LOCATION - ROUGH ROAD .1

|Location: Shelter's Gate|

-YUI-

We've gathered in front of the gate at this time. Our trip's necessities were quickly loaded into the trunk by Lukas and Roland as they carried the bags containing water and rations. For the other car, Johan took the same action. Ronald assembled us for an attendance meeting just before we left, as we had just finished getting ready for our trip.

"Okay everyone, roll call!"

When Roland realized what Lukas meant by his choleric response of "again," he laughed.

He patted Lukas on the back using his huge arm and said, "Haha, nice one, Lukas."

While attempting to massage his back, Lukas only gave him a serious expression. Upon hearing "Pfft," I chuckled a little, He quickly turned to face me, and he wore a hostile expression as opposed to my amusement.

I instinctively averted my attention away from Lukas because of it.

Roland began calling out our names.

"Yui"

"Lukas"

"Kate"

All three of us raised our hands and replied in a loud and clear voice "Here,"

"Johan plus the three newbies"

"Here"

Johan calmly said, raising his hand, while the newly graduated cadets stood straight as they shouted, "Where present and ready!!"

Roland laughed a little, "very lively"

Lukas quickly leaped inside the car, his dirty boots skipping along his muscular body, landing on his seat and securing his position. He is not even close to tripping, unlike me who was struggling to load my luggage into the car due to the height difference.

Lukas narrowed his eyes and nonchalantly called us. "How long are you guys going to finish? How about we move faster so we can go already? We aren't going to... what was it again that I read from a book long ago, hmm ah! A park!" Lukas argued.

"You heard him, let's move faster and head out!" Roland responded.

••••••

|Location: Dessert|

Before we set out, we already planned our course for the expedition, and we decided to take the road going to the nearest city ruins in just a half day of traveling. This will be our camping site before going northeast and reaching the Tokyo ruins, but before that, we must first pass through the desert.

We took two vehicles with us. Kate, Lukas, and Roland are grouped together with me, while the three newbies will be together with their supervisor, Johann.

As we move through the arid terrain. It was inevitable that I would be hit by the loud, rumbling engine sound and the sweltering heat, all at once.

At this point in the trip, the heat has already taken a toll on me; my body can no longer withstand the hostile environment. As I breathed in and out, I could feel my chest expanding and hear my heart beating in my ears.

A small and plump hand reaches out to me while holding a hand fan.

Kate says, reaching out for a bottle of water and handing it to me, "Use this, we're almost out of the desert, just bear with it."

However, Lukas burst in suddenly. Kate was about to hand me the water when he grabbed the bottle and tossed it back inside the bag.

Kate looked at Lukas and said, "Hey! What's your problem?"

"Seriously? I think our supply will be spent before we could even reach the site." He then turned his head away. I could see Kate starting to get really annoyed.

Kate raised her voice and grabbed his collar, saying, "Lukas, can't you see Yui? She's struggling, remember she's not like us Sightseer, her physic is much weaker than ours, and if you're forgetting, she is our archaeologist without-" Yet Lukas didn't talk back, only turned his head away from our direction.

I immediately patted and massaged Kate's back because I knew that ignoring her would only cause her to tighten her hold on him. I comforted her by saying, "Kate, I'm fine Lukas is right." In an effort to calm herself down, she tossed him aside, but for some reason, Lukas was only made more uncomfortable.

He looked directly in my direction. His fire-like hair cast a shadow over his face, hiding the sorrow that was screaming through his emerald eyes and preventing me from making any more assumptions. I was aware of the cause of his disinterest in me, though, deep down.

He averted his stare soon after. "Ugh, this is really annoying as expected you're pulling the pity act, it isn't even a day since we left the shelter, and your already making things hard for us"

"LUKAS!" Kate was about to act again according to her emotions, but gladly, she held back immediately when she was about to give Lukas a piece of her knuckle.

I reassured her, "That's fine, no need to make a big deal out of this."

I grew up with Kate, so I know her pretty well, but I've only known Lukas for a few years, and I can already tell where his resentment of me is coming from. because I'm partly responsible for it. And I won't deny that, but why can't I seem to talk about it? Even Kate and Roland decided to keep their mouths shut about the event that takes place that day. Since then, I started to feel guilty, and it began to eat me from the inside.

"Tch, don't act pitiful, you're just a burden, why not quit being part of this team. You might cause another accident" Lukas abruptly said it towards me, I could barely lower my head without forcing my body to do so, but that's all I could do now or maybe the only thing I can do right now.

I suddenly heard Kate's voice as she slapped Lukas, I immediately raised my head and saw Lukas closed his eyes as she went for another one. Instinctively I held her hands as tightly as I could.

"Take that back, Yui isn't a-"

"Please stop! Stop!" I can feel my hands shivering from forcing my body to move right now. I tried to look at Lukas, but he only avoided my gaze.

"Tch!" he clicked his tongue.

"Don't mind him, I'll talk some sense to him later"

Everything manages to settle down and those two stay silent with each other.

I tried to lean to my side, having a weak body out in this harsh world isn't easy if I could survive a god's attack. There won't be any say if I can survive the versatile weather conditions and irregular environmental mood of different areas.

Kate held my head after seeing me struggle, I felt at ease besides her to the point that I might fall asleep.

Since childhood, Kate, Johann, and Me grew up in a tribe who became nomads, surviving human who adapts and survived the world without being affiliated to any shelters, but living out in the harsh world never bought us to good things, my body is weak compared to other children and our family started to die off one by one it might because of natural causes or being attacked by gods.

Moving from place to place also didn't ensure our food supply, some even started to practice cannibalism, as the adults started to die off, only a few children were left, the three of us were a part of that. Our fate wasn't much different from the adult, food became scarce, and everyone tried everything to survive, some left the tribe while the others must be killed, or else we'll be killed.

It was the survival of the fittest, the three of us maintained a strong bond through thick and thin, it was until one day a God appeared at where we settled our camp.

It has long razor-sharp talons on both feet, an enormous mouth that could swallow a dozen of people in one scoop, and it's dark scales which was harder than any steel, its bird like figure covered the whole sky stretching its wings far and wide and with every flap of its wings was like a natural disaster.

We thought it was our end but, it was then the previous Division 1 came to our rescue and after that, a lot of things change after, the shelter tested all the children but only Kate and Johann got tested positive and become a student in their shelter as a potential Sightseer, on the other hand, I was just an extra that got carried with them.

It's been 11 years since then but her embrace never changed.

I looked at Kate, she still looked reliable as before, her purple hair always matches her, and the way she exerts her dominance always amazes me. Will I ever be as useful as her?

Thinking those moments reminded me of many memories of back when we struggled to live.

"Hey, Kate? If you didn't plead to that officer to bring me along, I would never have been able to stay here"

"Eh? You still remembered that we're 21 now gosh it's been a long time since then, even though I'm still thankful to that officer,"

Both of us couldn't help but to laugh, remembering those memories, I can't help but smile.

Despite those happy memories, questions that have long passed also returned "I know, but I wonder what the big city looks like? I never even got to ask Johann, "He was sent to the big city after the rescue. No matter, we still have a lot of time in our hands, maybe."

Kate shrugs off what I said, "maybe? Anyway, just take a rest for now I'll stay by your side"

"I know, thanks"

••••••