《Elysium Mist》


 Chapter 1 - RUN!

    Huge trees sporting massive crowns enveloped the sky allowing sparse light to pass through.


    Lush and overgrown vegetation filled the area. The forest floor looked dark and haunting.


    Within this Ancient jungle, an eerie silence was felt as animals seemed afraid to come out in the open.


    The silence was abruptly ended by the rustling of a bush within the undergrowth.


    A figure suddenly rushed out of the bush dashing within the jungle.


    Moments later, multiple figures followed after, jumping out of nearby bushes and chased after the figure who was running ahead.


    The chase has been going on for miles with the pursuers not giving up even after losing dozens of their members. In fact, it seemed to have just made them more aggressive.


    The prey of this chase was indeed quite unfortunate to have caught their attention.


    When passing by a clearing in the forest, sunlight cleared up the shadows around the dark figure running away from his pursuers.


    The figure turned out to be a young man holding onto his waist which was dripping with blood. He was panting heavily while his face twisted in pain as he ran for his life.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Glancing back for a second, he saw the figures still chasing after him.


    Despair started to creep on him as he felt his chances of survival slipping out of his hands.


    Quickly rummaging through his satchel, he had no luck in finding something that could help him escape this predicament. His mana was also depleted so he couldn''t even scare them off. His condition accurately represented his health and stamina. Near bottom and declining steadily.


    He was starting to lose hope of surviving out of this before faces of those he held dear started appearing in his mind.


    Looking over everyone smiling at him rekindled his hope. He had to somehow survive it. Not just for himself but more so for them.


    Though that hope was soon crushed when his foot got tangled with a root and he tumbled down to the ground.


    He tried to roll back up to make a run but making a harsh crash into a tree stopped that venture completely.


    He attempted to sit up but could only manage to lean on the tree with his back. He had probably bruised another rib or two in that crash as he could feel a dull pain in his chest.


    Numerous growls snapped his attention to the encroaching group of those monsters.


    ''They would probably like to have a piece of him.'' The young man thought while chuckling dryly at his disastrous situation.


    He likely wouldn''t be able to survive today. But getting eaten alive didn''t feel like the most comfortable way to die.


    Just overloading his body and exploding it from inside out looked a much better option.


    Thinking about it now, the last few months would be considered tame compared to his current situation.


    If someone told his past self just a year back that the world would be destroyed and he would have to fight monsters, he would have just ignored that person thinking it was nonsense.


    The entire thing just happened suddenly and gave no time to properly react to the people. Thinking about it now, he was quite lucky compared to others in his circumstances.


    Recalling the event that was the trigger behind it all.


    He could remember that scene clearly even now,


    It all started that fateful day.

 Chapter 2 - A Fine Morning

    Early morning, birds flew around and chirped bringing melody to the quiet surroundings.


    Inside an apartment in one of the residential buildings of the city.


    A ray of light flashed through the curtain of the room on the face of a boy, sleeping without a care about the world. The blanket was lying on the floor kicked from bed during sleep.


    ''Beep .... Beep''


    ''Beep .... Beep''


    ''Beep .... -''


    The alarm clock goes off but is not yet noticed by the boy.


    Slowly, the volume rose till it is ringing in his ears that he reluctantly got up and stopped the alarm.


    He was still feeling sleepy as he was up till late at night reading novels and watching videos. Rising out of bed, he searched for his slippers. Upon not seeing them in sight, the boy made a helpless face and bent down slowly to search under the bed.


    After finding his slippers, he pulled them out & wore them. Then, he headed towards the washroom.


    He walked like a drunk stumbling all around till he finally reached there. While brushing his teeth, he looked into the mirror.


    There was a 19-year-old youth in the mirror with above-average looks and black hair. He was light brown in complexion and was considered tall among his peers because of his height of 183 cm and was a tad bit overweight at 92 kg but he looked fit enough in clothes. Even though he had a bit of stubble, it only accentuated his looks giving him a rough edge. This was Noah, an ordinary student at St. Michael''s High School.


    After freshening himself up, he reached for his specs and put them on. He was myopic with -2D in both eyes. At this moment, Noah seemed to have remembered something and hastily went for his SA(Smart Assistant). He checked the date and upon realization, went into a panic.


    24th August 2069


    07:12


    Today his class had a presentation and he also had a part in it. They were told to arrive early at 7:40 because the assembly starts at 8:00 and he forgot all about it because of his disinterest as well as his minor role in it.


    He had no interest in being a monkey in front of his classmates but his class teacher wrote his name in the group, insisting he needs to participate in such activities despite his reluctance. He even told them to work hard on it.


    "Hard work, my ass. Come on, does he seriously thinks anyone listens to the crap that students copy-paste out of Google and Wikipedia for weekly presentations." Noah sighed in frustration.


    He then got ready in a crazed manner. Using deodorant in place of a shower, he was now dressed up. All that''s left was breakfast, so he made a jam sandwich in a rush and munched down on it. Then putting his laptop and necessities in his bag, he made a run towards the street while locking his apartment through his Neural Interface(N.I.).


    Upon arriving at main street out of breath, Noah called the nearest autoEV through N.I. and jumped into it. He directed it to go to his school campus. Noah then sat comfortably to the side plugging the earpods around his ears and scrolling iTube using his N.I. trying to enjoy the 15 min ride to the school.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    .....


    The World has changed a lot over the past few decades while at the same time not much has changed in general. Poverty is still there, wars are still going on in some corners of the world and Flat Earthers are still present in the general populace. But it''s not as if nothing has changed. Humanity has formed a colony on the Moon as well as Mars with the latter declaring itself independent just 6 years ago.


    Science has made many breakthroughs opening up fields like quantum computing, anti-gravity engine, nuclear fusion, room temp superconductors, and the likes of it and bringing their applications to common people in the form of GWS(Global Weather Surveillance), free electricity, Neural Interfaces, Commercial Spaceships, AI capable of selective evolution, LIVE Games - A new genre of games with massive worlds similar to reality in complexity and interactiveness and many more such inventions.


    This led to ushering the world in a new age making humanity a type-1 civilization according to Kardashev scale harnessing a total energy equivalent to the entire energy on the Earth.


    Medical technology also had many breakthroughs making artificial organ cultivation and transplantation of vital organs such as lungs, kidneys, and heart feasible and commonplace. Genetic diseases and cancer are now curable albeit at expensive costs through nanotechnology.


    Life extension is now possible through stem cell regeneration allowing people to have an average lifespan of above 100 years and maintaining their physical fitness at older ages resulting in retirement ages increasing by a decade on average.


    But Technology didn''t just bring joy and prosperity with it. Due to increased life expectancy, the population steadily declined through the years and also brought with it a new era of war-BioWarfare.


    With every country shifting to this new cost-effective option and rising tensions between the countries, it was only a matter of time before something unforeseen happened.


    And it did.


    On 28th December 2054, a new strain of bio-virus now called as "BlackDeath" virus was supposedly leaked from one of the top-secret research facilities of a Bio-technology MNC in Africa. The aftermath of the virus resulted in approximately 470 million direct deaths devastating the entire world with the indirect death toll to be estimated at around a billion.


    Countries dissolved overnight. Almost everyone lost at least one of their family members. No single country could escape from its effects. Fortunately, the virus data could be directly obtained from the MNC, and within 6 months and through the combined effort of all countries, the virus was contained. According to scientists, Humanity could be on the brink of collapse if they were late by a year.


    All senior-level staff of the corporation was charged with a crime against humanity and the company was abolished but this gave humanity a rude wake-up call leading to global protests in hundreds of millions which forced the governments to sign the ''Bio Weaponry Handling Act(BWHA)''.


    This Act restricted the study of Bio-weaponry on Earth and any research with risks of the same magnitude as of the ''BlackDeath'' virus was only to be held on the moon in isolated facilities. This pandemic also brought about huge political changes with the merging of many countries.


    It also led to the birth of the Earth Federation in 2055 with continents as well as subcontinents assigned as different zones and districts with different governments and the reshuffling of the entire political landscape.


    Noah was one of the many children who was orphaned by this event and has been living in an orphanage till he was 14 and afterward was able to live alone with help of government welfare schemes.


    He had above-average intellect with a few introvert tendencies. It was not that he didn''t like to socialize. He just liked to socialize more with people of similar interests. That''s why he was an active person in many forums and communities related to novels, anime, and iTube in sharp contrast to his almost asocial behavior in school. He was also a geek interested in tinkering and making various stuff.


    He got enrolled in St. Michael''s High School, a prestigious school in the district with a scholarship due to his intellect, and was in the 2nd semester of the second year of high school. Noah led the average student life, there was nothing unusual or out of the norm in his day-to-day activities. To be fair though, all of that could be attributed to him being a low-key nerd.


    .....


    Noah saw the school was near so he closed all his devices and put away both his nanopods and SA in the bag.


    The EV stopped near the entrance gate and Noah got off after paying the fare. Looking at his school, Noah thought, ''Another boring day at school. There''s really nothing interesting going on around here.''


    Walking through the campus, Noah had no idea that these few days were the last in his life with some semblance of normalcy.


    And the entire world is going to go through a massive upheaval in the upcoming days.

 Chapter 3 - Last Day of School

    Walking through the hallway, the school was quiet. Only a few students and staff were there in the entire school.


    Noah enjoyed the serenity while appreciating the greenery around the campus. The thing he liked most about his school was not the huge campus neither the facilities, well, he did like them but in his opinion, it all faded in front of flora around campus.


    It was like a different world past the entrance gate. Away from the crowd and noise of the city.


    Eventually, he reached his classroom and entered it. Taking a glimpse at the entire class, he could see all the members of the presentation group had arrived and were discussing among themselves essentially making him the last to arrive.


    As he placed his bag, his deskmate and best friend, Shaun called out to him. Shaun was a boy of above-average height and an athletic build standing at 176 cm. He had chestnut-colored hair and fair skin. He always had that cheerful smile on his face which sometimes gets so annoying that it makes you want to punch him in the face. The fact he was somewhat handsome in features only encouraged him more to try sometimes. Noah and Shaun had been classmates and best friends from the first year of high school.


    "Morning, Noah"


    "Morning"


    "What''s with the lazy response. How late did you sleep last night?"


    Giving a long yawn, Noah said.


    "I went to bed at around 2, I guess. I don''t really remember"


    "Which tags were you watching? Tell me about it, heh." Shaun said with a smirk.


    "Why do you always think about hentai. Just because you are addicted to it, it doesn''t mean I am." Noah replied with an exasperated look.


    "Who are you kidding? Just the other day, you were boasting about having watched dozens last month."


    "Okay, Just a bit. Not like you who gets withdrawal symptoms if you miss a single day of watching one."


    Both the boys started smiling. The reason they became best friends was because of their similar interests and hobbies. They hit it off the day they talked to each other for the first time and now they prided themselves as ''fellow men of culture''.


    "Why are you boys giggling like creeps over there. Come and help the group prepare."


    Their conversation got interrupted abruptly by a high-pitched voice. They turned to look towards the busybody. In their line of sight was a tall girl of height 175cm. She had a slender body with developing curves. She was brown-haired and had a light complexion. She had a cute face though it was ruined by her frown as well as stern gaze with which she was looking at the two boys. Her name was Ava, appointed leader of the group as well as monitor of this class.


    Ava was the clich¨¦d role model of the school. Good in sports as well as studies on top of having a cute face and good body. She was like those Madonna of school shown in anime until the day we found out about her secret. Okay fine, it was technically not a secret as anyone who spent enough time with her knew her ''hobbies''.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Yes, you guessed it. She was a full-fledged nerd showing completely different personalities in school and elsewhere. We were amazed to see this sight straight out of fiction, so obviously we had to talk to her and she instantly became one of our go-to friends to talk about all sorts of stuff.


    "She really keeps up with the act, doesn''t she?" Noah whispered to Shaun.


    "Yeah, doesn''t she get tired? It is tiring for me to watch her." Shaun replied in response.


    "What are you two whispering to each other? Hurry up, there isn''t much time left." Ava said in an annoyed tone.


    Seeing her like this, both of them wasted no time and went straight towards the group. As they were there just to fill the numbers and had almost non-existent roles, they helped others practice and do some small tasks.


    Just like that, a couple of minutes went by.


    "Okay, we are done. Now all that is left is to do the real thing. Try to not slip up and relax- "


    Just as Ava was done encouraging the group, a sharp bell rang throughout the school signaling the time for morning assembly.


    "It''s time. Let''s go." Taking the lead, Ava walked towards the campus with the group following behind her.


    Just after exiting the main building, there was a pavilion used for morning assemblies. There was a small stage in the front from where they had to address the entire student body today.


    Moving up the stage, they immediately started testing the equipment and adjusting them accordingly.


    After they were done with it, they just had to wait.


    As the minutes passed by, more and more students arrived and within 5 minutes, the Pavilion was filled up with the students in lines corresponding to their sections.


    Without further ado, they started the assembly and it went smoothly without a hitch.


    In the background, the sun was rising and the sky changed from an orange hue to vibrant blue. Clouds were rolling across the horizon.


    A myriad of different sounds from vicinity mixed to form a euphony.


    It was as if the world was waking up from its slumber and in the process bestowing vitality amongst its inhabitants.


    Eventually, the assembly ended and students started going back to their classes. Noah and Shaun were also heading back chatting along the way.


    "Hah, never really thought speaking in front of this many people would be so nerve-wracking." Shaun sighed in relief.


    "Oh, is this your first time doing it? thinking about it, I had never seen you participate in such activities. Well, it is then given you would have some stage fright." Noah said in an amused manner seeing his friend so relieved.


    "Well, what about you, huh? I don''t recall you participating in any function in the last two years." Shaun replied embarrassedly.


    "Unlike you, I had prior experience in debates, extempore, or whatever shitty thing similar to it because of my guardian. She would ''insist'' I participate in such activities as it would help me ''grow as a person. Instead, I only grew to hate it more to the point I decided to stay away from it altogether in high school." Noah explained bitterly.


    In this manner, they reached the classroom and seated themselves in their seats. Then their class teacher Mr. Smith entered just a minute after everyone.


    "Good morning, Sir"


    Everyone stood up to greet the teacher in unison and then sat down after being told to do so by Mr. Smith.


    "Morning Class, today we would discuss arrays in neo python. Open your e-books to Ch-5..." the classes went on with the students listening to the teachers. Noah and Shaun were attentive during the classes only occasionally whispering and chatting. During the breaks, they went out to stroll around the campus snacking on their sandwiches bought from the canteen. They also hung out with Ava for a bit.


    The day went on like this till all the periods and after-school club were over and it was time to go back home. It was already evening and the sky was darkening by the minute.


    Saying bye to Shaun and his other classmates, Noah exited the school.


    Hailing an autoEV, he sat down and relaxed on the seat.


    Habitually, Noah started listening to music.


    He sat still with his eyes closed enjoying the music. Suddenly, a thunderous sound came from the sky echoing through the entire area.


    The EV went for an emergency brake and due to inertia, Noah hit himself in the head.


    "Ouch, what happened? what was that sound?" Holding the part that was hit, Noah grimaced.


    Gazing outside the window, the sight unfolding before Noah''s eyes made him stunned.


    This moment marked the beginning of change, Later known as ''Integration''.

 Chapter 4 - Starfall

    Looking above, Noah saw something unbelievable.


    The night sky which was empty every day due to smog was glittering like someone sprinkled sparkles all across the sky. It looked as if it was filled with stars to the brim.


    But focusing more, Noah realized that it was something else instead of stars.


    As he gazed across the sky, he noticed that these ''stars'' were increasing in brightness. Their intensity kept going up till it momentarily stopped.


    Just as Noah noticed the phenomenon and started wondering why it happened, the stars burst out with radiance which together formed a massive wave sweeping across the sky.


    It was so beautiful that Noah could not help but marvel at the scene.


    He was so engrossed that he failed to notice that the ''stars'' had started falling towards the ground. The stars grew bright tails behind them.


    He came back to his senses when the stars reached just a few hundred meters above the ground. Seeing this scene, his senses screamed danger and in panic, he went for his bag and made a run across the street. He rushed towards the nearest building for shelter.


    Though, before he could reach the building, he tripped on his own foot and fell to the ground.


    "Oh shit, not now. Of all the times, why I have to trip no-" While trying to stand back on his feet, he looked above and was shocked to see that those ''stars'' were just above his head.


    Another thing he realized was that they were slowing down in speed to the point they were essentially feather falling.


    Registering this in mind, he calmed down. Then his curiosity took over him as he tried touching one such ''star''. He extended his hand slowly and grasped one of them.


    It felt slightly warm to the touch. Even though he could feel it on his hand, it had no weight. It was quite a strange feeling. Slowly the ''star'' disappeared. Same for the others which fell on his body and ground. As the light was dimming gradually, Noah felt a slight tremble in his body and his heartbeat started growing.


    It continued for around half a minute with trembling increasing gradually before stabilizing and returning to calm.


    Throughout the entire duration, Noah''s panic increased by the second until he started considering something was seriously wrong with him, then the trembling started slowing down out of the blue and stopped completely a couple of seconds later.


    "What was all that, It was really unusual. Should I call the ambulance?"


    Noah was still feeling uneasy and waited for another 5 minutes before deciding he would wait till tomorrow and see if it recurs before paying a visit to the hospital.


    After the entire thing vanished and the area became lively again with noise, Noah chose to return to his apartment first and see the news to hear what the government & officials had to say about it.


    Rushing back to the EV, he hopped inside while it started and made its way towards his home. He was anxiously waiting while scrolling the news. There was no official response from the government yet. Apparently, it happened all over Earth.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.


    The news anchors had nothing else to say either. All they were saying was to not panic and possibly stay indoors in case it happens again.


    Within 10 minutes, EV reached home. Paying the fare, he made a run straight to his apartment, opened the lock, went in, and locked it back.


    Being back in his flat and seeing the familiar walls and furniture made him somewhat calm down. He quickly went for a shower and changed to his more comfortable pajamas.


    Sinking slowly on the couch, Noah recalled the incident.


    ''What was that, exactly? I don''t recall any such news about a meteor shower. Well, even if there was one, what I experienced was no meteor shower. Also, the government seems to have no idea about it. Otherwise, it would have made the headlines weeks before. I will assume it was completely unforeseen for now.''


    It was then that a broadcast by the government was announced and the news channel switched to the live press conference. A suited person which clearly looked a bit worn out was handling the conference. He was obviously just there to convey the message and without wasting any time, he went straight to the point.


    "This evening at 6:24 IST, a celestial event had occurred which is believed by scientists to be a cluster of cosmic waves passing through the solar system. The cause of this event is yet to be determined at the moment. Though, this phenomenon is deemed to be of little to no concern with the scientist pointing that the only source of worry is the radiation of the waves which is estimated to be between 50-100 rad. In consideration of the safety of citizens, all public activities for the remaining week are prohibited in case another such wave occurs. A curfew is imposed throughout the nation. Caution is advised when going outdoors in case of emergency."


    After conveying the message, the suited guy swiftly went down the stage and exited the room without taking any questions. Anyone could see that this conference was just a formality to pacify the public and to prevent panic. But most will be satisfied with this response. That''s the reality, people only care about something if it will kill you tomorrow.


    Watching the conference only increased the number of questions Noah had instead of answering them. ''The official is clearly trying to hide something. It''s as if every country came to a consensus not to say anything about it.'' Noah thought scrolling through news channels from different regions and seeing the same kind of response.


    Despite the official statement, Noah had a feeling that whatever happened today was not so simple and it was not based on something abstract like a gut feeling. He concluded that by touching the orb (what he calls the ''star''). It was definitely something out of the norm.


    But that''s it. However many conspiracy theories or suppositions he could think of, they were in vain. Because in the end, no matter how intelligent, he was just an ordinary high schooler. Realizing there was little he could do to find the secret behind it, he went to sleep frustrated.


    Noah tossed and turned for hours on his bed unable to sleep. He kept thinking about the orbs for some reason and couldn''t get it out of his head. Eventually, he went into slumber but what he didn''t notice was that his skin had started lighting up in azure as he was trying to sleep. It was the same color as the orbs.


    The glow even increased to a maximum when he fell asleep. On a closer look, his body was starting to slowly change by the moment with Noah being totally clueless about it.


    ...


    In a vast expanse of barren wasteland with sprawling mountain ranges


    Booom!


    A huge volcano burst forth in all its glory to bring devastation around the area.


    In the middle of this hellish landscape, a young adult was lying flat on the ground sleeping as if the destruction around him does not concern him in the slightest.


    The world seemed to realize his nonchalance as another volcano erupted. Though it failed to get the expected response as the boy continued to dream. This did not deter the world as the eruptions continued to the point that the boy was woken up by a shockwave from a meteor landing next to him flinging his body a couple of meters away.


    Thud...


    The boy woke up abruptly from the movement, his face becoming distorted from pain right away.


    After enduring waves of pain for dozens of seconds, he finally pulled himself together to take a look around him. What he saw was an apocalypse with eruptions all around him and volcanic ash swathing the sky.


    "WHERE AM I !!?" Noah screamed in panic finding himself in this nonsensical situation.

 Chapter 5 - An Unexpected Meeting

    Looking around, Noah found no end to the scenery. At first, he thought it was just a dream and he was sleeping. Then the pain made him realize it was not.


    Being in the middle of this doomsday-like place with volcanic ash and rocks hurling towards him, he was paralyzed with fear. Putting his hands up in a meager attempt to protect himself was all he could do in the face of his doom. He closed his eyes not being able to witness the scene.


    ...


    Suddenly the rumbling thunderous sounds came to a standstill and the expected impact didn''t come. Waiting for a few seconds before slowly opening his eyes, a shocking phenomenon unfolded before his eyes like magic.


    He saw the rocks and ash stopped with a meter from him. Surveying his surroundings, he confirmed it was not just limited to himself but the entire area. However, before he could take a step to analyze the reason behind it, the entirety of his surroundings quaked with the rocks and volcanic ash starting to move away from him.


    Upon a closer look, he realized that time was reversing back or at least it seemed to be. The successive events occurring were tampering with his psyche and he failed to distinguish if it was a dream or not. His logical side told him it couldn''t be anything but a dream but his instinct felt it was too real.


    Too real in fact to be based in reality. He doesn''t know if it made any sense but he could feel that he was not perceiving the world through his five senses but some other unknown sense.


    This unknown ''sixth'' sense was way powerful as he could perceive the entirety of his surroundings for long distances. He could even make out the texture and layout of the inside of volcanoes as well the eruption receding inside the volcano.


    Ultimately, the world became calm. The entire experience was too surreal for Noah and he felt that someone or something was behind all of it. He thought to try to look around and see if he can find any clues.


    The wasteland was dry and arid with mountains at regular distances. Moving around the expansive landscape, nothing seemed to stand out. Walking for several kilometers, he was eventually exhausted and sat down to rest. Just when he did that, there was a movement in the sky, the clouds churned into an indistinct form resembling a face and the next moment there was a loud and deep voice coming from the figure.


    "Lad, so it''s you who will inherit my lineage. Still, it doesn''t seem to be ignited yet and it''s quite shallow. Anyways, there''s someone who can inherit my lineage, that''s enough good news. We can sort other issues later on. Now, tell me your name."


    Hearing the sonorous and majestic voice, Noah was scared out of his wits. He couldn''t muster up the courage to reply to the titan''s face and was speechless.


    "Come on, speak up. I don''t have all day just so you know." The face urged but seeing no indication of Noah replying to the question, he spoke in disappointment.


    "Seriously, this alone scares you. I was expecting more from my inheritor. You are making things tedious for both of us. At least have the courage to speak up."


    Seeing the gaze from the giant face locked onto him, Noah tried to reply upon seeing he had no other choice or he could be in danger.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    "My n-name is Noah. Who a-re you? No, what are you exactly?"


    Noah could see a grin forming on the face as he was speaking. He was quite puzzled as to what this figure wanted from him. He had no recollection of any extraordinary or supernatural event occurring in his life so quite possibly it was related to today''s phenomenon. Still, he wasn''t sure of it with certainty.


    "Well, what am I, huh. Let''s just say for now that I am akin to a cosmic being, as saying anymore is restricted for me. Maybe later on when you grow enough, we can think about it."


    Listening to its speech, Noah was befuddled.


    ''What''s with this entity. Beating around the bush while in reality, it didn''t disclose any information about itself.''


    Noah didn''t need to think twice to see this was not a good situation for him but he couldn''t find a way out of this predicament. He had no choice but to drag this on till he finds some breakthrough.


    "What do you want from me. I don''t have anything noteworthy on me. Could you please send me back?" Noah tried to keep the scared facade to lower its guard against him.


    "I don''t wan-" The face interrupted him before he could continue.


    "Lad, don''t think of me as a mortal. Your mental fluctuations are not helping you at all. Your thoughts may as well be written on your face."


    Noah''s face became pale upon the realization that his thoughts were read and was fearing that it would be angry.


    "I have no reason to harm a mortal with no power. I am not so free to be indulging in such activities. Besides, you could do nothing even if I wanted to harm you. I am just here to offer a contract."


    It said in a nonchalant manner.


    "Contract?" Noah was quick to catch on to the keyword. He knew nothing and the only source of information was the smirking face hanging in the sky.


    "Yes, Contract. It''s the same contract you know just a bit more fantastical in a sense. Right, you should know how people signed contracts with devils & in case you are misunderstanding I am not a devil. I repeat, I AM NOT A DEVIL! Gosh- never would I have thought I would stumble upon a coward as my inheritor."


    It said in an exasperated tone. Noah''s face became so pale upon mention of devils that he could''ve passed off as a true vampire.


    "How can I trust you with your monstrous features? You look and sound like a demon."


    Hearing its words, Noah replied without thinking before regretting his words. He should have done it politely. He didn''t know its temper.


    "This is why I hate dealing with kids. Listen, kid, I am compromising this time just because you are the sole match found yet. Just don''t freak out and don''t act stupid next."


    Finishing its speech, the clouds rumbled and the face collapsed with a ball of bluish light emerging out of it. The ball started moving towards him and eventually landed in front of Noah. Slowly the curtain of light dissolved from the top unfolding the figure inside.


    "You-u are this-"


    Seeing the figure inside, Noah was in disbelief.


    "You acted no different than I was expecting from you."


    A pleasant voice came in reply. The voice came from the woman emerging out of the light ball. She looked like she was in her late 20s with a mature figure and was wearing strange cyberpunk clothes. She had a wheat-ish or tanned skin tone but the surprising thing was her height. She was freaking 12 ft tall. A literal titan standing in front of me. Though not being a beauty that could topple kingdoms, she would be nonetheless considered extremely beautiful. There was even a faint metaphysical aura emanating from her making her look otherworldly.


    The most striking feature was her eyes. They were mesmerizing. The sclera and iris formed a mystical black-red combination while the pupil was glittering with starlight in both her eyes.


    "Now, are you ready to talk?" The titan woman said seriously.


    "Yes, yes. But before moving forward, can I ask if I can decline the contract?" Noah was prepared to face every sort of monstrosity but what came out was her, but like who would expect a titan woman after facing that demon-like face.


    "What do you think?" the woman said narrowing her eyes. The starlight in her eyes increased by a notch.


    ''Gulp''. Noah could feel the threat on his life. She could probably obliterate him with no effort. He had no choice other than to follow her orders.


    "Besides this is for your own good. As you are right now, there is a very real possibility of you dying in a year or two." She said knowingly.


    "HUH!"

 Chapter 6 - Multiverse & Mysteries

    "What do you mean by I''m going to die in a year or two??" Noah was panicking really hard now upon hearing of his upcoming demise from this ''cosmic being''. He couldn''t figure out how the conversation shifted from signing a contract with this unknown entity to the declaration of his probable death in a few moments. But before he could organize his thoughts and question "her" about this, he was interrupted.


    "Just like I said, there was a very real chance of your death had the ''Integration'' continued in the same manner. Though you can relax as from the moment I had intervened you could say the possibility has minimized." The titan lady said to the confused mortal whose very expression depicted that he had no idea at all about anything she said and was now questioning his entire existence. Recognizing the confusion and helplessness on his face, the lady''s expression softened ever so slightly that without having his unknown sense which amplified his senses however manifold he wouldn''t have noticed it.


    "Now there are definitely many questions you want to ask but unfortunately or maybe fortunately we have limited time. Not to worry as you will get a general sense of understanding of what is happening tomorrow. You may ask three questions and I will try to answer as best as I can."


    Noah was slightly dazed from the bombardment of words that he couldn''t make sense of. The only thing he could glean at all from all that was shit had hit the fan and something bad, real bad is going to happen very soon.


    Seizing the only opportunity provided, he wanted to at least know the reason for his death so he could at least stay the hell away from it or him or her. At this point, he wasn''t able to think straight about all this and one couldn''t blame him as well as he was still a teenager. So, him being able to remain stable was a lot better than what most reactions would''ve been.


    "What can you tell me about the ''Integration'' you mentioned? Is it related to my death in any way? If yes, how can I prevent my death from happening? Is all of this somehow related to the event that happened a few hours ago? Is apocalypse arriving and the world is going to blow up or Don''t tell me- it''s aliens. Yes, yes, that right there is a very real possibility now that I think about it. Oh my God- I am so going to die very brutally...", Noah started pacing back and forth in the middle and began mumbling.


    [Calm down]


    Those simple words infused with something extraordinary were spoken by the titan and within a second he slowed to a stop and all the panic left his face to present a serene visage. After a few seconds, the titan began to respond to the questions seeing no relapse of the panic attack.


    "I am going to start from the beginning, so listen carefully and don''t interrupt in between cause there is not much time left for you to pester me to explain every little thing. Am I Clear? "


    Noah unconsciously nodded and couldn''t muster up the courage to refute her after seeing the display of mystical might once more.


    Seeing Noah being obedient, she smirked a little since she could feel the curiosity just oozing from him. Clearing her throat, she began her explanation.


    "Good, now where to start. Let''s just give you a general overview of the history of this Multiverse."


    Saying this, her gaze sharpened and her whole demeanor changed to a more solemn one. Unconsciously, Noah was infected by her aura and couldn''t help but straighten himself up.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    "The Multiverse hasn''t always been in existence. It slowly grew from nothing to the size we see today and every growth in its journey was accompanied by a certain event." The lady continued.


    "You see, what is happening to your universe is not unprecedented. Such events are rare but still occur aplenty when seen in the timescale of the Multiverse. Even I have witnessed over dozen such events. What is happening to your universe is what we know as ''Integration''."


    "Which literally means what it says, the integration of your universe on a cosmic scale to be part of the multiverse. This event involves the assimilation and reorganization of your universe into the main universe which is located in the central part of the Multiverse. Generally, this process requires at least 6-8 cosmic years which should mean just about 7-10 years according to you. It also is divided into multiple phases with each phase taking variable amounts of time with the phases tending to take more time with each successive phase change." she took a break in her speech seeing Noah trying to make sense of the knowledge she had just given and utterly failing to hide his fear of the repercussions of a cosmic event of such grand scale.


    Noah felt himself start breathing again and he didn''t even realize he had stopped breathing for the last few minutes. Was he even breathing right now? Noah wasn''t sure and he sure as hell did not want to go down that rabbit hole. He was grateful for the break, however short the reprieve was.


    Taking a deep breath or something similar to that, he calmed down somewhat. He realized there is no need for him to worry because there is nothing he can do to stop whatever she wants him to do for her. Better, he sees this from an outsider''s perspective and prevents himself from totally breaking down. Though he wasn''t he was if she would even allow him to break down with what she did just a few minutes ago.


    He needs to first make sense of what the hell is she saying and how much of that is true. According to her, my universe is joining the Multiverse or something similar in concept which could mean bad news. Very, very bad news. History is witness to what happens when technologically superior race and inferior race meets. It never goes peacefully and is generally very bad for inferior ones. However she may try to spin it, there is no denying the inherent danger that will fall upon this universe and subsequently humanity and eventually me. Ruminating over her words, he came upon the important fact that this event will take at least a couple of years before our universe is completely assimilated. So, at the very least, there will be a buffer period of a few years.


    But it isn''t enough. He needs more information before making any sort of conclusion. Thinking deeply, his eyes widened as realization dawned upon him that there was a crucial piece of information he was missing.


    "hmm-what wa-What was the trigger behind the ''Integration''? Surely, there must be a reason why this is happening, right?" Noah flinched making eye contact with the titan but he mustered up the courage to ask the question seeing her waiting patiently for him to speak.


    "I don''t know." The titan lady deadpanned.


    Noah was stumped hearing the answer and began feeling awkward. Before he could try to think about another question, she chuckled a bit and feeling his inquisitive gaze responded.


    "More accurately, I don''t know the exact reason why it happens and why it is happening right now. Generally, It is either that the population of sapient creatures or the mana in your universe crossed a threshold or maybe some other exotic reason. Though I lean towards it being a culmination of various factors combined that resulted in this event."


    Noah carefully analyzed every word spoken by her and was thinking of the various implications before a single word stopped his train of thoughts. Without realizing he voiced his thoughts out loud.


    "Mana?"


    "Ah yes, Mana, one of the fundamental energy ever-present in the multiverse and the most versatile and primal in nature. It is after all the energy binding the universe and shaping it to the current state."


    Noah was only paying half attention to her words and therefore didn''t notice the mischievous glint flashing in her eyes as she read his thoughts.


    ''Is Mana, what I am thinking it is. Or is it something entirely different?''


    "Yes, It is exactly what you think it is. The usual jazz, you know, used in slinging spells and bending laws of universe mana."


    Hearing her words, Noah''s face became blank.

 Chapter 7 - Vanadis

    Hearing her words, Noah had a multitude of reactions. First came wonder, then joy followed by annoyance.


    His thoughts went from knowing mana exists to the possibility of one day wielding it then thinking that he can''t even sense mana much less hoping to wield it. Unless there is confirmation he is capable of wielding it, it''s better if he doesn''t hope about it otherwise it will only depress him if he is found not capable of wielding it or being not talented or some other bs.


    Seeing him like this, the lady restarted her speech from where she left.


    "So, yes, Mana and all that related stuff are not really important right now as you likely learn all about it tomorrow. The really important stuff right now is for you to learn how to adapt to your new world and the challenges that come with it in the near future. An advice from me, cherish the next month of your life and try your best and hopefully, you will be able to survive till the next time we meet." She finished with a finality in her tone and looked straight into his eyes.


    "But what do you mean will happen tomor-"


    Feeling her gaze upon him, Noah stopped mid-way as he realized that he had finished his quota of questions. But he still felt indignant as there were even more questions in his mind than before this encounter. All this talk about universes, mana, danger in the coming future made him realize how helpless and weak he was despite knowing that he couldn''t likely do a thing about it even if he was the wealthiest or most powerful person on Earth.


    "So, Are you willing to accept my contract?" She asked in a dignified manner.


    "Yes, I am. Although it is more like I don''t have a choice. Before signing it though, can I know the specifics of the contract? I would really appreciate it if you do so.", Noah spoke calmly. The reason behind his calmness was all the discussion he did with the titan made him conclude that she was at least reasonable enough to withstand the presence of a heretic mortal who wasn''t prostrating in front of its majesty and she most likely wasn''t going to harm him at the moment.


    "Well, The contract is basically me offering my bloodline as well as blessing in exchange for part of your records. Just remember the contract heavily favors your side and your records are just to complete the deal with them serving no purpose other than validation of the contract. As for records, I can''t discuss it, all the previous talk with you was already stretching the restriction. Don''t worry. You will learn about it on your own. Just know that acquisition of your records isn''t detrimental to you."


    Digesting all the information, one question came out on top. Why was she doing all this? There was no benefit at all on her side except a part of his records. Though he doubted his ''records'' were anything significant or important compared to her ''bloodline'' and ''blessing'', those are important sounding words. He wasn''t so delusional to believe that he was some main character with destiny or hidden power. Neither was he naive to think she was doing this out of the compassion of her heart. Not getting anywhere with this, he shoved it in the back of his head and decided to think about it later.


    "How will we complete this contract? Is there something I need to speak and sign on some paper?"


    "Merely giving your acceptance is enough. We are not doing any low-level contracts. It''s a high-grade soul contract between two parties." she finished and closed her eyes for a moment and opened them a few seconds later.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    The light present in her eyes was the brightest he had seen yet and slowly she spoke the words.


    [ Are You Willing To Accept The Contract ]


    The words came out slow but powerful with deep tones behind each and every word feeling otherworldly.


    "YES, I am willing." Noah was prepared and replied in confirmation.


    He kept his eyes peeled open in anticipation but a dozen seconds passed and nothing happened. Just as he was going to question her about it, the world suddenly shifted and Noah felt disoriented as if the axis of the world itself was tilted. He stabilized himself after a few seconds and looked towards the titan lady.


    Meeting his gaze in intensity, she declared.


    "It is done."


    "Just like that." Noah was skeptical as he felt it was a bit lacking. He thought it would at least involve some flashy lights and explosions.


    "Just like that." Though the lady was obviously having other thoughts.


    "What now?"


    "Now, you return back from where you came from."


    "How?"


    "Look around yourself." she said turning her gaze to a distant horizon.


    Following her gaze, He saw a white curtain of light erupting and enveloping the world slowly encroaching their sides.


    Gazing back at her, he saw her doing the same. Both stood in silence for few seconds before Noah spoke up.


    "This isn''t a question or anything. but just for curiosity, what would have you done if I had refused?"


    Not breaking the eye contact, a smirk blossomed on her face.


    "You would have gotten back the same. Do you really think If I have to choose someone to give my bloodline as well as my blessing, I wouldn''t have done thorough research on him. You were chosen not just because of your compatibility and talents, but mostly because I like your personality."


    Hearing her praise him, a similar smirk crossed Noah''s face unknowingly.


    "Though, it is still a bit rough on the edges and needs some real help in the willpower department. Also a bit of a narcissist..."


    Every word of her was dealing blow after blow on his ego. His smirked wiped off ages ago and replaced with an ugly face gazing at his feet in shame. He was about to erupt in a fit of anger before hearing her words come to a stop. Looking upwards, he looked towards her to see a cocky smile sporting her face. His anger resurfaced at this humiliation and he was about to lash out before he was interrupted again.


    "All that said, I know the person I have chosen. And it''s no fun if you get a perfect package from the get-go so your flaws are just a plus in my opinion. Moreover, technically you are now part of my bloodline. So, um-what was the saying again? yes, You may be an asshole, but you are my asshole."


    Noah felt his ego getting boosted back to the normal level and was about to thank her when-


    "And it isn''t like I cannot just take back my blessing when you start annoying me."


    She said while shooting another smug grin at him.


    ''Seeing her face made me just want to punch her. Alas, the world doesn''t work on my wants. I knew she was just playing with me, but something about her expression and her words just seemed to annoy the hell out of me. It was like she knew just the buttons to get a reaction out of me.''


    Seeing the curtain of light approaching its end brought me out of it.


    Looking at her once more, he didn''t know what came to him but he spoke before he could reflect further on his thoughts.


    "Thank you" He told sincerely and for the first time ever, he saw the lady taken back by his words as if she didn''t expect it at all. But before he could gloat on his small victory, her expression shifted back to normal. His face showed utter disappointment at not being able to seize the opportunity fast enough.


    "Since you at least hold the common decency to thank your benefactor for their generosity. I should at least give you a gift in return." the lady stated sarcastically.


    "Remember not to get arrogant as you are just one of many who will get blessings from higher beings and there are plenty of people as talented as you out there in the world. As for my gift,..."


    The curtain of light was moving to cover them both. She hesitated a little at the end. Seeing her hesitation, Noah became slightly impatient and urged her with his gaze to continue on as there was little time left.


    Her gaze sharpened on his urging and what little hesitation was there dissipated like mist. Steeling herself, she stated


    "Remember It Carefully Noah, My Name Is-"


    The curtain of light enveloped the world.

 Chapter 8 - Quest Completed?

    The rays of dawn passed through the curtains. Noah was lying on his bed face front. An alarm rang out jolting him from his deep sleep. Peeling open his eyelids, he stared at the ceiling.


    He had a dazed look upon his face as he kept staring for good twenty seconds before registering his surroundings. Sitting upon his bed, he felt his body energized accompanied by a fleeting sense of mental exhaustion. The kind you have when you have just completed your first session of high-paced gameplay and beat the shit out of your opponents. The feeling of energy overpowering any semblance of exhaustion.


    He was just ready to begin his morning routine by habit before last night''s dream hit him like a truck and he stood up straight with a sharp look. Organizing it all, he sighed before finally mumbling something.


    "Vanadis..."


    Noah was unsure whether to believe in his dream or not. He wasn''t even sure if it was even a dream. It was all too extraordinary in the sense that it felt disjointed to him. He never had been a dreamer and all the dreams he could remember (almost none) had been a mess he couldn''t make a sense of. So the fact that he could remember the dream exactly with apparently no gaps and could even recall the words he had spoken and heard from her were ringing alarm bells to him.


    From where he could see, there were only two conclusions. Either he was seriously mentally ill with unknown afflictions (''cause who the hell dreams about signing a contract with a higher being and remember it afterward with absolute clarity'') or the worst-case scenario where whatever he heard from her had been mostly or at least partially true and his world is on its way to get assimilated into the multiverse. For the first time, he was perfectly fine with the thought of being labeled as mentally ill by others since he couldn''t imagine what would happen to his life in case he isn''t. After all, there was no way this ''Integration'' stuff would happen quietly without anything going boom.


    Having no other source of information to confirm the truth, he was willing to believe that what she said was true for now. Now comes the important question, what should he do with this information? As there is no way he is going public with it. Authorities have no reasons to believe in his ''delusions'' while there will be plenty of reasons for them to stuff him somewhere else to fix those delusions.


    Most importantly, he was low on time with it happening today as per her statements. Speaking of her, he remember the last bits of conversation that happened as he tried to recall what exactly had happened for him to go out of his way to thank her when he didn''t even know her intentions behind approaching him beside her own words. He couldn''t quite put a reason behind his actions ever after scrutinizing the entire conversation. He moved towards his washroom on habit while continuing his thought process. Looking up, he peered at himself in the mirror. He was looking quite energetic today. Especially his eyes without the usual dark spo- Wait a minute.


