This city is alive...

How could there be a lifeform that exists in the form of a living city?

“For some higher-level lifeforms, it’s possible to exist in any form—it’s just that we can’t comprehend it.”

Grace Cooper seemed to guess what he was thinking, and said softly, “Of course, our goal for now is simply to learn how to survive in a city like this.”

“Survive?”

Henry Bennett was a bit shaken by those three words, finding them absurd.

“How do we survive?”

He even felt it was ridiculous: “We’re in a world full of monsters. Even the city we’re in is just a monster itself...”

“Of course, suicide is also an option.”

Grace Cooper smiled and said softly, “The gun is still in your hand. Whether you want to kill yourself or keep it for self-defense, that’s a choice you’re free to make.”

This answer surprised Henry Bennett, and it seemed she had given it serious thought.

Grace Cooper seemed to wait seriously for a moment. Seeing that Henry Bennett didn’t try to shoot himself in the head, a smile gradually appeared on her face, and she nodded lightly: “Looks like you’ve chosen to live.”

“Yes, to live.”

“Even when there’s no reason to go on living, the desire to keep living is our most precious quality!”

“After all, as long as you’re alive, you can always find a reason eventually.”

“...”

“I really don’t want to die...”

Henry Bennett answered honestly, looking at Grace Cooper, though his gaze was a bit downcast: “But how am I supposed to live?”

He turned to look at the group of truant middle schoolers, who seemed to have surrounded a homeless man, mocking and beating him, kicking around his bag of belongings for fun.

“This city is full of monsters. How do we survive?”

He raised the pistol Grace Cooper had given him: “With this? Will it work?”

“That’s another question.”

Grace Cooper smiled and said, “Once you’ve decided to live, of course you have to work hard for that goal.”

As she spoke, she turned slightly and walked to an old ATM by the street. Looking at Henry Bennett, she smiled and said, “Besides, we can always try to please ‘him,’ can’t we?”

“Please?”

Henry Bennett was incredulous, looking up at the city’s towering, uneven buildings and the lights as deep as the ocean.

“Yes.”

Grace Cooper said, “As lifeforms, everything we see—including all those people playing different roles—is part of this city.”

“Sometimes the city gets sick, spawning aberrant creatures that can cause disasters, or it’s influenced by other mysterious wills, affecting both the city and the ‘people’ in it.”

“And ‘he’ needs us to help solve these problems.”

“As long as we’re willing to carry out his will and help cure him, we can earn his goodwill.”

“His malice will make it impossible for us to take a single step in this city—monsters everywhere. But his goodwill can give us everything.”

Henry Bennett followed her, looking at the ATM in front of them.

The old ATM was covered in dents and exaggerated graffiti, and the camera on it swept over him like an eye.

He waited for two seconds, then suddenly saw the screen on the ATM flicker rapidly, as if the power was unstable. Soon, a dark red silhouette and tangled lines intertwined and reformed, turning into a block of text.

【Name: Henry Bennett】

【Age: 21】

【Contract: Low-level】

【Points: 30】

【……】

Henry Bennett was a bit surprised and jerked his head up: “What is this?”

“It’s the city’s goodwill toward you.”

Grace Cooper said with a soft smile, “Malice can’t be measured, but goodwill can be calculated.”

“Just now, you helped the city deal with a rat-man... Well, you fired the last shot, so it counts as your kill.”

“...So you earned his goodwill, and this goodwill usually takes the form of points.”

“Until these points are used up, you generally won’t feel the city’s hostility again. That way, everyone you meet will keep playing their roles...”

“...You can even pretend your life hasn’t changed at all.”

“...”

Henry Bennett felt it was all a bit absurd. He wanted to ask how he was supposed to pretend nothing had happened when everyone around him was a monster in human skin.

But as the words reached his lips, he suddenly closed his mouth: Had he ever really known what was beneath their surface before?

“You’ll get used to it.”

Seeing his hesitation, Grace Cooper seemed very relaxed. She helped Henry Bennett tap the ATM and said, “Go home and get a good night’s sleep.”

“Remember these points—they’re the most important thing we have.”

“Tomorrow, I’ll arrange for someone more professional to teach you how to use these points to strengthen yourself.”

“But I hope you’ll be fully prepared.”

“...”

She turned to look seriously at Henry Bennett and said, “In this city, the only way we can survive is by solving his problems—by curing the city.”