"You alright?" Melody asked while walking to Clovis, who was lying down on his stomach. His fingers were spasming.
"Yeah. You good?" Clovis replied with a coarse voice.
"I have no injuries thanks to you."
"Then do you mind collecting their essence? I don’t think I’m in the condition to do that." Clovis let out a long sigh.
"Sure, but for now…" Melody lifted Clovis up and placed his hand on her shoulder. She started helping Clovis climb the stairs.
She brought him to the surface and started bandaging him. They grabbed the water bottle from the bag on the UTV, which Clovis bought from Another World Mall. The water was refreshing and helped with their stamina recovery.
While tying up the bandage, Melody couldn’t help but say, "Seriously… I wonder how you, Jay, and Ragna always get injured."
"We are simply protecting the people on the back." Clovis shrugged.
"No. I know that. What I mean is… how are you guys able to get used to the injury? The last time I was in the hospital, it was so painful that I didn’t want to do this anymore. I’m fine with small injuries, but big injuries are too much for me."
"Welll…" Clovis chuckled. "Just imagine that your brother is behind you. In front of you are numerous enemies. What will you do?"
"That’s…" Melody shook her head helplessly. "I understand. Though, I wonder what you will do if the one with you right now is Kanaria, not me."
"I will do the same thing," answered Clovis without hesitation.
"Huh?" Melody was taken aback by the response. Was she at the same level as Kanaria? Was this a hint that Clovis was attracted to her romantically? But she had sworn in her heart that she wouldn’t think about anything romantic for the rest of her life. "Are you holding me in the same regard as Kanaria?"
"Mhmmm…" Clovis scratched the back of his head. The answer wasn’t something he could reveal easily.
"It’s fine. Please tell me about it. I don’t think it’ll change my attitude toward you and everyone else." Melody noticed from his expression that he didn’t think of her that way, which she accepted pretty easily.
"I’m just protecting you guys as I’ll do for my family. With the absence of my parents and grandfather, you guys are the closest people to me."
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"Oh." Melody was surprised at first but soon smiled.
Clovis was a bit hesitant, but he eventually chose to continue, "If anything bad happens to you guys, I’ll be angry and sad. But if it’s Kanaria… I will go insane."
"I see. That sounds like you." She could understand it since she would probably do the same for her brother. "It seems that Kanaria is a lucky girl."
Clovis only smiled, unable to reply to that remark.
Her comment made her remember what Kanaria said back when there were only four of them. "Now that I think about it, why do you want to have another woman? While we have lost most of our population compared to what we had before the apocalypse and it is now legal if one wants to have multiple partners, I still don’t know why people want it… at the individual level."
"Well, that’s…" Clovis suddenly fell silent, not because he was hesitant but because he was actually confused. That question actually poked the hole in his heart.
’Huh? Now that I think about it, why?’ Clovis looked down, falling into deep thought. ’I can’t deny my desire, but at the same time, for what reason? Is it only because it has become normal that people, including me, have been brainwashed that it’s better to have multiple partners?’
*Zsksk!*
All of a sudden, a static sound rang in his ears, then vanished right away. His eyes were also twitching for a split second.
’A glitch?’ Clovis raised his head, showing a shocked expression. He looked left and right but couldn’t find any mission notification.
"Clovis? Clovis? Are you alright?" Melody shook his body.
"Ah…" Clovis snapped back. "That was… That was…"
Clovis suddenly noticed something amiss. He muttered inwardly, ’Why do I want multiple partners? And that glitch from earlier… If the entire world is a simulation, it also means that I’m nothing but a part of that simulation.
’Then, does the glitch mean that my will has been manipulated as well? I can’t find a reason why I want multiple wives. If that’s the case, is my will actually my will? Or is it something that a certain computer programs?’
Clovis’ body trembled upon that realization. He had never thought about it, and he had to face this problem so suddenly.
"Why do I want to have multiple wives?" Clovis asked.
"Why? No, don’t ask me. I don’t know why." Melody was baffled by the question.
"That’s… you know how to program something, right? If you program something to be a certain someone, is that possible?"
"Yeah." Melody nodded.
Clovis sucked a cold breath. If that was really the case, was his goal to become the greatest explorer by finding out the truth about the meaning of simulation also programmed?
"Is there something wrong?" Melody tilted her head in confusion.
"Well…" He couldn’t say he was facing an existential crisis. At the same time, he couldn’t deny that this question might also be answered when he found out the truth about this world.
Clovis took a deep breath to calm down before saying, "No. I should thank you for asking that question. I couldn’t really answer it, but it opens my mind a little bit."
It was a bit disappointing, but it wasn’t like every secret was meant to be revealed. "I might not be the right person, but if you ever need me to listen to something, you can come to me."
"Yeah. Thank you." Clovis nodded, feeling bad.
"Anyway, I should collect the essence now." Melody stood up. After checking Clovis’ body and ensuring that all wounds had been treated, she grabbed the tools and went back to the mall.