As he was about to leave, the lady stops them, saying: « 你要去哪儿?你得付钱. »
« Gotta pay, guys, I've got nothing, I'll leave you to it, I'm going outside to smoke, it's been way too long, I need to light one up. »
Jack and yumiel look at each other, then turn to the shop manager.
« What do we do? » Jack asks.
« What do we do? Isn't it obvious? We're going to do what we do best. »
The lady looks at yumiel and Jack, waiting to be paid, firmly gripping yumiel's left arm to keep them from leaving. In a very quick motion, yumiel rips the lady's heart out with her right arm, then squeezes it over her. The lady falls a few seconds later, her face frozen.
« There you go, eat her brain and gain the knowledge. Well, your thing that lets you obtain people's abilities. With a bit of luck, you'll be able to speak Chinese. »
Suddenly, coming from where the lady had come from, a girl who looked to be in her mid-teens arrives. Seeing the scene, she is about to scream, but a crystal dagger pierces her throat; she dies, agonizing.
« That'll be one more for me, let luck smile on me. By the way, did you leave your daggers in the car? »
yumiel turns her dagger into blood and pours it back into her flask.
« I absorbed them, I couldn't exactly walk around the city with floating daggers without drawing attention. »
yumiel opened her senses and detected one more person in the back coming to kill her, before turning around and placing the body in front of Jack, who was eating calmly. She did the same, tearing out both hearts, then joined Alan outside, making sure to close the door properly.
« So, did you pay her? »
« Let's say that. We were forced to kill them because of you—if we'd simply left, she would've called the police or something, and we would've been in serious trouble. »
« sorry. »
« What the hell came over you? Anyway, forget it, I was already planning to hunt a bit, just not like this. Let's find a hideout. »
« Any ideas? »
Jack stepped outside afterward; yumiel gave him a look, Jack replied by shaking his head from left to right. Creating a key to the shop, she carefully locked the door, then looked at the surrounding buildings.
« Oh, yes. »
yumiel was simply staring at the starry sky while Jack and Alan were smoking. Then yumiel started to move. Throwing away his cigarette, they followed her. Heading toward one of the buildings, entering inside, they took the elevator up to the top floor.
Arriving on the floor, yumiel knocked on a door, waiting for an answer. After about a minute, she changed doors, knocking on another—still no answer. Knocking on the third, this time the door opens.
Unfortunately for him… she tore his heart out with a single motion before going inside, killing everyone present. Jack made sure to bring the body in and close the door.
Once finished, she sat down on the couch, first making sure to close all the windows and draw all the curtains. Jack gathered the four bodies into one of the bedrooms, eating calmly. Alan sat down in the living room with her.
« So this is our temporary base? »
« yeah. »
« Ok, then I'll prepare something to eat with whatever I can find. »
The kitchen was very close to the living room—actually, it was in the same room. There was just a hallway with the bedrooms and the bathroom, all connected to the same space that served as a living room–kitchen.
Jack came out of the bathroom, giving yumiel a sign, who went to wash herself. Alan tried to cook, looking at the ingredients without really knowing what to choose.
« Leave it, I'll make something, I got cooking skills. »
Jack started preparing a meal.
« Haha alright, but I would've preferred you to acquire language skills. Especially if we need to get information about where we're going. »
« That's exactly it—we have to go recruit a new member for the team who's in the Da Hinggan Ling forest. »
« Hm… Da Hinggan Ling, isn't that several hundred kilometers from here? »
« I just learned that by eating a brain—don't say anything to yumiel, she'll go absolutely berserk and I'll have another rough time. »
« Indeed, you miscalculated there, though even in your mistake, you did the right thing. »
Jack looks at Alan with a surprised expression, as if asking for more. He exhales, then explains.
« In Harbin, there are far more people compared to the smaller nearby towns, so we can hide easily. Not to mention the more complicated landing in cities surrounded by forests. Simply put, this city was the best choice. »
Jack was impressed by Alan's analysis, continuing to cook. yumiel came out of the bathroom, keeping her clothes slightly stained with red. She sat down at the table with them. Jack had just finished cooking, making three portions, then distributed them onto three plates.
In front of them were homemade dumplings, a long-braised pork, and a steaming stew—you could feel the mastery in these dishes. He served a bit of rice on the side in a bowl.
Alan pounced on the food; Jack and yumiel ate a little too, but not much. Watching them, Alan asked:
« Aren't you hungry? »
« It's not that—we don't need it. I feed on blood and he feeds on brains; food is just a matter of taste, nothing more. Though that said, it's very good. »
Alan kept devouring the food, even taking yumiel's portions. Once finished, she asked:
« Alan, why did you follow us? »
yumiel looks him straight in the eyes; Alan does the same before slightly averting his gaze and standing up.
« Just like that, I figured it would be interesting. And you—why say you aspire to something else, yet you massacre these poor people and families? »
yumiel crosses her arms and legs, letting out a slight sigh at the answer/question Alan just gave.
« Simple answer: I don't give a damn about them. China swore to kill us, treating us like beasts—I'm simply returning their goodwill toward us. »
« I see. I find that rather understandable; I would most certainly have done the same. On that note, I'm going to bed. Wake me up if there's anything new. »
Jack clears the table, yumiel settles into the couch, closing her eyes. A bit later, Jack comes and sits on the couch with her.
He then asks:
« Do you think we can trust him? »
Opening her eyes and looking at Jack.
« What did you see when I asked him that question? »
« I don't know, I'm not very good at that kind of thing, you know. But I'd say someone looking for action. »
She repeats in a low voice: « Action, huh. »
« I saw someone who had already lost everything. To answer your question: if someone comes up to you and tells you they can bring back what you lost, how would you react? »
Jack thinks before answering.
« I'd ignore it, it sounds unreal. »
« Exactly—that's why he's here with us. »
He looks at her, tilts his head to one side with a confused expression.
« Ahahaha, forget it—come on, let's go look for brains, we need that language skill. »