The metal ball glanced at the dashboard with its black eyes, as if it wanted to say something again. However, this time it finally had a “dowry” in its heart and didn’t speak up so easily.
Pei Ran had already seen it herself.
Whether it was due to the aging energy source or the battery not being fully charged, the dashboard showed that the forklift’s power was down to a red sliver, only enough to drive another seven hundred kilometers.
Take one step at a time. Just keep driving for now, and deal with the power running out when it happens.
W silently transmitted a federal map.
On the map, the destination was marked with a red circle, far to the northwest—the location of the Black Well.
Pei Ran used the compass in her wristband to find the direction and drove straight toward the northwest of the city. The forklift moved slowly and steadily at a speed of ten kilometers per hour.
One person, one ball, driving the small forklift, cautiously and carefully navigating through one alley after another.
After driving for a while, just as they emerged from an alley, they saw a navy-blue patrol robot from the Public Security Bureau hovering in the air above the street ahead.
Hearing the sound of the forklift, it twisted its “head” in mid-air, spotted Pei Ran sitting in the driver’s seat, and without a word, immediately opened fire.
Pei Ran reacted quickly. As it turned, she floored the accelerator and yanked the steering wheel hard. The patrol robot’s shot missed, hitting the wall beside them.
At the same time, W also fired.
His aim was excellent, and he shot the small ball right in the head.
Immediately after, there was a loud bang from another direction behind them.
Pei Ran turned her head: ?
“It’s fine,” W said. “Another patrol robot from the Public Security Bureau. But it’s gone now.”
He added, “When my scarf isn’t blocking my vision, my observation skills are pretty good.”
Pei Ran’s mind wasn’t on his observation skills. She felt a bit worried: This area was no longer near Hank Street in the city center, yet the patrol balls were still actively causing trouble for her. It meant that CT122 had indeed issued a bounty for her as an L16-level extremely dangerous criminal last night.
At least in White Harbor City, the Public Security Bureau’s patrol robots were now hunting her down.
Just her luck.
W understood what she was thinking. “Let’s get out of the city as soon as possible. The farther we are from the city, the fewer patrol robots there will be.”
“Get out as soon as possible” wasn’t really possible. The maximum speed was only ten kilometers per hour.
Further ahead, the skyscrapers disappeared, and the buildings gradually became sparse, replaced by a vast and peculiar scene.
The houses resembled countless black boxes of varying sizes, densely stacked together. Each box wasn’t very large, only a few square meters, piled one on top of another like a dense honeycomb of quadrilaterals.
The black material of these honeycombs looked like plastic or some kind of lightweight metal—it was hard to tell exactly what it was.
Outside the black boxes, staircases were everywhere, connecting one level to another.
The staircases were clearly homemade, made from all sorts of materials. Cast-iron spiral staircases were inexplicably welded to silver metal ladders, wooden frames connected to precarious rope bridges—absolutely no consideration for aesthetics, with practicality being the sole purpose.
W forgot about his “dowry” and instinctively launched into an explanation:
“On the outskirts of White Harbor City, there’s a large slum area like this. These makeshift houses are built from discarded shipping containers. The material is lightweight, sturdy, and has decent insulation.”
“This area has a very complex population, with frequent incidents of all kinds. Public security has always been a major issue here, and the Public Security Bureau has little ability to manage it effectively,” he said. “But looking on the bright side, there are almost no patrol robots here.”
Pei Ran drove the forklift through the honeycomb-like structures. Suddenly, a pile of construction materials appeared on the road ahead—various pipes and discarded steel frames, forming a low wall about half a person’s height.
The road was completely blocked, clearly intentionally placed there by someone.
Pei Ran paused for a moment, then turned the steering wheel and began to reverse.
On the road behind her, four people had appeared.
They were all tall and burly, carrying large backpacks and wearing dull winter clothes. Their hands were tucked into their sleeves, and their mouths were sealed with transparent tape. The tape didn’t seem to stick well, so each of them had wrapped it around their heads several times, as if bundling up their own heads.
With the road blocked ahead and people behind, the small orange forklift looked like a trapped little rabbit.
When there was no one around, the surroundings felt like a stagnant pool of water. But seeing people now was definitely not a good sign.
Pei Ran glanced at the group and asked W, “You’re not allowed to attack humans casually, are you?”
W replied, “If they haven’t been classified as L16-level extremely dangerous individuals, then no, I can’t just open fire.”
Alright then. Among all these people, the only one he could shoot was her.
The group stepped closer, stopping a few paces away.
One of them, wearing a black winter knit cap pulled down almost to his eyelids, revealing only half a face covered in noticeable stubble.
