Could she see them? Her eyeball was staring right at them, as if she could perceive their exact coordinates. Solomon felt a sudden, sharp spike of vigilance.

"I can see the two of you," the alien lady spoke, confirming his worst fear.

Dylan turned back to look at Solomon, his expression a mix of shock and confusion, and Solomon mirrored the look right back at him. How the hell could she see them? Had the system deceived Solomon and given him a faulty invisibility effect? He knew Dylan was sharp, but if they were completely visible, it meant they were exposed.

Despite the lady’s claim, neither Solomon nor his partner took immediate action or broke their cover. They wanted to test her, to see if she was simply a normal alien experiencing a delusion or blindly throwing out a bluff to check if anyone was hidden in the room. They stood perfectly still, refusing to make a sound.

The alien lady’s gaze swept slowly from head to toe, tracking both Solomon and Dylan with pinpoint accuracy. Then, she chuckled.

"Young man over there, you are wearing a blue shirt. And you, over there, are wearing a white shirt," she said smoothly.

Hearing the exact description of their clothing, Solomon realized they were completely cooked. There was no denying it anymore; she could truly see through the cloaking.

"We should just drop the invisibility," Dylan murmured to Solomon. "She can see us anyway, it’s pointless."

They deactivated the invisibility effects, materializing back into the room.

"How can you see us?" Dylan demanded, stepping forward while Solomon kept a wary eye on her.

The lady smiled. "Don’t worry, you can trust me. I am a system task taker."

Her voice sounded remarkably normal, like a regular human girl talking, though it carried a tiny, unmistakable glint of excitement beneath the surface.

"You can trust me," she repeated. "I am also a mission task taker."

Dylan pointed at her, his hand gesturing toward her form. "Your skin is blue. You are an alien. You shouldn’t be trusted."

The lady chuckled at the blunt accusation. "I am a system task taker. You know it’s not only the human planet that gets assigned these missions, right? This is a multiverse-wide phenomenon where everyone around the world, well, a few lucky ones, can be chosen. Coincidentally, I’m a system task taker, and this next mission just happens to be hosted in my world."

"Oh, so it’s in your world?" Dylan echoed. Then, he shifted his stance. "Well, since the mission is in your world, I suppose we can trust you."

Solomon thought Dylan’s sudden compliance was completely stupid, but he kept his mouth shut. He simply watched the lady with deep suspicion. The system had never explicitly informed him that non-human entities could also be assigned systems. Intrigued and cautious, Solomon summoned his system interface internally, asking a silent question within his mind: Is this alien lady standing before me actually a system task taker?

The system chimed in response, displaying a brief text string:

> [Yes, Host. The individual standing before you is indeed a system task taker.]

> [Note, Host: This will be the final piece of free information provided to you. Any subsequent inquiries will cost you coins or credit currency.]

>

Solomon frowned inwardly. The system was just as greedy as a corrupt politician’s staff.

"Well, we are both searching the area for the Zentari gem," the alien lady noted, breaking his train of thought. "Why don’t we work together?"

Solomon stared at her, his mind racing. He found it inherently difficult to collaborate with others under normal circumstances, let alone when dealing with a human, to say nothing of an alien competitor who was lurking in the exact same hazardous zone after the exact same objective. He couldn’t trust her. There was an unsettling vibe about this lady that he couldn’t quite put his finger on, the distinct aura of a character who acts like a good guy initially, only for the tables to turn later on when they reveal their true colors.

Because the system had given them a connection, Solomon was able to lean in slightly and speak directly with Dylan.

This lady cannot be trusted,Solomon warned.

Dylan’s response echoed back. I know she can’t be trusted. But let’s just look at her as a convenient pawn who can make this task easier for us. If she’s a smart-ass who knows the terrain, we can use her to establish a connection to the Zentari gem without any issues. We don’t have to get rid of her just yet.

The system warned us that entities here cannot be trusted, Solomon countered. What if she turns out to be smarter than us?

That won’t happen, Dylan asserted confidently.

Though Solomon agreed to follow his partner’s lead, he had no intention of letting his guard down around this stranger. He would remain incredibly careful.

"Sure, we are happy to partner with you," Dylan said aloud to the lady. "But you know both of us are after the Zentari gem, and it’s a known rule that not everyone gets to claim it. We will pool our assistance for now."

"We are going to team up to locate the gem," the lady agreed, taking over the explanation. "After finding the exact location, whoever gets the gem will ultimately depend on individual skill. Until then, we are standard partners, and we dissolve the alliance the moment the objective is secured. Sound fair?

