Chapter 63

Chapter 5 Inside Out (10)

***

"Here, take a look at whatever you want."

"Hahaha, thank you for your cooperation. It's for the safety of Sector 47, so don't be too formal...."

Clunk-

"Uh...."

"What?"

"No, it's just that...."

Following Ian, Aijel lost her words when she saw the cargo hold of the armed truck opening on both sides.

Weapons and explosives, packed tightly as if they were moving boxes, filled the space. There were all kinds, from high-end models rarely seen in the dome to second-hand weapons scavengers might use.

"We only need to show you what we're selling, right? If we show you everything we use, our strength would be exposed. I can't really hold back on that."

"So, this isn't everything?"

"Of course not. Who would stick a truck's worth of stuff in someone's nose? This is just what we're selling at a discount to spread our brand name. Selling all this will give us some face as a caravan. It looks like a lot, but it's just a small part of what we have."

Even a rough count showed enough to arm three Raptor legions, and he was going to sell it all at a promotional price.

'And this isn't even everything. This Metal Joe guy is quite wary of me. He'll probably hide information unless it's absolutely necessary. This is likely just a show of goods....'

No matter how she thought about it, it was too much to be just a show.

'The spice merchant of Sector 43. They say he's been doing business for years. He's not an ordinary person.'

Aijel observed his face closely to remember it. Sharp eyes, with nearly half his face made of metal—a very distinctive appearance. But strangely, he seemed familiar.

"Um...."

"Why? Is there something wrong with my goods?"

"No, I'll finish my inspection here. But.... have we met before?"

Aijel was an inspector, and she categorized people in her memory into two groups: those whose faces she remembered from frequent encounters, and those she deliberately remembered. She hadn't seen the spice merchant of Sector 43 often, so his familiarity must be due to the latter.

'But there's no matching face, no matter how I look at it.'

As Aijel felt a strange sense of déjà vu, she began to sketch Ian's face, but then she started to feel intense gazes from around her.

"Uh.... Do you have something to say to me?"

The professor looked at her with a puzzled expression. An old man closed his eyes tightly as if he had seen something he shouldn't. And then,

Thud, creak!

A large man's face was contorted to the point of breaking.

"We've never met....? Oh, you dome brats are really good at technology, aren't you? Your guts are so bold, I bet you've stuffed a few dozen in your belly, haven't you?"

"Ian, don't kill him. We need to survive here."

"I know. Don't worry, Professor. I'm being very rational and can control myself."

The man was mumbling incomprehensibly as he approached Aijel.

"Um, I'm sorry, but what are you talking about?"

"Kehehe! Inspector, your approach was too classic and direct."

"....What?"

Aijel finally realized what misunderstanding she had caused. The large man had interpreted her innocent words differently.

"Hold it."

"Alright, I can hold it."

"Hold it, I said."

"Hehehe. Come on, Professor, trust me. Can't you trust a comrade who has faced death with you?"

"Vex, grab him."

Thud!

Click!

Just as Vex ran over, Ian pulled out a small gun from his coat, which didn't match his large build.

"Aaaah! No! Hold it! If you shoot the inspector, we'll really be chased by the dome for life!"

"Shut up! This guy.... This guy looked at me with a perverted gaze! Oh yeah! I'll make him join me in a spectacular way, stuffing a big, thick, and hard dynamite into every hole!"

Bang!

"Aaaah! You really shot!"

"Inspector! Get down! Grab his arm!"

"I'll kill you! How dare you insult me like this! From now on, anyone who mentions the dome in front of me will have their spine ripped out!"

Bang!

"Hyde! Take the gun!"

"This guy bites! How can someone with no chin have such a strong bite!"

With that, a commotion ensued. After Ian calmed down, Aijel, who was tied to the floor, confessed like a sinner that she had a completely normal sexual orientation and that she had no such intentions.

***

"Huff, huff, huff."

Aijel, who had been tied up in the morning, was now restrained with the same rope, gagged and glaring at the inspector with a murderous intent.

"That.... You were quite surprised, weren't you? He's a hot-tempered guy."

"Huff, huff, no. I just asked because it felt familiar...."

In fact, Aijel had long lost interest in the large man. Instead, she was more focused on the name that had caught her ear during the commotion.

'Clearly, I heard it. Just once, but the professor called the old man Vex, and the old man called the professor Hyde.'

Scratch, scratch, scratch.

Aijel's pen danced non-stop on her notebook.

