Doomsday Wonderland c1-855

by N. Heller

  That face which previously avoided Lin Sanjiu's gaze was now peeking through the ajar door with half his face. They could see that the person was male. When he realized that they had turned back to look at him, he immediately shuddered.

  Lin Sanjiu tossed a glance at him. Then, she turned and walked away, paying no heed to that mental patient. Yet, she froze the very next second when she heard a voice from behind.

  "Are… are you posthumans?"

  The man spoke very quietly as if he was afraid that he might wake the other unconscious men, "Did you eat anything unintentionally?"

  Almost all the posthumans in this world were skinny and malnourished. This was especially true for that man. He was wearing skinny jeans but the leg trousers were hung loosely around his legs.

  "Bring… bring me along with you," the man's face was large and round despite his skinny frame. It looked like a dish plate secured on top of a rod, "I can't stay here any longer."

  "You're not insane?" Lin Sanjiu narrowed her eyes. She was like wound-up spring, she really couldn't tell who was sane and who wasn't.

  "I'm not. I didn't eat anything," the large-faced man shook his head immediately, "Whenever they gave me food, I would chew it and spit it out after that."

  He probably noticed their unconvinced faces so he quickly took out a palm-sized, toy-like, silver little trash can. "Look, this is one of my Special Items… I can throw away as much trash as I want as long as the item fits the opening of the trash can."

  As he said that, he picked up a few rocks from the ground the threw it into the trash can. They heard a thud. When he turned the trash can to empty it, nothing came out from it. It was empty just as he described.

  Lin Sanjiu and her companions' expressions immediately relaxed a little. However, they suddenly became tensed again.

  "So," Lin Sanjiu stared at him icily, "you are a posthuman."

  "Yes. Yes," the large-faced man replied hastily.

  "How did you infiltrate this place? They didn't treat you as an alien?"

  "It's a long story," the large-faced man sighed. "I came here with a comrade. There he is," he turned behind and pointed at Doggo, who was still unconscious. "He was originally a posthuman…"

  "What happened?" the grand prize couldn't help asking.

  "We came here last month. We were only three months away from our next world so we decided to find a secluded place to wait till we got out of this shitty world. I don't even want to stay another second. Unfortunately, we met this old man and one other lunatic."

  Lin Sanjiu frowned. She noticed that he used the words "one other".

  "Although they were off their rockers then, they were meek and quiet. They didn't speak much and didn't go against us. Once, we told them to sweep the floor jokingly. Surprisingly, they really did. After that, ahem, we ordered them to do some chores," the large-faced man did not show any hint of remorse when he said that. "In the end, we had almost the same experience as you. They added sugar to our cups secretly. If Doggo didn't drink his cup of water first and noticed something amiss, I would also have fallen into their trap. Say, who would have thought of that!

  "For some reason, I didn't run away after Doggo went mad… I stayed behind and acted crazy. I listened to the old man telling us that many aliens had arrived in this world. He said that the food on earth was the only thing that could cleanse the aliens and make them earthlings again."

  "What reason?" the grand prize raised a brow.

  The large-faced man paused for a moment before he gave them a slightly cunning smile. He did not give a direct answer.

  "After that, two other posthumans came. They went through the same thing as you guys, but they weren't as lucky. They became members of this insane camping ground. Ah, they were the ones who also attacked you."

  Lin Sanjiu's face darkened when she heard this.

  "You knew that they were out to harm others," she said slowly, "so why didn't you warn them?"

  "I was scared," the large-faced man answered truthfully.

  "Why were you scared?"

  "To be honest, I don't know what agendas those posthumans had," he laid out his hands. He had a sincere yet scoundrelly expression. "That includes you people… Who knows why you came here? Do you have any ill intentions? If I showed myself rashly, I might get caught by those posthumans. If that was the case, I would rather act like a madman."

  He sounded adamant that his actions were justified. However, an image kept appearing in Lin Sanjiu's mind. It was the image of the large-faced man hiding in the corner watching quietly and knowingly as the other posthumans drank their sugar water ignorantly.

