NIKKE, When the Milky Way Blossoms

It seems that these people, who have been on the surface to be friendly with her, haven't given her a second glance in private these past few days.

"I will not show mercy just because you did not choose a weapon," the noblewoman said coldly. "This is a duel of honor. If anything unexpected happens, please do not hold a grudge..."

"The Commander has already said it has begun~"

Even someone as patient as Mihara couldn't help but feel annoyed after seeing Helen's aristocratic demeanor repeatedly.

Click, click, click, click!

Four cracking sounds came from the woman's right knuckles. Mihara, who had already bound her pain-sharing to the noblewoman, immediately broke four fingers of her right hand with her left hand...

Helen: "!!!"

A sudden, intense pain surged into the girl's senses. The pain of her bones breaking in the opposite direction made her instinctively loosen her grip on the sword hilt with her right hand, attempting to alleviate the pain that was directly affecting her brain by spreading her fingers.

Clang!

The rapier landed as expected.

Mihara, who rushed forward in a few strides, seemed unfazed. With a smile, he stepped forward with his right foot, and as he leaped to the highest point, he thrust his right knee upward, while his left toes touched the ground, and his knee aimed straight at Helen's chin.

If that nearly 1,000-pound knee strike had landed properly, even Nikki would have suffered at least a moderate to severe concussion and would have had to stay in the hospital for a few days.

Faced with such a vicious mid-air knee strike, the noble girl, now unarmed, reacted entirely on instinct, turning her head to the side and crossing her arms in front of her, a movement no different from that of an ordinary person with no fighting experience.

Boom——! !

The explosive impact easily broke through the girl's arms, and Mihara's knee, through the girl's arms, forcefully penetrated her jawbone.

The feeling of fainting arrived as expected.

Boom!

In a single exchange, the captain of the Praise, who had challenged to a duel, was easily knocked to the ground by her opponent.

“I won, little noble sister.”

Mihara landed steadily, symbolically stomping her heel on the floor to show everyone she was fully capable of crushing Helen's head before narrowing her eyes and smiling seductively:

"Shouldn't the person who loses the duel be punished?"

"..."

Hearing her opponent's words, the noblewoman, who had fallen to the ground and was consumed by humiliation, pursed her lips and remained silent.

Tears welled up uncontrollably in her eyes; if the girl hadn't stubbornly held on, she probably would have already shed tears.

However, at that very moment, Phoenix, who was watching the game up close, slowly walked towards Helen amidst Unnie's applause and celebration.

dah, dah, dah, dah...

The man's steps were slow and steady, and he approached the girl with an undeniable aura.

"Does it hurt?"

Crouching down, Phoenix looked closely into Helen's jewel-like blue eyes.

Within those exquisitely beautiful eyes, the lieutenant clearly saw the anger, hatred, fear, and dread hidden within.

Yet he couldn't find even a trace of resentment in her. Despite her anger and resentment, Helen's eyes remained as pure as a wounded animal's, without a trace of malice or cunning.

She was just a girl who was well protected in her life, both before and after becoming Niki.

“You’ve never been to the front lines, you’ve never killed Lecher.”

The lieutenant's unique, hoarse voice echoed in Niki's ears, each harsh word relentlessly grinding against Helen's dignity and soul.

"Although Mihara's pain sharing cannot be defended against by shutting down pain perception, I don't see any doubt in your eyes, and you are unaware of this information. Therefore, can I interpret this as you not even trying to shut down pain perception?"

In other words, you don't even have the most basic combat awareness; you've even forgotten that you have the ability to shut down your sense of pain.

A warship commander who has never seen Lecher, cannot withstand pain, and has no adaptability, even if you are really sent to sea to fight Lecher in the future, you will only be leading a ship of unlucky people to their deaths in the name of naval glory.

Tell me, Miss Helen, what is the essential difference between you and those useless commanders who only know how to charge and run?

"I didn't! Naval warfare and land warfare... no, they're different..."

Hearing Phoenix's question, Helen wanted to retort, but her tone unconsciously weakened. Instead, tears, like pearls, uncontrollably streamed down her cheeks, thus admitting her weakness.

The false dignity was shattered by reality, and the arrogant soul was torn apart by words, yet the lieutenant's heart-wrenching words still echoed in the girl's ears like an abyss.

