Getting Back on Track

The sun set, and darkness covered the skies.

After what happened with Narise, I stayed inside the bedroom. Despite the lingering smell, I followed through with Cielle’s wishes, and spent the rest of the day recuperating. By the time night had fallen, I noticed significant improvements to my current condition. [Mental Strain] completely disappeared, while [Extreme Physical Exhaustion] reverted to [Physical Exhaustion]. To me, [Mental Strain] was probably the most bothersome of the negative status effects that I received. While the others lowered my physical stats, and shut off my skills, [Mental Strain] felt as if someone shoved my brain in a blender.

There was always this murky feeling that persisted and clouded my thoughts and judgement. With [mental strain] gone, I felt the literal fog in my mind clear up. For the first time since I woke up a few days ago, it felt as if I was finally back in control.

With my mind all cleared up, I had a lot of time to think and process Narise’s situation. Right off the bat, I knew I made some mistakes. I’ve come to realize that while I could remain calm and make level headed decisions whenever I faced off against monsters, I always lagged behind whenever it came to dealing with human created problems and individuals. This was true with Satou, this was true with Kido, and now, this was true with Narise.

Without getting too far into the complicated aspects of the topic, I made a few ultimatums to myself regarding this situation.

For one, under no circumstances should Narise gain control over the Manticore. Letting her watch over the egg might be okay for now, since that thing was essentially useless, and harmless until it hatches… wait, no, that might not necessarily be true. If, on the off the chance that she has some way to influence the egg as it is now, then that mistake will certainly come back to bite me in the ass. This possibility was especially scary, considering what happened today. It’ll be for the best if I keep the egg away from her for the time being.

The second ultimatum I made to myself was regarding what had happened today with Narise. It was clear that she acquired something special. Figuring out whether that something was a skill, a title, or something else, and figuring out what it could do, were very important. The sooner the better. In fact, I’m kicking myself for not pushing it out of her the moment she had acquired it.

The other issue I needed to address in the future was Narise’s state of mind. To make things short, Narise is an unstable individual. She is sort of similar to Kido and Satou, especially in the type of danger/risk she poses. In her case though, she wasn’t openly antagonistic like Satou, nor was she plotting something behind the scenes like Kido.

This put me in a difficult spot. In all honesty, the best and safest method to deal with Narise, would be to just simply kill her. The problem I had was that she had no ill will. Killing someone without any malicious intent did not sit comfortably with me. Back in the dungeon, I had a similar dilemma regarding Kido, and this time’s issue was practically the same. This train of thought was naive, I openly admit that, but…

… killing her, should I really do it?

This sort of indecision frustrated me. If I was overly cruel, or overly humane, then I wouldn’t be having these types of problems.

If she expressed open hostility, then this whole situation would be a hundred times easier to deal with. Outside of killing her in cold blood, there were two other solutions I thought of.

The first one was banishing her. If she posed too much of a threat to the group, I might as well just kick her out entirely, before she can stir up any trouble. The problem with this option, was that I wasn’t comfortable with the idea. I didn’t feel bad about the prospect of banishing her, but rather, I feared the potential backlash. If I did kick her out, and she grew to resent me because of that, I’d essentially be creating my own enemy. I’d rather nip the bud, before it can grow weeds, rather than sow my own seeds and hope they don’t pollute my garden. I was more comfortable keeping her within my sights, as opposed to letting her roam free.

The second, and most likely solution, was to control her. Regarding this route, I had as much options as I did problems. I could control her through her unhealthy obsession with monsters. Whether that was through promising her new monsters, or threatening her preexisting ones, there were plenty of methods, but a relationship forged through this method was an unstable one. I could see her build up a lot of resentment in a short amount of time.

Another route was to appease her. This was probably just as bad, if not worse than the first choice. This would essentially teach her nothing, and only contribute to making her situation worse. If she keeps repeating the things she did, and I do nothing to stop it, that would be the same as reinforcing the idea that she can walk all over me. In some ways, what I did this morning was similar to this. Regardless of the choice I end up making, I will need to address this issue soon.

