Observing his watch revealed no answers, and so did waiting for time or clues. William got the hang of time, unlike Celeste, who didn't understand how precious it and peace were. William expected at least two hours of free time, and now, without Ellie, perhaps more would come?

  "Was fine?" Celeste asked, poking his book.

  "What do you mean?"

  "Ellie was mad."

  "Mad? I... don't know about that. She is busy, right? How mad can she be?"

  Celeste's frown deepened as she tapped his book more insistently. "Just read to me."

  William sighed and got going. "You sure changed."

  "Bad?"

  "No, I mean it in a good way. I hardly had a chance to talk with other Walkers like me, and you are rather... well, it is odd, isn't it? I was out there, you were out there, and now, we are in this land. I think it is important to see the faces of others and hear their stories and perspectives. Yours sounds impressive. What have you experienced?"

  "I... don't know." She tried to copy the exact same sentence William had used a few seconds ago. It worked better, and she didn't care how she sounded.

  William's concern grew as he put his book down. "Is something bothering you?"

  "That you won't read."

  "You might try it yourself. I know you can read something, and it isn't as difficult as looking at the enemy. You understand it."

  "Better reference. Your voice. Words. Symbols. Makes more sense. Listening is good."

  William couldn't argue about it since she wasn't him and went back to reading.

  After two hours and almost a hundred pages without any stops, Celeste remained close, often frowning, but kept listening and looking at the flowing pages. Ellie didn't come back, which was weird, and the story ended up convoluted, yet worldwide. Dark, too, just in case, and she loved that part.

  William knew time was nigh, and he had to leave because Mi-Yung's time limit was approaching. Also, Celeste had someone already waiting for her down below, albeit the book still had more reveals to be told.

  "Thanks," Celeste muttered on her feet, hugging Hound and leaving many pages untouched. They had time, and she was learning to take everything in, and today, she took a very important step. William was more interesting than she thought, and he didn't mind her, like Ellie sometimes did.

  ***

  Two hours ago.

  Shuffling in an unnatural fit wasn't fine, but Ellie did it, strolling around the cultural floor before entering the hallway with pretty and large windows. She struggled with her thoughts, kicked the railings to relieve her stress unrelated to work, and mumbled nonsense under her nose.

  "This... This... And That! Humph!" striking the metallic bar for the twentieth time, she felt like a winner in the contest of strength. These rails survived much worse stuff than her anger in their lifetime, yet she had no shame in being a self-proclaimed winner and also a deep loser at the same time.

  She minded her feelings, increasing frustration, and not her time.

  "I swear. Celeste is whatever. She can spend her time with whoever she wants. I mean, she has Dreadus and a bunch of other guys who protect her like a little fledgling. William has Mi-Yung, but she is a different case, and I know what it means to her! All I wanted was his specific birthday, which I almost forced from Mi-Yung recently. All that trouble and for nothing. Why is it so hard to ask him about it? What a mistake... Why am I so hesitant? I should ask, and he will answer it as usual. He is honest. Sentimental. Probably. He doesn't mind a lot of things."

  Ellie lamented about her problem, leaning from the railing and moaning without care about whether visitors and walls listened or not.

  The sight below her left no impact on her anymore. She had seen it for as long as she could remember, and her heartbeat was calm, and what was beyond was distant.

  Was she too greedy with her expectations? Some people in the past have said that unrealistic expectations are a key to immense disappointments. Too much of it would cause no good outcomes, so having a good line or awareness sounded clever. And if anything made sense, then Ellie felt she was clever, but not with everything, of course. For those, she had to recognize her own faults, ideas, and those of others.

  And William. He was very ignorant or far too busy for his own good, yet he never changed and always gave her those looks. Maybe they were in Ellie's mind alone, or perhaps she was just stupid.

  Right. Ellie decided to blame half of this problem on Mi-Yung, who had been far too overbearing and overly concerned about William for the past ten days. She even omitted that promise from more than ten days ago, which meant this entire conflict must be well beyond anything from before.

  Ellie couldn't imagine how Assembly did things or how Pillars judged others. For her, Mi-Yung was not a Pillar but an older sister she never had.

  She wondered why it frustrated her; Mi-Yung never shared the details or explained what was going on. William did, but she could tell he was downplaying everything because he was that sort of guy. He would never mention problems, even if he could.

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Time was relevant, and he was training yesterday, like the day before, so seeing him busy and far away from her came like yet another tide. The watch, however, was a different matter. Mi-Yung suggested it herself, and Ellie took the easiest bait without thinking and got one 'date' out of it.

  Now, Ellie felt frustrated because there was no progress. She even felt Celeste might worsen it, but how the hell did it make sense? That girl was younger than herself and even more clueless than anyone she had ever seen, yet also not much, as she had no barriers, care, or any social standards.

  So yeah; she was like a younger sister Ellie never had, so... maybe that's it. Maybe she was watching herself from long ago, recalling younger Mi-Yung, who was busy and different from everyone. Then she was gone, far detached from her everyday life.

  Ellie didn't want that; she thought that no matter what she was doing, she was like Mi-Yung to Celeste when she was young.

  For most of her life, her parents encouraged her to focus on her studies, which eventually led her to this library, where she has stayed ever since. It was her shrine, so spending time on dating or boys wasn't an option. But it wasn't as if she couldn't think of it. There were great books on the cultural floor that talked about it.