By the way, I am Zara."

She extended her hand for a handshake. Solomon stared at her fingers, hesitating. Dylan stepped in first, reaching out to grasp her hand and complete the greeting.

Seeing that Dylan had already committed to the motion, Solomon pushed past his reluctance and briefly shook her hand as well.

Zara smiled warmly. "Happy teamwork."

The moment the greeting was finished, Solomon decided to get straight to the point. "So, right now, what exactly are you doing here? Walking around so freely with a coat and a suitcase? What is inside that suitcase, if I may ask?"

As he spoke, his eyes narrowed significantly, tracking the briefcase she was carrying. He was deeply suspicious of how easily she navigated this dangerous territory without being intercepted by guards.

"Well," Zara replied, tilting her head. "Let’s just say I disguised myself as a worker here. I successfully stole the identification of an employee, and right now, I’m wearing a synthetic face mask modeled after one of their laborers."

The moment she admitted to the deception, Solomon’s instincts flared. He knew it; this lady was bound to be trouble.

"If we are partners, can you show us your real face?" Solomon asked her, testing to see if she would even be willing to reveal her true identity.

Zara shrugged unaffected. "Okay, no problem."

She reached up, and the blue-skinned face mask peeled back. Beneath the disguise, her true skin was exposed, revealing a completely different female countenance from the one that had been speaking to them previously. Okay, that’s new, Solomon noted.

"So what’s your play?" Solomon pressed. "What is your actual target, and what do you plan to achieve?"

Zara chuckled. "The plan is to blend in with the general workforce to extract vital intelligence. Based on the data and research I’ve already compiled, these people are actively working on a major project that involves the Zentari gem. Once I finish the intelligence run, I plan to go find a place to rest and recuperate. Who knows, we might even cross paths with other system task takers. For now, I prefer that you two reactivate your invisibility and follow me anonymously, like ghosts."

The specific way she phrased it grated on Solomon, making him feel like a subordinate executing a boss’s orders, forced to trail behind her in the shadows like a pair of covert bodyguards. It felt incredibly weird, but he decided to go with the flow for the time being. Since Dylan claimed to be highly familiar with the mechanics of the system world, Solomon chose to place a calculated amount of trust in his judgment while focusing on keeping himself safe from any impending danger.

"Happy teamwork," Zara said again.

Why does she keep repeating that phrase? Solomon wondered, a faint sense of unease lingering.

Once she finished speaking, both Solomon and Dylan activated their cloaking mechanisms once more, fading out of sight. As the concealment settled over him, Solomon paused, a critical thought striking him. Wait a minute... why exactly was she able to see us even when we had our high-tier invisibility items equipped? 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

As if reading the room, Zara chuckled quietly into the empty space. "I have successfully cleared various high-level missions in the past, and I possess unique detection items that allow me to perceive individuals hidden by standard invisibility objects. Don’t be scared, though—it’s not like every ordinary entity can see you.

Let’s just say only a few rare task takers or specific aliens have the sensory capability to bypass your cloaking."

She paused, looking toward where Solomon stood. "I explained that because I’ve noticed you like asking a lot of questions, young man. Your mind is exceptionally curious. In fact, I can already predict your next question."

"Okay, then where are we going?" Solomon asked, his invisible voice echoing softly.

"Right now, I am heading directly into the primary workers’ hall of this facility to mingle and gather intel," Zara explained. "You guys just follow me silently."

Solomon kept close to her heels as she navigated the corridors. She slipped through a succession of heavily secured automatic doors, with the dual partners tracking her movements perfectly. Eventually, they emerged into a massive, sterile white workspace bustling with activity.

The hall was filled with an immense variety of alien personnel. There were laborers with vibrant blue skin, others with pink or deep purple hues. Some possessed three eyes, some four, while others had a standard pair. Solomon had initially assumed the local extraterrestrials would follow uniform biological traits, but the sheer anatomical diversity was bizarre. While some maintained relatively normal human proportions, they were modified by strange auxiliary features, such as four independent arms attached to a standard torso, or domestic animal traits like feline ears and canine noses. It was an unsettling sight, though Solomon knew he should have expected as much given that they were deep within an alien world.

As Zara walked purposefully through the crowd, a bald, pink-skinned male alien split from the main group and began approaching their position.

Zara immediately adjusted her expression, offering him a sweet, welcoming smile.