In a certain bar in Dalniy Manchuria, Ruthenian soldiers from the four branches of the military, which are the air force, navy, army, and coastguard were singing boisterously. The bar was filled to the brim with bursting with drunken men and women all celebrating one thing or another. One man stood at the bar with his arms crossed looking around for something important and not finding it. He grumbled as he looked back down towards the bartender who was busy mixing something that looked like an alcoholic drink.


    "Have you seen my pen? I believe it fell somewhere over there." The bearded man pointed towards an empty space on the counter. The bartender turned around and shook his head.


    "That''s sad then. Oh, how careless of me, I was writing my daily entry in my diary, and yet here I am drooping for my lost pen." His friend patted him on the shoulder.


    "What''s with the long face?" A feminine voice asked out of nowhere, making both men turn their heads and look up. A woman who couldn''t be any younger than 25 years old smiled at them kindly while waving.


    "Oh, Mingzhu," the man recognized the girl who called him. "It''s nothing, I just lost my pen." The man waved her off. She nodded as she sat next to him.


    "You know, Major Leonid, you shouldn''t wear that gloomy look especially when your country won the war. Is that pen really that big of a deal? Then I''ll let you borrow mine."


    Mingzhu handed Leonid her pen.


    Leonid grabbed the pen from her and spoke. "Thank you," before writing in his pocketbook.


    Ye Mingzhu, a Hanese girl whom he bumped into while he was walking to his office. Coincidentally, they were heading to the same destination and decided to walk together. The reason being is that Mingzhu is looking for a job to support her siblings. He thought that time would be thest of them seeing one another until her employer rejected her. Feeling lost, Leonid gave her fare money and advised her to look for jobs in Dalniy as there are a lot of opportunities there. She took his advice to heart and went to Dalniy, and there the god of luck smiled upon her andnded a job at a coffee shop where Leonid usually goes.


    Not only that but since she''s a Hanese citizen living in Manchuria, she was given a choice to be a citizen of the Ruthenian Empire, which she dly epted as bing one will bring a lot of perks and benefits to her. For example, she will have protection from deportation, immigration in the region of Manchuria has been strict since the annexation due to the influx of immigrants flooding the region in search of a better life. Second, by bing a Ruthenian citizens, her siblings will also be granted Ruthenian citizenship. third is the eligibility for work on government jobs, which is something a Ruthenian citizen has been exclusively enjoying. Fourth is the ability to vote. Fifth is the freedom to travel across the Ruthenian Empire without having to deal with travel restrictions. They also have the opportunity to seek the help and protection of Ruthenian Embassies and Constes abroad in the event of a personal crisis or civil unrest.


    Other benefits of having citizenship arewful permanent residents, working and paying taxes in the Ruthenian Empire, andstly a right to join public benefits and programs.


    A lot of former Hanese citizens have received their citizenship through this method, and they were quite lucky as hundreds of thousands of Hanese aren''t given the same choice.


    "What are you doing here, anyway?" Leonid asked a concerned toneced his voice. "You shouldn''t be going out at this hour and going into this establishment, it''s dangerous you know?"


    He was right and she knew that well. She knows that discrimination and segregation are still rampant in Manchuria. Even though they already received citizenship and a right to call themselves Ruthenians, there are still those who can''t approve of that easily.


    "Well I will be okay since I have you by my side, am I right?" Mingzhu teased. She saw him blushing lightly under the dark lighting of the pub''s interior, her smile grew wider.


    "I still can''t get over the fact that you can speak Ruthenian fluently," Leonid looked at her with a slightly shocked reaction, his face still flushed red.


    "With enough determination, a person can get whatever they want. Though I appreciate it, I still have a long way to go. Rutheniannguage is difficult I must say," Mingzhu admitted as she put her hands on the counter in front of her. "Two shots of vodka please," she ordered the bartender. Leonid, on the other hand, remained silent and scribbled in his pocketbook.


    The cheers and rowdiness of the Ruthenians reveling inside the bar grow louder and louder as the alcohol continues to take effect on them. Suddenly, someone tapped his shoulder lightly.


    "Lieutenant Leonid, fancy seeing you here."


    The man stopped writing in his small ck journal and looked up at the man who spoke to him. He recognized the man who tapped his shoulder. There''s also another man standing next to him.


