Pleading

"What's going on? If it's over, just say so. I thought something bad had happened to Shinnosuke and the others, so I ended up puncturing your ship."

Zany looks utterly stunned as Shinnosuke shrugs his shoulders.

"It's fine. It's true they were in trouble."

"Is that so? Then please don't bother me with repair costs."

Zany glances at the maid costume-clad doll lying on the ground.

"Is this thing really a combat-type doll, dressed like this?"

"Model M-02, manufactured by Cosart. A high-performance multi-purpose doll capable of supporting daily life, medical care, ship operations, and combat. This unit appears to have a malfunction in its internal power source, rendering it completely non-functional. However, despite its immobility, it was surprisingly agile in close combat—so much so that I barely kept up. Master, you handled it quite well."

"Did Shinnosuke take down this doll?"

Shinnosuke shook his head in response to Marks and Zany's words.

"No, it was just luck. When this doll lunged at me, I did aim for the sensor unit, but hitting it was pure chance. It was a near miss, and given the state it's in now, we need proper treatment as soon as possible—otherwise, it could be life-threatening."

In reality, Shinosuke's wound is quite deep and requires medical treatment.

"Then we'd better get rid of these guys quickly. What do we do?"

"We should turn them over to the coastal patrol according to regulations. This area is international space near the border between Akneria and the Damura Star Cluster Commonwealth, and we've already reported them to Akneria's coastal patrol. Their forces are already en route here, so we'll hand them over to those units."

"That sounds good. This woman's gang is a top-tier bounty, and the ones we took down earlier were all wanted too. We could split the reward three ways and make a solid profit."

When Shinosuke and Zanyu nodded at each other, Velvet, who had been silent until then, finally spoke.

"Hey, I have something to ask you two... Could you let us go?"

" "Huh?""

Shinosuke and Zanyu were stunned into silence by Velvet's sudden request.

You two are just mercenary escorts, right? Then I'll pay you more than your bounty. My ship carries a substantial amount of money and jewels. If you just look the other way, you'll still have plenty left over. That's a far better deal than some stingy bounty. Hell, you can do whatever you want with us right here and now. I'll admit it—women like me don't come around often.

Zany gave Velvet a bored expression as he tried to bribe him with gold and color.

"We're helping Shinosuke. Not our concern. Besides, if I touched any of you, my wife would scold me—so I'll pass."

Seeing Zany show no interest at all, Velvet pleaded with Shinosuke.

"Please, you're the one who can help us, right? How about becoming a space pirate? We'll all become your subordinates. You can do whatever you want with us anytime, and make a fortune. Not bad, right?"

"You're kidding. After relentlessly targeting me, you're suddenly being so generous?"

"Y-yeah, but if you help us, I'll give you some valuable info. About the people who're after you. You want to know, don't you?"

"I don't particularly want to hear anything from you. I already have all the information I need. You should just give up and face the law's judgment."

Velvet's plea was met with not the slightest intention to comply.

"Please... the law's judgment won't bring us anything but the death penalty, or at best exile to a labor planet for life. And you know what kind of fate awaits women like us if we're sent to such a planet, don't you?"

Shinonsuke let out a deep sigh.

Let's talk about the numbers. 48 vessels, 284 dead, 485 missing. Do you understand?

What are you talking about?

I investigated the space pirate Velvet—meaning you—before this operation. These are the number of ships and people who fell victim to space pirate Velvet, according to my findings. Among the missing, there are surely victims of the human trafficking you've sold. That's not all—there are likely also victims unrecorded in official logs. It's only natural you're wanted with a top-tier bounty on your head.

S-So, just because I became a space pirate doesn't mean I chose it out of love. As you know, I'm from the Rimlia Galactic Empire's nobility. When my abilities awakened, I fled my homeland before the Empire could capture me—there was no other way for me to survive. Otherwise, I'd have either died on the streets or ended up as a prostitute somewhere. I'm not alone in this—I'm just like the others. For a woman with no country, there was no other choice to stay alive.

Shinosuke glared at the wretched velvet with a cold, indifferent stare.

You had choices. You said it yourself. You could have died on the streets or become a prostitute and survived—there were other options. You chose to become a space pirate yourself. When you attacked ships as a pirate, there were surely those who begged for mercy. When you sold people into slavery, there were those who cried out for help. And there was always the choice to save them. The person you are today is the result of the choices you made among all those countless possibilities. Stop wasting my time with your words.

Velvet grimaced and clicked her tongue in response to Shinosuke's cold words.

"Che! You're such a damn idiot who doesn't understand a thing. I wouldn't want someone like you even if you came begging."

Satisfied by Velvet's words, Shinosuke nodded calmly.

All that remained was waiting for the coast guard to arrive.

"Huh... Zany, wife? What's that about?"

"What's wrong with me having a wife? That's weird?"

"N-no, I mean... no, it's not weird at all."