Carrying a seemingly heavy backpack, Zoe Carter walked out of the supermarket with a somewhat darkened complexion.
Ever since she discovered her sensitive and unique sense of smell at the market just now, she had been lingering near the market entrance, using her ability to detect whether food was edible and fresh by smell, searching for things she could still eat.
This approach saved her from the annoyance of having to buy each type of food separately. However, just as she was immersed in thoroughly sensing the entire market's aroma like a sponge soaking up water, she realized something was amiss.
The multitude of people emanating odors from their metabolism, combined with the public restroom in the market, made her realize the dangers of the world.
It also immediately made her aware of the downside of having such a keen sense of smell.
Initially, Zoe had mentally prepared herself to smell some unpleasant odors from the human body, considering that people's sweat, skin secretions, and exhaled gases all produce slightly peculiar smells due to the specific microbial communities involved in metabolism. However, she genuinely forgot about the restroom aspect.
Fortunately, this situation also tapped into her potential, allowing her to instinctively adjust the intensity of her sense of smell effortlessly. She could also manipulate this ability to actively weaken, block, or enhance the perception of specific odors. She quickly diminished her perception of certain odors to the level of an average person, but not completely blocking them out.
After hurriedly sniffing all the food aromas in the market, Zoe promptly left the area. However, this still left her with a darkened complexion, leaving a rather unfavorable impression.
It wasn't until she bought some simple fitness equipment like dumbbells, jump ropes, and yoga mats from a nearby supermarket that Zoe's complexion slightly improved. After all, what she experienced was truly appalling.
However, from this incident, Zoe vaguely realized a possible future. That is, there might be an inevitable gap between herself and ordinary humans.
Perhaps in the future, humans would only be perceived as a group of noisy monkeys in her eyes.
After all, if her kind of, let's call it, evolution, which is filled with positive feedback, continued to undergo ongoing bodily changes, it's uncertain what the continuously evolving self would become, but the distance between her and humans after evolution was already faintly visible.
For instance, this time, the normal bodily odors and chemical reactions produced by metabolism already made her feel uncomfortable.
If in the future her vision becomes even more exaggerated, and she can even see countless flaws and pores on human skin, human flaws would be greatly magnified in her eyes. Combined with the possibility of her overall abilities surpassing those of humans, there would probably be some changes in the relationship between her and humans.
This made Zoe vaguely uneasy.
The evolutionary process of humans doesn't have a decisive moment of creation; it gradually emerges from early human-like species generation after generation.
Behaviors that elevate collective interests in social animals are rewarded because the health of the group is more effective in evolution than that of individuals.
If conforming behavior can make a group more harmonious without affecting its development, then this behavior will not be erased by evolution. Non-conforming individuals generally cannot survive in the group, and the efficiency of spreading genes is also very low. Therefore, everyone is a descendant of conformists, so there is an instinct to conform.
Zoe was no exception. She felt a slight unease about the possibility of "deviating from conformity and becoming more distant from humans" that might occur in the future.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
However, while pondering, Zoe gradually came to a decision.
Regardless of the future, she would strive to adhere to her original personality as much as possible. She didn't want her values to be changed or shaken by any disturbances that might arise during the process of evolution.
Perhaps there would inevitably be some changes, but she would persevere. Even if in the future, "deviating from conformity and becoming distant" was inevitable, Zoe would make it into her own style of "deviating from conformity and becoming distant."
She was the one embracing evolution, not being guided by it. If her evolution were to continue indefinitely, she wanted to uphold her personality as much as possible.
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After setting this tone in her heart, Zoe's inner unease gradually dissipated. She was about to go home to put away the purchased items and record the changes she had discovered on this outing when the smartphone in her pocket suddenly rang with a notification sound.
Taking it out and glancing at it, she saw it was a notification message from the Hapsburg station. [Hapsburg Station: Please pick up your package at Building 5, Units 9-10, Wingsgone New Village, 1st District. Check the pickup code at https://www.amazon.com/pickup-info/....]
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Furrowing her brows for a moment in recollection, she recalled what this was about. It was a pile of teaching materials. It was something her neighbor Benny had asked her to buy together before the New Year Festival, but due to the holiday, the shipment was delayed and had just arrived. Benny should be in the garden near the Hapsburg station now, so it would be convenient to go over and pick up the package together.
With this thought in mind, Zoe headed towards the direction of the Hapsburg station. She hadn't walked far when she saw a group of children gathered around a stone table not far away in the garden.
Benny's slightly chubby figure stood out among them, looking distinctively Mediterranean plus Mexican.
As Zoe approached, she overheard the tallest and burliest child in the group shaking a water gun in his hand and saying, "So why do you always draw the big cards every time? Tell me!"
To this, Benny proudly spread his hands and said, "There are many things of which a wise man might wish to be ignorant."
As his words fell, the surrounding children remained silent, still looking at him without uttering a word.
Benny, feeling a bit awkward without the usual laughs and applause, scratched his head and added, "This is what Ralph Waldo Emerson said in 'Speeches and Biographies'."
Unfortunately, most of the children around were elementary school students, and for a moment, no one understood what he was talking about.
The air remained quiet. The tall and burly child, however, understood the rejection in Benny's words. Always indulged, he almost instantly aimed the water gun at Benny, saying, "I want to know!"
"...!!!"
As the naughty child spoke, the water shot out in the next moment. But Zoe, who had appeared next to Benny at some point, swiftly reached out, pulling Benny aside to dodge the water flow. Then, with lightning speed, she snatched the water gun from the naughty child's hand. The speed was so fast that neither of them could react in time.
The strength was so great that even if they had reacted, it would have been of no use!
Everyone around fell silent. The smaller children, in particular, widened their mouths in astonishment, clearly shocked by Zoe's swift and skillful action.
Benny was taken aback for a moment, his initial surprise giving way to a composed demeanor. He adjusted his attire and stood upright. With a subtle yet courteous gesture, he tipped his bowler hat to Zoe, conveying his gratitude.
Casting a helpless glance at the mischievous child before him, who now sported a crestfallen expression after having his water gun confiscated, Benny sighed inwardly. His bowler hat, though seemingly not cut off from the modern era, added a touch of timeless elegance to his gentlemanly appearance, commanding respect.
"It's harder to deal with the younger ones than the older ones," Benny murmured, touching his forehead.
While the children didn't quite catch his remark, Zoe, having undergone a transformation herself, heard it clearly. Benny's words carried a deeper significance to her. In the past, whenever Benny joined the card games, it was always with a group of elderly folks who appreciated his distinctive attire and manners.
After all, Wingsgone New Village was a well-known senior community, with the majority of residents being elderly. However, this didn't mean that there were only old people here. In the early morning, it was not just the elderly who came out for a stroll and to pass the time.
Therefore, the group of children watching Benny demonstrate his card skills consisted of energetic kids who still had a few days left of winter vacation. Compared to the mostly amiable old people here, the proportion of unreasonable children among the kids was slightly higher.
Seeing the face of the tall and burly naughty child, who looked like he was about to cry, Zoe frowned slightly.
She put on a serious expression and handed the water gun in her hand to the child. The naughty child, who had intended to provoke Zoe again, suddenly felt afraid when he saw Zoe's serious face and trembled involuntarily.
He wiped the oil stains left by the spicy strips from the corner of his mouth and said nothing before turning around and leaving. The surrounding children followed suit and left as well.