"Damn…"Abraham quietly muttered under his breath while gazing upon the horrific scene of corpses scattered throughout the wooden deck of the merchant vessel. Itwasn''tworse than he imagined, but more grounded instead.


    As he stepped into the main deck where the cold corpsesy, the middle-aged man carefully observed the results of his actions with scrutiny and disappointment.


    He was the one who ordered their execution, and now that they were dead, theydidn''tseem that much different. Theydidn''tlook like the evil monsters he imagined them to be.


    ''Iguess this is what makes humans… human. A monsterdoesn''thave to be hideous or be an abomination. They might look nothing more than a human.''


    This was the truth that Abraham discovered. Deathwasn''tasspecis he had previously thought. Everyone dies the same, with their lifeless corpse in or on the ground.


    ''Should I be disappointed?''Abraham thought while squinting his eyes. He crouched before one of the corpses and saw the expression it made before its demise.


    Horror, fear, and despair.


    He should have been regretting the decisions he had picked by now. But in his heart, there was no regret. Only the eerie tranquil as if his choice was paramount.


    Was he bing the monster that he was disgusted by?Abrahamcouldn''tfind the answer to this question, but perhapsin the future,he''llfind one.


    For now, the only thing he could do was make the choices that were for the best of himself and the United Navy.


    ''Whyam I having philosophical thoughts since I becamethe Fleet Admiral?''Abraham shook his head in annoyance. It must have been the books he had read in the office.


    "Clean the corpses up and throw them overboard. Lead me to the captain of this ship."He coldly ordered the Marines, who followed his words without any hesitation.


    Oneof themappeared to have prepared a mop as if expecting the order. This made Abraham wonder whether or not these crayon-eaten men were making fun of him.


    Though,he merely shook his head and appreciated their efficiency in the matter.


    While the Marines cleansed the bloodied main deck of themerchant''svessel, Abraham was led by one of the Marines into thecaptain''scabinwhere the ve-trading captain was held.


    As they stepped into the cabin through its cracked wooden doors, they saw the captain tied on a luxurious wooden chair with 2nd Lieutenant Campbell beside him.


    The Marine gave way for the Fleet Admiral and stepped aside. On the other hand, Abraham walked forward with his steps echoing throughout the cabin.


    Captain Crassus, who was beaten up by the 2nd Lieutenant, looked at the Fleet Admiral and started screaming in fear.


    "Ican''tunderstand whatyou''resaying! Why are you doing this to me!?"


    Abraham raised an eyebrow with interest in his eyes.It appears thatthe 2nd Lieutenant dida goodjob giving the captain a lesson, though it looks like the interrogationwasn''tworking.


    "Apologies, Sir. None of us understand whathe''stalking about, and maybe vice versa."Campbell nced at the captain while saluting to the Fleet Admiral.


    Abraham merely nodded at the 2nd Lieutenant and responded.


    "Language barriers are a problem, but fortunately, I can understand most of theirnguages."His proficiency in otherworldlynguageswasn''tsomething he was intent on hiding.


    It would be better if his subordinates knew of his capabilities sothat theywouldn''t preemptively dispose of possible intel because ofnguage barriers.


    "Isee…As expected of the Fleet Admiral,I''llbein your guidance in the interrogation."Campbell smiled at Abraham, revealing his ivory teeth.


    To think this was the guy that executed the ve-trading sailors.


    Abraham shook his head and felt his palms cold despiteitbeing covered by the finestofgloves.He stood in front of the tied captain and maintained his icy expression.


    "Iam Fleet Admiral Abraham Shepherd of the United Navy."He introduced himself to the captain and slowly tookouta ck revolver from his holster.


    Abraham ced it beside the tied captain of the merchant vessel and remembered the teachings of his beloved partner, Systema.


    When dealing with captured enemies,hemustn''treveal a trace of weakness and converse with them calmly.He must also subtly announce their fates if theydon''tcooperate.


    Hedidn''tknow if putting a revolver beside the captured enemy would do the job.But it was the only wayhe knewto subtly dere their unfortunate fates.


    "How about you introduce yourself?" The middle-aged man smiled at the captured captain who gaped at him with undisguised horror. It was quite something for a man to look at you with such a provoking gaze. It made him feel a strange emotion.


    Anyhow,regardless of his sadistic thoughts, Abraham patiently waited for thecaptain''sresponse.After all, he had all the time in the world towait.


    Captain Crassus gazed at the somewhat handsome Fleet Admiral and muttered inhisragged breath.


    "Itdoesn''tmatter if I introduce myself. Youwon''tbe able to understand me to begin with."He seemed to grumble in annoyancethoughit wasced with fear.


