Deep in the underground, in a cellar-like room, a man advanced with heavy footsteps while carrying a tray of food with him. The room was dark, with very scarce lightning. A normal human would probably be lost without a torch to illuminate the way. Thankfully, the place was forbidden entry for everyone in the house, and, in the first place, the man was not normal.

“How are you feeling today, father?” He asked to a corner of the cellar that was especially dark. He tried his best to maintain a gentle expression despite the incessant worry budding in his heart.

The sound of chain rattling was his only answer.

“I brought you food like always. I also made sure to have your favorite dish prepared.” His smile was threatening to falter. “Can you... can you eat?”

The chain rattled again but, this time, accompanied by a quiet sound—The sound of someone trying to talk. The man immediately lit up. He advanced with zeal and crouched on the ground.

“I'll help you father, don't worry.” He said, taking a plate from the tray and ready to feed whatever he was talking to. “We will help you. We'll find a cure, so hold on just a little longer, okay?

I swear we will save you. No matter what it takes.”

◇

Just like always, Rin was quiet. She was seated at the edge of the roof of a no name building while rubbing her gloved hands in an attempt to build more heat. Her eyes were fixated on the City's silent night scenery: beautiful despite being cold. Her mind, however, was wandering elsewhere entirely, contemplating the events of the past few days.

One fundamental question plagued her.

‘What do I do now?’

The weather was still calm. Nothing irreversible had yet to happen and Rin knew that, technically, she still had a choice. She still could go back. Of course, she had no way of knowing how Aiden would react if she rejected him this early on, but, getting him to release her was an easy task. A simple betrayal would do the trick. She could, for example, give their location to Ark's Elite or inform them of the existence of the still unknown Edward Warray. No matter how unpredictable Aiden was, surely, he wouldn't keep a traitor as his subordinate.

Furthermore, giving in and accepting his deal in the heat of the moment was, in no way, a good decision. It was now or never— the little angel in her mind kept nagging her.

Yet...

Rin inhaled deeply and exhaled a misty breath.

To be a Noble was to fight against Demons. Thus, for the past few days, in place of her daily training, she had been searching for one. As expected, though, she had no luck. To begin with, monsters only appear near Elite and Noble so even if she did find one, people would already be fighting it. So far the only exception to that rule, that Rin knew of, was the attack on her school. Moreover, given her circumstance, attracting Ark's attention was a bad idea. Being a Rogue was already a problem, let alone her connection to Aiden.

Rin also considered searching for a ‘villain’, but, well, those were even rarer than monsters. After all, one would have to either be extremely foolish (like Ursa) or extremely strong (like Aiden) if they wanted to openly wreak havoc with supernatural power, since, one: that attracts monsters to your way, two: that attracts Ark's attention, and three: that attracts a Noble House's attention. Villains do exist, though, just that they all are extremely secretive.

All of that to say that Rin had no occasion to use her power (yet another reason to give it up—her good conscience nagged).

‘How ironic,’ Her lips extended into a wry smile. ‘Even though I've always searched for power...’

There was something she could do, though. Something she should have done the moment she obtained her power.

Go back...

With how power-obsessed her family was, they probably wouldn't care how Rin obtained hers so long as she wasn't a burden— so long as she could contribute. If she did well, maybe they'd even help her find a 'real' power. Then, she wouldn't need Aiden anymore. Better yet, she could even help in their arrestation. And more importantly, she'd get to fight alongside the family she admired so much. She'd get to become a real Noble.

Rin couldn't help but widen her smile at her delusion.

A scream cut her off from her thoughts. Well, not really a scream, more like a yell—the kind that someone would shout in the middle of an argument. And it didn't stop, it escalated even. Two distinct voices fighting against each over. From where she was, she couldn't hear the specifics, but, it was so obviously loud that she grew a little concerned.

‘Then again, maybe I'm only hearing them because of Aiden's...’

Rin shook her head. This was probably none of her business, but, taking a quick look wouldn't hurt anyone. Pinpointing the origin of the voice to be a small, one-story building a few blocks away, she looked back at the ground and inhaled a deep breath. Not even bothering to stand up, she pushed herself off of the roof and forced her eyes to stay open.

Her hair and clothes fluttered in the air and cold wind caressed her skin. An instant later, she fell on the blanket of snow with a not-so-loud thud noise. She wasn't in pain. None of her bones broke and not a hint of blood could be seen. She was alright. Being a superhuman was amazing.

Her relief escaped through a sigh before she returned her gaze towards the fighting voices. As she approached, she began to make out some of the words.

“We need to close the shop, little girl, we nee—”

“I keep telling— I don't have your money, you retard!—s on his way here so fucking damn wait a little more!”

