To be honest, Mark was not really satisfied with the answers he got as a result. They just made the questions he had all the more confusing. But the truth was that he was simply too afraid to ask them now.
Especially now that he had a glimpse of what the intruder could do.
So, the best way Mark saw out of this situation was to actually follow what Liam was suggesting and bide his time to check how true his story was.
Not that he doubted him or something, but just for reasons alone. But something in him told him that learning to shoot was a good idea for his safety.
So naturally, the first thing Mark did after waking up was to freshen up and have his breakfast. The second was to hang the closing sign on his clinic and head to the police station.
For most people, the name - police station was a scary synonym with mistakes and regrets. For Mark, it was a part of his somewhat daily routine.
But somehow, today the doors of the place felt oppressing. They felt like a forbidden domain he must not cross. But Mark just took in a deep breath and opened the doors. En stood on the other side of the door.
"Mark, today is a really bad day to swing by. The higher-ups are making a fuss that we are to receive a super special guest we need to train up. A civilian even? Can you believe it? What do they think the police force is? A babysitting firm?" En's words sounded angry.
But it rang a wave of hollow anger which Mark was sure more frustration than anger at this point. This somewhat made him feel guilty.
But then the image of the monster from yesterday flashed before his eyes as he blinked and the feeling of guilt changed to terror. These emotional changes were starting to worry Mark and he hoped they would subside.
Hopefully, learning a weapon would help.
Just as he was about to open his mouth to console his friend, his phone rang. That was new to him, new enough that he almost jumped.
"Excuse me, this could be urgent" Mark flashed an apologetic smile at his friend who looked at him as if he was an alien.
"Sure, take your call" it was only after those words that Mark realised that he was acting way too nervous. He was the cheerful one here, but the past few days had shaken him and he was sure that the other had noticed.
But he was nice enough not to comment.
Once Mark had walked far enough to feel comfortable with the distance from En, he picked up his phone to check.
The number was not one that he knew and while it could very well be an emergency call, Mark had other suspicions. Suspicions were proven right as soon as he hit the answer on the screen.
"Mark, you should have called as soon as you reached the police station" the voice on the other end sounded annoyed.
"How did you know I was here? Are you tracking me? How? GPS?" Mark asked, his tone rising in volume a little. The last part was almost squealed out in a high panicky pitch.
How were they tracking him? Because they were, he was sure. Was someone following them? He had not felt anyone.
He realised his mistake and gave a shake to the onlooking voice along with a sheepish smile. Then he turned around and walked a little away from the crowd.
It was only some passerby employees of the police station, not ones he personally knew. But still, it felt odd - to be in such a public eye all of a sudden. He felt as if he looked at them as much as they would know.
"Calm down, it's nothing like what you are thinking. The central system controls this world and my system draws on that information. Knowing this is but a child's play" Liam's words sounded calm, a matter of fact.
Like he expected Mark to have already guessed.
"It can do that?" Mark asked the question in his voice obvious.
"Never mind what it can and cannot do. You'll feel its power soon enough once everything starts. Give your phone to the chief in charge" Liam's words held command and force.
But they also took Mark back.
"To the chief? To En? Why my phone. Why call here? He'll get suspicious if you do that" Mark was not happy. He was somewhat terrified, but he held his voice.
He did not want another scene to occur.
"It's alright since he'll be a part of everything sooner or later. He's part of the secondary cast anyway. Just do as I say for now since I clearly know better here" Mark was not happy, but he also felt he could not disobey.
Liam had proven to be right this far and he had decided to follow that lead for the moment. But he did not like the way he spoke of everyone.
"He's not a character in a game, he's a living breathing human. Treat him with respect or I won't give him the phone" Mark felt something inside him shift at those words. He felt annoyed for his friend.
"Yeah yeah. Just hand the phone over to him. I have other work to do too" Liam's voice carried annoyance. It felt really different from all their other exchanges.
