Editing Tytania:Volume 1 Chapter 4 (section)

=== III ===
Throwing curses at himself, the hapless and bankrupt Mr Hyulick tried to run back towards the vehicle he had left behind. His only option now was to sell it cheaply to levy some immediate funds.

It was a spur-of-the-moment decision, but there were many people in this world whose minds were quicker and shrewder than his. He spotted five or six figures swarming around the vehicle, already starting to strip it of its parts. Apparently, they were an organised gang of thieves.

“Hey, you unbelievable jackasses, how dare you dispose of someone’s property without their permission? How about you listen to the scolding of your consciences, you small-time cooks?”

Right as Fan Hyulick roared this and hurled himself on a shell some three light-years away, a pale yellow flash swept across his field of vision. The screech of bikes echoed gratingly. About five vehicles sporting Tytania’s coat of arms came to a sudden halt, and a group clad in grey military uniforms leapt out.

The thief gang screamed and fled, but the Tytanian soldiers paid no heed to these petty criminals and rushed straight towards Fan Hyulick. The unemployed youth fugitive pivoted on his right heel to make a 180-degree turn, entrusting his fate in the leg strength he inherited from his parents.

“Son of a bitch, why must a decent guy like me have to suffer through such hardship? Next time I meet the goddess of fate, I’m slapping her in the face!”

Swearing a vow he could never keep, Fan Hyulick pushed his long legs and raced through the night streets. With no luggage and empty pockets (though that was not the only reason), his swift feet were fully flowing, and the Tytanian soldiers were unable to catch up with him at once.

But right as Fan Hyulick’s breathing was starting to falter, the sound of light and precise footsteps was closing behind him. Turning around would only be a waste of time and distance, so Fan Hyulick didn’t commit that mistake. Instead, he committed another kind of mistake. By running through the labyrinth-like warehouse district around the spaceport, he had managed to shake off most of his pursuers, but the mass-produced ceramic walls of a massive warehouse soon loomed in front of him.

The sound of the footsteps behind him echoed closer, and Fan Hyulick clocked his tongue as he sprang towards the handrail-less staircase running along the wall. After bending his knees some forty times, he emerged onto the railed rooftop and appeared to have reached a dead end. Some five seconds later, a pursuer dressed in grey clothing reached the same level.

“How about giving up, Admiral Hyulick?”

“Shut up! What’s so amusing about chasing after an unemployed bankrupt man? Are the perverted Count’s henchmen as perverted as he is?”

“I’m not chasing you because I find it amusing. And I’m not serving the Count because I like it either. Everything is determined by destiny.”

“Don’t act all high and mighty when messing up your choice of words, you illiterate!”

His pursuer snorted derisively and glared back at Fan Hyulick. He was young both in voice and in build. The two small moons of Ementhal were casting a pale bluish glow upon the hunter and the prey.

“It’s time for a promotion and a pay rise. Your destiny is to surrender gracefully.”

“On this planet, destiny tumbles about more cheaply than an empty cola can.”

“Indeed, destiny is tawdry. Just as the lives of those controlled by it are, for the most part, mass-produced baubles of poor quality.”

The change from stillness to motion was fast as lightning. A black shadow flashed in the hand of the Tytanian officer. Fan Hyulick leaped backwards and narrowly avoided the swift blow. A light-metal baton shot out from the pursuer’s outstretched hand like the tongue of a reptile, aiming at the fugitive’s neck. Had he not dodged with a once-in-a-lifetime speed, Fan Hyulick would have taken the fierce blow in the neck and fallen unconscious.

“Oh, you dodged that? As expected, I won’t be able to take you down if I go easy on you.”

There was a lot of composure in the muttered voice. Words muttered from beneath the roof and above the ground reached the two men.

“What the hell are you playing at, Lieutenant Mahdi! Hurry up and capture that fugitive and hand him over to His Grace the Count.”

“Ah well, my superior is such a pain, but I must obey orders. That’s the destiny of a soldier.”

Without a shred of respect for his superior, the Tytanian officer gripped with more firmness the special baton in his right hand. He was slightly shorter than Fan Hyulick. His physique was well-balanced and toned like a spring. Though it was difficult to make out his facial features, he appeared to be completely unfamiliar with the notion of tension. With smooth and fluid movements, he cornered the fugitive at an edge of the roof.

The runaway pressed his back against the old rooftop railing. He looked down over his shoulder at the dark world below. Noticing a split-second opening, Lieutenant Mahdi closed in and seized his right elbow with his left hand while preparing to bring down his baton with his right hand. At that very moment, Fan Hyulick shifted his entire weight onto the railing behind him, deliberately throwing himself off balance.

