Chapter 37
Nice! A laid-back life in the apocalypse.
Hearing the thanks, Indeedee gave a cheerful chirp of satisfaction, then gently waved his paw.
The door closed, and Lu Li even heard it being locked from the inside.
Indeedee did not get angry. Instead, he pushed the food cart onward and continued knocking on doors.
Whenever Indeedee stopped outside a room, a hand reached out to take the food he had prepared. After accepting it, the person inside thanked him with gratitude written all over their face.
At that moment, Lu Li finally witnessed that classic scene of humans and Pokémon living together in friendship and harmony.
This is how I remember Pokémon and humans getting along! Lu Li could barely keep his emotions in check.
God only knew how devastated he had been when the Pokémon first descended.
His wonderful childhood memories had been forcibly turned into childhood nightmares.
Pokémon, supposedly humanity's beloved companions, had become Magical Beasts that destroyed the world and brought endless disaster upon humankind.
That enormous contrast had left Lu Li feeling miserable for a long time.
Once Indeedee and his food cart disappeared down the end of the corridor, Lu Li hurried over to the nearest room.
Lu Li knocked gently on the door.
Thinking it was Indeedee, the guest opened the door. Lu Li immediately squeezed inside the moment it opened, then reached back and shut it.
He had chosen this room because the hand that had reached out was slender, long, and fair. One look told him it belonged to a woman.
In the apocalypse, Pokémon were not the only things one had to guard against. Other humans were a danger too.
Lu Li did not dare approach the male guests either. It was the apocalypse, after all. If someone inside turned out to be a bad person, wouldn't showing up at their door be handing himself over on a platter?
The woman inside froze when she saw Lu Li. In that brief moment, he had already squeezed into the room and shut the door behind him.
"Who are you?" the woman demanded nervously.
"Don't panic. I mean you no harm," Lu Li hurriedly reassured the woman, whose emotions were starting to spiral out of control.
"By the way, I'm Lu Li. What's your name?" he asked.
Only then did Lu Li realize that she was actually a foreigner. No, in this world, she would be called a Federation citizen from another state.
"Eve Liya. According to the customs of your Donghuang region, Eve is my given name, and Liya is my surname," Eve Liya explained.
Lu Li nodded and eagerly asked, "I'm from the Survivor Camp in the Shopping Mall across the street. Can you tell me what's going on with that Magical Beast delivering food to you?"
"As you can see, everyone still alive in this hotel is actually being confined here," Eve Liya explained.
Lu Li's heart jolted at that. Before he could ask any further questions, Eve Liya continued, "On the third day after those Magical Beasts descended, that Magical Beast suddenly appeared and began forcibly taking care of us guests."
"He prepares three meals a day for us and even cleans our rooms. But whenever we try to leave, he suddenly appears and drives us back inside."
"Some people tried to resist, but he made a few of the loudest troublemakers disappear."
"Disappear?" Lu Li immediately picked up on the key word.
"Yes, disappear." Eve Liya nodded solemnly.
"At the time, several burly men were holding kitchen knives, planning to force their way out. Then that Magical Beast just waved his hand, and those men vanished instantly, knives and all. They never appeared again."
"We learned our lesson after that. With everything outside in such chaos, we're better off staying put here. We may have lost our freedom, but at least we're alive."
"Let me tell you, I've heard that lots of places have lost power and water, but not this hotel. That Magical Beast possesses power beyond anything we can imagine."
Lu Li regarded Eve Liya with a peculiar look. Why did he hear a note of fanatical worship in her words?
Back when he was in school, he had met a fanatical Christian. When that person talked to him about Jesus, they sounded much like Eve Liya did now.
As the two talked, a sudden knock came at the door.
At that unexpected sound, Lu Li's face went deathly pale.
He remembered what Eve Liya had just said.
Whenever someone left their room, Indeedee would suddenly appear.
That meant Indeedee had most likely left some form of psychic surveillance in every room.
Have I been exposed? His heart pounding so hard it almost burst out of his chest, Lu Li looked at Eve Liya with a desperate plea for help in his eyes.
Seeing how nervous he was, Eve Liya reassured him, "You don't need to worry. As long as you behave, the lord Magical Beast won't hurt you."
While Lu Li was considering what to do, the door opened.
Indeedee stood in the doorway, his eyes glowing purple as he silently regarded Lu Li with a heavy gaze.
"Indeedee~"
Indeedee pointed at Lu Li, signaling for him to come out.
Seeing this, Eve Liya hurriedly reminded him, "The lord Magical Beast wants to assign you a room. Hurry and go with him."
After saying that, Eve Liya added, "Oh, and if your room isn't far from mine, you can still come visit. As long as you don't intend to leave this place, the lord Magical Beast won't interfere."
Lu Li remembered that although Indeedee did not have the Telepathy Ability, he did have the Psychic Power Ability.
At that thought, Lu Li's lips felt dry and tight. He swallowed and steeled himself as he shuffled over to Indeedee.
He did not speak, instead trying to communicate with him through his mind.
Indeedee, I can't stay here. I have lots of companions and family waiting for me to return. Can you let me go? Lu Li repeated those words over and over in his mind.
Although he had no talent for psychic power, Indeedee certainly possessed powerful psychic power.
As long as his thoughts were firm enough, Indeedee should be able to sense them.
Indeedee, who had been about to use psychic power to force Lu Li to follow him, suddenly gave him a puzzled look.
Indeedee tilted his head, clearly not expecting this fake human to know the name of his species.
A remarkably human hesitation crossed Indeedee's face, and the purple glow flickered slightly.
You can bring your companions here. Indeedee used psychic power to project those words into Lu Li's mind.
"Aah!"
Lu Li suddenly let out a scream, then clutched his head with an agonized expression and curled up on
the floor.
He felt as though a sharp axe had violently split his brain open, followed by a wad of waterlogged cotton being forcibly stuffed inside. The pressure nearly cracked his skull.
Pain!
Excruciating pain!
It was not physical pain, but pain in his mind.
Seeing this, Indeedee realized he had caused trouble.
Indeedee looked at Lu Li with worry written all over his face. He had never expected a fake human to be so fragile that he could not even manage a simple mental conversation.
Looking utterly innocent, Indeedee was at a loss, unsure what to do.
After floundering for a while, Indeedee finally thought of a solution.
He pointed his right hand into the air. A green light grew brighter and brighter at his fingertip, and before long, it enveloped the entire room.
Then a peculiar, refreshing fragrance slowly spread through the room. The moment Lu Li inhaled it, he distinctly felt the searing pain in his mind ease, as though a gentle hand were soothing it away.
After the green light disappeared, only traces of that unusual fragrance remained in the room.
His eyes filled with surprise, Lu Li braced himself against the floor and slowly got to his feet.