  Even though Lin Sanjiu nodded stiffly, her expression didn't improve much.

  "Why did you come out now?"

  "I observed you for half a day. You decided to leave after you left them unconscious," the large-faced man chuckled. "Since you decided to spare them, it means that you guys are kind. Since you decided to leave immediately, you don't have other hidden agendas. If I don't follow you guys, I don't know how long I will need to wait."

  Lin Sanjiu stared at him for a short while and slowly smiled, "I see."

  "That's right. Let's go together. We can accompany each other," the large-faced man heaved a sigh of relief when he saw her smile. He took a few steps closer, "Ah, I haven't introduced myself. You can call me Carrot Lo."

  That definitely wasn't his real name. However, judging from his personality, he probably didn't plan to tell them his real name.

  Lin Sanjiu turned behind to Ji Shanqing. He returned a look. Qing Jiuliu was too irritated to even listen to that man. After they exchanged glances, Lin Sanjiu immediately made a decision.

  "Sorry, we have to take care of a sick person. It isn't too convenient for us to bring another person with us," she felt like an examiner who was rejecting an interviewee when she said that, "I think you better leave on your own."

  However, Carrot Lo flashed a smile as if he had a card up his sleeve. Lin Sanjiu instantly regretted thinking that the man was an interviewee. At that moment, Carrot Lo looked extremely confident that Lin Sanjiu and the others would accept him.

  "Really? Don't you want to think it over?" while he spoke, he slowly opened his palms. "I remember hearing that you were looking for a consular officer."

  A visa with the words "The Olympics" immediately formed in his hand.

  Chapter 495 - The Male Protagonist Of This Novel Is Carrot Lo, Seriously

  "Let me tell all of you something. The more unpredictable a world is, the easier it is to see a person's capability and luck..."

  The old truck rattled loudly as they traveled and shook so much that their bodies felt numb. Wind gushed into the vehicle from various cracks, yet there was a lingering smell of gasoline in the truck. This was the same truck that the crazy son drove when he attempted to knock down Lin Sanjiu and the rest. The sky in a distance was getting dark as large grayish clouds gathered. As the truck's headlight had been damaged, they could not continue traveling at night. After Lin Sanjiu saw the road sign of a small town, she gradually decelerated the truck and stopped at the entrance town entrance.

  When the truck stopped, the voice from the backseat grew clearer.

  "In this world, don't feel too bad for the people who die or go crazy here. It just their time," Carrot Lo comment with his eyes closed as he leaned back into the middle backseat of the truck.

  Lin Sanjiu killed the engine and kept quiet. She knew that he was directing those words to her.

  Three days ago, just as they left the camping ground, she asked him a question intentionally: "What about Doggo?" When he heard her question, he stared at her wide-eyed and questioned her back, "What do you think? He's a psycho now. What else can we do? Can you cure him? Just leave him here. He won't die."

  Lin Sanjiu gaped and wanted to say something, but she looked at Magus and finally swallowed her words.

  This was why she knew that Carrot Lo was now directing those words to her. However, Carrot Lo probably se
nsed her reluctance so he had been eager to bring up that subject while they were traveling.

  "Alright, get down." Noticing that Carrot Lo was about to talk again, Lin Sanjiu interrupted him. She left first after slamming the truck door behind her and shutting his voice inside the truck.

  As the night breeze hit her face, she couldn't help sighing softly.

  They used a paper crane to send out the message that they had found a consular officer a few days before. Cyrus' group answered them quickly. The members from the other team had already gone in separate directions to conduct the search so they were very far from each other. To better protect the consular officer, they decided on a meeting point along the northern coastline. At the end of his message, he even stressed that they had to protect the consular officer properly and advised them to watch his every step.

  With that, Lin Sanjiu and her companions left the camping ground along with Carrot Lo and headed for the coast. Lin Sanjiu did not expect that they would find a consular officer so fast. However, the most ridiculous thing was the fact that she couldn't get a single visa from that consular officer even after traveling with him for three days.

