Part Six

We made sure to kill any mantises that had survived Alicia’s bombardment, and retrieved what we could from the corpses. Three of the Sentinel’s scythes were still intact, so I decided to harvest them, just in case I found a use for them later. While the Sentinel never got a chance to use them, I could tell that they were fairly sharp.

After that, we made the unanimous decision to retreat. Simply fighting such large groups was stressful, and without knowing how many more insects awaited us, we could easily end up overrun if we miss-stepped.

The trip back to the cottage was much shorter since we didn’t really have to fight along the way. The only interruption was a small pack of wolves, which died with little resistance. It seemed like our first night would be a resounding success. There was just one tiny problem. Someone was going to have to sleep on the couch in the living room. And guess who was the lucky bastard to somehow end up both there and on first watch?

Haaah, why do I even expect different at this point? My luck is clearly shit, so I’m obviously going to lose any game of chance, even if it’s just drawing lots. Well, I guess it could be worse. Unlike the others, my sleep probably won’t be interrupted until tomorrow morning, so it does have one positive.

We’d boarded up all the windows and built a barricade with unneeded furniture in front of the door, so if something did try to get in, we’d all hear it. But given the nature of certain monsters, we all felt that it was necessary to have an actual guard, just in case. So here I was, all alone in the little mudroom/foyer/ annex thing before the living room, just waiting for something to happen.

……is this really a cottage? I mean, I’m not well-versed in the designations of buildings, but this seems to be bigger than what a cottage should be. And why the heck is it even out here? There’s nothing out here. Well, whatever. It’s convenient, and that’s all that matters.

***

Fuck. This is so boring. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but can something please happen?

I’d spent the last two-and-a-half hours bored out of my mind. Literally nothing had happened in that time period. And I couldn’t risk training because there was a chance I’d focus too hard and miss something. Thankfully, I was soon to be relieved, so I just had to tough out this last half-hour.

“…?”

Huh, I could’ve sworn something was gonna happen there. That’s the kind of cue that always jinxes characters in novels. Is my streak of bad luck over? I, I’m not sure I like this. I’m not saying I want something to happen, but it’s nice when you can consistently expect things to happen. Am I just supposed to hope good things happen instead of bad from now on? Because I’m not sure I can be that optimistic.

Just before my mind could go on another long, meaningless tangent, I heard someone moving about in the living room. This little annex thing had its own door because why not, so I couldn’t tell who it was or what they were doing. Though I didn’t need to wait long to find out.

“Hello Michael. I thought I’d come see how you’ve been doing.”

“…Uh, okay? I mean, I’m just sitting here. If something had happened, I probably would’ve woken you up.”

“Hm, yes, I suppose you would’ve. Well, then I guess I’ve just come to talk. I thought that maybe the two of us could burn off some of the tedium together. But if you rather wait it out…”

“No, it’s fine. I don’t mind if you join me. Beats just sitting here.”

“Excellent. Then if you’ll excuse me.”

I watched as Gwyn went to get a chair, all the while preparing myself. I highly doubted he’d give up sleep for nothing, though I couldn’t begin to imagine what this might be about. There were simply too many possibilities. Gwyn soon returned, carrying a bottle of water as well as the chair.

“Ah, there we go. I’d prefer to have some coffee, but I’d rather not risk starting a fire to boil the water. It’s a shame there’s no generator to power the stove.”

“Yeah, that’s the one thing this place lacks. Well, that and an internet connection."

“Hmhmhmhm, I suppose so.”

The conversation kind of died after that, and an awkward silence filled the room. Neither of us knew the other at all, so this was only expected. It had taken weeks with Alicia for the two of us to reach our current dynamic.

I’m beginning to remember why I hate socializing. Things always get awkward at some point. I’ve never been good at befriending people. I always need someone I already know to help keep things moving, at least until I’m used to the other person. Hrm, maybe I can bring up something we have in common. But what?

“…………Can I ask a silly question?”

“Hm? I suppose.”

“Why do you dual-wield? You’re the first person I’ve seen who does so, apart from myself. I just think it’s weird that no one tries to use two weapons.”

“…I can’t say I haven’t noticed that myself. I’ve always just chalked it up to most people prioritizing the safety a shield provides, but perhaps there’s more to it? Tell me, have you always used two swords?”

“Hm, no, not at all. At first, I only used one while keeping my left hand open just in case, though I frequently used a knife or shortsword with it. It was only after I got these two as a Dungeon Clear reward that I started dual-wielding all the time.”

“It’s the same for me. I always used a single weapon, up until I got my axes at least. Though I did go through a brief period where I used a shield. I stopped after I realized how much it hampered my mobility.”

“Right? Something about dodging a monster’s attack by a razor-thin margin, and then delivering a brutal counterattack just speaks to me.”

