Mori Aoi stared at the back of Wei Zhi's head in shock.
"Anything wrong?" Shae Harris, hearing the commotion, turned back.
Mori Aoi shook her head and went up to meet her.
She didn't dare glance at Wei Zhi as she passed by him.
It wasn't until she was grabbing the other girl's arm that she peeked at him.
"I just tripped on a fallen hanger," she muttered, looking away from Wei Zhi.
"Come on," Ming Jun, who hadn't even bothered to turn back, said.
"I should be telling you to slow down," Shae Harris rolled her eyes.
Then the two girls followed after, arm in arm.
Wei Zhi chuckled at the back and walked behind.
Soon, they reached the convention center.
It was scattered and empty, but mostly okay.
After all, a convention doesn't occur frequently.
And the last one was months ago.
So the building is usually shut down after that until the next convention.
The only reason why it's open now must be because some survivors used it as a hideout.
And after a careful survey by Yi Zheng,
It seemed those survivors were long gone.
But that reminded Ming Jun of another problem.
What's a convention without people?
Plus, the main attractions were empty—probably lying dusty in storage until the next convention.
Too bad, there's never going to be another one.
Ming Jun sighed and sat on the ground.
His excitement dulled a lot, and he felt like punching those stupid zombies.
"You can always try next year," Shae Harris patted his shoulder.
"If we're even able to see next year," Ming Jun sighed.
Just then, the shadow cat appeared again.
It walked with a phone in its mouth and dropped the object on Ming Jun's lap.
Mori Aoi scooted closer to the cat and bent down to rub its body.
The shadow cat only stayed for one minute before vanishing.
Mori Aoi stood upright, satisfied.
Ming Jun examined the black phone—it looked normal.
Then he pressed the only round button at the middle end of the phone.
With the sound of a click,
The whole venue seemed to come alive.
There were people walking up and down, and all the booths were set.
The four of them looked in shock as a lot of people suddenly appeared.
Yi Zheng, though, raised his vigilance.
"Do you guys need a guide?" a man in a uniform walked up to them.
He had normal features and a professional smile.
On his uniform was a tag with the name "Guide" printed on it.
"Who are you?" Ming Jun asked in surprise.
"I am your guide," the man said.
"If you want me to be," he added.
"Where did you come from?" Shae Harris asked him.
"I did not come from anywhere but here," the guide said.
"Then do you know that we're in the middle of a zombie apocalypse?" Mori Aoi looked at him in pity.
"That is none of my concern because I only exist in this premises," the guide responded.
"What are you?" Wei Zhi looked at him warily.
"A hologram whose main function is to be your guide," the guide said calmly.
The others looked even more shocked.
Then Shae Harris walked over to the guide and poked him lightly.
In response to the guide's words, her finger passed through.
The man, who looked like a flesh-and-blood worker, suddenly became pixels.
Then he turned back into looking as alive as a person can be just as Shae Harris pulled her finger away.
After that, Shae Harris began to pass a hand through his body.
The others, seeing her having fun, also came forward to experience the feeling.
They all looked amazed at the sight of a human being turning into pixels and back.
"I mean, we have advanced technology and holograms, but never this life-like," Ming Jun said.
The others nodded along.
"That's enough," Yi Zheng rolled his eyes at them.
They looked at him, then at the hologram in reluctance.
But they still chose to obey despite their reluctance.
"Who made you?" Yi Zheng stepped forward to ask.
"A friend to the cat," the guide—who had been harassed—didn't even flinch as the others passed their hands through him.
He just stood in the same spot with the same calm, professional smile.
"And why did that person make you?" Yi Zheng asked.
"To help Ming Jun fulfill his desire," the guide responded.
"Why?" Yi Zheng asked.
The guide didn't speak this time—he just smiled.
"What type of entity is that person?" Yi Zheng squinted his eyes.
The guide responded with another smile.
Yi Zheng figured he wouldn't get anything else out of him, so he took a step back.
He was once again reminded that this isn't normal.
The zombie apocalypse is already something straight out of a movie,
But the things he's seen go beyond extraordinary.
After all, the zombie apocalypse follows its own logic.
But the pressure of knowing there's an entity that can create a hologram that looks human in every way—
Or create a movie theater—
Also a shadow cat that appears and vanishes at will—
And, worse of all, teenagers who can heal holes in their bodies—
Yi Zheng turned to look for said teenagers.
He found them standing around a camera booth while the guide explained something to them.
They oohed and awwed,
Then excitedly began to look for which filter to use.
After seeing their happy and nonchalant attitude toward it all,
Yi Zheng simply gave up thinking about it.
Since the actual people involved don't want to think about it, then there's nothing he can do.
Besides, it's obvious he's at a disadvantage from all sides, so it's better to mind his business.
So, with a firm resolve to throw his worries away, Yi Zheng walked over to the booth.
At this moment, they had come out of the camera booth.
They took the black phone from the slot sticking out of the booth,
Then began to look at each picture while pointing at the stupid faces they made and laughing.
"What will you have next?" the guide asked once they were done talking.
"The panels and Q&A," Ming Jun said.
The guide nodded and led them to a room.
The room was full of people who were sitting and chatting.
There was a stage with a desk, chair, and microphone.
The guide asked them which seats they wanted.
Ming Jun chose the front middle row.
The guide waved his hands, and the people who were seated there vanished.
The kids were uncomfortable at first—it felt weird seeing living people vanish just because they wanted a seat.
But then the guide reassured them that these people weren't real.
So they shrugged and sat down.
All around them were the sounds of different conversations.
The four of them were nervous sitting among people.
After all, none of them had ever been amidst a crowd.
They were usually hiding in dark corners alone, praying not to be noticed by bullies.
So their bodies were tense, and their eyes would dart sideways nervously.
