Fissure.

The footsteps of the people, along with the surrounding hustle and bustle, accompanied the boy and the woman as they walked through the city, which had stretched on for a considerable amount of time simply because Koma wanted to show Infinn around the area where the workplace building was located. But the pain in the boy's legs seemed to tell him that they had been walking for an eternity. During these kinds of situations, the boy couldn't help but glance at the beautiful city. It stood with vibrant buildings made mostly of cement, bricks, or wood but with impossible architecture. Some constructions, representing entire homes, could stand effortlessly on simple poles, while others seemed to be situated in a way that gave way to majestic forms, such as trees or really tall skyscrapers that Infinn couldn't even visualize half of. He hadn't thought about it, but this "space" that was the territory of the state of logic made him wonder if it wasn't infinite by chance. Koma and he had been walking for a while, but he couldn't help but notice seas of buildings in depressions or, conversely, structures floating above him. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that this was a completely different plane from the real world.

Despite these surreal aspects, the people around them continued to engage in mundane activities. Some jogged to exercise, some young people who seemed to be wearing student clothes that the chestnut-haired boy had never seen passed by, talking about simple topics like romance or school drama. There were people sitting in chairs while enjoying what seemed to be a container filled with herbs with straws, with which they seemed to drink from. The unrestrained steam emanating from it indicated that it was hot water.

Infinn could notice different stalls, selling ice cream, coffee, fast food, and what interested him most: different manga, profitable videos, merchandise, or even comics. Apparently, no matter the society or dimension they were in, entertainment along with manga would always exist, not that he would complain much, to be honest.

The boy showed discomfort as they approached the center of the place, which increased the density of people. He fell silent more often, and his gaze moved at the moment of connecting with another's, these were subtle actions that would not go unnoticed by the woman accompanying him. With her typical cheerful attitude, she commented as follows.

"It's a lively place; we might even end up finding an event where we can join. Have you ever tried to enter an urban rap competition?"

"Eeeeeh? Aren't we supposed to be working?"

"Getting along with people is our job. Wouldn't those kinds of events be useful?"

"You're right, but..."

"If you're not ready yet, that's fine. No need to make excuses if you're scared~"

"What? I'm not scared! I'm just not really good at it..."

"Haha, I'm just teasing. I almost said you look like Adel, except he would act much grumpier and more arrogant, saying that 'those jobs weren't for someone like him.' Yeah, that idiot was terrible at talking to people~"

"He was always quite introverted, so he tended to avoid crowded places. Until I started taking him to social circles, it was a disaster at first, but he slowly started to manage. It's not like it became his favorite activity; he still finds it uncomfortable to interact with many people, but now he's not unable to do it if necessary."

"It sounds like Adel was a complicated person before..."

"Complicated? He was an egocentric narcissist."

"Koma, I don't think it's nice to talk about Adel like that... What if he finds out?"

"What's the problem? It's the truth. Besides, I said 'was,' not 'is,' past! So, I'm not really insulting him."

"I don't think it works like that..."

"Anyway, it surprises me to hear that about someone so sober."

"He was a completely different person when he was young. We're talking about someone who would tell you that you're inferior just because you didn't like his geeky stuff. We have the same type of magic since we have similar personalities, but my style is more about support and recovering my allies, whereas Adel focuses much more on the offensive side of magic. Due to his great intellect, he always managed to formulate strategies to emerge victorious against his opponents, except for very special people. He always stayed one step ahead, hardly ever really having a problem losing to someone, which ended up making him look down on anyone and consequently becoming impulsive when he thought he had everything won."

That was a small invisible blow against Infinn, who seemed to identify with that last part that was mentioned.

"That's... curious. Is there a reason he changed so much?"

When asked about that matter, Koma's demeanor seemed noticeably less cheerful than usual, her facial expression still maintaining a smile but her eyes closing slightly as her entire expression seemed to soften. It was a combination that left nothing to doubt about the impact of the situation that completely transformed her beloved.

"Previously, Adel and I belonged to another group of collectors. Our leader, although not powerful, was really charismatic, exploiting each of our strengths while trying to work on our weaknesses. I would say he was one of the few people that Adel respected in his youth, this was because, in terms of strategy, he was never close to defeating our old commander."

