Time flew by, and it was soon afternoon. After preparing some tea and cookies for 'Seere,' Hexia found herself with a bit of free time and returned to the jungle room where 'Botis' resided.
Today's 'Botis' was squatting by a pool, teasing a bright blue poison dart frog with a glass tube, and observing it closely.
"I feel like something's missing—could it be the pigment? But that's not what the records say," she pondered, her emerald wavy hair tilting slightly.
As Hexia entered, she took great care not to step on any clumsy creatures or get entangled by them, finally reaching the edge of the pool after a little while.
"Botis Senior~"
"Ah, it's Dantalion. You've come," Botis put down the poison dart frog, then pulled the girl to sit down.
"Did you sleep well last night? There was a big incident in Payin City."
"An incident?" The girl blinked her eyes, trying to look as surprised as possible.
"Beneath the underground, some accidents occurred, and the uncontrolled ones from before were caused by someone. Luckily, the culprit was caught this time."
"That's good," the girl nodded.
"But Payin City has imposed a lockdown, and I'm afraid it's impossible to enter or leave for a short time," Botis said, sounding somewhat disappointed.
Since last night, all passages to the outside of Payin City had been completely sealed—whether the Skylight's airships, ground roads, or underground rail tunnels. A comprehensive investigation was said to be underway, and the city would only reopen after assurance of safety, a process that might take a month.
"I had been hoping to introduce you to a teacher, but it seems that won't be possible in the short term."
"She's very good with singing and would suit your personality. My own style was mainly passionate rock which suited Prin well, but if you were to learn from me, it might not be as fitting." Although Botis was a former Songstress, she was aware of her limitations.
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After thanking Botis again, Hexia cleared a clean spot and sat down next to her.
"Were you training that poison dart frog just now, Sister Botis?"
"Ah, that's not exactly it. I was actually trying to think of a way to evolve that frog into a Sequence 4 'Golden Poison Dart Frog'. That variant is rare and produces a special product used to make 'Golden Poison'."
"'Golden Poison' is harmless to animals, but if it's injected into plants, like flowers, it can preserve them forever, maintaining their vibrant bloom. Some expensive garments are embellished with this kind of 'Eternal Golden Flower' and they fetch a pretty high price."
First of all, she needed to build up her confidence, although a shy 'Dantalion' was quite cute as it was.
————
After work, Hexia walked back to her residence with a light step, feeling a faint sense of satisfaction and happiness after a busy yet fulfilling day; now, even if she went back and played games all night, she would feel at ease.
But she wouldn't be playing today, as she needed to get some good rest because in three days she had to take part in the retest at Yuanting Academy.
Wait a second, to take the retest she had to leave Payin City for the Northern First District, but right now Payin City was still under lockdown...
Her steps suddenly slowed down; she couldn't be that unlucky, could she?
After rushing home, she began to check the local student forum to see what everyone was discussing.
Sure enough, as soon as she logged in, she saw many people talking about the lockdown.
"I had planned a trip, but now I can't go!"
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime graduation trip!!"
"I'm more worried about the retest issue; they can't just fail all the students in Payin City because of this, right?"
"What exactly happened to necessitate a city lockdown, does the government realize how many people are losing out because of this?"
"My family also asked around, but sadly they have no idea why, they only know it's a high-level secret."
...
In the bustling forum, not only students but also a few graduates and adults were discussing the matter, and Hexia even saw IDs of several familiar classmates; they had been planning a trip to the south.
In the noisy forum, all sorts of rumors flew around, with everyone wildly speculating about the cause and process of the incident; some said it was because a dangerous person on the wanted list was spotted; others claimed there was a leak in the underground industrial area, or there was some anomaly underground, or a special virus had been found. As each analysis was presented, some people even posted secretly taken photos and footage.
This chaos continued until after 9 p.m., when a new public announcement put a stop to it.
[All forums in the city are temporarily suspending posting; the resumption time will be announced separately.]
[Students who need to participate in the retest may report to the police station with their notification information; after verification, they will be allowed to leave Payin City through a special channel.]
With that, the chaotic situation was at least temporarily suppressed.