The sonic shower and its ticklish waves suddenly stopped tormenting Ferris's skin.
After the shower, he gave himself a quick sniff. Not only was he completely scentless, but even the dirt under his nails, the tiny dirt on his hair, and the surface of his skin felt as fresh and smooth as a newborn's.
If only I had this sonic shower. Ferris couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy at the technology on display. With something like this, he wouldn't have to waste precious time scrubbing himself clean.
Instead he could spend those extra minutes lifting instead.
"Ditch your old clothes. This new model can actually fabricate materials, so I'll make some for you." The mech hummed in its legs as his new set of clothes was being "fabricated."
Will he really not ask me anything...? Ferris was becoming more and more convinced that Prodigy Prince wasn't really planning on interrogating him.
But he didn't dare complain. It was good for him as well. It no longer mattered to him if the S-Class hero was even suspicious of him. As long as Prodigy Prince didn't bother him, then it is what it is.
And so.
I'll play along.
Ferris turned around because he felt that the sight of his moon was much more comfortable than his tower being seen. He still couldn't trust that the mech really had a censoring system.
"I thought this was a combat mech? Why does it have so many weapons?" Ferris questioned, seeing how the S-Class would respond.
. . .
The speaker boomed, "Ah! Sorry, this is one of my support types. I just grabbed some weapons and came here as soon as possible."
"I designed it for disaster relief purposes, so I had to personally control this one in order to fight properly."
Ferris crossed his arms as he stared back at the hero.
After his unremarkable reaction, the mech stopped humming.
"...It's done."
A compartment within its legs opened, revealing a fresh set of unmarked clothing.
After Ferris helped himself with the free gifts, he turned to the mech's eye and unlike kneeling, he slightly bowed as he pressed his fist on his chest.
Even with his concerns and distrust against Prodigy Prince. As a knight, he was duty-bound to accept and thank all forms of generosity.
"I will never forget this kindness, Prodigy Prince," he said, although his tone was a bit shaky.
. . .
"Huh? What kind of mannerisms' that?"
Seriously... With your technology, you probably know every single detail about me, so just accept my thanks! Ferris held his position for a bit longer before retracting himself.
. . .
"Ah... I'm not shaming you. If you really plan on becoming a hero, I think certain manners and images are good for popularity points." Prodigy Prince tried apologizing by saying supportive words.
Becoming a hero? I never told you that! Ferris now confirmed that his life was already in this person's hands.
He wanted to risk questioning the Prince himself. "How did you know I was going to be a hero?"
"Call it a hero's instinct."
That's such an obvious lie! Ferris confirmed another fact.
Prodigy Prince's genius might only be limited to his technical ability, rather than emotional intelligence.
Then, Ferris walked towards his phone and picked it up.
100%
"I even gave you some mobile data. 500 gigabytes should last you a while, right?"
500?! Ferris was astonished by the generosity. It almost made him puke.
Since his apartment lacked internet, he always had to top up on data, which really tanked his money savings in the long run.
But.
If this is a psychological attempt to get me comfortable at confessing, it won't work!
"Why are you... being so generous to someone like me?" Ferris faked his gratitude—at least in a physical way—but internally he was jumping up and down in joy.
. . .
The large mech began moving, its simple act of standing shook the ground.
"What reason does a hero need to help someone out?"
That's a little cliché...
A small hatch in its chest opened, releasing a fishing rod-like arm that extended and dropped a long, stiff pole with a small foot-sized platform at the bottom.
"Get inside me, I'll take you home in this ride!"
Ferris gawked at the poor choice of words.
He blankly stared at the pole in front of him, but there was an internal war that was now going on inside him.
One wanted to get in the robot.
One thought it was certainly a death trap.
But it would've been suspicious for him to refuse, after all, he was in the middle of nowhere on some unmarked highway.
"Place your foot on that small platform and grab onto the pole, it'll be safe, trust me."
Once Ferris placed his foot on the pedal-like device, it automatically closed to grip his foot.
The moment he grabbed the pole, he suddenly shot up into the air, then slowed down once he was in front of the chest.
The fishing rod that stuck itself out began to retreat, dragging Ferris inside a spacious cockpit that was a dark, spherical room with a chair in the center.
Once inside, Prodigy Prince instructed him to sit and wear his seatbelts.
After that, the entire room lit up as the walls around him were actually screens that displayed the terrain around the mech.
"Where do you live? If it's in a dense city, then I can't land there directly."
Ferris maximized his senses. Although his only contact with Prodigy Prince was behind a speaker, he could somewhat feel that he lied when he asked where he lived.
But he still responded by taking out his phone and opening his jogging app before pointing at a certain location on the map.
"Take me to this convenience store."
"Hold on tight... you can even take a video and post it on SNS if you want, you're quite lucky to be in here."
Boom!
"!!!" Ferris was jolted by the sudden acceleration.
It only took a minute of flying until they reached the clouds.
In the air, Ferris quietly enjoyed the skyscraper-like views in the safety of an air-conditioned cockpit. For a moment, he even wanted to change careers, but he quickly stuck to his knight's creed.
After that, the cockpit suddenly became quiet.
. . .
"I placed my contact info in your phone, by the way."
. . .
Ferris, at that point, was no longer surprised by what Prodigy Prince had to say to him. "Why?"
. . .
Suddenly, he felt his heart beating faster due to an ominous feeling.
"Ferris, whoever you are, I don't consider you as an enemy, or as a friend, but I want you to trust me from now on.
I won't kidnap you but.
Let's just say that... I've taken an interest in you."
. . .
Not once did Ferris directly tell Prodigy Prince his name.
What a way to switch the tone, Ferris lampooned inwardly.
Ferris was inside the mech, wearing a seatbelt that might've locked itself without him knowing. A trap?.. Definitely not, I can tell that he doesn't know everything either.
He chose to remain silent but he did nod once.
During the entire ride, the atmosphere was tense, but nothing ever happened to him.
After half an hour, they arrived at the remote town where Ferris ate his expired food.
Dozens of people watched in awe as a massive mech landed in front of the convenience store.
After Ferris dismounted by using the fishing rod pulley system, he walked towards the store, only to stop in his tracks as the front doors slid open.
The cashier stood there, blocking the entrance with his face frozen in a twitching, awkward smile.
But most importantly, he was holding the steel water bottle he left. "Your water bottle, sir. You seem to have forgotten it," he handed it over to Ferris.
What's with this reaction? Ferris thanked the cashier with a confused expression, but he quickly realized why the man was acting this way.
Ah... The mech...
Showing up in a giant mech was way more outrageous than pulling up in a sports car.