Book 5 Chapter 9.5 - Top Seat
Dragon City welcomed a brand new day.
When Helen walked out from the hospital's back door, the cold wind that assailed her face almost made her suffocate. Meanwhile, large amounts of snowflakes landed ruthlessly on her head, face, and shoulders, immediately piling up a layer of whiteness. The sudden arrival of wind and snow made Helen narrow her eyes, her lips that originally didn't have much color left now losing a few more shades. She pulled her clothes tightly around herself, and then faced the cold wind and snow, heading further and further into the distance.
The downpour of snow was extremely heavy, not showing any signs of rest even after an entire night of snowing. The roads were already covered under a thick layer of snow, the dark sky giving one the illusion that it was already close to dusk instead of noon. For as far as the eye could see, there wasn't a single person on this snow-covered path. Helen was the only one, her feet entering and exiting the thick blanket of snow as she walked forward with difficulty.
A faint dark green layer of light would occasionally pass over the snow surface, representing the radiance of powerful radiation. The amount of radiation Dragon City, which rested over a river and bordered the sea, received was definitely not weak, snowy and rainy weather even more so bringing over large amounts of radiation. Under this type of weather, Dragon City would turn off the anti-radiation force field installations they had just built not long ago, wait until all of the rain and snow stopped, and only after the city was manually cleaned would it be started up again. This type of gloomy and cold weather was something that most people were annoyed by to begin with, so when the radiation was several times greater than normal, people without much ability would normally stay inside, coming out only when the anti-radiation force fields were started up again. Even for low level ability users, the strong radiation would still inflict quite some damage.
Helen didn't have any abilities, but she walked in this weather despite the radiation and cold. Her body was slightly hunched over, facing the incoming wind and snow. At this moment, her collar suddenly moved, a fine and long antenna reaching out from within. It wobbled about in the cold winds, as if it was sensing its surroundings. When it reached out from the collar, the antenna began to move quickly and cheerfully, as if the cold and radiation were things it liked. Helen released a soft sigh, and then muttered 'naughty little fella' before stuffing that antenna back into her collar.
After struggling through the wind and snow for close to an hour, only then did Helen make a turn. There were stores on both sides of the street. They were all still open even under this type of weather, only, before the wind and snow stopped, they naturally wouldn't have any customers. Helen pushed open one of the store's doors and walked inside. The store wasn't large, but the lighting was extremely warm, the old wooden structure and decorations that matched this style giving one the feeling as if they returned home. The old-fashioned fireplace was burning, sending charcoal scented warmth to every corner of the store.
This store looked like a small restaurant, behind the front counter only an aged elder. His head that was close to bald reflecting a warm radiance under the store's lighting.
He stuck out his head from behind the sales counter, gave the entrance a look, and then stood up to greet her. "Miss Helen, what made you come out under such cold weather?"
Helen randomly selected a table to sit down at, and then said, "The laboratory was too stuffy so I came out for a walk, buying a few essentials along the way. Can't drag it on any longer."
The old man busied about for a few minutes behind the counter, and then he brought out two cups of coffee and a small plate of biscuits before sitting down across from Helen. He pushed one cup of coffee towards Helen, and then he said rather meaningfully, "I heard that the city wasn't too safe before, and now, the situation is even more terrible. In the future, you have to be careful when coming out alone."
The corners of Helen's lips tilted upwards a bit, enough to be considered a smile, and then said, "It's not too big of a deal. Ever since I was small, those that set their eyes on me, when had they ever had good ends? This time is no exception."
Helen indeed experienced a period of peace. After losing almost all of his high level chosen, Dr. Connor had to first face the wrath of the chairman. Even if he still wanted to trouble Helen, he temporarily had no one he could use.
The elder laughed, the golden teeth in his mouth shining brightly under the lighting. "Look, I'm already old, almost forgetting this fact. Alright, what do you want to order?"
"A sack of specially baked bread, and the things on this list." Helen pushed a list towards the elder.
There weren't many things on the list, only a few lines, but the elder's brows furrowed together. "The amount of things you want seems to be a bit much. It is difficult to deal with at this time!"
"I understand, but there's no choice. The two fellas back home eat just too much." Helen said with a sigh.
"Alright then, I'll try to think of a way." The elder shrugged his shoulders, standing up.
Helen handed over another card, saying, "Use this account."
The old man nodded. He walked behind the counter, swiped the card, and then began to fill a bag with bread. A while later, the old-fashioned card reader released a beep beep sound, spitting out a slip of paper. The old man gave the paper a look, reached his head above the counter and said, "Hey, Miss Helen, the amount of credit on your card isn't enough."
Helen said with shock, "That card has a credit limit of fifty thousand!"
"Correct, it is fifty thousand, but it's not enough. Miss Helen, the day before yesterday, the Halyphs Family was completely destroyed. You know that their manner is one of the parliament's greatest source of food production. Ever since yesterday, the price of all natural food increased three times. Of course, you can also choose processed meats, the price of those things only doubling."
"Halyphs Family was destroyed?" These news left even Helen a bit shocked. She produced another card, handing it to the old man.
"Correct, Halyphs. Who knows what family's turn it is next. Either way, this blasted war seems like it won't end that easily. Dragon City… it is unknown how much longer Dragon City will be at peace for!" The old man chattered away while operating his old-fashioned card reader.
"I recall that the Halyphs Family had quite the large scale food synthesizing factory." Helen said.
"Also blown up, not even a single intact component to be found. The Halyphs Family, at the final moment, blew up their warehouse as well." The old man said while shaking his head.
Helen frowned. "It is currently winter. Doesn't that mean that many people will starve to death?"
"There are already many who have starved to death. However, even if those people didn't die from starvation, they would have still died on the battlefield."