Chapter 957: Tadpole, Find Mother... Find Twelve

When the simulated sunlight inside the Ocean Voyager lit up again, Lin Sanjiu was already hurrying on her way to the captains cabin. By now, the high-ranking Night Wanderers had gathered together, waiting to hear her detailed account of the events on the night she left Heaven Zone. Yesterday, when they parted ways, the young pilot named Tan Zhang entrusted her with this task. However, it wasnt until she woke up this morning that she suddenly realized what a great opportunity this was and regretted not reacting sooner.

It seems that no matter how evolved people become, they still need to rest.

"When I mentioned this to Tan Zhang yesterday, it was rushed, and I didnt have time to go into detail," Lin Sanjiu spoke clearly in front of more than ten senior officers on the s.h.i.+p. The young pilot frowned and s.h.i.+fted in his seat at the back. Lin Sanjiu had already prepared her words, so her speech flowed smoothly, "On the way to the mooring port, I happened to pa.s.s by the Munitions Factory. At that time, there were sirens and chaos everywhere. I asked one of the pa.s.sing members of the Munitions Factory for information... He quickly told me about the situation."

She paused, feeling the gaze of every pair of eyes in the room fixed on her, including the lower-ranking members like Lyanna standing at the back, waiting in silence for her to continue.

"The commander of the Munitions Factory was murdered."

As soon as she said that, a collective gasp filled the room.

"I think the messages they spread didnt mention this? He was killed by three outsiders. When the alarm was sounded and everyone surrounded Commander Tower, one of the individuals took advantage of the chaos and escaped from the Munitions Factory... The member of the the Munitions Factory I talked to seemed to be part of the search party, as he described the appearance of the person and asked if I had seen him nearby."

As she spoke, she felt a few of the senior officers in the front row straighten their posture.

"What kind of person was he?" a thin, sharp-angled man with his temples trimmed into a hooked shape asked, "Perhaps they are Silvans accomplices. I heard that Silvan didnt go in alone."

The person who had gone in with him was standing right in front of them.

"I dont know," Lin Sanjiu shook her head naturally, "No one mentioned Silvan when I asked about it... They were looking for a man who, at first glance, appeared young but upon closer inspection, was not so young anymore."

"So is he young or not?" another middle-aged woman asked in an unpleasant tone. Rather than asking a question, she seemed to be giving orders.

They showed no courtesy to Lin Sanjiu as an outsider.

Lin Sanjiu didnt mind the att.i.tude of the middle-aged womanactually, she was hoping someone would ask that question. With a hint of relief, she proceeded to describe Twelves appearance in detail, making sure to add, "Someone heard his companion calling him Twelve."

Unfortunately, the Artist couldnt draw the picture as requested; otherwise, having a portrait of Twelve would have increased the chances of finding him.

The Night Wanderers gathered here, especially the lower-ranking officers, spent most of their time maintaining the operation of the s.h.i.+p. After all, it was their responsibility to create the pa.s.senger registry and arrange the accommodation and supplies. If anyone had seen Twelve, it was likely among this group of people.

Lin Sanjius gaze swept across their faces, trying to find any trace of recognition.

"Why does this person sound familiar?" someone murmured. When she turned her head to look in that direction, it was unclear who had spoken. Several people in that area were looking at her.

"Probably a mistake. That person couldnt possibly be on this s.h.i.+p," Tan Zhang responded without looking back, his eyes fixed on Lin Sanjiu, his thoughts unclear. "When he escaped from Heaven Zone, we should have already been in the sky."

No, I cant let them think that way.

They were all potential eyes for finding Twelve. Just as Lin Sanjiu was racking her brains to come up with a plausible "reason for boarding" for Twelve, a strong middle-aged man sitting in the center interrupted her thoughts in a deep voice, "Lets not talk about that person. What to do do you know about Silvans invasion?"

"I dont know anything," she immediately replied.

The room fell silent for a moment, and Tan Zhangs narrow eyes once again scanned her.

