The moment Sohan stepped outside, reality hit him harder than any memory.
The air was thick—heavy with dust, smoke, and something metallic he couldn't quite identify. The sky above was a dull grey, blocked by towering structures of rusted steel and patched metal stacked endlessly upon each other.
This wasn't just poverty.
This was survival at its lowest level.
---
Narrow alleys stretched in every direction, barely wide enough for two people to pass. Water dripped from broken pipes. Wires hung dangerously overhead, sparking occasionally.
People moved like shadows.
Thin. Tired. Hollow.
No one laughed.
No one smiled.
Everyone watched.
---
Sohan stepped forward slowly, his weak legs adjusting to the unfamiliar weight of this new body.
So this is how he lived…
The memories of the boy whose body he now occupied surfaced again—fragmented but clear enough.
No parents.
No home worth calling one.
No protection.
Just scraps of food, odd jobs, and constant fear.
---
"Oi. You're still alive?"
A rough voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
Sohan turned.
A bulky man leaned against a wall, chewing something lazily. His eyes were sharp, calculating.
"I thought you'd die yesterday," the man said. "Would've made things easier."
Sohan didn't reply.
The man smirked. "Lost your tongue? Or just scared?"
"…Neither," Sohan said calmly.
That seemed to amuse him.
"Not bad. At least you've got some spirit." The man stepped closer. "Name's Kadar. I run things around here."
Run things.
Sohan didn't need explanation.
This man controlled the slum.
Or at least this part of it.
---
Kadar's gaze swept over him. "You owe for staying here. Nothing's free."
Sohan's expression didn't change. "I don't have anything."
"Then you work."
"For what?"
Kadar chuckled. "Food. Water. And maybe I let you keep breathing."
A pause.
Then—
"There's a scrap run today. Go with them. Bring something useful, and you eat."
---
Sohan nodded slightly.
"Fine."
Refusing wasn't an option.
Not yet.
---
A group of five gathered near the end of the alley. All of them looked older, stronger… and far more dangerous.
One of them glanced at Sohan and scoffed. "He's coming with us? He'll slow us down."
"Then leave him behind if he can't keep up," Kadar replied lazily.
Simple.
Cruel.
Normal.
---
They set out without another word.
---
The deeper they went into the slums, the worse it became.
Collapsed structures. Burned-out sections. Areas that looked abandoned… but weren't.
Sohan could feel eyes watching from the shadows.
This place… even before the Sanctuaries, it's already a battlefield.
---
"Stay close if you don't want to die," one of the group muttered.
Sohan followed silently.
His mind, however, was racing.
This world isn't just about the Sanctuaries…
Even outside, strength decides everything.
---
After nearly an hour, they reached a partially destroyed building.
"This is the spot," the leader said.
"What are we looking for?" someone asked.
"Anything with value. Old tech, metals, components. Don't be picky."
---
They spread out.
Sohan entered cautiously.
The building creaked with every step. Dust covered everything. Broken furniture lay scattered.
He searched quietly, picking through debris.
Nothing.
Nothing useful.
---
If I don't find something… I don't eat.
His stomach tightened at the thought.
Hunger in this body wasn't just discomfort—it was pain.
---
Then—
A faint glint caught his eye.
Near a collapsed wall.
Sohan moved toward it carefully, brushing aside rubble.
A small metallic device.
Damaged, but intact enough.
---
"Oi! What did you find?"
One of the men had noticed.
Sohan's grip tightened slightly.
"Scrap," he said.
The man walked over, snatched it from his hand, and inspected it.
"Hm. Not bad."
He smirked.
"I'll take this."
---
Sohan said nothing.
Not because he accepted it.
Because he understood.
I'm too weak to fight back.
---
The man turned and walked away, pocketing the device.
"Next time, be faster," he added casually.
---
Sohan watched him go.
No anger on his face.
No reaction.
But inside—
He remembered.
---
By the time they returned, the sun—if it could even be called that—was fading behind the polluted sky.
Kadar stood waiting.
"Well?"
The group handed over their findings.
When it was Sohan's turn, he remained empty-handed.
Kadar raised an eyebrow. "Nothing?"
"He found something," one of them said with a grin. "But lost it."
Laughter followed.
---
Kadar looked at Sohan for a long moment.
Then tossed a small piece of dry bread at his feet.
"Take it."
Sohan blinked.
"I thought—"
"You worked," Kadar interrupted. "Barely. Don't expect kindness twice."
---
Sohan picked up the bread.
Hard.
Stale.
But food.
---
He returned to his room in silence.
Sat down.
And stared at it for a long time.
---
"This world…"
He took a bite.
It tasted like dust.
"…is worse than I imagined."
---
But then—
He remembered something else.
The Sanctuaries.
The place where true power could be obtained.
Where everything could change.
---
Sohan clenched the remaining piece of bread in his hand.
"Out there… is the real path."
His eyes hardened.
"This place…"
"...is just the beginning."
---
Outside, distant sirens echoed faintly.
And somewhere far beyond the slums—
A gateway to another world waited.
---
"To survive here is luck."
"To rise… requires power."