Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“This is today’s report. I will go back first if you have nothing else for me.”
At seven or eight o’clock in the evening, Lu Yiyun finished eating her takeout and made a copy of the sale report for the previous few days. After changing the date, she took today as the day she handed in her work. It wasn’t that she was lazy—it was just that the shop really didn’t sell anything.
“I have to go back to school. My classmates are discussing finding a place to gather together and have a meal… Ah, I don’t really have an appetite at all.” Jiang Feifei did not eat any takeout, but she was not that eager to pack up her things anyway.
Wang Qian and Li Kun were not there. They’d gone back to school in the morning after tidying up the shop a little. At this time, they should be studying for their exams. That was the theory. In fact, only God knew what they were doing.
“Okay, goodbye! Be careful on the road. Look where you are stepping. Tomorrow, you two do not have to come so early. This insect disaster will not end over the next two days,” Zhang Zian said as he stuffed rice into his mouth.
He did not say this to them out of politeness. Anyway, there was no business in the store. There was nothing for them to do except help out with cleaning and managing the store. There was no difference whether they did it early in the morning or later at night.
“There is nobody left in the dormitory. I am staying alone there, and I do get bored. I think it is better for me to just come over here regardless… Oh yes, Little Yun, are there any empty houses for rent in your area? I have to move out of the dormitory to find a place to live… I really do miss the cheap accommodations in college…”
Jiang Feifei was at a turning point in her life. Her job search had not been very successful. She faced the issue of graduating and being unemployed at the same time. She frowned all day—since she worked in a pet shop, although the income was still manageable and the work could be somewhat leisurely and fun, it was difficult for her to view it as a form of legitimate employment. Despite that she had a good relationship with everyone in the store, if her parents back in her hometown asked what she did for work, she’d find it difficult to tell them about her job.
“I will help you keep a lookout for anything good.” Lu Yiyun put Jasmine into her backpack and nodded.
Zhang Zian wanted to say to her that it was better to share a big house. There would be two bedrooms and one living room with one bedroom for each person. This would be more economical for them. However, if Jiang Feifei suddenly found a job, she might need to move. Then the spare bedroom would need another tenant to occupy it. Lu Yiyun, who did not take well to meeting strangers, much less stay with one, would be forced to face an unfamiliar situation… This did not sound like a good idea, so he swallowed his words back.
The two of them tightened their trousers, propped up their umbrella, turned on their flashlight, and said their goodbyes to Zhang Zian.
The pet store had once again returned to silence… Although it had been quiet for a few days already.
Except for Vladimir, the other elfins were not affected by the insect disaster. They each enjoyed a rather peaceful and smooth-sailing lifestyle—this was because the other elves were otakus and preferred staying indoors.
Zhang Zian pulled down the shutter door and locked it. He sat in front of the computer at the checkout counter and checked the sales report. He found no problems. He archived them all and left them.
He then started another form, one that recorded the number of empty bottles and cans picked up by the stray dogs, the money exchanged, the initial start-up money he’d provided and what was left, the cost of buying dog food, the chicken drumsticks, the generator, etc. In addition, he also roughly estimated the birthrate and mortality of stray dogs. These were related to the long-term arrangements he had in mind.
Fina yawned, jumped off the cat climbing frame, and walked to the second floor.
It was like a signal from her to let the elfins know that it was time to sleep.
Snowy Lionet followed close behind.
The other elfins also went back upstairs.
Zhang Zian, a young man, should’ve been enjoying the rich and vibrant nightlife. However, he seemed to have entered old age in advance. He went to bed early every day. If he did not do so, he would not be able to wake up early the next morning and would be sleepy all day long.
Wang Qian and Li Kun had used to be unrestrained night owls. They often played games until late at night. Since they’d started working in the pet shop, they had to go to bed early so as to wake up early. This was one of the positive effects the pet shop had on them. Otherwise, it would be difficult to say if they’d play till they died in their chairs…
Old Time Tea stayed downstairs because it hadn’t finished watching the news. It always waited till the news and weather forecast were broadcast before going upstairs and sleeping.
“Next news bulletin: The city’s tough battle against pests and diseases has achieved some results in its current phase. Please see the detailed report below…”
The voice of the announcer and the words she said sounded from the TV.
Zhang Zian saved the form, closed the computer, and moved beside Old Time Tea so they could watch the news together.
This news, whether due to its choice of words or the format of its narration, had a strong positive vibe to it. It was the main idea that it hoped to send to the viewers.
On the television screen, the city leaders wore protective clothes and carried pesticide sprayers to personally spray chemicals on the trees in the forest. When the pesticides were sprayed, the caterpillars fell from the trees and died. There were tons of dead bodies of various colors beneath the trees.
The lens turned from the high-ranking officials to the grassroots masses, focusing on the determination and actions of the various industries of Binhai City. They’d come from the industrial, agricultural, business, and educational sectors to fight against insects. In the video taken, Zhang Zian seemed to be in the frame, albeit only for a short second. Perhaps they had used him as the representative of the pet industry business.
