It was a bright and sunny day, with the sky as blue as the sea. The dreaded day had arrived when the clock struck thirteen—oh wait, my bad. Wrong book.

I kept my vision outside on the greenery. There wasn’t much to see in the city. Perhaps it is because I have been living in it for so long that I’ve grown accustomed to it.

If I had to imagine a child who always asked where we were going or when we arrived, I would think the child is annoying. But that child summed up my thoughts pretty well. My best guess is the Catskills mountain range but I could be wrong. It’d definitely fit the time since we’ve been driving for two hours already.

Large hills—or maybe they were small mountains. Either way, they sat scattered across the landscape. I couldn't make out any ground since the plentiful green trees acted as facial hair for the mountains. That made it hard to see any sign of wildlife. It could be the fact that we were on the country roads or the loud engine that scared them away. It wasn’t actually loud, but that was only to the human. I'm sure creatures like deer or coyotes would be much more sensitive to our presence.

This peaceful nature was much better than in the city. Peace and quiet: something hard to find anywhere on this damned Earth. It seems there was no need for me to bring my headphones after all…

Compared to those schools... Well in a sense, they are just prisons. The school building was the prison. The principal was the warden. The teachers were the officers who tried their best to curry favor with the warden. And the classrooms were the cells. As for the bathrooms... I'm sure prison bathrooms are actually much more sanitized than those.

Living life out of the city must be comfortable.

The old man had his full concentration on driving and I had no interest in striking up a conversation. I don’t understand why he would need more concentration driving in the countryside. The city’s traffic was much more serious when literally everyone owned a type of vehicle. Since cars were the majority, the streets got packed pretty hard when the parking lots were full.

Traffic officers, though rare, still worked in small areas. Traffic bots took over the large traffic intersections since they navigated things better. It also had something to do with that recent incident where an officer was run over by a car.

Automation has also become commonplace but only in factory settings. If robots replaced labor or other occupations, then unemployment would strike everyone. Having a highschool diploma was no longer going to cut it if you're aiming to get into the job force. Thus, graduating from college would become a mandatory thing rather than an optional one. And the people who benefit the most from all this are the people in the board of education. College tuition would rise to an extreme and all graduating students would be sunken in a pool of debt. Even after college, there'd be a bunch of competition and interviews to find the right job. Of course, this is all hypothetical in the case that robots did take over the workforce. But, artificial intelligence still isn't a thing so that there is no need to worry yet.

Machines have a fixed rate of work when compared to humans. Their work was also more stable and the quality of a product is almost always guaranteed. Meanwhile, humans are very capricious creatures that need to be taught for them to work. While one was paid in electricity: a far cheaper asset—employees and workers had to be paid in green sheets of paper. Some would even have the audacity to ask for pay raises! Machines don't do that.

Compared to electricity—a staple resource—money is a unit used by societies to measure an object or an action’s value. It isn't anything worthy. It's just an illusion formed by collective minds: a social construct. It would only make sense that money was worth more than electricity with how it is worshiped. In the end, money is a figment of imagination. The only thing that makes this illusion of value appear valuable, is the belief that it is. If everyone stopped using money and went back to the old-fashioned methods of trading and bartering, then what’s the use of money? Of course, there's a lot of good sides that money brings to the table so there's no need to do that. Banks, stocks, and these major conglomerates would never have existed without a definite article of value. I mean, who cares if you mass-produce cocoa beans. You can sell cocoa beans, but it's not like you can trade cocoa beans for a phone. Without these coins and sheets of paper to dictate value, then human society would fail.

In a way, this is the same as how many other issues exist. Racism, sexism, equality, equity, and basically any aspect that makes up society is dependent on the humans that make up said society. If humans didn't believe in God, why would Christianity exist? If humans didn't believe in logical reasoning, why would science exist? If no one believed skin color was an issue, racism would never have happened. Slavery only happened because humans believed in superficial societal roles. An emperor is still a human—what makes anyone think he is superior to other humans in any way? There are definitely a bunch of other factors at play, but it's all related to human psychology—or perhaps just psychology in general.

