“Huh? What are you talking about?” he asked.
His hands stopped unbuttoning his shirt as he spoke, but when I glanced over, he immediately started again. Sweat trickled down his forehead, and his breathing was ragged. Almost as bad as mine.
“Nothing. Mind your own damn business,” I murmured as I stared down at the bicycle. It was truly a marvel of creation that allowed someone to move several times faster than walking, and what’s more, the effort spent was way lower than on feet.
I stood there in a puddle of blood and looked around. Tall buildings, several perfectly square and others in different artistic shapes, reached for the sky. Lights flickered along their lengths, illuminating the inside and outside. More lights floated around us. No, not floated. I thought hard on it, and the name and information about it came to mind. Streetlights, garbage bins, and other stuff littered the alley we stood in.
I sighed and looked over at the four dead thugs lying on the ground. I was naked, and so was the other guy, all but for the boxer shorts we wore. I didn’t think it smart to exchange them with him, so I stared at their feet. I needed good shoes. Shoes that would fit me and would be comfortable.
Some ten minutes had passed since I’d killed the first guy, and now the first meridian finished forming, but I was far from satisfied. There was barely any Enma in the world around me. No, not just the air, in anything at all. This world was a fucking wasteland for cultivators!
Sensation returned to my left hand about then, and I could move it again, but it still hurt like you wouldn’t believe. The cuts and bruises weren’t healing as they should either.
I sat down on a piece of concrete rubble and stared up at the dark sky. The walls were tall and I couldn’t see anything but darkness and the stars. Not even the moon dared glance at me. Shit, was I in such bad shape that not even the world around me wanted to have anything to do with someone like me?
“Take off their shoes and help me put them on,” I ordered. “My left arm is useless thanks to you bastards.”
The man got up and quickly pulled their shoes off one by one, then placed them all next to my feet. He glanced over every pair and then looked at my feet.
“Do you want me to… I think these would fit you,” he said, his voice barely audible.
He was flustered and afraid. Good, that was just how I wanted him to be. I had no idea where I was or where I’d go, so having someone help me wouldn’t be a bad thing. The easy part was that I didn’t even need to believe him; he was afraid beyond his wits and would do anything to save himself.
“Which shoes are the best and most expensive?”
He frowned and looked down at his own, shrugged, and pulled them off.
“Here, these are slightly larger than theirs.”
I slid my feet into the shoes and wanted to gag. What the fuck was it with the cold, stiff feeling? Wasn’t this supposed to be leather? But why were they so tight and had heels?
“Are you into dressing like a woman?” I asked, not sure what to make of this. “Aren’t women supposed to wear shoes like this?”
“Huh? No! That’s a normal heel so the foot lies straight!”
I frowned.
“Normal for men?”
“Yeah, look at the other ones. They’re all the same.”
He picked the others up one by one and turned them around so I could see for myself. He spoke the truth, from what I could see, but the look on his face told me he had no idea what I was on about.
“Want to keep your shitty life?” I asked as he finished.
He nodded furiously. “I’ll do anything you want as long as you don’t kill me!”
“Is there any place we can stay? I want to shower and eat. I need some herbs to help with the pain you fuckers caused.”
He frowned and remained silent for several seconds. His mouth opened and closed twice, but then he let out a sigh and shrugged.
“If we go back like this, I’ll lose all the respect I earned over the last seven years. You’d better kill me right here and now before I lose what little self-respect I have!”
I raised my left hand and grabbed his throat.
“If that’s what you want,” I said calmly and squeezed down on his windpipe.
“No, wait! I have a way!”
I let go of the crying pig and leaned my elbows on my knees. I was tired and hurt and broken. I had barely recovered five percent of my Enma pool ever since we were sitting here. It would take a very long time until I was at full capacity due to the thin density of Enma in this world.
“What’s your name?” I asked as I studied the man.
He looked like a small-town thug if I had to compare him to my previous world. In this one, they were called gangsters, though. What an auspicious name.
“Sandro,” he replied quickly.
Our eyes met for a brief instant, and he looked away again, not able to hold contact for long. He was afraid and embarrassed. It radiated off his very skin and pores.
“Tell me about your gang. How many people are loyal to you directly? And how much wealth do you possess?”
“I have no… wait. Four are dead now,” he murmured and looked up at the stars as if searching for an answer up there. “Thirty people, give or take. The most loyal ones are dead now, and there are about ten left who would follow me, but they’re guns for hire. The rest are loyal to the big boss.”
I nodded. Thirty people—no, even ten would be more than enough for a start. I didn’t plan to conquer the world, just start my own little sect. No, not sect. I had to stop thinking along the lines of Karmag. I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath. I didn’t even mind the stench of this place and the piss the dying men lay in; it was still air. Karmag. Was the air as bad back there? Or was it much cleaner?
“How much wealth do we have at our disposal once we get rid of your current big boss?”
“We’ve lost a lot of territory and money in general over the last few years,” he started slowly. “He’s been indulging himself with women and drugs, letting others waltz over us. You should have been an example of what happens to those who don’t fork out for protection money or pay back their debts.”
