It was exactly midnight. The other players had gone to bed, but Axel's eyes remained open as he couldn't bring himself to sleep.
Trying to check his face now would be impossible. I'm sure he hasn't slept deeply; he wouldn't want us to find out about his real face. Axel thought as he glanced at Lionel, who appeared to be sleeping but wasn't.
"Anyway, I'll just go ahead with my recent plans. He wouldn't want to stop me for fear of me revealing his face, Axel thought as a grin escaped his lips. He soon got up from the floor and walked out of the supermarket. He continued walking until he reached an underground area where different cars were parked. Among the cars parked was a bicycle.
Since we can't use cars due to the lack of fuel, I might as well use the bicycle to do what I want to do, Axel thought to himself. He drove the bicycle out of the underground but was soon startled by a slim figure that appeared out of nowhere.
"Arrrrgh.. What the hell do your think you're doing?" Axel yelled angrily at the slim figure, which appeared to be Ave.
"And where are you going?" Ave asked with a serious expression.
"And how does that concern you?" Axel replied rather rudely, and began to walk past her.
"Let me ride on the bicycle with you," Ave said, as she turned to face Axel, who had also stopped walking.
"No! You should mind your own business, lady," Axel replied with a frustrated tone.
"I guess I'll have to wake everyone up then. With that, they'll all want to follow you, and considering the fact that you don't know the dangers you're going to be facing on the way, everyone might eventually be a part of your misfortune if anything should go wrong. Just let me ride on the bicycle with you. If I'm right, you're trying to gather some information about this game world. And that's what I'm also trying to do. Two is better than one. We can work as a team," said Ave with a wide grin.
"Aren't you scared? You're a lady after all," said Axel.
"With everything I've experienced since the day I arrived in the game world, what could possibly be scarier than what I've already been through? Ave asked as she walked up to Axel, now standing beside him. I just want to find the game master, and the only way to start is by gathering as much information as possible. Trust me, I won't be a burden to you.
You're so stubborn. I won't let you bring me down with you. If any danger comes our way, you're on your own, replied Axel with a serious gaze. But you can come along if you're okay with that, he added, and a large smile appeared on Ave's lips as she followed Axel out of the underground with the bicycle.
The two of them sat on the bicycle with Axel in front, riding, and Ave sitting at the back.They rode through the dark streets, onto the express road and over bridges. Soon, Axel finally stopped the bicycle in front of a large, dilapidated building.
The compound looked like it had been abandoned for years. The paint was peeling off the walls, and the front porch was sagging. There were cobwebs in the windows, and the grass was overgrown.
"Where are we?" Ave asked curiously as she held onto the small flashlight she had taken from the supermarket earlier.
"The most suspicious place I want to check. I believe we can start gathering information from here," replied Axel, as he began walking into the building with his own flashlight, with Ave following closely behind him.
The house had a creaky staircase that led up to the second floor. The stairs were old and rickety, and they made a creepy sound when you stepped on them. The upstairs hallway was dim and shadowy, and the floorboards were uneven. There were closed doors leading to empty rooms, and one of the doors was slightly ajar.
Axel and Ave continued to walk up the stairs, taking low steps. Axel finally stood in front of a wooden door with the name "big boss" hung just above it, and decided to open the door. Inside, there was a musty, damp smell. There were empty picture frames on the walls, and the furniture was covered in dust. There was a strange feeling of emptiness, like the house had been waiting for someone to come back for a long time.
"Why is no one present here? I thought we would be meeting lots of people here," Axel said with a frustrated expression.
"What's going on? Where are we?" Ave asked, her gaze fixed on Axel as he searched through the drawers for information.
Ignoring Ave's questions, Axel quickly left the room and began checking every other room, going through the files in the drawers until he had checked every room and now standing on the main floor of the building with Ave standing beside him.
PEEPS*
Suddenly, Axel's gaze turned to where a peep sound was coming from. It turned out to be a bomb, planted on the house ceiling just above his head.
Damn it!" Axel cursed and yelled, "Run!" as he grabbed Ave's hand and hurriedly ran out of the building with all his strength.
BOOM*
The loud boom reverberated as Axel and Ave escaped the building, their heads still low and ears covered despite the lingering noise.
After a few minutes, the loud noises ceased. Axel cautiously raised his head to see the building he had called home his entire life now reduced to rubble.
Ave raised her head, tears streaming down her cheeks. "What the hell was that? We could have died, you motherfucker!" she yelled as she walked up to Axel and punched him in the chest. "Such a dickhead!"
"I told you not to come with me, didn't I? But since you refused to listen, this is the outcome," replied Axel coldly, leaving the young lady speechless as he began walking out of the building.
The two of them soon stepped out of the building and started walking down the dark street with the help of their flashlight, while Axel walked with the bicycle.
"Where was that? It looks like they were prepared to kill whoever came there. What exactly is going on?" Ave asked, her eyes burning with curiosity.
Judging from what happened earlier, I think I know who the game master is now," replied Axel, stopping with a grin on his lips. "Just wow, how many people created this game? What's behind it, Murphy Lionel, you're full of surprises."
"Who's that?" Ave asked, her gaze fixed on Axel, waiting for an answer.
"He's the leader of the assassination cult I worked for. The bomb planted earlier shows they were waiting for us. He knew I was coming and was prepared. I wouldn't have suspected if I hadn't found this camera," Axel said, pulling a small camera from his shirt.
He then proceeded to show a video of Anthony in the building talking to a person whose face wasn't revealed.
"Who's that?" asked Ave, with a confused and frustrated expression.
"He was part of our team before, but unfortunately he tried to kill me. I knew he only did that because the day he would be planning his own trial was near," replied Axel with a smirk. "And this camera, I was fortunate to take it from his pocket without him knowing during our fights."
"I don't understand what you're saying. What exactly are you trying to explain here?" asked Ave.
"The only thing you should know is that some of the game planners might be among us and pretend to play the games with us. Not everyone playing the game is actually a player; some are the game masters behind the game," said Axel, locking his gaze with Ave, who seemed terrified by what she heard.