Doomsday wonderland c1 8.., p.123
Doomsday Wonderland c1-855, page 123
The spot that Lin Sanjiu pointed to was actually 600 meters away from them. Furthermore, the few people weren't moving as they were intentionally hiding their presence so it was hard for Reno and Rena to detect them. However, this was too troublesome to explain. After she thought for a while, she quickly wrote, "You guys can shout. Who's there."
Reno acted immediately, once he read Lin Sanjiu's words, he raised his voice and yelled, "Who's there? Why are you acting sneakily! You better come out now!" The teenager's loud voice with a slightly threatening tone reverberated through the tunnel for some time. However, after he shouted a few times and the echoes in the tunnel faded, the people hiding ahead did not respond.
"Bro, if they don't want to come, let's just do it!" A young girl's voice immediate followed, "Don't you still have a few of your Ripple Spheres?"
Her words were effective. Once Rena said the words 'Ripple Sphere', they immediately heard a few distant, vague shouts coming from a distance. As the people were too far from them, they couldn't really make out what was said, except something like 'wait'. Reno and Rena held their breaths as straightened their backs, hiding Lin Sanjiu, who was behind them, from view. They watched cautiously as three black figures emerge from the faint light at the end of the tunnel and slowly walked towards them.
The black figures grew larger until they were some distance away from Lin Sanjiu and the siblings. Both parties were now visible to each other. The strangers stopped, keeping a safe distance between themselves and the siblings, somehow showing some etiquette.
Reno and Rena blocked Lin Sanjiu from view, so she simply sat on the train tracks and peeked from behind them through the gap between the siblings. From a single glance, Lin Sanjiu could tell that the three people were definitely from the Twelve Worlds Centrum. People who struggle desperately to survive from other apocalyptic worlds certainly didn't have the mood to dress that well.
The tall woman that Lin Sanjiu saw wore a glossy red deep red lipstick on her plump moist lips. It seemed well-applied and fresh. The woman, with quite a good figure, in those high heel leather boots, probably reapplied her makeup often. Standing beside a little person (LP), accentuated her height.
The LP man was short and tubby. He was wearing a small tailcoat. Despite his dwarfish proportions, he had a cheerful, amiable face that was hard to hate. When Lin Sanjiu looked at him, he blinked his eyes, which seemed too large for his face, and introduced his party with a friendly smile, "I'm Derik. This is Miss Hannie Huang. That is brother Zhu Mingchun."
The man called Zhu Mingchun had a very average appearance. There was nothing notable about it except for the muscular frame and his dull expression. His eyes had not blinked since the two parties met.
Before the siblings could react, Derik gave a modest and gentle bow. Then, he apologized to the siblings, "We heard some sounds from the tunnel just now. Not knowing if you guys were friends or foes, we hid. Truth be told, we made some enemies in this world so we really have to be careful. That was why when you guys tried to call us out, we hesitated…"
Derik seemed to be tasked with representing his team.
Even though he sounded reasonable, the siblings couldn't help feeling suspicious of their previous actions. The siblings might be young and energetic, but they were not so naive that they would trust these people so easily.
Reno raised his chin and replied cautiously, "Why were you guys hiding?"
"Sigh. Since both of you are from Twelve Worlds Centrum, I will tell you the truth." Though Derik looked unsophisticated, he sounded very cultured. Even though he was speaking to the two minors, he spoke politely to them, "We got information that an item we wanted could be found in this place. Our enemies who are looking for the same item also got the news. To avoid being ambushed by our enemies, we had to be vigilant…"
Once he said that, the tall woman called Hannie Huang opened her mouth and spoke in a brash manner, "You guys have Ripple Spheres? State your price. We need some right now." Lin Sanjiu immediately understood why Derik had to be the spokesperson for their team.
The explosives which Reno used to blast the building were called Ripple Spheres. Since he had thrown a chain of those explosives, Lin Sanjiu did not know if he still had any. Reno gave Hannie a sidelong glance and folded his arms, "We're not selling."