    Abraham lightly chuckled at the response of the ugly bastard. But it soon disappeared as a threatening voice escaped his lips.


    "It looks like we are in understanding with each other. I hope you respond properly, or else." Abraham held the revolver and waved it beside the captain''s head.


    Crassus immediately realized what had happened and looked at the middle-aged man indeepshock. He was dumbfounded as it was beyond his expectations for someone who could understand him to appear.


    "You-"The captain stopped when he saw the icy gaze of the Fleet Admiral. The man before him wanted answers, so he could only gulp and respond with dread.


    "I-I am Captain Crassus of Pinguis Arca, a humble businessman."


    Crassus''s introduction made Abraham want to rip the bastard''s throat. He didn''t know if human trafficking was something humble in this world, but to have the gal to say it in front of him.


    Fortunately, he controlled his emotions well and his outward appearance didn''t change in the eyes of the pitiful captain.


    "Ahumble businessman, huh?Well, well,let''stalk about your presumed merchandise, humble businessman."Abraham''swords were shrouded in sarcastic disgust.


    "How many people are you nning to sendwhere are you selling them?"He asked a vital question to the captured captain of Pinguis Arca.


    Crassus was a bit hesitant after hearing the words of the Fleet Admiral. But with the revolver beside his head, the captain stopped hesitating and answered truthfully.


    "We nned to sell 130 ves into the Colonial Dominion of Terra."


    Abraham raised an eyebrow, remembering the 127 ves recorded by Systema. That meant that 3 ves died before they got rescued by the United Navy.


    "Colonial Dominion of Terra… Do you have a map of it?"The middle-aged man inquired once again, gazing directly into the eyes of the fearful captain.


    "Ye-Yes, I have a map ofTerra''ssea region,"Crassus responded while avoiding the peering gaze of the Fleet Admiral.


    "Thank you for answering honestly, captain.It''sgood thatyou''recooperative."


    "But, is there something youaren''ttelling me? For them to reinforce you with escort vessels, you must have sacrificed a lot for their protection. Though, why did you do it?"


    Abraham was satisfied that the captain cooperated with the interrogation, but he knewthatthingsweren''tas straightforward asit wason the surface.


    Crassus''sbody trembled, which was immediately noticed by the middle-aged man.


    ''Jackpot.''Abraham thought and decided to push the captain even further.


    "Please cooperate with me, Captain Crassus.Wouldn''tit be interesting to seethe sunrise of tomorrowinstead of forever basking in darkness?"With such words,Crassus''spir copsedandhe wapletelyat the mercy of the Fleet Admiral.


    "Thi- This… I- I don- I mean… What do you want to know?"Crassus lowered his head indejectionwhile lumping his body into the luxurious chair.


    "Ihave already said it before, Captain Crassus? What are you willing to protect so much on this ship?"Abraham felt pleased about his first interrogation.


    "Iwas nningto sell her to the Colonial Dominion of Terra for a hefty profit. I nned to have the greatest auction of all time, so I needed to get her to Terra no matter what."Crassus confessed and continued.


    "The magi are probably interested in something like her, one of a kind. No, perhaps, four of a kind. The rarest of allbeastfolk,and the strongest at that."


    Following each word of Crassus was the jumping interest of Abraham. The rarest and strongest beastfolk was chained under theshipimprisoned by various runes.


    "She was amongst the four revolutionaries of the Resistance, theleaders of the rebellion.I managed to acquire herafter getting a tipthat she was injured and exhausted to damnation."


    "And so, I captured her andassaid before, nned to sell her in the Colonial Dominion of Terra."Crassus felt weak after confessing to the Fleet Admiral.


    It was as though he was betraying himself, whichwasn''tfar from the truth.


    On the other hand, Abraham was in deep thought as he analyzed the matter of the captain. It appears that the pig wasn''t lying, meaning that his words might have some truth in them.


    If it was the truth, it meant thatthere was some big shotimprisoned in this ship.


    One of the rarest and strongest beastfolk that stood amongst the four leading revolutionaries of the so-called Resistance.


    After calmly scrutinizing the informationgivenabout the beastfolk imprisoned below, Abraham became more interested in the subject matter.


    Obviously, with interest stemming from the titles of the beastfolk, the Fleet Admiral wanted to meet and free her personally.It would be an intriguing sight, and perhaps, he would receive a favor.


    With this in mind, Abraham smiled at Captain Crassus as though he had struck gold. Meanwhile, Crassus felt chills over his body and noticed the Fleet Admiral staring at him with a scary smile.


    The ugly bastardcouldn''thelp but wonder if he was about to be tortured for the entirety of his life.