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ArabicHonkai Star Rail: My Chat Group is Full of Broken Timelines — Chapter 20
Chapter 20: Yukong, and the Echoes of Twenty Years Past
Kazuki had always been a man of decisive action. Since he had resolved to leave the Luofu and venture into the vastness of the galaxy, he intended to do so without delay.
After returning to his residence, he threw his belongings into a travel pack with a practiced, if somewhat haphazard, efficiency. He stood for a moment, gazing at the house he had called home for several years. A quick call was made to his clan, informing them he was beginning a long journey and requesting they arrange for someone to look after the property. He left the key resting on the door latch and walked away without a second glance.
It was only when he was halfway to his destination that a crucial detail slammed into his memory: his personal starship had been impounded by the Sky-Faring Commission the previous night.
‘Right,’he muttered to himself.’That.’Should he make a detour to the Sky-Faring Commission to retrieve it before leaving the Luofu for good?’Better get it back,’ he decided. It would also be a chance to bid farewell to a few familiar faces.
Kazuki looked up, his eyes tracing the path toward the Starskiff Sea Hub. There, nestled amidst swirling, manufactured clouds and ethereal mist, countless starships from various celestial arks were docked like birds of prey on their perches.
The Exalting Sanctum was separated from the Central Hub by a network of streets and winding alleys. The walk would take at least half a system hour. Now, without his own skiff for transport, the simple act of getting around felt unusually troublesome.
After a moment’s thought, he changed direction and entered a public transit station, planning to take a shared starskiff to the vicinity of the Sky-Faring Commission.
Soon, the iconic, upturned eaves of the Sichen Palace pierced the cloud layers above him. Its glazed tiles shimmered with a cold, authoritative luster under the artificial celestial light. The grand hall itself seemed to radiate an aura of unquestionable power.
Standing before the palace gates, Kazuki looked up at the prominently displayed plaque that read ‘Sky-Faring Commission’ and couldn’t help but let out a small sigh. He strode up to the front desk and slapped a stack of credits on the counter. “Paying a fine, retrieving an impounded starship.”
The clerk at the front desk impassively counted the one thousand credits and, with a face devoid of all expression, handed him a document.
Kazuki glanced at the slip. As expected, stamped in bold, official script were the words: ‘Starship License Revoked.’
But if his license was revoked, even if he got the starship back, he wasn’t qualified to pilot it.
Kazuki stroked his chin, pondering the new dilemma. He couldn’t possibly haul the behemoth back to his garage on his own, could he? The image of him physically dragging a starship through the streets flashed through his mind, and he immediately dismissed it.
Although the area around the Starskiff Sea Hub was always filled with people engaging in all sorts of performance art—some of it nearly as bizarre as the street acts on old-world boulevards—Kazuki couldn’t bring himself to create such a conspicuous spectacle.
‘How about just calling a designated driver to pilot it into the garage for me?’
Just as Kazuki picked up his Jade Abacus, intending to download a designated driver app, a familiar voice called out to him.
“Kazuki, dear, who are you waiting for here?” The voice, rich with a distinct motherly concern, made him freeze.
Kazuki’s hand trembled, nearly dropping the Jade Abacus. He turned, forcing a somewhat awkward smile onto his face. “Aunt Yukong. What a coincidence.” He scratched the back of his head, deciding honesty was the only viable path. “I… uh… I was speeding in my starship last night. Just paid the fine, and… my license got revoked.”
He hadn’t planned on hiding it. For the Chief Helmswoman of the Sky-Faring Commission, checking his flight records would be a trivial matter. Trying to conceal it would be far worse than just admitting it openly.
“Speeding? License revoked?” Upon hearing his confession, Yukong’s brows immediately furrowed. The usual warmth in her eyes was replaced by a sharp seriousness.
She stepped forward, gently but firmly poking Kazuki’s forehead with her index finger. Her tone turned stern. “You’re barely in your twenties, so young. Do you have any idea how dangerous high-speed flight is? The slightest mistake, a moment of lost control… how would I be supposed to explain that to your parents?”
“But for us Xianzhou people, traffic accidents usually aren’t that serious…” Kazuki couldn’t help but retort.
Seeing him dare to talk back, Yukong launched into an even more extensive lecture, her words covering everything from airspace safety regulations to a detailed recounting of past flight accident case files. Kazuki just nodded repeatedly, obediently admitting defeat.
