"Esteemed female, there's a ball tonight at the central ballroom of starrail. May I have the honor of dancing with you?" A strikingly beautiful and otherworldly male knelt before Emma, a rose in hand. A deep green feather adorned his brow, giving his already mesmerizing face an extra hint of mystery. "Get lost!" Edric kicked him away without hesitation. A Rank 6 Stormfinch, daring to make a move on his Emma? What a joke. The Stormfinch male stumbled back, momentarily wanting to whimper, hoping to earn a shred of sympathy since Emma hadn't pushed him away immediately. But when he saw Rank 9 Edric, flanked by two Rank 10 powerhouses, he froze on the floor, unable to move.Corvin quickly guided Emma away. "Emma, don't be fooled by his looks. He's only a Rank 6 Stormfinch—completely useless. You absolutely can't consider him." When females looked for a mate, strength came first, beauty second. "I wasn't interested in him." Emma watched Edric and Corvin's tense, almost combative expressions and pressed a hand to her forehead. Was she really that indiscriminate? "He appeared out of nowhere. I didn't even react in time—I really wasn't interested." With Edric, Corvin, and Silas around, she felt more than secure for now. The other potential matches hadn't even appeared. If someone she truly liked came along later, she could deal with that then. She simply wasn't interested in the one just now. Still, Edric had reacted a bit too harshly. The male hadn't done anything outrageous. Emma held Edric's hand. "Edric, I know you were looking out for me, but next time, let's try to control your temper a little. No need to get physical." Edric knew Emma was human. She had lived alone for most of her life, and although she had spent many years in interstellar, she still understood very little about how things truly worked there. That was why she couldn't grasp why he had simply kicked the male aside without a word. "Emma," Edric said quietly, "if I hadn't done that, he would have thought he had a chance. He would have kept pestering you forever." Edric had already noticed that Emma misunderstood therian courtship. She assumed they developed feelings over time, but that wasn't true—most therians were straightforward about love. Once they identified a compatible huntress, their devotion lasted a lifetime. Death wouldn't change it. If a female wasn't their matched huntress but one they chose on their own, as long as she gave them the slightest chance, they would cling to her obsessively until she finally became their mate. "I see." Emma had never encountered anything like this before. "I'm sorry, Edric. I misjudged you—you did the right thing." Even imagining the alternative, the thought of that male clinging to her despite constant rejection, she might have taken out a blade herself. A simple kick was nothing by comparison. No one took the incident to heart. After all, scenes of male therians courting females and trying to win their favor were far too common throughout the Interstellar Empire—so frequent they happened countless times a day. Soon, Emma and the others arrived at their room. It was called a room, but it was over a thousand square feet. Inside, three therians were already there: a Rank 5 female and her two mates, one Rank 8, the other Rank 9. When Emma entered with two Rank 10 powerhouses, the Rank 5 female's mates immediately stood protectively, eyes sharp. Edric calmly addressed them. "No need to be tense. We're just here to use the starrail. As long as you don't start anything, we won't either." Only then did the two males relax, returning to their huntress' side. Edric ignored them and, together with Corvin, found Emma a good spot where she could see the view outside the window.He remembered that the last time they'd ridden the starrail, what Emma loved most was watching the star clusters scattered across the universe outside. "Chirp!" As soon as she sat, Coalball eagerly wriggled out of Corvin's pocket and jumped onto Emma's lap. His chirp immediately drew the attention of the female across from her, eyes wide with curiosity. "Your little bird is so unique!" The soft voice made Coalball stiffen. He spun to face the speaker. Emma didn't expect the female to speak to her. Meeting her gentle gaze, Emma smiled. "This is my little bird. His name's Coalball." "Coalball?" Aria laughed softly. "Such an unusual name." She then turned to Emma. "I'm Aria Veynar. What's your name?" Aria Veynar? Only someone from Aurelia could have the last name Veynar on Central Planet. She is the same species as Lucien. What is her connection to him? "I'm Emma Tibarn," Emma replied with a smile. "It's nice to meet you."