Seth was left flabbergasted right after arriving at the wreckage site.

“And now it's gone.”

The giant wolf that was supposed to be blocking the hole it had created was mysteriously gone. He was sure that the poison had kicked in its system but seeing that it had moved elsewhere, Seth couldn't help but be worried.

As much as he wanted to think that ‘things do sort themselves out’, his predicament became much much worse.

“I need to cover this hole immediately.”

The walls of the facility was their only safe haven and seeing such a huge hole on it, brought a premonition of danger to Seth.

I need something more durable.

After witnessing the destruction of the concrete wall that was tens of inches thick, covering it with something half-assed would probably cost them their lives.

Hmmm, that'll probably do.

Seth's gaze fell upon several stacks of freight containers that were neatly arranged on one side of the facility's main hall.

Not only prototypes but also defective products were sent in here for storage. These 12 meters long steel containers were used for transporting consumer-ready products to several countries throughout the world.

“Heave-ho!”

Equipped with the state of the art exoskeleton that was built solely for strength, Seth positioned himself in front of a stack of three and began to lift it effortlessly albeit very slow.

The massive weight and mass of the two container at the top coupled with the force exerted by the exoskeleton below, caused the bottommost one to creak in stress.

“One… two….one….two.”

Seth rhythmically carried the stack with his two arms that weren't experiencing any kind of load, provided that the customizing he had done with the exoskeleton was enough so that he could lift a modern tank above his head easily.

“Almost there!”

The scene was jaw-dropping indeed but quite anticlimactic in a sense that Seth moved as slow as a snail. Being slow was fine since he needed to balance it very carefully so he needn't mind it.

“Al…...most!”

Several minutes later, he was finally halfway there.

“.............”

It was at that point where he truly believed that he wouldn't be surprised if the wolf surely pounces on him.

“At last!”

And after several more minutes, Seth had finally arrived at his destination and slowly and carefully lowered the stack onto an area that was clear of concrete fragments.

What he needed to do first was to remove the larger pieces of concrete that were scattered here and there. Only a few was of considerable size so Seth finished the task in a jiffy.

“Just a few more pushes.”

Seth enthusiastically positioned himself again and began to push the stack towards the hole.

The strain to the synthetic tissue wasn't the same as when he lifted the stacks. Scattered pieces of concrete that were on his way, crushed into fine particles, smoke and dust consequently blew in all directions. It obscured his vision by a bit but still he pushed until the stack of metal struck the solid wall.

Since he couldn't push further than that, Seth let go of the metal containers and dashed back to where he came from.

A few more minutes later, he returned while holding some tools that he believed were necessary for strengthening the stack.

Several large bolts and nuts, an electric drill, and a retractable ladder that would let him climb to the topmost container.

“Just to make sure that it'll hold up against any tremendous force.”

He bolted each four corners of the bottom container onto the ground by using the drill to puncture a small hole, and brute force by pushing the bolt with his bare hands. He repeated the process with the side of the container that was facing the wall. The same happened to the middle and the topmost box which made the stack a lot more sturdy.

“I can probably make it more sturdy by lining up more containers but this'll do for now.”

Seth satisfyingly declared as he stared at the finished work.

Protection from outside dangers was momentarily achieved but he knew that if creatures that possess more strength would come their way, this metal barrier wouldn't be much of a challenge to break through.

____________________________________

Deafening noise resounded throughout the whole place but Lily, who was currently lying on top of the bed, didn't have the energy to get up.

Her petite body felt lethargic but her consciousness was wide awake.

The last moment she'd remembered was when Seth began with fiddling with some sort of device that she couldn't understand. Shortly after that was the blinding light that swallowed her whole surroundings.

And right now she was inside an unfamiliar room and on top of a bed at that. She was alarmed, remembering her father's warning about strangers abducting children.

Big Brother Seth!

She wanted to call for his name but her voice didn't come out of her mouth.

Seth was the last person she was with and the only one she could trust within this island, but he was nowhere to be found.

Even if it was hard, she knew that she had to

assess the current situation, or else her life could be in jeopardy.

“Auuu.”

She groaned exhaustively as she lifted her body up and proceeded to get out of the bed.

Lily trod slowly and carefully while supporting herself against the wall. And soon enough, she exited from the plain room and found herself wandering around the interior of the testing facility.

“Huh?”

As she was searching for Seth, a big question marked floated above her head after noticing something outrageous.

Seth, who didn't possess any prowess in strength, was lifting a tower made up of stacked metal boxes using only his bare hands.

!!?

Lily wanted to shout and call out for his name but her voice didn't come out. Her body was still sluggish coupled with the fact that she had just witnessed quite a spectacle.

She gave up immediately and just stood there and watched Seth's work attentively.

There was a huge hole in the wall and Seth worked hard to cover that hole using tools and brute strength that Lily couldn't fathom where it had come from.

He was as strong as those superheroes Lily had seen in movies but there was something odd with his movement.

But why is he so slow?

Seth was as slow as a snail but he didn't seem to show any signs of struggle with lifting the huge load.

Every step he took was full of suspense for Lily but after awhile, she grew bored of it and unknowingly dozed off while watching.

