Supernatural Beings: Strive Survivors Vol. 3 [Steady Update]

Strive 203: Meeting...Uh...AGAIN!

Taoreta's POV

Mato, now in a new coat, stands up, ready to report. The coat retains its white color but features striking black stripes along the collar and at the bottom edge.

I scan the room and see Mark, Kibun, and Ashely present for the meeting, but the founder is notably absent. I wonder why. It seems strange to me not to involve the leader of this organization.

"It's unfortunate, but we must start without the founder. At any rate, tonight's mission is to explore—"

"Doctor Mato!" A voice suddenly calls from outside the staff room.

Cree!

The door slams open, revealing one of the workers. He is a male with brown skin, brown eyes, and messy hair, wearing a lab coat that matches Mato's.

"Is there a problem?" Mato asks his fellow worker curiously.

"It's awful! We're receiving an SOS from the second layer! It's in the broken mansion!" The worker exclaims in a panic. His brown eyes are wide with fear, indicating that this situation is serious.

"That can't be good," Mato replies seriously.

And it seems I am right.

With the worker panicking like that, it must be something significant.

"Let's hope it's just an alarm," Mark comments with a frightened expression.

"An SOS means it's someone from our organization," Kibun mentions while placing his hands in his dirty black jumpsuit.

"You don't mean—?" Ashely widens her eyes in fear.

"No, the founder is fine. He's not foolish enough to head there by himself. And even if he were, I doubt he would survive out there alone," Kibun reassures us.

"How can you know?" I ask.

"Simple. The founder has a tracker on his supercode. Not to mention he has one on his phone. He would have to be exceptionally clever to bypass our technology," Kibun responds confidently.

"And the founder isn't particularly skilled with technology. I mean, he can use his devices well enough but not the high-tech stuff. Only Kibun and I have access and knowledge to unlock the technology around here," Mato explains with assurance.

"Hmm..." I say as I begin to think deeply.

With that logic, it would indeed be difficult for him to give us the slip. While I may be suspicious of the founder, I doubt he can outsmart us with technology. Perhaps if we were using a classic tracker on a phone, but the supercodes are high-tech; I doubt he could rearrange that code himself. But if that's the case, where is he now?

"Then where's the founder, Mato?" Yosei asks curiously.

"The last signal is within the tunnel between headquarters. But when we checked, he wasn't there—the founder, I mean," Mato explains calmly.

"Meaning he's turned off his phone," Kibun states while stroking his black beard thoughtfully.

"What about his supercode?" I inquire, raising an eyebrow.

"Most likely, he took off his suit and pants. I doubt he's wandering around naked; he must be wearing some normal clothing," Kibun explains while pulling out a cigarette from his coat pocket.

"No smoking, Dad! It's not good for minors around here to inhale!" Kuma scolds Kibun with her brow furrowed in disappointment.

"Fine, fine," Kibun concedes as he puts away the cigarette and folds his arms. "Anyway, the founder should be fine since he's definitely in the first layer. I've already sent a group to track him down."