The last route was to enter a genuine underling relationship with her. Although She called me Boss, I felt no genuine sincerity from her words. What I needed to do was completely put her under my thumb. To make her believe that my words, my ideas, were more important than her own.

This option, while I felt that it was the best choice, at the same time, it wasn’t an easy one to accomplish. Unlike the first route, I don’t know how to form that sort of relationship with Narise. While in a sense, what I did with Cher was similar, she had special circumstances. Cher was Cher, and Narise was Narise. Hoping for something similar to happen with Narise was just a fruitless pipe dream…

For now, having Cielle watch over her was just a temporary measure, and not even a good one at that. Regardless though, I still needed to address what happened earlier today with her. If I let Narise run around thinking she can do whatever she wants to, then the situation will quickly turn sour.

As I contemplated the future, I could hear a commotion from outside. The sound of a wooden door opening, followed by the sound of people talking, quickly entered my ears. The others had returned. With a heavy sigh, I pushed off the bed, and headed towards the living room.

****

Four people entered the apartment. Each step they took, carried with it a combination of dirt, grime and blood. The clothes on their backs were practically scraps, torn and full of holes. I noticed, that unlike our time in the dungeon, they did not have any armor on. While I felt that going out alone without any protection was dangerous, I understood where they came from. Practically all the armor I had created was destroyed during the battle with the dungeon boss.

I walked out of Cielle’s bedroom door, just as they were cleaning up. When they saw me approach, there was a momentary silence. What I thought was a bleak atmosphere forming, was quickly overturned as they erupted in cheers. This was especially true for Cher and Hina, who were particularly emotional and vocal.

I couldn’t resist the smile that was forming on my face. I spent more than two months with these two, and seeing them again brought a warm sensation from deep within my chest. It was something I was unaccustomed to, but strangely, I did not hate it.

“It’s nice to see you guys again.” I spoke simply as I smiled at the two in front of me.

“Hide, you’re back! You’re really back!” Cher responded cheerfully. She was really energized, a far cry from her mood a few minutes ago. She paid no regard for anything else, as she ran up to me and attempted to tackle me in a bear hug.

“Don’t, you idiot!” My eyes widened. A curse leaked out from my lips, as I hastily back stepped and narrowly avoided the oncoming collision. A rather sharp object missed me by a hair’s breadth of distance.

“Don’t be so reckless, you idiot!” I repeated, propping myself onto a wall. “My body’s not in its best condition right now, so don’t go swinging around something so dangerous so haphazardly. I nearly lost my life back there.”

I protested, as my eyes turned towards the object attached onto Cher's severed arm. It resembled a very crude, but very dangerous prosthetic. There was a metallic short sword fastened onto her lower arm. It was held together using a combination of bandages, duct tape, rope, and cloth. Its tip jutted out from her arm a good two feet away. Overall, it was a very basic design that vaguely resembled the edge shield I first gave her a long time ago.

Cher’s face blanked for a second, before her cheeks flushed red. She sheepishly rubbed her face with her good hand, stating, “Sorry, I just… I got a bit excited, I didn’t mean to…” She stammered, looking up at me with a somewhat reserved expression. Noticing my gaze, she followed my eyes, and huffed out a breath of air. As if she remembered something, she waved her sword arm around in the air, explaining throughout the process. “This was something I found while wandering the neighborhood. I tried my best, but it’s not as good as what Hide can do… Nonetheless, it does help me fight a bit more.”

I nodded with an appraising look. After a few seconds of silent deliberation, I nodded again. “Yeah, that does look pretty bad. It looks like it’ll come of at least every other swing, if not more.” Before Cher had the chance to complain about my crude comments, I casually followed, the corners of my lips slightly rising into a smile. “I’ll make you a better one when we’ve got time.”

Instead of humbly responding, like I expected, Cher rubbed her nose, a grin on her face. “Hehe, I half expected Hide to say that.” She laughed ruefully, as she immediately began dismantling the semi-sword prosthetic on her arm. “I knew following Hide would earn me skills, but to think I get new weapons too, hehe…”

I rolled my eyes at her, inwardly noting how cheeky she’s gotten recently. In my mind, was already plotting how to take her down a peg or two.

