The food was absolutely disgusting—bitter, dry, and so astringent it felt like chewing on sandpaper. Aria gagged and spat it out immediately.

"What the hell is this? This is inedible!" she snapped, her face twisted in revulsion.

Ricky shot her a glare, clearly annoyed. "No one's forcing you. Eat it or don't—I don't give a damn."

Aria rolled her eyes at him. "Please. You think I'm like you Outer Zone street rats? That's not even food, it's—"

Smack!

Before she could finish, Ricky's arm swung out and slapped her hard across the face.

A bright red handprint bloomed instantly on her cheek.

Aria froze, stunned, her head turned to the side. Her eyes widened in disbelief.

"You hit me?!"

"You're lucky that's all I did," Ricky growled. "Spoiled brat like you needs a reality check. Don't wanna eat? Fine by me." He shoved the rest of the foraged veggie ration into his mouth, chewed it with exaggerated aggression, then turned and walked off.

Aria bit her lip, her eyes welling up. She was the daughter of a powerful Inner City family—when had she ever been treated like this?

Nearby, members of the White Robe Order watched the scene unfold with mild amusement.

"Sheesh, Ryan, don't let her get to you," one of them said. "She probably won't last long anyway. Boss might kill her any day now."

"Yeah… maybe," Ricky muttered, not sounding entirely sure.

Aria's brows furrowed. The truth was, her situation really was that precarious. Her mother had promised to negotiate with the so-called Zombie King, but everyone knew how unpredictable those monsters were. They didn't care about deals or honor—he could change his mind and kill her on a whim.

But then another voice cut through the tension, sending a chill down her spine.

A scrawny young man sidled up to Ricky, squinting with a sly grin. "Ryan, boss said she can't be killed, but he never said she can't be… enjoyed. Word is she's the hottest thing in the Inner City. Wanna be the first to try her out?"

"What?!" Aria's eyes went wide in horror. Her heart pounded in her chest. If that was really what they had in mind, death would be a mercy.

Just then, Ricky turned to look at her. His eyes were cold, unreadable.

Aria's breath caught in her throat. Her whole body tensed. She could hear her own heartbeat thudding in her ears.

"He wouldn't… would he?"

"…"

But Ricky didn't say a word to her. Instead, he turned to the scrawny guy and snapped, "Cut the crap. The White Robe Order has rules. I don't care if it's murder, arson, or poison—I'll do it. But I don't touch that kind of filth. That shit stains your name and breaks the Creed of the White Robe."

He jabbed a finger at the others. "Same goes for all of you. Anyone crosses that line, I'll cut your dick off. Got it?"

"Y-yeah, yeah, totally!" the skinny guy stammered, nodding quickly under Ricky's glare.

Aria blinked, caught off guard. She hadn't expected that. For all his rough edges, Ricky… actually had principles?

"…"

A short while later, Ethan returned with the Lizardfolk Chieftain after examining the murals.

Ricky and the others immediately stood up. "Boss, anything new?"

"Nothing urgent," Ethan said casually. "You guys can rest for now."

"Oh, okay, cool."

Ricky nodded eagerly. What he admired most about Ethan was how calm and collected he always was—like nothing ever fazed him. Just being around him made you feel safe.

Someday, Ricky thought, I wanna be like that.

Ethan glanced around and noticed they were still gnawing on those awful veggie rations. He suddenly remembered—he hadn't given them any real food yet.

With a flick of his hand, he summoned a medium-sized Command Cruiser from his spatial storage ring.

The thing was massive—like a mobile fortress made of sleek alloy, gleaming under the light. It looked like something straight out of a sci-fi movie.

"There should be food inside. Go help yourselves."

"Hell yeah!" The group's eyes lit up like kids on Christmas morning.

Most of them were from the Outer Zone and had never even seen high-end food before. And this wasn't just any cruiser—it belonged to Aria, the pampered daughter of an Inner City elite. There had to be some serious gourmet stuff in there.

"Let's go! I bet there's all kinds of good stuff in there."

"I'm calling it now—there's gotta be a big-ass Protein Brick. Like, the deluxe kind."

"Pfft, you and your Protein Bricks. I heard Inner City folks eat seafood."

"Seafood? What's that?"

"No clue. But we're about to find out. Let's go!"

"…"

The group charged up the ramp of the Command Cruiser, practically bouncing with excitement. Their laughter and chatter echoed through the clearing as they disappeared inside, leaving only Aria behind.

She sat alone at the base of a massive tree root, arms wrapped around her knees, watching the Outer Zone crew vanish into the cruiser like kids storming a candy store. Her expression was distant, thoughtful.

"They… don't even know what seafood is?"

Growing up, she'd always heard the Outer Zone was poor, savage, violent, and uneducated—but she hadn't realized it was this bad.

But… why? Why were things so different out here?

Aria frowned, lost in thought. But her reflection was cut short by a more immediate concern—everyone had gone inside, and she was still out here. Alone.

"Hey! Wait—wait a second! Aren't you gonna let me in too?!"

"…"

No answer. No one even looked back.

Inside the cruiser, Ethan and the others had settled in for a break. He wasn't planning to push deeper into the Xenorift continent until his zombie underlings arrived. The Dreadnought-class Starcruiser was still a few days out.

Outside, the sky darkened fast. The sun dipped below the horizon, and night fell like a curtain of ink. With it came the return of the hunt.

"Wraaaaoooohhh—"

Predators howled in the distance, their cries echoing through the forest, long and bone-chilling.

Back at the Lizardfolk Clan Stronghold, the Command Cruiser glowed with warm light, a beacon in the darkness.

Inside, Ricky and the others were feasting like kings. For the first time in their lives, they were eating the kind of food Inner City elites took for granted. Rich flavors, real meat, actual seasoning—it was so good some of them looked like they might cry.

Meanwhile, Aria had been completely forgotten. Or maybe not forgotten—just deliberately left out. No one had bothered to bring her in. The daughter of a powerful Inner City family, now left to sit in the cold, chained up like a stray dog.

The night wind howled through the trees, whipping her hair around her face. A chill crept down her neck, and she shivered.

Her jaw clenched, cheeks puffed with frustration. Those Outer Zone bastards were so rude. She tugged at the alloy chains binding her wrists, trying to wriggle free—but it was useless.

The restraints had been designed to hold Ricky, after all. At the core of the chain was a lightning-element crystal core. Any excessive resistance would trigger a surge of electricity, shocking the prisoner into submission.

A cruel, vicious piece of tech… and now it was wrapped around her.

Poetic justice, maybe.

Aria glanced around nervously. The forest beyond the clearing was pitch black. The massive trees swayed in the wind, casting long, twisted shadows that looked like clawed hands reaching for her. The leaves rustled with a dry, whispering sound.

"Why does it feel… off tonight?"

She muttered to herself. Normally, the forest was alive with noise after dark—growls, screeches, the sounds of mutated beasts fighting and killing each other.

But tonight, it was eerily quiet.

Too quiet.

The silence pressed in on her like a weight.

In the shadows, Lizardfolk warriors moved silently through the trees, patrolling the perimeter. Over ten thousand of them had followed their chieftain here, and now they formed the backbone of the Stronghold's defense.

"Patrolling here feels… different," one Lizardfolk guard murmured.

"What do you mean?" his partner asked.

"Listen… it's too quiet out there."

...

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