Since she knew nothing about the most crucial part, after some sporadic conversation, everyone got up and dispersed. As people left, Lyanna, like a released horse, took a few steps and stood next to Tan Zhang. However, the young man with the sharp eyes shook his head at her and instead walked towards Lin Sanjiu.

"You did well today," he spoke politely, but his tone still had a superior-to-subordinate qualitythese Twelve Worlds people were probably accustomed to the sense of superiority from being in the center of the Twelve Worlds. "Did Stan come to find you this morning?"

"Who?" Lin Sanjiu didnt immediately catch on.

"Stan," the young man furrowed his brow again, looking serious. "Stan Smith... the person I sent to guide you yesterday."

Lin Sanjiu blinked.

"Its normal for her not to ask for a name," Lyanna interjected, walking over. "That person seemed like he didnt want to talk to anyone... You only found out his name when you checked the list this morning."

Tan Zhang cleared his throat.

"I thought his name was Octo," Lin Sanjiu swept her gaze over the two of them, "Thats what he told me. So, youre not familiar with him?"

"Thats probably his middle name," Lyanna said cheerfully.

"Im not familiar with him, I suppose," Tan Zhang furrowed his brow, "Since youre new here, I instructed him to help you get familiar with the environment these days."

The words "no need" were on the tip of Lin Sanjius tongue, but she swallowed them back. She looked into Tan Zhangs eyes and pondered his att.i.tude for a moment, then smiled and nodded, "Thank you for being so thoughtful."

Lyannas bright eyes s.h.i.+fted between Lin Sanjiu and Tan Zhang. The young girl seemed to have an intense interest in everything, her thoughts floating like a balloon carried away by the wind, uncertain where it would land. At this moment, she smiled at the two of them, making Lin Sanjiu feel like she had thought of something helpless. To make her escape, Lin Sanjiu quickly nodded, "Then Ill go first. Ill find Octo... I mean Stan. Where is he?"

Lyanna immediately volunteered to show her the wayperhaps girls and boys of this age were all filled with such overflowing energy. She spoke quickly and lightly, like a sparrow just awakened by early spring. Even though she wasnt particularly beautiful, she was bright, vibrant, and lively. Even a casual chat with her would involuntarily be infected by her pa.s.sionate demeanor.

"Here it is," after chatting for a while, the two of them had arrived at their destination. The young girl spoke while tapping on the cabin door, "Stan! Stan!"

She knocked a few times, and the door was opened from the inside. An unfamiliar rectangular face peered out, "Stop calling, hes not here."

"Where is he then?" Lyanna seemed skeptical and tiptoed to look inside.

"He came back late last night and went out early this morning," the rectangular-faced person yawned, "Probably had a mission... I didnt bother asking him."

Faced with the silent black face, many people would probably feel that it was pointless to speak to him voluntarily.

"Ill go look for him," Lyanna turned around and smiled at Lin Sanjiu, her teeth s.h.i.+ning white, "Ill let him come to you once I find him!"

How could she let a young girl run errands for her? But before Lin Sanjiu could say anything, Lyanna had already turned and ran out. Lin Sanjiu watched as Lyannas figure disappeared around the corner. Seeing the rectangular-faced man about to close the door, she hurriedly grabbed it.

The rectangular-faced man raised his eyes.

"Your roommate," Lin Sanjiu smiled apologetically at him, "Whats his name?"

The expression on the rectangular-faced mans face seemed as if he had seen something foolish.

"She already called his name when she knocked on the door, didnt she?" he was very puzzled, "His name is Stan!"

"Well... are you familiar with him?" Lin Sanjiu asked.

"Not really," the rectangular-faced man shrugged and tried to slide the door shut, but Lin Sanjius long and strong arm still held onto the doork.n.o.b. He glanced at her, a bit annoyed, "I was just a.s.signed to be his roommate halfway through. I dont know much about him. I cant make heads or tails of him."

"Halfway through?" Lin Sanjiu caught onto that word, "Who was his roommate before?"

