Chapter 512: Shadows of Sleep Theft

The feeling of being seen by those eyes was indescribable.

Lu Xin was certain that the front desk girl before him was neither an Ability User nor a Mental Monster.

Yet even in her frenzied state, she suddenly paused and slowly raised her bloodshot eyes to look at them, exuding an eerie, unsettling aura—her pupils not budging in the slightest as she stared.

She made a motion as if to acknowledge their presence, yet her eyes acted as if they saw nothing of them.

It felt like being stared at by a corpse.

…

“Damn…”

Gecko’s heart skipped a beat under that gaze; instinctively, he stepped back and blurted, “Miss, haven’t you slept for days?”

The front desk girl offered no response.

She stood rooted to the spot, and only after a long moment did her pupils slowly contract and focus.

Only then did she begin to appear human.

“Are you here to stay?”

She replied, “One hundred per room, and a deposit of one thousand per person.”

Every word she spoke was drawn out, with about a half-second gap between each.

Her speech was as sluggish as a nearly dead radio.

“Hmm?”

Lu Xin frowned slightly at her prices.

These rates were more than merely expensive—they were outright robbery…

Especially that one-thousand deposit per person; it sounded like a joke.

“Damn, so expensive?”

Before Captain Lu could respond, Gecko shouted, “Little sister, are you sure about the price?”

Whoosh!

Though his complaint wasn’t excessive, the girl behind the counter suddenly glared at Gecko with venom. Her already bloodshot eyes turned even red, as if blood might burst from her sockets any moment—a truly chilling sight.

“If you don’t want to stay, then don’t.”

She snapped harshly, “Beggars, bumpkins—who’d want to stay in such an expensive hotel?”

…

Her anger left the group feeling uncomfortably awkward.

Lu Xin, ever patient, didn’t know how to defuse the situation, while Red Serpent, normally reserved, was momentarily at a loss for words.

But Gecko couldn’t stand it any longer; he pounded the counter indignantly, “What’s with your service attitude?”

Clatter…

No sooner had he spoken than the front desk girl grabbed the registration book from behind the counter and hurled it at Gecko.

“My service attitude is just this…”

She roared like an irate lioness, “If you don’t like it, get lost…”

“Hey, you—”

Dodging the book, Gecko angrily rolled up his sleeve and shouted, “Do you really think I can’t handle you?”

As he spoke, he stepped back and called to Red Serpent, “You take over. I don’t mess with women.”

“Huh?”

The shy Red Serpent froze for a moment, panic rising at Gecko’s words.

Why was he the one expected to fight?

After all, it was the vice-captain who ordered the fight—should he even get involved?

Just then, as Red Serpent shot a pleading glance at Lu Xin, the anger of the girl at the counter spiked further; tears streamed down her face as she screamed at the top of her lungs, “With so many of you, what right do you have to bully a little girl?”

“If you don’t hit me, I’ll hit you. I’m ready to fight…”

…

Voice cracking with tears, she struggled to climb the counter, intent on lashing out at Gecko.

Gecko’s heart pounded as he quickly exchanged a glance with Han Bing.

Understanding immediately, Han Bing stepped forward, grabbed the front desk girl’s arm—as she seemed dazed—and pushed her back to where she stood, saying with a gentle smile, “It’s alright, don’t be angry. If we’re registering, how do we pay?”

At the mention of ‘register’ and ‘pay’, the front desk girl seemed taken aback.

So surprised by the sudden question, she even forgot to fume.

After a brief pause, she continued, “We only accept Alliance Coins. We do take Gold, but no cutting.”

“No worries, we have Alliance Coins,” Han Bing replied with a smile as he picked up the registration book from the floor.

With a gentle and patient tone that reassured, she cooperated fully as she signed the register.

She first produced five hundred-dollar bills, handing them over one by one for the room fee, then took out a stack of notes, counting out twenty pieces as the deposit, watching intently as the girl clumsily accepted them.

“And three thousand more,” she reminded with a smile after noticing the girl had collected two thousand for the deposit, before adding another three thousand.

Strangely, the front desk girl appeared oblivious; upon receiving the money from Han Bing, she nonchalantly stashed it in a drawer.

It seemed that even if Han Bing later withheld the extra three thousand, she would still register a five-thousand deposit for Lu Xin and his team.

After securing the key card and confirming that their car could temporarily park in front of the hotel, they grabbed their luggage and headed for the elevator.

“This girl clearly looks dazed from sleep theft,”

Once inside the elevator, Han Bing let out a soft sigh and confided to Lu Xin, “She’s severely sleep-deprived—shifting between sluggishness, irritability, scattered focus, and abnormal hyperactivity. Yet she remains oblivious; otherwise, she wouldn’t be diligently working at the hotel. I suspect most people in Heichao City are suffering from partial sleep theft.”

“They might not even realize that their poor state is simply from lack of sleep,”

“…”

“Besides, her sleep theft likely hasn’t even lasted half a month.”

Gecko chuckled, “If she’d been deprived for a full half month, she wouldn’t have the energy to dance crazily now. I must say, her moves earlier—her waist twisting so perfectly…”

“Tsk tsk…”

“…”

Shaking his head, Han Bing brushed off Gecko’s offhand comment and continued, “This means that Heichao City’s downfall is marked by many losing at least part of their sleep.”

