Dark Undercurrents: System Warning and Cunning Defenses
The air conditioner vents in the master bedroom of the suite emit a low-frequency humming sound.
Dania lay on her side on the large double bed. A white down comforter was tucked around her waist. Her legs were curled up, and she was hugging a brown teddy bear that was about half her height. Her breathing was steady and long.
Zhou Yu stood by the bed. He reached out his right hand, grabbed the corner of the blanket, and pulled it up, covering Dania's shoulders with the down comforter.
Dania rolled over, uttering a few indistinct syllables. Her hands gripped the edge of the blanket.
Zhou Yu withdrew his hand and turned to walk towards the balcony.
The glass sliding door slid to the left, allowing the sea breeze to flow into the room through the gap.
Zhou Yu stepped onto the balcony and closed the glass door behind him. He walked to the glass railing. He placed the stainless steel thermos on the round table. He unscrewed the lid, and white steam rose up, quickly dispersed by the sea breeze.
A large red rectangular patch suddenly appeared above the retina.
The glowing text scrolls rapidly through blocks of color.
[WARNING: The physical laws of the region have been altered.]
[High-risk tsunami warning.]
[Correction Force Counterattack Progress: 45%]
[The kinetic energy of the water body continues to increase.]
Layer upon layer of red pop-up windows filled his field of vision.
Zhou Yu picked up the thermos. Hot water entered his mouth, and he swallowed it.
The black sea surface in the distance is undergoing physical deformation.
The once gentle waves began to rise. The seawater receded, revealing a large area of shallow water covered with reefs. The receding seawater gathered ten kilometers away.
A black line of water stretches across the horizon, rising at a rate of two meters per second.
Zhou Yu looked at the waterline.
If the tsunami breaches the breakwater, seawater will flood the hotel's first floor. The electrical system will short-circuit. Tomorrow's seafood breakfast buffet will be cancelled. Dania will wake up hungry. Sigelica's suite experience will be terminated early.
This is a serious accident.
Zhou Yu put down the thermos. The bottom of the thermos hit the glass tabletop, making a crisp sound.
He bent down and unzipped the canvas bag that was on the deck chair.
He reached into the bag and pulled out a folded A4 sheet of paper.
The paper was unfolded. It was white paper with black text. At the top was printed the "Appointment Letter for Specially Appointed Security Supervisor." The bottom right corner was stamped with the red circular seal of the Logistics Department Flamebearers' Academy.
Zhou Yu slapped the paper onto the glass railing of the balcony.
"Did you go through the approval process to create a natural disaster in my jurisdiction?"
He raised his left wrist. The screen of the old-fashioned digital watch emitted a dark green light.
Press and hold the button on the upper right side of the watch face with your right index finger for three seconds.
The numbers on the screen are changing, switching to the low-level code input interface.
Zhou Yu's fingers tapped rapidly on four tiny buttons.
[Invoking the environment physics component.]
[Target: Water ahead.]
[Modify collision parameters: Z-axis height peak value.]
The waterline in the distance had already risen to fifty meters high. The enormous body of water obscured the starlight. The wall of water, carrying immense kinetic energy, advanced toward the coastline.
Zhou Yu pressed the last button.
[Parameter locked: 0.5 meters.]
[Enforcement.]
The old-fashioned digital watch emitted a very short beep.
The appointment letter affixed to the glass railing trembled slightly, and the red seal deepened in color.
The 50-meter-high water wall advanced to a point 5 kilometers from the coastline.
The water suddenly lost its upward support.
The immense kinetic energy instantly vanished. Gravity regained control of the area.
The towering wall of water began to disintegrate from the top. Tens of thousands of tons of seawater crashed straight onto the surface.
White spray erupted. The enormous roar was confined to an area five kilometers away, and by the time it reached the shore, it had shrunk to a dull bass.
The sea surface churned violently for ten seconds.
Subsequently, the water level was firmly suppressed to below 0.5 meters.
The broken waves turned into tiny ripples, slowly pushing towards the beach.
The red pop-up on the retina stopped scrolling.
[Parameter conflict.]
[Correction force execution failed.]
The red patch shattered and disappeared from view.
Zhou Yu picked up the thermos and took a sip of hot water.
The second bedroom next door.
Chisa lay flat on the single bed, her hands folded over her abdomen. A long sword, still in its scabbard, rested on the right side of her pillow.
The metal bell at her waist emitted a very faint vibration.
It wasn't the sea breeze that caused it to move. Some kind of high-frequency spatial vibration was transmitted to the metal striking pin inside the bell.
Chisa opened her eyes.
Her right hand gripped the knife handle in half a second.
My body sprang up from the bed, my feet landing on the ground.
She walked to the sliding door to the balcony, grabbed the handle with her left hand, and pulled sharply to the right.
The glass door slid open.
The right thumb pressed against the guard. The blade emerged three inches from the sheath, the sound of metal scraping against metal echoing in the night.
She stepped onto the balcony, lowering her center of gravity, and scanned her surroundings with her eyes.
The balcony next door.
Zhou Yu stood in front of the glass railing, holding a stainless steel thermos in her hand.
Chisa's gaze fell on Zhou Yu.
Zhou Yu turned his head.
"Still not asleep?"
Chisa did not answer. Her gaze went past Zhou Yu's shoulder and landed on the distant black sea.
The sea was calm, with gentle waves, about 0.5 meters high, lapping against the beach. There were no unusual energy fluctuations.
The bell at her waist fell completely silent.
Chisa looked back at Zhou Yu.
Zhou Yu held up the thermos.
"The sea breeze is a bit strong."
He pointed to the beach outside.
"I have to get up early tomorrow morning to go beachcombing and crabbing."
Chisa straightened up, released her right thumb, and the blade slid back into its sheath with a soft click.
I heard a vibration.
"It's probably the ice machine downstairs that's running."
Zhou Yu put the lid on the thermos and tightened it.
"I've followed the room allocation rules after 10 PM. Your drawing of your sword now is excessive defensiveness."
Chisa looked into Zhou Yu's eyes.
Zhou Yu's expression remained unchanged.
"Meet at 6:00 AM tomorrow. Bring buckets and shovels."
Zhou Yu picked up the canvas bag from the table.
Chisa's gaze shifted twice between the canvas bag in Zhou Yu's hand and the calm sea in the distance.
She turned and walked inside.
The glass sliding door slides to the left.
The door wasn't completely closed; a gap about three fingers' width remained.
The long sword was placed on the bedside table, its hilt pointing towards the crack in the door. Moonlight shone on the metal counterweight on the hilt, reflecting a tiny point of light.