The streets were cold and silent, yet alive with unseen whispers. Akira Hayato walked steadily through the dim alleys, his footsteps echoing softly against the cracked stone pavement. The air carried the scent of smoke, rust, and faint electricity — the unmistakable signs of a decaying city trying to imitate progress. According to his memories, this place was the Umbraeth District, better known as the City of Shadows — the worst city in the entire Human Empire.
Umbraeth was a district shrouded in perpetual twilight, where sunlight barely touched the ground. Power ruled everything here. The strong lived like kings, while the weak were left to fend for scraps in the alleys. Criminals, mercenaries, and corrupt officials shared the same streets, each vying for control of the city's underbelly. If one had power, even in the smallest measure, they could live a life of luxury amid the ruin. If not — survival itself was a privilege.
Akira pulled his hood tighter, blending with the crowd that drifted along the narrow, neon-lit streets. His gaze flicked toward a nearby wall — plastered with holographic posters, half-flickering with static. Every image screamed of control, of hierarchy, of a world built on layers of power. He muttered under his breath, "So this is the human empire in this world…"
He recalled what little he had learned since waking in this place — the vast structure that governed the Human Empire.
At its highest peak stood the Royal Family, the absolute rulers who controlled the fate of humanity. Their word was law, their will divine. Under them were ten individuals handpicked for their power and loyalty — the Council of Aetherials. Each member of the Council governed one of the ten great districts that made up the Human Empire.
Beneath them, every district was divided into one hundred zones, each zone overseen by a Zone Manager. In total, there were a thousand such zones across the empire, a web of command and surveillance stretching across continents. For every ten zones, there existed a Lord — a powerful figure who managed and enforced the will of the Council in their assigned region. Each district, therefore, had ten Lords, and across the empire, a hundred in total.
The Lords reported directly to the Council of Aetherials, who in turn answered only to the Royal Family. It was a system of absolute hierarchy — one that ensured power flowed upward and control trickled downward. Order, dominance, and fear bound it all together.
Akira exhaled slowly as he walked, trying to absorb the sheer scale of this world. Ten districts, each with a hundred zones… a thousand zones in total. The structure was almost militaristic — vast, intricate, and mercilessly efficient. For a moment, he felt a strange awe mixed with unease. The empire was much larger than he had imagined, perhaps even greater than Earth's old nations combined. The population alone was said to be twice that of Earth, and every district had been built with a specific purpose in mind — trade, war, agriculture, knowledge, or, like Umbraeth, darkness.
He passed a group of ragged children sitting by a broken street light, their faces illuminated by its dim blue light. Nearby, an armored man leaned against the wall, his weapon casually slung across his shoulder as he watched the crowd. Power and poverty coexisted here like two sides of the same coin — one could see luxury towers in the distance while people starved just a street away.
Akira kept moving. The deeper he went, the louder the city became — the hum of generators, the chatter of street vendors, the rhythmic pounding of machinery from hidden factories. Neon signs flickered to life around him, painting the streets in streaks of red and violet. The oppressive darkness gave way to an urban glow that seemed almost alive.
This must be the urban sector, he thought, quickening his pace. This was where he needed to go — the place where the influential gathered, where fortunes were made and lives were bought. The streets widened here, lined with towering skyscrapers of metal and glass. Lights stretched high above like artificial stars, shimmering through the polluted sky.
He stopped for a moment and looked up. From this point, the city didn't seem as broken as it did from the outskirts. It was vibrant, even beautiful in its own grim way. Yet beneath that beauty, he could sense something sinister — a shadow that loomed over everything. The kind that thrived on secrets and silence.
Akira could feel countless eyes watching from unseen corners. Surveillance drones floated lazily above, recording everything, while people hurried past without a second glance. No one trusted anyone here; even the light felt like a lie.
Still, he couldn't help but marvel at the sight. The city stretched endlessly, its skyline glowing against the dark horizon. Somewhere within those towers lay opportunity — and danger in equal measure. He clenched his fists, his crimson eyes reflecting the glimmering lights.
"So this is where it begins," he murmured softly, the faintest hint of determination in his voice and walked towards the urban or rich part of the Umbraeth District — the City of Shadows and continued forward toward the glowing heart of the metropolis. Whatever awaited him there, he was ready to face it.
CHAPTER 2 END