Yugo collapsed just after entering the shelter.
Rushing over to him, the survivors helped him get on his back, and asked if he was okay.
"I-It's not—" he tried to say.
"BRING WATER! IS THERE A DOCTOR?"
Yugo raised his arm with difficulty, still lying down.
"Wait—"
A rumbling sound echoed, coming from his stomach.
The small group that had gathered around Yugo fell silent and stared at him dumbstruck.
He looked at them, so embarrassed that he turned red to the point where his hair almost blended in with his face.
"T-That's what I wanted to tell you!"
He lowered his head.
"I'm just too hungry!" he said, in a tiny voice.
"Bff... Bwahaha!" Rickard, who was leaning against the wall next to him, burst out laughing.
The other survivors laughed too, and with that, the atmosphere became more relaxed.
"Here, take this!" Rickard said while handing a few sandwiches he had taken out of his backpack.
Yugo got up, with some effort and took the sandwiches, which he devoured so quickly that he almost choked, pounding his chest to dislodge the piece that was stuck.
Lavitha swiftly handed him one of the bottles of water they had picked up at the convenience store.
He took it and drank, then blew out a breath.
"Thank you!"
"You're welcome! You saved us. It's the least we can do."
Yugo lowered his head and smiled.
Of all the times he had carried out purification operations, this was one of the few times he had come so close to the evacuated civilians. But this time was different because without them, he wouldn't be there to eat sandwiches.
What's more, it was because of his hunger that he had ended up there, injured and in bad shape.
He remembered that Lucile had told him to eat something before setting off because it would be a long journey, but he was too stubborn to listen to his self-proclaimed 'big sister', as when she started talking, she could go on for tens of minutes without stopping.
And above all, he believed that he would surely find something to eat along the way during the train stops, or at worst once he arrived in Stravagon... But that was not factoring in his mission, which was more time-consuming than expected.
In short, he was battered because he neglected his stomach, and it almost cost him his life in the fight.
He sighed deeply, already imagining the endless lecture he would surely receive from Lucile.
He gazed up at the small group.
"No, it's me who should be thanking you. If you hadn't helped, I might have failed..."
He paused and looked at Rickard's leg.
"...And in that case, there'd have been even more victims." he continued, looking serious.
Yugo felt remorse for the many people he knew he could not save.
Although he had spent most of this operation rescuing civilians and using his powers to serve the greater good — keeping the people safe — a small part of him resented being so weak that he couldn't help anyone more than he already had.
That genuine hatred against weakness was what led Yugo to this path as an emissary of shadows, but here, he had been confronted to it once more.
Weakness.
Weakness was the greater scourge of his existence.
It was because of his weakness, that he was unable to help or save his family as a child. It was also this weakness that led to the deaths of many of his comrades during their missions as new recruits to the Scythe Agency.
For him, weakness was, and is, evil.
Or at least, that's what he thought.
Lavitha, who was standing right next to him, could no longer contain her grief and let tears roll down her cheeks as she held her annular finger, where her engagement ring still sat, stained with Dhelan's dried blood.
She could have cleaned it, back in the convenience store bathrooms, but just thinking about it made the horrendous memories of his - still fresh - death come back. And the thought of cleaning his blood felt like a treason towards her love and the life they've could have had.
Her tears flowed intensely, the pain of her loss cutting her inside like a sharp knife.
Luka hugged her.
"Don't cry, miss! It'll be alright!"
She looked at him and got surprised by the strength of this child, who was still trying to smile, while retaining with all his might the tears that bordered his eyes.
'He's just lost his mother, yet he's trying his best to stay so strong.'
She smiled and hugged him back.
"Yeah. We'll be alright!" she finally said, wiping her tears.
Rickard then held Lavitha close, sharing her pain.
Yugo, seeing that the atmosphere was becoming heavy again, decided to change the subject.
"Mr Rickard, go to the medical area immediately!"
He stood up with some effort, holding his side, and addressed everyone in the shelter.
"And that goes for everyone who is injured, whether seriously or not."
"But what about you? You're injured too!" Rickard interjected.
Yugo looked at him and exhaled, flashing a reassuring smile.
"I'm fine, don't worry! I just have a few fractured ribs."
They all looked at him in amazement.
"But... that's hardly nothing!"
"Are you sure you're okay?!"
