𝐢𝐝𝐲𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐜 | 𝐫𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐩𝐧

𝟒𝟏| 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐚: 𝐰𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩, 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫. 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮?

   "𝐋𝐞𝐭'𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫! 𝐌𝐲 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐘/𝐧. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬?"

   "Get the hell out," he ordered, "I don't have to tell ya my name, and I don't want to."

   Y/n's smile didn't falter as she pulled out a chair, "please, take a seat. Look, I'm sitting down. Gilda?"

   "Um, right," the green haired girl ran out of the room.

   "So, how are you feeling?"

   "In a bad mood," he replied, not sitting down.

   "I'm sorry we had to tie you down like that. And for the cookies," Gilda ran back with a bowl, handing it to Y/n. She held it up and handed it to the man, "you must be hungry. To make up for it, we made you soup for breakfast. It's not poisoned. And it's not bad, either!" The man picked up the bowl and sniffed it in suspicion, then, he placed it down, "but we got the temperature just right for you..! You know, this soup... it's all made with ingredients we brought ourselves. We're not a drain on your food supply. From now on, we'll make do with our own food sources. As for water, energy and space, we'll make sure to keep our use to a minimum."

   "And you figure I'm sharing my shelter if you do that? No way. Get out."

   "No, that's not it. This is all just courtesy so that we can start on the right foot. After all, I think you're not really worried about resource limits, am I right? Let me get right to the point, then. We're going to meet with Minerva, and we'd like you to be our travel guide and bodyguard. You're strong, right? You've survived here for thirteen years by yourself. And also I'm guessing you have a lot of experience going outside."

   "Huh? How can you tell?" The children asked.

   Ray stepped in, placing a hand on Y/n's shoulder, "his shoes are quite worn down. And he doesn't have the belly of a sedentary life... on the contrary, he's fit. And also, there was fresh fruit hanging in the pantry. You can't just make those, and there was nothing like them in the indoor fields. What's more, they seemed relatively recent. Which means he must be getting them from forests or by the waterside."

   "Waterside?!"

   "Yesterday his shot just barely grazed Y/n's skin. Assuming he was missing on purpose, that takes some skill. He escaped out binding quite easily, too."

   "You're no 'sucker', that's for sure. And you've got experience in searching for Minerva," Y/n pulled out the near perfect condition letter, "you know what this is, right? The letter. We found it unsealed. You guys must have tried to search for him, too. Just like the letter says. Even if you gave up later. Ray, Emma, and I want to try. And, because you have the strength and the experience, we're asking for your help."

   He laughed, "in your dreams, suckers! The hell should I care? Get outta my shelter."

   "Oh, we will. If we manage to find Minerva and return safely, we're leaving the shelter at once, then all of us."

   "So that's your deal? And with this crappy offer, you expect me to risk my life going out? The risk to my life to protect a couple of ridiculous assclowns? Don't make me laugh, kid."

   "Well, you want us to leave, right?"

   "Yeah. But it's a lot easier to just kill yall right here," he pulled out a knife that was concealed in his back pocket. It nearly touched Y/n's forehead when Ray pulled out the man's gun from before. "You sure about that? Pull that trigger and you lose your old guide and bodyguard. You need me, dontcha."

   "I'm not killing you," Ray replied, placing the gun on the table and sliding it over, "I'm just returning your gun."

   Don panicked, "i-is it loaded?!"

   "No, we took out the bullets." The man's eyes widened as he spotted what was in Ray's hand. A button? No, a detonator.

   Y/n noticed the change in his face, "exactly. It's not your life that's on the table. We found it yesterday when searching the archive room. Must be to protect the secret, I think. If worse comes to worst, the demons find out about this place."

   "I'm kinda sleep deprived because you cut off the wiring, you know? Took me quite a while to fix it... the emergency self destruct system is online."

   Y/n stood up with a smile, "well then, Mister, let's make a deal. Or else well blow up the whooole shelter!" The man's face filled with fear as Y/n face turned serious, "this place is important to you, right? More than just a bunch of resources. You do understand that, if we destroy the shelter... you won't be having tea parties anymore. If we're going to die anyway, why not blow it up?"

   "Very well. If yall are so eager to throw away your lives, I'll help you die," he said.

   Eugene cried as he held onto Ray's sleeve,"but... but no, Mister, you cant let them die!"

   "You shut up! I'll go with you and help search for MInerva. But! I'm showing the way and that's it. I'm not guarding crap. And I'm certainly not putting my life on the line."

   Y/n nodded, "I understand. That's fine. So... what's your name?"

   "I said I'm not telling you my name... cuckoo."

   "Cuckoo..?! That's my nickname now?!" Ray held in a laugh behind the girl.

   "Don't get me wrong, I dont have the slightest intention of getting close to you. And stay outta my sight, if you please. Don't wanna stare at yer stupid faces."

   "I see... pleased to meet you, then... dear man with no name."

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𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫

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