Chapter 10: The One Who Entrusts Dreams

Levi was so exhausted that he slept straight through dinner.
“Oh God, have I done anything other than sleep and train lately?”
Since breaking up with Sherron—they hadn’t contacted each other. Levi needed to find a new goal.
When he arrived at his usual bar—some patrons gathered around, asking why he hadn’t shown up in a few days. A group of them started chatting aimlessly until the sound of a bottle shattering redirected everyone’s attention.
“Sherron?” When Levi saw the woman with tears in her eyes and disheveled hair, he was taken aback.
“You said we broke up! Have we really broken up?” A young man in military uniform yelled angrily.
“Yes, Gorin—ever since you were promoted to captain, you’ve changed! You’ve become arrogant and self-centered! I stopped liking you a long time ago! Now that you’re a captain, don’t bother me—there will be plenty of women who will like you!” Sherron stood tall, but fear glimmered in her eyes.
Levi didn’t rush over—instead, he stood with his hands in his pockets, looking at Sherron. When she caught his gaze—her expression instantly turned awkward.
“Tell me! Are you with another man or not?” Captain Gorin shook Sherron forcefully. Levi watched the scene, leaning back—his expression wrinkling with concern for Sherron being treated this way.
A nearby sergeant leaned towards Levi, “Hey, didn’t Sherron seem to be with you recently?”
Though the voice was soft, everyone else heard it except the angry main character of the incident.
“Yeah, Levi… why don’t you help her?”
Levi sighed—these people were implying they didn’t want to offend Captain Gorin and hoped that Levi, as Sherron’s nominal boyfriend, could step up to rescue the damsel in distress. Little did they know how wrong they were—Claude had ruined several chances for Li Wei to be with Sherron.
Sherron pretended to be strong, but even as she struggled to stand—she kept her head up, staring directly at Gorin.
Ah—don’t be so stubborn. Aren’t you just giving that chauvinistic pig face? He’ll only get angrier… Levi scratched the back of his head, feeling frustrated.
At that moment, half the crowd’s attention was on Levi—seemingly waiting for him to “take action.”
Captain Gorin gradually became aware of the focus on Levi and approached him—eyes wide.
“Why is everyone looking at you?”
Sherron hurried over, trying to push the man away—“What are you doing to him?”
“What? Are you rushing to protect him?” Gorin’s voice rose, prompting the bartender to intervene.
“Captain, you just got promoted—I’m sure the military doesn’t want any negative news about you.”
“Get lost! This is my business!” Gorin shoved the bartender aside.
Levi smirked, “Well, if Sherron keeps backing down, you’ll only get more arrogant.”
“What did you say?” Gorin yanked Levi by the collar, and the atmosphere grew tense.
“I said, you’re a coward who needs women to back down for you. You can’t even accept the fact that you got dumped, so you’re looking for a scapegoat everywhere. You know that no matter what you say or do, Sherron can’t refute you because she’s just a military officer—you’re a captain. She’s a woman, you’re a man—she’s the one who stylishly dumped you, while you can only cast yourself in the role of the victim.” Levi’s voice was calm—sending chills down everyone’s spines.
“Bang!” With everyone’s shock—Gorin punched Levi in the face.
Levi staggered back a few steps, and someone behind him helped him out of the way. While the crowd was furious—Levi shook his hand, straightened his back, and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
“Oh, I forgot to tell you—Sherron’s boyfriend is someone you can’t afford to offend.” Levi laughed heartily,—with a hint of schadenfreude.
“Oh? Who? You mean yourself? Look at your rank—you’re just a lieutenant! You still have to salute me when you see me!”
“Of course it’s not me, Captain. I’m talking about Claude Sean, the brigadier general in Z-Zone. Look at your rank—you’d have to salute him too.” The moment Levi finished speaking, the bar fell silent.
Everyone’s mouths hung open as they processed what Levi had just said.
“I’m not lying—many people saw General Sean having dinner with Sherron yesterday.” Levi continued, unfazed.
Sherron couldn’t help but respond, “What? I had dinner with General Sean?”
“Why don’t you go to Z-Zone and grab Claude Sean by the collar and tell him that if he dares to touch your girlfriend again, you’ll beat him up? Oh, wait—I should say ‘ex-girlfriend.’”
Sherron didn’t love herself, Levi knew that. And he wasn’t the type to be a chivalrous man who stepped in to help whenever he saw injustice. He hated trouble and loathed dealing with someone like Sherron’s ex-boyfriend. Not being cowardly never meant engaging in a head-on clash—if mentioning Claude Sean’s name could resolve this, Levi was more than willing to exploit that name.
Captain Gorin fell silent, looking embarrassed.
Levi walked over and patted him on the shoulder—“Forget it, bro. I can’t even compete with that guy for a woman.”
Then he boldly walked out of the bar.
Just as he stepped out the door, he heard the roar of Gorin.
“How dare you play me—”
Followed by Sherron’s scream.
Levi instinctively turned around—a beer bottle fell and shattered against the doorframe beside him, sending sharp shards flying toward his face.
“Ah—” This was the result he had never thought of, not even once.
The shards grazed his cheek and even his eye. Levi covered his eyes with both hands, the pain piercing him to the core—he had never felt such pain in his life.
“Li Wei!” Several bar patrons rushed over.
Sherron stood frozen, and after a few seconds, she murmured, “Oh God… Oh God… you actually hurt him… his eyes… that’s his eyes!”
“So what? He’s the reason you betrayed me, isn’t he?” Captain Gorin was still in a rage—showing no remorse for his actions. “Do you really think I’m so foolish to believe that General Sean would like you?”
“Whether General Sean likes you or not doesn’t matter now.” Sherron turned to her ex-boyfriend—stepping back step by step with a cold expression, “Because General Sean will not let you go, and the entire Z-Zone and even General Montel will not let you go. Do you know how precious those eyes are? He broke the record for the Pristine Lady Simulation System! He is the hope of the entire Z-Zone!”
“He is… Levi Van Pelt…” Captain Gorin suddenly realized he had made a grave mistake.
Levi simply leaned against the door, covering his eyes, warm liquid flowing down his fingers as if something important was leaking from the depths of his mind—something he wanted to grasp but couldn’t.
In less than ten minutes—Levi was taken to the military hospital, where the top eye doctors began an emergency consultation.
Claude, who was in the lab adjusting the system—received a call from the hospital, and his pupils dilated unnaturally.
“What did you say?” Claude asked back.
“It’s his eye… the vitreous is coming out…”
“Which hospital?”

