CHAPTER 15

  Am I supposed to eat this?

  I turned the small dark green pebble around in my fingers. It looked like some kind of tiny breath mint, but was lumpy and organic looking, like it had melted.

  No way I am eating this thing, It looks like something I found stuck to my shoe.

  I looked at the two people standing in front of the counter. They were both giving me expectant looks that were frankly, giving me the creeps.

  “Uh, so what am I supposed to do with this?”

  In response to my question, I could see the immediate change in their faces as their moods sank together. That was obviously the wrong thing to say.

  “Didst thou hear anything, or feel thyself compelled by any force unseen?”

  What is with this kid? Who talks like that?

  It was hard to understand the middle school kid. Not only did he have a slight lisp, but he used these old archaic words like they did in the samurai TV shows and movies. I heard they still talked like that in some places in Southern Japan, but I’d never seen anyone talk like that in Tokyo.

  “Umm, no?”

  “Hmmm. Well, that settles that, I suppose.” The old man scratched the stubble on his chin as he gave me an intense look. It was the look of someone trying to decide if you were lying to them, and I didn’t like it at all.

  “Am I supposed to do something?”

  Moments before, the young hero, Toshiro, which seemed like an oddly appropriate, though unusual name, had simply handed me the stone, saying that they needed to check on something.

  “Without doubt, he is no man of our fellowship.”

  What the hell is that supposed to mean?

  I frowned at the little punk kid who talked like some kind of feudal lord.

  The old man, noting my reaction, put up his hands.

  “No, no. Don’t be offended. It’s just a little test. A scientific experiment. We wanted to make sure about something. It’s all fine.”

  “Make sure about what?”

  This might have been a mistake.

  I glanced at PTA Mom. She was standing back, but gave me a look, as though pleading with me to be patient.

  “We wanted to know if you were a powered individual. People call them ‘heroes’. I’ve heard so many incredible things about this store, and we had thought that you must surely be one of them. Toshiro, can you show him what the stone does?”

  At the old man’s direction, the boy took the stone back from my hand, and then held it out toward me in the center of his outstretched palm.

  I watched as the stone slowly started to glow, and then, in a tiny flash of light, it disappeared.

  “What? What happened? What was that?”

  Damn, was that thing dangerous? Why did he give it to me in the first place?

  “The object is known as a Heartstone. We do harvest them from the hearts of fell beasts. They are, moreover, the hidden source of the heroes’ mighty powers.”

  Ugh. Seriously? This kid…

  “Young Toshiro is telling the truth. You have heard of the heroes, yes?”

  The old politician seemed to sense my growing lack of patience with the boy’s eccentric style of speech.

  I nodded.

  “Yes. But I don’t know much. I heard that after the earthquake, some people gained superhuman abilities.”

  “Yes. That is the general understanding. While much has been taken from us, it appears that in a few rare cases, a gift was given in return. The Heroes appeared, and with them, a way to protect us from the many new plagues that have appeared. They are individuals with amazing powers, and a mission to defend humanity.”

  That’s literally right from some comic book geek’s dream.

  “Those stones, the heartstones, they are used by the Heroes to use and increase their abilities. If you also had such an ability, you would have immediately felt some instinct to absorb and use the stone. We thought, based on all the stories we have been hearing about this place, that you must have been one of those chosen to be able to harness that power.”

  They thought I was a hero?

  “Sorry, I honestly do not have any special abilities. I’m just a normal person.”

  “Not that normal, after all, you control this amazing store. The food and supplies you provided yesterday were sorely needed. I admit, that it was hard to believe the rumors, but when all that food appeared, free of rot and contamination, I didn’t know what to think.”

  PTA Mom finally stepped in to explain the situation.

  “Ming, like I told ya, the Governor here has been the one making sure that the people who most need help are getting it. He’s been working almost as much as you have, tracking what few good resources are out there, and connecting the neighborhoods together, making sure no one is forgotten.”

