What is this? After entering the Shelter's dimly lit streets, there was this strange, warm feeling slowly spreading through my chest.

  As I cautiously walked along the familiar corridors, the pleasant hum of the Generator filled my ears, and I couldn't help but smile. I made it!

  The simple notion that I could ever miss this unseemly pile of reinforced concrete would have seemed beyond preposterous to me just a few short days ago, but here I was, grinning like an idiot.

  I shook my head, wanting to get rid of this stupid sense of nostalgia so that I could focus on the task at hand.

  After all, I was in the middle of an enemy territory right now. Well, technically, I was still part of Rowan’s gang, but if they caught me out here loitering, they would just lock me up inside the compound again, and that would be the end of it.

  My best and only chance to escape their greasy grasp for good was to forge ahead, get stronger, and make some money on the side first so that when I do confront them, it would be on my terms and my terms only.

  So, I stuck to the shadows, trying my best to appear as unassuming as possible. This was quite a tall order, given the fact I was covered in a layer of dust and grime and also being weighed down by my overflowing backpack.

  Luckily, I came here right at the time of day when the morning crowds had already disappeared, but it was not quite the lunch hour yet, so the streets were mostly empty.

  Still, the few people I did encounter were staring at me as if I had returned from the grave. Well, they are not entirely wrong…

  The Outskirts only housed a shabby few hundred souls at best, so this kind of reaction was not very surprising. Most people knew each other, at least from sight, even if they rarely spoke to one another.

  I would be lying if I said I didn’t quite enjoy their bewildered expressions, which served as unmistakable evidence of subverting everyone's low expectations of me.

  Arriving at the market, I quickly entered one particular shack at the corner of the main street and was instantly met by the familiar face of the grumpy-looking shopkeeper standing behind the counter.

  His monocle glinted in the dim light as he sized me up, a slight surprise reflecting in his amber eyes. "Look who's here? I heard a rumor you kicked the bucket down in the Ratways…"

  "Hahaha! It would take a lot more to do me in, gramps!" I grinned in response.

  "Who do you call gramps, you ungrateful brat?" he grumbled in annoyance before leaning closer. “So, what do you want this time?”

  I smirked at the poorly disguised greed with which he eyed my backpack before heaving my bountiful loot on the counter.

  "Take a look at this!" I carefully unwrapped the still-bloodied silvery pelts and monstrous claws and passed them over to the shopkeeper.

  He briefly inspected the presented items before narrowing his eyes in suspicion. “How did you get your dirty little hands on something like this?”

  "Found it in the Ratways..." I replied with a subtle smile playing on my lips. I was quite enjoying his apparent surprise as it was a rare sight indeed to make the old geezer lose his cool like that.

  However, it all paled in comparison to the incredulous expression he gave me when I took the mana crystal out of my inner pocket and added it on top of the veritable pile of loot already present on the counter. “And I also found this...”

  As the old shopkeeper’s eyes settled on the shimmering crystal, he froze, staring at it in shock. He then gingerly took the item in question into his hands, carefully examining it from each side.

  "How can this be? It's pure! I can’t believe it…" he mumbled in disbelief before looking me straight in the eyes. “Where did you find this?”

  "As if I told you!" I scoffed with a chuckle before swiping the shiny crystal out of his outstretched hand. "If you don't want it, I'm sure Greg from across the street will be interested..."

  "Wait, wait! I never said I didn't want it!" he hurriedly said, grabbing my arm to stop me from leaving. I snickered, placing the gem back onto the counter, and looked at him expectantly. "Well?"

  He fidgeted for a bit, seemingly deep in thought, before finally saying. "I can give you 300 tokens for the mana crystal itself. As for the rest... 20 for the claws and 30 for the hide."

  I did a quick calculation in my head, and with three pairs of claws, the hides, and the crystal on top, the total came to a whopping 450 tokens.

  So much money! On a good day, I could make around two to three tokens working my ass off in the Pit, but most of it went towards the food and rent, so I never managed to save much anyway.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  That’s why this was such a life-changing amount for some like me. With this kind of cash, I could even repay my debt—not that I was going to, of course. After all, I almost died several times to gain this wealth, so there was no way I would simply give it all away to that money-laundering racketeer.

  First, I wanted to buy myself a proper meal, not the scraps I usually settled for, and then I would go look for some equipment. There would be enough time to deal with my debts later. Especially now that I have learned how valuable the mana crystals are.

  Still, that didn't mean I couldn't try to squeeze out more from this greedy scrooge.

  "I heard you saying just now that the crystal is pure, right? There's no way it costs this little. I'll tell you what... give me 600 for everything, and we have a deal!" I said, flashing him a bright smile.

