Chapter 42: Kora’s Curiosity

Damon woke up from a dream that didn’t feel like a dream. It was similar to the same types of dreams he’d been having ever since he awakened.

This time, he was alone inside the master bedroom of the apartment 20C. Last night, Harvey and Mildred had taken the two guest rooms, getting the much-needed rest they required after locking up the apartment and doing a thorough sweep.

This was the most rested Damon had felt since this whole thing began; the bed he slept in, though not close in quality to the one in his penthouse, was sufficiently comfortable, as all the apartments in the building were luxury apartments.

Looking at the wall clock in front of him, the time was almost 5 pm in the evening. For someone like Damon, this was still a short sleep duration, but he couldn’t afford to sleep as he used to anymore; at least not until he’d gotten his situation properly handled.

Damon met Harvey and Mildred inside the living room, where everyone had already gathered at this point. He could feel Sage’s lingering stares at him, which made sense since no normal person would sleep until five in he evening.

After settling in, they began to discuss the issue of sustenance. They were seven in total, excluding Leo. That means they needed at least seven to fourteen origin crystals in order not to starve.

The good thing was, the human body could go days without food; so everyone decided they would begin to ration what was eaten. And Damon made a strange promise to the group: that soon, none of them would ever need to worry about feeding.

This proclamation was strange to everyone except Harvey and Mildred. They couldn’t even tell if Damon was serious or just trying to assuage their worries, as his expression gave out nothing at all.

Still, whether Damon had some tricks up his sleeve or not, they needed to keep descending downward and hunting. For the rest, it was to get more crystals to purchase some food since they were getting pretty hungry; while for Harvy and Mildred, they needed to increase the amount of crystals Damon could deposit into his skill in less than two hours.

Since Damon and Kora were not active contributors to the team, and this apartment was safe, it was decided that Damon and Kora remained inside, while the rest of them went down.

Mildred wasn’t comfortable with this plan, but remembering what she was told about Leo’s strange capabilities gave her some confidence. It was a weird cat which she doesn’t even understand its origins, but hearing it had somehow protected Damon that one time, gave her some peace of mind.

Soon, the team left, leaving Damon, Kora, and Leo inside apartment 20C. They thought it best to remain together just in case.

It was awkwardly quiet in the living room. Kora was just busy concentrating on her console while Leo had disappeared to who knows where at some point, a thing he does even back when Damon was in his former world. So it was just the two of them inside the living room.

Damon didn’t like conversations much, and Kora was only making it easy for him. So, he stood and was about to head back into his bedroom for some more sleep when he suddenly heard the girl speak.

"You are an awakened, right ?"

Damon was taken aback by the girl’s sharp, derisive tone, wondering why she was even willing to talk to him now. She seemed only interested in Leo.

"And why do you think that ?" He responded with a question of his own. The girl went silent, her focus still on her console as she then added—

"Well, there was the strange thing with the health injector.... But your words a few minutes ago confirmed it for me."

"A unique class? Or something that has to do with origin crystals. Pretty sure i am not the only one who’s caught on. Though I wonder why you are so weak for an awakened."

Damon was surprised by how confident she was. This wasn’t a conclusion she came to lightly. It would be impossible to convince her otherwise. Not that there was any need to. At the end of the day, Damon requires everyone’s trust, so he would have to share a little about his capabilities,

"It’s a bit complicated. But yes. I am an awakened."

"Heh. i knew it. So what’s your class?. Or skill."

For the first time, Damon could see genuine curiosity from Kora. She had even sat up and kept aside her console. Yet, he thought it best to make such an explanation when the whole group was there. He certainly wasn’t going to give her such detail when Hazel, who was more deserving of knowing, had not heard from him.

"Maybe when everyone is here," Damon said with finality before turning and walking toward his bedroom.

"Fine. Suit yourself."

Damon returned to the comfort of his bed; he had around two hours more before Mildred and the others returned and his skill would be out of cooldown. Hopefully the gain some extra crystals in that short time so they gain both invest, and purchase something for everyone to eat.

Back in the penthouse, inside the master bedroom, Brad was seated with a few supplies of water, bread, and jerky on the bed in front of him, which looked half-eaten, as well as some in front of Tessa, which looked untouched.

His expression was serious as he said to Tessa—

"You better eat that, or I swear, I will force it down your throat. You don’t believe I will?"

Tessa looked very unwilling, but apart from Brad’s threat, she was also starving after refusing to eat for a while. And Hazel had also implored her not to starve herself stubbornly. They had promised to come for her when they were sure they could take Brad down.

Seeing Tessa reluctantly chew on the jerky she provided, Brad smiled and walked out of the master bedroom, back into the living room, where the twins as well as his two new recruits were seated.

"So, Jake. You said you noticed something strange about my cousin?"

"Yes, Boss."