Chapter 217: Level One Alert

“This…”

The sudden change made the surrounding air feel instantly frozen.

Gecko, who was just about to approach, along with the two girls beside him, and Chen Jing who had just opened the car door, simultaneously paled.

They stared dumbfounded at the impossibly beautiful girl as she floated before Lu Xin, smiling at him. Their hearts lurched sickeningly, expressions twisting into disbelief, then their hearts clenched violently, rising into their throats.

“Not good…!”

Chen Jing reacted first, shouting sharply, “Doll has left the Safe House…”

“All personnel evacuate the scene immediately…”

“Everyone listen! Absolutely must not look directly at Doll! Withdraw immediately beyond the hundred-meter perimeter…”

“…”

Even as she shouted these words, Chen Jing herself immediately averted her gaze, refusing to look directly at the girl, and rapidly retreated backwards.

Simultaneously, her shouts alarmed numerous surrounding staff.

All were highly trained. Hearing Chen Jing’s orders, some didn’t even fully grasp the meaning before they instinctively lowered their heads, stared at the ground, and scrambled towards the distance, loudly repeating her words to warn colleagues nearby.

Next, the notified broadcast operators began blaring announcements throughout the loudspeakers: “Issuing Level One Alert.”

“Centering on the East Sea Hotel, lock down a one-hundred-meter perimeter.”

“Personnel able to do so must immediately evacuate beyond one hundred meters, or take shelter in the nearest hotel room. Do not observe the surroundings.”

“Please note, this is not a drill. Level One Alert is in effect. Everyone take cover immediately!”

“…”

Whoosh— With the blaring announcement, the crowd retreating for cover moved much faster, though still orderly.

Gecko and the two girls, who had been moments away from walking in that direction, instantly paled dramatically.

Gecko instinctively raised his head to look at the girl floating before Lu Xin, the one holding the Parasol.

However, the tall girl beside him immediately slapped his face.

The blow jolted him awake while her other hand covered his eyes; she then dragged him backwards, retreating towards the hotel.

Gecko seemed like he might struggle briefly, but quickly relaxed, wearing a contented expression as he let himself be dragged away.

Meanwhile, some staff whose reactions had genuinely been too slow, caught off-guard and unable to leave in time, were caught staring mesmerized at the Doll before Lu Xin. Colleagues with quicker reflexes seized them regardless of their dazed state and hauled them away by force.

……

“What’s going on?”

Hearing Chen Jing’s words, Lu Xin also instantly closed his eyes and prepared to step back.

But he only managed one step backwards before his back bumped into hard metal—the Jeep that Chen Jing had driven him here in.

He couldn’t retreat further. He heard only the surrounding Chaos before abruptly, all sound vanished. He could only perceive a presence in front of him, a body radiating a slight chill, slowly drawing closer. He could also smell a faint, unique fragrance.

This scent definitely wasn’t floral, nor perfume or shampoo.

It was a specific fragrance—cool and sweet.

He didn’t even need to open his eyes to sense that someone’s body was gently approaching, almost pressed against his face.

……

“Hurry! Bring up all surveillance camera feeds around the hotel! Also route the broadcast control signals here.”

“Surveillance operators be advised: maintain feed activation, but DO NOT look directly at the monitor screens…”

“Armed Personnel in Protective Suits, establish a cordon at the one-hundred-meter boundary!”

At the same time, Chen Jing had retreated outside the hotel into a temporary command vehicle.

Her brow was deeply furrowed, her mind filled with questions.

She couldn’t comprehend why Doll, who always obeyed commands, would suddenly appear before Lu Xin.

Especially since Doll had shattered a specially reinforced glass window of the rooftop Safe House to jump down.

Did this mean she was… desperate?

Previously, they had received Han Bing’s report: it seemed Lu Xin had once said something to Doll, and even received a response.

This led the Special Clean-up Department to realize the possibility of communication between Doll and Lone Soldier.

But it was just communication.

A reaction this extreme—rushing to meet Lone Soldier the instant she saw him—was completely beyond their expectations.

……

A row of computers in the control vehicle quickly displayed footage from various surveillance cameras inside the East Sea Hotel. Chen Jing instructed sternly in a low voice, “Unless I give permission, none of you are allowed to look at the screen. If anything goes wrong, I will shoot immediately.”

Upon hearing her words, the two other staff members in the vehicle snapped their heads away, breaking into a cold sweat.

The Special Clean-up Department had a strict and detailed set of regulations concerning Doll:

One of the rules was: Never look directly at Doll.

This direct gaze usually referred to looking at her without any physical barrier.

But extending the rule, even through surveillance footage, there was no guarantee that someone wouldn’t be affected by “Doll.”

Internally pondering all the clues related to Doll, Chen Jing picked up her Walkie-Talkie and issued rapid instructions:

“Establish the cordon. Do not allow anyone within a hundred-meter radius.”

“Snipers, note: switch to specialized Tranquilizer Darts.”

“If anyone attempts to inflict abnormal harm on Doll, or engage in abnormal actions like embracing or chasing after her, open fire immediately…”

“Lethal force is authorized as a last resort.”

“…Except for Lone Soldier!”

…

Just as Chen Jing was making all these effective deployment arrangements, news of the anomaly at the East Sea Hotel reached many others.

