Zoe Pierce splashed cold water on her face in the Omega restroom, finally managing to quell the agitation she felt.

The aftershocks of the incident were surprisingly strong.

She took a few deep breaths before heading out. The moment she did, she saw Miles Sherman standing off to the side and, feeling a little embarrassed, hurried over to him.

When Miles Sherman saw Zoe Pierce, he was direct. "Nathan asked me to come check on you."

"Don’t overthink it," Miles Sherman said. "But in the future, you need to know how to fight when your opponent is the opposite sex." His words had a far more calming effect than anyone else’s. At least, after hearing him, Zoe Pierce felt much better.

As they walked shoulder to shoulder toward the training room, Miles Sherman continued, "You’re already much more skilled than when you first fought us."

Honest, hard work never fails to pay off.

The first time Zoe Pierce ran with them, she felt as if she’d stop breathing at any moment. By the second half of the run, she could barely even lift her feet.

But now, she had undergone a complete transformation.

Her skills with Mecha and her physical fitness were like a carefully nurtured seed that had finally blossomed from a tender sprout into a brilliant flower.

The rest of the training session went on without incident. After Nathan Lockwood pointed out a few more areas where she was being too hesitant, Zoe Pierce learned to let go a little more.

The entire day slipped by quietly.

A few more days passed at the academy. One day, Zoe Pierce walked into the training room to find Nathan Lockwood had already projected the Intelligent Brain’s display into the air. Miles Sherman and the others were gathered around, all looking up at the projection from different positions.

The moment she walked over, they ushered her to the center.

It was a news report.

The report was about Planet B36.

It was brief—so brief that if the name Planet B36 hadn’t been explicitly mentioned, Zoe Pierce wouldn’t have even recognized the names of those being sentenced.

The report stated only that several high-level leaders from Planet B36 had violated the laws of The Federation, including statutes against subverting humanity and organized crime. For their numerous offenses, they were stripped of their political rights for life, sentenced to indefinite imprisonment on Nomadus, and condemned to hard labor until death.

As for the deaths of the Betas and the matter of the Beta-piloted Mecha, everything was dismissed in a single line: the affected populace would receive "humanitarian treatment."

A wave of indescribable unease washed over Zoe Pierce.

There were hardly any comments below the news report. No one on The Capital Star seemed to care what crimes the leaders of a remote planet had committed. The number of casualties wasn’t released, nor was there any word on the future of Planet B36. It was as if the entire affair had been brought to an abrupt and final close.

If Zoe Pierce hadn’t heard what Shannon Stone had said, she wouldn’t have been so deeply affected.

But it wasn’t as if they were completely innocent, either.

The world is not black and white, meaning that the shades of gray within it cannot be judged with pure, absolute reason.

It was all just so pitiable.

Pitiable for the people of Planet B36 who had dedicated their lives to a cause, and pitiable for the twisted path they had ended up on.

In the end, all she could do was let it all out in a heavy sigh.

"What happens next has nothing to do with us. Director Quinn just came by and had us sign a non-disclosure agreement. What happened on Planet B36 can’t be spoken of."

Nathan Lockwood took out a document and handed it to Zoe Pierce. It was her copy of the agreement.

Zoe Pierce picked up a pen, signed her name on the designated line, and stared at the document in a slight daze.

Finally, she silently handed it back to Nathan Lockwood, bringing the matter to a close.

’We were merely visitors to Planet B36, after all.’

"Director Quinn said the quarantine is lifted now that we’ve signed the agreements. We’re free to go." Nathan Lockwood looked at Zoe Pierce. "Are you going home?"

Beyond the endless, repetitive training she had grown accustomed to, Zoe Pierce now had something else to face.

Damien Pierce.

As the one Zoe had confided in from the very beginning, Nathan Lockwood made a point to ask.

Zoe Pierce looked at her friends, who remained silent but kept their eyes fixed on her. Sometimes, they gave her more warmth than her own unfamiliar family ever did.

"I am."

Zoe Pierce said, "I want to go back to the home where I grew up."

’Now is the perfect time to go back.’

’Damien Pierce has no news of me, nor does he know how much of my memory has returned. By choosing to go back to my childhood home, I won’t give him any chance to prepare.’

"We’ll take you."

Zoe Pierce didn’t refuse the kind offer from Miles Sherman and the others.

In the end, today’s training was cut short.

On the way, Zoe Pierce propped her chin on her hand and gazed out the window. One really has to experience something like this to understand the apprehension that comes with returning home.

That was exactly how Zoe Pierce felt right now. She didn’t know how many of Damien Pierce’s lies she’d be able to draw out, nor did she even know what she truly wanted from all this.

After all, among her memories of being with her parents, there were many that included Damien Pierce.

They had truly seemed like real, loving siblings.

She kept her gaze fixed outside, so she didn’t see the looks her friends were giving her—a mixture of tension and worry.

Their expressions seemed even more complicated than her own, even though she was the one at the center of it all.

When they reached the villa district, Zoe Pierce expected to get out, but the car drove right through the gates without stopping.

This time she turned around, her eyes wide as she looked at the others.

"My family has a house here," Nathan Lockwood said.

’So the recognition system at the gate didn’t stop them at all.’

"We’ll wait for you in the car," Nathan Lockwood continued. "Wait until you send me a message confirming everything is okay, and then we’ll go."

No matter how they looked at it, they were still uneasy.

It was rare for Zoe Pierce to feel like smiling in such a somber atmosphere, but she managed a small one. "Damien Pierce can’t beat me in a fight."

Setting aside Damien Pierce’s combat level, after nearly six months of high-intensity training and real-world experience, Zoe Pierce felt she was far beyond the capabilities of an ordinary person.

Besides, she didn’t think Damien Pierce would actually resort to physical violence.

’And if things really did escalate to that point, she probably wouldn’t let Damien remain a part of the Pierce Family anyway.’

"We’re just worried it will be painful for you."

Nathan Lockwood’s flat delivery of the line stunned Zoe Pierce into silence.

"Don’t worry. I’ll be monitoring Nathan Lockwood’s Perception," Erin Xavier piped up. She no longer called him by his first name and title, but by his full name. "If there’s any sign of trouble inside, we’ll charge in."

Chase Shaw added, "If you need help, call us."

Miles Sherman simply looked at Zoe Pierce and said, "You’re already doing great. We all have faith in you."

They all had her back.

Zoe Pierce couldn’t bring herself to say anything sentimental, but she felt a surge of strength coursing through her. Standing by the open car door, she asked, "You’re just going to park right here?"

’Are they not even going to pretend to be subtle? Just parking right in front of my house?’

The guys all nodded, seeing absolutely no problem with it.

’Fine by me.’

’In a way, they were acting just like they had when I first met them.’

Zoe Pierce closed the car door and walked towards the main gate of her home.

The automated gate scanned Zoe Pierce’s biometrics and swung open. Guided by a familiarity rooted in memory, Zoe walked straight into the villa’s main hall.

The villa was quiet, with only a few robots scattered about. There were no human servants in sight, giving the place a deserted feel.