Chapter 183: Under The Chief Master’s Order

"Lieutenant, that’s unfair!" the first Sentinel protested, his voice strained beneath the pressure holding him down. "We were protecting the Admiral’s residence!"

"We only attacked because she refused to explain why she was here," the second Sentinel quickly added, his jaw tightening as he tried to defend their actions.

Ares’s expression didn’t change. Even Aisha was speechless when she heard this.

"Ha..." Ares sighed audibly. "And? Did you wait for her answer?"

The first Sentinel swallowed hard.

They both knew there was no point arguing anymore. They realized that they really did not wait for her to respond to their accusation, attacking her immediately.

Ares finally eased his suppression enough for them to breathe properly, although he still didn’t completely release them.

"I’m already being lenient," he said, his eyes narrowing slightly. "If the Admiral were awake and standing here right now, neither of you would be arguing about the Black Tower. You’d be sent to the lowest floor."

The two Sentinels went completely silent.

Neither dared to protest after that.

Ares turned away from them and looked at Aisha instead.

The anger disappeared from his expression as soon as his attention settled on her.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his gaze briefly moving over her as though checking for injuries.

Aisha slowly straightened, taking a careful breath as the pain in her chest gradually eased.

"I’m fine," she answered, lowering her hand from her chest.

Ares frowned.

His eyes lingered briefly on the way she was holding herself, but he didn’t press her about it.

Instead, he looked at her with a question in his expression. "Were you looking for the Admiral?"

Aisha shook her head. "I wasn’t here to look for him."

Her answer made Ares pause.

After a moment, he asked, "You haven’t seen the news?"

"I have." Aisha’s expression grew more serious. "Is it real?"

Ares’s expression changed. The answer was already written clearly across his face before he even spoke.

"It is."

Aisha’s fingers curled slightly.

Ares lowered his voice as he continued. "The Association had no plans to reveal anything about the Admiral’s condition. But there was a leak somewhere inside. We don’t know who started it, but somehow, that photograph of him being supported out of the contaminated zone ended up in the public network."

Aisha looked at him closely.

"I’ve seen the photograph," she said, her voice quieter now. She paused before adding, "You were the one supporting him."

Ares’s mouth pulled into a bitter smile. "I was."

Aisha studied his face.

Then she asked, "Are you alright?"

Ares gave a faint laugh, although there was no amusement behind it. "I’m fine. I just wish I were the one lying down right now instead of Zeke."

Aisha didn’t know what to say to that.

She could only nod. She knew what it felt like to lose someone important and wish she was the one who had been in danger.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Then Ares returned to the question he had asked earlier. "So you weren’t here looking for him. Why are you here?"

Aisha answered without hesitation.

"I live here."

The statement left Ares staring at her.

The two Sentinels looked equally stunned.

One of them finally recovered enough to speak. "You live here?"

Aisha frowned slightly. "Yes."

"There is no way," the first Sentinel said, looking around the residence as though the house itself had contradicted her claim.

"This is the residence the Chief Master gave to Admiral Zeke," he continued, still struggling to believe her. "He doesn’t just let random people live here."

Aisha’s expression changed.

"The Chief Master gave this house to him?"

Ares nodded at her question. "Yes."

Aisha was dumbfounded. She hadn’t known that.

Although he hadn’t told her anything after giving her access to the house, Aisha had already assumed it was one of Zeke’s private residences that he had no plans of using. That was also the reason why she agreed to stay here.

Her eyes returned to the two Sentinels as she crossed her arms lightly. "I told you. I live here."

The first Sentinel still looked suspicious. "Who would believe that? Anyone could make that claim."

Aisha sighed before reaching into her pocket and pulling out the access card Zeke had given her.

She held it between her fingers and raised it slightly.

"This should be enough to prove it then."

The two Sentinels stared at the card.

Aisha lifted it a little higher so they could clearly see the mark engraved into its surface.

"Zeke gave me this. It grants me unrestricted access to the residence."

The change in their expressions was immediate. Neither Sentinel spoke.

They knew what that card was.

More importantly, they knew that there was no way an ordinary intruder could have that card with them unless they stole it from the Admiral’s hands, which would turn into a death notice before they could succeed.

Ares’s eyes rested on the card for a moment before shifting back to Aisha.

The confusion in his expression deepened.

He had known that Zeke acted differently about Aisha. Just bringing her into the Association and letting his trusted lieutenant escort her to his residence in the island was proof of that.

He just hadn’t expected to discover he’d let her live in his residence as well!

As for the two Sentinels, their earlier suspicion had vanished completely, replaced by another question they couldn’t answer.

Who exactly was this woman?

And what was her relationship with their Admiral?

Aisha slipped the card back into her pocket.

After a few seconds, Ares was the first to speak. "I apologize. We were the ones who intruded."

Aisha shook her head. "It’s fine. You didn’t know."

She glanced toward the two Sentinels before looking back at him. "But why are you here?"

Ares’s expression became serious again. He looked briefly toward the corridor leading deeper into the residence before meeting her eyes once more.

"We came under the Chief Master’s orders."

Aisha’s brows drew together.

"For what?"

Ares held her gaze.

"To retrieve the miasma-suppressing pod."