章 5: Chapter 5: *The Human Differentiation Guide*
Two knocks on the door interrupted Song Shi's thoughts. She quickly shoved the book back into the wardrobe and went to open the door.
It was her younger sister—Liu Chichi.
On the first page of *The Human Differentiation Guide,* her elegant handwriting was scrawled, suggesting she had lent the book to the original owner.
"Sister, come eat," she said with a perfect smile.
"Okay." Song Shi stepped out and closed the door behind her.
At the dining table, her seat was on the same side as Liu Chichi, while Chichi's father sat across from them.
Song Shi had pieced together the family dynamics: she and Liu Chichi were half-sisters, sharing the same mother but different fathers. Liu Chichi's father was the man across from them, while her own father remained unknown.
Judging by her biological mother's attitude toward her, it seemed likely that her real father wasn't a good person—at least from her mother's perspective.
Song Shi quietly sipped her soup.
A dysfunctional family dynamic suited her just fine. It saved her the effort of trying to mend relationships. She had plenty of other matters to focus on.
"Sister, the Bureau of Ability Management hasn't updated your awakening status yet. Should you follow up with them?" Liu Chichi turned her face toward Song Shi after both of them had sat down.
Without a change in expression, Song Shi picked up a vegetable dish near her. "I haven't awakened."
Both people across the table froze mid-meal.
"Don't joke, Sister. The stimulation experiments are so rigorous. How could someone who didn't awaken come back alive? And you're a high-probability Berserk candidate."
"Everyone in my group is dead. I didn't awaken, and the researchers concluded that I had no chance of awakening. They didn't see the point in pushing me further and sent me home." Song Shi casually fabricated an explanation.
Ignoring their reactions, she continued to add food to her bowl, eating earnestly.
She was hungry and just wanted to eat.
The woman across from her, however, didn't have the patience for pretense.
Setting down her chopsticks, she said coldly, "Since you're hopeless for awakening, move out as soon as possible."
Song Shi paused, her chopsticks hovering.
"Why?"
The original owner was still a minor.
"No one wants a potential violent offender living near them."
Violent offender?
It took Song Shi a moment to connect the term to herself.
Just because she carried the Berserk genes, she was labeled a "violent offender" even though she had done nothing and was now being kicked out.
The tense atmosphere at the table made the man across from her visibly uncomfortable. He tried to explain, "The neighbors have complained repeatedly. Before, they kept quiet because you had the potential to awaken. But now that they know you've failed, they'll likely band together to demand answers."
Liu Chichi chimed in, finishing her father's sentence:
"Sister, don't blame Mom. She has no choice. If Mom were still a healer, these people wouldn't dare act like this. But now... Mom's mental strength is damaged, her abilities are nearly gone, Dad's ability is practically useless, I haven't awakened yet, and now you've failed. Our whole family…"
Her voice wavered, and she covered her mouth, as if choking back sobs.
Song Shi glanced sideways at her. A single tear rolled down Chichi's pale cheek, making her look exceptionally pitiful.
It worked, judging by the faces of the two across from her, which were now full of concern.
Song Shi: "..." She felt like a complete outsider here.
"I'll leave," she said.
The atmosphere at the table immediately relaxed.
"But I'll need money for rent and living expenses."
Her so-called mother was almost too eager to sever ties. She quickly lowered her head, operating something on her wrist. After about ten seconds, she looked up. "The money has been transferred to your account. You'll be an adult in three months. It includes three months' rent and living expenses."
Song Shi glanced at the wristband on her mother's wrist and noticed that Liu Chichi and her father also had one. She guessed it was some sort of communication device.
She remembered seeing something similar on her desk, mistaking it for a watch and ignoring it earlier.
Having secured what she needed, Song Shi silently resumed eating.
This might be her last free meal, and she intended to savor it.
The other three at the table exchanged glances, clearly unprepared for her calm reaction. Their gazes eventually settled back on her.
Her so-called mother, eager to sever their final connection, said, "According to federal law, I'll no longer have any obligation to support you in three months. Until then, I hope you don't come looking for me."
"Okay."
Song Shi mumbled her response around a mouthful of food.
The woman hesitated before adding, "Once you're an adult, we'll have no further ties. I won't expect you to support me in old age, and it's best we never meet again."
Song Shi, in the middle of drinking soup, nodded. "No problem."
The woman opened her mouth again, her voice tinged with relief. "Can we make it from today onward—no ties between us?"
