Saturday morning, Sylvia had told the group to meet her in front of Ariam Miscellaneous Products and Processing workshop first thing in the morning to pick up her order. The snow was falling from the overcast sky as the group waited in front of the workshop where workers hauled crates of soap bars out, loading them onto a hover platform that Sylvia had purchased cheaply from a second-hand shop. 

"What's next?" Drew asked leaning against the shop wall as he watched the final crate was being placed on top of the platform. 

"We're going to head off to the slums to sell these," Sylvia replied brushing her hair back.

Wan walked over to the neatly stacked crates and flicked one of them. Her eyes looked as though they were going to pop out of their sockets. "We're selling all of these?" 

"Correct," Sylvia answered snapping her fingers together. 

"How so?" Elias gestured. "Don't we need a permit or something?" 

Sylvia smirked, placing her hands on her hips before giving Elias her response. "Nope, it's the slums. The authorities don't regulate that area so we can set up a stall somewhere there." 

"Any idea where that would be?" Rider asked putting a hand in his parka's pocket. 

"The slum's marketplace," Sylvia replied. "Unlike most markets in the main city, the slum's marketplace is outdoors with most of the shops being people's homes or small stalls other residents and vendors have set up." 

"Is the marketplace on a specific street in the slum?" 

"Nope, the slums is the marketplace itself. We just have to find an area that is heavily populated so we can catch the most traffic. Probably, the Old Plaza." 

Everyone in the city knows what the Old Plaza was. The Old Plaza which is now occupied by the slums used to be the old Civic Center when Ozwarth was being constructed over two thousand years ago. As the city grew, the Old Plaza was eventually abandoned and the people from the slums, which was formerly outside of the city's walls and now serves as the city's dumpster, moved into it and built this massive shantytown that is now the current slums. 

"What are we waiting for then?" Drew said moving away from the wall. "We're burning daylight here so let's go. The Old Plaza is a good twenty-minute walk from here." 

>>>

The slums were even more miserable than Glass Road. Each makeshift home was constructed from old steel plates, rotten pieces of wood, tarp, even large rocks and were around twenty square meters each. Smoke flowed out of the rusted pipes that served as chimneys for some of these dilapidated homes into the cloudy sky. The narrow streets reeked of urine, which stained the snow a bright yellow, with occasional cigarette butts sticking out from the slush creating a terribly pungent scent that made Drew almost hurl. It was much worse than Yerburn. Way worse. 

Drew though his life was difficult on its own bust after strolling through the slums, Drew realized how fortunate he was. The residents looked frail. Some of them had severe birth defects or injuries, one man had two disproportionate legs while there were two ladies who seemed to be conjoined twins. That was not the worst of it. Kids were malnourished, their bodies akin to those of skeletons as their bones could be seen, their torsos were unnaturally thin. Some of them didn't have shoes as nasty purple frostbites could be seen on the soles of their feet, their flesh peeling off their bodies but the blood didn't flow, it froze. This was horrible but, unfortunately, it was the reality. 

In this world, where one's Genetic Abilities dictates their status, there are those who aren't blessed with Genetic Abilities nor Otrio and have to spend their lives scavenging the trash in order to make ends meet. Some even committed because they believe there was no hope for them, believing that by dying they could escape eternal suffering. However, there were some that believed there was hope if they worked hard. Yes, they might not be able to have the best life, job, profession, but at least they would be able to make it out of this hellhole of a place yet the chances of that occurring were quite a slime. It was a hard life for those who are poor. Drew understood that well, being in that position months ago. Sylvia understood that too which is why she wanted to do something to help those unfortunate souls. 

As the group continued making their way to the Old Plaza, Drew noticed the weird looks the residents were giving them. Compared to the residents, the group seemed completely out of place. They were well dressed for the season compared to those who could barely afford to buy one pair of shoes and a nice jacket. This made some residents angry as they assumed the group was there to assert their dominance, just like those wealthy kids from the upper echelons of Ozwarth who would occasionally come to the slums to vent out their anger or play dirty tricks on them. Drew understood their fears and their reason for distrusting people who come from the outside. All their lives, they have been oppressed by the public, shunned by them for being poor and dirty. What could they do about it? Society, in its entirety, is cruel. It's judgemental. 

"Those rich kids, here to terrorize us again." A middle-aged man spat. 

"They should just leave, it's a shame we can't beat them or else their families will come after us. We can't do anything about it." A hot-tempered woman said cracking her knuckles. 

"Let's just observe their movements." 

