Vivienne Cross held her breath and gently leaned against the door, her ear pressed tightly to the cold metal, trying to catch every faint sound from outside.
Outside was a complete mess. Onboard the Tianshu, Jasper Vaughn made a decisive command without a second of hesitation, ordering the pirates who were carrying out tasks on the civilian vessel:
"Everyone, abandon ship immediately!"
…
"F*ck! Why the hell did they get here so fast?!"
"Those damn skunks!"
"Captain says retreat, leave everything behind!"
A wave of excited hope surged in Vivienne's heart. The Empire military's signature color scheme was black and white—"skunks" was the pirates' derogatory nickname for Imperial troops.
It really was the Empire's rescue force!
They were saved!
To hell with Leo Vaughn, that so-called Second Young Master!
Why bother trying to please pirates and live like a slave when you could be a decent citizen?!
Seconds ticked by. The hurried, chaotic footsteps outside gradually faded away, the noise outside slowly calming down. It seemed the pirates had already regrouped.
Finally, when Vivienne was sure there was no more movement outside, she cautiously opened the door and slipped out like a cat, silent and light.
Her gaze swept quickly around, searching for the best hiding spot.
This was a do-or-die moment !
…
In no more than five minutes, the pirates on the civilian ship had completely evacuated, leaving behind a cabin in utter disarray and the bound passengers and crew.
The signs of the sudden change were too obvious.
Relatives, friends—even strangers who had never met before—found a shared belief and strength at that moment.
Their eyes were filled with determination and encouragement, silently conveying one message:
"Hold on! The reinforcements are here!"
A little boy curled up in his father's arms, muttering softly: "Daddy, Daddy."
"Shhh." The man pressed down on the stuffed doll in his son's embrace, nervously asking, "You want to see Mommy again, don't you?"
If anyone caused trouble now and pissed off the pirates enough to get killed, it would be too damn unlucky. There'd be no one left to argue their case…
The Polaris Pirates obviously had no time to waste killing and silencing these irrelevant people onboard. Leo Vaughn, the guide and youngest son of the pirate leader, had already been taken back to the Tianshu. The last squad left behind to clean up, Anthony's team, was also hurrying to withdraw.
"Is everyone out?"
"Boss, Deputy Vaughn told us to check if that pretty boy is still around."
"That woman definitely ran off herself!" Anthony sneered, unsurprised at Vivienne's 'betrayal'.
"So, should we look for her?"
Anthony's voice was dripping with malice: "Look? Everyone get on the flyers now! Head back to the Tianshu! If you see that woman on the way, make it quick for her!"
He waved the rifle in his hand, his gaze dark and sinister, the scar on his face twisting hideously—what he meant was to put a bullet in Vivienne's head.
"Yes!"
"Understood!"
The squad members jogged away, but Anthony, who was the last to leave, didn't notice the faint shadow hidden in the half-closed storage room behind him.
A figure was quietly hiding there, her body tense, trying to keep her breathing light so as not to be discovered by the pirates outside.
Vivienne wasn't the kind of person who repaid every tiny grievance.
But every tiny grievance referred to things like a glare or a sneer.
The scar-faced bastard had done far more than just glare at her.
…
"Huh?"
His mindscape suddenly sensed pressure.
An indescribable fear and unease made Anthony frown and turn his head in confusion.
Behind him, the hallway was empty, only messy footprints left on the floor.
The next second, he seemed to smell the heavy, salty scent of the deep sea, and the sound of a whale's call echoed through the scar-faced sentinel's mind, leaving only a faint trace.
[Don't leave this ship.]
What?
He furrowed his brows, shaking his head as if trying to shake something filthy out of his mind.
"Boss, what's wrong?" A tense subordinate, seeing him still standing there, immediately asked, "Is something wrong?"
Anthony thought to himself that he was probably being paranoid: "Nothing. Move!"
…
The bay doors opened. Several flyers drove out from the temporary hangar, and the pirates jumped onto the flyers one after another…
"Boss, aren't you getting on?" A subordinate standing on a micro space flyer urged doubtfully.
Anthony gripped the weapon in his hand tightly: "I'm coming…"
[Don't leave this ship.]
A surge of inexplicable hesitation rose in Anthony's heart.
He struggled for a moment, finding this thought absurd—don't leave? How could he not leave? The Imperial troops were already at their doorstep!
But unfortunately, at a moment when the Imperial forces were about to arrive, any hesitation could result in fatal consequences—
A beam of intense light suddenly converged, fired from the Empire warship watching them like a predator outside the vessel. The laser cannon's light tore through the night sky, aiming straight for the ship's exit!
"Boss!!!"
The laser beam struck the launch bay of the civilian ship's flyers, and the sound of the explosion was deafening.
…
From the blaring alarms to the sudden silence of the cabin, the chaos on the civilian ship lasted no more than ten minutes. The Polaris Pirates had almost completely retreated—those who hadn't… no longer needed to.
Vivienne quietly observed all of this. She was surprised by how fast the pirates had withdrawn, and she had to admit—they were well-trained when it came to running away.
She took a deep breath and silently stretched out her hand, gently pressing her temple with her fingertips.
While easing the discomfort caused by the cracking of her mindscape, she focused her thoughts and planned her next move: after implanting a mental suggestion in scar-faced Anthony, her mindscape seemed to have cracked again.
But compared to the first day she encountered the pirates, when her mental tendrils were shredded and she was kicked by scar-face, this level of pain was still within her tolerance.
Vivienne, already used to this kind of pain, quietly added "find a reliable guide" to her to-do list.
…
After restraining her excitement and waiting for a while, when the civilian ship violently shook again, Vivienne judged that the Polaris Pirates had already engaged in a direct confrontation with the Imperial troops—or at least, the fight had been decided.
And the pirates had all withdrawn— Next, it would definitely be the Empire's forces taking over the ship!
They were saved!
She was free!
No more being sold to Crescent Bay and forced to bow her head! The priority now was to reunite with the other captured passengers! If she kept hiding in some dark corner and got mistaken for a pirate by the Imperial troops… that would be a death sentence!
Vivienne had just rushed out when she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks, like a nocturnal animal caught in the blinding light of a hunter.
Her body froze instantly, and after steadying herself, she slowly took two steps back.
" Clack. "
The sound of metal against skin was cold and unyielding.
A gun was pressed against her head.
…
The dark muzzle was tightly pressed against Vivienne's forehead, the scent of death lingering at the tip of her nose.
A thin layer of cold sweat appeared on her skin—that was the body's instinctive reaction to extreme fear.
A blond, blue-eyed man in black stared at her coldly:
"Where do you think you're going?"