"It seems like a friend who joined the organization and boarded the s.h.i.+p together," the rectangular-faced man recalled, "I heard about it, but I cant be sure... But when the Ocean Voyager sailed down and received the second batch of experiment partic.i.p.ants, that friend suddenly disappeared."

"Disappeared?"

"Thats what I heard." When it came to gossip, the rectangular-faced man seemed to become more interested and couldnt stop talking, "The Ocean Voyager was extremely selective during the screening process! Not to mention random outsiders, even internally, it was extremely difficult. I dont know who would be so stupid to sneak away after boarding the s.h.i.+p. As a result, the organization had to expel him... Moreover, he might have missed an opportunity that will never be available for teleportation again."

"Has Stan been quiet since then?"

"How would I know what he was like before? But since becoming roommates for several days, weve exchanged no more than ten sentences."

"I have one more question," Lin Sanjiu said softly, "Has he ever mentioned his name as Octo? Perhaps its a middle name."

"No!" The rectangular-faced man threw those two words and forcefully slid the door shut as Lin Sanjiu released her hand.

Lin Sanjiu pondered for a moment, then suddenly turned her head. She raised her gaze and coincidentally met "Stan" not far away.

Was Lyannas action that fast? Or did he happen to come back at this moment?

Before she could doubt how much he had overheard, Stan had already walked over. He glanced at Lin Sanjiu, and although his face still showed no expression, there was a faint gleam in his eyes that seemed different somehowhard to describe, but it was like a snake that had been startled from the gra.s.s by a stick.

Perhaps she had been biased, leading to such a feeling?

"Middle name," Stan said briefly, his eyes locked onto her, clearly having caught bits and pieces of their conversation. "Where to?"

This was no longer just a name issue... Lin Sanjiu looked into his eyes and a thought floated up in her mind.

Dont rush things.

She lowered her head and pondered for a moment before smiling, "Its just uncommon for someone to be referred to by their middle name... I thought I had mistaken the person earlier."

Stan didnt even nod his head.

Just as Lin Sanjiu thought he wouldnt say another word, Stan unexpectedly spoke, "I havent finished my task. You can go explore on your own."

Lin Sanjiu was taken aback, "Wait, Tan Zhang said"

But Stan turned and walked away as if he hadnt heard. In the bustling residential area of the posthumans, Lin Sanjiu couldnt really force him to stay, and she couldnt think of any reason to keep him anyway.

Besides, he couldnt leave the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p, so she could always come find him later.

On her way to the bulletin board, Lin Sanjiu fell into contemplation.

How could she confirm whether Octo was really his middle name?

The Twelve Worlds Centrum wasnt like a pre-apocalyptic government agency that would meticulously record all information. Even if he claimed his middle name was Napoleon Bonaparte, she had no means to verify it.

The only suspicious point was that everyone, including his roommate, referred to him as "Stan."

Now, thinking back, when Lin Sanjiu asked him his name at the bulletin board yesterday, "Stan" seemed distracted by the flow of messages. It was at that moment when he blurted out "Octo" as his answer.

Subconscious and unintentional words often reveal the truth.

If Octo was his real name and he wasnt Stan Smith... then the sudden disappearance of Stan Smiths close friend could be explained. The friend knew Stan inside out, and it would be too dangerous to keep him around... But in the end, was there really someone pretending to be Stan Smith?

His appearance could change so completely... which means...

Frowning, Lin Sanjiu didnt even know where she was going. When she snapped out of her thoughts, she found herself standing on the observation deck. There werent many people on the observation deck today, and the allure of the pitch-black universe had faded quickly as time pa.s.sed.

She stood still for a moment, but her attention was suddenly drawn back by footsteps behind her.

"w.i.l.l.y?" Tan Zhangs voice rank out. "Ive been calling you, didnt you hear?"

Lin Sanjiu turned around and quickly smiled, "Oh, I s.p.a.ced out for a moment..."

"The device that plays music," Tan Zhang casually asked, "can I borrow it for a few minutes?"