Absolute Attraction

After Anna explained the relationship between guides and sentinels in this world, Luo Ruzhuo no longer regarded it as a simple doctor-patient relationship. Her choice would affect the people around her in the future, so she naturally gave it much more careful thought.

"Why... do you all want to be my permanent sentinel?"

It was the question that had puzzled her most since she came to this world.

Luo Ruzhuo had been far from universally adored in the apocalypse. Her level-five psychic ability had given her the means to survive, but it had also attracted people with ulterior motives-most of whom had been after her ability or her supplies.

But the identity she presented to the world now was that of an utterly ordinary C-rank guide, awakened from an unpopular death-row convict, no less. By rights, there was no way so many high-ranking sentinels should favor her.

Luo Ruzhuo stared at the two men before her, waiting for an explanation.

Liu Qing did not answer immediately. He lowered his eyes, trying to find the right words.

In the end, he could not describe it. He only said quietly, "Sorry, I can't explain it."

He raised his eyes and met Luo Ruzhuo's gaze with determination. "But from the moment I first saw you, my intuition told me that if I let you slip away, I'd regret it for the rest of my life."

He paused, apparently feeling that this was not convincing enough, and added, "I've never had an intuition like this before."

Luo Ruzhuo did not answer. She was thinking.

Liu Sui came around from behind her and stood beside Liu Qing in front of her.

"I know why." Liu Sui sounded certain. "Sentinels have an innate sense for their match scores with guides. It's noted in the Black Tower's test report."

Only then did Luo Ruzhuo recall it. That did seem to be the case.

"The higher a sentinel's rank, the harder it is to find a compatible guide. Very few guides can make us react." And because the twins shared a Mental Domain and Mental Entity, guides who could make both of them sense a match at the same time were even rarer.

They had never encountered one while growing up.

Luo Ruzhuo was the first.

"The match score is the most direct measure of compatibility between a guide and a sentinel. It has nothing to do with emotion. It's the most primal, uncontrollable attraction of the body." Liu Sui did not deny the value of quantifying the human body; in fact, he was among its supporters. "Even if we're emotionally resistant, our bodies will give us the most honest answer."

Besides, Liu Sui did not dislike Luo Ruzhuo on an emotional level.

"Sorry, I can't resist this attraction."

Luo Ruzhuo fell silent.

She recalled the match score report she had received. After Anna had explained that a 100% match score was practically unheard of, she had assumed it was a system error and tossed the report into an inconspicuous corner of her dorm room.

Now it seemed that the match report, an entire page long, had not been a mistake?

Discussions of high match scores on the Star Network were full of rosy answers: "destined soulmates," "both rushing toward each other," "one look and you know it's her/him"... Every line described an intense attraction felt by both parties.

They had actually been describing reality.

Which raised a question-

Did the sentinels on Luo Ruzhuo's list of high match scores represent mutual matches, or one-sided ones?

To be fair, Liu Sui and Liu Qing were impeccable in both appearance and strength. They had also treated her with courtesy and propriety, and the character and morals they had displayed were beyond reproach.

Their heartbeats, breathing rates, and subtle fluctuations in psychic power were all clear to her psychic senses. Liu Qing's heartbeat had quickened, and Liu Sui's palms had grown sweaty. These were genuine physiological responses that could not deceive anyone.

But she had none.

None of the blushing or racing heart described online, not even the slightest stir.

Luo Ruzhuo stood there now, looking at the two young men before her, both among the finest sentinels. Her heart was as still as a mirror. It clearly reflected the emotions of the people before her, yet she herself felt nothing.

A thought suddenly flashed through Luo Ruzhuo's mind.

Are there really no dark guides?

If a guide existed who wasn't bound by match scores... She wouldn't be affected by sentinels' emotions, could control pollution and purification, and could even turn the tables and control sentinels.

A smile suddenly appeared on Luo Ruzhuo's face.

It was faint, like snow melting in early winter, cool with a hint of warmth.

"That's wonderful," she said. "To be honest... I thought I was the only one who felt attracted."

She lowered her head slightly, seemingly embarrassed. "I didn't expect you to feel it too... I think-our match scores have always been high."

"But you know," Luo Ruzhuo said, raising her head and interrupting the expressions of delight spreading across their faces, "I'm still serving my sentence."

"Sorry."

"While I'm serving, I don't plan to bond with a permanent sentinel for the time being."

Liu Qing's eyes dimmed for an instant. It had taken only one sentence from her to turn his joy to sorrow. He nodded. "I understand."

He did not withdraw the transfer. He only said, "Then I'll wait for you."

Liu Sui's lips, pressed into a thin line, parted as well. "Me too."

Afterward, the two stepped back in perfect unison, no longer overstepping and politely maintaining a social distance that was comfortable for Luo Ruzhuo.

Good sentinels.

Luo Ruzhuo was very pleased that they knew when to back off.

"But about the temporary sentinel list..."

The young woman returned to the subject after going in a long circle.

Liu Qing and Liu Sui's hearts rose and fell along with Luo Ruzhuo's words.

"I need an aircraft capable of making a round trip to the Central District." Luo Ruzhuo looked at the brothers. "A modified one, with no purchase record."

"Whoever gives me one first gets on the temporary sentinel list."

The starship slowly came to a halt on the landing platform on Planet b-475.

The moment the hatch opened, a gust of fresh, cool air washed over them.

Planet b-475's atmosphere was much like Seona's, though its oxygen content was somewhat higher. Every breath felt like a deep cleaning for the lungs. Giant ferns grew among broadleaf trees she could not name, and greenery stretched from the landing platform all the way to the foot of the snow-capped mountains at the edge of her sight.

As Luo Ruzhuo stepped off the gangway, she happened to see Lin Sheng leading the entire logistics detachment in transporting a huge steel cage.

It was the same one Luo Ruzhuo had seen at the very beginning.

Only this time, a layer of black cloth had been added over the outside, seemingly to soothe Captain Xianzhu inside. She did not know whether it was because of the pollution domain aboard the starship.

Luo Ruzhuo could feel that her psychic power was blocked by the cloth.

She did not probe any further. She would have to face him sooner or later anyway, so there was no need to do it now.

But just as Luo Ruzhuo passed by, a pair of enormous eyes fixed on her.

A low whimper came from inside the cage. The dragon seemed to move, and the piercing sound of scales scraping against the glass bars rang out, startling the logistics team. Lin Sheng shouted, "Double the suppressant!" A syringe was immediately inserted through a designated gap and into the scales, and its plunger was pushed all the way down.

The dragon seemed to quiet down.

Luo Ruzhuo withdrew her gaze, and the sounds behind her gradually faded as she walked away.

Luo Ruzhuo entered the quarters arranged for her and set her pack on the table. She opened her optical computer and pulled up the purification procedure Lin Sheng had sent her.