Reaching the building where the Commander's room was located put Aectaeon in a great deal of distress.
Above avoiding any sort of introspection, he first had to evade the gazes of the other soldiers and staff. It had been his goal from the very beginning. However, it seemed that he wasn't doing a good job at all.
He caught the attention of tens of soldiers, a handful of officers to boot.
He tripped several times on the dirt and also on even pavements.
He even intruded during the formation of a small company because his eyes were glued to the ground.
Right now, Aectaeon was hiding somewhere on the 2nd floor of the Main Office Building. It might just be luck that no one ran after him. Or it's just that no one cared enough. Either way, Aectaeon had no complaints.
'If I remember correctly, the Commander's office is on the third floor.' Aectaeon thought as he stretched his legs on the floor.
The floor where Aectaeon was staying was reserved for the desk workers of the Supplies Division. The entire floor itself was an office, so Aectaeon had hidden behind the table farthest from the entrance. He couldn't push himself further as he felt his consciousness starting to drift away.
A moment's rest would do him a favour in the long run, so to speak.
{{ Time Limit: 00 D; 00 H; 36 M; 11 S }}
Aectaeon scoffed upon seeing the Time Limit. He leaned the top of his head on the divider, looking towards the ceiling to escape the illumination of the panels. Unfortunately, it didn't really help since the sun rays were peeking through the blinds.
'I don't even know how many clues are left. I don't even know how far I have to run just to locate all of them. Then there's the guessing opportunity and two other missions to think about after.'
The man sighed.
Again and again.
Until it didn't help in calming him down anymore.
'What should I do…? What should I do…?'
Aectaeon began tapping his fingers on the floor.
'I can't really fail one of the missions intentionally. They're all interconnected. Not to mention, the ridiculous penalties.'
No matter how much he complained, Aectaeon's desire to accomplish his missions was greater than his desire to rest. That's a given.
Since his legs were feeling a bit better, he decided to stand up, grunting all the while. Once he was on his feet, he went towards the door and opened it slightly. When he determined that there was no one around, he slowly slipped out of the room.
As cautiously as he could, Aectaeon climbed up the stairs.
"Strange, why is there no one here? Has the drill already started? What about the meeting?'
The second he landed on the third floor, he stuck his back on the wall. He then surveyed both ends of the corridor, relieved when nobody was walking about.
Aectaeon immediately ran along the left corridor. He didn't bother inspecting the next corridor first before taking a turn. He just had an inkling that no one was also there. After taking two more turns, he finally arrived in front of the Commander's office.
He grabbed the door handle right away. But to his dismay, it was locked. Aectaeon clicked his tongue.
But then, goosebumps suddenly covered his body.
For some reason, he felt as if he was being preyed upon. He quickly glanced at his back, checking if someone was there watching him.
Although no one was there, Aectaeon was still bothered.
Eyes, many of them were fixated on him. His insides felt itchy. His throat went dry, making him take a gulp. His palm started to sweat, so his hand slipped off of the handle.
Aectaeon just remained there, standing as he kept his eyes at the end of the corridor.
He wanted to check for himself, but his feet refused to move.
A second felt like an hour. An hour felt like a day. Nothing afore him was moving, as if time had stopped for him. And in that instant, he had forgotten to breathe.
Aectaeon turned towards the door and rattled the handle, hoping that it would open. Gritting his teeth, he uttered, "Invent"
{{ INVENTORY }}
{{ MAS-38 x 1 }}
{{ Vityaz-SN x 1 }}
{{ Military Rucksack x 1 }}
{{ To Open Rucksack Inventory: recite "VALICE" }}
{{ To Exit Inventory Window: recite "QUIT" }}
"Valice"
{{ RUCKSACK INVENTORY }}
{{ First Aid Kit x 1 }}
{{ Fire Kit x 1 }}
{{ Fire Starter x 1 }}
{{ Medicine Pouch x 1 }}
{{ Journal Notebook x 1 }}
{{ Black Pen x 1 }}
{{ Water Canteen x 2 }}
{{ MRE Packs x 9 }}
{{ Rechargeable Flashlight x 1 }}
{{ Night Vision Goggles x 1 }}
{{ Survival Knife x 1 }}
{{ Swiss Army Knife x 1 }}
{{ Tactical Radio x 1 }}
{{ Satellite Phone x 1 }}
{{ Compass x 1 }}
{{ Map of the Base x 1 }}
{{ Sleeping Bag x 1 }}
{{ To go Back to Inventory Window: recite "BACK" }}
{{ To Exit Inventory Window: recite "QUIT" }}
"Use Swiss Army Knife"
The knife materialized inside Aectaeon's loosely clenched fist.
{{ Swiss Army Knife In Use }}
He forthwith searched for the thinnest tool in the array and utilized it to pick the lock. In less than ten seconds, he was able to open the door.
Aectaeon entered as soon as he could, closing the door behind him with a thud. Once he was inside, he began heaving heavily. His legs began to tremble, making him fall to the ground.
'What in the-- What in the world was that?!'
He rubbed his shoulder vigorously as if he was trying to remove a sticky substance.
'Disgusting! Is someone planning on eating me alive, huh?!'
"Use Water Canteen"
The item appeared on the spot beside Aectaeon. He grabbed it and emptied the contents as fast as he could. Once he was done, he threw the canteen on the ground. The clanging of the metal pricked his ears, urging Aectaeon to click his tongue again.
He proceeded to look at where the canteen landed. In that instant, he saw the arrowhead that he coveted.
Unfortunately, someone was standing beside it.
Aectaeon's gaze slowly went up, his heart pounding heavily against his chest.