“You've been saying that for the past hour!”

Indeed, this was none of her business. Arriving in front of the building, Rin finally noticed that it was a restaurant. She had never gone here before so she didn't know its schedule, but it was a little surprising for it to still be open this late at night. From a fair distance, she peeked through a glass window and finally discovered the identity of the voices.

A girl and a middle-aged man (probably the manager of the restaurant).

The situation wasn't so difficult to decipher. Apparently, the girl refused to pay for what she'd eaten.

“What the fuck do you want me to do then!?”

“Either you give us our money, or we go together to the police station.”

“Guh! You... Do you have any idea who you're talking to?”

“I don't care, kid. I couldn't care less even if you were the son of a Noble House. I can't just let you walk away, scott-free, with how much you've eaten.”

It was probably better if Rin walked away now. Nothing dangerous was happening, and, even if she wanted to, there wasn't really anything she could do to help. Nevertheless, there was one thing that glued her in place. The girl had white hair. White. Even though, at first glance, she appeared to be of the same age as Rin, if not a little younger.

‘...Is that a wig? Or is she dying it?’

Why white, though? Especially since it contrasted so much with her brown-colored skin. ‘Or are white hair in fashion, right now?’

From Rin's perspective, it looked very natural.

“Noble House? Believe me, old man, ‘we’ are a lot scarier than those arrogant bas...”

‘Oh...’ Rin exclaimed in her mind. The girl looked at her. And as soon as she did, she stomped her way in her direction. Of course, the man stopped her by grabbing her arm.

“Where do you think you're going?”

“Let go!” The girl gave the man an intense glare and tried to free herself from his grasp. To no avail. The girl decided to point at Rin instead. “She's my friend! She can pay for me!”

‘...What?’

The man turned his head toward her with a dubious look. “Is that true?” Without waiting for an answer, he dragged the girl with him out of the shop to approach Rin. “Is that true?” He repeated more firmly.

“Eh, um...” A troubled expression was on Rin's face.

She missed her timing to escape. What's more, even though she wanted to say no, the girl's glare seemed like it could kill her. Not that she would give in, of course. But, then again, it wasn't like she was against helping the girl either.

“I'll reimburse you, okay. So, just fucking get this shitty old man away from me!”

Rin looked at the girl briefly. Could she trust her? Judging from how she was acting, probably not. You never know, though. The girl might be acting like this simply because she's extremely pissed right now. She might be gentle inside. Moreover, how much was the cost of a dinner in a restaurant anyway? Rin had money, and she liked helping people.

Who knows, maybe this will be the beginning of her second-ever friendship. Therefore, it was fine to take some risks.

“Alright...” Rin said while heaving an internal sigh.

The man smiled.

She instantly regretted her decision when she saw the bill. ‘How... how much did this girl eat?’ Her eyes flickered back to the girl in question with slight disbelief. A quick look through the restaurant's menu confirmed that, indeed, a regular dinner shouldn't be this expensive.

“What? Just pay up, already. I said I'm going to reimburse you!”

Rin heaved out another sigh and reluctantly took out her wallet. She had already given her consent, after all.

“Thank you for your patronage.” The man said with a business smile and slowly returned inside his restaurant. “And you! Next time bring your money.”

“As if I'd ever come back here.” The girl wore a scowl until the man disappeared out of sight. Then, she finally looked back at Rin with observant eyes.

Rin decided to do the same.

In addition to her white hair, the girl had white eyes too. A pitch-black tattoo was present on her neck, hidden partially by a white circular device, enrolled tightly around her neck like a collar. ‘A regulator...’ The same one Rin was wearing. Unlike her, though, the girl fully took advantage of the device's capacity and wore rather light clothes despite the cold: a plain long-sleeved shirt and a black skirt barely reaching her knees.

A regulator was expensive, though. Extremely expensive even. So how come a girl who could afford that much didn't bring any money for her dinner?

“My name's Ruby.” The girl presented herself and beckoned her to do the same.

“I-I am... Rin.”

“Rin? That's all?” The girl passed her by and narrowed her eyes. “Well, whatever. Mind waiting with me for a bit. Like I said to that shitty old man, my brother should be coming any minutes now. He can reimburse you.”

Rin just nodded her head with a slightly nervous complexion. “So, how about you tell me what a ‘rich girl’ like you,” The girl's eyes lingered at Rin's neck, probably looking at her regulator. “is doing outside at this hour?”

Rin stayed quiet, more nervous. She wished Celia was there to give her some advice on how to talk with someone. Was ‘searching for a monster’ a valid answer? Probably not. Should she lie, then? She was a very bad liar, though. “Um...” —Was the only word she could mutter. She really should have socialized more at school.

