At the border between the Ivisa South District and the Sule District, countless heads wearing black military uniforms and military caps were jostling about.
On Rein Street, which connected Ivisa and the Sule District, some roadblocks made of sheet metal were set up, and two squads of armed soldiers were guarding the road.
This was a blockade line.
Inside the blockade was the Ivisa District, where houses were emitting plumes of black smoke, and even the trash heaps by the roadside were burning fiercely, giving off a foul odor.
The row houses on both sides of the road had the military flags of the Great Saya Empire hoisted, having been temporarily requisitioned as barracks.
However, the Sule District on this side was still bustling with people, though there was a significantly long stretch in the middle of the street where no one was present; even the street vendors seemed to avoid getting close to Ivisa.
"Whew, I heard there's a riot in Ivisa. It sounds like they're trying to kill people!"
"Hey, it's a good thing the soldiers arrived in time, otherwise those rioters would have broken out sooner or later."
"Haha, just go distribute some 'Head Bread,' and I reckon those people would quiet down."
"Indeed... they don't bother to learn any skills, yet they want high wages. Why not just say they should be handed money directly... Hahahaha..."
'Head Bread' was a cold joke circulating in Suramar, usually used only to mock the people of Ivisa.
The origin of the story came from a massive strike riot in Ivisa decades ago.
In the end, the riot ceased simply because the police station started distributing free bread to Ivisa for one day, and the people who tried to stop the riot were arrested, making the whole affair a laughingstock.
It was precisely because this saying was circulating that people didn't seem worried about the riot in Ivisa—they figured it would be solved with another day of bread.
If that didn't work, they would just distribute it for two days.
None of them had ever considered why the people of Ivisa didn't learn other trades. Perhaps if they themselves had started working sixteen to eighteen hours a day since they were five or six years old, they might have understood.
It wasn't that they didn't want to change, but rather that being stuck in the mire, any solitary struggle was futile.
Just then, a small figure ignored these people's words, slipped past the crowd of people talking, and walked toward that deserted area.
"Hey, little girl, it's very dangerous in Ivisa right now—it's under blockade, and once you go in, you won't be able to come out." The man who had been discussing it earlier kindly reminded her after seeing the little girl.
"That's right, don't walk that way, little girl. Where are your parents?"
The people around also chimed in.
In their view, such a cute, exquisitely dressed little girl couldn't possibly have any connection to Ivisa; she had likely just wandered off while playing.
Especially that long white hair, which seemed characteristic of people from the Northern Province of the Great Saya Empire.
"Boom—"
A rumble of thunder echoed in the sky, but people were unfazed; Suramar was naturally a place that rained often, and the mornings were usually filled with mist.
The people of Suramar were long used to things like thunder and rain.
The small figure they called a little girl was none other than Syl.
She did not pay attention to what the people behind her were saying, nor did she blame them.
The education they received and the information disseminated by the media determined their stance; these people incapable of independent thought had not yet reached a level that could stir even a ripple of emotion in Syl.
Ignoring their shouts, Syl walked straight toward the blockade line. Looking at the unextinguished flames inside the blockade, Syl sighed.
As Syl walked toward the blockade, the soldiers standing on both sides of the roadblocks also noticed her approaching.
Initially, they didn't react much, but when they saw Syl truly preparing to walk toward the small passage exposed in the middle of the obstacles, one soldier reminded her:
"Little one, it's very dangerous inside; you can't just go in."
"Is it not allowed to go in here?" Syl lifted her small face and asked the soldier.
"It's not that you can't go in... it's just that people coming out will be subject to relatively strict screening, so it's not really recommended for a little one like you to go in... Where is your family?"
Just as the soldier wanted to continue asking something, a soldier with a detachable black cape on his shoulder walked over.
After seeing that soldier, the first soldier shut his mouth and adjusted his posture to be more upright.
"Little sister, there are monsters inside right now." The tall man crouched down slightly, knelt on one knee beside Syl in a standard knight's kneeling posture, and asked softly, "May I ask what you are going in for? Where is your family?"
"I just want to go in. There isn't a rule that says I can't, is there?" Syl tilted her head and asked curiously, "My family lives inside."
In order to avoid being forcibly taken to an orphanage after saying she had no family, Syl had to tell a lie.
"Oh? Then where did you get this outfit, little girl... This doesn't look like something someone from Ivisa could afford." Upon hearing that the little girl's family was from Ivisa, the officer's attitude clearly grew a little colder.
However, his words carried a strange hint, almost like surprise.
"A kind noble big sister gave it to me. Can I go in now? I'm going to find my mom."
Syl conjured up a mother out of thin air, wanting to quickly skip this boring interrogation.
But the officer kneeling beside Syl didn't seem to want to let her go.
He reached out to pat Syl's back, but was nimbly dodged by Syl.
He looked at Syl's beautiful, furrowed brows, a smile curling at the corner of his mouth, and said, "Don't be afraid, I'm just taking you to register for entry. Come with me, little girl; once you're registered, you can go in."
"Follow me." The officer stood up and walked toward the inside of the blockade.
The surrounding soldiers all showed expressions of pity; the soldier who had advised Syl to leave earlier gripped his sidearm tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force.
"Interesting..."
Syl lowered her head, the corners of her mouth also curling up slightly, and slowly followed the officer.
It seemed she really had a propensity for bad luck; no matter where she went, misfortune would find her.
The squirming "seed" hidden in Syl's hair also moved to behind her ear at this moment, hiding between Syl's ear and her hair, waiting for an opportunity.
The moment Syl stepped across the cordon, an unfamiliar icon appeared.
It was a bright yellow exclamation mark, and it was pointing in a certain direction.
If understood in terms of a game... was this a quest hint?
Just as Syl was staring blankly at the exclamation mark at the end of the road, she felt her back being shoved violently, a force trying to push her into the house nearby.
What a weak force.
Syl frowned but did not resist, instead letting this force lead her into the room.
And the "seed" also crawled along Syl's clothes all the way to her palm.