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「That's for ratting me out back in the marketplace. I was about to make away with two full loaves of bread. It could've fed multiple mouths you know?」

I couldn't even respond to her. My unmentionables had suffered such a fatal blow.

「Well truth be told, I actually messed up by getting caught in the first place so... this was more of me taking out my frustration on you.」

「I'M GONNA RIP YOUR STUPID HAIR OUT AND BEAT YOU WITH THAT STICK OF YOURS, YOU PRECOCIOUS LITTLE FILCHER!!!」

「Alright, alright, I'm sorry. By the way, I forgot to introduce myself. Constantly using insults for one another will eventually get tiring...」

She had the nerve to kneel beside me as I writhed in agony on the ground. Gradually though, the pain began to dissipate.

「The name's Melyn. Spelled M-e-l-y-n. What's yours?」

I angrily glared at her as I cupped my genitals. The throbbing pain had become manageable at this point—only the resentment remained.

「My name is Kiss-my-ass. Spelled d-i-e-i-n-a-h-o-l-e. Go bother someone else.」

「Hmm? Mr. Kiss-my-ass? That's a pretty long name... Oh, I know! I'll shorten it to "ass". That way we can communicate with ease. Nice to meet you, ass!」

Melyn was a grade-A wisecrack. I took note of her articulate manner of speech. She was a cut above some of the other middle-class workers.

It was all the more unusual that she was a slum dweller.

「Oh, and I can't leave you alone. Since you're a newbie slum dweller on our turf, the first thing you have to do is meet with the Lakua District Master.」

Finally, my gonads stopped hurting, and I could operate at full capacity. I steadily rose to my feet.

The sun had completely vanished beneath the horizon, giving way to the dark of night.

The sky was a vast expanse of cerulean blue, surrounding the pale moon in the distance, and its light coated Yarzon City like a blanket of fine white silk.

Nary a star disturbed the deep blue ocean beyond.

It was a breathtaking view—one that lured me to the border of the terrace. The balustrades barely kept me from falling over onto the city streets below.

Melyn came up beside me and leaned against the railings as well. She too admired the beautiful scenery before us.

「It never gets old you know?」

The girl's crimson eyes were glued to the night sky.

「I still haven't forgiven you for kicking my nuts.」

「If I told you it was a slum dweller joke, would you understand?」

「If I said my idea of a joke was giving you a black eye, would you?」

「Ah—touché.」

We looked at each other, before laughing ourselves silly. Whoever this Melyn girl was, she was a good source of banter.

Speaking to her reminded me of my days in Battleshift, funnily enough.

It was a nostalgic feeling, one I cherished greatly.

「So... ready to tell me your name?」

She turned to me wearing a cheeky grin. I purposely ignored her, still harboring a bit of vexation from our prior exchange.

「Aaaah, I'm still not in the mood...」

Melyn's playful smile slowly developed into an annoyed scowl.

The girl then pushed herself off the railings and walked up behind me. I instinctively closed my legs together out of fear she would kick my cojones again.

But instead...

「There, there, I'm sorry...」

I felt two arms wrap around my neck. I could hear her unusually silent breathing from up close.

「W-what are you doing?!」

At first, I thought she was going to strangle me, but I quickly realized I could still breathe. Then another strange sensation followed.

Warmth. On my head and throughout the breadth of my back. I tried swiveling my head to see what was going on, but it could only go so far.

I then came to a conclusion, based purely on feeling alone.

「W-why are you hugging me?」

「Because I made you mad, why else?」

She spoke in a soft voice as if she was consoling a baby. It irritated me to no end.

「I'm not a kid you know? Y-you don't have to treat me like one.」

「But you are younger than me right?」

「How old are you then?」

「I'm fifteen, and you?」

「I'm twen—」

I cut myself short from answering. I remembered my damned physical body was only twelve years old.

It meant I was younger than this brat who was technically younger than me.

It pissed me off to no end, but I refrained from struggling since she had a firm lock on my head. She could easily kill me if she wanted to.

「T-twelve years old. I'm twelve years old.」

Swallowing my pride was the smart thing to do.

If I complicated things by telling anyone else about my unusual circumstances, I could face dire consequences.

While magic was a facet of this realm, I didn't know to what extent it was accepted.

Magic that involved deities and dimension traveling could've been seen as demonic by the denizens of this world.

I chose to refrain from spilling the beans until I had sufficient information on the situation of this place.

「Twelve years old huh? You're pretty young to be having a sharp tongue like that. Where'd you learn to speak like that?」

Crap.

I ran my mouth too much. If I kept this up, I would undeniably garner unwanted attention from other slum dwellers.

Luckily, I had a way of getting out of this.

「W-what about you..? You're well-spoken yourself.」

「Me? Really? it's probably because I read a lot of thrown-away books. I never understand how those nobles could abandon such wonderful stories.」

「Ooh really? I also read a lot. What a coincidence!」

Safe.

Still, the idea of a printing press being widely available in a seemingly medieval domain was interesting to me. This could be a cross-genre world after all.

「Really?! What books have you read?」

「I-I don't exactly remember any names...」

「Aww, is that so? I never forget the names of the books I read.」

Another perfect deflection job by yours truly. For someone being comforted, I sure was being bombarded by a myriad of questions.

Perhaps she too was trying to get information out of me.

「Well, when you get settled into our small community, I'll let you read all the books you want. Sound good?」

「Really?!」

「Of course! Just holler at your Big Sister Melyn anytime you want to read. I have a mountain of them in my room.」

Geh.

"Big Sister Mel" was not something I could see myself saying. To begin with, I hated being coddled.

Having access to a "mountain" of books, however, would make the humiliation worth it. I'd finally found my data source.

All I had to do now, was get accepted into the Lakua District.

「Will you tell me your name now?」

「Mm. It's Lorenzo. Nice to meet you.」

She gently patted my head, like a mother to a child.

「Lorenzo huh? Guess that makes your nickname... Zozo..? Nice to meet you too Zozo.」

「C-can you not call me that..?」

「Nope. And you better call me Big Sister Mel. Otherwise, I'll get really mad.」

Within minutes our dynamics drastically changed. Where we were once budding acquaintances, we were now a pair of siblings.

My pride as a man took a massive hit.

I could bear with it though, as long as I had a viable starting place for gathering information.

「Melyn...」

「Big Sister Mel.」

「R-right, Big Sister Mel. Shouldn't we get going?」

「Oh right. Rysef's gonna blow a gasket if I don't get back before midnight.」

Melyn finally released me from her clutches, leaving me with some space to breathe.

「Is this Rysef guy the master of this supposed Lakua District?」

「Yep. And I'm his only apprentice, so leave all the talking to me. Okay, Zozo?」

「I was planning to do that anyway...」

The thief girl flashed a beam of satisfaction. Playing house for those few minutes must've made her happy.

I for one was sick of it.

We immediately set off for the Lakua headquarters, where Rysef, the Lakua District Master, and a pile of books awaited me.

Hopefully, my dignity would stay intact by the end of the trip.

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