Soon, they noticed that these people never looked at them once.
The holograms always faced away from their direction,
And their bodies leaned away.
The teenagers relaxed a bit and curiously listened to the conversations.
They slowly got interested because the people around them talked about genres they liked.
For instance, the girl behind Shae Harris was talking about an action anime to the guy beside her.
The boy beside Ming Jun, who was seated first, talked about random manhwas.
The girl in front of Mori Aoi was talking about a romance anime with her best friend.
And Wei Zhi, seated beside her, listened to the boy on his other side talking about a popular donghua.
Yi Zheng sat behind them, at the edge of the row, just listening casually.
The teenagers slowly relaxed their stiff seating posture as they got more absorbed in the people around them.
It was as if the holograms could look into their minds—
Because the anime or manga they talked about aligned perfectly with their aesthetics.
From sitting casually in their seats to tilting their heads toward the conversations,
Which escalated to practically turning their whole bodies in that direction,
And the highest level—expressing emotions like surprise, excitement, and a light chuckle along with the other holograms.
Soon, they blended in pretty well with the environment.
After a few minutes, a mic tap resonated.
The holograms behaved like normal people and reduced their conversations until it completely dwindled.
These holograms never interacted or made any recognition of the teenagers.
They simply ignored their existence—which was very welcome to the group.
They certainly weren't at the level of initiating or even being in a conversation with other people,
Even if those people weren't people at all, but holograms.
They sat facing the stage as a man arrived.
Ming Jun got excited and began to explain how this guy was the creator of this anime,
And another was the creator of another anime—stuff like that.
Then the fans seated were given a chance to ask questions.
The others were a bit interested because they asked about the same anime the teens had overheard.
Ming Jun was the most excited, of course, and his gaze was burning.
The guide came at this point and asked if any of them wanted to ask a question.
Ming Jun pursed his lips, clearly hesitating.
The guide didn't rush him and stood calmly at the aisle, waiting for Ming Jun's decision.
As for the others—well, this wasn't really their thing.
It was impossible for them to risk public speech for something they weren't interested in.
So they buried their heads, watching Ming Jun.
Shae Harris, who was sitting lazily on her seat, not bothered enough to volunteer,
Put a hand on his shoulder and patted his arm.
"What's the big deal? It's not like these guys are real people, so they can't hurt you," she said.
"What if they laugh at my fat?" Ming Jun said quietly, eyes fixed on his round, chubby stomach.
"Then make them submit by doing what you do best."
"What's that?" Ming Jun turned to her, one eyebrow raised.
"Being a disgusting otaku," she slapped his back and chuckled.
Ming Jun yelped and glared at her.
He rubbed his aching back while wondering how this girl was so strong.
Thoughts about how inferior he felt and how much of a trash he was flew out of his head—
just as the pain in his back flew in.
"What if I can't beat them? After all, I had limited time to read manga and watch anime," Ming Jun wilted again.
"Then simply say the magic word that will instantly cause chaos," Shae Harris turned serious.
"What is it?" Ming Jun looked at her in surprise.
Judging by her serious demeanor, she might actually be right.
Which begged the question—why would she know something like that in the first place?
Could it be possible that she might actually be a secret otaku?
"I am definitely not like you, and I will never be obsessed with anime," Shae Harris rolled her eyes.
"How did you know what I was thinking?" Ming Jun looked at her with narrowed eyes.
"Because I'm smart," Shae Harris swelled in pride.
"If you guessed, then you can just say so," Ming Jun nodded with a look that screamed, I understand.
"You doubt my intelligence?" Shae Harris raised a fist and smiled at him.
"Let's go back to the topic—what were you about to say?" Ming Jun swiftly changed topics.
Shae Harris snorted and dropped her fist.
Then she leaned in to whisper in his ear.
Ming Jun shrunk back instinctively while the back of his neck turned red.
Shae Harris pinched his side and glared at him.
Ming Jun had no choice but to be bullied into staying in place.
But he didn't look at her at all.
"Just say that new anime can replace the Big Three," she whispered, then moved away.
And raised his right hand up while he was still dazed.
Ming Jun, who had been thinking about her words, suddenly felt something handed to him.
He looked down at his hands, which now held a microphone.
And the creator of his favorite anime was staring at him with a smile.
Ming Jun almost dropped the mic, but Shae Harris was already holding it steady—
right at his mouth.
Ming Jun groaned and turned to her with a glare,
but she only mouthed that he could do it.
Ming Jun turned to the others—they gave him thumbs up.
Feeling encouragement from both sides, Ming Jun shakily stood up and gripped the mic.
Even though the holograms were all facing the stage and not looking at him,
it didn't decrease the pressure—it elevated it.
He felt like there were eyes at the backs of their heads, watching him.
Ming Jun tried to look at his feet, but all he could see was his belly sticking out.
Just as he was about to give up, he felt someone stand up beside him.
Shae Harris, with a smile, slung an arm over his shoulder and held the microphone to his mouth.
"Come on, I think I saw a themed food court before we entered," she urged him with a glare.
But her arm on his shoulder was stable, and the hand holding the mic didn't flinch.
Ming Jun looked at her bright smile and spoke his question slowly.
"Jeez, and you could have done that ages ago," Shae Harris rolled her eyes and dragged them both down to sit.
Ming Jun didn't fight but just stared at her.
"Hmm? Is there something on my face?" she asked, rubbing her cheek.
"It just looks weird, that's all," Ming Jun grinned at her.
Shae Harris waved a fist at him and huffed, looking away with her arms crossed.
Ming Jun turned back to face the stage.
But the response to his question was drowned out by the fierce beating of his heart.
He turned away from Shae Harris mostly because he couldn't hide the dark red of his cheeks.