——Reborn in this world 4000 years later, aside from having lived a few more years and being a bit more mature than his peers, he had not a single advantage! Others conquered ancient alternate worlds with technology or secret martial arts manuals found online or at secondhand bookstalls, but three thousand years later, did he really think he could conquer the high-tech human civilization now spread across the entire galaxy with the little knowledge he’d learned in the 21st century?

　　What’s more, he was at a considerable disadvantage compared to others. Although this body, like everyone else’s, had undergone three thousand years of continuous evolution and was strong enough, he didn’t know if it was because his soul was too weak, but his memory and reaction speed lagged far behind others.

　　The most obvious example was the military academy’s three-year fast-track junior officer training program. His classmates had all joined the military early, with some already holding the rank of lieutenant or higher. Yet he had taken six years and still hadn’t graduated!

　　He normally wouldn’t care about others’ ridicule and scorn. If there were subsidies to collect, he wouldn’t mind never graduating in his lifetime. After all, the academy’s restrictions on him had become minimal over the years, even allowing him to live off-campus, which didn’t interfere with his part-time jobs. And joining the military was no joke—graduates from their kind of second-rate military academy were mostly destined to be cannon fodder on the battlefield. In interstellar wars, once a warship was hit, the crew usually died as a unit. Staying on a battleship or cruiser with a complete escape system gave a slightly higher survival rate. But on patrol ships, destroyers, or raiders, there was basically no chance of escape. And now, on the Federation’s borders, there were no major wars, but small skirmishes were constant—if he could, he’d never want to join the military in his life.

　　But now, he could no longer muddle through, and finally, a bit of ambition had arisen in his heart—

　　His younger brothers and sisters were all gradually growing up and were about to reach college age. Unlike him, even the ‘dullest’ among them, Edward Collins, was a one-in-a-million genius among their peers. No matter what, he would never allow his only family members to end up in the same kind of second-rate military academy as him, or have their talents buried in those so-called ‘public universities.’

　　But relying on his part-time earnings and those subsidies was clearly not enough. The only choice was to graduate and join the military. With a second lieutenant’s salary, living frugally, he could barely afford his siblings’ tuition. And if he could get promoted once or twice within a year or two, all the better.

　　Thinking of how Edward Collins woke him up, Brian Carter shook his head and smiled wryly. He knew they were worried about his prospects after joining the military. But sometimes, fate is not something you can control! Glancing at the multifunctional electronic watch on his wrist, he saw there were only fifteen minutes left until the exam started at 8:30. Brian Carter frowned, then activated the quantum booster his friend from the military academy’s mechanical maintenance department had installed for him this year. As a stream of heat surged from the pipe at the back of the car, the speed of the hovercar instantly doubled.

Chapter Two: First Encounter

　　At the entrance to the Federal Military Academy in the western district of Greenfield City, three hovercars were slowly coming to a stop at the tightly closed main gate.

　　From the front car, a man got out and walked into the guard room beside the gate. Dressed in a black suit, he stood tall and exuded a tough, stern military aura, with a badge engraved with a white eagle pinned to his chest.

　　At the same time, the tightly shut window of the rear compartment of the middle sapphire-blue official hovercar was opened from inside. Peeking out was an elegant Oriental woman with bright eyes and white teeth, dressed in professional attire, exuding an air of utmost sophistication. Looking through the gap beside her, one could vaguely see that sitting next to her was also a middle-aged man, sitting upright, every gesture radiating a military bearing.

　　“Chairman, I still don’t understand why you’ve come all the way here despite your busy schedule. If it’s to select backup talent for our company, I don’t think this Greenfield Military Academy is a good choice.”

　　The middle-aged man was frowning, a virtual projection screen in front of him. As he tapped and pointed at the buttons, the images on the screen kept changing. The car’s onboard computer displayed sets of data before him.

　　“—According to the information and statistics I obtained from the military network, among the graduates of Greenfield Military Academy’s six-year fast-track program, the highest current rank is only captain. There isn’t even a single person with a captain’s qualification, which shows the limited talent here. If you compare the students’ grades horizontally, among the Federation’s 367 military academies, this one is only mid-tier at best. It’s just a second-rate military academy. If you’re worried about the personnel shortage for the thirteen new warships at our Security Company, I actually think it would be better to negotiate with the Brophy family and recruit from their pool of retired soldiers. They may not have had systematic training, but they have real combat experience. With some training, they should be able to handle junior command positions in the company. Or, we could just get some student quotas directly from the military academies controlled by the Brophy family.”