Alina slightly smiled and said, "Well, you know that already a Hell exists, then surely there must be a Heaven as well on the other side, though it may not seem like the heaven people think of when they hear the word."
Ethan nodded slowly, feeling that the name couldn't be more apt as he said, "Is it because Hell is literally a place of death or the unknown dark side while on the other side, life exists, including us, and because of that it is kind of considered like heaven? Or maybe we are actually living in heaven," Ethan found the whole idea a bit deep and fascinating after learning about these things.
"Maybe. Who knows. I wish I knew the answer too," Alina said with a pure smile.
Ethan realized how he actually had little to zero idea about the vast universe or its deep mysteries.
"Come on. Let's go out and talk to Mr. Nuan," Alina said as she held Ethan's wrist and tugged it slightly, indirectly telling him to follow her.
Ethan nodded, but then he asked with pinched lips, "Can I see Sui first? I know she must be alright and resting now, but I just want to see her with my own eyes to put myself at ease. Just seeing her from afar is enough as well."
Alina's gaze became unfocused for a moment before asking with a quick smile, "It seems like you both really care about each other a lot. Before you woke up, she was in this room, helping me watch over you for at least a few hours. I insisted that she should rest, but as usual, she is someone who does things her own way. Only a few minutes before you woke up did she leave on her own. But she is really fine. You don't have to worry. As a doctor, I can at least assure you that."
"Oh…okay then…" Ethan didn't expect that Sui would be watching over him for so long, especially after being hurt. He felt complicated, not knowing what to think, especially since he remembered his moments with the Deviant Sui.
He then realized that Sui must have seen him confess his feelings and even kiss the Deviant Sui.
'Shit…what would she have thought…' Ethan had never felt so anxious, having no idea what Sui would have felt.
"You are still worried about something?" Alina asked as she blinked her eyes and tilted her head.
Ethan gave an awkward smile as he touched the back of his head and said, "It's nothing. I was thinking that I should let her rest and talk to her when she wakes up. No need to disturb her now."
Alina faintly smiled as she said with a glazed gaze while pressing the button on the wall to open the door, "She is really lucky to have a friend like you."
"So am I," Ethan said with a tight-lipped smile, but his distracted mind was brought back to reality when the door of his room opened, and he was welcomed by the sight of a neat white corridor with bright lights and polished tiles.
He also saw other doors to different rooms in the same corridor, and it seemed as if he was standing in a hotel corridor, with the only difference being the design of the whole place was far more pleasing to look at than in any luxurious hotel.
"What section of the building are we in?" Ethan mumbled as he looked towards his sides curiously.
"The room you were sleeping in was actually mine, and these quarters are for employees like me," Alina said while feeling a bit amused at seeing his child-like curiosity.
"Wow. That's cool. No wonder your room was so amazing. The room is free, right?" Ethan was coming from a lower middle-class family, and so all of this was impressive for him. He had always wanted to stay in such a posh room with a great view and felt as if he was lucky enough to stay in such a room for a while.
"Of course, it is. Otherwise, do you think I am rich enough to rent such a room?" Alina said with slightly reddened cheeks.
Ethan began to walk forward as he asked with a shrug, "I know but still, since you are working for such a powerful organization, wouldn't you be receiving special perks or maybe a salary big enough to live lavishly in our world? Wait…you do get some salary, right?" Ethan asked doubtfully, seeing how Alina was giving him a strange look when he mentioned salary.
Alina pursed her lips as she said in a slightly petulant tone, "They don't give us a single penny."
Ethan had a blinking expression, "Not even a single buck? That is some next-level stinginess…Isn't this taking advantage of employees like you? Is this even legal, or maybe our laws don't even matter here."
Alina's eyes lit up as she said, "Ah, when I said we don't get a salary, I meant the standard ones we receive back in our world. But we actually do get incentives in the form of a currency called 'Credits'. And we would get them based on our performance, but we cannot use them in our world. These credits are only effective within this place, but you could use them for various things, some of which I am sure you will be very interested in. You will get a clear idea if you join us."
Ethan's expression became a bit serious as he contemplated joining the bureau.
Alina saw how his expression seemed conflicted and added in a soft voice, "Ethan…I really hope you do join for your own good and…at least for me…so that I will feel more at ease, knowing that I can keep an eye on you all the time while you get to learn how to become stronger and protect yourself," Her eyes began to mist over as she continued, "If something like today happens again or worse…I-I don't know how I would…I really can't bear seeing anything bad happening to you…*sob*..."
"Aunt…" Ethan felt his heart getting heavy, seeing how his aunt was so worried the entire time but was bottling it up all in so that he wouldn't notice anything. He forgot how much of a worrywart his aunt was, especially when it came to him.
He couldn't help but hug her as he patted her back, "Aunt…please…don't cry...I…I will join…I will join the bureau if that will make you feel at ease and at the same time, I can look after you as well. I can't let my aunt get involved in dangerous things on her own, even if it's from here. We can have each other's backs, aunt. I will somehow convince my mother," Ethan said with a determined gaze while thinking about many complicated thoughts. He knew that he couldn't be unprepared if something like this happened again, and the bureau seemed the only option before him.
At the same time, he can also look after his aunt as well and make sure everything goes alright for her.
"Mn," Alina softly nodded, her lips arching into a soft, graceful smile as she clutched his shirt, feeling happy.
Since the two were busy discussing before, they didn't realize that they had unconsciously walked towards the main corridor by now.
And suddenly, a surprised voice startled the two, "Alina? You got a boyfriend??"