Awakening [3]

September ended without incident. The start of October was the same.

Mining was a decent way to exercise. Naturally, it was different if it wasn't done in moderation, but such conditions didn't exist in this place.

Technically, the contract Gio signed was a slave contract, but the notion of "slavery" was illegal in all Stratums except the Rathole, where there was no semblance of government.

Even if the Wasteland was its own breed of hellhole, it was also ruled by a council of the strong. 

As Gio was a child, he was only required to mine for five hours a day. He could work overtime for extra pay if he wanted to, but he did not choose this route.

'Money isn't the most important thing for me right now.' 

In fact, money wasn't a thing at all. Gio had a special talent, after all.

'Every slight change in the Sequence Market, every small change in the Stock Market, every new invention and technology…'

He knew all of it and had a perfect recollection of it stored in his mind. The moment he wanted money, he could get his hands on it.

The five-hour shift was spent by Ricky's side. The other man was a brash person who didn't like others much. He yelled at anyone who looked at him the wrong way and always looked like he was on the verge of killing someone.

However, Gio knew what was beyond this exterior. Within him was a personality that he refused to show the world. It was that personality that he wanted to bring out. 

'I want to save him, but the current him simply doesn't deserve to be saved.'

Gio looked down at his own skin with a smile.

He was the color of caramel, a light brown that was darker than sand and as smooth as marble. His hair was black and messy, and his eyes were a pale green color that bordered on grey, giving his gaze a mystical and almost disorienting quality. 

In the Wasteland, where temperatures were always cold, there weren't many people like him.

It was normal for people who grew up here to be generally xenophobic. Even though he was also raised in the same places, it didn't matter to them.

His skin was not the same as theirs, so he was not like them.

Frankly, it was easier to get used to it and ignore it than to face it. It also wasn't worth anything to change those people, since they would likely never meet anyone else like him in their lives.

Their opinions would always remain based on the fantastical worlds they created in their own heads. What point was there in entertaining these people?

"Mud Rat" was a term they coined. There wasn't a word more offensive than "Rat" in a world where the Rathole existed. 

Ricky also used it often. In fact, he never called Gio by anything other than that term. For a long time, Gio believed that Ricky was just like the rest of them. The thirteen-year-old version of him did not believe that humans could ever change.

Back then, Ricky was the first person to show him otherwise, so for the two weeks that ended September and started October, Gio spent a considerable amount of time around the man.

Though his attitude didn't change much, it was obvious that his defenses were softening.

But, that was only a matter of personal satisfaction. He also knew that there were more important things to focus on.

'I have three and a half weeks. In that time, I have to gain at least a little bit of strength.'

His body couldn't change much in that amount of time. The most he could do was run every day, stretch, do basic workouts, and ensure that his body was at the peak of its current condition.

Other than that, he spent his time outside of work using various household appliances and metal poles found around the dig site to familiarize his current body with weaponry.

'I never had a main weapon in the tower. Every weapon I got ended up breaking, so I just took whatever weapon the tower provided me next.' 

He ended up with skill in various weapon categories. 

Since the best he could get his hands on were pipes and poles, he trained his polearm skill most of all. 

To everyone else, October 16th, 3005, was an ordinary day. Nothing about it stood out in the slightest.

Gio followed Ricky into the mine. Just like every morning, that guy was chatting away.

"Hey, Gio, I just figured out what that "Mud Rat" shit means. I actually didn't know until just now." 

"If you didn't know, then why were you saying it?"

"Uh, because I wanted to? I looked at you and you fit the description, so I just said it."

"Haa…that's exactly the problem. You can't just call people slurs because they 'fit a description.' As a matter of fact– Hey, get your ass back here!"

Gio helplessly chased after his comrade who left him in the dust.

Ricky was nineteen around this time, but for some reason, he was the one with the brain power of a thirteen-year-old.

'He's a perfect example of that "not quite right, but he's got the spirit" saying.'

Now that they'd spent some time together, he was obviously starting to change. After all, he was even looking into what words meant now.

This was considerable progress, considering that Ricky had been a "do as he's told" kind of person for the entirety of his life.

After Ricky was corralled, the duo could finally head into the mine as they'd done every morning for the past 6 months, at least in Ricky's perception.

Gio looked down at his watch. 

'In three hours…'

"Huu…"

He took a deep breath and calmed himself. This was the first true test after regression.

'I remember exactly how catastrophic this was in the past. The entire dig site was decimated.' 

They were lucky that this site was separated from any cities or settlements. Otherwise, there would have been a more serious issue.

In the end, only a few thousand people without identification died in the mine. It wasn't a considerable enough loss for anyone to do anything about it.

They should have taken it as a sign. Something that absolutely shouldn't have happened, happened. 

"Ricky, make sure you stay close to me today." 

"What's your problem? We've been here for 6 months. I already know that you're a stone-cold son of a bitch. It's too late to pretend to be a real kid." 

"That's not– Haa, never mind. Just stay close to me, alright?"

"Haha, I guess you developed a fear of the dark when you started puberty. Well, if you insist, then I'll help you out. It's because I'm a good person, not because you're special."

"Good."

Most of the drivel went in one ear and out the other. Gio really only heard the essential message of, "I'll do as I'm told."

It was good that he was skilled at following orders. Though he acted like he adamantly refused, he spent the next two hours not far from Gio's side. They spent their time normally until that fated third hour dawned.

All of a sudden, an ominous rumbling filled the mine. 

Gio, Ricky, and every other miner in the vicinity raised their heads at the same time.

A massive sound was approaching rapidly from the entrance of the cave.

That was a sound like–

"–mutated beasts." 

Ricky spoke before Gio could say anything. Even in his past life, Ricky was the first to notice them. 

"Something must've happened outside. We have to get out there and rendezvous with everyone." 

Ricky stated the obvious, but there was quite a large problem standing in their way.

More specifically, it was the horde of tens of mutated beasts barreling towards them at full speed.

Every single person here chose to be a miner for the same reason.

Because they weren't strong enough to be hunters or suicidal enough to be scavengers. 

When such people were placed in front of imminent death…

To say that they did not respond well was the grossest understatement one could possibly make.