[Volume 2 - Heartless Angel]

"Wake up dear... you are going to be late."

A sweet, voice called from somewhere beyond... actually not from too far, it was just a room away.

But there was no response.

"Ishiki! Wake up!" The voice called again, this time a little strained.

He groaned, burying his face deeper into the pillow and said in a muffled tone. "Five more minutes, Mom..."

"You said that thirty minutes ago! Get up, or I'm throwing water on you!" The voice immediately snapped.

Ishiki instantly sat up with wide eyes. Not because of the water threat of course, he knew that was empty.

'Holy shit... thirty minutes?' He grimaced and blinked a couple of times. 'I am so dead...'

He sat up and threw his legs off the bed, hoping that they would reach the floor, but they didn't. His hair were a chaotic mess of long black strings that fell down to his shoulders now and covered his face whole if let in the front.

He walked to a small window and yanked the curtains open, letting the warm, golden light fill the little room.

He then walked towards the other side of the room where the bathroom was situated. He went in and stood in front of the mirror, looking at himself.

It has been six months. Yes, exactly six months from the day he arrived in the capital of Aethelburg. Better known as The City of Dreams.

'Well, the name is in the right place.'

He splashed cold water on his face and scrambled out of the bathroom. He didn't have time for a full shower. He was getting late.

The room was small and simple, but it was clean and luxurious. Not exactly, but a hundred times better than the damp, moldy apartment they had lived in on Earth.

Here, the walls were dry and the air smelled of bread instead of smog, factory toxins and the most exciting thing was that, there was a real sun in the sky outside.

Ishiki chuckled. 'How exquisite.'

He hurriedly tidied up his bed.

"Ishiki!"

"I'm up! I'm up!"

He pulled on a fresh shirt—a simple grey tunic that blended in with the crowd, then grabbed his coat and ran out, he bypassed the kitchen entirely, ignoring the smell of toasted bread.

"I'm leaving!" he shouted, already halfway out the door.

"Eat something first!" his mother called from the kitchen, waving a spatula.

"I will eat out today, mom."

He slammed the door shut and busted out onto the street.

Ishiki weaved through the holiday crowd like a fish in a stream. It was a Rest Day—Aethelburg's version of Sunday, though they had two of them a week. And as mostly everyone was free today, the streets were packed.

He dodged a fruit cart, sidestepped a group of laughing teenagers, and ducked under a hanging banner.

If one were to look down from the heavens, Aethelburg would look like a golden jewel set in a ring of iron.

The city was a masterpiece of impossible architecture, floating high above the ground layer of the ruined world below. It was divided into three concentric circles, separated by massive, golden walls.

The Outer Ring was where the relatively poor, or the ones with no connections lived—the lucky players from Earth, who had managed to reach Aethelburg and the common folk of the Empire.

It was crowded, noisy, and alive. Markets spilled into streets, children played on streets and the smell of spices and sweat hung in the air.

It was a typical Victorian era slum, if you could call it a slum. It definitely was a lot higher in that regard.

The Secondary Ring was cleaner and sharper. The streets were paved with white stone. The houses were larger and guarded by private security.

This was the domain of the high ranking military officers, the wealthy merchants, and the branch families of the noble clans.

And in the center, protected by the innermost wall, was the Inner ring. It was a lot mysterious and marvelous place in the whole empire. The Imperial Palace and the Sun statue were situated there.

This floating island... was only the capital of the Aethelburg Empire. But it was all that was left of the once mighty and humongous Empire.

Ishiki lived in the Outer Ring with his mother. And today... he had some business in the Secondary Ring.

"Watch it, Runner! Your legs are moving." someone yelled.

"Sorry! But can't help them." Ishiki called back, not slowing down. Then he blinked a few times. 'Wait... who the hell was that?'

A hand suddenly grabbed his shoulder, stopping him dead. Ishiki stumbled, turning around to see a familiar face grinning at him.

"Well, well. Look who's in a rush." Kaori said scanning him from head to toe.

She left him and leaned against the bakery wall, holding a steaming bun. Her hair was tied back in a practical ponytail, and she looked far too amused.

"Kaori," Ishiki sighed. "Actually yeah, I am in a rush... someone like you won't understand." he said with a smirk.

"Don't tell me you are going on a date?" she teased, taking a bite of her bun. "well... you should at least bathe once in a while, you reek."

"Shut up. Don't compare me to yourself... I actually bathed yesterday."

"Well, you're heading toward the Secondary Gate," she noted, her eyes sharpening. "You don't have a pass, Ishiki. Do you?"

"I don't need a pass," he deadpanned. "I have charms."

She snorted. "You have a death wish. Don't get arrested, somehow. Kenji would be crying."

"Huh? Why would Kenji cry..." He sighed and shook his head. "I'll be fine."

He pulled away and kept running, ignoring Kaori's laughter behind him. soon. Ishiki reached the boundary line.

The wall loomed just a few meters ahead of him—a sheer cliff of golden metal that stood hundreds of meters high.

It could make anyone's heart turn out of sheer greed. 'If I could chip off just about hundred bricks from this thing, and sell them back on earth.' Ishiki thought, staring up at the lustrous surface, 'I could buy half of the Lower sectors.'

He stared at it for a whole minute... admiring the money it could bring him. 'No No, i am admiring its beauty.'

The wall was adorned with two massive Obsidian Gates. And, four soldiers stood guard, their armor were polished to a mirror shine, and all of them looked bored and resigned.

One of the guards with a thick moustache, noticed a particularly weird looking kid... staring up at the pristine wall with greed filled eyes.

"Hey you! What are you looking at?" he asked with narrowed eyes.

Ishiki flinched once and then straightened his coat, then put on his best "lost noble" smile, and said in a nonchalant voice.

"I was just wondering... how much money I can make from this wall."

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