Chapter 1: Fifteen Years of Blood and Sweat
"The terminal doesn't make mistakes, Liu Xin. Your ticket is gone. Now take your little burden and get out of the administration hall!"
I stood at the alloy counter of the Centaur Branch of the Interstellar Development Bureau, my fingers digging hard into the cold surface. Traces of heavy-metal grease from the underground reactor, impossible to wash off, still clung beneath my fingernails. Manager Wang sat behind the counter. He wore the silver uniform of a Level Twelve employee. The Development Bureau badge on his chest had been polished to a gleam, its reflection stabbing my eyes.
"Manager Wang, that can't be right." I fought to keep my voice from trembling. "I've spent fifteen years
