As soon as Ryan stepped out through the gate, the signature, nauseating smell of the slums completely disappeared.
Bang!
With a loud noise, the iron door slammed shut behind him, announcing that he had finally left the slums.
Ryan closed his eyes for a moment, and sounds completely different from what he was used to reached his ears.
The noise of vehicles moving, horns blaring, and the constant hustle and bustle of a prosperous city.
Opening his eyes, Ryan slowly walked forward and after passing through a few narrow streets, the view before him gradually expanded.
What came into sight was a wide, interconnected road filled with hover cars and various other vehicles moving in an orderly manner.
Tall buildings lined both sides of the road, and people walked along the sidewalks, each of them carrying an air vastly different from the people of the slums that Ryan was accustomed to.
Looking at such a scene, Ryan was momentarily dazed, his mind buzzing.
In reality, both the slums and the city existed in the same world, separated only by a few streets and a single iron gate.
Yet, as Ryan looked at the prosperous scene before him, he felt as though they belonged to two entirely different worlds.
Calming his somewhat chaotic thoughts, Ryan took a deep breath and gradually regained his composure.
He went over the plan he had made before leaving the slums and immediately began to act.
The city Ryan had entered was called Buka, and the slums he used to live in were part of it.
Buka was just a small city in the countryside, belonging to Guan State, which was under the rule of the Bright Light Kingdom.
Although Buka was considered a small city, it was still thousands of times better than the slums.
Before leaving, Ryan had already gathered information about the city from the internet and had formed a plan about what he needed to do next.
"First, I need a place to stay..." Ryan muttered to himself and after confirming the direction, he began walking eastward.
As he walked, Ryan couldn't help but feel amazed by everything he saw along the way.
Whether it was the hover cars or the various items being sold in the shops, everything was something he was experiencing for the first time.
He had seen these things on the internet before, but watching them through a screen and seeing them in person were completely different experiences.
Just then, Ryan noticed something and raised his head, only to be stunned.
About two hundred meters above the ground, he saw a man flying freely through the air, with green wings that seemed to be made of wind itself.
"This… what rank does he have to be to fly so freely?" Ryan muttered in amazement, as it was his first time witnessing someone fly.
Perhaps he had spoken a bit too loudly, because a passerby heard him.
The man also looked up and, upon seeing the figure in the sky, chuckled.
"Kid, it seems you didn't study properly in school. That guy can fly because of his Aspect, Wind Sparrow. Even a Rank One Evolver can fly freely with that Aspect."
"Huh?" Ryan was taken aback upon hearing the man's explanation and felt slightly embarrassed.
After all, forget about studying in school, he had never even attended one.
"I see… thank you for the information," Ryan quickly said before hurrying away.
The man simply shook his head as he watched Ryan leave in a rush, assuming the boy was embarrassed for not knowing something so basic.
He didn't think much about Ryan's somewhat shabby clothes or appearance.
After all, not everyone living in Buka was wealthy.
In fact, there were many poor people in the city as well. The only difference was that, unlike the people in the slums, they were born and raised here.
People would only be able to identify Ryan as someone from the slums after seeing his identity card and that was precisely where the problem lay for slum dwellers.
Once others saw their ID and learned they were from the slums, it became extremely difficult for them to find a job or even rent a place to live.
After all, no one wanted to hire or rent to someone who might be a thug or a criminal.
And what made it even more frustrating was that Ryan couldn't even blame them.
As someone who had grown up in the slums, he knew very well that only one out of ten people there had even a somewhat decent personality.
Most of the people living there were scum, no different from beasts.
In fact, if it weren't for his mother, Ryan was certain that he wouldn't have been any different from the rest.
Even with everything his mother had taught him, Ryan himself had committed many crimes after joining the gang, including killing people.
"Let's hope I'll be able to rent a house here." Ryan said with a sigh.
After walking for about forty-five minutes, he finally reached his destination.
It was a small residential area filled with old-looking houses. There were only a few people walking around, and most of them didn't seem very well-off.
Standing in the modest neighborhood, Ryan looked around and soon spotted a middle-aged man with thinning hair, wearing a white T-shirt and brown pants, sitting on a cement platform outside a one-story house.
'It should be him…' Ryan thought to himself as he walked over.
"Hello, are you Mr. Darren?" Ryan asked. He wasn't used to speaking politely due to growing up in the slums, so he tried to imitate the way people spoke in videos.
The man looked Ryan up and down before nodding.
"You are the one who contacted me about renting the house?"
"Yes," Ryan nodded, sighing in relief that he had found the right person.
While searching for a place to stay before leaving the slums, Ryan had browsed the internet and come across an advertisement posted by Darren.
He had contacted him in advance regarding the rental.
"Since you came here after seeing the advertisement, you should already know the conditions. One thousand credits per month, not a penny less," Darren said flatly without even standing up.
Ryan wanted to negotiate and lower the rent slightly, but seeing Darren's expression, which clearly said pay or leave he swallowed his words and nodded silently.
"Can I at least see the house first?" Ryan asked after a brief pause.
"Go ahead," Darren replied, pointing at the house behind him.
Ryan noticed that the door wasn't locked so he thanked Darren and walked inside.
The house wasn't large. It had only one room, a small kitchen, and a bathroom. The floor was made of cement, and the walls were painted white, though they looked quite old.
Ryan didn't care much about the appearance of the place. He focused on checking whether the kitchen and bathroom were functional.
Once he confirmed that everything was in working condition, he nodded inwardly.
He had already checked rental prices in other areas before coming here. Most places charged three to four thousand credits per month, with some reaching as high as five thousand in better locations.
Compared to that, one thousand credits for this house was quite reasonable.
After finishing his inspection, Ryan stepped outside and nodded at Darren.
"I'll take it."
Darren finally stood up upon hearing his decision.
"Give me your identity card. I'll prepare a rental agreement and bring it to you tomorrow."
Ryan paused for a moment but soon took out his identity card and handed it over.
Darren glanced at it casually, but when he noticed that Ryan was from the slums, his expression changed slightly.
"You are from the slums?" He asked, frowning.
"Yes..." Ryan nodded calmly, though inwardly he felt quite anxious, hoping Darren wouldn't refuse to rent the house to him.
Darren was about to say something, but when he noticed Ryan's young and somewhat immature face and saw from the ID that he had just turned sixteen not long ago, he paused.
After a moment, he spoke in a serious tone.
"Since you've already left the slums, don't do anything foolish in the future. If I find out that you're involved in anything shady, I'll throw you out immediately."
Ryan let out a quiet sigh of relief and quickly nodded.
"Don't worry, sir. I just want to live peacefully here."
Darren simply nodded and said nothing further.
"You can move in right away if you want. I'll bring the rental agreement tomorrow."
Ryan nodded as he watched Darren walk away.
Once the man disappeared from sight, Ryan's tense body finally relaxed.
"I can finally start living outside the slums..." Ryan muttered to himself, and for the first time, a genuine smile appeared on his face.