    Her Eyes.


    Noah''s eyes widened as he realized now why he did that. He recognized those eyes. How could he not when he had the same look on his face for years. Though he could somehow feel that her experience was incomparable to his to the point it would look insignificant. He also realized why he was so fast to put down his guard in front of her. In spite of the bravado she put on, the moment they signed the contract he could somehow feel her emotions. Not very clearly, but enough that he could make out her general mental state, and what stood out the most were two emotions.


    Loneliness and Resignation


    He couldn''t understand how she looked so fine when even a fragment of her emotions made him recall his worst days in his life where no one was there to help him and he was just wasting away until ''she'' came to save him. Feeling his increasingly depressing mood, he jolted himself out of his thoughts and put them back to look at the more serious problems. He needed to at least contact his friends and inform them about the situation. He wasn''t worried about whether they would believe him or not. It was just situationally better to be together in case of an unknown disaster.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    Pulling out his call list from SA, he dialed the number of his best friend. Hearing the call being picked up, Noah started speaking.


    "Shaun, yeah, there was something I need to discuss. Yeah, it''s really urgent. Can you call any of our friends who can come by quickly? I am also on my way...."


    ...


    In a Dimension present in the far reaches of reality. Located at the edge of Multiverse


    The entire dimension was empty except for a single celestial object. Or more aptly put a Celestial Being. Without any frame of reference, it was difficult to gauge the enormity of the being. But those in its presence would have felt the raw power coursing through its body and would have immediately realized its identity.


    Those Beings stood at the top of the pyramid in the Multiverse along with Gods, Dragons, and Transcendents.


    Titans


    If Noah was here, he would have recognized her as the titan lady he had made a contract with and whose name he now knew. Vanadis. Though he would have to try really hard to make the connection as she looked way different than before. She was not in her clothes but was covered in some sort of hard armor. Her skin showed veins glowing and coursing with mana. The only consistent feature present was her eyes. They glowed with even greater intensity than before.


    She would have looked mostly fine if not for the numerous translucent chains binding and piercing her body. The chains seemed to phase in and out of reality with them disappearing for a moment and appearing at another from time to time. Even though the chain seemed to pierce her body, there was no sign of any injury as though their target is not the body but something deeper and hidden.


    There was no sign of movement from the titan until suddenly her eyes broke out of the haze and gained clarity. With it came literal soul shredding pain to which she showed no outward reaction except for a minor frown.


    ''Well, that''s done. didn''t expect that to go so well. I was hoping it to take some more time. Though, That Noah was an interesting fella. Is it just because he was the first person I have interacted with in eons or some other reason. I should think about it later. Important matters come first.''


    She then focused her thoughts and uttered in her mind.


    ''Status: [Quest]''


    [Quest: Legacy of Titan {Completed} - With the upcoming Integration, new talents and powers will come into play with plenty of opportunities arising. Pick your own Chosen to carry the Legacy of Titans and present it in the new world.]


    Main Objective: Grant a Blessing to Your Chosen. Offer a Titan Bloodline to your Chosen.


    Bonus Objective: Offer your own Titan Bloodline to your Chosen


    Rewards: Restore Access to Akasha


    Full Soul Recovery (Bonus)


    Seeing the message floating across her eyes, she yelled out loud inwardly since she was still not able to move. Sensing deep inside herself, she could feel both her soul recovering back to original as well as her connection to Akasha fully restoring instead of a fleeting thread of a link she had before.


    ''Those bastards wouldn''t have seen this coming ever. Haha, even I wouldn''t have thought of this. Who would have thought this Integration would get me such a quest. These types of Quests are a normal occurrence in every Integration.''


    ''It was the bonus objective that really threw me off. It literally increased the reward by orders of magnitude. Maybe it is because of my current status. Akasha always likes to offer difficult quests in such desperate scenarios since it provides much better records than normal. ''


    A familiar smirk appeared on her face as she felt power resurging and flooding her body. Though that soon changed into a frown when the chains attacked her soul with renewed vigor. Analyzing the situation in-depth, her expression was covered in gloominess.


    ''At this rate, It would take centuries for me to weaken the reality chains enough to try to break out of them. Even then, it would be a matter of chance. Argh, why couldn''t it have given a body recovery along as a bonus. It would have made things so much easier.''


    Grumbling in frustration in her mind, she tried to think of different solutions to tackle the problem but they were either uncertain in nature or too time-consuming. She was almost exhausted out of ideas until she felt a certain newly formed link attached to a central part of her soul. She felt a crystal lamp went on in her head.


    ''Could that be possible? I mean, yeah, It is a feasible plan. But it would be really reckless and bold.''


    ''...''


    ''...''


    ''Yeah, I love reckless and bold.''


    Thoughts started churning out at breakneck speeds that would have left supercomputers in dust. These thoughts coalesced into ideas that together formed the outline of a concrete plan for the escape of the Era.

 Chapter 9 - Survival Tips 101

    Shaun''s Apartment 9:36 am


    "So, you are saying that the world is ending and no one knows about it except you. Also, you were given this information in your dream by a God, am I correct? " Ava said stoically.


    "You are grossly oversimplifying things and there are many inconsistencies but in general, yes, that is what I am saying." Noah sighed looking at his friends disbelieving faces or more accurately Shaun''s face since Ava wasn''t letting a single emotion out.


    Well, he couldn''t really blame them since if he were in their position, he would have first checked if they were playing April Fools on him. Though that would be a futile endeavor since they were well into August. Regardless, his first thought wouldn''t be to panic after learning that the present society and world is doomed. He would obviously question their sanity first.


    "Noah, I don''t mean to sound rude but have you done drugs? You are not really helping your case even if you haven''t with all your talks about the apocalypse and whatnot." Shaun added in a very oh-so-helpful manner.


    Noah rolled his eyes upon hearing of his ''supposed'' consumption of drugs.


    "Look, I know it sounds all crazy and I wouldn''t hold anything against you for not believing me. But just for a day, no, a couple of hours, just entertain my ideas. You don''t have to believe me. Just help me prepare a bit in cas-"


    "Hey, I would definitely like to believe in you if you just for a second come back down to earth. If I were not your best friend and was habituated to join your fantasies, I would have called the cops on you from the very moment you walked into my flat with your "doomsday gear"."


    "Come on Ava, don''t just sit there, let him have it. Tell him how crazy he sounds right now." Shaun said with an exasperated expression and then looked towards Ava for follow-up.


    Instead, he was left ignored with Ava looking daggers at Shaun for ten long seconds before she opened her mouth.


    "I am Crazy"


    "Ava, I know I look like a crazy right now but just try to lis- Wait. what did you just say? " Noah stopped mid-speech upon registering her statement. He had a confused look on his face and seeing Shaun exhibit the same expression made him realize he wasn''t hearing things.


    Both of them were just waiting for Ava now to clarify what she meant by that.


    "I am saying I believe what Noah said is true." Ava said while looking like she was starting to doubt her own existence for agreeing with him aka ''crazy person''.


    "what?" "What!" Both of them had the same response albeit with very different tones.


    "Ava, I didn''t expect you, of all people to agree with this bastard. And here I thought Noah was the craziest I had to face today."


    "I am not telling you that what he says is completely true. What am I trying to say is that he may have a point." Ava explained seeing the incredulous looks adorning the boy''s faces.


    "What point, if I may ask. You may as well tell us instead of just letting us hanging here with no clue." Shaun sarcastically replied in kind.


    Ava had a pondering look on her face as she tried to lay out her thoughts slowly.


    "The thing is, I would have had the same reaction as you if it were any other day. Except it isn''t. He wasn''t the only one who had a weird dream last night."This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    "What do you mean? " Noah couldn''t help but voice out his question. He knew he wasn''t the only one who had an encounter like that according to ''her''. He just wasn''t expecting to meet someone like that so soon. Especially with that someone being Ava whom he knew personally.


    "Although I didn''t have an encounter with a God with the said god offering me powers to combat some unknown forces of evil" She said amusedly looking towards Noah who responded with an eye roll at her choice of words.


    "I did have some strange visions. Though they were not particularly clear and were fragmented in nature."


    "What did you see in those ''visions''?"


    "Now see here is where it starts to get weird. I saw us three in a medieval town wearing medieval-looking clothes eating medieval-looking foods." She said seriously looking at both of them.


    "Was there any more medieval-looking thing you forgot to mention?"


    Words dripping with sarcasm came out of Shaun''s mouth. But somehow it failed to get noticed by Ava or maybe she herself was well aware of how ridiculous the whole situation was.


    "It just gets even weirder. The next vision involved us three moving in a jungle decked in leather gear with swords, bows, and arrows. Then it jumps to us hunting beasts and bringing it back to the same town."


    "So you are saying that this dream you had of us living the ideal ''medieval'' life is somehow related to the dream he had about meeting a god and being told that the world is ending?"


    Again his words were ignored which just incensed him further.


    "If it was just those visions, I wouldn''t mention it here. The weirdest part of it all is that I somehow, someway know my visions are from the future." Ava said with such utter confidence that if what she said little less crazy, they would have truly believed her.


    "So, right now I am here sitting here with two people out of which one formed a contract with devil face who is apparently a titan, in his dream and other is a seer getting visions from the future, also in her dream." Shaun said with the most exasperated look he had ever seen him with.


    "Should I be worried that I am the only one left out of this fever dream trend? All that is left now is for you two to join together and start summoning devils and doing witchcraft." After saying this, he got up to get away from the two crazies and went straight to the kitchen to prepare his breakfast since he was exhausted by the nonsense those two were spewing nonstop.


    Whilst preparing his breakfast, he forgot to ask if they were also joining in. Heading back to his living room, he stopped in his tracks right at the entrance.


    His left eyebrow twitched at the sight of Noah and Ava whispering to each other nonstop with an almost fanatical look.


    Wanting to have nothing to do with those two he turned back at the very moment, but before he was halfway out he heard the dreaded voices.


    ""Shaun""


    A chill went up his spine hearing the tone of their voices, he slowly turned back to face them.


    "Yes?"


    ""Help us, please!"" Both of them requested sincerely.


    Seeing those two, he knew with a single look that they were adamant about this and thus left with no choice, he sighed in resignation.


    "Fine"


    Both of them cheered like children at their win. Noah waved to Shaun to get closer.


    Moving towards them, Shaun asked the obvious question.


    "What is the plan?"


    "We follow Survival tips 101" Noah answered back after sharing a glance with Ava.


    "Do you mind detailing what these tips are since some of us aren''t prepared enough to deal with a zombie apocalypse or nuclear doomsday."


    "Ava" Noah offered Ava the opportunity since she was clearly the better speaker out of those two.


    "See, there are three things we absolutely need in such situations. Food, Shelter & Clothes. We have the Shelter part completed as we could just use mine. It is more spacious and is frankly a much better option location-wise. We can just prepare Food and Clothes right now. Thankfully, Noah has come well prepared." She said while pointing at the travel backpack and shopping bags placed on the couch.


    "Now all we have to do is help you and I get packed up, then we hole up in my mansion and wait it out."


    "That''s your plan. Holing up in your mansion while looking like we packed for a vacation."


    "I mean, there isn''t much else we could do. We don''t have enough information. We don''t know when and how is it going to happen. Only a vague confirmation that it is going to happen today."


    "Fair enough. But be sure to remember that this is the first and last time I''m going along with your whims. If nothing happens, I won''t be joining you again in the future acting like preppers. Understood."


    They nodded back. Though all of them knew those were just empty words, they acted as if it was the first time Shaun said something like this, without showing any indication at all that this kind of scenario had happened dozens of times before.


    "And before we start, We are having breakfast. You two should quickly join me at the table." Shaun stood up from his seat and headed back while beckoning to the duo.


    The trio headed towards the kitchen to have their last meal in the old world.

 Chapter 10 - Here it comes!

    A couple of hours later...


    Ava''s Mansion 12:37 am


    An autoEV stopped in front of the mansion. The doors opened in unison to reveal three teenagers packed to the brim with travel gear. From an outsider''s perspective, it looked like they were going on a vacation.


    They had headed straight here after taking a stop at Ava''s apartment for her own packing.


    "Why did it took you so long just to get the extra stuff? I thought we were in a hurry."


    "Noah, I am not going to give excuses for my wrongs. But before pointing fingers, remember that ladies have their own needs."


    "Guys"


    "Does that include your makeup kit and all your other fancy toys. And don''t you dare try to deny it, I saw you giggling while packing those away."


    "Guys!"


    "What do you mean by that? Just because we were in a bit of a hurry, you thought I would leave them behind."


    "Of course, That''s what it means to be in a hurry. You leave less important stuff behind."


    "GUYS!! Can You For A Moment Calm Down and stop bickering like kids."


    ''Why am I doing all this? There is no reason for me to be here. I should have just refused back then even if they would have stopped talking with me for a while.'' Shaun thought while looking at them both glaring at each other.


    Eventually, they calmed down with both of them realizing they were wasting away precious time arguing with each other.


    The trio started moving towards the mansion carrying all their luggage with them.


    Moving ahead of the boys, Ava unlocked the mansion''s main gate and entered with both of them following after her.


    Walking on the stone path, Ava introduced the building to both of them seeing their curious looks.


    "This is my parent''s holiday mansion. We lived here when I was young but after they got busy managing the company they hardly ever got the time to visit home. So, at the start of my high school, I decided to move out to my apartment."


    "WOW, I knew you were rich, Evergrad Foundation being world-famous and all but seeing this brings it to a whole new level." Noah said in awe seeing the massive mansion in its entirety for the first time. It was a high-class modern mansion with 2 Floors, a pool and a garden included. The whole thing just screamed luxury.


    The most surprising thing was its location. It was near downtown. Moreover, we were in the district capital. The real estate prices had a tendency to start ballooning the closer we move to downtown.


    He couldn''t even imagine the cost of buying such a mansion in the middle of the city. It must have cost stupid amounts of money. He was looking all around before suddenly freezing all of a sudden.


    He fixed his expression quickly seeing Ava shooting him a smug look.


    The trio headed into the mansion and dumped the luggage on the couches. Settling down, they relaxed for a moment.


    "Anyone else coming?" Shaun asked.


    "Everyone we contacted was either too busy, out of town, or couldn''t be bothered to join us. Regardless, we have informed them to bunker down for today. We have already done our part. Now it''s up to them to follow our advice." Ava said while rummaging through her stuff in search of her phone.


    "What about your parents, Ava? Have you informed them to at least stay at home for today?" Noah asked seeing Ava fiddling with the phone.


    "Yeah, I did that hours ago. Though I doubt they would listen to me and take a leave from the company. What about you two, you both have guardians, right?"Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!


    "Same here on my end. I doubt she would take a leave from her nurse duties." Noah responded.


    "Mine''s not answering. I have messaged just in case. Though I think he doesn''t need any help. Guy makes a living through survival shows. There is nothing new we can provide that he doesn''t know already." Shaun said staring at both of them.


    Without looking up from her phone, Ava asked.


    "What?"


    "Now what?" Shaun questioned seeing both of them busy with their phones.


    "We wait." Putting his phone down, Noah answered instead of Ava.


    "Till when?"


    "Until we are sure" Saying this, he sprawled on the couch and became busy with his phone again.


    Shaun couldn''t be bothered to care seeing that they both didn''t care. So same as the other two, he took out his phone to watch some content to relax. He deserved some rest after all.


    ...


    1:31 pm


    Looking at the time, Shaun asked the two lazy bums watching the cinema on the home theater.


    "Remind me again, why are we doing this?"


    Both shared a glance urging the other to speak up.


    Noah eventually conceded under the stony glare of Ava and had to answer.


    "We couldn''t quite get into agreement on whose plan was the best, so we both decided to take a step back and agreed on a common plan, which is to prepare for the worst-case scenario for the possibility of losing contact with society at large. Though there aren''t any obvious signs yet which would give us confirmation such as power cuts or internet shutdown."


    "Are you satisfied now? Cuz I don''t see any telltale signs and you would think the world would end with a bang." Shaun was tired of this whole charade and wanted to go back and enjoy the weekend.


    "Just a few more hours, we won''t disturb you again. We just want to make sure."


    "I''m not so sure about this. I have already wasted my morning and by the looks of it, you lot are going to hold onto me the entire day." Shaun caught onto their scheme and was getting ready to ditch them and called for a ride back to his apartment.


    "Hey, hey, wait a bit, we can discu-" Noah stood up to persuade Shaun but was interrupted by a blue screen appearing in his vision.


    [Initializing...


    Procedures check...


    Systems check...


    Beginning Integration in ... T-60 seconds


    Standby for Teleport


    59..58..57..]


    They were broken out of stupor by the countdown flashing before their eyes. It took them a few seconds to skim through the contents of the message. The trio eyed each other and nodded with serious faces.


    "GO!" Noah yelled and hell broke loose in the room with each of them rushing for their stuff. Items flew across the room as each of the trio hung their own backpacks and tightened the straps.


    Within 30 seconds, they were standing as ready as possible in the center of the living room.


    "All set" Noah said holding onto the straps.


    "I took as much as possible. All the other stuff was either too big or too heavy." Shaun being the most athletic of the trio had more stuff on him.


    "Everyone, be careful. When we move to the other side, try to find each other first." Ava said with a worried look.


    "Just in case, hold onto each other. We may be transported together." Noah reached out with his hands while giving the idea.


    Everyone got closer and hold their hands. As soon as they did so, new details popped up on every screen.


    [Local signatures detected nearby...


    Checking willing participants...Found


    Teleport reconfiguration


    ...


    Mass Teleport in T-13 seconds]


    "It''s confirmed. We''re going in together." Ava tightened her grip which they reciprocated.


    8..


    "This is literally out of the world." Noah said slightly anxious.


    5..


    "See you on the other side."


    3..


    "Here it comes!"


    2..1..0


    Their figures of the trio were covered in blinding light as the timer reached zero and within a second they disappeared along with their baggage.


    The whole Earth became much quieter all of a sudden.


    ...


    In between two valleys rested a medieval town surrounded by forests on all sides.


    A river passed through the middle of the village dividing into two parts, filled with aquatic life of both mundane and mystical variety.


    The river meandered throughout the entire forest bringing vitality to the landscape.


    The town was bordered by a fortified wall of wood and stone. Watchtowers were placed at regular intervals along the wall with archers on the lookout. Smoke was billowing out of various lodges while carriages led by all kinds of beasts moved through the town transporting various goods.


    The whole scene looked straight out of fantasy.


    Today was a bit special for the residents. The whole town was gathered near the town center. The main junction of the town was kept empty while the residents kept watching as if waiting for something.


    Indistinct chatter rang out as the whole plaza was suddenly engulfed with light. The light died down in a moment with thousands of people now occupying the empty plaza.


    Among those thousands of people, there was a very peculiar group of three standing in a circle holding hands with each other. They were each loaded with baggage.


    The trio being Noah, Ava and Shaun.


    Looking at their new surroundings, their eyes widened. Their bodies went taut due to being put in an unfamiliar environment with strangers everywhere.


    Noah being the tallest of the trio stood up on his toes to catch a glimpse of the town. Seeing the medieval buildings, his brain short-circuited for a moment and he said to Ava half dazed.


    "You were right."


    "About what?" Ava couldn''t see a thing from her height.


    "About the whole medieval thing."


    "Really?" Shaun interjected while still being confused by the entire event.


    Suddenly, Noah jerked back to stand normally and said with a grim look.


    "I just had a stupid thought."


    "What now?" Ava was irritated at his lax attitude.


    "We just got Isekai''d" Noah deadpanned.

 Chapter 11 - Training Arc?

    "Ow, you don''t have to hit me so hard" Noah said while clutching his waist.


    "You were being an ass" Ava snorted and looked away.


    "I didn''t even get to say we didn''t meet truck-kun." Noah had the annoying smug face on. Ava got ready to punch him in the face this time.


    "Back off you two, do this later." Shaun as always had to step in as the mediator.


    "Sure"


    Noah continued seeing his friends losing some of that tense look. "You both calmed down enough?"


    "All thanks to you" Ava huffed though her eyes showed slight gratitude.


    "Why are you chill about all this?" Shaun had an inquisitive expression.


    "Believe me when I say that experiencing the dream last night made me slightly immune to crazy stuff happening around me. This doesn''t even come close to it." Noah shrugged.


    "What do you think about the situation?" Ava said while eyeing the others with caution.


    "They seem to be in the same situation as us." looking at the people around, Shaun continued. "They collected quite a group from around the world. I can see Caucasians, Africans, Asians and even some tribal people just from a casual glance around."


    "At least, we don''t seem to be in immediate danger at the moment. We have to quickly find a source of information. We can''t be sitting ducks here." Ava added.


    "The buff guys up there wearing knight cosplay armor seems promising. Who am I kidding, those are definitely real knights." Noah pointed in a direction in which the trio turned in shortly afterward.


    There was a massive three-floor manor in that direction. The walls were adorned with glass windows. In the middle of which was a huge balcony. There was a podium placed there with more than a dozen knights wearing shiny armors covered in intricate designs posted on both sides of it.


    A knight with even shinier armor having more intricate designs emerged from within the manor and headed straight to the podium with swift steps. He was followed by a man wearing a luxurious dress covered by a robe.


    The knight said some words to the noble(?) who nodded and waved his hands to most likely signal him to speak. As a few moments after that, an explosion sounded out. Those who didn''t keep an eye on the knight would have likely missed him but the trio clearly saw him punching his fist up in the air and air rippled out around his fist creating a sonic boom. On closer look, they saw his fist covered in some sort of yellow aura. Their eyes widened at this display of might.


    The plaza suddenly quieted down with everyone turning towards the source of the explosion. Seeing that he had everyone''s attention, the knight took a deep breath declared with a booming voice.


    "WELCOME VISITORS, TO THE ERANGEL TOWN!" Hearing the loud voice all of a sudden, people were startled and started murmuring with fear slowly permeating the atmosphere.


    "CALM DOWN. AND NO ONE SHALL BE HARMED." The knight repeated his previous feat which was surprisingly quite effective to calm the group.


    "Everyone Is Surely Confused By The Situation. Worry not, you will all get your answers." The booming voice eventually quieted down though still loud enough to be heard clearly by the entire plaza.


    "It''s best we start from the beginning. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Geoff Sanders, Commander of Knights Order of Kingdom of Lydia." Knight Sanders took a sweeping glance at the group and continued.


    "You all are here for a reason. It''s better for you all to see it than hear me explain. Now, Focus your thoughts and think of the word ''Status'' in your mind." He finished with that simple instruction having no indication of continuing whatsoever.


    "What does he mean by Sta-" Noah like all other was confused by that statement and was about to question his friends before getting interrupted by a blue box popping up in his vision.


    ''Feels like Deja-Vu Noah thought and turned his attention to the message present in front of him.


    [Integration: A Once In An Era Event. Involving the merging of Universes to be part of the Multiverse. An Event of Cosmic Proportions. The Akasha Records bear witness to the event and manages the proper assimilation of all beings, sapient or non-sapient and acclimatize them to their new worlds.]


    [Title Acquired: [Initiates of the New World (LOCKED)]


    [Quest: Phase I {Initiation} - The New World will be treacherous and fraught with dangers. Where a single misstep could bring you into fatal danger. As new Initiates, you are given the precious opportunity to be prepared for the eventuality and flourish in the new environment.]Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    Main Objective: Pass the Rite of Awakening before the end of Phase I.


    Time Left: 90 Cosmic Days


    2339:56:37


    Rewards: Talent Acquisition


    Invitation to Phase II


    Digesting all this information took some time with everyone paying careful attention to every word. A lull fell over the entire plaza as every single person tried to come to terms with their current situation.


    After almost 2 minutes of silence, Knight Sanders deemed it enough and restarted from where he left off.


    "I believe all of you now have a basic understanding of your circumstances. To put this into your perspective, you are given an opportunity for growth. I and my colleagues are here to oversee your development and help you get on the right track." Sanders paused to let them ease the tension.


    "WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO ALL OF US?" A young teen couldn''t handle the pressure and chose to vent his angst by yelling.


    "WE JUST WANT TO GO HOME" Witnessing the teen, the dam burst and people started coming forth in apprehension.


    "WHERE ARE MY PARENTS?"


    "BRING US BACK!"


    ..


    "ENOUGH!!" Knight Sanders intervened before it could turn into something disastrous.


    The Knights standing behind him banged their sheathed swords in unison. The resulting noise put a stop to the clamor but anyone could see it was just a stopgap.


    "Unfortunately, We don''t know much besides the general information and neither can we teleport you back to your world." Knight Sanders said in a much softer tone and continued.


    "But, One thing we can do is help you all. It is the sole reason we have all gathered today in this town. To help you settle, to help you train and guide you. It is normal to feel fearful in face of unknown dangers. but don''t let that fear dominate you. We, I will be there to help you." Knight Sanders said in an upright manner.


    Hearing the speech was much effective than one would expect. After all, most of the fear was because of concern for the future. All of a sudden being put in such a situation is enough to make most people uneasy. Getting a guarantee of support even if it may be fake is enough for people to hold onto it with their dear life. After all said, Humans are quite gullible in nature. No wonder people could vote for politicians that screwed them over time after time.


    Besides, this Sanders guy was no slick politician, he was a natural leader. The guy could probably give Captain America a run for money with his charisma. So, people were willing to at least listen to him. And his punch was enough deterrent to those who weren''t.


    "My Knights will lead you to your dwellings. You will be living there for the rest of your stay here. The people there will help you get settled." Sanders added. The Knights moved in unison and jumped from the balcony to land in front of the crowd.


    "Form a line before each knight. Make sure not to rush. We have plenty of time on us. You will live in this town for quite some time after all." Sanders concluded.


    The trio shared glances and started moving towards one of the knights.


    "You think he is trustworthy?" Ava whispered to the two.


    "I think so, although time will tell. We should continue this discussion back at the lodge or inn or wherever they are taking us to. Don''t want them to think we''re suspicious or anything." Noah replied while looking at the Knight leading this group.


    "I mean, there isn''t much we can do even if I wanted to. You guys have seen those moves too, right. Every single one of the knights is a supersoldier while that Captain Sanders is a beast. You may as well replace him with a tank." Shaun added with a cautious look.


    "I''m really excited right now for some reason." Noah said with a sharp glint in his eyes.


    "Are you serious with me? I''m halfway pissing my pants here and you are looking like you have come to Disneyland." Shaun said with a strange look on his face.


    "Oh, I for sure pissed my pants last night but they are hung out to dry right now. Looking past all that, I just realized there is something unique, new about this and I''m getting to know about a literal new world. This isn''t something that happens every other day." Noah explained with a tinge of excitement in his voice.


    "Looking at you makes me feel like I should just relax and go with the flow." Ava''s body relaxed slightly and her gait became slightly more confident.


    "Maybe I just have that effect with people. By the way, did you realize the people here are not speaking English right now while we''re still able to perfectly understand their intent."


    "I thought it was just another thing done to help us socialize and allow us to become part of the community here. This town has more of a fantasy feeling than a medieval one. But can''t say anything about that. The moment that dude threw a supersonic punch like Flash, that possibility drained down the gutter." Ava had an enthusiastic look on her face looking at the town around her. She wasn''t the only one though, nearly everyone had a childish look on their face watching the different sights in town.


    The walk went on like this for another 15 minutes or so with the trio discussing about the town before the knight in lead slowed to a stop in front of a massive building.


    It was a three-floor tall wooden inn. At this point, it would be more apt to call it a hotel ''cause it definitely had the necessary size.


    Moving through the two-door doorway, the knight led the group into the inn.


    "Welcome to Florelle''s Inn" A cheerful voice greeted them as they entered the inn. The owner of the voice turned out to be a young woman with dark hair tinged slightly with green. She looked to be in her mid-20s and could be considered beautiful. The lady saw the knight in front leading the group and greeted with a bright smile.


    "Oh, Good Afternoon Rylee. Are they here?"


    "Good afternoon, Florelle. There they are, the new trainees. Are the rooms prepared?" The knight, Rylee was an average-looking guy also in his mid-20s though if your average guy had six-packs and could put NBA players to shame. He answered while pointing his thumb back at them.


    "Just a moment till it is done. they can look around and do something else until then." Florelle said while looking back to check the progress.


    "Right, they probably haven''t done that. They might as well check it out sooner rather than later." Rylee continued after turning towards the group.


    "Y''all should open your Status page again and familiarize yourself with it. It is going to be very important in your future."


    With a curious look, the trio eyed each other and nodded before opening their Status page and with it entirely new information appeared within the box.


    [Status]


    Name: Noah


    Race: Human(F) - LVL 1


    Profession: N/A


    Status: Healthy - [Blessing: Universal Tongue (Limited)] [Blessing of the Titanos Ragnarok]


    Talent: [Intelligent] [Focused Mind]


    Stats


    Strength: 1.3


    Agility: 1.1


    Vitality: 1.2


    Constitution: 1.2


    Endurance: 1.1


    Perception: 0.9


    Intelligence: 1.6


    Wisdom: 1.4


    Willpower: 1.5


    Skills: N/A


    "Okayy??" Noah didn''t know how to make sense of it. Or more precisely, he was quite disbelieving of the situation.

 Chapter 12 - Behind the Door

    ''Stats, yep, those are definitely stats and a fully decked status page. Just missing some HP bars.'' Noah affirmed to himself but still not completely convinced he turned towards his friends.


    "Hey, you guys seeing the same things I see?"


    Shaun and Ava jerked their head towards him with wide eyes.


    "Yeah, It looks like a stats screen." Ava answered with a dumbfounded look.


    "This thing is even weirder than all the other stuff. All of that, I could somehow make sense of but this shit is straight out of rpg." Shaun looked like the world just got overturned and Noah couldn''t have agreed more with him.


    They didn''t know what to say to this.


    Even Noah was floored by it. Here he was thinking that after last night, his life couldn''t get any crazier for a while. But what can we say, reality sucker punched him the next day.


    Seeing the lost faces in the crowd, Rylee explained.


    "I heard from Cap that this is new to y''all. So, to give you a general idea, every person in the Multiverse has Status from birth. They form an integral part of life itself and make LVL progression and advancement way easier." Rylee continued.


    "The Akasha Records maintains the Status and its sub-branches. What is the Akasha Records, you say? All I know is that it is the will of the Multiverse or at least that''s what I heard. Those who want to learn the complex stuff can visit the library. You can ask Miss Florelle here or any other employee for directions." Rylee said as if it was obvious to everyone to know about this.


    "By the way, your rooms are ready. You can choose any room you want. We have all kinds of rooms here, ranging from individual rooms to rooms for whole families. Just make sure to inform me beforehand which room you choose so that I can mark that as booked." Miss Florelle intervened.


    "Hurry on, we don''t have all day for you to just choose your rooms." Not seeing anyone moving, she urged.


    The crowd moved into the inn with groups and individuals trickling down the hallways into their chosen rooms.


    The trio eventually decided on a family room since it was spacious enough and got their door key from reception. Closing the door behind him, Noah leaned his back against it.


    "I think I''m way out of tune with this," Noah said while putting his backpack aside.


    "You don''t say" Shaun had an exhausted face dumping the luggage on the floor roughly.


    "I don''t know what is happening anymore" Ava added while hopping in on the couch, surprisingly. Who would have thought you could find one in a medieval inn.


    "Before, it felt mystical or fantastical. Now it just doesn''t make sense." Noah continued. "Reminds me of those old litrpg novels."


    "Stop it, Noah, don''t say a word more. You are just making this a lot more confusing." Ava said with an annoyed expression.


    Noah shut his mouth seeing her expression. He could tell she didn''t want to talk right now. Same with Shaun who was heading towards the beds.


    ''Well, he could definitely use some rest. He was always the one who worried the most.''


    Now, Noah didn''t know what to do. He decided to just have a tour of the entire room. He wanted something to divert his mind away anywhere else from this mess or he would start getting existential crisis.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    At first glance, the entire room was huge. It was divided by a wooden partition into two parts. There was a living room with a couch along with a table and chairs. Then, there was a bedroom at the back on the other side of the partition with a few beds placed. There was a wooden cupboard built as part of a wall. He could also spot a few crystal lamps. Sunlight was coming in through a window on the other side of the partition.


    Those lamps piqued his curiosity since they were clearly standing out. Moving closer, he inspected the lamp from all angles yet he couldn''t see a candle inside. He instead found a small azure crystal placed on a disk with intricate carvings etched on it. The only reason he could tell they were lamps was because they were shaped like one. Also, they were fixed on the walls.


    He reached his hand out towards it. The lamp lit up in bright azure light. His hands stopped reflexively. He pulled his hand back and studied the lamp. The emitted light was slightly dim but sufficiently bright. The azure color gave the lamp a mystical halo. It was like one of those night lights with an extra magical feel to it.


    Curious at how it worked, he reached his hand out slowly but the lamp didn''t react.


    He waved his hand slightly and the lamp went out instantly. A bit surprised, he repeated the gesture by bringing his hand in and out fast and it went on and off correspondingly.


    ''Interesting'' He tried it again multiple times from different angles and the lamp worked perfectly each time.


    ''There seems to be some sort of field around the lamp. Could it be electromagnetic? No, it is definitely something exotic. Possibly mana field. And the field seems to be disturbed by external movement. and the movement had to be sufficiently big enough to disturb the field. That should be the trigger for switching the lamp on/off.'' Noah was pondering upon this magical device before being suddenly interrupted by a voice coming from behind him.


    "What are you doing there?" Ava was disturbed by the light show going on in the room.


    "Feeling better?" Looking behind him, Noah asked seeing her looking slightly relaxed than before.


    "Better than before." Ava gave a short answer and moved in to look at the brightly lit lamp.


    Noah demonstrated the crystal lamp to her. She had a curious look adorning her face as she tried to turn the lamp on herself.


    Seeing the lamp light up, she burst in excitement as she repeatedly turned it on and off.


    "This is amazing"


    "It sure is." Noah replied looking at Ava playing with the lamp.


    His lips quirked as he realized that he was feeling quite better now.


    Having enough fun, the two went back to the couch and sat down comfortably.


    "This is quite nice" Noah said while digging himself in the couch.


    "I also think so. I had quite a nice nap while you were fiddling with the lamp." Ava added with half-closed eyes relaxing on the couch.


    A silence fell between the two but it was a comfortable one. Eventually broken by a yawning sound coming from the bedroom followed by steady footsteps.


    "You two seem to be enjoying yourselves." Shaun seemed to be back in his usual mood with the annoying smile back on his face.


    "I don''t know about us, but someone seemed to have enjoyed their sleep." Noah replied with a genuine smile. He felt calm seeing his friends behaving normally.


    Shaun moved towards them taking a seat at the chair placed near the table.


    "You two want to discuss about it?" Shaun said with his becoming serious.


    "We should. It''s better we deal with it sooner rather than later." Ava replied also with a serious look.


    Taking a deep breath, Noah said "I think we shouldn''t think this from our perspective. The Status page may resemble games but for the people here, it is part of life. We need to know more before coming to any conclusion. What is this Akasha Records and what does it do? Is it something like a god? But frankly, in my opinion, we shouldn''t worry too much about it. It is way above our paygrade right now."


    Ava nodded before saying, "I''m of the same opinion with you. Worrying about it will not solve anything. We should first solve the problems present before us."


    Shaun hesitated slightly before adding, " I agree with you two, but I feel you two are being too carefree about this? Doesn''t it make you anxious? The possibility that this world may be fake."


    "It does and I''m keeping it in the back of my mind right now. I know my priorities. Which is surviving this place and returning back to Earth." Noah declared with a determined gaze and continued. "Other things can come later on. Or maybe we can even learn about it here during our stay."


    "Sometimes I envy your optimistic outlook towards life." Shaun sighed before a smile came to his face.


    The slight gloom present in the trio''s expression faded as they restarted their discussion about the town and people. Noah showed the lamp to Shaun with him showing a similar reaction. They then toured the room and unpacked their luggage into the cupboards. With everything sorted out for the time being, the trio sat down on the couch to rest after the activity.


    "Ahem" Noah fake coughed to get his friend''s attention.


    "Want to compare our stats?" Noah had a smirk on his face while waiting for friends to respond.


    Ava and Shaun looked at each other before similar smirks appeared on their faces.


    ""Sure""

 Chapter 13 - Stats Measuring Contest

    "My general stats are Strength, Agility, Endurance, Constitution, Perception. All of them around 1. Only Intelligence, Wisdom and Willpower are a bit higher nearing the 1.5 range. I''m guessing 1 is the average base stat."


    Noah said looking at his stats. Not hearing any response, he looked up to see his friends staring at him with a confused expression.


    "Anything wrong, Guys?"


    "No, it''s mostly alright except I have Dexterity instead of Agility. Also, Toughness seems to be the alternative to Constitution. Does this mean something?" Ava replied with confusion apparent in her tone.


    "It''s the same with me. I have similar stats to Ava except for a few obvious differences like Awareness instead of Perception and Power should be for Strength." Shaun added his own inferences.


    "Interesting, Let me check on it." Noah said while scrutinizing his Stats. Getting an idea, he thought to see it in different languages. Seeing the characters change into different scripts with his thoughts, he smiled a little at his hypothesis being proven. Fiddling with it a bit more, he tried to change the stats themselves like Strength to Power and it did so effortlessly. Feeling confident in his theory, he turned to his friends to explain it to them.


    "I have good news."


    "What good news." Shaun was curious to know what could have happened to change his friend''s mood so much and so quickly.


    On the other hand, Ava gasped while she was fiddling with her Status.


    "It seems she also found it." Noah looked at Ava to see her face beaming in excitement.


    "Noah, this changes things entirely."


    "What does she mean?" Shaun asked Noah.


    "It means what we thought was a likely possibility that the world was some kind of simulation has been changed to a minimal one. You see, the status page likely shows you what you associate with the most. Since it was very similar to game character status, it naturally assumed that form for us. I confirmed it just now thinking different terms for each stat and in different languages and it changed accordingly with my thoughts." Noah explained it with a slight smile on his face.


    "So, the world is not some kind of game world and we''re not NPCs." Shaun asked for further clarification.


    "What Noah meant to say that it is now very unlikely now. Though the possibility still remains, we can at least rest assured for now until we get more information." Ava intervened and explained to Shaun.


    "In hindsight, thinking this was a video game world from the get-go was a bit stupid. These people have their own language and they are using the Akasha Records, System whatever for who knows how long. They would definitely have entirely different terms for all the stuff on the Status Page." Noah laughed a little thinking how panicked they must have been back then to not even question it at all.


    "It really is true." Shaun said after checking that terms on his Status page were really changing with his thoughts.


    "Funny how getting out of existential crisis makes the body feel light." Ava said while she took her usual position on the couch.


    Noah was feeling the same after the revelation. It was then he saw movement from the corner of his eye.


    He saw Shaun take out papers and a pen from the luggage.


    "We should write the stuff to make it easier to discuss. We can destroy it if we want later on." Passing the papers, Shaun explained seeing their intrigued faces.


    Understanding the use of papers, everyone promptly wrote their status on their pages and passed them on.


    [Status]The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Name: Ava Evergrad


    Race: Human(F) - LVL 1


    Profession: N/A


    Status: Healthy - [Blessing: Universal Tongue (Limited)]


    Talent: [Prodigy] [Tough Will]


    Stats


    Strength: 1.1


    Agility: 1.2


    Vitality: 1.1


    Constitution: 1.2


    Endurance: 1.2


    Perception: 1.1


    Intelligence: 1.5


    Wisdom: 1.4


    Willpower: 1.5


    Skills: [Foresight] [Precognition]


    [Status]


    Name: Shaun Fenton


    Race: Human(F) - LVL 1


    Profession: N/A


    Status: Healthy - [Blessing: Universal Tongue (Limited)]


    Talent: [Nimble] [Perceptive]


    Stats


    Strength: 1.3


    Agility: 1.4


    Vitality: 1.1


    Constitution: 1.3


    Endurance: 1.4


    Perception: 1.5


    Intelligence: 1.2


    Wisdom: 1.3


    Willpower: 1.3


    Skills: N/A


    Looking at the other two status sheets, Noah''s eyebrows quirked and he couldn''t help but tease his friends.


    "It seems it is now confirmed I''m smartest in this room."


    Both of them rolled their eyes at his narcissistic behavior.


    "Sure, Mister, Can we focus on the other things now." Ava wanted nothing more than to put him in his place right now but she knew that arguing with him will do nothing more than to put fuel in this fire.


    "The Stats doesn''t to be too out of place. Everything is mostly as expected if we go by Noah''s deduction of 1 being average base stat. Though I am curious about all the other things. I could get the idea behind Profession and Skills but what are Talents. Does it mean that literally or is it something else?" Shaun asked the other two.


    "I''m not sure. It could be either of those two possibilities or maybe even a combination of those two." Noah was also a bit perplexed at that. There was no information for him to make any conclusion. Before he could start searching the Status page for any new information or option, a voice startled him.


    "Found it" Ava mumbled excitedly.


    "What?" Noah didn''t clearly hear what she said.


    "What those Talents meant. Since it was reacting to our thoughts, I thought to try and focus on the different parts of the Status page in case it shows more information. When focusing on Individual Talents, It displayed a message with detailed information about that particular Talent. The other stuff also gave a general feeling." Ava explained with pride at having found the little tidbit about the Status first among them.


    "General feeling?" Noah didn''t know what to make of that.


    "You will know when you focus on any Stat." Ava added and got back to fiddling the status page ignoring the two boys.


    Noah and Shaun looked at each other in exasperation at her behavior. Then again, this was nothing new. Ava always got a bit in her own world doing anything that interests her. They just shrugged and start checking out their own Status pages.


