"Please…. Please, it's all I have."
A lady in tattered clothes dropped to her knees in front of one of the reception desks, her body frail and her hand shaking as she placed a few coins onto the counter with her remaining money.
"Miss"
A male receptionist in a suit said flatly while adjusting his glasses.
"As I told you before, your amount is insufficient. The Sentinel Order cannot accept your request. Regulations are clears."
He pushed the coins back toward her and pointed at the regulation poster on the counter.
The coins spilled across the polished floor, clattering loudly in the silence.
".. please"
Her voice cracked as she quickly scrambled after the coins, scooping them up with trembling fingers. She laid them back on the counter and repeatedly begged the man for assistance.
Many people inside the building turned their heads to the lady, some were frowning with irritation, others whispered to one another. A few even smirked, entertained by the girl's humiliation. But no one stepped forward and offered help.
"Miss"
The receptionist's eye twitched, his patience thinning. He leaned forward.
"I don't mean to offend you.. but look at yourself."
He smirked as he gazes over her filthy clothes with a disgusted expression.
".. The Sentinel Order upholds a rule to respect all humans,"
He continued, his tone dripping with mockery.
"…but that doesn't mean we must tolerate an Outbound ruining the atmosphere in this establishment !"
People began to mock and laugh as they realized that the poor girl was an Outbound.
[Outbounds were people born outside the Empire. They were not considered citizens, but refugees who lived beyond the wall. Unlike true citizens of the empire, the Outbound bore no crest mark on their wrists.]
"…please, my friend … is in trouble …"
The girl began to sob, tears falling from her eyes as she whispered.
"…I need help …"
The girl crawled on the floor, tears streaming down her face as she begged the bystanders nearest to her for help.
"Please… everyone here ... one of you please accept … the request"
"… eww ... "
"Oi... take your filthy hand off me !"
Everyone looked at her in disgust, some even kicked and pushed her away without a shred of sympathy.
"…Miss, if you refuse to leave this establishment right now, I will have to force you out!"
The male receptionist warned sharply, signalling to the guards.
Two guards in nano-tech armour, masked and armed with rifles, stepped forward from their station and slowly approached her.
"…no… please!! I'm begging you!!"
The guards seized her thin arms, one on each side, and dragged the girl toward the exit.
Everyone watched her scream and plead without the slightest concern, as if this was something that happened all the time.
Suddenly, a man's voice rang out from another counter.
"What!! The year is 3452!!"
The entire hall of the Sentinel Order froze, even the guards stopped and turned their heads toward the voice.
"Sir, please lower your voice!"
The female receptionist who assisted that man hurried to calm him down, gesturing to reassure everyone that everything was fine.
The man was also dressed in tattered clothes. He stood tall, with short black hair and a well-built physique. He looked confused after receiving the receptionist's answer.
"I'm sorry, could you tell me more about this place … Oh—do you know where I could find Yaya? I lost her when I got here… and what are these things?!"
The man began to pour out ton of questions, pointing at everything that caught his attention.
Suddenly, the same male receptionist that humiliate the poor girl strode toward that counter, his brow deeply furrowed.
"Ah… Mr. Winson…"
The female receptionist quickly noticed his presence and greeted him as soon as he approached, but he didn't bother to return the courtesy.
Instead, he fixed his gaze on the man.
"…Sorry, sir. We've had enough of people like you. Please make your way to the exit."
"… Mr. Winson, but he…"
"Enough, Ms. Shally. Don't show any sympathy to these people. You won't gain anything in return!"
After saying this, Winson gestured to one of the guards, who was still holding the poor girl's thin arm, to seize this man as well.
"Eh… I'm just here to ask some questions. People told me to come here! I'll leave once I get the answer!"
The man replied with a smile, clearly unaware of how low his social standing was in this society.
"Moreover… hey!"
As the man continued to speak, he was quickly grabbed by the guard.
"Woah...… wait … wow what's with this armour? It looks so cool!!"
Instead of resisting or showing fear, the man turned his head toward the guard, studying the equipment with excitement with curiosity.
"Mr. Winson, I think he just needs some help with information. He'll leave once I assist him!"
Shally, the female receptionist, protested, trying to ease the tension by explaining everything to Winson.
Winson ignored her plead and adjust his glasses.
"…Ms. Shally, do you think this establishment is a charity organization?"
Winson sigh before continuing lectured Shally.
"You were selected to be the receptionist of the Sentinel Order to assist our valuable Tracers and the citizens of the Terran Empire."
His tone was sharp and flat.
"…A mere Outbound like them will gain nothing. Instead, they are the source of corruption, filth, and decay in our Empire!!"
While Winson was lecturing Shally, the two guard already drag the two to the exit.
The two were thrown out of the establishment.
They sat outside the building in silence.
"... someone…"
The girl broke down, tears streaming from her eyes as she whispered, covering her face with her hands.
The man noticed and turned toward her.
"…Are you all right, Miss?" he asked kindly, scratching his head.
"Oh… my name is Kris. What about you?"
He introduced himself, waiting for her reply.
Instead of answering, the girl quickly stood up and attempted to return to the establishment, but she was stopped by the guard.
"…Please… I need help!!…"
"YOU CANNOT ENTER!"
The guard shouted, shoving her back with his gun.
"Oi, that's not how you treat a lady !! "
Kris barked at the guard.
"….Yaya always told me to be nice to a lady"
He scolded the guard, but the man didn't even bother to respond.
"Tch! Get lost !"
The guard muttered, annoyed, without even looking at them.
Kris then turned to the crying girl.
"Is there anything I can do to help?"
He asked kindly, smiling as he reached out his hand to her.
The girl shot him a quick glance with cold, lifeless eyes before dashing away.
She clearly thought Kris wouldn't be of any help after all, he was the same as her an Outbound.
Kris didn't realize that. Instead, he stood there, confused by her behaviour and muttered to himself.
"… that girl is weird…!?"
He then straightened up, turning his gaze back to the bustling crowd in front of the Sentinel Order establishment with an awe.
"… maybe I should explore this place…"
His eyes lit up with curiosity but then something come up into his mind.
"…I wonder where Yaya is!"
As that thought crossed his mind, a soft voice suddenly echoed within him, as if reaching out directly to his head.
'Kris! Help me!'
His expression shifted instantly. He spun around, desperately searching for the source of the sound. It was a woman's voice, and he recognized it at once.
"YAYA!! Where are you!!"
Kris shouted, startling the bystanders, who stared at him in surprise.
Then he slowly calms himself by taking a deep breath and close his eyes.
After a few moments, Kris began to calm himself, focusing his senses.
He homed in on his hearing, carefully stripping away every sound that wasn't Yaya's voice.
First, the noise of the crowd faded from his mind.
Next, the rumble of engines vanished.
Finally, even the subtle sounds of nature disappeared into silence.
'…Kris… help me!'
At last, Kris was able to hear Yaya's voice again. With that, he pinpointed her location through the sound.
His eyes snapped open. Without hesitation, Kris dashed forward, leaping from one building to the next, racing across the rooftops until he reached to another district.