She Is Not Human

Chapter 12

With a loud "boom," a bright blue light exploded in the middle of the venue, making everyone squint.

This was already the second failure.

The last guy sent his family's strongest member to try and open the bottle, but as soon as he touched the lid, he got blasted into pieces by the lightning inside.

This time, at least this person lasted three or four seconds before meeting the same fate—a pile of ashes left behind, not even a whole charred body.

What an insane amount of electricity! So powerful!

For a moment, everyone fell silent, feeling pretty overwhelmed. With that kind of power in the Soul Bottle, whatever robot was connected to had to be top-notch. The rewards and risks were both sky-high. But no one expected something like this would happen now. The big shots from their families didn't have time to show up—could they really just sit back and watch such an opportunity slip away?

It felt like biting into a juicy piece of meat only to find it encased in hard ice that felt like iron. It was t*****e to see something so good but not be able to enjoy it.

Even the handsome young man who brought people from City Five here frowned slightly as he turned his head toward little Erik, surrounding Maya; there was something deeper in his gaze.

"You don't feel anything?" Little Erik was totally focused on Maya at that moment, pulling her along and firing off questions.

He loved having fun more than anything else in life—but if there's one thing that could pull him away from playing around, it's women.

Being chivalrous isn't bad or anything; still, when beauty is involved?

He'd completely zone out on everything else. No wonder Mayor Smith often scolded him for wasting all his time with girls instead of getting serious about life.

Maya tilted her head thoughtfully for a moment before shaking it with no expression on her face.

Little Erik stared at Barbara's back, lost in thought. It didn't make sense for Barbara to be so nice to approach Maya after their little spat just a few days ago. But if the drinks were really good, what was that woman up to?

Right now, Barbara felt like she was sitting on a bed of needles. She kept her eyes glued to the bodyguard, watching him closely for any signs of change. Part of her hoped that Maya wasn't reacting because the d**g hadn't kicked in yet, but another part worried it actually work. If that bodyguard showed any reaction, she wouldn't know how to explain it.

After thinking it over too much, her pretty face scrunched up with regret. She wished she hadn't tried to show off and done this herself.

Honestly, even if she had given it to Patricia—the clueless one—it would've been better!

"Okay then, next up is the third one... Huh? Miss, you want to go first?" Michael noticed Maya suddenly stand up and looked surprised.

In an instant, everyone's envious or curious eyes turned toward Maya. Even someone who was about to step forward hesitated.

Two people had already died; things were super dangerous! How could this girl still be brave enough?

But sadly for them all, Maya just needed a bathroom break. Right there in front of everyone, she headed straight for the restroom.

Of course, she didn't catch those weird looks behind her—guys smirking ambiguously while the girls frowned disapprovingly.

A girl's beautiful dress had blood on it near her thigh—anyone would have wild thoughts about that!

Little Erik wanted to call out to Maya, but saw someone moving into his dad's VIP room instead. So he plopped back down after standing up for just a moment.

It felt like his dad's voice was still echoing in his ears: "Maya is under her brother's protection. Don't get involved with her stuff. If you must do something about it, let the organization handle it. Got it?"

As the son of the organization's agent, Little Erik knew how to tell you what really mattered. But this time, he hesitated. He glanced back at where his dad was and finally got up to go after Maya.

At least he could give her a coat to keep warm. Four years ago when they first met, he had just lost his first love and was drunk in some random place, totally out of it—his clothes were ripped, he'd been beaten up by some tough guys, and he ended up collapsed in the mud while everyone ignored him.

Back then, it was Maya who dragged him under an awning to get out of the rain with her tiny frame.

Her makeup had washed off from the rain, and she looked pretty rough, but little Erik still remembered her beautiful blue eyes that sparkled with life.

The people around him were either scheming or pretending to be nice because of his status; none were like Maya—she didn't ask questions or care about anything else; she just wanted to have fun with him.

She seemed carefree but was actually super innocent. Being around her felt so good that he didn't want to think about anything else.

But now, after being warned over and over by Mayor Smith, little Erik suddenly felt angry. Why should this "older brother" who popped up outta nowhere take away his only safe space?

It was on him that Maya got into trouble last time because he hadn't protected her well enough. That kind of thing wouldn't happen again!

What did he want to do? Why should anyone else butt in?

The hallway outside stretched on forever; soft light made everything look fancy yet kinda eerie too. When Maya turned a corner, hands reached out instinctively for her, and as she turned around, a big black suit wrapped around her instantly like a hug. A fresh scent surrounded her right away.