    Noah first focused on the stats since he was curious what Ava meant by general feeling. He focused on the Strength Stat. The first few seconds didn''t do anything until suddenly he got what he could only describe as a sensation of the stat and aptly put by Ava, general feeling. He could feel Strength was related to muscular strength and gave a sensation of power.


    The other stats were the same. Agility was related to reflexes and reaction speed. Vitality was related to body health and healing. Endurance was related to stamina. Constitution was related to muscle and bone density as well as natural resistance of the body against external factors. Perception was related to Senses. Intelligence was related to learning capacity, memory, and thinking capabilities. Wisdom was related to reasoning and intuition. Finally, Willpower was related to willpower and concentration.


    ''Really feels like a game, just more complex in nature.'' Noah thought as he digested the various sensations and organized the information he gleaned from them.


    Focusing on other parts, he started with Name. Getting no reaction even after waiting for a minute, he moved on to Race. He got a reaction this time.


    [Human(F) - One of many races inhabiting the multiverse. Humans are one of the most balanced and numerous amongst the many races present in the multiverse, being able to walk a variety of paths. (Unawakened Soul) ]


    Base stat growth per LVL: +0.1 in all stats


    Seeing a huge load of text compared to the previous vague feeling made him a bit surprised. Looking over, he could see many important pieces of information. The first being that they are not just one or two races but possibly dozens or even more races present in the multiverse. He wasn''t surprised since he had a feeling that it was possible after meeting with Vanadis but it felt nice to be confirmed about the fact.


    Glossing over the other details, he latched onto the more important information. Stat growth per LVL was obvious and didn''t require him to deliberate more on it. It was the Unawakened Soul that he was really curious about. Pondering more about the fact that Souls are real and apparently Unawakened. He suddenly something from before. Focusing his thought on the message he saw just a few hours, a blue screen popped up in his view covering the status page.


    [Quest: Phase I {Initiation} - The New World will be treacherous and fraught with dangers. Where a single misstep could bring you into fatal danger. As new Initiates, you are given the precious opportunity to be prepared for the eventuality and flourish in the new environment.]


    Main Objective: Pass the Rite of Awakening before the end of Phase I.


    Time Left: 90 Cosmic Days


    2339:56:37


    Rewards: Talent Acquisition


    Invitation to Phase II


    He looked over the quest window and quickly locked onto the Main Objective.


    ''Rite of Awakening, I hope I''m not reading too much into this but the terms related to Awakening appearing there on the Race window seems awfully suspicious."

 Chapter 14 - Talent Show

    ''I really am smart. Or I am a narcissistic piece of shit. I don''t care either way. The point is these two are related. Unawakened Soul and Rite of Awakening. Anyone with a bit of brain would analyze the two terms and put two and two together to conclude it is related to Soul Awakening.'' Noah thought.


    ''So, if I''m not wrong, the entire Initiation Phase is based on Soul Awakening. We are brought to this place just for that and people here could help us achieve it. Maybe Awakening one''s Soul could give someone supernatural abilities aka superpowers.''


    ''This is so frustrating. Making assumptions upon other assumptions. I really need to go visit the library soon.'' Noah sighed in frustration at the lack of information.


    ''I should move on. We should know about it soon enough if it related to the Main Objective.''


    Noah thought as he moved to the next section, Profession and he again got a pop-up.


    [Scholar - A Scholar devotes themselves to learning new knowledge. Pursuing new fields of study and their applications. They attain mastery in their research discipline and are well-recognized throughout the multiverse for their thirst for knowledge.]


    Base stat growth per LVL: +0.2 in Wisdom & Intelligence and 0.1 in Willpower


    Noah whistled in appreciation. This was something entirely new. Reading the summary, he got a general idea of what it was saying. This was basically an option for path specialization. He focused a bit more on the Profession and a prompt appeared.


    [Confirm?]


    "Hmm." Noah hesitated to confirm at this moment. He wanted to choose this Scholar Profession. The Profession was perfect for someone like him but he didn''t know if there were other professions that are better out there and Noah didn''t really want to make a hasty decision. So, he regretfully closed the window for now.


    He then moved on quickly to the next section since he didn''t really trust himself not to go back and choose it without caring about consequences. The next section also offered a reaction.


    [Blessing: Universal Tongue (Limited) - Grants ability to understand and converse in every language present within the Multiverse.]


    Limited Time Period: 45 cosmic days


    ''So this is the culprit behind our sudden understanding of the language here. Also, it seems to be a limited-time thing. About half the entire Phase I. Must be granted to be able to interact with the people here.''


    Confirming there was nothing more to the blessing, he moved on. The next thing made Noah more than a bit surprised.


    [Blessing of the Titanos Ragnarok - recognized and granted a blessing by the Titanos Ragnarok herself. Grants slight growth bonus to all stats and small growth bonus to Strength, Vitality, Endurance and Constitution. Grants access to paths related to Titans.]


    ''She really kept her promise.'' Looking back, Noah felt a lot more time has passed since their last meeting than the actual half day. He almost forgot about the titan lady with who he made a contract. Well, not really but he wasn''t really able to think about her in this mess of a situation.


    This blessing could be summarized in one word, OP. It offered bonuses to every stat and even stronger bonus to his physical ones. On top of it all, there was some extra benefit he didn''t know right now but probably related to his profession or maybe even his race. Now that he thinks about it, She said she had offered him her bloodline.


    Though, what was with the designation. Was it something like her title or something different? He felt slightly curious but focusing on it gave no more information so he chose to leave it be.


    Finally checking on the Talents, he again got reactions in the form of two blue screen pop-ups.


    [Intelligent: Possessing exceptional intellectual capabilities. Grants small growth bonus to Intelligence and slight growth bonus to Wisdom and Willpower. Increases chances of acquiring Intelligence-based skills]


    [Focused Mind: Possessing exceptional concentration and focus. Grant small growth bonus to Willpower. Increases chances of acquiring Willpower based skills]This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ''They are general talents. They should be rare but still found aplenty." Noah heaved a sigh of relief having finally completed checking out the entire Status Page. Turning his gaze to the other two, he saw they were still busy so he decided to not disturb them and relax after the mental exercise.


    A dozen minutes passed in relative silence. Noah was disturbed from his rest by someone nudging him awake. Opening his eyes, he saw Ava looking down at him.


    "You done?" Noah asked with a yawn.


    "Yeah, we''re waiting for you to join us." Ava said pointing towards Shaun sitting at the table looking at both of them with an amused look.


    Sitting upright, he moved to the side of the couch. Ava took the other side.


    "So, how did checking your stats go for you two. I presume it must have been fun."


    "You can see for yourself." Shaun said while passing a paper.


    [Nimble - Possessing extraordinary reflexes and fine body control. Grants small growth bonus to Agility and slight growth bonus to Willpower. Increases chances of acquiring Agility-based skills.


    [Perceptive - Possessing enhanced senses and spatial awareness. Grants small growth bonus to Perception and slight growth to Willpower. Increases chances of acquiring Perception-based skills]


    "As you can see Nimble Hands just gives small bonus to Agility along with slight bonus to Willpower while Perceptive gives small bonus to perception also with slight bonus to Willpower." Shaun explained.


    Noah put his left hand on his chin while reading the talent summaries.


    "Here, this is mine." Ava said putting a paper on the table.


    [Tough Will - Possessing extraordinary willpower and determination. Grants small growth bonus to Willpower. Increases chances of acquiring Willpower-based skills.]


    [Prodigy - Possessing extraordinary talent. Able to learn and master new skills easily. Grants slight growth bonus to all stats. Grants small growth bonus to two build specialized stats.]


    "My Tough Will gives small bonus to just Willpower while Prodigy gives slight bonus to all stats along with small growth bonus in two stats I will specialize." Ava clarified while looking at the different status sheets.


    "Now, here is my talent sheet." Noah said handing his own paper.


    "Similar to the other talents, Intelligent gives small bonus to Intelligence and slight bonus to both Willpower and Wisdom while Focused Mind gives small growth bonus to Willpower." Noah continued and added his observations.


    "I''m seeing a pattern here. There seems to be grades to talents."


    "Yeah, there are two. Normal Talents giving small bonus to one stat and rare ones giving small bonus to two stats. Of course, there seems to gap between the two with some slight bonuses to stats appearing closer we get to rare talents. " Ava answered with a smug look.


    "No, there should be three. Notice the difference in names. The more stats bonus it gives the less specialized and more general the term becomes. First is specialized talents like Tough will and Focused Mind. Then the general ones which include just one word like Nimble and Intelligent. Finally, the rare ones that are an archetype like Prodigy. We can point the obvious divide between the normal and rare talents but can you find out the one between specialized and normal ones?." Noah explained and added the last part looking at Ava with a smirk.


    "I''m not so sure about that. There doesn''t seem to be any obvious differences except slight bonus to other stats." Ava said with a tinge of bitterness in her tone.


    "Let me give you a hint, Range" Noah said playfully.


    "Range, hmm" Ava went deep in thought thinking over the word.


    "Range of bonuses. The summary says small bonuses but we don''t know what that means. It is safe to assume that it should be a range of bonuses. So, stat growth by specialized Talents should lie in low-mid range while normal ones should lie in mid-high range in terms of the small bonus." Shaun added suddenly joining the conversation led by the two.


    Sensing the silence, Shaun looked to see Ava and Noah looking at him with a strange look.


    "What?"


    "No, it''s just you don''t normally do something like this. It''s generally me and Ava doing the smart talk."


    "Just because I sit quietly listening to you two having a childish competition doesn''t mean I don''t follow along with the conversation."


    Noah and Ava had a sheepish expression on their face after listening to him say they were behaving childishly. They couldn''t even refute him after looking at their past behavior.


    "Anyways, It seems we are quite talented." Noah fake coughed and tried to change the topic.


    "What do you mean?" Ava asked innocently joining in to steer the topic away.


    Shaun shakes his head seeing their antics.


    "I ran the statistics. Having a talent should be rare. Otherwise, it won''t be named talent. And having double talents should be even more. There should be less than 10000 people having double talents. While for Ava here, she should in the top 100 for talented people, maybe even top 10. We should be in the top 1000." Noah said looking at the calculations he did in the paper. Obviously, it wasn''t entirely accurate since he was assuming the probability of having one arbitrarily but it would give them a general idea about their talents.


    "That''s amazing" Ava said engrossed looking at his calculations paper.


    "It''s fine. We have got a general idea now but there are some things still left. For example, there was an extra blessing on top of the language translator one in Noah''s status page. It should be related to the titan you mentioned, right. Is everything okay with that?" Shaun asked with a worried look.


    "Oh, Everything''s dandy" Noah''s eyes were smiling while sliding in the note he wrote.


    Reading the note, Shaun and Ava bore a surprised look.


    "What is with this! This Blatant Cheat!" Ava shouted in indignation holding the paper.

 Chapter 15 - Rejuvenation Potion

    "Why, is something wrong with it?" Noah asked with faux shock.


    "Don''t act innocent. This Blessing really deserves its name. It''s two grades up my rare Talent. There will probably be no one having better Stat growth on Earth than you." Ava said still in slight shock.


    "I wouldn''t be so sure of that. She, Vanadis told me there will be others having Blessings. Maybe you two could also get one somewhere down the line. Though I don''t know what the criteria are to be chosen for a Blessing. If it was just Talent, Ava would have already got one. Maybe it''s some sort of affinity. She did say I was a match." Noah explained to his friends.


    "Here I was feeling good about having a rare Talent and you just had to throw your Blessing on my face." Ava said spitefully.


    "Now, You of all persons shouldn''t be upset. You have two Skills on your Status Page while we have none. They should also be pretty good considering their names. The Precognition one should be the one behind your visions if I''m right." Noah snorted.


    "I wouldn''t have been upset if they were working skills. If I focus on them, Just a prompt showing [Dormant Skill. Requirements not met.] comes up." Ava added with her eyes focused in front of her most probably trying to see if the Skills became active.


    Hearing her words, Noah pondered what the issue could be before he remembered the conclusion he came up with. Turning to Ava and Shaun, he explained his conjecture.


    "That seems very plausible and considering our circumstances, this whole thing is likely some sort of trial. " Shaun said thinking over Noah''s theories.


    "So, the Soul Awakening is to be done before my skills can become active or at least functional, right?" Ava asked from the side.


    "I think so. Everything points to this Rite of Awakening being an important thing. Anyways, by now we have familiarized ourselves with the basics of these Status Pages. " Noah replied and continued.


    "So, Let''s summarize our situation. We are in a different world, therefore we know nothing about our surroundings. We don''t know everyone''s intentions though I think it is safe to say we won''t be intentionally harmed by the normal people and the knights. We should still be careful since nothing is absolute, especially in a fantasy world. Finally, we probably would be teleported someplace else either without any say or given an "invitation" once this is over according to the quest page. That''s all from me. Anything you want to add." Noah concluded.


    "The thing I noticed is that this whole thing seems to be to prepare us for something. After looking at the beasts pulling the carriages in town. I wouldn''t put it past me that there would be bigger baddies out there. Hell, being a fantasy world, there would probably be all sorts of monsters. We already know Titans kind of exists. Maybe Dragons would be too. We have seriously no way to tell how dangerous the situation is. We can only do guesswork." Ava said in frustration.


    "Those knights should be able to help in that regard. We should make rounds tomorrow around the town to gather information and general knowledge about the world." Shaun commented.


    A growling sound suddenly interrupted the conversation which was quickly followed by two more similar growling sounds.


    Staring at each other with embarrassed looks, Shaun was the first to break the silence.


    "We haven''t eaten in quite a while. We should probably check downstairs to see if they provide food. We need to save the food we brought whenever we can in case we need it later on." Shaun laughed while getting up from his seat.


    The other two nodded and the trio headed downstairs. Their room was located on the second floor. Along the way, they could see very few people out of their room moving about. Most were probably still shocked over the entire series of events. Not everybody could pull themselves together that fast especially if they were teleported alone. They were kids nearing 14-15 years old in their group. Unless one was delusional enough to believe they were now going to become adventurers and enjoy their ideal fantasy life with a harem, most would be crushed by the weight of the situation.


    It''s the same with the trio. They avoided talking about friends, family and acquaintances. They could just hope they would be safe whenever they were transported.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    Arriving on the ground floor, they took in their surroundings. Before, they were not able to properly look at the inside of the Inn. The Inn was quite lively, much more than afternoon as most people were probably coming back from work to relax or to spend the night. There was a diner on the other side of the hall with noises coming from there.


    They could see Miss Florelle handling the reception. Approaching her, they could see her giving instructions to the maids and waiters while handling the new customers. She was wearing a simple one-piece dress with some floral designs on the side. She looked quite elegant in the dress.


    She noticed the trio approaching her and swiftly turned towards them greeting them with a professional smile.


    "How may I be able to help you three?"


    Ava took the lead representing the trio.


    "Can you tell us where we can get some food?"


    Miss Florelle seemed taken aback by the statement and looked at the trio confusedly.


    Gazing at the trio again, a look of realization dawned on her as she took in their appearances, specifically their clothes.


    "Oh my, I''m so sorry I was quite busy I didn''t recognize you as visitors. I was just about to call out all of you to have dinner." Miss Florelle said with an apologetic look.


    "It''s no problem."


    "Just take any empty table, okay. A waiter will verify if you are a guest so just show them your door key. You got yours with you, right?" Miss Florelle explained.


    "Yes, We got our key with us." Ava said looking back at Shaun who took out the key they got after picking their room.


    Ava looked back at the boys and they nodded. Together, they just turned to head towards the diner when they were suddenly stopped by Miss Florelle.


    "And right, I almost forgot. After dinner, instead of heading back to your room directly, stop by the reception. There is something extra for visitors. Be sure to take it with you." Miss Florelle added the last part hastily before turning to deal with her next customer.


    The trio looked at each other with strange looks.


    "What do you think is something extra?" Noah commented as they walked along the hall.


    "Maybe some necessities like clothes and other essential items." Shaun added putting the key back in his front pocket.


    "Can we discuss this while eating? I''m quite hungry from all the talking and worrying about the future." Ava was annoyed with the constant discussion.


    "Okay" "Sure" The boys agreed instantly as they were feeling quite starved themselves.


    Entering the hall, the first thing that stood out to the three was the lively atmosphere. There was a homely feeling present in the diner that was absent in modern city restaurants. It was more akin to a pub in that sense as people were enjoying themselves without caring about outer appearances. There were dozens of wooden tables accompanied by chairs on their side many of which were occupied by people. Drinks were brought to tables as people described their day to each other.


    Searching for a suitable empty table, they found one at the back. They rushed to the table in case someone occupies it before they do.


    A waiter came by in a few minutes and they showed their door keys when asked. Taking out some sort of amulet, the waiter then pressed the key to it which lit up in azure. Handing back the key, the waiter told them to wait for their order.


    "The society feels oddly advanced despite the obvious medieval look." Noah commented after the waiter was far away from the table.


    "What do you think. This world has some form of magic. Obviously, things will be different and magical." Ava admonished him hearing his comment.


    "You know what, I don''t care. I have seen enough things today that something like a magical scanner shouldn''t be too crazy." Noah said laying back on his chair.


    The waiter came by within a few minutes with their dinner. Looking at the ceramic plates and bowls accompanied by a spoon, he could see there was bread, vegetable soup, a piece of roasted meat and two roasted potatoes sprinkled with herbs and spices. They salivated looking at the assortment of appetizing dishes in front of them.


    The trio charged at their dinner without wait. They were quite surprised at the taste. It was a lot better than they expected but they dismissed it the same as many other incredible things they experienced today. They relished every bite of the delicious dishes. All of them finished their plates clean and looked to be quite satisfied from their expressions.


    "I don''t know if it was because I was hungry but that was good, like really good." Noah exclaimed to the other two.


    "It was really delicious." Ava joined in patting her stomach.


    "Some of the herbs they used were new to me. The dishes were also quite unique in their taste. Overall, it was a nice experience." Shaun commented like a professional taster.


    Noah and Ava shook their heads remembering their friend''s obsession with food.


    Finishing up, the trio headed back to the reception desk. Reaching there, they saw Miss Florelle was standing there at the desk as before.


    Seeing them coming, She turned back and picked up some packets from different shelves placed there. Miss Florelle then handed those packets to them.


    "Here, these include some clothes and some soap, some money and -" She said while pointing to different packets.


    "Can we ask why we are provided all this for free?" Ava asked carrying an armful of packets.


    "If I were you. I wouldn''t worry about it. The Mayor is paying for your lodging and food expenses and all the extra items here. I don''t know the exact reason but If I were to guess it would be some kind of quest. Just like I have for providing for your lodgings."


    She then ducked under the desk to search for some item. Standing back up, she carefully handed a crystal bottle filled with green liquid to each of them.


    "Be careful with that, that is a bit expensive." She continued seeing the trio''s curious eyes.


    "These are Rejuvenation Potions."

 Chapter 16 - That was Stupid

    Scrutinizing the crystal bottles handed to them, the trio became more suspicious the more they looked at it.


    "It isn''t poison or something like that. In fact, it is very good for your body. I am saving up for one myself." Miss Florelle tried to dismiss their suspicions seeing their narrowed eyes.


    "Remember to drink it right before you go to bed. You will probably need it for tomorrow. Now, move on, I have other people to tend to." Miss Florelle shooed them away not allowing them to ask any questions and attended to the people waiting behind.


    The trio walked the way back to their room in relative silence. Closing the door, they erupted at once.


    "What is this?" Ava exclaimed holding the bottle close to her face and inspecting it.


    "Is this a Potion potion or some other thing named potion?" Noah eyed the green liquid inside.


    "Should we drink it or not?" Shaun was the only one showing some worry over the unknown potion handed to them.


    "I don''t know but I want to drink it." Ava''s eyes were glittering with excitement.


    "I''m in. I want to know what it does." Noah showed a similar level of enthusiasm.


    "Can we sit down for a moment to discuss why we shouldn''t ingest unknown liquid handed to us?" Shaun tried to bring reason to his friends.


    "There''s no option other than to drink it. We probably would need to do it anyway so why not do it sooner rather than later." Noah presented their situation to counter Shaun''s argument.


    Not seeing himself winning in an argument with Noah, especially with such points against him, Shaun opted for the desperate measures. He lunged quickly and snatched both their potions from their hands before they could react.


    "Hey, give it back" "Did you really have to do that?" Ava and Noah voiced their complaints at this apparent injustice they felt was done against them.


    "We.Need.To.Talk." Shaun declared setting the potions on the table far from their reach.


    "You really are no fun. Just give the potions back. We will listen quietly and not drink it till we reach an agreement. Right, Ava?" Noah said turning to Ava who was bobbing her head clearly just wanting to get her potion back.


    "Fine, here you go." Shaun sighed and handed their potions back to them. Noah''s eyebrows raised seeing him give up so easily, like he didn''t even try to make a comeback. Something was off.


    Ava snatched her potion while Noah also looked glad to get his back.


    The trio then took their position around the table at their usual positions.


    "What did you want to say?" Noah asked placing his potion at his side.


    "Did you think what this potion could possibly do? Even if it doesn''t have poison, It may have some hidden curse." What Shaun was saying was quite a reasonable source of worry but something told him he wasn''t really serious about it. Being best friends with someone has at least one perk. You know when they are speaking bullshit. Still, Noah decided to entertain him.


    "We don''t know. Actually, we know nothing. That''s the point. We can''t just run away from this town." Noah looked at his friends with a sombre expression.


    "The moment we got here until this very moment now, we were just following what we are told. This is just adding another one on the list."


    "So, we just do what they told us to." Shaun questioned with his face frowning.


    "Yes, We do just that." Noah answered glaring at Shaun.


    "Noah, can you stop being a dick and just tell him the truth. Also, Shaun, what are you hiding? You are not fooling anyone here." Ava intervened seeing the argument heat up.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    "I am not at fault. He''s the one acting abnormally." Noah said trying to shift the blame.


    "I am behaving normally. What are you two saying?" Shaun genuinely looked confused about the question.


    Both Shaun and Ava also became confused by his behavior.


    "You are acting suspicious, Shaun. Even I can see it, much less Noah who spends way more time with you." Ava explained.


    "You were not serious when you were mentioning about the potion''s dangers. Yet you keep trying to prolong the argument. What is with that, huh?" Noah joined the assault.


    "I was just-" Shaun suddenly shut his mouth up and was now clearly hesitating to speak up.


    "I was just what. Speak up. We need to know the reason." Both Noah and Ava pressured him with their gazes.


    Eventually, Shaun crumbled under the combined weight of their gazes and sighed.


    "I was really not stopping you to drink the potion. It was just you were both acting recklessly. So, I thought to at least remind you about it." Shaun finished but both Noah and Ava weren''t buying into that. He was still hiding the full matter.


    Shaun put up quite a serious face but wasn''t quite a match to the duo''s stare.


    "Also, I may be a teensy bit interested in drinking the potion myself." Shaun added with an embarrassed look.


    The duo stared blankly hearing his confession before Noah''s face suddenly break up.


    "Pffft" What initially started as a chuckle turned into a full-blown laugh.


    "That''s all. You wanted to use the potion but couldn''t bring yourself to admit it. That''s really stupid. But I can totally see you doing that sort of shit. Here I was thinking something was wrong with you."


    "Noah, you shouldn''t laugh at him, he was ju-Pfft" Ava also couldn''t handle it either and joined in the laughter.


    "See that''s why I did not want to say it. I now have to deal with harassment from you two for the coming week." Shaun sighed seeing the two acting like jokers. He thought it would subside quickly but no, they weren''t stopping even after a few minutes had passed.


    "We get it. It was funny. Now can you stop laughing? It''s not making me anymore embarrassed." Shaun really didn''t like the fact that two people who acted like kids all the time were laughing at him just for a single time he acted a bit curious.


    "Okay, but you shouldn''t try to keep up a serious face. It''s really not you. I get that we aren''t really in the ideal situation but you don''t have to be so stiff. Just loosen up a bit." Noah said getting himself up from the floor while wiping the tears from his eyes.


    Ava also got up and sat at her seat quietly with an embarrassed look realizing how silly she must have looked rolling on the floor cackling like a crazy.


    "Now that I think about it, that was pretty stupid. The whole argument was baseless. If people here wanted to harm us, they had no need to take such a roundabout way such as the potion. They could do so easily if they wanted to." Noah said with a chuckle.


    "What do you think the potion would do?" Shaun asked changing the topic.


    "Obviously, it has something to do with Rejuvenation, since it is the name of the potion." Noah commented.


    "I think it will restore one''s body to peak condition or even work as a youth potion of sorts. Maybe that''s why Miss Florelle wanted one. To preserve her beauty. Though there is no way to know other than to try it. I, personally am really excited about the idea." Ava said explaining her ideas about the potion.


    "We can try it now, It is already getting late and I am really tired. We should sleep early so that we can start in the morning." Shaun added looking out the window.


    The trio nodded at each other. They were heading towards the bedroom before Ava stopped the boys in track.


    "Wait, I need to change first. You boys can change here." Ava said quickly closing the partition.


    Shrugging, they went to their luggage to take out some comfortable nightwear.


    "That was immature of me. I will be upfront with you, It was not the smartest decision." Shaun said suddenly.


    "I was also being a bit of a jerk myself. So, it goes both ways." Noah replied and continued.


    "You know, I am really thankful you two are here with me." Noah answered without turning his head from the backpack.


    A smile came upon Shaun''s face hearing those words.


    Noah and Shaun quickly changed and then stood waiting in front of the bedroom partition. A few minutes later, a knock sounded out on the partition which then opened up with Ava peeking out and then fully opening it seeing they had fully changed.


    They headed inside and took their respective beds.


    Sitting on the beds, Noah looked at the potion bottle.


    It was made of crystal and had beautiful designs on it. The bottle seemed to be for the rich. The green potion inside made the whole thing look magical. Pulling the stopper, it made a pop sound.


    Looking over his friends, he saw them doing the same. Giving a nod to the two, he chugged down the potion. As soon as the liquid touched his throat, a weird taste erupted in his mouth. It was not disgusting per se but it was not good either and it had a slightly slimy texture. Enduring it, he finished the potion.


    He started feeling warmth in his stomach soon. Taking it as a sign of the potion working its literal magic, he relaxed. The exhaustion also caught up to him as he started feeling tired. Laying in his bed, he pulled the sheet and tucked his body in comfortably.


    The trio waved their hands to turn off the lamps. The room was instantly engulfed in darkness. Staring at the ceiling and going over today''s events, Noah soon felt sleepy. He bid goodnight to his friends.


    "Goodnight"


    "Night" Ava replied.


    "Sleep well, we need all the energy tomorrow." Shaun said.


    He closed his eyes and sleep took over him soon.

 Chapter 17 - Specs off

    The room was quiet in the early morning. The trio was deep in their sleep.


    Suddenly, a rooster crowed signaling the arrival of sunrise.


    The morning rooster call brought Noah out of sleep.


    Opening his eyelids, he looked to see the room half-lit. Ava and Shaun were still sleeping.


    He felt oddly energized just like yesterday. In fact, it was even better than yesterday. He sat upon his bed and feeling his body, heaved a sigh of relief. Despite what he said to Shaun last night, there was still a possibility he could be wrong but thankfully he was right about the potion.


    He stood up and stretched his body which made cracking sounds that felt comfortable to his being. He thought to try to take a walk to vent all the energy and also see if he could find something new.


    Putting on his specs, he went to dress up but something immediately stood out to him.


    His vision was blurry. He took out his sunglasses to wipe them with his shirt. Then he realized a very odd thing. His vision cleared up when he put off his glasses.


    Putting it on again, the same thing happened and his vision blurred. He put them off and everything became clear in his vision. He repeated the same thing over and over again to confirm if it was real.


    It looked almost comical seeing him putting his glasses on and off again and again.


    The whole thing seemed unreal. Now, he knew this shouldn''t be too surprising to him now but one thing one fails to realize is seeing something extraordinary happen and experiencing one yourself along with feeling its effects on your body has way too big of a difference.


    Pulling up his status screen, he was greeted with few notifications.


    [Rejuvenation Potion consumed: Body has been restored to its optimal form. All negative afflictions removed.]


    Perception +0.2 Endurance +0.1


    [Status]


    Name: Noah


    Race: Human(F) - LVL 1


    Profession: N/A


    Status: Healthy - (Buff: Energized) [Blessing: Universal Tongue (Limited)] [Blessing of the Titanos Ragnarok]


    Talent: [Intelligent] [Focused Mind]


    Stats


    Strength: 1.3


    Agility: 1.1


    Vitality: 1.2


    Constitution: 1.2


    Endurance: 1.2


    Perception: 1.1


    Intelligence: 1.6


    Wisdom: 1.4


    Willpower: 1.5


    Skills: N/A


    (Energized: Body is fully energized and active. Boosts Endurance for a short time.)


    Noah almost yelled in delight but managed to stop himself at the last moment. Looking over both the sleepy heads, he saw they were not roused from their sleep. He would feel bad if he woke them up from their rest.


    He threw the glasses back at his bed and looked at himself. He still couldn''t believe he could see clearly without glasses. You could obviously undergo an eye surgery to remove the need for specs but despite the advanced technology, it wasn''t perfect and had a tendency to need to redo the surgery many times over the years.


    So, he chose not to do it and was thinking in his mind that he would need his glasses lifelong but fate seemed to have something else for him. I mean, you could only see this sort of scene in movies, specifically involving certain spider-themed character as far as he knew. He could also see that his belly which could be described as sticking out a bit had also thinned a little.


    Overall, he felt better. He changed into his sports clothes and moved out of the room. Coming up on the ground floor, he saw Miss Florelle standing there as usual. At this point, he didn''t know if she also slept there as he had hardly seen her somewhere else.Stolen novel; please report.


    He greeted her politely since she was taking care of them and was also providing lodging free of cost. Quest or not.


    "Morning, Miss Florelle"


    "Morning, ....mm, I didn''t get your name yesterday. " Miss Florelle greeted back.


    "Noah, Miss" He replied politely.


    "Noah, that''s a good name. You look quite better today. It seems the Rejuvenation potion really deserves its fame as the beauty potion." She continued with her eyebrows raised.


    "I thought you would be asleep at this time and I would have to wake you up along with all of the visitors."


    "Why would you have to wake us up this early?" Noah asked curiously.


    "I didn''t tell this yesterday since many of were not looking fine at that time but you are ordered to be present at the training camp located at the northmost point of the town in an hour from now. After all, visitors are generally brought to complete their Rite of Awakening." She explained.


    "If you don''t mind me asking, does this happen often? Also, can you tell me about the Rite? You can see how clueless we are about all this." Noah asked seeing the precious opportunity to get some information.


    "Of course not, dear. Let me see, this generally happens every few years with each lasting from six months to a year. Typically, only a dozen people come. Yours was quite a special group. Having thousands of people come at once. Even the Knight Order got involved this time." She continued.


    "Normally, just the normal guards oversee the training and maybe a knight or two will supervise it. As for the Rite, I have heard it from Rylee but seeing you totally ignorant about the Rite really says you lot have come from another Plane. One undergoes the Rite of Awakening after reaching LVL 5 in their Race and Awaken their souls. "


    He nodded to her. His conjecture about the Soul awakening was confirmed and he also found that the requirement was to reach LVL 5 in Race.


    "Better hurry and wash yourself up. The washrooms are located along that hallway. Be sure to wear the clothes we have provided. I should head now to wake everyone up." She said pointing to the backside of the hall.


    "Thank you and one more thing, which direction is the field?"


    "Just head left after exiting the Inn and head straight in that direction."


    "Sure, Goodbye Miss Florelle."


    He rushed along the hallway after saying that and soon came upon two doors each located on one side of the hallway. Opening the left one, he confirmed it to be the washroom. After all, where else can you find urinals with running water.


    Instead of heading towards the urinals, he entered one of the compartments on the side and locked the door with the latch present there. A few minutes went by and Noah came out with a relieved expression on his face.


    Initially, he was quite hesitant to go to the washroom here but he was quite amazed to see there was a mechanical flush system. Along with probably the most beneficial object he could ever find. There was a holder fixed to the wall containing a shower bidet sprayer. Its appearance was quite different and was quite bulky but functioned almost the same. He just didn''t expect to see this here. All he had to do was hold it tight to spray water. Also, the toilet seat dries on its own after use so he just had to sit and do his job and it would take care of rest.


    Rushing to his room upstairs, he opened the door with a bang. Shaun and Ava were startled by the noise and jumped out of their bed half-awake.


    "WAKE UP!" Noah yelled while looking around for the packets.


    "What!? Noah.. what are you doing? The sunrise has not even happened yet." Ava said drowsily looking out of the window to see the dark sky.


    Shaun also was going to say something but he stopped abruptly and his eyes widened as he touched his right shoulder.


    Noah didn''t notice his friend''s action and continued to speak.


    "We need to get ready soon. Wash up and wear the clothes we got yesterday." He said hurriedly and went for his packets.


    "At least explain why do we need to get ready." Ava asked becoming fully awake now.


    "The Knights ordered the Initiates to gather at a training camp in an hour. Hurry up, we don''t have time." Noah said giving directions for the washroom.


    The Ava nodded and rushed ahead to the washroom after hearing his words while Shaun just stood there rotating his shoulders.


    Looking at his friend''s action, Noah said with a knowing smile.


    "The potion''s something, isn''t it. How much stats did it give you? I got 0.1 in Endurance and 0.2 in Perception. Look, my specs are gone." Noah pointed at his face for Shaun to look at.


    Shaun heard his words and realized Noah wasn''t wearing his glasses. Checking his own Status, he was surprised by the notifications.


    "I just got 0.3 in Vitality." Shaun replied dazed.


    "Well, no surprise there. You don''t look like you need any more optimization of your body. You were already jacked enough." Noah said nodding to himself. He then reminded Shaun.


    "You should move now or we will be late."


    Heeding his words, Shaun made a beeline towards the washroom. There was a big smile on his face all along the way.


    Noah went back to tearing the packets open. He took out the cotton clothes which included a sleeveless shirt and pants reaching just below the knee. They were slightly rough to touch but otherwise were perfectly fine.


    Quickly changing his clothes, he checked his phone to listen to some music. Thank god they brought solar chargers with them.


    Ava came back to the room in a minute and headed to the bedroom straight after grabbing her packet.


    Shaun followed in a minute and quickly took out his packet to change his clothes.


    A few minutes after that, Ava came out fully dressed. She was wearing similar clothes but they were slightly feminine in appearance and the shirt was short-sleeved.


    "I forgot to ask. Which stats of yours got increased?"


    "What stat?" She said with a bewildered look.


    "Check your statu-" He just started saying before being interrupted by a shout.


    "Woah! I got 0.1 in both Agility and Perception" She exclaimed seeing the notifications.


    Noah sighed looking at the careless girl. He waited for her to read through it and finally checked to see if they were ready.


    "Let''s go" Noah said once confirmed leading the group down the stairs and outside the Inn.


    "Do you know the way to the camp?" Ava asked taking large strides to keep up with their fast walk.


    "I asked Miss Florelle." Noah answered and sped up the pace to reach there early. He didn''t want to arrive at the last moment. He could talk with the knights there in the extra time.


    The trio headed towards the training camp.

 Chapter 18 - Training was never this easy

    Along the way, Noah explained his conversation with Miss Florelle to Shaun and Ava.


    "So, the Inn lady said we have to LVL up our race to LVL 5" Ava asked to confirm if she heard the statement correctly.


    "Yes, but she didn''t elaborate on how to LVL up." Noah answered stoically.


    "Don''t tell me we have to hunt monsters now." Ava commented.


    "I am not sure about that. Shaun, any opinions. You have been keeping quiet the entire time." Noah said turning towards Shaun who looked engrossed in his own world.


    "I''m just thinking some things." Shaun replied not explaining any further.


    Noah started to question if he was acting like yesterday but seeing the small smile on Shaun''s face abated his worries.


    "What got you into thinking?"


    Shaun hesitated for a moment but then he remembered the previous day''s incident and decided to be truthful.


    "Remember how was I accepted at high school"


    "if I remember correctly, It was through sports scholarship."


    "Right, I was an orphan like you so I could only get in through scholarship. Before meeting with you, I was into archery. Like really into. I won competitions for my school and even represented the district many times." Shaun said and then continued in a sullen mood.


    "I was doing pretty good in archery that I was thinking of trying for the zones but then one time I got seriously injured in the shoulder. It massively impacted my performance and despite trying hard to get back in the game, things never got back to normal. Eventually, I had to drop out of archery altogether."


    "But that potion should-" Noah remembered the scene in the room.


    "Yes, it felt good as before. The dull ache when I put stress on my shoulder is gone." Shaun said with a huge smile on his face. Noah was stunned because he had never seen him show such expression except a few times before. Even then, it was way more bright.


    "Well, I am happy for you but are you seriously telling me your sports anime backstory before going into the training camp. If it couldn''t be more obvious of a flag, then I don''t know what else could be." Noah said jabbing at his friend who also realized how absurd the whole story sounded now.


    "Just don''t get a rival now. I don''t want to be an extra explaining all your attacks." Noah wasn''t letting go and Shaun''s face got even more embarrassed. He looked like he wanted to dig a hole and die.


    Ava was just sporting an amused expression listening to the entire interaction.


    They were nearing the training grounds as they could see people moving in the same direction wearing a similar type of clothes.


    They soon reached the field. The entire area was covered by a small fence. They were many field tents placed around the entire open ground. They could even see logs embedded on one side forming a sort of practice gym with people smacking them. Looking over, they could see many knights and guards practicing with their swords or running with logs on their backs. The entire scene looked like a medieval military camp which it probably was.


    Looking around for a familiar face, he soon spotted Knight Rylee. Waving at his friends to follow, he started heading towards him. Noah then saw him carry a massive log that could not have weighed less than a few tons on his back.


    He looked like an ant carrying that tree while walking and that made the feat look all the more impressive. He was not even sweating heavily. This just reinforced the notion of how strong these knights could be and why he shouldn''t annoy them but clearly the world doesn''t work that way.


    Following him closely but at the same time trying not to disturb him from his training, he was waiting for an opportunity to start the conversation. Maybe knight Rylee saw his pitiful look. As he put a stop to his training and slowly put the log on the ground which raised a small cloud of dust around it.


    "Good morning Knight Rylee, I am Noah. You might not reme-" He didn''t waste the opportunity and jumped right into only to be interrupted halfway.


    "You are one of the kids in the group I led." He said indifferently.


    "That is right but how do you know that?" Noah was curious as to why did he remember him. He didn''t do anything that might attract attention and if he did, he wanted to at least know so he could prevent it from happening again. He didn''t want to attract the knight''s attention.


    "Every knight has to remember each and every face in their group. That way, they can tell who''s not worth any guidance." Knight Rylee answered with an annoyed expression.


    Noah was stumped hearing the answer. That was blunt. He clearly didn''t want to talk and Noah himself wasn''t the best speaker. Thankfully, he was friends with one who had enough thick skin.


    "Can you help us, please? We really don''t know anything about well, everything. We just got teleported here without even our consent. At least tell us why we are gathered here?" Ava had put on such an innocent-looking face that had Noah and Shaun not remembered her previous behavior, they would have questioned if someone else had replaced her.


    Knight Rylee scoffed, apparently having seen through her act. Though he wanted to have nothing to do with the three kids, Rylee knew how troublesome it would be if he said nothing and they just kept clinging onto him.


    "I''ll give just one piece of advice, follow through the entire training. It will definitely save your lives later on." Knight Rylee concluded and then bore his gaze at the trio.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    The trio was just there waiting for him to continue without realizing the talk was over, if that could even be called a talk. Seeing this, Knight Rylee reminded them of the fact.


    "Now get out of my sight."


    The trio looked at each other and then in unison scurried away from there.


    Looking back, Noah could see they were a sufficient distance away from him and then said.


    "That didn''t go too well."


    "You consider that not going well. That guy just said a single sentence and then told us to fuck off." Shaun was filled with indignation over Knight Rylee''s attitude towards them.


    "He was being a real jerk. We just asked for some information." Ava huffed while kicking a pebble on their way.


    "Well, now that avenue is closed, what do we do now? Should we try another one of the knights?"


    "No way, you want to experience that again. It''s better if we wait for the commander to come and address us once and be done with it." Ava said motioning towards the growing crowd in the center of the field.


    Agreeing with her, both the boys joined her in the crowd. Looking over, they could see the knights standing there in a line similar to yesterday. The people got in line like before. They too joined the one in front of Knight Rylee.


    He was standing there with his arms crossed in front of him.


    Seeing him act aloof standing in front of the group irked Noah for some reason. He didn''t like how he treated him and his friends. He started planning to get back at him just a bit. Maybe he should have thought more of what he was going to do now.


    Before Ava and Shaun could even think of questioning him, Noah moved fast.


    Heading towards Knight Rylee, he acted in a jovial and cheerful manner.


    "Knight Rylee, nice to see you again. You were really helpful before. Especially your advice, that helped a lot. So, I want to again thank you for your aid. We are really grateful." Noah said sincerely to Knight Rylee while being intentionally loud so that everyone nearby could hear him.


    Rylee''s eyes twitched as he realized Noah''s ploy. Before he could try to stop him and bring him to the side for some interrogation, Noah rushed back to his position. Rylee wasn''t even able to get to him as some people seeing the interaction thought that Knight Rylee could provide information and help them rushed towards the knight. More people joined seeing the opportunity and he was soon drowned in the sea of people.


    "Knight Rylee, Could you help us also?"


    "Here, Knight Rylee, we need some advice too."


    "Knight Rylee, you are so strong, can you train us?"


    "Knight Rylee" "Mister Rylee"


    ''Oh, those poor people. Alas, someone needed to be sacrificed.'' Noah thought snickering at Rylee''s misery. He knew that the knights would probably not intentionally harm them.


    There should be some sort of safeguard to prevent that but Noah forgot that even if it were completely true and Knight Rylee couldn''t beat him up, there would be nothing stopping him from making his life difficult.