Derik quickly mediated the situation, "Miss Huang, you're too rash… We are all from Twelve Worlds Centrum, so we sort of share a similar hometown. I wonder where you two might be heading?"
Even though Derik maintained the same decorum, Reno and Rena could easily sense that 'I hope you two leave quickly' vibe from the man. The situation suddenly got awkward. It wasn't as if the siblings didn't want to leave but they couldn't move now. If they moved, Lin Sanjiu would be seen. Just when the two kids exchanged hesitant glances at each other, Lin Sanjiu simply stood up and walked out from behind them.
Seeing a horrifying 'creature' emerging from the darkness, the man called Zhu Mingchun was alarmed. While the other two people beside him gasped softly, he was the first to react. With a yell, he leaped forward. From the looks of it, he was also a fighter-type combatant. Zhu Mingchun's movements were very quick. In just a split second, like a fleeting shadow, he bypassed the siblings and aimed his kick at Lin Sanjiu before the siblings could even react.
However, Lin Sanjiu, who was well-versed in physical fighting herself, didn't think much of his attack. How could the agility of a physical body compare to her higher consciousness form? In her current form, all movements created from any physical body seemed somewhat sluggish to her. With a slight jump, she avoided the man's kick. As she fell, she condensed the higher consciousness of her leg bones, making them tangible. Then, she landed a kick on the man's knee. Zhu Mingchun immediately let out a painful cry.
At the same time, Reno and Rena finally reacted to the situation. As Rena stepped forward to block Zhu Mingchun, Reno said angrily, "What are you trying to do with our teammate?"
The three people in front of them were shocked. Derik and Hannie exchanged glances before Derik stammered, "Isn't that... Isn't that a duoluozhong? How could…"
It really wasn't all that surprising how Lin Sanjiu was misidentified. The whole incident was not a big deal, but Lin Sanjiu could shake off the feeling that the Hannie woman had been trying to size her up. This wasn't unusual since 'something' like Lin Sanjiu was a rare sight. However, Hannie seemed to be concentrating on only one part of Lin Sanjiu. As Lin Sanjiu facing the three people directly, she spotted when Hannie took two steps to the side and tilted her head… as if trying to see Lin Sanjiu's back.
To be honest, Lin Sanjiu's back only consisted of two kidneys and some mucous membrane, there wasn't really anything interesting about it. Suspicious, Lin Sanjiu shifted her position. As Hannie didn't want to appear too conspicuous, she had no choice but to give up on seeing Lin Sanjiu's back.
"Oh, is that so? What a rare ability!" Derik did not doubt the siblings' words, "But, it is easy to make such faux pas in a place like Kisaragi Station. It pays to be careful…" After his superficial comment, Derik hesitated for a moment before he said almost apologetically, "I think you guys and that fella must be quite powerful," he pointed at Lin Sanjiu. It was probably inconceivable to him that a woman would end up looking like that. "Since you got the upper hand fighting against Brother Zhu, may I be so bold to ask a favor…"
"Could I invite you three to join in our operations to fight against our enemies? They have more men and are more well-equipped…" Derik clenched his teeth for a second, "We heard that there is quite a number of Special Items around here. With only the three of us, we can't get all of them. Once everything is settled, we can give you 30% of the stash."
Chapter 227 - A Woman Must Protect Her Waist
The sound of footsteps on the train tracks broke the silence in the dark tunnel. The vague noises of human chatter gradually grew clearer as the footsteps headed in the direction of the exit.
"It's a self-driving train after all. It isn't really that weird if it stops suddenly. Maybe, there is a fault…" The most distinct voice from the chatter was one that was low and mellow. After that person spoke, he laughed, "But, luckily that train broke down, otherwise we wouldn't have helpers!"