After a short exchange with Cher, I turned towards Hina, who was standing directly next to her. Just from one glance, I could tell how badly the past couple of days had affected her.

Her hair was disarrayed, and her clothes were torn and smeared with all sorts of stuff. What was especially striking, were her eyes. Hina’s eyes, were red, heavy bags underneath. While it didn’t diminish her overall beauty, it did give her a somewhat ragged and worn down ambiance.

Not knowing what to say, all I could do was smile knowingly.

Seeing my smile, she copied with her own. Just slightly, I saw the weariness in her eyes decrease.

“It’s good to see you safe, Hina.” I stated, genuinely meaning it.

“It wasn’t easy.” She replied with an exaggerated sigh. “Cher was all depressed while you were gone, Sis refused to leave the building, and Hokusei…” She glanced briefly at the President. Her expression told me she knew he was listening. “... He’s not as good a leader as you are.”

From towards the kitchen area of the apartment, I heard the President break out into an odd coughing fit. I smiled, and couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at her comment. While I was vaguely aware of the role I started to take up within the group, being openly addressed as the leader… it was the first time that’s ever happened, and honestly, I don’t know how to feel about it.

With mixed feelings in my heart, I turned and glanced towards the other two who came back with Hina and Cher. Minikawa, Kido’s old childhood friend, was standing next to her friend. She met my stare with my own, before turning away. Her eyes, were blank and hollow. It was as if I was looking through the eyes of a lifeless puppet.

I ignored her, and looked over towards the President. He came back from the kitchen with a handful of canned goods, and paper plates. We exchanged a quick nod, before he silently began setting up the table. In return, I turned towards the rest of the living room. Everyone was currently present. From Cielle, Hina, Cher, Narise, Kido’s old friends, and the President, I silently counted off in my head, before I addressed the group.

“While, I’d like to take some time to relax after my return, I can’t very well do that with the current situation happening.” A solemn expression slowly fell on my face. My words were dark, and contained within it as much authority as I could muster. “Let’s quickly get things over with. Tell me what’s going on.”

****

It was the next day. I was currently outside, in front of the apartment building’s entrance, staring out into the neighborhood.

After yesterday’s briefing, I furiously thought up of a plan. Right now, aligning with the original information Cielle told me about, the manticore’s old territory was being invaded by other monsters. From what the Cher, Hina, and the others told me, it was far more severe than I originally thought. At most, we probably only had about 2 days left, before the whole place gets completely flooded.

Yesterday, the monsters they encountered were stronger, and more numerous than all the other days combined. Two more additional monster species, joined the invasion. Both new species, were stronger than the others before it. And if that wasn’t enough, they also fought off two elite monsters, and saw at least 5 more wandering the area. This was not a good sign. They were only able to push back the forces, due to the coming darkness. For some reason, the monsters did not attack during the night.

The forces behind the invasion, had enough strength to deploy several elite class monsters as scouts. This was indication enough of how strong the monsters within the city were. If I were to guess, then I’d say… at the weakest, their leaders are all at least named monsters, while there existed a strong possibility that they had boss class monsters serving as their leader.

Confronting this sort of power was dangerous. At first, I thought we might be able to monopolize on the fact that the invading forces aren’t a united front, but seeing as how things have been going, it's more likely that we’ll only end up getting caught in the skirmish, and die, then reap a profit.

Right now, securing an escape was the best option available. As I stared at the morning sun rising from the east, I made a few mental calculations. Right now, there were two options available; head west towards the harbor and shoreline, or head into the urban landscape of the city.

To decide which route was better for us to take, the most critical thing to do, was to identify the reason why the monsters were invading the residential district. Whether their invasion was based on necessity or desire, would greatly affect what route we will take.

If their invasion was based on necessity, then that meant that the monsters were being pushed out of the city by an even stronger force. If it was because of desire, then that meant that the monsters already had a comfortable hold on the city, and were now looking to expand and conquer the surrounding regions.

Considering the fact that the monsters were invading not as a united force, but as different, independent groups, I doubt it was the latter. The most probable situation was that there were stronger monsters hidden deeper within the city, and that only the weaker groups were being weeded, or pushed out.

