How It Works

Punching the throw pillows in the living room of the captain's Sanctum somehow relieved my anger towards him. Not only once, but thrice! 

He threw me in that dome three times! 

First, it was a volcanic eruption; next, a sandstorm in a desert, and lastly, an avalanche. I almost died by getting buried alive. I'm really certain that shithead is picking on me. Was it because I insulted him? 

He's so fucking petty. 

Slam!

My shoulders jumped in surprise at the noise. I turned to look at the entrance and saw Claude entering with his usual gloomy expression. He went upstairs without glancing around. I remained silent, in hopes he won't notice me. 

I sighed in relief after I heard another door on the second floor get abused. I shook my head in that rebellious temperament. If only I had a choice, I'd leave this place already. Living with a literal toxic person with toxic behavior is too stressful. 

"What are you thinking?"

"Wah!" I slammed the pillow behind me in shock. It bounced back at me after hitting a solid surface. Looking up, my jaw quivered at the obsidian eyes glaring down at me. "I—It's...uh, reflex. You surprised me, captain. I thought you were upstairs. Ah, sorry about that…"

I picked up the pillow and carefully put it back on the couch. He won't attack me just because I hit him, right? I watched him carefully, but he just stood motionless with his nonchalant expression. 

Scratching the back of my head, I pointed at the kitchen and asked, "Have you eaten?"

"Yes." 

"Ah, okay. I haven't, so I'm going to eat now."

I quickly moved to the kitchen, grabbed a knife, and took out the can of Spam I bought before. 

"That's your dinner?"

I nodded without looking back. 

I'm a growing man, so I have to eat a lot, but because I resigned from my work and haven't received my allowance as a Seeker-in-training, I have to save up on food. I have to keep half of this for my breakfast tomorrow. 

Yet, I fried all the slices. Unwillingly. 

"This tastes good."

I stopped counting how many times I cursed this guy. Pulling the chair opposite to him, I sat and began eating dinner. I could feel his gaze on me as he munched on my poor breakfast. 

"How do you do it?"

"I just added some butter and fried it until golden brown."

Has he never tasted luncheon meat before? He lives in a big house with a full pantry. Why did he sound so surprised? Everything I learned about him doesn't make sense. The memory of him standing like a prince before the monster resurfaced. 

If I hadn't met him before, I wouldn't believe the captain had a kind and polite personality. He looked nothing of that man who saved my life, especially now that he's looking at me like I'm some sorry existence. 

"I'm asking about your ability." 

Claude pushed away the plate with the remaining slices. He must have realized those are my breakfasts. I quickly moved the plate to my side. 

"12 minutes, 45 seconds—when you did it first. 10 minutes, and 2 seconds, on the second try, and the third, it only took you 6 minutes. You're improving quickly, despite this being your first training. However, in battle, every second is crucial, and it will only take a minute for the enemy to attack you. You should cut your numbers to 1 minute on the second training."

"How can I do that?"

"That's why I'm asking you how you did it. Let's see if there's something I can help you with."

So, his kindness did not entirely vanish, huh?

"Think properly."

Even if he asked me to go back on it, I still won't be able to answer him. What else did I do but gawk and be amazed at the simulation, after getting a bit terrified on it first?

I jumped on the rocks to avoid being melted until the magic was nullified. I kept running away from the sandstorm that chased me in the desert until it was gone. And I climbed a tree, tied myself to it before the great avalanche devoured the whole place. 

All I did was survive, waiting until my ability worked on them. 

"So?"

There was nothing I could think of, but I had a feeling that if I didn't answer him, I was going to be thrown into training right away. I gulped and thought of a plausible reason. 

"I just…tried my best to focus on activating it."

A long silence reigned between us. It was nerve-wracking. I casually stood, pretending like my hands were not sweating, as they grabbed the plates and delivered them to the kitchen sink. 

Cold sweat trickled down my back. I could feel his prying gaze trying to discern the truth. 

What did I do when the convenience store was robbed again? I just…felt calm, unperturbed by the robber trying to harm me. 

And when Claude and his team tried to check it during the investigation, I just thought they were being a bother. 

When the Aetherlock spheres malfunctioned, I just vented out my anger and threw my dinner. At the RDC, I was regretting not living properly. And when the captain went berserk, I just thought it was a relief to die with someone. 

"I think…it has something to do with my emotions," I muttered in a daze. 

An ability that relies heavily upon emotion is something seen as… uncontrollable and dangerous. 

"So, it really worked when you shouted insults at me?" 

That dark, heavy voice pulled me out of my thoughts. I cleared my throat and shook my head. "If that was the case, then it should have activated right away, right? And I didn't insult you the second and third time."

"Who knows if you were cursing me silently?"

"Do you think I have time to curse at someone when I'm trying to survive? That's all I was thinking back then—that the sandstorm would bury me alive if I didn't stop it, or that I'd freeze to death."

A phone call interrupted our talk. His brows furrowed deeply after checking his phone. He stood, his eyes hovering at the kitchen sink before they flickered on me with a warning. 

"Wash the dishes."

"I'm on it."

I hurriedly washed the plates I used while the captain went somewhere, probably to answer the call. After I tidied everything, I slumped on the couch and was about to open the TV when he appeared again, wearing his usual uniform. 

"Are you going somewhere?" 

Claude nodded while walking to the door. He stopped just before it and glanced at me over his shoulder.

"I will be gone for a few days. Your training will be supervised by someone else. Make sure to come. Don't even think of skipping it and visiting elsewhere. Got it?"

"Got it. You—

Before I could even tell him to be careful on his mission, the door closed with a loud thud, shaking the whole house.

"Does he hate the door that much?" 

But what was I going to say again? 

Take care?

Ha. I should be worried about the people interacting with him instead.