After Jin Seoyun and Adel disappeared, a man quietly emerged from the darkness of the corridor.
Heavy footsteps broke the silence. He walked through the blood-soaked corridor and slowly stopped in front of Leon Licencia's corpse.
He looked down at the crimson-stained floor and muttered softly.
"Truly... isn't life interesting, Leon?"
He knelt and sat beside the corpse. His fingertips carefully brushed Leon's hair.
"I never thought you'd die so powerlessly. No, I thought you'd survive until the very end... but it ended much faster than I expected."
There was no pity or sympathy in his eyes.
"Still... you've worked hard. Thanks to you, the moment to destroy the world has been brought forward much earlier than planned."
He slowly raised his right hand and peeled off the leather mask covering his face. And beneath it, his true face was revealed.
Aaron Blake.
He searched the corpse again. He took out Leon Licencia's identification code reader, expressionlessly completed the scan, then took out a replicated face of Leon from his pocket and carefully placed it over his own.
"Ahhh-"
His voice slowly transformed. Leon Licencia's soft, authoritative voice flowed from his lips.
He picked up a communicator.
"Chairman-nim. The criminals have escaped."
He paused to take a breath, then calmly lowered his voice.
"Issue a pursuit order to the entire military. The current targets are Adel Licencia, Jin Seoyun, and four others. Adjust their threat level to 'Top Tier'."
The corners of his mouth slowly curled upwards.
"They are no longer... mere rebels. They are a disaster that threatens the very existence of this Federation."
He ended the communication. Then, without a word, he slowly walked out into the corridor.
Wearing a false face, disguised as the truth.
***
I returned with Adel to the rendezvous point where the group was waiting.
As soon as we entered, Elena rushed over. Her usual composure was nowhere to be found; her face was etched with urgency.
"Hurry! An emergency order has been issued throughout the entire Federation!"
The screen of the terminal in her hand was blinking rapidly.
"Orders have been issued to the entire military. Adel Licencia and you... have been designated as top-priority targets. Identification information has been transmitted to all military facilities and spaceports."
I took a breath and nodded.
"We need to move quickly."
I looked at the group, and everyone had finished their preparations.
Then, Adel quietly stepped forward.
"Just a moment."
Everyone's gaze focused on her.
"How do you plan to escape?"
Elena immediately replied.
"My uncle-nim prepared a shuttle. It's on standby in Hangar B area."
Adel slowly shook her head.
"...We can't escape with that shuttle."
At her words, everyone froze.
"If the entire Federation military is on high alert like this, it will be shot down before it even reaches orbit."
A heavy silence fell. Breaking the stillness, Sheryl calmly asked.
"Then you mean there's another way?"
"We need to go to the spaceship Astrea, the one we originally rode."
Lisa interjected with surprised eyes.
"That ship was seized by the Federation, wasn't it? And we don't even know its current location, so how are we going to find it?"
"I know its location."
Elena pondered for a moment, then looked at me.
"Seoyun... what do you want to do?"
Everyone's gaze turned to me. I thought for a moment.
"Let's do as Adel says. It seems she has a plan."
At that moment, Torno, who had been standing quietly behind, stepped forward. He looked at Sheryl and spoke.
"Commander-nim. I hope you escape safely."
Lisa cautiously asked.
"...Won't we get caught?"
Adel nodded with a confident look in her eyes.
"Don't worry. I have pre-secured authorization codes. We should be able to pass the first checkpoint easily enough."
Elena looked around and said.
"Then let's prepare quickly. There's no time."
We quickly changed into military uniforms, moved to the location Adel had mentioned, and then boarded a pre-arranged Federation military transport vehicle. The heavy vehicle rumbled along the road, moving down the highway.
Elena was in the driver's seat, and I sat in the passenger seat next to her.
In the back seats were Adel, Sheryl, Oh Hyun, Lisa, and Mason. And in the very back compartment, Suhyun and Hina were quietly hiding, keeping low.
Inside the vehicle, even their breathing was cautious.
"I see a checkpoint."
Elena said. Three hundred meters ahead, a Federation military security outpost. Vehicles were stopped, lining up, and vehicles arriving from various directions were undergoing inspection procedures one by one.
"Everyone, get ready."
Adel adjusted her posture and spoke softly.
"If there's a problem, Elena-ssi, please respond as I instructed. The rest of you, don't make eye contact, and only answer questions asked."
The vehicle slowly moved along the line. My hand naturally gripped the gun inside my clothes, staying vigilant.
Finally, it was our turn.
Two guards approached the vehicle. One moved to the side window, the other to the front of the vehicle, raising an arm.
"Vehicle stop. All occupants, please wait for identification verification."
Elena rolled down the window and presented her documents and ID.
"This is Major Glenn. I've brought supplies as per the second resupply request."
The guard took the ID and immediately pulled out his terminal to begin inputting data.
"Sir! I will proceed with the ID and mission directive verification. Please wait a moment."
The terminal screen blinked and loaded. A moment later, the terminal screen turned green.
Bbiik-
'Authentication Complete'
The guard looked up and gazed at Elena again.
"Confirmed, Major-nim. You may proceed!"
Elena didn't bat an eye and replied curtly.
"Carry on."
The vehicle slowly accelerated. Once we had completely passed the outpost, there was a brief moment to catch our breath inside the vehicle.
The group almost simultaneously relaxed and let out sighs of relief.
Elena carefully turned her head.
"We've passed the first hurdle."
Adel kept her gaze fixed out the window and replied briefly.
"From now on... we really need to be careful."
"Is it that dangerous?"
At my question, Adel quietly nodded.
"This is a top-secret area where the Federation military secretly develops new battleships and mobile weapons. The entire facility is separated by an independent electronic surveillance network... so the security is so strict that if you don't have a registered code, you'll be immediately shot."