    Heading back, Noah could see both Shaun and Ava facepalming at his actions. He didn''t realize it but those two witnessing the entire event could see the anger in Knight Rylee''s eyes. Someone was really in some deep trouble.


    Noah sometimes acts so irrationally when he had beef with someone. They had been angrier than him but they never thought to get back at the knight for that. He could be extremely spiteful at times.


    "You really had to do that, huh?" Ava hissed at Noah for his reckless behavior.


    "That wasn''t a really smart way to get back at him. He''s going to be on your tail from now on." Shaun added looking towards the said knight dispersing the crowd with an irritated face.


    "Let''s see who will be more trouble. I was just returning the favor." Noah had a challenging smirk on his face.


    Just then, a commotion started from one side. Looking over they could see Captain Sanders coming with his entourage of knights. He started climbing the logs embedded in the ground to reach a platform made from dozen or more of the same logs. Taking a deep breath, Knight Sanders addressed the crowd.


    "All of you are gathered here for a purpose. The purpose being is to grow. We are here to facilitate the growth in your body." He continued with an even deeper tone.


    "However, what we will put you through is not something most are capable of handling without a firm will. Therefore, I want to inform you all before starting this, this exercise is not mandatory. Those who want can opt-out of this at any time. You can join those knights there, they will take you to the City Hall where you can choose who you want to apprentice under for your Profession." He said pointing to a group of knights standing at the side.


    Nobody knew what to do. Most felt it was some sort of test so they chose not to move. Noticing this, he clarified.


    "You will not lose out on anything. In fact, you will get extra time to pursue your Professions. If you want, you can join whenever you feel ready. Those who will be training here will also be joining you in the afternoon." Knight Sanders continued.


    "There''s no shame in admitting weakness. Instead, It is the true strength. Knowing where your weakness lie so you can improve upon those. "


    Finally, some people moved forward. They were mostly adults in their late 20s who looked like your typical office workers. You can''t expect people who have been sitting on a desk for most of their life to suddenly pick up swords and undergo military training. Looking at them, people started trickling out as more and more people joined them. Eventually, the crowd thinned from a few thousand to less than five hundred.


    The entire group moved towards the city hall leaving the trio and the rest of the remaining people looking at Knight Sanders to continue.


    "You all will now undergo a series of tests to judge your performances. Each knight will test their group of Initiates. A suggestion from me, don''t give up and complete the entire test. Those who do so will get a great head start compared to others." Knight Sanders finished his speech and without wasting any time motioned to the knights to take it from here.


    "Follow me" Knight Rylee swiftly turned and moved with a brisk pace after saying that. The few dozen Initiates left followed behind him. His brisk pace turned out to be much faster than one would expect and people had started jogging just to keep up with him. They eventually had to start to run. After a kilometer or two, he stopped at a clear patch of land.


    The people following behind were huffing and puffing at this point. The trio was no exception to this.


    Apparently, Knight Rylee was generous enough to let them have a short break for a minute.


    "Stand in a line" He ordered and people quickly followed.


    "All of you will now make ten rounds around this ground. I don''t care if you fly or crawl. Just reach back here before noon."


    People groaned hearing his outrageous order. The ground was easily more than a few kilometers long in circumference from a single look.


    "You chose this. I didn''t. Or if you want, you can quit now. No one''s stopping you from that. In fact, I would be happy that there would be one less burden." Knight Rylee clearly knew how to annoy the heck out of people. However, no one quit since they all had made their mind to go for the training.


    "Since no one is quitting, what are you waiting for? MOVE!" He yelled jolting people to start moving.


    The trio also got ready to move when the same voice rang out.


    "Initiate Noah, was it. I thought you would like some more of the advice since the last one was so helpful to you." Knight Rylee''s voice made a chill crawl up Noah''s spine. He slowly turned to face the knight to see an overt evil smile on his face.


    ''I am fucked'' Noah thought as he trudged slowly towards Knight Rylee. In the corner, he saw Shaun and Ava move on with apologetic looks on their faces.


    ''Traitors. They gave up on me at the moment when I needed them the most.'' Noah sighed realizing there was nothing he could do to escape the torture awaiting him. So, he went courageously to meet the challenge head-on.


    And by courageous, he meant with shaking legs.

 Chapter 19 - I just had to say that

    "Fuck" A hoarse voice rang out of the mouth which quickly went back to panting.


    ''I hate the sun. Been roasting me for hours now. Never been a fan of sports and physical activities either. Now I know why I hate it.''


    ''Shit, my thoughts are becoming more random. I am seriously drained right now.''


    Noah''s pace was close to a crawl as he was carrying a nearly 10 kg log on his back. His shirt was drenched and soaked hours ago. He could even feel the blisters on his hands carrying that big ass thing as well as on the soles of his feet. He was already at his limit long ago. The only thing between him and giving up is the face of the bastard shooting a grin at him from the side. Oh, how much he wanted to just sock that face in. But clearly, the world didn''t favor him this time and that rascal was having the time of the day.


    ''Just wait you asshole, I am going to make your life hell now. This has become personal.''


    While Noah was cursing Knight Rylee in his mind who was walking along while smiling at him, Ava and Shaun stood at the far side having worried looks on their face.


    "Shouldn''t we stop Knight Rylee now? It has already gone on for too long" Shaun asked looking at the miserable appearance of Noah.


    "We could try but I doubt he would do so just because we said it. Moreover, this is Noah we''re talking about. Just look at him right now. He is being all kinds of stubborn. If we go now, he may even lash out at us for stopping him. The only way I can see this stopping is either one of them backs out. But they''re really similar in the way, they are both being way too stubborn and I don''t want to join in." Ava said stretching herself after the extra-long obstacle course they had to do after the marathon. Thankfully, they had a break in which they gave some food and water or else they might have collapsed by now. Noah also looked to have had some water but they weren''t sure if he had food.


    "I get what you''re saying but the way it is going, Noah could seriously hurt himself." Shaun said pointing at the two in the distance.


    "That would be absolutely true had this been our old world. I''m sure knights must have faced injuries regularly with the kind of training they do. They would surely have something to patch him up. Besides, we are not in the condition to bail him out when we haven''t even completed all our tests. We will check on that after we complete this hack ''n slash with the dummy." Ava said picking up the wooden sword.


    "I''m not sure what to do. I could see him acting stubborn but leaving him like that also doesn''t just sit right with me." Shaun said sharing his concerns.


    "Well, you can''t just back him up every time he throws shit on people. He kinda needs this. Better now with little consequences than sometime in the future when we could be in danger. The world has changed. We need to adapt to it." Ava said starting her swinging practice at the dummy.


    Hearing her words, Shaun looked towards Noah in a resigned manner and picked up his sword to hack at the wooden figure placed in front of him.


    Meanwhile, Noah was starting to see things as his vision started fading. He could see ''her'' with her beautiful smile on. His spirit improved remembering the memory. Then a mocking voice came crashing his mood.


    "You seem to be hanging there all right. Hmm, Want to quit? I''m sure a guy like you who looks like he hasn''t ever run properly could do better as a Civilian."


    Noah trekked on not paying attention to his words.


    At this point, he was out of energy to even glare at the guy.


    He just wanted this to be over with. He had enough of this torture. He just wanted to rest and have a bath because God, he was stinking. The blistering heat wasn''t enough. He had to deal with the smell too.


    But he could endure all of that. The thing he couldn''t was just standing in front of him. The bastard was standing in front of him blocking his path. He looked up to motion with his eyes to move over but one thing perplexed him. The smile on his face was gone and was replaced by a neutral expression. Regardless, he had no energy to think about that. He started urging with eyes only to be stunned when his words reached him.


    "You are done." Rylee said with no outward emotion.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    He couldn''t catch the words. Not because he couldn''t hear them or something like that but more like he couldn''t believe them.


    "The course is completed."


    If the previous sentence didn''t do it. This one did. All energy suddenly left him and he slumped to the ground with the log sliding off his shoulder. He had no energy left to think. He just stared at the sky taking deep breaths trying to calm his heartbeat.


    His body seems to be doing cheers able to relax after that intense period of exertion. He just wanted to fall asleep. He could feel his body loosening and-


    "Urgh!" something hit his face prompting him to open his eyes while fumbling around looking for the culprit. He came upon it in the form of a cylindrical box of some sort.


    "Put some salve on your arms and legs. You should be up in half an hour. The tests aren''t over yet. Join others in their practice sets when you can stand back up." Knight Rylee said that and moved on to the other members of the group who were going through their hacking session.


    Noah kept staring at Rylee''s back until he became a spot in the distance which didn''t take much time considering his speed. He then turned towards the box containing some salve.


    Reaching out to it sent waves of pain through Noah''s body which elicited a groan from his mouth. He slowly moved his hand trying to endure the sheer exhaustion and pain his body was being wracked with. Finally, he grabbed the box and pried upon the cap with his other hand.


    Opening the box greeted him with a herbal scent. He looked to see a semi-solid gel like substance that was mostly translucent with a green tint filled inside the container. Picking up some of it, he applied carefully on his palms taking care not to put pressure on the blisters. He didn''t want to feel any extra pain. Shortly after applying it, the area felt warm to him and pain started slowly subsiding. Seeing the effectiveness of the salve, he quickly applied it on the other blisters and small cuts.


    Then, he painfully removed his shoes presenting him with the ugly state of his feet. Blisters covering almost the entire area. He went to work applying it everywhere. Once done with it, he just closed the salve container and then laid there on the ground.


    The salve worked almost magically as he could feel the pain lessening as the minutes passed by. He welcomed the rest and closed his eyes enjoying the feeling of wind passing over his body.


    A little more than half an hour passed by like this. Noah then opened his eyes feeling his body. The pain had become much less noticeable now. Sitting up, he could still feel aches here and there but nothing that couldn''t be endured by him.


    He glimpsed towards the horizon to see several figures there practicing including Shaun and Ava. He tried to walk in that direction but at first, he could only limp because of the pain. Fortunately, he got used to it and was able to walk somewhat properly.


    He reached the source of activity within a few minutes. Moving towards his friends, they stopped their activity noticing and rushed towards him.


    "You feeling okay?" Shaun asked supporting Noah''s body.


    "You don''t look too good." Ava also showed a concerned expression noticing his slightly limping gait.


    "I will be fine." Noah didn''t want to worry them too much and it wasn''t like he was lying. He was really feeling much better.


    "You should ask for a break. He won''t refuse you. Many are already taking some breaks in between." Shaun said pointing at the people resting on the side.


    "Sure, I will take a break every now and then. I know how much my body can handle." Noah said trying to reassure his friends but they could clearly hear him not mentioning about having a rest now.


    Both sighed at Noah''s behavior. Seeing no way to stop Noah, they headed back and proceeded to hack at the dummies.


    "Take care. We can''t have you fainting on us." Ava said turning her head back before striking the dummy as before.


    "Of course." Noah replied with a smile before he took one of the wooden swords and joined the others in hacking.


    Everyone took breaks in between all the practicing. Some took more than others but almost all completed the sets. Those who would have given up had already done so back in the first test of the marathon.


    The sun eventually climbed directly over their head indicating that time was up. This was also cemented by the loud bang of drums coming from the center of the camp.


    The trio along with all others sitting on the ground could see Knight Rylee coming up from that same direction.


    "Follow behind me." Rylee didn''t say anything more and turned around taking big strides back to center of camp.


    The Initiates begrudgingly stood up from resting and ran after him.


    Within a few minutes, they could see a scene similar to the morning with a crowd standing in front of the platform with Knight Sanders standing on it. They joined the crowd soon after.


    It seems that they were the last group to arrive as Knight Sanders begin speaking after everything settled within the crowd.


    "Congratulations, For most of you have completed the tests and emerged triumphant. For those of you who were not able to complete the entire trial, fear not as you will be given plenty of opportunities to prove yourself in the next few days." Knight Sander nodded at the crowd and continued.


    "Those who have completed the trial will be given a growth potion to applaud their efforts. Further potions will be handed over on the basis of your weekly performances and improvement. Therefore, I hope you try your best in the upcoming days. All Initiates who will be participating further in the camp are to gather every day here in the morning for the training." He waved at the knights who came forward with satchels in their hands containing crystal potion bottles.


    "Now, the knights will distribute the potions after which they will take you back to your Inn for a meal. Then they will finally escort you to the City Hall for you to choose which Profession you wish to take. Remember to memorize the locations as the knights are escorting you just this once. After which you will be on your own." Knight Sanders finished and moved down from the platform.

 Chapter 20 - Cant Potions be Sweet!

    Knight Rylee moved forward and handed the potions to people who completed the entire trial in their group. They were about of dozen in total including the trio.


    Noah also got one which he was handed over by Knight Rylee. He wanted to snatch it out of his arms but chose to leave it this time for two obvious reasons first of which was the potion bottle, he didn''t know if it would break and the second obvious one would be Knight Rylee himself. That dude could rip trees with his strength, he didn''t want him to test his strength against his frail body.


    "All of you are to drink it now." Knight Rylee ordered crossing his arms waiting for the group to follow up on that.


    People looked at each other before popping the plugs off the potion bottles. Noah also shared a glance with the other two and they affirmed each other with a nod. Twisting the bottle plug open, he gulped down the purple potion.


    He almost retched by the taste of the potion. The Rejuvenation Potion tasted like candy compared to this. Well, that potion didn''t have much going for taste. But this, he felt like he had consumed some sort of witch concoction which maybe even be true. Trying his best not to throw up, he somehow swallowed it down thinking about the benefits this ''growth'' potion could provide. It literally had growth in its name.


    Feeling the potion settle down in his stomach, he could feel the warmth he felt when he consumed the Rejuvenation Potion. It was also accompanied by a tingling in his body. This continued for a minute before subsiding but he still feel it if he concentrated on the sensation.


    Wanting to see the effects, he opened his Status.


    He was instantly greeted with a notification.


    [Growth Potion has been consumed: Latent potential is tapped into your body granting you a period of extreme growth. Grants large Boost to Stats growth speed. Boosts Records acquisition. Makes learning new Skills easier.]


    Active: one cosmic week


    ''Oh, now that''s something. Benefits just keep coming. First, there was the Rejuvenation Potion. Now, it''s the Growth one. Let''s see, there is boost to growth speed. Pretty standard considering it''s a growth potion. Records? the word comes again. Maybe it''s something like XP since there are LVLs though it doesn''t seem so simple. I need to ask the bastard for this, don''t I?'' Noah thought looking over the others deep in thought also probably looking at their status screen.


    ''Just move on, new Skills, that''s good. Also, can someone please ask that sorry excuse of knight about the Records. I would remember your sacrifice.'' Noah was trying to see if someone would speak up about their doubts with the knight and he seems to have found the person in the form of a woman in her mid-20s. She raised her hand and asked aloud.


    "Knight Rylee, I have some doubts. Could you clarify what does Records and Skills actually mean. I have got a general idea but it would be best if someone like you would describe it to us."


    Noah gave a mental thumbs up to her for speaking up. Knight Rylee had a constipated look on his face like he wanted to be anywhere but here. Though seeing the eager looks in their eyes, he resigned to himself and started explaining.


    "Records are a fundamental part of Multiverse. They form every part of you. Your past, present and your possible futures. Your abilities, your knowledge your everything. Many Scholars have conjectured that souls are made up of Records though we don''t know the connection between the two for sure. What we do know is that they are intricately connected to each other. Thus, acquiring new Records grows your LVL and eventually allows you to evolve beyond your limits by growing your souls." Knight Rylee continues with a serious look.


    "As for Skills, they are the crystallization of Records. The Records manifest as Abilities through your Skills. The Skills can vary from very mundane like weapon mastery or knowledge of certain subjects to extraordinary abilities like energy manipulation to skills of mass destruction. Skills can be acquired through a lot of ways." Eyebrows were starting to rise hearing him continue to speak.


    "You can try to obtain one manually but it is next to impossible to create a decent skill from scratch. You need to have extensive knowledge and practice of the study on which the skill is based on and then you would have a chance to create it. Normal skills like Weapon Mastery can be acquired with continuous practice but unique abilities or even advanced energy ones require years of study to even attempt to acquire. You can count the number of people on your hands in the kingdom of Lydia who has created their own unique Skills." Knight Rylee seemed to want to give the entire lecture on Skills right here.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    "Then, how would one go about acquiring new Skills. That''s where Professions and eventually Classes comes in. They lower the entry barrier and help you to create new skills related to the paths. They even provide basic Skills at fixed LVLs and grants the opportunity to acquire rare skills." He finally concluded his explanation before giving a final reminder.


    Everyone was waiting eagerly for him to continue since he just imparted them with quite a lot of important information.


    "That''s everything you need to know. So, I don''t want anyone coming by to ask anything."


    Almost everyone rolled their eyes at his lazy attitude. He clearly didn''t care much about this job and was just doing the bare minimum as a formality of sorts.


    Rylee then pointed at the stash of salve containers in his satchel. "These are basic recovery salves. Take one with you. Remember to apply it every night before sleep so your body can recover from minor injuries and heal itself for the coming day of training. You can ask for another when your current one is all used up."


    People came by one by one and picked their salves. Noah was considering whether to get another one. He eventually decided to try his luck. It would only benefit him.


    Standing in front of the Knight, he extended his hand while having a shameless smile on his face. Rylee''s eyes twitched but he ultimately didn''t say anything and just handed him a salve.


    Noah was surprised by this. He thought he would have to at least convince him to get one but who would have thought he would get one just like that. Well, he didn''t care about the details, he got one. Not wanting to test his chances, he rushed back to his friends.


    "This should be good." Ava said looking at the salve when Noah came close.


    "Oh, those are very good." Noah commented still feeling the effect of salve on his body. His blisters have almost faded. At this rate by tomorrow, his hands and feet would be as good as new.


    "Have you tried it?" Shaun asked hearing Noah utter the statement with confidence.


    "Yep, it''s what helped me get back up after that torture. Now, except for a bit of pain, I am mostly healed." Noah said describing the effects of salve.


    "Well, at least I won''t look bruised and battered from the training every day." Ava remarked hearing about the effectiveness of salve.


    "What do you think we should do about the training? I think it is best we continue coming." Shaun said looking at Noah and Ava for their replies.


    "I think it is best we continue. There''s no obvious disadvantage to us. It''s just that I have to see that ugly mug every morning." Noah said glaring at Knight Rylee.


    "Noah, I get you don''t like him but can you make it less obvious. Since he is technically our in-charge for the rest of our time here." Ava was getting tired of Noah''s behavior. He generally acted smart and mature until he started acting like this making one question if he was just bluffing all along.


    Noah wanted to ignore her but seeing her staring straight at him, he grumbled under his breath and said, "Fine, I''ll take care not to overdo it."


    The salve distribution was completed while they were talking. Knight Rylee immediately moved towards Florelle''s Inn. He seemed to be always in a rush. From what Noah could see, he most likely wanted to just be done with his duty.


    Miss Florelle was waiting for them at the reception and guided them to the diner. Everyone had a sumptuous dinner containing plenty of roasted meat with potatoes and peas. It was served with a fresh drink. It was also chilled somehow. The drink itself was creamy and tasted sweet.


    The trio felt refreshed after having dinner, especially the drink. They were thinking to get back to the room to change. They had got two other similar sets of clothes to change into by Miss Florelle.


    That thought had to be stopped since Knight Rylee didn''t even wait for a second after everyone had dinner and led the group out of the Inn. He was unfazed by any complaints and went forward indifferently.


    The group went a repeat of the morning with them running to catch up to him. They finally arrived at the plaza they arrived at yesterday. Rylee then headed towards the Manor they saw before from which Knight Sanders addressed the entire batch of Initiates.


    Finally able to look at it closely, it was much more majestic and grand. The entire mansion was mostly made of a mix of gray-blue stone bricks. The other parts were covered with exquisite wood forming pillars, windows frames, railings and others structures. The tinted windows brought out the charm adding an extra finish to the luxurious manor. Short spires were jutting out of some parts of the roof giving the entire mansion a royal look.


    There was awe in every Initiate eyes standing in front of the mansion. Knight Rylee clearly didn''t care about that as he turned around and said to the group.


    "My duty is completed here. You all can go inside and ask the people there what to do." He didn''t wait for them to respond as he dashed off in the distance.


    The group just stood there in front of the mansion stunned at the series of events. They were undoubtedly abandoned by him just now. Knight Rylee could at least show them inside. It shouldn''t take much time. Everyone was confused about what to do. Then, the lady from before who spoke up took a step and headed towards the mansion.


    People followed soon after seeing her take the first step including the trio of Shaun, Noah and Ava.


    The trio then entered the mansion along with the group.

 Chapter 21 - Nephra

    Entering the mansion brought them to a completely new scene. The entire entrance hall was massive with paintings, sculptures, others pieces of ornaments. A massive chandelier hung on the ceiling. On the side and back of the hall, they could see several booth stalls with long lines in front of them. People in black and white official wear moved around. The whole thing seemed like an old-style government office which was even more bizarre considering the sheer opulence overflowing the place.


    Initiates flooded the room with the entrance hall full of chaos. It seems despite Knight Rylee''s rush, other groups came here before theirs and were now wandering around the hall possibly scouring for information.


    Not wasting any time, they also joined in but the long lines deterred them from sticking around for long. Moving back, Noah started the discussion.


    "This isn''t going to work. We need to wait at least an hour before getting our turn."


    "I have got an idea." Ava''s statement piqued the interest of the other two. Seeing their attention was on her, she continued.


    "We can be dumb and try to brute force it like the others or we can be smart and ask someone who knows their shit." Ava pointed at the office workers carrying papers on them running all around.


    Noah and Shaun were on with the idea. So, the trio started looking for a good target.


    They soon locked on one as the best possible target. A girl around 15-16 years old who clearly looked new on the job. She was clumsily handling the papers and was flustered by all the people moving around her.


    Ava was the one who called out to her since they didn''t want to scare her off and she was least likely of them to do so.


    "Hey, you okay? Maybe I can help you"


    "I''m fine. I can handle it." the girl shyly said trying to move out of the crowd but utterly failing at doing so.


    "You don''t seem to be fine. Here, this will be okay, right?" Ava said swiftly pulling her out of the crowd and then just as naturally took half the stack of papers from her hand.


    "Tell me where you were going to take all this, I will help you put it there."


    The girl was confused at the sudden turn of events. She wasn''t able to form a coherent response, ultimately uttering a weak reply.


    "Um..., The office over there, I was taking it there."


    "Sure, let''s go there." Ava said smiling while urging the boys to follow along with her eyes.


    Both Noah and Shaun were slack-jawed at the ease in which she handled her and gave a mental thumbs up to her performance.


    The girl headed towards the booth on the far side. Ava along with Noah and Shaun followed behind her.


    "Are you new here? You were looking quite helpless back there." Ava continued the conversation.


    The girl tilted her head a bit and blinked her eyes not able to gauge the intentions behind the questions.


    "I am. It''s only been a week since I got the job here. It took a few years to get my Scribe Profession to decent LVL. I was also quite lucky to get the job here." She answered Ava.


    The trio''s ears perked up instantly hearing her words.


    "Oh, is that so. You must be quite lucky then, mm-. Right, I didn''t get your name? Just so you know, my name is Ava." Ava continued prodding at her to get more information.


    "My name is Nephra. Um, do you know why are those two following us?" The girl named Nephra whispered to Ava looking cautious pointing at Noah and Shaun.


    "Don''t worry about those two. Those are my friends Noah and Shaun. Hey, you two. This is Nephra." Ava reassured her while introducing the girl to the boys.


    "Hi, Nephra"


    "Nice to meet you"


    Both of them greeted her with a smile which she reciprocated with a shy smile.


    "Nephra, you said something about your Scribe Profession. Can you tell us more about that, you may know who we are. We are visitors so we don''t really know much about Professions." Ava softly said letting her understand what she wanted.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    Nephra suddenly stopped in her steps also making the entire trio halt.


    "Neph?" Ava said nervously wanting to know if she said something wrong for her to suddenly stop.


    Then, all of a sudden she jerked her head up to look straight at Ava. She was taken aback because Nephra was glaring at her with anger. Before Ava could question her, Nephra erupted in anger.


    "So, you just wanted something from Nephra. That''s why you helped her." She said while putting on what she thought was an angry face. Though to the outsiders, it was something else entirely. She was just puffing her cheeks out while pouting. Coupled with her strange way of speaking, she could probably threaten a puppy.


    The boys wanted to laugh at the cute display but they were also a bit disappointed because certainly, this case was hopeless, they had to look for someone else now.


    "Well, that is true. I helped you because I wanted to get information." Ava said seriously.


    Nephra became angrier at the admission. She was tired of people being friendly with her just because she was useful to them. She wasn''t some tool and Nephra would tell that straight to their face. She was about to excuse herself but Ava cut her short.


    "But that is only the partial truth as I would have helped you regardless. After all, I couldn''t just leave a cute girl looking helpless all alone." Ava declared with a bright smile directed at Nephra.


    Her face became blank. The sudden reversal caught Nephra way off guard. She started fumbling with her words before hanging her head in embarrassment.


    ''Nice save'' Both boys thought seeing how she turned the situation easily.


    Though that was because of how innocent and naive Nephra was. She was just a kid who didn''t seem to have much experience with people despite her intuition.


    "Shall we move now, the papers won''t deliver themselves to the office." Ava said seeing how flustered Nephra was.


    Nephra nodded meekly and then moving on. She wanted to just get away from the awkward situation she was in.


    The group of four moved silently for some time before Ava restarted the conversation.


    "So, can you help us know more about Professions, Neph?" Sometime in between Ava started addressing her with a nickname. Nephra though was busy thinking over her words and therefore didn''t notice it.


    "Sure." She said softly before taking a deep breath and started explaining.


    "Professions are umm, they are sort of like normal jobs but they provide extra benefits from Akasha. One gets a Profession unlocked after repeatedly practicing activities related to a Profession. Like a Blacksmith forging weapons, a cook making and serving food, a tailor making clothes and a Scribe making and handling records and paperwork. All of you get that much, right?" Nephra confirmed if they were following when the trio responded with a nod. She then continued her explanation.


    "People generally hire those who have high Profession LVL and those who have advanced Professions have high status. There are few grades to Professions with rare ones offering more stats and better Skills. Normal Profession includes Farmers, Workers, Miners and others like that. Rare ones include Apothecary, Artificer, Cook, Scribe, Blacksmith, Craftsman and many others." She then looked upwards recalling some information in her distant memory.


    "I don''t know the exact difference between them. Mom says it has something to do with the complexity of Profession but she also said no two Professions are exactly the same and even Rare Professions have ones which offer better stats." Nephra finally concluded having said all she knew about Professions.


    "Do you know where we can learn those Professions?" Ava asked the question of the hour.


    "Well, generally, one can learn Professions on their own but it is very slow and inefficient. Instead, it is better to go for apprenticeship since the masters will help the apprentices and makes leveling Professions much faster and less frustrating." She answered before pointing at the booths.


    "Lucky for you, counters have been set up in the hall for visitors especially. You can go to any booth and choose which Profession you would like to pursue. They will then register your identity and hand you an appointment letter along with a map to where you would be learning and practicing your Profession."


    The discussion went on like this for a bit where they asked about other things they were curious about. Like how those who specialize in Profession are called Civilians and those who pursue their Class after the Rite are called Professionals despite the obvious irony.


    When asked about it, Nephra mentioned that each evolution unlocks an extra Profession Slot and since Classes provide more Records compared to Professions, therefore Professionals evolve much faster in earlier stages. In conclusion, Professionals have more number of Professions than Civilians in general. This is the reason why Professionals have a much higher status in society compared to the average Civilian.


    Gradually, the topic of conversation shifted from formal talk about Professions and Evolution to casual talk about their daily lives along with friends and family. She made quite an amazed face hearing about their past lives and all the devices and technology they used.


    "Those technology you mentioned sound a lot like magical items that Artificers make but you mentioned they didn''t use mana. So, were they something like the Engineers I heard about in the Capital?" Nephra had quite a thoughtful look on her face pondering about the technology and other devices but the trio could only see a cute face mumbling some words.


    In this manner, they went about from one booth to another till all the paperwork was distributed. It took them about 15-20 minutes to do so and they very much enjoyed each other''s company. The trio was happy to know more about Akasha and Profession while at the same time befriending her whereas she was happy to know about the visitors and their world along with making three new foreign friends.


    "I would like to meet you again sometime soon." Nephra smiled at the trio.


    "Same here" Ava replied with a smile.


    "We will visit soon." Shaun had a fun time knowing the cheerful girl.


    "You can maybe introduce your family to us next time." Noah also enjoyed their time with her and would be happy to visit her again.


    The trio stood and waved their hands while Nephra went about her work.


    "Shall we move now?" Ava asked the other two when she was gone from their sight.


    Nodding, they went straight to the booths.

 Chapter 22 - Arent we all Professionals?

    Joining a sparsely crowded line, They started talking to pass the time.


    "That Nephra was a very interesting girl." Ava said with a smile thinking about the cute girl.


    "You don''t say. If I didn''t know better myself and your strikingly different facial appearances, I would have thought you two were sisters. Seriously though, how did you get along with her so easily and in such a short time? We both could barely be considered friends with her but you, on the other hand, looked like you had known her for years with the ease you interacted with her." Noah said still amazed with how she got along so well with Nephra.


    "Well, she reminded me a lot about myself so I could relate to her. Also, being in the School Committee really helps when dealing with boys and girls a few years younger than yourself." Ava clarified sounding proud of her social skills and she deserved to be with how helpful she was turning out to be when dealing with Nephra.


    "Mind explaining how she reminded you of yourself?" Noah was curious about that detail.


    "Well, she was being a tryhard like I was a few years ago. Trying too hard to make yourself the best or at least what people expect out of you. Let me tell you, that weighs on you, like a lot. I was burning myself out from being way too tryhard a few years back. I learned the hard way that it''s much better to be one on your own conditions." She sighed before answering with a pained smile.


    An awkward silence fell between the two after that.


    "So, any thoughts on which Profession to choose?" Shaun disliked interjecting at this moment but they needed to discuss that topic since the queue was thinning by the minute.


    Noah was thankful to Shaun as he desperately needed something to change the awkward atmosphere he had created between him and Ava when he so stupidly asked a question she was obviously uncomfortable answering.


    "Speaking of Professions, I recall mentioning about the possible option for Scholar. What do you think of that? Should I choose it? And do you guys also have similar options for Profession?"


    "I think you shouldn''t. This apprenticeship is clearly very important for growth from what we''re hearing. We shouldn''t waste it on an experiment. If there is an option for Scholar here, you could try it but otherwise, I think you should refrain from choosing it and instead choose something else." Shaun replied thinking about what Profession should be best for someone like Noah if not Scholar.


    "I was thinking the same but I also have one more reason. Right now, our training is focused on physical sections and we probably won''t touch the mental ones soon. Moreover, the only reason we were even able to complete the entire trail today was due to the Energized Buff. So, a Profession that is more physically oriented is my priority. Do you think it is a good decision? " Noah had thought over his priorities but he still needed that extra assurance that he wasn''t making a dumb decision.


    "I think it should be fine but ultimately, you should choose one that suits you. It''s even better if that Profession also interests you." Shaun said before continuing.


    "I have also got an option myself. It is Cook. It gives 0.1 per LVL to Agility, Perception, Wisdom and Willpower. Pretty decent if I consider what you mentioned about the Scholar. If nothing drastic happens, I should be choosing this one." Shaun said looking over the summary of Cook Profession.


    "Yeah, you would probably do best in that one. What about you, Ava, any luck in getting a Profession." Noah said trying to make Ava join the conversation since she was being awfully silent the entire time and he was feeling guilty about it.


    "Hmm, did you say something? I was a bit out of it." Ava got back to Earth from wherever she was thinking when she heard someone call her. Seeing the two look at her, she was somewhat embarrassed at getting so distracted in the middle of the conversation.


    "We were talking about our Profession choices. You got any existing choices?" Shaun answered calmly.


    Ava quickly opened her Status and went to the Professions tab. Focusing on it brought out her choices for Professions. She said after thoroughly examining every choice.


    "I got two. One is Orator and the other one is Leader. They are exactly what they mean. Both provide similar stats. 0.1 in Wisdom, Willpower and Perception."


    "That confirms another thing. We can get Professions if we are proficient in something related to it. Moreover, it seems to need to be sufficiently practiced." Noah voiced out his conjectures before continuing.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    "For the Orator, we two should also have gotten it if the prerequisite was just to talk in front of a crowd but it is more likely to be to address a crowd regularly with sufficient expertise in speaking. The two of us could barely qualify for the first condition let alone think of the second one and that is if there are only two conditions. We never know."


    "Regardless, we should think more about whether she should choose one of these or not. Again, I stand by my previous opinion. We shouldn''t experiment with it right now. It''s much better to follow the ones available here. We will have the opportunity to experiment with Professions later on." Shaun intervened bringing the topic back to Profession choices.


    Ava started pondering about which choice she should take now. After considering for some time, she made the decision and stated to her friends.


    "I think I will listen to you both this time. I don''t see any easy way I could easily progress in both of those professions unless they teach about it here. Even if they did, I doubt it would help me significantly in training with either of them offering no physical stats."


    Noah and Shaun agreed with her opinion. It was better to test the waters first and it''s not like this was the end all be all for their Profession. They could always choose a new one after they undergo the Rite.


    Some may ask why were they so confident in being able to pass the Rite. It was because they learned from Neph that almost all people who undergo military training like the one they were put under right now passes the Rite. It takes them a few years in general but the Growth Potion is there to compensate for the time.


    This is different for Civilians since they could take at most a decade to pass the Rite with the help of Professions. Those with mediocre Profession like Worker even struggle to undergo the Rite within their lifetimes because growth is only possible until a certain age after which stats starts to degrade.


    The stats slowly begins to stagnate in one''s 30s while starting to degrade in 40s after which it is nigh impossible to grow your stats unless they use a Rejuvenation Potion before they reach 60 years or so. That would bring the body back to prime allowing one last chance to try to pass the Rite. Of course, that is only true if one could afford the expensive price of the potion that only nobles and rich merchants could pay for with ease.


    They finally reached before the booth. It was more of a compartment with a glass window and door to enter. Initiates entered the door and exited every 10 minutes.


    Their turn came and Shaun was the first to go. It didn''t take him more than a few minutes to be done. Moving back, he passed the two with a satisfied look on his face.


    Next was Ava''s turn. She took a bit more time with her choice. Though, eventually, she seemed to have found one that interested her. She was smiling ear to ear, apparently very satisfied with her choice.


    While passing by, she whispered in his ear.


    "Found a good one for myself. There are many to choose from. Don''t get overwhelmed."


    When Noah looked at Ava a bit nervously, she winked at him.


    Noah nodded and responded with a smile while internally he was relieved she was back to normal.


    Moving forward, he entered the booth and greeted the middle-aged staff. He was wearing similar attire as the other employees here.


    "Please state your name and age." The staff asked professionally.


    "Noah, age 19" Noah answered the question calmly.


    The staff took a deep breath and started speaking.


    "Mister Noah, I am here to help you choose a Profession. You will be given a list of Professions to choose from. I will be answering any questions and doubts you might have regarding the Professions. Now, shall we start the process?"


    Noah nodded to show that he was ready.


    "Since we are doing this formally, I have to ask whether you wish to choose any labor or gatherer-related professions. Examples include Worker, Woodcutter and Miner. There are many others but most are similar offering 0.2-0.3 stats per LVL. We do not recommend choosing any one of these unless all other options are exhausted."


    The staff finished his explanation with a reminder at last. Despite the staff''s stoic and professional speech, Noah could recognize the genuine advice in the statement. Well, he was not dumb to choose those anyway unless he absolutely needed those specific Professions which he clearly did not right now.


    "No, I don''t wish to choose anyone out of those."


    "Then you would choose one from the list of mainstream Professions. They are generally categorized into craft, academic, survival, managerial and miscellaneous. We could go over the entire list but it would be much better if you could give me a criterion so that I could narrow down the possible choices." The staff continued the explanation while writing some notes.


    "I would prefer one which is more physically oriented since I am also undergoing the training camp. I hope that it would help with the camp." Noah explained his priorities to the staff who was nodding along to show that he was listening.


    "That is a good decision. Since we are going for physically oriented ones, academic and managerial are completely out. This also removes most of the craft and miscellaneous leaving only survival and few others from the craft and misc. categories. The available choices left include Explorer, Militia, Hunter, Blacksmith and Builder. These are all the Professions you could choose from. All of them offer 0.4 stats per LVL. There are others left out like Rider because there aren''t any masters of those Professions here in this town who could guide the apprentices." The staff finished his explanation and asked the important question.


    "Which one will you choose?"


    The question got Noah into thinking. Except for the Builder, all others were excellent options. He could choose any one of them and be very satisfied after the fact. Though when ruminating over the choices, one option stood out to him. The prospect of having that Profession appealed to him much more than the others. Making up his mind over the choice, he informed the staff of his decision.


    "I will choose-"

 Chapter 23 - Not Fun at all

    Noah came out of the booth with a big smile. Heading straight to his friends, he playfully said to them.


    "Wanna guess which Profession I chose?"


    Ava''s eyebrows raised seeing him all gleeful and decided to entertain him since she was also curious which one he chose.


    "Well, if we think about your priorities, you should choose one which is more physical. So, something like Militia or maybe even Explorer. But you could choose either or even something entirely else." Ava said holding her chin thinking over Noah''s potential choices.


    "I should give you a hint. It is something all fantasy aspirants wish to try once." Noah decided to make it a bit easier for them to guess.


    Ava thought about the hint but wasn''t able to narrow down the list. When every Profession seemed straight out of medieval fantasy, how could one tell which one people would wish to try more.


    Noah was enjoying the sight of Ava pulling her hair out trying to figure out his choice. He eventually decided it was enough and was about to declare his Profession but he caught Shaun in his sight looking at him strangely. Before he could question him why, Shaun said anxiously.


    "Don''t tell me you chose Blacksmith."


    Noah was a bit surprised he was able to guess it that easily but chalking it up to luck, Noah replied.


    "Yeah, how did you guess? Isn''t it awesome! I can picture myself right now making weapons in a forge." Noah had an excited expression describing about his future blacksmith creations.


    Shaun sighed hearing him excitedly talking about creating fantasy weapons. He eventually couldn''t handle the sight anymore and yelled at him.


    "You dumb asshole!"


    Ava and Noah along with all those near them were startled by the sudden voice.


    Finding the source of the yell, Noah was confused at the sudden outburst by Shaun. People''s gazes turned towards their direction and whisperings started coming from those nearby. Seeing the commotion he caused, Shaun lowered his tone down a bit and whispered his next words though still quite agitated.


    "Do you even realize what have you done?"


    "Choose the Blacksmith Profession. Is something wrong with my choice?" Noah was nervous sensing Shaun''s obvious disapproval with his choice. He wondered if he made a mistake choosing Blacksmith.


    Shaun couldn''t even get angry seeing him being so clueless but it was no less frustrating dealing with Noah''s dumb shenanigans.


    "Why do you always make such dumb decisions. Tell me, what made you think choosing Blacksmith was your best option."


    "I thought I could learn to make and repair weapons. We obviously would practice with them soon, so I thought it would be better if I knew how to maintain weapons along with their characteristics. Also, the idea of being a Blacksmith and making weapons sounds a bit fun." Noah replied explaining his reasoning behind choosing Blacksmith which in his opinion was quite reasonable.


    "Fun, you think forging weapons would be fun. Hah, what a funny thing I heard." Shaun had scorn on his face as if what Noah said was so absurd that he couldn''t believe it.


    "Why do you say so? I know It would be difficult to learn a new craft from scratch but it shouldn''t be too much for me considering I like making stuff." Noah wasn''t quite sure why was Shaun behaving this way. He was usually the calmest out of the trio.


    "You are being naive, Noah. Making weapons is anything but fun. It would be frustrating, tiring and nerve-wracking. Not fun. I repeat, NOT FUN AT ALL." Shaun was annoyed at how easy Noah was taking Blacksmithing.


    Noah could see Shaun was being irrational about all this but he couldn''t quite place a reason behind it. Instead, It would just be faster to ask the man himself.


    "You sound like you have a bad history with blacksmithing."


    "Not Blacksmithing but weapon crafting in general. I told you about my archery days, right. I was not so well off at that time to be able to buy new arrows in batches just for practice. So, I thought to try making them myself. Let''s say it didn''t go well. I gave up in a week and just made do with second-hand arrows. That was just me trying to make half-decent arrows. You are just going to try doing the full course on that and much more. Do you now realize what you have gotten into!? I say go back there before it is too late and choose something tamer." Shaun felt he had to persuade Noah to give up Blacksmith otherwise he will fall down the abyss of disappointment and failure.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.


    "I don''t think it would be that bad. You are likely exaggerating your experience. If anything, I think you probably suck at anything related to crafting. What do you think, Ava?" Noah wasn''t buying it and turned to Ava for her opinion.


    "You are right. It sounds Shaun just has a personal grievance with weapon crafting but you shouldn''t become lax. Blacksmithing is a very complex profession in our world taking years to only become decent not to mention here where you would be dealing with exotic materials." Ava was also baffled at Shaun''s behavior.


    Though, despite how absurd he sounded, there was still some truth in his words. Becoming a Master Blacksmith is a lifetime endeavor for most people. Noah would need more than just interest to perform well in this field.


    Noah was happy that Ava was of the same opinion as him at first but rolled his eyes hearing the next part. He also agreed that it wouldn''t be so easy, but she could have put that better. Did she not trust his judgment. How would people here choose Blacksmith if it was so hard that you couldn''t even hope to master it. He didn''t want to extend this pointless discussion anymore.


    "Okay, I will take this seriously. Now, can we move on from me? I didn''t get what you two chose."


    Shaun grumbled at the obvious attempt to evade the topic but he couldn''t try to force this anymore on Noah unless he wanted to be seen as an irredeemable jerk.


    "I chose Cook as I mentioned before. There were some others that interested me but I was far more comfortable with cooking than trying something like Apothecary."


