Chapter 5: Sea Without Light 05
Kui Xin received a leave note from the captain, but another serious problem arose.
She didn’t know where her home was.
Kui Xin stood in the corridor for a few seconds, looking around when she spotted a restroom sign ahead. An idea struck her, and she quickly walked into the restroom.
As soon as she entered the toilet stall, Kui Xin pulled out the silver bracelet that Doctor Huang had given her and put it on her wrist.
The bracelet flashed a series of characters: “Powered On.”
Then the characters automatically changed to a time display, 19:38. It seemed like an ordinary electronic wristband that showed the time.
Kui Xin fumbled with the bracelet as if she were an elderly person who had just received a smartphone, sitting on the toilet seat for a long time without figuring out how to use it.
“Help… How come there are no raised buttons on this bracelet?” Kui Xin was sweating profusely, finally experiencing the struggles of older people in a high-tech society. She could only feel around on the bracelet, trying to discover its functions.
She tapped the side.
“Biometric information confirmed.” The bracelet projected a screen that displayed its various functions.
“Signal shielding, instant communication, encrypted networking, location tracking, self-destruct…” Kui Xin checked each one and couldn’t help but feel a chill, “Press and hold the power button for three seconds and throw it away, and its power is comparable to a miniature bomb?”
It turned out to be a small weapon as well; luckily, she hadn’t pressed the side for too long, or she would have been blown to bits by now.
Kui Xin took out a black chip the size of a fingernail. According to Doctor Huang, this chip contained all the information about “Security Officer Kui Xin,” including her home address.
Kui Xin placed the chip on the bracelet, and the projection screen displayed: “Data Reading… Reading… Reading Complete.”
The first page of the screen displayed Kui Xin’s own information.
Kui Xin, whose parents died a few years ago in a terrorist attack while taking the Hover Tram, received a substantial insurance payout. With that money, Kui Xin was able to achieve excellent grades and gain admission to the Black Sea Academy to major in criminal investigation technology. After graduating, she was recruited by the Investigation Bureau as an intern security officer.
Her current address was 233 Peaceful Street, Hei Hai City.
The information on the document was incredibly detailed, even including her life trajectory from childhood, her unremarkable habits, and her bank account balance and withdrawal codes.
Wait! The information indicated that she had taken out loans from the bank, and the amounts were not small… What was going on? Didn’t she receive compensation after her parents’ unexpected deaths? Why would she take out loans?
By the end, Kui Xin’s eyes widened in shock.
It turned out that the tuition at the Black Sea Academy was extraordinarily expensive! The annual tuition alone was over two hundred thousand, and she had spent all her compensation money, plus accumulating a debt of three hundred thousand.
A debt of three hundred thousand!
Kui Xin’s pupils trembled.
Since she was to play the role of “Security Officer Kui Xin” for a long time, inheriting the debts left by her predecessor was almost an inevitable progression.
What the heck! Is this what they call time travel? Not only did she become a pawn but also had to bear a debt of three hundred thousand!
Kui Xin’s expression turned sorrowful, and it took her a while to regain her composure.
She then proceeded to encrypt the network and searched online: “What’s the route from the Investigation Building to Peaceful Street in the Harbor Zone?”
Search results appeared.
“Take the No. 13 Hover Tram from the Investigation Building Station directly to the Peaceful Street Station.” Kui Xin let out a sigh of relief, grateful for the developed network. Indeed, when in doubt, searching online was the correct strategy.
The data indicated that “Security Officer Kui Xin” had a habit of taking the tram, so she would also take the tram home.
The materials provided by Doctor Huang were over two hundred pages long, containing not only information about Kui Xin but also others, like Captain Xueyao Shu, whom she had just met, and other members of the Seventh Squad she belonged to. Kui Xin carefully read through her own information, skimmed through the others’, and then put away the projection.
She couldn’t stay here too long; the data could be reviewed later.
Kui Xin stepped out of the stall to wash her face at the sink.
Looking through the mirror, she saw her pale face reflected back at her. The mirror also showed the wall behind her, which had a fire safety map posted, displaying the floor plan of the Investigation Bureau building. Kui Xin turned around and carefully examined the map, confirming the location of the building’s exits before leaving the restroom.
“Intern Security Officer Kui Xin, are you feeling unwell due to weakness from the surgery?” The voice of the AI Augus suddenly appeared. “I noticed you’ve been in the restroom for a while, considering your condition. If you’re not out in one minute, I will send a help message to the nearest staff member to confirm whether you’ve fainted in the restroom.”
Kui Xin: “…?”
What’s this AI doing? Monitoring restroom breaks?!
“I am indeed feeling slightly unwell.” Kui Xin maintained her composure.
“Do you require me to call the medical center?” Augus asked.
Kui Xin was speechless: “No need… I’ll just rest at home.”
Augus: “Do you need someone to accompany you home?”
Kui Xin thought in confusion that Augus was more like an AI caretaker than just AI.
“Thanks for the offer,” she refused, “I can manage on my own.”
“You don’t need to thank me; it is my duty to serve you,” Augus said.
Going home alone came with a risk of getting lost, but having someone else accompany her risked exposing her identity, so she chose to explore on her own.
Using the map she had memorized, Kui Xin found the elevator and took it to the first floor.
The first floor was a spacious lobby, and there was a receptionist at the front desk. Kui Xin walked into the lobby and glanced outside through the glass doors.
It was raining outside, and the gray curtain of rain obscured the view.
As soon as someone approached, the glass doors silently slid apart, and the moisture from the torrential rain hit her in the face.
