You're So Rude

"What do we do now? Can we go out and kill some monsters?" Zhu Gaoge brandished her steel fork, eager for action.

Cang Ning pushed her back down. "No. There are too many of them out there. The four of us wouldn't stand a chance."

"Let's leave first, Captain. The intel from the Vanguard Squad this time was completely off. What the hell happened?"

Xing Chun propped herself up on her harpoon and stood. If it were a few dozen, they might just barely manage, but there were at least several hundred Devil Fish out there. If they all swarmed at once, it was doubtful whether the four of them would even have a sliver of a chance of surviving.

"Alright, let's figure out how to get out of here," Cang Ning said. "Going back the way we came is out of the question, and I don't think going deeper is much better. Let's head up first and make contact with the surface. This task is going to need more people."

You couldn't swallow an elephant in one bite; with so few people, this job was simply impossible.

Song Weishi remained seated on the floor, listening to their conversation while quietly mulling over all the inconsistencies.

Cang Ning had relayed most of the Vanguard Squad's information, but the more she thought about it, the more holes appeared.

Logically, they should have cleared out a wave and gotten a clear picture by now, then reported exactly how many Devil Fish there were.

And then there was the sunken ship. If it had been attacked by Devil Fish, then coming by boat themselves hadn't been the right call either—after all, if a giant cruise ship could be sunk, their little fishing boat was even less reliable.

Cang Ning had clearly arrived at the same thought. She spoke up. "These creatures are amphibious. The cruise ship probably didn't sink because of a hull breach. Maybe our earlier guess was wrong. Maybe the ship is still intact."

The other two quickly caught her meaning. Xing Chun said, "Captain, you mean it sank because of something internal?"

Cang Ning nodded, then turned to Song Weishi, who had been sitting silently on the ground. "Song Yi, what do you think? This mission is a bust. We need to get out first. I'll front you your pay, but it'll be cut in half."

Cang Ning's heart was bleeding. Every piece of equipment for this trip had cost money, and before earning anything, she was already hemorrhaging cash. This kind of situation was rare—at least afterward she could apply for a subsidy from above, so it wouldn't be a total loss.

This was exactly why hunting squads were unstable. When things went well, they struck it rich; when they went badly, they lost everything.

One good job meant months of food and clothing. One bad job meant bankruptcy or death on the spot.

The mood was heavy all around. Even Zhu Gaoge had wilted, now wanting nothing more than to rush out and grab the Devil Fish she'd just killed to pawn them off for money—that was cash!

Song Weishi stood up and said, "Let's kill some first."

"Alright, let's go—huh?"

They had all turned, expecting her to give a token nod of agreement, but instead she'd said kill, kill, kill. They stared at her, dumbfounded.

Song Weishi leisurely pulled off her fins. These things were really hampering her performance.

"Those people earlier didn't attack us," she said. "They just waited for the Devil Fish to come up. That means these things aren't as dangerous in the hall as we thought. If we got into the water, do you think we'd stand a chance against them? I'll go out first and test the waters. You all get ready to retreat. If things look bad, I'll follow you out immediately."

"That makes sense. In the water, we definitely wouldn't be better than them."

Cang Ning also pulled off her fins. She was a cautious person and would only consider taking them off when she was sure it was safe.

Since Song Weishi had said so, she planned to see how it went.

Their safety lines were anchored outside. Once they got out, they could pull themselves back up. The only problem was that they couldn't withstand another rush of water. The most dangerous part of the entire process was the ascent.

The pressure difference during ascent could easily kill a person, even though the surface wasn't far from here.

Decompression had to be done slowly, which made killing these monsters all the more crucial.

Song Weishi stretched her limbs. She was getting seriously cold now. She'd had thermal gear when coming down, but she hadn't expected the ship's interior to be this frigid. With her fins off, she grabbed a pair of cotton slippers from the staff room and wrapped some cloth around the bottoms for traction.

Only then did she carefully open the door.

Outside was pitch black, with her flashlight barely illuminating the corridor ahead. There was some wet, slimy residue on the floor, but not a single fish in sight.

True enough, the fish had left. Such marine creatures couldn't survive in the open air for long.

Even if monsters had been enhanced, before full mutation, they couldn't escape their original biological habits.

