Kaiser's eyes still lingered on the most glaring oddity around him, the enormous, glowing screens that dominated the sides of towering buildings. Inside those massive, luminous frames, people moved, speaking animatedly, some rubbing peculiar substances onto their hair or skin, others swinging swords with dramatic flair. A few even battled fiercely, sparks and blades clashing theatrically.

He snickered quietly to himself, shaking his head with a mix of mild amusement and appreciation. "What an unusual approach," Kaiser remarked aloud, mostly to himself, but loud enough for Ivan to hear.

Ivan, who had been desperately trying to process the sensory overload of the city, glanced up at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

Kaiser gestured subtly toward the towering glowing screens. "Those boards up there, with the moving prisoners," he said, voice calm yet analytical. "It's a clever form of public humiliation, though I admit, quite effective."

Ivan blinked rapidly, confusion spreading across his youthful face. "Public… humiliation?"

Kaiser, misreading Ivan's bafflement for intrigue, continued smoothly, eyes narrowing slightly in thought. "I assume they place individuals there through some strange magic, forcing them to perform acts for the city's amusement as punishment. Barbaric, perhaps, but undeniably efficient for discipline and deterrence."

Ivan opened his mouth to interject, eyes widening further, but Kaiser, now thoroughly intrigued by his own speculation, pressed forward swiftly. "It's only natural, really. Even where I'm from, public humiliations drew vast crowds. They were potent tools."

Ivan's face now shifted fully into a bewildered mix of horror and disbelief, but Kaiser was already deep into his explanation, undeterred. "The Walk of Shame was especially common—typically reserved for those caught cheating on their spouses," he elaborated, completely missing the look of alarm on Ivan's face. "The guilty party would be stripped naked, forced through the town's busiest streets, and their wronged partner was given a whip to deliver punishment as they saw fit."

Ivan stared, visibly paling, his jaw slack in shock. Kaiser, still unaware of Ivan's reaction, offered a small, almost reassuring nod. "This seems a less barbaric variation, though the humiliation element remains quite pronounced."

A flash caught Kaiser's peripheral vision, and he swiftly turned his head, eyes narrowing as another screen displayed the very same sequence he had just seen moments earlier. His mind raced into immediate overdrive, analyzing possibilities. Were they identical siblings forced into identical punishments? Or perhaps some kind of cloning power existed in this world?

Ivan, having recovered slightly from the earlier revelation, finally managed to find his voice, his words hesitant but steady. "Kaiser…those aren't prisoners. Those are advertisements."

Kaiser stopped abruptly, turning his piercing gaze fully upon Ivan, his expression conveying a clear request for clarification without needing to speak a single word.

Ivan swallowed visibly, gathering his courage to explain. "Advertisements. You know, like the posters and signs we had back in Arkhold, but… moving. They record people, celebrities mostly and replay their images all over the city, promoting products, services, or entertainment."

Kaiser's eyebrows furrowed deeply, a rare moment of genuine confusion flickering across his features. "These people are willingly 'recorded'… and displayed repeatedly?"

Ivan nodded vigorously, visibly relieved that Kaiser seemed to grasp his meaning. "Exactly. They get paid, often very well, to appear on these screens. They're famous. People admire them, and a lot even want to be like them."

Kaiser stood perfectly still, his eyes fixed thoughtfully upon the glowing screens once more. Slowly, very slowly, a faint smirk emerged on his lips, a mix of irony and a reluctant kind of admiration. "Fascinating," he murmured softly, nodding to himself. "They willingly parade themselves, paid to humiliate or elevate their image. It's remarkable what people here seem willing to do for coin and fame."

Ivan exhaled softly, the tension easing from his shoulders as he recognized Kaiser's calm acceptance. Still, a part of him couldn't help but wonder just how many other misinterpretations Kaiser held about the world.

As they made their way forward, Ivan fell quiet again, but Kaiser could sense the questions bubbling just below the surface. That suited him just fine. Ivan's silence gave him more room to think. Still, Ivan's earlier words circled back when he nudged Kaiser and asked, with a half-whispered urgency, "If we're supposed to blend in, why are you gawking at those billboards and talking nonstop? I thought you told me to keep my mouth shut."

Kaiser only half-smirked, refusing to slow his stride as the crowds swelled around them. "Ivan, look around." He flicked his eyes pointedly at the passing crowds. "Everyone is gawking. People are chatting, pointing, laughing. Half the city is glued to those screens. If we were the only ones walking around stiff as corpses, dead silent, refusing to look at anything—now that would be suspicious. Sometimes, the only way to go unnoticed is to follow the herd. Disappear in plain sight."

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Kaiser slowed down, watching as a trio of teens walked past, all holding out shimmering little panels of light in their palms, just like the one he had seen before with Erya, except now they were flicking through images and text at a blinding pace. It was so commonplace that nobody even spared them a glance. Kaiser felt a quiet pride at this observation; he was adapting quickly, as always.

He continued, voice lower now as they neared the bridge, "People in a city like this aren't looking for threats. Every last one of them has their own burdens and plans, and they're too busy to care what anyone else is up to, so long as you don't make yourself a problem. After all, these are simple civilians."

As they crossed the arched bridge, Kaiser looked down, his stride slowing for a rare moment of wonder. The city's layers sprawled beneath him: a great ravine, its walls engraved with sprawling apartments, cavernous shops, and winding stairs, all glowing with soft blue and gold lights. Between the buildings, walkways stretched like spider silk, weaving a second, dizzying world beneath his feet.

