But unlike what I am thinking, the man in front of me, after looking at my profile, thinks that I am a cat-loving person.
“No, I don't even love animals”
If he knows that I have wanted to kill a dog because it is always around me when I go to school, he will have been more surprised.
“I will answer a few more of your questions. So Catta, is there anything you want to ask me?"
“Of course yes, with such a suspicious organization, I have a thousand questions to ask you. But since I don't waste time on both sides, I only give the main sentences”
“You're welcome, I'm here to do it. Never mind anything!”
I look around and open with an old question:
“Where was this organization built?”
“As I said, it doesn't belong in this land”
“Do you mean this land where I live or the whole country?”
The man is like a pre-programmed machine, he answers mechanically:
"Both are wrong!"
Is not right? His answer makes me a little curious. Could this strange organization not exist in the world? I want to ask him about this, but it feels a bit ridiculous. However, does anyone know that an absurdity makes a big thing… I am not sure of this but still chose to move on to a new question.
“How many members does your organization currently have?”
“Less than 10 members”
"Can't you be specific?"
The man nods. I don't understand why he hides the number of members like that but does not ask in-depth either. Then move on to the third question:
“If I do a quest, can I cooperate with others? If yes, how will the rewards be divided?”
“You can completely cooperate with the other members if the two of you have the right combination. Rewards will be reduced by one level when divided by two, and 2 levels when divided by three. And the number will increase or decrease depending on the number of participants. For example, when you and a random member destroy B-rank together, both will be recorded as having destroyed C-rank”
“I see… So when do I join that practice?”
The man looks at the device he is wearing in his hand, performing a few extremely quick operations like using a computer. He is silent for a moment and then replies:
“As our system records, you have to attend extra classes for almost a week and only Sunday is completely free. So you can join in that day. You don't need to sit at home or in the park, just go anywhere and I will follow the preset location, take you to the organization by the route like today"
I don't say it, but this ARXX organization has some things that make me feel quite scared. They can completely control me, from the simplest and most trivial things to the brain and body. But fortunately, they are not my mother, that's lucky!
"So do you have any more questions?" The man looks over at me.
“Since just now, have you been infiltrating my mind?”
He is silent, then, still keeping his cold face, looks straight at me with his sharp eyes. Answer:
“How do you feel when I answer yes? This is a must-check to see if she is the right fit for us.”
“You guys give people chills”
I prop my chin, look at the white wall, and comment.
“We sincerely apologize” – He says to me.
“So how do you feel when I think of you as a pre-programmed machine?”
The man looks at me, his gaze changes, I can see it even for a moment.
“Like you, perhaps?”
His answers always make me feel uncomfortable. But maybe he's right, I'm an emotionless machine? Or are my feelings so negative that they go unrecognized?
“I don't need to answer, do I? After all, you can know what I'm thinking and feeling" – I say.
“Please don't be too worried or afraid of me. My powers can only be used for a limited time. This is a dangerous ability after all”
Perhaps everyone has a superpower hidden in their body, only they can't activate it. Just like a light bulb, to be able to turn it on, we need a switch. And the black water I used to drink was that switch.
“At the moment, it is possible that your ability is still not enough to distinguish between humans and aliens. But because your power is growing more and more, more dangers will come. So in the meantime, I'll protect you"
“Is there a way to distinguish the ranks of the aliens?”
“Of course!” - replies the man slowly - “We have built a device that will work and signal when it detects magnetic fields that are unique to aliens. Through analysis, it will tell us the rank of those”
After receiving his answer, I think that the reason why the alien pretending to be Luna disappeared into the light was that BB wanted to capture them for research.
“You think it is right.”
“Is your ability not at its limit yet?”
“Yes, but I will not abuse it for my purposes”
I look at my watch, it is now 12 minutes since I asked the first question. So perhaps his strength can be sustained more than this time.
“To your question, I would like to answer that I can maintain more than 30 minutes. Admittedly, you seem to pay attention to details, don't you?"
“I think you do it on purpose to get my attention. There won't be a reason to admit your weakness, again, you're lying to me"
Looking at the man, I know he is being quite careful with me.
