Deputy Warden Prisson

Seeing the message Gu Ding had sent, Rose could hardly believe it. She immediately dialed Kaviel's communicator.

The moment it rang, Kaviel answered. "Big Sis Rose, what is it?"

"Did that guy Kane escape?" Rose asked directly.

Kane took the communicator. "Big Sis, it's me..."

"You really escaped?" Rose froze when she heard Kane's voice.

"For some reason, the prison system suffered a serious malfunction. That kid Gu Ding took the opportunity to get me out." Kane laughed heartily.

The two chatted briefly before hanging up.

Only then did Rose realize that everything Gu Ding had said was true. At the same time, she was somewhat puzzled. A system malfunction at Hai Lan Star Prison occurring at a time like this was far too much of a coincidence. She had watched Gu Ding grow up, yet she had never known him to possess hacking skills.

Rose immediately sent Gu Ding a message. "Rose Tavern is reopening tonight. Come back to work. If you're late, this month's pay will be cut in half!"

When it was time for the night shift, Gu Ding returned to Rose Tavern as though nothing had happened. Although there were fewer people entering and leaving the tavern than usual, he could hear its lively bustle from far away.

When Gu Ding stepped into the tavern, Auntie "Rose" and the others were already seated in a circle, raising their glasses in celebration of something. Seeing Gu Ding push open the door, Rose beckoned to him. An empty seat had been left on her left.

Gu Ding looked around. That was the only empty seat, so he sat down beside her despite himself.

The bartender Batengde handed him a glass of Mirka. Usually, if Auntie "Rose" saw someone ordering such a non-alcoholic drink in her tavern, she would call them a "sissy." But today, surprisingly, she said nothing. She merely smiled and raised her glass. "To little Kane's successful escape from Hai Lan Star Prison! Drink as much as you want tonight. Put every last drink on Kane's tab, and make him pay me back next year with interest!"

Everyone happily raised their glasses. Besides the staff of Rose Tavern, there were also a few outsiders present. It was enough for those within their circle to know what Gu Ding had done. If outsiders learned of it, it would only bring Gu Ding trouble, so no one in the tavern mentioned it.

The cheerful party lasted until dawn before all the guests were finally sent away. Auntie "Rose," who had drunk who knew how many barrels of alcohol, showed no sign of drunkenness. She filled everyone's glasses again and raised hers toward Gu Ding. "Kane told me everything. I, Rose Gingier, thank you on behalf of my brothers!"

The other staff members of Rose Tavern also raised their glasses high.

Gu Ding merely grinned without saying anything, then tipped back his head and poured the glass of Mirka down his throat.

The others at Rose Tavern also laughed as they poured the strong liquor down their throats.

Without Sea Emperor's control, the prison systems across the Tianhe Star Region quickly returned to normal, and the virus was brought under control a few hours later.

What Gu Ding did not know was that the virus intrusion and system malfunction at Heaven River Prison had not only provoked a strong response from Tianhe Prison Headquarters, but had even drawn serious attention from the Federal Government.

More than eighty percent of the escaped criminals were recaptured within less than a day. On Deep Sea Star, the two fugitives Gu Ding had seen escaping earlier were also caught and brought back. After taking stock of the fugitives who had yet to be captured, Deep Sea Star found that three remained at large. The most notorious of them was Interstellar Pirate Cain, who had previously been sentenced to death and carried a bounty of more than three hundred million.

The following afternoon, the system malfunction and virus on Lan Wo Star were finally dealt with completely. Prisson truly had no desire to remain on that planet any longer. He had already learned that other branches had suffered the same problems, and that his sworn enemy Kane had successfully broken out of prison on Deep Sea Star. Unwilling to accept it, he took an interstellar transfer to Deep Sea Star, intending to uncover exactly what had happened.

Late at night, the moonlight on Deep Sea Star was faintly cold.

In the interrogation room of Hai Lan Star Prison, agonized howls and pleas for mercy had continued for most of the night. After interrogating the last recaptured prisoner, the fleshy-faced Prisson pushed open the door and walked out.

