We walked back to the house while we talked about society. Alaric explained how the class, status, and grade system worked again since I didn’t understand its purpose.

“But it was stupid,” I said. “I understand the grades since they are separated by age, but not status and class! Shouldn’t we all learn everything equally?”

“Think of it like this,” Alaric started. “Can you clean the house while driving the car?”

“No?” I answered.

“Okay, can you spar with me while reading the book you shouldn’t read in the first place?”

Looks like he was still mad at me, I thought as I shook my head.

“Good. Now, my last question is, can you innovate something new, like the glasses you are wearing or the cars people are driving, while an attack occurred and you had to fight voidspawns?”

“I don’t know!” I protested in the end, but I couldn’t understand the questions.

“Then let me tell you the answer: no. And think that this happened to everyone. Can you imagine the chaos that might happen? Not to mention that not everyone is a good fighter or not everyone is a good technician. If they send the wrong person to the field, the outcomes won’t be as we desired.”

“But there are cyber-something?”

“And if the people who make the cybers go to the battlefield, what will happen? In your logic, it is a possibility.”

“Okay,” I accepted. “You might be right about what about class? Why are they separate them?”

“To help lower class and higher class students better. People in the lower class need additional help to improve. The higher class students can learn advanced techniques that lower class students are not ready for.”

“I think I understand,” I said and nodded. Alaric smiled at my response, and we jumped to a different topic, ‘rudeness.’ Alaric explained to me why my response might be accepted as ‘rude’.

“People are as fragile as they are sly. They can understand it wrong or think that they are rude if you interrupt them or say them in a disrespectful manner. What you did today was disrespectful and rude.”

“I didn’t mean to be rude,” I said, genuinely feeling sad for that.

“I know, and Hanna might know it too, but not everyone is understanding, you need to be careful with your words.”

I nodded to Alaric as we finally reached our home. When we entered the home, the clock was already at twelve o’clock.0

“Wash your hands, then come to the living room,” Alaric said. I nodded and said, “Okay,” as I walked upstairs. I removed my glasses first and put them on my bed, then went to the bathroom to wash my hands as Alaric instructed. I quickly ran down the stairs, almost tripping again, and jumped onto the couch.

“Easy,” Alaric said as he frowned. I nodded, wondering what will he say. Alaric looked at his hands and started talking.

“There are many things we need to talk about. From your name to what kind of discrimination you might face.”

“Discrimination?” I asked. “What is that?”

“It is when people act differently towards you, unlike how they act in front of others. They might be mean to you, try to hurt you, or give you nicknames that might hurt your pride. They might even try to hurt you physically.”

“Why?” I asked, curious.

“It is one of the things I don’t understand properly, too,” Alaric admitted. “But I know it is a possibility.”

“And what should I do?” I asked this time, feeling anxious.

“For starters, go to the Hanna and ask for help,” Alaric said, finally turning his gaze towards me. “If it is not enough, then do the same things as they did to you. Just make sure you won’t be in trouble.”

“Oh, okay!” I said quickly, but as the words left my mouth, a small doubt crept in. I wasn’t sure what kind of ‘trouble’ I might find in this place. We were away from the boundaries, so there was no way for me to pass the boundaries again accidentally. Thoughts of it made me shiver; it was a horrifying experience, and I was lucky there weren’t any voidspawns at that time. Or was he talking about the time when I accidentally hit a tree and caused a bee hive to fall and attack us? Or was it about the time when I almost broke my arm because I fell down a cliff?

Well, I will find out soon! I thought.

“We also need to talk about your studies. You will notice that in fighting, you are better than most. This means I don’t trust your school will be any better teaching you, so we will continue with your education early mornings.”

“If school is not good, why am I going there?” I asked.

“You are going because you need experience about human life.”

I nodded to him. He kept telling me that they were weaker than me, but I couldn’t understand how. It seemed nonsense to me, but if Alaric was telling me that, then it should be true.

“Good, now let’s start our lessons. Go to the kitchen table and wait for me. I will be there shortly.”

“Okay!” I said and walked to the kitchen. Alaric smiled at me before going to the upstairs.

🐝🐝🐝

The sun was about to set when our lesson was interrupted by the doorbell. I looked at the door first, then back to Alaric. I was surprised but from the looks of it, so he was.

“Could it be Miss Hanna?” I asked.

“No, she would have sent a notification before she came here,” he said and slowly got up from his chair. “Stay here.”

I nodded to Alaric. Alaric approached the door carefully and looked through the door viewer, then he sighed with relief and opened the door. I quickly got up and walked next to him. There was a man with short blond hair and green eyes. He was holding something in his hands.

