24. Penniless
The moment we stepped outside, the oppressive heat of Tropical Night City gripped Jinri and me, making us forget the stifling air of the ruins.
Yet, the summer uniforms of Tropical Night High School softened that pressure. Their flawless craftsmanship steadied our hearts like perfect armor, granting us the strength to endure the tropical night. Jinri, too, showed no signs of irritation, walking with a cool expression.
We started moving.
Nothing begins unless you take action.
As we walked, I wondered if Jinri felt the same.
A strange sensation overtook me, as if the uniform, not my CPU, was driving my body.
It was a pleasant reversal.
As if the uniform were the master and I its servant. Welcoming this fresh feeling, I entertained the idea of intentionally halting my thoughts and surrendering to the uniform.
With that in mind, I called out to Jinri.
"Where to next?"
Snapping out of her enchantment with the uniform, she regained her usual calm and answered, "The border of Tropical Night City."
She continued, "Our story isn't over yet. The police are after us, and more importantly, Yura, you're running out of time, right? You need to leave this city and see the sun, or you'll die."
"Right," I said, as the fog of memory loss cleared.
"I have to leave this city, or I'll break down forever."
I spoke deliberately to the uniform.
"Did you hear that? I'm going to die soon. If I die, you won't be worn anymore. You don't want that, do you?"
It felt like the uniform tightened around me in response, almost resonating with me.
"So, let's hurry. Out of this city."
We picked up our pace and broke into a run. Like during the waltz, the uniforms' elasticity and ease of movement were exceptional. The expertly crafted fabric resonated with my body's actuators, creating a sensation as if electromagnets were spinning more smoothly.
Jinri matched my pace with ease, her high-performance humanoid robot capabilities keeping up effortlessly.
It felt like we could run to the border like this, but feeling alone wouldn't cut it.
"We'll probably need a way to travel," I said.
Jinri replied instantly, "Bus or train?"
"Public transport, huh?" I nodded. "Which one gets us to the border faster?"
She calculated for 0.02 seconds.
"A limousine bus goes straight to the border but stops at other places, so it's a bit of a detour. The train is faster in terms of the route, but transfers are a hassle. Honestly, I'm not great with trains. If we get on the wrong one, it could be bad."
"Then let's take the train," I decided.
"Wait, did you hear me? I'm bad with trains," she protested, genuinely reluctant.
"That's exactly why you should take it—to overcome that fear," I teased.
"Ugh, Yura," she said with a wry smile but nodded in agreement.
The uniform seemed to sway lightly, as if approving our decision.
With the train chosen, we headed to the station.
At the station, we tried to buy tickets for the Mirage Line 1 to the border, but a problem arose. Our entire fortune had crashed again, converging to nearly zero.
We were essentially penniless.
"No money at all. What do we do?" I asked absently.
Jinri thought deeply for three seconds, searching nearby information via the station's Wi-Fi before answering.
"There's a casino in the station."
"A casino…" I tilted my head. "But don't you need to be a foreign humanoid robot to get in?"
"Humanoid robots trying to leave for a foreign country can enter," she said confidently, having already checked.
I reviewed the data she sent via hologram and nodded.
"Right. Since we already consider this city 'foreign,' we can get in."
"Exactly. Let's go."
"But," I continued, "even if we want to make money at the casino, don't we need seed money to start playing?"
"That might be okay," Jinri whispered, her voice tickling my auditory sensors.
"Our uniforms could probably serve as chips."
"Right."
Decision made, we headed straight for the casino.