Timothy and Ariana walked out of the room in a hurry. But, taking just a half step more, Leon appeared before them. The duo furrowed their brows as they looked at him, not even knowing how to react at first.
The guy was some distance from the entrance door. So, it was obvious he just arrived into the room...
"Good morning!" Leon greeted with a surprisingly wide smile. Ariana blinked. "Sorry I'm late. I was on the lookout the whole night."
Timothy gave him a momentary gaze. He had his doubts, but he washed them away by patting Leon's shoulder.
"Oh, were you? That's very thoughtful of you, Mister Vale," Timothy responded with the same expression. "Come on, then. Let's not keep the others waiting."
Leon and Ariana nodded back.
Soon after they stepped into the cold breeze, Leon saw Ariana glancing at him often. He didn't know why, but something like that couldn't make him uncomfortable, either.
With Timothy moving at the forefront, Ariana finally voiced her concerns. "B-being on the lookout? Seriously... you d-don't want to offer more than... you have..."
Leon looked at her. "What?"
"Just don't... put yourself in trouble because of others," Ariana said before looking away. She turned her head down to avoid meeting Leon's eyes.
Leon cleared his throat and then looked straight up.
Timothy glanced over his shoulder. He chuckled. "It seems I will be giving them some space..."
Leon tilted his head mid-step. He looked at Ariana again, who swept her hair all over the side of her face immediately.
He imagined, 'Does she like me or what?'
***
They soon met up with the others before the hospital. Kael was back on his feet, much to everyone's relief. Not wasting time, they split into two groups for easy movement.
Each group was to gather at a station pinpointed from the mini-map—the Central City Train Station. This place had its glory when the world was still one—a station that spanned three other regions.
Jane's group would get into the station through the passenger tunnel. And Timothy's was the main tunnel.
Leon, Axel, and three others belonged to Timothy's group. In a while, they set out. They moved quickly past regions to avoid detection. But when caught in the end, they resorted to violence. Leon only limited himself to basic moves and sorts. Because it wouldn't make sense to tell the others he was a Trainee until yesternight.
According to
The air became both fruity and earthy as the group ascended a hill. The wrecked buildings spread as far as the eye could see below them. Sam leaned on Leon for support as he walked. He had hurt himself fighting a pack of flame tigers along the way.
The gentle breeze billowed their cloaks. Timothy looked back at them and ordered, "Start checking your statuses. And secure everything at both ends before we move on. It will be a mess if anyone later falls back."
Leon's eyes scanned around in surprise. 'Check their statuses? Don't tell me...'
Sam muttered words under his breath. Ding—widening Leon's eyes, a blue panel hovered before Sam afterward. And crazy enough, Sam was looking at it. Player info, stats, Constellation, energy level—the status screen had it all.
Leon blinked. "Wait... you have that too?"
"Of course. Doesn't everyone?" Sam replied in a strained voice. The next instant, he frowned and looked at Leon. "How are you able to see my status screen?"
Two guys glanced their way immediately. Leon mouthed "oh" upon seeing his own screen before him, displaying that he was using
Anyway, he shrugged at Sam. "How will I be able to see it? You were just staring into space and mumbling words... I just guessed you were looking at your status screen. I mean, everyone does, right?"
Sam tilted his head as he looked away. 'What a weird guy... half-forgetting that everyone has a status screen.'
Leon later asked Timothy about everything as they continued their journey. The man explained that people often keep their status screen closed as it uses up a lot of stamina. Leon understood things better after that. He didn't know this before... because it was his first time actually interacting with humans from this world.
Hours of walking, they finally reached the tunnel. Stressing the eyes through its dark depths gave some chills. Even so, Axel brightened it with his torchlight, and they walked in. Their steps echoed as shoe soles ground against the railway lines.
They walked, walked, and walked until they found a raised platform on the right side. Finally, they made it to the station. Everyone climbed up with relief. They spotted a metallic door up ahead, and thus opened it...
TWISH! A breeze rushed at Timothy's face as he opened the door. He gaped, freezing in place for a moment.
'What... what a powerful presence that was just now!'
Axel leaned in. "Is anything the matter, Mr. Cross?"
Timothy chuckled it off and proceeded down the next narrow pathway. "Nothing special. We should find the others in the waiting area."
That moment, Leon saw Axel move his palm across his nose. The palm came back smeared with blood. Leon held his jaw right away; his eyes scanned around.
'It can't be!'
The moment Timothy pushed open the final door, the team met the sight of a variety of faces down below. Yet, they walked down the stairway.
One of the Tankers asked, "Uh? Who are those people with Jane's group?" Their other six team members made it there - what a delight! - but they were with strange faces. Six in number as well, each one giving off confidence as everyone looked their way.
Jane waved with a grin, her hand moving in a swift motion as if to catch attention. "Hey, my daddies! I believe you guys will milk me so well later. Eh?"
Axel groaned, "Milk her? Ei, that slut. She can't live off of flirting."
"Be careful down there, guys," Timothy voiced with a strong note of warning. "Our teammates are all right around them. But just be careful. You understand what I mean."
"Yes, Mr. Cross!"