'Hyde. The leader of the group that won the large-scale battle in Sector 45 recently. Hyde, Ian, Vex. H...HIV. These guys, they are the ones known as the conquerors of Sector 45!'

A few days ago, a bunker was discovered in Sector 45, filled with resources from the old world. A battle between the dome, Raptors, and scavengers ensued, and the group HIV emerged victorious, despite the hundreds of mutants, scavengers, and elite dome forces that perished.

A week later, the dome had sought information about them in every way, but the troops sent to the bunker were all wiped out. The information sources in Sector 45 were also eliminated, and Sector 43 was in chaos, leaving no information about them. As a result, the community relied on rumors, missing the chance to contact them early.

***

"Ah."

Shudder!

"Ahhh-"

Shudder! Shudder!

Every time the professor exclaimed, Aijel, tightly bound on the shelter's sofa, shuddered as if pricked by a needle.

"Soy-Gaybar. Soygay."

"Yes, Professor."

"Soygay?"

"Y-Yes?"

"Why are you so scared? We're not that close, you know? Just call me Professor~ Professor guy~ Professor brat~. Isn't that better? Soygay friend?"

"Aaaah, no! I'll just call you Professor!"

The professor smiled at the frozen Soy-Gaybar, thinking, 'I've wanted to meet this guy for a long time. I knew he was rich and lived in the dome, but an inspector, an elite of the dome, and even with the authority to use exosuits?'

"Soy-Gaybar.... quite an impressive nickname. So, you were looking at me that way?"

Aijel, who was tied up, answered Ian's words with a convulsive response.

"Absolutely not! It's just that it felt familiar! Really!"

"Really? Take a good look. Have you ever seen a face like this?"

"No, never! Never!"

As Ian took out a lighter and flicked it, leaning in close, Aijel answered convulsively. Ian seemed satisfied with her reaction and returned to his place.

"Ian, don't scare him too much. After all, he's a dome inspector and practically my savior."

"Ah, right. The reason I started concept play was because of this guy, wasn't it?"

"That's right! If it weren't for the fuel and money I sent, the professor wouldn't have been able to run the generator, and we wouldn't have made this big money character!"

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.

Vex, who was sharpening a kukri on a whetstone, looked up with a gleam in his eyes.

"So.... the cause of the time bomb planted in Hyde's mind. It's this guy, right?"

Swallow.

Ah, damn. I knew I'd have a short life because of this guy's tongue.

"By the way, that's right. Hey, Hyde. Say hello. This guy is your godfather."

[Oh, godfather! Hi?]

Aijel's mind went blank at the professor's suddenly twitching fingers and the sharp blade of the kukri on the other side.

"Soy-Gaybar. No, Aijel. As you know, in the wasteland, you have to give and take clearly. We have a lot of debts from the past five years. Wouldn't it be good to settle them all at once?"

"Hyde, Professor! Wait! Wait!!!"

"I won't kill you. Cutting off a hand or a foot won't kill you. Trust me. I started GG with random traits and had my limbs cut off many times. I'm an expert in this field."

Shudder, shudder, shudder!

Aijel closed her eyes tightly at the professor's white smile.

"Over the past five years, thanks to you, I've had a lot of fun. Soygay."

Swoosh!

Without anyone to stop him, the professor's kukri swung instantly.

Thud-

The blade, swung with great force, only cut the rope binding Aijel. The professor put the kukri away and playfully patted Aijel's shoulder.

"Hehehe. Scared, huh? Since you made my heart race for the past few days, I thought I'd scare you a bit—"

Thump.

"....Soygay? Aijel?"

"He fainted?"

The faces of Vex and Ian, who had been laughing at the professor's actions, turned to panic.

"Damn, this is bad. He's an inspector. If he doesn't wake up and return to his unit, what will happen?"

"What will happen? He'll be considered attacked, and the dome's special forces will swarm to the last location!"

.....Damn.

The professor went to Aijel's side, slapping and shaking his unconscious face.

"Hey, Soygay. Wake up."

Slap, slap.

"Soygay! It was just a joke! Wake up!"

Slap! Slap!

No matter how hard the professor slapped, Aijel remained motionless like a rotten log.

"You're wrong! He's completely out of it!"

"Water! Get water! If he doesn't come to, we're all dead!"

"Damn! Professor Park, you idiot! You have to know when to stop joking!"

"Did you think this would happen?"

Another commotion erupted in the professor's shelter to wake Aijel. She finally opened her eyes five hours later, just as her exosuit was ringing with urgent calls.

***