[ADAM] Chapter 29: Alone Again

"Why… is he not moving? Is he dead?"

"Does he look dead to you? How did he even survive?"

"Who… is it?"

"Right, you wasn't here yesterday. The motherfucker's crazy, man. He was popping them motherfucking snakes left and right."

Everyone was hesitant to approach Adam. The veteran creeps made sure not to make a sound, but that didn't stop them from whispering among themselves.

"He's not moving… we sure he ain't dead?" one asked, clutching his weapon tighter.

"You should be asking why the Heroes aren't moving instead."

They were right. Vincent and the others weren't moving and were only staring at Adam. The Heroes looked at Adam, then at each other, and then back at Adam again before they whispered among themselves.

"...How is he alive? We all saw him get mowed down by the verdrakill," Eugene muttered, his brow furrowed, "We all saw that, right?"

No one answered him. But after a moment of looking around, Dennis narrowed his eyes. "These eggs... maybe the boss was trying to feed him to its children?"

"I believe that makes the most sense," Vincent nodded before focusing all his attention on Adam. "What doesn't is how he survived. He doesn't seem to have any wounds on him."

"He fought... all of these baby snakes?" Eugene gestured at the carnage surrounding them, "We really do need to recruit the guy to the guild, Vince. If he survives and is reborn as a Hero, I'm sure he'd be high tier."

"It still doesn't make sense how he survived this," Vincent narrowed his eyes in suspicion at Adam.

"No—considering these verdlecks have just been born, it makes sense they would be weaker," Dennis grabbed a dead verdlecks from the water, its soft body dangling even with the slightest of movement, "It's… just a shame, these materials are practically useless. Even a normal person could kill these things."

"In this number?" Vincent glanced at Dennis before pointing at the verdlecks who were close to their normal adult size, "And how do you explain those, then?"

"He's a really good fighter," Dennis shrugged, "You've seen him yesterday—he was the only one not running and actively shooting the serpents point-blank even though he has a gun."

"Hmm."

The Heroes looked at each other in silence after that. No one said a word as they contemplated the painting in front of them.

A painting, perhaps that was the best way to describe it.

The soft light of the swamp cast shadows across the scene, it caught on the scales of the dead verdlecks, making them shimmer as if they were still alive—but their executioner standing on top of them showed otherwise.

Adam was holding the stick pierced through a verdlecks' eye like a sceptre, remaining unnaturally still. Truly, like a painting.

Soon, however, this painting moved.

Suddenly, Adam stood up, causing them all to flinch and raise their weapons instinctively. He stared at them with hollow eyes before he stepped down from the mountain of dead monsters.

No, he didn't step down—he rolled down. The life in his eyes disappeared, and his body came tumbling down like a puppet with its strings suddenly cut. He rolled and rolled, until he finally hit the swampy ground with a wet thud.

"What the…"

It became quiet again.

And the only sounds were the buzzing of insects, the occasional splash of something moving beneath the murky water, and the confusion escaping everyone's lips.

But soon, another sound followed—a gurgle. A bubbling beneath the water where Adam's head should be.

Before anyone else could react, Vincent shouted, "He's still alive! Let's get him out and then rest for today!"

The veteran creeps quickly rushed to get to Adam. As they lifted him, they confirmed he was indeed unscathed—aside from his ripped clothes, and they could see scars across his body where wounds must have been.

But these scars were old.

The veteran creeps didn't really say anything. They just focused on carrying Adam out.

Fortunately, they didn't encounter any monsters along the way, and with them having mapped most of the area, the Heroes led them through the safest path outside.

As for Adam, well—he was dreaming right now. Dreaming of another memory. Dreaming of her. The woman in his dreams.

"Adam…?"

"Yes, Adam."

"But I thought… my name was Zero?"

"No!"

The woman's voice echoed softly in the white, suffocating room. Adam sat beside her on a cold metal bench that was stuck to the wall, his small legs dangling above the floor.

He tried to look at her, but the woman's face still remained a blur in his memory. But he knew—he knew how warm her voice was.

It was… a comfort that completely shadowed everything else.

"Never, ever call yourself Zero, okay? Adam. That's your name now."

"Adam…"

He remembered looking puttering his lips, licking his teeth as the name felt strange in his tongue, yet… somehow right.

"But...only parents are allowed to give names. Are you… my mother now, then?"

W…what!?" A burst of laughter escaped the woman's lips.

"Excuse me? I'm only nineteen, Adam! Sister, I'm your..."

"Hmm?"

