LOSS System: Last Store Standing

Jack blinked under everyone’s gaze, then briefly explained his idea.

Silence lingered beneath the canopy. Judging by Henry and Mort’s expressions, neither of them had expected Jack to suggest anything like this. Even Leonard seemed at a loss for words.

“Are you sure about this?” Elias finally asked.

“Why not?” Jack spread his hands.

Elias gave the matter some thought before agreeing.

Jack immediately started arranging everything they would need that evening. Megan would return to the convenience store and prepare bread and canned beef, two servings for each person. Dale would deliver them to the shelter, where Edith and the others would make the beef burgers. Susan and Ray would stay behind to make as much ice as possible before nightfall.

Once the worst of the afternoon heat had passed, Vane and the others would set up a canopy near the entrance. Cass’s group would move several PCCUs over, while Thomas used the available boards to make a few long tables. Henry reorganized the nighttime watch, and everyone else set to work on Jack’s preparations.

Jack returned to the second-floor kitchen of the convenience store to make the French fries himself.

By late afternoon, everything was ready.

A new canopy stood near the entrance, with several long tables arranged beneath it and PCCUs steadily cooling the area. Dale soon arrived in a CUEV loaded with boxes of beef burgers and French fries. Drinking water and ice were placed beside the tables, while the insulated containers were lined up along the edge of the canopy.

The lights had been installed as well. Once darkness fell, everything beneath the canopy would be clearly visible from outside.

Henry inspected the area, taking in the food, drinking water, and boxes of ice without comment.

Jack, on the other hand, seemed thoroughly satisfied. He adjusted the tables and had the lights moved closer, making sure anyone outside the entrance would have a clear view of everything on display.

With the preparations complete, Jack pulled over a chair and watched the sun sink toward the horizon.

“Now we wait for dark.”

After nightfall, a cluster of figures emerged in the distance.

The refugees were following the lights toward the settlement, burdened with supplies taken from the agricultural supply center. Some carried heavy bags on their backs, some shared the weight of large boxes, and others dragged bundles of materials whose original purpose was no longer clear.

The long journey and heavy loads had left them drenched in sweat. Their pace slowed with every step, but the sight of the brightly lit entrance pushed them onward.

All they had to do was deliver what they had brought. Then they could finally receive food and water.

Before they reached the entrance, several people on watch stepped out and stopped them at a distance.

The refugees came to a halt. Some bent over, gasping for breath, while others dropped their loads onto the ground and stared ahead.

A new canopy had been erected near the entrance. Several PCCUs sent cold air through the space beneath it, where bright lights illuminated long tables covered with beef burgers and French fries. Boxes of drinking water and ice had been stacked neatly nearby.

The smell of food drifted toward them on the cool air.

After carrying heavy supplies through the heat, the refugees were exhausted, hungry, and desperately thirsty. Several swallowed as they stared at the food beyond the entrance.

“Didn’t you say we could bring things to exchange?”

“We brought everything. Why won’t you let us through?”

The crowd grew increasingly restless, but the people on watch refused to let anyone pass.

Before long, Jack emerged from beneath the canopy.

Mort came out beside Jack with his chain hammer, while Henry took the other side with a gun in hand. Together, they looked like Jack’s personal bodyguards.

Jack stopped at the entrance and surveyed the refugees. They were in even worse shape than the night before. Carrying heavy loads through the heat had nearly drained them, and some could barely stay on their feet.

“I’m guessing you’re wondering why I stopped you here.”

After a brief silence, someone asked, “What exactly are you trying to do?”

“Nothing complicated. I just want you to answer one question. Did you come all this way because you heard I had plenty of food and water?”

No one answered at first. Eventually, a refugee near the front admitted, “Yes.”

Others soon acknowledged the same.

“Then when you heard about this place, did you also hear another rumor?”

Confused murmurs spread through the crowd. Several people asked those around them what Jack meant until an uncertain voice finally called out from somewhere among them.

“Do you mean... the Poison King?”

The name silenced the entire crowd. No one noticed that one person among them had briefly tensed.

Jack pointed toward the speaker.

“Bingo. Unfortunately, there’s no prize.”

None of the refugees laughed.

Jack’s smile faded. “Since you’ve heard about the Poison King, you should understand why I stopped you here.”

The crowd immediately stirred.

“The Poison King might not be among us!”

“We all came from the agricultural supply center together! No one else joined us along the way!”

Instead of answering, Jack gestured behind him.

Dale brought over an insulated container and set it beside the table. Jack opened the lid, revealing rows of ice beneath the lights. He dropped several pieces into a cup and poured in a bottle of water.

The ice clinked sharply in the sudden silence.

Jack took a long drink.

“Have any of you seen the Poison King’s real face? If not, what makes you so sure he isn’t one of you?”

No one had an answer.

Jack unwrapped a beef burger, releasing an even stronger smell of food into the cool air.

“I did promise to exchange supplies with you.”

He took a bite, followed it with a few French fries, and ate slowly while the refugees watched. Several licked their cracked lips. Others could no longer take their eyes off the boxes of drinking water beside the tables.

Only after finishing the fries did Jack continue.

“But I’ve changed my mind.”

The crowd erupted.

“What?”

“You can’t do that!”

“We carried all this through the heat, and now you’re refusing to exchange with us?”

Several refugees pointed at the bags and boxes piled on the ground, shouting about how much effort it had taken to bring everything there.