Shining her light across the hall, only a few dead Devil Fish remained sprawled on the floor, with trails of blood streaked across the planks—the marks left by the injured fish's struggles.

Now these fish lay half-dead on the ground, and Song Weishi stepped forward to put them out of their misery.

Eight in total. Xing Chun piled them together, and for the first time, a hint of a smile appeared on their faces.

Song Weishi gained two hundred energy points. Even though she hadn't killed all of them herself, the System still gave her credit.

The lowest deck of the ship held storage rooms and an arcade. Those who weren't in the rooms above had all come down here.

To be honest, none of the four had any curiosity about the true cause of the ship's sinking. They just wanted to gather the Devil Fish quickly, kill them, and get them back up as fast as possible.

They walked down the stairs and found that the four people who had been standing at the landing had shifted positions.

The floor was dry. The fish hadn't attacked them. So these people really were in league with the fish.

But Song Weishi couldn't see anything different about them. They still looked human, not like they'd turned into monsters.

She must have missed some detail.

Song Weishi cast her mind back to how they had looked when she first saw them. They had been tense and wary, seemingly not having moved their bodies the entire time.

She turned her head, scanning the ground. If these people were also monsters, why weren't they in the water?

What condition required them to stay dry?

The group gathered at the water's edge. Seeing no trace of the people, they decided to try luring whatever was in the water out.

Zhu Gaoge dipped her bloodied steel fork into the water and stirred. The surface was calm; nothing stirred beneath.

Xing Chun dragged over a small Devil Fish, stabbed it a few more times until blood seeped from its corpse, then tossed it into the water and swished it around. The result was the same—no movement below.

"Alright, you two, enough," Cang Ning said. "Is that bait or a threat? If I put two people in the water, would you two take the bait?"

The two sheepishly withdrew their hands, then simultaneously turned their gazes toward Song Weishi, who still hadn't made a move.

She spread her hands. "I don't know what to do either. Don't ask me."

Just as they were at a loss, a strange noise suddenly came from the hall above. Two sharp clicks, and the previously sealed airlock door slid open again.

Then came the sound of a heavy object hitting the ground. A rush of water poured in, splashing over their feet, dripping down the steps in a steady trickle.

It all flowed down into the puddle below.

A dark figure lay on the ground. The group cautiously approached, harpoons pointed at the newcomer.

The figure coughed a few times, rolled over, and revealed Ren Tong's face. "Holy crap, that hurt!" She tore off her breathing mask and covered her eyes.

The group lowered their weapons.

Zhu Gaoge pulled Ren Tong up from the ground. "Ren Tong! Why did you come down?!"

Ren Tong's dizzy head cleared in an instant, and she looked at Zhu Gaoge as if she'd seen a ghost, shaking off her hand with a shriek. "What are you doing here?! Didn't you just go up?!"

The others were baffled by her words. Ren Tong quickly backed away from them, staring at Zhu Gaoge in terror. "Stop joking! You just came up and told me to switch shifts with you! Why are you back down here?!"

Xing Chun said, "She's been with us the whole time. How could she have gone up to tell you to switch? What are you talking about?"

Song Weishi thought for a moment, then understood. "Everyone, stop arguing. She was tricked down by a monster. The person who went up wasn't Zhu Gaoge. Ren Tong, what was that person doing when you came down?"

The hunting squad had rarely encountered such a high-difficulty mission. They knew some powerful monsters possessed the ability to beguile the mind.

But monsters of that caliber were usually handled by the security officers; they never got involved.

They'd thought this was a lucky break, but it turned out they'd walked right into a wolf's den—a fox outfoxed in its own ditch.

Everyone was scared, except for Cang Ning, who managed to keep some composure, and Song Weishi, who stood calmly analyzing the situation.

Ren Tong's legs were trembling. This was a huge mess she'd caused. She'd never had to worry about being on guard against her own teammates before, but today she'd learned that lesson the hard way.

Song Weishi glanced at the others. Their expressions varied, all pale. It seemed people from Huihai City knew very little about the dangers beyond.

They simply hadn't had that awareness before, thinking Huihai City was the whole world. Completely different from someone like her, who had fought tooth and nail to survive outside.