"I'm scared." Brix trembled as she clutched the nearest person's arm that so happened to be Rider's. Her nails making indents in his parka but Rider didn't seem to mind it and just ignored the sketchy looking residents. 

"It's okay Brix, they won't do anything to us unless we do something to them," Wan said in a low voice trying to calm Brix down. 

"I'm not sure...they're giving us scary looks..." She shivered as she saw from the corner of her eye a group of people following them from a distance. 

"They're just making sure we don't do anything." Elias sighed until he bumped into the hovering platform that stopped dead in its tracks.

"Sylvia," Drew began turning to Sylvia who had stopped in the middle of the road. "Why are we stopping?" 

Sylvia bit her lip, her eyes burned a bright crimson. Spinning on her heel, Sylvia grabbed a crate of soap from the platform and opened it, tossing the lid on to the ground, revealing the wax paper wrapped bars with Sylvia's custom made logo on its center, a flame enclosed in a circle, before running over to the crowd that was following the group. The snow on the ground melting with every step she took. 

"Sylvia, what are you doing?!" Wan asked watching her place the crate down in front of her, the residents staring at her with confusion. 

"What is this?" One of the residents asked looking at the crate that Sylvia had put on the snow-covered road. The other residents nearby gathering over to watch the scene before them.

"It's soap," Sylvia replied with a serious look on her face. 

"Don't lie to us!" Another resident spat, letting his spit fly near Sylvia's foot. "It's probably poison! Krausian Hemlock!" 

"Miss," Sylvia began folding her arms. "If this were Krausian Hemlock wouldn't you guys have all fallen on the ground by now?" 

The resident flinched, she couldn't think of a way to retort to Sylvia's statement. 

"How do we know you aren't lying?" An elderly resident asked. 

"I'll prove it to you," Sylvia replied, her eyes burning even brighter, picking up a random soap bar from the crate, tossing it into the air as she took off her gloves. "Wan, come over here." 

Following her instruction, Wan came over, watching as the residents gave malicious glares. She felt a chill run down her spine but it disappeared as Sylvia placed her hand on her shoulder. 

"It's okay." She reassured her she opened the soap bar, the white waxy substance was unveiled in her hands. "Create some water in the palm of my hand, don't worry about it freezing." 

Wan nodded gathering blue Otrio particles in her hand and condensing them in a ball that hovered above her hand. The ball took shape and a transparent liquid became visible, it ball-like shape deforming as Wan passed the ball into Sylvia's hand. As it made contact with Sylvia's hand, the ball exploded and the transparent liquid spilled all over her hands, droplets of it spilled onto the frozen grounds. Taking the soap bar in her hand, Sylvia lathered her hands together allowing the soap to bubble up, the white solid sliding between her delicate fingertips but what shocked the residents wasn't Sylvia's proof that the soap bars were safe but Wan who created the water bubble simply out of nowhere. 

"A Genetic Warrior!" One resident murmured. 

"What do you expect?" Another resident said. "These rich kids are able to afford Awakening regiments so it's not unexpected for them to be Genetic Warriors."

Meanwhile, Sylvia had finished washing her hands with the soap. Tilting her head, Sylvia gestured to Wan to create another water bubble that allowed Sylvia to wash away the soap that coated her hands. The stream of water that flowed from the bubble removed the soapy substance from her hands. There were no tricks played and everyone could see everything. 

"Do you believe me now?" Sylvia asked wiping her hands on her jacket.

"I still don't believe it!" The obnoxious female resident spat. "That water the girl used could have healing properties!" 

"No, it didn't." The elderly resident said silencing the female resident. "And that soap is just ordinary soap. There's nothing wrong with it either."  

"You-" She gritted her teeth, her face becoming ugly as the crowd dispersed, granting the elderly resident the spotlight. The man had a long gray beard and a bald head similar to a monk. He held a wooden cane in one arm as he gave Sylvia a warm smile. This old man seems to be the leader of the slums. 

"Girl, what is your name?" The elderly man asked, placing his cane in a mound of slush. 

"Sylvia, 39th Princess Sylvia Burnstone. May I ask who you are?"  

"She's a P-princess?!" The female resident stuttered. 

"Magnus Halford." The elderly man responded. "You could say I run things here in the slums. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Princess." 

"Why did you help us?" Sylvia asked.

Mr. Halford stepped out from the crowd taking slow steps towards Sylvia who had continued to keep her ground. 

"I saw something in your eyes girl..." He began. "That moment when you came over to confront my people, I saw a glint in your eyes. A glint that signified something good. Something that would bring change to our miserable slums. Something good. Confidence?"

