The halos had faded back to white, and the supermarket was thriving with life from the electricity.
Just as Simon, Leo had guessed that Hollow Beasts would now leave this location alone.
Leo sat on a shelf, bobbing his head with an MP3 player in his hands and headphones in his ears. Whatever he was listening to, it was so loud he didn't even notice Simon walking in.
This was a good thing for Simon; however, he needed to clean his shoes.
Simon had tossed the body away to the beasts earlier and didn't bother cleaning up any evidence besides that.
He knew either the rain or beasts would cover his footprints, but the actual body was an exception to this.
As for what he fed the body to, it was the same pack of wolves that had run from him earlier. Simon quietly walked away from Leo's vision, but Leo suddenly turned his head, noticing him.
"You still go out for walks?" Leo asked as he took the earbuds out.
"...It helps me calm my mind."
"Yeah, but here? Come on now, you don't need it that bad."
"I think I do." Simon forced a smile.
With that, he hastily walked towards the back of the store, although Leo didn't seem to care. Simon needed to replace his shoes quickly, before Leo would notice.
However, when he got there, he saw Haruto already in the building.
Haruto was blind, with scars around his closed eyes. He was reading a book in Braille, one that Simon had never seen before. His kimono was blue with designs of the clouds rubbing against the book ever so gently.
He paid Simon little to no attention, almost as if he didn't notice he was there.
However, his head quickly turned as the sound of Simon grabbing a pair of shoes hit his ears.
"What's that on your shoe?" Haruto asked, his voice as smooth as silk.
"Monkey brains. Had to step in a few to get back."
There was no doubt in Simon's mind about this — that man was no better than a monkey.
"Really? At this time, you were out? How far'd you go?"
"One thousand, six hundred, and thirty steps."
Simon said before tossing his shoes out a window with all his strength, before putting on the new boots. They fit him snugly, possibly even better than his old pair.
"Haha, always counting, huh?"
"And you're always reading, aren't you? Anyway, when'd you get here anyway?"
"Maybe two hours ago, most of the team was still doing missions. I was the only one available, but it took a while to get here."
(Two hours? Earlier than I expected. Shouldn't be a problem either way — even with his foresight, he can't tell the difference between the brains of a monkey and a human.)
"By the way, Simon, I have something to tell you." The faint smile on his face disappeared
Simon's gaze flickered back to Haruto — he hadn't been expecting this. Haruto explained it would be at least three more days until more backup would come for them.
Additionally, as Simon had predicted, there was an increase in Hollow Beasts.
(That isn't so bad, the city east seems free of them, probably wiped off before I got there. Either way, they'll be scared to approach me with Jör's aura protecting me.)
"I should warn you, there are more Gateways that lead to this place than we expected. If you see any survivors, please try and lead them here."
(Why should I do that? That's just another mouth to feed. Once the canned goods are gone, we'll have to hunt Hollow Beasts; they'd only put us in more danger. Sigh. I hate sympathetic people.)
"Sure, I'll try." The truth didn't reach his lips.
In honesty, Simon was disgusted at the thought of saving any human he saw.
There was a clear difference between them — If Simon were a raven, then they'd be a pigeon.
(It doesn't matter if I say the ones I find die anyway, it's not like my Signature is fit for fighting.)
However he felt, he was tired from being awake for so long. He quickly set up a tent, away from the others. He, of course, made sure he had all the necessities, including a jug of water which he greedily drank from.
The taste of plastic danced across his tongue, but it was better than death.
If he died, his goal wouldn't be achieved — if his goal wasn't achieved, humanity wouldn't be free.
In a way, yes, it was selfish, but he knew people would thank him sooner or later. Even now, he was also a slave, a slave to the government.
This world was his plantation, and he planned not only to escape but to destroy it. In truth, if the bureau knew about this, he would be executed on the spot.
The punishment would only be worse if he tried to run away from this; he knew too much.
You may ask yourself, "What punishment could be worse than death?" The answer would be to be a toy to the bureau.
Criminals were also involved in this government, and they planned to use them. If you tried to run, you would be assigned to one of these criminals — a toy for them to contain themselves.
The thought of this sometimes kept Simon awake at night, just like now.
But at the same time, in a way, it made him fascinated. It was something he would think of himself if he had an organization.
Everyone could be useful, no matter what they did or what their background was.
Simon let out a low chuckle at himself. He didn't find it funny; he just came to a realization.
The realization that there was no difference between him and the one who had set this system up.
(I could probably take control of this entire thing from the inside. More paperwork would just make sneaking around harder, though. Nor do I want to deal with the Attack Force; there's a reason they're in that hell.)
Simon tossed and turned in the mattress he had set up. With the blinding white halo blasting his eyes, it was hard to sleep. It was as if he was looking directly at a star, even with his eyes closed.
He sighed and pulled his sleeping bag over his head once more before falling asleep.
Hours later, when he woke up, his throat drier than a desert, he stepped out of his tent with the jug of water. As he roamed the aisles of the supermarket, he looked to see if there was anything new.
He stopped for a moment, realizing that Leo's phone was on, even though he himself was asleep. This could either be good or bad, since there was no way to charge his phone, it would be crucial for calling for help.
Not for him, but for Leo. Simon had no clue whether Leo and Haruto were scouting together or taking turns. If it were the latter, then Leo could be in trouble.
"Fifty Percent..." Simon said softly, not wanting to wake him up.
Simon still needed Leo; he couldn't have his phone dying just now. He quickly turned it off entirely to preserve the battery and wrote a note for when Leo woke up.
With that, he drank the rest of his water, grabbed a can of fruit, and left the Supermarket with Jör. He immediately went back to where he had explored last time, now knowing the quickest route.
Of course, he made sure to keep track of his steps, four hundred fewer than last time. He was pleased with this result, but more importantly, he felt something strange around the city.
It wasn't like anything he had felt last time, almost like it wasn't human at all. But no matter which direction he looked, he couldn't find the source of it.
(It must be deeper inside than, but how can its aura be this strong? Even Jör's barely covers a few blocks around the supermarket and me.)
He made sure to take note of this; it wasn't something he could just brush off so easily. Maybe the thing that was inside of this city was the reason why Project Icarus was here.
That only made him want to search it more frantically. However, whatever he sensed was clearly of no danger to him... Yet.
He needed to worry about different things; seeing if they responded was of utmost priority. He walked toward the wall he had written on, remembering the street as clear as day.
When he got there, he was only expecting them to either take the bear's hide or reply. However, he didn't get one, leading him to sigh dreadfully.
He checked the bear's hide once more; the boar's tusk was now gone.
(So they did come here after all... I guess they want me to prove myself in some way? Yes, that must be it.)
Just as he thought that, he felt a gust of wind hit the side of his ear.
An arrow was left at his feet, a note attached to it. As he turned back, nothing was there, but nonetheless, he picked up the arrow.
"Who are you?" The note read.
The sheet of paper wasn't big, so Simon had to work with what he had. He didn't have a pen with him, so he'd need to carve the words into the paper.
"Liability."
He set the note back down next to his first message before turning towards the city.
(Well, I still have a hefty amount of time. It wouldn't hurt to scout.)