"That's incredible. Was it perhaps the attitude of this commander that changed him for the better?"

Koma would simply shake her head, almost as if her body language wanted to convey that she wished things had been that way.

"There was a teenager in our group, not that she really had exceptional talent, but she was enough to enter the collectors at a young age. She had a fairly conventional magic and believed she was really exclusive to the rear guard, but our old commander saw unique potential in her, as he always did. He took it upon himself to educate her and show her a way to turn that insignificant magic into a terrifying destructive power, which would eventually turn her into a young promise for people who forgot her age."

"So, she was always showered with various praises for her early entry into the market. How could one take away ideas of greatness from someone of such a young age? She was a weak point of our commander, and we knew it, especially Adel."

"He believed there was no importance in it because he could simply readjust his plans, and besides, how could it be possible that our commander was wrong? He was negligible."

This last statement was said with sorrow in her voice, she certainly seemed to experience a feeling that ranged from some sadness to anger for her lack of action, as if she were someone watching a movie in third person to notice the signals as clear as water that she had previously failed to observe.

"What happened?"

"The area we were exploring was a swamp, which meant there was a huge open field with so many obstacles that early detection of opponents was impossible. During our walk, a tornado caused by a hidden group tore down trees and ended up separating a large part of the group. Adel ended up staying with that mage; he was always the type to hate babysitting but had no other options. I used to tease him a lot that with that attitude, he wouldn't get any partners. Did you know?"

"So it seems Adel was quite lucky."

Koma could only release a small smile as she remembered the grumpy attitude her precious Adel could have along with the boy's small comment.

"Adel and the commander had already planned to avoid any crystal collection unless they were in a group, due to the danger posed by ambushes. There were no more problems during the gathering; we managed to avoid trouble while each piece of us returned to mix. She thought the danger would end once they reunited with the commander, so once Adel finally met the rest of us, the girl decided to go pick around even if it meant breaking formation. In Adel's mind, there would be no problem since he had previously inspected the area in search of mana clusters more than once, ignoring the crystals that were normal mana clusters, so he let her unleash her desires."

"But things are not always so simple on raids. There are mages capable of dematerializing themselves, becoming purely an element or simply mana in an immaterial state. By using the mana from a natural crystal, a mage would end up camouflaging themselves inside one of these crystals. When that girl picked up the crystals, that group inside the crystals surprised her, and she fought just as the commander had taught her, allowing her to resist for a while, but against a group of mages with much more experience than her, there are very few exceptions that could face a similar situation. That night, there were two people guarding the camp while the others rested, it was precisely Adel and the commander, it's amazing how clingy that idiot could be with him, he never stopped talking to others about anything or achievement he had made."

Koma would simply interject with precious memories as if it were a kind of momentary respite so that the next part wouldn't be such a sharp impact. Even with this, her face seemed to slowly erase the smile she had tried to maintain as she continued delving into the narrative.

"The preparation couldn't be carried out properly because the attackers were already inside the camp perimeter. It was thanks to the commander that he noticed the close combat, so he took quick action to separate the girl from the attacking group, allowing her to reunite with us. I woke up after Adel ran out to help her; the rest of us were sleeping in the makeshift shelter. The members wouldn't take long to come at the sound of nearby impacts; we all woke up suddenly only to find opponents significantly outnumbering us. It was thanks to the orders of our commander combined with Adel's plans that we were able to reduce the numerical difference that night while confronting them. Still, there were casualties on our side as well. We weren't in a condition to exterminate the aggressor group; we simply reduced their numbers enough to escape. They were about to capture the girl during our confrontations in the middle of the escape. I abhor what they were planning to do with her from the bottom of my soul. Thanks to the commander, who remained attentive to changes on the battlefield, he didn't hesitate to face the divided number of mages while ultimately forcing Adel to take the injured girl with us as we escaped along a path designated beforehand. If no one stayed behind to hold them off, it was likely they would catch up to us and more casualties would occur, so there was no choice but to simply leave someone behind, which is why he decided that if another sacrifice had to be made, it would be his."

