Ep. 4 — Chapter 17: Hunting Grounds (4)

I had a hunch that it was Lia who did this to the monsters all around. The last thing she sent me was her location, as per orders I had given to the kid. But other than that, she said nothing else. And now, she is gone. Her phone, however, is still here. Broken.

I stretched out my leg and pulled the phone closer to me. Yup, it was completely smashed. Either someone deliberately destroyed it, or that she dropped it from above. My guess is the latter. The hole above me, all the way through the roof must've been where she dropped it from. I traced my fingers over the cracked screen. The sharpness of the shattered screen pricked my finger, leaving behind a ticklish sensation.

Leon on the other hand was still outside. Lucky for me, the system seems to be a bit more lenient this time around, allowing me to survive for longer.

[Due to the event, your energy depletion rate is slowed down. Remaining time: 20 minutes.]

[Your remaining energy is at 2%.]

It was still too low for me to do much. All I could do now was stay still while Leon went to find food. And cook. It was weird that such a quest would be given, to find food and cook. It was like the system wanted me to live. How ironic.

Leon was out of sight now. After taking the dagger, which I had guessed to belong to Lia, he went off. I wasn't too sure how far he'd gone, but I could just barely hear him cutting something up. Inhuman groans followed after every one of Leon's grunts and slashes. I wanted to think that it was cruel for him to go after the ones that were still somewhat living, but I suppose the meat is supposed to be fresh. The others are probably spoiled by now.

It is a weird feeling. It's been two days already. But at the same time it felt like it had only been two days. Time was moving fast but slow at the same time. I wasn't able to really express the feeling of it.

That it was only two days ago. I was still working at the bookstore, lazing around and reading novels on my phone. Two days ago when I planned on going home early and picking up writing again after a few months of 'hiatus', though I was never really an official author. It's only been two days since, yet it felt like I've been in this place for a long time now. Much longer than I actually have.

[Your remaining energy is at 1%,]

The sudden message emerged and snapped me out of my thoughts. I refocused on the outside, beyond the opening in the wall just a few metres ahead of me. Leon was still outside, and it's gotten mostly quiet. I wondered how long I had been in deep thought.

[Time remaining: 10 minutes.]

More time had passed than I had expected. He should have started cooking by now, right? I wonder why he didn't just bring it back here after getting the meat…

Hold on, does he even know which ones to get?

It wasn't too long later when Leon returned with an entire leg. I was baffled. How the hell did he manage to cook up something that big in such a short amount of time? And what the hell did that leg belong to?

But before I could ask any questions, Leon started to speak first.

"I'm not sure, but I think this is the most edible thing there is. The other things outside are a bit…non-edible." Leon muttered the last part quietly. I think I know what he meant. Aside from the 'City Hordes', which were like big dogs, the other monsters there were the Slugs and Wingless Flies. Even though the flies were edible doesn't mean that they'd be enjoyable. I might've died from the stench if not the hunger, for goodness' sake.

I suppose I should thank Leon for not only doing this, but choosing the City Hordes instead of the other options.

[Time remaining: 8 minutes.]

[Your current energy is at 0.9732%]

What the hell is with that precision? It's bothering me more than it should, honestly.

Leon walked up to me and crouched down beside me, the giant drumstick-like piece of meat emitted a smell that made me drool, completely forgetting the situation we were in.

.

.

.

It neared daybreak. After that questionable Trigger Quest, I had only managed to regain only a portion of my energy. Leon decided that we should take a break somewhere. We hopped from houses to houses, finding a stable rooftop to lay on.

"I never would have guessed that monster meat is edible. And they taste great too. It was unexpected, really." Leon sighed and burped, excusing himself embarrassingly.

We both laid down on the roof. I stayed near the top while he stuck near the edge, his legs dangling off and swinging slowly. It was cold, but not so much. Perhaps from everything that happened, the cold was the last of our concerns now. I laid the coat over me and let my eyes rest for a bit. My breathing became slow and paced. Leon was quiet as well, I wonder if he is sleeping already.

I let myself glance over at him, still fully awake, staring off into the distance. Not towards the sky, but at something else. Far from here, but visible all throughout the city.

The Guild Tower.

Ah, if I remember correctly, there was still that mission right? I wondered if it would stay valid until we got to a safezone, or if it would terminate after the timer had ended. Was there even a timer?

—

Main Quest: [Survival in the Wild]

Difficulty: ★★

Requirements: Survive in the city from the hordes of monsters until you reach a safezone. Progress with later main quests will be temporarily suspended until you fulfil current quest requirements.

Time Limit: —

Compensation: Safety, advance to the next quest, 300P (additional Points increase depending on time spent in the wild.)

Upon Failure: Death

—

Fortunately, the quest was still ongoing. Until we reach that point, the quest will remain in effect. But that means we could also increase our total Points accumulated. It seems that there is no way to know just how many Points we would have made up until now. It's only been a day in the wild, so it shouldn't be too much.

