Chapter 171: Hatsune Nikke vs. The Queen of Snark

Everyone was shocked.

Only Marian seemed unfamiliar with Aria. She curiously observed from the side, occasionally reaching out a finger to poke her cheek, acting just like a curious child.

She turned to Mo Chen and said,

"Commander, she looks like she's about to die."

Everyone: "?!"

At her words, the entire group was startled.

Mo Chen quickly stepped forward and placed a hand on Aria's neck. Although she was a Nikke, her body mechanical, his enhanced vision allowed him to analyze her physical condition.

Aria's life signals were indeed extremely weak, and her brainwaves flickered intermittently. If she were human, it would be the equivalent of being on the verge of death, her life hanging by a thread.

She had been corrupted by the Rapture virus!

Mo Chen immediately made his assessment.

Shehad likely been infected long before the Rapture army invaded the Ark. The corruption had gone deep, completely turning her into the Rapture's puppet.

A quick scan revealed that a significant amount of the Rapture virus was still lingering in her body, particularly concentrated in her brain.

On top of that, her body had sustained severe damage in the battle, and her life-support system had been compromised. Under such conditions, the fact that her brain had been surviving without oxygen for this long was nothing short of a miracle.

Without hesitation, Mo Chen took out a restorative nanomachine spray and applied it to Aria.

As the nanobots activated, they worked rapidly to repair her mechanical body. In just over ten seconds, her artificial skeletal structure, synthetic muscles, and even the superficial scratches on her skin had been fully restored.

For now, she was no longer in immediate danger.

But this was only a temporary solution.

To fully cure her, they needed to either find a counteragent to disable the NIMPH device in her brain or use the Punishing Virus to overwrite the corruption.

The former was out of the question since he had no counteragent on hand yet. The latter, however, carried a significant risk—once infected with the Punishing Virus, a person's thought process could shift, potentially altering their personality entirely.

As the group stood at a loss, a unit of Nikkes rapidly approached from the distance.

The leading Nikke was a girl with vibrant green twin tails, wearing a tight-fitting Central Government military uniform and a black-and-white military cap. She was quite pretty, though not very tall, but her strong presence carried an air of arrogance.

As soon as she arrived, she issued an order.

"We are Triangle Squad of the Central Government Army. Per orders from our superiors, we are here to formally arrest Aria. Please hand her over to us."

Triangle Squad?

Mo Chen scrutinized the girl before him.

Her skin was as delicate as porcelain, smooth and flawless. Her features were elegant, with a refined contour that gave her a natural beauty.

Her hair was a brilliant green, like the fresh leaves of spring, brimming with vitality. It cascaded down to her waist in soft waves, and even though it was tied into twin tails, a few playful strands still managed to escape.

She had a slender yet well-proportioned figure, with graceful curves that carried a youthful vibrancy. Her uniform was visibly tight across her chest, hinting at some effort to restrain her figure.

This should be Privaty.

Mo Chen immediately rejected their demand.

"You should go back. She's under our jurisdiction now, and we'll handle the situation. There's no need for you to concern yourselves."

The Central Government? Arrest?

Even just from their wording, it was obvious those bureaucratic parasites were up to no good.

If Alia fell into their hands, she would either be disposed of or dissected. Given her massive influence, they would never allow the public to learn that she had been corrupted by the Raptures.

"Do you even realize what you're doing?" Privaty's golden eyes swept over the group before she solemnly read out the official order. "Aria has been infected by the Raptures. She is a potential threat to both humans and the Ark. She must be detained immediately to prevent further attacks."

"Furthermore, we have yet to fully determine whether the attack on the Ark is related to Aria. Our current priority is to investigate all possible suspects. We have orders to proceed with this investigation."

"If necessary, we are authorized to use force. So for your own good, hand her over."

Mo Chen sighed.

In the original story, Privaty was the one who arrested Marian. And now, here she was, coming for Aria. She really had a knack for rounding people up.

Before he could respond, Anis had already stepped forward.

"Hey, if you're going to frame someone, at least be upfront about it. If you want to haul Aria away for experiments, just say so. Don't hide behind a bunch of dirty excuses."

Anis found Privaty's reasoning—or rather, the Central Government's methods—disgusting. Furthermore, Aria had once been her idol!

"What do you mean dirty excuses?!" Privaty was visibly upset, her voice rising. "I didn't make these rules! This is a direct order from above! It has nothing to do with me!"

"So what? You're just as bad as them."

Anis put her hands on her hips, nearly pointing a finger right at Privaty's face.

"Just as bad as them?!" Privaty's face turned red with anger as she glared at Anis. "Slandering the Central Government—I can arrest you right now, you know!"

Anis wasn't intimidated in the slightest. Instead, she stuck out her tongue and made faces at Privaty.

"Woof! Woof woof woof! Blah blah blah blah…! Woof woof woof!"

Privaty was stunned by Anis's antics and snapped angrily, "What the hell are you doing? Acting crazy won't help you!"

Anis put on a surprised expression, covering her mouth as she said, "Huh? That's weird. The Central Government's dog actually can't understand? I thought you'd at least get it."

"You—you—!" Privaty was instantly enraged, her brows furrowing as she gripped the assault rifle in front of her, her voice brimming with anger. "If you know what's good for you, hand her over. Obstructing official duties is a serious crime!"

Mo Chen didn't take her words seriously and chuckled.

"The government? Which government? Are we close or something? You claim it's an order from the Central Government—then let them come see me in person."

He had always despised those high-ranking officials.

If they had the guts to meet him, they probably would have reclaimed the surface by now.

"Pfft!"

Anis couldn't hold back and laughed out loud.

That's our Commander for you!

"You—!"

Privaty's face flushed red with anger as she glared at Mo Chen and Anis. "What do you mean by that?!"

Anis quickly covered her mouth and mumbled through her fingers, "Sorry, I just caught a cold and sneezed. You guys go on, don't mind me."

But the way her lips twitched upward uncontrollably completely exposed her true emotions.

Feeling mocked, Privaty was furious. She pointed a finger at Anis and shouted, "Are you trying to go against the Central Government?!"

Mo Chen had no patience to continue this pointless argument. He waved his hand dismissively, as if shooing away a fly.

"I don't care who you are or whose orders you follow. Go tell your superiors this—Aria is my captive, my spoils of war. If they want her, they can come and take her themselves."

"And another thing, don't try to throw the Central Government's orders at me. We are an outpost base, long independent from government control. We are not their subordinates, and they have neither the reason nor the authority to order us around."