Chapter 8: Chapter Eight: You Probably Won

"That's great—we made it!"

"We finally landed—we're alive!"

From midair flips and life-or-death drops to decompression and sideways crash-landings, any one of those crises would have been fatal.

Yet they all survived them.

Everyone embraced and wept.

Never before had they felt how precious life was, how fragile human existence could be.

Fortunately, they were still alive.

"By the way! Captain—get the captain out here!"

"Yes, yes, hurry and bring the captain! Ma De, I’m filing a complaint against you!"

"Complaint—definitely a complaint!"

Amid their joy, the passengers were emotionally charged.

Anger, confusion, resentment...

NH137’s safe landing and survival through the crisis must be due to the captain’s skill.

Yet NH137’s danger was also inseparable from the captain’s actions.

Like a domino effect, or a butterfly effect—mention the captain, and the passengers erupted in outrage, surging toward the cockpit demanding answers.

Over two hundred passengers rushed forward.

Their roar was like a flood, like a beast ready to swallow them whole.

The flight attendants had never seen such a scene—they panicked, frantically begging passengers to calm down.

As for physically stopping the passengers?

They didn’t do it.

In fact, not just the passengers—the flight attendants were angry too, wanting to demand to know how the captain had flown the plane, nearly costing everyone their lives.

Only Takee Sashiko was trying to stop the passengers.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please calm down and listen to me."

Takee Sashiko was closest to the cockpit.

She bore the brunt of the passengers’ fury, yet she didn’t retreat—she spread her arms to block the door.

Others might not know the truth, but she did.

She knew clearly—this wasn’t the captain’s fault.

"Ladies and gentlemen, listen to me—the accident had nothing to do with Captain Hasegawa. Don’t blame him."

It was like a rebound from rock bottom.

The moment Takee Sashiko spoke, the angry passengers heard her,

and their rage ignited instantly, exploding outward.

"Bullshit! If the plane flew like that, who else could be to blame but the captain?"

"Do you think we’re fools? This crash couldn’t have happened without the captain’s incompetence!"

"Exactly! What kind of nonsense are you spouting?!"

Hundreds of curses poured out continuously, drowning out Takee Sashiko’s words.

At the same time, the passengers surged forward.

Toward the cockpit door.

Since the flight attendant wouldn’t move, they’d break the door down themselves.

"Mina-san, follow me—let’s storm in and drag the captain out for answers!"

"Yes! Break in, grab the captain, and ask him—Ma De, I want to see what kind of twisted motive he had to kill us!"

At that moment, the passengers’ rage ignited and exploded completely.

Yet just as the passengers frantically surged forward—

"The captain is dead!!!"

The voice, hoarse and desperate, came from Takee Sashiko.

She stood with arms outstretched before the door, eyes tightly shut, screaming with the loudest voice she’d ever mustered—her voice cracked, pouring every ounce of strength into it!

The cabin fell utterly silent.

The passengers’ furious faces froze, stunned, unable to believe what they’d heard.

As if they’d just heard the most absurd thing in the world.

Only for a moment.

Then noise erupted again.

And this time, even louder than before.

"Impossible! How could the captain be dead? If he were dead, who flew the plane? Who landed us safely? You’re lying!"

"Yes, you’re definitely lying to us."

"You’re just trying to stop us from entering the cockpit—that’s why you’re saying this!"

"Exactly! Exactly!"

Facing their accusations, disbelief, and the renewed rush toward her—

Takee Sashiko didn’t grow angry or retreat—she kept her arms outstretched to block them:

"The captain really is dead—he died during the plane’s ascent. He was... "

Click!

The cockpit door opened.

Everyone—including Takee Sashiko—fell silent, all eyes turning to the door.

Huh?!

A teenager?!

When the door opened and they saw who stepped out, everyone except Takee Sashiko froze.

"Hey."

Wang Zun stepped out, noticing hundreds of eyes fixed on him, and raised a hand in greeting.

Instantly, some eyes widened to the size of saucers, others turned wild.

Their expressions were eerily uniform.

Shock. Astonishment.

Is this a joke? How could there be a high school student in a commercial airliner’s cockpit? Could it be... the crash happened because a teenager was messing around?

Right!

Where was the captain? The first officer?

How could a high school student even get into the cockpit?

One question after another swirled in the minds of the passengers and flight attendants.

