The Commander Beyond Command

Humanity is complex, never defined by absolute good or evil.

One cannot solely judge a person by their words or actions, nor determine their worth entirely. People change—every moment, every decision. Some villains roam free, some criminals meet justice. Some heroes are sung, while others are wrongly accused.

For Mike, however, one thing was certain—Chen Dafeng was not a good man.

This guy was arrogant to the point of openly boasting about the number of lives he'd taken, showing hints of twisted pride in it. If he wasn't a bloodthirsty psychopath, then he was at least a violent murderer with an unnervingly high body count.

But as the leader of a fragile settlement in a post-apocalyptic world, Mike didn't have the luxury of drawing lines in black and white. He had to assess people for their value in the moment—however morally gray that might be. Yesterday, Chen Dafeng's actions had been monstrous. Today? Barely passable as human.

Yet, despite his cruelty and the disdain he had for anyone he deemed beneath him, Mike couldn't ignore that Dafeng's brutal methods had a peculiar effectiveness. And oddly enough, there was something about standing in the light, about being seen as a savior—no matter how fleeting—that seemed to chip away at Dafeng's armor of apathy.

Even Chen Dafeng himself couldn't quite deny the strange allure of those grateful gazes or the cheers of survivors who hailed him as a hero. A hero? Him? The thought should've been laughable. And yet, a small part of him couldn't help but revel in the praise.

But Chen Dafeng had his own agenda—he always did. What he sought was power, respect, and the undeniable thrill of control, cloaked in the guise of service to the settlement. And if that meant exploiting the system, saving lives while sowing fear, so be it.

When the rescued survivors saw him, they weren't looking at a man burdened by morality. They saw a force of nature, a monster who—at least for now—fought on their side.

And Dafeng played the part well.

"Unload them. Quickly now," Dafeng barked at the returning convoy, casually flicking the ashes of his cigarette. The team complied without hesitation—no one dared challenge the man who could crush a skull as easily as swatting a fly.

Even the former oppressors now cowered before him, stripped of their arrogance, awaiting judgment.

"Next step's the trial," Dafeng declared with a smirk, his voice booming with authority. "Public court. Let the people speak—report their crimes."

One of his aides hesitated, speaking up cautiously. "Chen… Shouldn't we follow the settlement's legal procedures? Evidence, proper trials—"

"Legal procedures?" Dafeng interrupted, his tone sharp and final. "In war, the commander's word is the law."

His voice thundered through the night.

"I am the law now."

For better or worse, Chen Dafeng was not just a villain in these trying times. He was also the only kind of hero the apocalypse could breed.