Chapter 30: 'Where Am I?'

The windows in the coffee shop are quite big so Charlotte got to see most of the commotion happening outside.

The blond-haired boy near her also seemed to peek his head out of interest.

A crowd had formed a circle around what was happening, she could hear the loud whisper from amongst the crowd but couldn't coherently form them into words.

The robot that had sounded out the automated voice was tall, around human height, which was completely different from her little friend at home.

It wore, what seemed like, a patrol uniform, indicating they were part of the law, the enforcer of the laws if you will.

Its eyes glowed a red color that constantly blinked as if it was sounding off a siren.

The boy who was caught was quite young, around the same age as the kids Charlotte saw drinking the silver drink.

Unlike others, he wore a set of tattered clothes that were close to rags. The shirt was black and torn. His leggings had pieces of fabric dangling which were probably caused by the tearing of the fabric. He was barefooted, exposing his pale white feet. His clothes felt old, old for this society, as he frighteningly looked up at the robot officer.

Charlotte then heard a scream, a shout, from the crowd. It sounded like a desperate cry filled with sobs. The individual then squeezed their way through the crowd and revealed herself as an older woman. Charlotte assumed she was his mother from their similar appearances.

She also has black hair like the boy, it was long and extremely tangled.

She shouted, "Please! He didn't do anything wrong! Please don't arrest him! Plea-!"

She broke down sobbing as tears streamed down her face. She covered her face with her hand and traces of dirt appeared on her face. She was docile and extremely pitiful.

"Ma'am, he has violed rule number 41, as part of the procedure, he must be detained."

"But-"

"Ma'am, if you continue to make trouble, in violation of rule 61, I will also have to detain you."

Suddenly, the blond-haired man appeared in front of the robot officer, blocking the woman from the robot.

"She did nothing wrong, no need to arrest her," he fiercely spoke.

Charlotte looked to her side and the boy was nowhere to be found. She then turned her head to stare at the boy.

'What a righteous guy.'

The robot merely stared at the boy, and a beam of light came out of the robot's eyes. It seemed to scan the young boy from head to toe. The boy remained calm and showed no signs of panic as if he was used to this action.

The robot then stopped and slowly put the black-haired boy in cuffs. The robot then turned to the blond-haired boy and said, "Please also come with me to the station."

The blond-haired boy gave it a nod and crouched down to meet the woman's gaze. Charlotte couldn't hear what they said but it seemed like she calmed down at his words. He then stood up and off they went.

The crowd gave the woman a look before dispersing.

'Interesting, will this make the news?' Charlotte thought while sitting down.

'Wonder where he got the confidence to do so? Considering all the bystanders, it seemed like the authority has a massive amount of control over the people. Maybe he is just brave, braver than most.'

'He also followed the robot to the station and so he must have done it before. The robot analyzed him so they have some sort of record. But what did he do? What will happen when he reached the station?'

She looked out the window where the scene once occurred.

'Is he... the story's protagonist?'

She took the last sip of her drink and left.

The sun was setting and the city was dyed a beautiful golden color. For a moment, the city felt alive again, it felt urban, it felt real. It was as if technology never existed under the gaze of the setting sun as it was pierced away.

Charlotte grew up in the city, so the sight of it wasn't rare. She and her teacher would walk down the streets just the one she was on right now. She was a young girl then and couldn't understand the beauty of such a sunset. She would always watch him stare into the distance but without knowing why. But, the calm and peacefulness of an afternoon, the feeling of a place called home, it was all there. She understood. It was a beautiful sight to behold.

However, the feeling quickly warped away as the night sky finally took over. The floating disks on the street suddenly lit up.

'So they were street lamps. I kind of thought they were wifi signals or something.'

All the buildings, the lights, the roads, everything was lit. It was bright, like a city that never sleeps.

It shone brightly and Charlotte had to squint her eyes.

Charlotte didn't know where she ended up but she found herself on a street filled with restaurants. All of the restaurants sounded and looked quite fancy. Everything looked high-class and modernized.

Charlotte was getting hungry after walking and so she randomly chose a restaurant place.

It seemed to be an Italian place. The reception and dining hall were filled with elegance. From the chandeliers dangling on the ceiling to the candles and roses neatly placed on the table, everything screamed money. Looking at everyone's calm behavior, she felt a bit out of place.

Since she didn't know what she was doing, she just randomly ordered a pasta dish and quietly enjoyed her meal.

To keep it short, it was decadent, or at least she thinks it was. Charlotte had no knowledge of fancy food and so she was a bit curious. Her expectations were definitely delivered as the food tasted better than usual. As she finished her dish, she couldn't help but look around at the other restaurants.

'It's all the same, the restaurants. All of them are elegant and somewhat similar. I guess the people like this sort of stuff.'

She twirled her fork, 'But what happened to the places that are deemed less high-class? Things like street food. Would people really eradicate those restaurants? Food is what makes culture so maybe not? But I saw no diversity here as if everyone is one of the same...'

She finished her dish and then paid using her headset.

She got curious and checked her bank allowance.

'Unlimited? Isn't this too much power?'

She scrolled to her personal account and found a small note.

'I made sure you can purchase whatever you wanted to fully enjoy the story. We will eventually meet soon so do enjoy yourself. - Rain'

'It was left by the author? Did she create this character knowing I would become her?'

Charlotte saved the questions for when they do meet.

She walked out to the street again and found it a bit strange. They were a group of people walking together, their heads peered in all different directions, as if looking for a certain location.

'For a street that had no variety in food, do they need to look for a specific restaurant?'

But then something strange happened. They turned the corner and walked into an abandoned alleyway.

Charlotte followed through.

But when she reached where they once were, they were gone, as if they never appeared in the first place.

Charlotte walked further into the alleyway to look around and she stepped on something.

Her body felt weird and she closed her eyes at the bright lights in her eyes.

When she finally opened her eyes, the street where she was previously at disappeared.

'Where am I?'