Dimensional Store: Welcome to the Apocalypse Apartment - Chapter 255

Chapter 255

“Is that your dad?” Gu Huaiwei turned and asked Lulu.

The train window was half-open. Lulu was still gazing at the scenery outside, silent.

The wind swept over her bloodstained school uniform, carrying a sickly sweet tang through the air.

Even when using an Anomaly bound by Contract, there was still a price to pay.

Gu Huaiwei took out the Yellow Paper for Lifespan.

Only then did Lulu turn her head. After swallowing the Yellow Paper, she answered Gu Huaiwei’s question. “Gray Mist Town only has one hospital, and only one Dean… clack, clack, clack… I don’t know if the person in Car No. 0 is my dad. He always takes a business car when he goes out. He usually wouldn’t ride the Green Train.”

Then she stretched out her pale hand again.

“I can help you go take a look, but that’ll cost extra.”

The Lifespan used for Contracts with Anomaly all came out of Gu Huaiwei’s own pocket. It did not go through Oasis Sanatorium’s official accounts.

Gu Huaiwei slapped Lulu’s palm away.

To get an Anomaly to move of its own accord, she had to use Yellow Paper with Lifespan written on it.

She did not have that much life to spare.

Gu Huaiwei decided to go herself.

At that moment, the uncle lying on the floor foaming at the mouth began to convulse.

The girl holding the Black Cat urged the attendant Trial-taker to hurry and call a doctor over.

But the Black Cat in the girl’s arms seemed to have been startled. With a “meow,” it extended its sharp claws and scratched the girl’s face, then leaped out of her embrace.

The Black Cat pounced at the little boy who had been watching the commotion from the side. The little boy’s head flew off like a ball and rolled under a seat.

The head that had gone flying kept crying.

The headless little boy flailed blindly, staggering through the crowd.

Meanwhile, the little boy’s grandmother snapped harshly. One hand on her hip, she pointed the other right at the attendant’s nose. “Clack, clack, clack… Oh, my precious eldest grandson! Attendant, you have to help me find my precious grandson’s ball right now… clack, clack, clack… Otherwise, I’ll make sure you pay for this…”

The girl also began to sob. “Waaah… my cat, my cat ran away…”

The Black Cat ran to the place where passengers stored their luggage and licked its own paws.

The entire car descended into chaos.

All the passengers started looking for the attendant.

Those Anomaly passengers surrounded the attendant on all sides.

Gu Huaiwei took out her sister’s mirror.

In the entire car, only the Black Cat and the attendant showed no signs of pollution.

As a Trial-taker, the attendant’s forehead was pouring cold sweat. The scene before him left him utterly flustered.

According to the Rules, he had to properly handle every passenger’s request. When he could not resolve something, he could ask the Black Cat for help.

He swallowed dryly and was just about to walk toward the Black Cat when the girl who had been covering her face and crying curled her lips into a meaningful sneer.

Incidents in the car had to be handled in the proper order.

He had overlooked the major premise written at the very top of the Rules: the attendant was supposed to prioritize the customers’ lives.

The correct approach would have been to first promise the other customers that he would find attendants from the other cars to help look for the ball and the cat. Although the other passengers would be dissatisfied and file a complaint with the train, the conductor would have no way to punish the attendant.

Then the attendant needed to leave this car at once, bring a doctor over, and treat the uncle who was foaming at the mouth.

Only if other customers tried to stop him from doing so would he need to take out lunch to lure the Black Cat. The Black Cat would jump down and scratch the Anomaly beings that attempted to block him, allowing him to leave smoothly.

Gu Huaiwei stood up.

“Quiet.” She walked straight toward the old grandmother who had been yelling nonstop.

“Clack, clack, clack… Who are you to tell me to be quiet? Hurry up and find my grandson’s ball! If my grandson cries himself sick, every last one of you will be responsible for him!”
The old woman looked hunched and frail, but she was surprisingly agile. She picked up her cane, a vicious glint in her eyes, and swung the wooden stick hard at Gu Huaiwei’s arm.

Then, just like that, the cane snapped.

“Crack, crack, crack… crack, crack, crack…”

The old woman stared at the broken cane, unable to react for a moment.

Gu Huaiwei hadn’t dodged. The instant the old woman hit her, she toppled sideways into the seat beside her, clutching her completely unharmed arm and wailing, “You broke my arm! You have to pay compensation! I need to go to the hospital for a full examination now. Medical expenses, lost wages, and the transportation costs for this train ride-you have to cover all of it!”

The old woman raised her head. “Crack, crack, crack… Are you trying to scam me?”

The moment Gu Huaiwei heard that, she immediately covered her head with one hand. “Oh dear, what do you mean, scam? I don’t understand. My head must hurt this much because of all that noise you made just now. No, I have to add emotional distress damages too.”

Bai Miemie grabbed the old woman, who was trying to weasel out of paying, with one small hand.

“Hurry up and hand over your Lifespan already. You beat up my Sister Gu. If you don’t obediently compensate her, I’ll yank both your arms off!”

“I’m an old woman… crack, crack, crack…”

“Mm-hmm.” Bai Miemie nodded repeatedly. “Respect the elderly and cherish the young. If you can’t afford it, have your grandson pay. I’ll treat both of you equally.”

The old woman opened her mouth, then closed it again.

She was a Low-level Anomaly, incapable of handling matters that strayed too far beyond the Instance.

Anomalies operated within a fixed range and had their own patterns of movement.

The old woman lowered her head and looked at Bai Miemie, who had a human appearance. She tried to pull her hand back and skip this part entirely, only to discover that she couldn’t move at all.

She didn’t know what Bai Miemie was.

But the old woman realized one fact that filled her with fear: Bai Miemie could harm her the way a High-level Anomaly could.

Terrifying.

Because of Gu Huaiwei’s maneuver, the young male conductor stopped in his tracks on his way to find the Black Cat for help.

The Anomalies’ attention was all on Gu Huaiwei now.

The girl suddenly appeared beside the conductor. Her eyes were brimming with tears, and she urged him anxiously, “Mr. Conductor, please hurry and bring that cat to me. That cat is very important to me. It’s been with me for more than twenty years. Without it, I’ll die.”

This girl acted the most like a human.

As a Trial-taker, the conductor couldn’t tell whether the girl was good or bad.

“Ah, okay, okay. I’ll go help you find the cat right now.”

According to the Rules, the Black Cat was good.

So this Trial-taker naturally assumed that the girl holding the Black Cat must also be a good person.

“Can a cat live for more than twenty years?” Gu Huaiwei was sitting on the train’s cushioned seat, her head tilted to the side, her long black hair falling over one shoulder. Although one hand was clutching her arm, there was no trace of pain on her face.

A normal cat’s lifespan was twelve to sixteen years.

The Black Cat on the luggage rack looked extremely young on the outside.

Its black fur was glossy, its eyes bright and sharp. It didn’t look remotely like a long-lived cat over twenty years old.

When the conductor heard Gu Huaiwei’s words, he snapped back to his senses. His gaze turned wary as he looked at the girl.

“Conductor, that uncle lying on the floor is about to kick the bucket. Why don’t you take me to find a doctor first?

This hooligan granny broke my arm. I need a doctor to set it first.”