ICUGW Chapter 13

Chapter 13: The Man-Eating Hot Pot Restaurant (2)

[The mission has been accepted. Please complete it before dawn.]

After Zhu Ning finished reading the content of the "grave post", the page flickered, and an address was displayed. After that, the post disappeared completely. No matter how hard she refreshed the page, she could not find the previous one.

Zhu Ning searched for keywords online to find more information, but only found a post from 32 years ago saying that they personally tried and tested the food at this restaurant; it was very delicious.

There was too little information.

The system said it should be completed before dawn. It was now 12:06 a.m. The sun would rise around six o'clock in the morning, so she probably still had six hours.

She entered the address into the navigation software, and instructions on how to go were displayed on the screen. Luckily it was still searchable, otherwise she wouldn't even be able to find the mission location.

Before setting off, Zhu Ning faced a suitcase of standard weapons and began to think: What kind of weapons are suitable to bring to eat hot pot?

In the end, Zhu Ning chose two guns and brought two daggers. There were also explosives on her system panel that could blow up a thirty-story building.

Compared to the fish man last time, this time she at least had enough firepower.

She put on her work clothes to prevent herself from being parasitized by contaminated spores. And finally, she put on a helmet and carried a full set of cleaning tools on her back.

Before leaving, she glanced at the mirror, which reflected a woman wearing a "motorcycle suit" with a black helmet carrying a black backpack more than one meter long. The high-tech material of the helmet reflected a cold light.

Well, what can she say? Very criminal-like.

Zhu Ning lives in a slum. The "community" is called Beehive. The population density here is high and almost all the residents are defective products. Because their identities are not checked, there might be other strange tenants around.

She was guessing that her neighbor might very well be some wanted criminal because there was a black market shop downstairs from her house.

Time was tight, and Zhu Ning couldn't walk to the location. She had to choose a means of transportation. Though with her attire, she could just take a public taxi and report to the cleaning center on the spot.

She looked around and found a cool motorcycle parked in front of the black market shop. Zhu Ning fell in love with it at first sight. The lines were smooth and the body was cool, like a crouching cheetah. It was a perfect match for her. Zhu Ning could already see her name etched all over it.

The proprietress of Big Wave (name of the black market shop) was smoking at the door and looked Zhu Ning up and down, trying to gauge whether she could afford it.

Zhu Ning now has money in her wallet. She confidently asked, "Boss, how much for this bike?"

Big Wave boss lady: "Four million dollars."

Zhu Ning: “…”

Very good, she lost.

Why can’t she afford a bike even though she worked so hard to sweep garbage?

Zhu Ning whispered: "Rent?"

The proprietress flicked the ash off her cigarette and said, "Not for rent."

Zhu Ning whispered, "Then..."

"I'll take you wherever you're going," the proprietress said. "Five hundred dollars a trip."

Very good, an acceptable price.

Zhu Ning's momentum had long been lowered. In front of the boss lady, it didn't matter if she was carrying a standard weapon, she was as soft as a little lamb.

"Are we leaving?" The proprietress put out her cigarette.

"Leaving!"

This conversation is becoming more and more like a case of hailing an illegal motorcycle in front of a train station...

The proprietress took a look at the address Zhu Ning gave her.

Zhu Ning was cautious and did not really let the boss lady take her directly to the hot pot restaurant. Instead, she asked to be sent to a restaurant two blocks away.

"Are you sure it's here?" asked the proprietress.

Zhu Ning: "Sure."

The proprietress said: "You little girl sure knows how to have fun."

Zhu Ning: “?”

She looked down at the store she had randomly located. It was a duck shop. With a minimum spending of eight thousand dollars, one could play one of their famous ducks.

Zhu Ning: “…”

Fortunately, she wore a helmet when she went out!

'Once you wear a helmet, no one will bother you, and no one will know who you are!'

The proprietress was a cold person who spoke little. She sent Zhu Ning directly to the door of the duck shop, and then drove away on her motorcycle without asking any questions, leaving behind only a trail of exhaust gas.

Zhu Ning stood under the pink "The Noble Queen" sign, looking like a poor little child abandoned by her parents.

There was a man at the door of "The Noble Queen", who seems to be the owner of the duck shop. He was leaning against the railing. He was thin, with very white skin, and looked quite handsome, like a little star.

The shop owner's eyes lit up when he saw Zhu Ning, and his first words were: "Want to play?"

These three simple words destroyed Zhu Ning's last bits of confidence. She had lived too much tonight.

She had wanted to ask the shop owner tactfully about a nearby hot pot restaurant, but when she saw the dark purple turtleneck and tight sweater he was wearing, she backed off.

Zhu Ning only had doomsday survival skills, but no skills in dealing with a duck shop. This person must be a cunning person, and she was afraid that he would trick her into it.

"Thank you, I'm not here to spend money." Zhu Ning squeezed out these words from her throat.

Mission. Zhu Ning reminded herself. She had a mission.