“Hello, neighbor. I am Kyle, your next-door neighbor,” he said as he showed a house on our left.

“Wow,” I said. “You are so tall!” Alaric shot me a displeased glare, but the man simply smiled at me.

“I get that a lot,” he said. Kyle was very tall and masculine. Even taller than Alaric! Kyle’s smile turned into curiosity as he noticed something; he leaned slightly toward me and knitted his brow.

“What a unique eye color you have.”

“Oh, thanks,” I said as my hand went to my left eye. He continued to look at it for a few more seconds, but with Alaric’s movement, he turned his gaze to Alaric with a smile while Alaric moved in front of me.

“When I saw the lights here last night, I couldn’t believe it. To my surprise, you were outsiders like us, too! By us, I meant like me and my niece Naomi, and maybe a few more people around here. Anyway, I made an apple pie for both of you. I hope none of you are allergic to it.”

“No,” Alaric said slowly.

“Good. By the way, what a nice house you have. And speaking of the house, since you moved in, I assume that there isn’t any food for you right now. You can join me and my niece if you want.”

Before Alaric could answer, the man looked at me and smiled.

“She is probably the same age as you. How old are you, sweetie? My niece is 14 years old.”

“She is 14,” Alaric jumped into the conversation. “And we had a friend who helped us move here, so thank you for your kind suggestion, but we have to decline.”

“Oh, already made a friend. How lucky!” Kyle said, then looked at our home inside, then back to Alaric. “And you seem to be rich too. I am surprised that you are not in the inner areas.”

Alaric frowned. He seemed uncomfortable. I couldn’t understand why.

“No matter how much money I have, my daughter and I are still outsiders, as you said. I doubt we would be comfortable there.”

“I am sorry if I made you uncomfortable,” Kyle jumped. “It was not my intention. It’s just that I believe we outsiders should stick together. There are few of us here. Speaking of which, would you two be comfortable if I invite you to dinner this Sunday? You can meet others in that way, too. And your daughter would have a chance to have a friend, too.”

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“We will think that,” Alaric said as he held me from my shoulder. “Thank you for your kind invitation.”

“Don’t mention it. It is like a tradition for us between outsiders. I will be waiting for your response to call others,” Kyle said with a smile and gave me the plate. Before Alaric could say anything, Kyle continued.

“And welcome to the neighborhood. Hope to make your acquaintance.”

🐝🐝🐝

After I wore my T-shirt, I looked at the mirror uncomfortably.

“What is this,” I mumbled.

“Are you ready?” Alaric called out to me.

“I guess, but,” I said as I turned my back to look at my ‘jeans.’

“Are you sure it is good? I feel like it will prevent me from fighting,” I said as I left the room to show myself to Alaric.

“We are not going there to fight, Bumble,” Alaric said as he was fixing his white shirt. “We are going there to meet new people.”

“But,” I said, trying to find an excuse. “What if a voidspawn suddenly shows up!”

Alaric’s gaze suddenly moved up towards me instead of his shirt’s sleeve, as if he couldn’t believe I said it. Then, he sighed and raised his chin.

“What’s wrong?” Alaric asked. “You were the one who asked for this.”

He was right. I was the one who begged to join Kyle’s invitation. Since Kyle told us that he had a niece in my age, I was excited. I thought that we could be friends, like in The Lady of the Crowns!

“I know, but I don’t know! I feel too excited and scared and maybe nervous?”

“It is normal for you to feel that way,” Alaric replied, then turned his gaze to his sleeve again.

“Is it?” I asked. “But you don’t seem to feel that way.”

“When you gain enough experience, you’ll learn how to control your emotions.”

“So, are you excited or nervous or scared?”

Alaric thought for a minute before he answered.

“No, not really.”

“Then it is not normal to feel like that!” I said happily as if I had discovered something.

“Then let me fix myself then,” Alaric said calmly. “It is normal for you to feel excited because you never experienced something like this before.”

I sighed and looked at my outfits again. Alaric chose these clothes for me. An orange-red t-shirt which had purple outlined pink flower on it. Below were dark blue jeans.

“Are we sure there won’t be any breach at the…“

“Bumble!” Alaric warned.

“Okay, okay,” I said, raising my hands. “I am wearing these very uncomfortable jeans.”

Alaric nodded and walked down the stairs.

“When you are ready, get down.”

“Okay,” I said and walked to the toilet to brush my teeth. Quickly, I squeezed some toothpaste onto my toothbrush and began to brush my teeth. After I cleaned my mouth with water, I called out to Alaric.

“Do I have to get my glasses?”

