Chapter 53: Thirty Tanks and Two Middle Fingers

Summer didn’t even have the energy to react to that anymore.

The moment Ilya wrapped his arms around her from behind and let her rest against him, she closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep almost instantly.

She slept so peacefully that, for once, no nightmare came to disturb her.

When Summer opened her eyes again, the room was already filled with warm orange sunlight.

She blinked slowly. Had she really slept until late afternoon?

"Last night, our SSS-Rank Sentinel, Archer Reed, was taken into military custody."

Summer frowned and slowly gathered her senses when she heard a woman’s voice. As she pushed herself up and sat on the bed, she saw Ilya sitting at the edge of the mattress while watching the news on the television.

He was still shirtless, but at least he had put on a pair of long pants.

On the television, the reporter continued, "He destroyed thirty military tanks, burned down an entire military base, and even sent the Minister of Defense Against Extraordinary Threats to the hospital."

Summer stared at the television and then she slowly crawled toward the edge of the bed and sat beside Ilya.

For a moment, neither of them said anything. They simply watched as the soldiers locked handcuffs around Archer’s wrists and strapped a muzzle over his mouth.

As he walked toward a military vehicle, Archer raised both hands toward the cameras and showed his middle fingers.

The cameramen quickly turned the camera back toward the reporter. She cleared her throat, clearly trying to stay professional.

"Before he was arrested, Mr. Reed said, and I quote, ’If I didn’t want to be caught, none of you would be able to touch me.’"

"Mr. Reed also stated that his surrender was voluntary and that the military should not mistake his cooperation for weakness." The reporter paused for a second before adding, "His final words were, ’Good luck finding another SSS-Rank Sentinel to save your asses.’"

Ilya covered his face with one hand and let out a heavy sigh. "Okay. I guess we have to go to the prison now."

Summer pressed her lips together before asking, "Can I come with you?"

Ilya only nodded in response and didn’t even dare to look at Summer because his mind kept going back to what had happened last night.

But after a moment, he still said, "I asked the staff to bought you some new clothes. I hope you like them."

Summer looked down and realized that she was still completely naked under the blanket. Still, her body felt clean and smelled fresh, which meant Ilya had cleaned her up while she was asleep.

"I can wear anything," she said, and immediately regretted it.

No, the clothes weren’t ugly at all. Summer had just spent so much time wearing her uniform that putting on something completely different, like white Mary Jane shoes and a baby-blue dress, felt strangely unfamiliar.

The dress had short puffed sleeves, a fitted waist, and a long skirt that fell below her knees.

A small ribbon was tied at the front, making the whole thing look much softer and more feminine than anything she usually wore.

Summer stood in front of the mirror for a few seconds. "This feels weird."

Behind her, Ilya immediately looked up. "If you don’t like it, I can ask them to bring something else."

Summer looked at him through the mirror, and for some reason, he sounded a little nervous.

"I wasn’t sure what kind of clothes you liked," he added. "But I just think..."

He suddenly stopped, so Summer raised an eyebrow and asked, "think of what?"

Ilya hesitated for a moment before saying, "I think you look pretty in it."

Summer went quiet for a while, then looked back at herself in the mirror.

At first, the dress had felt too different from what she was used to, but the longer she looked at it, the more she started to like it. "I think I actually like it."

There was nothing wrong with wearing something different anyway.

"I’m glad you like it," Ilya said in a slightly quiet voice. He cleared his throat before adding, "I’ll call someone to bring my car around."

Ilya then called someone through his terminal, while Summer stayed inside the room, looking at her reflection. But then her terminal buzzed and showed the earnings from last night’s livestream.

[BeastNet Livestream]

[Current Viewers: 5,755,102]

[Likes: 110,657,004]

[Followers: 856,544]

[Total Earnings: 2,636,755 Credits]

[Processing currency conversion...]

[Ding! Ding!]

[Bank Balance: $263,675]

[Adding it to the remaining bank balance...]

[Remaining Bank Balance: $894,907]

Okay... Summer hadn’t expected to see five million views from her last livestream, and it probably could have been even higher if the livestream hadn’t suddenly been cut off.

"Summer, my car is here," Ilya called to her from the doorway.

Summer immediately closed the floating screen and walked toward Ilya. "Okay."

As they went down to the first floor in the elevator, Ilya handed her a few packs of bread.

"I’m sorry, we’re in a rush right now. We can grab something to eat along the way, okay?"

Summer nodded. "Okay. It’s not a problem."

She was honestly pretty hungry, but the bread was enough to fill her stomach for a little while.

Ilya’s car was already waiting outside the hotel by the time they reached the lobby.

It was a sleek black car with a low body, dark windows, and smooth silver lines along the sides. It looked expensive without being too flashy, the kind of car that clearly belonged to someone who didn’t like to show off.

Ilya opened the passenger door for her. "Get in."

Summer gave him a look. "You don’t have to do that."

Ilya smiled. "But I want to."

Summer sighed, but she climbed inside anyway.

The interior was just as simple as the outside. Black leather seats, a wide digital screen across the dashboard, and soft lights running along the doors.

Summer settled into the seat and looked around.

"This doesn’t look like something a military captain would drive."

Ilya got into the driver’s seat and glanced at her. "What did you expect?"

Summer casually responded, "A monster truck."