Chapter 191: Chapter 191 Unease
...
Back in the space system, Laurel stood weakly with a frying pan in her hand as she stared at the unconscious Chris and Alexander. Her fingers tightened faintly around the handle while her eyes moved between them as if she was trying to reassure herself that they were truly still asleep and not about to open their eyes at the worst possible moment.
Her body still felt cold and heavy, but she forced herself to move, and with slow unsteady steps she walked closer before crouching beside them. She shakily placed her fingers beneath Alexander’s nose, holding her breath for a brief moment before quietly exhaling when she felt the faint warmth of his breath against her skin.
She moved to Chris next and repeated the same action with the same care, and only after she confirmed that he too was still breathing did she let out a sigh of relief. Laurel lowered her hand, though her grip on the frying pan did not loosen completely.
Luo floated to her side and looked at her with a calm expression. "Master Laurel, you do not need to worry. They are fine."
Laurel nodded faintly. "I know," she muttered, though her voice sounded tired and unconvinced even to her own ears. She slowly sat down on the floor beside them, the frying pan still in her hand, then stared at nothing for a moment before speaking again. "It is just that... the great hunt will destroy everything."
Luo remained beside her, listening quietly.
"In my past life, that was when everything truly changed," Laurel said, her brows knitting together as old memories surfaced in her mind one after another.
"At first, the monsters were dangerous, but people could still struggle and survive. There were fortresses, there were groups, there were still places that looked like life had not completely collapsed yet." She paused, her gaze drifting toward the floor.
"But once the great hunt started, most of that was wiped away. The monsters slaughtered survivors everywhere, and the higher level monsters began appearing one after another. That was when everything became drastic."
She swallowed faintly, then continued, her voice quieter now. "At that time, all of us believed they were just mutated animals. We thought something in the world had gone wrong and turned them into those things just like the infected. But after some time, we realized that was not the truth at all."
Luo tilted his head slightly. "Another dimension," he said.
Laurel nodded. "Yes. They came from another dimension." Her eyes darkened a little as she thought about it. "If that is the case, then if we close the portals, wouldn’t that solve the problem?"
Luo was silent for a brief moment before shaking his head. "That is near impossible. The portals are random, and their appearance is unstable. They do not remain fixed in one place and they do not open in a pattern that can be controlled."
Laurel frowned slightly as she looked at him. "Then is there nothing in the system that can help? Nothing I can trade for that would help seal the portals?"
Luo shook his head again.
That simple action made Laurel’s shoulders sink a little, and her head dropped slightly in disappointment as if the answer had pressed down on her chest harder than she expected. For a moment she said nothing, and the silence inside the space house stretched around them.
Laurel feared that even her knowledge about the past might not make things easier for them... what if she was not good enough to help in the situation... What if she could not protect the ones she wanted to... What if...
Then a low groan broke the silence.
Laurel’s head snapped up so quickly that a strand of hair fell across her face.
Alexander’s brows twitched faintly, and his eyes began to flutter open, his expression still dazed and unfocused as if he had not yet figured out where he was or what had happened. Laurel stared at him for one second, then in the very next instant her hand moved on instinct.
Clang.
The frying pan came down on his head with a sharp metallic sound.
Alexander’s eyes rolled shut again immediately.
Laurel froze. Her eyes widened in horror, and her other hand flew straight to her mouth.
"I... I didn’t mean to do that," she whispered in shock, staring at him as if she could reverse what had just happened if she looked hard enough. "I mean... I did, but not like that... forgive me."
Luo floated silently beside her for a moment, then turned his head toward Chris. Laurel followed his gaze.
Both of them stared at Chris and waited for him to wake up. A second passed, then another. But Chris did not move.
Laurel frowned. "That’s strange..."
"That’s strange..." Luo echoed at the exact same time.
They both turned to look at each other briefly before their eyes returned to Chris, and the quiet unease that settled between them was enough to make Laurel’s grip on the frying pan tighten again.
"Why is he still not awake?" Laurel muttered under her breath. "He was knocked unconscious the same time as Mr. Wayne."
Luo hovered a little closer to Chris, then narrowed his eyes as if trying to inspect him. "Perhaps it is because of his condition."
Laurel’s expression hardened. "That is what worries me."
She slowly leaned toward Chris, studying his face more carefully. There was no pain in his expression, no sign of distress, but something about his continued unconsciousness made her chest feel heavy in a way she did not like.
She reached out slightly as if to check him again, but before she could, a strange unease stirred inside her, a faint restless sensation that she could not explain.
It made her think of Tina. Her hand paused midway.
"Master Laurel?" Luo asked when he noticed her expression.
She slowly drew her hand back. "I don’t know why," she murmured, "but I keep having a bad feeling."
