The Omnistore System

In the midst of their conversation, Yelena strolled up to them, having just secured her steed nearby, and teased, "Are you two just lounging while everyone else is working?"

Kevin glanced at her cheerful expression and replied, "Ah, we were just chatting."

"slacking it is," she teased with a playful smirk, then turned to the silver-haired man. "Don't make him like yourself, lazy ass!"

"I didn't do much, really. Like he said, just shooting the breeze, and hey, the tent's already up, nothing much to do now." Ken mentioned, rising and brushing off his clothes.

"There's always something if you look," she retorted.

"Like what?" the silver-haired man inquired, smiling. Keith's aunt glanced at Whisky and suggested, "You could go grab some grass for these monsters to munch on."

Ken's smile faltered a bit, but he couldn't back out now. With a grin, he turned to Kevin. "You mentioned earlier you were gonna grab some grass for your steed, right?"

Kevin looked at him, surprised, thinking, 'He really is lazy ass.' But since he was already planning to do that, he replied, "Yeah, I'll get some for the others too." Then, turning to Yelena, he added, "I've got it covered."

Yelena nodded with a smile, watching him walk a short distance to cut some grass. Turning back to Ken, she asked, "What were you two chatting about?"

"Nothing," Ken replied, glancing at Kevin, then turned to him. "Why do you care?"

"I don't, it's just Robert seems interested in him," Yelena commented, wearing a contemplative expression.

Ken raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Robert? What's he interested in?"

Yelena shrugged casually. "Can't say for sure, but he's been keeping an eye on him for a while."

Ken found it intriguing and wanted to inquire further, but Yelena was already striding toward the camp, urging, "Quit lounging, get moving and do something!"

*******

"What have you got today?" Stuart inquired as Kevin retrieved a plastic-wrapped plate from his ring.

"It's grilled fish with spicy green chili and tomato sauce, alongside some rice," Kevin offered, handing him the plate of grilled fish.

Stuart accepted it with a smile and inspected it, commenting, "You seem to have quite the taste for food to whip up these kinds of dishes."

"Nah, I'll eat anything. It's just that my mom enjoys cooking, so she made a bunch," Kevin explained with a smile, passing out a plate to each of them. Surprisingly, they were all eating together today.

"Thanks," they all chimed in while sharing their own food. Each of them had packed enough to last half a year, if not longer, since they also received larger space rings from Keyara—Kevin got one as well.

Benny, between bites, looked over at Kevin. "Hey, did you get a chance to call home?"

Kevin nodded, taking a sip of water. "yeah this morning." 

"Well, you should call again. It will hard to call once we are in den, It's hard to find network once there," Benny mentioned between bites of fried chicken.

"Yeah, I'll make sure to do that," Kevin agreed, having read about the signal disruption in the information he received from the cultivations association.

"Who's taking the first lookout shift today?" Yelena inquired while enjoying the fish and rice Kevin had shared with her.

Kevin raised his hand, along with Keith and surprisingly Zaria. Keyara nodded in agreement and added, "Alright, then I'll take the next shift."

"Count me in too," Robert chimed in, and Stuart also agreed to join the lookout duty for the next shift. This left the third shift, which Arya, her husband, and Viana opted to take on.

After a while, everyone retreated to their tents, leaving Keith and Zaria on watch duty. Kevin sat with Keith, who was still munching on food, now with a handful of chips. "I'm gonna go call my mom," he announced.

Keith, with a mouth full of food, nodded and mumbled, "Don't go too far."

"I won't," he assured her, then moved to sit beside Whisky and dialed his mother's number.

"Hi, Mom," he greeted as Maria's concerned face appeared on the holographic screen.

"Where have you been? You didn't call for days," she expressed with a worried look.

"I just called you this morning, Mom," he replied with a helpless smile before asking, "Is Riya home?"

"Yeah, she just headed to the store," Maria replied, eyeing the background. "What's behind you? Is that a monster?"

Kevin glanced back, smiling, and turned the camera toward his steed's face. "Meet Whisky, Mom. He's my ride. Doesn't he look cute?"

Maria couldn't help but gaze at Kevin with a strange expression as the 'cute' creature had three eyes, a long face with two large curved horns, and a mouth containing two long teeth in its lower jaw. It was far from cute.

However, to preserve her son's feelings, she nodded and said, "Yeah, it's cute. Now, can you turn your camera?"

Kevin chuckled and adjusted the camera. "Sure thing, Mom. How's everything at home?"

Maria sighed. "Same old routine, dear. Your sister is busy with her exam." 

"How's your cultivation going?" Kevin asked, leaning against Whisky's soft fur.

"It's going well. Riya has unlocked all of her extraordinary meridian, and I'm also on my last one," she shared, settling into a chair and placing the watch on the table she continued with sad expression. "It's just I miss you a lot."

"I miss you too," Kevin responded with a smile. "Wanna meet my buddies?"

"The ones you've been fucking?" Maria asked, a hint of jealousy in her look.

The teenage boy chuckled and shook his head. "I'm not mom; at least not to all of my buddies. As Some are guys, others are married."

"So, who were you going to introduce?" Maria asked again, wearing a smile.

"You know her, or at least have seen her. Her name is Keith. She's quite cute and pretty," he replied with a smile, glancing towards Keith, who was laughing with her mouth stuffed while watching something on her watch, as Zaria gave him odd looks.

"If she looks anything 'cute' like your friend Whisky here, then no thanks," Maria joked, laughing.

Kevin, seeing her laughing, smiled and asked, "Why? What's wrong with Whisky? He's the cutest."

Maria laughed. "Oh, he's unique alright, but not exactly my definition of cute!"

Kevin chuckled, looking fondly at Whisky. "Well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder."

"True, true," Maria conceded. "So, how's Keith?"

Kevin grinned. "I had showed her some of your pictures, She found you really beautiful."

"Really?" Maria asked, surprised.