Primordial Expanse: I have the Strongest Talent! - Chapter 84

Chapter 84: Not Alone
Normally, Alex would be rejoicing at this situation, the revelation that this place wasn’t some endless, barren cave, and there were actually other humans down here would be a great comfort.

If other humans could survive down here, then that most likely meant that there was either a way up to the surface somewhere in this place, or a self-sustaining civilization down here somewhere.

But his skepticism was also high, as he only spotted this lone child, with no other humans or even living organisms in sight.

The boy walked closer and closer to Alex, his visage becoming more clear as he neared in.

The boy looked to be around 10 years old, a short kid. He had black hair, with pale white skin and deep black eyes. His unique appearance was startling at first for Alex, but he quickly frowned when he got a full picture of the kid.

‘He’s just like the workaholics I’ve seen back at the mines in the colony.’

To Alex, the fact this kid had pale white skin wasn’t a good sign, as it meant that he had rarely ever seen sunlight, if at all.

His hope for finding a way out of here was dwindling by the seconds.

Eventually, the boy came to a stop around 5 metres away from Alex and gazed at Alex with an annoyed look.

“What are you doing outside the town past curfew? You know Father Bertram won’t be happy about this?” The boy opened his mouth, asking Alex as if this was just another normal conversation.

‘???’

But Alex was stumped, he couldn’t form any coherent thoughts as he was just that confused.

‘What the hell is this kid talking about? What town? Father Bertram? At least that confirms there are other humans in this place.’

Alex gathered his thoughts for a few seconds, considering how he should respond.

A few moments later, he responded:

“I’m not from around here, my town was attacked by a huge black wolf, I was the only survivor. My family… my family were all killed by that horrifying beast…” Alex put on his best acting skills and feigned a look of sadness and grief as he recounted his tale.

The boy held a look of pity as he listened to Alex’s ‘story’, but it was quickly replaced by a horrified expression soon after.

The boy acted as if he had seen a monster as he turned tail and ran as fast as he could back to his small, rudimentary house, and slammed the door shut behind him.

Alex heard multiple locks click from the house. Clearly something Alex said didn’t sit right with this kid.

He moved closer to the house, wishing to get a better look, while also wishing to talk to the boy.

Alex walked near to the house, speaking his mind:

“I don’t understand, surely there’s some misunderstanding going on here. Can’t you at least tell me why you ran off all of a sudden?” He shouted, loud enough for his voice to echo throughout the surroundings many times over.

This would surely catch the boy’s attention.

And just as he expected, it did.

“Stop it! Be quiet, stop shouting! You’ll get us both killed if you keep being so loud!” The boy opened a small crack in a window on the second floor of his house and whispered to Alex, practically begging him to stop speaking.

Alex saw the boy subtly glance at the darkness off into the distance, before he quickly diverted his eyes back to Alex.

He made a mental note of these movements.

“I won’t stop until you tell me why you reacted like that, as well as how I can get to the nearest town.” Alex answered, repeating the same tone.

“Okay! Okay! I’ll talk, just stop shouting.” Seeing that his tactic worked and the boy finally cooperated, Alex complied.

He nodded and gestured for the boy to continue speaking.

“You’re dead meat, you’ll get me killed, you’ll get the whole town killed if you stick around here!” The boy explained, but Alex was only left even more confused.

“Why?” He asked, looking genuinely concerned.

The way the boy spoke implied he wasn’t lying at all, and he genuinely believed what he said.

If this was so, then Alex also had reason to be a little nervous as well.

“Your whole town was killed by the black wolf, but you were the only survivor. Black wolves are prideful beasts! If you survived an attack from one of them then you were just lucky, there’s no question that it will come back to finish the job! It already has your scent, you’ll only get us all killed if you stick around here!” The boy rushed his explanation, like he was pressed for time.

As he explained, he subconsciously glanced off into one specific direction in the darkness again.

When Alex heard this, he felt immense relief wash over himself.

‘Phew!’

Luckily it seemed there was some misunderstanding after all, as the Shadow wolf, or black wolf as the boy called it, was already dead! Killed by Alex himself.

But the boy couldn’t have known this, as Alex only stated that he and his fictional town were attacked by it, and that he survived.

‘I see, so there’s nothing to worry about then. That’s good to know.’

Alex didn’t ask anymore questions to the boy. He knew he wouldn’t get any more useful information from him.

Alex coughed, clearing his throat.

He feigned a look of shock and hopelessness, pretending to be distraught after hearing what the boy said.

“What… It can’t be! But I escaped!”

In reality all this extra acting wasn’t necessary, but Alex found it fun so he kept it up.

After his performance was over, he turned around and mindlessly walked off into the darkness, out of the boy’s sight.

Seeing Alex leave, the boy heaved a sigh of relief.

‘Phew, thank god he’s gone. That poor guy doesn’t know what’s coming…’

But unbeknownst to the boy, the moment Alex left his vicinity, he changed his direction, heading in the direction where the boy kept subconsciously glancing every so often.

‘Every time the town was brought up he glanced in this direction, my best bet is it’s somewhere along this path.’