One of the people in the fleeing group suddenly shouted, "Stop!"

The mutant tiger—mid-sprint—froze.

Its whole body trembled. You could tell at a glance: this wasn’t caution. This was pure fear.

Then a skinny guy walked out toward it.

In front of everyone’s disbelieving eyes, he strolled right up to the tiger’s face.

And that terrifying mutant tiger... just dropped to the ground, shivering, not even daring to resist. All that earlier savagery was gone like it had never existed.

Skinny Pete grinned. "Perfect timing. My strength just shot up, and I was starting to feel like controlling Goldie and the others was too easy. And now you come delivering yourself to me."

"From now on, you’ll keep Goldie company."

He smiled, and his Beast Control ability fired off—snapping the mutant tiger under his control instantly.

At Tier 14, controlling a Tier 11 mutant beast was effortless. He didn’t even need to beat it half to death first.

After the bond took, Skinny Pete patted the tiger’s head, then swung himself up onto its back like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Everyone except the Fallen Star Squad stood there, dumbstruck.

That monster... just got tamed. Like that.

The ones who took it the hardest were Jared and his little crew.

Their eyes were wide, faces stiff—like reality had just slapped them across the mouth.

"...Go," Jared said in a low voice.

Then they turned and hurried off.

Over here, Ethan seemed to sense something. He glanced in the direction Jared and the others left, the corner of his mouth curling slightly.

Grace was already questioning the people they’d saved.

According to them, they’d gone up the mountain to hunt like they always did, only for a mutant tiger to suddenly burst out and ambush them.

The tiger was ridiculously strong. They’d had no choice but to run for their lives until they ended up here.

"I can’t believe there’s already a Tier 11 mutant tiger up there," Grace said, still shaken.

Thank god Ethan and his people had been around. If it had just been her group... it didn’t take much imagination to see how that would’ve ended.

A tiger-type beast was way stronger than an Enhanced of the same Tier. And they were only Tier 10—plus they weren’t Awakened with Innate Abilities. They simply couldn’t fight something like that.

The group returned to the compound.

Jared came up to greet them with a big smile, like he hadn’t been gone at all.

"Grace, you’re back!"

"Yeah." Grace nodded. "Have people get dinner going. Ethan and the others are probably starving."

After climbing the Celestial Stairway in the Void Realm, every single person had been squeezed dry. Food wasn’t optional right now.

"Got it." Jared nodded and turned to go make arrangements.

"Hold up." Ethan’s voice cut in.

Jared paused.

Grace looked over, confused. "What is it?"

Ethan didn’t answer her. He looked straight at Jared. "That tiger—you had someone lead it here, didn’t you?"

Jared’s smile vanished. He frowned. "I don’t know what you’re talking about."

A man behind Jared stepped forward, tone sharp. "Ethan, you might be a guest here, but you can’t just accuse people."

"Ethan..." Grace hesitated. "Are you sure it’s not a misunderstanding? Jared’s always worked hard for the compound. I don’t think he’d do something like that."

Ethan gave a soft, humorless laugh. "A mutant tiger doesn’t mean much to us. But I hate being set up." 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

He tilted his head slightly. "Still not talking?"

"Skinny Pete. Make him talk."

"Gladly." Skinny Pete grinned. "My ability leveled up—perfect chance to test it."

He looked straight into Jared’s eyes.

Jared didn’t even get a chance to react before his expression went blank—like someone had reached in and flipped a switch.

Ethan spoke coldly. "You had someone lure the tiger here, right?"

"...Yes." Jared nodded stiffly.

Grace and the other girls’ eyes widened.

"Why?!" someone blurted.

Jared’s emotions suddenly spiked, his voice rising even through the control, full of resentment. "Because of you!"

"I’ve worked my ass off for this compound. If you looked down on me, fine—whatever. But why did you have to hand the whole compound over to some outsider?"

"If you’re going to be that heartless, then I’ll be the one to become the compound’s owner myself!"

"You—!" Grace’s face went green with fury, her chest heaving.

They’d rescued Jared on the road when they first came here. They’d given him resources, helped him stand back up...

And in the end, they’d raised a traitor.

"That’s human nature." Vivian patted Grace on the shoulder.

"Alright." Ethan’s voice stayed flat. "Your dumb plan did get us a new pet. But the moment you even thought about making a move on us, your ending was set."

He didn’t waste another word. He casually kicked Jared.

Jared’s body flew backward like he’d been hit by a truck. When he landed, it was over—his organs had been shattered clean through. Dead beyond dead.

Grace parted her lips like she wanted to say something, then closed them again. In the end, she said nothing.

"And those guys too," Ethan added, pointing at the few men who’d been behind Jared earlier. "Kill them."

"I—" Grace started.

Their faces drained of color.

"Grace, it’s not our fault!"

"Please—please, we didn’t do anything!"

They scrambled toward her, begging. They knew Grace. She was soft-hearted. If they could just get her to hesitate, maybe she’d let them go.

What they knew was Grace’s personality.

What they didn’t know was the Fallen Star Squad’s efficiency.

Before Grace could even finish her sentence, a Wind Cutter flashed through the air.

Heads hit the ground almost at the same time.

For a second, the area went dead quiet.

The people nearby stared, completely stunned.

Everything had happened too fast. Their brains hadn’t caught up.

These people were way too ruthless. One wrong sentence and you died.

"Let’s go," Ethan said lightly, like he’d just swatted a bug. "We’re heading in."

"...Yeah." Grace nodded, still a beat behind, like she hadn’t fully processed it.

It wasn’t until they were inside the compound that she suddenly remembered herself. She turned to the people at her side and spoke, firm and loud enough for everyone to hear.

"You all saw it. They tried to lure a mutant tiger to kill us. For that, they were willing to sacrifice that many innocent lives."

She looked around, eyes sharp.

"People like that—should they be killed?"

"Yeah! They should!" someone blurted, eager. "They should die!"

"Right. They should," another echoed quickly.

Grace nodded once. "Then have someone clean up the bodies."

"Understood."

Back inside the compound, Grace had them prepare a feast.

Everyone ate until they were full, then went back to their rooms to crash.

Climbing the Celestial Stairway had been exhausting in a way that wasn’t just physical. It had wrung them out—body, mind, everything.

Ethan slept straight through until night.

Then he gathered the Fallen Star Squad together.

"Alright," he said, looking around. "Tell me what new skill you got when you hit Stage C."

Ethan could see their skills with his own methods, but hearing them describe it would give him a clearer picture of how each person thought and fought.

He hadn’t asked earlier because Grace and the others were around. This kind of thing was the Fallen Star Squad’s trump-card information.

Chris stepped forward first. "I’ll go."

"When I reached Stage C, I got a Void-type ability: Corrupting Spear."

He spoke steadily, eyes bright.

"If it hits, the target’s body gets corroded. Anyone weaker than me will basically melt into a puddle of blood. Even if they’re stronger, it can still seriously injure them and massively weaken their body strength."

"It’s not an AoE skill, but I think it fits me. It makes my damage way nastier."

"And my invisibility ability changed too. While I’m invisible, I take less damage now."

Chris inhaled, confidence building as he spoke. "With both together... I think I can kill Tier 15."

"Even Tier 16—I can threaten them."

"Damn." Ethan gave him a thumbs-up. "That’s badass."