  It made sense that there should be some form of government response, but I was getting the feeling that there was no central government left. If that was the case, I wanted to know how far this disaster had reached.

  “What about Tokyo? What about the national government? When are the rescue teams coming?”

  The look on the old man’s face chilled me to the core.

  “I’m sorry. I’m afraid I don’t know either. I wish I did. The scope of the disaster… We were not ready. The national government, the civil defense, local governments, none of our plans were useful. I can only apologize for our failure to protect the people and secure the safety and prosperity of the country.”

  The old man bowed deeply, clearly humbled by the situation. It was shocking, a high-ranking government official was now standing in front of me, bowing in apology.

  “The Governor, he’s done more than anyone else. He’s gathered all the remaining civil servants, the policemen, firefighters, doctors, bureaucrats, and anyone who has the skill or knowledge to be helpful. He is helping save the people who are still trapped, and most importantly, he brought the Heroes together.”

  I had no idea such things were going on. The street the store was located in was a somewhat protected area, blocked in my larger buildings, all of which had likely been empty when the disaster occurred in the middle of the night.

  “We, the heroes, did awaken to the sound of a voice within our minds. The voice spake unto us, bidding that we stand in defense of mankind. It taught us the means by which to slay the monsters and to wield the powers set within us.”

  With that, the boy stepped back, and then shouted at the top of his voice.

  “I summon forth my sword, Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, the Cleaver of Demons!”

  Holy smokes. This kid is nuts.

  From a kendo stance, the young boy slowly pulls a glowing blue sword from empty air. Lines of lightning flash from the glowing blade as it forms in his hand.

  Then Toshiro vanishes into thin air.

  “What the—”

  The governor gasped in shock, and then he spun around, looking for the missing boy.

  As soon as Toshiro vanished, all the display screens in the store flashed to a red screen, with a now familiar police hat Wanma looking out of the monitors with a scornful expression.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  [Violation: Weapons are not permitted on the premises. Violations will result in removal from the premises. Further violation may result in temporary or permanent loss of entry permission. Thank you for your cooperation. One Mart looks forward to your next visit!]

  In the last week, I had gotten used to this. More than once, someone had tried to slip out with something hidden in a pocket or bag, to a similar result. It didn’t happen a lot, and anyone who had tested it never tried it again.

  I directed the Governor’s attention to the street, where Toshiro was now standing, talking animatedly with the other people who had stayed outside. Then I pointed to the message on the monitor.

  “Remarkable.”

  Rather than being upset, the old man seemed to be almost pleased.

  “So it’s all true? The store can defend itself?”

  I nodded affirmatively.

  “Even against monsters?”

  I nodded again.

  “But you don’t control it?”

  “It’s the store. It follows its own rules. Well, rules set by whoever programmed it. I’m not the one making the rules or enforcing them. I’m just an ordinary person. Maybe even less than that. I’m just a temp, who works the night shift.”

  As Toshiro walked back into the store, once again unarmed, but more cautiously than before, the Governor turned back to look at me. He stared at me for a few seconds, then nodded his head slowly.

  “I don’t see you as ordinary at all, Mr…?

  I faltered for a moment, not sure of what to say. Those people who chose to call me anything, simply called me Ming, as it was written on the tag on my uniform. This form of forced intimacy was meant to make it easier for customers to make requests from the employees. Meanwhile, we were never allowed to use a customer’s name, even their last name. This always put us below the customer in any interaction.

  No one had ever asked for my last or full name. Somehow, this older, distinguished man, asking me for my name felt like a sign of respect that I was sure I didn’t deserve. It was almost as if he was treating me as an equal, while the truth was that he was a high government official and I was just a temporary convenience store clerk.

  “Mr…?”

  I still hesitated, but he kept looking at me, and I wasn’t sure what to do. To make it stop, I answered him.

  “Huang. My name is Ming Huang.”

  “Mr. Huang. Thank you, My name is Shigehiko Ueno. Until recently, I worked as the Lieutenant Governor of Saitama Prefecture. Now, I am simply a public servant, one of many who are endeavoring to help the people of Saitama during these times of difficulty.”

