Loki’s Successor System

Chapter 161: Day Two in the New World

Chapter 161: Day Two in the New World

I woke up, turning to my side. There was a pain in the ribs of said side. So I turned to my other side. The pain was there too. I slowly raised upright, only my feet and my behind touching the floor. My eyes were kept closed. I had a penchant for sleeping on the sides as opposed to the back. But I couldn't get any of that last night. The floor was also really flat and hard on my back. I cursed.

I opened my eyes only to see Hanso, Xavier, and hundreds more familiar corpses lingering on the floor in a striking slew of atrocities. Blood, a lot of blood. And juxtaposed, stood a figure with green, glowing eyes; wearing a perpetual smirk amidst all of this

I quickly squeezed my eyes shut, and tried to slow my breath. I slowly exhaled and opened my eyes again. I was just staring at the opposite wall of the alley. I sighed in relief. Another factor that contributed to my insomnia was the endless reign of nightmares. 

What about Hanso and Miguel? Did they get good sleep? I turned to them. Hanso seemed comfortable, still asleep. However, Miguel wasn't there next to him. I looked around until my eyes eventually met Miguel at the end of the alley.

Ialongside the mimicking red-eyed creatureslowly climbed to my feet, stretching. I winced. The pain I felt was enough to drive me insane. My entire body was sore. Regardless, I walked over to Miguel. I stopped when I was right in front of him. He seemed different. He peered up at the sky where the dome covered. His eyes were glassy. I couldn't fathom the look on his face.

The look ... reminded me of the look I saw on somebody else's face. A face I loved and feared at the same time. Miguel reminded me of this person at that moment.

I didn't know whether he saw me next to him or not, so I decided to speak. I folded my arms. "Good morning. It's really cold out here, isn't it? How long have you been up?"

He slowly looked at me. "About an hour or two ago. I'm just ... relaxing."

It was around seven in the morning. So he did rouse quite early. I looked up at the sky as well. The translucent hexagons were looking right down at me. "That's quite early for someone who got his ass beaten to a pulp last night. Had trouble sleeping?"

"Actually," he said, "I slept like a log last night. It was really cold, and I gave my jacket to you but... I was able to sleep nonetheless."

Having listened to him, I instantly knew his reverie was stemmed from other problems. I didn't dare ask him what those problems were. I guess I had more things to learn about Hanso and Miguel than I thought. Two strangers I only just met. I frowned. They were great friends already. But ... I felt a yearning for my other friends .... the ones who-

"I'm splitting up from you guys today for in a bit," Miguel said, "I have something to do. I'll find you again. Rule three."

I felt an urge to ask him where he was going, but I relented. Miguel had a secret life of his own. Asking him about itthat was another I didn't dare do.

"Alright," Hanso said from behind, "you just better be back quick. And don't come back if you're not bringing us something to eat." He walked up to us, yawning. Then, he stopped and narrowed his eyes at Miguel; to which Miguel snorted. 

"I'll try to bring something back," Miguel said, "you guys be safe, alright? And avoid getting into more trouble. I don't want you guys getting hurt. You look like shit. Lie low, and try not to draw attention to yourself. Rule one. Easy?"

Hanso scoffed. "Yeah, we all know the rules. Especially me. I'm the only one who hasn't broken any yet."

"That's great," Miguel looked at him, staring. "Since the three are too easy for you ... I'd like to establish a fourth rule."

"A fourth rule?" Hanso and I echoed in unison.

Hanso sneered. "Why would we need a fourth rule?"

"The fourth rule is," Miguel glared at him, "trust and loyalty. We are to trust each other and stay true to each other. There should be no fighting amongst us. No back-stabbing amongst us. No hate amongst us. Rule four: don't be the cunt who isn't loyal to his friends. You got that?"

Hanso scoffed, averting his eyes. "Of course. What's a fourth rule if I haven't broken the three before?"

Miguel stared at him, oddly, for a while. And then, he looked at me.

"Yeah," I nodded, "I got that."

Miguel sighed, looked at Hanso one last time, and then deflated, turning around. 

What was all that about?

I guess we had a fourth rule. Trust and loyalty. That should've been the first rule.

"Oh and ... Miguel," Hanso called.

Miguel looked over his shoulder. "What?" He said with a gruff. 

Hanso furrowed his brows. "Get back a few hours before dark. We gotta find a way to pay our debts, find food and shelter again, and additionally find that old man's son, Andrew. Stay keen out there. Report back to us if you find something that would make our tasks easier."

"I'll keep an eye out for Rafael, Nate, and this 'Andrew'," Miguel said, walking away. He disappeared into the walls and corners of the new world streets. 

I gasped. We had a lot to do. A lot. We had to not only find sustenance but also suffer from being under two magic hexes already. Maynard's spell. Rafael's spell. I totally forgot we had to find Maynard's monstrous son. "We gotta find Andrew. Only just remembered that."

"No biggie," Hanso said, calm. "It's a small world now, and Andrew is definitely within this dome. We have a lot of time on our hands. We just have to avoid being bewitched ever again."

Hanso was right as always. But he was incredibly, awfully wrong about everything he'd said.

It was a huge 'biggie' since both hexes would be hindering our bodies later. Two, the world was small. But huge. Massive when you consider the fact that it comprised thousands of magic users. We didn't have a lot of time on our hands at all. The demons would find a way to get into the domes soon enough if they hadn't already. And lastly, it was nearly impossible to avoid being bewitched ever again.