“I won't ask why, because right now I can still read what you're thinking. I indeed lied to you”
“I don't need you to provide unnecessary information. But, maybe you're an honest liar"
I look at the man, and he looks back at me with firm eyes. I am also curious how he thinks when I make such a 'judgment'. Anyway, it's been a while since I've actually talked to a stranger for so long, and as he said, I'm probably a bit like him in some ways. Therefore, when starting a conversation, neither he nor I ask the other person to choose the appropriate words and facial expressions. Simply say what I want without worrying about the other person's face. Except that his answer is a bit vague, this is probably fine.
“Now, I will take you home. Thank you for working with us”
This time, the man brings me to his front door, I do not dare knock because I am a little afraid of my mother's angry expression. When I don’t have time to react, he knocks on the door of his own accord, I look at him with annoyance. But he calmly says:
"Everything will be okay"
My mother opens the door, just as I has imagined, her face darkened, her eyes sparkling. When she sees me, she frowns. If Ell isn’t here, she will probably beat me to death to deter the bad daughter. My mother puts on another mask, and then she displays a kind of artificially gentle, kind demeanor. Smile and greet him:
“Did my daughter cause you trouble?”
I don’t look my mother in the eye, I just lower my head, involuntarily shaking, I don’t dare to breathe and wait for an answer from the man.
“No, madam. My name is John, I'm a member of the organizing committee of a newspaper contest. Since Daisy won the special prize in this contest, I took her to receive the award and certificate of merit. We appreciate her writing skills!”
So, the man named Ell is also a good actor. He makes up a perfect excuse that completely convinces my mother, who judges a person's worth solely by achievement. To make it more real, he even makes a certificate of appreciation and an envelope, hand-delivered to my mother. Surely the people of ARXX did a lot of research on us.
My mother happily comes out, accepts the gift, and thanks him. After the man leaves, my mother only gives a brief reminder and happily hangs the certificate of merit on the wall.
"If you keep trying like that, I'm not going to work so hard. By the way, is the grand prize the highest?”
I also get carried away with this lie, just nodding to let it go. In the end, the woman only cares about rankings. The cheerfulness on her face is the result of the achievement.
A week goes on and on and the first day of training begins. That day, when I am studying in my room, Ell comes and takes me away. What intrigued me the most is what excuse will he use to convince my mother like last time. Surely, he can't use the old trick again. Today, I am taken to another room, the inside is still painted in white but it's a bit murky and a bit cramped. There is nothing here but a table, two chairs, and a strange machine that looks like a giant egg. What is in front of me is completely different from what I thought.“First, You are doing a general physical examination to assess your health condition. So, Catta, please step inside that machine.”“What is that?” “It's called the Egg of Strength. After entering, your body will enter deep sleep, and the machine will make a detailed assessment of your body and ability to use the powers”I feel a bit suspicious so I do not immediately agree, I hesitantly stare at the strange machine. It seems that this ARXX organization
I don't even know that my mother is away from home and yet he knows so well. Quite disappointed that I don't get to witness a spectacular scam by this glasses man today. That's fine too, I enjoy my mom's absence."Do you know when she'll be back?"He looks at his watch and replies:“Probably in a few hours. We only dare to estimate so.”“In that case, you still have plenty of time to answer my other questions?”The man nods and tells me to go easy.“What weapon are you referring to specifically?” I frown, wondering.“Knives, guns, etc. Weapons include anything that can hit the opponent. Sometimes just a pair of chopsticks is a powerful weapon.”I'm not sure if he's joking or telling the truth. Because here every citizen is not allowed to use such weapons. If found, they will immediately be fined a large amount of money and sent to prison. This is not the country of Mixreca, he needs to know about it.“I apologize for using my power to read your mind. Just as you think, our country mus
Today our class has a surprise Math test. Anyway, this is my forte subject so I'm not too worried, besides, since last night I've been studying very hard. But the person sitting next to me, that obnoxious man named David, and the others, aren't like that. As soon as the teacher announces that there is going to be a test today, they all get into a commotion, very disorderly, they turn left and right again just to complain about the problem. It is only when the teacher mentions it for the third time that they are silent for a while. “You guys need to keep order. Why do you make such noise every time you take a test? No matter what, you have to study well before going to school, right?” – says the teacher, taking a stack of papers from the bag. Call Milan – the class monitor of my class to hand out the test papers to everyone. Before that, some of my classmates asked me why I'm always at the top of the grade but I don't hold any position. It’s largely because my mother forbade me to do
