Just when he thought he traced the original Sean's origins to Richelle, now it turned out that there was a possibility, albeit a wild guess, thus miniscule probability, that Sean's origin was deeper than that.
And judging from Richelle's tone, it was as though she was caught between feeling hopeful and wishing he recalled, or regained memory of what she wanted him to remember, at the same time, feeling dread that he actually did.
It was like she couldn't decide on which one was the better option.
"I can't remember what I dreamt about." Sean lied with a straight face.
"You... You can't?" She asked in doubt. His previous reaction had been too strong, for him to claim to not remember.
Sean however, shook his head lightly, confirming to her, that he didn't... Even if it was a lie.
There was something else he wanted to know as well though, and that was if this missing memory, was something Sean was supposed to be aware of.
"It's fine then, don't worry about it. I guess it really was a bad dream afterall." She replied.
From her reply, it seemed the original Sean was indeed supposed to know he had a missing... or some missing memory, however the case may be.
This only served to remind him just how much of a thin line he was treading now, without any concrete knowledge of who Sean really was, or rather, what Sean knew.
Ever since coming to this world, barely ten hours now, he had not had a single moment when he wasn't on edge.
Aside the obvious caution and paranoia of having found himself thrown into this situation, without any prior warning or preparation, there was also the fact that, every single second, he had to think, anticipate, and steer conversations into directions that would not have him exposed, or raise suspicion.
If only he knew Richelle was already having suspicions, despite spending no more than an hour together.
His mind was running dry, and his brain power was as good as exhausted, but more than that, he needed sleep, he needed rest. But right now, he would rather do anything else, than close his eyes to sleep.
The first time he lost consciousness, courtesy of his enhancement and mutations which had taken a weird turn for some strange reasons he was yet to unearth, something even the Aegis Protocol seemed to have no answer to, since he had checked his status more than once already.
The first time he fell unconscious, he had a confrontation with himself... No, a confrontation between himself, and the previous Sean, or at least what looked like it. He couldn't be certain it wasn't his brain playing all these tricks with him, due to how intense his situation was.
The second time he closed his eyes to sleep, he had a dangerous, first hand experience of psychological horror.
So right now, while he badly needed sleep, he did not want to sleep. The second dream seemed to have a left a profound scar on his psyche.
He turned his head stirring out the window, and instantly marveled. This place now, was unlike the slums.
The slums was like the urban Earth he came from, only run down, a lot less clean, more of metal than wood and sand, accompanied by a dreary atmosphere.
This place however, was like he was thrown to a more advanced mix of New York and Chongqing China, the city was very clean, high rise reaching buildings made of metal and glass, railways running through the sky.
Large, holographic bill boards showing ADs, and things of the like, people walking around with robots, or androids, some as pets, some for utility, some even were trolling baby cots, acting like baby sitters, and some were... Partners?
Yet amidst all these technological marvel, what truly blew Sean's mind, was the good amount of greenery, even in a city like this.
Lush vegetations and ornaments by the side walk, and many other little details, that kept his mind occupied.
He didn't try to show whatever he was feeling though, his expression remaining calm and composed, then shifting softer to appreciation of how wonderful it all was.
While he had read all these in the novel, seeing it with his eyes, was a different experience all together.
Richelle watched him from the side, complex emotions swirling in her head, before she let out a soft sigh, so soft she didn't want Sean to hear... Too bad Sean's senses were basically superhuman now.
She sank into her seat, her thoughts drifting despite her exhaustion.
Even though he acted okay before her, how could she not know how the child she raised up herself, behaved? It would be an insult to her wisdom and intelligence, of she couldn't tell that he was becoming more and more worked up daily.
With how high her continuity index [1] was, how valued she was in Elysium, her connections, she would have already moved in to Elysium if she wanted to, instead of remaining in the inner sector.
Richelle was not a genetically enhanced human, nor did she have active mana cells, however, her societal value was so high that those unordinary humans, did not dare take her lightly, not even the likes of Devon, no matter how eccentric he came off as.
"If she was so powerful, why wasn't she there?" One would ask. However, the reason was plenty obvious, and that was Sean himself.
While Richelle held power, Sean had dormant mana cells, thus was not an awakened human, he also wasn't a genetic evolver. Cybernetic enhancements however, was something reserved only for the elites and indegenes of Elysium.
If he wanted to make a difference, then he could only do it the usual way, to opt for a genetic enhancement, or use his brains... Ground breaking intelligence and resourcefulness. The only problem was that Sean wasn't so intelligent.
He could pass for highly above average, or very close to a very intelligent child, but lacked brilliance and creativity... such level of wits, could only carry one to the top of the inner sector, and nothing more.
To break beyond that, he would need to get a job first, gather so much knowledge that he was considered a top tiered expert in his field, make connections with those in Elysium, and wait for an opportunity.
The last two were covered though, as what other connection and opportunity did he need other than her?
However, Sean was not satisfied with that, he didn't want to hold her back. She could still remember how many times he had begged for a genetic enhancement. With her connections, it wouldn't be hard for her to get him a beast gene of matching affinity.
But knowing the mortality rate, even though only twenty percent, and already having a much safer option, how could she agree to that? That was why that night, when he had not returned home, dread creeped in.
She searched for him futilely allover the inner sector, and only after after the rays of morning sunlight, did she see a note in her own room, of what he wanted to do.
He had decided to take matters into his own hands, "if she wouldn't do it for him, then he would do it himself", he basically said in the letter.
It was why aside relief that he was alive, she had also slapped him out of anger in the pit.
Looking back at her actions now, she couldn't help but ask herself, if it wouldn't have been much better if she had just listened to him, and gave him his own room to grow.
'He must probably resent me.' she thought bitterly.