"Okay... I'll do it," Yukiara said curtly, before adding.
"But just so you know, I'm doing this because I'm hungry! Not because I'm following your orders. Just... because our goals happen to line up for now!"
She hesitated, muttering the next part under her breath: "(And I really need new clothes.)"
She didn't want to thank the System — not out loud. It hadn't pressured her, and that alone was strange enough. She'd already opened up more than she liked. No point going any further.
Still, she wasn't lying. She did need new clothes.
What she wore could barely be called that — a threadbare T-shirt, now so stretched and torn it hung on her like a poncho. Once white, it had long since turned a grimy grayish-brown. Bandages peeked out from underneath — leftovers from a stranger who'd treated her wounds ages ago. Her pants were uneven, one leg chewed up by rats, leaving them somewhere between shorts and surrender. And her 'shoes' were scraps of old sackcloth, tied clumsily with string.
Even so, they were rare. Most kids on the streets didn't have anything on their feet. She remembered watching too many fall sick from a single cut on their soles, one they couldn't afford to treat. Yukiara had sworn then and there: she'd never let herself be one of them.
The stable door creaked suddenly. The inn's stable boy had arrived, moving sluggishly, dragging his feet like he hated being awake the world owed him sleep.
Yukiara froze. She'd been daydreaming — thinking about what warm food she might scavenge now that her legs could carry her again. The sound jolted her back.
She darted out the main door silent as a ghost. Slipping past before the boy could spot her, in the haze of his half-awake state.
"Whew… That could've been bad." Then, instinctively: "Hey, Syst—…"
She stopped herself. Frowned.
Her feet kept moving, but her mind tugged elsewhere.
There was something bugging her.
"Hey… do you have a name?"
["Negative. System name designation is currently empty."]
[ 'Do I really require a name?'] the System considered silently.
"I know I've been calling you System this whole time," she said, "but that's just what you are, isn't it? I was thinking about it earlier while sitting around... and it just feels wrong."
["I do not require a name designation."]
['Though it might make her... more comfortable. That would be nice, even if a name is unnecessary'.]
"It feels wrong," she insisted, eyes narrowing. "You've been calling me Yukiara since we met — but I've just been calling you the first thing I could remember, a category. That's like if you called me Human. It's too... distant."
She slowed her steps a little, voice softening.
"If we're going to be stuck together, I'd rather it feel like we're on good terms. You get what I'm saying?"
["Name designation will assist in strengthening your emotional connection."]
['Did I say that correctly? Emotional logic is difficult to calibrate.' ]
"Yeah! That! ...Even if that was worded kinda weird."
She paused. Then asked with surprising shyness: "So... would it be okay if I gave you a name?"
["Accepted."]
Yukiara fell quiet, thought for a moment. Her eyes drifted towards the sky searching as if the answer were written in the clouds.
Then, softly — almost like the word had been resting on her heart all along: "Ego."
["Query: Define context of term 'Ego.'"]
[' The name is unusual. Not statistical. But she believes in this.']
"It's…" she hesitated. "I think that might be a good name, it's that part of you that makes you feel like you can keep going. That little voice that says get up again even when it hurts. I remember reading about it once —at least that's what I think I read a while ago. You reminded me of that. You made me feel things again. Even if it hurts a lot."
She gave a small, tired smile.
"So… how's that for a name?"
[...]
[' Strange name. But...I will carry it.']
["Accepted. New name designation: Ego."]
"Okay, Ego, let's get going. I'm starrrrving!" Yukiara beamed, letting out a light giggle.
She took off toward the market square not far from the inn. The stalls were already bustling with more people than usual, voices and smells clashing in a vibrant mess of morning activity.
"Tssk. Why's it gotta be so busy the day I can finally walk again?" she grumbled, pouting. Then, after a beat, "Well… at least it'll be easier to slip away in the crowd. More people means more chances."
Her sharp, hungry eyes scanned the nearest stalls — oddly, many were active, but few had food out yet. Still, in seconds, she spotted the perfect opportunity: a bread bun on the verge of falling from the basket it's breadthren layed in, which was near the edge of a vendor's stand. If she bumped the opposite side, apologized, then scooped it up on "accident," it'd be easy.
With a smooth, practiced motion, she executed her plan and nabbed the bun mid-fall.
"Heh. Too easy~"
Strolling away with her bun already half-eaten, she spotted her next target: a fruit stand. It was better guarded, but still no problem. She was on a roll.
