ENERGI: THE PRIMORDIAL CONDUIT[OP MC, APOCALYPSE, SURVIVAL, AND LITRPG]

"Dad, stop it. You are embarrassing me!" A young soft voice called out, a bit of grievance contained within.

"Hahaha...so my daughter is now a big girl, huh?"

"Of course, I am. I will soon enter middle school."

The middle-aged man flashed a grateful smile, before rubbing the girl's hair to her annoyance.

"No matter how old you are, you will always be my little girl."

"Stop it!" The little girl growled like a cat who had her tail stepped on, as she watched around in embarrassment, hoping none of the students going inside the school was paying her any attention.

The man laughed without a care, until the driver in black tuxedo suddenly approached him.

"Sir, we are getting late."

The middle aged man simply waved him off, his eyes fixed on his daughter who was still studying her surroundings in panic, a loving smile still adoring his usually serious face.

As if sensing something, the little girl who looked barely above ten, turned her eyes back to father, but upon seeing his smile and fearing he might do something more to embarrass her, she quickly turned around, while waving her little hand.

"See you!"

The man merely smiled as he watched her go. But once she had gone a bit far, he suddenly cleared his mouth, before bringing his hands to his mouth.

"I love you!"

The girl almost stumbled, before turning around and glaring at him, to the man's amusement. She stomped on the ground a few times, her mouths moving, though he couldn't hear her.

Seeing her turn away, the man also did so, his driver moving quickly to open the back seat.

But just as he was about to enter, a girl's voice suddenly resounded from afar.

"I love you too!"

The man's eyes widened, before swiftly turning around. But the little girl had already scurried past the school's gate, her head lowered in embarrassment.

The man chuckled at the sight, before entering his car.

*****

Rachel suddenly gasped loudly, as she awoke from her sleep. She had hidden in the bathroom for so long that she had inadvertently fallen asleep.

But when she recalled what she saw in her dream, she pulled her leg closer to her body, before resting her head on her knees as she huddled against the wall. A feeling of loneliness, one she was already used to, engulfed her.

She remained in that position for several hours, her fear not allowing her to make heavy movements. But after not hearing any noise that should have come from a battle for a long while, she eventually stood up, and opened the door with a soft click.

Her head gaped out of the door slowly, a look of vigilance plastered on her features. But when she saw the situation in the room, her eyes widened in surprise.

With slow steps, she walked inside, moving carefully around the fallen bodies. Each of these figures were people she could only look up to. Her eyes widened slightly the more she studied them and noticed their current levels, as she bit her lower lips so tightly it almost drew blood, at the unfairness of it all.

Life had taken away her joy, and even now after the apocalypse, all she had done was hide and hide again. It felt as if her life no longer had a meaning. Still, she didn't want to die.

But when her eyes fell on one of the young elementary girls, her fingers curled slowly, nails digging into her palm until a faint sting spread through her skin.

'It is because of her. This bitch.'

'I could have also gotten stronger. I could have gained the power to protect myself, but she stole it away from me. Just like they stole everything from me!'

The words screamed in her mind, and Rachel didn't even realize when she arrived before the young girl. She watched those adorable features. They seemed so unaffected, still retaining a bit of their innocence. The sight further dug up painful memories, and the anger within her suddenly turned into...envy. They looked so peaceful… as if nothing in this world could touch them.

Her hands moved unknowingly as she bent forward, her limbs moving to grasp at the soft small neck.

'Just a little twist...'

The thought barely formed before a voice suddenly resounded in the quiet room, causing her yelp and stumble back in surprise and fear. She was sure they were all asleep. How come then there was a voice?

She quickly turned to see the young teacher pull herself up from the ground.

"I asked what you were doing?"

"No-nothing." The word stumbled out of her lips.

"Nothing?" Claire shook her head, and rubbed her head, at the discomfort of resting on the ground for so long. She had woken in time to see Rachel leave the bathroom. But she had not immediately made a move to stand, one part scared that the monster was still around. But as she studied this girl who was alienated from the group, she realized the creature must have left.

Initially, she had felt uncomfortable about how this young girl was treated, but after not only shutting the door against them, almost costing them their lives, what she just saw showed her why the young girl was likely not associated with.