"Did you hit your head somewhere?!"
"Someone comes and examines him! Quickly!"
Yugo watched them panic because of his statement, then burst out laughing — laughter that was interrupted by painful spasms.
The refugees looked at him again with doubtful eyes.
Clearly, they thought he had definitely hit his head a little too hard.
"Um... is there a problem, sir?" little Luka finally asked.
"No! No... don't worry. It's just that it's been a while since I've seen so many people freak out about my condition."
"B-But it's normal to be worried!" replied Lavitha.
"Yes. That's true." continued someone in the crowd.
"If something happens to you, we'll feel bad!" added another person.
The rest of the crowd nodded in agreement.
There was a short silence after that.
"I'm telling you... All of this happened first, because we're just sinners!" suddenly interjected somebody.
'Ah crap! Here we go again!' Yugo thought.
"Y-Yeah! The gods are angry! Otherwise, this monster wouldn't have attacked the city!" added another.
"What are you talking about, you lot?!" Yelled Rickard.
He stepped forward.
"So, you're telling me, everything that happened, is because of some entities that think they're entitled to dictate our lives?" he continued.
"I-It's... It's not that. We surely made them angry through our actions somehow and—"
"Does it mean that for you, my wife, the mother of my kid, deserved to die? Because they're angry?!"
The people who talked about the gods' fury, fell silent.
"If so, then the gods are no different than the monster they apparently sent. And if you also believe that people dying might solve the problem, so go ahead and kill yourself..."
he took another step and made himself more intimidating.
"If you do so, maybe your ill-minded gods will forgive you, and us too, thanks to your martyrdom!"
Yugo tried to calm him down, but Lavitha stopped him.
There was also rage and sadness in her eyes.
Yugo, realising that they, and many of those in the shelter, had horribly lost people dear to their hearts during this night, backed away.
"Plus, by uttering such nonsense, you're implying that the young lad here, who almost sacrificed his life to save us all, went against the gods? What kind of Unibull crap is that?!"
"Yeah! If you think like this, then get out of here!" said somebody.
"Get out!"
A lot of people started yelling at the believers.
"Please, calm down!" intervened Yugo.
He moved forward and looked at the crowd of refugees.
"You're all here, not because of the gods but because of this vile creature. And it was my mission to purge it. You did nothing wrong in any ways. If anything, it's thanks to the gods that you lot are still alive..."
He lowered his head, clenching his fist.
"Many didn't get such a chance tonight! I understand your frustration about this catastrophe, but saying these things won't make the facts go away!"
"Heard'im?! Now go back to what you were doing!" added Rickard.
He then turned back to where he was standing, his face still red of anger.
Yugo looked at the crowd again and sighed.
'That should do it! But still, the church's preaching really is centred around apocalypse, huh!'
Yugo was not really the religious type. In fact, much like Rickard said, the idea of some almighty, all-seeing, all-knowing entities that decided of how the 'play of life' should unfold, was pretty sickening for him.
It was even worse when, according to that logic, people could not do or should not even do anything about their situations or struggles, just because the gods willed it. For him, it simply was a cowardly and dumb way of living.
At some point in his formation during the academy days, should he see anyone just surrender to anything, without trying with everything they had, just because of their beliefs, Yugo was ready to slap some sense in them, as saying 'it's the gods will if I slap you!'.
Moreover, in his eyes, it was the same as saying that his mother and his little brother had died according to some strings of fate pulled by a bored couple of unknown entities, and as such deserved it.
Of course, it was a far stretched reasoning, but that was how he understood the whole thing behind the gods' wills quoting.
Anyway, he used the gods name here, not because he really believed what he said about them being responsible for the safety of the refugees — absolutely not — but simply because it was a far more effective method to deal with the believers whilst calming the other refugees who, just like Rickard, wanted the little group of so-called pious out of the shelter, than trying to go against their reasoning and using facts and the harsh truth.
He turned back in order to join Rickard and the others.
But at this moment, Yugo faltered.
The little group that had gathered around him, came supporting him, their faces full of worries.
Yugo looked at them and smiled.
"Thank you!"
There was a look of relief on his face, mixed with gratitude.
He stood up, but his injured arm gave way.
"Argh!"
He faltered again.
Lavitha and another person rushed to his side and helped him stand.