"After escaping from the fractal containing the swamp space, we secluded ourselves in another area, which was a system of caves previously explored and where we had certainty it was a safe place with groups from the Belio household to take refuge. The poor girl cried countless nights waiting for the commander. It would be a lie to say that more than one of us hoped for his return, although we knew he probably wouldn't come back. Something in our hearts sought to believe in it. We held onto that dream until the raid ended, forcing everyone to leave there. Each one waited at the gates, hoping that the commander would return with just a smile and the typical 'Do you think I'm so easy to kill?' but..."

"He never came back. The thread that was supposed to unite all the parts would break, leaving everyone aimless until the inevitable separation."

Infinn would almost say as if he were in tune with the woman in her story, this automatic response would certainly surprise the latter, but soon her face seemed to simply show understanding of the situation. There was certainly a way in which the chestnut-haired boy knew at least a piece of the story.

"Yes."

"But it wasn't her fault, nor Adel's either. They weren't capable of knowing anything about it..."

Koma wouldn't take long to see how the boy's face turned into one that only showed the weight in his heart at the unsatisfactory end that these two figures, whom he admired, had experienced. Knowing better than anyone that it was a past that wouldn't be changed, the woman could only put her spirits back in place and pat the boy's back to snap him out of the trance he was in with her usual smile.

"We'd better focus on doing our job. You wouldn't want our commander to scold us just for slacking off, would you?"

Remembering what Kana was like when scolding, she really wanted to avoid such a scene, so she could only manage to smile faintly. The trench coats of both collectors seemed to move naturally in the ambient wind.

"I guess what we need to do is interact with the community in some way. Should we look to help people around?"

"There are many ways, actually. Some decide to write books or novels that make them recognized, others decide to draw, others decide to invent things, other groups hold social events."

"It sounds quite extensive. Isn't this method somewhat inefficient? I mean, helping people individually doesn't leave as much impact as, say, that of a literary work."

"This is just a job for you to start, our group is quite recognized for the feats of each of us in our respective areas. Lein is a singer and guitarist who usually goes from bar to bar to give performances promoting the group, that's why he's almost never present. His connections in the music world usually give us quite some artistic appreciation. Adel provides teaching services in both technological knowledge and mana theory or advanced magic use. He has even managed to educate children without many resources, often giving charity classes, which has made him a highly recommended private tutor. Mori, on the other hand, has taken on the task of providing protection to people against waves of robberies that happen from time to time, or taking care of children. Surprisingly, he's good at it. Kana, on her part, loves ice cream, so she herself helps and works in ice cream parlors. She often also looks for lost objects thanks to her magic, which allows her to inspect large areas simultaneously. As for me, of course, I dedicate myself to providing my medical services. In fact, I often volunteer at various clinics. People love me because I'm a total cutie~"

"Who would think that a collector usually does so many things other than collecting most of the year..." Infinn would say in his mind as he listened to what his companion described, so gaining fame for the group was more varied than he could think. Perhaps he could become a content creator on some platform? Did such a thing exist?

"Now you understand more or less what you need to do, you just need to support people with different problems around. It's actually more common than you think; this city is huge and usually all these people end up causing problems in one way or another. Do you need assistance? I don't want little Infinn to get anxious talking to people~"

Wounded in his pride, the boy could only manage to laugh sarcastically as he quickened his pace.

"No need, I can do something as simple as that."

Infinn commented as he gently turned his gaze to his surroundings; he could notice price tags in the shops he had already been observing. Now that he thought about it, the currency in this place was vastly different from that of the real world, and he could understand why to a certain extent. The value of the pieces of paper used in everyday transactions was because they were backed by something, but they couldn't be backed by anything in this society since people usually couldn't leave or bring things from outside unless they were a closer of ends like the old lazy one. He remembered that Adel had given him a class on this in the weeks leading up to this job to avoid being unable to transact if necessary to buy something.