This felt like he was seeing the real face behind the mask for the first time and it was over a phone call. This made Mark hesitate to follow him.
"Just hand it over and I won't do anything too drastic. The chief is your know right and you don't want him to know all this right now? As a bonus, I'll even throw in this - he won't question you at all. It's a good deal as we need for you to be hidden behind a wall of secrecy" Mark really did not like how those words sounded at all.
"Is all this necessary. Why can't we just tell him? I'm sure he'll understand" Mark commented and somehow before he could blink, he was in front of En.
He blinked up at a pair of concerned eyes looking at him.
"There will be no need. He's one of us anyway. Don't know him personally, but I was told that he was a mole to keep an eye on you" The words should have shocked Mark, but he felt nothing.
Liam's voice was detached and so matter of fact that it left no room for confusion. But it rang hollowly inside Mark's head.
The words echoed inside his head as he looked up at the pair of concerned eyes looking down at him. He did not answer back, for what could he say? That he felt betrayed? But for what reason?
Because En had kept him company through the years? Befriended him even if it was for his mission? That he had kept something secret which Mark was never supposed to find out about?
"Mark?" En's voice called out, so concerned for him that it pulled out a smile at his lips. But Mark knew that just like his heart, this smile was empty too.
"Sorry. It's for you" Mark extended the phone over to his 'friend' who looked much more disturbed. Of course, since En did not have any context he must be feeling this as an OOC Mark.
But surprisingly, he did not question the strangeness and took the phone. Mark saw him leave just as the phone touched his ears.
Everything was turning out to be such a mess. In a week, everything had turned around Mark's head and now he didn't even feel like his life was his anymore. Was anyone he knew genuine in their feelings toward him at all?
What about his clients? Were they there to keep an eye on him too? What about his neighbours? His parents? Were they actually dead or just some agents that had completed their mission and just left for their real home?
Who was he then? Just a character that was written inside the code of a game?
"So you know the truth now. I suppose it was bound to happen if we wanted to keep you alive" En was back, his tone flat and his gaze shifty.
Firm hands held his phone back toward him and without having a look at En's face Mark took his phone back and pocketed it.
There was an awkward silence between them now, a transparent wall that felt all compressing. Or perhaps, it was a transparent box around Mark only which separated him from everything else around him.
"Not everything, but I know enough," He thought he saw En let out a sigh of relief but Mark felt anything but relieved. He felt almost detached.
"I see. So, shooting right? Come this way" there was an elephant in the room which was ignored. Surprisingly, no one was actually looking at them despite this horrible atmosphere.
It almost felt staged, like no one could see anything but their own work.
"Don't worry, it's just the system at work. The conversation would not go out" there it was again, the term 'system.' It was something he was coming to hate and appreciate in the same measures.
"What is it anyway? The 'system'?" In all his hollowness, that was the only question that actually burned his lamp of curiosity. He had a vague idea, Liam had told him so. But he really wanted to know what it actually was.
"You'll come to know. Survive first and you'll get your own handler once things start. But first, let's teach you how to actually defend yourself" En led them down from the stairs toward a hall.
It was a long hall with a glass separation in the ratio of about 8:2 with the longer side having a target at the end. It was a shooting range, one that was well equipped to deal with training new recruits.
"There's one here?" Mark asked for a wonderful present in his voice in tons.
"Of course we have one. Now, here. Hold this" En held out two very distinctive shapes toward him - ear mufflers as well as a .22 calibre. Both were familiar to him, especially the gun since En liked to carry it around.
Though it looked a little bigger than he was used to. Mark did not complain much and just took the mufflers first to put around his neck.
Then he reached for the gun.
"It's a little bigger than the standard .22 calibre. It would be easier to shoot than the real smaller version for an inexperienced person such as you since you have no muscle mass. Be careful" Mark held the gun and as soon as he did, he felt himself almost drop down from the weight.
It was heavier than he was expecting it to be. How would he actually be able to shoot it if he could not even hold it?