We froze. The man in the clean blue coat didn't budge; his sharp eyes moved from Leo's knife to my scared face. His presence turned the dirty alley into a courtroom.
Leo broke the silence. He lowered his knife slowly. "Sorry, sir! We thought you were a homeless man! A big mistake!
The face of the man did not show any emotions. His gloved hand rested on his shiny sword. The two-sword symbol of the Zwei Association was on his coat.
"I understand," he said calmly, "You tried to rob a Protector. This is against the law. Explain yourselves."
"Sir, we're lost," I said, raising my hands. "We just appeared here an hour ago. We have no money. It was a stupid mistake."
"Lost," he repeated. "Not knowing the rules is no excuse. The fine is 100,000 Ahn. Pay now."
"We have nothing," Leo said, his face pale.
"Then you will be arrested."
"Wait!" Leo yelled. "Let us work for you! We can cause a distraction!
The man was quiet for a moment. "There is a Syndicate safehouse three blocks east. The 'Rusty Vipers.' They bother people we protect. Cause trouble at their door. If you succeed, your debt is gone. If you fail, they will deal with you. Do you agree?"
It was a dangerous mission, but our only choice. "We agree!"
After he vanished into the shadows, I turned to Leo. "He's using us as bait."
"Of course!" Leo grinned. "But we're smart bait! Let's go!"
We navigated the dirty alleys until we finally found the safehouse. It had a heavy door with a painted snake symbol.
"Ready?" Leo whispered, holding a piece of scrap metal. "For maximum annoyance!"
He began scraping the metal against the door. The sound was horrible—a high-pitched screech that hurt my ears.
Scratch. scratch. scratch.
Nothing, for a whole minute. Then a muffled curse came from inside. The door cracked open. A bloodshot eye peered out. "Go away!"
Leo pointed at the snake symbol. "Hey, man. This snake is blocking your positive energy. That's why you're so angry. You need a better logo."
I began to tap a rock on the wall in a maddening rhythm. Tap-tap. tap. tap-tap-tap. "He's right. This place has bad energy. You should try therapy."
The door swung fully open. Two guards stood in the opening, their faces contorted in anger. "I'll skin you alive!" one growled.
"Whoa, so hostile!" Leo said. "That's your blocked energy talking! Let it out!"
More members of the Syndicate emerged. They were not disciplined soldiers, but just angry men whose day we were ruining. They were completely focused on us-the two annoying pests.
That's when the Zwei attacked.
They came out of the darkness without a sound. Blue-coated figures emerged from the rooftops and alleys. There was no yelling, only the soft clattering of drawn steel. In under ten seconds, the various members of the Syndicate were all on the ground. The lead Protector cleaned his blade and then put it away. He looked about as fazed as if he had just taken out the trash.
Leo and I stood there, shocked. The change from our silly acting to this quick violence was jarring.
The Zwei Protector walked toward us. He looked at the scrap metal in Leo's hand and the rock in mine.
"The distraction was enough," he said flatly. "The threat has passed. Your debt is paid." He turned to leave, then hesitated. "You two are drifters. A danger to yourselves and others. The City will destroy you if you remain lost."
He reached into his coat and threw something to Leo. It was a metal badge with the Zwei symbol.
"What's this?" Leo asked.
"A provisional ident tag," the Protector explained. "It means the Southern Branch is watching you. It doesn't protect you, but it identifies you. It might stop other branches from shooting you. If you live for a week and want a job, come to our office. We need people who can. creatively distract others."
He gave a curt nod and walked away. The team disappeared as silently as they appeared.
I looked at Leo clutching the badge. We weren't injured, but our minds were shaken. We were now on the Zwei's list for being a nuisance.
Leo held up the badge. "See? We've got police friends now."
I put my head in my hands. "They're not our friends. They just gave a badge to the most annoying people in the Backstreets."
But as I said it, I felt something new. For the first time since coming to this nightmare city, I felt a small spark of hope. We were far from home, but we had taken our first step toward survival. We had a chance.
We stood there in the quiet alley, the only sound coming from a distant street vendor. The Zwei badge felt heavy in Leo's hand, a tangible connection to something larger than ourselves in this overwhelming city. It wasn't safety, but it was a starting point.
"Come on," I said finally, my voice softer now. "We should get off the streets."
Leo nodded, putting the badge away carefully. "Yeah. Let's find our spot behind that sign."
As we walked, my mind was racing. We had survived our first real test in the City. We had faced a Syndicate and the Zwei Association and lived to tell the tale. The badge in Leo's pocket was proof that we could adapt, that we could find our way in this brutal new world. The City was still a terrifying place full of dangers we didn't understand. But now we had a goal: survive the week. And if we could do that, maybe we could do more than just survive. Maybe we could actually build a life here. This both terrified me and thrilled me. We were nobody, two kids from another world. But we were learning, and we were together. For now, that was enough.