Catching a Human Trafficker

Catching a Human Trafficker

Luo Jun froze...

What was going on?!

He frowned. Suddenly, everything around him slowed to the point of near stillness. Ling Xin, sitting before him, looked like a statue, while the students leaving school around them were all motionless...

The eerie sight made Luo Jun's eyes widen. Then, two dice—one black, one white—appeared before him, exactly like the ones the old man had thrown in his dream!

That wasn't a dream?!

Wait... that wasn't important!

What did you mean by a "[Low Probability] successful event" just now?

Did that mean inviting Ling Xin to a movie?

Luo Jun felt insulted all over again.

Me!

Spending money!

Treating someone to a movie!

How was that a [Low Probability] successful event?

Hah! I refuse to believe this nonsense!

For the sake of his pride, Luo Jun chose "Yes" as well. The two ten-sided dice before him began spinning madly.

As the two dice stopped one after another, the black one showed an eight, while the white one showed a six!

Eighty-six points! That was high enough, right?

Luo Jun gave a disdainful cold snort, but the next prompt sound poured a basin of cold water over him.

"Ding! Final Points: 86. Success Difficulty: 90. Sorry, Event Failed!"

"What the hell?!"

Luo Jun's eyes went wide. "Inviting someone to a movie has a difficulty of ninety points?"

"Then I'm not asking her out!"

"Ding! Warning: the Controller must take responsibility for their choices. Once you choose to use the dice, you must complete the corresponding event. Otherwise, the Dice of Heavenly Secrets will disappear completely."

As though it had read his urge to retreat, the prompt sound rang out at just the right moment.

The prompt left Luo Jun stunned. Disappear?

Though he still didn't know exactly what the Dice of Heavenly Secrets could do, they were clearly something extraordinary that belonged to him alone. They were going to disappear as soon as he got them?

Remembering the hardships he had endured over the years, as well as the bleak life whose end he could see at a glance, these Dice of Heavenly Secrets might just be a turning point...

It was only a failed invitation. A man who had never been rejected by a woman could never grow into a real man!

After secretly giving himself a round of encouragement, Luo Jun took a deep breath and looked down, meeting Ling Xin's eyes.

Ling Xin seemed to find this male classmate somewhat strange. She stood up, intending to walk past him.

Luo Jun gritted his teeth and called out to her despite himself. "Ling Xin, you like Wild Hunt too? I happen to have tickets. Want to go together?"

The moment those words came out, the classroom, which had just been somewhat noisy, fell silent in an instant.

Did someone just ask a girl to a movie?

Who did he ask?

Ling Xin?!

Who asked her?

Luo Jun??!

Everyone held their breath, their gazes swinging between the two of them.

"Inviting me to a movie?"

Ling Xin was somewhat surprised as well. She turned to look at Luo Jun, seeming to hesitate for a moment before shaking her hand.

"Sorry, I already have plans!"

With that, the beautiful girl slung on her backpack, stepped past Luo Jun, and strode out of the classroom.

The silence in the classroom lasted for several seconds. Then, someone started with a "Pfft," and the room erupted into jeering as everyone instantly surrounded Luo Jun.

"OOOOH!"

"What courage, young man!"

"Jun Ge, not bad! Does this count as a graduation confession?"

"What were you thinking? Pulling something like that out of nowhere... Were you still half asleep?"

"Don't listen to them. I support you, but Ling Xin's level might be a little too high. What do you think of Zheng Xiaoou from Class Three? She might not be as pretty as Ling Xin, but her figure is seriously~ wow~. Want me to put in a word for you?"

"There must be more than one person who wants to pursue her, but you're the first one who dared to make a move. I hereby announce that from today onward, you are my idol!"

Faced with everyone's teasing, Luo Jun could only pretend to be nonchalant to ease the awkwardness. "Calm down, all of you. Why make such a fuss over something so minor? Look at you, acting like you've never seen the world!"

At that moment, a somewhat grating voice rang out.

"Luo Jun, we are students, after all. Don't waste your energy on such useless things. Especially you—your circumstances are special. You should recognize your own position and make plans early for your future life!"

Luo Jun raised a brow and turned his head. A slender, delicate-looking boy with willow-leaf brows and narrow eyes stepped forward.

This boy was named Han Yuri. His grades were good, his family was well-off, and he was highly regarded by the teachers. It was said that he had even received a recommendation from a prestigious school. However, he was quite utilitarian and sharp-tongued. He had become class monitor by constantly tattling, but he was not particularly popular with the class.

The others had merely been joking around, but Class Monitor Han's words carried a rather Yin Yang tone, mocking Luo Jun for overestimating himself.

