novelkee Chapter 295: Kenji’s Very Bad Day
Chapter 295: Kenji’s Very Bad Day
Meanwhile, at a roadside convenience store.
The driver, Kenji, tore open the wrapper of an ice pop with a satisfied sigh and
took a massive bite.
"Phew... refreshing."
The frigid sweetness dispersed the summer heat, and Kenji felt his system coming
back online. This haul had been exhausting—driving a twenty-five-ton juggernaut
from the east end to the west. He'd spent the entire transit with his focus at
high alert, terrified of a structural failure or an Anomaly intercept.
Now that he was nearing the delivery point, surely an ice pop as a reward wasn't
an excessive variable?
Once he finalized the manifest and collected the freight fee, he'd finally have
the coin to buy that gaming console his son had been badgering him for.
Visualizing the boy's happy reaction, a genuine smile touched Kenji's face.
Kenji hummed a tuneless melody as he strolled out of the store.
Then, his smile vanished.
The ice pop fell from his hand, shattering against the concrete.
The truck was still there. But... where was the cargo?
Where was the twenty-five-ton, high-value steel coil he had been babysitting for
three hours?
Kenji rubbed his eyes, blinking frantically, performing a second visual audit.
Empty. The flatbed trailer was a void of steel, save for a few severed links of
heavy iron chain dangling uselessly in the wind.
"M-My steel... where is my coil?" Realizing the reality, he performed a rapid
scan of the perimeter. He localized a group of pedestrians further down the
street, all pointing and whispering toward the far end of the thoroughfare.
He broke into a sprint, seizing the shoulder of a random passerby.
"Friend! The cargo on my trailer! A gargantuan steel roll! Did you perceive its
movement?!"
The man turned his head, pointing a finger toward the turn in the road. "I
believe you refer to that particular entity."
Kenji followed the gesture.
He saw the back of a girl disappearing around the corner. Pursuing her was a
blue, gelatinous mass hoisting a silver-grey, circular object of impossible
proportions. The two turned the corner and were gone.
Kenji's brain experienced a three-second system lag.
Then, he tremblingly retrieved his phone and dialed his manager. The call was
accepted almost immediately.
"Hello? Kenji? Have you reached the delivery coordinate?"
"M-Manager..." Kenji's voice hit a tearful frequency.
"Mmh? What is it? A mechanical failure?" The manager's tone sharpened.
"Manager... our freight... the steel coil... it has been pillaged..."
"PILLAGED?!"
The manager's volume spiked by eight octaves. "You are claiming my
twenty-five-ton industrial coil was stolen?! What manner of logic error is
this?!"
"It is the truth, Manager!" Kenji was nearing a psychological breakdown. "It was
a... a blue jelly-blob! It shredded the high-tensile chains like wet paper, then
hoisted the coil and sprinted away! I could not achieve intercept velocity!"
A long, heavy silence followed. Kenji could hear the sound of a lighter being
sparked on the other end.
After a duration, the manager spoke in an unnervingly calm drone.
"Kenji."
"Yes, Manager."
"I project a high probability that you are experiencing hallucinations due to
terminal fatigue. Since when did I authorize a steel shipment?"
"I am not hallucinating, Manager! I witnessed it! A dozen pedestrians witnessed
it!"
"Here is the directive: Find a quiet sector to park. I am granting you three
days of paid leave."
"But Manager! Should we not notify the local authorities?! The Night Watchmen?!"
"Notify them of what?" The manager's voice turned harsh. "What steel coil? I
have zero record of a steel procurement. Our firm specializes in the wholesale
distribution of seasonal fruit. Since when did we pivot to heavy industry?"
"Kenji, I am warning you—do not introduce unnecessary variables into my
paperwork. That item clearly belonged to someone else. Return the truck to the
depot safely. Am I clear?"
Click.
The line went dead. Kenji stared at his phone, standing in the middle of the
sidewalk as his mind became a blank slate of confusion.
Just then, a hand clapped onto his shoulder.
"Old-timer, do not fear!"
Kenji turned to see a youth in trendy attire, looking to be in his early
twenties, wearing a mask of righteous fury.
"I overheard the report. You've been robbed?"
Kenji, still reeling from his manager's gaslighting, gave a slow, automatic nod.
"In this era? When our species is on the brink of liquidation, people still prey
upon their own kin? That thief has a death-wish!"
The youth's knuckles cracked as he balled his fists. "Fear not! I am a
Participant! Though my parameters are modest, I can handle a pack of common
thugs with ease! Tell me, Old-timer—what was the prize? I shall retrieve it for
you!"
Kenji looked at the enthusiastic youth as if he were a divine anchor. His lips
quivered as he spoke.
"The... the steel coil..."
"Steel coil?" The youth paused. "Clarify the item."
"The... the twenty-five-ton roll of industrial metal on my trailer..."
"Oh. That entity." The youth nodded slowly, then asked, "And how did the thief
extract it? A heavy-duty crane? A multi-unit team?"
Kenji shook his head, his voice a weak rasp. "He... he carried it. Over his
head."
The muscles in the youth's face performed a series of involuntary twitches. He
forced a smile that looked like a structural error.
"Ha... haha... I see. Then the situation is resolved."
"It was likely... a priority procurement by a High-Tier Unit. They'll likely
return it once the immediate need is satisfied."
"Actually, Old-timer, a memory just surfaced—my mother requires my presence for
the evening meal. I must depart at maximum velocity!"
With that, the youth spun around and bolted, his exit speed exceeding Sora's
previous sprint. Within seconds, he was a statistical zero on the horizon.
Kenji was left alone, standing in the wind of the city's indifference.
A few hundred meters away, atop the roof of a high-rise building.
Seven Night Watchmen in black tactical gear were monitoring the scene through
high-magnification scopes. Their team comm-channel was a void of silence.
Finally, the Captain's voice broke the quiet.
"...Logging observation data. Subject 'Jelly' localized in the mid-sector of
New-Street Road at 14:37. Subject proceeded to manually hoist a... a..."
"A steel coil," the tactical analyst added, swallowing hard. "Vehicle
identification and cargo manifest cross-referenced: The item is property of
Hongda Steel. Mass: Twenty-five tons."
The channel returned to silence.
"C-Captain..." a junior member whispered. "Is this... scientifically sound? Can
a carbon-based organism support that level of pressure?"
"Unknown. For now, simply record the variables as witnessed. No deviations."
"Sir. The subject is currently moving toward the Museum Sector, maintaining the
twenty-five-ton load."
"..."
"Captain... a query."
"Proceed."
"In your estimation... if Hero-Unit: Tyro consumed a full meal... could he last
more than two rounds against this slime?"
"..."
The Captain offered no answer. He silently lowered his scope and looked at the
sky.
"The weather today," he murmured. "Is quite pleasant."
☆☆☆
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