"Guess there's no use in crying over something I can't change anyway..."
And just like that, he snapped out of his daze and began thinking about what questions he could ask the mysterious person.
I at least know a couple things: boring questions or obvious questions are things he'll probably not answer, so I need to be bold and think outside the box.
But that's easier said than done; he knew basically nothing at the moment. He didn't know if he was the one who granted him the phone or just someone in the same position, but maybe he had the phone for longer.
There were so many options that Senzo felt himself become dizzy at the massive amounts of information he was trying to process and utilize to come up with good questions.
"Yeah, I'm lost," he muttered while staring at his phone.
Staring, of course, didn't change anything as time slowly ticked by, and the person he was messaging didn't send any new messages either, seemingly waiting for him to come up with his questions.
"There's no point in waiting any longer. I have no idea what the others are doing, but I should try to find a way back fast."
Then he tightly grasped the phone and slowly typed out his first question, one that had been gnawing away at his subconsciousness.
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Senzo Kazuko:
"What happens to Earth if I die?"
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Now there was no turning back; hopefully, he thought that was a good question because Senzo desperately wanted to know the answer: would time resume, or would they be stuck frozen in time for all eternity?
Or would something even worse happen?
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Him:
"Hehe, that's a solid question alright. I will answer that one.
So listen up because I will only say it once.
If you, for whatever reason, were to die or fail to meet my expectations, I will erase that tiny planet and everyone living on it from the universe."
"So remember these words above all else.
Anything I want comes first, and what I want I let you know through missions, but of course the first time I was also trying things out, so next time they won't be voluntary but mandatory.
And I will add some more flavor to that world as well after all... nah, forget it, you're not ready to hear that yet.
Damn. I was yapping a lot. Well, this was kind of a bonus for such a good question."
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While reading everything 'he' had sent Senzo, he felt his hands shake and his eyes widen after every word he read.
This was massive; he had given him so much info just because he liked the question?
"I have to think carefully about my next questions."
But there was also something very ominous in that message: if I fail to meet his expectations, he will erase Earth? Does that mean he has been watching everything I've been doing, and he's the one that sent that phone to me?
Just that thought alone terrified Senzo more than anything else at the moment; neither the weird space he had found himself in nor losing his family sounded as horrific as being constantly watched and graded on his actions by an unknown being.
"How am I supposed to meet his expectations if I don't even know him?"
Then an idea hit him: maybe he could ask something along those lines as his next question. Would that not be predictable, though? I feel like this might've been a trap from him.
And on another note, Senzo had no idea how truthful 'Him' was being, and because he had no way of verifying any of it at the moment, it might be better to just keep it in the back of his mind and check once he gets his next mission. He had said something about missions becoming mandatory, so he could check it then.
"Fuuu."
"Calm down, Senzo; don't just blindly believe everything he says, and focus on the next questions."
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Senzo Kazuko:
"Thanks for the long reply, and here is my next question.
Why can you message me, and how?"
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Now he was waiting once more for the other party's reply, as sweat trickled down Senzo's forehead.
He felt like his current situation was even more nerve-wracking than wiping out everyone from the USEI that had attacked Pandra.
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Him:
"Tsk tsk tsk, what a boring question."
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"..."
Silence followed as Senzo stared at his screen, hoping for another one to follow after.
But with each passing second, that hope grew fainter and fainter as he didn't even see the three dots indicating that the other party was typing.
"That's it? Shit!" Senzo exclaimed as he tightly grasped the phone while gritting his teeth.
He had just squandered an important question and learned nothing new; well, nothing might be an overstatement. Now he could carefully compare both questions to try to figure out what he considered a boring question.
And hopefully he would then reply to his remaining questions.
"Calm down; in moments like these I have to stay calm and keep track of everything happening."
"Fuuu."
After taking deep breaths a couple times, Senzo had finally calmed down and was carefully scrutinizing both questions to try to see if he could come up with a possible reason why he would find the second question boring.
"Could it be because he's the one who sent me the phone, like he implied? But that would mean that he expects me to believe anything he says?"
It was completely unreasonable, but then something clicked for Senzo; that is how he had been acting all this time.
Completely unreasonable, like he was always correct and could do no wrong.
"I guess I'll keep that in mind and ask questions, acting like I believe everything he has revealed in his answer to the first question..."
Senzo was appalled, but in this situation he had to be adaptable so he could make the most of it.
"Time for the next question then."
Now with this newfound understanding of 'Him,' he would make full use of it in formulating his remaining questions.
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Senzo Kazuko:
"What will the next Multiverse OS update include?"
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Now all Senzo could do was cross his fingers and hope he would like this question.