The Cubs Can’t Possibly Be This Well-Behaved! – CH13

Chapter 13

“Caretaker Su, taking the bus today? Where are you headed?” Luo Shengfei quickly overlooked Su Ci’s accessory and struck up a conversation.

“The medical center,” Su Ci replied.

“Oh, going to pick up those two cubs from yesterday, right?” Luo Shengfei said, catching on. He patted his toolbox. “I just came from the Operations Department for a repair. Now I’m heading back.”

Then he offered, “The medical purification center is at the next stop below the Logistics Building. It’s pretty close. Want me to drop you off there?”

Su Ci politely declined Luo Shengfei’s offer and walked past him to take a window seat in the rear row.

The hover bus had two-person seats.

Number One, who had expected Su Ci to sit next to Luo Shengfei, was pleasantly surprised. He eagerly scrambled into the seat beside Su Ci, using both hands and feet to climb up.

In the past, while he could board hover vehicles, he couldn’t interact with their interior objects. Naturally, he had never been able to sit in a chair like this.

Leaning back into the cushioned seat, he felt it give slightly under his touch. Being small, his legs stuck out straight when he reclined against the seatback.

He wiggled his feet happily, admiring his new shoes.

But his joy was short-lived.

He glanced down at himself, then at Su Ci and Luo Shengfei, who were talking comfortably, their gazes meeting on an even level. Unlike him, they didn’t need to tilt their heads up to see each other.

For the first time, a yearning sprouted in the boy’s heart.

When can I grow taller? If he were as tall as the caretaker, wouldn’t it be easier for the man to notice him?

But… since gaining awareness, he had always been stuck in this form. Unlike the other cubs in the center, who grew with time, he remained the same.

Lost in thought, Number One didn’t notice that Su Ci had been drawn into a conversation by Luo Shengfei.

It was mostly Luo Shengfei doing the talking.

He brought up the state of 4583, admitting it couldn’t be repaired in just one night. Then, taking the opportunity, he asked, “Caretaker Su, everything went smoothly at the Cub-Rearing Center last night, right?”

Su Ci blinked, puzzled by the question.

Seeing the overly handsome caretaker’s confused expression, Luo Shengfei hesitated before clarifying, “Wasn’t there a security alarm at the Cub-Rearing Center last night?”

Su Ci recalled that he had indeed triggered an alarm while experimenting with the red mist. However, the response team hadn’t done much before leaving, so he hadn’t thought much of it.

It seemed like word had spread throughout the base. He noticed the other two passengers occasionally glancing their way.

Su Ci nodded. “Yes, I heard the alarm, but it stopped quickly.”

He then tossed the question back, “Do you know what caused it?”

“Oh, you just started yesterday. It’s normal not to know,” Luo Shengfei said. “I’m not too clear either, but I heard it was because the pollution levels in the air exceeded the warning threshold, which triggered the alarm.”

“Warning threshold?”

“Yes,” Luo Shengfei said, pointing at the blood-red clouds above. “When the pollution levels hit a certain point, bad things happen. That’s why monitoring devices are installed all over the base, especially near the fostering center…”

Bad things?

Su Ci tilted his head, wondering if it referred to the loss of rationality caused by the resentment within the red mist.

“I think it’s mentioned in the work manual,” Luo Shengfei continued, narrowing his eyes at Su Ci. “Have you started reading it?”

Su Ci froze for a moment before denying it. “I’ve read it.”

Though only a page.

“Maybe you haven’t gotten to the section on pollutants yet. It’s best to read more when you’re back,” Luo Shengfei advised warmly.

He added, “Don’t worry too much about the end-of-month assessment. The manual might look thick, but the test focuses on a few key points.”

“If you’d like, I can mark the important parts for you. Study those, and you’ll pass easily.”

Though they had different jobs, Luo Shengfei’s sociable nature and frequent visits to the Cub-Rearing Center for repairs had earned him a good rapport with the previous caretakers.

He had often helped them prepare for their assessments. The first-month tests weren’t difficult, and since it was getting harder to recruit caretakers, the standards had been relaxed significantly.

“Are you going to mark directly in the manual?” Su Ci asked.

“Yes! Too bad that manual is so thick. I bet you didn’t bring it along, or I’d help you mark it now, and you could start studying tonight—” Luo Shengfei stopped mid-sentence, his words faltering.

He stared, dumbfounded, as Su Ci pulled the hefty Caretaker’s Work Manual seemingly out of thin air and handed it to him.

“Holy crap, you have a spatial storage device?” Luo Shengfei blurted.

“Mm,” Su Ci confirmed.

Hearing this, Luo Shengfei’s eyes practically brimmed with envy, but an idea quickly lit up his face.