“Hey, you bastard!”Stella is probably the leader of these guys. She grabs my short hair, and tugs it painfully, they drag me into the bathroom, locking the door so no one would disturb them. Then they take turns kicking hard on my stomach and body. They torture me and scold me:“Who do you think you are to come face to face with us? Do you think you're good at it? How dare you look down on us?"“Give her a taste!”“Damn, this girl is so ugly, her face is dark, and her eyes are also dark. Her hair is a bit messy, and it's still sticky."“The body is like dry wood. Does she think she's beautiful when she's thin or something?"Since they hit me in the eye, I can only see them with my other eye. There are a total of 4 people. They beat and record a video, laughing and talking happily.“Your life is almost over! Try to enjoy it you slut!” – Stella says, kicking my arm with her foot, I cry out in pain, but another girl covers my mouth with a pile of toilet paper – “You think David helps yo
I go back to the classroom with anger in my heart, all the members see my pathetic appearance and start talking. Milan still behaves like a nice class monitor, she asks me:“Are you okay, Daisy? Besides… where's the document I asked you to get?"Ah, so she comes to ask me about the documents. But know how to respond when those documents were neatly in the toilet and were trampled to the point of tearing. All of that cost more than half of the class budget, and I'm already in big trouble."Hey, don't you hear what Milan is asking?" – A friend says in an aggressive voice, she is sitting on the table with her legs and arms crossed, she looks just like an errant."I'm sorry"I answer quickly and return to my seat, they have another excuse to dig up and talk bad about me. The boy sitting next to me doesn't say a word, he doesn't care much either. That's fine, at least he doesn't go along with them in such an outrageous and stupid way. After settling down, I adjust my clothes. I vigorously
Hearing him say that, I smirk."Well, I don't think you would say such words."“Are you surprised?”"No" I reply bluntly.David laughs merrily, then slithers down on the grass, plucks a blade of grass, and puts it in his mouth. There is something inexplicable and silly about his actions. I immediately say:“You will soon be in trouble if you stay calm and carefree.”"Why?" - He leans over, looking at me with a pair of eyes that are something very sad and sparkling. His usual smile also becomes strangely magical, quite similar to BB."Aren't you afraid that it's a poisonous plant?"“You worry too much, Daisy. Don't worry, I know plants well. My future dream is to become an entomologist. How about you?"I keep silent. I don't even know what my dreams are. Is there someone who lives without ambition or hope? That's deplorable! The person that I always look down on is superior to me, in the end, the worst person is just me. I turn my face away, avoiding David's eyes, and reply:“What are
Ell suddenly falls silent and I follow him in silence, then he pulls my hand and says:"Let's go!""Okay, let go of my hand," I reply.He also obeys, and we both find an empty road to leave. After leaving the neighborhood, he and I stand on the bridge, and he says:“Honestly, your handling of the matter isn't too bad, but this has caused us to lose track of him. He is now out of the radius”“How many kilometers can you notice their presence?”Elle replies:“About 10 kilometers. But it also depends on the state of my ability”I put my hand on my chin, lean against the bridge, and say:“Do their leaders want to take over the planet… Even to achieve that, they accept living in the status of others. However, what are they doing consciously?” – Having say that, I lower my head, looking towards the fast-flowing water.The man reminds me in a low voice:"Be careful not to fall again!"I laugh, he doesn't trust me. Or is it because I'm too careless to be trusted? I look at him, squinting beca
Again? I'm tired of this world full of lies and injustice. I hate forcing myself to fit in to make other people happy. I hate the fact that I have to obey every command of that person no matter how absurd it is. I'm so miserable, now I have no interest in participating in this training session anymore. Oh no, I've never been interested since then. I don't feel that life is any fun at all. Everything is covered in a murky black, the darkness of this world is slowly swallowing me. I'm dying, no, I'm probably dead a long time ago. I died at birth and was embraced by the world by the endless voices of my parents arguing. Of course, I didn't see it all. After all, I was just a baby then. But given their strange personalities, this is easy to guess.Just thinking about these things makes me feel uneasy. They are nothing to me anymore, why do I bother to care about those people? There is a book that once taught me: If you hate someone, you still care for that person. I don't want to be like