The wristband Gabriel was holding fell to the ground.
Ash froze, staring at Gabriel's hand as it fell limp, and then at his eyes, which were now closed. His lips formed a faint, subtle smile.
Jagu walked over to them, sniffing and nudging Gabriel, who was no longer alive, then sniffed and nudged Ash before sitting at Gabriel's feet.
They remained in that position for quite some time. Then, the sound of Ash's scream echoed through the large, silent room.
***
Ash sat for a long time in front of the mound of earth he had created in a shaded spot within the object-searching room.
The mound was made to bury Gabriel and Albert.
As for Liliana, he buried her in a separate spot, farther away from Gabriel and Albert's graves, in the northern corner of the room.
Even though he harbored intense hatred toward her and could have easily instructed Jagu to devour her, he wasn't that cruel.
Finally, he stood up and walked toward Jagu, who had reverted to its small form, and gently stroked its head.
Jagu whimpered softly, as if it understood that its master was feeling sorrowful.
"I will be fine, Jagu..." he murmured.
Hearing his master's words, Jagu whimpered once more, and Ash gave it a faint smile.
"We still have to find the items and return to Sassi," he said, then began walking, with Jagu following close behind.
All the objects in the Finding Objects room, once discovered and taken by someone, would return to their original places if the person who had taken them was no longer alive.
So, Ash had to search for all two hundred items on his own—well, with Jagu by his side, of course.
It took him two whole days to complete the search for every single item. Now, with everything gathered, he was ready to head back to Sassi.
That night, he slept in an apartment building located in the western section of the object-searching area. The apartment was fully equipped, complete with a bed, kitchen, bathroom, and toilet.
There was even a television and a refrigerator inside.
'Almost every place in here is identical to those in the real world, but there isn't a single living creature,' Ash thought to himself.
Suddenly, the thought crossed his mind—perhaps one of the objects here could help him return to Sassi quickly.
The problem was how to take such an object out of this place. It was located underground, and the only exit was the same entrance he had used earlier.
Ash closed his eyes, thinking that tomorrow he would try out one of the vehicles or perhaps an airplane, and then look for another way out of this place.
***
The next morning, after taking a shower and having breakfast, Ash headed straight to one of the cars parked on the street. He struggled to push Jagu out of the car, as the creature was eager to get in.
Once he managed to get Jagu out, Ash tried to start the car.
There were no keys, so he resorted to manually starting it.
'Good thing I used to work part-time at a car workshop,' he thought.
The engine sputtered but didn't start. Ash tried again, and this time, the car roared to life.
"Yay," he murmured happily.
He checked the fuel gauge and realized the tank was nearly empty.
"Hmm. Maybe there's some fuel around here. I'll look for it later," he muttered.
He got out of the car and checked inside all the other vehicles around. Eventually, he found one with plenty of fuel, but he would still need more if he wanted enough to return to Sassi.
As he looked up, his eyes landed on an airplane hovering above, not far from where he was standing. He smacked his forehead in realization.
The airplane was floating in mid-air without any visible support or mechanism keeping it suspended.
'How stupid of me. How could I possibly get onto that plane?'
Disappointed, he scanned the area again, and his eyes landed on a motorcycle.
He imagined how he might escape from there, but then shouted in frustration, "How am I supposed to use any of these vehicles when the snow outside is that deep?!"
Dankkk!
A trash can nearby went flying after being kicked, crashing into the edge of the sidewalk.
Dankk!
Clang!!
Everything within reach became a target of his frustration.
Jagu ran off, whimpering softly as it watched its master venting his anger.
After his anger subsided, Ash slowly walked along the sidewalk, with Jagu timidly trailing beside him.
With a heavy heart, he gathered all the items he could carry—food, drinks, and other essentials—and decided that tomorrow he would leave this place.
***
Ash tried pushing the heavy metal door blocking the exit upward, but it barely budged.
He turned to Jagu, who was watching him from the bottom of the stairs, and motioned for it to help push the door.
With enthusiasm, Jagu climbed up and, with a single nudge, pushed the door wide open.
Grumbling, Ash gave Jagu a light smack on its rear. "You always pretend to be a weak little puppy, but you're ridiculously strong."
Jagu ran out cheerfully, leaping and bounding through the deep snow with excitement.
Ash followed after closing the door behind him, trudging through the thick snow with great effort.
They headed south, with Jagu happily hopping along, for several hours. Suddenly, Ash spotted a small, box-shaped hut standing alone in the middle of the snowy expanse.
'Strange. When I first arrived, this hut wasn't here,' Ash thought.
As they got closer, Ash noticed that the hut was made of wood on the outside. However, when he tried to open it, he discovered that the interior was completely lined with metal plates.
There was a slit at eye level, likely for peeking outside, as well as small air vents.
Ash entered the hut, relieved to have found a place to rest. They both sat on the floor and he began eating the provisions he had brought.
Then he fell asleep from exhaustion, only to suddenly wake up to the sound of growling coming from outside the hut.