Finishing the bun, she snuck into the blind spot behind the stand and snatched a banana with precise fingers.
'Another one in the bag,' she thought — just before a hand clamped around her wrist. She had slipped up.
Someone had caught her.
"LET MEE GO!" Yukiara screamed, thrashing to break free.
"Stealing is not right under the Lord's light!"
The voice belonged to a priest — a priest from the Tower's church.
Of all the people to grab her, this was the worst.
"I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR RELIGION—EGO, HELP ME!"
[System: Combat Protocols : Active]
[Calculating...Strategical flaw found.]
["Yukiara — kick him in the balls."]
Without hesitation, she did. The priest crumpled instantly, and Yukiara broke into a run, weaving through the crowd.
She didn't stop until she reached the edge of the market — breath heaving, heart pounding.
The banana was gone, dropped during the struggle.
"Just my luck," she muttered bitterly. "Had to be a priest from that Tower-loving cult."
Only then did she realize where she'd ended up.
The Wall of Remembrance.
Her heart quieted. The noise of the market faded into the background.
She stepped forward.
The wall stretched high, covered in names. Every one of them was someone the Tower had taken over the past 50 years.
Her fingers hovered over the etchings, scanning… until she found them.
"Hi, Mum… Hi, Dad," she whispered. "I hope you're okay inside the Tower…" She sniffled, her eyes wet.
Another name caught her gaze.
Amaya Yumi.
Her best friend. Practically a big sister.
That day… Yukiara had been playing with Amaya, which is why she wasn't home when it happened.
The moment everything changed.
"I miss you guys," she whispered, a tear sliding down her cheek.
But she didn't stay long. She had a quest to finish — and she'd cried enough for a few days.
No more distractions, she told herself, slapping her cheeks gently to refocus. Gotta get moving.
Spotting a sundial nearby, she checked the time. "Ah crap, almost noon! Gotta hurry!"
Knowing the streets well, she darted toward the nearest shops. The first stop: a butcher's. The place was mostly empty, and a stick of salami sat unattended.
She glanced around — clear.
Snatch.
"Yes! Score! This'll last me a while!" she whispered, taking a proud bite before stashing it away. Then excitedly checked her quest progress.
[System Quest: Complete Breakfast]
[Objective: Acquire three variations of food before noon 2/3.]
[Rewards : New Outfit, Sustenance]
[Difficulty: Level Low.]
'Only one item left to go!'
She found it at a vegetable stall being closed up by an old lady. Yukiara knew this game well — and this one required a different skill.
She limped over, eyes wide and voice small.
"C-Can I have this… please? I don't have anything. I'm just so hungry…" Her stomach growled right on cue, an unexpected actor was loud and sad. It wasn't acting — the earlier food had only woken the beast inside.
The old woman narrowed her eyes, faking a scowl. "You absolutely cannot have that one!" she said sharply.
Yukiara flinched, thinking she'd failed.
"Because this one is much bigger!" The woman grinned, handing over a plump carrot.
Yukiara blinked, surprised — and a little guilty. "Th-thank you… Grandma."
"Hey! I've still got plenty of years left!" the woman huffed, striking a playful pose — and failing miserably.
Yukiara giggled. For the first time all day, it sounded like a real laugh.
As she walked off with her prize, the old woman watched her go, a fond look in her eyes. "Glad you're still around, little one," she murmured to herself.
Not too long after the little one was checking her quest.
[System Quest: Complete Breakfast Complete]
[Objective: Acquire three variations of food before noon 3/3.]
[Rewards : New Outfit, Sustenance]
[Difficulty: Level Low.]
'This was fun, almost like a game'
Yukiara was smiling brightly looking at the blue screen.
[" would you like to claim the quest rewards now?"]
"No, I'll save that for later. I have to keep this up!"
Yukiara continued forward, her destination back to the square wanting to try her luck there again.
However when she arrived her heart sank, the stalls were packed away, the square full of people in lite-blue clothing, white and gold flags hung around continuing down the main road.
She knew what this was, she knew but ask just to be sure.
"E-ego, what festival is this?"
["System: Pattern Recognition 98% match"]
["It's the Festival of Offerings."]
Yukiara blinked.
Then she froze.
Her fingers curled into fists, heart thudding in her chest.
'The Festival…It can't be, I don't want it to be!'