Chapter 14: Who Will It Be?

Mǐ Qiū suddenly noticed the screen of the light-brain on her desk was lit up. Tapping it open, she saw that someone had sent her quite a few messages.

She looked at a green chat box.

Xiǎo Zé. That was Sù Zé Chū. The name slowly brought back memories of him being the original owner’s childhood friend.

You could say they were the best of friends when they were little.

Their parents had always been on good terms, and they attended the same interstellar kindergarten, so the two of them had built a deep and strong friendship.

“Is now a good time?”

Even though it was already so late, Mǐ Qiū replied that it was. If she kept her voice down in her room, she wouldn’t be heard by the others or disturb them, since they were all on different floors.

He initiated a voice call through the light-brain.

His voice was deep, magnetic, and incredibly, incredibly pleasant to listen to.

Mǐ Qiū perked up instantly. For a certified voice connoisseur like her, this was pure bliss!

She listened intently as the man spoke. “It’s been almost two years since we last talked, hasn’t it? We’ve really grown distant. You don’t even reply to my messages anymore.”

Mǐ Qiū had to explain that she had gone to the island bookstore to read a novel and hadn’t brought her light-brain with her.

“I heard about you being stationed on the island. Yù Nán has been praising you constantly.”

Officer Hè praises me often? How come I’ve never noticed?

“Oh, okay.”

“Actually, it’s nothing much. I just wanted to tell you in person. I’ll be in the second group of visitors. I hope you can meet the standard.”

“We all know what our Xiǎo Qiū is capable of. Of course you’re amazing.”

Mǐ Qiū replied, “Not really.”

“One more thing. I’ve been promoted. I’m now the Commander-in-Chief of the drone mech division, and also the General Captain of the command center. Same rank as Hè Yù Nán.”

No wonder. He had dared to call Officer Hè by his first name. So that was why. What she hadn’t expected was that the original owner’s childhood friend was now a Commander-in-Chief.

Mǐ Qiū was stunned. After being captivated by his pleasant voice, she slowly managed to pull her thoughts back together.

Sù Zé Chū said, “If you want to lower the soothing value to the passing line, it’s not difficult. I can tell you a method.”

“Of course, you can take my method as a reference. First, you need extreme dedication. Second, it’s about the accumulation of quantity. After multiple sessions, the Sentinels will completely let their guard down around you. Once their psychological defenses are thoroughly shattered, you can meet the standard.”

Mǐ Qiū understood. She had learned a lot from this. She asked him, “Alright, I’ll give it a try. If I succeed, I’ll be the first to share the good news with you.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

With those two final words, Sù Zé Chū went offline.

But at least now, Mǐ Qiū fully understood the fundamentals of soothing. So it was that simple…

Mǐ Qiū had actually been very dedicated during every hypnosis session. But now, it seemed that what she called “dedication” was merely being serious about the hypnosis itself—just surface-level effort.

In other words, during the hypnosis, Mǐ Qiū had to truly treat the person being hypnotized as someone she was already deeply in love with.

She had to get promoted to a C-class Guide first, then slowly work her way up to an A-class Guide. If she didn’t put in her best effort now, she’d be done for!

By now, Mǐ Qiū had already drawn up a detailed plan. In her plan, all three men had roughly the same danger level.

And their brainwave fluctuations were all hovering around nine. Now, what she had to figure out was the order of their soothing sessions. Maybe she should just let them decide.

Tomorrow was Monday, so the plan would start then. The next day, Mǐ Qiū woke up bright and early. After breakfast, the other two had already disappeared, leaving only Hè Chí in the first-floor hall.

Hè Chí wasn’t a flirtatious talker like Shěn Qīnghuái. At least, being with him was comfortable, like being with a warm older brother.

Of course, every Sentinel was dangerous. Mǐ Qiū kept this fact firmly in her mind.

After asking Hè Chí, Mǐ Qiū learned that Zhù Shāngchén and Shěn Qīnghuái were both in their rooms playing games. She wanted to understand them better and have more in common with them.

Hè Chí said, “They mostly play action and competitive games. I’m different from them.”

Mǐ Qiū couldn’t handle those types of games. She opened the relaxing puzzle game she had recently downloaded and started harvesting carrots and cabbages.

Not only did she gather these crops, but she also had to herd the little chicks and ducklings into their pens and feed them herself. This gave her a great sense of accomplishment.

Mǐ Qiū preferred simple, relaxing games that didn’t require much thought, the kind where she could plant vegetables and raise pets every day, enjoying a carefree life.

Mǐ Qiū asked in return, “So what kind of games do you like?”

Hè Chí’s answer was very straightforward: “Match-3.”

They have match-3 games in the interstellar era?!

Hè Chí even gave her a special explanation. “For someone like me with a very meticulous mind, it’s generally hard to get into a game. I prefer something that can train my fingers.”

