Chapter 242: She Seems to Have Changed

Blatant favoritism.

After Aaron Xavier spoke, even Miles Sherman added, "You must have tested her and realized she isn’t lying. Everything is real."

Anyone who watched the two of them fight would know Zoe Pierce wasn’t lying. She demonstrated far too many impossible things.

What’s more, Zoe Pierce made no attempt to hide her spiritual power at all.

Thus, the fluctuations were perceived even more clearly.

An Alpha officer stepped forward and handed Colonel Hanson a towel. He wiped himself down hastily and tossed it aside. "That’s right."

"It’s real." He smiled. "Go back and rest for now. Our warship should be returning to the Capital Star."

"..."

After Zoe Pierce and the others had all left the Psionic Training Room, Colonel Hanson asked the person beside him, "Did you record everything on video?"

The Alpha nodded. "It’s all been recorded."

The video of the fight with Colonel Hanson would be submitted as a reference for Zoe Pierce’s abilities.

Of course, the research department would definitely be paying a personal visit later on.

There were quite a few things to sort out.

—

In the vast Star River, a small fighter jet making a rapid jump quickly exited the merging galaxy.

Only after confirming he had reached a safe location did the man contact Quentin Ford.

"My lord." The moment the face on the other end appeared, the man immediately lowered his head.

Quentin Ford was an expert at reading people. Seeing this, his expression darkened as well.

"What happened?"

Confusion flickered in the man’s eyes, but he still chose to report the truth. "My lord, it didn’t go as we predicted."

"The people from the warship salvaged five mecha."

"There were no casualties."

Quentin Ford first paused at the mention of five mecha, then froze at the man’s last sentence.

"What do you mean? What about Zoe Pierce?"

That was what puzzled the man, too. "The last mecha they rescued... it seemed to be Zoe Pierce’s. I’m certain. After they retrieved the fifth mecha, they stopped searching through the debris."

If a human body were exposed to space under such an impact, it wouldn’t remain intact. It would surely be torn to pieces.

This was the best conclusion he could draw from observing at a distance. The military personnel, including Miles Sherman and the others in their mecha, weren’t searching for anything else.

Something was clearly wrong.

Quentin Ford suddenly realized something. "You mean... Zoe Pierce can pilot a mecha?"

The discovery was nothing short of shocking.

But neither Quentin Ford nor the man immediately dismissed the possibility.

After all, there was a precedent.

In the past, more than enough people had said that Betas couldn’t pilot mecha.

But the facts now had already shattered that absolute rule.

Now, it was merely a different gender.

"We can’t rule out that possibility." The man processed and restored a photo he had specifically managed to capture, then sent it to Quentin Ford.

"The mecha in this photo is the fifth one." A white mecha, very conspicuous in the boundless universe. "It’s just that... regarding the military’s side, I couldn’t get any more information."

Quentin Ford leaned forward, carefully studying the photo, before slowly sitting back again.

"I understand," he said. "Come back for now. Don’t worry about the rest."

Hearing that Quentin Ford wasn’t going to hold him responsible, the man breathed a sigh of relief.

After ending the video call, Quentin Ford contacted Arthur White. Once he confirmed his safety, he finally rose from his desk in the study.

The moment he opened the door, he startled Justin Lewis, who was standing right outside.

"My lord."

Quentin Ford walked out and said, "I’m going for a walk in the garden."

Only when he encountered an extremely tricky situation did Quentin Ford think of walking in the garden.

Justin Lewis didn’t know what had happened in the study. He could only follow silently, not saying a word, as he accompanied Quentin Ford out of the main residence of the estate.

The garden was professionally maintained. And being on the Capital Star, it was like spring all year round, with vibrant clusters of beautiful flowers and lush, thriving greenery.

The garden surrounding the residence was not small; a single lap would take nearly an hour to walk.

Yet Justin Lewis was stunned to see Quentin Ford walk three full laps.

He walked until the sky had grown completely dark, with only a few scattered lamps lighting the path.

After an unknown amount of time, Quentin Ford finally looked up at the bright, clear moon.

"The winds are changing."

’Another event that had gone beyond his predictions.’

’There are just too many things to figure out.’

’Is this really true?’

’Where did Zoe Pierce get her spiritual power?’

’Can it be replicated?’

’Is there a connection to how Betas became able to use mecha?’

’So many mysteries, all because of one person.’

’Each one demanding verification.’

’That was the rational approach. But if he were to go by his gut feeling,’ Quentin Ford thought, ’he would be absolutely certain.’

’This is probably real.’

’It’s so outrageous that it might just be true.’

’There was no need for them to lie.’

’In that case, eliminating Zoe Pierce was no longer an option.’

’On the contrary, he now desired to possess her more than ever before.’

Only when a bank of clouds rolled in and covered the moon did Quentin Ford sigh. "Let’s go back."

’Who could have imagined it? What should have been a flawless plan had now turned into an incredibly foolish one.’

’It had gotten too out of hand.’

’After this, he was certain he wouldn’t be able to make another move on Zoe Pierce in the short term.’

’At least a month, at most, a matter of years.’

’It was truly... the worst possible move.’

*

The warship had enough empty space, and everyone was given a private cabin.

Although it couldn’t compare to the starship the four of them owned, it was about the same size as the one they took for the First Military Academy’s supplementary training.

Director Quinn and Mr. Jacobs both gave them their space. After escorting Zoe Pierce to her room, the two of them left.

After the door closed, Aaron Xavier took an anti-surveillance device out of his Space Button.

It locally blocked all signals, even video recording.

The military probably wouldn’t go that far, but one had to take precautions.

Once he was sure the signal was completely blocked, Aaron Xavier immediately rolled up Zoe Pierce’s sleeve to look. "You were hit just now. Does it hurt? Are you injured?"

Zoe Pierce smiled. "It doesn’t hurt. I used his technique."

"I’m not injured."

Aaron Xavier checked her arm and found it was just as she had said.

He let out a small sigh of relief.

Getting injured during a spar was unavoidable. Even during their usual training, he couldn’t help but feel his heart ache for Zoe Pierce.

Now, having seen another Alpha kick her in the arm with his own eyes, he had nearly ground his teeth to dust several times.

He sat down in a chair and watched as Chase Shaw went over and tidied the strands of hair on Zoe Pierce’s forehead, which were damp with sweat.

She even closed her eyes and tilted her face up, letting him do it.

Emerging from the earlier panic, Aaron Xavier belatedly sensed that something was off about Zoe Pierce.

’She seems... a little different.’

’It’s like she’s not so guarded anymore.’

’That hug in front of everyone just now, too... Without any regard for Director Quinn or Mr. Jacobs, she just hugged him and Miles Sherman.’