor, even though I’ve handled many matters for you, that is your personal business, excuse my candidness, but you have always disliked others meddling with your personal affairs,” Kyle replied truthfully. “You’re right. Youngsters always dislike others prying into their relationship issues. I regret it now, of course,” Devon cursed. “In the future, keep a digital record of all the love letters, gifts, and the like from my suitors,” he ordered. “Notify me should any contain a hint of obsession so I can deal with her or him as soon as possible.”“Yes, Solaris Emperor.” Kyle nodded slightly, adding another note to his routine tasks.“We were just discussing the…”“Gege.”Daren peeked his head in from the doorway. “Are you busy?” he asked hesitantly.Devon answered with a gentle smile on his face. “Busy? No, it’s outside office hours.” He discreetly switched off the conference screen, completely disregarding Kyle, who was still awaiting orders.Daren bounced into the room holding an ornately carved black box inlaid with red jewels. He placed it on his brother’s desk. “Gege, I found this box in your room. What is it? Can I have a look?” he asked, br.i.m.m.i.n.g with excitement.Looking at his little brother’s smiling face, Devon smiled. Without even taking a clear look at the box, he answered: “Of course you can. If you like it you can have it.”Permission granted, Daren opened the box with child-like glee. The first thing that caught his eye was a silver BHP handgun, lying among the bits and pieces inside. The model and design was ancient. It was obvious it had several years behind it.Daren quickly lost interest after playing around with it for a moment. The handgun was nothing compared to the many guns in his room.He picked up another item from the box; a beautiful, crystal clear, crescent-shaped necklace.“Is this Gege’s necklace?” he asked curiously.It was only then did Devon realise the box held items of sentimental value to him. He had not recognised it straight away because he hadn’t taken the box out in several years.He stared at it distractedly. It had been a present from his father for his 10th birthday, reputed to be a priceless antique that had been pa.s.sed down from generation to generation. Initially, his father had been hesitant about giving such a important family heirloom to Devon at such a young age, but eventually he had caved under Devon’s constant begging…“Gege?”Devon came back to his senses and turned to see his brother’s look of confusion. He hastily glanced at the necklace. “No, it’s not mine.” he replied, shaking his head.He frowned at the crescent moon necklace before saying “I can’t remember whom it belongs… Ah, wait a moment, a crescent moon shaped necklace? Perhaps it was Yuer’s necklace.”“Who is this Yuer1?”“That is a long story…”Devon furrowed his brow, but when he lifted his head he saw Daren looking up at his with wide eyes, the picture of an innocent child waiting to be told a story.Too cute! cried a voice in Devon’s head. Dar! How can you be this adorable?Thus, the good brother started to tell his story.“It all started when I began junior high. I had decided to discontinue home schooling in favour of enrolling in a school.“Back then, I was still young and ignorant. I disliked having a bunch of bodyguards trailing behind me. So, on the first day of school, after taking great pains to lose all my bodyguards and the chauffeur, I walked to school by myself.“Who would have known that I would get targeted by street thugs and cornered in a dark alley even before crossing two streets?”“A brat who goes to an elite school like yours should at least have a few thousand dollars on him. Us brothers are a little short on money. How about lending us a few notes? Young Master,” the leader of the thugs asked, chuckling menacingly.A few of the thugs kept stealing jealous glances at Devon’s expensive school uniform.“I don’t have any cash on me,” Devon answered mildly. He was telling the truth; he never had any cash on him, just a Solaris credit card.“How could you not have any?” the p.i.s.sed off street thugs demanded.“Stop lying,” the leader challenged. “I can tell with one look that you’re a filthy rich brat.”Devon shrugged his shoulders. “I do have money; I just didn’t bring cash. Do you accept credit cards?” he asked.“...Are you messing with us?”“No, I would never do that. If you accept credit cards, then hurry up with it. I’m going to be late for cla.s.s.” Devon answered impatiently and wrinkled his brows. “You little jerk…”When Devon saw the fist flying towards his face, he raised his eyebrows. “You want to punch me? It just so happens that I’ve never been punched before. Might as well make an experience of it.”Mid swing, the thug seethed with rage at Devon’s arrogant reply. “Good! I’ll beat you to death today,” he screamed, swinging furiously.Just before the fist could collide with his face, Devon noticed a shadowy figure through the corner of his eyes charging toward them. He raised his eyebrows without a word, watching calmly as the girl rushed over. She wore a long, traditional skirt, kicking out as she slashed her whip and thrashed the thugs till they cried for their mothers. Sobbing, they scrambled out of the alley.What a fearless girl. Devon smiled faintly and applauded as though he had seen a brilliant show. “It was really nice watching you. You fighting style is so graceful, like a dance.”The girl laughed heartily. “You’re pretty interesting. You actually want to experience the feeling of being hit?”