He leaned closer to Su Ci, lowering his voice. “So, when you came to this Prison Star, did you bring a bunch of stuff in your spatial device?”

Su Ci didn’t answer immediately, waiting for him to continue.

“What did you bring? Got any food?” Luo Shengfei asked.

“Food?” Su Ci’s gaze turned wary.

“Don’t misunderstand,” Luo Shengfei quickly waved his hands. “I just haven’t eaten proper food in ages. If you brought extra, I can buy some from you or trade points for it.”

While points were the hard currency on this planet, off-world goods were even more valuable.

Due to the Prison Star’s nature and high transportation costs, staff stationed here could only take leave every two years. Those who returned from leave often brought back goods and made a tidy profit. However, there were strict weight limits, so the trade remained manageable.

As for new hires, most arrived unaware of the planet’s situation and rarely brought much, given the convenience of online shopping.

But who could have guessed that on this prison planet, not only was interstellar online shopping banned, but local resources were also incredibly scarce?

Su Ci looked at Luo Shengfei’s orange-yellow uniform and asked, “You’re in the Logistics Department, right?”

“That’s right!” Luo Shengfei nodded. “I’m a team leader in the maintenance squad.”

“Logistics… should have a list of exchangeable goods?” Su Ci inquired.

“Of course. What are you looking for? I have this week’s exchange list—it’s the most up-to-date and complete version!”

“Can I see it?”

“Sure! Let’s add each other as contacts, and I’ll send it to your communicator.”

After adding each other as friends, Luo Shengfei promptly sent the list to Su Ci and watched him eagerly.

Su Ci opened the document and began scrolling through it carefully.

The first item he noticed was nutritional packs. Over 100 boxes were available this week, each containing a week’s supply (21 servings) for just 10 points.

Doing some quick math, Su Ci calculated that with his 100 monthly points, he could exchange for 10 boxes of nutritional packs. Combined with the one box issued weekly for free, he could acquire 294 servings—barely enough to cover 10 servings a day.

While he could buy points from others using interstellar credits, he currently lacked both the connections and the funds. His account balance, as his intelligent assistant had informed him, was a mere thousand credits.

Trading goods with Luo Shengfei seemed like a promising alternative.

Continuing down the list, Su Ci eventually found the section on meat cans. Options included chicken, fish, beef, and rabbit, each costing 100 points per can. There were also premium meats priced between 150 and 300 points per can.

Finally, after scrolling for some time, he located the fertilizer section.

The base offered two types: a 250g bag of solid granular compound fertilizer for 50 points and a 200ml bottle of multipurpose nutrient solution for 100 points.

With his current point balance, he could only afford one bag of solid fertilizer—but there was no guarantee it would work. Even if it did, one bag would hardly be sufficient.

After some thought, Su Ci turned to the hopeful-looking Luo Shengfei and asked, “How many points do you have?”

Luo Shengfei chuckled awkwardly. “Well, it’s not exactly convenient to say, but I’ve been working on this planet for quite a while. Plus, I’m a maintenance team leader…”

The implication was clear—his monthly points far exceeded Su Ci’s.

Su Ci wasn’t bothered by Luo Shengfei’s reluctance to disclose his exact points balance. He had already made up his mind and simply stated, “I have beef cans for trade, points only.”

Luo Shengfei’s eyes lit up. “How many?”

“I can give you two.”

Luo Shengfei beamed with joy. “Sure, sure! Based on the standard market rate, a can of beef is worth 75 points. Two would be 150. I’ll transfer them to you right now.”

Su Ci glanced at the exchange list. With 150 points, he could redeem one of each type of fertilizer. However…

“The exchange list specifies 300g cans, but mine are 350g,” he said, pulling out a can from his spatial device.

When Luo Shengfei saw the can, his eyes gleamed green with greed. “Okay, okay! I’ll add extra points to make up for the difference.”

In the end, Luo Shengfei transferred 175 points to Su Ci, who handed over two beef cans on the spot.

The other two passengers on the bus, a man and a woman, clearly noticed the transaction. Their expressions betrayed interest, though they hesitated to strike up a conversation with the unfamiliar Su Ci.

Su Ci pretended not to notice. For now, his points were sufficient, and unless absolutely necessary, he wasn’t planning to trade away any more food.

After all, he didn’t even have enough for himself.

Finally, the woman stood up, seemingly ready to approach Su Ci.

However, Su Ci suddenly furrowed his brow and turned to look out the window. The previously bright sky had grown overcast, and the red clouds began converging ominously.

At the same time, the base’s alarm system blared to life.

“Warning! Warning! Meteorological monitoring indicates that a blood rain weather pattern is forming!”

“This event will impact Bases 21, 24, and 26. All personnel currently outside in Base 24 must immediately seek shelter in the nearest building!”