Chapter 111: The System’s Exception
Although the boy was small and slight, he still managed to push the man back several steps, making him stumble and nearly fall.
Furious at losing face in front of so many of his fellow base residents, the man tried to hit the little boy.
But the boy was as nimble as a monkey. He used his small frame to slip through the crowd and vanish.
The surrounding area was all part of an industrial park with a complex layout. Anyone unfamiliar with it would almost certainly get lost inside.
The little boy didn’t say a single word, his face resolute as he came and went in a flash.
Douglas Donovan sighed. "What a poor kid."
Lily Hart asked curiously, "You know him, Base Commander?"
He shook his head. "I don’t. But a kid that young having to snatch food... how could you not feel sorry for him?"
’I think the residents getting robbed are pretty pitiful too...’
This was the first time Lily Hart had ever encountered something like this. She found it strange. ’Weren’t the scratch-off prizes supposed to have a protective mechanism?’
’So how could it be stolen?’
She asked the System, and the answer she received was, "I don’t know, Host. Perhaps that child is a chosen one."
Lily Hart didn’t believe it—that someone could be an exception to the System—but the facts were undeniable.
Lily Hart didn’t like to dwell on things she couldn’t understand. It was a waste of time and energy.
The System also found it strange. In all its years of operation, it had never encountered an exception.
It desperately wanted to investigate the little boy, but reason told it not to. It couldn’t interfere with the development of humanity.
So, it let the matter drop.
While the group was having lunch, Lily Hart mused, "I’d really love to go check out that industrial park..."
In truth, she was interested in the little boy and hoped she might find him.
Frost Shaw looked up at it. The industrial park was enormous, roughly the same size as Fortune Base.
In the old world, this area had been full of factories producing all sorts of things: daily necessities, cosmetics, baby strollers, light bulbs...
Roman Rowe didn’t get it. "Why would you want to go in there? I’ve been. It’s no fun, just a confusing maze."
"I’ll go with you this afternoon," Frost Shaw said simply. "Should we close the shop?"
Lily Hart nodded. "Yeah, let’s close up. We can give Diana and the others the afternoon off to get some rest."
Roman Rowe glanced from Lily Hart to Frost Shaw, then lowered his head and quietly went back to eating his meal.
After lunch, Lily Hart eagerly started packing, as if she were about to go on vacation.
She packed snacks, amusements, and supplies, stuffing a backpack full.
In the end, the backpack landed on Frost Shaw’s back. Lily Hart urged Diana and the others, "Go on back to the convenience store. No need to worry about things here."
"I’ve activated the highest level of security, so no one can get in or break anything."
The two of them set off, entering the industrial park through the nearest gate. The grounds were overgrown with weeds.
Weeds sprouted from the walls, from the cracks between bricks, and across the rooftops, and every plant was gigantic.
Lily Hart gazed left and right, finding it all wonderfully strange. It felt like she had stepped into a world built for giants.
This was the first time she had left her lottery shop since arriving in this post-apocalyptic world.
The plants were massive. Some were so large they blotted out the sun, which filtered through the gaps in their leaves to cast dappled spots of light on the ground.
Frost Shaw took the lead, clearing a path through the overgrown weeds, while Lily Hart followed closely behind, her head swiveling from side to side.
Suddenly, a RUSTLE RUSTLE came from the tall grass to their right. A thousand possibilities flashed through Lily Hart’s mind.
Her nerves went taut. Frost Shaw immediately pulled her behind him, formed a blade of ice in his hand, and sliced away the patch of weeds to reveal what was hidden within.
It was a litter of kittens. The mother cat’s back was arched high as she shielded her babies, her eyes fixed warily on the intruders.
Lily Hart breathed a sigh of relief and patted Frost Shaw’s arm. "It’s alright, it’s alright."
But she couldn’t bear to see the cats looking so pitiful. She produced a bag of cat food and a pile of cat treats, set them down nearby, and then she and Frost Shaw quickly left.
The mother cat then cautiously emerged. It sniffed at the food and began tearing at the bag with its teeth.
Kibble scattered across the ground. The mother cat immediately turned and ushered her kittens out to eat. The little ones ate with joyous abandon.
Lily Hart and Frost Shaw watched from behind a broken wall, peeking through a crack. Neither could suppress a faint smile.
The mother cat was remarkably clever, dragging the leftover food and treats back into the tall grass to hide them.
They watched for a while longer before moving on. Lily Hart was fascinated by everything. "I thought people said there weren’t any plants left? Why are there so many here?"
Frost Shaw explained, "All these plants are at risk of mutating. Mutated ones will attack people, so we have to be careful."
"Oh..." Lily Hart said, understanding.
No sooner had the words left her mouth than a leaf drifted down onto Lily Hart’s shoulder. She was about to pick it up and examine it when Frost Shaw brushed it off.
"Hm? Was that a mutated plant?" Lily Hart took an involuntary step back.
’She knew so little about the apocalypse. It was best to listen to what Frost Shaw said when they were outside.’
"Just a precaution," Frost Shaw said cautiously.
"Right!" Lily Hart agreed.
They both began to tread more lightly, moving with extreme caution. In truth, Frost Shaw was only being so careful because Lily Hart’s nervousness was rubbing off on him.
Lily Hart whispered, "What’s that?" while patting Frost Shaw’s arm. Then, without letting go, she let her hand rest there, covering his arm quite naturally.
Frost Shaw froze. He followed her pointed finger and saw a swaying Little Red Flower. How to describe it? It was... well, it was very much a "Little Red Flower."
It had no green leaves, just five bright red petals. And in the very center, where the pistil should be, was a face with eyes, a nose, and a mouth. Tell me, isn’t that terrifying?
It stood on a single stem, planted in the dirt, swaying back and forth, back and forth, like a lullaby in motion. It stood out starkly against the sea of green weeds, which was why Lily Hart had spotted it instantly.
As the two of them watched the Little Red Flower sway, Lily Hart suddenly felt a wave of drowsiness wash over her. ’I’m so sleepy... I just want to sleep...’
With that thought, her head tilted to one side, and she slumped directly against Frost Shaw’s arm.
Frost Shaw didn’t dare move. He stiffly, slowly, turned his head to the right. Her hands were draped limply over his arm, and her head was resting, completely vulnerable, against his bicep.
Her eyes were closed, her breathing was even, and her face was peaceful and serene. She looked as if she had fallen fast asleep.
Frost Shaw hesitated for a moment before reaching out with his left hand to pat her soft cheek. The sensation was incredible. He whispered, "Lily Hart? Wake up?"
When patting didn’t wake her, he resorted to pinching. Frost Shaw finally did something he’d long wanted to but never dared: he gently pinched Lily Hart’s cheeks. The gesture, not too hard and not too soft, felt surprisingly intimate.
"Lily Hart? Lily Hart!"
If not for her shallow breathing, Frost Shaw might have thought she was dead. But strangely, her legs seemed to be rooted to the spot, keeping her upright even as her body leaned heavily against him.
One side of Frost Shaw’s body was completely stiff; he didn’t dare to move a muscle. He glared at the Little Red Flower and said in an icy voice, "Stop swaying. You sway one more time and I’ll rip you out by the roots!"
The Little Red Flower paused for a fraction of a second... and then began to sway even more enthusiastically. Its eyes curved into gleeful crescents as it shook with all its might! Shake, shake, shake!
Frost Shaw tore his gaze away, refusing to look at it. This Little Red Flower was clearly hypnotic; staring at it for too long would make one’s mind go blank and fall into a deep sleep. He had living proof of that right beside him.
He’d never seen such a bizarre plant anywhere else.