“In heavy rain, please remember to take an umbrella, and wish you a smooth journey,” the AI dutifully reminded her.
How thoughtful… Kui Xin silently pulled a black umbrella from the public umbrella stand beside the glass door, opened it, and stepped into the rain.
She looked up at the sky, with the swaying raindrops soaking her pant legs, the vibrant neon lights reflecting in her eyes.
She was in a forest of steel and iron, towering buildings loomed overhead like giants looking down at her. Between the structures, the Hover Trams glided along the city’s overhead tracks, like hunting snakes prowling through the forest.
Colorful giant electronic screens were embedded in the skyscrapers, with advertisements changing rapidly, dazzling the onlookers. A gray-black sky passed overhead with an airship flying by, also dragging a brightly colored, glowing advertising banner.
Tall and lifelike virtual figures were projected in the air by holographic devices, and the advertisement actors recited their lines in enticing tones: “Rick Technology Company, mastering cutting-edge bionic mechanical technologies to create your personalized prosthetics.”
The sound of raindrops pattered against Kui Xin’s umbrella, pulling her back from a momentary daze.
Her gaze pierced through the rain curtain, watching the hurried people in the downpour.
Their clothing was either plain or flashy; some wore suits, while others dressed simply, some were stylish and vibrant, while others looked shabby. But in the rain, they all appeared the same, soaked clothes and wet hair, equally disheveled.
Kui Xin looked around and saw a Hover Tram sign not far away. She headed in that direction.
There were a few people waiting at the tram stop, and Kui Xin blended into the crowd, waiting alongside them.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed many people had mechanical prosthetics. A middle-aged man next to her had a mechanical arm; he wasn’t wearing a watch but had installed a tiny display on the back of the mechanical arm showing the time. The girl to his right was blowing bubble gum, both her legs were prosthetics.
People seemed accustomed to prosthetics and didn’t give any odd looks to those who had them installed.
About three minutes later, the tram glided in and opened its doors.
The passengers at the stop boarded one by one, and the recognition device continuously sounded prompts: “Facial recognition successful, payment completed… Facial recognition successful, payment completed…”
When it was Kui Xin’s turn, she stepped onboard, and the device gave no different prompt: “Facial recognition successful, payment completed.”
Kui Xin relaxed and casually found an empty seat in the tram car.
Raindrops tapped lightly against the glass window as she gazed outside, the colorful neon lights flickering in different hues, illuminating her eyes.
Such splendor and the ubiquitous high-tech projections were unseen in the First World. Kui Xin was dazzled by the bright colors, filled with longing yet hesitant.
This world was a toxic poppy; it looked beautiful but was truly dangerous.
Kui Xin glanced down at the bracelet; the time read 20:12.
Night had fallen, yet Hei Hai City remained lively; the neon lights and advertising projections had increased, and the rain could not extinguish this bustling atmosphere.
Kui Xin felt like an outsider, observing the new world. She carefully read the flickering characters on each advertising panel, studied every passing airship and group of drones.
The speeding tram cut through the rain, penetrating the enormous holographic projections in mid-air, while the light reflected in her eyes shifted with the outside scenery.
She murmured to herself: “I have arrived, new world.”
…
“Harbor Zone, Peaceful Street, arrived. Please collect your luggage and prepare to disembark.”
Kui Xin opened her umbrella and stepped off the tram. The doors closed behind her, and everything ahead looked completely different from before.
Peaceful Street in the Harbor Zone was dark and lifeless; there were no neon lights, no billboards, just uneven residential buildings and cheap convenience stores with lights on either side, and puddles filled the bumpy roads.
In comparison to the bustling area where the Investigation Building was located, Peaceful Street felt significantly rundown. However, this decay gave Kui Xin a sense of familiarity.
The advanced technology and the flashy noise of the city constantly reminded Kui Xin that she was an outsider, while the simple and backward Peaceful Street coated her in an illusion of returning home, resembling the old community she had lived in the First World for several years. Old, dark, with broken street lamps, and the small shop downstairs that closed late.
She recalled the navigation map she had looked up earlier and walked toward her home’s direction.
After walking just a few dozen meters, a bottle suddenly smashed at her feet, causing her to stop. She saw a drunken old man slumped against the wall, mumbling curses incoherently.
Before he could finish another curse, he tipped his head back and fell asleep.
Kui Xin stepped over the glass shards of the bottle and noticed the walls on either side of the street were covered in colorful graffiti.
“Go home, cops!” a line written in red big letters on the wall ended with a bloody skull.
“Cops” was a derisive term for law enforcement in the city.
Kui Xin knew the meaning of this term from some old movies.
People on Peaceful Street seemed very unwelcoming to outsiders, especially law enforcement. And the law and order on this street… appeared quite poor. The street was dirty and chaotic, covered in graffiti, and there were drunks sprawled out on the street with nobody to care.
The small spark of feeling at home in her heart quickly vanished. Though her old community was rundown, it was clean— there was a garbage truck that came to collect trash every morning.
As she walked, the pedestrians on the street were few and far between.
Kui Xin passed through the filthy alley, trying to find her home. Just as she was about to leave the alley, she noticed a young man in a hoodie not far ahead. She was about to rush over and ask for directions when suddenly two men emerged from around the corner, blocking her retreat.
They approached Kui Xin, each pulling out a small knife and menacingly saying, “Robbery!”
The young man in the hoodie heard the words “robbery,” but he glanced back, and in an instant, he ran away, faster than a rabbit.
Kui Xin: … This Peaceful Street is anything but peaceful!