"Class Monitor, there's no need to make such a big deal out of it..." A boy stepped out with a smile, intending to smooth things over, but Luo Jun waved a hand and cut him off.

"Class Monitor Han is right. I have no one to rely on, so I really should keep my feet on the ground... But as far as I know, you've had feelings for Ling Xin for more than a day or two, haven't you? Why haven't you made any moves even though graduation is almost here?"

As he spoke, Luo Jun leaned his face forward and stared straight into Han Yuri's eyes.

"What, are you an orphan too?"

The moment those words left his mouth, Han Yuri's face twitched involuntarily. Luo Jun snickered, grabbed his backpack, then turned and walked out of the classroom with his chest held high.

As for the other onlookers, they could see that the two had reached the point of Swords Drawn and Bows Bent, so they sensibly dispersed.

Watching Luo Jun's departing back view, Han Yuri frowned slightly, his cheek twitching.

A tall boy beside him leaned over. "Yuri, don't lower yourself to his level!"

"Hmph, he's just an orphan. I'm not that cheap!" Han Yuri gave a cold snort, then turned to the big guy. "Daqiang, Ling Xin said she had plans tonight, right? Help me find out who she's meeting!"

Gao Ziqiang pursed his lips. "I'm a guy. How am I supposed to pry into a girl's secrets..."

Han Yuri rolled his eyes at him. "I'll take you along to the gathering this weekend."

Gao Ziqiang's eyes lit up when he heard that. He instantly stood at attention. "Don't worry, I guarantee I'll complete the mission!"

Meanwhile, after leaving the classroom and turning past the stairwell, Luo Jun made sure no one was following him before his face fell. He ran and stumbled his way out of the Teaching Building.

"Where's a ground fissure I can crawl into..."

He was still only eighteen or nineteen. He might have said he didn't care, but he still felt awkward inside...

Still, he had at least completed the event. He wondered what he would gain.

Just as Luo Jun was puzzling over it, the prompt sound rang out in his mind again.

"Ding!"

"Event: 'Invite Ling Xin to a movie' failed. Obtained one Experience Point!"

"Dice of Heavenly Secrets activation failed."

Experience Points? What kind of nonsense was that?

With a thought from Luo Jun, a translucent panel appeared before him.

Name: Luo Jun

Level: Level 0 (1/100)

Attributes:

Strength: 5 points

Agility: 5 points

Perception: 5 points

Spirit: 5 points

Luck: Level 5

Skills: None

Items: None

Uses: 4/5

Status: Not Activated

What was this? Some newly released video game?

The old man from the dream had given him more than just a pair of ordinary dice—there was also an accompanying system?

Looking at all those attributes and skills and other miscellaneous things, it seemed to possess limitless potential for enhancement...

This was kind of amazing!

But what did activation failed mean? Those two dice still didn't count as successfully activated? Could it be that activation required succeeding at an event once?

With that thought, he began trying to investigate the strange panel. But before he could figure out its hidden workings, the system suddenly vanished, and the flow of time around him returned to normal.

"That's it? Where's the panel? Where are the attributes?"

Luo Jun waved his hands around in front of him a few times, but he could no longer summon that miraculous system.

After trying like a madman around campus for quite a while, Luo Jun finally gave up...

There was no time. He needed to get to the theater first, or today's tickets would have been bought for nothing.

Luo Jun boarded a bus at the school gate and rode all the way to the mall. He went up to the top floor, found the theater, and exchanged his tickets.

Looking at the two movie tickets in his hand, Luo Jun sighed...

He hadn't found a way to refund them at the venue. Just because his hand had slipped, he had spent more than thirty extra yuan. That was enough to cover two days of meals. Could he somehow recover some of the loss?

Checking the time, Luo Jun saw that there was still more than half an hour before the movie started. His eyes shifted, and he stood at the theater entrance, stopping customers walking inside...

"Big bro, want a ticket? Wild Hunt starts soon. Just thirty yuan—seven and a half cheaper than online!"

"Miss, want a ticket? Wild Hunt, selling it cheap!"

"Little kid, do you want to watch a movie..."

In order to recover his meal money, Luo Jun took up a side job as a scalper during the gap before the movie began. However, people mostly booked movie tickets online these days, and very few actually bought them at the venue. He could not find a buyer for his ticket even after a long time.

"Uncle, my mom bought tickets. She'll be here soon!"

The Little Boy he had stopped answered while eating an ice cream, his dark, round eyes glaring up at him.

"Who are you calling Uncle, you unlucky brat? You don't know any manners! Remember, only people about the same age as your dad are called Uncle. A beautiful young man like me should be called Brother!"

