RTS System in the Apocalypse: New World

The food was still warm.

The trio ate without saying anything else for the next few minutes.

Kimmy did not continue asking about the operation. Yunera did not say anything either. The earlier tension remained around the table, but it was no longer as heavy as it was before.

The sound of utensils clanking against plates was enough.

Hans savored the taste of the food that Yunera made. Though his mother’s cooking could not be compared, he was confident that Yunera could be listed among the top cooks on his list.

"What were you doing before dinner?" Kimmy asked after a while.

Hans slowed down.

"Consolidating the operation’s gains."

"Is everyone okay?"

"Aside from the infected," Hans paused, "everyone in the army is okay. Why do you ask?"

"Nothing," Kimmy pursed her lips. "Will your... army go out more in the future?"

Hans nodded.

"The pace will pick up," he looked at Kimmy. "Why? Do you have someplace to visit inside the city?"

"The parks," Kimmy answered honestly. "I have been to many of them before, but I did not see how beautiful they are."

She downed a mouthful of meat, then continued. "And the buildings, and the skyscrapers. Just how tall are they? Can my spatial vision see through all of that?"

Hans did not know what to answer. He had expected Kimmy to ask about the operation, the pressure, or why she had been left behind.

After all, the girl has been adamant to be included on his operations lately.

But he did not expect things like parks nor skyscrapers.

Did I took these things for granted? He doubted.

He could only attempt to understand her yearning of seeing these places, these structures; the things she was blind to before.

Hans looked at her blindfolded face for several seconds.

"I don’t know," Hans admitted. "My understanding of your ability is not much better than yours."

Yunera pouted. Clearly, her sister was not asking about her ability power. Before she could open her mouth, Kimmy spoke.

"That is reassuring."

Yunera gave both of them a look, then continued eating.

Hans leaned back slightly.

Kimmy’s spatial awareness had already improved beyond ordinary senses, but a skyscraper was not an ordinary object. Even if she stood near one, would she perceive the entire structure? Only the nearby floors? The people inside? The hollow spaces between concrete and steel?

He could not tell.

"Don’t worry," Hans said. "We can test it."

Kimmy suddenly became vibrant. "Oh, when?"

"When the area is safe enough."

"That... might take a while."

"It will, but it will be worth it."

A wave suddenly emanated from Kimmy as she stared at Hans’s figure across her seat. Hans paused, wondering if he had done anything wrong.

A moment later, the wave retreated back to her body.

"You said it," Kimmy pursed her lips. "Don’t go back on me when the time comes."

Hans almost wanted to laugh.

Was that a threat? Or did he just soft-lock himself into some sort of a promise?

Whatever it was, a deal has been unanimously made. Mostly from Kimmy herself.

"Just so you know," Hans teased. "The parks may not look like what you remember."

Kimmy turned slightly toward him. "It’s okay. I do not even know how they look like anyway."

Right, Hans wanted to slap his face. Tease the girl about her being blind? Was he a fool?

Amidst his self-mockery, Kimmy continued as though she said nothing unusual.

"I remember the sounds. The wind. Children running. Water from one of the fountains. People taking photographs."

Her fingers moved lightly against the edge of the table.

"But I never knew how large the open spaces were. Or how the trees were arranged. Or what the buildings looked like from below. Or the sun shining through the clouds and blessing the lands with its... light."

The dining area grew quiet again.

Hans looked down at the food.

Reclaiming Grefort had always existed in his mind as routes, districts, resources, infected concentrations, artillery ranges, and future defensive lines.

Kimmy was speaking about the same city as if it were something waiting to be discovered. He found that strange.

Perhaps because he had forgotten that cities were supposed to be lived in.

"Don’t worry, sister."

Yunera chimed in. "Our Golden Eagle will give you a lift on the skies one day. I’ll make sure he’ll do his part."

"Sister," Kimmy furrowed her brows as she looked at Yunera. "Please don’t start a fight again."

What?! Yunera was at a loss. I was only helping! That’s it, I’m going to shut my mouth when these two are together.

She quickly focused back on her food and resumed eating. However, before the frustration could vanish away, Kimmy said something that almost made Yunera’s heart leap out of her body.

"Hans, you can do that, right?"

Hans continued chewing.

"Hans?"

He swallowed. "In the future, in the future. Someday in the future, you will."

He did not want to test Kimmy’s patience. However, it was not the case where he could not do it for her too.

The only problem was that the Airfield Base was not his priority at the moment.

Bah? What am I thinking about? Even if I have a helicopter now, is a dead city really something we should view together?

That did not feel right. Perhaps, if he tried doing that, the hives underneath would feel violated.

Did Hans think they were tourist attractions under his eyes?!

Hans returned to his food. For the next few minutes, the conversation drifted toward smaller things.

The cold storage. The meals Yunera wanted to prepare next.

Gossips about Tyrus and Cell 12.

Whether Kimmy’s spatial awareness could distinguish different shapes from farther away.

Whether Hans had been sleeping properly.

He answered the last question with silence.

Kimmy said nothing, though the tense muscles on her face said everything else he needed to know.

By the time the plates were nearly empty, Hans felt the exhaustion settling into his body. It had been there the entire time.

The emergency operation, the hive, the highway, the loot, the War Factory, and the map had only kept him too occupied to notice it.

Now that he was sitting somewhere warm, with food in front of him and no immediate orders to give, the fatigue finally caught up.

Kimmy tilted her head.

"Hans, you are tired."

"I am fine."

"You always say that."

"I... I am indeed tired."

Hans did not want to argue against Kimmy.

"Then you should rest," Kimmy said.

"No, I will check the Command Room first."

The venue turned silent.

"I will check, then I will go to sleep."

"You promise?"

Hans sighed.

"I promise."

"Good," Kimmy let out a smile.

Hans stood from the table. As he turned away, Kimmy called after him.

"Hans."

He glanced back.

"Do not forget the parks."

Hans looked at her for a moment.

"I won’t."

"And the flight."

Hans’s gaze shifted toward Yunera. "We will discuss that one later."

Kimmy smiled.

Hans left before another promise could be added to the list.

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