Just as that sentence was spoken, the group of people finally walked out from the tunnel. The person leading the group was a LP wearing a tailcoat. He raised his arm and pointed to the street, not far from them, and gave a thoughtful explanation to the teenage siblings and the reddish humanoid, "This area was once a financial district so there are many banks here. We chose this place as a strategic base because it is easy to defend…"
The person who spoke was Derik. Naturally, the people he was talking to were Reno, Rena and Lin Sanjiu. Initially, the three of them didn't want to participate in the complicated mess. However, Derik didn't give up and continued to persuade them earnestly. He also raised his proposal to a 50:50 split, instead of the 70:30 he initially offered. With his pleasant attitude and charming way of speaking, he made it difficult for them to reject him.
With three other people observing them, Lin Sanjiu couldn't even communicate in written words to the siblings even if she wanted to. The siblings looked at each other and Rena finally spoke, "We don't wish to be dragged into your conflicts, so—"
"What about this?" Derik interjected, "As we don't have enough people, even guarding this place is quite troublesome. Since you guys don't want to get involved, why don't you help as just guards in this place? We will still split 30% of what we get with you!"
He was very tactful in his negotiation. He started with a difficult request for them to join them in battle, before he reduced the request to something simpler like guarding the premise. He even offered a good reward, so it was really hard for them to reject him. Just as Lin Sanjiu sighed, Reno acted as she expected. He paused to think for some time and agreed, "I think that's alright."
Derik immediately showed his great satisfaction at the outcome. He quickly took lead and brought the siblings and Lin Sanjiu out of the tunnel. The infrastructure in Kisaragi Station was very strange, so when they came out of the tunnel, they found themselves right in the financial district.
"Who did you guys offend? How did it happen?" Rena asked Derik while she walked beside her brother. She had not removed her gloves from the moment her group met the other trio and instead kept her hands in the pockets of her Tully dress.
Hannie answered her instead, "You guys are from Red Nautilus so you probably have never heard of them. Our enemies are a group who have recently gained infamy in Jade Paradise. They are ruthless and arrogant. They are a group of seven people. Every now and then, they would create trouble for us."
With her explanation, it was obvious to the siblings and Lin Sanjiu why they were so desperate to find people to help them. The difference in the number of members was too large. Rena quietly explained to Lin Sanjiu that Jade Paradise was one of the worlds in Twelve Worlds Centrum.
"We purchased a very expensive detector from The Munitions Factory and detected the existence of Special Items around this area… As you know, it takes a long time to actually find a Special Item even after detection… Sigh. We can only blame ourselves for not being more careful. And so, we were targeted by that group from Jade Paradise," Derik sighed quite a few times, seeming to regret the matter.
"How many flashing dots did you see on your detector?" Reno couldn't help asking.
Hearing this, Derik smiled faintly and whispered, "Exactly 27."
Reno and Rena both took a sharp breath when they heard this. It was extremely difficult to manufacture a Special Item Detector. So, even if it was created by The Munitions Factory, it was flawed. Special Items detected by the detector were indicated by small flashing dots on its screen, as the false-positive rate was high, it had an error rate of 30%.
However, the number of Special Items indicated was quite extraordinary, even if they took account of the error rate.
"That many? That explains why those people targeted you guys." Reno mumbled.
"They made it very clear that they wanted everything, declaring that they would not spare anyone who got in their way. We have a difficult battle ahead of us…" Derik sighed and brought the group of them to a bank building situated among a few other office buildings.
Compared to the other business buildings, a bank has better security features and a stronger structure. It also has windows with bulletproof glass. In other words, a bank is an ideal place to defend against attackers.
"We were lucky. We found the key of this bank on a duoluozhong nearby so we didn't have to destroy any part of its structure," Derik explained when Hannie took out a remote control key. The metal shutters of the bank rolled upward slowly, revealing thick glass doors. They could see their reflection on the cold large marble floors.
After calling the siblings to enter, Derik and his team walked into the bank like it was their house.
"Hey, let's not mingle with them for too long," Rena said quietly to her brother and Lin Sanjiu when they walked through the doors of the bank, "It sounds dangerous. We don't even have anything to do with it, so why should we take this risk…"
"But… There are 27 Special items here," Reno was a little hesitant, "We have already used up quite a lot of the items we brought…"
Lin Sanjiu couldn't help thinking of the cylindrical container she was trapped in previously.