Just then—

"Ladies and gentlemen, please make way."

Wang Zun stepped out, waved his hand, signaling everyone to clear space.

Then someone stepped out behind him.

"Gasp! Is that the captain?!" Someone suddenly cried out as the crowd puzzled over Wang Zun’s actions.

Instantly—

Everyone turned pale, some even gasped aloud.

In their gaze—

After the teenager emerged from the cockpit, two more people followed.

One was a middle-aged man in civilian clothes; the other was the first officer.

They knew the second man was the first officer, not the captain, because the two weren’t walking out—they were carrying something.

A corpse.

The body of a middle-aged man in uniform.

Judging by appearance, he was older than the first officer—clearly the captain.

"It really is the captain... he’s dead..."

Seeing the captain’s body, the passengers and flight attendants turned sharply toward Takee Sashiko.

She hadn’t lied.

She’d told the truth.

"What happened? If the captain’s dead, who flew the plane?" a passenger whispered, eyes clouded with confusion.

To answer everyone’s confusion, Takee Sashiko spoke.

"Actually... the captain died before the plane even ascended. When I opened the door, I saw..."

Takee Sashiko recounted what she had seen.

Not long after—

She finished speaking, looked up at everyone, her expression sorrowful, wiping away tears.

"The captain was probably killed by a bird strike."

The passengers’ faces grew complex.

They misunderstood the captain; from start to finish, the captain remained dutifully at the controls until his death.

“If not the captain, then who was flying?” someone asked Takee Sashiko.

Without hesitation, Takee Sashiko extended her hand, her finger brushing past Nakano, pausing slightly, then pointing at Mori Takeshi.

“I don’t think I’m wrong—it was this gentleman who flew the plane and saved us all.”

In her view,

the first officer’s eyes were injured.

It was clearly impossible for him to have executed such expert piloting.

Only Mori Takeshi, who remained calm amid the crisis during the plane’s ascent, could have saved NH137.

Unconsciously, Takee Sashiko grasped Mori Takeshi’s hand, her face filled with gratitude.

“Thank you for saving…”

At that moment, other passengers also moved forward, eager to sincerely thank Mori Takeshi.

Now, everyone understood the full sequence of events that led to the plane’s emergency, and realized their safe return depended entirely on the pilot.

Without the pilot, they would have been dead for sure.

They were alive now solely because of the pilot—naturally, they were overflowing with gratitude.

“You’re mistaken,” Mori Takeshi interrupted Takee Sashiko. “I didn’t save you. I didn’t fly the plane.”

Huh?

You weren’t flying?

Everyone, including Takee Sashiko, froze, instinctively turning to look at Nakano.

If not Mori Takeshi, then it must have been Nakano.

Instantly, awe filled the crowd.

Nakano was incredible—so dedicated.

Even with injured eyes, he flew with such skill—unbelievable.

Yet, as soon as these thoughts surfaced,

Mori Takeshi pointed to Wang Zun beside him.

“You might not believe this, but since the captain died, the one who flew the entire time was Kamikawa Mitsu—he saved us all.”

Mori Takeshi’s words rang out.

The passengers’ first reaction was immediate:

Are you kidding me?

As if sensing their disbelief, Mori Takeshi spoke bluntly, recounting every detail.

As the only person idle in the cockpit, Mori Takeshi could do nothing but observe Wang Zun flying the plane.

Thus, he knew every detail of how Wang Zun piloted.

In just a few minutes, Mori Takeshi described the scene vividly, while everyone listening turned pale.

Shock, horror, eeriness, wonder—

all surged through their hearts.

When Mori Takeshi finished,

the men swallowed hard, the women trembled, and every single person felt a chill crawl up their spine, overcome with dread.

They had never imagined NH137 had endured such terrifying dangers.

It was almost miraculous—they had survived such peril…

The next moment,

everyone turned to Wang Zun.

It was him!

This high school student saved us!

Feeling all eyes upon him, Wang Zun fell silent.

He hated dealing with scenes like this.

“Minasan.”

Wang Zun opened his mouth, preparing to change the subject, when a voice came from outside the cabin.

“Those inside who have taken over the plane, listen: you are surrounded. Don’t even think about escaping—you can’t. Drop your weapons. Don’t add to your crimes. You still have a chance for a lighter sentence. Otherwise, you’ll face severe legal punishment.”

…

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