Chapter 32: Silent Firearm
"Where is everyone?" Lucas asked, sinking into a chair.
With a sigh tinged with sadness, Lucy replied, "They're still struggling to deal with the aftermath of the mess 'we' created."
She emphasized the word 'we' with air quotes. Then, changing the topic, she continued, "They're not accustomed to handling actual human bodies like we are, or at least like I am. It took me a while to get used to the idea of touching real corpses. Anyway, what was your earlier complaint?"
"Remember when I mentioned my power bank running out of battery?" Lucas said, reclining against the chair.
Lucy raised an eyebrow. "The one you were talking about yesterday?"
"Perhaps. Well, while I was scouting nearby buildings, it suddenly came to mind. Knowing you were preoccupied with the adults upstairs, I thought of heading out on my own to find a phone store."
Lucy looked astonished. "That's a bit reckless, considering the whole apocalypse situation. Did you forget?"
Leaning further into the chair, Lucas sighed. "Call it bravery or stupidity, but after searching for hours, I couldn't find a single store. And guess what?"
"An orb?" Lucy guessed.
Surprised, Lucas asked, "How did you know?"
"You mentioned it, remember?"
"Right... Never mind that. On my way back, I stumbled upon one. It looked identical to the one you found that day, so I grabbed it."
Lucas gestured with his hand to form an orb shape as he continued, "Oh, and it's red, unlike yours."
Checking the faint light filtering through the closed door to see if there were any urgent sounds, Lucy inquired further, "So, what ability did you gain?"
Suppressing his previous confusion, Lucas responded, "It's... well, technically a skill. It lets me grow a claw and fang; I think?"
"Are you unsure about it?" Lucy mused, standing before Lucas.
"Don't blame me. I was just as surprised. Let me examine it and see if I'm becoming a dog or a bat," Lucas quipped with a chuckle.
"Opening system!"
---
Name: Lucas Tharla
Age: 16 years old
Race: Human
Gender: Male
Class: God of Fire and Heat
Subclass: None
Subclass: None
Subclass: None
Level: 11 (960/1000)
Stats:
Agi: 14 (Average Adult Human: 20)
Str: 30 (Average Adult Human: 20)
Int: 27 (Average Adult Human: 20)
Vit: 25 (Average Adult Human: 20)
Unallocated Stat Points: 6
Skills:
[Clawing Fang: Manifest a temporary long claw for 30 seconds. (2 uses/day) Grade 1!]
Unallocated Skill Points: 11
Coins: 415
Achievements Completed: 6 △
Items: 8 △
---
"Yeah, I don't think I'll be a fan of this skill," Lucas said, his expression turning perplexed.
Perplexed, Lucy inquired, "What? What does it do?"
"It'll sprout a pair of long claws for me, but only for 30 seconds, and I can use it twice a day. Honestly, I'm not too keen on growing bone-like structures out of my fingers anytime soon. Claws aren't exactly my thing," Lucas explained.
Comprehending his hesitation, Lucy added, "Your luck seems to be consistently bad."
Walking over to check the door, Lucy extended their silence for nearly a minute before returning. "For now, just get accustomed to it. I doubt we'll need to use that skill anytime soon unless you suddenly want to become a bald eagle. Consider yourself lucky you won't have to grow wings to fly—imagine how painful that could be."
Teasing him about his initial skill choice, she chuckled.
"Lucy, you've become a lot more confident in the past week," Lucas observed, hearing a newfound self-assuredness in her demeanor.
Turning her head and shaking it, Lucy responded, "Really? I suppose anyone would after facing and defeating a group of middle-aged men twice their age. Anyway, let's head upstairs. We should check on the women, especially Sarah's daughter, to see how they're faring after these hours."
Suddenly bombarded with this new piece of information, Lucas was taken aback. "You had a traumatized child help with moving corpses to help her get used to them? What?"
Rolling her eyes, Lucy retorted, "Just climb the stairs, and you'll understand. I was initially against it too, but Sarah asked me to turn a blind eye and help, as it was a way to strengthen her daughter's mentality."