Mǐ Qiū said, “Yeah, I like those too.”

Just then, Mǐ Qiū noticed that the TV Hè Chí was watching was showing a realistic nature documentary.

A red fox was chasing a pure white bunny, preparing to eat it.

How could Hè Chí watch such a bloody scene with such relish, without being moved at all?

“Maybe we should change the channel? There are probably a lot of other interesting channels,” Mǐ Qiū suggested.

“This one is fine. I find it quite interesting.”

Mǐ Qiū said, “But don’t you think it’s cruel? And it’s all real.”

Hè Chí replied, “During my experiments, I often observe the death of a creature up close to experience the coldness of death. The law of the jungle is the rule for all living things in this world. Being eaten by a natural predator is a very common thing. This is just one way for the red fox to hunt. Of course, it’s the same for all animals.”

Mǐ Qiū couldn’t watch this kind of thing at all.

Because the little bunny always made her think of Ruǎn Bái Bái. Bunnies are so cute, why would you eat them?

She really wasn’t being overly sensitive; she just couldn’t bear it.

You could say that Mǐ Qiū was unable to watch such gory scenes.

A short while later, Mǐ Qiū went back to her little game, planting and harvesting vegetables.

This kind of cozy scene made her feel much more comfortable.

In a week, Mǐ Qiū had to set aside time for three people, which meant one night of soothing for each. So, for the order, Mǐ Qiū came up with an idea.

They would go sea fishing. Whoever caught the biggest fish would be first in line.

Mǐ Qiū chose this method to be fair.

Of course, the three of them didn’t know about this idea. Mǐ Qiū simply suggested going sea fishing, and as she had expected, they weren’t against it.

The sea fishing officially began in the afternoon. Mǐ Qiū would also participate. Not for any other reason, but because she had always wanted to try sea fishing and never had the chance. Now that she finally had the opportunity, she was going to show them what she was made of, hahaha!

Who said she was weak? She wasn’t weak at all!

When it came to something she was interested in, Mǐ Qiū would give it her all.

Finally, finally, Mǐ Qiū could take out the fishing equipment she had bought online a long time ago. Any longer and it would have started collecting dust. Mǐ Qiū put bait on her fishing hook and cast it, hoping a fish would bite soon.

The weather today was perfect, with no wind. What a clear and beautiful day! Mǐ Qiū would occasionally observe the other three, wondering who would be the first to catch a big fish.

The wait for a fish to bite was extraordinarily long. Could it be that there were no fish swimming under this clear, blue sea? Otherwise, how could they not be attracted by her delicious bait?

It was unscientific, absolutely unscientific!

So, Mǐ Qiū added another piece of bait. She put another, larger slice of raw meat on the hook.

Actually, as long as she could truly calm down, it shouldn’t be a big problem.

Before long, she believed she would succeed in catching a fish.

Mǐ Qiū still held great confidence in this matter.

Getting bored during the process, Mǐ Qiū went back to the cabin to grab some snacks.

The moon-shaped, puffy crackers tasted like they were made with butter and had a hint of honey sweetness, which balanced the buttery flavor and made them even more delicious.

After eating a few crackers, Mǐ Qiū felt much better. She didn’t forget to share the snacks with everyone.

Then she asked them about their fishing progress.

Hè Chí calmly stared at the sea surface. “You still need to be patient. This one shouldn’t be small. I’ll just wait slowly.”

Seeing Mǐ Qiū looking at him with wide eyes, Zhù Shāngchén said, “Don’t worry, I’m best at waiting. If I don’t catch one, there’s no way I’m going back to sleep.”

So it wasn’t just her who found it difficult; they also thought fishing was on hard mode.

At first, Mǐ Qiū had planned to judge the final result by who caught the biggest fish, but now it seemed that just catching one fish would be an achievement.

Just then, Shěn Qīnghuái said to Mǐ Qiū, “Guide Mǐ Qiū, aren’t you going to ask me?”

“I thought you would have the same answer as them, right?”

“You should ask me what my chances of catching one are.”

Seeing how confident he was, Mǐ Qiū asked, “What are your chances?”

“100%, provided that Guide Mǐ Qiū doesn’t disrupt my thoughts. Like now, hovering between the three of us. Do you know how to get a fish to bite?”

Mǐ Qiū said, “I do.”

“Focus. Otherwise, your own chances of catching a fish will decrease.”

Zhù Shāngchén laughed from the side.

“Isn’t it just because your skills suck? Haven’t caught a single fish. Tell the truth.”

Shěn Qīnghuái retorted, “Speaking of bad skills, Zhù Shāngchén, you’re not much better, are you?”

Hè Chí poked his head out to watch the fun. He decided not to get involved.

Her soothing work was scheduled for Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.