Chapter 121

Whilst at Rank 0, a simple day or two in this place had yet to give William a proper awareness of what was happening in his life. He got the warnings, so he swallowed the little bit of pride within him and didn't want to trouble himself over such a nice evening.

So far, only Ellie saw his Emblem and took his youthful Walker status with great vigor and interest. Some might call it a progressive fashion of a newer generation of normal people, but she was clever and worked in a rather interesting library, so perhaps she didn't count. William thought that more people would be like Wagner, taking Walkers for great figures that made this paradise into reality.

Hence, William accepted this wooden box, lying to himself that any shoe should be convenient and some price or freebies never harmed a fly.

Returning to his walk, he realized the evening had deepened, yet something insane was happening beyond the horizon, letting the shimmering lights of the lamps linger around the emptier streets. Beyond, he saw a red moon, creating a nice ambiance and reminders of the grand Dawn that happened more than a century ago.

People didn't watch much of it; they remained in the present, keeping their lives in check, walking and living. They were used to it, William guessed. Pairs of people, families, and even many lonely pedestrians were everywhere on this windless night. Clutter of steps and voices were all around him as he walked alone. New clothes gifted one surprising benefit; they made him seem as if he belonged to this place, and he did. In the mind, not so much.

“What is happening out there?” He wondered, looking at the southwest corner where the raging torrent of Rifts and war did not escape his eyes. “Oh... Something invasive? Oh, well. Not my problem, right? Or... Nah. Fuck! That woman said it like an asshole. I am not an asshole!” Scratching his head with his left arm, he knew this place was far away from the corners of the Federation.

William looked around and hadn't forgotten about his stomach, though a ton of restaurants and stalls were long closed because of that stuff happening beyond the horizon. Food and water were two options. Then, he realized his blunder, wondering about his credits, and plunged his hands into his pocket.

By some miracle, there was a single credit remaining. He thought he tossed everything to Wagner but didn't. Should he feel bad? It felt like a blessing, even if it was essentially a useless waste of paper Outside.

He felt no different, yet felt the difference after walking around for a few minutes. There were still some people, as well as more patrolling officers. The gazes of people were less problematic thanks to his new clothes. They took him for one of them. Wasn't it kind of silly? Well, he hid his Emblem for the time being, and it was enough to create a huge disparity to his past self, even when his face and hair remained the same as his shoes.

He felt no different from before, so he silently scrutinized these people who didn't like his former attire.

'They are just clothes. Freaking Federation. Have the people grown insane in this peaceful land? What a joke. It isn't some lovely mess; they just don't see it. Are people that shallow? And here I thought Camp Roshwell was abnormal in its politics. How ironic.' William complained in his mind.

As he went, he didn't meet with Dreadus's group, which might be fortunate and not that surprising since this whole place was quite large. He considered they wouldn't recognize him anyway, because he genuinely looked different from a simple change. Celeste underwent the same transformation. Being no longer half-naked helped with a lot of things, although her kimono didn't hide everything.

William had different needs. Getting to one of the many intersections of streets, he noticed a group of people in an unassuming corner. There was a water fountain in the shape of a bell. People drank from it, or stored water in various containers.

“Oh, water?” William assumed and felt ashamed he never noticed them before. He walked for a long time and was thirsty.

There was a big sign right on the side of the fountain, citing this place as a Bell Fountain.

The establishment of water supplies had to care for more than a million people, so things such as public water reserves and open places to get drinking water weren't rare. All over the Federation, water was free. Bamboo bottles were included right beside the fountain and the Federation guaranteed the water was safe all year round.

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How? William didn't know how, but he saw something suspicious about it since Outside never had this sort of thing. Water was extremely crucial for survival and any river and stream or underground reserves were priceless if they were safe.

He was the only one in here who judged this fountain like that.

'Free water? What a utopian world. I guess I should have asked about this much earlier. Asking Ellie sounds fine, or that owner? Well, too late. Food will wait.'

William waited in a line of dozens of people. Each held two feet long bamboo bottle with a cap on each side. One side had a small hole, so one could drink from it, creating a simple natural design.

