After walking through the forest for a few minutes, it seemed we were getting closer to civilization. The first hint was that there were fewer monsters and creatures around. The second was that these girls looked like they meant business, so I definitely trusted them.
While we were walking, they asked me a few questions.
"So, Celestia, where are you from?" Aurelia asked.
Zerelia also glanced at me, giving me her full attention.
Oh fuck… I'm dead. What am I supposed to say?
Shit… I have no clue. I'll just say I was a slave for as long as I can remember and got sold to those people. Honestly, I knew nothing about this world, so that's the safest option.
Now I just have to remember this lie… or I'm fucked if anyone asks again later.
And yeah, of course I'm going to make more friends—real ones. Now that I've got a new life, I'm going to live it to the fullest, even if it has weird monsters, systems, and magic.
"Well… I'm sorry, but as long as I can remember, I've always been a slave. My parents sold me, and yeah… but I did learn a lot of survival skills and magic from listening to people and stuff. Maybe that's why I'm kind of independent?"
They both looked so sad.
But I definitely did not expect them to suddenly hug me.
"I'm sorry… I never knew. You had it way worse than us. Don't worry, we'll be here with you," Aurelia said.
"Yeah… we're in this together, right?" Zerelia added.
"Don't worry, guys… and thanks. Yeah, we're always going to be together," I replied, trying to sound a little sad.
But oh my god… I'm so happy she said "together."
So we're actually going to be friends for a long time, huh? HAHAHA. Finally. She even accepted my friendship.
Now I'm fired up.
I'm going to make these two trust me completely. Yes—we're going to become the strongest, and if anyone tries hurting them… I'll kill them. They're my first friends, so they're special.
Eventually, we reached the slums.
And beyond that, at the far end, there looked like an exit leading into the city. We just had to pass through here first.
…And wow.
This place was disgusting.
The moment we stepped out of the forest, a horrible stench hit me immediately. I had no idea what it was, but I'd never smelled anything like it before. Looking around, the entire atmosphere was dark and melancholic, like everyone here was just slowly waiting to die and fade away.
The streets were filled with garbage. Houses were barely even houses—half of them were sticks, others half-collapsed brick structures. Some looked like they were barely holding together.
What the absolute fuck…
Even homeless people in my world would've lived better than this.
Well… I was never homeless, but I did need money. I mostly robbed and stole to survive. I know how hard it is.
But here… this is something else.
There were people living in alleys, maybe dead… maybe not. And the worst part—there were so many beer bottles everywhere. They had money for alcohol, but not for survival? Fucking idiots.
And yet they just sit here like it's someone else's fault. They should really get their shit together.
I also noticed people smoking. Normally smoke just smells like smoke, but here… it had this strange, almost addictive smell. I won't lie—it was tempting. I might try it later when I'm older.
…But not now. Focus.
We need to get out of here.
Sell the dagger. Buy clothes. Maybe find a hotel… or work. Something to survive.
Aurelia and Zerelia were looking around. Maybe searching for something… or maybe thinking about going back.
Well, they said they wouldn't—but I've got trust issues, so I couldn't help but watch them carefully.
I quickly stepped forward and grabbed both of their hands.
"Come on, guys. Let's go faster. The quicker we find a shop to sell this, the sooner we get clothes—and maybe even food," I said with a small smile.
They both looked shocked for a moment… then nodded.
"Yeah, let's hurry," Aurelia said.
"Yup" Zerelia added.
Good. Thank god they didn't say anything else.
For some reason, my heart was beating fast.
But I knew they wouldn't leave.
Still… I guess I was scared. Me? Scared? Hah.
I can't believe this.
As we kept walking, more people started staring at us. Some even looked at us with disgusting, lustful eyes.
Come on… we're just trying to leave. Spare me those looks. I swear they make me want to vomit. I sped up, and the girls followed.
Then suddenly—
Voices.
"They aren't here! Where the fuck did they go? They couldn't have gone anywhere except back here!"
We all froze.
That voice… the boss.
Why is that rich bastard still so obsessed with us?
I thought since he was so rich he wouldn't come here himself. What the fuck he's insane!
"Let's run," I said quickly.
We took off without looking back, running until we were out of breath.
And finally… we were almost out of the slums. Thank god.
Even the slum people were giving us looks filled with killing intent i guess in this world you can physically feel it - back on earth we could mentally tell 'Oh yeah this guy want to kill me'.
But here it was on a whole different level.