“…!”

It was unclear who screamed, as the bodies and voices entangled and flew. Both the pursuer and the pursued tumbled along the broken railing, plummeting to the ground.

He felt water around him. Fan Hyulick’s last-minute calculations had yielded results within the margin of error. He had fallen onto the black surface of the canal that was flowing behind the warehouse. His vertical fall had been ten metres.

He surfaced. Oxygen poured into his mouth and nose. After exchanging the air in his lungs for fresh air, Fan Hyulick cut through the water and rode with the current.

From beyond the darkness of the night echoed the confused voices of the Tytanians. Knowing they couldn’t see him, the carrot-top youth waved a hand in a mocking gesture before climbing onto the concrete embankment. Just then, a figure could be seen nearby in the water, screaming and churning up waves.

“Hey, help me, Admiral Hyulick…!”

“Any obligation to save you was lost in some corner of the universe.”

“I can’t swim!”

“That’s your problem. Not mine.”

“Are you going to stray from the path of righteousness when it’s expedient?! Come on, can you even consider yourself a warrior of justice after that?”

He hurled abuse at him, using a title Fan Hyulick didn’t recall ever claiming.

“Isn’t it because you are still clutching your baton that you are unable to swim?”

Faced with this bitterly sarcastic remark, the Tytanian mumbled something under his breath and threw away his precious baton onto the surface of the water. Upon seeing this, Fan Hyulick reached out and pulled Lieutenant Mahdi to safety. There was an immediate sound. It wasn’t a word of thanks, but metal clanging.

“What’s that!?”

“Can’t you see, Admiral Hyulick? Handcuffs.”

“I saved you from drowning! And that’s how you repay me? Aren’t you the one straying from the path of righteousness?”

The lieutenant swept his wet hair back while making a pose.

“Ah, the grumblings of a loser are such a pain to listen to.”

“You ungrateful bastard…!”

Gazing at Fan Hyulick’s face, which had gone white with fury, Lieutenant Mahdi suddenly broke out in a familiar smile.

“Let’s think of a way to reconcile moral principles with worldly success. I’ll take you to the Count’s mansion. Then I’ll receive the reward money and let you escape. How about that, Admiral Fan Hyulick?”

“Who would fall for such a scheme?”

“You’re a man without any trust. Look into my eyes. Do they look like those of a person who would deceive others?”

“Don’t go around telling jokes from the Stone Age as if you were boasting about it!”

Was there not a single decent person on Ementhal? As he pictured Lira’s grandmother’s face, Fan Hyulick groaned. That he described as “comfortable” such a depraved planet with such a problematic human environment was proof that his ''naiveté'' was sweeter than cheap artificial sweetener. He couldn’t help but blame himself.

“Well, if you can’t trust me, I don’t have a choice. As reluctant as I am, I’ll have to do what you can imagine.”

Speaking with brazen insolence, Lieutenant Mahdi tugged at the handcuffs’ wire. It was thin but sturdy, and as Fan Hyulick was dragged along, he had no choice but to walk along as he felt the bitter frustration of being unable to curse his nemesis to death.

Lieutenant Mahdi made no attempt to call his colleagues. It appeared he intended to claim the bounty and all the glory for himself. Right as he began striding triumphantly along the canal, something stirred in the shadow of the warehouse.

A sharp thud echoed, and Lieutenant Mahdi’s body was sent flying into the air. As the young, unconscious officer hit the ground, the figure in white clothes that had knocked him down with a single punch hoisted him effortlessly onto their left shoulder. It urged Fan Hyulick, who was standing there dumbfounded, to come forward, as if scolding him.

“Hurry and follow me. It will be a pain if the Tytanians find us. I’ll take off your handcuffs later.”

The figure was almost as tall as Fan Hyulick but broader and more substantially built. It was a woman. She had two enormous mounds on her chest and short chestnut-coloured hair. She could hardly be called a beauty, but her face, illuminated by the street lamps, had a lustrous and strange quality that gave her an almost endearing charm.

Feeling as if the wind had been knocked out of him, Fan Hyulick followed her when he suddenly realised something as he asked the most basic question.

“Who are you?”

“Didn’t Lira tell you? I’m Miranda. I used to be the princess of the Principality of Casabianca.”

The giant woman laughed heartily, and for some time, Fan Hyulick was unable to close his gaping mouth.