Next to her stood Max, leaning against the wall, looking slightly annoyed as he said in a low voice: "No tissues?"

Maya looked at him there, all casually, like they'd just bumped into each other randomly.

His deep, shiny eyes were mostly hidden under his messy hair, using the shadows to mask how he really felt. Even though his voice was cold, you could see that his ears were a bit red.

No matter how tough he acted around others, when it came to certain things about her, this guy always seemed a little shy.

Maya picked up on all the little changes in him. Her heart suddenly raced out of nowhere, and she couldn't shake off the thought of pushing him down again.

Here?

Now?

How could she even think like that?

She reached out to touch Max, but before she knew it, he shoved a pack of sanitary napkins into her hand and said flatly, "Change it." His voice softened just enough to take the edge off.

But then something unexpected happened—a cool little hand gently brushed against his chin and slid down his throat. The stubble at the base felt rough against her smooth fingertips as he caught her playful hand with one of his own and raised an eyebrow: "Didn't you hear me?"

Maya looked up with bright eyes: "Your heart is racing."

"That's just your imagination."

"My imagination?" Max didn't want to argue anymore; he pushed her toward the bathroom: "I'll have someone bring you some clothes in three minutes."

As his footsteps faded away, he didn't explain why he showed up so suddenly or ask her to come back with him right away—he didn't even defend himself for carrying around feminine hygiene products!

Maya stared at those sanitary napkins for what felt like forever while getting ready to change them, when she noticed something in the mirror—the ventilation window had been pushed open!

The shiny glass reflected bright light as a man appeared out of nowhere, leaning against the wall.

He was breathing heavily and looked pretty urgent too. Suddenly, looking up made his neck flush red; there was confusion written all over him—his eyes were scattered and red while his heart raced...

With Maya's sharp senses kicking in, she could totally feel how lost he was at that moment.

Her eyes were like a clear green lake, calm and still, but her body sensed something off, making her take a step back until she hit the wall. Just then, something moved outside the window. The light reflecting off it blurred Maya's vision for a moment.

When she could see again, she found herself wrapped up in the arms of a broad-shouldered man. His hot chest pressed against her face, giving off an oddly confusing scent.

"I've never been outsmarted like this before," he said. Usually his voice was smooth, but now it sounded rough and hard to pin down. It felt like his gaze was looking right through Maya to somewhere far away.

It seemed like he saw something that made him forget about whatever discomfort he was feeling for just a second. The elegant curve of his lips under the silver mask managed to form a weak smile.

But with all that pressure building up inside him, the veins in his neck were bulging out. He had taken three doses of "Dream Death," which was lucky for him; no one else would have passed out ages ago.

He held on for several minutes before finally giving in. He'd been hiding behind the passageway, but when Maya showed up, that faint scent of a girl from afar stirred something in him and pulled him out into view.

No matter how much he craved female company, he'd never actually touch another human woman—until now when he found himself holding her close.

His long fingers were pale with prominent knuckles; they felt slightly rough with thin calluses—hands that belonged to someone who always handled weapons.

He breathed in the sweet fragrance coming from her as his trembling fingers slid down her cheek and slowly traveled lower. Her skin felt cool against his touch; every smooth spot sent tingling sensations shooting through him straight to his mind.

But Maya didn't move at all; she offered no resistance whatsoever.

Her almost wooden compliance made him stare blankly and lean down to kiss her. Just as he lowered his head, the girl in his arms shifted, her slender fingers suddenly seeming to grow larger right before his eyes.

A numbness shot through his forehead, and he stared in shock, tilting sideways against her.

But while he couldn't move a muscle, his mind was still sharp and alert.

Waves of intense heat washed over him. He parted his thin lips slightly, panting heavily as he glared at Maya from the corner of his eye.

A simple cup of wine in her hands had turned into some kind of d**g that fogged up his brain. Even though she held him close without resistance, she had slipped something into him when he was at his most vulnerable, leaving him completely frozen.

Getting outsmarted twice by the same person was just unheard of for him.

And this sneaky tactic that instantly shut down nerve signals clearly bore Max's trademark style. He'd been sure that if they ever faced off for real, Max wouldn't pull a stunt like this on him. But ironically enough, it was Max's sister who took him down so effortlessly.

The records said that the girl Max raised wasn't anything special except for how she looked. But now it was obvious there was way more to her than met the eye.

"What do you want from me?" He croaked out hoarsely while staring at the girl in front of him. His vision blurred with multiple images of her; every little movement she made felt mesmerizing beyond words.