But their mental fortitude wasn't bad; they recovered quickly and accepted the situation well.

Song Weishi, the person with "experience being tricked," had become the group's pillar of strength.

The monster had cut off their escape route. The mindless ones below were too dumb for such clever tactics.

That left only one possibility: those four people above were the real ones they should be looking for.

Song Weishi laid out her analysis for them. Honestly, it was hard to imagine something you'd never encountered before.

But at a time like this, with Song Weishi saying those four were the fish's ringleaders, they had no choice but to take the gamble and start searching for them.

The hall was wide open, with no place to hide.

The five quickly split into two groups and began scouring for traces of the four living people. The hall was big, but the places to hide were few.

They soon found the four still standing together beside a row of fallen shelves.

They hadn't even changed positions. The man still stood in front, the two women flanking him, and behind them, the little girl who hadn't shown her face.

The man's expression was weary with a hint of surprise. "You're still alive?"

Zhu Gaoge rolled her eyes. "Alive? Once they're on land, how are the ones in the water supposed to beat us? You'd better behave. Teaming up with those monsters will never get you back on dry land."

The group gave her a strange look, and then the brown-haired girl burst into wild laughter. "Go back? We can't go back! Don't think I don't know you're just here to kill the fish. When the ship sank, we were all down here. The people outside just hauled up the cargo—did they give a damn about us?"

On a calm and sunny day, the girl's ship had returned to Suo Harbor. She had spent a lot of money to bring her aunt, who had raised her, back to Huihai City aboard the Shihang.

By nightfall, the cruise ship had already entered the bottleneck of Suo Harbor's docks. Mid-voyage, the ship suddenly began to list and sink without warning.

She and her aunt had been lying in the lounge when a shifting cabinet slammed into her, waking her. Outside the window was pitch-black seawater. There was no time to escape. Helpless and desperate, she watched the cruise ship sink.

They sank but didn't die. Trapped inside the cabin, surviving on the air within, they waited in despair for death.

They had already given up hope, but then the Vanguard Squad came down. These survivors watched as those people hauled the cargo off the deck.

Someone even shone a light through the cabin window and saw them, yet showed no reaction.

Compared to awaiting death in silence, the greater despair was that they clearly had a chance to be rescued, but these people chose to ignore them.

She would never forget the eyes that lingered at her window for so long, shining on her, telling her plainly that death had come and she was only waiting to die.

The group watched her in silence. The Vanguard Squad indeed hadn't mentioned there were survivors below. What she said was true—this was a cruel world.

But Cang Ning was still incredulous. The Federal Vanguard Squad wasn't the kind of organization that ignored human life. She asked, "Is it possible he didn't see you?"

The girl gave a sinister smile. Her lips split, her mouth half-open, reminding Song Weishi of those Devil Fish with raised heads. "I'd like to convince myself of that too. Unless you're willing to give me your oxygen tank and let me go up first."

Cang Ning shook her head. "I can bring one back down for you after I get up, but not now."

The girl laughed even more wildly. "Of course. You're just saying that. You're all the same—afraid of trouble, unwilling to come back down. Who would value someone else's life over their own? I've paid so much in taxes to feed you idiots, and this is how you repay me."

The hunting squad did have a certain duty to render aid. The group fell silent.

Song Weishi cut in. "Cut the crap. Don't try to guilt-trip us."

The girl was taken aback, seemingly not expecting that response. "What?"

Song Weishi said, "By your logic, if everyone only looks out for themselves, why should anyone care about you? You know what the situation is like out there, right? You spent money to have the ship bring your aunt back. If the ship's pilot was attacked and needed your help to survive, but you'd already gotten off—would you risk your life to save them?"

The girl was speechless. The "yes" that had been on the tip of her tongue hesitated for just a moment, revealing her true answer.

"No one is responsible for your life. If the Vanguard Squad didn't save you while you were on the ship, that's their problem. Who are you trying to guilt-trip here? Your money wasn't paid to us—you gave it to the government. Didn't the government protect you?"

The group tightened their grips on their breathing tubes, the gloom in their hearts swept away. They'd been on the verge of feeling awful just now. Having lived in such a sheltered environment, they had no defense against such rhetoric.