“Look into my eyes while talking!” Alaric responded. I sighed and left the bathroom, and walked down the stairs. When our eyes met, I asked my question again.

“Do I have to get my glasses?”

“Have it with you, just in case.”

I nodded and returned back to my room to get the glasses again and wore them quickly.

“I am ready, I guess,” I said as I went next to Alaric.

“Don’t worry too much,” he gently smiled at me.

“Even if you did bad, they will only talk about a month.”

“I am not that worried. It’s just that these jeans feel too…” I thought for the right word for a moment. “Frustrating!”

“Get used to it,” Alaric said as he opened the front door. “Come one, let’s go.”

I nodded and changed my soft pink slippers to black sneakers. Then we left the house and walked to the house on our left. We could hear chatter and laughter as we walked closer. I could feel my palm getting sweatier and my heart beat faster.

“Alaric,” I said. “I don’t feel good.”

Alaric glanced at me, then continued to walk.

“You are just overwhelmed. Take deep breaths.”

I started to take deep breaths and closed my eyes.

“Relax, Bumble. It is not the hardest thing in the world.”

“Really?” I asked. “Then why do I feel like this.”

“Like I said, what you are experiencing right now is all new to you. It is normal for you to be like that. Now, chin up! We are arrived.”

I looked up anxiously. We were really at the front door of Kyle’s house. I turned my head and looked around. The outside of the house was similar to ours. The wall’s color, the door’s design, even the design of the front yard!

“Why are they the same?” I asked Alaric while he rang the doorbell.

“Rules of the society,” Alaric replied.

“Wha-?”

Before I could ask my question, the door in front of us opened. Soft music was coming from inside.

“Welcome!” Kyle said cheerfully and moved a few steps back. “Please come in.”

I looked at Alaric, worried, while he walked inside. I followed him behind. As we took off our shoes, Kyle spoke up.

“Everyone, our guest of honors has arrived!”

When everyone started to clap, I felt so confused that I looked at Alaric again.

“Welcome to the neighborhood!” Some people said while walking toward us. Alaric slightly moved in front of me.

“Thank you for your kind invitation. My name is Alaric, and she is my daughter, Bumble,” Alaric said while he showed me slightly.

“Bumble, what a… unique name?” A man said. Alaric nodded, then turned toward me.

“Why won’t you go sit somewhere?” Alaric said gently.

I nodded and quietly walked away while Alaric was talking to others.

So many people, I thought as I escaped the kitchen. The layout of the house was surprisingly the same as our house. Did Kyle change his house after seeing ours? It can’t be, I thought. Even though they looked similar, the inner design was different, like the position of the fridge.

“What are you doing here?” A soft female voice came behind me. I quickly turned my back and saw a blond girl with wavy hair. I panicked when I saw her.

“Oh, sorry, it’s just too crowded there, and Alaric told me to go sit somewhere and-“

“Easy,” the girl said calmly and walked near me. “Are you the new neighbor?”

“Yes. Alaric and I just moved here.”

“I am sure you will like it here; people are a bit more friendly here than in other places.”

“You went to other safe areas?” I asked, excited.

“I did,” she approved, then shrugged. “So far, this one seems to be better. But time will show it.”

“When did you move in?” I asked this time.

“About a year ago. Of course, when we moved here, there wasn’t something like that,” she said while pointing to the outside of the kitchen, where Alaric was crowded by people. “No outsider talked with each other. Of course, my uncle likes to… socialize with people,” she paused, then smiled to herself. “He found all outsiders and invited them. Soon, we became good friends. They even created a group on ‘HeyThere’.”

“Hey there?” I asked.

“Yeah, HeyThere. Oh, is a different app used where you came from? I heard some safe areas were strict on these.”

Hey There? App? What?

I was so confused that I only looked at her. Should I tell her that I had no idea what they were, or should I say nothing and ask Alaric later?

“Umm,” she said, seemed a bit uncomfortable. “Are you perhaps a foreigner?”

I sighed. I had no idea what these words meant and knowing this made me feel bad.

“Sorry!” she suddenly said loudly. I felt confused again, why was she sorry?

“I guess I made you feel uncomfortable,” she continued while she gently patted her arm. “I am going in then.“

“No, no!” I jumped, interrupting her. She seemed surprised by my sudden burst.

“It is not that I am uncomfortable, I just had no idea any of the words you said, like, app!”

She continued to look at me, confused. Did I say something wrong? I thought. Should I have stayed quiet and didn’t say anything?

Then something I didn’t expect happened, she chuckled. Was what I said funny?

