All of us paused and stared at each other, unable to utter a word. Shin Hayato tried to say something but ultimately rubbed the back of his neck and gritted his teeth.
"I mean, no offense, but that's the first thing that came to my mind." Sheng Yue said, offering a small apologetic smile toward Cassandra,
"Not for you, Cas. Considering how badly they treated you."
Cassandra scoffed, crossing her arms,
"They could easily be faking it. Nobody knows what they're up to except for them."
"It's completely illogical for them to act so calmly though." I intervened almost immediately,
"They don't even seem to care whether we exist or not, as long as we help them and be useful."
Shin Hayato stroked his chin, slumping back against the wall,
"Unless Vera altered something in the contract ?"
Sheng Yue furrowed her brows, gesturing with open palms to the side,
"That makes no sense !"
"I actually agree with the chaotic one for once." Cassandra muttered,
"Look, imagine this. We're the unit making a deal with the bunker. On top of that, we have beef with an opposing unit. We're not going to—"
She mimicked a high-pitched mocking tone,
"'Oh yeah, just capture them and let them stay forever !'"
She rolled her eyes and returned to her original tone, glaring at each of us,
"No ! They're not stupid enough to do that and they're definitely not merciful ! Didn't you see how they treated Zarina ?!"
The four of us froze. Instinctively, I double tapped the screen on my ChronoLume. The digital clock showed [18.20].
Sheng Yue drew a deep breath, tilting her head,
"It still doesn't add up ! Aléssio is right, they're too chill ! Plus, whenever I got closer to Vera, she seemed like a normal everyday boss that is filled with workload ! I'm not sure if she is good at masking expression but yeah, that's what I got. Or what if... the people in this bunker know something—"
Cassandra jabbed a finger toward Sheng Yue's shoulder,
"So what ? We can't just ask them. They'll report us to Vera and we'll get kicked out into the freezing snow—or worse."
What if I asked one of the locals myself ?
"I know someone—two people, actually." I spoke up, looking between the three of them,
"I'm not entirely sure if they'll help but they seem to be very fond of me."
As Cassandra took an aggressive step toward me, Shin Hayato quickly held out an arm to block her path.
He offered me a nod,
"Alright then. Let's see if that works."
Cassandra whipped her head toward him in disbelief,
"What ?! You're actually letting him do that ?!"
Shin Hayato sighed, shrugging,
"We don't have a choice. Whatever works, we'll try it—even if it raises skepticism."
I gave Shin Hayato a quick smile and gestured for IRIS to come along with me.
As I turned to leave, Sheng Yue sat on the edge of the mattress,
"Hey Blondie ! Leave the HoloPad to us for now, you greedy bum ! Or should I tell everyone the most embarrassing moment of your life~?"
Biting my lips, I clenched my fist and tossed the HoloPad straight at her face before dashing out.
◇ ◇ ◇
Navigating the hallways, I clutched my ChronoLume tightly against my chest.
Where am I even going ? Why don't they have a map around ? And most importantly, why do they seem to not care about living in a maze like this ?!
Lost in my thoughts, I took a sharp turn to another corridor. Every time I pushed open a door, the room inside was empty. Just as I was beginning to lose hope, a familiar broad shadow materialized ahead of me
"Oh hey ! Quite a coincidence meeting you again !" He beamed at me, extending a hand to help me,
"Something on your mind ?"
Right. My fan.
"Yes, a question actually." I replied as he pulled me up, brushing some dust off my clothes,
"If you're busy, I can always ask later or find someone else."
He waved off the concern, wiping sweat from his forehead,
"Not busy at all ! In fact, I just finished my shift, so I'm having a break right now. What did you want to ask ?"
I rested my chin on my hand, thinking carefully,
"Before me and my friends arrived here, was there another person or unit that came ?"
Wait, isn't that too straightforward ?
He glanced around cautiously before leaning closer,
"Honestly, I don't remember much. I only saw one person with a mask on walking out of the administration office."
He sank onto the metal floor, fanning himself with a hand,
"I tried asking the rest but everyone said the same thing. No one knows who that was but the moment Boss came out of the room, she looked like she'd just seen a ghost."
Huh ? So even the locals don't know either ? And why is he talking like this a daily gossip ?
I rubbed my chin, collecting another crucial piece of information,
"Thank you so much once more. Can I get you a drink ? Also... are you sure you should be telling me all of those things right now ?"
"No need for a drink, don't waste your newly retrieved wages on me." He replied, gesturing for me to sit down beside him,
"It was a hot topic back then before your chaotic friend showed up. Everyone was trying to figure out what could possibly traumatize Boss like that."
He laid on the floor, resting his hands at the back of his head,
"Honestly, whatever business that masked guy is doing, none of us like the look of it. Especially since they started moving in barrels of random liquid around right after."
So Sheng Yue was telling the truth...
I listened as he rambled on before pushing myself back up.
I gave him a polite bow and a gentle smile,
"Thank you for the information. If there are any more problems, I'll be sure to find you."
He offered a lazy wave,
"Anytime ! Now, all I need is—"
His sentence was cut short by a sudden thunderous snore. I blinked, staring down at him as he instantly drifted off to sleep right on the floor.
I might as well learn how to fall asleep in a millisecond from him. Could be handy.
BEEP BEEP
IRIS landed directly on my head and tugged my hair to get my attention. I lightly nudged my fan's leg with my toe to confirm he was actually asleep before turning around and sprinting out of the corridor.
◇ ◇ ◇
"So what was inside that contract ?" I whispered to IRIS after ducking into an empty supply closet,
"Or you didn't see anything since you were inside the vents ?"
IRIS displayed "(๑•﹏•)" on its screen before snuggling against my chest. It flapped its arm frantically accompanied by a series of frantic BEEP. The text on the screen shifted:
[The contract wasn't there (ᗒᗩᗕ)]
My jaws dropped slightly,
"What ?"
IRIS updated its display:
[I searched everywhere but it's gone .·´¯`(>▂<)´¯`·. !]
I stared at IRIS for some time. My mind racing through possibilities.
Did Sheng Yue lie to us ?
Why would she lie ?
No... Sheng Yue would never make something like that up.
As if reading my thoughts, IRIS quickly refreshed the text:
[But I overheard Vera talking to someone !]
I held onto IRIS tightly, waiting for it to continue.
IRIS checked its surroundings before flashing the next line:
[The person was talking about some liquid (;ŏ﹏ŏ)]
That liquid again ? But why that liquid ? What's with everyone focusing on the barrels instead of that masked person ?
IRIS showed "(٥↼_↼)" as it delivered its final summary:
[That's all I managed to find. But one thing for sure, Vera was gripping her head in distress while the person said something about 'don't forget.']
Don't forget ? What on earth is Vera trapped in ?
IRIS settled against my neck, accompanied by a soft hum.
Something is fundamentally wrong here.
Pulling IRIS closer, I burst out of the closet and sprinted down the hallway. Skidding past wet floor tiles, dodging small crowds of workers, and practically sidestepping some guards.
I need to tell the others right now.