'Those are rather big. Didn't Miss Anderson have some of these? Bamboo is rather great, isn't it? They were much smaller. How much water does it hold? A gallon? What is a liter?

William waited less than five minutes for his turn.

On the left side of the fountain was a napping man in his thirties. William approached him since he had a bunch of bamboo bottles that William didn't have like most of those in the queue.

Poking him with his finger, William asked. “Excuse me, how much for the bottle?”

It was a really strange question. William felt he got used to this city quicker than he thought. Perhaps it was because of Ellie? After listening to her for a whole day, perhaps he was right and learned a lot about the great luxury and peace of this paradise.

He asked like a customer and was glared at like one.

Frowning at William in rather nice and new clothing, the man scowled and didn't hate William outright. First impressions mattered and William wasn't so shabby, unlike his question which was lacking.

“One credit. They aren't single-use, you see. You can come here in the future and refill it any day. They last for a long time.”

“How nice,” William tossed him his remaining credit and got his own bottle. It was sizable, high in quality, and surprisingly light.

The man grinned behind William's back and thought to himself. 'What an idiot. They are free and part of the effort of sustainability. I am just here to care if something goes wrong, or if some dumb person steals them.'

Unbothered by his oblivious mistake, William filled his bottle. A knob pushed water into his bottle and it took a while for it to be full. Struggles with the opening and closing mechanisms of this bottle didn't stop him.

“This much will last a week!” William guesses wrongly, yet his smile and happiness persist after sizing and gripping his bottle.

Walking away, he quenched his thirst later in a reminiscent of his past. Glass bottles were typical storage for water, which was popular in restaurants, but they were brittle and not as fine to create.

They could shatter to pieces if one wasn't careful enough, so bamboo seemed better in comparison, albeit they were a bit luxurious in this quality and size.

William was half-familiar with a tree called bamboo. Light yet robust, it was easy to farm in the right conditions. Not in Canada, unfortunately, and even the Federation had a limited supply of them. They were imported from some locations and associations held by the Federation's history and great links to the rest of the world.

That was as far as rumors reached some ears, or him. In actual reality, no one really cared for the origin of many goods, or supplies. People cared for facts and quick-witted truths of what was useful and readily available.

William didn't know what went on behind the scenes of Camp Roshwell, or how its management worked with a lot of things. The Federation took a lot of care about them. The public Outside knew that the Federation was tightly connected with running those camps, while the people in the Federation did not.

Roswell was one of the best camps since its protection and size were exceptional. The rest weren't as stable; they either moved from time to time or had difficulties with business and sustainability.

Humming in a good mood, William made quick and easy steps even while carrying a heavy bottle on his shoulder, a wooden box under his arm, and a diary. Like this, he walked through the night of the Central District without having any more goals in mind. His pockets were empty, apart from Kaufman's card, so going into a street he didn't know the name of, he found a familiar pathway.

He walked here in the morning, while the building complexes around him were hard to miss. He would never forget such a sight. Especially these impressive buildings.

Although hungry, his pockets answered his demands. Broke and credit-less, he went back to Luke's home. Perhaps he will be back already, or what about those living there alongside him and Mi-Yung? Luke said he wasn't alone in that complex for sure.

Tired, William didn't want to do anything else but rest and eat something.

Waiting while sleeping wouldn't bother him too much either. It was a physical reaction of hunger that would annoy him more.

Fortunately, William was used to such feelings. Working in the fields or with animals kept one busy for a whole day with barely any time for rest. Those were good times. Before, or in many other pasts, times were rougher and food could become scarce much quicker than anyone could imagine.

Those were times and memories before or between the safety net of people and some shelters, or the lack of anyone or anything. In fact, people might become problems as well, albeit Darks were still Darks and their insanity was drastic and hard to overlook.

Walking onwards, William reached the same building complex he left in the morning.

He entered with ease, but getting to his apartment was something else. William banged on the door with no response. Nobody was home.

Sitting down beside the door was all he could manage. At least he had a chair, which was his wooden shoe-box. A bottle of water then quenched his thirst and eased his hunger. Then, he opened the diary to take a look at what had he stolen.