    Noah was not at all surprised. He expected this from Shaun. What he didn''t expect was Ava''s decision.


    "I decided to go with Explorer. The staff told me it provides great skills for survival and exploration. Something which would be necessary for unfamiliar environments." Ava said while fiddling with her appointment letter.


    Noah completely agreed with her reasoning. Such skills will definitely come in handy soon based on their current situation. Though, one thing stood odd to him.


    "I thought you would choose something like a managerial one because of your familiarity with it and all."


    "I told you before. How could you forget it so quickly? I chose to join the Committee and manage events. That doesn''t mean I particularly like it. I just put up with it. Instead, I think of myself more of an adventurous type." Ava said pointing a finger straight at him with an admonishing look but everyone could tell she was just teasing.


    Thankfully, Noah wasn''t dense at taking social cues. He joined her performance putting on a scared face while acting dramatically.


    "Oh, how ignorant I am. I should throw myself off the cliff for this."


    "Do you also choose the place where you would do your apprenticeship?" Shaun interjected their melodrama with an abrupt question.


    Both of them were confused. They didn''t recall the staff asking anything related to that.


    A look of realization appeared on Shaun''s face seeing their puzzled looks.


    "I thought so. I was given the option to choose which restaurant or inn I wanted to go to for an apprenticeship. Cooks should be more common compared to other Professions, therefore the options." Shaun presented his thoughts and continued the topic.


    "The list given was rated according to the reputation of the establishments and would you know it, Florelle''s Inn was near the top so I wasted no time selecting that. It seems I will now be helping at the Inn. Be prepared to face my dishes soon." He added the last bit with a mischievous smirk.


    Both of them smiled at his comment. They didn''t need to fear his dishes. He was far better at cooking than the two of them to the point he was the one who prepared the dishes whenever they decided to hang out indoors. The trio soon moved to head towards the main entrance to depart on to their separate destinations.


    Mid-walk, Ava thought she should also explain her appointment destination.


    "I was told to head to the barracks near the outskirts of the town. The guards there would supposedly guide me to the Archers when I would show them the letter. Many of them appear to choose Explorer as one of their Professions. Archers regularly dive into the jungle nearby and know the ins and outs of the place. They would show me the ropes around surviving and exploring. At least, that''s what the staff said." She finishing her explanation and shrugged her shoulders.


    She didn''t think everyone at the barracks would be happy and willing to come forward to help someone who was an absolute beginner at the job. Nevertheless, she would find out how the situation is when she reaches there. Hopefully, she would find someone patient enough to teach her. Though, her interaction with Knight Rylee already gave a bad precedent for the soldiers.


    Seeing he was the only one left, Noah also described the location he was briefed about.


    "I have to go to a place called Anvil Artisans. Seems to be in the middle of the city. Also, apparently a very reputable place. The staff basically told me I could ask anyone in the town for directions. He informed me that I would recognize it at first sight. Besides that, I wasn''t told much." Noah was extremely curious about the establishment. The information he had was far from enough to form a picture of the place. He was becoming impatient slowly and wanted to just rush there at this moment.


    Arriving at the plaza, Noah reminded the two.


    "We should move now, shouldn''t be too late on the first day."


    "Yeah, we better get moving. See you both back at the Inn. You two are sure to have interesting stories after this. I will be expecting to hear some good ones." Ava waved at both of them which the two boys reciprocated and sprinted straight out of the plaza.


    Shaun also bid Noah farewell and jogged back towards the Inn.


    "See you at night"


    "You better have made some delicious dishes for us." Noah yelled at Shaun after he started jogging. Shaun waved back in affirmation without turning around.


    Noah then turned in the direction of his destination and started walking.


    "Let''s see, where is this place?" Noah murmured to himself taking out the map given by the staff.

 Chapter 24 - Anvil Artisans

    "This seems to be the place." Noah looked up from the map marked with the location of Anvil Artisans.


    He took almost an hour walking nonstop to get here. This was despite the place being located very close to the central plaza on the map. The initial estimates he had of this town just kept getting subverted. It seemed that the population here was more than just than a few thousand and looked to be in the range of hundreds of thousands, possibly nearing a million.


    The only saving grace from this exhaustive walk was that he didn''t have to go out of his way to search for the place. The entire structure stood out from far away. Asking nearby town inhabitants, he confirmed it to be his destination.


    He stood in front of the grand structure. The wooden building was tall despite having only one floor. The plumes of smoke coming out of the chimneys of the roof belied the building''s nature.


    There was a massive logo of a hammer placed on an anvil at the front. High traffic of people moved in and out of the entrance indicating the popularity of the place. Noah moved inside the place following the crowd.


    He came upon the reception. Upon showing the letter, the busy staff just pointed in a direction leading to inner parts of the smithy before turning to the other customers. Giving a nod to the staff for the help, he resumed his march.


    He finally stood before massive double doors at the back of the smithy. Most likely leading to the forge. Noah took a deep breath to calm himself and pushed open the doors.


    The doors were halfway open before a sudden thunderous voice startled him.


    "YOU BUFFOONS! HAVE YOU NO IDEA WHAT TEMPERING MEANS?"


    He was taken aback and slightly frightened by the rumbling voice. Focusing his sight, he came upon a scene that would be burned on his soul and reminded him of the fact that he was in a different world now. He spotted a midget holding two men by the collar. The two men were on their knees looking like they were scared shitless. The rumbling voice made an appearance again.


    "IS THIS WHAT I TAUGHT YOU, HUH? YOU TWO LOOK LIKE YOU NEED SOME TIME ALONE IN THE THE SALVAGE LINE."


    This time he was able to pinpoint the source to the midget. He couldn''t believe the scene happening before him. Not that the midget could lift a man with a hand. He was already familiar with that but that no one around was looking shocked. It was as if they had seen this scene before many times.


    The two men continued to plead for mercy as if the thought of going to this ''Salvage Line'' was more frightening than facing the midget. Despite his diminutive stature, he was intimidating. His bushy beard and hardened muscles exemplified this fact while the steely gaze he directed at the two miserable-looking men made him look downright scary.


    "NOW HURRY UP AND MOVE TO THE SALVAGE LINE BEFORE I CHANGE MY MIND."


    The midget threw the two men across the room. They landed with a plop. Their face twisted in pain but they didn''t dare to keep laying down in front of their master and hurriedly stood back up. The men withdrew from the forge after meeting the midget''s gaze and scurried out of his sight.


    The entire commotion died down in an instant and all those who had stopped to enjoy the sight went back to their work. It was as if the previous event didn''t even occur. He felt quite out of place here not able to put together the tone in the forge.


    At one moment, it was serious with the midget shouting at the top of his lungs and the entire forge paying attention to him while in the other moment they are doing their normal blacksmithing business looking like a common forge.


    He was jolted back by a voice coming from his front.


    "Hey, you, step aside. This is a busy place and you, my clueless fellow are blocking the entrance."


    Noah looked to see a boy slightly older than him carrying a bundle of metal tools standing in front of him with an annoyed gaze.


    He unconsciously stepped aside allowing the man to move through.


    "Now that was quick." The man was surprised at how Noah moved aside immediately after hearing his words. Looking closely, he didn''t recognize him as one of the staff.


    "You look new. Are you one of the new apprentices?"


    Noah nodded at the question to which the man asked.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    "The appointment letter?"


    Noah took out the letter and showed it to him.


    Confirming it to be an appointment letter, the man said, "Go and hand that to master Ralvol."


    "Who?" Noah obviously didn''t know who this master was.


    "Master Blacksmith Dalir Ralvol, owner of Anvil Artisans." The man stated proudly.


    Seeing the still confused look on Noah, he clarified.


    "He was the one shouting earlier."


    Noah''s face paled slightly hearing that. The man noticed this and explained.


    "Don''t worry, he won''t bite. He is just a bit strict when it comes to his craft." The man headed on his way towards the front of the smithy just after saying that.


    "Okay?" Noah as always decided to just go with the flow. He couldn''t avoid meeting with the smithy owner anyway if he was to be learning at his place.


    Moving inside, he took in his new surroundings. The first thing he felt foremost was the sweltering heat. Everyone was sweating buckets in here. The temperature difference surprised him. He hadn''t felt the slightest heat standing before the door but taking a step inside, he was suddenly hit with continuous waves of it. Looking back and scrutinizing the doors, he couldn''t spot anything magical looking except for a few engravings so like all other magical things before it, he just chalked it up to magic fuckery.


    He started heading towards the backside of Forge where he saw the midg-, ahem, master going. Along the way, he came upon the sight of multiples forges placed at the different stations all around the room. People were milling around the forges hammering, bending and twisting molten metal. The entire atmosphere was orderly with everyone dedicated at their work. Except for a few people at the side who clearly were new here and seemed to have no clue what to do.


    He then caught sight of the master checking a few weapons placed in a stash. Heading towards him, he greeted nervously.


    "Greetings, master Ralvol. I am here for apprenticeship in your smithy."


    Master Ralvol showed no reaction to his words and kept eyeing him with a blank look.


    Noah felt uncomfortable with his stare. Wanting to end this interaction, he presented the letter to him. "This is my appointment letter."


    Master Ralvol took the letter and looked it over before stashing it in his coat pocket. Noah could see similar letters placed in the pocket.


    The uncomfortable staring resumed and Noah was inwardly getting frustrated with this master. He was just about to excuse himself but Master Ralvol spoke up before he could.


    "Go and stand there with other newbies." He pointed to the group of people he saw before who looked out of place.


    Noah felt relief at being able to get away from him and turned to head to the group.


    "What is your name, kid?" Noah stopped in his steps at the stern voice coming from behind.


    Turning back, he answered with a professional smile.


    "It is Noah, Master Ralvol."


    He grunted affirmatively with a nod before speaking in an irritated tone.


    "Don''t act subservient here. I don''t like that sort of behavior in my smithy. AT ALL!"


    The last bit frightened Noah and his smile faltered. Master Ralvol continued speaking indifferently.


    "Now move ahead, I will be starting the demonstration in half an hour."


    Noah was more than happy to go away and quickly rushed out towards the group.


    Joining in with the Initiates and possible native apprentices, he stood silently and watched master Ralvol continue to inspect the different stashes and the items inside.


    Nobody said a word within the next half an hour, all deterred by the Master''s presence.


    Some people joined in within that duration of time in the same manner as Noah. Though he noted that none seemed to have faced the same treatment as him. Noah felt especially bitter at the special treatment.


    Did he really look the scheming type with squinty eyes. He had never thought of himself like that. He was just being cautious like a normal human in front of obvious dangers. In fact, he considered himself more of a reckless type with how he butted heads with knight Rylee. It seemed so stupid of him now to act like that.


    Why he had to aggravate the only person who would be training him for the coming months. He wanted to say he was ashamed of his actions but the truth was, he wasn''t. Despite thinking he was being stupid at that time, he didn''t regret his actions. Just regretted that he could have done it much better.


    He was brought out of his thoughts by the murmuring around him. He glanced around to see Master Ralvol standing before them. Just barely though, because of his short 5'' height.


    Without saying anything, He signaled with his hands beckoning the group to follow behind him.


    Everyone followed him obediently for a while to reach a huge forge at the far back of the smithy decked around with all sorts of bizarre devices and structures. It looked very odd among all the other normal forges but strangely fascinating at the same time.


    Master Ralvol turned around and addressed the apprentices.


    "You lot have come here to learn the craft of Blacksmithing. It is a very noble craft requiring countless hours of dedication. Therefore, before we start with this, I should remind you, if you want to learn here, you must follow the only rule I have set."


    He paused for a moment to take a glance at the faces in the crowd and continued.


    "That is, you must not, at any moment try to think of this as a game. If I see you at any moment dilly-dallying around, I will throw you out at that instant. I don''t care what you do outside. Inside, my word is the law. UNDERSTOOD!" Master Ralvol voice became increasingly deeper as he kept speaking. The last words hit their ears like a truck as master Ralvol roared with his loud voice.


    Everyone flinched at his voice and stood still utterly silent. He didn''t seem to like that as his voice became even more loud.


    "DON''T YOU HAVE MOUTHS! I REPEAT, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"


    ""YES, SIR"" Everyone erupted out in chorus at his threatening voice.


    "Good" Master Ralvol''s voice deflated back to his usual levels at once. He then smiled at them for the first time.


    "Now, we should start with the demonstration." His voice was much softer than before.


    Noah along with all others was still dazed with the sudden change in attitude. The only thing Noah knew for sure was that his life has completely drifted from the mundane to crazy.


    Unknowingly, Noah''s lips upturned and a smirk came upon his face.


    He was starting to enjoy this entire thing.

 Chapter 25 - Art of Blacksmithing

    Noah was feeling excited right now. Despite all the unknowns around, he felt more alive than ever in a way. Everything felt new, unique and brought out curiosity within him to learn more about it.


    Something exciting was going to happen now and he didn''t want to miss a single moment of it.


    He refocused on the master of the smithy heading towards the huge forge.


    "This will probably be the first time many of you will be formally introduced to the world of Blacksmithing. It is tradition here at Anvil Artisans that masters display their skill at the introduction. It serves both as a goal to aspire for and to ignite the interest of the apprentices. After all, at the end of the day, Blacksmithing, like many of the other arts is mostly dull and repetitive to learn. To find interest is necessary for one to excel in any Profession. Remember, this is a demonstration. I will try to explain the steps as I go through the making but it is more important you find the passion to truly want to tread on this path." Master Ralvol said while taking out his tools from the side of the forge and placing them on the anvil.


    The master then touched various metal panels around the forge and twisted certain nobs here and there. Gradually, the engravings started to light up on the forge. He continued to speak while preparing the materials.


    "Many people think Blacksmithing only revolves around forging i.e. hammering the metal. It doesn''t. Make sure to get it in your minds. We will get to it later."


    He slammed a trunk he picked from the back near the anvil and then looked up at the apprentices. His eyes were lit up with both excitement and literal light, brightly reflecting the glow from the forge.


    "Listen here now kids, Master Blacksmith Dalir Ralvol is going to present you with the steps in the creation of a mana blade crafted from Artificial Mythril alloy. Hopefully, you lot will enjoy this old man''s craft. Enjoy the sight."


    He turned back to the trunk and opened the latches which produced clicking sounds. He then pushed open the cover and took out bars of different colored metals.


    "First rule of Blacksmithing, know all that you can about the metals, woods and ores you would be working with. You can''t start making things unless you know which material will be needed where."


    He pulled out what looked to be a bar of steel.


    "This here is an ingot of high-grade steel, a low carbon-iron alloy. Most of the metal creations use this as a basis. This is the best you can get without involving mana or stupid amounts of money. Now, steel is very essential to your craft in the early stages of your Blacksmith career. You should know how steel is made and its properties so you could decide how and where to utilize it when creating your crafts. Just a slight change in concentration of carbon in the iron ingot could turn it into something entirely else like cast iron or wrought iron, both of which have their own uses. But steel is much better than the other two when working with blades and weapons."


    He put the steel ingot in a metal bucket and used the long handle on the bucket to pull the entire thing up. He then placed it in the forge letting the ingot melt.


    "Heavy grade Mythril, if you didn''t know, is basically Magic Iron. It is much stronger than your normal iron or steel and vastly more mana conductive to the point it shouldn''t even be compared to each other. It naturally occurs in mana-rich ore deposits of Iron. Knowing the rarity of those deposits, you can guess they are quite expensive for the common folk. Noble and rich people are primary consumers of Mythril. Master Professionals and some Elite Advanced Professionals, like the Knight Commander and the Knights Captains are also one of the groups using it. They also use it properly for their armors and weapons, unlike the others who may even use it for a tableware set." Master had a look of disdain when he mentioned the tableware part. Anyone could tell he didn''t like the way Mythril is used by the rich.


    "Since it is so rare and expensive, people had tried to create it artificially. What we then got ourselves was called Artificial Mythril. Granted, it isn''t as good as the original but it can be mass-produced and it is also much cheaper to produce."


    He took out the bucket from the forge to show that the ingot had turned into molten slag.


    "This took much less time than usual to melt because of the forge. This beautiful creation here is my Mana Forge." He patted the Mana Forge and continued to explain it proudly.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    "Powered fully by Fire crystals, the inside of this thing is covered in a mix formed from Fire salamander scales which were magically treated. This helps in keeping all the heat trapped inside the furnace while the temperature inside easily could go as hot as the surface of the sun without you feeling like boiling outside. At least that''s what the Artificer who created this told me. Regardless, any basic forge would take half an hour at least to melt the ingot down into molten metal."


    He then ducked down to bring out a small luxurious looking box. Master Ralvol then placed his hand on it which lit up the engravings on it. A second later, the box opened with a click. He then put his hand inside and took out a shiny piece of metal from within the box.


    "We can create Artificial Mythril alloy by mixing molten normal steel with a shard of Truesilver and adding mana to fuel the synthesis. The shard acts as a catalyst here but it also mixes to form an alloy where the finished product is much better."


    He said dropping the piece of metal inside the metal bucket. Then he held the handle of bucket and placed it inside another part of the forge. This part was fully enclosed with a single opening through which he opened to put the bucket inside. He followed it by detaching the handle from the bucket. He then pulling down a hatch effectively sealing the bucket inside the compartment.


    "What I did just now is what we call the Refinement process. This is a bit advanced for you but the basic idea is to improve upon the basic ores and metal using mana and magical refinement. I just now put the molten Steel with a shard of Truesilver in the Refinement chamber. There it will be fueled with tons of mana and the synthesis process will be magically controlled to form our desired Artificial Mythril Alloy." Master Ralvol was pulling different levers and touching panels while giving his speech.


    "This will take some time to finish. So, we will focus on another part of the blade we will be creating, the handle. Let''s look at our blade first." He took out piece of parchment from a drawer and folded it open on the table next to the anvil.


    "You will not be able to see it normally but fortunately for you, this one is a magic blueprint. Let me just turn it on." Master put his hand on the parchment and it lit up like the box before.


    Sounds of awe and amazement came from the crowd as they witnessed a magical scene. Blue light emerged out of the parchment which gradually took shape in the form of blade in the air allowing everyone to take a look at the blueprints.


    "Amazing, isn''t it. Makes forging looks way more magical and allows me to focus on making stuff instead of just looking at the blueprint every so often." Ralvol smiled looking at the amazed looks in the apprentices. He had acted no different from them when he saw this scene for the first time.


    "Now, focus here. We have the material we need for the blade being synthesized right now." He said pointing at the blade. Ralvol then waved near the parchment and the blade part dissipated leaving only the hilt. Making another gesture, he made the handle part magnified allowing everyone to make out the details.


    "The hilt of the weapon is no less important than the blade. Therefore, proper materials are required. We can go a variety of ways here making the handle out of wood, alloy or even something like monster bones. It boils down to what fits the weapon best. Here, I am going with treated oak wood. The base will be formed and then reinforced with the alloy we are making." He stated while taking out small blocks of wood from shelves at the side.


    Placing them on the table, he said to the group.


    "You don''t have to be ultra-precise with the design. You just need to be good enough. You will see that in this field, half of the things are done on intuition. Of course, that doesn''t you can just forgo the dimensions of the creation. They are there for a reason and you should follow them to a certain extent. More important is to check for who you are making the weapon for. Every person is different and therefore requires different handles. You need to account for that when making something custom order."


    He then got to work again. Taking a woodblock, he took it one side with numerous long blades and screws. pulling a lever turned the machine on and the screw started rotating making drilling noises.


    Master Ralvol took the block a started drilling a hole. He had to shout now for the apprentices to hear him because of the noise.


    "THIS DRILL IS GENERALLY USED TO CREATE HOLES AND FIXTURES WHEN REQUIRED. I AM USING THIS TO DRILL A HOLE IN THE WOODBLOCK FOR THE BLADE TO FIT IN."


    The noise continued for another minute or so before he pulled the lever again stopping the drill and the loud noise.


    "I use wood for handles mainly because of personal preference and feel of it on hand but you can try other materials. You can even just extend the blade when forging and cover it in leather to form the hilt." Master Ralvol then took out leather gloves from the tools and put them on. The gloves then shrank automatically to fit on his hands.


    "Now, our alloy should be ready." He said rushing straight to the Refinement chamber. He then pulled open the hatch and attached the handle back to the bucket. Taking it out, he placed the molten glowing metal alloy on the anvil.


    "We will now put the molten metal in a basic mold and set the entire mold in a cooling compartment for the alloy to form." Saying this, he took out a mold from another section. He placed it on a bulky metal stand.


    Next, he picked the bucket using its handle and carefully poured the entire alloy inside the mold. The molten metal bubbled and splattered around during this process. He then sealed it shut using a similar mold. Then he took the thing and placed it in what could be the cooling compartment. It was similarly shut sealed like the Refinement chamber.


    After some twisting and pulling near the compartment, Master Ralvol took a seat on a chair placed next to the table. Turning towards the crowd, he smirked and said.


    "Wait a few minutes for the alloy to become somewhat cooled and then we will move on to the real smithing."

 Chapter 26 - Mana Blade

    Meanwhile, Noah''s gaze never strayed away from Master Ralvol. He was analyzing every action of the master blacksmith. The more Master Ralvol got into the explanation, the more Noah''s expressions intensified.


    He also couldn''t help but let out a squeal in childlike wonder when the blue lights formed a hologram of sorts in mid-air.


    The entire scene could be described as life-changing for Noah. He felt he was finally being introduced into an entirely mystical world. It was not because of the magic hologram. Despite it looking more advanced than their public version. He could probably find one with similar capabilities in the military. What excited him more was the fact that it wasn''t based on science but freaking MAGIC. Yesterday just felt like a teaser now. This was the real deal.


    Every new term brought with it a wave of curiosity which was followed by delight at being given otherworldly knowledge. In a short span of time, he heard terms like Mythril, Mana Forge, Magic and grasped their definitions and possible applications.


    The realization he would be learning and testing out those possibilities here was almost dreamlike for Noah. He was using all his will to not just run out and touch and tinker with the Mana Forge. He once thought modern technology was the best thing he could ever witness. Now, looking at the magic metal being synthesized before him, that thought seemed laughable at best.


    The movement on Master Ralvol''s side brought his attention back to the forging.


    Master Ralvol stood up and went to the cooling compartment. Opening it up, he took out the mold and set it down on the anvil. He then picked up his bulky hammer from the table. Aiming at the mold, he dealt a solid blow on the side. He followed it up with another one. The mold broke into two parts with the upper part falling off.


    He then rummaged through his various tools to take out his tongs. Using his tongs, he picked up the block of Mythril alloy inside the mold. Though, he had to hammer it a few times to get it loose.


    "Now kids, here comes the main part. One thing you have to realize is that magic metals are treated differently compared to normal ones. With normal metals, you will have to leave the metal to slowly cool down to room temperature before you could start forging. But in the case of Magic metals like Mythril, they have the added variable of mana. The point you need to know is that intrinsic mana i.e. mana inherent to anything is very stubborn to change in general. Therefore, when the Mythril alloy cools to normal temperatures, its intrinsic mana follows suit to its physical state and settles down to its form and nature. The good thing is that it makes it tougher as well as more resistant to external changes." Ralvol paused and continued.


    "You can probably guess the bad part. This also makes it much harder to deform and repair it if the need arises. It would probably take hours to melt it down through conventional means even in my Mana Forge, much less in normal forges. Therefore, we do the forging part before it has settled into its shape. It is far more efficient and gives a much better final product because the mana is capable of being molded right now. The Blacksmiths mold the mana to suit their needs allowing for a greater finish." He took the still glowing metal alloy and put it in the forge.


    He then pulled a lever on the side, after which huge flames burst out of the forge enveloping the surroundings in a reddish-orange tinge.


    "What it now requires is simply patience and continuous hammering." Saying this, he took out the glowing metal block and placed it on the anvil using his tongs. Using his other hand, he picked the hammer. This time, the hammer began to glow slightly blue with the engravings lighting up. Pulling the hammer swiftly and in one decisive motion, he struck down.


    A loud clang of metal clashing with metal resounded through the forge. The hammering had begun.


    A steady rhythm of constant hammering sound took over the surroundings. The sparks and clangs formed a beautiful picture in the forge. Master Ralvol had a look of intense concentration on his face as he hammered at the metal block which was gradually forming into a blade. Every few minutes, he took the blade and placed it back in the forge for reheating. This process of hammering and heating continued over and over. He sometimes used different tools like chisels and the anvil to help in the shaping of the blade.


    Everyone stared at this display of skill and craft with rapt attention. The metal block was finally looking like a blade.


    With a final strike, he put the hammer down. Then, picking up the hot blade with the tongs, he swiftly dipped the glowing blade in a tube filled with some sort of oil in one go. Flames accompanied by lots of smoke erupted as the blade got submerged in the oil. He kept his hand steady for a few moments till the flames died down and pulled the blade out slowly.


    Master Ralvol then wiped the oil from the blade using a cloth nearby.


    With his gloves still on, he brought up the blade closer to his eye and inspected it for cracks, bends and other problems. Finding nothing major, he nodded in satisfaction and then said to the group.


    "The forging part is done. The whole dipping of the blade in the special vat of oil mix is known as quenching. Very important for the blade. It strengthens and toughens the blade overall, drawing on in its true potential."


    He picked up the still hot blade and moved to the section containing different contraptions and attached blades. He touched one of the plates on the side which lit up in response. This was followed by the rotation of rollers on which a rough-looking belt was fixed, just slightly left to the lit plate.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    "The next part is grinding. This involves literally grinding the blade down on a grinding belt to form a razor-sharp edge as well as giving details to the shape and fixing minor problems. Being a magic metal, it also requires that we do it before it completely cools down."


    The rotation increased rapidly to produce a whirring sound letting everyone know that this was the grinding machine. Master Ralvol then held the blade firmly and pressed it onto the grinding belt to create a shower of sparks.


    Silence permeated around the forge as just the sound of blade grinding on the belt reached their ears. He was being completely silent as all his concentration was on sharpening and shaping the blade.


    The showers continued for some time before dying down. Master Ralvol then wiped the dust and impurities off the blade giving a finished appearance to the blade.


    "See, the blade finally starting to look like one. Grinding really brings out the shine in the metal. After this, a hilt is fixed. Since I wanted to keep it simple, I had already formed the guard in the blade." He said showing that the other side of the blade away from the edge extended outwards before thinning in a rod shape. The extended part will become the guard and rod section was where the handle will be fixed.


    "Now, the only thing this blade needs is a handle." He picked the drilled-out wooden block and showed it to the apprentices.


    "We can fix it to the blade using an appropriate hardening agent. In simple terms, glue." Saying this, he took out a bottle and opened it. The bottle contained a dark resin-like substance. He scooped the glue using a thin and long spoon-looking tool and applied it inside the hole in the wooden block.


    He kept filling it with more glue until it seemed to fill the hole completely. Then, he took the blade and joined the rod section with the wooden handle. The blade slid in smoothly and seemed to fit the handle perfectly. He applied force to allow the glue to bond the blade and handle together.


    He kept up the force for an entire minute before loosening. He then wiped the glue overflowing from the joint part.


    Then, he took the entire blade back to the same section he drilled the hole in wood before and soon machine sounds started coming from there.


    "The handle is very important for the blade. It should have a good grip and feel to it. Remember what I told you before, that every person requires different handles. We need to make the handle fit comfortably in the wielder''s hands but since this blade is not made for a custom order, I will just give it a generic shape."


    He trimmed the wooden block using a sawing machine to shape the handle adding grooves and ridges for the grip. Ralvol continued to add finishing touches until he was finally satisfied with the look. Finished with the handle, he turned off the saw machine using a nearby lighted-up metal panel. He then moved back to the main workspace.


    Brushing off the wood carvings, he placed the finished-looking blade on the anvil.


    "The Blade is finished now, is what I would I like to say. But there are some steps needed still. Steps that become the key difference between determining whether you are amateurs or professionals." He took out extra bottles, whetstones and clothes while continuing his lecture.


    "The look is very important for the blade. No one buys a blade that looks like it has been used for years. A good-looking blade also means that the blade is well maintained and sharp for use." Master Ralvol started applying the oil on the handle and blade using a cloth. The entire blade seemed to have had a magical touch up wherever the cloth touched. By the end of it, the blade looked completely different with everything looking shiny and new, especially the blade. Before it looked decent enough, now it felt like looking at the blade directly might cut him. He was almost blinded by the shine off the edge.


    Though Master Ralvol seemed adamant at perfecting the already great-looking blade as he started sharpening it under the whetstone.


    ''How sharp does he want the blade. It already looks like it could cut through everything.'' Noah couldn''t help thinking about what was going on in the master''s mind. Then again, he didn''t know anything about the weapons here besides the two words, sharp and strong. The blades made would definitely have to perform much better than conventional blades to be able to handle the stress put on by those knights. That was definitely the reason. The warfare here involves superhumans and monsters. Clearly, normal weapons wouldn''t cut it. He even thinks that normal steel wouldn''t be able to cut through a knight''s skin. With the strength they had shown in the morning, their toughness shouldn''t be too bad.


    Just thinking about the knights donned with magical armor and swords sent chills up his spine. He didn''t fancy the chances of conventional earth military against them. A single fully armored knight would probably require joint effort and concentrated bombardment from multiple battalions to take down. Anything less powerful than an RPG shouldn''t even faze the knights, so infantry is mostly useless. To take them down in a single clean hit would probably require the large electromagnetic railguns on warships.


    Moreover, from what he managed to gather, there are hundreds of knights just in this kingdom. Yep, He now thinks it is better they were teleported to this world, not the other way around.


    While Noah was feeling dread thinking about the knight''s combat power against normal humans with guns, Master Ralvol was finished with his sharpening.


    Turning to the apprentices, he said to them.


    "The blade is now usable. It came out quite decent and alloy seems to have synthesized quite well. Let me test it once." He headed straight to the steel armors donned on the testing dummies some distance away. The dummies were bolted to the ground.


    The group including Noah heard the master''s words and swiftly followed behind him. They were eager to see the blade in action.


    Master Ralvol stood straight before a dummy and took a deep breath to steady himself. Then he suddenly struck at the armor. The blow was swift and a sharp sound came out from the clash.


    When everyone took in the result, they were awestruck. The blade had penetrated fully through the armor leaving only the hilt visible.


    "This is the vast difference between magical metal and non-magical ones. One can''t even compare the two. Moreover, this isn''t even this blade''s final form." Master Ralvol''s demeanor changed after saying that. The atmosphere suddenly felt pressuring.


    Noah could make out the aura emerging from the master''s body. It was the same as Knight Sanders. Though, this was just the beginning as the blade''s edge started glowing in azure.


    "Let me show you the renowned prowess of mana blades." Ralvol said in a deep voice and slashed instantly.


    Noah couldn''t even see the blade as it struck the armor. The only indication it struck was the short sound he heard and the changed posture of the master.


    He was even starting to think that master Ralvol could have missed but the next thing made him slack-jawed. The upper part of the armor slid down along with the dummy and fell to the ground with a resounding thud. A clean and sharp cut was placed at the midsection of the armor.


    Silence fell among the group at this fantastical scene.

 Chapter 27 - Monsters

    "Whoa" Noah couldn''t hold in his amazement at this scene that looked straight out of a fantasy. Well, technically he was in a fantasy world so this shouldn''t be unexpected but still, the guy used a freaking magic blade to cut the steel armor in two with a clean slice.


    The master had a wide smile on his face as he turned to look at the astonished crowd.


    "How do you all like that? Pretty neat, huh?" He said while admiring his creation along with the wrecked piece of armor.


    People nodded in response completely floored by the spectacle.


    "Now that the theatrics are done, I should stop messing with you all." His words confused the people as they didn''t understand what he meant by theatrics.


    He then took the metal helmet from the destroyed armor lying on the floor and brought it back with him to the forge. He then placed it on the anvil. Igniting the Mana Blade again, he sliced at the helmet slowly like he was cutting into bread instead of steel.


    This time without all the extra aura around his body making the action itself feel a lot less impactful and less powerful. Though, the steel clearly didn''t think so as it was cut like butter in front of the mana knife.


    The group got even more amazed at the blade''s sharpness yet at the same time confused. If it was so easy to cut steel with a mana knife, why the extra performance earlier then.


    Perhaps Master Ralvol could feel the questions brimming in their eyes as his smile widened even more while he stated amusedly.


    "I confess that I became a bit dramatic seeing you lot behaving like little chicks. Full of wonder and curiosity at this new world." He had a hearty laugh after saying that but the same could not be said for the apprentices.


    They were annoyed with the way he treated them like kids. It was irrelevant that his words couldn''t be more right as they were indeed behaving like little children visiting Disneyland for the first time.


    The apprentices were slightly miffed by the attitude of Master Ralvol towards them.


    But Ralvol put a stop to the ruckus before it could even start with his next words.


    "Now back to Forging, we aren''t done yet."


    People again went back to being confused. They had just seen the blade in action and he was telling them that the blade was still incomplete. Many were skeptical of his claim especially with what he said before, they were thinking it was just him continuing to toy with them.


    "Now, some of you may be thinking that the blade is working just fine." He accentuated his point by waving the blade at the half-sliced helmet again and turned it fully sliced.


    The apprentice''s heads were still tilted in confusion because they weren''t sure where the master was going with this. They could evidently see the finished blade, what more could be missing.


    "As you just saw, the blade is functioning well enough but let me tell you that this is nothing but a front. It may look good right now but it is fragile in nature. A few high-intensity battles and this could snap right in a middle of a deathmatch. And when it will snap, instead of the blade just flying off leaving you with a hilt and broken blade, it will explode with metal shards flying everywhere. Many of which will embed themselves in the body severely injuring that person. You can guess what will be the outcome of the blade''s wielder in that situation." He explained while tracing the spine of the blade.


    Their faces grimaced as they imagined the miserable condition of the poor fella who was unlucky enough to have that happen to him when facing an enemy.


    "Now to prevent such an outcome, we perform the final and most important step in making a great weapon, Tempering. Many of you may have seen me lashing out at two idiots a while ago. It was because they forgot to temper the weapons the city guards ordered for the new Initiates. They actually had the gall to skip such an essential procedure in blacksmithing despite my repeated instructions. AND THAT FOR JUST BEING LAZY."


    Master Ralvol finished with a roar while wearing back his angry face. Many people flinched at the sudden change but soon calmed down. They were now getting used to his strange quirks.


    "Now that I think about it, I think I was being too easy on them loose with such a small punishment. It should be made sure no one makes such a horrendous mistake again. EVER."


    He was boiling in rage from his core as if the two had done some heresy against Blacksmithing. From his looks, they might as well have done it. Everyone felt sorry for the two poor fellows.


    "VYLD!!" His shout was harsh enough to grate on their ears. It probably reached the main entrance with how loud the shout was.


    "Yes, Master." A familiar voice answered back. Noah was surprised to see the person who he met at the door rushing towards the master.


    "Make sure those two do not take a step in the forge unless they complete salvaging the entire monthly batch."Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    "Sure, as you say, Master." Vyld swiftly replied and rushed back to the front with haste. He wanted no part in this charade. It was much better to just listen to master''s demands and get back doing his work.


    Master Ralvol''s expression calmed down instantly and all traces of anger melted like snow just after hearing Vyld''s answer. He then turned to them and expressed regret for his behavior half-heartedly.


    "Sorry for the unsightly display. I just get a bit heated when someone disrespects the craft I had put my life and soul into."


    Everyone nodded while inwardly thinking they could not afford to slip up while learning here or they wouldn''t hear the end of it from him. Well, He would likely chew them raw before that anyway.


    "Where were we? Right, Tempering. It is a necessary process if you want to turn your good weapon into a great weapon. It basically requires that we leave the blade in a stimulating environment for the mana inside it to thoroughly finish reorganizing and settle down. By stimulating, I mean in a mana oven where the blade will be given a mana bath while also being heated below its melting point simultaneously."


    He took the blade and positioned it in another compartment, likely the mana forge. Sealing it off similar to the other times, he then started adjusting the parameters using the panels.


    "If we were doing this for just a normal steel blade, we could just let it bake in an oven and be over with it but we are dealing with magical metals here, therefore the need for a more complex treatment process. After the treatment process is completed, we just leave it to cool down in the air. The blade is then truly finished and can be further enchanted if the need arises in future."


    He then began imparting knowledge about enchanting.


    "As for Enchanting, just think of it as adding extra abilities in the weapon through the use of mana and runic script. I don''t think this one needs any fancy enchantment. It would do fine with just your regular old Toughen and Sharp. Enchanting isn''t just done on any weapon. You need to have a proper base for it. Every weapon has a capacity to the number of enchantments it can handle along with affinity towards certain enchantments. This Alloy blade is far more compatible with basic enchants than any of the elemental or esoteric ones."


    People were getting befuddled juggling around all the new terms in their minds. He seems to have noticed it and uttered.


    "You don''t have to worry about it now. First master the non-magical Blacksmithing before even thinking of trying the magical one." He concluded that topic and continued.


    "Now, If you have some doubts, I can answer them. Just make sure it is related to forging and what I explained to you."


    Hands were raised without wasting any time. Everyone was itching to know about, well, everything. The entire demonstration only further raised their curiosity.


    Master Ralvol nodded looking at them seemingly satisfied by this scene.


    "It seems the display was quite effective. The passion can now be seen blazing in your gaze. Embrace this passion and strive for greater achievements. Now, present your questions."


    People became somewhat bashful at the sudden praise and unconsciously tried to pull back their hands but their overwhelming curiosity stopped that attempt halfway. They stretched their hands straight back up.


    Ralvol then randomly chose one of them and the session began. Questions were asked and answers were given with the apprentices learning more and more about Blacksmithing as time passed.


    Noah was thankful for this doubt session as many of his previous doubts were dispelled by the explanations. He gained many insights into the different procedures for crafting while also rectifying some mistakes he had in his understanding of Blacksmithing.


    Moreover, he also got to know some general knowledge about other interesting stuff like the industrial capabilities and the production chain of this kingdom. Part of the Blacksmithing job apparently included buying ores and checking in for material deliveries. He was thrilled at the prospect of seeing the different types of metals and products manufactured here in this kingdom and the world at large.


    Eventually, Noah''s turn came and he presented his question without any delay to the master.


    "Master Ralvol, I was curious to know what the mana blades are used for besides during fights between high-grade Professionals." Noah''s question seemed innocent enough at first glance but there was an embedded question inside it. To answer the question, one had to clarify the existence of monsters or other races and Noah wanted confirmation from him. Though, he was almost sure they existed from what he managed to gather from his Status and Nephra.


    Master Ralvol''s eyes narrowed looking at him.


    He was frowning so deeply that Noah started feeling uneasy under his gaze when suddenly his brows got relaxed. Then, he explained the reason behind his strange behavior.


    "Young man, let me tell you something. You and your attitude disgusted me at first. Reminded me a lot of those fake nobles." He looked sickened at the thought of those fake nobles he mentioned.


    Some people were snickering from behind at his apparent misfortune. Master Ralvol instantly locked his gaze onto those people which promptly shut them up. He then continued.


    "But having seen you being patient and determined to learn this craft the entire time changed my mind. You have impressed me, young fella. Your name was Noah, if I remember correctly."


    "You are correct, Master Ralvol." Noah answered respectfully while inwardly he was relieved that there was no SALVAGE LINE coming his way.


    "Noah is a good name. Now to answer your question, we need to talk about the dangers to the kingdom. Just to remind you Noah, your attempt at prying is much rough and needs proper work."


    He directed a knowing smile at Noah having easily recognized his attempt at prying information out of him from far away.


    Noah looked almost comically surprised at his intentions being found out so effortlessly. Master Ralvol had a loud chuckle seeing his expression.


    "That was an amusing look. Getting back to the topic, the dangers mainly come from neighboring kingdoms and monsters. Monsters are also called Awakened Beasts or Mana Beasts but the general term is monsters. You can calculate the possible danger that could be posed by groups of them. Knights are dispatched routinely to whittle down their numbers so that they aren''t able to grow into a legitimate threat. Unfortunately that isn''t enough to completely curb down their threat. Sometimes Beast Hordes which includes hundreds of thousands of Monsters gather under Monster Kings and decimates entire cities in their paths." He paused for a moment to let the information sink in and then continued.


    "In those cases, an entire squad of Grandmaster Class Professionals is dispatched to effectively handle the threats. To give you an idea of the danger posed by Beast Hordes, a single Grandmaster can tear down your average city in a short time. Those masters only come out when there is a grave threat to the kingdom." His face was grim while he was explaining and the apprentices sported similar grim looks as they could also imagine the danger a Beast Horde could possess.


    "Thankfully, those type of threats appear very rarely and generally takes few decades to occur. At that time, many kingdoms combine their forces to eliminate the Horde, which brings us back to the second threat, Kingdoms."

 Chapter 28 - War of Beards

    "Kingdoms on the other hand aren''t so obvious in their threat but are much more deadly because of the same reason. Competition between kingdoms is downright brutal with various espionages and ploys running all year round. They are more schemes and tricks thrown around the political scene than hookers in red-light districts. Those slimy bastards."


    Master Ralvol spat in disgust just recalling some of the nobles. It was obvious to everyone that he had some kind of grudge against them.


    "Despite this, rarely the situation worsens to the point of an all-out war between kingdoms. They mainly try to settle their disputes through skirmishes and diplomatic measures or in extreme cases, assassination. The fact is that any kingdom can''t afford to go to war so easily unless of course, the disparity in prowess between them is such that the war is declared over shortly after it starts."


    People''s heads were tilted at being told that all-out war is bad for the kingdom. That much seemed obvious to any person.


    Ralvol guffawed seeing their innocent faces clearly not having witnessed any of the devastation wrought by Professionals.


    "You all may think this much is obvious but you are seeing this from the perspective of nations who don''t have much going in terms of evolved Professionals. Nations rely more on external machines and contraptions to fight their battles while here, the fight is largely spearheaded by Professionals."


