TCWGRF 3

Although a voice from outside urged him on due to his lengthy preparations, he paid it no mind and reached out his arm to pick up the pistol placed on the shelf.

It was a single six-shot revolver that he always carried at his waist. Checking if the bullets were properly loaded by rotating the cylinder every time he went out was a kind of habit, and an instinct for survival.

His head tilted slightly as he looked down at the cylinder, and his eyes narrowed.

There was nothing wrong with the partner that would protect him in an emergency. Click. If he pulled the trigger against the tip of his own chin like the man in the mirror was doing right now, it would blow his head off without hesitation, and very cleanly.

“Ahaha.”

However, the pistol was deprived of its chance to show off its usefulness and was put away obediently into the holster on his belt.

Tap, tap. Soon, the expensive leather shoes made a blunt yet rhythmic sound as they moved away from the mirror.

The Commissioner General of Public Security of this city, as cold and sharp as a knife carved from ice. The being most feared by the rebels slipped out the door into the world beyond to face another one of his enemies.

*

District 28, the very bottom of the city, was bustling with a rare vitality it had not seen before.

Everyone was excited by the fact that the Public Security Department was offering new, well-paying jobs, and they formed a long line in front of the temporary booth set up near the bulletin board to accept applications for the neighborhood watch.

Isaac was one of the people mixed in that line.

Others might have been tempted by the higher salary compared to most jobs listed on the bulletin board, the seemingly easy tasks, the loose eligibility requirements that didn’t consider age, experience, or origin, and the simple procedure that ended with submitting a document and a single interview. But for him, the only thing that mattered was the ability to come and go between other districts in the name of patrol.

If getting into the city from the Outside was something that risked one’s life but was nevertheless possible, then moving to other districts, further inside, by crossing the city’s internal gates or high walls, was an impossible realm that one could not achieve even if they died and came back to life, except through legal procedures.

Even that legal method was not easy. One could not leave the district they lived in without a clear purpose, such as an invitation from another district approved in advance by the administrative department or a recognized workplace. And there was no guarantee of passing through the checkpoints, which were often at the mercy of the officers’ moods, without trouble. It was a common occurrence to get into an argument or to be suspected of being suspicious.

Since he hadn’t even found anyone who resembled Asel in District 28, he needed to move proactively if he wanted to find that boy. For that purpose, the neighborhood watch was perfect.

“…The neighborhood watch was a thing that popped up for a bit about 10 years ago and then disappeared, right? Probably.”

“I heard that back then, they received training from the Public Security Department and took on not only patrol duties but also all sorts of odd jobs. I wonder how much they’ll work us this time.”

“What does it matter. If they’re paying, I’d even clean up corpses there.”

Behind him, men of a respectable age joked around, reciting the information they remembered. Although their tone was grumbling, inside it, a soft expectation was packaged in the form of worry or concern.

Isaac felt the same sense of excitement. It felt as if he could find Asel in a single stroke if he just joined the neighborhood watch.

Just like that, without any hesitation, he filled out the documents when it was his turn, heard about the interview schedule to be held at the Public Security Department in the City Center a few days later, and only after receiving a small, stamped receipt that he had to present when passing through the gate, did today’s procedure come to an end.

Because the person in charge told him he must not lose it, Isaac held the small piece of paper tightly in both hands, looked around, and quickly returned home.

In the very center of the City Center, there was a massive ‘Capitol’ building where the Party executives discussed and decided on the important affairs of the city.

Unlike the rough, square concrete buildings throughout the city, the pillars and decorations carved by artisans over a long period of time, the arched colonnades, and the domed roof, were structures that evoked a nostalgia for a bygone era of which not even a faint trace remained now.

The city’s design was based on this ‘Capitol’. From here, each district and wall spread out in the form of concentric circles at regular intervals, drawing a perfect circle.

A black vehicle came to a stop in front of the Capitol’s main building. When the aide-de-camp in the driver’s seat got out and opened the back door, the Commissioner General of Public Security, dressed in a pure white uniform, appeared.