"Do you really care about the honor of the navy? Or are you just trying to prove that you can still be an excellent nobleman even as Niki?"

"I told you I didn't!"

The fiery and mischievous spirit unique to young girls bloomed belatedly at the moment when their arrogance was destroyed. Helen shook her head in horror, unwilling to admit that everything she had done was just to prove that she was still a young lady from a noble family.

"You know nothing! I never even had a chance to go to the surface! The Praise was the only warship on the Ark! And it was also the Ark's first warship!"

And what happened? After she was built, everyone used her as a poolside salon!

“This is no excuse for you to be incapable of anything, Miss Helen.”

Upon seeing the little beast's almost hysterical roar, the demon named Phoenix finally revealed its long-hidden, ferocious fangs. Then, it grinned and uttered the three-word Abyss Contract.

"Want to learn?"

"……what?"

A glistening tear still clung to her eyelashes. The naive noblewoman, oblivious to the harsh realities of the world, propped herself up on her right elbow, staring blankly at the lieutenant, and asked incredulously:

"Learn...learn what?"

"Commanding troops, personnel management, tactical layout, strategic policy, and things like political judgment—there's so much you need to learn, Captain Helen."

The demon whispered persuasively, and finally uttered those three words again.

"Want to learn?"

"..."

Gazing into the lieutenant's emerald green eyes, Helen's full, moist lips trembled slightly. "You... are willing to teach me?"

"If you behave well, I'll teach you."

Under Mihara's excited gaze, under Yuni's adoring eyes, and under Marian's helpless eye roll, Lieutenant Phoenix wiped away the tears from the noblewoman's eyes with the back of his index finger and softly uttered the first requirement of the contract.

"First of all, you have to be on my side."

“My dear Miss Helen.”

Chapter 186 We Have Everything You Need

The lieutenant left.

However, he did not run away from home; instead, he took his wife, whose right hand had broken a knuckle, back to his underground dormitory.

Of course, Nikki and the rest of the squadron, including Maruchana, also filed out of the canteen in unison. Even Helen, who had just been beaten up by society, chose to accompany them after wiping away her tears.

However, in the end, only Mihara, Eunice, and Marian entered Phoenix's room.

If you're wondering why Maruchana didn't shamelessly go in with them...

The main reason was that students Nadja and Tia were still present. The teacher was still quite shy most of the time and didn't dare to get too close to the instructor whom the students admired in front of them.

Nadja is alright, but if Tia sees her, this blonde idiot will really cause trouble.

The teacher sneaked a meal without taking her along?

This person can be called a teacher?!

……

Outside, Squad 04-F, the Aegis Force, and the teachers and students of the affiliated high school were all lost in their own thoughts.

Inside, Phoenix held Mihara's hand affectionately, asking Anik to help repair the parts at his finger joints.

"I'm leaving at noon," the man said, gently rubbing his thumb on the back of his wife's hand. "Just in case, let me help you get rid of the NIMPH."

The deal with Shuen hasn't been finalized yet, and I'm worried that brat will take advantage of my absence to direct you guys to do some brainless things again.

"Ah."

Mihara obediently nodded in response to the commander's suggestion.

In fact, after Phoenix returned to Ark and moved from the rehabilitation center to MMR affiliated high school, he had already mentioned the matter of disbanding NIMPH to Mihara.

However, after a moment's thought, the woman politely declined the commander's suggestion.

She was the first Nikki to refuse to be dismissed from NIMPH, and the reason was so simple and straightforward that it left others speechless.

Mihara finds being forced by her man's commands to be quite romantic...

That's it.

It was precisely because the reason for her refusal was so outrageous that Mihara, who knew how to be tactful, agreed without hesitation when Phoenix offered to remove NIMPH from her list of responsibilities.

So, the nanometal cut open Niki's finger.

The next second, under the watchful eyes of Yuni and Marian, Mihara acted as if no one was around and began to act coquettishly towards the commander. In the end, she got her wish and hugged her man's right hand, slowly losing consciousness with a smile on her face.

That was a textbook example of a clever trick. After witnessing the whole thing, the other two ladies present seemed to have received guidance from a sage, and their skill level suddenly jumped several notches.

Both of them had experienced the erosion virus and knew that apart from dizziness and loss of bodily control, this virus did not cause any other uncomfortable symptoms.