The waitress's eyes darted toward the exit.
A second later, all she saw was a blur of silver.
Then—
She was locked in place, held from behind by Silva's grip on her neck.
At the same time, her wrists were restrained—Akira stood calmly, holding her arms behind her back like he was managing a mildly annoyed customer, not a potential alien threat.
Everyone in the restaurant froze.
Chairs scraped. Cups rattled.
Customers stared, wide-eyed, holding their breath.
Then—
Sit down.
The voice echoed inside the waitress's skull.
Her mind rang like a bell—Shinko had entered her thoughts. The command was firm. Calm. Unshakable.
The waitress screamed—not aloud, but in her head.
Another staff member yelled, "Let her go!" and charged forward.
Too late.
A shockwave burst from the waitress's body—pure repulsion energy. It exploded outward like a pulse bomb, blasting Silva, Akira, and the rest of the crew off their feet.
Tables flipped. Dishes shattered. Humans screamed and ran as the restaurant turned into a dust cloud of chaos.
Only two figures remained standing.
Jinka.
And the waitress.
They stared each other down in the silence that followed the blast.
The waitress bolted for the door.
Jinka didn't flinch.
She stepped into her path, fast as breath, and drove her elbow into the waitress's midsection.
What followed was chaos.
The waitress flipped backward, landed on her palms, and launched herself forward with an aerial twist, slamming both feet toward Jinka's chest.
Jinka raised her forearms and took the hit like stone, sliding back a few inches—but unfazed.
She responded with a low sweep kick that cracked the floor tile as it missed.
The waitress twisted again, mid-air, and sent another repulsion blast—this one tighter, aimed like a fist.
It caught Jinka's shoulder and pushed her a full meter back.
But Jinka grinned.
She rushed forward with a flurry—two low punches, a rising palm, a quick stomp on the waitress's foot.
The waitress winced, but retaliated with a headbutt—then vaulted over Jinka's back, trying to escape again.
Jinka grabbed her by the ankle mid-air, spun her like a hammer toss, and slammed her into the ground hard enough to crack it.
Dust settled.
The waitress struggled to move, coughing.
Jinka stood over her, grabbed her by the hair, and yanked her upright.
"Now," Jinka said, eyes cold, "you speak."
cut to a news broadcast
A local anchor spoke nervously on TV.
"We... we don't yet have footage of what happened inside the restaurant. Witnesses report a loud explosion, but strangely, there was no fire or heat. A blast that wasn't a blast. Police say the cameras inside were all destroyed during the event."
The crew had returned to the ship.
The waitress, now tied to a steel chair, sat in the center of the lounge. Silent.
Barock sat nearby, chewing noisily again.
Kiluar reviewed shifting holograms.
Ginto scribbled equations with a physical pen and paper.
Shinko sat on the floor with strange plastic toys, gently stacking alien-shaped blocks with eerie calm.
Akira leaned against the wall, arms crossed, watching Ginto.
"...With all your tech," he asked, "you still use paper?"
Ginto smiled without looking up.
"My planet doesn't have this advanced tech. This... is what I'm used to."
Akira squinted. "Aren't you a genius?"
"I am," Ginto said gently." Our planet dont have the necessary materials for all this tech, like silicon."
"Well.... I'm a Genius in the mind. Not the metal." Ginto gave a smile
Akira gave him a slow nod. "...Respect."
Across the room, Silva was crouched in front of the waitress.
"Oi, oi, oi," he said. "You gotta say something. Please? Anything?"
She stayed quiet.
Jinka walked in, cracked her knuckles, and grabbed the girl by the throat.
"Name?"
Choked and wheezing, she gasped, "A-Alph."
Jinka let go. Alph coughed, rubbing her neck, and watched Jinka sit across from her.
"Where are you from?" Jinka asked.
"A very, very far-off world," Alph said.
Ginto raised his head. "Your species isn't in our database.
"You can't get there. Even wormholes will take forever," Alph replied.
You don't even wear a disguise. You... actually look human."
"Our planet is very similar to Earth," Alph said. "But far more advanced. We've adapted... differently."
Barock, still chewing, froze. His mouth hung open.
"Wait—" he said, slurred, food still half-swallowed. "You've got something faster than wormholes?"
"Yeah," Alph nodded casually.
"But—how?" Barock sputtered.
"Our tech is more like teleportation," Alph replied.
. "That's matter to energy, you'll have to turn matter into energy and then back to matter. Reintegration? That's impossible and insane," Barock said, still shocked.