As the call ended—Claude rushed out the door, not caring about the system that was being updated. He ran a few steps, the anxious thought in his mind urging him to sprint—his formal military uniform felt too restrictive, so he ripped open the buttons and threw his coat to an approaching officer.

The other party looked at Claude’s back with a surprised expression.
“What happened…?”
What could make Claude Sean give up all his composure?
When Claude arrived outside the operating room—everything was eerily quiet.
Two nurses came out of the operating room, and Claude immediately asked, “How is he?”
“Major General Sean?”
“Is Levi Van Pelt in the operating room?” The elegant smile on Claude’s face had vanished, replaced by an icy coldness.
“Yes…”
“How is the eye he was injured in?”
“The lens is damaged, and the vitreous body as well…”
Claude raised his hand to stop them from continuing, “Just tell me what the surgery can achieve—whether his eyes are in danger, and if he can continue to be a fighter pilot!”
“Uh… that…” The two nurses had never seen Claude this impatient and suddenly didn’t know what to say.
Claude waved his hand, signaling them to leave.
He slowly sat down on a seat outside the operating room—lowered his head, and supported it with his hands.
The sound of steady footsteps echoed in the corridor—it was General Montel. He looked at Claude’s figure for a moment—then slowly sat down beside him.
“I’ve never liked you—you often remain calm when you shouldn’t for someone your age.”
Claude forced a bitter smile but didn’t lift his head.
“Even when the design for the Pristine Lady was heavily criticized, your confidence was overwhelming. But now—you are worried and afraid.”
“Because… relying on someone else to fulfill your dreams is pathetic.”
General Montel smiled, “So, did you entrust your dreams to him, or did he help you find yours?”
Claude turned his face to look at the elder—who had weathered over half a century.
“There’s nothing to worry about. If this were fifty years ago—it might have been difficult for Lieutenant Van Pelt’s eyes to recover, but now it can only be classified as a minor surgery. The attending physician told me that the surgery will take time but is not too difficult. First—the wound in the eye will be cleaned, then an artificial vitreous body will be supplemented, the eye will be restructured, and even vision can be adjusted. After three days—Lieutenant Van Pelt can have the bandages removed, and in half a month—he will resume training for the Pristine Lady. Who knows—he might even see better than before.”
“This is the dumbest day of my life.” Claude’s fingers ran through his hair—revealing an expression of helplessness.
When Levi was wheeled out of the operating room, Miller also arrived.
“How’s that idiot’s eye?” He had just gone home for dinner and read the newspaper—and he didn’t expect Levi to cause trouble in such a short time.
“Everyone, don’t worry. I can guarantee that Lieutenant Van Pelt’s eyes are absolutely fine,” the attending physician quickly reassured. “Because we needed to clean up the glass shards left in his eyes—we administered anesthesia to let him have a good sleep. But you needn’t have any doubt— this anesthesia won’t have any negative effects on Lieutenant Van Pelt’s bodily functions or brain reaction abilities.”
“Nothing is absolute.” Miller glanced at Levi, who was lying on the hospital bed—“His eyes and his brain cannot have any problems. In fact, no part of his body can have problems.”
“We will transfer him to the intensive care unit until we confirm that he is completely recovered.”
Levi remained soundly asleep, his eyes covered with bandages.
Claude stood by his bed—the only sound in the room was the beeping of the machines. The world seemed to stand still, with only Levi’s shallow breathing.
Taking a long breath, Claude smiled, “You’re sleeping so comfortably, yet you’ve caused chaos for everyone else.”
Unconsciously—he reached out his arm and gently poked Levi’s stubborn nose with his fingertip.

—–

Proofreader/Editor: meowrii