  "Ahh..." she moaned and pushed her palms over her face. "Maybe tomorrow? Yes. Tomorrow, I will ask him what he would like to have for his birthday or where he would like to go. Mi-Yung said within the month, maybe? She wasn't sure, so... Date might be really unknown, or maybe we could just decide on it?! Is she a true problem I am facing?" Ellie got up, speaking small little lies as she departed home.

  Not like the source of her mood mattered since William didn't know about her mood, for there was much more he didn't know about.

  His mind shifted around a lot of places in the past few days, and Ellie was not there for it. Alas, as the promises came, minds were fickle, forgetful, or straight-up abandoned.

  ***

  Out in the Central District, William took a deep breath right when Mi-Yung came into his view; she said she would fetch him at 8 PM, and she was here, spotless and on time.

  "Shall we go?"

  "You are... alone?"

  "What? Do you want others or someone else with you? Am I not enough? I forced Yungmin to stay at home. He was adamant to come, but... What a brother, right? Who else? Ellie? Celeste?"

  "No. I am fine. At least you have a family."

  Mi-Yung chuckled helplessly and imagined Ellie's grinding nerves. "Right. That was a little harsh of me. Alright. Come on. It isn't that far from here."

  William followed her rare, calm footsteps that weren't as swift as usual. "I want to reassure myself, William. This night connects to the very reality that I was adamant about, fearful of, while others caught on. It is strict. Has everything been alright today?"

  "I like to think so. Perhaps it's a lie because I dislike thinking of the worst. Not after you trained me like a... well, horse? Right. A freaking horse."

  "That's a good idea. Don't ride to the sunset alone, thought." Mi-Yung chuckled and liked to think he was doing his best not to think about anything bad. It seemed innate, resembling an ideal that took care of most of his problems, and she thought it was one of the best decisions he had made. It was a pretty darn good view to follow.

  "Outside kind of does that on its own. The last thing that one wants is a helpless mind and deep depression. I got used to dealing with things, and you, Mi-Yung. I think... I did well, right? I didn't lose... much."

  "Maybe, but don't forget that losers and winners aren't all beggars or choosers. Mind, heart, and spirit are connected. You don't want to lose all feelings." Mi-Yung agreed with him and gestured to him to go to a different street. "Emblems have emotions with many aspects, and I am sure you think of it too. Research and the System have progressed far beyond this curve, and many Walkers can no longer sense others. I can't help yours; only you can, and from what you've told me, there are methods and signs it could be more prominent. It could have signs of a greater crack."

  "Which means what? That my Rank 0 is a bit more... weird? I feel my Emblem does it all the time when anger is not that surprising, and death is nearby."

  "It isn't, but ten years is a ten-year worth of accumulations. Perhaps you can't see it or feel it because you can't do it yet, but it does. That's what tonight is for: where we get this stop activated. You accepted it."

  "Yeah, and I am not running away." He nodded, putting his hands into his pockets to stop his shivers. He wasn't feeling as confident as his words described.

  "Do you want to run?" Mi-Yung said, chuckling as if she had made a joke.

  William shook his head and hoped Emblem Association had no advanced treadmill, ridiculous weights, or other hellish contraptions. He read there were weighted clothes, which sounded like complete torture.

  In a few minutes, they reached one of the most splendid places in the whole Federation. Tall, majestic, and impressive, the architecture featured a lot of right angles and impressive heights. There were towers, bulky structures, and huge domes, all in great style, looking carved, shiny, and built with care. They were nothing like the Assembly Island. That was about the best thing Mi-Yung could say about them, whereas William could not think of it enough.

  It was a palace compared to the Outside, and for it, the most depth was underground. People inside were always busy, with some being even weirder than Walkers. That was odd. Way too odd, in Mi-Yung's opinion, after working and seeing so many of them in her lifetime.

  Entering the main building, she knew where to go and whom to meet. A young woman beside the counter didn't even talk to them because she noticed her Assembly Uniform, or Mi-Yung, who was impossible to forget.

  William strolled behind her, eyes shifting left and right, and his steps were firmer than his hands. He looked around, absorbing the place that might be more important than he ever thought.

  He made up his mind about it a long time ago. He planned to do his best; if that went well, he might even reveal his intimate secrets and surpass his best. For now, he had other options and one trial ahead of him.

  Mi-Yung took him to an elevator, which William watched with astonishment. It was a rarity, as stairs were usually sufficient for everything, and even that great library didn't have elevators. One would think they would be there, but nope.

  The underground of the Federation came into question, and so did its depths, which William wasn't even seeing very well. It facilitated advancements, which, by itself, weren't particularly impressive for most people, as they couldn't appreciate the full value of what brought this land to its current era.

  Industrial zones were on the surface, so some large elevators for dozens of people weren't outrageous. There were ships out there, as well as tanks and stuff that encapassed little rooms lifted by mechanical contraptions. Hiding that was not feasible or even necessary. Perhaps it was part of propaganda, which William had recently learned, presenting impressions and public directions.

  The functional elevator was still impressive in his eyes, and it was even electric; no people or slaves were working behind it, which was a silly little idea that William found amusing for the duration of his ride to the unknown underground level.