    Everyone got even more confused by the information. Were Siege Weapons not in use here or just not completely developed. Thankfully, Ralvol cleared their confusion soon.


    "Not to say that other instruments of war aren''t used, just most of them are more or less relegated to support and secondary roles instead of main ones."


    This got raised eyebrows. They were unable to imagine clearly how Siege weapons could only be useful for support.


    What was even worse was that he kept on teasing their curiosity while leaving only more questions. They were just getting more vexed listening to him speak.


    On the flip side, Master Ralvol was clearly enjoying the spectacle as a faint grin was on his face the entire time.


    "I did say most, not all, didn''t I. Let''s just say that some of them are in a class of their own. Closing off that tangent, the Point to note is that fights among Professionals rarely end in a short time and with the amount of destruction they are able to casually inflict on their surroundings, no kingdom wants their cities to be razed to the ground as collateral damage." Mid-speech he moved to the testing zone started and cleaning up the mess he had created during the demonstration. The group stuck close to him not wanting to miss a single word.


    "Another important factor in preventing wars is that it isn''t profitable. Going into is war is a definite loss each time. Your other enemies and competitors aren''t just going to sit by and enjoy the show. They would surely jump at the opportunity. In the aftermath of such a war, only fractions of the original kingdoms will be left intact. Most of it would either be destroyed or even worse, assimilated by other factions and powers leaving the kingdom on the brink of collapse."


    Everyone was taken aback hearing about the nature of war in this world. They probably shouldn''t expect some sort of Geneva Convection if entire cities are leveled down in a war. Pun intended.


    Some were even starting to fret for their lives. From the looks of it, there''s little to nothing stopping a kingdom to just storm this town with an army.


    Master could sense the worry in their eyes and tried to reassure them.


    "You don''t have to worry about it. Just as I said, it is very rare for a war to start and the political situation had been stable in this continent for decades. Even if it does happen somehow, your safety is guaranteed by me. While I may now be considered a citizen of the Kingdom of Lydia, I still possess the original citizenship of my home, the Dwarven country of Nunerum which is a neutral state."


    He started reminiscing about his home and therefore failed to notice all of the apprentices widening their eyes and giving surprised looks at the mention of ''Dwarven''.


    "Come to think of it, I would be honored as a distinguished master Blacksmith currently if I were in Nunerum. I should make a visit back home soon. Been gone for a decade. Regardless, no kingdom is stupid enough to attempt an attack on a citizen much less a distinguished individual of Nunerum. It would spell very bad for that particular kingdom. The entire Blacksmith association and its numerous allies will collectively shun that kingdom and refuse to offer its services to them. It is quite a gr..."If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    He finally noticed the looks the apprentices were giving him and stopped talking to question them.


    "Why are all of you looking at me like I''m some exotic animal. Don''t tell me you haven''t seen a Dwarf before. Even if you lived in another Plane, Dwarfs are still seen quite frequently in human kingdoms."


    He had seen the same looks when he passed by some human villages in his travel. He could understand their fascination at seeing something new and unique but these Initiates should have seen a dwarf before in a city. He could recognize at first sight that they were city dwellers from their mannerisms. They stood out very clearly as an odd bunch of city people.


    What he didn''t realize was that his words were hitting like metaphorical bombs to the Initiates who were fascinated by the implications of his speech. One teen finally couldn''t keep in his curiosity and asked the master.


    "Master Ralvol, are you really a Dwarf?"


    "What, you think I look like an Orc or goblin of some sort? You insulting me kid, HUH!"


    Ralvol growled thinking that the kid was mocking him. The kid clearly didn''t understand his handsome looks.


    The kid looked like he shat in his pants when master yelled at him.


    "No, Master. In fact, You look manly and handsome. Especially with your bushy beard." The teen hurriedly tried to placate him.


    He grunted in satisfaction while stroking his majestic beard. Finally, someone who could understand the inherent majesty in beards. He couldn''t comprehend at all why humans always shaved their beards. It was like making yourself bald every time your hair grows a little.


    Another teen curious about Dwarves chimed in.


    "Is it true that Dwarves only drink ale?"


    "Don''t compare me to those boorish bunch of drunkards who can''t even appreciate the exquisite nature of wine."


    He felt that such practices in drinking were distasteful. It was much more elegant to be a connoisseur of wine and savor its mellow flavor.


    People were interested to know more and therefore weren''t shying away from coming forth with it.


    "Can you tell about the other kingdoms?"


    "The other races too, please?"


    "Are there more Dwarves in this town?"


    Master Ralvol was starting to get irritated by the constant barrage of questions.


    "STOP! I will only take questions related to forging. This is clearly outside the subject. Go ask your instructors about that. I am not some babysitter posted here to answer every little doubt of yours."


    The apprentices began whining but he wasn''t fazed at all. In fact, his stare was gradually becoming wrathful so they had to begrudgingly let go as it wasn''t worth it to risk his ire.


    The session then went on normally for an hour or so before Ralvol finally announced its closure.


    "This is enough for an introduction. Now, the important thing is for everyone to find a partner to train with. I will only be giving you general teachings. For the rest, you need to find someone who will guide you and show you the ropes around here. Technically, you all will be part-time employed under Anvil Artisans."


    Ralvol looked straight at his future employees and said seriously.


    "So bear this in mind, I want no employee of mine to be flimsy, part-time or not."


    "Choose someone experienced in the craft. Search for a senior Blacksmith and ask to be their helper. See and learn from their craft from up close. Persevere through and shine by making your own blade. I will be expecting everyone to be able to do so in a week. I don''t care if it is shabby or brittle. I need a blade presented in front of me by the end of the week. Is that clear?"


    The Apprentices nodded in affirmation seriously which was very much appreciated by the master.


    "Good, now move fast. You ain''t got all day. Chop-Chop." Master clapped his hands gesturing them to sod off.


    Everyone obviously scuttled away instantly. They eventually slowed down to a stop when nearing the main forging area to look around. They undoubtedly going to need someone to guide them here and that same someone was among all of the blacksmiths toiling near the intense heat of furnaces.


    Instead of rushing headfirst like the others and asking every person one by one whether they would accept him as a helper, Noah chose to take the wait and see approach. There was something he was unsure of.


    He seems to be right in his conjecture as every Blacksmith who was asked shook their heads and then pointed in the same direction. The moment he noticed that he made a dash straight in the pointed direction.


    He had noticed that master Ralvol used the term Senior Blacksmith. Not simply Blacksmith which meant they were more experienced than normal ones or they had an Advanced Profession. Either way, not everyone here would be a senior Blacksmith and he didn''t want to lose out on mentorship with one just because someone beat him to it.


    He was ready to get the mentorship anyhow but when he looked over the forge, something strange happened.


    Noah stopped in his tracks when he saw every single Blacksmith turning away from him as he was approaching the area. He was a bit confused at that but simply regarded it as some coincidence.


    He resumed his walk only to see the Blacksmith he was heading towards making a hasty run after catching sight of him.


    Noah realized that it wasn''t some fluke. They were actively avoiding him.


    He found similar reactions whenever he tried to reach out to someone. It was quite Strange. It seemed as if they were afraid of him.


    Despite this, Noah kept on searching. He was almost giving up hope of finding a mentor but he eventually spotted one guy who didn''t run away at first sight. Thanking his lucky stars, he started taking steps towards him but was stopped halfway by a sudden playful voice.


    "Having some problem finding a mentor now, Noah?"

 Chapter 29 - Gul Gul Work

    "Having some problem finding a mentor now, Noah?"


    Hearing the voice, Noah''s mood instantly shifted gears. His face became hollow in a blink. Someone would probably get scared just by seeing his empty eyes. They were completely blank showing no outward emotion.


    Inwardly Noah was thinking which adult was so free to harass him for entertainment.


    Turning around, Noah became surprised seeing three kids around his age looking at him playfully.


    He recognized those three as the ones snickering at him before and then shut up by the master. They must have been pretty incensed about that.


    "What happened? Cat got your tongue." The leader chuckled turning to his two buddies who joined him in laughter.


    Seeing their idiotic behavior, a small smile came upon Noah''s face.


    "What''s so funny? Did everyone ignoring you made you crazy?" The main guy didn''t seem to like his smile.


    "Oh, it''s nothing. Just-" Noah paused for a moment glancing at the gang of three before continuing with an impish smile.


    "You must like me quite a lot."


    "What! You really got a loose screw." One of the underlings blurted out baffled by what he heard.


    Noah realized his words seemed to have confused them. Well, he couldn''t blame them. He should have been more clear.


    "I meant that you must have liked me a lot since you are risking serious punishment for every second you stay with me. Master did say he was keeping an eye on me. I don''t know what he would say to your behavior."


    The trio faltered and finally showed hesitation in their movement while their faces were gradually becoming more scared the more they thought about their actions.


    Not wasting up his momentum, Noah followed up on his attack.


    "Come on, we are all apprentices here. You also have been dropped here without knowing. We should help each other instead of wasting time doing this."


    The three flinched when he mentioned the teleportation. Finding an opening, he moved in for the final blow.


    "Let me tell you something, the Inn we are staying at serves quite a delicious smoothie. Maybe we can hang out sometime. We may even become good buddies. What do you say?"


    He even patted the leader''s shoulder letting them consolidate his image as a non-aggressor.


    The leader eventually snapped out of his dazed state and shrugged his shoulders to shake off Noah''s hands.


    "Let''s go. We are done here." He then headed away with his two underlings in tow.


    Watching the two go away, Noah''s face slowly turned from a smiling to an indifferent one. He waited for some time to confirm it was finally over before his face turned back to his usual carefree one.


    ''Phew''


    Noah heaved a sigh of relief at being able to deal with the problem relatively easily. They should leave him alone now. The trio just seemed to be scared being alone this far away from home.


    It was after all human instinct to try to vent your frustrations at someone else. He may have done something similar if he was in their place. Had he been 10 years younger.


    He couldn''t blame them for targeting him either. He was standing out quite a bit.


    Let''s just hope that they stop this pointless behavior. He didn''t want to resort to measures like publicly humiliating them to stop their behavior. That had a great possibility of backlashing and they may do something rash in anger.


    ''Sigh, It''s so tiring overthinking all of this. Why can''t the world just be black and white.'' He would have dealt with the three right now and be done with them but then, he would break his promise to her. He would give them a chance.


    Thinking about her, he just hoped she would be fine.


    Noah continued his trek towards the guy. He spotted him sporting a welding mask and using a blow torch to weld pieces of metal.


    Moving closer, he waited for him to finish and then greeted him.


    "Hi, my name is Noah. I was told by master Ralvol to search for a Senior Blacksmith mentor. I was hoping if you would accept me as a helper." He bowed slightly to show his respect and was desperately hoping that this guy would be flattered and accept him. There was no one else he could go to after him.


    Maybe that Vyld guy. But he didn''t even know if he was a Blacksmith. He seemed more like a manager.


    The guy pulled up his mask to show his face. He looked to be around thirty. His facial appearance resembled slavs. The thing that stood out to him first was his huge physique. He looked quite intimidating with his hulking over 7'' body. That''s why his bright eyes and goofy smile caught Noah off guard. Just looking at his face, he seemed like an approachable guy.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    "Yeah, mate. You have become quite infamous here. Must be wondering why all the fellas avoiding you. Well, they are so scared by the master that they didn''t want to come under his notice. The only thing they could think of was scurrying away like rats from you. Tell you mate. That was one hilarious scene." He gave a hearty chuckle talking about his situation. It may have looked amusing to an outsider but to Noah, it was more like a pain in the ass.


    He now knew why every blacksmith was running away from him with tails between their legs. Well, he couldn''t really blame them for this. He also doesn''t want anything to do with someone who could bring him trouble. Plus, with this trouble being Master Ralvol, he would put a ten feet pole between them.


    Though learning the reason behind that fiasco was all well and good, he had another more important thing to confirm.


    "About my apprenticeship?" Noah still hadn''t heard him accept his mentorship.


    "Oh, It would be fun to have you here. So yeah, you would be under me from today. Everyone was too stuck up and grumpy here. No fun at all. Your appearance has livened up the atmosphere quite a bit. I would be looking forward to our future, mate." The teddy bear turned human smiled brightly and offered his hand for a handshake.


    "I am also looking forward to an apprenticeship under you, master ..." Noah responded with enthusiasm. He then gazed at his new mentor with the obvious intention to get him to cough up his name.


    The cheerful guy smiled widely at his gaze and said.


    "Gul. Just Gul. No need to add master. Think of me as your best friend from now."


    Noah just heard that and retorted instantaneously.


    "Sorry, but I can only consider you as my friend at most. The best friend spot is already taken." Mentor or not, he wasn''t going to let him belittle his actual best friend''s status. Noah could be stubborn like that.


    Gul blinked repeatedly at his odd outburst. He didn''t expect him to show such a strong reaction. He eventually burst into a boisterous laugh.


    "You''re interesting, mate. I was right. The next months are going to be fun." He hugged Noah''s shoulder and brought him closer.


    Noah wasn''t too excited about it seeing the overly enthusiastic attitude. It would have been much better even if he was lackadaisical towards him. His types tend to be very annoying to deal with.


    However, his thoughts would have to be stopped abruptly because of Gul''s next words.


    "That was one scary face, mate. Lucky for you I didn''t feel any killing intent from you. Things would get quite ugly if you try to bring harm to the employees here despite how much of an asshole they are."


    Gul''s tone had completely changed with all the cheerfulness nowhere to be seen. His voice was indifferent, but he was dead serious about it if his bright eyes were to be any indication.


    Noah''s entire body became rigid immediately. He could feel the danger he was in very clearly. He tried to think fast of something to defuse the situation but Gul acted before him and loosened his grip. He then patted his shoulder with his normal goofy smile and said.


    "Of course, It was just a warning. Though I must admit it was quite fun seeing you all scared like that."


    Noah didn''t relax in the slightest. How could he, this guy was clearly mad.


    Gul increased the strength behind his pats noticing Noah was still stiff.


    "Don''t worry. You''ll get used to me just fine in a few weeks. What do you think?"


    "Sure," Noah said and backed away at once from him. He wasn''t too keen on the whole overly friendly attitude. Especially with a homicidal maniac he just met.


    "Now, let''s get to work. I could use a hand here. Too much work for one fella. You have a tough body. You should be able to handle that much stress." Gul acted like he didn''t just threaten him a moment ago.


    "What do you mean by that much stress?" Noah had a bad feeling about the way he worded the sentence.


    Gul had a grin on his face as he spoke softly.


    "Oh, it''s just basic striker work. You''ll either hate it from the start or just grow to hate it."


    Noah felt his bad feeling turning into a certainty. He just hoped he would be able to handle whatever this striker work was.


    ....


    "I HATE IT!" It didn''t even take an hour before he grew to hate this work from his very being.


    "Yeah, that''s the spirit, mate. Strike here now, Medium" Gul tapped at the middle of the red hot metal with his hammer. He was using tongs to hold the hot iron steady on the anvil.


    ''Clang'' A hammer struck near the same spot a moment later.


    "Position is starting to get a bit off. That was clearly a Light. Put some force." He again tapped a spot lightly to indicate the hitting mark.


    ''Clang'' The hammer struck even more fiercely than before.


    "Yeah, that''s a bit like that."


    The constant ringing of hammer strikes on metal continued.


    ....


    "That was good practice," Gul said wiping his sweat with a towel.


    Noah was lying down on the ground completely spent.


    "Yeah, I would describe it more of a torture and you as the executioner with how you were all smiles seeing me gasping for breaths." Noah wasn''t mincing his words at all. He would have tried to keep up appearances but the sheer exhaustion he was feeling wasn''t helping.


    Gul''s gaze intensified for a moment there but then he beamed at him.


    "You make good jokes. I was just being the caring mentor teaching his apprentice the basics."


    "If by a caring mentor, you mean just ordering me to continue to strike at metal using a big ass hammer for two and a half hours straight. Yeah, no shit. With no breaks in between. Just a few minutes to lower my heartbeat in case it accidentally bursts." Noah was clearly not in his best mood.


    "I was just prepping you up. This kind of work is required daily here." Gul''s smile never faltered as he replied.


    "If you have rested enough now, it is time for you to grind the blades. Here, take these." He said to Noah while throwing a pair of thick leather gloves.


    Noah tried catching them only to fail miserably with both the gloves striking his face. He uttered a pained groan in response and slowly stood up.


    "You saw how I was grinding the blades, right. I won''t expect you to do that good but remember not to mess up too much. You will have to stay with me to make up for every blade you wasted." Gul reminded Noah while putting the tools used back in their respective shelves.


    Noah nodded in understanding and got to work.


    Picking up the dozen blades they had made in the past couple of hours, he stashed them in a crate and headed to the grinding machine with the crate in his arms.


    Sparks erupted as he got to grinding. He had to be very careful with this. Noah had no desire to stay any longer than necessary with that murder bear.


    Fortunately, basic grinding wasn''t that hard to do. Gul had shown that to him. What he needed were just patience and steady hands.


    The whirring sounds of the grinding belt he was working on dissolved seamlessly into the growing cacophony of machines and hammers working in tandem at the forge.


    Noah put another finished blade back in the crate after he was satisfied with its look.


    He was almost done with his work when a commotion started from the other side of the forge.

 Chapter 30 - Mediocre or Insecure

    The commotion took his attention and he looked to see some apprentices surrounding one person while blacksmiths all around were shouting congratulations of some sort.


    Noah didn''t know what to make of the scene. He couldn''t even move from his position to check up on it because of Gul. Nothing more needed to be said. If Gul wasn''t enough, then there is master Ralvol making rounds. Despite all their rambunctious actions, they were still cheering from their workstations and he wasn''t going to take a chance.


    Therefore, he acted like any person with common sense and went back to his job. He swiftly grinded the blades to finish his shift. Picking up the crate now filled with shiny blades, he headed back to his workstation.


    Reaching there, he dropped off the crate near the anvil. He then turned to the laid-back Gul and said.


    "The blades are done."


    "Hmm, let me see." Gul gestured to Noah to hand one of the blades. Noah followed on it and handed him one from the crate.


    Inspecting the blade, Gul commented.


    "Pretty decent for a beginner but it is still not quite usable in real battle."


    Noah became downcast hearing that thinking he needed to do overtime on his first day but Gul continued to speak.


    "It will do fine for training though, which it was ordered for so that''s all good. You can go now. Your shift today is finished."


    Noah glared annoyed at him and said.


    "You are enjoying this, aren''t you?"


    Gul gave a grin in response. Noah snapped at that and swiftly turned around to head back to the Inn but he soon halted himself after recalling about the previous incident.


    "Before I go, can you tell what was all that commotion before?"


    "Oh, that. Some apprentice seems to have unlocked the Blacksmith Profession. Quite talented, it seems. Probably will be able to reach Senior Blacksmith in a year." Gul had a strange look while answering his question.


    Noah was a bit stunned by the news. Someone had already got a Blacksmith Profession. It had only taken that guy a few hours and here he didn''t even know how far he got. For all he knew, he may just be smashing hammers and grinding metal pieces.


    "How long does it take for one to get the Profession normally?"


    "Generally around three to four weeks. It mostly has to do with talent and proficiency in Blacksmithing. Therefore, those who have experience, as well as talent in it, get it within a few days. That guy seemed to have prior experience." Gul answered the question but there was a mischievous glint in his eye.


    "How long do you think I will take?"


    Gul rubbed his chin thinking and replied.


    "You learn fast but you are not that much talented. In fact, you could even be said to be mediocre in talent. I would say about two weeks, give or take a few days."


    "Can you decrease the time it would take? I can handle more training." A month was too long for Noah. He needed to do better than that. Others wouldn''t keep waiting for him to catch up.


    "Sure. I can increase the intensity of training up a notch."


    "Okay, let''s start." Noah was getting himself ready to stay the night at the smithy but Gul words poured cold water over his enthusiasm.


    "Hold on mate. I love you are excited about it but I ain''t going to stick around seeing you flailing when I could be in bed after a warm dinner. We will do it from tomorrow onwards."


    "Fine" Noah realized he was in no condition to begin another training session. He would probably hit the sack as soon as he gets back at the Inn. He resumed his pace back towards his stay.


    "Remember to come by early tomorrow. You would need extra effort to catch up." Gul yelled to remind him about his attendance the day after.


    Noah just waved his hand back while racing out the forge.


    Gul smiled as he watched Noah moving away.


    He found the new guy quite interesting. Normally, you would need inordinate amounts of effort to be able to unlock the Profession with the average time being between one to two months. Even talented ones take a week or two. Of course, that is only true when someone puts the usual amounts of time into practice.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.


    The guy who got the Profession earlier looked to have years of experience under his sleeve. Blacksmith is altogether much harder in difficulty compared to other professions like Cook or Scribe.


    The main reason is because of the difference in ease of practicing it. You can cook dishes and write records much comfortably and easily compared to making something like a blade under the sweltering heat of a forge. It is considered to be one the hardest Professions in difficulty comparable to the likes of Artificer, Apothecary, and Engineer.


    He didn''t think the new guy had enough talent to be able to unlock it in two weeks.


    Despite his other lies, he was serious when he said that Noah''s talent in blacksmithing is mediocre or maybe somewhat decent at best. A guy like him would usually take months before unlocking the Profession. Seeing him so pumped up about trying to unlock it sooner made him interested.


    He was intrigued to know how long his new apprentice would take to do so under his training. If you could even call it one. He thought of it as more like a Zekar''s Test.


    In a Zekar''s test, a gladiator holds a large plate above him while the audience would pile stones on the plate. The crowd would continue to pile stones until the gladiator eventually gets turned into a paste under the plate or the audience becomes satisfied with the display of strength and stop pelting stones.


    It is a test of strength, determination, and most importantly experience. An experienced gladiator knows when to give up the test.


    Will Noah possess the wit to quit when it becomes too much for him or would he be headstrong and crumble down like others.


    He chuckled thinking about how much pressure would Noah be able to handle before breaking down. He was looking forward to that interesting spectacle.


    He should start prepping up the forge for tomorrow.


    ''Can''t disappoint Noah now, can we?''


    ....


    Meanwhile, Noah walked tiredly back to the Inn. He hadn''t quite felt it until now but the exhaustion had finally caught up to him. He suddenly staggered and felt dizzy. The whole experience felt a bit strange to him so he thought to check his Status.


    His gut feeling seemed to be correct as a notification greeted him.


    [Buff: Energized has ended.]


    ''So that''s why.'' A groan escaped his mouth as he started feeling pain all over his body. He didn''t think that the Buff was active until now. He thought it was already over sometime in the afternoon as he started feeling tired from then. It seems he was underestimating the efficiency of the Buff as well as the severe condition of his body.


    That murder bear didn''t hold back in the least. He could see that others had just some lecture and probably got to do a few errands compared to his real deal.


    ''Damn, that means tomorrow is going to be real hell for me.''


    His mood dampened as he thought about his Profession. He was feeling inconfident about keeping up with the other Initiates, especially Ava and Shaun. Both of them would probably get their Profession in a few days.


    ''Oh, right. Shaun already has his Profession.''


    That left Ava and he had a feeling that she wouldn''t take much time either.


    Which brought him back to the thing that worried him the most.


    Though he thought it was very unlikely, some part of him still felt that both of them would start ignoring him if he performed very poorly. It may be illogical of him to think like that but he didn''t want something like that to happen at any cost. He could handle overtime easily if it would augment his progress.


    He was very insecure about his friends. Sometimes he questioned if he even deserved them.


    Noah shook his head repeatedly. He couldn''t think like that. They were his friends, he had to believe in them. He turned to look at the surroundings to divert his mind.


    The sun had set long ago but the ambient lighting was amazing. The vast expanse of sky was filled to the brim with stars. The backdrop was given an extra finish by the three moons. Yes, three moons, each a different color. Yellow, purple, and blue. At this point, it was quite underwhelming compared to the other details. Nevertheless, the night felt much brighter than back on Earth.


    The town had become even more vibrant with families and friends roaming the streets enjoying the nightlife in this city-sized town. The market was bustling with nightlights everywhere. What he noticed was that most of the lights seemed normal gas lights or even oil lamps. The few crystal lamps that were there in front of big shops glowed extremely bright illuminating the entire street with white light.


    It seems they are indeed somewhat expensive otherwise he would have seen more of them. That just goes to show how high-class Florelle''s Inn is to have dozens. The lively atmosphere was quite reminiscent of the nightlife in urban cities. Noah somehow felt comfortable as he soaked in the hubbub of laughter and shouting. Despite how chaotic his circumstances are looking, moments like these go a long way to give him a sense of normalcy.


    He slowed down his pace as he took in the many sights the town had to offer as any other passerby. He lost himself in the moment and just wished it would stay like that for some time.


    Though like everything else it also ended as he reached the Inn. Entering through the main entrance, he was greeted with a strange scene. There was almost no one present in the hall except for the receptionist. Well, there was still some time for dinner so that could be the reason.


    He was also surprised to see someone else other than Miss Florelle handling the reception desk. He could recognize her as one of the staff. Maybe she was busy somewhere else.


    He was going to first check up on Shaun but the horrible smell emitted by his body changed his mind. He asked the receptionist lady directions for the bath and rushed for the room they were staying in.


    He had to come back because he didn''t have the key with him. It was with Shaun. When asked if something could be done about this, the receptionist lady matched his credentials and gave him a spare key with a smile. She told him to return it after he is done.


    Reassuring her he would be sure to return it responsibly, he rushed again to his room. Slamming open the door, he quickly took some clothes from his luggage along with towels and soap. With that done, he dashed back. Handing the key back to the lady, he thanked her for her help.


    The staff politely responded saying she was just doing her duty and helpfully pointed out to him to put his dirty clothes in one of the baskets in the back and bring it back for laundry.


    Thanking the receptionist lady again for her help, he headed towards the bath.


    Halfway through, a yell from the main door caught his attention.


    "Mom, I''m back. Had a rough day. Give me something to eat, will ya." A familiar voice came from the front.


    Noah turned his head towards the voice and was surprised to see someone he wasn''t expecting in the slightest.


    "What are you doing here?"

 Chapter 31 - Its a Small World

    Moving out of the town hall, she stretched herself up to loosen her body from her laboring shift.


    ''What a long day.'' She was really tired from her work today. The fault mainly lied in the sudden number of Initiates who had to register themselves. Otherwise, she would just pass records between the offices and be ordered to make some registry.


    She wanted to just head back home now and relax. She wondered what was on the menu today. She was even thinking to try to request her mom to make her favorite dishes for the hard work she did today.


    Speaking of work, those three foreigners came into her mind. The trio was very strange. They really did not have the slightest of common sense of the world. Though that could be attributed to them being from another Plane. The world they came from seems vastly different from here. From things like food to buildings, she was interested in learning the differences between both Planes.


    She was especially interested in the technology they mentioned. She very much admired the elaborate contraptions she had seen in the capital. She wanted to know more about them and how to create them.


    She was thinking of taking Engineer as her next Profession. Her Rite was also coming in a few months if she were to consider her current pace. She needed to think soon of what Class she wanted to choose. She didn''t want to be a brute and smash swords but becoming a mana Practitioner is very unlikely either. She didn''t think she had the talent for mana.


    She sighed in frustration as it was seeming increasingly likely that she would have to choose some Class like Archer or Rogue.


    Reaching her home in the form of Inn, she entered through the main entrance and announced her arrival for Mom as always. She was very strict about manners.


    She was surprised to see Angie instead of her Mom manning the desk. It was very rare for her to leave the reception. The only time she had ever seen her leave was either during breaks or when she had some other more important duty.


    What happened next was what made her even more surprised.


    She saw a familiar face standing near the reception with an astonished expression. She was sure she was as surprised as the other party at seeing each other here.


    Then, she heard him question her presence here. She realized how absurd it was being asked what she was doing at her own home.


    "What do you mean what I am doing here? I live here." Nephra pointed an accusatory finger back at him.


    "Right." A strange coincidence in Noah''s opinion.


    "It seems you are also living here." Nephra noticed the items he had on his hands and looked at the direction he was heading in to make the conclusion.


    "It seems so. Just curious by the way, Who is your mom?" He was interested to know who her mother that she seemed so respectful of was.


    "You are talking to the daughter of this Inn''s owner." She replied proudly.


    Noah was stunned to hear that. He wasn''t expecting Miss Florelle of all people to be her mother. But like who would expect a young-looking woman to have a teenage daughter.


    "Are you sure she isn''t your big sister or something? Cause she doesn''t look like she is married and has a 15-year-old kid."


    "No, she is my mom, and just so you know I''m not a kid. I''m a 16-year-old young woman." Nephra could understand his disbelief. Most people at first meeting thought mom was the older sister instead of the mother.


    "Right. Doesn''t sound any different to me though. I still did not get how she could be your mother." Noah was still doubtful about the revelation. He could believe Miss Florelle to be her relative but her mother seems a bit too much.


    "She just looks young. In fact, she isn''t as young as you believe. She covers up her actual age using Beauty Potions and a variety of products." She rolled her eyes thinking of the sheer amount of cosmetics her mom had stuffed in their room.


    "You are being far more outspoken than I remember." Noah could see that she was much unreserved than before.


    "I am new to that job. You cannot expect me to act as I do at home in front of my colleagues."


    "Fair point, I guess. So, I must say it is nice to meet you again. Also, thanks for the hospitality and letting us stay at your Inn." Noah shrugged. It was perfectly reasonable to portray a good image of yourself.


    "Same here, though I hardly did anything for you guys. If you want to thank someone, thank my mom." Nephra was happy to meet Noah and continue their talks. She was excited to know more about their world.


    "Just take it as a token of appreciation in place of Miss Florelle."


    "Please, my mom may act kindly to the guests but ask the staff here how much of a devil she is." She shook her head seeing how unbearably ignorant he was about the terror her presence commanded in her as well as the staff. Though that ignorance is surely going away soon.


    Nephra should have realized she damned herself the moment she had the thought.


    A bone-chilling voice came from behind the two.


    "Nephra, you shouldn''t say such things about mom."


    ''Yeep'' Their hearts shuddered hearing the voice as they leaped out in fright. Nephra panicked much worse because she could recognize the very familiar voice at any time. A yelp came out of her mouth as she crouched down holding her head in fear of coming punishment.


    "Miss Florelle" Noah turned around in fright and saw the owner of Inn standing behind them smiling. Unfortunately, her eyes were anything but. He blurted out a question shocked at her sudden appearance.


    "From how long have you been standing behind us?"


    "Around the time little Neph began speaking some ungraceful words about her mother. Neph, do you have anything to say in your defense?" Miss Florelle''s voice was calm as she directed her gaze to Nephra who curled up even further.


    "No, mom." Her voice was back to the meek one he knew.


    Miss Florelle nodded as if satisfied with her response and said.


    "Good. Since you accepted your mistake gracefully, I will make the punishment light. You may not have dessert in dinner today."Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    "That is not fa-, yes mom." It seems that desserts were a weak spot to her as she somehow had the courage to stand up against the smiling devil. Of course, that was only in fruition as her mouth shut instantly when Miss Florelle''s gaze turned sharp.


    Noah intervened to seek confirmation if she really was Nephra''s mother.


    "Miss Florelle, Is Neph really your daughter?"


    She was a bit surprised by the nickname but then a mischievous smirk donned her face.


    "Yes, though I sometimes think it would be better if I didn''t have such a naughty daughter."


    "MOM!" Nephra made an annoyed shout, pouting.


    "Just a joke, darling." Her grin only grew wider as she very much enjoyed teasing her cute young daughter.


    "But you don''t look like her mother to me. You seem way too young for that." Noah still wasn''t convinced.


    She chuckled at his remarks and added.


    "Thanks for the compliment, dear. It seems the potions aren''t wasted."


    "Are the potions really that good? Then, that means you are much old-" Noah was musing about this new knowledge but was interrupted suddenly.


    "One shouldn''t ask about a woman''s age. Remember that, young man." Her voice was even colder than before with those eyes glaring daggers at him.


    "Yes, Ma''am." Words came out instantly from his mouth. He wasn''t going to argue with an angry woman. That is just a futile endeavor.


    Noah sighed in relief as Miss Florelle''s glare softened and her professional look was back on.


    "Leaving all that, it is good I found you here. I have some news for you."


    Noah was now intrigued. What could be the important news for her to have to give it to him in person.


    "Firstly, A special bath is made available for the Trainees. You need to make sure to go to the leftmost one. A staff would be standing there and guide you." she paused for a moment to gather her thoughts and continued.


    "Secondly, you have Language classes taught by me tomorrow. Originally it was supposed to start today but I readjusted the schedule to tomorrow in consideration of the visitors as many of you may not be able to handle such a packed schedule just after coming. It seems I was right seeing your appearance."


    Noah was surprised to hear the information but then recalled the agreement he had made with Gul.


    "I am sorry to disappoint you but I have decided to stay overtime at my job in Anvil Artisans so I most probably wouldn''t be able to attend it."


    Her eyes widened slightly in surprise as she responded.


    "Oh, Dali''s place. Hmm, That seems to be a problem but I have got the solution for that. Since you can''t attend the regular classes, you just need to make time for special ones. Considering your schedule, it would be better if you take it in the early morning. Neph would be there too."


    His eyebrows rose at the way she addressed the master. She seems to know him personally. It''s a small world. First Nephra and now master Ralvol. Though, he could ask her about it later on. It was more important to discuss about his classes.


    "And she doesn''t have a problem with me intruding in her studies." He said pointing at Nephra.


    "I''m sure she can adjust, right Neph?" Her voice may be calm but the underlying tone wasn''t lost to anyone present.


    "Yes, mom." She nodded lightly.


    "Now, if you will excuse me, I am required by the new cook apprentices." Saying this, she headed back towards the diner.


    The two stood there standing for a moment. Nephra broke the silence first.


    "See" She was back in her outgoing persona.


    "I could see what you mean. She seems strict and very disciplined." He could now somewhat understand the situation.


    "Just wait a few weeks, you will understand it clearly. No, scratch that, you are going to study with me from now on. In a few days, you are going to fear her very presence." She was trying to scare him but Noah wasn''t going to back down so easily. The two started bantering with each other.


    "Well, we will handle it together then. You should be happy I am willing to take some of the heat."


    "Let''s see how you will handle the heat."


    "I gotta say, I like this Neph is much better than the meek one."


    She had a grin on her face as she replied.


    "Try not to get annoyed by Nephra. I will be picking you up tomorrow morning, so don''t be late to bed. I don''t want to knock on your room early morning."


    "Sure, Miss Neph."


    He smiled waving at her who rushed upstairs.


    The girl could really open up. He couldn''t even recognize the shy girl from the morning. Though she showed some signs back then when they started talking he could feel that she really showed her true persona to him now.


    There is a saying that common suffering is the best way for people to get closer. He could see how that might be true.


    He resumed his march towards the bath and proceeded down the hallway the staff informed him.


    Reaching the end of the hallway, he came across multiple partitions each covered by curtains. In front of the leftmost one, there was a staff arranging some towels.


    Heading towards the staff, he asked for guidance.


    The staff directed him inside while handing him a towel. He politely refused, showing him the towel he had brought with him. The staff nodded and put back the towel in the rack.


    The staff gave a final reminder to first take a shower before dipping in the special herbal bath. Giving a nod of acknowledgment, he stepped into the changing room. There were shelves placed around with baskets in them.


    He spotted no one else other than him in the room. Maybe they haven''t arrived yet.


    Removing all his clothes, he placed them in an empty basket on one of the side shelves.


    Wrapping his towel around his waist, he headed forward.


    He came across a large bath. There were several showerheads and taps along with buckets and stools. Everything needed for a public bath.


    He didn''t wait anymore and got to cleaning himself up. Turning on the shower, he relished the feel of cold water brushing against his skin.


    He took a long shower washing away his fatigue along with all the grime and sweat.


    After the relaxing shower, he headed to the main attraction of the night. There was a massive bath at the end.


    The water inside was slightly bluish-green, kind of like swimming pools but more pronounced. He wanted to know what made was special about it except the color.


    Dipping his toe, he felt that the water was somewhat warm but bearable. Immersing himself slowly in the bath, he felt the difference in an instant.


    A tingling sensation erupted from his skin. It felt oddly comfortable despite the slight itchiness. He sank himself even deeper just keeping his head above the water. His body slowly relaxed as he felt the miraculous restoration his body was undergoing. Having experienced the effects, Noah submerged his head occasionally as well. This way, whatever good it was doing to his lower body, it could do so now to his entire body.


    He stayed around 15 minutes in the bath taking occasion dips when he heard some sounds from the hallway. Turning to look, he was delighted to see Shaun coming in though he looked like shit.


    He waved to announce his presence which he replied with a weak wave. Shaun took a short shower just letting the water run over him for some time.


    Shaun then joined him in the bath. He seemed to have relaxed somewhat as he made himself comfortable spreading his hands around the bath boundary. Seeing him so worn out, Noah couldn''t help but ask.


    "Tough day?"


    "Don''t even get me started." Shaun wanted just to relax and forget about the harsh work. Talking about it won''t do that.


    "Come on, you need to tell me or I will just think you failed to even do a simple dish." Noah was now curious whether others had to suffer as bad as him. Luckily, he knew just how to rile him up.


    As expected, he was quite proud of his cooking skill. He just needed to poke at him and Shaun started his explanation.


    "No, I did well enough. People were even surprised by my skill that they felt there was no reason for me to go through the basics. At this point, it looked fine to me but then it all got worse when Miss Florelle took charge and starts teaching some advanced lessons."


    "Oh, boy" The mere mention of Miss Florelle was enough to warrant a suspicion Shaun''s day was pretty bad.


    "Yeah, it was total hell. Every mistake confronted me with a death glare and then served with harsh punishment. By the end, she had squashed every single ounce of self-esteem I had as a cook and made me feel like I shouldn''t even dream of being one." He sighed recalling the abuse he went through.


    "Well, your experience sure sounds horrifying but it still doesn''t hold up to being worked to death by a murderous psychopath."


    His eyebrows raised in question so Noah gave him the context.


    "Well, that''s something. This Gul guy seems straight-up dangerous. You should keep your distance and make sure not to antagonize him."


    "That''s the thing. Despite all the crazy, I actually feel comfortable around him. Now, before you start yapping, let me tell you my reason. It''s because he is almost open with his intentions. There are some things he keeps hidden but it is minor. I don''t need to be on my toes around him. Hell, I think he even enjoys it when I drop all pretense and start cursing him." Noah then explained his entire encounter with Gul.


    "Quite a peculiar dynamic you seem to have formed. Well, It is not my concern as long as he isn''t going to harm you." Shaun didn''t care anymore as his mentor didn''t seem much different.


    The trio then chatted in detail about their respective experiences enjoying their relaxation time. Finally, they got out and wiped themselves. Putting on the clothes they brought with them, they exited the bath to see a surprising sight.

 Chapter 32 - Snowflakes

    The duo came out to see a group of ladies standing nearby. From the looks of it, they seemed to be quite angry. They could even see Ava in the group.


    She seemed to have noticed them as she stomped straight towards the two. Her appearance was haggard and messy clearly having just come from her apprenticeship.


    Ava didn''t wait for them to ask what was the problem as she started rebuking them.


    "So it was you two who were the last ones. What was taking you two so long? We couldn''t even get to enter the bath."


    Noah and Shaun looked at each other clearly confused by this information. The two of them were the last ones in the bath. How could that be true. They had seen no other person enter the bath.


    "But the bath was empty. I mean, no one was coming the entire time we were in there." Noah replied a bit unsettled.


    She huffed exasperated at the two and explained.


    "That''s because they are already done with theirs. You two were extremely late. Seriously, pull yourself together."


    She stomped off saying this leaving the two perplexed. Other ladies showed similar responses as they passed by them.


    "Were we really the last ones?" Noah wasn''t really sure about that.


    "It seems so. It was pretty late when Miss Florelle declared the session finished. I didn''t see any apprentice in the kitchen. From what you told me, you likely were also late." Shaun pondered a bit and concluded it was very likely that it was true.


    "So what, just because we were a bit late and they had to wait, they didn''t have to treat us like that. How could we know about it if we aren''t told." Noah felt that their attitude was a bit excessive. He failed to keep his voice down.


    Some girls heard him and turned around to glare. Shaun noticed their current predicament and decisively pulled Noah by the shoulder and headed out.


    Noah tried to resist but Shaun''s words made him halt.


    "Now, don''t argue and move on."


    Noah was puzzled until Shaun motioned him to look back which was when he noticed the glares.


    He shrugged and allowed himself to be dragged.


    They were heading towards the diner. Both of them were feeling famished and wanted to stuff some food in their empty stomachs.


    Walking down the hallway, Noah thought to check out his status and as expected there was a notification.


    (Buff: Restoration - Restores body stamina and health. Heals minor injuries and ailments.)


    Everything here seems to have a miraculous effect. The salve in the morning and now the herbal baths. He was just waiting for some health potions to pop up.


    They entered the diner and chose a random empty table.


    Seating themselves up, they enjoyed their dinner while continuing to chat.


    Gradually, the talk turned to serious topics.


    "What do you think about the apprenticeship?" Shaun moved in closer and whispered.


    Noah took a sip of ''Meryol'' before replying. The drink seems to be quite famous here.


    "Well, there isn''t much to say. There doesn''t seem to be any ulterior motives clearly apparent besides teaching. What concerns me more is the training camp."


    "How so?"


    "Well, I told you about the Monsters, right." Shaun nodded at that after which Noah continued.


    "I am worried they are training us to eventually fight against them. Clearly, humans or races like Dwarves aren''t the only ones with superpowers. I don''t know how we will fare against such threats that the Knights find trouble to deal with themselves. Then, there''s the added problem of Monsters also being present wherever we are sent to after this Initiation Phase.." Noah had many concerns about the training and was feeling apprehensive when Shaun interrupted him.


    "Calm down. You are getting too anxious. Like you said before, we will handle it somehow. We got to."


    Noah sighed and said.


    "Yeah, it''s just too many unknowns kept emerging."


