As the camera panned, the panoramic view of the battlefield gradually unfolded for the assembled group in the room. These were the senior management of the Caesar Mercenary Corps, all deeply invested in the fate of the Crown Fleet. Seeing the wreckage of the fleet instantly ignited their fury, their faces flushed crimson as they absorbed the grim scene.

"Lord Ishta, vengeance must be sought for these fallen!"

"Lord Ishta, send me! I swear I will not be human if I do not wipe out the Trand Mercenaries!"

"Lord Ishta..." The crowd pleaded in unison.

"Quiet!" Ishta roared, and the clamor immediately ceased.

Ishta turned to Captain Hess. "Captain Hess, you are to immediately proceed toward the designated airspace and search for the whereabouts of the Hammer of the Crown Fleet. Report back to me the moment you find anything!"

"Yes, sir." Captain Hess acknowledged before terminating the communication.

"Even if the Hammer Crown Fleet managed to wipe out the entire Trand Mercenary Corps intact, the lost Golden Flame is still gone," a voice laced with a faint sorrow sounded from behind Ishta.

Ishta turned to see Andre entering. He strode forward heavily and continued, "Furthermore, given the Trand Mercenary Corps' reputation for total annihilation, I fear the Hammer has already been destroyed, just as they claimed."

Total annihilation was not a reputation Yang Ying actively sought. However, for the sake of absolute secrecy, he had often found it necessary to act ruthlessly, thus allowing this unflattering reputation to echo throughout the entire Asteroid Belt.

Yet, Yang Ying had to admit that the existence of this reputation saved him a great deal of trouble, keeping many ill-intentioned parties intimidated and hesitant to make a move.

Ishta’s mind was in turmoil. He was the one who had personally instigated the conflict between the Caesar Mercenary Corps and the Trand Mercenary Corps. Before the battle, he had arrogantly rejected Yang Ying’s overtures for peace—a news story that had graced the front pages of every major newspaper. He couldn't deny his role.

At the time, he believed Caesar’s Crown Fleet was invincible, and a mere upstart force would be easily crushed. But the current outcome had plunged him into crisis.

The Caesar family was a powerful lineage, characterized by intense and brutal internal competition. Sometimes, a single blunder by an heir was enough to destroy all trust and strip them of their inheritance rights.

Losing one Crown Fleet could not be described as a mere 'blunder'; it was a catastrophic error significant enough to ruin his entire future. If both fleets were lost, he might spend the rest of his life under house arrest, and even his father, Lloyd Caesar, the commander of the Caesar Mercenary Corps who had loaned him those two fleets, would face repercussions.

He knew well that the various uncles and cousins on the Caesar Group Board of Directors intensely coveted the position of head of the family’s armed forces—the Commander of the Caesar Mercenary Corps. The loss of two Crown Fleets would inevitably give his father’s rivals the leverage they needed to challenge him.

In his mind’s eye, Ishta could already see the days of his permanent confinement stretching ahead.

On the other side of Worrell, at a 'Word' Military Garrison base.

A squire knight burst into Senior Knight Haynes’s study, holding a watch-shaped recording device.

"Teacher! The Trand Mercenaries won! Caesar's two Crown Fleets were annihilated! The news reports are true—an unbelievable victory!" He waved his arms wildly, as if unable to contain his elation otherwise.

This perfectly illustrated a common saying in the Asteroid Belt: all major powers existed in a state of competition. Even if the 'Word' Military and Caesar had no overt hostility, one side’s misfortune was another’s source of satisfaction.

However, Haynes's professional composure prevented him from sharing his disciple's outright glee.

He sighed, spreading his hand. "Let me see the recording device."

"Oh." Seeing his teacher’s expression, the squire instantly realized he had gotten carried away and hurriedly handed the device to Haynes.

Haynes spread the recording device open, and a holographic screen rose up.

The scene on the screen was similar to what Captain Hess had shown Ishta: a vast field of wreckage floating in space.

The camera slowly moved, capturing one piece of debris after another.

The squire explained from the side, "This was spotted by a cargo ship we were escorting. Very few people use this route. The ship's owner hadn't seen much and was terrified by this wreckage. Fortunately, we had one of our men aboard who captured the images and sent them straight to headquarters."

"All this debris appears to be high-grade warships manufactured by the Caesar Group; they look very familiar," Haynes noted. His memory was near eidetic; he could recognize a Caesar Group warship even if it were melted down into slag.

"Ah!" Haynes’s gaze sharpened, suddenly becoming intensely focused.

A piece of alloy plating, its edges twisted into an odd shape, drifted across the screen.

"That's it," Haynes stabilized the image, observing it judiciously. "That is external armor plating from a Crown-class Battlecruiser, specifically from the port side, 128 meters from the stern. No other model of warship possesses that exact configuration."

