William definitely didn't question where they were even getting such high-quality meat, let alone in such a quantity. He didn't dare to think; that's why.
Getting people was the easy part here, and building restaurants or businesses with management and food supplies was a different level compared to basic survival. It was a good thing Mi-Yung had great funds, and starting it was easy because of it. By now, the Pit was pretty much self-sustainable, although that wasn't the case for seven years.
“If the same goes again, I will gladly decline, and I don't even know what we ate last night. I didn't ask out of principle.” William said regretfully.
“What happened last night?” Luke asked in curiosity. A day ago, Mi-Yung told him that she would spend a day with William and show him what he ought to know. As for last night, they had other things to discuss, so their talking became a trifling matter.
“Nothing extraordinary.” Mi-Yung downplayed William's words and pushed her own spoon into Luke's mouth.
In this way, the breakfast was over. It was almost precarious and happening without arousing suspicion that Luke had nothing to worry about. It was her problem. She will deal with it, so he adapted.
Drinking fresh juice, William never felt this refreshed. “Good lord... so how about those credits?”
“What are you planning?” Luke asked after ensuring that Mi-Yung had no other arsenal.
“Getting by and learning stuff. What? Heck, I know what is ahead because I don't know. I suppose both of you will be busy with work and so on, so...”
“I am always busy. Walkers tend to be that, because if they aren't, what the hell are we doing with our lives?” Luke said.
“I will see... something new today. Won't be with you, unfortunately.” Mi-Yung awkwardly added, almost coughing and unwilling to discuss this.
“Which means?” Luke teased her.
“I have some suspicions that must be resolved. In truth, I planned to go with William to the library again. I don't think I will. Not today.”
“No worries. I feel like I can do a lot by myself. It's called self-study, right?”
Mi-Yung nodded in approval.
“There is also one thing that worries me, so if you won't mind, tell me. How can I get credits?” William asked before an empty bowl.
“Is a hundred credits not to your satisfaction? Sure, they are a bit off for some people, but still, it should be enough. Don't tell me you've already spent it. Oh. Wait. That set! I recognize your boots?! They are...” Luke nearly got up and started to seize his clothes, but Mi-Yung kicked his feet and tripped him aside.
“No. They were cheap. I swear. I have more than sixty credits left.”
“Oh,” That calmed Luke down a little, and he forced his moan to remain inside his lungs. “Why ask then?”
“It is about money and civilization. Ellie told me how it works, but it wouldn't hurt to get to know some specifics or understand exactly how it works for me. Mi-Yung also said getting credits wasn't part of my problem. Is it complicated for someone like me?”
“Someone like you?” Luke hummed, and Mi-Yung had a perfect answer in a heartbeat.
“A little. You are young, and your citizenship will take time to complete. Unless you have it, you can't earn credits for yourself. It is one rule we have to follow.”
“Citizenship?”
“It is something like a personal token. This one is mine.” Luke showed him a small paper book that revealed his personal information. Citizenship included military, personal, and Walker status. Most of the military ones included memberships in Divisions and various benefits. Walkers had theirs in a unique color, such as his purple booklet.
Regular people had simple white ones that they carried everywhere, and each was a remarkable example of the past meeting the present. There weren't many lines with text, lest it be overwhelming. It was a handful, with barely a dozen little pages.
Luke's lines describe Yondu Division, his physical status, marriage, Rank 5 Walker's ranking, and other less important things, such as business relations, family, and so on. It was rather empty because his life in the military was pretty much all he had, including Mi-Yung, of course.
“I see. How are the credits then? I don't need funds for anything, but I will be here for months, and afterward, I will need them, right? Maybe I should get familiar with them ahead of time.”
“Credits... I didn't think you would be that interested in them, considering yesterday and everything. Well, I can speak about it. Our situation is rather good because we are both Walkers with a fixed salary, so in a sense, we work for the Federation, and the Federation gives us what we deserve. It's not as simple as you would think for us. The Federation supports a large number of people, and they require more credits than we, the Walkers. That is it. Our needs are different, so the order is different.”
“Sounds normal. So... are you millionaires while a teacher is not?” William nodded, liking this answer because Ellie had said something similar.
For another example, Luke described his fair share. “It is normal, but such numbers are not it. Walkers don't need too many credits, but we have great ways to earn them if that's what our position depends on. If not, we get little of what we need. Credits, in a way, serve as rewards for completing jobs and missions. Yondu Division has them, even though Walkers have completely different kinds of resources and money to consider. Credits are solely for the Federation anyway. Other places have their own coins or monetary systems. Neither of them is lacking, and my fixed salary is one hundred and fifty credits a week.”
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William hummed. “Hundred and fifty? You have it like that even as a Captain?”
“It isn't so bad because I don't need them a lot,” Luke said, and felt that dreadful massage coming. His voice trembled when Mi-Yung blew his numbers into obscurity.
“I have a basic income of one thousand and four hundred credits a week. Assembly is why, and with businesses and things around my work, I can multiply that however I want.” She announced with pride. Half of her confidence came from her position and family, and less from challenging work. That came off as rude, and her true worth shone in many different things than mere credits.
“That much? That is a lot of kebabs... I guess I won't be able to do anything about this, and my lifestyle is fine anyway.” William sighed as he leaned on the chair. “What about those...things that Walkers have? I read a little bit about it.”