As Lucas ascended the stairs, he muttered, "I guess a mother's wishes take precedence."
Arriving on the second floor, Lucas noticed that most of the corpses had been moved, leaving only a few in the hallway. The one near the stairs had completely vanished.
Following Lucy into one of the rooms, he was greeted by the sight of numerous bodies. Among them, one woman's gaze seemed distant, lost in the void of her thoughts.
"Lucas, meet Carrie. Don't mind her vacant expression. She's likely drained from moving the most bodies," Lucy introduced.
Acknowledging the woman's name, Lucas gave a nod of greeting, and Carrie responded in kind. It felt odd for him to interact with so many unfamiliar faces in a single day, especially considering the number of people he had personally killed.
Although Lucy had mentioned Carrie's exhaustion, the woman's expression betrayed her struggle to cope after handling the bodies of those they had lived with for almost a week. Not everyone they killed was guilty of cannibalism, but in this world, it was a matter of kill or be killed. Rules and morals had lost their significance.
He understood that he couldn't have explained the situation to all of them before taking action. They had fought for their survival, and in the end, he knew these women would understand, even if their faces were marked by grief and confusion.
"Does anyone know where Sarah and her daughter are?" Lucy's voice suddenly cut through Lucas's inner thoughts as she addressed the women.
One of the women replied, "I think they're in the room with the boss's bodies."
"Ah, got it. Thanks," Lucy acknowledged with a slight bow of her head, pulling Lucas, who had been lost in his thoughts, out of the room and into their own.
Being abruptly yanked along, Lucas struggled to match Lucy's brisk pace. He still felt a bit uncertain about interacting with others, particularly older individuals. He was only somewhat familiar with Sarah, as her face sparked a sense of recognition, but beyond that, he didn't really know any of the other women. Lucy was definitely the more outgoing and social of the two, the one who would actively engage with others and remember their names. Even when they first met Sarah, it had been Lucy who initiated the conversation and learned her name.
At the time, he had contemplated whether speaking with the middle-aged women would yield any benefits, considering they would likely be parting ways soon. But as they reached their room, a thought occurred to him – was he merely presenting a facade of confidence and bravery to Lucy? Did he actually lack confidence in social situations? He mused on this as he followed Lucy into the room.
However, before he could get lost in his thoughts again, Sarah's voice broke the silence. "Oh, it's your sibling. Were you looking for me?"
"Hi, Sarah! Yes, we were looking for you. Why are you here instead of with the other women?" Lucy replied while Lucas observed Sarah and her daughter seated on their former bed. He wasn't entirely sure if he should participate in the conversation, given that he had been absent during whatever had transpired in his absence.
"I was just trying to look at our boss's face. After all, he traumatized my child. Oh, and I found this," Sarah explained, holding out a gun to Lucas.
Taken aback by the unexpected gesture, Lucas glanced toward the corner of the room, where the bodies of James and the other group leaders lay.
"Why give this to me? You could use it for your own protection. We already have our skills," Lucas expressed, his surprise evident.
Sarah shook her head and explained, "You can call me foolish, but I can't bring myself to use something that belonged to those disgusting monsters anymore. Especially since my daughter still sees me as one of them. I wanted to confront their corpses, to come to terms with their deaths. They were cannibals, after all. I'd rather face these monsters' faces than those lifeless bodies in the other room. I found this gun near the boss's body, not that he can be considered the boss anymore."
Never having used a gun before, Lucas raised an eyebrow in genuine confusion. "You know I've never used a gun, right?"
Sarah smiled at him reassuringly. "Don't worry. You can hold on to it, just in case."
Nodding in understanding, Lucas said, "But, Sarah, isn't this gun out of ammo?"
"I checked; there are some cartridges in the cabinet over there," Sarah replied, pointing to the indicated spot.
"Oh," Lucy chimed in with a soft realization.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Tarhuala
Tarhuala I keep hamsters as pets in a spacious enclosure.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone