Kingdom Evolution: LitRPG Gamelit Fantasy Kingdom Builder, page 1
Kingdom
Evolution
Warden Locke
Copyright © 2023 Warden Locke
All rights reserved.
ISBN:
ISBN-13:
1
Togashi Vassahn maneuvered his way through the brightly lit streets of White Vale, keeping his hood drawn tight to keep the rain from running down his back. There was little he could do for his face, but his overheated skin welcomed the coolness of the weather. The toridium processing plant was always hot, especially in the cleansing sector, where he spent fifteen hours, nine days a week working. The execs always ranted about how vital their work was, proven by the glowing lights that surrounded him, a reminder that the city’s power came from the bright blue rocks he worked tirelessly to cleanse.
Not for much longer though, he thought to himself with a smile quickly forming on his narrow face. Not after the news I just got.
Since Togashi turned ten, and was legally old enough to work, he’d spent nine of ten days per week in the sector nine processing plant. It was hard to believe that fifteen years had passed since that day, without a thing to show for it other than minimal credits, and the cough that would eventually kill him.
Today was different though. Out of the blue, one of the lab assistants got a promotion, which left a vacant spot above him. Typically, such spots were filled with recent graduates from the academy, but all the hours of study Togashi had performed helped him qualify for the job. His salary would double, he’d be away from the fumes within the plant, and he’d gain access to such luxuries as health care. It was the best possible news he could have received, and he couldn’t wait to go celebrate.
Working fifteen out of thirty hours a day didn’t allow for much leisure time, which was why Togashi only had one friend outside of the plant. Keenie Qi, his neighbor, who he was on his way to see now. Keenie’s shift would end soon, and the pair had a nightly habit of walking home together. There was a reason for this, one that wasn’t as joyful as having company for the trip. It was a necessity, especially when one considered Keenie’s line of work.
Leisure sector four wasn’t as large as the previous three in the city, but it was cleaner than five through seven, with more light, and, thankfully, more ProCor soldiers. ProCor was short for Protection Corporation, who were in charge of maintaining the peace, and, if the history archives were to be believed, fighting wars. According to his lessons as a child, the Asmir had to fight off countless other nations to keep their claim of the toridium caverns. The wars lasted for decades, with the Asmir coming out the victors, and the other races decimated to near extinction, forced to rebuild within the Null, the area of the planet deemed uninhabitable by Asmir standards.
Togashi turned the corner on his routine walk, only to have a short woman slam her head into his chest while she rounded the corner from the other side.
“What the shit?” she growled as a small metal tube fell onto the ground with a clank. “Can you not see where you’re going?”
“Just an accident,” he groaned before taking a step around, only to realize that she was leaning against the wall. Most Asmir were wearing rain gear, but the short woman had no protection whatsoever, and was soaked to the bone. Her makeup was streaming down her pale face, and her pink halter top was so drenched that he could see her nipples lifting the fabric. She was staring at the vial, but wasn’t making any effort to pick it up, which could only mean one thing. “You should just leave that and move on. You’d be better off without that crap in your lungs.”
“It isn’t Race!” she yelled, uncaring that a dozen people around them all turned their heads toward the name of the illegal substance. “It’s Ranacin.”
“Oh, damn, you’ve got the shakes,” he gasped, scooped up the vial, and handed it over. “How long since your last dose?”
“Yesterday?” she whimpered and reached for the vial he extended. Her hand was shaking too much to grab it though, which drew too many nightmarish memories for Togashi to withstand. Without so much as a sigh, he gently took her wrist to steady her, then placed the vial against her palm and closed her fingers around it.
“Ranacin is supposed to be taken every six hours. No wonder you’re shaking so bad.”
“It’s all I’ve got,” she muttered, sniffed, then shoved the tube into her hip pocket. “At least until I get a new job. Hard to do data entry when your hands are always shaking.”
“Uhm. . .” he stammered and looked her over again, wondering why someone with an office job would dress in such revealing clothing.
“I was trying to get on at Silver Chair,” she replied when he stalled for too long. “My audition didn’t go well though. Owner said I looked too diseased to do lap dances. The jerk.”
“Yeah, I’m familiar with the guy,” he sighed, shook his head, then weighed a decision. If he went through with it, he’d barely have enough credits to eat until his next paycheck, which wouldn’t come for another week. It’d be his last measly one though, and he did feel like celebrating. Besides, she looked like Keenie, because of her lack of height, and it certainly wasn’t the first time he’d seen someone suffer from the shakes. He swallowed his groan, then pulled a cluster of credit sticks from his pocket, which he placed into the woman’s hand with a polite smirk. “Take this, but don’t get your Ranacin at the health district. There’s a guy that runs a free hub over in sector five, goes by the name Dr. Free-all. He’ll give you a Ranacin knock-off for free.”
“Then why bother giving me the credits?” she questioned with another sniff. She tried to push her hair over her pointed ear, but her hand shook so bad that she wound up making more of a mess than the rain could ever hope to achieve. Once more, he felt bad, so he quickly reached out and did it for her, then took a step back to make up for violating her personal space.
“I’m guessing you’ve been skipping meals as well.”
“Uhm, look,” she replied with her brows crushing her eyes as she squinted through the rain at him. “I’m not going to suck your dick, if that’s what you’re hoping for here.”
“I’m glad we got that out of the way,” Togashi chuckled and offered her a wink. “Remember, sector five, Dr. Free-all.”
“Yeah, uhm, thanks. And thanks,” she said while lifting the credit sticks. “You’re a good guy.”
“Heard that a time or two.”
Without another word, Togashi headed across the street, knowing that the woman with the shakes wasn’t the only person watching him. No one could hand out credit sticks on the streets without ProCor eyes on them, and he could feel the cold stare against the back of his head while he hurried over to Silver Chair.
The building stood out among its neighbors, which was saying a lot, considering how narrow it was. The owner placed the emblem of a silver chair over the toridium lights, which almost made them appear white, unlike the dozens of bright blue lights that surrounded the place. The huge guy standing by the door helped with the uniqueness, and he was already shaking his head when Togashi approached.
“You look like a drowned rat, factory-boy.”
“Good to see you too, San. Is she done yet?”
“Star is getting dressed. She’ll be out in a tick. What’s with the ProCor tail?”
He didn’t need San to nod at the opposite corner to know what he meant, but he turned anyway and gave the soldier a look. The heavy armor was menacing enough, white, like everyone in ProCor, but with red lines on the shoulder pauldrons that matched the glow coming from his holstered pistol. The suit made him a foot taller than everyone walking by him, but there was more to them than just the heavy armor. They were different, even when they were out of uniform, which was why everyone was terrified of a ProCor soldier. It was good for keeping people in line, but made it impossible to have a good time, or do charity work that looked questionable in the wrong eyes.
“Ran into a woman with the shakes,” he sighed and turned back to San, who looked like he should be wearing a ProCor suit, given his impressive size. “Said she was trying to get a job here, but your boss turned her away.”
“That poor little rat that just scurried out of here?” San chuckled with a wicked smile that not even a mother could love. “Don’t know what Mr. Soto had against her, but I’d give her a go, if you know what I mean?”
“You think you’d be immune to it, considering your environment. I bet you can’t even get hard without having to think of something kinky.”
“Watch it!” San snapped with a sneer, then chuckled and reached out to bump his chest with his fist. The bouncer’s hand was almost as big as Togashi’s head, but, deep down, he suspected San was a softy at heart. “It works, so don’t go spreading any rumors about me. Reputation is bad enough as it is, working this shit hole. Now, I got a job to do, so you can go over to the P section and wait.”
The P section was San’s joke. Everyone knew that Silver Chair had a VIP section, but, since Togashi came to walk Keenie home every night, San elected to create a new section, just for him, just for a ‘person’. It was just to the right of the door, but the overhang would keep the rain off of him for a bit, which he appreciated.
Togashi was about to head over to the P section when he realized a large man was standing behind the bouncer. He wasn’t anywhere near as big as San, but, given his build, and the clothing that was too nice for leisure district four, he kind of stood out. The black pants and
“What’s with soldier-boy back there?”
“Don’t even have to look to know who you mean,” San sighed and shook his head. “Been meaning to tell you about him. ProCor trainee, Yosha. Been here the last six nights straight. First night, he acted like the place was his personal buffet, if you know what I mean? Second night, and every night after? Well, let’s just say that Star has a number one fan now.”
Damn. That can’t be good.
Togashi was about to say something when the door opened, and a short, slim woman in rain gear stepped out. The shadow in the doorway made it difficult to see, but he recognized Keenie once she stepped into the glow of the light on the building’s front. She smiled when she saw him, but her bright blue eyes turned to find the ProCor trainee next to her, and the smile quickly faded. Her eyes widened, then she hurried past San to slip her arm around Togashi’s.
“Just walk,” she hissed through clenched teeth. “Please.”
“Couldn’t agree more,” he whispered with his eyes on the soldier, who was squinting at his friend. He knew Keenie wore heavy makeup at work, which was probably why the trainee didn’t recognize her. He needed to keep it that way, so he lifted Keenie’s hood for her with his free hand, then walked with her down the street.
“Got a new fan, I see.”
“You know that’s short for fanatic, right?” she growled and squeezed his arm tighter. “That guy is a creep. It’s all that crap they do to their heads, how they make it impossible for them to fear anything. That includes overstepping boundaries, I might add.”
“Your brother might disagree with you, given that he’s in ProCor.”
“Devo is different, and you know it,” she sighed as they moved around a guy with a girl under both arms. Togashi had seen the man before, because he’d tried to recruit Keenie a few times to his entourage. He was little more than a pimp, but at least he was kind enough to take ‘no’ for an answer, eventually.
“I know, but, still, you need to watch what you say,” he muttered with his eyes peeking through their corners. The soldier who’d been watching him earlier was walking in the same direction, but wasn’t moving very fast. He probably had a small area to cover, and was on the verge of moving beyond his boundary. If he did, he’d get a warning from command, as well as an order to get back to his post or face a reprimand. Togashi knew this because he had dinner with Keenie and Devo every Nineday, his only day off. The brother told him a lot about ProCor, which included their tactics when it came to patrolling the street. According to Devo, he wasn’t in the clear, because the soldier was probably forwarding his description to the soldier in the next section.
“I really don’t care. Them guys are all brain-dead gluttons. I heard there was a green-banner who used to come into Silver Chair when it was new. He took a liking to a dancer named Sparkles, because she coated her skin in glitter every night. Wouldn’t let any other guy come near her, and he expected a discount from her every time he got a dance. Soto wouldn’t do anything about it though, because he was ProCor. Poor girl had to quit. Either that or she could have taken the soldier up on his nightly offer.”
“Which is why I wish you’d spend more time in the academy,” he sighed with his eyes up ahead, scanning for the next soldier. “You could earn a degree in two years, like I did.”
“For all the good it did you. Look, I’m glad that you want to better yourself. Lavora knows you deserve better than that damn plant. You’d make more money working the bar, and you wouldn’t have to breathe in those fumes that are killing you.”
“But then I’d have to watch you work,” he chuckled and moved his free arm to give her hand a squeeze. “I couldn’t miss you if you never went away, even though I’d finally learn why you call yourself Star in that crap-festival.”
“I’ll take that to my grave, but, seriously, you need to. . .”
“Yeah, about that,” he interrupted and let out a deep breath. “One of the guys in the lab got promoted, and guess who they picked to fill his spot?”
“A rat they’ve been doing experiments on?” she teased and leaned into him.
“No, me.”
“Like I said, a rat,” she laughed, squeezed his hand, then stood on her toes and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. “I’m sorry. You know I make jokes. Seriously, I’m happy for you. You needed to get off the production floor. That cough is going to wind up killing you sooner, rather than later.”
“Thanks. I just. . .Lavora, I can’t believe it. I thought I was in trouble when they called me into the office. For a second, I thought I needed Ranacin, because I was shaking so hard. But, they made the offer, which will double my salary. . .”
“And gave you access to health care?” she asked with a raised brow. “I know I joke a lot, but I’m serious about that cough you keep trying to hide.”
“I only cough when I work too hard.”
“Are you going to move to another district though?”
He could see the mixed emotions in her eyes, even though her face remained stoic. It was a habit of hers from dancing. She hated her job, so she learned how to turn her face into a mask, a façade to keep the customers happy while she pretended she was somewhere else. While she wasn’t stripping off her clothes for him, she was putting on a show. On the outside, she wanted what was best for him. Deep down though, she was terrified that he’d leave her to rot.
“About that,” he sighed while his mind fumbled the beginning of the statement he’d memorized a month after moving in next door to Keenie. “I was thinking. I mean, I’d have double my income, which means I could get a two-bedroom place. . .”
“Togashi?”
“I’m just saying,” he groaned, let go of her arm, and leaned against the light pole. “I’m not saying you need to marry me or anything. I’m just…you could quit Silver Chair, and I’d support us both until you got a degree. No more dancing, no more Star, and definitely no more worrying about soldiers stalking you.”
“Oh, Togashi,” she sighed, shook her head, and leaned in to drape her arms over his neck. She had to stand on her toes to reach him, which placed her far closer than two friends should, proven by the swell within his pants. “We’ve been over this, you sweet lug. I’m not smart, like you. I’m just a pretty girl with firm tits, making tips while I strip my clothes off to music.”
“Tips that Soto keeps,” he growled while making a mental image of his fist meeting the face of her boss.
“It’s how things work, and you know it. Now, I’ve known you’ve had a bit of a crush on me for some time now, and you’re probably dreaming of saving me every time you lay down to sleep. I don’t want to know what you do after that, so let’s just leave it at. . .”
“Star?”
Togashi wanted to object to having a crush on his neighbor, but the thought fell out of his ear when he whipped his head around. He could feel Keenie shrinking against him, which probably made the ProCor trainee all the happier as he walked over to them.
“I thought that was you,” the man chuckled with a wicked smile, which faded when his gaze shifted over to Togashi. He was probably more focused on the fact that they were embracing than anything else, including the people who had to maneuver around him on the sidewalk. “Who’s this loser?”
