บท 33: Memento
Alex finally snapped out of his daze upon hearing Agent Eris's inquiry: "What happened to you?"
Turning towards them, Alex started to examine them and saw both of them had taken battle stances and were fully alert, watching him intently.
Then his eyes shifted towards the damaged floors and cracked walls, causing him to wonder, 'Did they fight each other?'
Dumbfounded, Alex glanced back at Agent Eris. 'I should be the one asking that,' he mused while taking in the chaotic state of the room.
He gathered himself and asked, "I don't know, why don't you fill me in?"
Agent Eris looked at Alex's curious face and answered, "You blacked out."
Alex knew that, after realizing he had a dream, but he wasn't willing to talk about it or think of it anymore.
He was scared to think about that dream. Instead, he replied, "I don't know; it must be because of the pressure," Alex speculated.
"Did you guys have a fight?" Alex gestured towards the mess in the room.
Agent Kirf shook their head and stated, "No, this is all your doing."
Perplexed, Alex pointed at himself, asking, "Me?"
Agent Eris responded, "Yes, we thought you were going to turn into a corrupted."
'What are they talking about?' Alex wondered. 'Do they really believe that every person who blacks out would turn into a corrupted?'
"What made you guys think that?" Alex asked.
Agent Eris looked puzzledly at Alex and replied, "When you were unconscious, you were releasing a high amount of killing intent."
Agent Eris added, "Didn't you realize?"
Alex shook his head in denial, "No."
Agent Eris said, with a hint of amusement, "Honestly, reacting this strongly just because you killed someone, isn't it a bit too much?"
'I released a killing intent and caused the room to turn into this state,' Alex thought, surprised, and then reality struck him after being reminded of how he killed someone. 'I took a life, the thing I once considered most valuable that a person can have.'
'Or should I say I have been killing people since childhood?' Alex added bitterly, recalling his creepy dream.
Agent Kirf stated, "Anyway, it's good to have you back with us. It saved us from having to request another agent."
Alex ignored Agent Kirf and tried to deny that he was a murderer. In a daze, Alex looked toward Thomas' lifeless body again and noticed that he was still chained. He headed toward him.
Both Agent Eris and Agent Kirf looked puzzled, trying to comprehend his actions.
Agent Kirf interjected, "You are not allowed to take his body; we still have business with it."
Without turning back, Alex replied, "I won't take his body," and began to unchain Thomas.
Curious, Agent Eris asked, "Then what are you trying to do?"
Ignoring Agent Eris' inquiry, Alex thought, 'I forgot to take my weapon with me.' He then looked at the bloody chains in his hand and said, 'This should do it,' before stashing the chains into his space ring.
Alex found himself questioning the reason behind his actions. 'Was it because he wanted to take a memento, or simply because he really wanted to use it as a weapon?'
He couldn't find an answer to this; he just thought, making an unrealistic remark to himself, 'Maybe because I like chains.' Then he turned toward Agent Eris, who had just spoken to him.
"What would you do with those chains?" Agent Eris inquired.
Her playful smile accompanied the teasing remark, "You're quite an odd one. Do you have a fetish for chains? Is that it?"
Alex couldn't be bothered with psycho-women jokes, so he just replied, "Yes," before redirecting his attention to Agent Kirf, and asked, "What is my next assignment, sir?"
Alex just wanted to get over with this knight acceptance mission and return to the academy and slack off all day.
Even though he was awakened, he could feel that his mind was becoming tired and unstable.
Agent Kirf commanded, pointing towards Thomas' lifeless body, "First, use your items and take his appearance."
Alex did as he was told; he didn't have the energy to question anything for now.
Nodding, Agent Kirf said, "Let's proceed to the conference room. There, I'll explain your assignments to both of you."
Without uttering a word of objection, both Agent Eris and Alex followed him. As they headed toward the conference room, Alex suddenly began to hear voices coming from downstairs and saw several individuals carrying boxes into the warehouse's basement.
'Are they storing weapons?' Alex wondered, glancing towards Agent Kirf for some clarification.
Agent Kirf noticed Agent Silas's puzzled expression and chuckled softly, explaining, "Did you think there would only be three of us in this operation?"
Alex replied, "It's not that I assumed that; it's just that until now, I have only met you guys, sir."
Agent Eris interjected, "We always require some low-level personnel to gather intel or provide supplies for us."
Agent Kirf added, "On the first level, we have individuals working for us, but that doesn't necessarily mean they are from BW."
Alex inquired, "What do you mean, sir?"
Agent Kirf started to explain the common operational workings to Agent Silas, "Whenever we create an operation base, we always make it noticeable to the public. We don't want to appear suspicious. This warehouse now operates under the guise of a seafood corporation, serving as a front."
Agent Kirf pointed towards to people carrying some stuff in the basement, "Those people are workers. Some of them officially work for our front corporation, while others work for us to gather intelligence. They are local residents of this city."
Alex asked, "How did you convince them to work for us and gather intel? Wouldn't they find this suspicious and illegal?"
Agent Eris replied instead of Agent Kirf, "So what if it looks suspicious? It's not uncommon for people with fewer opportunities to work in jobs like this."
After pondering, Alex understood the point Agent Eris was trying to make. He could understand how valuable and discardable "lesser" people are and how they might know certain city workings better than the hunters; they were basically perfect informants in this world.
However, Alex still had some confusion plaguing his mind, so he asked, "What if some of these informants betray us and report our activities to the authorities?"
Agent Krif reassured him, "It has never happened before, mainly because we compensate them generously for their assistance. But even if such a situation were to arise, it's doubtful that the authorities would take the reports from these 'lesser' individuals seriously."
Agent Eris chimed in, "Furthermore, I doubt they could even establish contact with the authorities in the first place."
Alex nodded, acknowledging, 'I guess this is how this world works,' and dropped the matter.
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