The stubbled man activated his wristband, typed a few words, and swiped a virtual screen, turning it toward Pei Ran:
【We have an urgent need to requisition your vehicle.】
Sure enough, they were here to steal the vehicle.
At times like these, nine out of ten vehicles are ticking time bombs, unable to start. A working vehicle is something everyone wants.
Pei Ran didn’t respond. Silently, she picked up her backpack, got off the forklift, and stepped aside.
Her demeanor was completely compliant.
The group seemed to take this silent compliance for granted. Without even acknowledging Pei Ran, they walked over and began examining the small forklift as if it were already theirs.
No one spoke, but their eyes clearly said: This vehicle is way too small, it can’t fit many people, but it’s better than nothing.
One of them noticed the metal ball hanging from the front of the vehicle.
He reached out and poked it, then turned to the stubbled man with a questioning look, as if asking: Is this a patrol robot from the Public Security Bureau? It doesn’t look quite the same.
The stubbled man saw the “DOD” painted on the metal ball and frowned.
None of them were paying attention to Pei Ran standing nearby.
It was a heaven-sent opportunity.
A dull thud of metal hitting bone.
One man staggered a step and then collapsed onto the forklift.
The others were startled and immediately turned around.
Pei Ran remained silent, swinging her mechanical arm at another man’s neck.
Crack.
An unnatural crunching sound. The man fell to the ground without even putting up a fight.
The remaining two, seeing the situation turn bad, tried to flank her, both swinging their fists. Pei Ran dodged the one on the left and swiftly moved behind the one on the right, driving her mechanical elbow into his spine and taking him down instantly.
In the blink of an eye, only the stubbled man was left.
He was genuinely terrified and turned to run.
Pei Ran didn’t let him go. She chased after him as lightly as a cat, wrapped her arm around his neck, and gave it a sharp twist.
In less than a minute, all four men were lying on the ground.
W was silent for a long time.
Pei Ran picked up her backpack from the ground, tossed it back onto the forklift, kicked the man slumped over the forklift off, and sat back in the driver’s seat. Casually, she asked, “Did I level up?”
W: “Level up what?”
Then he realized—this L16-level extremely dangerous individual was curious about the consequences of her actions and was wondering if she’d just leveled up to L17.
However, L16 is already the highest level; there is no higher L17.
“I think you acted in self-defense,” he said. “It might have been a bit excessive, but given the circumstances, it’s not a big issue.”
Pei Ran restarted the vehicle and prepared to turn around.
W suddenly spoke up: “Pei Ran, more people are coming.”
Pei Ran didn’t need his reminder—she had already heard the noise and turned her head.
On the quiet street, where the four men had appeared earlier, another group had arrived. This time, there were seven or eight of them.
This group was dressed strangely, with hair dyed in all sorts of colors. Some had every possible piercing on their noses and ears, adorned with rings, and their leather jackets were covered in metal chains.
In the center of the group sat a young man in a wheelchair, about the same age as Pei Ran.
His appearance, however, was completely different from his companions.
He wore a finely tailored light camel-colored wool coat, with a soft and delicate beige scarf. His black hair, slightly wavy at the ends, fell to his shoulders.
His skin was extremely pale, but his eyelashes were jet black, thick and dark like two raven feathers.
While the others had their mouths sealed with tape, he didn’t even wear a mask, seemingly very confident in his self-control.
The strangest thing was the small black leather notebook resting on his lap.
He wasn’t looking at Pei Ran but was instead calmly leaning forward, his pale, slender fingers holding a pen, swiftly sketching something in the notebook.
The sky was gray and heavy, and the densely stacked black makeshift shelters blocked out the sunlight. In the dim light, only the tip of his pen glowed with a special green light.
It was incredibly bright, incredibly familiar.
The green light dangled from the tip of the pen, as if alive, trembling and occasionally moving, winding up the pen before falling back to the tip.
Pei Ran stared at the green light: even the way it moved was almost identical to the light in her mind.
The only difference was that his light wasn’t inside his body but exposed, appearing extremely eerie.
The long-haired young man in the wheelchair looked up and calmly gazed at Pei Ran, leisurely twirling the pen with the green light.
Suddenly, something felt very wrong with Pei Ran’s body.
It was as if an invisible rope had materialized out of nowhere, binding her limbs and tightening abruptly.
Pei Ran’s entire body stiffened, and she fell off the forklift seat.
Her limbs completely immobilized, she hit the ground hard, her nose slamming into the dirt, the pain so sharp it brought tears to her eyes. Her chest heaved violently, leaving her breathless and aching.
Out of nowhere, white foam bubbled up, seeping through the gaps in the tape and dripping down her motionless lips.