Ivan peered over the edge, wide-eyed. Kaiser noted the hunger in his gaze, and for a moment, almost envied the boy's capacity for open awe.

"Don't trip," Kaiser said quietly, but with no real concern.

They soon reached the end of the bridge, where the path split, left and right, leading deeper into different districts. Ahead, a wide circular platform waited at an opening. Kaiser watched as people lined up, stepping onto the platform with the confidence of routine. Others broke away, heading left or right down long, branching avenues.

Kaiser tugged Ivan forward, careful to keep their pace steady and unhurried.

The platform was humming beneath their feet, lifting with the faint vibration of hidden sorcery as people shuffled to make room as strange blue walls of energy appeared around them. Kaiser, standing near the center, scanned the crowd for threats and oddities. His gaze flicked over merchants, street-toughs, clerks, and an old man in gold-rimmed spectacles, but one figure held his attention: a small, blonde girl, perhaps eighteen at most, with an attitude that radiated far beyond her height.

She was lost in her own world, tapping her foot in time with the frantic, tinny music playing from the glowing square in her palm. On the screen, a wide-eyed, blue-furred spider twirled, wiggling its limbs in impossible, almost hypnotic patterns. It was a sight so bizarre, so utterly nonsensical, that Kaiser had to suppress the urge to rub his eyes.

He was still processing it when Ivan, leaned in like a moth to a flame, to get a better look at the strange sight. Their heads bumped, and instantly, the girl's attention snapped from the screen to Ivan, her eyes narrowing into painted slits.

"Oi! What the actual sludge, blondie?!" Her voice was sharp, fast, almost melodic, and her words tumbled out like marbles. "You wanna pay rent for my personal space, huh? Or you just like breathing other people's air? Back off, you perv!"

Ivan blinked, startled, hands going up in self-defense. "Sorry, sorry—I just, uh, I've never seen— What even is that thing?" He nodded at the screen, trying to sound curious instead of clueless.

She tossed her long bangs with a flick. "This? Like, duh. It's Mik-Mok. Only, like, everyone knows about it. You got rocks in your head, or you just from the sticks? Don't ever sneak up on a girl watching her feed, dummy."

Ivan tried to play along, but only managed to dig himself deeper. "Sorry, I was just curious, you know? Never seen a—uh, spider dance like that before. Or… an Albus like that."

She rolled her eyes so hard Kaiser was half-convinced she could see her own brain. "Ugh, cringe. You must be a total kid. Next time you wanna stare, at least buy me a boba first."

A small snicker rippled from someone in the crowd; Ivan flushed bright red, mumbling apologies under his breath. He looked to Kaiser for help, but Kaiser only arched an eyebrow—if anything, he was enjoying Ivan's discomfort.

Meanwhile, the girl turned back to her screen, muttering, "Noobs everywhere… can't even vibe in peace." Her fingers danced over the display, flipping through more nonsense, and the blue spider was replaced with a rainbow cat running on water.

The platform jolted slightly as it began its descent, and the crowd swayed together. Suddenly, Kaiser felt a gentle tug at his trouser leg. He glanced down and found a tiny girl, no older than five, clutching the hem of his shirt with wide, unblinking eyes.

"Mister?" she piped up, voice piping and innocent. "Are you a Liberator? You look like the hero from my book. You're even taller then him!"

For a split second, Kaiser's mask almost slipped. But before he could answer, another presence swept in—a young woman, perhaps seventeen, hurriedly scooping up the child. "I'm so sorry, sir! My little sister doesn't understand boundaries, honestly…" Her words trailed off as she actually met his gaze, her cheeks coloring as she hurried to add, "I mean—um—the handsome—Sir. I mean, thank you, sorry—" She hugged the little girl close, shooting Kaiser an apologetic, mortified smile.

Kaiser inclined his head, as if he heard nothing unusual. The girl's stare lingered a bit too long before she scurried away into the crowd, whispering fiercely to her little sister not to "bother the beautiful man."

A second jolt rocked the platform. The brash blonde girl from before, who'd been scrolling through her screen, staggered back, bumping squarely into Kaiser's chest. She scowled, whirling around, and as she steadied herself, her bright blue screen flicked up almost on reflex, its lens aimed right at his face.

There was a flash, and suddenly, Kaiser was staring at his own image on her screen—his expression perfectly blank. He tensed just a hair, expecting some kind of spell, but the girl just grinned, flicking her fingers over the device as if summoning spirits.

"Okay, no way," she drawled, her voice high with excitement. "You have to be a celeb or something. That face? If you're not famous, you're, like, committing a crime." She squinted, tilting her head, then shrugged. "Meh. My brain's mush right now. If I remember who you are later, I'll DM you."

With a single, practiced movement, she thrust a slim card into Kaiser's palm. The paper shimmered, embossed with a cryptic blue symbol—lines twisting into an elegant, geometric knot. "Here. Scan it, add me. Don't ghost, 'kay?" She winked, turning on her heel to strut off, already sharing the picture to her friends with a swipe.

Kaiser didn't react, not outwardly. He merely nodded, slipping the card into his pocket with an efficiency that belied his total confusion.

'What the actual hell just happened.'

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