My communicator buzzed, and when I answered, a small, glowing figure materialized before us—Miss Junia.


    “Hello, kids! Ready for your first mission?”


    We instinctively straightened up, replying in unison, "Yes, ma’am!"


    She nodded approvingly. “Good. Be ready—I’ll drop you off at Sector 55.”


    Before we could react, an intense azure light flared beneath our feet.


    The space around us cracked with a sharp buzz, and before my brain could register anything—


    We were somewhere else.


    ……


    We had landed in front of a desolate village.


    No… not a village—slums.


    The stench hit first, thick and putrid, sinking into the air like something rotten that had been left to fester. The ground beneath us was dry, cracked, and uneven, littered with debris. The structures—if they could even be called that—were crude huts, mostly made from scavenged materials and creature carcasses.


    It was a miserable sight.


    Kaltain, rubbing his temple, groaned. “Exactly how I imagined it. A wild place.”


    Azrael let out a short laugh. “Wild? Just say it straight—it stinks, and you’re disgusted.”


    I frowned. His tone was sharp, dismissive.


    Normally, he carried himself as someone who cared, but right now? He didn’t even try to hide his contempt.


    “You don’t have to be rude,” I shot back. “The people here didn’t choose this life. They were forced into it. It’s not like the government is doing anything to help.”


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Azrael just laughed again, as if I had said something amusing.


    Then, with an unnerving calmness, he met my gaze.


    “Didn’t choose?” His voice was laced with something bitter. “Vesna, the people here are criminals at best. The rest? They’re burdens. A waste of resources. Please, don’t live in a fantasy.”


    His words were like ice.


    I felt something inside me shift—an instinctive reaction, an alarm ringing in my head.


    I had believed that training with these two would make me stronger, but… if this was who they truly were?


    Then in the end, they’d be no different from the monsters outside.


    Rotten pests, treating human lives like playthings.


    Azrael scoffed, as if sensing my thoughts. “Oh, now you think we’re the bad guys? Listen—no one deserves to live just because they exist. If you have no worth, even your own family will abandon you.”


    I felt my hands clench.


    Something was off about him.


    Was this really what he believed? Or was this… something else? A memory? A wound reopened in the wrong place?


    Either way, I had seen enough.


    I already kept my guard up around Kaltain. I might as well add Azrael to the list.


    Without another word, I turned on my heel and walked toward the rusted metal gate ahead.


    I heard Azrael mutter behind me. “Tch… just leave her alone for now.”


    Good. I didn’t want to hear his voice again.


    If nothing else, coming here was a blessing in disguise.


    At least now I had seen his real face.


    ……


    The streets—if they could even be called that—were narrow and winding, uneven paths leading between scattered tents and makeshift huts.


    The people here were thin, hardened, and bruised—their bodies lean from survival, their clothes little more than stitched-together hides from creatures they had hunted.


    I felt their eyes on me.


    They didn’t say a word.


    Just stood there, watching, as if judging me—my posture, my clothes, my speech.


    They knew exactly where I was from.


    I ignored their glares and spoke calmly. “Hello. Nice to meet you. My name is Vesna. Could you tell me the fastest way to reach Sector 56?”


    Silence.


    They didn’t even move.


    After a long pause, a boy—around my age—stepped forward.


    His voice was hesitant, his accent thick. “You should… go straight… then… left…”


    He was stuttering badly, but I could tell he was trying to help.


    It was strange, seeing kindness here.


    Then, before he could say more, an older man grabbed his arm.


    The man—aged, which was rare, considering the presence of cosmic energy—pulled the boy back without a word.


    The boy struggled for a second, then turned his head toward me.


    “…Go away… dangerous place…”


    He was dragged off before he could say anything else.


    The moment they disappeared down a dark alley, the atmosphere shifted.


    I could feel it.


    They were avoiding me.


    Not because of who I was, but where I was from.


    I exhaled slowly.


    “Are they… hiding something?”


    I didn’t want to jump to conclusions.


    But even if Azrael’s words were disgusting, there was one thing he was probably right about.


    They were criminals.


    Maybe they didn’t deserve to rot here—but they weren’t innocent either.


    And that meant I had to stay on guard.


    Even if they had no personal hatred toward me, my mere existence was enough to make me an enemy.


    ……


    I continued walking, navigating the endless maze of huts, carcasses, and alleyways.


    Every sector had a 10-kilometer gap, meaning the journey to Sector 56 would take a while.


    If I wanted to, I could have raced through the sector at sonic speed—but that would have been stupid.


    I had already felt their hostility. Moving recklessly would just make it worse.


    An hour passed.


    Still no signs of the next sector.


    It was frustrating.


    The slums felt endless, like a deliberately designed puzzle.


    Every street looked identical—the same structures, the same long alleyways, even the same discarded carcasses scattered around.


    It was like someone had built it this way on purpose.


    And the worst part?


    I had the creeping suspicion that someone was watching me.