Sheryl also nodded and continued.
"As Miss Adel said, this is a top-tier zone among top-secret areas. The areas we can access with our ID codes will be extremely limited."
Adel took a short breath and said.
"So, from now on, we really can't make any mistakes."
She operated the signal device on her terminal. Soon, a small, faint vibration sound rang out, and a reception confirmation signal appeared on the connected internal channel.
"We've received contact. From now on, we'll approach Astrea under their guidance."
The vehicle entered the interior of the sector. The inside of the facility was much busier than expected. Numerous soldiers and personnel were moving about, checking various equipment, and
We got out of the vehicle, pulled our hats down low, and quietly moved our steps.
Elena led the way, naturally placing her ID on the access panel and opening the door.
Adel muttered softly.
"The rendezvous point is near Hangar 3. There will be someone inside to guide us."
I whispered, looking around.
"There are more surveillance cameras than I thought."
"According to our information, there's a blind spot for surveillance on the east side of the building. Let's detour that way."
We quietly slipped into a narrow corridor behind the building, taking advantage of the surrounding gazes. At the end of a gray corridor that seemed blocked on all sides, someone stood quietly in the darkness.
It was a man with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, wearing a black Federation military uniform.
"Miss Adel. You've made it here safely."
"It's been a while, Lieutenant Colonel Xian."
"Let's put aside our pleasantries for now. The situation is urgent."
He quickly checked his surroundings and continued.
"Astrea has been fully serviced by the Federation military. It's been worked on enough that it can depart immediately without issue."
Adel's face hardened.
"...That means all the data and system information has been compromised."
"Yes. Its core structure and weapon configurations have all been scanned."
"......It can't be helped, I suppose. More importantly, is that... safe?"
At Adel's question, Xian was silent for a moment before nodding.
"Fortunately, the Federation military hasn't discovered it yet."
She quietly let out a breath.
"That's a relief, at least."
Xian checked his wrist-watch and then looked up.
"There's no time. We need to move quickly from now on. Follow me."
He turned and moved deeper into the corridor.
We silently followed him. And finally, before our eyes, a massive battleship was revealed. Inside the gloomy hangar, countless pipes and power lines were connected. I was inwardly amazed by the battleship in the center.
'Its size and appearance are insane.'
"Miss, the crew and necessary personnel will be waiting inside."
Xian quietly continued.
"However... from the moment you leave Earth, you will have to face all threats yourselves."
Adel nodded calmly at his words.
"That part is fine."
She slowly turned her head and looked at me.
"Because we have a knight-nim to protect us."
I gave her a short smile in response to her gaze.
"Alright. Then let's move again."
We moved towards Astrea again. As we got closer, the armed forces deployed inside the hangar began to become noticeable. Heavily armed soldiers were patrolling, and several armored drones were slowly moving in the air.
Sheryl whispered softly.
"Lieutenant Colonel Xian... the armed forces are much larger than expected. Is it alright?"
Xian smiled slightly and nodded.
"Most of the forces in this area are personnel from our organization, so it's not very dangerous. However, some personnel directly managed by the Federation's upper echelons are also deployed. Especially the surveillance drones, those were deployed directly by them... so you must be careful with every single action."
"So Astrea is also under surveillance."
"Yes. Fortunately, not many personnel are directly deployed. We've adjusted the deployment so that our side can quickly suppress them."
Xian quickly input a signal into his terminal, then pointed to an adjacent entrance.
"This way. Once you pass through the door, you'll be directly in the lower level of the hangar, the underside of Astrea."
We quietly followed him.
But then-
-Wiiiiiing!!
Suddenly, a sharp alarm blared throughout the entire hangar.
『Warning! Warning! Unidentified outsiders have currently infiltrated! All security forces, immediately switch to response posture! Repeat. External infiltration detected! All forces, battle stations!』
"Damn it...!"
Xian gritted his teeth.
"We've been exposed! From now on, we're sprinting to Astrea!"
At the same time, soldiers patrolling the upper corridor spotted us and simultaneously raised their rifles, shouting.
Sheryl turned around. Her eyes narrowed.
"...Aren't you coming with us?"
Torno shook his head. Complex emotions were etched in his eyes.
"I must remain here. There's still... something I need to do."
With a faint smile, he approached Adel.
"Adel Licencia."
He quietly handed her a small device.
"This is a communication device that can connect with our organization. It also contains information about a safe base where you can stay."
"Thank you, Captain Torno."
"From now on... I hope you truly change the world."
With those final words, he disappeared into the dark hangar.
Adel took a breath and spoke to Elena.
"Could you give me a terminal?"
Elena quietly took out a communication terminal and handed it to her.
"Here."
Adel activated the terminal and accessed a specific channel.
"It's me. Are you ready?"
[Yes. We are on standby, ready to move at any time.]
"Good. We'll arrive within 30 minutes."
[Understood.]
As the brief communication ended, the group quietly looked at Adel.
"Who was that?"
Adel replied briefly to Sheryl's question.
"They are people who help me."
Then, she immediately looked around and added firmly.
"Everyone, please change into military uniforms or maintenance suits from now on. We will disguise ourselves as supply unit soldiers and approach the unit where Astrea is located."
"You there! Identify yourselves!"
In an instant, the group's hands moved. Sheryl pulled out a pistol from her clothes and aimed it, and Xian also picked up his radio and shouted firmly.
"All units, switch to Condition C! Commence operation!"
At that moment. Some of the scattered forces throughout the hangar suddenly moved, raising their rifles and pointing them at the upper-level soldiers instead.
"What-?! What are you doing!"
As the confused soldiers shouted, Xian's subordinates began to systematically subdue the soldiers. And some, holding what looked like black guns, shot at the drones, causing them to fall one by one.