His voice was more or less neutral. I could see he wasn’t excited about it, nor was he showing any regret. It was just business from what I could feel. Yeah, I could work with that. Business. Now that I thought about it, wasn’t this the same as back then? The strong bully the weak and take what they want. I guess no world is exempt from this one universal law.
“I need a single night of rest. Tomorrow I’ll take over and you’ll start working for me.”
“Umm…”
“Or would you rather join your dead friends? Right here and now?”
He looked away and stared at the wall for a long moment. I was about to snap at him, but he shrugged and spoke.
“No, sir. I’ll do as you say, but I beg of you, please don’t hurt the person who’ll be taking care of us tonight even if you have a change of heart. My sister hasn’t done anything wrong and is just trying to get by.”
“Oh? And didn’t this… I mean, wasn’t I trying to do the same?”
“Huh? No. You spent the money on gambling, didn’t you?”
I shrugged. “That’s in the past now. You’ll have to tell me in time who it was I really owed money to and who ordered my family’s death.”
“It was an accident, and you know it. That guy you killed earlier accidentally pulled the trigger and… you know.”
I glared at him but then looked away myself, not wanting his mind to wander places it shouldn’t.
“Get dressed again and take me to your sister. I’ll just wear pants and a shirt from one of your dead men.”
Chapter Three
It was the first time I saw one of the transport vehicles from this world when we rounded the corner and crossed the street. It was pitch-black with glass windows almost as dark as the outer skin? No, it wasn’t skin. This world’s word was a frame?
The wheels came to just under
my knees, and the thing was made from metal. What a world where you could drive in one of these instead of having to run or walk for miles. Sure made crossing large distances easy.
Sandro opened the door for me, and I got in on the right side. He ran over to the left and sat as well, took out a key, and started the vehicle. It was called a car, I knew that from my memory, and these things supposedly could go very fast. I was looking forward to trying it out.
Everything on the inside looked as if it was made from leather. The seats, the inside of the doors, the roof, and even the hand rest. Numerous displays were located on the left where Sandro sat, and a big one in front of me. It turned on, and music came from all directions at the same time.
It sounded quite aggressive and was unlike anything I’d heard before, but I liked it—I guessed? Or not? Some of the sounds were comparable to metal scraping on metal, but it went well together.
“What is this stuff?” I asked, confused. Sure, the flashing memories filled in some blanks, but when everything was foreign, you couldn’t help but ask.
“It’s a metal band I like to listen to while driving, sir. If you don’t like it, I can turn it off or…”
“No need. I like the strong sound, just not used to it.”
Sandro nodded but stared at me strangely for a second. He turned to face the window in front of us and turn on the lights. I put up my hand to stop him for a moment. My hand moved to the door, and I pressed down on a button instinctively. The window rolled down, and I looked out onto the street as the cool night air struck my face again.
Numerous pedestrians walked in groups or solo, their choice of clothing something I never would have seen in my own world. Short and sleeveless skirts with their chests exposed, tight—pants? No, they were called tights? Yeah, that must be it.
The girls had yellow or pink hair, some even purple or red. The young men wore pants and leather jackets, or expensive suits. This would take some getting used to for sure. I liked to wear sect robes, which were comfortable and soft.
“What kind of woman is your sister?”
“Huh? What?” Sandro asked. He wasn’t paying attention since I was gawking through the window. “My sister?”
“Yeah, what kind of woman is she?”
“She… I don’t really know since we’re not very close anymore. I do this stuff to keep her out of trouble and off the streets. I help her pay for the protection money, keep her business afloat… and some other stuff. She hates my guts over it, so let’s just say we’re not very close.”
“Talk about family. My brother, he…” I stopped and let out a deep sigh. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter to you anyway.”
We sat there for a good minute in uncomfortable silence before Sandro coughed weakly to draw my attention.
“Do you want us to go?”
I nodded. “Sure thing. I have all the time in the world to check this place out.”
“This place?”
“Yeah, this city.”
“Oh, you mean Sylmar?”
I nodded and returned to staring out the window as the car started moving. Sylmar, huh? Yeah, there were a lot of memories I could tie to this place. Were they good? No, they weren’t, but they belonged to this body. Some of them I’d be able to use, while others—no, it wasn’t the same as before. This was a whole new game now that I was in control, so avoiding anything this body might have had to deal with would be a smart move forward.
Tall buildings flashed by as we drove down the same street for over ten minutes. It was long, and it was straight as an arrow. How strange that this world’s people were able to come up with such a way to build. Lights flashed wherever I looked, and despite being so late, there was no end to the people walking outside.
Countless cars flashed by on the opposite side of the road, even larger ones called trucks or busses. I tried not to stare too much, as he didn’t have to know I was from another world. What’s more, I didn’t think it would be a smart thing to say, but some of the things I saw were just… marvelous.
The music played all the while as we drove. He didn’t ask any stupid questions, and I didn’t bother breaking the silence. Well, the silence between the two of us anyway. After all, half an hour ago we were about to kill each other.