“Let’s start from the beginning, then,” she said with a big smile. “I am Naomi. I am the host, meaning Kyle’s niece. And you are?”

“I am Bumble. I am Alaric’s adopted child.”

“Oh,” she said, seemed surprised again. “Looks like we are the same, kind of.”

“Really?” I asked. “Then you are also home-schooled till coming here, and reading novels was also forbidden because they are useless.”

She opened her mouth, then closed again as if she wasn’t sure what to say. She waited a few more seconds to answer.

“No?”

“Oh, then how are we the same?” I asked. Her cheeks got redder as she scratched her head.

“Maybe I should have said ‘similar’ then.”

I tilted my head to the left, still not understanding.

“I said that because I lost my parents too,” she admitted.

“Oh! Me too!” I said cheerfully, happy to understand what she meant. She chuckled at my response again.

“It was nice to meet you, Bumble,” she said, then turned her back.

“Wait!” I said loudly. “Where are you going?”

She looked at me, confused again, then pointed to where the others were.

“Inside.”

“Well, umm…” I said as I played with my hands. “I was wondering, maybe you could stay here and continue to talk.”

“I would love to, but I have to go back. How about you join me?”

“Yes!” I answered without listening to her question, then realized what she said.

“I mean, yes, but…”

“Don’t worry,” Naomi said with a smile as she walked towards me. “They all are good people.”

“Maybe, but I am just too nervous.”

She paused mid-step, her gaze fixed on me, before quickening her pace and closing the distance. I felt a cold shiver. “Are you okay?”

“Your eye,” she said, then leaned toward me and looked at my left eye carefully.

“What a unique color you have!”

“Thanks,” I said and took a few steps back, but her eyes followed, unblinking. “I started to hear that almost from everyone.“

“Well, it is true! It is beautiful,” she said, making me blush.

“Oh, sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable!” She said while waving her hands. Her voice became softer. “It’s just that I felt too excited. You can’t see something like that every day. It is like seeing a deer on the outside, you know,” she said, then whispered, “I am not usually like that,” while giving me a smile. I felt dumbfounded.

“Is it really that unique?” I said as I touched my eye.

“Absolutely,” Naomi said, her voice still soft, but there was a glimmer of something in her eyes—admiration, perhaps, or curiosity. “It’s not just the color, you know. It feels… rare. Like it’s telling a story all on its own.” She paused, tilting her head slightly, then added with a shy smile, “Sorry, I must sound so silly. I just notice these little things sometimes.”

Little things, I thought. This little thing, my eye, kept getting people’s attention. Was it really that something different?

“Well,” Naomi said, getting my attention again. “Let’s go.”

I nodded and followed her inside, where there were a lot of joyful people. I walked behind Naomi silently, trying to find Alaric. He was still in the center of the crowd.

“Look who was here,” Kyle suddenly showed with a bright smile. Alaric’s gaze focused on me as Kyle approached me.

“I hope you are enjoying?”

“Not really,” I answered. “I feel way too nervous.”

Kyle looked at me dumbfounded at first, then laughed.

“You are straightforward, aren’t you.”

He smiled at me gently. I wasn’t sure how to react.

“No need to get nervous. All these people were here for you. I hope you will enjoy it.”

I nodded to him slowly, feeling better.

“Alaric told us that you are also starting the same school as Naomi. If you have any trouble, please do not hesitate to reach us.”

“Okay?” I said, a bit confused. Kyle nodded to my response and left me alone, walking toward Alaric.

I sat on a sofa slowly and watched around till the event ended. I wanted to talk too but somewhere in me scared. I wanted to hide behind Alaric. This felt strange to me. I wanted to talk, to know them, but somewhere in me just wanted to get away.

I wonder, I thought.

Our ‘Welcoming Party’ continued for about two hours. When we left Kyle and Naomi’s house, I felt a strange relief.

“I never thought I would feel this nervous,” I admitted. “And this relieved because I am returning home.”

“We are just getting started,” Alaric said with a smile.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Tomorrow is your first school day, and what you feel tomorrow is probably no different than what you felt today.”

“Wait!” I said. “I will feel the same way tomorrow? Aren’t I going to get rid of it because of today?”

“Is your fear gone for voidspawns even though you fought with them through holograms?”

“I’ve never seen a real one yet!” I protested.

“Is your nausea gone away when you are in the moving car?”

“It’s just a physical reaction.”

“Emotions, too, are physical reactions.”

“Are they?” I said, confused.

Alaric smiled and gave me a long lecture about how we felt ‘emotions’ because of the ‘hormones’. But for the first time in my life, I had trouble listening to Alaric. Not because I was bored but because I felt way too nervous.