They knew in their hearts they should feel sorry, but something had been binding them, keeping them silent. After Song Weishi's rebuttal, the crushing weight lifted, and they felt much better.

The girl's face turned ashen as she glared at her, saying nothing more.

Song Weishi said, "What are you looking at? I can not only refuse to save you, I can also hit you, believe it or not?"

She flashed a smile. Though her face was covered by the mask, her eyes made it clear she wasn't to be trifled with.

The girl lowered her head, angrily clutching the pillow in her hands.

Xing Chun suddenly spoke. "What happened then? What happened after?"

The girl hadn't expected anyone to still talk to her. She raised her head with a dark look. "None of your business. If you're not willing to take me up, then don't ask."

Song Weishi wasn't about to indulge her. She raised her steel fork and pointed it at her neck. "Talk or not?"

The girl: "..."

The man beside her tried to intervene, but he seemed unable to move from his spot. He could only raise his hand, trying to push the fork away. Song Weishi kicked him, and he let out a sharp cry. Behind him, a fuzzy little head peeked out, shrinking back behind the man as if crouching down.

The girl shivered, staring at the fork before her, and swallowed hard. "Later... the ship sank, and the Devil Fish came up. It saved us."

"Who is the Devil Fish?" Zhu Gaoge pressed, also raising her steel fork. She had genuinely felt guilty a moment ago, thinking about whether to share her oxygen tank and bring the girl up first.

But Song Weishi's words had snapped her out of it. She was here to hunt monsters and make money, not to play the saint. Besides, even if she saved the girl, the girl wouldn't be grateful—after all, who asks for help with such an attitude?

"The... the Devil Fish. We made a deal with it. The Devil Fish is the Devil Fish. You'll know when you see it."

The girl stammered, as if recalling something terrifying.

The middle-aged woman standing beside her suddenly clamped a hand over her mouth, shooting her a warning look to shut up.

Song Weishi was truly losing patience. She swung her fork and struck the woman's hand. The woman howled in pain, clutching her hand, but still refused to move from her spot, wailing hysterically. "You'll all die! We can't live, so you all die too! Wahhhh... Soon you'll all be dead, hahaha—just like us, wishing you were dead!"

Her words were incoherent and nonsensical, but judging by the three of them, they were still human. Genuinely human.

That left only the unremarkable little girl behind them.

The group had found the crux of the matter. They exchanged quick glances and stepped forward.

The three were trembling with fear, yet they still shielded the girl, backing away ceaselessly, as if they were robots compelled to follow orders.

The pain on their faces was unmistakable. Every step seemed to inflict immense agony, yet the moment their feet stopped moving, their expressions smoothed back to calm.

Song Weishi strode forward, intending to drag the little girl out from behind the man. The three in front suddenly moved faster, their faces twisting with even greater pain. But even so, they didn't utter a sound.

At the same time, from the puddle behind them, a few bubbles rose.

Everyone turned around warily. There, at the corner of the staircase, a black Devil Fish—tall as a full-grown adult—slowly walked up.

It moved like a person, its fleshy fins touching the ground, as it gradually emerged from the water. Strangely, its gait didn't seem odd at all; it was almost graceful.

Its back was completely different from the other gray Devil Fish—pure black, like a gentleman in a tuxedo, perfectly blending into the dreary, hazy hall.

Its tail was strangely curled, hooking upward, with even a wine glass dangling from it, looking somewhat comical.

"Good evening, ladies."

It waved its 'hand,' folding its body slightly, as if bowing in greeting.

Its face, so remarkably human-like, opened and closed its mouth, releasing a magnetic voice.

It was so 'perfect'—just like a real person.

The group stared dumbfounded at this Devil Fish, until Song Weishi turned her steel fork and aimed it at the creature. Only then did they snap back to their senses.

"Holy crap, the fish talks."

Zhu Gaoge rubbed her nearly dislocated jaw, finally managing to speak.

Upon hearing this, the Devil Fish's mouth drooped, seemingly offended. It slowly stepped out of the puddle. "How rude. You should address me politely. Though you've insulted me, I don't mind teaching you some proper manners."

The moment those words left its mouth, the fish tail that had been holding the glass whipped toward Zhu Gaoge.

Song Weishi shoved her out of the way, grabbed her fork, and charged at it.