    "Major Petro? Oh, I didn''t expect to see you here either, thiste at night."


    If his memory serves him right, Petro was a pilot of an Aletina Super Heavy Bomber that bombed Busan port.


    "Who is that person standing next to you?" Leonid asked.


    "Ah, this is Major Leon, a fire control officer of the Air Battleship Perun. He participated in a lot of military operations essential for crippling Yamato ground forces..."


    "Nice to meet you," Major Leon extended his hand to shake his hand politely.


    When Leonid was about to reach for his hand, Leon took back his hand as he noticed a girl sitting next to him. "A Hanese woman huh?" there was a hint of disgustcing his words.


    Leonid raised his brow. "Excuse me?"


    Leon sighed exasperatedly. "I thought this bar is off-limits to the orientals? Why is there a Hanese woman sitting next to you? Hmm...I think I know what''s going on here, she is chasing you for money, isn''t she? Fucking dirty."


    The atmosphere between Leon and Leonid instantly changed when Leonid said that.


    Mingzhu looked down and bit her lips as she felt her ears burn with shame.


    "Major Leon, this is the first time we met but I already don''t like you. How dare you speak that way to my friend here?"


    "Friend?" Leon scoffed again and looked at him with contempt. "You are humiliating the real Ruthenians from those words alone."


    "She''s not Hanese, she is Ruthenian."


    "A fake Ruthenian," Leon corrected. "And there''s a lot of them roaming around here."


    "Okay this is getting too hot," Major Petro stepped in and started pushing Leon away but he didn''t budge.


    "You are really getting on my nerves," Leonid''s voice grew low. His eyes gleamed coldly.


    Petro held onto Leon''s shoulders. "Come on Major, the man is ourrade, you cannot cause a scene here, or else you will be reported. You don''t want that don''t you?"


    Leon smirked. "I''m just worried about ourrade here. Well, I don''t have the mood for drinking anymore since this bar has been infested by Hanese, let''s go."


    "I apologize for Major Leon''s behavior. Please forgive him."


    Both men walked away from them and exited the pub.


    Leonid returned to his seat and ced a hand on Mingzhu''s shoulder. "Don''t let his words affect you, alright?"


    "Thanks," she said quietly, still feeling guilty.


    "Don''t worry, I won''t allow it. Don''t mind what he says, if I hear anyone say anything hurtful towards you, you can rely on me to stand up for you," Leonid said firmly.


    Leonid''spassionate words made Mingzhu blush slightly with a smile gracing her lips. It was probably the kindest words she had ever received from a Ruthenian.


    "We should go, there might be others here in the bar who behave like that jerk," Leonid stood up and extended his hand for Mingzhu to grasp.


    Mingzhu took it and stood up as well and headed out of the pub with Leonid. Outside, Leonid sighed irritatingly when he saw the Major who disrespected Mingzhu.


    "Oh, look at these two, walking out of the bar like a fucking couple," Major Leon mocked them. rtionship. He turned to Leonid. "Could it be your new girlfriend? That''s disgusting."


    Leonid watched him leave in disbelief, anger starting to build up inside of him. He turned towards Mingzhu who seemed nervous and embarrassed.


    "Wait for me here, I''m going to have a talk with him," Leonid told her before heading in the general direction of Major Leon and Petro.


    "Oh, here ourradees...Gugh..."


    Leonid punched him squarely in the face before he could even react.


    "You fucking bastard!" Leonid roared, "I warned you to not speak to her that way!"


    Leon''s body fell down on the floor, unconscious.


    "Lieutenant? What the fuck did you just do?!" Petro fumed.


    "He is talking to my friend here like she''s trash. So I punched him to put him in his ce."


    Mingzhu stood frozen in ce, unable toprehend the sight before her. In all honesty, she couldn''t believe her eyes, after thinking of Leonid as a sweet gentle guy, this ispletely different than she expected. Leonid had gone beyond his typically calm demeanor.


    "Mingzhu,e over here," Leonid beckoned.


    Mingzhu ran to him.


    "Major Petro, if he wakes up, tell him that if I hear him talking shit again, I will personally beat him to a pulp to the point he''s not going to move that joystick around," Leonid threatened.