Outside the floor-to-ceiling window, far in the distance, black smoke curled into the sky. "Fire?!" Her eyes flew wide. She rushed to the window. Except for the area directly around the cabin, many other sections were up in smoke. Boom! Boom! Boom! The explosions kept going. What's happening? What's going on out there? Emma changed into her combat suit as fast as she possibly could and ran out. And when she didn't see Corvin in the living room, she shouted for him. "Corvin? Corvin!" "Ms. Tibarn, I'm here." Corvin emerged from the kitchen, both hands covered in sticky dough. Coalball was lying on his head like a lazy hat, paws dusted white with flour, leaving Corvin's hair a total mess. Seeing both of them unharmed, Emma let out a sigh of relief. "Corvin, do you know what's happening outside? What's with the explosions?" Corvin glanced toward the window with an annoyed look, then turned back to her with a gentle explanation. "Did the fighting wake you, Ms. Tibarn? Edric's family came to demand money. Edric refused to give it, so they're fighting the alliance right now." "What?!" Emma almost thought she had misheard him. Not giving them money means they just start fighting? How is that any different from robbery?! "Where's Edric? Is he back? Is he out there?" Emma asked. She didn't dare rush out without knowing the situation. The alliance headquarters was full of Rank 6 and above therian fighters. She, a Rank 4 beginner, would only get in the way. Corvin shook his head. "Not yet. The alliance notified him. He's rushing back. As soon as he got the call, he called me and told me to protect you." So because no one had brought the fight toward the cabin, Corvin had stayed inside. His sole mission was to guard Emma. "What's the situation outside now? Do you know?" she asked. Judging from the explosions, if things kept going, buildings would collapse. The whole base might be destroyed. Corvin opened his lightcore and hacked into the alliance surveillance system. In less than ten seconds, the live feeds appeared before Emma. That's… impressive! she gushed. The scene outside was total wreckage. Most of the plants were destroyed, the beasts were captured, and the alliance staff fought desperately, many of them bloodied, some missing limbs.Corvin frowned. "Edric told them not to fight with their lives on the line." Why are they still throwing themselves into the fight? On the screen, Emma focused on the massive violet serpent wreaking havoc. Its dark-purple eyes looked down at the alliance fighters with mocking disdain—like it was watching clowns. One woman stood atop its head, long hair flowing, dressed in ornate clothing. Behind her was a group of Violet Obsidian therians. That serpent was clearly the strongest among them. They couldn't continue like this. Buildings could be rebuilt, but alliance lives could not be replaced. "Corvin, can you tell what rank that serpent is?" Emma asked. Corvin answered without hesitation. "His name is Sulien Lachman. He's Rank 9." "We can't let him keep slaughtering the alliance. Do you have any way to deal with him?" Right now, it was only her and Corvin. The alliance staff were mostly Rank 6 and Rank 7, with only two Rank 8 among them. None of them stood a chance against Sulien. Corvin lowered his head, embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Ms. Tibarn. I'm only Rank 8 right now. I'm not his match. If I had my mecha, I could blast him into pieces." He had been taken away while unconscious. He hadn't brought his mecha or his warship. Emma nodded firmly. "Next time, we'll bring your mecha and blast him to dust." But now, they couldn't win through force. They would have to be smart. Emma touched her storage band. The black crystal Drake had given her was still inside. With that, she was confident she could at least protect herself and Corvin. On the screen, another alliance worker had his leg shattered.Emma could not watch anymore. Sulien wasn't just stealing. He was hunting, torturing, slaughtering the alliance staff.