Breathing heavily, Mars, who had been rushing through the woods with sharp urgency, finally let out a sigh of relief upon noticing the temporary "safety" of her surroundings.
Her ankles were trembling, and now that she was out of danger, her limbs felt weak.
This was completely normal.
Let alone a young girl like her, who wouldn't have shaky legs after experiencing such bizarre events?
They had come out for a pleasant trip, for outdoor adventures, just to see the scenery and take pictures. The strongest enemies they had anticipated were the biting mosquitoes and insects in the primeval forest, or at most, a snake.
Who would have thought they would encounter such a fantastical situation?
Beautiful scenery, open-air barbecues, the tranquility far from the city, a wonderful night, romantic love... weren't these the normal plot points?
Weren't these the elements that outdoor adventures should have?
Never like this, where legendary monsters and beasts roamed directly through the forest, and companion after companion died tragically before these monsters, with all resistance proving futile.
Legendary monsters had personally appeared before her, and she had personally managed to escape their pursuit for the time being.
Deep mountains and old forests…
Desolate wilderness…
Suddenly missing women…
Those who went to investigate the tracks instead encountered monsters…
Chased by monsters, fleeing madly…
This series of thrills was something Mars had never experienced in her life.
This unparalleled excitement far surpassed the thrills of any haunted house or roller coaster at an amusement park.
But if she had a choice, Mars would never want this kind of thrill.
She swore to God—if time could rewind to a day before, she would absolutely not come to Crystal Mountain for any outdoor tourism. Let whoever wanted to go, go; she wouldn't.
But now, there was no turning back.
Having arrived here and being chased by monsters, Mars knew very well that Crystal Mountain was overrun with monsters, and precisely near their parked car at Crystal Lake Camp, the monsters were most numerous.
These monsters had completely cut off Mars's hope of escaping Crystal Mountain by car.
And walking—Mars held no hope of being able to walk such a long distance, evade countless monsters, and ultimately escape Crystal Mountain.
The only course of action was to call the police.
Mars thought this in her heart and acted accordingly.
She dialed the local police station, hoping for officers to rescue her.
"Help! I'm at Crystal Mountain, two people have already been killed here! Come save me!"
"Come save me!"
"The location is Crystal Mountain! The location is Crystal Mountain!"
After this mobile call was made.
It immediately caught the attention of the dispatcher, a female officer.
A murder case, this was a sensational crime.
If two people had died, and this was true, the entire local police department would be shaken.
"Don't worry, we already know the location of the incident, it's at Crystal Mountain."
"In the meantime, please find a quiet place and wait for rescue."
"The police department is immediately dispatching a large team to the mountain for rescue... Can you describe the situation in more detail?"
The female officer reacted very quickly and urgently notified her colleagues, treating it as a major event and handling it without any impropriety.
Facing this question.
Mars quickly said, "I encountered monsters at Crystal Mountain, it's a slime! A red slime with a small crown. Two of my friends have already been killed by the slime, they are..."
"!! The call is disconnected?"
Mars looked at her disconnected phone with a look of fear.
Didn't they say they would rescue her just now? Didn't they say they would mobilize all forces for rescue just now?
Why did it suddenly hang up?
Flustered, Mars didn't understand what was happening and tried calling again.
When she got through the second time.
Mars quickly said, "Officer! I'm telling the truth! There are really monsters! Right at Crystal Mountain!"
"I..."
A voice came from the other end.
"Got it! Got it! You were killed by a slime in a game and lost two friends, right?"
"What game are you so engrossed in that you're making a false report?"
"Making a false report is a punishable offense, but I don't have time to argue with you. The police department has already blacklisted your phone number. Go play your game."
The call was hung up again.
Mars tried to call again, but her number was blacklisted and she couldn't get through.
Mars looked at her phone, filled with despair.
"I'm telling the truth!"
"The truth!"
"Why won't anyone believe me!"
...
A few days later.
"Buddy, information from the police station says a body was found in the river below 67th Street."
"They want us to—recover the body and determine the cause of death."
"More work? A body? Did they jump in voluntarily, or were they murdered?"
"We police officers really have a lot to do. Not only are we busy with our own work, but there's also a lot of risk involved."
"Not much money, yet we have to deal with people robbing with guns... I regret ever going to police academy."
Hunt was driving the police car at a normal speed, avoiding obstacles and pedestrians, while multitasking and chatting with his colleague, once again complaining about the hardships of being a police officer.
Being a police officer in the United States is not a good job—there's a saying, "Shoot America, freedom every day."
This saying reveals how chaotic gun control is in the United States. The leading country on Earth, the United States, experiences gun violence cases from time to time. This is a rare or even extinct occurrence in neighboring China, but it seems to be the norm in the United States.
Nominally, it grants every citizen the freedom to shoot and defend their dignity. In reality, it's a scheme by corporations to make profits, backed by an extremely well-established interest group that even the President cannot shake.
Regardless of the truth behind the freedom to bear arms, whether morally or legally, it is clearly an issue that police officers dislike—because no one can guarantee that when apprehending a petty thief, a criminal won't impulsively pull out a gun.
And the police officer's career would end right there.
From a professional standpoint, Hunt, as a police officer, strongly opposes the freedom to bear arms.
Since the passage of this law, the number of police officer deaths in the United States has surpassed that of soldiers in the military.
The number of soldiers killed in wars is less than the death rate of police officers within the United States—this is a great irony.
Hunt, while complaining to his colleague about this matter and the tragic treatment of police officers, also shifted to other topics.
"Recently, a group of parents reported their sons and daughters missing—is there any lead on this?"
"There is a lead. After investigating classmates who had close relationships with the missing individuals but didn't go with them, we learned from them that these people were heading to Crystal Mountain when they lost contact."