Chapter 179

  William found thinking about the ground, let alone the lamps, to be wasteful. Now, when he thought about it, wasn’t the whole electricity, generators, and water business superficial?

  It sounded as if Walkers were in charge of that alone, and it would explain how there were no chimneys and very little smog. It was also false, as this whole land wasn't simply living off of a powerful minority.

  But it lived on because of this minority, and continued doing so.

  Ellie knew this subject, and from this talk, coupled with a walk and a good meal, Walker's business and underground levels of the Federation weren't smaller than the surface. That was where many wonders existed.

  Electricity was a core component of humanity, and it empowered almost everything. Walkers did too, or at least some of them did so for the sake of the majority. A small price, the people would say.

  Walking inside, William reached out for his key apartment, inserted it into the keyhole, and stepped inside his home like a zombi. He barely glossed over the mess on the ground and wanted to shower and sleep.

  It had been two days since Luke departed because of those Rifts issue. They were a probable cause, though Luke hadn't said much about them. William assumed he didn't have to, so he didn't.

  Thus, he didn't expect to meet anyone here. Not even those mysterious roommates that never showed up. William hoped Luke would return safely, and from the looks of it, the battles will be over soon.

  Luke kept things vague because that was his style. William didn't mind it that much and shrugged it off because he was getting used to him.

  Many people had their priorities set on what they wanted. Personality aside, wanting to change their nature wasn't always right, clever, or harmful.

  It depended on people, which was why William trusted that people could change, no matter what. For good or worse, a couple of days of knowing Luke wasn't a lot, but it was also not very little, if that makes sense.

  Pulling his shoes off, he noticed a bunch of voices talking god knows where. There were even bags not so far away. They looked like military equipment, ranging from simple green bags to sturdy cases.

  Listening to the sounds, the kitchen had those hums, so William assumed Luke was back, and someone else was also there with him.

  “Hm?” William assumed nothing further and went ahead first. “Gree..” Just when he wanted to greet Luke, he stopped in his tracks as he walked into the kitchen.

  There was an absolute beauty to behold inside, standing half-naked with a towel around her chest and half to her thighs. Mi-Yung glanced at William, eyes flashing with surprise and no shame whatsoever. Her long, black, wet hair was thin, looking like razor lines behind her back.

  She had to take this shower after all, as the last couple of days hadn't been the smoothest experience of her life. After cleaning her mess and following further orders, she even caught on to Dreadus and wasted a bit more time there. With that done, more than five days had passed. Five gruesome and also excellent days.

  At last, he was here, before her and her alone.

  “I... I... I am sorry,” William blurted out as he moved his gaze like his steps, sidestepping yet still looking at her for a bit longer than he should have.

  “Hm?” Mi-Yung pressed her lips and secured her towel a bit more. She had no speck of embarrassment on her beautiful face.

  Her sharp brows pressed, eyes squinted, and she assessed this youth from hair to shoes. It was important, if not downright one of the most important moments in her recent memory.

  By all rights, William observed her as much as she did him. Mi-Yung was generously younger than he expected, barely looking thirty, and even that might be off.

  With her wet skin adding freshness, her radiating, mesmerizing aura and strength, as well as tender anxiety from battles and dealing with the last couple of days, made her feel a bit mysterious and like no human at all.

  There were no scars on her visible body whatsoever, so she seemed like a model from a previous era.

  But there were sturdy muscles there, as well as weight, softness, and elegance in her flesh. It was a major primary feat for Walkers to close or choose their preferred perfection, since all deficits would hinder their progress or focus. With Arcana dwelling in their bodies in one way or another, changing bodies or strengthening such prose was more than possible.

  It had to be done. It wasn't always about outer effects, for Emblems did their things in countless variants and levels and layers.

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  One thing, other than the two below, was also there, shining in the night. William noticed the end of a glinting jewel right above her breasts, approaching her neck. It was an interesting line without the bottom in sight, so he wondered where did it end.

  It was quite a long Emblem, engraving and running in an awkward place. Embarrassed, he glanced aside for real and didn't even know what to do.

  Mi-Yung knew; she walked to him, smile wide, and her heart was more than glad and pounding. Her steps were quick and strong, and one thing turned truly passionate. Her skin started to fog up from the moisture that slowly turned to mist, and the first things she did was to hug him and look at him even closer.

  Of course, he didn't take it that well and was utterly silent because there was no way in hell he could have fled.

  This meeting was a long while in the making, if not a work of the past decade. Mi-Yung had so much to tell, show, and give to this youth, he might not even believe it.

  The next thing was an obvious greeting, but considering that hug, perhaps it should have happened first. “You look older than I thought, William Gale, my little treasure that I finally sea with my own eyes. I suppose that is normal. You are of age, after all.” She said and moved her finger, touching his chin and angling his face to see it whole.