…..

….

…

..

.

“You shouldn't sleep here Lily.”

His voice tickled her ears while she was sprawled on the cold floor, sleeping peacefully.

Seth lowered his voice to a degree where only Lily could hear it but it did manage to wake her up since she wasn't in a deep sleep.

“Still tired? Maybe hungry?”

He inquired in a caring tone while smiling brightly at her.

Even though Lily was quite rude during their first meeting, Seth grew fond of her. A sense of camaraderie mixed with nostalgia developed in him as he was reminded of his orphanage days whenever he took care of her.

“Yawn~. “

Lily on the other hand, was busy yawning and rubbing her still sleepy eyes, responded with a few cute nods.

____________________________________

A sweet, savory smell wafted throughout the small kitchen while Lily, who was seated in front of a small wooden table, waited curiously. Occasionally sneaking a few peeks at the back of the person who was causing that mouth watering aroma, Lily couldn't help but be in a state of confusion.

A simple yet colorful apron adorned his androgynous frame. His silver white hair that reached his shoulders, which was in the way of his cooking, was bundled into a ponytail.

No matter how many times Lily peeked at his back, she could only imagine a big sister cooking a meal for her younger sibling. Contrary to his usual unkempt appearance, Seth possessed enough feminine traits that he could possibly be mistaken as a girl, if not examined thoroughly.

“Bon Appétit~.”

Hunger that was amplified by the scent of the meal that was packed with processed umami, pulled Lily out of her daze.

“Mmm… delicious!”

She exclaimed with a few bits of food stuck on her cheeks.

It certainly was delicious that it reminded Lily of a mother's cooking, which further convince her that Seth was better of a sister instead of a brother. Until…

Nom..nom...nom…

As if the meal was his last, Seth devoured his share of food. Showing not a hint of table manners, he wolfed down his meal in just a few moments.

“.............”

That scene completely shattered Lily's image and left her speechless. Everything was almost perfect but deep inside the androgynous Seth, a normal consciousness of a boy resided.

Seemingly oblivious of Lily whose mouth went agape, he drank from a newly opened water bottle.

“Be sure to eat as much as you can, we'll need all the energy we can get.”

Seth declared to Lily in a serious tone while she was busy with the meal.

There was a lot to be done for just today and to Seth, any kind of help would be welcomed. Lily was the only one who could support him with his present objectives. Even so, considering that she was still a child, only light and easy chores would be assigned to her.

Taken aback by his unusual seriousness, Lily could only nod her head in affirmation.

____________________________________

“Wow!”

Her eyes were filled with fascination as soon as she saw the gigantic forest for the first time.

After their meal, Seth explained the whole circumstance that they were in at the present.

That this place wasn't normal and was full of life threatening dangers. Nevertheless, curiosity urge her to know more, just like when they toured the facility of Professor Harper.

“Uuum, can I go out too?”

Lily, who was assigned to keep watch of the surrounding area was currently seated inside the surveillance room where dozens of screens were installed. Multiple cameras installed outside the facility showed the scenery that stirred her adventurous heart.

Seth specifically instructed her to notify him of any suspicious entities through the intercom so that he could retreat if necessary.

“No.”

Even so, instead of supporting him attentively, Lily kept on insisting that she wanted to go outside as well. But regardless of her constant pestering, Seth flatly refused everytime and Lily could only sulk in disappointment.

“Is the scene clear?”

Seth, who was currently equipped with the exoskeleton and the high-tech goggles, inquired through the intercom that was connected with the inside of the surveillance room.

“Yes.”

The image of him wearing his work clothes on top of the exoskeleton and the bulky goggles that almost doubled the size of his head wasn't befitting of the serious atmosphere he possessed right now. That made Lily, who was unable to read the atmosphere, snicker in joy whenever he talks to the intercom.

“Setting up the mapping device.”

He ignored Lily who was making fun of him and decided to exert his full attention on the activity at hand.

“Injecting helium to the ballon.”

Seth was currently outside of the facility, busy installing the mapping device on the weather balloon that he found not too long ago. The intercom connected to his goggles allowed him to conveniently communicate with Lily.

“Fifty percent helium capacity achieved.”

A hose that ran from the inside of the facility was presently attached to the balloon that slowly took its inflated form.

“Balloon fully inflated.”

A white, sphere shaped balloon began to float upwards but Seth stopped it from continuing. The hose that supplied helium, was removed. And finally, the opening of the balloon was sealed with a simple knot.

There was a lot of trees with long branches that could stop the balloon from ascending to its maximum altitude so he needed to find a clearing.

The sun, shining at its brightest, was directly above him. Nonetheless, his goggles automatically adjusted the brightness that could reach his eyes.

“Launching in 3….2….1”

It took him a few minutes to find a suitable ascending path for the balloon and immediately let go of it.

Slowly it began to float. A white colored balloon pulled the instrument, that was connected with high quality nylon ropes, upwards. And in the middle of the balloon and the mapping device, a parachute was installed, which made it possible to retrieve it again for future use.

“Launching success!”

As soon as the balloon ascended above the trees, Seth yelled satisfyingly and immediately went back inside the facility.