The woman's words started to fade in and out, but the feeling remained. Adam remembered everything, everything except her face.

She brought him books sometimes, sneaking them past the guards and the other doctors. They'd read together, her voice changing for each character.

It was… lovely.

Sometimes she'd bring a small puzzle or a simple game. Those moments were… islands of joy in an endless ocean of pain.

But happiness never lasted long in that place.

They were discovered. Men in white coats came flooding in when they were playing a game of chess. He remembered now.

Two guards came in and grabbed her, dragging her by her arms. Adam tried to stop them, but they tazed him—to the point smoke came out of his flesh and skin.

"N…No! Stop!"

"What did we tell you about entering the subject's containment?!" A tall, bald man with glasses shouted, his face red with fury. Adam would know; he remembered his face.

He remembered all of their faces; the other doctors, the guards who dragged her out and pulled her hair. He remembered, all except for her.

Another doctor, older with gray hair at his temples, stepped between them. "Don't get attached to him! He's not human!"

"Not human!? Are you people blind!? He's a child! A little boy!"

"Dr. Williams, control your intern!" The tall man barked, turning to someone standing in the doorway.

Dr. Williams? That's… new.

A name Adam hadn't heard before—or perhaps had forgotten. A shadow moved in the doorway, another figure he couldn't quite recall. But before he could see the face, before he could hear anything else, the memory fractured.

Adam's eyes snapped open, woken up by his own pleading gasp.

But he wasn't the only one shocked—the person tending to him jumped back, eyes extremely wide.

"H…holy shit!" The man shouted, nearly kicking the bucket of water beside him, "You're—you're awake!?"

It was the veteran creep from the Nightraptor guild again, the one responsible for assessing everyone's contribution during the exploration, Rick.

Adam sat up, his eyes scanning where he was. He was inside a tent, but the only bed present was the one beneath him.

"What… happened?" Adam groaned, pressing his fingers against his throbbing temples. His clothes had been changed, now just a simple gray shirt and pants that weren't his own.

"You… don't remember?" Rick's eyes grew wider, "We…found you surrounded by dead snakes, alive. How do you not even have a single scratch on you? Wait, no… you do, but nothing fresh. OH. Wait, wait here!"

Before Adam could say anything, Rick suddenly bolted out of the tent, the drapes flapping wildly behind him.

"Ugh…" Adam pushed himself up, swinging his legs over the side of the cot. A violent wave of grogginess drowned his head, but it disappeared as soon as it came—his body healing whatever wrong lingered in his body.

The drapes of the tent flapped open again as Rick returned, this time with the three Heroes of Nightraptor guild behind him.

Vincent entered first, his eyes already sweeping over Adam from head to toe. Eugene and Dennis followed close behind, both also scanning him.

"Join the Nightraptor guild." Vincent did not waste time with pleasantries at all as he stood in front of Adam, "We will sponsor you and give you all the equipment you need. We know it wouldn't matter at all if your team loses, but it would at least help your chances of surviving until the end of the Game."

"That…" Adam considered the offer, but he knew his choice was already made for him. If he joined the guild, he would have to register with the government as an official part of the Game. His face would be recorded into the system, into a database that Dr. Aniston and the Hospital could possibly be watching.

"I… would like to remain independent for now," Adam answered, sighing slightly as he shook his head.

Eugene stepped forward, opening his mouth to say something, but Dennis placed a hand on his shoulder and pulled him back.

As for Vincent, well, he let out a sigh of his own and nodded.

"Very well," he said. The disappointment in his voice evident. "We have already taken our share of your loot. Rick will explain the details for you."

The Heroes stepped out of the tent, but Adam and Rick could still hear them arguing about him outside.

Rick let out a small chuckle and approached Adam, grabbing a stool to sit in front of him.

"Okay then, Chris…" Rick pulled out a small smart tablet from his bag. His lips rolling as he blew a large breath when he reviewed Adam's share.

"You've… received quite a lot," he whistled, "The guild also had some people gather the baby snakes you killed. We already took their labor fee from your share. We also already processed all the scales, hide, and bones. That's also coming out from your share—but it's still a very, very good amount."

Rick looked up, his eyes filled with amazement. "I've... honestly never seen a creep loot this much. And that's not including your pay for your contribution—although… the guild master asked me to dock your pay since you killed the baby verdlecks before they could mature. It would take two days before they fully grow, and their scales would harden. Dome monsters are weird like that. Anyway, I'm rambling, right?"