Jack raised his cup and took another drink of ice water, waiting until the shouting began to die down.

“The supplies are mine. I decide what happens to them.”

The remaining voices quickly faded.

“You all know how dangerous the Poison King is, yet you expect me to risk my life for you. Do you really think I’m an idiot?”

His eyes swept across the crowd.

“I don’t know whether he’s among you, and I don’t care.”

Jack set the half-eaten burger back on the plate and wiped his hands with a napkin.

“Poison King, I don’t know whether you can hear me. But if you’re hiding among them, listen carefully.”

Silence settled over the entrance.

“I know you want what I have. I also know you want to kill me.”

Jack gestured toward the lights, food, and ice behind him, a smile returning to his face.

“Too bad. You can’t.”

At his signal, several more insulated containers were opened, revealing even more ice beneath the lights. Cold air drifted over their edges as Dale and the others distributed the food. Everyone beneath the canopy took a seat and began eating beef burgers and French fries in full view of the refugees.

Ice clinked against cup after cup as water and drinks were poured.

Jack returned to his chair and picked up his ice water.

“You’re good at hiding, aren’t you? Then keep hiding.”

He spoke toward the crowd as casually as if the Poison King were standing in plain sight.

“It gets hotter every day. No food, no water. Let’s see how long you can last.”

The refugees grew increasingly uneasy.

“As for the rest of you, unless you can prove the Poison King isn’t among you, I won’t exchange anything with you again. And don’t come near this place anymore.”

“That isn’t fair!” someone shouted.

“Fair?” Jack took another drink. “Do I owe you anything?”

No one answered.

After letting the silence linger, Jack suddenly changed his tone.

“Still, I’m not sending you back completely empty-handed tonight.”

Several refugees immediately raised their heads.

“You can take water from the pit. How much you carry is up to you.” Jack gently moved his cup, making the ice clink. “Tonight only. Consider it payment for the trouble you went through to bring those things here. As for food, forget it.”

The refugees immediately turned toward the water pit, their expressions brightening.

Jack added casually, “But you’d better hope the Poison King isn’t hiding among you. Otherwise...”

He left the sentence unfinished and let out two quiet laughs.

The brief relief vanished from the crowd. People began eyeing those around them and checking the containers they had brought.

A moment later, confusion broke out.

Everyone wanted to reach the pit and collect as much water as possible, but no one wanted anyone else near their containers.

“Don’t touch my things!”

“Stay away! I’ll fill it myself!”

“Who touched this bucket?”

Several refugees grabbed their buckets and empty bottles and rushed toward the pit. The rest quickly followed with anything that could hold water, keeping their distance from one another as they went.

Among them, one person remained focused on Jack, the hand at his side slowly tightening into a fist.

He was the Poison King.

Without even realizing it, Jack had caught him completely off guard. He had indeed hidden among the refugees and had already considered poisoning the water pit. But now, anyone behaving strangely near the water would immediately draw the suspicion of everyone around them.

He forced down his anger and quickly put on the same frightened expression as the others. Taking his container, he followed the crowd toward the water pit, keeping his distance and pretending to be just as afraid of being poisoned.

Whatever trust had existed among the refugees was gone. Some guarded their containers and refused to let anyone come near. Others kept checking their surroundings while filling them. A few formed temporary groups, watching one another closely as they took turns collecting water.

Beneath the canopy, Jack took another drink of ice water as he watched the once-united crowd turn against itself.

Henry came closer. “I didn’t expect your plan to work this well. If the Poison King really is among them, we may not have to do anything. These people might expose him themselves just to stay alive.”

“Don’t be too optimistic,” Jack said quietly. “If he were that easy to find, his name wouldn’t scare all of you this much.”

Mort kept his attention on the refugees. “You underestimate human nature. When people are pushed far enough, survival takes priority over almost everything else.”

His voice turned cold. “Especially when the Poison King is the reason they’ve been pushed that far.”

Jack watched the people around the pit. No one was helping anyone else anymore. Everyone guarded their own container, and even those who had carried boxes together earlier now kept their distance.

After a moment, he admitted, “You have a point.”

Jack and the others remained beneath the canopy, eating beef burgers and French fries and drinking ice water while the refugees filled their containers and left one after another.

Only after the last few figures disappeared into the distance did Jack finally relax.

Megan came over and gave him a thumbs-up. “Good job, Jack.”

“Your plan was completely different from what we discussed,” Elias added, “but it worked.”

Jack was beginning to look pleased with himself when a weak voice came from behind him.

“Um... can I have something to eat and drink?”

Everyone glanced back.

The refugee who had been shot in the leg was sitting nearby, eyeing the beef burgers and ice water on the tables. Jack didn’t know whether to laugh or sigh.

“I don’t even know what to say about you. If I call you unlucky, you happened to get shot and cleared yourself of suspicion in the process. If I call you lucky, there’s still a fucking bullet in your thigh, and we don’t even know when it can be removed.”

The injured man gave an awkward smile. “None of that matters. What matters is... can I eat?”

Jack waved him off. “Fine. Eat.”

Laughter broke out beneath the canopy.

The refugees who had already traveled some distance heard it, and several glanced back. The Poison King stopped as well and faced the brightly lit entrance.

The laughter continued drifting through the night.

His grip tightened around the container as he glared toward Jack with undisguised hatred.