The next morning, as Mary ate breakfast with Casca and Clyde at the dining table, Clyde and Casca told Mary what had happened last night; her fork, which was mid-air puncturing an egg on its way to her mouth, froze halfway as she stared at them in utter shock,
"S... so while I was asleep... the city came under attack?" Mary asked falteringly.
"More precisely, the enemy arrived through the northern corridor, but before it could enter the city, the situation was already handled. Right, Casca?" Clyde answered, turning to look at Casca to confirm.
"Um... yeah," Casca answered, looking down at the egg pierced by her fork.
"I see... I must’ve been sleeping like a log to not notice anything that happened last night, hahaha," Mary said.
Mary then ate her egg, and suddenly her eyes widened; realizing something, she glanced down at her plate, her face turning pale as she looked at the eggs, grilled cheese, and bacon in front of her. She leapt to her feet and sprinted to her refrigerator, her expression completely shifting, her jaw tightened, her mouth agape, her body rigid and then, "Aaaaaaaaaah!" she screamed.
Hearing her scream, Clyde and Casca naturally stood up immediately, staring at Mary in front of the fridge, who was now visibly mourning the contents inside,
"What’s wrong?" Clyde asked.
"Clyde... who made our breakfast?" Mary asked.
"Um... I did... Why, what happened?" Clyde asked, confused.
"You used my eggs, bacon, cheese, and bread... All the expensive food I deliberately saved for special occasions... Sob... There’s barely anything left!" Mary answered hysterically.
"Huh?" Clyde grew confused, since all he had made were sunny-side-up eggs, fried bacon, and grilled cheese, a standard routine he usually did on weekend mornings. In fact, he typically added pancakes or waffles to go with his breakfast. Then Clyde and Casca watched as Mary checked the salt, butter, and oil in her kitchen,
"Aaargh!" Mary screamed again, making Clyde and Casca feel guilty as they exchanged awkward glances with each other.
Sinking weakly back into her chair, Mary let out a breath, and Clyde and Casca sat back down as well; "sigh," Mary exhaled deeply,
"All right... I’m sorry for being hysterical. I’m not blaming you guys—of course you wouldn’t know the situation in this city and assumed everything was still the same as in the simulation. So now, let me tell you a bit about the economy of this world," Mary said after calming herself down.
Mary went on to explain the reason why so many people roamed the wasteland outside, besides freeing humans, they were actually scavengers salvaging remnants of the past to be converted into present-day technology, earning compensation in the form of chips, which served as the currency in the city.
Processed foods like bacon, bread, and cheese carried astronomical prices, while items like eggs were rare commodities because there weren’t many chickens being raised to produce eggs within the city. Ingredients like salt, pepper, oil, butter, mayonnaise, and others were equally scarce due to low production rates and the difficulty of sourcing raw materials.
Hearing Mary’s explanation, Clyde felt an immediate wave of guilt; he stared down at his plate, realizing that what felt like a simple meal to him was considered a lavish luxury for people like Mary,
"I... I’m sorry. Once I’m allowed to go out and earn money... I’ll replace everything," Clyde said remorsefully.
"No need, it’s fine... It’s my fault for not explaining things to you guys beforehand. Besides, I can still afford it; I was just annoyed because those supplies are hard to find... that’s all, not because of the price," Mary said, waving her hand dismissively.
"Again... I’m really sorry," Clyde said, lowering his head.
"Me too... I’m sorry as well. Just like Big Brother Clyde, I thought a breakfast like this was normal," Casca added, bowing her head.
"All right, all right... Let’s not dwell on it anymore, you’re making me feel bad... Besides, you said a rogue Skitterer made its way into the northern corridor last night, right? That means we’re getting extra food rations, so don’t stress about it," Mary said casually with a wave of her hand.
"Clang!"
At Mary’s words, the forks in Clyde and Casca’s hands dropped onto their respective plates, their faces clearly showing that they were processing what they had just heard,
"Wait, Mary... that monster called a Skitterer... is a food source?" Casca asked.
