Itsuki walked along the side of the cobblestone street after yet again leaving the hospital where he received treatment—without paying, or even confirming if he was supposed to.
I'll need to set some time aside to figure out how hospitals work in this world…
The city was now fully awake. Traders had poured into the streets, shouting over one another from every corner. Storefronts stood wide open. Horse-drawn carriages rolled steadily past, leaving trails of dung that carried a sharp, foul odour through the air. Trucks carrying heavy loads rumbled by as well, while the cars he'd seen the previous day were practically nowhere to be found.
He slipped through the commotion, the bandage on his arm still wrapped firmly and hanged tightly across his shoulder. After a short walk, he arrived at his destination—the same warehouse hiding the rift he'd been dragged out of.
Compared to the crowded chaos he remembered from earlier, the place now looked lifeless, almost abandoned.
The rift still churned and warped inside the darkened space, twisting slowly like a wound that refused to close.
A Barrier Strip had been wrapped across the warehouse entrance meant to warn people to stay clear. It was plain yellow, with no markings or words—nothing like the policing tape he was familiar with.
That's odd… A report went out saying over fifty Abyssals are inside that rift, and yet nobody's here? Not even a single officer on standby? And from the look of it, no one's been sent in to clear it either…
From the mouth of a narrow alley between two buildings across the street, Itsuki watched the warehouse, trying his best to blend into the crowds flowing past him, which wasn't proving too hard since there was enough noise and movement in the street to swallow him whole.
This place just keeps getting more and more eerie…
He scanned the area again, hoping to spot an officer like the ones he'd seen on his first day here. It was a fool's errand, trying to find anyone specific in this sea of people, but he tried anyway.
After a few minutes of pointless scanning—searching for an officer, or at least someone suspiciously watching the warehouse from afar—Itsuki finally arrived at one conclusion: the rift had been completely abandoned.
Then again, he wasn't entirely sure how rifts worked in this world. Maybe leaving them unguarded wasn't unusual. But based on everything he'd seen and pieced together in the two days since arriving…
I wouldn't put it past them to have some sort of ulterior motive for leaving it empty. Either way, it doesn't matter. I'll go in, go out, and get the job done.
He kept his eyes trained on the warehouse entrance, as though gathering the courage to step forward. At that moment, someone bumped into him from behind. Before he could turn, the figure raised both hands in a quick apologetic gesture and walked straight out of the alley, disappearing into the bustling street.
Almost immediately, the system's dashboard flashed into view.
[ System Notice — Foreign Hex Detected with hostile intent. ]
[ System Notice — The True Light's Blessing has intervened and Attempted Hex has been nullified. ]
A hex?
He spun back toward the street, trying to spot whoever had bumped into him, but they had already dissolved into the sea of bodies.
"Huh…" He glanced at the glowing system window again, then let out a quiet chuckle.
"Why would anyone try to hex me in the middle of the street…?"
As if summoned by the thought, an old woman shuffled out of the alley behind him. Her clothes were torn and dirty, her back hunched so far forward it looked painful. She tugged on his shirt with trembling fingers, faint words leaking from her lips.
"Excuse me, sir… could you spare some change…?"
Spare some change…?
He glanced again toward where the figure had disappeared into the crowd, then back at the woman. Another soft laugh escaped him—this one, more amused than surprised. The old woman blinked up at him, confused by his reaction, but her act remained steady.
I see. I'm basically about to get scammed. If not for the True Light, I was probably supposed to end up giving this lady a lot more than "some change," huh…?
He slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out the tightly wrapped roll of money. Her eyes widened greedily in an instant the moment she saw what he held.
Using his teeth, he tore off the wrapping. With one hand, he slid a single note free from the roll, returned the rest to his pocket, and handed her the lone bill.
She took it, but her eyes didn't leave his pocket.
"I don't suppose you could just give me all the money instead, kind sir…?"
A smile tugged at his lips as he reached out and lightly tapped her on the head.
"I don't think so."
Afterward, he turned toward the crowd and walked away, leaving the old woman standing there, silently wondering how her usually flawless scam had fallen apart so easily.
Reminds me of when I used to live on the streets of vibrant Japan… I guess they've got it easy here if stealing is as simple as placing a hex and asking nicely.
He circled around the busy street, all the while doing his best to keep his head low. It took him a bit of time, but he eventually slipped to the back of the warehouse.
One quick glance around to ensure no one was watching, and he forced the rusted back door open with a sharp crack.
This is going so easy I'm actually scared.
Inside, the warehouse was quiet—eerily quiet. The swirling rift twisted at the center of the room, humming softly like something alive.
He crouched and removed his shirt, followed by the bandage around his arm. Using his teeth, he ripped the bandage into two equal strips and wrapped them tightly around both hands. Then he tore his shirt into lighter sections, securing them the same way he did the bandages.
The rift pulsed, faintly illuminating the dark room with shifting waves of distorted light.
The mechanics of it were simple: it was basically a two-way passage. You could enter from either side, but you would only exit through the side proportional to the one you first came in from.
He tightened the makeshift wraps around his knuckles while holding to the other bits of his torn shirt and exhaled slowly.
Alright… no turning back now.
He rose to his feet, steel settling in his eyes. With one last steady breath, Itsuki stepped forward and disappeared into the rift.