There was not much exaggeration in the news. In the battle against insect pests in Binhai, the city had indeed turned from a defensive to an offensive position. In the beginning, when the city had been unable to adequately respond, compared to now, when there was a comprehensive plan to fight back, the transformation had been huge. They seemed to be able to see a light at the end of the tunnel. Nevertheless, it was still too early to say whether they would succeed in eliminating the pests.
The news broadcast was over, and the weather forecast indicated that tomorrow was yet another sunny day.
Zhang Zian waited for Old Time Tea to head upstairs before turning off the lights on the first floor.
Before going to bed, he routinely messed with Richard and Snowy Lionet in the bedroom for a while, then turned off the lights and went to bed.
This night was no different than usual.
Nothing happened in the night.
Until the morning, which also looked like it was no different from usual.
The sky was still not yet bright. Due to the problems with the insect pests, the elderly who got up early in the morning, as well as the stall vendors, had not come out these days.
The street was surprisingly quiet, and there were very few vehicles on the road. Only the flickering street lights sprinkled orange light that was just about to go out. Many moths flew around the street lights.
In the east, after the summer solstice, the sun rose a little later. It slowly brought forth the first light of the day.
At the corner of the door to the shop next to the pet shop, which had been closed and was awaiting a new buyer, was the recently-neglected swallowtail butterfly. It hung down from the ceiling, basking in the first light that shone in.
The sunlight transferred heat and humidity to the swallowtail.
On the days that Zhang Zian and others did not notice it, its cocoon had been quietly turning from green to brownish yellow, much like ripe fruit. Under the yellowish color, there were hints of spots.
The motionless larva that had not moved for a few days suddenly trembled.
The lower part of the cocoon cracked from the inside, and a splendid swallowtail butterfly pushed out from it. The shell had become a flappy piece of protein. It struggled a little to emerge from the shell.
The first thing that came out was its fillers, followed by the rest of its body.
It turned and completely left the shell. Its six legs climbed onto the door, completely exposing its body to the sun. It allowed the light to dry any remaining water or fluid from the surface.
Its large eye, made up of countless smaller retinas, glowed in the sun. It looked like it was observing its surroundings, looking around for something.
After a few seconds, it unfolded its colorful wings and took off. It was so beautiful that it did not look like something from Earth.
It flew toward the wall, and its figure quickly faded. Before hitting the wall, it disappeared from the environment.
In the dimly lit bedroom with the curtains, Zhang Zian, who was still asleep, was suddenly awakened by the sound of the mobile phone.
He didn’t blink, as his own biological clock told him that it was still early, and he did not need to get up just yet. Thus, he kept his eyes closed and put a hand under his pillow. He groped around, searching for his mobile phone. Had he forgotten to turn on silent mode before going to sleep last night?
Before he touched the phone and brought it closer to his face, he could barely open his sleepy eyes. He wanted to see who’d sent him a message so early in the morning.
The [Pet Hunter] game started automatically.
[Game Tips]: It has been detected that rare pets have appeared in your city, and it is up to the player to decide whether to capture them.
[Game Tips]: The following is pet information.
[Pet Type]: Elfin.
[Rareness]: Epic/legend level.
[Capture difficulty]: Very high.
[Danger]: Very high.
He was stunned because it was the first time he’d seen the “difficulty of capturing” and “danger” fields as “very high.” In addition, on the game’s electronic map, the center of the light representing the position of this new elfin almost coincided with the center of the cross that represented his location.
He hadn’t gotten enough sleep, and his brain didn’t react as fast as it did during the day. He stared at the game, confirming that he was not mistaken. He had a few thoughts in his slow brain. What did this mean? The position of the elfin coincided with his position? Was the elfin right beside him?
Wasn’t it simply delivering itself to him?
This would make things much easier.
As for the difficulty and danger of capturing this elf, he did not feel too worried. It was nothing more than a pet elfin. It could not be a lion or a tiger.
He turned his head and glanced at the elfins on the second floor, who were still asleep.
He would get up first. He would catch this elfin and make up the lost sleep later. Besides, there was nothing to do today—or so he thought.
So he got up.
However…as opposed to before, when he’d been occasionally woken up before getting up, he felt particularly sleepy and weak today. His eyelids felt heavy and kept trying to sink down over his eyes.
He thought about getting up quickly, but…he was so sleepy—so sleepy that it felt rather unbearable.
He had never felt so sleepy in his life.
His quality of sleep last night had been good, and it did not make sense for him to be so sleepy.
He struggled in bed for a long time, much like a salted fish out of water. He barely got up from the bed and managed to prop his torso up with his elbows.
“Okay, now, just move your legs off the bed…”
However, he failed. His legs were as heavy as lead, and he could only move them a few centimeters, no matter how hard he tried.
“Forget it…”
He would lie down again and just close his eyes for a while. This elfin was so close that even if he lay down for a while, there would still be time.
He could lie down for more than a while. Even if he slept hard again, he would still have time.
This thought just popped into his mind. After he relaxed, his whole body suddenly became soft and weak. His two arms could no longer hold his body up, and his upper body collapsed.
It was useless. He closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
Then…
His biological clock, which had worked for nearly a year, failed in waking him up.
At the time he usually woke up, he didn’t wake up at all.
And still had not woken up.