It was now 12:56 a.m, with only five hours left until the mission was over. She had to hurry.

Man: "Oh, that's fine. I was just asking."

The man was a little confused when he saw the backpack Zhu Ning was carrying. She appeared in the middle of the night, wearing a motorcycle suit, a mask, and carrying a backpack, looking like a murderer.

He raised his eyebrows and asked calmly, "Where are you going? Maybe I can show you the way? The roads here are quite complicated."

The shops here were all low-class. The roads were winding like a maze. Many people get lost when they come in.

'How could this person be so kind? He even gives directions!'

Zhu Ning: "I'm looking for a hot pot restaurant."

"Hot pot restaurant?" The owner's expression changed noticeably. "Come Again, Okay?"

"What's wrong?" Zhu Ning asked.

He glanced at Zhu Ning and said slowly, "We don't go near that place. We heard it's a haunted shop. It's been closed for decades, but every time we pass that street, we can still smell the scent of hot pot. It's very weird."

Zhu Ning frowned. From the information she had found, this restaurant closed down thirty years ago. How could it still smell like hot pot?

"It's quite strange, and there's an inexplicable meaty aroma. I can't tell what kind of meat it is. I don't think I've ever eaten it, but it's definitely not pork, beef, or mutton. Many people say it's human flesh, but I don't know if that's true."

Zhu Ning: “?”

Human meat hotpot?

Zhu Ning asked, "Why did the store go bankrupt?"

"I've also heard that in our area, stores often open and close, but this one has been open the longest. It seemed to be very popular at first, with lines so long you have to line up for three hours before you could grab a meal. Then the owner fell ill and couldn't keep the business going, but he didn't want to sell it, so he simply closed the store to focus on his recovery."

"He was sick?" Zhu Ning asked, "What sickness?"

"I don't know. It's just a shame that such a prosperous store was gone just like that."

Zhu Ning pondered for a moment, feeling something was amiss. Medical expenses in the wasteland world were extremely expensive. If the shop owner was ill and needed money, why didn't he sell the store?

Such a popular hotpot restaurant, as long as the owner wants to sell it, a bunch of people will line up to take it. Is the owner already so rich?

Zhu Ning asked, "Is there anyone alive inside?"

"How is that possible?" He laughed. "It's been thirty years, sister. It's a dead shop. If someone still lives in it..."

He paused, looking at Zhu Ning with a pair of dark eyes, and asked, "Do you think it'll be a human or a ghost?"

That makes sense.

Why would the system have her rescue survivors of a shop that closed thirty years ago? If this person was really alive after thirty years of living in a contaminated area, would they still be really human?

If they weren't humans, why did the system task Zhu Ning to rescue them?

The system should be a good system. Its goal is so great that it gave her a mission to purify contaminated areas and save the human society. It is unlikely to let Zhu Ning do dirty things.

Zhu Ning asked, "Can the shop still be entered?"

"You know what, I actually passed by and took a look before. There was a wall built inside the door. I don't know who built it, but maybe it was there to prevent people from accidentally entering."

Zhu Ning thought so too. If the store can still be entered, the center might have already closed it down.

"What do you plan to do there?" The more the man looked at Zhu Ning, the more suspicious he felt.

Zhu Ning: "It's hard to explain."

Shop owner: “?”

He has been in the business for so many years and has seen all the cunning people he should have seen. This girl could at least make up a lie to deceive him. What does she mean it's hard to say?

"Then I won't ask anymore. I'll show you the way. You definitely won't find it with the navigation. Just turn right at the next intersection, then right again, and right again. If you turn three times, you'll get there. If you really can't find it, you can just follow the smell."

"I hope to see you tomorrow."

Zhu Ning, who was still remembering the route: "..."

'Thank you for your blessing.'

Zhu Ning left the Noble Queen shop and followed the directions to another street. This street was very deserted, with no one around. There was a prominent warning sign on the street:

"Area ahead is contaminated, please take a detour."

Zhu Ning was stubborn and walked into the cordon, and easily found the hot pot restaurant. The Noble Queen owner was right, the food here smells very delicious.

The beef tallow hotpot was mixed with a meaty aroma, a very strange one. Her brain could identify it as meat, but it had no idea what kind of meat it was.

To be frank, it's the middle of the night and she's a little hungry.

Half of the hot pot restaurant is sunken into the ground. It should be because the owner of the hot pot restaurant has little money and cannot afford to rent a shop on the ground, so they can only choose a semi-underground shop.

But based on Zhu Ning's previous experience in finding food, this location is an excellent hotpot restaurant. The restaurant's food must have been delicious when it was alive, no, when it was still operating.

The hotpot sign was lit, though a little shaky. The sign was even crooked, and the word "Hotpot" was probably flickering due to a short circuit.

There was a line of small words next to it:

Open 24 hours.

Before going in to die, Zhu Ning wanted to give herself some insurance.