    A dinner plate slammed on the table startling the two. They were shocked by the sudden clatter.


    "What are you two whispering about?" Ava said pulling out her own seat and settling in.


    "You really got to scare us like that." Noah''s heart felt like it almost burst out of his chest.


    Ava stuck her tongue out and smiled.


    They both sighed at her behavior. She wasn''t showing any remorse at all.


    "Tell me, what is all the secrecy for?"


    Noah told her about their discussion to which Ava nodded.


    "Yeah, my instructor told me that those who pass the Rite would have to hunt low-level Monsters for training. Before that, we will even practice with beasts in the forest."


    Noah and Shaun were surprised by this new information. They hadn''t expected to get confirmations about this so fast.


    Noah was now curious about what else Ava had gotten out of her instructor.


    "That''s new. what more did she tell you?"


    "She didn''t exactly know our situation but she had in no uncertain terms told me to be ready for Monsters. Said they are going to be a tough nut to crack." She answered before taking a bite out of her salad using her fork.


    "They really are not holding back at all. Only the Trainees will participate, am I right?" However cool the prospect of fighting with monsters may be, there is no denying the danger of duking it out with superpowered beasts.


    "Yeah, she said others will just die the second they enter the monster zone ." Ava shrugged and added.


    "I don''t get it. Why did she tell you all of this?" Shaun was a bit suspicious of all this new information.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    "She couldn''t care less about it. My instructor is a very laidback type of person. When I asked her about it, she told me the only reason she was doing this was just for the quest. Every instructor seems to get a quest for mentoring the Initiates." Ava didn''t really like her instructor''s attitude but she was her best option.


    She could see the other instructor weren''t really serious about teaching. After learning about the quest, she realized all they wanted was just to complete the quest somehow. While her instructor was the same, at least she was not half-assed about it and taught her thoroughly.


    "So we are going to fight monsters, Perfect. The ultimate fantasy experience. We were missing just that." Noah wasn''t liking where all this was leading at all.


    "Hey, no one is telling you to go fight them now. Besides, it is better we learn to fight them. There''s no telling when we need to." Ava tried to persuade them not to give up on the training camp.


    "Hey, let''s keep the worrying matters aside for now. Let''s talk about how our day went, starting with you Ava." Shaun acted as the mediator as always and switched the topic.


    Ava was happy to put this issue away. She thought about her day and gave her honest opinion.


    "It was quite fun actually. You won''t believe how I met my instructor-"


    They went back to chatting. Noah and Shaun laughed when Ava told them that her instructor came an hour late to the selection because she was sleeping. Her instructor then had to choose in a hurry and since Ava was still undecided about her choice, she got unlucky to be chosen by her. She couldn''t even refuse. Thankfully, her instructor turned out to be okay.


    Finished with their dinner, the trio headed back to their room.


    Along the way, they heard a quarrel going on near the reception. Checking it out, they saw a group of dozen people clamoring near the reception desk. The receptionist lady was clearly looking anxious from being surrounded.


    Moving closer, they heard the people shouting. A middle-aged man appeared to be leading the group.


    "We wish to talk with the senior staff. Instead of the accommodation, we request that you switch our rooms to the more spacious ones. We can''t stay in those cramped rooms, more so in an unfamiliar environment. You can see that everyone is clearly uncomfortable." He said gesturing back at the group of dozen.


    "Let me check up on miss." The receptionist lady took out some sort of device from the desk and activated it. The device glowed for a moment before dimming down.


    But the man didn''t seem to like what she did.


    "No, just hand us the master keys for the rooms. Then, We will go our way."


    "I can''t. The master key is not given out without her permission." The receptionist lady tried to move away only to be stopped in her tracks by that man.


    Seeing her situation, Noah rushed ahead and placed his hand on the leader''s shoulder.


    "What got you so worked up?"


    "Don''t interfere kid. This isn''t something you should meddle in." He wasn''t looking too keen about talking it out.


    "Oh, you''re saying that. She seems very comfortable with all of you ganging up on her, ain''t that right." Noah''s sarcasm wasn''t lost to the group as the crowd became unruly and started making noise.


    "Go back to your mum, fucker."


    "You are only making it more worse for you."


    "This guy doesn''t seem to realize his situation."


    The constant hurling of insults faltered Noah slightly but Shaun and Ava came by his side and supported him.


    Just when the situation looked like it was going to erupt, a thunderous voice resounded through the hall silencing everyone.


    "WHAT''S GOING ON?"


    Everyone turned to face the direction of the voice. The crowd parted to reveal a seething Miss Florelle. She took swift steps and reached the desk.


    "Miss" The receptionist lady looked relieved at seeing her.


    "Angie, are you okay?" Miss Florelle asked worriedly.


    "Yes, miss. These three helped me." Angie said pointing at the trio.


    Miss Florelle turned to the three and bowed slightly to show appreciation for their actions.


    "You have my gratitude for that. We can talk later. First, let me take care of the situation." She then addressed the crowd in a frigid tone.


    "Your group wishes to change your rooms."


    The leader stepped forward and answered as representative of the group.


    "Yes, we have decided that we can''t stay in those small rooms."


    "Idiots." She said indifferently.


    "What do you mean?" He questioned with an angry voice.


    "I am not considering your demands. If you wish to get yourself a high-class suite, you can pack yourself up and get lost. You have been provided with enough money to sustain yourself for your entire stay if you live frugally." She clarified her decisions.


    "No, I think you could provide us with that." Mister Leader obviously wasn''t satisfied with her decision.


    "No chance of that, I''m afraid. Since you threatened my employee, you all will have to go. I am not going to tolerate any guests who misuse our trust and hospitability." She had given her verdict. They could either go her way or the highway, it meant the same thing anyway.


    "You can''t do that." Someone seems to be whining.


    "I just did that." Miss Florelle turned around to face them. Her tone didn''t change in the slightest from beginning to end.


    He extended his hands to try to stop her but Miss Florelle acted faster. In a single motion, she had the man in an arm lock. He couldn''t get out of her grasp despite thrashing like a fish out of water. The man bellowed out in pain at which Miss Florelle just tightened her grip even more.


    When his cries had turned into begging to stop was when she removed the arm lock and pushed him towards the crowd.


    He stumbled and crashed onto the ground holding onto his arm. She then continued in her icy tone.


    "I want each and every one of you to leave this Inn today. You should know that I don''t like to repeat myself."


    "What a badass." Noah was amazed to see the ease with which she dispatched the crowd.


    He could recognize the type these people were. Snowflakes, they plagued the modern world. Don''t look at the three of them. They were quite an odd bunch. Many people among society generally acted similar to the group.


    Modern society had a very serious societal problem. Despite all the advancement, stupidity and irrational behavior just seemed to thrive more and more. People were more prone than ever to lash out anywhere. On social media, you couldn''t even hold a decent talk without someone cursing at you. It had eventually trickled down into society with people not able to tolerate the slightest something that doesn''t conform to their wishes. These people considered themselves to be special or something.


    He had thought seeing those knights and being in a completely different world where there was no government to protect them would have made them cautious. Nope, It turned out to be wishful thinking.


    It was most likely a rude wake-up call to many in the group.


    Realizing no one was there to help them out, they shrank back from Miss Florelle in fear.


    The leader scurried away the second he gathered his wits. Seeing him fleeing away, many joined him in retreat.


    Slowly, the crowd left the hall leaving just the trio, Angie and the owner of the Inn itself, Miss Florelle.


    "Quite a rowdy bunch that was." She said to them looking at the last members of the crowd heading back to pack up.


    "It didn''t look that way to me. You dispersed them in a few minutes." Noah wasn''t one to shy away from stating his opinions.


    Miss Florelle turned to face him and said amusedly.


    "We are meeting quite often today Noah." She paused for a moment before continuing.


    "They still don''t amount to much. I have handled much worse." She had a slight shimmer in her eyes as she said that and added.


    "Now, you seem to be fine Angie. If it happens again, call me up at that instant."


    "Yes, Miss." Angie bowed to her respectfully.


    "Good night, everyone." She said and moved out of the hall.


    After Miss Florelle left their field of vision, Angie turned to face the trio.


    "I want to thank you three for helping out, especially you Noah."


    "No need, I was just repaying your kindness. You were very helpful to me before." Noah brushed it off as something insignificant.


    Angie was surprised by his words and smiled.


    "If you say so. Just know that if you have any problems in the future, you can come to me. I will try my best to help."


    They nodded and bid their goodbyes to her. The trio then continued the walk back to their room.


    "She seems quite nice." Shaun commented to the other two.


    "Yeah, she helped me a lot giving me a spare key. I couldn''t get my clothes from the room." Noah said.


    "I had to do the same." Ava added with a bitter voice.


    They both turned to glare at Shaun in concert who was jolted by the sudden attention and asked.


    "What?"


    "We need to decide who keeps the room key. Else, just your sorry ass is going to enjoy all the comfort and convenience." Noah said with a solemn look. Ava sported a similar expression.


    Shaun faced the two with a sheepish grin on his face.


    By that time, the trio was standing in front of their room.


    They entered the room and moved to their beds.


    After a lengthy discussion, they eventually decided it was better to hand the key to Angie for safekeeping. It was a much better option than one of them having it and not being present when others need the key. The conversation then shifted to various other topics as they chatted about the magical stuff they encountered, people they met and other things. It was late night when they went to bed.


    The night passed by serenely without any other mishap.


    Sunlight came in through the window as dawn declared its arrival. Light snores sounded out as everyone was still in slumber. The atmosphere in the room felt calm and peaceful.


    However, the tranquility of the room was soon disturbed by a series of knocks.

 Chapter 33 - Language!

    Loud knocks echoed throughout the room but to no effect. The trio was dead asleep being both exhausted due to last day''s training as well as from staying up late.


    The knocks continued for a dozen more seconds before suddenly stopping. Next came the sounds of footsteps stomping away from the door. The room returned to its previous silence.


    Not for long though as the footsteps returned back after a few minutes.


    With the clicking of the lock, the door swung open screeching harshly.


    The irritating noise only managed to bring a slight reaction out of them. They were still only half-awake.


    Nephra was completely enraged at the moment. Noah wasn''t ready and she had to get him ready quickly and be there on time. Her mom will not take kindly to being late for class.


    She rushed inside and gave a solid kick at Noah who fell straight out of bed. The sudden pain roused him up as he swiveled his head around looking for the perpetrator.


    "Ow, what happened? Neph-"


    "Get ready." Nephra cut in with a stoic voice. Noah was still groggy as he tried to understand what brought such a hurry in her.


    "Just wait a few minutes, I am gettin- wait. why are you getting closer?" Noah was becoming uneasy as she started treading towards him.


    "No, get going now. We don''t have time." She dragged him by his collar and subsequently carried him to the main room.


    Reaching the place, Nephra took a glance at Noah for a moment and nodded to herself.


    "Your clothes will do fine. Get in your sandals fast."


    Noah wasn''t listening to her. Instead, he was more surprised by how effortlessly she manhandled him.


    "Hey, can you calm down for a moment. Seriously, how freaking strong are you?"


    Nephra looked at him like he was an idiot. Then, she wagged her fingers in front of his face while admonishing him.


    "I''m much higher LVL than you. Of course, I would have more strength. I remember telling you about it yesterday. In fact, you should be able to realize that on your own."


    Noah had an embarrassed look on his face. He was still in a drowsy state and it was muddling his consciousness. That was the excuse he gave himself for forgetting about such basic knowledge.


    Putting on his sandals, he looked at himself and felt satisfied by his attire. He turned to face Nephra and said.


    "I''m ready."


    "Then what are you waiting for? We are going to be late and it will be your fault." Nephra was just hoping that was still time.


    The two headed out only to be stopped by another groggy voice.


    "Are you two going out for the language class?" Ava peeked out of the partition with Shaun standing by her side. They both had quite a bad case of bed hair. Ava, in particular, looked like she had a bird''s nest in place of her hair.


    "Yeah, we are in a hurry right now. We can talk later." Noah said hurriedly as he was finally a bit clear-headed and could realize the precariousness of the situation he was in right now.


    "Wait, take us with you." Ava exclaimed while they were turning around making them halt.


    Before he could try to say anything, Shaun intervened with his voice trembling slightly.


    "No no no, I am not going to have another personal tutoring session with her. I am already suffering enough. No need to add to that." It seems someone had got a minor PTSD.


    "What are you saying now? If you don''t want to go, I will." Ava was annoyed by Shaun''s actions. She was about to convince them to bring her along. Here he was putting a wrench in her attempt.


    Though it wasn''t any help as Nephra doused any hope Ava had with her next words.


    "Sorry to say it can''t happen. Your classes are already scheduled. If you want to shift it in the morning, you have to ask mom about it."


    Ava gave a vexed look and said resignedly.


    "Okay, I will see to it that she accepts my request. But you need to have dinner with me tonight."


    "Sure, Best luck to you. Let''s move." She replied and tugged at Noah''s sleeve.


    The duo moved out and downstairs to arrive at the reception. From there, they took an obscure side hallway moving at a fast pace. Coming out of the hallway, they came to a double door with vine patterns jutting out of the frame. Opening it swiftly, a breeze of chilly morning wind caressed their bodies bringing a wave of floral fragrance with it.


    Past the doors brought them to the backyard of the Inn. There was a beautiful garden there with mesmerizing flora. A small stream wandered throughout the entire garden filled with colorful aquatic life.


    Noah gawked at the scenery to the point that Nephra had to drag him to keep pace.


    Treading past a wooden bridge, they soon reached the middle of the garden where a large tree resided. The tree was truly mystical with its crown sprawling over the center and its vibrant azure leaves.


    Under the tree stood Miss Florelle in white training garbs. She was swinging a sword in rhythm with the wind. The leaves danced around her as she performed her sets. The whole scene looked like an art piece. He couldn''t help but whisper to Nephra.


    "Is Miss Florelle a Knight of some sort?"


    She smiled noticing his amazement. She sometimes forgets how great her mom was seeing the same spectacle every day.


    "No, she was an adventurer in her early days. Not sure what her Class is but she is retired currently. When I asked her about it, she answered that she couldn''t take care of me whilst fighting monsters."


    Noah was a bit curious about the adventurer but one thing stood out as strange to him.


    "What about your father?" He hadn''t yet heard a single thing about her father.


    She went silent abruptly and Noah realized he had touched upon a sour topic.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    "I''m sorry I didn''t know your father was- "


    "No, you are misunderstanding. Actually, I have never met my father. You know, she did tell me he had died at first when I asked her. I would have believed in her lies had she not slipped up once." Nephra realized he had misunderstood her silence and explained.


    "I had to pester her daily about it before she confessed to me that she had separated from him when I was very young. Eventually, she promised to let me meet him if I Pass the Rite which I likely would in the coming month. I am very excited about it. Now, don''t you be a snitch and tell that to Mom." She said as they stepped under the Legua Tree. This tree had quite a history. She remembered her mom planting the sapling here after they had finished settling in Erangel almost a decade ago.


    "What were you two chatting about?" Miss Florelle stopped swinging her wooden sword and asked them with a bright smile.


    Before Noah could respond, Nephra chimed in hurriedly.


    "Noah was just dazzled by your beauty and skill."


    "Huh!" He was perplexed regarding her statement but a painful pinch to his waist compelled him to follow suit.


    "Yes, I would love to hear about your adventurer days."


    Miss Florelle ignored their play which was blatant in her eyes. She was thinking it was just some harmless secret they shared. She used to do the same when she was young.


    "Oh, she told you about it. I generally don''t divulge about my past to others but since Neph already informed you, it would look impolite of me to keep shut."


    "Let''s see, the Adventuring days. I was young and ambitious at that time. Wanting to explore the world and the wonders it contained. Of course, it wasn''t all sunshine and rainbows. I came close to serious danger many times. Yet despite the hardships, I still love those times. It made me who I am today. That''s why I keep myself in shape. Besides commemorating, it wouldn''t do good for my skills to go rusting now." She recounted some tales of her fighting monsters and traveling the world.


    "I should stop here. We should start the lesson now." Miss Florelle said looking towards the distant horizon. They could see the sun slowly rising, bathing them in its warm sunlight.


    Following her instruction, they sat on nearby tree stumps turned stools. Miss Florelle then moved towards the tree trunk and came back with a satchel similar to the one he had seen on Knight Rylee.


    She then reached inside the satchel and rummaged around looking for something. Noah''s eyes widened as her hand disappeared more than it should be physically possible.


    "First time seeing this?" Miss Florelle asked.


    Noah nodded repeatedly eager to know more about the magical item. She smiled and answered.


    "Basic Expansion Runes. These magic bags can be quite handy. The inside is more than three times it looks on the outside." She took out a thin book and tossed it to him. He caught it clumsily and heaved a relief at succeeding. She took out another book, this one was fairly thick and she tossed it to Nephra. She caught it easily and shot him a grin. He gave her an annoyed look.


    Miss Florelle started her lesson.


    "We will start with basic characters. This language is known as Unified Eqin. It is spoken widely among many Planes with most human kingdoms using this language as their official one. It has 31 characters. Make sure to memorize them."


    She pointed at each letter while pronouncing them. He listened attentively to her lesson. Noah knew he had to learn this Eqin language manually as the Blessing was just temporary. Though he wasn''t sweating over it. He was fairly confident in his language skills.


    He believed he would be able to hold a basic conversation with someone in Eqin within a month. With how proficient in languages he was, he was surprised by how he still hadn''t gotten a skill related to linguistics.


    The moment he had that thought, a pop-up came up in his vision.


    ''It seems Akasha is listening on thoughts. Expected nothing less from an omniscient entity.''


    Noah wasn''t surprised at this revelation. He already had this suspicion with Vanadis being able to read his thoughts. Moreover, he was controlling his Status using his mind. It was fairly obvious when one thought over it carefully. Though, he could do nothing but ignore it for now. He wasn''t able to do something about the surveillance Earth Federation puts on its citizens, much less this multiversal system.


    Checking over the notifications, he smiled. At least the user service was good.


    [Synchronizing Records...


    Skill Acquired]


    [Language: Ability to grasp languages and converse in them. Increases capacity as well as ease of learning new languages. Does not include Rune script and other magical languages.]


    List of Languages with Basic Proficiency:


    [English] [Japanese] [Filipino] [Korean] [Mandarin] [Hindi]


    His eyebrows quirked up at the description. He could mostly understand it but the last part in the text was what made him excited. Magical languages and Runes. His inner nerd was cackling like a madman. He decided it was of utmost importance to go visit the library once he learns enough to be able to read.


    Looking over the list of languages, he was not that surprised. Now, some might be thinking that was a lot of languages but it wasn''t even half of what he knew. He also knew parts of other languages like Spanish, Arabic and Russian. In fact, he was quite famous over the internet as a polygot. His videos gave him a substantial side earning.


    ''The list displayed by the skill seemed to consist of those languages in which he seemed to have a basic mastery.''


    By mastery, he meant he was able to read, write and converse in them.


    As for what reason had he learned so many languages, well partly because they interested him. Most of the content he followed generally came from few specific zones. This way, he could forgo the hassle of waiting and enjoy it in its native language. He also had a pretty good memory. His stats and Talent probably made it easier for him to absorb knowledge.


    Learning the archaic characters wasn''t too difficult. Studying the runic shapes, he asked Miss Florelle to repeatedly enunciate the letters he was keeping his fingers on. She caught on to his thinking and was delighted to see him being active in his learning.


    What she didn''t expect was for Noah to shut the book after ten minutes and close his eyes becoming utterly silent. She thought he was consolidating his learnings.


    She didn''t wish to disturb his concentration and thus chose to leave him be and check over Nephra. She remembered the lesson Neph was assigned to revise for their next class. She was keen to know about her progress.


    On the other hand, Noah was committing the letters to his memory. Rote memorization may not be suited for nurturing creative thinking but one cannot deny its usefulness for grasping a new concept. This method can be followed by others to imprint a concept in mind.


    Therefore, it took him no more than ten minutes to have a basic understanding of the characters. He then called upon Miss Florelle.


    "What made you stuck, Is it this character?" She said pointing to one of the more complex-looking ones.


    Noah shook his head and clarified.


    "No, I have memorized them. I want you to test me so I can reinforce my understanding."


    She gave him a disbelieving look and said.


    "You already did it. That''s fast. You aren''t pulling a prank, are you?" She picked up the book and turned the pages.


    She started asking to pronounce the characters pointing at them one by one. Her eyebrows kept raising as he was answering them one by one. Despite his horrible accent, he managed to remember almost all with only a few minor mistakes.


    "Do you have some Talent related to learning?"


    Noah was stumped. He was a bit hesitant about coming out with his secrets.


    Miss Florelle noticed his concern and reassured him.


    "Don''t worry. Thought Talents are rare, you can find people with them everywhere. You won''t be in any problem. In fact, both me and Nephra have inherent talents."


    "What do you mean Inherent? Are some not?" Noah asked curiously.


    Miss Florelle chuckled slightly and explained.


    "You think Talents are just inborn. No, my dear. New Talents are acquired and old ones improved upon with every Evolution. Having a Talent may provide an advantage at the start but the more you evolve, the less having a Talent is surprising."


    "I guess that would make having Talents not that useful." He remarked. It was only logical to think that Evolution would make Talents look like cool gimmicks.


    Therefore, he was surprised when she spoke the opposite.


    "On the contrary, it makes them more valuable. Do you know how hard it is to evolve. It isn''t just training your body and skills but the accumulation of Records. One cannot undergo Evolution without having a certain threshold of Records. That is why the Rite is so important. It signifies that the individual possesses extraordinary potential. That potential is mostly gained through the Records one acquires when leveling up anything from Race to Skills."


    Noah pondered over the implications while grading up the importance of the Rite. It didn''t seem to just be important but life-changing for people.


    He was about to continue his questions except Nephra had to just barge in their conversation.


    "What Talent you got? I got one called Dexterous Hands. It makes writing records much faster and easier for me because of the added stat growth." She asked sporting a curious look on her face.


    After thinking it over carefully, Noah eventually decided to reveal his Talent. Hiding it now would only do harm to their budding relationship. It shouldn''t become a big deal in his opinion. It will mostly be fine as long it wasn''t something rare like Ava''s Talent.


    "Well, I got one called Intelligent. That must be the reason I can learn things fast. Haha" He laughed it off trying to downplay his Talent but it didn''t quite bring out the expected result. One can even say it backfired.


    The mother and daughter duo had their firm gazes locked onto him.

 Chapter 34 - Do Drugs

    "Is something wrong?" Noah was alarmed by their sudden seriousness.


    "Wrong, do you know what this means? Your Talent." Nephra said eagerly waving her hands around. In her excitement, she wasn''t able to form any coherent sentences.


    The sheer joy in her tone baffled Noah. One moment there she was serious and the other she was happy. He couldn''t understand what was going on in her head.


    Not to mention miss Florelle was there to double down on him.


    "You should have told me that you were a Potential Awakened." She said rubbing her forehead with a vexed look. Miss Florelle looked like she couldn''t be more frustrated by this new development.


    Noah wasn''t sure what the new term meant but he could at least judge from her expression that it was going to be a lot of trouble.


    "Do you mind explaining?"


    "Right, visitors." She sighed before elucidating the situation.


    "I don''t wish to say much but since it directly affects you, it would be best for you to have a general understanding. If you didn''t already know, Talents come in grades. Minor talents like slight boost can be found easily in droves. Then comes the basic Talents which allow small growth in a stat. Those are rare. In this town, you can find less than a hundred who have them. After which are the rare ones which are a step above basics like your Intelligent. The scope then changes from this town to the kingdom. You can now guess what I am worried about."


    He nodded to her understanding fully well that possessing something valuable could be a very troublesome thing or possibly even dangerous.


    She continued her explanation.


    "Some even have double Inherent Talents. There are even records of people possessing greater ones. Very few of them are found within entire empires. Every single one of them turns out to become a monster. Not in the literal sense but in that the absolute power they wield demands them to be labeled as such. Fortunately, that isn''t that case or a political storm will be coming."


    "It seems I got lucky." Noah snarked while sweating inwardly. He seemed to be grossly wrong in his conjectures. There seem to be more tiers of Talents than he had speculated. He was just able to think of their own Status. He needed to remind the two to keep it a secret.


    She briefly considered his statement before replying.


    "That is only partially true as they will only give you a head start. Talents come along as one evolves progressively. I acquired a rare one on my Racial Evolution. However, the gap is still present. What''s important is that everyone has a chance to obtain special skills related to their affinity from their Rite. With a decent Talent, one is guaranteed to pass the Rite with some good ones."


    "That means those with Talent have it easier compared to those who don''t but I still don''t get the worry. Are those skills that good?"


    "You seem to have caught on to what I mean. Awakened are those who acquire special skills. These skills are potent for your level. Therefore, it brings a lot of attention. Both good and bad. Whatever the case, it becomes messy. I would recommend you to keep it to yourself as long as you can."


    "I will do my best." He didn''t want any trouble either.


    "You need to. I don''t want a repeat of that mess." She muttered the last part under her breath but Noah was able to catch parts of her statement and asked.


    "What mess?"


    A blank look crossed her face for a moment before she replied with her usual smile.


    "Oh, I had an acquaintance who had to deal with tons of nobles and factions who came to recruit him for his Rare Talent. That was quite a bothersome thing." She giggled as if she was recounting that event in her mind.


    For some reason, he felt suspicious. Her story felt fabricated to him. He scrutinized her but found no noticeable openings. Left with no choice, he had to resort to exploiting her weakness. He looked at Nephra to see her hopping around in excitement. She was behaving like a child who had found a new toy. He wasn''t letting the obvious opportunity go and dived in.


    "Neph, what got you so happy?"


    "Obviously because I have also got -" She paused abruptly in her speech as both of them felt a crushing force on their very being. It didn''t feel like a normal force but more of a metaphysical one as if something was pressuring their souls. He felt suffocated and was about to falter down on his knees before the pressure vanished suddenly. He knelt and heaved violently feeling his breath return to him.


    "Neph, get your gear. We will start your morning practice." Miss Florelle''s voice brought chills down his spine.


    Noah looked to see Nephra dashing away frantically back towards the Inn. This left him alone with Miss Florelle.


    He could feel her presence behind him. Mustering up his nonexistent courage, he turned to face her.


    She towered over him by few inches. He had to look up to meet her gaze.


    This was something he had found out soon after being teleported to this world. The average height here was more than back on earth. Particularly, the knights were all more than 6 feet tall.


    Peering closely at her, he found her blue eyes were locked onto his figure. A breeze blew past them letting her golden locks cover her face. She tucked them behind her ear and addressed him.


    "I think we should have a proper discussion."


    ''Here we go again.'' He clenched his buttocks in preparation for the upcoming disciplining. He definitely wasn''t going to enjoy what he was about to face soon.


    ...


    ''Pain may come and pain may go but the scars accompany you.'' That aptly described his current condition. Noah was considerably tired from the ''discussion'' with her. His taut nerves had finally relaxed.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    Surprisingly, he was left relatively scot-free with just a short lecture about not yapping around. Man, she was scary though. He was just relieved about not being thrown out of the Inn. Afterward, he went back to learning Eqin while Ava began her training with her mom.


    Regardless, it was now unquestionable that Nephra had a rare Talent. One thing he came to knew about her from their short friendship was that she sucked at masking her emotions. It was very improbable that she didn''t.


    He now needed to make sure their Talents doesn''t become public. Miss Florelle would throw them out if they gave any trouble to her.


    He didn''t know whether Talents are genetic. From what he could glean from Miss Florelle, there was a considerable chance of that. She felt very strong to him. Stronger than even the knights. He had gotten the same feeling as Knight Sanders from her.


    Although he wasn''t sure who was stronger between the two, they were clearly leagues above the others. There was also the Racial Evolution she mentioned in passing. He was feeling restless wanting to learn more about all the new stuff.


    Noah was thinking about his conversation with her and therefore wasn''t paying attention to the sword coming his way.


    It struck at his waist making him crumple down to the ground in pain.


    "You okay? You were zoning out." Ava asked in concern while offering her hand.


    He had already completed most of today''s training constituting the regular old run and obstacle course. Now they were left alone to practice their weapon skills by Knight Rylee who was away doing god knows what. Some tried picking up archery while others honed their sword mastery. He chose the latter and decided to spar with Ava.


    Accepting her hand, he stood back up and assured her.


    "Yeah, just a lot to think about."


    In response, She crossed her arms and stared at him fiercely. She wasn''t very keen on him keeping his problems to himself.


    He huffed amused by her behavior and shared whatever he managed to gather from his talk with Miss Flroelle.


    She thought about it and eventually nodded.


    "I didn''t think our Talents were that rare. This really is concerning. Though, I suppose we don''t have to worry that much. If someone asks, we can just say we have basic Talents."


    "I don''t know about that. Shaun isn''t exactly being lowkey, to say the least." He switched his gaze from her to look at the archery section.


    She joined him in observing the display and remarked.


    "He seems happy."


    "We won''t be if he keeps showing off."


    There were a group of trainees practicing there with bow and arrows. Shaun was standing out among the group. Every arrow he shot was landing close to dead center. He was gathering quite an audience with his performance.


    "You should think about yourself. We need to work on your form."


    She took her stance and readied her wooden sword. Noah did the same but it was quite shoddy in comparison to her.


    "Why do I have to learn from you?" Noah wasn''t happy with Ava acting as his instructor.


    "Two years in fencing and one in kendo. I don''t claim myself to be a professional but compared to you, I might as well be." Her smirk infuriated him.


    He lunged at her with a basic swipe which she parried easily and counterattacked. He hastily blocked the sword and tried attacking back. Though, his stance was broken by it. She wasn''t going to let the opening pass by and put pressure on him continuing her flurries of stab and slashes.


    With each successive strike, his posture crumbled till it turned into a jumbled mess. She did a leg sweep and he was back on the ground tasting the dirt.


    "You''re improving. I''m impressed. Even so, your form is trash. It needs to be worked upon from the ground up. Come on now, stand up."


    Noah spewed out the dirt in his mouth and stood up faltering slightly in the process.


    "Ugh, I hate this."


    Steadying himself, he rushed ahead at Ava with an overhead assault.


    ...


    "You don''t hold-Huff" "back. Seriously, how are you still standing?" Noah was breathing rapidly trying to calm down his pounding heart. Exhausted from the practice, he was laying down on the dirt field. The sun overhead was making him dizzy while he felt spasms of pain from his stomach. He didn''t feel so good right now.


    "You were wasting so much of your energy in excess motions. The first thing you should have realized was that you need to conserve your stamina if you wanted to stay standing for hours. It wouldn''t matter if we have similar stats if you are going to utilized only half of it." She headed to the side and brought back a waterskin. Loosening the plug, she poured the water over his head.


    Noah''s eyes opened wide after being sprayed with water all over his face. He spluttered coughing out the water.


    "Cough-cough What are you doing?"


    "You are heating up. If I don''t do it, you will get a heat stroke." She took a few gulps out of it before passing it to him.


    "Here, keep yourself hydrated."


    Noah kept glancing back and forth between the waterskin and Ava. She frowned seeing his actions and asked.


    "What are you waiting for? Want me to give you permission."


    He eventually shrugged and held it above his mouth while savoring the cool water coursing down his throat. He took care not to touch the waterskin with his mouth. He didn''t want any stupid complications with her.


    Peeking at her, he thought he saw a disappointed look on her face for a moment. Shaking his head, he was met back with her normal grumpy face. Was he hallucinating now?


    Not wanting to think on it further, he continued hydrating himself to clear his mind.


    After quenching his thirst, he passed it back to Ava.


    "Wanna check up on Shaun?" Standing upright, he asked while dusting his clothes.


    Her eyebrows rose as she responded.


    "Can you move?"


    "I can try. Just got to shake off the tingling in my leg-" His voice trailed off as clanging of metal boots on the ground began coming from afar.


    They turned to see Rylee brisk walking in their general direction. He was in his normal cotton training clothes except for the metal boots adorning his legs. There was also an arming sword on his waist.


    Despite how much he loathed his presence, Noah couldn''t deny the dignity and majesty he was radiating at the moment. Rylee could portray himself as a righteous knight when he wanted to. Of course, from inside he was rotten to the core.


    Knight Rylee halted his march near the group and yelled.


    "ROUND UP"


    After a few days, everyone was somewhat acclimated to their new lifestyle. Following his orders, they decisively left whatever they were doing instantly and lined up in front of him.


    "Your practice and sparring should be done. We can start the main class ."


    "The session today is going to be a bit different than normal. You will now be introduced to the practice of Meditation. From today onwards, it is expected of you to meditate for at least an hour a day in your free time. This is not counting the session you will undergo in the training camp."


    "Not to worry as I have faith you lot will be half-assed about it. Even Orges listen better than you. I have seen young kids whose performance exceeds many among you."


    They were accustomed not only to his orders but also his constant insults.


    "Come forward one by one. Be careful with it. You won''t be provided another one."


    Similar to yesterday, they moved forward and were handed something by him. Only this time it was something entirely different.


    The thing turned out to be a bulbous purple leaf with blue veins. He felt the texture to be very soft. He could squash it if he was slightly careless with it. Purple pulp dribbled down from the side as he put some pressure on it.


    "Now, sit down at your place." Rylee ordered with a firm voice.


    They followed on it and sat at the bare ground. There wasn''t much complaint from the Trainees as they were already covered head to toe with grime and dirt.


    "Gently place your Morwo leaf at your tongue and leave it there. Then squeeze out the juices inside slowly. Make sure not to chew or swallow it down whole. I do not wish to be held responsible if any of you duckfucks mess yourself up."


    Taking heed of his advice, everyone tried to be careful and placed the leaves slowly within their mouths.


    Seeing that no one was thrashing from an overdose, he continued.


    "Morwo leaf or better known as Serenity herb is very essential in practicing Meditation. It will soothe your mind and forcefully pull you into a calm state of mind allowing you to activate the skill. Since your Souls are not awakened yet, you will not have any significant benefits from this practice. It will however improve your recovery and help your mental stat growth. Therefore, it is notably vital in your training. Nevertheless, its true usage will only come after you complete your Rite." He paused for a moment before continuing.


    "Meditation is a core Skill for every Class. Remember that when you practice. It may be disorienting at first but the sensation should not overwhelm you. Therefore, try to be -"


    "WHOAAAA" Noah erupted out suddenly drawing everyone''s attention.


    His pupils started dilating as an intoxicated expression appeared on his face.

 Chapter 35 - Psychedelic

    Noah took the Morwo herb and placed it on his tongue like others. He took care not to press on it hard. He wasn''t so curious to take his chances against the possible consequences of swallowing down such a potent substance. Neither was he stupid to ignore the obvious warnings even if they were given by someone he disliked very much.


    Though, sometimes the World just gives a middle finger to you and your plans. With just a drop of liquid trickling down his throat, his body decided to go haywire. Dizziness came first. He shook his head trying to steady himself but it had little to no effect. If it was just that, he would have chalked it up as normal reactions when ingesting this herb. Rylee did say it would be disorienting. It was the following spasms and twitches in his body that rang the warning bells in his mind. It was definitely something not good.


    His entire body felt numb in spite of his constant attempts at movement. Then, he experienced a familiar sensation. His mind became oddly calm and rational. That being said, he was not overwhelmed by it like last time. It was much milder in comparison to that time with Vanadis and whatever magic she used on him.


    This gave him the opportunity to inspect his situation. Checking up on himself, he was intrigued by what he was feeling. It was like a curtain was placed between him and his senses. They felt muted but he could still discern his surroundings if he concentrated on the sensations. The entire state was indeed quite disorienting. He tried to glimpse at his fellow Trainees but saw no extreme reactions among them. Were they suppressing it like himself or was he the only one to feel it?


    Whatever may be the case, it wasn''t an issue as he settled down gradually and gained back some control over his body. His body loosened in relief. He was really worried about his condition. Thankfully, it subsided down. Putting aside the concerns, Noah could resume his meditation.


    Closing his eyes, Noah felt his senses continue to distance until they became a distant feeling in his mind. With the added effect of the herb, he was calm the entire time. He tried to meditate by concentrating within and inspecting his body. To his surprise, he was able to sense his internals with ease. He could make out the rhythmic pulsing of blood within his veins and arteries, the thumping beat of his heart, the contraction of his lungs, the shifting of his intestines to speak a few.


    It gave him a whole new understanding of his body and its functioning. Every part worked like cogs in the giant machine which was his body. Never would he have thought he would be able to do this. It may seem insignificant in this new world but to him and most likely everyone from Earth, it was otherworldly.


    He wanted to experiment with this new state to research what he was capable of. Trying to diagnose his body, there was some feedback he felt. He got excited over the discovery. Concentrating back, he was able to pinpoint some areas where his body wasn''t able to properly function. He was able to understand that his lower body muscles were cramped with a large buildup of lactic acid. There were also bruises in his upper body from the spar and training.


    He was feeling out his muscles which pulsed with his will. Not to mention he was even able to exert control over obscure ones.


    Suddenly, he got a seemingly implausible idea. He tried to control his heartbeat. This took considerable effort on his part but eventually, he was able to lower his heartbeat slightly. There was an instinctual understanding by his body on how to do it. It was as if he was just rediscovering his abilities.


    He wasn''t going to stop here. His confidence was bolstered by his successful attempt. He tried different things with his body. Though, only disappointed greeted him when he wasn''t able to do much besides increasing his blood flow. He still was able to get a reaction out of his other organs but knew he wasn''t proficient in meditation.


    He felt that he could do much more with practice. Diverting his attention to the other vital parts, he examined his brain and nervous system. Focusing on his spine, he could vaguely make out the electric impulses traveling through the spinal cord to the limbs and back to the brain. He followed along fascinated with the processes.


    Reaching his brain, it instantly felt different. There was something else he couldn''t quite put a finger to now. Despite being aware of its existence, it was elusive to his senses. Dissatisfied by that, he increased his efforts. His mind concentrated to the utmost as he honed on that elusive feeling. He was eventually able to grasp onto it.


    And would you know it, the feeling turned out to be the sixth sense he had felt during his meeting with Vanadis. He didn''t let go of it and probed further. It was as if something clicked inside his body. if he were to describe the experience, it would be like his third eye opened up. He felt a sudden rush of energy as a euphoric feeling took hold of his senses. He couldn''t help but cry out.


    "WHOAAA"


    His physical senses were cut off suddenly. Before he could panic, he found himself in an unknown environment.


    Noah''s pupils shrank unconsciously as he saw something mind-boggling through his newly discovered mystical sense.


    There was no ground for him to stand on. He was floating in the empty void of space. Or somewhere similar to that. If he were to make a guess, he could be inside a nebula. For he was surrounded by beautiful & deadly azure mist. Glancing around, he saw a silent explosion happen above him bursting the clouds in a shower of azure. Vibrant colors cascaded down and passed through him. He tried to paddle around in order to move away but wasn''t quite able to avoid the colossal clouds of cosmic dust.


    A single touch from the dust and he was gripped and thrown around the cosmos.


    Getting yanked out of that place and thrust into another, he felt himself getting squeezed through space as a sense of vertigo dominated him. A myriad of colors assaulted his senses as he found himself in an oven.


    Not in a literal sense but because everywhere he could see, there was only fire and flames.


    After looking around, he was somehow able to make out a few figures in the distance. I guess it should be somewhat expected when he saw that they were fiery creatures inhabiting this world. Before he could inspect further, the sensation returned.


    He didn''t like this feeling for obvious reasons. The nausea and dizziness increased the more time he spent in this colorful tunnel. Arriving at his new destination, he couldn''t be more relieved.


    The sentiment lasted not for long as he realized where he was dumped.


    The new place differed quite a lot from the first one. For starters, It had a ground. Secondly, Instead of few creatures, he was dropped in the middle of a fucking war in some part of hell. Demonic beings with horns and tails were gutting each other out. Gnawing and ripping sound accompanied by shrieking howls and roars registered to him from his surroundings.


    The backdrop wasn''t reassuring him either. The place he met Vanadis was nothing compared to what he was seeing. The ground had lava flowing around with a strong sulfuric smell in the air. The dusky reddish sky made the scene feel even more gloomy.


    What worried him more were the magma-bathed demons who looked to be gargantuan compared to the others. No, it wasn''t their height that was his primary concern. They may pack a nasty punch but it was the torrential rain of flames towering like skyscrapers around them that scared him out of his wits.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    The only saving grace was that the demons here didn''t seem to see him. He himself felt he wasn''t present in this place physically. That was until one of those hell demons turned to gaze at him. A chilling sensation erupted in his being. He was considering getting the hell out of here. Whatever was behind this, it seemed to have heard his pleas as the feeling surfaced back.


    His gratitude at the timing didn''t last long as vertigo caught up to him.


    The transfers were getting quicker. Scenes from various worlds were imprinted in his mind. Places familiar and unfamiliar. Some filled with life, some with death while the majority were lifeless with nary a soul in sight. Some felt inviting to life while others felt malicious and dark.


    If he had not been getting thrashed around the multiverse, Noah would have loved seeing the numerous sights of the Multiverse.


    His consciousness was slipping up the more times he phased around. Right before he couldn''t handle it anymore, something halted him leaving him stranded in the middle of nowhere.


    ...


    On the outside, only a few dozen seconds had passed. Seeing his condition worsening by the second, Knight Rylee didn''t hesitate. His figure rushed forward with a step. Placing his hand on Noah''s chest, he flooded the body with his Ki shutting it down and sending him into unconsciousness but he knew the problem wasn''t solved yet.


    Taking out a runic amulet from his pouch, he poured mana into it to send a signal for help.


    He was about to notify others of the situation when Shaun and Ava asked in concern.


    "Is he okay?" "What was wrong with him?"


    Rylee continued monitoring Noah''s condition while responding to the two.


    "I''m afraid it isn''t over yet, Wait for some time, help is coming."


    "Please, save him." Ava pleaded to Rylee. She was dreading over what had happened to Noah. Could there be something wrong with his leaf? There wasn''t much effect felt by her except a soothing sensation which was still doing its job in keeping her calm.