Is it not interesting when you see things from an outsider's point of view? When there are believers, there are atheists. When there are sexists, there are people who preach gender equality. When you invert the equation it's still the same—where there are atheists, there are believers, and so on. So can there be a solution to such ‘issues?’ I don’t know. Are they even issues? Isn't it just different groups of humans with different opinions? Who said racism was wrong? Can anybody define racism? Instead of painting someone as a definite group and pointing fingers, why not consider their opinions first? Instead, most fools decide to ignore everything they disagree with. It's just confirmation bias at play. These idiots are people who think they know what they think. No intelligent person would outright proclaim their opinions. If I walked into a classroom and proclaimed 'I am a Nazi,' who the fuck cares? Everyone takes it as a joke. Proclaiming I am such will only antagonize everyone. But it irritates me how everyone shoves it off.

Why does everyone dismiss Hitler as an evil guy and call it a day? That's not an analysis, it's just a biased opinion. 'He killed the Jews, so he's evil.' Okay, you're using first-grade sentences now, congratulations. Now, I am supposed to play the devil's advocate and respond with a counterargument.

I would say, 'Despite that, Hitler also contributed a lot to the world and especially in Germany.'

The fool would say, 'But he killed a lot of Jews.'

And I'd continue, 'Under Hitler's rule, he promoted anti-smoking laws, preventing cancer; which at the time had no known correlation with smoking.'

The fool continues, 'But he killed Jews in concentration camps!'

I'd say, 'Hitler also supported the sciences in medical development especially for researching cancers. He also didn't use any gas or chemical weapons in World War II because he knew how deadly they were during his time as a soldier in World War I. And, the labor laws were one of the best when compared to other nations.

'But he killed Jews!' The fool would say.

And that is the type of conversation one should expect when conversing with an idiot. If it had been someone on the same intellectual level as I, they would actually back up their claim with reasoning.

A similar situation would transpire when discussing slavery. Some idiot will say, 'Slavery is wrong because it is not right to take control of another's life.'

And I'd refute, 'But, that would depend on which slavery you're talking about. In the case of Ancient Egypt, slaves were actually treated pretty well.'

And blah blah blah, I somehow lose the argument. It's fucking frustrating.

While I don’t want to admit it, compared to other animals, humans are relatively smart creatures. But among us, intelligent skeptics are a minority. All the other unintelligible humans are usually busy with appeasing the masses rather than looking for answers. They don’t even look for answers—any answer you give to them, as long as it is in an agreement with their ideals, they will accept it as fact. If you tell a Christian who firmly believes in God to a stubborn extent, ‘God doesn’t exist,’ you will be ignored. The same applies when you tell an atheist, ‘God exists.’ People in modern society only want to hear what they want to hear. I despise such hypocrites. Fucking hate them.

Nothing in this world is unconditional; nothing is free. If a mother of two was walking along the streets and finds an abandoned baby, there’s the chance that she ignores it or adopts it. If she ignores it, she’d be thinking, ‘A nearby orphanage would find the baby.’ Or maybe, ‘Haha, your mom abandoned you.’ And the woman would go on about her day as if such an event had never occurred.

In the instance that she adopts the baby, and shows love to a child that wasn’t hers, then people will say she is an altruistic person. But that isn’t unconditional love. The only reason the baby was adopted is exactly that it was a homeless and helpless little baby. Had that baby been a homeless old man, would she have adopted the old man? No—the idea would probably not even cross her mind. To help those in need is a condition. To be unconditional is to be freed of any bias. Humans are biased creatures—all living things are in fact, biased.

A dog protects its owner because the dog loves the owner. If the dog protects a stranger from an assaulter, then that isn’t unconditional love. It is because the idea, ‘Humans are friends that should be protected,’ has been deeply ingrained in the dog. Isn’t it funny?

