Mo Chen opened his mouth, just about to say something—when Eunhwa suddenly reached out and pressed her finger against his lips, rising slightly on her toes to whisper softly in his ear.
"Business first. We'll talk later."
With that, she quickly pulled the still somewhat reluctant Vesti away and left the scene.
She'd already heard there had been an incident at the banquet, and that Vesti had been involved. Coupled with what she'd learned earlier—that Vesti had been tricked into attending this charity banquet—Eunhwa had immediately sensed trouble, and rushed over with Emma in tow.
Halfway there, she'd heard that someone had actually died, which gave her a real scare.
The high-ranking elites attending this charity banquet all wielded power and influence. If something happened involving them, it could turn into a serious problem.
Halfway to the banquet, Eunhwa and Emma had already heard rumors that someone had been killed. That made them even more anxious, and they quickened their pace.
Although the blood and corpses had shocked Eunhwa at first, the moment she saw Mo Chen, she exhaled a long breath of relief.
Everything was fine.
She didn't even know why—just seeing Mo Chen always gave her a sense of peace.
After Eunhwa and Vesti left, Emma gave Mo Chen's waist a subtle pat on the way out, throwing him a teasing wink with a meaningful smile.
"Nice job, Commander."
Then she left as well.
She knew this wasn't something they could intervene in. It was best not to get involved—it would only make the situation more complicated.
Only the bloodied, trembling girl on the ground was left. As Mo Chen approached, she struggled to sit up, trying to beg for mercy, knowing that he was the only one whose word mattered now.
But what met her gaze was the cold muzzle of a gun.
Mo Chen pressed the pistol to her forehead and pulled the trigger without a shred of hesitation.
Bang—!
Her body twitched and collapsed to the floor. Blood gushed out as a hole appeared in her forehead. Her pale face froze in the moment of begging, her lifeless eyes still wide, as if she never imagined that bullying someone would one day get her killed.
Mo Chen reholstered the gun.
The banquet paused for only a brief moment before returning to its usual chatter.
Andersen stepped forward, speaking quietly to Mo Chen. "That was a bit much. You should've let me handle it."
He wasn't blaming Mo Chen for the kill—just that handling it personally could provoke some of the major families, because those three men and two women, arrogant as they were, were heirs to powerful families within the Ark.
Killing them outright would definitely spark backlash.
Burningum also couldn't quite figure it out—until his eyes lit up and realization dawned.
Of course.
The commander's thunderous method was meant as a warning to the unruly factions—letting them know, if their kids could be killed today, their entire families could be next.
Burningum's small eyes shifted toward those high-ranking nobles, smiling and cordial on the surface, but full of schemes behind their masks.
He had a hunch. One day, the commander would sweep them all away.
Meanwhile, outside the banquet venue—in the ladies' changing room—things had exploded.
"You saw that, right? The commander killed someone!"
"For real?!"
"What do you think? The body was just dragged away."
"Hey hey, what happened? Tell me!"
"Well, it went like this…"
One of the Nikkes began retelling the story, naturally adding some dramatic flair.
"That's so cool!"
"He actually killed someone for standing up for a Nikke?"
"No way… there were top brass there, weren't there? Not a single one said a word?"
"Exactly! It's the commander, after all—he took down a Heretic. Those bigwigs couldn't even handle one punch from him."
"But… will the commander be okay? I heard the ones he killed were from major families. Won't that cause trouble?"
"No way… right?"
"Why not? That was the Lawrence family. Even the Big Three and high command tread carefully around them."
"So what? The commander could just punch them into the ground."
A cute Nikke girl swung her little fists with a huff.
"Shhh, don't say that out loud. Someone might hear."
The Nikkes whispered and chattered, a mix of awe and worry for the commander who stood up for them. They were afraid he'd get into trouble.
After all, Nikkes had long been treated as tools—until the commander came along. Only then did they begin to feel like real people. Even their treatment in public had changed drastically.
It wasn't full equality yet, but the progress was real. Even the Outer Rim zones didn't dare treat Nikkes carelessly anymore.
That was all thanks to him.
At that moment, Helm strode over and lowered her voice. "That's enough. Don't let anyone hear you."
The Nikkes immediately stopped gossiping and got back to work.
Helm composed herself, checked her uniform, fixed her makeup, and took a deep breath before pushing open the door. But the moment she stepped out, she froze.
The banquet was lively—guests were laughing, clinking glasses, engaged in pleasant conversation. And the supposed center of the incident, Mo Chen, was mingling with the guests like nothing had happened, smiling and chatting as if it were all perfectly normal.
There wasn't the slightest hint that anything had gone wrong. He was surrounded by guests, eagerly speaking with him.
The corpses had been dragged away, the blood cleaned, the floor polished until it gleamed. Even the splattered flesh and wall stains had been scrubbed spotless.
If Helm hadn't known a murder had just occurred, she would've thought this was just another normal charity banquet.
At that moment, a few guests finally began to take notice…
"Looks like it's starting."
Deputy Chief Burningum of the Navy stepped onto the banquet hall's stage and greeted the assembled guests.
"Th-thank you all for waiting."
"I'm truly grateful for the presence of all our esteemed guests."
"I am Burningum, the host of this banquet aboard the 'Admire'."
In a corner nearby, a few officers were whispering to each other.
"Deputy Chief Burningum? No wonder the banquet is so grand this time."
Burningum looked toward Helm, who had just arrived at the banquet.
"H-Helm. Regarding the Admire, would you please explain it to everyone?"
"Yes, Sir," Helm quickly composed herself and, with confident and sharp steps, walked up onto the stage.
"The place you're all standing in right now is the main hall of our Aegis Squad's warship: the Admire."