One thing I learned was that everyone could have a change of heart, though. Especially once death stared them down like the insignificant little ants they were. They learned to become humble and obey if they wanted to live. That was exactly what Sandro did. He bowed his head like a dog and would therefore get to live as long as he was useful to me.
The car slowed down and he turned right off the main road, driving past several tall buildings. The area didn’t look as wealthy as the ones we passed earlier. Run-down buildings were everywhere, and the people outside didn’t dress like most of the ones we’d seen earlier. Poverty was a thing no matter where you went, be it my previous world or this one.
I had no idea where all the comparisons came from, but flashes of the Celestial Karmag came and went several times.
I sighed inwardly and closed my eyes for a long minute as the car stood still on the side of the road. I opened them again once he hit the gas pedal. It was a traffic light, and you had to stop at one. Interesting way to keep people from driving into one another.
We passed by a large park and playground before we stopped at an iron gate. Sandro looked over at me and took in a deep breath.
“Please, sir. She’s rude, but a good woman. Don’t take her words to heart.”
I nodded and let out a sigh. “Sandro, do you think that I enjoy killing?”
The question took him by surprise, I was sure of it. He even flinched slightly.
“Why would you… I mean… yeah, I think you do, sir.”
“No, I don’t. I killed the four of them because they tried to kill me. Once you stopped showing hostility, I let you live, didn’t I?”
He nodded hurriedly. “You’re right, sir. Forgive me. I… yeah, let’s just go.”
The car started moving again, but it barely moved forward. He turned the music down, and I could only barely hear it as a large building came into view. No, it wasn’t just one building, there were three of them. The central was the largest of the three and stood three floors tall. The one on the right was slightly smaller and two floors in height, just like the one on the left.
The architectural style looked so familiar that I couldn’t help but stare in wonder. I remembered the small home from the memory Krajolik had showed me, and smiled. This couldn’t have been a coincidence, could it? The bastard must have sent me here. No, why would he? What was it to him? I was nothing to him.
“What’s your—” I stopped for a second to search for the word “—nationality?”
“Ours? We’re born Sylmarian, but this place used to belong to a family from abroad. They didn’t have anyone to leave it to, and my sister had been working with them for a while, so they left it all to her.”
“So that’s a foreign-style ryokan?”
He shrugged and nodded as one of his eyebrows rose slightly, almost as if he wasn’t able to understand my question. Or my lack of knowledge about the matter.
“Now that I think about it, she was pretty adamant about working here, and we floated apart when she started. Or… no, that was a couple of weeks before that. As to foreign, there are a lot of different countries and continents in this world, so everything is basically foreign, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, it is, but it’s not like it matters to me. It’s quite a… say, do we have enough money to buy this place?”
“What? You want her to kick our asses? This thing is her life! She’d rather let go of me than this place!”
I turned and stared at Sandro blankly. “That isn’t what I asked.”
His eyes closed and he nodded weakly. “We’ll have enough if that bastard hasn’t spent anything else over the last few weeks.”
I turned back to stare at the beauty in front of me. A single cherry blossom tr
ee stood proud at the center of the yard, which was paved by large round cobblestone. Wooden beams held the roof up and hugged the buildings from all sides, even the balcony railing. Green paper lanterns hung from the ceiling and were spread out at an equal distance from both sides of every door.
Shoji panels served as walls, but it was slightly different than what we used back in our world, I guessed. Thicker, wider wood was used here along with thicker sheets that probably served to keep the cold out and prevent much light from showing on the other side of the panel. Even glass was used in several places. A really interesting place indeed.
Bright light flooded the yard from inside the main door. I spotted movement, which was followed by the appearance of a tall, young woman. Dark brown hair was tied to a bun and held with two hair sticks in place. Several strands of hair flowed loose at the front, which barely came to her neck.
A short, half-sleeved dress hung down her shoulders. It showed more than it hid, but I wasn’t going to protest. The dress ended slightly above her knees and looked almost too wide for her. The dark fabric was painted over by red sakura blossoms that decorated the piece just enough without cluttering the fabric.
“Shit, she’s probably drunk again,” Sandro muttered. “Whenever she wears that dress, she’s been drinking heavily.”
Sandro got out and opened the door for me, then waited for me to get out. My eyes never wavered from the young woman standing there, leaning against the wooden beam at the entrance. Thick black mascara was smeared around her eyes, and her lips were as red as blood. The look in her eyes told me volumes and more or less confirmed Sandro’s words.
“You think we’ll be welcome?”
He leaned in and nodded. “Please just don’t hurt her, alright? She’ll be grumpy now that she’s drunk, but she’ll let us stay. I’m sure of it.”
“Let’s go, then. I’m hungry and I’m thirsty.”
Sandro nodded hurriedly and ran over to the young woman. She crossed her arms as he approached, and glared at him.
“What the hell are you doing here?” she asked.
Her voice was strong, and she spoke loud enough so I could hear her as well. The young woman didn’t yell, she didn’t scream, and she didn’t hiss, but that was just it. The way she asked Sandro what he was doing there was far worse than any of it. Her voice was cold and strong.
Beginner Quest: A LitRPG Cultivation Series (Towers & Rifts Book 1) Page 3