I wanted to get greedy, but that would mean putting both Leon's and my own life at risk. Maybe it's better to start moving towards a safe zone as soon as possible.

From what I know, the only safezone there should be is the Guild Tower itself. All other areas aren't. Of course, other players may have had set up bases around the city to protect themselves, but the only official safezone was the Guild Tower. They must have gone to the Guild Tower first to clear the main quest requirements before building their own hideout. I wonder if they would be considered a safezone according to the system.

I really didn't want to move to the Guild Tower. Not only is it far from here, but also the fact that once I get there, my other objectives would be even further away. I could get a ride, but what are the chances of that? If there's anything I know about that place, it would be that the guilds are nothing but egotistical assholes.

Even visiting the Guild Tower in the game pissed me off. Seriously, who the hell designed such crappy attitudes for an entire organisation in the first place? For every single one there, that is.

"Sir Rayes, you never actually told me." He startled me when he suddenly spoke after being dead silent for so long. His voice was low, near whispering. I'm sure that he was on the verge of sleeping but decided to stay awake. Which is why he's making this small talk.

"What is it?"

"About here," he replied bluntly. I frowned in confusion, not that he would be able to see it anyway. I sat up and turned to him. Leon was still laying down, swinging his feet about, but his eyes were turned upwards to look at me.

"Here? What do you mean, 'here'?" I asked, not getting what he was saying. I thought about it and had some ideas of what he meant. About this world, perhaps. The Game, the system. Everything. About what I know and how much do I know. And the extent of my knowledge of this world. I was about to answer his question, as clueless as I am, but he kept speaking.

"Why did we come here?"

Ah. I didn't expect that. "I assume you mean here, in this neighbourhood?"

"Yeah. You were following your phone, so I think someone must have sent you a location or something, right?"

"Yes, you're right." I replied, chewing my lips. "I actually told them to send me their location after getting somewhere safe."

Leon was silent for a moment. Only for a short moment. "Who are 'they', if you don't mind me asking?"

"My younger sister."

Leon shifted his body upwards. He turned to me and pulled his legs up from the edge, straightening his posture. I wasn't sure what he was doing now. He could be very random and unexpected at times, but they were usually normal and simple things.

"You have siblings?" He asked, sounding excited.

I totally didn't get his excitement, but I replied without much thought. "Yeah. A younger sister is all."

"Hm, you gave off single child vibes, if I'm being honest."

"What?"

"No offence, of course." Leon clarified, stumbling in his words.

"I know."

Leon was bashful for a while. I just shook my head softly, a slight grin on my face. "What about you? Any siblings? You seem like an older brother."

"Ah, yes. I have siblings as well." His voice was full of uncertainty. An ominous feeling emerged along with his words. It sounded like fear, but also full of hope. His face is sullen, looking down on the texture of the rooftop, avoiding my gaze. It was pretty clear what this meant.

"Anyway, how is your sister like, Sir Rayes?" Leon asked, looking back up to me with a slightly more cheerful expression. He's pushing down his true feelings. It was clear.

But I decided not to question it any further. As selfish of a reason it is, I didn't want to have to deal with someone else's dark background. Whatever happened, I'd very much prefer not to know. I've no need for factors that may tinker with my rationality, the most important factor to survive in this damned world.

I did wish I could try to sympathise with the man. After all, I owed him. But vulnerability is the last thing I need now.

"Why do you want to know that?" I shot back, keeping the seriousness back. Leon let out a nervous chuckle, making me raise an eyebrow in suspicion. "What is it?"

"I just want to know if you two would be the same." Leon admitted finally.

"The same?"

"How should I say this…uh, it's a bit…"

Leon was hesitating a bit. I huffed out a breath, "Say it."

"Ah, then…grumpy?"

I was at a loss for words. Me? Is this kid talking about me? "What do you mean 'grumpy'? Do I act that way to you?"

Leon covered his mouth, looking at me wide-eyed. He barely suppressed a giggle, getting a glare from me in response. He then talked with a strained voice, "Well, not grumpy. You are nice, just a bit…I don't know how to say it right, nevermind."

I narrowed my eyes and he hiccuped. I finally let out a sigh and gave him an answer.

"She's a good girl. You know, the usual. Feisty and temperamental, and she gets pissed off real quick." I told Leon, wondering if I really had the right to say anything about her. After leaving her for so long and moving to live alone, is it right that I now speak of her as if we're close? Nevertheless, "But she's got a soft heart. Of course, that doesn't change that she's a bit aggressive. So I've no doubt that she's still alive."

Leon nodded. He didn't say anything. I guess I prefer it at that.

"You seem like a good brother. Like the two of you are really tight."

Shit. That's the one reaction I didn't want.