"Oh... right... Of course you guys wouldn’t know. We get meat from them; plus, their blood can be used for medicine and to restore ORBs, the organs used to cast magic," Mary answered.
"W... what?" Casca asked, stunned.
"Um... sorry to ask... but the meat we ate yesterday at the cafeteria... what kind of meat was that?" Clyde asked.
"Nephilim... Sometimes a stray giant wanders close when it’s already on the verge of death... We kill it and harvest its meat. When we get a dead giant, we can survive on it for up to six months... They eat us, and we eat them, it’s all just the law of nature," Mary answered casually.
Clyde and Casca went silent; the world they inhabited turned out to be a brutal realm where every living creature devoured and slaughtered one another, making what they had done yesterday feel completely normal by comparison. But all Clyde could picture was the faces of the soldiers who had ambushed him back at the farm, the terror in their eyes as they clearly viewed him as a monster while he devoured the Ravager, the facility’s guard dog.
Doesn’t that mean... even though this world is brutal and inhumane... we’re far more brutal than this world? So... what are we? We’re clearly not human, because the readout I read explicitly said Casca and I aren’t human, Clyde thought in his head, his face draining to a pale white as the full weight of his actions hit him.
Casca, noticing Clyde growing tense, reached out to rest her hand on his shoulder, while Mary closely observed the look on Clyde’s face.
"What’s wrong, Big Brother?" Casca asked.
"N... nothing," Clyde answered.
"I know all of this must be confusing for you guys. On Monday, you’ll get an education about the world so you’ll be prepared to live in reality rather than a simulation," Mary said.
"Y... yeah, I know," Clyde replied.
"Um... yes, we understand, Mary," Casca added.
"You two look like you’re the same age, why does Casca call you ’Big Brother,’ Clyde?" Mary asked.
"Because ever since I can remember, I’ve always called him Big Brother," Casca answered before Clyde could open his mouth to speak.
"Fair enough. Come on, let’s eat. I have to go out today, so you guys just stay home, okay? Don’t go anywhere," Mary said.
"Okay... Mary," Clyde and Casca replied in unison.
They continued their breakfast, after which Mary headed into her bedroom to take a shower in her private bathroom. Clyde, still dazed, sat down on the sofa, with Casca sitting right beside him. Casca turned to look at Clyde’s face, which still looked as though he had just seen a terrifying ghost.
"What’s wrong, Big Brother? Why do you look like that?" Casca asked, leaning her head forward and turning to look closely at Clyde until their faces were inches apart.
"It’s nothing... really, I’m just thinking about something," Clyde answered.
"Um... thinking about your life in the simulation?" Casca asked.
"No... I’m thinking about something else... but don’t worry about it, I’m fine," Clyde answered, his hand now clenching into a fist at his side out of Casca’s view.
"All right, I understand, Big Brother. If anything’s bothering you, please tell me, I want to help you," Casca said.
"Yeah... thanks, Casca," Clyde replied with a smile.
The two then fell quiet for a moment without saying a word, staring blankly ahead without blinking. Suddenly, Casca broke the silence,
"Big Brother, when can we leave this place and go find Celes?" Casca asked.
Hearing Casca’s question, Clyde turned to look at his sister beside him, who was also staring back at him, awaiting an answer.
"You... remember Celes?" Clyde asked.
"Yeah... Celes was the one who woke me up and freed me from the simulation... Back then... I was so scared, but the soldiers found me and brought me here," Casca answered.
"Woke you up? How did she do that?" Clyde asked, growing serious and eager.
"Um... I was relaxing in my room after coming home from school... when suddenly I received a message, and when I opened it, it was just a voice note. I played it and heard that melody... and then... Celes spoke inside my head... ’Find me’... that’s what she said," Casca answered.
Clyde froze in silence, swallowing hard; what Casca had experienced was identical to what he had gone through, and he was certain that even after receiving an education at the rehabilitation center on Monday, unresolved mysteries would still remain, mysteries about what he truly was, who he and Casca were, why they had to find Celes, and what kind of robot he had seen on the screen when he opened the holographic display for the very first time.