“Mn, I know that feeling well. There was this one time where I was fighting a rather large Minotaur and I ducked under its swing, only to take its wrist in the next second. The look on its face. Priceless.”

“Pfft hahahaha, oh, I can imagine that. I’ve seen one or two stupid looks from them, and it rarely disappoints. Something about them just makes me want to bully them a little. Just a little."

The next ten minutes were spent by us relaying our various exploits in battle against monsters. I’d gotten the feeling from how he fought that he enjoyed it to some degree, and that was proven ten times over. There was a flame deep inside this man, one that burned with anger and hatred towards monsters. Not that I blamed him for it. I was the same way.

Hm, the vibe's pretty good right now. Should I try to bring that up now, or wait until later? I don’t think he’s plotting anything malicious, but my damn paranoia won’t settle down until I make sure. Besides, it’s probably for one of the two reasons I already thought of, so this shouldn’t be too big of a surprise. Just gotta…do it.

But before I could do anything, Gwyn was the first to go off-topic.

“You know, I was surprised the other day. It’s been less than a month since I’ve seen her, but it’s like Kalia’s a completely different person.”

Okay, not what I wanted to talk about, but it’s not the worst topic. Guess I’ll see where this goes.

“She’s gone through some things. I doubt anyone could go through all that and remain exactly the same. Honestly, she’s a lot tougher than I thought she was. I feel like most people would’ve fallen apart a little more after what happened.”

I was especially surprised by how she acted towards me. I’d kinda figured that after the whole thing with Mark, she would’ve avoided me more than she did. Admittedly, there was a short period of time where I felt like she was hesitating around me, but that hadn’t lasted long. Of course, that’s not to say that I knew her all that well yet, but that was something that could be rectified with time.

“I imagine that this is what she was like before the System appeared. Out of our entire group, she was the one most traumatized by what she’d experienced in London.”

That’s not all that surprising. Kalia’s been understandably quiet on the details regarding the original outbreak, aside from the ones relating to the establishment of Braddock’s group. I kind of want to ask about it, but I also don’t want to. Would he think that’s intruding?

“I also think it’s a good thing she’s free of Braddock’s influence. His ideals are a half-baked lunacy that will drag everyone around him down. And the worst part is, that the lunacy is disguised with good intentions.”

“…”

What the heck!? I know he had an argument with him, but it sounds as if Gwyn hates Braddock. From the way Kalia described it, their argument came across as more of an difference of opinion, not whatever that was. I may need to be careful from here on out.

“I mean, seriously. His decision to enter that Dungeon cost so many people their lives. It was a reckless idea when it was first proposed and it was a foolish idea to follow through on. In a way, he’s earned what he’s gotten.”

“…?”

“And the worst part is he’ll just write off everything that happened. It’s what he did the last time. I can guarantee that wherever he is, he’s trying to put something together. He’ll lure more people to their death. And for what? A vague, unrealistic goal that can never succeed.”

“…!?”

“If only he was nothing more than a parasite, then there’d be no danger for other people. But no, he’s actually extremely competent, which creates an illusion that tricks everyone else into falsely trusting him. Mark my words Michael, nothing but disaster befalls the people who follow him. Everyone is much better off being as far away as possible.”

“…”

“Aaahhh, it feels good to get that off my chest. I’ve been worried about Kalia ever since I left, and getting to see her in such high spirits has really relieved that. Sorry about unloading that onto you.”

“…it’s fine. I didn’t know you felt so strongly about this.”

“I’ve been on edge ever since I first got Kalia’s message. I thought that this was some attempt by Braddock to bring me back into the fold using Kalia’s sincerity as a tool. But I suppose that was needless suspicion on my part.”

Despite the fact that this had been a very strange conversation, I did feel that I’d learned a little bit more about Gwyn in the process. I still had some questions, but for the time being, I felt like they could stay unanswered. For now.

***

“Kuu?”

Somewhere roughly halfway between the human cottage and the Mantiz nest, a solitary fox pup cried out in confusion. Just a few hours earlier, a swarm of Predator Mantizes had descended on the fox den, tearing through the pup’s family in a matter of minutes.

“Ku! Kuuuu? Kuuu…”

Now all alone, the pup was forced to wander. It was honestly a miracle that the insects hadn’t killed it as well, though perhaps that would’ve been kinder. As it was, the pup's future was looking bleak. Death by starvation was almost inevitable, if something didn’t eat it first.

“Sniff, sniff. Ku? Ku kyu ku? Kuu!”

Suddenly, a familiar comforting scent drifted to the pup, one that reminded it of home and family. Excited by the scent, the pup put all its focus into following the faint trail, towards whatever awaited it there.