Different Paths
Ethan Zhao, son of Victoria Zhao, the Undersecretary of New Atlantis, is seen by others as: Have you ever seen a transport ship? The kind that carries star core energy crystals? You know how alluring it is, and you know it's heavily armed. But with Ava Lin: he seems rather naive, like someone who, amidst a feast of seafood every day, suddenly discovers a unique ear of corn—rare and exciting. But corn is everywhere, costing two dollars a piece. Ava Lin, from the town of Willow Creek on Koso (a little-known asteroid in the northwest corner of the Alliance), is seen by others as: ...well, too ordinary; it's hard for others to remember her. But if someone points out, "It's that girl who always wears a gray school uniform with 'Gifford High' printed on the back," others might suddenly realize, "Oh, it's her. She's quite tall, average-looking, and she stutters." But in Ethan Zhao's eyes: a rare person who practices what they preach, someone who wouldn't let others down, a smart and courageous person, someone whose criteria for choosing a partner are hard to find in this galaxy, a cold and scummy person... A special reminder: in this interstellar parallel world: university dorm assignments are done by drawing lots, and students from different majors live together; high school is four years; university is six years, with no distinction between undergraduate, graduate, or doctoral programs; students don't have summer vacations (the author's words are simply inhuman).