The domestic dog and cat have been bred by humans so that they could be objectified as pets? How cruel is that? If it weren’t for humans, these dogs and cats would be able to live their lives out in the wild and form their own attitudes. But because of humans, we have brainwashed these creatures and their instincts into becoming our servants. It's come to the point that the domestic dog can no longer live without the human. Humans have been breeding the wild instincts of dogs for thousands of years. It would be a wonder if they weren't so friendly. Pet lovers say they have unconditional love for all pets, but they are only loved because they are seen as pets. It's fucking disgusting. When a dog shows repeated aggressive behavior, they are euthanized. That isn't humanely killing them—that's forcefully ending their lives. Maybe if it were a sick dog who's already predetermined to die, then that would be alright. But for a dog that's just following its natural biological instincts, why the fuck are humans killing them? You wanted them to be pets. Now you're killing them when they don't act all friendly? There are humans out there who are friendly, and there are actual murderers. Those fuckers go to jail, yet dogs that bite their owners are killed? What's next? When artificial intelligence is achieved, will we be killing machines that kill humans?

Is owning a pet not the same as owning a slave? Is having a child not the same as owning a pet? At least in the case of humans, it is slightly better since, after the legal age of 18, humans are allowed to be independent. But at the age of 18, that is more than enough time for their childhood and parents to have a large influence on them. How is it any different from brainwashing children and setting them free at the age of 18? I DON’T FUCKING KNOW—

“We’re here.”

Ahh.

It was only then that I realized I had both my hands clasping my head like a ball. My palms did not make contact with my face, but my fingertips and nails were trying to penetrate my skull.

I put them down and resumed a more natural position. It’s good that I was facing the window side and the seat I was in was behind Freud—I mean, old man. Even if he was looking at the rear-view mirror, he shouldn’t have been able to see me since I was hidden by the seat. Since I couldn’t see the side-view mirror, that meant my figure was not captured in either mirror. That’s a relief…

Why is it a relief?

Strange…

Getting out of the car, what greeted me was a mansion.—No, it was a villa in the middle of bumfuck nowhere.

There was a giant pool of crystal blue water on the left side without any leaves or anything in it. Someone's definitely living in it.

The building itself had many small pillars that held up the second, and possibly third floor. Its design and color even matched The White House that the president of the U.S. lived in: neoclassical architecture.

It wasn’t anything out of my expectations. I’d be more surprised if it was a small wooden shack.

“This is my... Anyway, you can live here starting from now on.” He said as we walked in through the grand entrance. Normally, one would be concerned with the lack of security. But it only makes sense since this place was in the middle of the wilderness. It isn’t like a burglar would drive this far into the Catskills to intrude on this property.

Entering the building, a sense of nausea hit my brain as it tried interpreting all the information. A sensory overload was to be expected since I have never seen this place before. The dizziness was my mind’s way of memorizing things in a new environment.

“There’s a... Heh, I guess a live-in butler, or you could call him your servant. Yeah, call him a servant. His name is Trevor. I’ve already told him about you so he knows you’re here already. If there’s anything you need, ask him.”

A servant? In this day and age? Well, a servant is basically a housekeeper so I’ll say housekeeper. Calling someone a servant seems too derogatory which may lead to some misunderstandings.

“How is he?” I asked.

“Well, he should be fine.” This old man said, misinterpreting my question…

“I meant, how will we get along?”

“Knowing his personality, I’m sure you’d have no issues communicating.” He let out a chuckle for some reason.

As he was about to turn around and leave, he said, “Also, Trevor is a good friend of mine. But treat him how you’d treat a normal servant.”

As he turned around ready to leave, I voiced out another question of mine.

“Why did you buy this place?” I asked, knowing it was a rude question. But out of all the other questions in my mind, this seemed to be the one I was most curious about.

Other than a vacation home, I can’t see why he would own a villa in such a place. But in the case that he does only come here for vacation—wait, the man’s retired. If I’m correct, the current CEO of Nexon is his son, so… Hold on a moment—.

The old man is a retired rich guy. He owns a villa in the middle of the mountains and hires a live-in housekeeper. Actually, he never specifically said he owned this place. So maybe this is someone else's home? Let's assume he does own this place. Both of these things are expenses. Since he’s retired, it’d make sense if he lived out the rest of his days in this villa. But he doesn’t—meaning he has another home. While a villa can be sold or rented, why the housekeeper? Hiring a housekeeper means a paycheck will flow out of your pocket every month to pay the housekeeper. Why have a housekeeper for a place you don’t live in?