Two prison guards dragged a prisoner out from inside. He had been tortured beyond recognition. The fingers on both his hands had been broken into more than twenty segments, and not a single fingernail remained intact. His bare upper body bore more than ten marks of superficial skin burns left by powerful electric shocks. A foul stench wafted from his pants, which bore faint damp patches. Clearly, he had been tortured into incontinence.

After leaving the interrogation room, Prisson dialed the communicator of Hai Lan Star Prison's warden. As deputy warden of headquarters, he had direct authority over the wardens of the branch prisons.

At three thirty in the morning, Old Henry, who was sound asleep, was awakened by his communicator. As the warden of Hai Lan Star Prison, he was a prominent figure on Deep Sea Star. The virus attack on the prison system and the complete system failure had kept him occupied for the entire day. He had worked until nearly dawn before finally returning home.

He had only been lying down for a few hours when someone disturbed his sleep. Somewhat irritated, he picked up the communicator. He pressed the answer button and was about to start cursing, but Prisson's voice came from the other end. He quickly covered his mouth, a thin sheen of cold sweat appearing on his forehead.

Prisson was the deputy warden of headquarters, the superior of branch wardens like him. More importantly, he held grudges fiercely.

Old Henry had spent more than thirty years working within Heaven River Prison, so he knew Prisson fairly well. Seven or eight years ago, during a meeting at headquarters, a newly appointed warden from one branch saw Prisson's comical appearance for the first time and could not help laughing. Less than a month later, that warden had not only been dismissed, but a mountain of evidence of wrongdoing had been dug up against him. Prisson sent him to the sex crimes division of Tianhe Prison Headquarters on charges of corruption and bribery. Unable to endure the abuse he suffered in prison, that warden committed suicide within a week.

"I heard you recruited an intern named Gu Ding the day before yesterday?" Prisson's voice was somewhat chilling.

"An intern?" Old Henry was startled, but he immediately recalled the matter. "Oh, I remember. He's a graduating student from the Basic Military Academy. I looked over his résumé. He's excellent."

"I want all his information." Prisson's voice remained cold.

"Now... now?" Old Henry asked reluctantly as he glanced at the time displayed on the wall clock: 3:41 a.m.

"Do you intend to make me wait another five hours and nineteen minutes?" The questioning tone made Prisson's voice sound even colder.

Old Henry shuddered. "I'll be right there!"

"Who is it, this late at night?" Old Henry's movements as he got out of bed woke his wife.

"There's something urgent at the prison. I need to go out for a while." Old Henry forced a smile, quickly put on his clothes, bent down to kiss his wife's forehead, and hurried away.

By the time Old Henry arrived at his office, Prisson was already sitting in his chair with his legs resting on the desk. In his hand was a photograph of Old Henry and his wife.

Old Henry frowned. "The résumé is in the bottom drawer."

He walked over to the desk and pressed his fingerprint against the identification system on its surface. Only after the system confirmed it did the drawer unlock automatically. He took out Gu Ding's résumé and handed it to Prisson. "Is there a problem with this child?"

Prisson ignored Old Henry's question. He set down the picture frame, picked up Gu Ding's résumé, and began reading it. A moment later, he narrowed his already pea-sized eyes slightly. "Rose Tavern? Who runs it?"

"Rose Gingier and her people," Old Henry replied without concealing anything.

"Rose Gingier of the Rose Pirate Crew? Kane's former boss?" A cold gleam flashed through Prisson's eyes.

"Yes." Old Henry nodded. "Rose and the others had Bounty Orders issued more than thirty years ago. After their Pirate Crew disbanded over twenty years ago, the Federal Government withdrew the bounties on them. They have remained on Deep Sea Star for the past twenty years, and the Federal Government's military has never gone looking for trouble with them."

"A pirate will always be a pirate. It's carved into their bones." Prisson slammed Gu Ding's résumé onto the desk. "Notify the Tianhe branch of the Federal Government. I've found the person who let Kane go. After breakfast, have them send someone to arrest that brat Gu Ding and take him directly to the Federal Court for interrogation."

(Sigh, the contract was mailed on Friday, and it still hadn't arrived by Monday. Shentong's efficiency is really making me anxious~ I wonder when the signing status will change...)