Moving his hand to the pockets of his trench coat as his steps became apparent on the wide streets, he could see curious transportation methods: the classic flying brooms, some carousels, and he could even joke that he saw what looked like flying cars, along with different trains that had floating tracks in the sky that made travel to any part of the city or even the sky possible. There were also different buses that passed through the streets traveling by land. At this point, he had stopped questioning the logic of this world, which, although certainly mundane in its activities, could be so bizarre for someone coming from the outside. His hand would eventually take out of the pocket of his trench coat what looked like three different coins, each bearing a different symbol. One bore what appeared to be a lightning bolt, another a moon, and finally a diamond. These coins were usually referred to simply by the symbol they bore, abbreviated in some cases by the initial of the symbol stamped on them. The lightning bolt was the coin of the lowest denomination, generally representing from one to five units of value, differentiated by a number in the center of the lightning bolt. The moon had a value of 5 to 50 lightning bolt coins of five units of value each, while the diamond represented 10 to 100 moon coins respectively.

The money Adel had left for Infinn was a lightning bolt coin worth 2 units of value and a moon coin along with a diamond one, both of the lowest denomination, although already having a diamond coin was a considerable amount of money, considering that many manga prices didn't go above 30 lightning bolt coins of 2 units. A feeling of impulsivity formed in the chestnut about buying as many mangas as his heart dictated, but the money was specialized for when Infinn was in an immediate need to pay for important things, like the magical transportation of the train or the bus. He couldn't waste the money so recklessly... Right?

"But if it's just one manga, I don't think anyone would complain..."

His eyes landed on a shop called "HeartBlaze," which displayed a variety of products behind its shop window, catching the attention and will of the boy.

...

Nation of Logic, Outside HeartBlaze

Evil ultimately prevailed. The corrupted would see himself leaving that store he had witnessed after buying a quantity of three different mangas. If Infinn had consciousness, he would be brutally murdered by it, but that was not the case.

As he continued his walk, he could hear something slightly soft but firm falling to the ground, causing a bouncing sound. When he moved his gaze, he could see an older woman who had dropped a box of oranges. The boy quickly approached, seeking to help and at the same time fulfill his duty; after all, if he didn't do his job, the three mangas he carried with him would be the incriminating evidence for his execution by his commander. This would end up killing two birds with one stone, so to speak. His hands quickly landed the oranges that had fallen on one side; lately, he had been thinking about how to use his magic as support for his daily life. One of the things he could do was to increase his cognitive abilities and his own mobility, so taking those oranges would be as fast as blinking. When he finished on one side, he tried to move to the next, but as soon as he put his hand on one of the oranges, another hand was placed on top of his. When he tried to grab the same object, by touch he could feel warmth and softness coming from it, and with his sight, he could notice how small it was compared to his own, besides, of course, appearing more slender, when he lifted his gaze, he would find himself with a certain surprise, a woman with long hair that shone like gold. Before the curious scene, Infinn could only let out a soft laugh, calmly removing his hand.

In his mind, that situation presented itself as a comical joke; reading so much about these situations made him see them merely as a joke at this point. This seemed to infect the golden-haired counterpart, as a playful smile would appear on her slender face with soft features, her eyes a crimson tone like two scarlet moons. Even with a quick glance, Infinn could notice that the woman was slightly taller than him; she was a lady of incredible figure in the same way. It wouldn't be an exaggeration if the boy compared her to his commander in that aspect. Her attire consisted of a parka coat with a hood, which at the moment was not being used; underneath the same coat was an elegant suit like the one collectors generally wore, long pants of a dark hue that merged with the tall boots she wore, which reached up to the middle of her thigh.

"Did something on my face amuse you? You're looking at it a lot."

Noticing that his gaze ended up lost in his analysis due to the comment from the golden-haired, meanwhile the woman was calm, her expression didn't seem to be of annoyance or offense shown by the young man's act; a simple smile appeared on her face as he raised her eyebrows as a bodily gesture to interrogate the other. The boy could only quickly avert his gaze with celerity at such an event. Had his eyes really disobeyed his most present consciousness to see this woman? Such an idea could only present a slightly pink color on his face.

"I apologize, it wasn't my intention..."

He would comment while handing the oranges to the elderly woman, still with his embarrassed expression, something that would only serve for the woman to let out a soft chuckle. The elderly lady seemed to be content with the young man's help; it could be noted with simplicity, thanks to the thinness of her hands and fingers, that her body had already been weakened by time. The boy waited attentively for the vocal response of the elderly woman, although this wouldn't happen; instead, she would slowly move her hands with slight tremors due to the little pulse that her advanced age caused her. Slowly, she began to make different signs that the boy could vaguely recognize as a sign language, but this didn't mean that he could understand it. Soon, confusion would be part of the boy's expression, who couldn't understand that old lady. It was then that the golden-haired woman would touch the boy's shoulder to get his attention.