"As expected of you, Teacher, truly remarkable," the squire murmured, his eyes wide. To him, it had just been a strangely shaped, slightly twisted piece of metal.

"Judging by the degree and angle of the armor plate's distortion, the cause must have been an internal explosion, and an exceptionally violent one at that—powerful enough to cause hull breakup. Whether this armor belonged to the Golden Flame or the Hammer, it confirms that at least one Crown-class Battlecruiser is no longer in existence!" Haynes stated with certainty.

In truth, Haynes was looking at a fragment of the Hammer, a ship that had been pulverized into dust by two thousand four hundred anti-ship missiles, making it difficult to find any large, recognizable pieces.

"Hmm!" Haynes paused mid-sentence, looking again.

"Teacher? Did you find something else?" the squire asked curiously.

"No! Nothing at all!" Haynes sounded genuinely astonished, more so than when he first saw the Crown wreckage.

"Teacher, what is missing? What happened?" The squire felt a prickle of curiosity and pressed rapidly.

"There are no remnants of Trand Mercenary Corps warships here. Not a single one!" Haynes said sternly. "Every piece of wreckage displayed here originates from Caesar Mercenary Corps vessels."

"Could it be zero damage?" The squire shuddered. "That's impossible. Perhaps the Trand Mercenaries cleaned up all the wreckage belonging to their own ships?"

"Impossible. The Crown Fleet was fine yesterday; the battle began this morning and ended by dawn. Even if the fight took mere hours, clearing the battlefield would take far longer," Haynes shook his head. "Besides, there is no resistance in space. An explosion scatters debris in all directions, infinitely. To clear it completely would require specialized waste disposal groups using high-intensity impact equipment for days and nights. If they did that, even the Caesar debris would be cleared. For the Trand Mercenaries to clean up their own wreckage immediately after the battle—it’s unthinkable!"

"It really was zero damage then?" The squire sucked in a sharp breath. "That's incredible."

"We have too little intelligence to draw firm conclusions yet. Only the people from the Trand Mercenary Corps know exactly what transpired on that battlefield," Haynes cautioned.

They continued to review the footage. When they finished, the squire quietly asked, "Teacher, about that rumor we discussed last time—can we proceed with the debunking now?"

"If you want to go, then go. This small matter is no longer important now," Haynes permitted his disciple's request.

"Yes!" The squire nodded, bowed deeply, and turned to leave.

"Take this with you." Haynes tossed the recording device to his student. He had already committed the images to memory, and they would never fade. The device was now redundant.

"Understood." The squire caught the device and hurried out.

"Ah, such an impatient child," Haynes murmured with a faint smile.

As time passed, more and more people received confirmed reports. Both battle sites were discovered by an increasing number of ships.

The Caesar Mercenary Corps issued no official response, but reporters obtained definitive confirmation from the 'Word' Military, the Kowloon Consortium, and the Mercenary Alliance: the wreckage at those two sites belonged to Caesar’s Crown Fleet!

The news caused an immense sensation!

The Crown-class Battlecruisers, much like the laurel wreath worn by the ancient Roman dictator Caesar, had always carried a tremendous aura, symbolizing the might of the Caesar Mercenary Corps. Half the strength of a Crown Fleet resided in these battlecruisers; they were rumored to be capable of sweeping clean all major mercenary groups in the Asteroid Belt single-handedly.

And now, two Crown-class Battlecruisers, along with their supporting fleet, lay adrift in the cold embrace of the cosmos.

Why did Caesar’s Crowns fall to the Trand Mercenary Corps?

No one believed the Caesar Mercenary Corps was inherently weak. Caesar possessed a history longer than the Mercenary Alliance itself, and as one of the only three Super Mercenary Corps in the Asteroid Belt, their power was deeply ingrained in the collective consciousness.

Therefore, only one conclusion remained: the Trand Mercenary Corps possessed the strength of a Super Mercenary Corps!

Before noon that day, Commissioner Yusuf convened an emergency session of the Assessment Committee. All members attended, and they unanimously approved streamlining the procedure to immediately grant the Trand Mercenary Corps the status of a Major Mercenary Group.

Countless reporters swarmed Worrell, nearly overwhelming the port facilities, and the influx only increased as time went on.

The only place busier than Worrell was Gray Port. Thankfully, Gray Port had immense capacity; it could handle tens of thousands of reporters!

Many inhabitants of the Asteroid Belt felt as though the world had fundamentally changed overnight; a new Super Mercenary Corps had been added while they slept.

News regarding the Trand Mercenary Corps flooded the networks, with new updates appearing every second, endlessly replaying every piece of history connected to the group.

The history of conflict between the Trand Mercenary Corps and the Caesar Mercenary Corps became the focal point of all media coverage.

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