Great! I'm surrounded by villains!
Chapter 271 - 190: It’s Hard to Be a Good Person

Chapter 271: Chapter 190: It’s Hard to Be a Good Person

The Cosmic Pirates fully demonstrated what a disorderly mob looks like in a textbook.

When the news of Actus’s death spread, the remaining crew members didn’t hesitate for a moment, immediately surrendered their weapons, and didn’t even think of fleeing; instead, they lined up to report to Earth Wolf Twelve.

The loss of control of Fortress Number meant that it was impossible for them to flee the planet—wouldn’t running away now just give the Chamber of Commerce a reason to kill them?

Not long ago, they had dropped a tactical nuclear bomb on the Gear Hotel, and the security team there now couldn’t wait to take vengeance on them.

But fortunately, the security personnel were good people, and at least in the current public opinion environment, the Chamber of Commerce belonged to the just side.

Good people follow the law, and even to punish the evil ones, they must go through a series of trial processes to ensure they are treated correctly. They would even send a transport ship to escort them back to their respective Star Zones.

If they had fallen into the hands of other Cosmic Pirates, being shot one by one would be considered a quick end. If they encountered a captain like Actus, they would probably have to endure a series of inhuman tortures before death.

There are still more good people in this universe!

The pirates silently rejoiced.

Duan Mingyuan steered Fortress Number away from the Mirage, docking it on the surface of Mechanical Star. The subsequent aftermath was fully entrusted to Earth Wolf Twelve and his security team; he had never had much interest in tedious aftermath work.

Earth Wolf Twelve called over the security team from the hotel, handcuffing the pirates one by one.

Unable to vent their anger directly, they could only exert some covert strength while handcuffing, being a bit rougher, or "accidentally" kneeing the pirates in the abdomen, causing them intense pain.

But what frustrated them was that they had to be careful not to leave obvious injuries.

"If nothing goes wrong, the Chamber of Commerce will send them to a nearby planet for trial. There’s a planet in this star system specifically designed to hold serious offenders."

Earth Wolf Twelve lit another cigar.

It seemed like a satisfactory conclusion, but he felt really damned frustrated inside.

After Actus’s complete defeat, the Chamber of Commerce’s envoy came under the guise of handling the aftermath, but anyone with clear eyes knew that the Oasis had dared to bomb the Gear Hotel at that time because they were instructed by the Chamber of Commerce. These culprits, far from receiving the punishment they deserved, instead sanctimoniously took on the role of emissaries of justice.

Sincerely expressing apologies to the members of the Sixteen Star Summit and promising them that they would ensure the strictest punishment for the Cosmic Pirates.

The only good news was that with Actus dead, his remaining forces had lost their value to the Chamber of Commerce, so the trial for the pirates would likely be fair.

"They will either be executed on ’Prison Planet’ or spend the rest of their lives there. Have you heard of that planet? It is specifically used to imprison those with heavy sentences."

"I’ve heard of it."

In Siyang City, He Ya also mentioned this planet, along with the name Eisenberg-Adler; He Ya hoped he would get this person out of prison.

Duan Mingyuan hadn’t expected that a "god" who had cocooned an entire planet would be interested in a human researcher.

"Oh, one more thing."

After hesitating for a moment, Earth Wolf Twelve finally made up his mind, "After the Sixteen Star Summit ends, I’m planning to resign from my job at the Chamber of Commerce."

The events that unfolded on Mechanical Star made him realize that there was no difference between the Shan Clan and the damned Universe Company. He had been round and round in this universe, only to end up back where he started.

If it wasn’t for the appearance of an unpredictable factor like Duan Mingyuan, he probably would have perished on this planet as well.

"That’s a good thing."

Duan Mingyuan expressed his support.

Getting involved with the Chamber of Commerce surely means trouble, and his impression of the Shan Clan had already hit rock bottom.

But just as the Cosmic Pirates had said, he was a good man.

Good men have to abide by laws and regulations, as well as various peace treaties between star systems, which made it difficult for him to turn those insincere envoys from the Chamber into trendy little gadgets from Mechanical Star.

This made Duan Mingyuan question the so-called interstellar peace treaties.

These treaties couldn’t protect the summit venues from nuclear attacks by Cosmic Pirates but did ensure that the pirates weren’t immediately executed upon defeat.

"But like I told you last time, I’m almost fifty, and for someone unemployed at my age, finding a new job would be very difficult."

Earth Wolf Twelve exhaled a ring of smoke.

In fact, he had already planned his life ahead, after drifting alone in the universe for so many years, he had never expected that one day on Mechanical Star he would meet a group of people willing to accompany him in blowing up Cosmic Spaceships.

He asked, "I wonder if you’re still hiring on your ship, do you need an interstellar cowboy to serve as a security officer?"

Fortress Number was a large ship, and the delegation from Blue Star was just a handful of people.

Earth Wolf Twelve felt that instead of being tossed around by interstellar powers, it would be better to blend into a compatible team and start his retirement life.

After a lifetime of battle, serving as a security officer on board was well within his means.

"Are you sure?"

Duan Mingyuan of course welcomed a skilled hand like Earth Wolf Twelve on board, but from a career planning perspective, job-hopping usually involved stepping up the ladder, or at least a lateral move; Earth Wolf Twelve’s jump was taking him straight back to the beginner’s village, "Just to clarify, Blue Star’s interstellar travel business is still at a very early stage, it’s not comparable in scale to the Chambers or companies."

"That’s not important, what’s important is that you won’t leave your crew behind on some strange planet to die when danger arises."

"Of course not."

Duan Mingyuan made no definitive answer.

As a Sword Warrior, he couldn’t allow any Bug Swarm Queen-like tragedies to unfold in reality.

"The salary is all up for discussion, but as the vice-captain, there’s one thing I must bring up to you."

Earth Wolf Twelve had already started to see himself as part of the crew, contemplating his future in interstellar travel from the perspective of a crew member.

"You should know that interstellar travel is actually both tedious and trying on the will, your previous ship was small, but now that you have switched to a bigger ship, many ancillary facilities should be updated as well."

"Such as?"

"For instance, I think Fortress Number should have a bar, and hire some hot-bodied chicks, so we can have some fun whenever we want."

"What did you say we need to hire onto the ship?"

"Chicks, really hot-bodied ones..."

Earth Wolf Twelve raised his hands, gesturing the silhouette of exaggerated curves, but when he turned his head, he was met with Jiuyue’s piercing gaze.

Clearly, Jiuyue was the one who had asked that question just now.

"What I mean is."

Earth Wolf Twelve coughed lightly and corrected himself seriously, "We should build a library on Fortress Number, so when we get bored, we can go to the library to read, to cultivate our sentiment."