With a troublesome sigh, June sat down on a bench and stared at the lake through a window. It has been a day since his fight against the Pandavar's enforcer, and although June won in the end, he didn't leave unscathed.
Currently, he was at one of the newer medical clinics near the central area of Bastion. After the Antarctic Expedition, there was an exponential increase in the number of Awakened in the world, resulting in medical centres being established within several citadels, with dozens of healers working at any given moment.
The one where he's at is pretty similar to the one back in NQSC; the only major differences are that it lacks electricity and has more stone flooring.
There was a reason why he came to this medical centre, it wasn't because of its close proximity to where he's staying at, there was another one closer to his motel. Instead, it was because of this centre's relation to the Black-Market, and due to his status within the criminal underworld, it allowed him to skip the waiting line.
June was just healed a few minutes ago; his injuries from the fight against the enforcer weren't serious, only a few broken ribs and torn muscles near the back and abdomen. Though the healer did advise him to rest for a few days.
Staring at the lake, June continued to ponder over what his next course of action should be.
Last night, he couldn't sleep well at all, not because of the injuries he had received, but due to what he had learned.
The Pandavar clan is currently monitoring the smuggling of a drug that was supposed to be extinct long ago... But why?
And there was the question of what exactly happened during his battle with the Pandavar's enforcer.
The fight was fast-paced, but thanks to his dormant ability, which allows him to think faster, the vivid image of Worf's transformed body just breaking down was clear in his mind. Even though it seemed that Worf was indeed over exhausting himself trying to kill him, that kind of thing wasn't normal in the slightest.
The sound of muscles getting torn, bones breaking, and the scene of Worf struggling to pick up his memory. All are still vivid, playing in the back of June's mind.
June himself has fought beside and against several awakened before, seeing dozens of people getting their limit pushed to the utmost. Yet in all those instances, he couldn't recall a single one whose body just broke down.
'His strength was abnormal too...'
June thought to himself, as one of his hands scratched his ear. Yes, Worf's strength was suspicious as well. While it could very well be the case that Worf was just an anomaly within the ranks of Awakened, whose strength somehow approached the Masters, June has a hunch that it isn't the case... Or at least, there's something deeper than that that might be going on.
'There could be a connection between Worf's body breaking down and his unnatural strength.'
Suddenly, a sound of stomach growling interrupted his train of thought.
'Ah, right. I haven't eaten anything since the encounter with that enforcer.'
Standing up, he stretched his arms before walking in the direction of the canteen section of the building. Unlike most medical centres in the waking world, such as the one in NQSC, medic centres inside the Dream Realm are smaller in comparison. Mainly due to the limited resources they can gather. Though he had heard that a couple of scientists were planning to introduce electricity into Bastion soon, this difference might change eventually. However, this building is still quite large in comparison to others inside Bastion, due to its involvement with the Black Market.
'I wonder what I should get....'
June himself wasn't a particular person who liked to eat much, but as of right now, he's starving for some food. This is his first time visiting this particular medical centre, so he wasn't quite sure about the quality of taste, but he has heard good reviews from other executives, during the off instances that he met them.
'Speaking of executives, besides the Hangman, Smiley probably had hired more elites as well.'
June wondered, after all, this was a high-level mission, since the requirement was the extermination of a minor Legacy Clan. From what the old man said during the job briefing, there are more elite executives taking up the job. Which means that any moment he wastes might mean giving up an advantage to other elite executives like him.
After all, being an elite executive of the Black Market means that the person needs to have a high success rate. Meaning that 'strength' isn't the only requirement to achieve this status, among the criminal Underworld. An Awakened also needed to be good at adapting, managing their resources and planning. If a person is only strong, then chances are they would've perished within the depths of the Dream Realm, long before they even hope reached the status of 'elite'.
Each one of the elites of the Black Market are incredibly cunning and resourceful individual. It is due to this trait that June contemplated about how he should approach this mission next. Any mistake, any moment wasted could risk that large paycheck.
This is partially the reason why he was feeling quite reckless. Due to the injuries he had received during his battle against the Pandavar's enforcer, he was advised not to engage in physical altercation for the next few days. Normally, he would have ignored such advice — but after the battle against Worf, June knew he couldn't take things that recklessly.
'I need to take a new approach to this mission, at least for the time being, until I completely recover. Last night raises a lot of questions about the Pandavar and their recent activities...'
June wondered to himself as he scratched his chin while walking down the hallway to the canteen. It was still quite early in the morning, so the corridor that he was passing through was quiet for the most part.
Most patient here are either asleep or have already gone to the canteen for breakfast to start off their day.
'Speaking of which, the guy that Smiley mentioned has been taking on a lot of jobs lately, during the last two years.'