  “D-d-d-d-d-do we know each other?” he mumbled, uncertain whether this was really who Luke described as his freaking wife. Wasn’t she too darn gorgeous for that guy? Also, wasn’t she kind of ridiculous?

  Mi-Yung puffed her cheeks and began laughing. She couldn't help herself. Making fun of this situation was completely deceitful for struggling William. He had enough troubles today with Kaufman and Ellie, so this was well beyond, or... well, it was something else.

  “My name is Mi-Yung. Song Mi-Yung. Did Luke not tell you about my later arrival, name, or... anything?” She introduced herself with a bright smile after backing away a little. Giving this otherwise calm night another hit wasn't a problem for her.

  But this boy before her was far out of his mind.

  William spaced out and failed to escape her gaze, so he clutched his bottle behind his back. He heard creaking, and that alone calmed him down.

  “Kaufman said something, but Luke is away and always shakes his head over your arrival. He… kind of didn’t know where you are, so I don’t know you,” he revealed, trying to calm his flustered expression. She had yet to let go of his chin for some reason.

  It was true. Her name, eyes, and face left a lasting first impression on William's face, and he didn't know her at all. This first meeting was less than ideal.

  The basics touched upon her Walker's status, significant role in Assembly Island, her relationship with Luke, and that she was often very busy.

  Luke also said that his retrieval ended up being a little off-putting for some people and that he shouldn't worry and focus on the library and learning because Mi-Yung was the main cause of his kidnapping.

  Fixing it sounded complicated, or easy, depending on what the hell was actually going on with these problems or Assembly.

  Or her.

  Wait. Wait. Learn. So on. It wasn't giving much clarity to this boy until he finally met the cause. William focused on what he could handle because it was easy with Ellie close. Leaving that aside, he wasn't sure what to believe next.

  In a flash, numerous ideas and memories that originated from Luke at their first meeting—including further talks in that helicopter and with Kaufman—gave William a couple of small ideas.

  Mi-Yung was the sole motive that made him come here weeks before the Forced Awakening, which should’ve been his major stake even without her. Weirdly, no recruiters coming to the Roshwell camp ever mentioned anything about it, either by fear or unspoken rules.

  In the Federation, the event of the Examination was common knowledge, but not the Forced Awakening. This made this entire situation with Luke’s team kind of weird, as it was more private and done so quickly and strangely that even miss Anderson accepted it. At least it wasn’t like delegates from the East.

  It was not a random idea, guess, or invitation. This person's power and rule brought him here. Not by luck. Sure, some force was there, but that was fair and almost given.

  It happened because William supposed that staying where he was for two years was no longer good. He accepted it and figured he was also at fault. By calming down and trying to understand this lady, he felt it would soon be more reasonable.

  Mu-Yung finally found that old relation she had oh so desired for the past decade. Looking at his face, she pondered for a while before letting him free.

  “That asshole!” Mi-Yung made a different smile and glanced aside. “Have anything to say to that, Luke?”

  A helpless and wet figure walked around a corner, a tower around his hips. His muscles showed intense terror, and numerous scars gave him a contrast between a soldier and a hell walker.

  Luke scratched his chin and wasn’t ashamed, let alone embarrassed about anything he had said about her. By all means, it wasn’t even his fault; he shouldn’t even be involved in that sort of business. It was no contract, let alone a simple thing to do. Also, he kind of knew her personality and traits, so letting things go this way sounded totally fine.

  Luke expected this to happen and was ready to face the consequences.

  “I was busy, and—”

  Before he had a chance to redeem himself, Mi-Yung made her move. Quick steps were soundless, and her hands were even quicker than the water dropping from her soft flesh and floaty yet resilient hair. In a flash, she pressed her left palm on his neck and the other behind his shoulder.

  Then she pressed herself against him until he grunted and plunged to the wall. Her softness and power pushed onto him, and before he found the strength to escape, her leg moved around his like two scythes.

  She tripped him over and performed a chokehold under a breath without paying attention to her attire, or, to be more specific, the lack of it.

  “YOU! Stupid! Luke! I told you to take care of William and fix any sort of misunderstanding!” She called out, each word smacking his cheek or tensing the hold. They were on the ground, fighting.

  Luke was speechless and didn't utter a word.

  “You told me nothing of this care! I am a soldier! Not a nanny. Just go and fetch him with freaking Academy chopper, eh? Freaking Dreamscape has more sense than this, and have you even heard the issues and what it all caused? And let’s not pretend something else. Was Kaufman even involved with you, or had he done it all like a ghost?”

  “What a load of crap and excuses,” Mi-Yung said coldly and resumed her force.

  “Where and how to think? Hell, I don't give a crap about it when I have missions to take care of because some people are seriously pissed off at you. Not at me; but that that it even matters to any of them. This much was already...” Luke kept arguing, slightly enjoying the hold.

  Not because of the hold itself, of course. That would be weird.