“I will be waiting in the car.”

From here, the aide could not follow. Only permitted Party executives and high-ranking officials could set foot in that grand building.

As he climbed the external stairs to go inside, Samuel habitually counted how much the security had increased since the last time.

‘About ten people, perhaps.’

The old men who occupied the top of the city were cowards. They were afraid of suffering the same fate, even as they dealt with their political enemies without hesitation.

So they restricted the number of people who could enter and exit, stationed fully armed guards, and made people go through several body searches before they could stand before the executives.

Not only guns and knives, but even sharp decorations that could be used as weapons were not allowed. One had to strip completely and get dressed again under the watch of three guards. Only after all that was done could Samuel stand before the Party executives who had summoned him.

‘It’s always so bizarre.’

At the end of a long corridor. When he opened the heavy door and entered, there was a space with rows of chairs arranged in parallel on a platform divided into several tiers.

The number of chairs decreased as one went up and increased as one went down. Each of the chairs in the rows had its own designated owner.

The ones who first built the city and their descendants, those who still wielded immense influence and enjoyed the few remaining resources in the world, also owned those chairs.

The ghosts of the city do not wander the streets or depart to another world like heaven or hell. They simply sit here in their rows and look down on the swarming livestock at their feet. Fortunately or unfortunately, the chair at the very top had remained empty for several years.

Today’s meeting was not a formal summons. It was just a gathering to appease the Party executives who were dissatisfied with the appointment of a barbaric person from the Outside as the Commissioner General of Public Security. Perhaps for that reason, about half of the seats were empty.

The descendants of the ghosts, with their stiff necks, high-chinned faces, and domineering gazes, filled the other half and were waiting for Samuel.

Opposite them, a single small chair was prepared for guests or subjects of a hearing.

A decorative piece that, unlike the chairs on the platform, had no intricate carvings, no backrest that came up to the back of the head, and no ornate armrests. It was crudely carved from common wood, barely serving its function as a chair, while at best, it played the role of creating a sense of incongruity that didn’t fit with the magnificent building.

Samuel was not even of the status to sit there. Even though he was the Commissioner General of Public Security, responsible for the city’s safety, and the adopted son of ‘Lot’, who had a chair of his own in the Capitol building, albeit at the lowest seat, he was not a native of the city.

The spot assigned to him was right in front of the door, far away from the Party executives. There was nowhere to sit nearby, so he had to stand until the business was over. But they probably considered it a great honor just to be allowed in the same space with them.

“After you were appointed as the Commissioner General, you have no notable achievements. How do you plan to explain that?”

Among those sitting in the third highest row, an old man with dull red hair that looked as if the color had been washed out, brought up the main point without hesitation towards Samuel.

It had only been a few weeks since he became the Commissioner General, so it was far too early to be talking about achievements.

Especially considering that his predecessors had produced poor results, unable to distinguish front from back in both their work and in the matter of taking sides, reprimanding Samuel was certainly premature.

In the end, their purpose was likely to loudly assert their authority and keep him in line, questioning if a dog that should be guarding the front yard and eating the stale rice its master throws it had forgotten its place and become drunk on power, or if it was craving the food that humans eat. Asking if he knew who his master was.

“If the Party has granted you a position that is more than you deserve, you should be grateful and loyal, and immediately bring back the head of the rebel leader!”

An angry voice echoed, and everyone, without exception, put on a stern expression, showing their tacit agreement. Samuel almost burst out laughing, a laugh he had been holding back, at their rather solemn faces.

“Why don’t you answer?”

Most of those who knew how great the power they possessed was would grovel on the floor after just a few shouts, despicably buying time by promising to do whatever they wanted.

However, Samuel did not grovel or beg, but with a consistent smiling face, he explained the future plans of the Public Security Department point by point.

“As it happens, we are planning to root out the rebels who have infiltrated the city soon. Every last one of them, all of them.”

“Ha!”

“That’s absurd!”

Gasps erupted from the audience, and someone raised their voice and shouted at Samuel.