She had to let others know that she will be entering a contaminated area. So that even if she couldn't handle it properly, the people at the cleaning center would react quickly enough to come and clean it up to prevent the contaminated spores from escaping and contaminating the entire area.

Zhu Ning thought about it and found Li Nianchuan's contact information. The employee wristband will automatically display the employee's status.

A string of small words followed Li Nianchuan's name:

[Mental pollution, hospitalized.]

Since they were all colleagues, Zhu Ning decided to express her sympathy to Li Nianchuan and sent him a message:

[Are you okay?]

Li Nianchuan didn't reply for a long time. Zhu Ning thought that he might be in the medical department receiving treatment and was unable to communicate. About a minute later, Zhu Ning received a message:

[Sister! Woof!]

Zhu Ning: “…”

She was so embarrassed by the "Woof" that she tapped her toes on the ground.

'Boy, when you recover from your mental pollution, you will regret it when you see your chat history.'

Li Nianchuan didn't receive any message from Zhu Ning, so he sent a very resentful sticker.

Zhu Ning forced herself to chat with him, [You haven't recovered from the pollution yet?]

[They drew a lot of blood and gave me a lot of injections.]

Li Nianchuan sent a crying emoji.

'What, is this dog seeking comfort?'

Li Nianchuan: [Can you give me a gift?]

Zhu Ning: [What?]

Li Nianchuan: [I want a pair of wings on fire.]

Zhu Ning closed the communication page with a snap.

'This person is too abnormal!'

Zhu Ning took a deep breath and sent scheduled messages to Xu Meng, Fang Ying, and the official technical support department.

The speed inside the contaminated area was different. If she hadn't left within an hour, she was probably already dead. The help message she had set would automatically be sent to Xu Meng and Fang Ying, letting them know her whereabouts.

Of course, Zhu Ning didn't really want to have to use this layer of insurance.

After finishing the setup, Zhu Ning walked down the stairs. She walked very slowly, observing her surroundings. The stairs were covered with moss, fallen leaves, and some discarded garbage.

From the outside, it looked like the shop has been abandoned for a long time.

It was not fully open, and the roller shutter was half down, so it was difficult to see what was inside from where she was standing. Zhu Ning noticed that there was no stone wall like the Noble Queen shop owner had mentioned.

A warm red light leaked out, and then came the fragrance. It was a store that had been "dead" for thirty years, but now it looked like there were people inside.

Zhu Ning had dealt with fish men before, so she was much calmer this time. This was definitely a contaminated area.

She had watched some witcher courses at home today, learning how to quickly kill contaminants.

Unfortunately, the course was very long and Zhu Ning only attended three classes. She put the rest of the course in her secondary brain, planning to review it when she has time.

There are many notices posted on the shop's door.

{Recruitment Notice:

Now recruiting a cashier.

Food and accommodation provided.

High school diploma or above required.

Age must be under 35 years old.

Salary of 3,500 dollars per month.}

{Recruitment Notice:

Now recruiting a chef.

Food and accommodation provided.

No educational background or age limit.

Relevant work experience of more than 5 years.

Salary of 5,000 dollars per month.}

{Recruitment notice:

Now recruiting an agent store manager.

Food and accommodation provided.

Bachelor degree or above.

Age must be under 35.

Salary of 10,000 dollars per month}

There were ten job postings. It seemed like the shop was short of all kinds of workers: dishwashers, cleaners, food processors, waiters, and even garbage collectors.

There was also a medical notice next to numerous recruitment notice.

{Help needed:

Because my family member is ill and has a serious genetic defect, I urgently need a C-type gene bone marrow match. If there is any kind-hearted person who is willing to donate, I will be very grateful.}

Then the help post turned into a reward post.

{Reward:

A large sum of money is offered for an eye, up to 300,000 dollars can be paid.}

{Reward:

A large sum of money is offered for a kidney, up to 800,000 dollars.}

{Reward:

A large sum of money is offered for a mutant's genes, up to 1.5 million dollars.}

{Reward: ...}

The more Zhu Ning looked at it, the more she felt something was amiss. Missing one or two was understandable, but why were they missing everything? The store could form a whole new person with all the organs they were asking for.

There were even mutant genes.

Is the mutant genes from the sixth-class citizen mutants that Fang Ying mentioned?

Zhu Ning had studied before setting off. As long as a single contaminated spore escapes, it can contaminate the entire area, so cleaners are very important.

From these notices, she deduced clues that a mutant had died here before.

Zhu Ning was still thinking about it when she suddenly heard a muffled sound.

The rolling door was suddenly pulled up from the inside, and a man stood in front of it.

He was dressed in a butcher's suit, a black leather apron, a large knife in his left hand, and a pig's head above his neck.

---

The translator has something to say:

It was a duck shop - the raw really says its a duck shop, but in slangs, "duck" usually means like a male prostitute. So, duck shop is more of a brothel...

---

Previous

TOC

Next