Society.

A community or group of people having common traditions, institutions, and interests.

A group of people with a common interest, belief, or purpose in historical societies.

The aggregate of people living together in a more or less ordered community. These were the explanations that I got from the internet.

There were a lot of definitions regarding society.

But, that was not all. There was more than that.

Some of it was a lie. Some people didn't live together, they lived by trampling on others.

Not everyone was like that though. Because society was divided into several classes.

The privileged ones, who were born into wealthy families, I called them the winners. They were the types of people I despise the most.

The ones who chose to enjoy their life to the fullest while trying their best to improve their situation. I called them the average types.

Some struggled to improve their life from the bottom of society. I called them the suckers.

Then there were those who never improved in anything. They couldn't do anything. They had nothing. I called them losers.

If you asked me which one I was, then I would have undeniably said.

I am the loser.

Crash!

In a store full with green bottles, the sound of glass breaking rang out, followed by another loud yell.

"Asuga! What the fuck are you doing! We are in the red this month, and you can't even do shit!"

It was the shop owner, screaming out my name. My name was Asuga Victus, a half-Japanese. I never knew my parents, nor was I interested in knowing them, the ones who threw me away. Who would care for someone they have never met? At least I wouldn't care.

This shop sold wine to people, and I was the only worker of this store.

I looked at the shop owner, a chubby man with a bald top, dressed in a yellow shirt and cream pants.

"I'm sorry. I-I will clean this up quickly!"

As an employee of his shop, I couldn't say anything to him. He was always mad at me even when I did nothing wrong.

But if I did something like that just now, he would be furious.

"I'm sorry? You said I'm sorry? I was kind enough to let you work in my shop when you have nothing!"

He approached me and shouted right in front of my face. I instinctively lowered my head. Good thing my hair was long enough to hide my eyes, or else he would notice me glaring at him.

"Forget it! I will kick you out after I give you your pay today! Don't come again, you fucking loser!"

He would kick me out? I raised my head instantly when I heard that. My mouth gaped in shock as I looked at the store owner in disbelief.

"Hah, looking at your face, it seems you have nowhere to go? I don't care though."

The store owner spat on the ground and walked away from me.

"Clean that shit too, I won't give you anything if the store is still in a mess."

I glared at his retreating figure; I wanted to give it back to him, but I couldn't.

Grabbing a broom from the back of the store, I began sweeping the floor, picking up the glass shards that I had dropped.

I also cleaned and mopped the owner's spit.

After everything was cleaned properly, I let out a sigh. I was tired, my lanky body was begging for rest after all the work that I did. Although I was taller than average, around 180cm, my body was skinny because of malnutrition. There was someone who offered me food, but I wanted to buy my food by myself.

Maybe I was a Loser, but I am not a beggar.

A loser can't be a chooser; I couldn't even take a break right now while there was still work to be done.

'Let's finish this and rest. If he fires me, I need to find a new job tomorrow.'

***

The day passed just like that, as I found myself knocking on the door of the owner in his room to get my severance pay. It was now 4 p.m. and I had just closed the store.

The owner counted the money in his hand and threw 5 sheets of paper on the table.

"Here, take this and scram from this place!"

It was only 50 thousand Yen. I was not given my pay this month, yet my severance pay was just 50 thousand Yen?

I tried to brace myself as I peered at the sneering owner.

"O-owner. I-isn't this too little? I mean, I was supposed to be given 80 thousand Yen."

"Ha?! You said you wanted 80 thousand? Do you think the glasses that you broke are free?!"

"Eeeek!!"

I yelped in surprise when the owner raised his voice.

My mouth opened, wanting to say what was in my mind. But I held it back. Because I was only a Loser, I couldn't say something back to him.

It was hard to keep myself calm butI could only bite my lips in frustration and say, "N-no."

"Then take the money and scram! I don't want to see your filthy face again."

Following what he said, I took the money, put it in my pants' pocket, bowed to him a little, and turned around to take my leave.

"Tch, useless brat. You better die on the streets."

I could hear his curse, but I ignored him and left his room, closing the door behind me.

***

The sun that was hanging on the horizon changed the blue sky into orange. I looked at the sunset while sitting on the edge of the pier.

For as long as I remember, I never had a place that I can call a home. All I've been doing until now was scrapping my life in the warehouse on the pier.

When I was still a baby, I was found on the beach and was put in an orphanage.

The orphanage I was in had a few rules. One of the rules was that a kid older than 18 years old would be forced to leave the orphanage no matter what.

It seemed harsh, but that was how the world worked.

"Yo, Victus. You are here as usual."

I looked at the source of the familiar voice..

The one who greeted me was a beautiful girl with short red hair. She was wearing a short white shirt with a dark green jacket on top of it. The jacket was unbuttoned, so I could see her belly button.

She was also wearing blue short jeans and sneakers. She was the daughter of the warehouse owner.

Her dad was kind, he allowed me to sleep in the warehouse without paying. When I was about to hand him some money, he said that he was grateful to me for looking at his warehouse at night for free.

Her name was Kasugi Rena.

Rena stopped beside me and leaned her body forward, her eyes were peering on my face.

"What's wrong? You seem to be lost in thought."

I looked at Rena and smiled.

"Ha-haha, the owner just fired me."

"What? That pig dares to fire you?!"

Rena clenched her fist tightly and gritted her teeth. "Should I bring my boys to destroy that place?"

She muttered something ominous. I quickly stopped her by waving my hands in front of me.

"N-no, please don't. I've paid no heed to it already. Please don't say anything to them."

"Victus, you know that all of my boys also think of you as their brother. If you are in trouble, I bet they'll want to help you, no, I will make sure that they will help you even if I have to force them."

Rena was the leader of the gangsters in the area. She and the boys that she talked about, the gangster members were kind to me and often helped me.

Without getting anything in return, they helped the helpless me throughout my day.

Someone once attempted to gang up on me and punched me several times. The next day, the guy who punched me was kneeling in front of me while tied to a rope, apologizing for punching me. His body was full of bruises, his eyes were swollen, and two guys from Rena's gang were smiling behind him.

"They have helped me so much, Rena. I have no way to repay their kindness. I will try to find a job by myself for now. Your dad has even let me use his warehouse to sleep for a while now."

"Victus…"

She sounded sad when I refused her help. I couldn't help but turn my head to face her.

At that moment, the ground shook uncontrollably and the sky flashed a few times.

"W-what is happening?!" In a panic, I stood up and stepped away from the edge.

Rena did the same as the sky clouds moved rapidly, gathering in a concentrated area resembling a human figure.

"Rena, what is happening?!" I shouted. Our gazes were still focused on the bizarre phenomenon in the sky.

"I don't fucking know!"

It was at that moment I heard a voice inside my head.

The voice sounded cold, with a commanding tone.

Everyone who heard that would focus their attention on the voice, it gave an oppressing feeling, forcing them to listen.

The voice that started everything. The voice that changed everything. Also, the voice that changed me.