"She's expressing her gratitude."

"Oh. It's nothing, ma'am, a pleasure."

While the boy answered with some nervousness on his face, feeling somewhat embarrassed for staying a long time frozen at the woman's gratitude, the golden-haired woman would end up depositing the oranges she had managed to pick up, gently putting them in the woman's basket and making quick hand movements, which seemed to indicate to the woman to have a good day. The woman's expression softened with a smile as she nodded, all while the boy observed the scene, certainly surprised at how smoothly she could handle this situation.

"Did you know sign language?"

"Don't you? Having extensive communication skills is essential in the collector's job, both inside and outside incursions."

"Oh... I guess I forgot..."

Infinn really didn't want to mention the fact that he hadn't been properly trained for his job; not only was it bad, but it also sounded terrible to introduce himself to someone who looked quite professional. For her part, the woman wouldn't take the boy's apparent lack of ability to heart; she would simply let out a little laugh.

"It's okay, it's something you can work on later, although I suppose you have talent when it comes to recreating clichés. Do you want to become a Romeo?"

While commenting on this, her smile inspired a certain tone of mockery, Infinn wasn't really good at dealing with people who had such an easy time pressuring him socially; however, his pride would show itself once again, as anything that characterized the chestnut-haired boy was that provoking his ego would almost naturally lead to impulsivity due to his age.

"Wouldn't you then be Juliet? It's a strange way to score points with someone, miss."

"Would you like it to be that way?"

The woman didn't ease the pressure even a bit as she closed the distance with a simple step towards the boy, continuing to increase it, and the small flame of rebellion that had ignited in the boy's eyes was rapidly turning into ashes. Not only had he isolated himself socially, but when it came to trying to flirt with someone, he was useless.

"I wasn't implying anything like that..."

"Fufu~ Has the cat got your tongue?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

While the golden-haired woman seemed to press the inexperienced young man against a imaginary wall, meanwhile this last one was trying to mount a somewhat ineffective defense, the old lady witnessing the current scene would simply smile as if she had found a curious scene. Therefore, without wanting to bother them further and having already thanked them, she would walk softly with her box of oranges. In a moment of lucidity, the boy would remember the third person in this situation, trying to use her as a kind of improvised escape; he would quickly turn around.

"That's right! We still need to..."

"Too bad, she left without us being able to say goodbye."

"Bidding her farewell wouldn't have been a problem if someone hadn't been playing around."

"I remember you didn't seem to object that much."

"That's because you took me by surprise."

"Oh? A surprise that lasted several minutes?"

"I..."

His face was covered in a pink color that seemed to betray his desire to demonstrate his innocence in such a situation. Just when he thought he was completely at the mercy of the woman, the boy felt a slight tug on his coat; as he turned to see, he could see the small woman with pink hair trying to get his attention.

"Did you do so much work to give yourself the freedom to fool around? How diligent."

At first, Infinn seemed to feel saved by the presence of Koma who would surely get him out of this predicament, but he would fall with a dry sound into the pit of shame with the woman's comment, which seemed to be giving him a soft smile. Her gaze would move to see the woman of noticeably greater stature than her, not taking long to recognize her as the commander of another group belonging to the Belio household named "Crimson Summit," Liona Belio. Despite what her personality was like outside of her job, the reality was that when she had to perform her duty, she could be much more serious than Kana, a trait of her experience in the position for a notable amount of time; incursions were not areas where a commander could live in ignorance or happiness.

"Lin-Lin, it's not fair for you to tease our new member. Don't you feel sorry for the poor thing?"

As usual, Koma would mention with her typical attitude, while Liona would simply give a small laugh as she kept her distance from Infinn, who seemed to have shed an invisible weight that was slowly robbing him of his breath.

"My sincere apologies, I couldn't help but take advantage of the opportunity. I heard about your talent; it seems that The New Wings are getting really special members, I feel some envy."

