21 - Teton [1]
The receptionist asked to see the Woke token again. I stared at the enamel pin that I traded the polymer flower for. These guys have no taste. A tiny metal pin that's colored and shaped like a red spider lily, with a silver outline.
Really? Who suggested this?
[Ding! A Woke named Hua-]
No System, that was a rhetorical question. You didn't need to answer.
I walked out of the receptionist area, and what I saw was an otherworldly scene. I knew I took an elevator underground, but the ceiling of this city was so tall that it was obscured by fog. Luminous stones in the ceiling and walls shone through the fog, creating a starry feeling to this underground city.
This is definitely worthy to be called a city. Buildings and shops extended as far as the eye could see. There were streets too, lit by artificial streetlights, filled with cars and chattering people. In fact, if not for the receptionist area that I just came out of, I would've thought this was a normal city.
Why is it called a lawless city?
[Ding! The three major lawless cities was built around three unspoken rules: it's not murder as long as you clean up the mess, it's not stealing if no one saw you take it, and it's not scamming if your victim was foolish enough to be deceived.]
I see, so be aware of your surroundings, be aware of your surroundings some more, and don't be an idiot.
Now that I looked around, quite a few people around me were staring at my clothes.
What's wrong with my clothes?
[Ding! The Host is wearing the TREE's uniform and a yellow F-rank badge.]
And? What's wrong with that?
[Ding! People would assume the Host will be an easy target to steal from, or the Host came to investigate the city.]
"Hey, you! In the TREE uniform!" I turned around. It was a bearded man with a huge scar across his nose. "Give me everything you have." He demanded with a stupid grin on his face.
A random NPC gang guy? Why is his character design so cliché?
"You're allowed to rob people in the middle of the street?" I asked out of curiosity. The System told me 'it's not stealing if no one saw you steal', but what about stealing with force?
"Hey!" He sneered. "It's not a robbery if you give it to me. Now give me everything you've got!"
I see, so the three rules aren't 'literal' rules. Basically, whatever you do is not a crime if you don't admit you committed it.
"Even my clothes? Are you a pervert?" I asked while crossing my arms, then took two steps back and leaned away.
He looked at me with disgust. What? You said 'everything'.
The only things I had on me were a badge with a yellow F, a fancy uniform, a Leaf that tracks my heart rate, an F-rank artifact, and this pin I just got. Everything else is my inventory, including the Woke coin.
What's the most valuable thing he can even take?
[Ding! The Teton pin.]
What happens if I lose that? Can I get another one?
[Ding! The Host can obtain another Teton pin by stealing. The only way to leave the city of Teton is to trade the pin.]
Trade the pin? I thought all the 'guests' have one.
[Ding! Visitors will gain a pin upon proper entry, and the pin will be returned when the visitor leaves the city. In the city of Teton, owning a pin grants you basic human rights. The ones without a Teton pin will not have the ability to buy, sell, eat, find a place to sleep, or even speak. Obviously, if a person does not have a pin, they cannot leave the city.]
I shift my eyes to the bearded man's collar. It was an enamel pin, but it was different from mine. His was shaped and colored like a white lily and the outline was an orange-ish yellow.
Is that another one of those 'Teton' pins?
[Ding! The Teton pins are separated through ranking. The lowest is Copper Lilium, followed by Silver Lilium, Gold Lilium, Copper Lycoris, Silver Lycoris, Gold Lycoris, and the highest is Black Lycoris. The only way to be part of the Lycoris ranking is if you're part of the Wokes or working with Woke.]
So 'Lilium' is the white lily and 'Lycoris' is the red spider lily, and the copper/silver/gold/black are the outlines?
[Ding! The Host is correct. One of the ways to get a Lilium ranking is by buying it with money.]
Ahh, so he's a rich douchebag.
Nevermind where he got the pin, can't he see the 'Silver Lycoris' or whatever I pinned on my sleeve? I clearly outrank him.
[Ding! The Host's TREE uniform is more eye-catching. The System also advises the Host to move the pin to the collar of the Host's jacket.]
I shook my head in disappointment.
Of course the uniform is more eye-catching, it's a rich people's school!
At this point, the man has recovered from my comment about clothes. He spat on the ground near my foot. "You dare be disrespectful?" He yelled, "I'll have my brother who's-"
Yep, time to leave. I'm not listening to his cr*p.
I muttered "Shadow Steps", and my vision turned monochrome. I quickly left the confused man in the middle of the street as people around him started to give him weird looks.
I have 39 minutes. What can I do in these 39 minutes?
I walked a bit further down the street before pausing in front of a brick building. I would say it's strange to have a store in a place where murder is legal-
[Ding! Murder is only legal in the city of Teton if the Host removes the dead body.]
(I ignored the system)
-but then I read the wooden sign: "Corpse Loot".
[Ding! The store in front of the Host sells items that were "borrowed" permanently from the dead.]
I let out an exasperated sigh. Anyone could've figured that out by reading the sign.
Not stealing if no one saw you?
I felt myself smirking.
• • • • • • • • • • (P.O.V. change)(really need to figure out a better way to do these)
His name was Bi Suk. Yes, he knows his name was stupid (many of his friends made fun of him for that). He was 34 years old. Yes, he knows he looks old (many of his friends made fun of him for that too). He owns a store that sells mostly armor and weapons from dead people (AND YES! He knows his friends make fun of his occupation too)...
...
Bi Suk really wanted some new friends.
Anyway,
Today was the day that he introduced his younger brother to an association called Woke, under the guidance of his boss, a lady who's one of the major executives of the city of Teton. Although the beauty doesn't seem like one of those big guns, she belonged to an important group in the Woke Cult, a group that can even influence the government and society if they chose to. Despite their power, the cult chose to stay hidden, and strike only when they're able to leave a permanent mark on the world.
Bi Suk was checking through the goods in his store, since theft was extremely common in any of the lawless cities. As he worked, a set of armor made out of Black Wolf hide and Lunar Silkworm silk disappeared before his eyes. Bi Suk rubbed his eyes to double-check, then he did a slow 360 spin. A dark blue trucker jacket and a pair of black jeans that he just checked were now nowhere in sight. He wasn't sure if he was seeing things until he saw a pair of daggers made out of Fire Mantis claws vanished.
He was about to scream, "What the hell is going on!?", but a yell of surprise from outside the shop interrupted him. He quickly waddled out, since the voice sounded like his brother.
"Ow! Watch where you are going- Wait!" He heard his brother shout.
In front of Bi Suk's shop was quite a spectacle indeed. His idiotic little brother was knocked down on the ground, angrily shouting and pointing at a young green-haired boy. The boy, however, didn't seem bothered. He was wearing the same armor that disappeared in front of his eyes. Bi Suk quickly concluded the teen was the one who stole the items from his shop, probably with a Skill because the youth wore a silver Leaf on his right wrist.
"That's my brother's merchandise!" His brother accused the teen, "You stole it!"
Bi Suk walked closer and saw the satisfied smirk on the youth's face. "It's not stealing if you didn't see it happening."
He would've jumped in and used his muscular arms to shred the teen apart for taking what was his, a person with a Copper Lycoris pin, but the sight of a silver pin on the teen's collar stopped him. From the way he carried himself to his knowledge about the rules of the lawless city, Bi Suk knew it wasn't the first time the green-haired youth visited a lawless city. Dejected, Bi Suk dragged his brother inside the shop, all the while cursing his bad luck.