He also says the housekeeper is a friend, which has many other nuances in and of itself. But why describe a 'friend' as a 'servant?'

“Well, I bought it for you. I’ll contact you when it’s time.” He said as he opened the door to leave

His mumbling didn't escape my ears though. “As long as you're polite, you oughta be fine."

What he said was bullshit. And what was weirder was how he brought me here and left. Not even a tour? Nothing? Do I not have a job? He is my ‘employer,’ but what am I supposed to do? He's rushing out of here as if it were a haunted house. Was there something in here he was scared of?

While I knew I could continue questioning him if I followed him back outside. I wasn’t the type of person who follows someone that wants to be left alone. So I guess it’s just me and my backpack in a…living room? This is a big fucking living room. It's probably half the size of the school gym.

As I was about to walk around to check things out, I heard footsteps coming from around the corner. What did he say the housekeeper's name was again? Damn, I knew I was bad at remembering names—oh well.

“So you are Coeus? I’ve heard about you from Morris.”

What met my eyes was not the figure of a fragile and skinny man, or a man with an apron, or anything at all. Nay, how could I have expected this? He did not dress the part of a school janitor. And he definitely did not match the image of what I assumed a housekeeper would look like. Had he been in a black suit akin to that of old-fashioned butlers, I’d be able to accept that. But this?

*cough

THIS?!?

“You’re the housekeeper, right?” I asked, genuinely wondering if he was actually the housekeeper.

“Housekeeper? Excuse me, what did you say?” The man in black tank tops asked.

While I did indeed say housekeeper… How am I supposed to respond to someone like you? This man was the literal essence of muscle itself. He wasn’t fibre or protein. He was the fucking amino acid. His tank tops didn’t even fit for fuck’s sake! His pecs were trying to jump out of his chest, unable to contain themselves. His arms were as big as my thighs and even his thighs were twice the size of mine. His serratus anterior muscles which were under his armpits were sticking out as well. It was like he had actual wings—made of muscles of course. How much fucking red bull did he drink? Don’t even get me started on his shoulders, that was another beast in and of itself. Was it the same size as my head? Looking at that stretched tank top that tried its best to hold everything together, I could only watch with amazement. Was it a common courtesy among bodybuilders to not wear clothes that fit?

Just seeing him from across the room made me recognize my own inferiority. This man was in a whole new realm. What sort of extreme bodybuilding could get you to this stage? I’d even confuse him with the main character of Commando. What was his name again? John Matrix? No, if my memory doesn't fail me, it should be Arnold Schwarzenegger.

“Are you not...the housekeeper?” I carefully said back.

“No-no-no. I’m not the housekeeper.”

“So you’re not Terry?”

He looked at me for a good second before sighing.

“Do I look like a housekeeper to you?”

“No, he said you were his servant so I thought…”

“He? You mean Morris?” I had a rough idea of what this situation was about, so I nodded.

“Hah, is that so? I see how it is.” He said with a hearty laugh which posed a stark contrast to his intimidating figure.

After a second of awkward silence, the buff dude spoke.

“Anyway, my name isn’t Terry, it’s Trevor."

Ah, okay. Trevor. Trevor. Trevor. Let's add that to my vocabulary list.

"I thought he’d have explained it to you but it looks like you have no clue what you’re doing here, right?”

I nodded.

“Coeus, I’ve heard a lot about you from Morris. He’s told me a lot of things. You’re what the Oracle calls the Survivalist. Do you know what that means?"

‘Yes,’ I wanted to say. But I only ended up giving a nod.

“Quiet one, aren’t you?”

Do I even need to answer that?

“A Survivalist should be able to survive. You got yourself kidnapped, meaning you have much to grow. So Morris sent you to me so that I could train you. I'm sure you already know yourself, but I'll say it. Your current condition is no good for what you will face in the future.”

Anybody compared to you is ‘no good.’ The fuck do you expect? You want Hercules to pop out of the sky and say you’re ‘no good?’ I mean, other than a musclebrain like Hercules, I don’t see how any other being would have the guts to deny your claim.

“Well, you're not going to be leaving anytime soon, so make yourself at home.”