It was ironic, of course. In her own youth, Yukong had been something of a reckless daredevil herself. Rumor had it she once blew through a dozen red light warnings in a row and was hauled directly before General Jing Yuan for a dressing-down.
The reason she cared so much for Kazuki was rooted in a shared, tragic history. During the Third Abundance War, Kazuki’s parents had also been pilots—aces in the very same squadron as Yukong. Like Yukong and her own partner, Cai Yi, they had flown as a pair: one piloting, the other controlling the weapons.
What happened next was a grim chapter in the Luofu’s history. In the Defense of Fanghu, more than twenty years ago, the Abundance Alliance forces, led by the revived sentient planet Ketus Mirage, were met by the divine might of the Reignbow Arbiter. The resulting cataclysm utterly annihilated the enemy, but at a terrible cost. One-fifth of the Xianzhou Fanhua, and the three hundred thousand pilots dispatched as reinforcements from the Luofu—including Kazuki’s parents—were wiped out.
As the orphaned child of martyrs sacrificed in that battle, Kazuki naturally received extra care from Yukong. However, unlike Cai Yi’s surviving daughter, Kazuki still had his extended family and General Jing Yuan looking after him, so she didn’t need to worry excessively.
It was just that, ever since that day, the former ace pilot, the reckless youth named Yukong, had died. What remained was a mature, reliable, and deeply conservative Chief Helmswoman of the Sky-Faring Commission.
A few years ago, when Kazuki had just passed his adulthood exam and was taking his pilot’s license test, it was Yukong herself who had acted as his examiner, sitting in the co-pilot’s seat to supervise him personally. Only after confirming that Kazuki exhibited no signs of aggressive driving did she feel comfortable handing him the license.
So today, hearing that Kazuki had his license revoked for speeding of all things, how could Yukong not be beside herself with anxiety?
“I’m sorry, Aunt Yukong. I really know I was wrong. But yesterday, there was a genuinely urgent matter!” Kazuki lowered his head, his apology sincere.
“Ah… you child.” Seeing him bow his head in contrition, the full force of Yukong’s anger dissipated in an instant.
Legally, Kazuki was an adult, capable of standing on his own. But on the scale of a Xianzhou native’s long lifespan, a twenty-something was merely a child who hadn’t truly grown up yet.
She put it into perspective for herself. Would you harshly criticize a two-year-old who accidentally bumped into someone while riding a tricycle? Of course not. Especially since Kazuki hadn’t actually caused an accident, and there were apparently extenuating circumstances.
Yukong shook her head, a helpless sigh escaping her lips as her tone softened. “Fine. Where are you headed next? I’ll drive your starship and take you.”
Kazuki was taken aback and quickly waved his hands. “No, no, Aunt Yukong, you must have official duties to attend to. I can’t possibly delay you.”
“So I’ll be delayed,” Yukong waved her hand dismissively, her gaze falling on the starship retrieval slip in his hand. “You don’t have a license right now. I can’t just leave you standing here. Tell me, where do you need to go?”
Kazuki thought to himself that if Aunt Yukong hadn’t suddenly appeared, he’d probably have already called that designated driver by now.
But that thought stayed firmly locked in his mind; he didn’t dare voice it. After a moment’s consideration, he stated his destination. “The Seat of Divine Foresight. I need to go to the Seat of Divine Foresight.”
Last night, his conversation with Jing Yuan had been purely verbal. In reality, the exit review process for a Xianzhou native wanting to travel to non-Alliance regions was excruciatingly troublesome. Generally, only Sky-Faring Commission employees on official business were permitted to leave the ship.
It was clear someone like Yukong would never approve his request. His family was an even less viable option; they practically wanted him to become the next Director of the Department of Terrestrial Balance, inherit the family business, marry Fu Xuan, have her first inherit the General’s position to avoid accusations of the Jing family monopolizing the Luofu’s leadership, and then have him inherit Jing Yuan’s position as General to make the family great again. It was all a bit much.
Therefore, if Kazuki wanted to leave the Luofu, he absolutely had to go through Jing Yuan’s connections. While the General had agreed in principle last night, that was just verbal consent. Actually leaving would require handling the proper, official channels—with a General’s seal of approval.
“The Seat of Divine Foresight?” Yukong’s eyes flickered with surprise upon hearing this, then she chuckled. “What a coincidence. I was just heading to the Seat of Divine Foresight for a meeting.”
“Then what are we waiting for, Aunt Yukong?” Kazuki’s face brightened. “Let’s go together!”