"Not impossible," Alph said, "our people somehow pulled that off."
Barock sighed. "I was part of the team that designed wormhole protocols. We thought it'd never be outclassed."
He looked at her in disbelief.
"But still, transferring energy would still have some speed, theoretically even if you use light speed it's still slower than wormholes."
Alph blinked. "Our method is faster than light... a million times faster."
"WHATTT!!" Barock in Schock.
Even Silva stopped scratching his head.
Jinka stood. "I don't care about the science. What are you doing here?"
Alph looked down.
"I wanted to escape that place. Find a peaceful planet."
Akira burst out laughing. "Earth? Peaceful?"
Still on the floor, Shinko softly said, not looking up from her toys:
"Less advancement. Less war. Earth is... relatively peaceful."
Akira tilted his head. "Huh. It speaks.", pointing his tumb at shinko.
Alph smiled faintly.
"I was happy. I was just... working. A waitress. Quiet life. And for god's sake, you showed up and trashed the place."
"Aliens got God too?" Akira added, smirking.
Jinka glanced at Alph.
"She's not a threat," she muttered.
Jinka began untying her.
"You can go," she said. "But if you say anything about us... You'll die before you finish the sentence."
Alph stood up, rubbing her wrists.
"...Fair."
She paused, then looked at Silva.
"And you....What are you even doing here?"
Silva stood straight, eyes closed.
"...I'm a conqueror."
Silence.
Everyone stopped.
Alph blinked. "You're here to destroy Earth!?"
Jinka smiled. "It's called conquering."
Alph's expression twisted. "What? Killing people?"
Silva scratched the back of his head, smiling.
"Not really. I'm... on vacation."
Alph stared at him. "That doesn't sound like a conqueror."
"Our planet has faced numerous conquerors, and they all are grumpy, serious dudes. What's up with you?"
"You don't seem... dangerous," Alph said. "Are you just one of the weaker ones?"
Silva's eye twitched.
Jinka clenched her fist.
The others snorted or chuckled.
Jinka shouted, "WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY—"
Silva quickly held her back, like a guy restraining his sister before a bar fight.
Shinko, still stacking her toys, said softly:
"Silva isn't a regular conqueror. He's the conqueror of the galaxy."
Alph froze.
Her eyes locked on Silva, who was busy arguing with Jinka, half-laughing.
"You're kidding," she whispered.
Akira rubbed his temples.
"Wait, wait—I'm the only one here who doesn't get this? What's with this 'conqueror' crap? Are you like, a king?"
He pointed at Kiluar.
"No wait—he's the king."
Kiluar nodded serenely.
Alph finally sat.
"Conquerors," she said quietly, "are chosen by circumstance. A conqueror is the last of his species. To become one... you must destroy your own planet first."
Her tone dropped.
"You must kill your people. Then conquer others."
Everyone turned quiet again.
Akira looked around. "So what—you all did that? killed your people?"
"No," Ginto said. "Just him. He's the conqueror, we are just crew members."
Akira said, "So he and I are still the worst ones in the room."
"So what about Galaxy Conqueror?" Akira asked.
"It's exactly what you think, I'm the last one of my galaxy," Silva said with a serious tone, eyes closed.
" I killed all conquerors and then destroyed every civilization there."
"Well, that makes you now the worst one here," Akira said with a grin.
"So that show you put up in my school, was really you huh"
Alph smiled. "Well. At least you're not here to destroy Earth."
She looked at Akira.
"You are a human too, right?"
"Yeah", Akira replied.
"How did you end up with them? I've never seen a human crew member," says Alph.
Silva threw an arm around Akira's shoulders.
"Oh, he's just a really good friend, don't worry about it," Silva said, smiling..
Akira lowers his head and sighs in embarrassment.
"There's something about humans. Something no other species has. I've to hundreds of planets, but nothing like humans."
Alph chuckled. "Anyway. You forget me, I forget you. I'll find another job. Earth runs on jobs."
She waved, walking toward the exit.
"Wait!" Barock shouted. "I haven't asked you about your tech! Your people!"
But she was already gone.
Everyone went back to what they were doing.
Akira sat down on a nearby crate, rubbing his temples.
He exhaled sharply.
Then—
A voice. Deep. Calm. And too close.
"Are you gonna be alright after this, son?"
Akira's hands stopped moving.
No one else noticed or realised.
For the first time all day, she looked directly at Akira.
Her gaze was blank.
Unblinking.
The blocks in front of her collapsed.
Chapter Ends