Waking up in an unfamiliar bed, Noid saw an unfamiliar ceiling. In the short time he'd been in this world, this had happened to him twice. But he couldn't be blamed. For an ordinary, timid person to experience so many shocks and only faint twice was already a testament to his potential.
This room was much cozier than the military quarters. It looked like a university dorm room. If it weren't for the aching pain in his eye and the empty space where his left arm used to be, he would have truly believed it was all a dream.
He sat up, drank some water to soothe his parched throat, and stepped outside.
This place really did resemble a dormitory, except it was ten stories tall and incredibly long, with what must have been thousands of rooms side by side.
Noid's room was on the tenth floor, number A10-57. He went out onto the balcony. It was already evening, and the cool breeze made him feel a little chilly. But the starry sky above made him stand still for a long time.
The dazzling galaxy was as if the entire universe was reflected in Noid's eyes. Having grown up in a modern society where light pollution made it difficult to see even a single star, he was deeply moved by the sight of the star-filled sky.
"It's beautiful, isn't it? That's what the sky has looked like since the doom came to Earth. It's a shame nobody pays attention to things like that anymore."
A voice came from the doorway. He recognized it; it was the golden-haired woman he had seen before he lost consciousness.
The word "woman" wasn't quite right. "Young lady" was more fitting, as she looked very young. Noid guessed she was around his age.
Noid didn't reply, and the young lady didn't seem to mind. She placed the bag in her hand on a table, then turned to the door.
"You haven't eaten or drunk anything for almost a day, so you must be hungry. Have something to eat and get some rest."
After his door closed, he heard the sound of another door opening to his left, so it seemed she lived in the room next to his.
Noid didn't dwell on it. The water he drank earlier had briefly suppressed his hunger. Now, seeing the food, his stomach began to growl. He opened the bag, which contained a fast-food-like box. With meat, mashed potatoes, rice, and broth, it was a complete meal.
After eating his fill, Noid went outside. Although it was evening, he wasn't sleepy at all. Walking out of the building, he figured this must be Rorgh City. Looking into the distance, he saw a grand, tall city wall protecting the entire city, at least a hundred meters high. Defense towers stood side by side. Even a small part of this defensive line was incomparable to Karj City.
Noid stood in front of the building entrance, scratching his head. Suddenly, he didn't know where to go.
This world, the people here, were all too foreign to an outsider like him. After much thought, Noid could only wander aimlessly into the inner city.
As he walked into the inner city, Noid noticed that the living conditions, both physically and mentally, were a cut above Karj City. The food was a clear indicator; the meal box he had just eaten was just an ordinary item here, but in an era where humanity's territory had been reduced, having such a complete meal was a testament to strong development. The people here also had various forms of entertainment to relax, such as watching pictures, performances, and shopping. Although he saw many modern technological advancements, the forms of entertainment seemed simpler than in the pre-invasion era.
After wandering for a while, a somewhat dilapidated area appeared before Noid's eyes. He recognized this area as the refugee camp.
The camp was filled with tents. To save space, sturdy steel frames with wooden floors were divided into multiple layers. Refugees could choose to set up a tent or live directly on the wooden floor if they didn't mind the stares of others or didn't have enough resources to trade for a tent.
Although the Rorgh City government had done its best to take care of the refugees, the number of refugees was so vast that they could only do so much. Rorgh City was rich and magnificent, no doubt, but it was already bearing the burden of 30 million residents and operations.
It wasn't that no one complained about the refugee situation; that had been almost ten years ago, at the beginning of humanity's conflict with the doom. Leaving a warm bed to sleep in a makeshift tent wasn't something everyone could endure, but they had gotten used to it by now. After all, in this era, being alive was what mattered most.
In the refugee camp, he thought about the child he had protected earlier, who must also be in this camp.
After searching for a while, Noid found the child from before. He was curled up on the wooden floor, covered with a piece of cloth. He seemed to be sleeping. But because he had no tent, the child tried to huddle in a dark corner to sleep.
It wasn't that the people around him didn't want to help, but they lacked the means. Everyone here was a refugee; they were all people who couldn't even take care of their own families, so how could they help others?
After observing for a long time, Noid returned. He had quietly made a decision in his heart. He didn't know how a coward who only knew how to run could make such a decision, but deep down, Noid felt he had to do this.
Standing in front of the door next to his, he was wondering whether to bother her at this hour or wait until morning when the door opened.
"Is something wrong?"
The young lady appeared in her pajamas.
Noid was a little embarrassed. Ten years of avoiding social interaction had made him not very good at speaking. He fumbled for a long time before managing to say:
"Could... could you help me get into the refugee camp? There's... there's a child there, he's... he's an acquaintance. He's all alone."
In reality, he wasn't acquainted with the boy. He had saved the child and didn't want him to be alone like that. That was all.
The young lady looked directly into Noid's eyes and said slowly:
"Why not ask to have the boy stay here?"
He hadn't not thought of that. But it was wartime. He was a person with no achievements, and having such a good place to live was already hard to justify. Noid guessed that the young lady had saved him, which was also the reason he was allowed to stay here. If he brought another person to live with them, it would be awkward not only for him but also for her.
Even if he had the nerve to stay here, it would be very inconvenient to take care of the child from such a distance.
Faced with her question, Noid just shook his head and gave a wry smile. Though the young lady was young, she was observant and understood his meaning.
"Alright. You can go to the refugee camp tomorrow. Just sleep here tonight."
She waved her hand.
Noid bowed his head in thanks and returned to his room.
"My name is Sasha."
He was a little startled and replied awkwardly:
"Oh... Noid... I'm Noid."