“But the amount of lost sleep varies.”

“In the worst cases, people might lose sleep completely for nearly twenty days.”

“In milder cases, only a portion of an eight-hour sleep is stolen, and only for a shorter time…”

“And also…”

Han Bing produced a sleek Mental Detection Device and waved it in front of Lu Xin, saying, “I got close enough to observe her, yet the readings on the device didn’t fluctuate.”

“This indicates a deep-level form of contamination.”

“Contamination here is about theft, not granting…”

“…”

Lu Xin nodded. As captain, he noticed that both Gecko and Han Bing had been watching the front desk girl closely during the earlier scuffle—Han Bing, in particular, had gathered plenty of information just by observing her.

Of course, one person alone can’t reveal the whole picture; further observation is necessary.

“Ding…”

The elevator reached the designated floor, and its doors slowly opened.

Lu Xin and his team stepped silently onto the thick carpet, moving through a dim, narrow corridor.

On each side, hotel rooms lined the hall, emitting various eerie sounds.

Some sounds mimicked happy clapping—’clap clap clap’—while others resembled someone desperately banging their head against a wall—’thud thud thud’—or even the groans of a drunkard rolling on the floor—’hm hm hm’.

Additionally, a mix of strange noises lent the hotel an unsettling agitation.

As they passed through the corridor, they even saw some rooms left ajar, with occupants sporting dark circles as they stared intently at their computers.

Lu Xin realized that the bizarre atmosphere was clearly a result of sleep deprivation…

Just as they were pondering, they turned a corner—and suddenly, everyone froze.

There, in the middle of the corridor, stood a woman in a robe, barefoot, dancing gracefully.

She looked to be in her thirties, with an exquisite figure, as if she wore nothing under her robe. She moved quietly across the carpet like a tipsy spirit, her arms weaving delicate flower-like shapes with languid motions, like a ghost at midnight.

She blocked their path, forcing Lu Xin and his team to stop.

Under the dim, yellow light, she danced as though alone in the world, her face marked by vacant awe.

Gecko stared as she slowly raised her slender, straight leg in a split against the wall, her body arcing gracefully. For a moment, her perfect form captivated him, only for his eyes to narrow in confusion.

Then the dancing woman slightly turned her head, as if just noticing Lu Xin and his team.

Her face—a face that hadn’t seen a touch of makeup in ages—slowly contorted into a strange smile, red lips stretching to the sides.

In a drowsy, muddled tone, she mumbled, “Hee hee, I’m so tired…”

“It feels like I’m walking on clouds…”

“But I just can’t sleep…”

“So why don’t you come over and keep me company…?”

“…”

As she spoke, she straightened her posture; her feet seemed to glide on air as she wobbled forward.

“Hmm?”

Lu Xin’s worry deepened as he exchanged a glance with Gecko.

However, after only two steps, the woman suddenly stiffened.

Without the faintest warning, the dazed smile froze on her face, and her body went limp, collapsing forward.

“Ouch…”

Quickly, Gecko dashed over and caught her to prevent a hard fall.

Then, his expression turned grim with panic.

Frowning, he pressed his hand to her neck and heart, his face growing even more solemn.

“She’s dead.”

Gecko turned to Lu Xin and whispered before gently laying her flat on the ground.

Lu Xin stared silently at the woman, his emotions turning complicated.

Though her death was sudden, it wasn’t entirely unexpected.

Her dark circles, gaunt appearance, and horrifying expression testified to exhaustion far worse than that of the front desk girl.

When sleep deprivation hits a critical level, sudden death becomes a common fate.

Yet watching her pass away so silently was more terrifying than any gunshot.

…

…

“What now?”

The four of them gathered in the corridor around the woman’s corpse, each feeling the oppressive weight of the space.

The timid Red Serpent, clearly shaken, finally whispered, “Let’s leave her here for now and notify the front desk.”

After a moment of silence, Lu Xin softly replied.

Gecko nodded and added, “But what’s even more concerning is the state of Heichao City. The contamination here seems far worse than we imagined. If left unchecked, it could lead to more mass sleep-deprivation deaths. Should we consider contacting the Administration Hall for a cleanup?”

“Not yet.”

Before Lu Xin could respond, Han Bing offered her suggestion.

Noticing all eyes on her, Han Bing blushed and murmured, “I’m not an Ability User, but I’ve been exposed to special contamination events and trained for them for a long time. I’ve always believed that Heichao City’s problem is severe. With our usual contact out of reach, approaching the Administration Hall now is too risky…”

After a pause, she continued, “At the very least, we need to observe for a while longer.”

Gecko and Red Serpent exchanged a glance; as Ability Users, they couldn’t quite grasp Han Bing’s decision.

After all, Han Bing was just an ordinary person—while Ability Users naturally have an advantage.

“I agree with Han Bing.”

Lu Xin gave Han Bing a nod before continuing to walk forward, then suddenly turned back and said, “Also, stay with us for now. Tonight, you can stay in my room.”