  "Are you out of your damn mind? There's no way I could give you that much!" He spat out, acting offended. "If it's you... The best I can do is 500, but that is already kinda stretching it."

  Stretching it, my ass... I thought but didn't let anything show on my face. Instead, I looked at him confidently, replying. "550"

  "520!" He shot back.

  "550..." I held my ground, not going any lower than that.

  Seeing my unwavering determination, the old shopkeeper ground his teeth for a few moments before finally uttering, "Fine!"

  After years of conducting business in this lousy establishment, I already knew how much I could push the old geezer before he would chase me out.

  So, I grinned, quickly gathering my hard-earned money and getting out of the fusty shop before he could change his mind.

  Whistling happily, I strode across the market area, wondering where to go next. However, being lost in my thoughts, I failed to notice the approaching danger before it was too late.

  Suddenly, three men barred my path, and to my horror, I immediately recognized Carson’s dainty face sticking like a sore thumb among them. "Well, well, well… Look, who's come crawling back from the dead?"

  When I saw that bastard's wicked smile, I froze in my tracks. Of course, it would be him.

  I was not stupid - I knew the gang would find out about my miraculous return from the moment I crossed the Outskirts’ boundary, given they had eyes and ears everywhere around here.

  Still, I was betting on the fact that I was a literal nobody—a tiny, unimportant cog in the giant machine that was the Shelter.

  Because of this, I reasoned it wouldn't be worth it for them to send someone after me right away, giving me some time to sort out my affairs in peace and maybe even get a little bit stronger before I would have to face them.

  Sadly, that's not how this was meant to play out. I sighed dejectedly, wondering what I should do next.

  It was an entirely different matter with Carson since he was never known for being particularly reasonable. I guess he must have made it personal for him the moment he learned that I had made it out of there alive while all his buddies didn't.

  This certainly complicated things. I smiled wistfully, knowing that a week ago, he barely even remembered my name. I shifted my eyes, desperately looking for a way out, but it was futile as they expertly blocked any possible escape route well in advance.

  Carson snickered as if knowing what I was thinking about. "Where do you think you're going?"

  I swallowed hard, trying my best to maintain a facade of nonchalance. "Hey, Carson! How're you doing, buddy? I was already on my way to the compound, just making a quick stop to buy some supplies first."

  They turned toward each other before bursting into laughter. "Hahaha!" But then, before I could react, Carson sprung forth, grabbing me by the neck and smashing me against a nearby wall. "Don't try to play smart with us!"

  His previous amusement was all but gone, replaced by a vicious grimace as he crushed me with the power of a raging bull.

  "You think I'm stupid? Such a pathetic little rat, like yourself, would never come back on your own. But don't worry—we're here to make sure you honor your obligation. I'm certain Rowan will be very interested to know you've made it out."

  "I very much doubt that..." I managed to utter through the pain.

  "Hahaha! You might be right about that... He actually doesn't give a crap about you, but you still owe him money, and until you repay your debt, he owns you." Carson grinned as if he knew very well I could never repay it.

  Well, I'm about to greatly disappoint you. With all the incredible loot I managed to get my hands on in the tunnels, I could get rid of this stupid debt once and for all and still have plenty of tokens left over.

  Yet, I also knew that I couldn’t tell him any of it because if Carson found out I had money on me, he might want to rob me.

  I was always a coward, trying my best to get along and avoid trouble. So even now, I barely resisted as Carson squeezed my neck in his relentless grip.

  Right about now, I was beginning to regret leaving Rocky behind. Still, something about this situation didn't feel quite right. It took me a while to figure it out, but the next moment, I widened my eyes as a particular realization dawned on me.

  It feels different. The strength of Carson's grip, which I always thought was inescapable, suddenly didn't seem so severe anymore. I feel like I could easily wrestle my way out of it if I exerted my full strength. Is this the power of my new Class?

  However, I forced myself to remain calm, not daring to do anything rash because I knew that even if I managed to beat them here, showing any unnatural strength would scream to the whole Shelter that I had awakened a Class, and then there would be no way in hell that Rowan would ever let me go.

  Being lost in my own thoughts, I didn't catch what he said next, but I quickly came to my senses when he threw me to the ground and pressed his smelly foot against my neck.

  "...But before we let you crawl back to the compound, we need to teach you a lesson so that you’ll always know your place, scum." He spat out, and at that moment, I knew this wouldn’t end well for me.

  At first, I simply wanted to let Carson beat me, like always, until he got his fill and left me alone, but with that mad look he was giving me, I realized that today, I wouldn't be able to get off the hook that easily.

  Still, I have to do something. I frantically looked around to find a way out of this mess, wondering whether or not I should simply trip his legs and try to make a run for it; the consequences be damned.

  But before I had a chance to do anything, a loud, angry voice sounded from behind. "What are you doing to him?"

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