  Carrot Lo even stored the visa for "The Olympics" which he showed to them to prove his identity. Not knowing when Magus would be sent to the next world, Lin Sanjiu felt a mounting pressure to acquire a visa. After the incident at the hotel, she could not erase the feeling that the reason she could stand there today was that she had snatched Magus' chance to be saved.

  Although she knew she shouldn't think that way, she couldn't help feeling a sense of guilt toward Magus. The more anxious Lin Sanjiu was, the more obnoxious Carrot Lo acted.

  "This town is way too small," Carrot Lo remarked as he walked in front of the group while he searched for a place for them to rest. The streets were quiet and empty. "I don't want to stay in some small, dilapidated motel… what the hell. Let's find a big house."

  Compared to a hotel with multiple guest rooms, staying in a house would definitely be easier for Lin Sanjiu to protect the consular officer surreptitiously. Naturally, she didn't object to his suggestion. When they found a considerably clean two-story house with no lunatics nearby, the sky was already completely dark.

  After the few of them lit some candles in the living room of the first floor, the night seemed darker when in contrast with the warm glow from the flames of the candles. Carrot Lo was unwilling to sleep in the same room with others so he chose the master bedroom which had the largest area.

  He had just entered the room to rest when Lin Sanjiu and the others called him out. The few of them were sitting at the dining table. The flames from the candles cast strange-looking black shadows as they wavered. The moment Carrot Lo walked out, all three of them immediately turned to look at him.

  "Oh," Carrot Lo flashed a shrewd smile once he saw them sitting around the table. Under the dancing flames from the candle, his smile seemed slightly twisted, " Why are all of you sitting here?"

  "I want to talk to you about the visas," Lin Sanjiu answered expressionlessly.

  "Sure," Carrot Lo smiled as he sat cautiously at the other end of the dining table, "Let's talk business. What are you going to offer me?"

  Lin Sanjiu exchanged glances with her grand prize. Meanwhile, Qing Jiuliu was resting his upper body on the table idly. There was a bottle of wine in his hand and his skin was turning red. They certainly couldn't count on him now.

  "Well," Ji Shanqing cleared his throat and tried to his best to look serious, "we need three visas of the same world. I don't know how much you usually charge for your visas."

  Carrot Lo was just about to open his mouth when Lin Sanjiu interjected, "Before you make your request, I need you to know something."

  She knew that Carrot Lo did not like her so she kept her words brief. She signaled with her eyes for Ji Shanqing to take over.

  "I'm not sure if you've heard this piece of information. Someone is hunting down consular officers," the grand prize went straight to the point. Carrot Lo's smile faded the moment he heard those words. Ji Shanqing continued, "Our group consists of more than four of us. We are all trying to protect the remaining consular officers…"

  "Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait," Carrot Lo stuck his head closer. He hesitated before he suddenly laughed again, "There is someone hunting down consular officers? I've never heard of anybody that would hunt consular officers!"

  Seeing Ji Shanqing quiet, Carrot Lo continued, "How would killing us benefit anyone? If we die, the visas that we issue will be unusable. That killer would be sent to a random world that he might not even survive. Is he sick? That's a lose-lose situation, isn't it?"

  "We don't know his reasons too," Lin Sanjiu tried her best to explain things to him calmly.

  "I've drunk too much. Call of nature," Qing Jiuliu murmured suddenly. He stood up and walked away drowsily. Lin Sanjiu gave him a quick glance before she focused her gaze on Carrot Lo again.

  "But, it's true," Ji Shanqing stressed. "We have already found four dead consular officers. Before you state your price, I hope you'll think carefully first. We will be providing you 24/7 protection. That not something you can get with some items or resources."

  Carrot Lo did not say a word. He leaned against his chair and flashed an "I've-got-it" smile.

  "You people don't have to say these things anymore. Do you know how many years I have lived through different apocalypse worlds? I've barely seen any dead consular officers. Those that die are just unlucky. For your visas, what levels do you want?"

  Ji Shanqing was stumped for a moment before he finally answered, "We want to go to a world C-Level and below. And, of course, we won't reject any better visas."

