NOVEL WEB Chapter 74: Stalking
He moved to the door and creaked it open.
Down the street, the two men were already halfway down the block, walking side by side toward the the maglev station.
He didn't waste any of his time checking his surroundings.
The two men were already a good distance ahead, striding along with the kind of pace that showed they weren't in any rush.
He fell in behind them at a comfortable distance.
He didn't look directly at them, of course. Nick knew better. One of the most common, and useful, Soul Abilities that many people across the Federation awakened when they enter the Beast Domain was one called 'Sixth Sense', which gives them the ability to sense whenever someone, or something, is observing them.
With how little he knew about these two, and the whitesteel gang as a whole, he couldn't know whether one of them possessed this ability or not.
He let his peripheral vision do most of the work, doing his utmost to avoid looking at them directly.
If it were mid day, with lots of people out on the streets, then he could get away with looking closely at them every now and then, but with how early it was and hence how empty the streets were, that would just be a dead giveaway. And all the people that were out and wandering the streets already tended to keep to themselves around this time.
Although, it helped that there were enough early risers and late finishers on the sidewalks to make his presence less conspicuous.
A few shopkeepers rolling up metal shutters. A couple groggy salary men and women speed walking with their eyes glued to their comms.
A few cleaning drones buzzing lazily overhead.
He slid in between a pair of slow moving pedestrians and kept his head low.
They turned at an intersection, and Nick caught a glimpse of the familiar signage of the maglev station he acquainted every day — or at least, every day he wanted to go to the Beast Domain.
The Sector 12 station, a squat concrete structure with a neat and tidy feel and a small convenience store inside.
It wasn't that big, since the area Nick lived in wasn't that large itself compared to the bigger cities.
The two men entered the station without hesitation.
Nick stayed outside, leaning against a nearby wall while he waited just under a gutter that was still dripping from last night's rainfall.
From there, he could hear the automated announcements echoing from within the station building.
"Platform One bound for the capital, arriving in ninety seconds."
"…Platform Two, bound for the industrial quarter, arriving in twenty seconds…"
Nick listened attentively.
There were only two platforms in this small station, each going in opposite directions, so the options the two men could take were limited.
He watched closely outside the entrance to see just which platform the two men chose.
And sure enough, he didn't have to wait long.
The two of them soon reappeared on platform two, though he did have to look directly at them to find them.
He was hoping that in the case they did have the Sixth Sense ability, there was enough people in the train station to drown out any thoughts they were being watched.
However, despite that, he didn't like what he was seeing.
The industrial quarter meant warehouse galore, abandoned buildings from failed ventures, and all kinds of underground garbage. The kind of place people went missing all the time… but also just the kind of place a new gang in town would set up shop.
Now, Nick understood why the Whitesteel gang had gone so long without being found out by the Federation or Kai's family.
They had set up shop in a completely different area to the location — Nick's neighbourhood — they operated in.
He was sure now that his choice of following them from afar was the correct one.
If he didn't take measures like this, he doubted he would have ever found out their location without using unnecessary force.
Still, as he swiftly entered the station and bought a ticket, he cautiously edged his way over to platform two, just in time for the maglev to arrive.
Unlucky for him, this line was one he was unfamiliar with, as he always took platform one's train to the capital whenever he wanted to go to the Beast Domain, as the teleporter he used was a few stops away along that line.
Still, it was just the kind of place Nick needed to go if he wanted answers, and to formulate a plan.
He took a breath, and waited until the very last moment the maglev was about to leave, to get on.
He slid into a seat near the end of the platform, a carriage away from the two men. Just enough to avoid any suspicion but close enough to keep the men in view.
He watched them through the reflection in the grimy window opposite him.
The talkative one stood with his hands in his pockets, looking bored as always, while the sharper one stood a little straighter, with his arms folded, scanning around lazily but methodically.
But the fact they stayed standing instead of taking a seat like he did gave him a big clue — that they didn't plan on sticking around for long on the maglev.
Sure enough, a few minutes passed and the maglev came to a gradual halt in its momentum.
The doors slid open with a hydraulic shunk, and the two men stepped out immediately afterwards.
Nick waited until the doors started beeping and the lights were flashing till he stepped off and continued his stalking.
'Shit!'
Nick immediately assumed a slower walking pace and turned away slightly as he began tapping away at his comm.
He hadn't realised it until he stepped off, but the station was basically completely empty apart from him, the two men, and one other woman!
Even if the two men didn't suspect anything, Nick wanted to play it as safe as he could.
And sure enough, they turned around, seemingly out of habit, and glanced across the platform behind them.
They found Nick walking slowly, facing away from them, and another woman walking at a brisk pace towards the station's exit.
'Don't notice… Don't notice…'
They turned around soon after.
'Damn, who taught these guys to be so cautious!'
Nick heaved a sigh of relief, and waited before they were out of his eyeline to continue his pursuit.