Evening.
Yuki and Akane Nishino walked along the streets of the Lawless City.
The girl's gaze kept darting around, taking in the surroundings.
Compared to the orderly streets of Midgar's royal capital, this place was utter chaos.
Hoodlums and thugs could be seen everywhere, their arrogant eyes constantly scanning passersby.
Like hungry wolves selecting their prey.
Additionally, elderly people and children were rarely seen on these streets.
Most were robust youths and adult men, their attire clearly marking them as mercenaries or adventurers.
Just as the city's name suggested, those who could enter this city and leave unscathed were certainly not unarmed civilians.
Because such people, upon setting foot here, would either have their flesh and blood drained by vampires, turning into Ghouls, or be kidnapped by local thugs or street overlords and sold to slave traders.
"Come, come, come! Take a look!"
"Fresh slaves, just in!"
"Men and women, strong and thin! Slaves to meet all your needs, we have everything!"
In less than 50 meters of walking along the street, Yuki and Akane had already seen about three slave shops.
Akane looked at the slaves imprisoned in cold iron cages, clad only in thin garments, shivering in corners, their bodies curled up against the cold. A sense of sympathy welled up in her heart.
Inside the chat group, everyone watching the livestream also began discussing.
[Seitenshi]: Thinking about it, slaves in another world are really quite pitiful.
[Dongfang Huaizhu]: I agree. These people are so pitiful. Not only are they treated like commodities, those merchants even make them wear only thin clothes.
[Raiden Ei]: Seeing something like this, I hope it never happens in my Inazuma.
[Marika]: Don't forget what kind of place this city is. Situations like this are to be expected. Even in my place, slave trading exists. So it's probably a feature of civilizations with similar systems.
[Athena]: Modern civilizations might not have it, but slavery was common even in my era.
[Artemis]: I've observed that human societies also have slavery.
[Saeko Busujima]: In past civilizations, slavery was indeed common. But this place is so chaotic. The vampires are supposedly the rulers here, yet they don't seem to manage things.
While the group discussed, Akane's gaze kept moving between the various slave traders' shops.
"It feels somewhat uncomfortable watching this."
Akane furrowed her brows, her tone tinged with sadness.
"That's normal. From the perspective of someone educated in modern civilization, it's completely normal to feel that way."
A light smile appeared on Yuki's face as he spoke calmly.
"That's true. Anyway, I can't remain as calm and unaffected as you, Yuki-kun, watching such things happen right before my eyes."
Akane sighed, casting sympathetic glances toward the slaves caged nearby.
"Heh, that precisely shows you have a compassionate heart, Akane."
"I don't dislike girls like that."
Yuki chuckled lightly, offering words of comfort to Akane.
Hearing this, a shy expression appeared on Akane's face.
Her cheeks flushed slightly. After meeting Yuki's gaze for a moment, she hurriedly looked away.
Her heart was pounding wildly.
"Of course, while having compassion is good, it's also important to keep it in moderation and not let it become excessive."
Yuki then added a reminder.
Hearing this, Akane silently took note, giving a slight nod and a soft reply.
"Mhm! I agree with that."
The two then continued walking a few more steps. As they ventured deeper into the heart of the city, slave traders were still present, but there were also many other kinds of merchants now.
For example, shops selling food and other normal goods had increased significantly.
Of course, since many mercenaries and adventurers came here, establishments like taverns and blacksmiths were also much more numerous.
In addition, industries catering to the entertainment and leisure of these mercenaries and adventurers were also plentiful here.
Such as... prostitution.
While passing by, Akane saw rows of lavishly dressed women standing outside certain buildings, causing a blush to spread across her face.
'Oh right! I almost forgot—these kinds of industries are common in fantasy worlds like this!
Wait... Yuki wouldn't have come here to experience that, would he?
That... wouldn't be good! I'm right here, why would he need to look for those... unclean women?'
After seeing shops of the "nightlife" industry, countless conjectures instantly flooded Akane's mind.
She then felt she couldn't let Yuki touch women who had been... handled by who knows how many people. She quickly thought of a plan.
"Ah! Yuki-kun, what's over there?"
"Let's go check it out."
Suddenly pointing in a direction, Akane grabbed Yuki's hand and pulled him towards a different street.
Yuki was taken aback by the girl's sudden action. As she dragged him into a small alley, he couldn't help but give her a strange look.
"The place you wanted to see... wouldn't happen to be this pile of garbage, would it?"
Yuki looked at the girl curiously, pointing at the heap of trash they were now standing beside in the alley.
Hearing this, Akane quickly turned her head and saw the mountain of garbage. The foul odor instantly assaulted her senses, leaving her utterly embarrassed.
She hurriedly covered her nose, looking awkward and unsure how to explain.
Seeing the girl's reaction, Yuki could guess she simply hadn't wanted him to go down that other street.
And as for why... he figured it out.
This made him almost laugh out loud.
Just then, several mocking voices reached their ears.
"Heh heh, didn't expect you to pick such a nice spot for yourselves."
"Haha, we were just thinking when to make our move, but we never thought you'd hand us the opportunity."
Five men blocked the alley's only exit. They held short weapons like daggers, clearly up to no good.
Seeing these five thug-like men, Akane immediately recalled the hoodlums on the roadside earlier who had been eyeing them like prey.
Clearly, they had been targeted.
"Heh heh, hand over anything valuable on you, nice and easy!"
"That's right. These two sold to a slave trader would definitely fetch a good price!"
The thugs acted as if victory was already assured.
However, facing the blockade of five men, neither Yuki nor Akane showed any change in expression.
Akane merely looked at the five as if they were fools.
Daring to rob Yuki... these guys really had a death wish.
But just then, Yuki pointed behind the five and said softly:
"Take a look behind you."
Hearing Yuki's words, the five were stunned. They instinctively turned their heads.
They saw a man with crimson eyes and a ferocious expression glaring at them with a murderous gaze.
Seeing this abnormal man, the five instantly showed expressions of horror.
They had seen this kind often in this city. It wasn't a normal human, but a Ghoul transformed by a vampire!