The room fell into silence.

No one uttered a word. Not a single soul.

They simply watched Tatehan, incredulous.

They should have been staring at the core in his hands, but they were too stunned to do so.

They only gazed at his face.

Tatehan, who had already seen the notification confirming he'd earned their respect, decided to savor the moment.

He slowly adjusted his posture to one that radiated greater presence.

It was one thing to carry aura, and it was something entirely different for his system to declare that he had 'farmed' AURA.

The distinction carried weight.

It was like being the last man standing in a battle of thousands. That moment where you just pause and look around you, enjoying the silence of your victory.

That was how it was as Tatehan stood there, the bio neutral core on his right hand.

"How did you do it?" the guard who had escorted him all the way to the commander finally asked, breaking the silence.

Tatehan remained silent for a prolonged moment, looking at their faces one after the other, taking in each expression.

At the gate earlier, he had been looked at with absolutely no reverence whatsoever, as if he were some crazy, delusional kid. Even when he had stated clearly that he knew Kael personally and wanted to finish what Kael had started, they had still looked down on him with obvious disdain.

The looks he had received while walking down the long corridor that led directly to the commander's office had been nothing short of hateful and suspicious.

And he still wasn't even trusted fully. Guards continued to lurk near the door, perhaps waiting eagerly to rush inside and kill him—or at the very least imprison him—if he did anything remotely foul or suspicious.

Tatehan realized something important in that moment: if he hadn't said anything worthwhile at all, if the things he had said carried no meaning and he had just shown up here empty-handed, he would surely have been imprisoned by them without hesitation.

But he had told them a compelling story. And although he had brought devastating news that their second strongest warrior was now dead, the good news he carried was slowly starting to overshadow even that tragedy.

"The maulers are a deadly species of creatures, known throughout Mars for their brutality," a bulky looking male guard announced as he stepped purposefully into the room.

If Tatehan hadn't just claimed that he had killed the mauler himself, he would have genuinely thought that the man wanted to strangle him to death right here. It was evident in the aggressive way he walked and the dangerous look plastered on his face.

"There are many types of maulers, each one possessing very powerful cores, and they are very hard to defeat in combat," the bulky guard continued.

Tatehan looked him over carefully, sizing him up. The commander was still in visible shock, and so was everybody else gathered there.

"Even though Kael might have contributed significantly to helping you kill the mauler before he ultimately died, I'm still very doubtful, highly skeptical, in fact, that you actually killed it yourself. The Hexapod Mauler is said to be an exceptionally powerful beast, one of the most dangerous in the wastelands."

Tatehan stared at the man with a look of almost open disgust. He wondered what exactly this fool was going on about.

Wasn't the core physical evidence enough, or did this man somehow think that he could magically create a bio neutral core from thin air?

"And I suppose I'm holding your brain in my hands?" Tatehan said to the man, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

The words were completely unexpected. The man clearly didn't know that the response would come delivered in that sharp manner. It hit him hard and fast, and he thought about it too deeply, dwelling on the insult even though that wasn't exactly what Tatehan had expected or intended.

"Oooh," echoed through the room in unison. The other guards were starting to filter into the place gradually, and to Tatehan's genuine surprise, they actually seemed to be on his side now.

By being on his side, what he meant was that they appeared perfectly okay with the cutting joke he had just made at the bulky guard's expense.

The commander remained completely silent, not saying a single word as the insulted man glared at Tatehan with visible intensity, rage flickering dangerously in his eyes.

"How dare you!" He shouted loudly, his voice booming. "How dare you insult someone of my rank and standing in the Red Crest Clan! How dare you speak to me that way!"

His voice was very loud and even though they stood quite afar off, Tatehan could feel the man's spit hitting his face.

Well, he remained silent and composed. He deliberately ignored the man who was now stepping closer to him with aggressive intent, his large fists now clenched tight. Instead, Tatehan turned and faced the commander directly.

"He told me his daughter was dying," Tatehan began, his voice steady. "I too needed the core desperately for my own purposes, but when I heard his heartbreaking story, I made a decision. I decided to fight alongside him with the mutual aim that we would retrieve the core together and return here to save his dying daughter."

Tatehan was lying again, because if he admitted that they had both fought the mauler together as partners and he claimed he didn't know beforehand that Kael specifically wanted to use the core on his daughter, he'd be putting himself in serious trouble. They would immediately suspect that he had wanted the core for himself, and that was why he had killed Kael after they had taken it down together.

He looked around the room slowly, letting his voice carry unmistakable fearlessness and bravery.

"I came here to deliver the core to you personally so that you could treat his daughter properly. During the short time we spent together out in the wastelands, Kael became a very good friend of mine, a true brother. And thinking that his daughter would die because I kept this core would hurt me far more than even his death did," Tatehan said, his voice carrying substantial weight and emotion. He paused deliberately to let the emotional impact sink in deeply, then he added with a trembling voice: "And his death already hurt me more than words can possibly describe."

The commander sniffed audibly, the previously stern and angry woman now feeling visibly emotional and vulnerable.

A guard quickly ran over to her side, dropping a clean handkerchief with a respectful bow directly on her lap. She was now seated in a large chair, a particularly comfy-looking chair that appeared specifically built to accommodate her considerable weight and size.

She took the handkerchief gratefully and wiped away the small drops of tears that were now falling freely from her eyes.

The sight of her being this sad must be surprising to the guards who had known her to be a stern and unsmiling leader.

Someone who would rather ride an horse in the ocean than smile.

"I honestly don't know how to properly repay you for this…" She paused, intentionally drawing out the last sentence expectantly.

"My name is Tatehan," he offered.

"Oh," the commander said, acknowledging him. "Well, Tatehan, we truly don't know how to repay you adequately for this extraordinary generosity and for saving the reputation of Kael in his final moments."

Tatehan's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Reputation?" he asked.

The woman nodded solemnly.

"Yes, reputation. His honor."

She paused thoughtfully and then looked directly at a certain guard standing nearby, silently signaling him to explain further. The guard immediately understood the meaningful look and stepped forward to explain clearly:

"Since you've stated that the mauler killed Kael in combat, he died in violation of our number two rule: Never die at the hands of a monster. However, you killing the mauler shortly after it killed Kael, someone you genuinely considered a friend, has lessened the negative impact it would have otherwise had on Kael's reputation and legacy within the clan. It can now be considered a somewhat noble death to an extent, specifically because of your actions and your revenge," the man explained thoroughly.

Tatehan nodded his head slowly in understanding, processing this information. His eyes eventually met those of the man he had insulted earlier.

The bulky guard was still fuming with barely contained rage. If Tatehan wasn't currently holding the invaluable core and the commander didn't regard him so highly right now, he would have already received a brutal punch right into his face without hesitation.

The man was only standing there restraining himself due to how satisfying and compelling Tatehan's tale had been to everyone present.

"What is the number one rule of the clan, by the way?" Tatehan asked the commander directly, genuinely curious about the answer.

The commander's expression darkened slightly as she answered:

"Never die at the hands of a friend."

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