My Realm, My Home (Kseniya's Perspective)

The rusty name board of Iovredale slowly swings with every bone-freezing breeze that blows by. It's sound was like an old man who's about to die, coughing up some last times before his life goes down to the cemetery. It looks like there's a snowstorm that's going to arrive soon, and Kseniya was still sitting there with the cold. This is the city border. They seem to live far away from the other cities because she can no longer see any shapes behind the mist. She starts to blow warm breaths into her hands. She doesn't have enough clothes to stay healthy here, like in Russia. That means she shouldn't stay outside too long to wander around. It's not at least safe to explore this vast place and find other people. They have no time to finish what they intend to do when coming here, but instead of working efficiently, the only thing they can do is go looking for others.

What happened? She heard about this multiple times through fantasy stories like anime in her original world. One group traveled into other multiverses and got separated. Kseniya already expected this and warned her allies, but the only one who listened was Blue. That's the reason she ran from her temporary residence to the city border to catch better waves, and now she's still here. She can remember that moment when her boots hit the cold ground and she ran in the freezing breeze. Blue's voice seems very far away, and the waves are weak. She tells her about something like "realms." It's like other universes, but very close to each other, that humans can travel around without causing severe time-space malfunctions. Kseniya seems to have given up, as she doesn't want to listen anymore. She never planned to stay here or learn anything about this world. Why does she even bother? The irritation and feelings of annoyance came through her head as she smacked her lips and rubbed her forehead. Why don't other people listen to her and at least bring something that helps them communicate without meeting each other? Are her allies taking this as a joke?

For those questions, Kseniya decided to throw them in the corner because they were not necessary. Looking up at the rusty, swinging "Iovredale" name board, she gave it a sigh before slowly standing up and wiping down the snow that stayed on her clothes. She has nothing to do here; every tissue inside her body is screaming, telling her to go search for others, but human body conditions won't allow her to just recklessly travel and hope that she'll find them along the long road ahead. Humming some songs to help lighten up the mood, Kseniya walks down the street. People here, just like in Russia, seem so familiar with the snowstorm that the shops are still open, and people around them keep walking with no rush. Look closely; Kseniya discovered that they aren't humans at all. They have animal ears and tails and transparent legs with different colors. She wonders what they are and why on earth there is a type of creature that puts so much effort into decorating their biological features like that, or at least she didn't figure out what those glowy, glowy legs should be used for. Is this some kind of anime or movie? These people have a rare popularity in her old world, but they seem much more crowded here. Are they local species?

A man's voice calling from behind gave her goosebumps. She quickly turned her head and looked at him. Another being with animal features and strange legs. What does he want? He sounds friendly, but she needs quite some time to set up a translator. He introduced himself as a guard of Iovredale's royal family, then warned her about the upcoming snowstorm. Thanks for his reminder, Kseniya realized that she wandered a bit too far when searching for good signals and lost the way back to her residence. Some other men came after him and looked like they'd just switched shifts. Their looks clarify his claim; they are all wearing the same formal uniforms with armed weapons. Another one of them asked if she was a newcomer or visitor because, in a rush, she came pretty close to the royal's territory. Kseniya bowed and said sorry; she didn't want to be involved. But outside of her expectations of the strict guards she met before, they seemed quite relaxed and friendly. Are these glowy legs' relationships with humans good? Or they're just simply chilling? She knows she should not ask too much; her problem now is to go off the road, trying to find a place to hide before the storm. And even though people here are pretty welcoming, she couldn't find the confidence to knock on a door, asking for a totally understandable warm fire to sit by.

Kseniya found her way home somehow, and she's sitting in front of the heater. The technology here is quite impressive and well developed; at least she has enough things to maintain her minimum living conditions without paying too much. The equipment she bought for a cheap price sure has lower quality, but it's usable, that's all. She won't expect much income from a totally new human that just got lost a few minutes ago. The sounds of bubbling boiled water woke Kseniya up from an unconscious nap. The small smoke coming out of the kettle was so faint that it looked like it could freeze at any time. Wrapping herself in a blanket, she pours a cup of hot cocoa to slowly enjoy while looking outside, watching the snow start to fall down like rain. Strong wind breezes start to shake the window glass. The sky slowly gets darker. She waits for the storm to end—not to go out again but to see the moon shine. This city is not really crowded, so they have lots of houses that nobody uses. That's how she got this one for free. Kseniya closes her eyes to think about something, and that's when she decides to go out tomorrow and start learning about this place.

- "I know it's so inconvenient for you, RMB, but please, can you take this for me? It will take much longer than it was supposed to. She is not a weak enemy, and she had that commander supporting her from the back. We need to stay here for a long time. Let's hope it's not too late when we get this fixed."

The cup of cocoa has been emptied, as she remembers Blue's words. She somehow sees the rusty Iovredale name board swinging somewhere outside the window, even though this place is far from the city borders. "Must be my imagination," she told herself before standing up and heading to bed.