"Mm-hmm, it's not like you don't have some special people under your command. Especially that person, is terrifying!"

"Those people."

"Sorry, I forgot~"

"I'm still here..."

Infinn couldn't help but speak in a low tone after all the previous experience; realizing this, the golden-haired woman would cross her arms while giving him a simple look that the boy, unable to put up a fight as before, would just avert his gaze. However, the woman had promised to stop bothering the boy, so she would simply turn to the pink-haired woman, who couldn't help but chuckle at her companion's attitude, although she didn't seek to be cruel, so she would simply pat the boy on the back.

"Alright, alright~ Let's continue a little more with your work and then return, Infinn."

"Your first incursion will be in less than a week. Isn't that right, Infinn?"

The question from the golden-haired woman took the boy by surprise, who could only nod his head, noticing the gradual change in the woman's expression, which went from a playful carefree attitude to a more focused face, denoting greater seriousness, which gave her words a completely different weight than before.

"Focus on surviving."

"Yes, ma'am."

The boy's response would be nothing more than automatic in the face of the woman's very different demeanor, which was similar to when Kana ordered him to do something or scolded him, but her demeanor wasn't as aggressive. It was more focused, which gave a sense of admiration deep in the boy's heart that almost forced him to comply. The woman, upon hearing his response, could only give a soft smile as she changed back to her usual self.

"My team expects organization from me, so I must leave."

"Will you continue working around here?"

Infinn found himself asking that sudden question without even realizing it, something that took both Koma and Liona by surprise, while the latter couldn't help but release a small smile, approaching until she was just a step away from him, causing the boy to take a small step back instinctively, both locking their gazes.

"That's right. And you?"

"I think... likewise."

"I hope we meet again then.♡"

Without giving him time to react, the woman would only give one last smile before walking away and finally disappearing as if nothing had happened, while Infinn could only see himself in silence with the color pink painting his cheeks, something that was broken by a small cough from the woman next to him.

"Shall we move?"

"Oh, yes!"

The smile on the pink-haired woman's face wouldn't take long to appear, with a certain look towards Infinn that would provoke some discomfort in him.

"What's the matter, Koma?"

"Nothing. Wouldn't you like me to get you her number?"

"Eh! That's not necessary!"

"We have to take advantage of the welcome gift Kana gave you. Aren't you grateful? We should use it to thank her~"

"It's true that I haven't been able to use this phone much, but still, it's not necessary!"

The conversation seemed to be going normally; however, while the boy said something, he would notice the absence of a response from his companion. In fact, what seemed like the entire huge metropolis had been silenced or, rather, frozen in time.

"Koma?"

Despite his call, the figure remained motionless, with her expression completely fixed, a situation that would quickly fill Infinn's heart with immense anxiety and horror towards the unknown, as he tried to find an explanation for this moment, cracks began to appear in the air behind the brown-haired boy, almost instinctively he would turn to face them, each time worsening until finally, the thin layer of reality seemed to break, leaving a dark void in the form of a hollow where a hand slowly began to emerge, only visible up to its wrist because after that, the arm seemed completely covered by white fabric, before the figure could finish peeking out, time would start moving again, Koma would casually respond as if nothing had happened.

"Of course it is, you have to give it a us..."

Just as Koma was about to finish her sentence, her eyes would catch the pale expression on the boy that denoted an inexplicable horror, her concern becoming evident as she approached him.

"Hey? Is everything okay?"

Infinn would still be really confused by what had just happened, but he could notice that the cracks or the void were not present in the world, as if everything had been a simple illusion, shaking his head as he tried to dismiss it as just that, he would nod.

"Yes... It's nothing."

"Do you want to go for ice cream?"

"Will Kana be upset if we spend group money?"

"I'll treat, besides, with that face, even she would allow it~"

Their steps moved towards a nearby ice cream parlor, downplaying it. Meanwhile, the white tone of a trench coat moved with the wind, invisible to the rest of the world.

...

Nation of Story, Babylon Library.

In the ethereal silence of the place, slow steps filled the space, a figure would stand in front of a book which pages moved on its own until reaching a last blank page where information began to be written as a kind of record.

"On March 15th, 2023, time was stopped for 10 seconds."