"Mr. Halford, how were you able to tell that the water didn't have any special properties to it?" 

"Girl," He laughed, "I may be old but my eyes don't lie. I see everything, even the truth itself." 

"Were you a Genetic Warrior in the past?" 

"Not exactly." He trailed. "Not exactly..."

Sylvia looked at him with curiosity. She didn't quite understand what the man was thinking, his mind was clear yet it seemed like an abyss. It was similar, similar to someone else she knew. 

"Anyhow, we'll be on our way. Sorry for making everyone feel a bit apprehensive. I understand why as past visitors have caused problems here." She apologized, bowing to the crowd. 

"No worries, if Mr. Halford says everything is good, then it's good. His judgment is trustworthy." A male resident replied. 

"That's right!" Another one chimed. The crowd surrounding the group erupted. It seems all their worries have been dispelled with the appearance of Mr. Halford, demonstrating how much trust the residents have in him. 

"Where are you heading off to?" Mr. Halford asked. 

"The Old Plaza," Sylvia replied before pointing with her thumb to the crates. "To sell these." 

"Girl, how about I take those off your hand?" 

"Huh!" Sylvia's eyes widened. "Now?"  

"Why of course. How much are you selling these for?" 

Sylvia's face brightened up. 

"There are about 5000 bars of soap in here. Each bar cost a Kala fifty pence. If you want to purchase all off it, it would cost 7500 Kalas." 

"That's rather cheap girl. You're selling it at less than half the price than those convenience stores. Very well, I'll pay you upfront for all of it." 

"Okay, thank you so much." Sylvia thanked as Mr. Halford waved to some of the residents to help remove the crates from the platform. 

"No worries. You are the first person here to sell hygiene products for such a cheap price. Some of the vendors here sell it for nearly the same a market price. You have made a 'luxury' here a commodity." 

"I'm glad to do so. If you'd like, I can continue supplying soap here, for the same price of course." 

Mr. Halford chuckled. 

"Gladly, whenever you have a new batch, come here to sell it. We'll welcome you here from now own." 

"I will." Sylvia nodded handing her hand for Mr. Halford to shake. He accepted, transferring 7500 Kalas to Sylvia's account. With that, another deal has been sealed. "Thank you for your patronage." 

"I should be the one thanking you, Princess. I'll tell you how the soap works in a few days." Mr. Halford smiled releasing his hand from Sylvia's. 

"Thank you." 

>>>

"You reckless Princess!" Wan shouted punching Sylvia as the group exited the slums. "What would've happened if Mr. Halford wasn't there?!" 

"You had us all worried there," Drew said as he tipped is messenger hat. "You're seriously going to get yourself into a lot of trouble in the future." 

Drew was the last person to be saying that knowing how much trouble he had brought upon himself in the past two weeks. 

"Thanks for your concern. To be honest, I wasn't even sure what was going to happen. My body just moved on its own and there I was, standing in front of that crowd proving that we weren't there to cause any harm." 

"I think my heart might not be able to handle this if this goes on." Elias sighed placing his hand over his heart. 

"Haha," Sylvia laughed. "You might as well prepare yourself. There will be more instances like this in the future." 

"I don't want to know..." Rider muttered listening to the conversation. 

"Me neither." Brix agreed. 

"Forget about that. At least our goal has been accomplished earlier than expected." Sylvia smiled. 

"What's next?" Drew asked. 

"We wait a week. Also, do you have the ingredients list I asked for?" 

"Yes, I do." Drew nodded pressing the send button on his holographic screen. "I just sent it to you right now. You can obtain all of these ingredients at a local Alchemy store or second-hand medicine shop. They don't need to be high quality nor quantity. A little of these can go a long way once I produce the extract." 

Sylvia grinned looking at the ingredients on the list. It was not that long, only five or six ingredients which were quite common in Alchemy.

"Good, that means we can cut costs slightly while improving the quality of our product. I'll have these ready for you by tomorrow. How long does it take to make the extract?" 

Drew shrugged.

"Not that long, only about twenty minutes. Once I have the ingredients, I can give you the extract the same day." 

"That's great. Then for next week, once we have our results from the slums, we'll head back to the Viridiana then we'll head over to the Marigold Hotel right after. I'll rent a truck out that we can use so that we don't have to use suitcases." 

"That'll be of great help. It was a pain dragging those suitcases around." Drew laughed. 

"Your just weak." Sylvia snickered. 

"What did you say?"

Sylvia whistled spinning on her heel. 

"Nothing. Let's head back."