"But when I look at Dad's photo, he seems about the same age as you..." The Little Boy looked at Luo Jun with his dark, round eyes.

"Photo?" Luo Jun froze, only to hear the child say, "Mom said Dad was gone before I was born. He went to a very faraway place... There are only photos of Dad at home. Mom said they were taken when they were dating..."

He was a pitiful child too... A trace of sympathy appeared in Luo Jun's eyes.

"By the way, Brother, since you have an extra ticket, why don't you use it to go on a date with your girlfriend?"

"Uh..." Luo Jun instinctively clutched his chest, as though a knife had stabbed into it.

"Is it because you don't have one?"

"Uh, uh..." The child's innocent words stabbed Luo Jun twice more. The sympathy that had just arisen in his heart vanished without a trace...

"Go, go, play somewhere else!"

Seeing that the movie was about to start, Luo Jun sighed. It looked like he was destined to lose money today...

Having given up his last hope, Luo Jun lifted a foot and headed into the theater, only to suddenly be bumped by someone.

That person was very strong. Luo Jun was knocked into a full turn on the spot. When he looked up, he saw a tall, skinny man over 1.9 meters tall, dressed in a black trench coat.

The man did not stop to apologize after bumping into him. As if he had not even seen Luo Jun, he continued walking straight ahead.

Weirdo... Luo Jun grumbled inwardly. Not wanting to stir up trouble, he was just about to go have his ticket checked when he suddenly noticed that the man had grabbed the Little Boy who had been eating ice cream earlier!

The boy was terrified and clearly tried to resist, but the man's large hand covered the child's mouth. Then the boy's eyes began to glaze over, and the ice cream in his hand fell to the floor. The man smoothly gathered the sleeping child into his arms and prepared to leave.

The entire process took only two or three seconds. In the bustling mall, concealed by his trench coat, the man's actions had not drawn anyone's notice—except Luo Jun's!

"A Human Trafficker?"

Luo Jun's eyes widened. He immediately pointed at the man and shouted, "A Human Trafficker is kidnapping a child!"

The passing pedestrians were immediately drawn to the commotion and all looked over.

With the words Human Trafficker hanging over him, the man holding a sleeping child naturally looked rather suspicious.

Luo Jun gave a smug laugh. With so many eyes on him, the Human Trafficker would not dare act too recklessly. At the very least, he would have to explain himself. As long as Luo Jun could stall him until the police arrived, that would be enough!

With that in mind, he had already taken out his phone and started calling the police.

But who could have expected that after looking at the pedestrians gathering around, the man suddenly raised a hand and placed it on the back of the boy's neck? The boy then opened his eyes and said in a childish yet slightly stiff voice, "Dad, why did we stop? We're going to be too late..."

So they were father and son... Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and stopped paying attention. Several people even looked at Luo Jun, who had "made a false report," with reproach in their eyes.

Something's Wrong! Luo Jun knew this man could not possibly be the child's dad. His dad should already have been... Besides, the child's condition was not right either...

Seeing that the man was about to take the child away, Luo Jun had no time to think. He rushed forward in a single stride and grabbed the man's trench coat!

"Don't go. The child isn't yours!"

He did not directly try to snatch the child away, because he was afraid the man might be carrying a Murderous Weapon such as a knife. So he only grabbed the hem of the man's long trench coat. Even if the man tried to attack him, he would still have room to Dodge Attack and run.

No matter what, he had to hold him here first. Even if he really had it wrong, an apology would settle it in the end. That was still better than letting the child fall into a demon's clutches!

The man had not expected this kid to be so difficult to shake off. He gave a cold snort and spun around with a kick!

This guy was tall with long legs, and he seemed to have martial arts training. His spinning kick was swift and fierce, leaving Luo Jun no time to react!

Just then, Luo Jun felt everything around him slow down, and the prompt sound rang out in his mind once more:

"Detected a low-probability event with a Severity Coefficient no less than two: Dodge Attack! Use the Dice of Heavenly Secrets? Current remaining uses: 4/5."

The system prompt had appeared again?

A low probability? True, that kick had been far too fast. It would be difficult for him to dodge it on his own!

At this critical moment, he couldn't worry about so much. Roll the dice—he could still gamble on his luck! If it succeeded, who knew what he might get...

Event Difficulty 85, yet the Final Points were... 3?

"Ding, Great Failure!"

"Damn!!"

After hearing the Prompt Sound, Luo Jun only had time to spit out that one word before the kick struck him, sending him flying through the air!

(End of Chapter)