Since this was the most likely scenario, then the best option was to avoid the city all together, and head towards the west. This decision wasn’t one without its own fair share of risks either.

I don’t think the Manticore’s sphere of influence stretched as far as the west. Now, there were two probably reasons for this. One, the distance was too large for it to control alone, or two, there was an even stronger force that kept the Manticore at bay.

If it was the former, then that’s good, but if it was the latter… that would be like jumping out of the frying pan and straight into the fire. I recalled what happened last night. When I presented this argument to the rest of the group yesterday, I was met with a mixed response. Despite the danger, some of them wanted to head into the city. This reason was mostly supported by human sentimentality. A few of them, namely the President, had family back in the city, and wanted to return in order to confirm whether they were alive or not.

When the apocalypse happened, my parents were overseas, so while I knew what sort of feelings pushed the President, I had unknowingly accepted the fact that I was probably never going to see my parents ever again.

The others wanted to prioritize their own safety, and head west. Despite the potential danger I pointed out, they felt that the coast was safer than the city. Of course, seeing a bunch of monsters flood in from the city, while nothing is outright attacking us from the west, sort of reinforces this decision.

In the end, we decided that the city was simply too dangerous. While our argument went well into the night, Cher had unknowingly convinced us all, when she pointed out the fact the green light we all saw on the first day. The green light that flashed in the sky, and pushed out various monsters… that same green light had been floating directly above the city during the first day.

After we came to a mutual agreement, I decided that, rather than waiting until more monsters flooded the residential area, it was best if we left this place as soon as possible. At the very least, relocating deeper into the residential area was a more viable option that staying in this apartment building.

The safest location within the area, was probably the school. Considering how these monsters were acting, they probably still feared the manticore. Even though it was already dead, just like how its body still emitted heat after death, its influence, although growing fainter by the second, still lingered enough to hold the rest of the monsters back.

Right now, this lingering influence was the best repellent towards the invasion force. In addition, there were also a few things I wanted to collect from the manticore before we headed west.

Just as I was deep in thought, from behind me, I heard the entrance to the apartment building opened.

“Should you be standing out here by yourself?” It was Cielle. She asked, noncommittally as she carried a number of bags with her. All these bags contained food and water. “In your current condition, a monster could easily kill you.”

I laughed dryly at her comment. “I’m not that weak, besides, Hina said that they don’t attack until a little later in the day. The sun’s barely out, I won’t be in any danger for a little while.”

From the corner of my eye, I saw Cielle nod slightly, as she placed the packs down with a grunt, adding to the collection that had grown in front of the entrance to the building. Besides my feet, and everywhere else around me, bags containing various supplies, were stacked one above the other.

“Are they here yet?” She asked, wiping a thin layer of sweat away from her forehead, as she walked over to me.

I answered, “No, not yet. The Pres did say they found it, but it was pretty far away… it was practically on the other side of the neighborhood, so it’ll take them a while…” I stared out into the distance. I paused for a moment, tilting my head towards Cielle. I stared at the top of her head, looking meaningfully at her jet black, yet beheaded nest of hair, before I asked, “... Where are Narise, and the other one?”

“They are still getting the remaining supplies.” She replied. “Although Narise is pretty depressed because you took the egg away from her.”

“Hmm…” I nodded, shifting my gaze away from Cielle’s head, to the floor beneath me. On my left, near my foot, was a bag. Poking out from its partly opened flap, was a dirty white egg, the size of a basketball. “I got caught up in the moment, and made a bad decision yesterday. Leaving the egg with her was a bad move. Indulging her like that was an even worse move.

“Sooner or later, I’ll find away to… calm her down. Until then, I hope you can…”

Cielle silently nodded, as she looked up towards me. Her rosy, thin lips curved into a slight smile. “Whatever you decide to do, I’ll support you.”

“...”

Just as I was about to open my mouth to respond, from the far distance, I could hear the whining metallic roar of a relic from the not so distant past. The noise got increasingly louder and louder, as it approached. I exchanged glances with Cielle, before peering out into the distance. A smile formed on my face.

“Looks like they're here.”

Coming in from the east road, a dark, grey-vehicle, was swerving awkwardly through the narrow street. At its helm, was a red faced President.