878 Ruthless 2 (1/2)
In a different room.
Baylon hugged the blanket tightly and curled into herself on the bed while taking in her entire surroundings.
After fainting from intoxication, she had woken up and found herself lying on this bed. There was no one around her and the room door was locked shut.
Suddenly, a familiar cry echoed from the next room.
”It's Clint!!” she was happily surprised at once. She crept over anxiously and leaned against the wall closely while listening carefully.
”Clint!! Is it you?!” she yelled loudly.
The cries from the next room softened at once. Half a second later, a timid voice drifted over.
”Lon?”
”It's really you!” Baylon's mind was freed of anxiety immediately.
”Alright, little girl. You're all right now. I've examined the area and both of you are currently in a place that is almost a thousand kilometers from the previous shop. You'll be staying at this inn temporarily,” the sound waves of Red Moon's voice were transferred into her mind.
”Clint. What happened to Clint? Why is he crying so sadly?” Kind Baylon was concerned about her friend immediately.
”He's fine… He just encountered one of life's minor obstacles…” Red Moon did not know how to explain this either. The things that were supposed to happen had occurred already…
”Is he really okay?” Baylon was still worried.
”Don't worry. A man will definitely be able to get over a small pain like this,” consoled Red Moon. ”The person who saved you has left. It's best that both of you get up immediately to check your surroundings and geographical conditions. This place is just a temporary residence so other than yourselves, there aren't any other living things, food, or even water here. If you don't hurry up and find a way out, don't blame me if you end up starving to death here.”
These words echoed in the minds of these two people simultaneously. Both of them had been able to distinguish when Red Moon was being honest or lying long ago. Now, they could clearly tell that Red Moon was speaking the truth. They crawled out of bed immediately while Clint looked around for clothes that he could wear.
He pushed the door open and walked out.
Bright, burning golden sunlight cascaded inside and spread across his skin, leaving a painful burning sensation there. Their surroundings were primarily a stretch of barren wilderness that included yellow-green plains and a little winding stream could occasionally be seen. Strangely enough, the water in the stream was green while thin shrouds of green mist would rise from it faintly.
The entire place was deathly quiet and there was not even a single fly to be seen.
Baylon looked into the distance. Near the horizon, a man in an eye-catching leather jacket could be seen riding his motorcycle speedily into the distance faintly. Strangely enough, the motorcycle was silent.
”That man saved you. This place was initially just a dilapidated hut that he turned into a temporary resting stop,” explained Red Moon softly.
”What should we do now?” Baylon felt suddenly thirsty.
”Think of a way to survive,” answered Red Moon solemnly. ”You can't drink the water here because it's toxic. Since there are no other living things, it means that there won't be any pieces of radioactive meat for you to eat either. It's a good thing that I had brought some edible supplies with me in my space knob. I can support you for a period of time, but if you don't find a way to solve your food problem within a week, you will definitely starve to death in this radioactive wasteland.”
”This is the radiation belt, huh…” this was the first time Baylon had felt the brutality of the radiation belt. First, it was the betrayal of the supposedly kind Big Sister and Yellow Bearded Uncle, and now they were in a situation where they had nothing to eat or drink. At this moment, the lack of food and water had become a life-threatening issue.
”Think of it as a form of self-training,” Red Moon sighed. ”This is one of the main reasons why most people in the radiation belts don't live past seventy or eighty years. They can't preserve their health whenever they drink water, and their food sources are limited to a few plants and mostly the flesh of mutated beasts with lower rates of radiation inside their bodies. Most of the time, they are only able to consume a fist-sized amount of meat from mutated beasts that are the size of buffalos. After risking their lives to kill these animals, the food they get is usually only enough for one person.”
While listening to Red Moon's explanations, Baylon suddenly understood the brutality and hardships that were part of the radiation belt wastelands.
”What would my big brother do if he was here?” she murmured softly.
”Your brother… I guess he would be at ease here,” Red Moon recalled the man whom he had judged wrongly. ”That guy… has an extreme ruthlessness in his bones…”
******************
After circling the Inner Courtyard a few times, Garen realized that it was impossible for him to encounter that male student from the administration office again. There were no traces of that female student nicknamed Goldfish either. Meanwhile, he heard from others that Fila had gone to participate in some ceremony.
Once he had visited the library and read up on more of the general information here, Garen finally understood the makings of the entire Inner Courtyard properly.
To put it simply, the Inner Courtyard was the true, ruthless side of Blackboard Academy, while the Outer Courtyard was merely a place to train military and government personnel. The Outer Courtyard was mild and gentle while the Inner Courtyard was where the savage fights took place.