In a sense, Linchuan County could be considered a forgotten city.
Within this Forgotten City, there existed a layer of even deeper oblivion.
Take this alley, for example.
It was the ultimate level of forgotten.
Even the locals of Linchuan County didn’t know this godforsaken place existed.
Ellen’s home was located here, unseen by anyone.
Most of the houses here had been abandoned.
Small, dilapidated, single-story houses were huddled together in a messy, crooked cluster.
At the end of the alley stood a small hut.
The edges of the door frame had been gnawed rough by time, and the keyhole was rusted black, making one wonder if a key could actually open it.
From the outside, the interior of the hut looked to be barely 30 square meters.
It was the kind of home that seemed like it could be blown over by the wind at any moment.
Ellen stood before the door.
Her originally black eyes faded in an instant, and a purple hue rose from the depths of her irises.
[Beep.]
[Iris recognition successful.]
From within that wooden door with the rusted keyhole, a purely mechanical echo resonated.
Gears turned, and the sound of metal clicking together came from deep within the door panel.
Click.
The door opened automatically.
Outside remained a world of poverty and decay, but the inside was an entirely different scene.
The moment she stepped across the threshold, the space immediately produced an indescribable sense of displacement.
It wasn’t as simple as just getting bigger.
Instead, the space was like a piece of paper that had been folded to shrink it; once the owner entered, it instantly unfolded to its full extent.
Moreover, it was a multi-level space.
The originally compressed 30 square meters expanded into a vast 300-square-meter open area almost in the blink of an eye.
The air became clear and cold, carrying a scent close to that of a sterile room.
The internal design was minimalist to the extreme, resembling a Nordic style, yet it possessed a sense of order that didn’t seem to belong to Earth.
From the outside, it appeared to be just a small, mottled window.
But from the inside, it was a completely different sight.
That window connected to a certain sea on Earth.
A giant shadow of a whale glided past, its tail fin’s movement creating a trail of bubbles, and schools of fish scattered like silver meteors…
“I’m a little hungry. What should I eat tonight?”
Ellen muttered softly.
“Forget it, I’ll have Japanese food.”
With that, she snapped her fingers.
The ocean view outside the window was quickly replaced like a shifting image, instantly switching to the night scene of Tokyo.
Neon lights flowed between skyscrapers, and the flow of traffic looked like a glowing river.
“Activate language conversion function.”
She dialed a phone, and when she spoke, it was Japanese at a near-native level.
Her speech was natural, her tone impeccably polite, and she easily secured a reservation for sushi at Sukiyabashi Jiro.
After hanging up the phone, she looked down at the “disguise” she was wearing.
‘Right, this skin I use for camouflage is a bit inconvenient. As for my original appearance… whatever, there shouldn’t be a problem in Tokyo.’
Ellen walked to the center of the open space.
There was a tiny button on her skin, so hidden it was practically nonexistent.
She pressed it lightly with her fingertip.
The next second, the mimetic skin used for camouflage quickly dispersed as if it had lost its support.
Her shoulder and neck lines straightened, her spine began to calibrate, and her bones made slight clicking sounds as they realigned.
Her stature shot up, pulling away from that “plain girl” shell that was barely 145 centimeters tall, small, and deliberately kept low-profile.
160 centimeters… 170 centimeters…
Finally, her height settled at 172 centimeters.
If there was anything that hadn’t changed, it was her chest.
Whether in her true form or her disguise, she remained a C-cup.
Light swept across her profile.
Her shoulder-length hair appeared pale gold, like diluted morning sunlight.
Her purple eyes were cold and clear, and deep within her irises, a cluster of purple nebulae seemed to be slowly rotating.
Her skin was so white it seemed to glow, but it wasn’t a sickly pallor; it was an impeccable, nearly perfect texture.
She casually tossed the ugly, baggy school uniform aside and changed into a white crop top and light blue jeans.
No matter how one looked at her, she didn’t look like a 16-year-old high school student.
She looked more like a mature model walking off a fashion runway.
If Gu Yebai were standing in front of her, even though he was several centimeters taller, he would likely have to respectfully call her “Sister” based on her sheer aura alone.
‘I need to review the material Gu discussed today…’
She took the test paper covered in red Xs out of her schoolbag.
‘How did I ever suffer such a grievance?’
Back then, she had been a top-tier student at the United Academy of Atlantis Star.
‘It’s not whether the answer is right or wrong that matters, but the logical thinking of Earthlings.’
Before reviewing, she decided to finish today’s report.
“EIL-ΛN-Alpha reporting to the Chief Inspector. Human logic significantly differs from ours. The mathematics they use appears to be ancient mathematics,” Ellen suddenly spoke.
Immediately after, a glowing floating screen appeared before her eyes.
On the other side of the lens was a blue-haired woman wearing glasses, exuding an air of intelligence.
“Miss Alpha, how friendly are the humans? Currently, based on your subjective observations, can the Earth civilization be cooperated with or guided?”
“I fabricated an ugly character based on the threshold of human aesthetics. As initially judged, most humans displayed an unfriendly attitude. However, there are a few individuals who have tried to protect me.”
“A few individuals? Do these few individuals belong to the leaders or the servants within the Earth civilization?”
“Regarding this point, I cannot provide an answer for the time being. It will take more time to verify.”
“Understood, Miss Alpha.”
“Additionally, if the Chief Inspector and the Council ultimately issue the final solution to destroy or purge the Earth civilization, friendly Earth individuals should be taken away. We do not have reproductive isolation from humans, and as you know, our genes have inherent defects. The number of males is extremely scarce.”
“The Council does not yet have plans to destroy Earth. Please continue your observations, Miss Alpha.”
“Yes, Chief Inspector.”
The screen that had been floating in the air darkened.
Just as Ellen intended to turn her gaze back to the test paper, the screen lit up again.
“By the way, Miss Alpha.”
“What is it, Chief Inspector?”
“You’re in love.”
“I am not.”
In the beginning, Ellen had been a firm supporter of the destruction and occupation factions.
She had conducted several sets of observational experiments.
When she presented herself with beauty, most people would cast gazes of desire at her.
Those foolish males spoke of “love” and “eternity” on the surface, but in reality, they were just unable to hide their primal reproductive urges.
Their friendliness always had an obvious purpose.
When she presented herself as ugly, most people bullied her.
There was only one exception.
Gu Yebai treated her well.
Gu Yebai regarded her as a good friend.
‘Gu Yebai is a good boy,’ Ellen murmured to herself.
He was friendly without any ulterior motives.
Willing to waste time on an ugly and weak individual—that was a quality a civilization’s leader should possess.
She had once asked Gu Yebai what kind of women he liked.
She wanted to give him a reward.
Gu Yebai said he wanted freedom.
Actually, Ellen didn’t really want him to get involved with other women either.
Ellen didn’t understand why that was, but she still hoped that Gu Yebai would continue to treat her as gently and friendly as usual, regardless of whether she was beautiful or ugly.
‘Hey, wife.’
Even today, Ellen would frequently recall what happened during the “Class Beauty Ranking” that day.
Gu Yebai had called her “wife.”
Though she always had various pursuers on her home planet, it was the first time someone of the opposite sex had called her that.