“Little things,” Luke said and pinched his fingers above the table. “I don't think you want them right now.”
“Maybe I do?”
“Maybe. Perhaps... It is an interesting proposition.” Mi-Yung seemed to recall or realize that something else was missing. She hummed and slapped her palms. “Forget them!”
“I won't, but I am not in a rush, alright?”
“Yes, you will-- wait, what?”
William shrugged, supposing that they didn't want to talk about stuff he already knew a little about, but not in depth.
“I kind of agree with Mi-Yung, William. A bit of credit starts to flow after your Examination because even little recruits such as yourself have their worth. Without my involvement, you would have ended up in dorms, Outside places, or under the watchful eyes of some Division in the Federation. The meals and everything are kind of free in such places, and as expected, it is also not so pleasant. Everything after the Examination is up to the organizations, or said choice, because no one is forcing kids to their deaths anymore.”
“Or it needs me!” Mi-Yung said, patting her chest.
“Yes... Miss Proxy, you might give it even more attention and silly misunderstanding than anyone else. How great of you.”
“What?” she shouted, giving Luke a tough look.
“Anyway,” Luke changed the topic and looked at William with a firm resolve. “Certain papers, documents, and done citizenship are making a lot of things official. Credits are part of it, as the Federation is the holder of credits. That is how I made money when I became a Walker. From missions to salary. At first, it was a few dozen credits at a time and involved a lot of little things that eventually got big. It's supporting, you know. We don't need to meddle with people's money. We just need a little to get by or support our family or business. Oh, that could get big, but never mind that.”
“It was also a different time, right?” William asked.
“Oh, right. Right. I guess stuff about missions is a bit different nowadays. I'm not that young, after all. Rank 1 is tougher than it was in the past, although not much can change in training. Anyhow,” Luke explained that his time and start were very different from Mi-Yung's.
“Why?”
“Luke... There is no need to scare him.” Mi-Yung tried to ease his words a little. It didn't work, for there were many more truths in Luke's words than lies.
“It doesn't hurt anyone to say it. The Darks are getting tougher to deal with each year. Their numbers aren't dwindling unless squads of Rank 3+ Walkers are involved. For youths, it is way tougher since they are still young, but how else can they grow than by being pushed against their natural predators and dangers? It is... rough, but necessary.”
“What he is saying, William, is that living for us has its ups and downs, and how to fix such difficulties is up to every new generation. Each is important.”
“Yep. Not many opportunities go far if Rank 1 and above Darks stick together like hordes. Finding a suitable way to nurture young generations has been an issue for as long as the Federation can remember. The military is usually looking at such nasty results with shame or care. That's where most losses go. Surprisingly, it is also where talent comes in because Ranks after the Awakening are crucial. Some take a few months to reach Rank 2. Then, a year for Rank 3. It is typical for it to be exponential and different, and there are differences among talents.” Luke explained after Mi-Yung let him continue.
“Is that that bad? I thought stability was required for every Rank-up. Why rush it?”
“It's actually much worse than that,” Mi-Yung added, knowing a bit more than Luke about the sheer losses. Reports surrounding large or even small-scale operations worked with every kind of Walker, which meant endless problems.
It was about numbers, statistics of deaths, successful missions, Rank-ups, time, age, resources, news, and so on. She knew quite a bit about the internal structure and how many organizations worked around it for years. It wasn't about the Federation alone, but other places and mainly... Outside and Darks. Mi-Yung visited various areas, including China's underground cities and Nepal's mountains, and was particularly keen on working with Japan.
From her knowledge, statistics were grim. Three in ten Walkers would die in the first year after the Awakening. Then, six in ten in the following years, even if the actual dangers weren't ever excessive, yet how to help it, if Darks were also hunters? Still, after five or more years, one could be considered an impressive Walker, as they have survived their experiences and taken steps just enough to approach a state of equilibrium.
As for the bad statistics, it was about a lack of experience and capabilities. Youngsters had to gain power from their hunts; otherwise, they would never go far, and they needed to know how to live and hunt. Doing so without paying the price of deadly mistakes was hard.
In short, experiences weren't cheap and easy to gain, hence the death toll was that bad worldwide. The Federation was trying to fix it bit by bit, but even in such practices, being too soft would never end well for anyone. It had very few promising directions, and Mi-Yung didn't deny that.
This was the primary reason why Forced Awakening didn't help anything. In fact, many older Walkers believed it worsened everything because those who came with it gambled for much stronger Walkers to emerge from those younger-than-average Walkers in decades. Yet... there were still children.
Mi-Yung was among the finest examples of this entire project, and many people had far too high expectations for her. Regardless of that, many others were never satisfied with this idea or her, simply due to petty attitudes or frustration with the status quo, and the ambiguous advance of this society that had stalled for years.
Outside wasn't an easy place to look for change. Darks might not be as crazy as they used to be, yet countless of them were growing and getting stronger in return.
Mi-Yung knew the first generation of Walkers came within the thirties of the twenty-first century. Almost none survived from that generation, or the following one, and so on. Compared to them, survivability was rising in little pieces in this region, but it wasn't right to call it good either.
Anyone who was able to claim their life as a first-generation Walker was a force of nature, a true monster. Rank 8s were all about that, whilst... First-generation and even rare survivors of the following ones were around, either in shadows or pillar positions, and supporting what they could. They were no regular people, who couldn't live that long.
