Chapter Summaries

Hesta stayed with Eleven and learned more about Eucali’s plan to seek money through a pregnancy arrangement in Northern District 14. After Eucali left for the city, Hesta took the hungry Eleven to Vera Maternity Center.

• Hesta carried Eleven back to the dwelling, where they slept together through the night.
• Eucali warned Hesta to be careful, explained that she needed money, and said her arrangement with Mikhailo was legal in Northern District 14 and carried little risk.
• Eleven woke up and accused Hesta and Eucali of talking behind her back, then refused to eat the noodles Eucali had cooked.
• Eucali asked Hesta about her plans, and Hesta said she was waiting for Yu Xuekun to find her after following the clues she had left.
• Eucali took a bus into the city while Hesta and Eleven agreed to meet her again at six in the evening.
• Hesta offered to take the hungry Eleven to Vera Maternity Center for food.

Hesta returned to the care center and demanded a definite offer from Mikhailo after another woman promised her an exceptionally high price. Mikhailo compared Hesta’s coloring with Eucali’s and said he could secure a better price for her in District 14 if she gave him time.

• Hesta asked the receptionist to take Eleven to breakfast, then waited for Mikhailo and requested to speak in his office.
• Hesta told Mikhailo that someone else had approached her with a high offer and demanded to know whether he could match it.
• Mikhailo urged Hesta to explain what had happened, but she insisted that he give her a specific price.
• Mikhailo measured Hesta’s eye and hair colors with a paper wheel and said standard market rates would value her at less than half of Eucali.
• Mikhailo explained that District 14 favored Hesta’s darker blue eyes and lighter hair, and claimed he could obtain a surprising price if she gave him time.

Hesta questioned Dr. Mikhailo about how he would sell her and demanded a specific price instead of relying on his assurances. He began explaining District 14’s wages, but had not yet named her price.

• Hesta examined a magazine about the declining Hesta population and learned that its publication had raised their market price twentyfold.
• Dr. Mikhailo argued that the broker had undervalued Hesta because she lacked access to buyers who prized missing limbs.
• Dr. Mikhailo claimed he could connect Hesta with wealthy clients and described his focus on rare candidates and buyers.
• Hesta said she trusted numbers more than persuasion and demanded a concrete amount before continuing negotiations.
• Dr. Mikhailo explained Northern District 14’s minimum and median wages, giving figures of 947 and 2125 Robbie.

Mikhailo explained to Hesta that a deal could give her a guaranteed minimum of two hundred thousand in sixteen months, presenting it as her admission ticket to a better life. When Hesta asked how her rarity could matter if she only carried a transplanted embryo, Mikhailo revealed that she would have to conceive a child with the client.

• Mikhailo described the income and lifestyle that he claimed would let Hesta experience the joys of being human.
• He told Hesta that the process would take at most sixteen months and promised her two hundred thousand in cash, with other costs covered.
• Hesta questioned the payment terms and asked how her traits would matter if she only received an embryo transplant.
• Mikhailo said Hesta could not merely carry an embryo and would have to bear a child conceived with the client.

Hesta agreed to proceed with Mikhailo’s arrangement after learning that she would need to bear children carrying her and the client’s genes, and he gave her money to help with her immediate troubles. After she left, Mikhailo grew suspicious of her identity and called a woman to question how quickly she had verified Hesta’s background.

• Mikhailo explained that Hesta would need to keep having children until she had a girl, and described the payments and living arrangements.
• Hesta agreed to turn down other offers and asked Mikhailo for a loan; he gave her three thousand five hundred Robbie.
• Hesta and Eleven left with Mikhailo’s well-wishes, and Hesta thanked him before departing.
• Mikhailo felt uneasy after Hesta left and called a woman to discuss Jane Hesta’s identity.
• Mikhailo questioned whether the woman’s quick background check was accurate and wondered if Hesta had falsified her age or past experience.

Mikhailo remained suspicious of Hesta despite being reassured that her records were genuine, while Hesta dreamed of her mother and woke with questions about Eleven’s visits to Vera Maternity Center. The chapter ended with Hesta asking Eleven whether she often took people there.

