Chapter 278 - 277: They Are Going to Arrest the President of Astraeus Group

Chapter 278: Chapter 277: They Are Going to Arrest the President of Astraeus Group

I looked back at Asher. ’What was he trying to say?’

BANG! Suddenly, a gunshot echoed in the distance. Someone had fired a gun on the cruise ship...

Stunned, I turned to look in the direction of the sound. Asher instinctively pulled me into his arms, pressing the little girl we were holding close as he ducked us under a dining table.

A group of armed men entered from outside—the same ones who had taken the control room. "Send a message. If they keep moving, we start killing hostages."

Asher and I exchanged a glance. A ship must be approaching.

The police had already worked out a rescue and response strategy with Zeke Shaw and Lucas Grant. To ensure the survival of the more than one thousand people on board, they couldn’t use brute force. A direct confrontation was out of the question.

So, the approaching ship definitely wasn’t the police.

"Is it the organization’s people?" I whispered.

Asher nodded.

’It has to be The Resistance.’

The hundred-plus tycoons on this ship were the organization’s lifeblood, their source of funding and financial backing. The Resistance would likely stop at nothing to rescue them.

"Hmph..." The leader stood by the window, looking outside.

We were on the third level of the ship’s public area. From their vantage point, they could see the approaching vessel. "Go tell them that if they get any closer, we’ll start killing the tycoons on the list, one by one, and toss them in the sea to feed the fish."

The leader spoke in a deep, hoarse voice that sounded vaguely familiar.

I wanted to peek out for a look, but Asher stopped me.

He shook his head at me. It was too dangerous.

But that voice... it really was familiar.

"They’re going to use the list of Global Chamber of Commerce members to target people. We need to get back to the 16th floor as soon as possible, find the president of the Astraeus Group, and protect him," I whispered my plan to Asher. "We’ll run for it when they head to the deck."

Asher nodded. We looked at each other, a silent understanding passing between us, ready to bolt with the little girl at a moment’s notice.

"*Waaah*, I’m scared... I want to go home..."

But suddenly, the little girl started crying in fear, sobbing where she was crouched.

I instinctively clamped a hand over her mouth, but it was too late. The men outside had heard.

Peeking through a gap in the tablecloth, I saw someone slowly approaching.

I drew a sharp breath, my hand reaching for the dagger hidden on my person, ready to fight back at any moment.

Asher’s gaze turned icy. The moment the man reached out to lift the tablecloth, Asher shot out, grabbing his hand. He rolled out from under the table in one fluid motion, using his momentum to slam the man to the ground and pin him underneath.

My heart tightened. I pulled the little girl out from under the table with me.

The leader glanced at us but didn’t order his men to attack.

The man beside him raised his hand, aiming his gun at Asher.

Asher’s hand was clamped around the neck of the man beneath him. His eyes were cold, showing not a trace of fear.

I watched them warily, shielding the little girl behind me.

"Stand down," the leader said, his voice still low and hoarse. "It won’t be any fun if they die."

The leader gave a cold smirk and gestured for his men to let us go.

Asher glanced at the man he had pinned, snorted, and rose to his feet, shielding me as he moved to leave.

We took a few steps back, preparing to run.

Suddenly, the man on the ground scrambled up. Humiliated at being taken down in a single move, he pulled out a knife and lunged at us.

Asher instinctively raised his hand to block the blade and kicked the man away, but the knife had already pierced straight through his palm.

I panicked, grabbing Asher’s hand. I quickly took off my jacket to wrap it around his wound and stop the bleeding.

Asher glared at the man, his eyes cold. "Trash."

The leader frowned, watching Asher. After a long moment, he raised his hand and slapped the man who had launched the sneak attack, knocking him back to the ground. "You’re a disgrace."

Asher looked dispassionately at the knife piercing his palm. Ignoring my protests, he yanked it out and threw it at the man.

The man cried out and ducked his head. The knife flew just over him, severing a few strands of his hair before embedding itself deep in the wall.

I looked at Asher nervously. "Let’s go to the infirmary to get that wound treated."

The cruise ship was fully equipped. The doctors and medical facilities were comprehensive. I’d heard this was the only ship in the country with a surgical suite at sea, one capable of performing organ transplants...

Asher nodded, guiding me and the little girl into an elevator.

The little girl was still crying, trembling with fear.

I didn’t comfort her, just frowned slightly.

’Protecting her is the police’s job. All I have to do is get her to Zeke Shaw and Lucas Grant. Then I’ll have done my part.’

The elevator doors closed. Worried about Asher’s injury, I completely forgot what he had been about to say earlier.

"Are you okay?" Outside the infirmary, Zeke Shaw and Lucas Grant ran in, asking worriedly.

I shook my head, clenching my fists. "It’s a through-and-through wound to his palm. They just took X-rays, and the doctor performed emergency surgery, but as for whether his hand will be affected long-term... I can’t say."

The human palm is a complex web of muscles and nerves. A wound that pierces it completely is bound to affect future movement and daily life.

"You probably don’t know this, but this cruise ship is staffed with top-tier doctors. The ship’s owner paid a fortune to hire this medical team from the Republic of M. Their surgical skills are considered the best in the world, so your worries are unfounded." At the doorway, Killian Lancaster leaned against the frame, a sarcastic smile on his face. "But I am curious. My brother’s skills are so sharp, and his hearing and perception are far beyond those of an ordinary person. How did he manage to get himself injured like this?"

A slow reaction? An urgent situation? Clearly, Killian Lancaster wasn’t buying it.

I frowned at Killian Lancaster. "If you’re just here to make sarcastic remarks, you can get out."

Killian Lancaster shrugged. "Don’t be so hostile toward me, sis-in-law... I’m just voicing a reasonable suspicion."

"Oh, by the way, did I forget to tell you? The true owner of this cruise ship is the head of The Genetics Organization’s Estrian Division. He’s the ’boss’ behind The Genetics Organization. His codename is Boss, and that’s what we all call him," Killian Lancaster said with a smile.

’He waited until now to give us this information on purpose!’

If this cruise ship belongs to The Genetics Organization, then it’s definitely not as simple as it seems.

"This cruise ship has fifteen floors above deck and one below, for a total of sixteen public floors. But below the public areas, there are two more deep-hold levels. What’s down there... curious?" He paused. That was a place only members of the Chamber of Commerce could enter. "This ship spends its years at sea, traveling through international waters and... war zones. Because in places like that, no one oversees the more... terrifying transactions. Things like human trafficking, organ trafficking, and all sorts of other activities for illegal profit."

I took a deep breath, frowning at Killian Lancaster. "If you have something to say, you’d better say it all at once."

"The Resistance’s main objective in hijacking this ship is to make a statement to The Genetics Organization. Killing the individual financiers the organization cares about most would be the biggest statement of all. And the president of the Astraeus Group is reportedly on this ship, but no one knows who he is or what he looks like..." Killian Lancaster glanced outside, where armed men were patrolling.

"Right now, they’re using a list to round up all the members of the Chamber of Commerce. Unfortunately, I’m on that list. And of course, so is the president of the Astraeus Group."

Killian Lancaster knew they were coming for him. Just before they took him, he grabbed my hand and lowered his voice. "Find the president of the Astraeus Group. Protect him."

With that, Killian Lancaster was led away by the approaching armed men.

"Him. Chamber of Commerce member. Killian Lancaster. Take him."

Killian Lancaster went along cooperatively, turning back to flash a smile at me as he left.