" Sometimes, a powerful Special Item was game-changing. If I still had to stay in Kisaragi Station for such a long time, it wouldn't be a bad idea to collect a few more Special Items, " Lin Sanjiu thought to herself absent-mindedly while she followed the siblings into the bank.
The front lobby of the bank seemed wide and empty as everything that could be moved had been cleared from the middle of the lobby. There were a few random doc.u.ments on the ground and the seats meant for waiting customers were strewn haphazardly to one side. There was still a stack of cash on the table previously used for form-filling.
After showing Reno and Rena their base of operation, Derik took out a hand-drawn map when they weren't noticing. Even though the drawings on the map looked simple and crude, the map was detailed. Every street and corner had been carefully drawn. From the path that they took from the tunnel, it was clear that the map was very accurate.
After all, the opposing party had more members, came from Twelve Worlds Centrum, and most certainly had many rare items, so they had to be extremely cautious. After everyone had sat in a circle around the map, Derik circled the area where they had a skirmish with their enemies. He briefed the team about what had happened and his analysis.
"And, that's about it. Do you have questions?" When Derik had almost finished the briefing, he looked at the team and asked.
Zhu Mingchun shot a very quick glance at Rena's lower back. He looked for just a split second before looking away and acted like nothing had happened. Though it was just a swift look, Lin Sanjiu noticed it.
Chapter 228 - An Unexpected Discovery
Daytime only lasted for a short while before nightfall silently arrived. The last rays of the sun lingered in the dark murky sky as if unwilling to depart. Finally, reaching a consensus, the sky turned into a dark deep blue, such that the clouds appeared blue. The wind swept gently through the silent cities devoid of human life. The sound of the breeze ironically accentuated the silence all around.
The group stood on the rooftop of the bank building and looked at the dots of yellow light in the distance. Those light seemed like the only sign of anything living within the lifeless darkness. Though Kisaragi Station was a recently formed world, the sides of the bank building were already overrun with ivy.
"Those lights are probably switched on by duoluozhongs to attract survivors," Hannie suddenly commented, as though she had noticed Lin Sanjiu looking in the direction of the lights. Lin Sanjiu was startled by the woman's keen observation.
Even though their agreement was for Reno and Rena to guard to place, Derik's group probably didn't trust them enough. Consequently, Derik sent Hannie to patrol the place with Lin Sanjiu.
After they ate dinner, Hannie's lips were once again a bright red. She had done some touch-up when nobody noticed. Whenever she walked, her high-heeled leather boots made loud clackity sounds which could be heard from afar. However, it didn't seem like a concern for Hannie. She wore her boots proudly without showing any signs of changing her footwear any time soon.
Her acute sense of observation mismatched her straightforward personality.
After observing for some time that the western streets were quiet, the two women turned and headed toward another side of the building.
"Your ability is quite strange," Hannie couldn't help commenting after a long time of silence between them. "Is it for scaring others?"
Lin Sanjiu shot a glance at Hannie and shook her head. As she moved, the neck muscles pulsed and contracted. It was a rather gruesome sight to behold, so Hannie quickly looked away. Lin Sanjiu did not communicate by written in front of Derik and the others just to keep a hidden ace with her.
From Hannie's perspective, it was better to patrol the place with a mute than a hideous, incomplete anatomy figure. Hannie scoffed and ignored Lin Sanjiu, walking away noisily. Lin Sanjiu couldn't fathom how that woman could survive in an apocalyptic world.
"Perhaps, this was an affordance only residents of Twelve Worlds Centrum have?" Lin Sanjiu thought to herself. Even though Hannie was constantly on standby, her makeup was perfect and her soft wavy hair was always kempt. She wore a high-collared, wine-colored sleeveless blouse and a pair of skintight shorts. Her outfit accentuated her beautiful figure but it was hard to imagine that she could fight in it.