  As he spoke, he extended his hand. Not knowing what else to do, I shook his hand, while trying not to look at him directly or obviously avert my eyes.

  Ahhh! I don’t know where to look!

  “It is clear to me that you are an exceptional individual. You speak intelligently, and act prudently. Regardless of what you say, I know that due to your direct actions, many lives have been saved, and many, many more have had their suffering abated, even by a little.”

  I thought back to those first couple of days. I had done nothing but sit in this store by myself. I knew I did not deserve the praise he was giving to me, but didn’t know how to express it.

  The Governor released his grip, and I lowered my hand.

  “Things are not easy for anyone. In just the past few days, I have seen good people falter. I have seen brave men turn and run. I have even seen my fellow countrymen commit atrocities on each other out of fear and greed. I shudder to think what the days ahead will reveal.”

  As Toshiro joined us at the counter again, the Governor put his hand on the young boy’s shoulder.

  “We call people like Toshiro a hero, not because they heard voices and received powers, but because of what they are doing. Each day, they have been fighting the monsters tirelessly, trying to make our city safe again. For an old man like me to ask this of a fourteen-year-old boy fills me with shame.”

  He locked his eyes on me, and I felt an intensity that was hard to resist.

  “Your judgment, and actions have preserved this place, helped to ensure the people who need these precious resources can get access to them, and from everything I have heard, and seen, you have treated everyone who has come here with humility and generosity. To me, you deserve to be called a hero, just as much as anyone else.”

  I felt uncomfortable. I could tell that he was saying these things to influence my opinion, to make me receptive to his influence, he was a politician after all. Still, I felt sincerity in his words, and saw no deception in his eyes.

  Most of all, I wanted to believe him. I wanted to return to a world where people in power took the responsibility for the safety and well-being of the public to heart. I wanted the world to be normal again, desperately.

  With my doubts settled, I spent the next ten minutes explaining what I knew about the store to the Governor. Everything from how things used to work, and how they had changed after the earthquake, to the enhancements that had happened after the upgrade. I showed them the delivery schedules and invoices for the products that had been received. Throughout all my explanations, the older man listened carefully, only asking a few questions.

  One thing he asked took me by surprise. First, because it showed that he had indeed been paying close attention to what I had been saying, and also because it mirrored a question I had myself, but had forgotten about without investigating to find an answer.

  “Even though the AI is controlling the orders, isn’t there a way for you to edit the requested deliveries?”

  I was about to explain that the AI was fully in charge, when I remembered that there actually were several ways to do what he had asked.

  The first was to manually add items to the order. This was something I wasn’t supposed to do as a temporary part-time worker, but I hadn’t actually attempted to do it, so I wasn’t entirely sure that it wasn’t possible.

  Another way was not really up to me, but could theoretically allow anyone to add items to the supply deliveries. That was by using the app.

  Through the app, customers could order anything they wanted from the online store, and whatever they ordered could be sent to the physical store of their choosing. I noticed it, but hadn’t attempted to use it, after seeing the interface when I first opened the app after the disaster had struck. Since then, I had forgotten about it in my focus on the digital wallet function.

  Now that deliveries had seemingly resumed, it seemed possible that I, or anyone with a working app, could order whatever we wanted, pay for it through the digital wallet, and have it delivered to the store along with the other products.

  What made this even more exciting was that the online store had a much larger selection of goods than we usually carried. There were even things like camping supplies, clothing, and electronics products.

  Again, I wasn’t sure that this would work, but suddenly I was excited to investigate the possibilities.

  Since the time we had was limited, I promised to investigate and let him know what I could determine through testing and questioning the AI.

  For his part, the Governor promised his support, not only in helping maintain the integrity of the store’s independence, but also in supplying me with information and a reliable line of communication.

  He promised to assign people to make daily visits to the store from the interim base that the government employees had established at a nearby high school. They would communicate to the nearby groups that no organization, even the group the Governor had organized, was to take over the operations of the store. Both the public servants and the Heroes would stand behind me as the operator and representative of the store and its resources.