Setting down her empty bowl, Song Shi stood and corrected her, "Starting tomorrow. I'll stay one more night to pack my things. You don't mind, do you?"
Her gaze swept over the three of them. Liu Chichi looked shocked, her father appeared worried—though it was unclear if it was genuine—and her mother's expression remained cold as ever.
Song Shi nodded to herself. "Silence means consent. See you tomorrow."
With that, she rose and returned to her room.
Closing the door behind her, Song Shi leaned against it and pressed a hand to her chest, over her heart.
A steady rhythm.
She assumed the original owner wasn't upset either.
Better to leave a family that didn't love her sooner and embrace a new life.
Song Shi strapped the watch-like wristband onto her arm.
After fiddling with it, she familiarized herself with its functions and opened her account to check her balance: 34,030.
Not knowing much about the world's economy, Song Shi couldn't determine the value of the amount. For now, she set it aside.
She retrieved a suitcase from the top of her wardrobe and opened it, intending to pack some clothes.
A sparse collection of garments filled the wardrobe. Among them, a black-and-white school uniform caught her eye.
The original owner… was still a student?!
Song Shi picked up the uniform to examine it. A badge pinned to the right chest read: Renxi High School, Senior Class 2 – Song Shi.
Song Shi: "…"
The original owner really was still in school.
She had been so preoccupied with abilities and awakening that she'd completely forgotten the most important thing for someone this age: education.
Tossing the uniform into her suitcase, Song Shi sat on the bed, ruffling her hair in frustration. She eventually found a contact labeled "Teacher Chen" in the wristband's address book.
It was the only teacher listed, and the chat history indicated the original owner had last spoken with this teacher a week ago. Song Shi pressed the call button.
"Song Shi? What is it?" A middle-aged man's voice quickly answered, matching the avatar displayed.
"I need to take tomorrow off." As someone who had respected teachers throughout her education, Song Shi felt skipping class without permission was wrong.
There was a pause on the other end. "…Approved." Then the call ended.
Though only two words, Song Shi somehow detected an awkward tone.
Shrugging it off, she closed the interface and resumed packing.
With so few clothes and only a few essentials to bring, she finished quickly. The bookshelf contained mostly literary works, which she decided to leave behind.
She sat down and reopened The Human Differentiation Guide.
This time, she read it cover to cover, memorizing the details of every ability: their traits, weaknesses, and notable representatives.
Once she finished, Song Shi leaned back in her chair and exhaled deeply.
Liu Chichi had mentioned that her mother was a healer-type awakened.
The book described healer-types as fragile and defenseless.
They were vital to humanity and highly valued by the Federation.
One of their abilities was healing, both physical and mental—essentially combining the skills of a magical clinician and therapist. All healers could reach this baseline level.
But this wasn't why healers were so crucial. Ordinary doctors could also heal wounds.
Their second ability was the key:
Purging the black aura of beasts and supporting other awakened individuals in killing them.
Only B-level or higher healers could achieve this.
Song Shi searched her wristband for more information: Black aura was the mental pollution emitted by beasts. It didn't affect ordinary people but was highly damaging to awakened individuals. Mild cases reduced their abilities temporarily, while severe cases caused irreversible brain damage, permanent loss of abilities, and even death.
While contract-types could control the release of black aura, only healer-types could purify it.
Thus, despite their lack of combat strength, healers were indispensable on the battlefield.
Healers weren't particularly rare in the Federation, partly due to the heritability of their genes. Many healer families only married within their kind, ensuring a high probability of healer offspring. The purer the genes, the higher the awakening level, and the larger the range of black aura they could purify.
Song Shi wondered what level her mother might be.
For now, she had no way of finding out—she didn't even know her mother's name.
She set the thought aside.
Liu Chichi had called her father's ability "useless."
Abilities described as such were almost non-existent.
If it qualified as an ability, it should offer advantages—even if not on the battlefield, then at least in daily life.
Flipping through the book and combining it with what she knew about Liu Chichi's father, Song Shi concluded his differentiation likely fell under the enhancement class, like the Berserk type. However, while Berserk focused on physical strength, his "Peacock type" enhanced appearance.
Those with peacock genes were born more attractive than average and continued to refine their appearance toward an ideal as they aged.
High-level peacock awakened individuals could even change their looks at will, keeping up with trends.
This seemed like the most plausible explanation, but Song Shi didn't care to investigate further.
Glancing at the time—1 a.m.—she remembered she had to rent a place and move out tomorrow. Stretching, she climbed into bed and went to sleep.
(End of Chapter)
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