She ignored the girl for the moment, and quickly moved to check on her pupils. After making sure there was nothing wrong with them, she checked on the others too.

'Thank goodness. They are only unconscious.' when her mind got here, her face grew pale as she remembered the nightmare she had been thrown into.

But when she felt movements behind her, she quickly turned and glared at Rachel.

"You...I saw you. You were trying to kill her. You tried to kill a young girl. Don't you have a conscience?"

Rachel who had risen back to her feet, lowered her head in shame, as the young teacher continued:

"It's been a short while since the apocalypse descended, and you have already lost yourself to your true nature." A sad look appeared on Claire's face, as she realized this world was spiralling into a path she could not imagine. Humans were as much a danger as those horrors out there.

She looked at the young girl, before voicing out:

"How do you think your parent would feel if they should see what you are turning into...what you have become? How..." 

However, what Claire would have never guessed was how the girl would react before she could even finish her words.

"Shut up!"

Claire's eyes widened slightly, and it seemed the girl also realized her sudden outburst as she flinched back, upon locking eyes with her. But, then she seemed to draw courage from somewhere as she glared back at her.

"What do you know about me? It is easy for you to talk when you were given such a powerful class and you have people to support you." The grievance she had been feeling leaked through her voice, but Rachel was tired of bottling them up. Her chest tightened, as though something heavy had been forced into it.

 Of course, the only reason she was so courageous was that she could already sense Claire's nature. 

"How do you expect me to react when I only have such a weak class, and was turned away from my own people." The more she spoke, the more Claire became subdued. Of course, Rachel conveniently ignored how she had hidden even before the system revealed the class system. To her, the world owed her everything.

Claire listened to all of Rachel's ramble. She could somehow connect to the young girls words. After all, had she not also been feeling useless herself? She was the only adult among their group, yet she could only support from the back. It was why she had been studying the upgrade to her skill when the monster appeared.

She released a sigh after Rachel ended her tirade, and spoke with a serious voice.

"You should leave."

"W-what?" The fierce look on Rachel's face instantly crumbled like a pack of decks, as a look of panic took it's place. Rachel’s pupils shrank violently, as her hands trembled greatly.

Claire shook her head. She wanted the girl to leave in one part because she was no longer comfortable with her lurking around them. No matter her excuse, the fact was that Rachel had almost hurt an eight-year-old girl.

It was simply pathetic.

Most importantly though, Claire had noticed the changes in Kael. The others might not have sensed it, but how could she not with her experience?

'He has grown more cold.' her instinct warned her that if Rachel remained with them, something she might not like to see, may happen.

Seeing that Claire was resolved to make her leave, Rachel broke into tears as she pleaded.

"I am sorry. I swear I didn't mean to do anything."

Claire shook her head, as she spoke softly.

"Don't worry. The outside doesn't seem so dangerous for the moment. There are no zombies lurking around."

Rachel eyes widened. After all, she had hidden herself for awhile and wasn't aware of the events that had ensued.

"But..."

"No buts. Trust me, leaving might be better than staying for you." Saying so, she glanced at the unconscious Kael who remained at the entrance.

Rachel's face turned pale as she understood the meaning in Claire's words. A feeling of unwillingness filled her soul, but she bit her lips and repressed any thoughts of acting out.

.....

Looking at the opening in the corridor that looked as if a gigantic monster had taken a bite out of the school, Rachel slowly made her way through the side, as she pulled through her fear of falling from such a height.

When she reached the stair well, she almost screamed in shock. Luckily she was able to control herself.

'It is the same undead.'

She had almost thought Claire had deceived her. Of course, she had looked through the windows herself before leaving. But she had indeed not seen any zombies lurking around. 

So when she realized the zombie before her was the same she had almost killed, the one Rose had stolen from her, she repressed her fear and walked around the creature.

The undead merely growled softly before turning aside to continue it's guard duty.

Like that, Rachel continued down the stairs, her thoughts churning.

'The nerves of them all!'

'How dard them treat me like this?' the more she remembered Claire's judging eyes, the more the hatred in

her festered. She gritted her teeth and turned the corner, about to reach the ground floor, only for a voice to call out to her in surprise.

"Rachel?"

*****

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