"It's fine," Adam shook his head, before his eyes caught on a crate that was resting at the side of the tent, "Are those…?"

"Yes," Rick glanced at the crate as well before nodding, "That's your share. I heard from other guild members that you came here on a... bicycle? Is that true?"

"Yes."

Rick's eyebrow rose. "How... are you planning to take all this back?"

"I don't." Adam's gaze shifted to Rick. "I read on the website that Nightraptor guild has a blacksmith, right?"

"Oh!" Rick's face lit up when he realized what Adam was getting at. "You want us to forge equipment for you? That's good too—we can deliver the remaining materials once the equipment is done. For a fee, of course."

He pulled out his tablet again, fingers hovering over the screen. "What equipment do you want so I can put in the request?"

"Everything," Adam said without hesitation. "You can use all my contribution to pay for it too."

Rick paused, looking up from his tablet. "Are... you sure? That's a lot of materials."

"Yes."

"Well, okay then..." Rick shrugged, tapping notes into his tablet. "And where do we send it when it's ready? We'd also need to measure you, by the way."

Adam shifted slightly. "I'll... send you an address once you confirm it's done."

"Do we have your contact information here?" Rick scrolled through Adam's registration form and found nothing there but his name.

"No," Adam shook his head. "But I have Nightraptor guild's number. I'll... just call a week from now. Is that... doable?"

"Uh... sure thing," Rick nodded, "Just wait here, and I'll get you the receipt for everything. As well as call the person who would be getting your measurements."

Adam sat in silence as Rick left the tent. The blacksmith entered a few minutes later, but he didn't say anything at all and just left as soon as he got his measurements.

And now, Adam was alone again.

He closed his eyes, listening to the sounds outside the tent. But soon, he filtered all those out as he tried to remember the name he heard earlier.

Dr. Williams. Would he be able to find the woman in his dreams if he found that doctor? Or at least… a confirmation that she was already dead.

But even if he wanted to find this Dr. Williams, he couldn't.

He was still too weak to do anything, he might as well go directly to Dr. Aniston, and the result would be the same.

"Ha…" Adam let out a long, and very deep sigh, filling the tent with his frustrated breath.

And after several minutes of thinking about his very limited options, Rick returned with a printed receipt and handed it to him.

The transaction felt…strangely normal. The Game truly was a business now.

Rick didn't stay any longer, and Adam didn't too.

He stepped out of the tent, covering his eyes from the harsh afternoon light. The eyes of the veteran creeps scattered across the camp, however, were all looking at him—curious, wary, respectful.

The Heroes were also at the other tent, and they gave Adam a nod before focusing back to their meeting.

Adam walked around the camp, pausing at the barriers surrounding the Blue Leaks. He stared at it for a moment. The people guarding the Leak glanced at him, and Adam once again nodded in response before turning away.

Walking until he was outside the camp—he was done here. He should leave before they start suspecting and catching on that he has an ability to heal incredibly fast.

He unlocked his bicycle that was chained to one of the barricades, and he pedaled away without glancing back or bidding farewell to anyone.

Adam didn't head toward the nearest city, or even nearby small towns.

Instead, he stopped when the road became flanked by dense trees. He looked around for a moment before carrying his bike off the pavement and into the forest.

He walked deeper into the sea of trees, checking his phone from time to time, and when he saw one of the bars from the signal disappear, he traced back a few steps before setting up camp.

Well, if it could be called a camp.

It was just him, his bicycle, and a sleeping bag.

Adam, once again, was alone.

It didn't even take a minute to set up. He sat next to a tree first, pulling out his phone again to search for something.

He searched for new information about himself first.

The Undying Creep.

There were still people talking about him, but the stories were slowly getting buried and fading from the headlines.

"Good…" He whispered to himself.

Adam continued browsing, searching for anything related to the Game. But it was all the same—it was about the Heroes, ads about illegal betting, and all sorts of things.

He kept on scrolling, until his thumb stopped as a post caught his attention—some kind of religious organization that worshipped the Game and treated the Administrators as gods.

One of the many cults surrounding the Game.

"They… have a chapel in a town near here?"

Adam's eyes narrowed as he looked at the map. They had a very… weird website—but they were claiming that their priests could converse with the Administrators directly.

He promised Grace he would make the Administrators pay, but he knew nothing about them—the internet didn't help either, as most people were afraid to post about them in fear of them watching even after two decades.

Of course, Adam knew all the claims of this organization were fake.

But… it might be worth a visit.

***

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Uh oh... That's not good, Adam. Cults are... well, cults.