"Don't push yourself!"
"Take him to the medical bay!" Rickard ordered.
"B-but I'm telling you, I'll be fi—" Yugo tried to say.
"NO BUTS! You need to be in top shape before you go home." Lavitha cut sternly.
Yugo froze.
For a second, he felt as if he could hear his mother again, yelling at him when he was younger and had done a misdeed.
He lowered his head, hiding a melancholic smile.
"Fine!"
He allowed himself to be led to the treatment area.
There, he received care using the Kilith energy that was transferred to him by a sort of transfusion, and was stabilised using more conventional methods.
His broken arm was put in a splint, and the area where Kilith energy had been used to heal his cracked ribs was massaged with ointment.
"That should be fine for now, but you should receive more extensive treatment as soon as possible, and undergo rehabilitation sessions after that."
"But I have to—"
"If you insist, your arm won't last long! And even Kilith won't be able to do much for your body!" cut the doctor.
She sighed.
"You should already be grateful that the man you arrived with, Rickard, agreed to give you some of his Kilith. Otherwise, you'd be in bigger trouble."
Yugo swallowed what he was about to say and reluctantly nodded.
"Understood! Thank you, doctor Tory!"
He lowered his head so that his hair hid his face.
'I guess I'll be off for a while, huh.'
He sighed and got up, took the badge out of his bag and gave it back to the doctor, then headed for the entrance to the shelter, where Rickard was waiting for him.
"Where are the others?" asked Yugo when he didn't see Lavitha and Luka.
"The young lady is getting treatment, and my son has gone to get some food."
"Oh! I see. Thanks again for everything. You were a great help during my mission."
"You're welcome!"
He looked at Yugo, who had reverted to a serious expression.
"What did the doctor say?"
Yugo, a little surprised by the question, looked at the 'brave cripple' and sighed.
"I'm out of action for a while, but I should be okay. And by the way, thank you for agreeing on giving me a bit of your Kilith, without you, I would be in a lot more troubles!" he finally replied.
He clenched his fist, and frowned his eyebrows while lowering his head.
His expression turned bitter.
"It's frustrating to think about it, because while I'm here twiddling my thumbs, people could be in danger from those monsters. All because I have a couple of broken ribs and a fractured arm."
There was clear frustration in his words.
"I'm still too weak." he whispered.
Rickard looked at him silently, then sighed too.
He finally got up, leaning on the automated crutch he had been given — a crutch powered by a Kilith energy fuelled battery and attached to his hips via a belt, which allowed him to move around and stand up without much effort — and approached Yugo.
"It's not that bad! Look at me, look at everyone here... we're going to have to adapt to this new way of life that's been forced upon us..." he said, looking down at his missing foot.
He paused and patted Yugo's good shoulder.
He switched from formal to informal addressing.
"...But there's nothing we can do about it! Sometimes life imposes limits on us that we can't overcome in one fell swoop. We are weak and there's nothing we can do about it..."
He raised his head, starring at the underground ceiling.
"...That's what makes us human. For example, in nature, we are among the weakest in the animal realm: we have no fangs, claws, huge muscles, venoms or talons. Yet despite our lack of strength, we've kept trying again and again, and look where we are now. So, a few injuries shouldn't make you doubt yourself. Yes, you are weak, but that's not all you should remember..."
He made Yugo look at the entire shelter.
"Without you, who complains about being weak, many of us would no longer be here. And certainly not me, to lecture you. So yes, you may be weak, but that doesn't change the fact that you tried anyway, and succeeded. And that's what matters. So, accept your weakness and move on, kid. Being weak can be a strength sometimes!"
Yugo stared at him in amazement, then smiled.
"Thank you, Rickard." he whispered.
The man smiled back at him.
"You're welcome, young master."
He immediately switched back to formal language.
"And I'm sorry if I was disrespectful, speaking to you in an inappropriate tone." he replied.
Yugo burst out laughing.
"No, I needed that! Don't worry!" he said, holding his sides as he laughed.
"Good! Then I'll go join my son and the young lady."
"Okay! I have to go to the mayor's office to file my report."
"Alright then! Take care of yourself, Master Yugo."
Yugo looked him in the eyes and smiled.
"You too, Rickard."
They shook hands and parted ways.
The doors of the shelter opened and Yugo stepped out.