“Can’t I?” Devon chuckled. “There’s always a first for everything.”“Of course you can. How about a taste of my whip?”“Sure.” Devon answered with a smile and leisurely waited for the blow.The girl raised her whip in all seriousness, but the blow never fell. After a moment, she burst out laughing.“Forget it,” she said. “How can I bear to hit you when you’re smiling at me with such a pretty face?”Devon’s smile deepened. “You’re pretty too, Yuer.”“Why did you call me ‘Yuer’?” the girl asked, a bit surprised.Devon pointed at the girl’s chest. “Because there’s a crescent moon on your clothes.”“So that’s why… I thought you knew my name,” Yuer muttered.“Huh?”“Nothing. I can’t bring myself to hit you. So, how about we watch others take a beating? There’s a place nearby holding a combat tournament and the preliminary matches are on right now.”Today’s the first day of junior high, but… Devon shrugged his shoulders.“Okay, let’s go,” he said nonchalantly.“That was how I met Yuer. After that, every day she sent me flowers, and if I wanted to meet and play with her, I would place the flowers on my windowsill. When night fell, she would be waiting for me at the back gates.”Devon faintly smiled. Those really were crazy times.They repeatedly stayed out all night, even when they had to attend school and learn the ropes of the business the next day. If it hadn’t been for his youthful exuberance and stamina, he definitely would have collapsed.“I want to meet Yuer-jiejie, too,” Daren requested excitedly.Devon shook his head. “It’s impossible. One day Yuer suddenly disappeared. She never sent me flowers again and even when I signalled with my own flowers on the windowsill, she still didn’t appear… It was strange.”He lowered his head and murmured, “But from the moment we first met until she disappeared, I don’t remember her ever giving me this necklace. Could it be that it’s not hers?”Then have I just recounted my story for nothing?“Solaris Emperor, please excuse my interruption.”Devon jumped at the sound of Kyle’s voice, but Daren reacted swiftly and pressed the b.u.t.ton to activate the conference call screen. He cheerfully greeted the other party.“Kyle-ge, good evening.”“Good evening, Young Master Daren,” Kyle cordially returned.Devon looked at the communication switch and realised he had only turned off the screen and hadn’t actually hung up. Kyle must have been waiting patiently during the entire conversation, in case anything else was required of him.“Kyle, what is it?”“May I be allowed to inspect the necklace?” Kyle asked respectfully.Not waiting for Devon’s reply, Daren immediately raised the necklace in his hands.“I’ll let you see it, Kyle-ge,” the boy said.Kyle scrutinised the necklace for a moment, quickly concluding, “Solaris Emperor, this necklace is the family heirloom that Yue Baylian gave to you when he confessed.”“What?” Devon frowned as he stared at the necklace. So, Yue Baylian really did give me a necklace?“Please take a look at this, Solaris Emperor. The traditional dress you believe Yuer wore––was it similar to this?” An image of a traditional Chinese-style robe with a short coat attached appeared on the screen.“That’s right! Yuer wore the same type of dress,” Devon confirmed, reminiscing.“Solaris Emperor, this isn’t a dress. This is a traditional robe and b.u.t.toned jacket that is worn by men. It is also the traditional clothing worn by Yue Baylian’s family.”“What?” Devon Solaris was stunned.“According to my reasoning, Solaris Emperor, your first love Yuer is Yue Baylian himself,” Kyle reported delicately. “However, he wore a traditional robe that may be mistaken as a dress by modern cultural trends, and combined with his feminine appearance, so...”“Wait a minute!” Devon protested, alarmed. “If he was Yuer how could I not recognise him when he confessed to me?”“In my opinion, he may have wanted to blend in with social customs, or create a formal atmosphere when he made his confession. So he approached you in a western suit, and may have cut his hair. Again, excuse me for speaking bluntly, but your powers of recognition have always been less than perfect. Coupled with the fact that you were constantly worrying about Young Master Daren being missing, you were unable to determine that the man confessing to you was actually Yuer.”Devon Solaris frowned, deep in thought.“Find me a photo of Yue Baylian wearing that... whatever-you-call-it dress!” he ordered. “Robe.”On screen, Kyle ducked down and punched some b.u.t.tons. The image of a stunning beauty wearing a glamourous, long, traditional robe appeared on screen. Despite having a beautiful face, it was obvious from his physique that the person was a man.“Ah!”The moment he saw the photo, Devon recognised him. This person had a stronger build and was more masculine than the Yuer from his memories, but the similarities in the face were obvious. Devon covered his mouth unconsciously, trying to suppress his shocked exclamation.Yue Baylian really is… Yuer!
****************Eclipse Hunter v03c01 END ******************
Note:1月牙儿: p.r.o.nounced Yue Ya-er, hereby shortened to Yuer. Means crescent moon. - >>