• Mikhailo urged a woman on the phone to investigate Hesta’s family and associates, but she questioned whether his suspicions were reasonable.
• Hesta and Eleven rested together on a park bench, where Eleven fell asleep against Hesta’s arm.
• Hesta dreamed of her mother carrying her through Duanming Alley and promising she had found a way to enter the Habitable Zone with her.
• Hesta woke distressed from the dream, and Eleven tried to comfort her with peanuts and checked her forehead.
• Hesta asked Eleven whether she often took people to Vera Maternity Center.

Hesta struggled to understand Eleven after the girl threw stones at her, then reunited with Eucali, who had found a tutoring student. Eleven grew jealous and antagonized Eucali, while Hesta asked her to help translate questions for Eleven.

• Eleven threw stones at Hesta, but Hesta dodged them, caught some, and picked Eleven up to scold her.
• Eleven climbed onto Hesta's shoulders and declared that she had won, making Hesta carry her like a horse.
• Eucali met Hesta and Eleven at the bus stop and told them she had gotten her first student tutoring Third District Language.
• Eleven tugged Eucali's hair and argued with her about being conspicuous, while Eucali scolded Eleven for her behavior.
• Hesta asked Eucali to help translate questions for Eleven, but Eleven interrupted and challenged Eucali's claim that she had relatives nearby.

Hesta, Eucali, and Eleven returned to the big house, where Hesta questioned Eleven about taking people to Vera Maternity Center and learned that Eleven earned commissions. Eleven then explained her ambition to learn kung fu, join a lineage, and make a name for the Liu Clan of Mei County.

• Hesta ran back to the big house with Eleven on her back, while Eucali struggled to keep up.
• Hesta asked Eleven why she took people to Vera Maternity Center instead of bringing them to her family, and Eleven said Mikhailo paid her commissions and gave her food or pocket money.
• Eleven refused to explain what she spent her money on and declared that she wanted to learn kung fu and formally take a master for twenty-six thousand.
• Eleven told Eucali that joining a lineage would let her have her own school and described her family connection to Pingjing.
• Eleven recited the words she said her relative's master had spoken about making a name for the Liu Clan of Mei County, then asked Hesta if the story sounded impressive.

Eucali argued with Eleven about her plans to earn money through Mikhailo, then Hesta offered Eucali financial help and urged her to reconsider the deal. Eucali questioned why Hesta had appeared in her life so often, and Hesta said fate had brought them together.

• Eleven insisted she would earn money from Mikhailo once she was old enough, and Eucali warned her about the dangers before sarcastically praising her ambition.
• Late that night, Hesta offered to lend Eucali four hundred thousand Robbie if she explained what she needed the money for.
• Hesta gave Eucali two thousand Robbie and offered to help her rent a place in Mei County, while urging her to reconsider Mikhailo's offer.
• Eucali clarified that Mikhailo had promised her two hundred and fifty thousand Robbie for sixteen months and said she planned to leave afterward.
• Hesta questioned whether Mikhailo's offer was bait, and Eucali challenged Hesta to explain their repeated chance encounters.
• Hesta said fate had brought them together, leaving Eucali feeling that the situation was unreal.

Eucali warned Hesta against trusting strangers and refused her offer of help, but Hesta asked how she could keep Eucali away from the place she feared. The next morning, Eucali rejected Hesta’s request to stay with her, and Hesta stopped her to give her something.

• Eucali told Hesta she had arranged to receive money from Dr. Mikhailo and explained that she had already signed a contract, with a medical examination scheduled for next Tuesday.
• Hesta asked why Eucali would not accept her help, and Eucali warned her to guard her money and boundaries in District 14.
• Hesta asked what she could do to keep Eucali far away from that place, but Eucali ended the conversation and went to bed.
• The next morning, Eucali said she planned to look for a place to stay, and Hesta asked to live with her and offered to pay most of the rent.
• Eucali refused, but Hesta grabbed her wrist and said she had something she had forgotten to give her.

Hesta gave Eucali a phone and spent the day with Eleven, then waited at the station for Eucali, who never arrived. After the last bus passed, Hesta let Eleven climb onto her back and remained at the stop.