Currently in his City Defense Department Office, Minister Shen was frowning as he perused materials related to their “Advanced Talent Training Conference” and the list of attendees. Upon receiving this call, he was so furious he nearly slammed the receiver down. “I knew it!” he raged. “I knew that holding a conference like this, gathering so many Ability Users in one place, would lead to trouble. But I never imagined…”

“…it would happen this fast!”

With that, he immediately dialed another number: “Activate emergency procedures. Enforce a lockdown on the entire East City district!”

“Do I need to remind you exactly what kind of defensive measures to prepare?”

…

“Based on our previous strategy, we’ve always tried to give Doll the same treatment as other Ability Users. That’s why we constructed a ‘Safe House’ for her on the top floor of the East Sea Hotel in advance—to give her a sense of participation in the Ability User conference…”

“Her past behavior indicates she enjoys this sense of participation.”

“Furthermore, with so many Ability Users gathered at the East Sea Hotel, there’s no guarantee we might encounter unforeseen problems beyond our control. Placing Doll here also serves as a safeguard, allowing for the immediate elimination of any factors potentially harmful to the Main City.”

“Another reason is that Doll has indeed responded to Lone Soldier’s words in the past.”

“So, Professor Chen from the Special Clean-up Department also planned to arrange a meeting between Lone Soldier and her during the conference.”

“What no one expected, however, was how intensely Doll would react to him…”

…

In a research room at the Special Clean-up Department, someone arrived promptly to brief Professor Bai.

Professor Bai showed no sign of panic, nor did he rush to a conclusion.

He pondered quietly for a moment, then set aside the research document in his hands. Calmly, he stated, “Continue to observe!”

…

“Doll, can you hear my voice?”

“You shouldn’t have left the Safe House. Could you please go back now?”

…

Lu Xin leaned against the car, his eyes closed.

He listened quietly as the surrounding commotion gradually subsided. He had also heard the tense announcement broadcast moments earlier.

He didn’t sense any danger, so he simply kept his eyes shut obediently, leaning against the car while he waited.

Sure enough, before long, the surroundings grew quiet. Then, a voice echoed from the broadcast again.

This time, it was Chen Jing’s voice coming through the speakers.

Her tone sounded gentle, a tenderness Lu Xin didn’t recall her ever using when speaking to him.

However, after Chen Jing’s voice faded, there was absolutely no reaction from the surroundings.

Lu Xin could feel that faint, slightly chilling fragrance still lingering close by, near the tip of his nose.

After a while, Chen Jing’s voice came through the broadcast once more: “Lone Soldier, can you hear me?”

Lu Xin raised his right hand and formed an “OK” sign towards the air.

Chen Jing spoke: “Due to some reasons unknown to us, Doll has developed a strong interest in you suddenly. Don’t be nervous, and do not display hostility towards her. I will now ask you a few questions. Please assess your feelings and indicate your responses using hand signals…”

Lu Xin raised his hand again, making another “OK” gesture.

He genuinely didn’t feel tense, nor would he casually show hostility towards others.

“Currently, are you experiencing anything unusual inside… such as feelings of affection for Doll, or perhaps…”

Chen Jing’s question over the broadcast was slow and meticulous: “…an urge to possess her?”

Lu Xin concentrated for a moment, then raised his hand and swung it forcefully.

He truly hadn’t felt anything.

“You don’t have to swing your hand so forcefully, you startled Doll…”

Chen Jing’s voice came over the broadcast.

Lu Xin had no choice but to halt his movement.

Feeling incredibly awkward just sitting there against the car with his eyes closed, he shoved both hands into his pockets.

“Second question: since Doll first approached you until now, have you noticeably sensed any change in your Emotion?”

Lu Xin gave a small wave of his hand.

“Third question: at any point between then and now, did Doll say anything to you?”

He waved his hand again.

“Fourth: I can see you have your eyes closed, but did you happen to see Doll’s face earlier?”

Okay.

…

Inside the control vehicle, Chen Jing’s brow furrowed slightly. She glanced at her wristwatch, then at the monitoring logs.

One thing was certain: it had been about five minutes since Doll first stood before Lu Xin.

Although Lu Xin currently had his eyes shut, he’d already been in close proximity to Doll with no physical barrier between them for five full minutes. That, at the very least, was equivalent to the effect of staring directly into Doll’s eyes or gazing directly at her face for over three minutes.

Especially considering that the negative effects associated with Doll were currently intensifying.

Therefore, by this point, Lone Soldier should have been experiencing uncontrollable Emotion.

But he had shown nothing…

This abnormality gave Chen Jing pause.

Then, she spoke softly: “Now, you may open your eyes.”

…

“Hm?”

Lu Xin heard Chen Jing’s words, feeling a flicker of curiosity. Slowly, he opened his eyes.

What filled his vision was a face with perfectly arranged features, one could find no flaws. Her skin was unnaturally pale, devoid of any trace of makeup. Yet it was delicate, her lips softly rosy, her eyes large but vacant, her eyelashes slightly upturned.

Her face was positioned directly in front of him, her nose tip almost touching his own.

“Thump thump…”

Lu Xin seemed to hear his own heartbeat.

The moment he saw this girl up close, it felt as though his Heart melted instantly. An infinite yearning surged within him. It was as if all his feelings had solidified into tangible things, his entire mind now tethered to this one girl.

This caused his feelings to intensify, growing stronger and stronger, until…

…his mind abruptly cleared. That sensation dissipated instantly, leaving behind only disinterest.

He offered a friendly, calm smile, extending a hand towards Doll. “Hello, our second meeting.

Official introduction: I am Lone Soldier.”