After the tension that had surrounded the western area of the construction site, Cain and his comrades were busy carrying out their assigned tasks.
They had been instructed to sort, log data, and report any errors or inconsistencies in the received goods to the managers.
A day had passed, and Cain and his teammates found it easy to get along with the seniors at their workplace, or perhaps the seniors had been friendly and open to their arrival from the start.
Thanks to the environnt they built, Cain felt at ho and comfortable in his job, even though it was pretty exhausting. Not physically, but ntally, as he had to track every detail and ensure data accuracy at all tis.
Though called "storage," the area was divided into several sections, primarily for food, clothing, and other supplies.
Holding the prepared terminal in his hand, Cain was currently in a small warehouse in the corner.
The interior was quite spacious, with shimring silver walls and a white mist erging from vents in the ceiling, exhaling cold air that bit his nose each ti he breathed.
"Good, this box is the last one."
Cain crouched down in front of a thick, black tal box, a container used to preserve food for the soldiers. His four teammates were currently assisting seniors in other sectors.
He opened the box to find rows of chocolate-flavored jelly packs neatly arranged. Cain checked the data on his terminal before beginning his count.
"One, two, three..."
Cain’s black eyes scanned each pack, counting them as if his life depended on it.
"There’s a hundred in the first line. Let’s continue."
Counting small items one by one was indeed a tedious task, but for so reason, it provided a sense of accomplishnt to his conscience.
In his heart, Cain realized that this food would be sent to the soldiers currently fighting out there.
They were struggling to protect this construction site, risking their lives every second to claim their first victory.
Living under the pressure of extinction, instead of prioritizing survival, the humans of Babylon chose to embark on a mission to build a new civilization.
The mission was reckless, but behind that madness lay a deeper aning: humanity’s first counteroffensive against the virus beasts. A creature fused of flesh and machine scattered across the world.
If it succeeded, it would ensure humanity’s first major victory in the war against the monsters.
Cain felt moved and wanted to participate, but there was little he could do. Since he was only sent here as support, he couldn’t fight on the front lines to harvest Integrity Points to develop his strength.
’That’s a sha,’ he murmured to himself.
A mont later, Cain snapped out of his thoughts and shook his head furiously. He wondered: since when had he beco so addicted to danger just to chase the numbers on his status screen?
The answer lay in the mont he traded half of his mories, though he remained oblivious to that fact.
After finishing the count, the grey-haired boy pulled back the top layer and continued counting the second layer of jelly packs.
He spent his ti counting and cross-referencing the data on the terminal. Half an hour later, he finally finished logging the items in his area.
"Finally finished."
Cain let out a long sigh and stood up. At the sa ti, the door to the room hissed loudly, drawing his gaze toward the source.
"Cain, are you there?"
One of the male employees had arrived. The man stood near the door, looking left and right.
"Yes, sir, I’m here."
The boy stepped out from behind the high shelves that had obscured him. From behind the man’s visor, Cain could see his expression brighten.
"How is the work going?"
Cain hesitated for a second before walking toward the man. His fingers began typing on the terminal screen, wrapping up his business for the day.
"Yes, everything is clear. Just waiting for the distribution team to pick them up."
The man’s eyes widened. Cain took the opportunity to hand over the terminal, which the man accepted. After checking the device’s data, the man looked at Cain, and his bright expression suddenly dimd.
Seeing this, Cain furrowed his brows. Several seconds passed in a silence that began to stifle him from within, and the man finally spoke with a short sigh.
"Cain, soone from the main base was looking for you."
"The main base?" Cain raised his eyebrows, feigning ignorance.
"Yes," the man replied. "The Supre Commander wants to et you."
Cain touched his chin, thinking for a mont.
"Am I the only one called?"
The man nodded. Cain looked down. The first thing that crossed his mind was regarding yesterday’s incident, or perhaps this was an official summons where other captains had been summoned as well.
’Well, sooner or later, I’d have to et him anyway. Better now than later.’
Cain nodded and looked up.
"Alright, I’ll head over. Thank you for the notice, sir."
He bowed his head slightly and walked past the man. However, before he could go further, he was stopped by a firm grip from behind. He turned around to find the man staring at him intensely.
"Listen, Cain... we and the workers in the western area are very grateful for your help yesterday. If anything happens, don’t hesitate to ask for my help. I’m sure everyone here feels the sa way."
The sincere statent made Cain catch his breath. For a mont, he reflected on the man’s words; he hadn’t expected that receiving soone’s support would renew his spirit.
"Thank you, sir."
Cain’s lips parted into a smile. The man nodded and released his grip.
"Go on, they’re still waiting outside."
...
Not wanting to waste any more ti, Cain hurried out of the storage building. In front of the plain, fenceless structure, a Humvee was parked. Without a word, the front door opened, revealing the man Cain had t yesterday in the main tent.
"Get in."
The man said, prompting Cain to enter the vehicle and close the door with a ’thud.’ The engine roared to life, carrying him from the storage area to the Supre Commander’s location.
A deafening silence descended into the cabin, with only the screeching of tires and the rumble of the engine accompanying them.
A minute passed in a blink, the quiet journey had co to an end when Cain saw the crimson-haired senior, Oliver, standing in front of the main tent with his arms crossed.
"Get out. We are going to face the Supre Commander."
"Understood."
Cain opened the door and stepped onto the hard, earthy ground. At that mont, another Humvee appeared and stopped behind him. The door opened, revealing Senior Luna, who stepped out of it as she imdiately locked eyes with him.
"Cain, so you were called here too."
"Yeah."
Luna walked closer and stood beside him as if it were the most natural thing in the world. They stared at each other for a few seconds before Cain shrugged and looked forward.
"Let’s go."
The girl gave a small laugh and followed his lead. Cain took a deep breath to release the tension tightening around his heart.
"Luna, we et again. How are you feeling?"
Oliver tried to strike up a conversation with her, but she remained silent, completely ignoring his presence.
Cain gritted his teeth, struggling to keep his lips from twitching as he held back a laugh.
’Pfft... calm down, . Breathe, in and out... pfft, that’s hilarious.’
Sohow, Cain managed to keep his face neutral as he pushed the tent curtain aside and entered.
"You ca!"
A deep, authoritative voice reverberated through the room. Cain’s relaxed expression instantly hardened; he unconsciously clenched his fists as he stared straight into the man’s eyes.
"I’ve been waiting."
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