  "I don't think you can afford anything better than C-Level," Carrot Lo narrowed his eyes and chuckled. He suddenly placed his silver trash can on the table. "This little thing isn't that useful. I found it interesting so I agreed to provide a C-Level world visa for it."

  Lin Sanjiu looked at that silver trash can and an irrelevant thought suddenly invaded her mind, "If a consular officer dies, wouldn't the people who used their items to exchange for a visa die from buyer's remorse?"

  Carrot Lo spoke again. He suddenly took something out. His hands were empty but somehow he seemed to have hidden many items somewhere, "Look at this."

  He took a rectangular block. It was packaged in cheap ration wrapping and half of it had already been used.

  [Military Compressed Energy: 1200KJ×10 Packet]

  No one can tell what you will face during your trips. This ration had been specially designed for circ.u.mstances when you are not accustomed to the local food or can't eat anything. When you open the packaging, you will find "compressed energy". It is formless and colorless. You can absorb it directly once you place it on your skin. It is faster than eating and no one would notice.

  "You can only get a visa to the Twelve Centrum if you have a Special Item that is specifically useful in this world." Before he continued, Carrot Lo stored back the item carefully after he showed it to them. "If you have four items of that value, maybe, we can negotiate."

  Lin Sanjiu's expression got sullen.

  She had quite a few Special Items, but not many meet his requirements. Furthermore, some of her items were her hidden aces, so she basically couldn't give them to him. However, trying her luck, she took her items out one after another. She even converted them back to their original forms. She placed them on the table and pushed the items over.

  [Mewing Alarm Clock] was the first item to be thrown back. Very quickly, [Tornado Whip], [Tape recorder], [Ability Polishing Agent] and the remaining bag of red crystals from Red Nautilus was rejected. Carrot Lo rapped on the table with a dissatisfied face, "Are you serious? You are trying to get a visa with these items?"

  Lin Sanjiu once ranked her items in private. The Special Items which were more valuable were those like [That spring, when the cherry blossoms fell, your sweet laughter melted my world] and [How to Render]. If she was honest with herself, she defini
tely couldn't bear to use these items for exchange. Lin Sanjiu sighed and pushed the first batch of items aside. She clenched her teeth and placed the second batch of items on the table.

  After he read her cards one after the other until there were only two left. One of the cards was [An Unfinished Oil Painting] and [Oh My God! My wallet is missing!]. He took the second card and suddenly felt a little scared when he thought about the possible consequences. He looked at Lin Sanjiu like she was an idiot before he suddenly laughed at them, "Wow, there is actually a Special Item that can freeze other Special Items. I never would've imagined there would be something like this. This cannot end up with anyone but me."

  After he said that, he eyed Lin Sanjiu. Even though he didn't say anything, Lin Sanjiu understood what he meant.

  Now, Carrot Lo was probably laughing at her inwardly, right? If she used that item, he wouldn't be able to defend himself. Then, she could most likely get as many visas as she wanted, depending on how far she would go to torture him.

  However, she was foolish enough to offer it up for a visa.

  When Lin Sanjiu saw the cards in Carrot Lo's hands, she couldn't help feeling a great sense of loss. At that moment, she really wished that bit of conscience which was now hindering her would just disappear. However, her conscience was like an annoying obstacle which forced her to sit down and do nothing.

  "With all these…" Carrot Lo seemed to be enjoying the moment, "I can give you two visas to a D-level world."

  That offer was far worse than what Lin Sanjiu expected. "D-level? And only two?"

  "They are only worth two visas. I'm fair," Carrot Lo waved the card in his hand, "Unless you have more?"

  Lin Sanjiu felt a tight feeling in her c.h.e.s.t. If Cyrus didn't request for them to protect him, Lin Sanjiu would have punched that man's face.

  Actually, she still had one item with her. She was very sure that no one would reject that item and she could definitely get another visa for it. However, she definitely wouldn't give up that item, especially not to someone like Carrot Lo. After all, [Empty-handed Kleptomaniac] could possibly kill its target.