—Determinant Of The World Destiny—
The Difference
The rising sun illuminates the city's buildings from behind, its morning light a mix of yellow from the sun and bluish from the lingering dark sky of last night.
Along the streets, Victorian-era buildings blend with steampunk aesthetics, their varied colors and shapes preventing the city's layout from appearing monotonous. On the edge of the pedestrian and vehicle lanes, medium-sized trees and streetlights alternate every four meters.
On the wide road, cars and buses continuously pass Nathan as he walks along the side. In the middle of the road, two train tracks lie two meters apart from each other.
Nathan walks past all of this, past thousands of other people's lives that are important to them, yet he doesn't care much. He doesn't even know if life holds meaning for everyone. With half-open eyes in the morning, he tries to fight off the drowsiness until he finally gives in—he yawns, closing his eyes and tearing up slightly.
He rubs his slightly watery eyes with his index finger; he's not very used to waking up before seven in the morning. Nathan, who was walking, now stops and stands beside a bus stop—he's forced to because the seats at the bus stop are already full of various people.
Two girls in school uniforms are visible: white shirts, plaid skirts in dark brown, light brown, and black, and a brown tie with light brown diagonal stripes.
"Did you do the math homework Mr. Alex gave us?"
"Oh, so you want to copy mine, do you?" The girl grins at her friend.
"You always seem to know my intentions." With an innocent smile, she replies to her friend.
Next to the girls, a man with a slightly grim and nervous face is looking down slightly. He holds several sheets of job application letters. The man whispers to himself, but Nathan overhears him.
"Hope I get accepted, hope I get accepted, hope I get accepted." It seems the man has been rejected from many jobs.
Next to the nervous man applying for a job is a pregnant woman. The woman is wearing an elegant yet simple dress.
Nathan, who has been analyzing the four people sitting at the bus stop, then speaks very quietly to himself, but with an annoyed tone.
"Why am I ordered so early just to check on the armor crafting? Plus, I'll be choosing runes and training." Nathan lets out a long, heavy sigh.
Not long after, a red bus with golden engraved letters on its side, spelling 'NOVUS VITAS,' arrives. Nathan is the first to enter the bus. The bus is crowded with passengers, and Nathan sits in the only remaining seat—as do the two schoolgirls and the working man. Unfortunately, there's no more seating for the pregnant woman. The priority seats are taken, and it seems no one is willing to give theirs up.
Nathan sighs and stands up, giving his seat to the pregnant woman. He taps the woman's shoulder, who is standing with her back to him. The woman turns to Nathan.
"You can sit in my spot." His cold voice contrasts with his noble action; although Nathan is often indifferent, he still has compassion.
"Ah, thank you, young man." The mother sits in the seat Nathan had occupied. Nathan now stands, holding onto the bus handgrip to stay stable.
A group of women in stylish and neat clothes, carrying medium-sized bags, whisper beside Nathan.
"Hey, isn't that man standing there quite handsome?" The woman with a ponytail whispers into the ears of her three friends beside her.
"I think so too."
"Look at his slightly messy middle-parted hair, his perfectly proportioned face, and his blue eyes." The women giggle.
"I really want to know his name. But Im too shy."
"Just do it, Sophie."
Nathan frowns—feeling a bit disturbed, remembering he doesn't like being the center of attention. Why is this happening to me?
---
Nathan finally arrives in front of the armorer's shop that Andreas mentioned. The sign above the shop reads 'Ivory's Shop,' and below it, a smaller engraved phrase says 'Novus Vitas Blacksmith Experts.'
The shop looks quite large from the outside, considering that Unit 001 gets their armor and weapons from this shop. I'm curious about the quality. Nathan opens the shop door, and a bell rings as the door swings open.
"Welcome, sir."
Nathan looks around the shop. Many armors and weapons are displayed on the walls.
"Is Mr. Ivory here?"
"Of course, I'll call him for you." The shopkeeper goes downstairs with a spiral staircase.
Nathan sees a drawer behind the cashier's desk full of what seems to be high-level armor. The back wall also has many awards. The shopkeeper returns with a slightly older man with a thin beard.
"Finally here, huh?" The old man said to me, I approach him. We both extend our hands and shake.
"Nice to meet you, new Unit 001 member, I'm Ivory." He smiles at me.
"Nice to meet you too, Nathan."
"Nathan, nice name."
"Follow me, you want to see the armor, right?" Without waiting for my answer, he walks towards the spiral staircase. Of course, I have to follow him.
I descend the spiral staircase, holding the handrail on my right. The basement room has brick walls.
Many people are working, along with machines and tools to help create armor and weapons. No wonder the quality is unquestionable.
Ivory leads me past the working people to the end of the room where many finished armors and weapons are displayed.
Ivory turns his body to face me. He points to an outfit similar to what I and other Unit 001 members usually wear.
"You're familiar with this outfit, aren't you?"
"Of course."
"But unfortunately, this is different from what you usually wear." I raise my eyebrow, showing a confused expression.
He chuckles softly. "This is your uniform, but made from MeteorWraith leather and refined iron crystals, shaped like this. Smooth yet strong, its texture won't bother you at all in combat or on a normal day. Unfortunately, this armor is still under development. Once it's truly finished, it will be able to withstand a StarWraith."
"So we can't wear it yet?"
"You can, but it won't be as strong as planned because it's still under development. We'll try to finish it as quickly as possible."
"Alright."
---
"Welcome to Porta Station. Thank you for using our service. Please mind the gap between the train and the platform." The train doors slide open. Several train passengers disembark—including Nathan.
He walks past people wanting to board the train, heading towards the stairs on the left. Just one step away from the stairs, someone suddenly taps his shoulder from behind. When Nathan turns around, he sees Tobias.
"Tobias? What are you doing here?"
"I just wanted to get some fresh air, and also to get to know the city streets."
They both walk down from the station via the stairs. They are now walking on the sidewalk.
"You've been released?"
"Yeah, at least for now. Besides, I don't have any weapons with me, don't be too vigilant." It's easy for him to say, but for Nathan, it's impossible, considering Tobias is a Wanderer from Equinox.
At the intersection, Nathan turns left, followed by Tobias.
"Where do you want to–" Tobias says before he stops mid-sentence.
"What's with that crowd?" Tobias asks me.
"Are those other units from Novus Vitas?" Tobias sees SpyderMechs being driven automatically, while their drivers are on top, poking their heads through the entry/exit hatches of the SpyderMechs. Some are waving, some are smiling, and some are just silent.
"Yes, they are Novus Vitas Unit 001, Second Division."
"Second Division?"
"In Novus Vitas, there are two units: the exploration unit and the rescue unit. The exploration unit is my unit, tasked with uncovering the truth, while the rescue unit is only assigned to patrol around the district."
"Usually, the rescue unit consists of people who want high salaries and to become Wanderers with low risk."
"Ohh, I see. A bit different from Equinox." I glare at him, before my attention returns to the rescue unit. People are crowding the roadside to see them. It's very different from the exploration unit, which operates without public knowledge.
Tobias and Nathan watch the rescue unit.
"Welcome, our saviors!"
"You are the best!"
Everyone cheers, encouraging and appreciating the unit.
The atmosphere between us is silent, but after a moment, Tobias says something.
"A unit divided into two divisions, huh. The rescue unit protects peace, while the exploration unit seeks peace."