• Hesta insisted that Eucali take a phone so they could stay in touch and arrange tutoring.
• Hesta and Eleven wandered around Mei County, where Hesta noticed unfamiliar soldiers patrolling the streets and returned near the Quicksilver Needles station.
• Hesta waited for Eucali while thinking about Mikhailo and the people behind Vera Maternity Center, as Eleven searched dumpsters for discarded batteries.
• Hesta called Eucali when she failed to appear, but her phone was switched off; Hesta checked the bus schedule and chose to keep waiting.
• The 7:24 bus arrived without Eucali, and Hesta crouched down so Eleven could climb onto her back.

After Dr. Mikhailo’s phone number stopped working and Vera Maternity Center said he was on vacation, Hesta rushed toward Quicksilver Needles station with Eleven. A monster attacked Eleven on the way, and as soldiers took her away, Hesta realized the fight outside had triggered the station’s alarm and lockdown.

• Hesta learned that Dr. Mikhailo’s number was invalid and that he had supposedly gone on vacation, so she headed for Quicksilver Needles station with Eleven.
• Hesta left Eleven waiting near the station with her phone, and Eleven sat outside a closed shop playing Snake.
• A bloodied monster attacked Eleven, but the older sister who had taken her to a buffet rescued her and fought the creature.
• Eleven fled, then hid to look for Hesta; soldiers found her and forcibly took her away.
• At Quicksilver Needles station, Hesta was filling out a visitor registration form when the fighting shook the building and the doors and windows shut as the alarm sounded.

A Chelated Being infiltrated the hall disguised as a wounded, bound woman, while a second one lurked overhead and attacked the soldiers. The ground creature captured a soldier and proposed a deadly game, leaving Hesta and the others hiding beneath desks in immediate danger.

• Hesta sensed a Chelated Being inside the building as staff and soldiers hid beneath desks.
• A bloodied woman ran into the hall and warned that a Chelated Being had tied up her coworkers in the offices.
• The woman revealed herself as a Chelated Being when the staff member questioned her identity, while another Chelated Being attacked from above with Flying Shears and hard cards.
• The ground Chelated Being broke free of its bindings, seized a soldier as a human shield, and crushed his wrist.
• The ground Chelated Being announced that people had thirty seconds to find someone hiding beneath the counters or die in that person's place.

Hesta volunteered to play the Chelated Being’s deadly game and tried to satisfy its rules by dragging a shelter occupant outside. The occupant ended up locked back inside, leaving Hesta bewildered as the Chelated Being watched.

• A soldier warned everyone that the Chelated Being intended to kill them, but it seized him and claimed Quicksilver Needles might arrive to save them.
• Hesta emerged from beneath a table and volunteered to play, saying she had seen where people were hiding.
• Hesta pretended to doubt that the creature was real, then struggled unsuccessfully to open a shelter while the Chelated Being mocked her.
• As the countdown neared its end, Hesta dragged a staff member toward the counter and told her to enter a shelter so Hesta could count her as someone she had found.
• The shelter latch snapped shut with the staff member still inside, and Hesta stared at the door and said she had not meant to do it.

Hesta killed one Chelated Being with her pens, then fought a second one in the dark before it escaped. After reinforcements arrived, a Quicksilver Needles noticed the dead creature’s eye and ordered the soldiers to release Hesta and take her along.

• Hesta tricked the first Chelated Being and killed it by driving her fountain pen through its eye and into its brain.
• Hesta climbed to the second floor and attacked the young-girl Chelated Being, which extinguished the lamp and struck back with business cards.
• Hesta barely deflected the second creature’s attacks as it killed several soldiers, then a flash split the station ceiling and the fight fell silent.
• When the alarm ended, Hesta emerged and told the arriving soldiers that one Chelated Being was dead and the other had escaped.
• Hesta recognized a fluorescent rim around the dead Chelated Being’s eye, and a nearby Quicksilver Needles ordered the soldiers to remove her shackles.

After being released from isolation, Hesta reunited with Yu Xuekun, who had come to find her after receiving her tip. Hesta asked Yu Xuekun to help locate Eucali, and they headed to Yu Xuekun’s apartment to search for her.

