Cannon fodder in the Interstellar

“I don’t love mechas!” Neptune exclaimed in surprise upon seeing Ruo Manni.

His reaction caught Ruo Manni off guard; she initially thought Neptune had brought her here, since who else in this room would recognize her?

But it turned out it wasn’t Neptune who had pulled her in—so who did?

“She’s the legendary dark horse?” A boy to Neptune’s right assessed Ruo Manni, raising an eyebrow and directing the question at Neptune.

The tone of the boy wasn’t outright hostile, but it wasn’t friendly either; it was rather complex.

Ruo Manni sensed that this boy was slightly stronger than Neptune, and with his black hair and black eyes, she suspected he might be the male lead, Hua Deli, as the novel had described him.

Furthermore, during the map assessment competition, Ruo Manni had followed Neptune and had caught a distant glimpse of this boy, who was likely the male lead, Hua Deli. Behind him had been a girl with dark red hair, who should be the female lead, Mina Olli.

If this boy is indeed Hua Deli, then his scrutinizing and critical gaze made sense.

In fact, regardless of what he thought internally, he didn’t show any outward hostility towards Ruo Manni, which she appreciated as a sign of good upbringing.

It’s worth noting that Hua Deli’s fiancée, Mina Olli, was also a telekinesis master and a renowned genius within the Gus Empire.

However, with the unexpected rise of Ruo Manni as a dark horse in the crucial admissions competition at the Xuan Gu First Military Academy, she captured everyone’s attention and became the most notable telekinesis talent of this cohort.

Meanwhile, Mina Olli, who had reached late-stage level four in telekinesis and late-stage level two as a warrior, found her brilliance significantly overshadowed, losing the glory depicted in the novel, and was even mocked by factions opposed to the Olli family.

Ruo Manni had seen those malicious posts, and some of the comments were truly harsh. Those keyboard warriors thrived on negativity, and when they were paid to attack, they targeted vulnerabilities. If Mina Olli had a fragile heart, she would likely be severely impacted.

Even if the Olli family knew these criticisms were just their opponents seizing the opportunity to undermine them, they might still indirectly blame Ruo Manni for sparking these issues. After all, Ruo Manni had risen to prominence by stepping over Mina Olli.

If Ruo Manni came from a prestigious family, any resentment would probably remain hidden, surfacing only when the situation called for it. However, when they discovered that Ruo Manni was just an orphan from a peripheral planet, that resentment could easily turn into bullying.

Although Ruo Manni intended to avoid the male and female leads, she also didn’t want to become a target of their dislike, gaining two more formidable adversaries.

These issues were beyond her control; when faced with such unexpected situations, she could only respond as they came. If her safety were genuinely threatened, she wouldn’t hesitate to escalate matters—after all, she wasn’t just some helpless orphan.

Yet, Hua Deli’s reputation remained intact; he was still regarded as the top candidate of this cohort, admired by many.

However, the variables were not limited to her alone.

After observing the two competitors in the arena, Ruo Manni began to seriously doubt Hua Deli’s status as the top newcomer. The golden-haired youth who won easily in the challenge seemed to exude a much stronger aura than Hua Deli, who was at the pinnacle of level four.

So, this golden-haired youth was definitely a level-five warrior.

Ruo Manni was very surprised. The gossip she had casually heard in another room turned out to be true. Regardless of whether this golden-haired youth was the one ranked ten thousandth, the news that there was a level five warrior among the new students was indeed accurate.

The male lead’s question wasn’t directed at Ruo Manni, so she didn’t intend to respond. Instead, she focused on Neptune, observing his reactions and attitude.

Before Neptune could reply, a middle-aged man who appeared to be a mentor approached them with a serious expression and asked, “Are you Ruo Manni?”

At the tone of the question, Ruo Manni quickly stood up and saluted, “Yes, sir.”

“No need to be so formal, sit down and talk,” the middle-aged man’s demeanor softened.

A polite child may not win over everyone, but they certainly won’t leave a bad impression.

“I am Li Xingtai. If all goes well, I will be your mentor,” the man said.

Ruo Manni realized that this mentor must have been responsible for bringing her. Mentor Li Xingtai wanted to see her.

Having the chance to meet a mentor from Xuan Gu First Military Academy in advance made Ruo Manni genuinely excited, and she promptly requested to add him on SkyNet to show her eagerness.

As a mentor of Xuan Gu First Military Academy, he didn’t need Ruo Manni to introduce herself; he already knew her name. His acknowledgment of her identity indicated something significant that she understood well.

This meant that Ruo Manni’s admission to Xuan Gu First Military Academy had been confirmed. As a clever girl, she quickly seized the opportunity to connect with her future mentor.

After successfully adding Mentor Li Xingtai on SkyNet, Ruo Manni happily returned to her seat.

“Congratulations!” Neptune said, though his expression showed no surprise; he likely already knew about it.

In fact, his presence there and sitting alongside the male lead suggested that Neptune himself held an impressive status.

“We’ll be classmates soon, so let’s connect on SkyNet too,” Neptune smiled, not minding the male lead’s indifference towards Ruo Manni.

This was good news for Ruo Manni. Since Li Xingtai had already revealed her true name, she readily exchanged ligh massages with Neptune.

Neptune’s real name was Dean Atchison.

Ruo Manni could only think that the world was indeed small.

They had fought as teammates for several hours during the map PK match, and Ruo Manni felt that with Neptune’s abilities and insights, he was certainly not an ordinary person. Her guess was correct.

In the novel, Dean Atchison was an important supporting character. Most notably, he was the male lead Hua Deli’s cousin and classmate, always overshadowed by the male lead’s aura, unlike those unfortunate supporting characters who got sacrificed in various intrigues.

Dean Atchison was only eliminated during the final desperate counterattack in the interstellar war. He was a hero who sacrificed himself for humanity in the Gumera star region, living a spectacular life and dying a meaningful death, ensuring his name would be remembered through history.

After connecting on SkyNet, Ruo Manni and Dean Atchison naturally resumed their conversation, creating a somewhat friendly atmosphere.

As for the male lead sitting beside Dean Atchison, he showed no intention of introducing himself or connecting with her, which made Ruo Manni secretly relieved.

“Who is that blond boy? His skills are so high, yet his ranking is only over four thousand?” Ruo Manni quietly asked Dean Atchison.