  In truth, it was a hollow gesture. The store’s defenses seemed to be more impressive than anything the Governor, or even the Heroes could manage, but having their backing would go a long way in keeping the more annoying people at bay. This would be especially helpful as word spread that supplies of new products would be available.

  Finally, I promised to prioritize the sale of critical supplies, such as bandages, antiseptics, and over-the-counter drugs, to the public servants for distribution until the shortage was abated.

  For the time being, the Governor was sure that obtaining cash wasn’t an immediate issue. There was nowhere else to spend it after all, as these supplies were unavailable anywhere else. That said, cash was now a non-renewable resource, and we needed to keep that in mind for any longer-term strategy.

  We started to discuss the future impact of a seemingly endless supply chain and a finite amount of currency, but it was clear that this would be a much longer conversation than we had time for, so the Governor promised we would set aside time during a future visit to discuss such matters in greater detail.

  “What did you do before working here? It seems unlikely that someone with your understanding would be working as a clerk in a convenience store.”

  “Well, I recently graduated from Meishuu University Graduate School of Business and Economics.”

  This seemed to shock the Governor more than anything else I had told him so far.

  “Really? They why… No wait, You don’t need to answer that. It is none of my business, nor is it relevant. What is important is that I feel confident that you are the right person to be where you are right now. I can only be grateful that fate has put you where we needed a man of your abilities to be at this time and place.”

  Boy, he does lay it on thick.

  I tried not to let the man’s smooth words of flattery influence me, but my smile was genuine.

  Before the delegation left, the boy, Toshiro, approached me again and handed me another of the small green pebbles.

  “I know well thou art not one of the Chosen, and that these stones are like to be of little use to thee. Yet I cannot shake the feeling that there is something about this store — a power, mayhap, greater even than the gifts we heroes wield.”

  “Don’t you need it?”

  “I hold many of these stones. Yet know that there is a limit to how oft their power may be drawn — but a few times each day, as it now standeth. Each monster we vanquish beareth one within its breast. Take this, I pray thee, and perchance it may prove of use to thee in some other manner in times to come.”

  This kid. I seriously can’t…

  I took a deep breath.

  “Uhh, sure. Thanks.”

  Per our discussion, I started to bring out the stock from the back room and scanned as much as possible into the system, so that they could purchase whatever they wanted. The escorts from outside joined us in the store, and I learned that two of them were police officers, or former police anyway.

  They loaded up a sizable amount, which saved me some time in restocking the shelves. I knew that there should be a few more deliveries later in the day, so I didn’t think it would make much difference overall. The word would soon spread, and this store would be getting busy. That was inevitable.

  As the group left the store, PTA Mom came over and gave me another one of her hugs. I was starting to get used to them, so I didn’t stiffen up as much as I usually did.

  “Ya did good, Ming. Things are going to be fine.”

  She said with a big grin, then she pulled me close and whispered something in my ear.

  “Don’t get too pulled into his flow. I think he’s a good man, and he is doing lots of good things, but he’s a politician, don’t ya forget.”

  She pulled back and joined the group at the entrance.

  “Remember, this PTA Mom’s always on your side!” She yelled, then gave me a wink.

  I wanted to make sure to get everything in place before people started showing up, so I got back to scanning and stocking the products. Including all the dried goods. It was quite a bit of work, and I needed to make sure the displays met the store’s standard for inspection as well.

  I still had the small green pebble that Toshiro had given me, and I didn’t want to lose it, so I placed it in the currency tray on the counter for now, then went back to stocking the shelves and straightening up the store.

  I didn’t notice the window that had appeared on the screen, and by the time I finished, I had forgotten all about the small green pebble.

  I also missed noticing as the small, dark green stone slowly glowed, and then disappeared in a tiny flash of light.

  [Notice: Additional charging method confirmed. ATM system will be upgraded to accept new charging currency.]