“You mute or something?”

Sounds of footstep entered her ears and Rin decided to wholeheartedly divert her attention there. A man came out of the corner of a street wearing a big smile on his face. A scarf hung loosely on his neck and a pair of sunglasses rested atop his nose. Is he blind? The smug manner with which he was conducting himself and the confidence he exuded with each of his steps seemed to say the contrary. It was night, though, so why the sunglasses?

“Rouge,” He said with an overdramatic voice. “How ya doing?”

“Took you long enough, retard.” Ruby retorted with a scowl.

“Haha, your fault for going out without warning.”

“I was hungry.”

The man laughed some more before finally noticing Rin. The face he had then was like he had seen a ghost. He immediately sprinted in her direction like a madman. Rin unconsciously flinched and took a step back.

“Ooh, might I know who you are, little miss?” He said, observing her intently.

A few beads of sweat ran down her forehead. If not for her money, Rin would have run out of this places ages ago. Instead, she took a few more steps back with a troubled expression. Unfortunately, the man decided to follow her nonetheless. He was a little too close to Rin's liking.

“Uh, um... M-mister...?” Rin tried to remain polite.

“Hm? Ah, right.” The man coughed. “My name is Law Colville. Very nice to meet you.”

“..R-Rin...” She said.

“Rin? It doesn't ring a bell.” He said with a pensive look. “I really have the impression I've met you before, though. Do you, perchance, recognize me?” He took off his sunglasses and approached further.

“N-no...?” Rin answered in a more than awkward tone.

Thankfully, A loud punch on his head made him back off.

“Ouch! That hurts, you little...!”

“Stop being a pervert and take out your wallet!”

“My wallet? Oh Rouge, I think you've burned all your allowance by pulling this little stunt. How many times did I tell you we needed to be caref—”

“—Not for me, idiot, for her.” Ruby pointed at Rin and began to explain the situation.

Rin used the moment to take a closer look at the man. He had short brown hair, black colored eyes, and slightly handsome facial features. At the side of his face was plastered the same tattoo that was on Ruby's neck, though his was tainted with a vivid red color. At first glance, he seemed to be around his early twenties. Contrary to his supposed sister, his skin was white, which made Rin doubt that the two of them were related.

Once Ruby finished her explanation, something shifted. It was small, practically unnoticeable, but, maybe thanks to her increased perception, Rin saw a slight change in the man's attitude. She frowned.

“I see, I see. It seems gratitudes are in order.” He looked back at Rin and took out his wallet. He didn't even bother to check its content and immediately handed it to Rin by taking her hands. “And don't worry, there are more than enough in there to cover this glutton's feeding expenses. You are free to keep the change.”

Rin blankly looked at the wallet and back at the man.

“A-are you... alright?” Rin asked with an uneasy feeling.

“Hm? Why I'm perfectly alright,” he said, turning to look at the restaurant

“I think it's time for you to go home, little miss. It's pretty late, and I'm sure you don't want to be sleepy tomorrow morning.” He said calmly while tightening Rin's hand on the wallet.

Rin's sense of danger perched up. Her eyes narrowed further, her heartbeat quickened and she took a step toward the man. Before she could open her mouth, however—

“Go Home.”

Light disappeared from her eyes and her hands fell limply at her side. Like a puppet being controlled, she turned around with stiff movement and began to walk away.

◇

“Did you really need to use your power on her?” Ruby asked with a scowl, taking out her phone.

Law simply watched Rin walk away with a calculating look in his eyes.

“...I have a favor, Ruby.” He said, looking back at his sister. “Would you mind doing some research on that girl?”

“...What? Why?” The girl looked back at him like he was the worst scum in the world. “Don't tell me you got charmed by her? Are you that stupid?”

“Well, I would be lying if I said I wasn't interested but, no.” He raised his index finger and waved it in disapproval. “No, no, no. I want you to look into her because she smells... 'important'. It's just a hunch, but I feel like she could be useful.”

Ruby sighed. “I'm going home.”

“Is that a yes or a no?”

The girl let out a scowl as her single answer. She walked away, eyes never leaving her phone. Law's smile widened. He, however, didn't follow the girl.

“Oh, and one last thing, Rouge, who was it exactly? The old man that gave you trouble, I mean.”

Ruby stopped in her track. Her expression shifted back to irritation. “Hey, retard, you're the one that told me we needed to be careful.”

“That is that and this is this.” He answered. “No one, and I mean, absolutely no one gets to mess with us without a punishment.”

Silence reigned for a few seconds. Ruby clenched her hands and resumed her march.

“Go figures,” She said in a firm yet dismissive tone.

Law simply sighed. He put back his sunglasses and let his smile falter.

“Tell me.”