Chương 8: Why Scavenge Anymore?

Aren stared at the kitchen knife in his hand. The edge caught what little light there was and flashed coldly. He had only meant to try. He had not expected it to work.

"If a knife works, then what about a gun...?" Without wasting time, he pushed himself into self-hypnosis again. This time, he drew on the body's memories of being shot. The next moment, a black handgun appeared in his hand. Before he could feel pleased, Aren noticed the problem. It was only shaped like a gun. In reality, it was a gun-shaped lump of metal. The failure did not disappoint him. He tossed it into the garbage behind him and rubbed his chin.

"So that's the limit. I don't understand the structure, and I've never handled one before. I can picture the outside, but not the mechanism." It was like saying a desperate person could do anything. Except a math problem. Aren brushed dust from his pants and stood, satisfied. That was enough testing for now. Regeneration and object creation. Either one would be valuable. Together, they gave him real capital in this world. As he dusted himself off, he finally noticed the bullet-riddled suit hanging off his body.

"Right. I need new clothes." He closed his eyes and focused on how uncomfortable the ruined suit felt against his skin. A moment later, a set of cotton sleepwear and a clean black suit appeared in his hands.

"Convenient." After changing into the sleepwear, he carried the suit back toward the house. Now that he had tested his abilities, his tension eased for the first time since waking up. He still did not know where those powers came from, but for now he would treat them as whatever had come with his arrival in this world.

"It's late, though. Why am I still not sleepy?" His biological clock felt strange, but Aren did not dwell on it. Maybe he really had been unconscious too long. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. And not feeling sleepy did not mean he could not sleep. Sleep was not only physical recovery. It was a way for the mind to loosen its grip. Inside, Machi seemed to be asleep.

Aren moved carefully, pulled the blanket back over her, and said softly, "Good night." Then he lay down on his side of the mattress and closed his eyes. After a full day of fear and confusion, the sudden relief dragged him into sleep quickly. What he did not know was that Machi had been awake from the moment he entered. She had only stayed still after confirming it was him. When Aren reached toward the blanket, every muscle in her body tightened. Steel thread was already hidden in her hands.

If he made one wrong move, she would cut him down at once. If possible, she did not want to attack him. His ability to create food was something all of Meteor City would dream of having. More than that, her sixth sense had given no warning. So she watched. And all he did was cover her with the blanket and say good night. Machi could not understand it. No one in her world did things like that for free. Her mind had no answer, but her senses understood something else: warmth. A kind she had never felt before.

In the end, Machi was still eleven. In another world, a child her age would be leaning into a parent's arms, not checking steel wire before sleep. This world had frozen her instead. After she felt Aren fall asleep, Machi opened her eyes and looked at his sleeping face with a complicated expression. Sometimes people were not that difficult. Sometimes, one small act at the right moment was enough to reach someone who had never been given much. Somewhere deep inside her, something began to crack....

"Aren! Aren! Wake up!" A rough shout dragged him out of sleep. He did not need to open his eyes to know it was Uvogin. A voice that loud was wasted on ordinary conversation. After a brief moment of fog, his mind cleared. Machi was already gone from the mattress. She had probably gone outside.

"Uvogin? Are we gathering supplies?" Aren rubbed his eyes as he sat up.

"Yeah. Nobunaga and I got you protective gear, so you can pick out what you need yourself." Uvogin handed him a yellow-brown protective suit.

"Thanks." Aren accepted it, then looked at the patched, filthy thing and felt his eye twitch. He doubted it could block radiation at all. He did not put it on. Instead, he studied the material for a moment.

"Actually, I tested my ability last night. Food isn't the only thing I can create. Most supplies should work too. Protective gear included." He closed his eyes for a moment. A brand-new protective suit appeared in his hands. Uvogin's eyes went wide.

"Holy-" For once, even he was too startled to say anything else.

"Aren, that ability is ridiculous. Wait here. I'm getting Machi and Nobunaga." He threw the words over his shoulder and ran out. Soon, he returned with both of them.

"Aren, is it true?" Nobunaga asked.

"Uvogin said you can make clothes too." Then he noticed what Aren was wearing: clean sleepwear instead of the cheap, ruined suit from yesterday. Machi's voice came from behind him.

"I noticed his clothes had changed this morning. At first, I thought he had found something outside last night. It seems his ability is larger than we thought."

"Not only clothes," Aren said.

"As long as the structure isn't too complex, I should be able to create most things." As he spoke, a sofa appeared. Then a table. Then a proper double bed. One by one, clean modern objects appeared in the clearing as if he were performing a magic trick. Machi, Uvogin, and Nobunaga slowly froze. Their mouths opened without them realizing it. Aren stopped and enjoyed the rare sight of Machi losing control of her expression. Since he met her, she had worn almost the same cool look the entire time.

Right now, she finally looked like someone her age. The same thought rose in all three minds. With Aren here, scavenging trash suddenly seemed absurd.