Chapter 596: Playing Hard to Get

Once she understood that, Melody Summers asked, "Then what if this virus spreads extremely quickly?..."

"...I mean, that’s how it always is in the movies! One second a person gets bitten by a zombie, and the next they’ve turned into one and are biting someone else! A ten-second scene is all it takes to turn a whole room of normal people into zombies. If it’s really like that..."

’If the virus really spreads as fast as it does in the movies, could the military even handle it? Would one bite be enough to wipe out an entire army?’

Roman Rhodes shook his head and replied, "If it’s really like that, then there’s even less to be afraid of!"

"The reason many infectious viruses are so terrifying is because of their long incubation periods! With a long incubation period, carriers have no idea they’ve been infected. They go about their normal social lives, frequently interacting with people, and spread the virus all the while, causing more people to get infected..."

"That way, by the time the first group of infected people starts showing symptoms, countless others have already been infected. It becomes impossible to control. That’s the most difficult kind of situation to handle!"

"A zombie virus like the ones in the movies—where you get bitten one second and turn the next—a virus with such a short incubation period would be wiped out before it could even spread beyond the city limits. It’s actually the easiest kind to deal with!"

At this, Roman Rhodes paused, his brow furrowing as he sighed. "...The real fear is a virus with a long incubation period... and one that isn’t just transmitted through blood..."

Melody Summers understood what Roman Rhodes was saying. As a horrifying possibility dawned on her, she murmured, "...If... if this new virus has a long incubation period... and if it’s not just transmitted through blood, but is also airborne..."

She couldn’t bring herself to finish the thought. She shot up from the sofa and said worriedly to Officer Tristan Tanner, "If that’s the case, could we have been infected at the emergency response office yesterday?!"

Yesterday at the emergency response office, several police officers and Melody Summers had been in close contact with the female owner of apartment 1404. When Officer Sean Pierce fired his gun, her blood had even splattered on them.

’If this new virus really does have a long incubation period and is airborne...’

Melody Summers suppressed the chill creeping into her heart and murmured, "...I... I should probably go home and self-quarantine... Just in case I really am infected. I can’t risk spreading it to anyone else..."

To be safe, Melody Summers decided that after she got home, she would have her family each take an S Level Far Sea Secret Medicine. That way, even if they were infected, it might serve as a timely remedy.

Seeing her state, Officer Tristan Tanner patted Melody Summers’s shoulder comfortingly. "Don’t scare yourself. This is all just speculation. The experts at the research institute are working around the clock to study this new virus. Let’s wait for their findings before we conclude anything!"

"If it’s really as you suspect—a long incubation period and airborne transmission... then I’m afraid it might really be fate’s will to end human civilization in this era. That’s not something human effort can stop, so there’s no point in being scared!"

Melody Summers sighed in resignation. ’Humanity had barely survived three years of natural disasters—extreme heat, volcanic eruptions, endless night, blizzards, droughts, and torrential floods... Just as the rain was finally letting up and things were about to return to normal, this new virus appeared...’

Recalling the sight of the woman from 1404, completely devoid of reason and frantically trying to bite people, a single thought consumed Melody Summers’s mind—

’Could it really be fate’s will to end human civilization on Terra?’

...

Feeling dejected, Melody Summers packed up the lunchbox and left Roman Rhodes’s hospital room. She decided that when she got back, she would contact Paige Walsh online and ask about the progress of their research on the new virus.

But to her surprise, just as she reached the turn in the stairwell, she saw the last person she wanted to see—

Kylie Walsh, wearing impeccable makeup and clutching a paper bag, was fuming. "Those bodyguards are insane! I just wanted to go in and drop off some breakfast, and they actually blocked me from entering!"

"Something about ’for security, no unauthorized personnel allowed...’ How ridiculous! I’m just one woman. What am I going to do, kill someone? Poison them? Why won’t they let me in?! I bet they’re doing this just to target me!"

Kylie Walsh was seething. The thought that she had woken up early to personally prepare breakfast for Roman Rhodes, only to be denied the chance to even see him, filled her with anger and indignation. She almost crumpled the paper bag in her hands.

Seeing Kylie’s eyes redden with indignation, Autumn Sawyer, who was standing beside her, tried to comfort her. "Kylie, don’t be angry. If you ask me, it’s Mr. Rhodes’s loss. He’s the one missing out on the chance to eat your homemade breakfast."

After comforting Kylie, Autumn Sawyer sighed to herself. She felt that Kylie’s efforts were wasted, because she knew this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened.

She remembered a while ago, when Kylie Walsh had learned that Roman Rhodes was working late. She’d personally stewed a soup and brought it to him as a late-night meal, but she hadn’t even gotten to see him.

The same thing had happened many times. His rejection was perfectly clear, but Kylie only grew more tenacious with each failure, refusing to give up.

Having navigated the entertainment industry for years, Autumn Sawyer was long since immune to matters of the heart. Seeing Kylie like this, she felt helpless and couldn’t stop herself from advising, "...Kylie, Mr. Rhodes isn’t the only man in the world. Since he clearly doesn’t appreciate you, why do you keep torturing yourself like this?"

"You’re a young lady from a wealthy family. You have the background, you have the looks... what kind of man couldn’t you have? You’d be better off finding someone who knows how to cherish you..."

Autumn Sawyer meant well, but before she could finish, Kylie Walsh cut her off angrily—

"What do you know!" Kylie Walsh raised a hand to her forehead. She was already furious, and here was Autumn Sawyer, pouring cold water on her enthusiasm.

Losing her temper, Kylie Walsh lashed out. "Since when is my business any of yours? Who the hell do you think you are? Did you really think latching onto my cousin gives you the right to lecture me?!"

Although Kylie Walsh had a one-track mind when it came to love, chasing after Roman Rhodes all day, she wasn’t a complete idiot. She knew perfectly well that a career within the system wasn’t just about putting in your time. The gap between people could be enormous.

’Take her cousin, Brandon Walsh, for example. He had no real ability, only a knack for petty political infighting. He’d probably never hold a real leadership position before he retired. Autumn Sawyer had exhausted all her efforts just to cling to a good-for-nothing like him, so what right did she have to lecture her?!’

Seeing that Kylie was angry, Autumn Sawyer didn’t dare say anything more. She quickly put on an apologetic smile. "Yes, yes, you’re right. It was my mistake. I shouldn’t have said anything. Kylie, please don’t take it to heart..."

Kylie Walsh just snorted coldly and ignored Autumn Sawyer.

’It wasn’t that she didn’t understand the logic in what Autumn Sawyer had said. But she had been chasing Roman Rhodes for so many years; she couldn’t just give up. She wanted both Roman Rhodes and the Rhodes Corporation.’

’Even though Roman Rhodes had rejected her outright many times, as long as he wasn’t married, she still had a chance.’

Kylie Walsh clutched the paper bag tightly, thinking, ’Even if Roman Rhodes won’t marry me, he can forget about marrying anyone else!’

Seeing her expression, Autumn Sawyer knew she couldn’t reason with a woman so blinded by love. She changed her tack. "Kylie, honestly, men are fickle creatures. You can’t spoil them..."

"You’re always chasing after Mr. Rhodes, and for that reason, he doesn’t cherish you. Why not try a different approach? Distance yourself from him. Maybe he’ll start chasing you instead. It’s called ’playing hard to get’!"