• Farn took Hesta from the workstation after arranging for her ankle shackles to be removed.
• During her examination and isolation, Hesta worried about Eucali and wondered whether she had misidentified the Chelated Being’s eye.
• Yu Xuekun met Hesta after isolation and gave her a confidentiality agreement instead of questioning her.
• While Hesta changed clothes, Yu Xuekun explained that public safety was especially poor for Hesta people.
• Hesta asked Yu Xuekun to find Eucali and provided details about Eucali’s contact with Mikhailo at Vera Maternity Center.
• Yu Xuekun drove Hesta to her apartment so she could use her work computer to search for Eucali.

Yu Xuekun brought Hesta to her apartment and offered to help her with whatever problems she faced, while Hesta asked about the Chelated Beings and her search for Eucali. The chapter ended with Hesta recognizing a turtle shell used for divination in Yu Xuekun’s study.

• Hesta and Yu Xuekun discussed the Chelated Beings, quarantine, and how Hesta could seek Yu Xuekun’s confidential help.
• Yu Xuekun learned that Hesta had no language teacher or interpreter and gave her a translation device.
• Yu Xuekun drove Hesta to her apartment and led her into the study.
• Hesta recognized a turtle shell and Eight Trigrams cloth as tools for divination and said someone had read her fortune near Vyborg.

Hesta and Yu Xuekun searched for the missing girl while Mikhailo fled Mei County and agreed to have her sent to Pingjing so he could continue handling her case. Hesta suddenly remembered what she had forgotten and asked Yu Xuekun to return to the workstation.

• Yu Xuekun told Hesta that her divination readings had helped her find her lost cat, and Hesta urged them to find the missing person first.
• Mikhailo learned that a Chelated Being had appeared in Mei County and that the city was under martial law, then argued with a woman about Hesta’s identity and his case.
• The woman offered to send Eucali to Pingjing, and Mikhailo agreed so he could continue handling her case.
• Hesta and Yu Xuekun submitted a missing-person request, then set out to ask AHgAs colleagues for help.
• After Hesta realized she had forgotten her phone at the workstation, she asked Yu Xuekun to go back there.

Hesta went with Yu Xuekun to search for Eleven after realizing she had forgotten the girl’s phone number and most of her identifying details. They found the accident site deserted, but Yu Xuekun learned that nearby residents had been evacuated safely and promised to help locate Eleven; on the way to meet Yu Xuekun’s colleague, she revealed her connection to Quicksilver Needles and Office 7.

• Hesta borrowed Yu Xuekun’s phone but could remember only the first seven digits of her own number.
• Hesta recalled that the missing girl was named Eleven, had a mother who trafficked people, and used the surname Liu.
• Hesta and Yu Xuekun reached the sealed-off accident site, where Hesta found ruins but no blood or clear signs that Eleven had died.
• Yu Xuekun told Hesta that nearly two thousand residents had been evacuated and no civilians had died, and said she would help find Eleven.
• Yu Xuekun explained that she was a part-time Quicksilver Needles member with a 12.47-second Bullet Time and usually answered to Office 7.

Hesta learned that Yu Xuekun was stationed at the Special Operations Bureau and discussed their ongoing counseling sessions. Meanwhile, Eucali was moved to a safehouse and warned to avoid Jane Hesta, leaving her uncertain about Mikhailo and the deal protecting her.

• Yu Xuekun told Hesta that she was stationed at the Special Operations Bureau and would continue their weekly counseling sessions while conducting monthly psychological assessments.
• A man brought Eucali to a vacant apartment and ordered her to stay inside, but he destroyed her phone after discovering she had brought it.
• After a noise outside prompted the man to move Eucali, he put her on a call with his superior, who said Mikhailo could not return because Jane Hesta had put him at a disadvantage.
• The woman warned Eucali not to contact or investigate Jane Hesta and said she might arrange a call with Mikhailo if Eucali cooperated.
• Eucali questioned the claim that Jane was merely a retired medic from District 3, but the woman insisted Jane was dangerous and threatened to end their deal if Eucali acted independently.