Chapter 81: Chapter 81: Isn’t This a Female?
Not long after Gu Ning left the building, several figures began to follow her.
Ten minutes later, Gu Ning arrived at the cooked food shop near the west gate of the construction site.
She didn’t go in right away. Instead, she stood by the trash can outside, craning her neck to peer inside.
A wave of warm, food-scented air drifted out of the shop, adding a bit of warmth to the cold, silent night.
But the shop looked empty, with no customers in sight.
It was probably because winter had set in, and with the construction site operating around the clock, business was slow. Only a few Beastman employees in aprons were busy in the open kitchen to one side.
Inside the kitchen, a few "employees" were talking in low voices, their gazes occasionally drifting outside.
"Another one’s here."
"Is that it?"
"Why isn’t it coming in?"
"Looks like a hungry Dwarf hybrid begging for food."
"Ah Ze, take some food out and send it on its way."
A vein throbbed on the temple of Wanai, who was standing to the side. He pressed down on Ming Ze’s shoulder, stopping him as he was about to go out with a roasted chicken. "That’s the one. Everyone, do as I said. If you mess this up, you’ll clean up your own mess."
Hearing this, Mingxi and the others all turned in unison to look at the small, thin figure outside the shop.
Through the greasy, dirty glass, they could only make out the silhouette of the Mimic Mixed Species.
Wanai stepped in front of them, blocking their line of sight. "Do you understand what I said?"
Mingxi was the first to react. "Got it. We’re just verifying its identity today, not capturing it."
"If you want to try and capture it, be my guest," Wanai said. "But don’t say I didn’t warn you. A Special Level Mimic Mixed Species is not easy to deal with. Besides, someone is protecting it right now. If you don’t follow my plan, I won’t be responsible for any problems that arise."
Mingxi and his teammates exchanged a look and nodded.
Outside the shop.
Gu Ning sent Barto two messages but received no reply after waiting for a while. Hunching her body against the cold, she stomped her numb feet. After hesitating and pacing in front of the shop for a moment, she finally walked toward it.
The shop’s sliding door was closed. Gu Ning reached out and pushed, but it didn’t budge. She used a little more force, but it still wouldn’t open. Finally, she had to grab the handle and use her shoulder to shove it.
In the past, whenever she came here to buy food, she’d always get it to go. There was a special window next to the entrance for serving Mixed Breeds, and she would just wait there without ever going inside the shop.
’I can’t believe this door is so heavy.’
"Welcome."
Gu Ning was pushing with all her might when the door was suddenly pulled open from the inside. She nearly lost her balance and crashed into the person who opened it.
Gu Ning barely managed to steady herself and looked up at the Beastman who had opened the door for her.
The Beastman had handsome, refined features and beautiful, medium-length brownish-gold hair, with a small ponytail tied at the back of his head. His expression was gentle, and he looked easy to get along with.
Gu Ning froze for a moment.
’Strange, did this shop change its staff?’
Although she’d never paid close attention to what the staff here looked like, the Beastman employees were usually loud and gruff-voiced. When they worked, they would roll up their sleeves to reveal muscular arms, brandishing their meat cleavers with a swift, brutish efficiency.
’This one... is so polite...’
She had never heard a Beastman say "Welcome" to her before.
Mingxi looked down. ’Is this... the Mimic Mixed Species?’
’Hmm... if it’s supposed to be a Dwarf hybrid, it’s way too small.’
Based on his knowledge of Mimic Mixed Species, they didn’t like to hunt Mixed Breeds. Mixed Breed genes would accelerate their degeneration, and a smart Mimic Mixed Species wouldn’t disguise itself as an unpopular type of Mixed Breed.
Unless it was a low-level, weak one that had to settle for hunting Mixed Breeds to replenish its energy.
But Wanai said it was a Special Level Mimic Mixed Species.
Mingxi didn’t dare to underestimate it. After a quick glance, he stepped aside to let it into the shop.
After he moved away, Gu Ning’s view opened up. Her eyes quickly scanned the shop, and she spotted the familiar red figure at a table in the very back.
It was Barto.
Barto was sitting in a chair built for a Beastman’s physique, most of its body hidden from view. Only its tail and a claw hanging by its side were visible. No wonder she hadn’t seen it from outside.
Seeing that it was there, Gu Ning relaxed.
"What would you like to eat?"
The Beastman’s clear, pleasant voice came from above her head.
She wanted to say she wasn’t eating, but now that she was here, she knew that as a Mixed Breed, if she didn’t buy anything, she would be kicked out for begging.
With that thought, she immediately took out a slip of paper and wrote: Two roasted chickens, to go.
’I’ll take them back for Cook to eat.’
’His appetite is huge right now. He can devour two whole chickens, bones and all.’
Mingxi took the note from the little Mixed Breed, glanced at it, and shouted to the kitchen, "Two roasted chickens to go!"
"You got it!" the kitchen shouted back loudly.
"Anything else?" Mingxi continued to ask the little Mixed Breed.
Gu Ning shook her head and walked quickly toward Barto.
She couldn’t call out to it, so she could only walk over to get its attention.
Gu Ning walked up behind Barto. Just as she was about to raise her hand to tap it, the lights in the shop suddenly went out, plunging her into darkness.
"What happened to the lights?"
"I don’t know. Did a breaker trip?"
"Someone go check the circuit breaker."
Gu Ning heard the employees’ voices, and the panic that had just started to rise in her heart subsided. Power outages were normal in Zone 19, especially after winter set in.
She activated her terminal, intending to use its light to see Barto.
’That’s weird, why isn’t Barto reacting at all?’
"Find some tools."
"It’s pitch-black in here, I can’t see a thing..."
Just as that voice finished speaking, Gu Ning was bumped by a figure in the dark.
She was sent flying sideways, completely unable to resist the force. The person who bumped into her hadn’t expected her to be so light and froze in place after the collision.
Gu Ning’s body slammed into a wall of flesh. The impact was so strong that her mind went blank.
’What’s going on?’
A pair of large hands steadied her.
"Hm? What’s this?"
The hands patted her down and then pushed her away again.
Before Gu Ning could react, she crashed into another wall of flesh.
In the darkness, Gu Ning was shoved back and forth like a pinball between several Beastman "employees" who had surrounded her at some point.
She was pushed until she was completely disoriented, unable to get a firm footing. The hard hat and goggles on her head were about to fall off.
Wanai caught the little Mixed Breed as it was pushed toward him. His fingers moved nimbly, quickly undoing the gear on its face. When his fingertips accidentally brushed across its cheek, he paused for a split second.
The skin under his fingertips was warm and smooth. A bit too... soft.
Realizing this was a Mimic Mixed Species disguised as a female, Wanai quickly snapped back to his senses. He frowned in disgust and pushed the little Mixed Breed toward Mingxi.
Mingxi caught the little Mixed Breed, spun it around to face him with a deft movement, and gripped its thin shoulders. He crouched down to get a good look at its face.
By the faint glow of the little Mixed Breed’s terminal, Mingxi could see its features clearly.
Its expression was panicked. The small bun on its head had come loose and was dangling at the nape of its neck, with stray strands of hair clinging to the sides of its face. Then, a beautiful face with soft, delicate features came into view.
"..."
Mingxi froze.
’This is a Mimic Mixed Species?’
’This is a Mimic Mixed Species?!?!’
’Isn’t this just a female?!’
’Have Mimic Mixed Species really evolved to this extent?’
Mingxi was utterly shocked.
"BAM!!!"
The main door was violently shoved open from the outside, followed by the piercing sound of a gunshot.
"Police! Everybody put your hands up!"