    "I''m doing whatever I can but this is way out of my expertise."


    His amulet started pulsating. Noticing that, Rylee tossed it on the ground. A runic inscription circle sprouted out of the ground centering on the amulet. With a flash of azure light, a figure appeared in the circle.


    Everyone paying attention to their surroundings got surprised at the sudden appearance. More so when they recognized him as the same person they had seen on the balcony with the knights the other day.


    Similar to that day, He was draped in his luxurious robe over formal wear.


    "Viscount" Rylee saluted the noble walking out by placing his fist on his chest.


    "What''s the situation?"


    "His energies started fluctuating after taking a Morwo herb. If it was a case of overdose, it would have only made him unstable for a short time. Worst case it would have put him into a state of induced coma till its effect recedes sometime later. Instead, it continued increasing. I had to suppress his outburst using my Ki."


    "Let me check on it." His eyes glowed as he scrutinized Noah''s figure. After few moments, his gaze widened in astonishment. He remarked to Rylee.


    "It seems we have got a Gifted in our midst." He shut his eyes and opened them with the glow fading out.


    "Never thought this kid would be one." Knight Rylee couldn''t hide the surprise in his tone. A Gifted was something he didn''t expect. It was something even rare than Awakened. He could recall Viscount was one of them.


    "So, is he okay?" Ava interrupted their conversation.


    The Viscount turned to look at the two who were peeking at Noah''s figure with concern.


    "And you''re-"


    "His friends" It was Shaun who answered this time.


    "He will be fine." The noble reassured them a bit too soon.


    As just shortly after that, Noah''s body began thrashing.


    The viscount hurried to check his status. His brows frowned as he said.


    "This shouldn''t be happening."


    "What''s wrong?" Ava asked.


    "He should have calmed down. It was just his sensitivity acting up. He isn''t used to feeling mana. His body overreacting is normal but this is not just that. His soul is acting up. Something is causing harm to his soul."


    "Can''t you do something?" She didn''t like what his statements were hinting at.


    "I will try my best." Placing his hands on Noah''s body, he closed his eyes in concentration. An azure glow traveled from his center through his hands out into Noah''s body.


    A tense silence engulfed the place as everyone gazed at Noah''s continually increasing struggles.


    The noble wasn''t looking thrilled by this development. Drops of sweat slid down his forehead as he tried to fend off the turbulent mana in his soul.


    Everyone had mostly declared him gone.


    It was then that Noah became tranquil all of a sudden. The abrupt change caught everyone off-guard.


    The noble stood up slowly in a daze, surprised like others.


    "His condition has stabilized." He stated absent-mindedly as if he could not believe the outcome.


    Noticing his odd behavior, Rylee whispered.


    "Everything alright?"


    "It should be fine. He should recover consciousness in a few hours. I will keep watch just in case. It''s just that he should be dead by now. Despite my attempts, I wasn''t able to get rid of his ailment. He somehow did it on his own."


    The two men stared at Noah''s figure surrounded by his friends and the other Trainees as they thought over the implications of this event.


    ...


    Zone B3, Sector EZ-231


    An unconscious figure floated around in space, millions of kilometers away from the nearest celestial body.


    Harsh light rays hitting his face brought Noah out of his stupor. He shook off the dazed look and assessed his surroundings.


    What he could understand was that he was in some solar system. A Star was hanging overhead warming him up. Shouldn''t he be burning from the heat? Whatever, he wasn''t about to question it now.


    ''Ooh'' He looked away from it as the sun glare was killing his non-physical eyes.


    Turning around, he saw a planet not so different from Earth. It looked like a blue marble from where he could see. There was also a satellite moon revolving around it. He was a bit confused because the moon looked a little too close for comfort. If he remembered correctly, Earth''s moon was hundreds of thousands of kilometers apart. They should be quite distant. Then again, this wasn''t Earth.


    Though, something felt off to him. It didn''t feel natural.


    Focusing on the moon, he noticed some movement.


    His heart skipped a beat as the moon revealed itself in all its haunting glory.


    Tentacles sprung forth from its sides enveloping a large part of the Planet. A gaping maw churning down the planet came into the light giving an invitation to the Abyss.


    In the face of this impossibility that was the creature, Noah could only hope to get away from this place as soon as he can.


    He could feel its spine crawling gaze from the vast distance. Thousands of eyes turned in his direction. Making direct eye contact with the abomination in space didn''t fare well for him.


    ''AHHHHH!''


    An agonizing pain flared up inside him. Noah was feeling something crumbling inside him.


    He couldn''t even. I. He. It. A@#*! --------


    His mind was becoming an unrecognizable mess. All he could feel was pain.


    His mind was about to be consumed in despair when a sliver of hope emerged. He heard a feminine voice in his mind.


    "You don''t play around. Do you, Noah?"


    The pain disappeared as if it was not even there.


    Unbeknownst to him, a foreign energy purged the malicious mana sticking to his soul.


    Recognizing the familiar voice, he tried responding through his thoughts.


    ''Vana-'' The pain flared again.


    "You need to rest, kid. That Xorz Dweller did a number on you. I have restored your soul but you shouldn''t exert yourself."


    ''Yeah'' That was all Noah could muster before his consciousness started slipping.


    The same energy sent him to sleep as it got to recovery. Noah''s body gradually became transparent before disappearing completely.


    ''How can someone be this unlucky. I mean, what are the chances of someone triggering Astral Projection by accident and coming face to face with a Demi-god. I don''t know if he is a genius or an idiot. Most likely a bit of both.'' She was thinking over the absurdity of the situation but a disturbance in space halted her thoughts.


    ''Now, time to take care of the big bug.''


    Illusory eyes formed dwarfing even the planet. The Dweller capable of consuming entire planets was already evoking warp travel, discarding its decades-long project.


    "Not so fast. You shouldn''t have attacked something that is mine. I don''t take it very nicely."


    Space itself froze around the sector. Teleportation spells and spatial skills were rendered useless in the whole region.


    Despite having his escape attempt thwarted, the dweller still didn''t face her. Instead, it fleed using its telekinetic tentacles.


    A chuckle resounded in space.


    "Am I this scary? Well, I wouldn''t have it any other way. Have your own medicine."


    The mythical Chaos Eyes presented itself in the Multiverse after eons. A ghostly radiance burst out of the eyes.


    The Dweller became still all of a sudden before chaos ensued. The vast majority of its tentacles turned to attack their own body. A gory mess erupted as it ripped itself apart. Innards and fluids flew around the space.


    Within a dozen minutes, only a broken husk remained of the once destroyer of civilizations.


    ''That was fun. I hadn''t let loose since forever. Noah should get in fatal danger more often.'' She thought jokingly before continuing.


    ''I better move, pesky ones should be coming soon.''


    The eyes left the space leaving an apocalyptic scene for others to witness.

 Chapter 36 - Le Nightmare

    The clattering of tableware filled the diner hall. Waiters and waitresses swiftly passed by them. Most were holding jugs filled with booze while occasionally someone could be seen carrying plates full of appetizing dishes. Laughter from every corner reached his ears.


    Noah sat at his table staring at his lunch. He was still not able to get the experience out of his head.


    "Did you see the training the knights went through?"


    "Of course, I couldn''t stray my eyes off for a second..."


    Although, his two tablemates seemed far more interested in chatting than being worried about his condition.


    His mind wasn''t in the conversation for obvious reasons. He kept playing with his salad. Idly spinning the fork in his hand, he recounted the experience repeatedly in his mind. The truth was, one can''t just walk off something like that. Sitting in the cheerful atmosphere; He felt disjointed with reality.


    "Noah?" She called out to him all of a sudden.


    "Hmm." He responded absentmindedly.


    After waking up, he had gone through a checkup. Finding no further complications, he was given permission to leave. Further training was canceled because of the incident. Therefore, he had headed back for lunch. With some help from his friends, he somehow managed to get back to the Inn.


    Did he?


    Everything felt fuzzy to him. He credited it as another one of the side-effects. There was a plethora of them to count by now. Migraine, dizziness, temporary loss of motor control. Heard that right. He was actually paralyzed for some time after becoming conscious. Now adding to all that was memory loss. He couldn''t bother to care at this point.


    "You got to pull yourself together." She said sternly.


    "Yeah, no shit." He grumbled quietly, picking up a roasted potato with his fork and chewing on it.


    "Eh, It wasn''t a pretty sight." His best fella couldn''t resist putting in a snide remark.


    "I didn''t expect him to fail at such a simple thing." She said giggling as if it was a funny thing.


    Resisting the urge to scowl, he tried focusing on the dinner. He could be insufferable sometimes, for sure, but they were going a bit too far. He almost died back there, damn it.


    "He was a complete wreck, ain''t that right." He was laughing his heart out. The earlier comment clearly wasn''t enough for him, he needed to rub it in by putting on a show.


    Surrounding noise faded in his ears as Noah could feel everyone''s attention was on them.


    That was the tipping point. He couldn''t stay shut. They would continue to just roll over him.


    "Sorry, what?"


    "You made such a show back there. I feel bad now considering myself as your friend." She said, contemptuously eyeing him.


    "What do you mean? Should I have just died back then?" Noah finally snapped. His friends'' attitude affronted him. He felt estranged by their uncaring nature. The least they could do was ask about his state of mind. No, they were more concerned about how he made them look.


    "She is right, man." He scoffed and continued. "You have become a joke among the Trainees."


    "What has gotten to you two?" Noah asked. An unsettling feeling sprouted within him. His friends were behaving abnormally. The following statements only intensified the feeling.


    "What has gotten to you? We are acting normal. I would say it is you who is acting like a clown, not us."


    "The whole thing has taken its toll on you. Cool yourself down. Stay away from us for now. Maybe you should change your room."


    "Hey, you can''t just..do...that." His voice trailed as he found out the source of unsettling feeling in his heart. Focusing on them for the first time in the conversation, he was horrified to find both of them looking at him with blank faces.


    "What are you?" He blurted out. Why didn''t he notice it sooner? It was almost as if his brain was purposefully ignoring them. Fear crept upon him as he noticed similar looks in the crowd. Everyone was simultaneously turned in his direction. He could feel their emotionless gazes boring through him.


    Was this some sort of elaborate prank? If it was, it had clearly gone too far. Where is the announcer declaring he got pranked?


    He wasn''t able to continue those thoughts when he noticed everyone stepping towards him.


    His panic increased with every step they took before reaching a crescendo as they halted a few feet from him. The tension became suffocating as the eerie gazes never strayed away from his figure.


    "Forgot me, Noah." A playful voice reached his ears from behind him.


    It snapped explosively as the color drained from his face. His heart froze hearing that hateful voice. Turning around slowly, his dread turned into reality as ''she'' was standing there smiling at him.


    "For I didn''t."


    "All these years," She said slowly. "you didn''t change at all."


    He clutched his fists in rage. With sheer will, he restrained himself from going berserk. However, it was considerably difficult with her presence alone continuing to test his patience.


    She took slow, confident steps towards him. The anger radiating from his face didn''t so much deter her approach in the slightest. Trailing her finger across his body, she circled around him like a predator gauging its prey.


    "You may think that you did, but deep down, we both know that you are still that wimpy kid stuck in the orphanage."


    Propping up his chin, she asked with a condescending gaze.


    "This mask of bravery you wear. How long can you keep it on?"


    "VERA" Noah growled. He hated saying that detestable name. Pushing off her hand, he glared at her.


    Painful memories surged in his mind. Memories he wished to keep bottled deep inside. The gleeful smiles filled with malice. Relentless thrashing in the corner. The constant struggling against them. Day by day, the worsening acts that eventually became unbearable. Feeling imprisoned and confined in that building.


    As if showcasing his memories, the puppets surrounding him progressively transformed into indistinct black figures.


    The faceless crowd took part in the whole performance becoming the ''innocent'' spectators. Under that detached guise of innocence lied potential actors in making. Eager to impress the spectators through their endearing plays. What a spectacle, promising to reenact itself on and on.


    His gaze turned hazy as he lost himself in the chaotic piece.


    The memories just kept on flashing by. His mind started deluding itself to think of her as the reason behind his suffering.


    It all started with her. She was the cause, the origin, the source behind all that pain.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Twirling a crimson strand of hair in her hand, Vera pressured him further with her gaze.


    "Now, where is the retaliation? Or are you all talk, no show?"


    His gaze turned vicious. The red in her hair became pronounced turning into blood-like crimson.


    Slowly, Noah reached out for her. He wanted to vent all his rage. Put an end to this nightmare, to all his problems. If she could just disappear, he would be back with his friends and family.


    It was so easy, so simple to do this. Just give in to his impulses for a moment.


    Then, why were his hands not inching further?


    He found his answer in her green eyes. Clarity returned to his gaze as the realization of what he was about to do dawned on him. All strength left him as he buckled down to the ground. He began hyperventilating as the breath he didn''t know for how long he was holding got released.


    His figure looked utterly defeated kneeling in front of Vera but the relieved smile sporting his face said otherwise.


    He had managed to keep his promise. Proven himself better than them, better than the previous him. His impulses did not control him, he controlled himself.


    However, his reverie was soon to be broken by Vera.


    "Thought so." She said casually.


    He felt a shift in his surroundings. It didn''t take long for him to discover the reason. His face turned grim as he stared at the figures restarting their march towards him.


    "HaVe iT YoUr wAy" Vera''s voice distorted itself into something sinister. She, no, It started rippling as its figure began turning into one of the black creatures.


    Its hair started lengthening accompanied by black tar dripping out of its eye sockets. The eyeballs had melted into a gooey mess long ago. By this pace, it shouldn''t be long before it becomes the stuff from nightmares.


    However, its transformation was halted by a sudden battlecry.


    "ARGHHHH" Picking up a chair, Noah smashed it in the monster''s face. The face exploded into a shower of black goo.


    "You don''t expect me to stand there and watch, do you?"


    The black goo began reforming itself at a rapid rate. Seeing this, Noah continued his barrage of blows to flatten it down. A shriek sounded out of its mou-, general mouth area with every hard hit it received.


    By the end of it, Both the creature and the chair had become a broken mess. His hand was holding onto just a broken leg of the chair.


    His face was scrunched up in anger. This piece of shit tried to manipulate him and make him break his promise. This was unforgivable.


    "You shouldn''t have removed your mask. It was the only thing holding me back."


    He looked down at one of his hands and noticed one of his nails bleeding. "Dammit!" He exclaimed in frustration.


    Shrieks in the back shifted his attention. Readying himself for facing off against the horde, he spun around.


    As expected, he was met with an approaching mob of blob-men. Narrowing his eyes, he assessed his current situation. The area was wide enough for him to maneuver and fight them but it wouldn''t stay that way for long.


    He urgently needed a weapon. Running his eyes around the hall, he caught a glimpse of a sword out of the corner of his eyes. It was lying on the floor some distance away. His sight was soon obstructed by the black blobs.


    Looks like he had to go past them.


    Pulling up another chair from the table, he held it straight in front of him like a pole.


    Without hesitation, he rushed straight towards the freak mob, crashing into them. Surprisingly, the chair toppled half a dozen of them which were standing in the front.


    His conjecture was confirmed. Somehow, he was much stronger here, whatever this place was. Nightmare, alternate reality, soulscape. He didn''t care, all he knew was that he could send these monsters into oblivion with his newfound power.


    He lunged at the blade and rolled to collect it.


    Swiftly drawing out the sword, the blade made a hissing whisper as it was removed from its sheathe. All the while, Noah was holding the boss firmly in his gaze. Sensing movement, he knew he had to hurry on with this fight.


    He turned his neck left and right, popping it with a series of clicks in rapid succession.


    Noah taunted the creatures, "Come at me, you shit stains." and continued with a quick test swing of his sword. "Time for round two."


    He charged straight at the crowd. Hacking at the minions using his newly acquired sword, he was amazed by its unreal sharpness. It felt almost effortless as he made short work of them.


    All their resilience and strength meant nothing if they couldn''t keep up with him. They were pretty dumb and stupid. He just had to maintain his momentum while keeping a safe distance. The fact that he could die if he made a single mistake wasn''t fazing him at all. His sweating face was just the result of intense exercise.


    Despite his continuous offensive, the blob minions were reforming themselves fast. Eventually, the numbers started overwhelming him. The fight had taken Noah close to the edge of the hall and he had his back to the wall.


    Searching for any possible way out of his predicament, He came across an idea noticing the crystal lamp affixed to the wall.


    Using his sword, he yanked it off the pillar and tossed it in the crowd.


    ''Please, please, light them up in fire.''


    It did light them up, just not in the way he expected. The lamp reacted explosively to their presence as a bright flash blinded his eyes. Along erupted out a thunderous shockwave slamming him back into the pillar. The impact knocked him out for a moment.


    Trying to shake off the dull pain he felt all over his body, he stood back up to witness the once pristine diner turned victim to a crystal lamp bombing. A rare sight, indeed.


    Moreover, except for some slight burns and singes, he found himself relatively unharmed. It didn''t look like he was standing near the epicenter of an explosion.


    Not to mention the mob crowd looked to be finally thinning out.


    Unfortunately, his slip in concentration allowed something to latch onto his leg.


    Noah was pulled off his feet violently and thrown across the floor. He skidded and tumbled along the ground uncontrollably. His tumbling was stopped abruptly by the bar top, knocking out his breath. A groan escaped his lips as the pain from the attack settled in.


    He looked up and his pupils dilated in horror.


    The monster was back up and it looked to have got itself a major makeover. The hair strands had thickened from the tip into large tentacles. With the way they were moving around, they didn''t seem to like his presence.


    He rolled to dodge a sweeping tentacle blow. His senses felt abnormally better.


    Locking on another incoming tentacle, he swung his sword using both hands with the intent to slice it in half.


    An ominous foreboding emerged in his heart as he didn''t hear the usual cutting sound. Turning his head, he saw that the sword only managed to barely make a nick on the tentacle.


    Caution settled in as he made a run for another pillar housing a crystal lamp. It looked to be the only option left. Dashing mid-way, the feeling surfaced back in his mind as he ducked instinctually, dodging another tentacle.


    Quickly, before it could respond with a follow-up, Noah decisively threw the sword at its body, it lodged itself in it stunning it for a moment.


    It was still open for more attacks and he was not yet done.


    Reaching the pillar, He hurled another lamp at the writhing monstrosity. Then, taking cover against the pillar, he braced himself for an explosion. The crystal lamp didn''t disappoint in the slightest, it lighted up in a grand firework show of magnificent blue.


    "That had to hurt," Noah said to himself coming out of cover to check. "Oh, shit." His eyes widened as his mystical sense tingled, warning him of incoming danger.


    Noah sidestepped to the right as a tentacle passed by a hair''s breadth from his face.


    He saw the monster looking completely pissed off. How could he have known that? Its switch to berserk mode made it quite obvious. The explosion seemed to have damaged it quite heavily.


    The tentacles began flailing around making an even bigger mess of the diner hall. Tables and chairs were flung around with ease. Wood and glass shattered around with splinters flying everywhere.


    With a healthy chunk of them penetrating his body. Pained cries came from his mouth as he felt himself getting shredded.


    He decided to try to crawl towards cover for safety, it turned out to be a bad choice. One of the larger tentacles seemed to have found his crawling figure and aimed straight at him. It nailed him to the floor through his chest.


    The pain sent him into shock as his body started convulsing.


    Subsequently, it held him up from his chest cavity and swung upwards.


    Noah collided with the ceiling and his head plowed through the woodwork with a painful cracking sound, the wood shattered under the enormous pressure from the attack.


    The tentacle let go and steadied itself for another blow.


    His body fell in the embrace of gravity for the briefest moment, suspended in an ephemeral moment in time, then it slammed him straight into the ground. He sensed his body was far more broken than not, but he was still somehow breathing.


    The blow jolted him back from shock but the pain made him think it would have been better if he remained unconscious.


    The tentacles then dragged him on the floor towards the monstrosity.


    Reaching near the head honcho of blob-men, He was hung upside down from his ankle.


    He could sense its empty eye sockets sweeping over him. As Noah''s eyes met the black pits that once held Vera''s eyes, a sickening feeling washed over him; he could feel its gaze peering into his very soul.


    What... a nightmare.


    He now realized the creature''s identity. He had undergone the same experience just a few hours ago. This monster was the planet-sized hentai fuck he met back in space.


    His mind was consumed in vengeance and anger.


    Picking up a broken chair leg, he jabbed it in its face.


    His face darkened as the attack wasn''t as effective as he expected.


    Other than slight rippling on the surface, there was no reaction. It regenerated itself in an instant.


    "Was worth a try." He sighed in resignation. That was the last attack he could manage to muster, his severe condition was already inhibiting him to make large movements.


    The creature melted into a goo along with all the other blob-men. The slimy mix turned the floor into a vortex leading to the unknown.


    The tentacle set him free and his body began freefalling.


    Within a second, a sea of inky black void engulfed him.


    Passing through the vortex, his senses left him one by one. Every emotion seemed to dull. Even his mystical sense didn''t work. Noah tried wriggling, struggling to break free of the eternal darkness.


    He felt weak and alone. Curling himself up, he drifted into the abyss.


    The seconds ticked by as time itself lost meaning. the tension left his body and he thought of nothing. His mind felt numb, emotionless and uncaring of everything.


    Maybe it was far better if he died this way, not having to deal with the craziness in his new life.

 Chapter 37 - Elysium

    When Noah came to once more, he was still in the black void surrounded by nothingness.


    He could faintly remember the pain and fear, but they seemed unimportant, like a distant echo. His emotions felt removed. Those last moments he could recall had been full of rage directed at the monster. However, what had it got him? Other than more pain. Nothing. A small voice wanted to argue that it helped him fight back but he suppressed it right away. Abject loneliness ate away at his sanity.


    Perhaps those memories were just a nightmare.


    Noah was hoping so. That the hollow, empty sensation gnawing at his mind which is about to be nearly drowned out by the accompanying silence and darkness was just his imagination. Hah, Who was he kidding now?


    There it was. The recurring denial. Never one to face his problems head-on. Vera was right. Some things just don''t change. He could only lash out at the world like a child when nothing seemed to go his way. Whenever someone became a nuisance, he made sure to make their lives more miserable than his. That was the only way he knew to solve his problems. His current life was just a performance he coaxed himself into enacting. What more could you expect out of a slab of flesh and blood trying to imitate living a happy life and failing spectacularly.


    He chuckled dryly. Look at that, his emotions don''t seem to completely dry up. He could hate himself just fine.


    His mind was completely numb to his surroundings by now. If he wasn''t hallucinating anymore, he should either be dead or in a coma. Good riddance.


    How did he gain consciousness anyway? He had come to grips with his circumstances that he was deader than dead. There wasn''t anything he could point the reason to.


    No, there was something. Something else was present here with him. He could sense its presence. His vicinity was even lighted up slightly.


    There was a sudden movement. He wanted to say he got shocked but in reality, he felt nothing even when that something hugged him from behind. His muted emotions judged it as insignificant. Though, he was being presumptuous in his thinking as those same emotions stirred violently when he heard her voice.


    "How are ya doing?"


    His eyes widened as he swiveled his head behind to see her green eyes.


    Those same eyes turned downcast taking in his current appearance. His face must have looked like shit.


    "Right, shouldn''t have asked that." She said sympathetically.


    The shock at her appearance soon faded to caution. He had a wary look remembering the previous nightmarish situation. This encounter couldn''t be any more disturbing. He freed himself from her hold and then floated away pushing against her body.


    Noticing his guarded actions, she reassured him.


    "Don''t worry, I won''t bite you. Just hear me out."


    She floated to his side and softly said.


    "Want me to tell ya something?"


    "..."


    He didn''t give any response. Once was enough. He may be many things. Sociopathic, cynical, pessimistic. Sure. But masochist wasn''t one of them. He wasn''t very eager to experience that nightmare again.


    Apparently, his silence wasn''t enough to deter her.


    "Since there is no response, I will take that as your acquiescence."


    She pinched his cheek.


    "Now that I notice," She said. "I really don''t like seeing you moping around. You need to fortify your mind to wake up. It is trying to push you down harder."


    He caught her muttering something under her breath "I have to try to rouse up his emotions." or something in the same vein. Was she thinking he was under someone''s control? Laughable. No one can control him.


    "Hey, trying to get out is tough. Opening yourself to others may make you feel vulnerable but closing yourself off is much worse. Moreover, doesn''t such a sheltered life sounds boring? I mean, what is life if not risky, adventurous. Every day, you get out in the world and face problems. That''s the beauty of life. Don''t give in to your fear. Listen to your inner voice."


    He stifled a snort. Real or not, he didn''t wish to give any more ammo to her. It was taxing enough hearing her give the "positive" talk.


    "The world''s not a pretty place. There''s enough depressing stuff going on. However, you don''t need me to remind you of that. I''m sure your mind is filled with those thoughts. But that doesn''t mean you should get swept up. That''s such a waste. Don''t let the world dictate your actions."


    ''Frighteningly optimistic, aren''t we?'' He could never get around to her constant hopeful attitude. Guess that was part of her charm. At least there couldn''t be too much optimism in life.


    Noah said that a bit too soon.


    Her eyes were rolled to the side in recollection before she proudly stated, throwing her arms out in a pose.


    "We have to be greater than what we suffer."


    Noah couldn''t hide the incredulous look any longer. What was she doing? Quoting some famous sayings won''t turn this half-assed thing into a touching speech.


    His expression seemed to have registered to her as she became flushed before floating down.


    "Come on, get up. I can''t keep up the corny speech any longer."


    "I can''t" He murmured. How much more ignorant could she be?


    "Why not?" She let out a long-suffering sigh at this. Despite knowing it wouldn''t be easy, she still felt disappointed thinking all of this was still not effective.


    "There''s no ground." He replied impassively.


    His response made her face blank before she smiled in relief.


    "Who says you need one?" She gave him a solid tug.


    Before he could resist, Noah was standing there in the darkness with her. She brought him in closer touching their heads.


    "Remember our promise."


    The words triggered something in him. He fidgeted nervously avoiding her gaze. Trying to pry her off, she tightened her grip in response.


    "Everyone deserves second chances, including you."


    No, he didn''t. Not him.


    "Believe in others, especially your friends. Not to mention trust yourself. I am not seeing that yet in you."


    Something seemed to have ruptured as the haze over his mind cleared.


    ''Ooh, that was a close one.''


    What was wrong with him? It was as if all his negative emotions were amplified, with an emo-phase to boot. How embarrassing. At least he was cognizant of that. He was starting to think he had been robbed of even that. How many times had he been mind-fucked today?


    It made him feel like a nihilistic sociopath. He hoped to never experience that again.


    He very much liked living, thank you.


    That Xorz-whatever was really out for his blood. All this time, he had never really hated something for its existence but now he could say for certain, he wouldn''t bat an eye even if that thing get burned in hell. In fact, he was all in for some barbequed tentacles.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    He was brought out of his thoughts by some loud coughs. Turning to face the something which saved him, he still wasn''t able to believe she was there to save him.


    Finally, Noah couldn''t help but voice out his suspicion.


    "You are not real, aren''t you?"


    She just gave a smile, amusement apparent in her voice.


    "Of course not, you think I can ever compare to the real deal. I am just a figment of your imagination. Your self-defense mechanism, so to speak through which you are trying to cope with this situation."


    "Thought so, you seem way too chill to be her."


    "I see your crappy mouth''s back to normal." She grinned.


    He grinned back.


    "It had to, listening to that speech. So, technically... I was consoled by myself. Talk about new levels of misery."


    Scratching her cheek, she confessed.


    "Well, I had some help."


    A transparent figure emerged out of the inky darkness behind her. It materialized into the figure of human-sized Vanadis. He was alarmed by her sudden arrival. However, more astonishing was her height which surprisingly made a lot of difference to her presence. The previous intimidating factor was lessened considerably.


    "What are you doing here?" He asked cautiously. Warning bells were ringing in his mind.


    Vanadis looked a little bemused by the question. That gave way for an irate look seeing his guarded behavior.


    "What am I doing here? Let''s see. For starters, Preventing you from going insane. Then, restoring your cracked soul. Did I forget to mention I was also suppressing the soul imprint lodged inside you by that Dweller? Should I have not done that? I guess you want to turn into an insane tentacle monster. What a weird taste."


    "Ok, ok, I get it. I am sorry for saying that. It was just that your appearance was too abrupt." He held up his hands in defeat. He regretted saying that when she just saved his life multiple times. if it wasn''t for her, he would be buried six feet under the ground. Or the multiversal equivalent of that. One could choose whatever they want.


    "Damn right, you should be. You don''t know how troublesome the situation was." She sighed. The stuff she had to do for him. She just wished he tried not to get into trouble deliberately. Trouble seeking him out was already a foregone conclusion. She especially made sure of that.


    His future looked pretty murky to her. To the wielder of Chaos Eyes. What headache had she brought upon herself?


    "Was that monster too strong?" He didn''t really know how strong she was. At first glance, the odds looked stacked up against her. A 12-ft titan against a planet-sized being. Go figure that yourself.


    "No, that monster wasn''t much of a problem. What is troubling is your attitude. You did put up quite a good resistance but you have to do better. I won''t be there to help you next time." She explained.


    "What do you mean?"


    "It means you can''t keep doubting yourself. I have killed that monster but a Demi-god isn''t some joke you could meet one day on street. Guess what, you won big time. Met the real deal on an Interplanar highway. Beings of that rank can be quite stubborn. The instant you made eye contact with it, it imprinted itself on your soul." She pointed her finger at him and continued.


    "That imprint is now going to try to pry open your soul and eat you up from the inside. I would consider not showing any weakness if you don''t want to become a snack for a soul-sucking monster. Correction, a mere imprint of a soul-sucking monster."


    He mulled over her statement.


    "I wouldn''t fancy that either. Anything else to note."


    "Nothing that comes to my mind right now. You should head back. Others should be worrying for you." He was taking it much more calmly than she thought. Was she missing out on something? All that she was able to glean was he had fought and then got thrashed by the imprint.


    Noah could feel a tugging in the back of his mind. He could intuitively feel that it was his way out.


    "Thanks again, Vanadis."


    "No problem, kiddo."


    Turning to face the silent third person, he said sincerely.


    "Even if you aren''t real. I would still like to say this, you saved me. Hope you''re doing fine. Sis"


    She had a small smile the entire time.


    He tuned in on getting out as he felt himself getting yanked out of this place.


    The silence returned to the place which was soon disrupted by Vanadis'' giggling.


    "You are quite the jester. Why not tell him the truth? It would have looked hilarious seeing him shocked."


    "I would feel bad. He can also be distrusting sometimes. I don''t think he would have believed me if I introduced myself as the real one."


    "Your soul isn''t fully capable of Astral Projection yet. I should drop you off in your body. I''m surprised you are capable of keeping up a straight face with the stress placed on your soul."


    "I had to look up the part as an adult."


    Vanadis placed her hand on her shoulder. She was about to initiate the Skill but was suddenly interrupted.


    "Sorry to disturb you, Miss Vanadis but I was curious." ''Sis'' said. "My apologies beforehand if I come off as rude. I believe you could have saved him much faster than me going in to bring him out of that state.."


    "Vanadis will do. I just can''t. Akasha restricted everyone from interfering with the Integration. Me saving him from that Demi-god was barely possible because of my soul-bind to him and the impossible nature of the foe he was facing. It was a sheer coincidence. That''s why I couldn''t destroy the imprint."


    "Oh, that''s why your voice came into my mind all of sudden. Then, dropped a bomb on me saying if I don''t come with you, Noah will die."


    "Sorry for that, You can see the situation was quite urgent."


    "Regretfully, it was. Noah still isn''t able to let go." She trailed off focusing on the place Noah was occupying a few minutes ago.


    "He can be quite a handful." Vanadis remarked offhandedly.


    "He sure can.."


    The two figures disappeared in a rainbow flash of light traversing into the Astral Plane.


    ...


    Noah could be seen lying on a bed motionless. His eyelid twitched slightly before both eyes slowly opened.


    Despite not being a minor, he never really had alcohol before. Partly, that could be because of Lana''s strict discipline. No smokes and drinks. That was the rule of the house. He couldn''t bring himself to disappoint her in any way. However, a major reason was his personal distaste. Drunks reminded him of them. He hated losing control of his mental faculties. Therefore, he never had the opportunity to get drunk, much less of getting a hangover. Nevertheless, he could say for sure that hangovers could be the least of his concerns after today.


    A migraine had him holding his head in pain. Twisting around in the bed, the veins in his head throbbed as if someone was trying to drill through his skull.


    Concurrently, his joints were on fire. He was dizzy and light-headed, hungry and hollowed out. It was as if he had a severe case of fever. Thankfully, the pain was quickly becoming subdued.


    The intensity calmed down enough for him to think rationally. His fuzzy thoughts revved up as he regained clarity of mind.


    Sitting upright, he registered his surroundings. He looked to be in a tent. Possibly one of those in the training field. Lying in a wooden bed with a sorry excuse for a mattress. Wooden training equipment was stashed in the corner. There were shelves, chests, and all sorts of goods placed around. One thing stood out to him. Crates.


    Crates that looked awfully familiar. Focusing on them, he found the batch of swords he made yesterday.


    ''So this is where they were delivered.''


    He tilted his head as he noticed the herbal scent wafting through an incense placed by his bedside. Another noteworthy thing was the small bonsai plant his bedside looking like a miniature replica of the Legua tree in the Inn.


    Before he could move around, the tent entrance flipped open and a noble entered with a relaxed stride. He looked noticeably young. Like mid-20s young. Dressed in a luxurious robe with silver and gold linings, faint runic signs strobed around the cloth. A regal aura emanated from his being. His very presence commanded respect.


    Yup, that was definitely someone much older than he looked.


    He was holding onto a cup containing some tea in his hand.


    "You finally woke up"


    "Who''re you?" Seeing an unfamiliar face put him on guard.


    "You were out cold for the last three hours. Here, hold this for me." Saying so, he handed him the cup.


    His hand remained fixed in position as Noah wasn''t reaching out to accept. He could now remember him as the noble he had spotted together with the knights. It still didn''t put him at ease, though.


    "Here"


    The noble''s smile only grew wider as he urged him. The awkward silence continued for a long time before Noah chose to give in.


    Not knowing where he was going with this, he accepted the teacup.


    ''What a strange fellow.'' he thought.


    "As for your question, your healer for the moment. Prospective to change." He began making rounds around the bed with a luminous pair of eyes. Looking satisfied with what he saw, he continued.


    "Mind checking your status for me."


    Noah was tempted to ask more but curiosity about his status dwarfed it. He was personally more interested to know what the heck happened to him.


    Checking on his Status, he was swarmed with notifications.


    [Status Log]


    New skill [Meditation] Acquired!


    Skill Initiated...


    [Astral Projection (Incomplete)]


    Bonus Records Acquired!


    *LVL UP*


    Race: Human(F) reached LVL 2


    Survived an encounter with a Demi-god


    Bonus Records Acquired!


    Title: [Balls of Adamantite (Locked)] Granted


    ...


    [Status]


    Name: Noah


    Race: Human(F) - LVL 2


    Profession: N/A


    Status: Weakened (Severe Soul Trauma) - [Buff: Greater Recovery] [Buff: Reverse Entropy] [Blessing: Universal Tongue (Limited)] [Blessing of the Titanos Ragnarok]


    Talent: [Intelligent] [Focused Mind]


    Stats


    Strength: 1.4


    Agility: 1.2


    Vitality: 1.3


    Constitution: 1.3


    Endurance: 1.3


    Perception: 1.2


    Intelligence: 1.7


    Wisdom: 1.5


    Willpower: 1.7


    Skills: [Language] [Meditation]


    ''Now we''re talking. New Skills. Thought I would get something. Then there''s the locked Title. That''s a shame. Dying and coming back just to get a locked feature. Akasha''s pretty stingy. And here I was excited to know what a title could offer.''


    He could see many new things and was eager to think about the effects. His stats were increased but he had yet to feel something. Was the increase so minor that he couldn''t perceive it?


    He could go on and on with his thoughts but he was brought out from his musings by the noble.


    "From the looks of it, you seem to have LVL''ed up. Congrats on that but we can celebrate that later on. Could you tell me your Status condition?"


    His brows furrowed in confusion. Did he mentioned anything about leveling up to him? Or was he that easy to see through? He wasn''t about to care about it now. Mages do what they do better than anybody, which was pulling out bullshit.


    "It is showing Weakened next to which is Severe Soul Trauma."


    "Hmm, As expected." His gaze steeled on him as replied. "You don''t look half-dead or comatose to me. Is that really all?"


    "Yeah..." His voice trailed off uncertainly. He was sweating inwardly at the moment. And most likely outwardly too. He wasn''t sure if he could say about the Buffs on the Status Page to him. They sounded quite powerful and he had no excuses for where they came them. What should he do? Continue acting ignorant and maybe he would just forget about it.


    "I forgot to tell you. I can detect the high-grade Buffs placed on you. Your Patron seems responsible enough. Made my work much easier."


    Or not.


    His face became stunned hearing those words.

 Chapter 38 - Trust Defunct

    **


    Previously on Elysium Mist:


    After the unexpected mishap turned disaster,


    Noah managed to make it through by the skin of his teeth.


    That so only with the help of Vanadis.


    Thereafter, he woke up to find himself in front of an unknown noble.


    who somehow knew about the involvement of higher powers in his rescue.


    **


    "How do yo-"


    "Know? While to others it may be shocking, I have some knowledge of your situation. I was expecting a few more out of your group. Enough talent can get one blessed by Deities or higher beings. You seem to be the first one in this batch. Though I should say, I am quite surprised with you being offered a Covenant so early."


    "What Covenant?"


    "You didn''t get a message for accepting a contract?"


    "I... did."


    He could recall the conversation a few days back. It felt like it happened a long time back. Though, he hadn''t gotten a prompt. Well, he didn''t have the System back then.


    But what did it mean, for real? He could feel there was more than he was letting on. Noah urged with his eyes to elaborate. The noble spoke as if able to read his mind.


    "Some system placed by Akasha to foster potential Talents. It acts as a protection for them until they can grow strong enough."


    "And about whatever the heck happened to me?"


    "Oh, no worries. It was just some first-time symptoms. You will adapt in time. The problem was the thing that was attacking your soul. It''s good you managed to fend it off with some outside help. Just so you know, I also helped. Still, you are quite lucky to be alive."


    A sharp pain surged in his mind making him stagger a bit. Leaning on the bed, he remarked.


    "You say so. But the head-splitting makes me think I should have just died."


    "That''s why it is in your best interest to drink that tea. It will alleviate your symptoms and improve your condition. It is more effective when hot than cold."


    Thinking over his words, he focused on the tea. Taking a sniff to test its smell, he was pleasantly surprised by the familiar fragrance.


    "This smells like..."


    "Meryol. Some zest was added for flavor. People complained it was too bitter."


    Again, his sentence was completed by the noble.


    Whatever. He was in no mood nor condition to pry into it. Instead, the content of his statements was what caught his attention.


    Intrigued by the new information, he took a sip. Noah relished in the refreshing aftertaste and continued to indulge in the tea.


    Mhmm...


    A suspicion emerged in his mind the more he drank. He could swear he tasted something else in the tea. Something he didn''t have a good experience with. He couldn''t quite put a word to it. The frustrating thing was that it was just on the tip of his tongue.


    ''Urghh''


    Unable to stop his curiosity, he turned to the only person who could possibly solve it.


    "What''s more is in this tea?"


    "Morwo Herb"


    He spewed out the tea he was about to gulp down his throat in a spray. Most of which was directed at the noble. Noah''s heart sank thinking over the disaster he was about to face.


    However, in a surprising turn of events,


    Before it could drench him, the liquid slowed down to a stop in front of him.


    "Young men these days. why such a drastic reaction?"


    "How-? No, you are not going to distract me by that magic show. Do you know what happened the last time I put that in my mouth? I nearly died. Twice! I am not going to risk my life for just a bit of recovery."


    "I can understand where you are coming from but you need to realize this. I am putting it kindly when I say that you are wholly ignorant of the matters of the mystical kind."


    With a small gesture of his hand, the scattered droplets joined together in a glob of tea. Followed by another wave. Then, a small stream grew out of the glob and trickled in the air to finally water the plant. Eventually, all the tea was used up watering the plant.


    "I am not going to argue over the credibility of that statement but you could at least tell me this beforehand. I would have prepared myself."


    The mage continued completely ignoring the statement, his speech uninterrupted.


    "Since you are so lively, it seemed you won''t need to be held back any longer."


    Noah''s eyebrows quirked up at the strange wording. It seems he was hinting at something.


    "Where is everyone?"


    "They had left long ago. It''s only you, me, and a few knights still training in this field."


    Remnants of his nightmare returned back to haunt him. He tried to banish them for the moment. Now is not the time for that.


    "What about my friends?"


    He seemed confused for a moment before a look of realization appeared on his face.


    "Oh, you mean those two. They were being quite stubborn but eventually left for their apprenticeship after looking over you for half an hour or so." He paused for a moment and resumed.


    "I would advise staying away from long periods of exertion. What is your chosen Profession?"


    "Blacksmith"


    "Hm, it is better you take a leave today. Allow your body to recuperate pro-"


    "NO!"


    The noble gave him a judgemental look for his sudden outburst.


    "I mean, I can handle it. My instructor did tell me he was going to teach me a lot today."


    "Are you sure?"


    "Yeah... I... am."


    "Then, Off you may go."


    "You aren''t going to stop me?"


    "You are a young man but an adult nonetheless. I am sure you can take responsibility for yourself."


    "Hmm"


    "Even if you do mess yourself up, it won''t be anything severe. Your soul is already recovered enough. Give it a few days and you would be back to normal."


    "Ok, I should go now. Plus, I am famished."


    Swiftly getting out of the sheets, Noah made a beeline out of the place.


    Halfway out of the tent, the noble called out.


    "Wait"


    He turned around to see something thrown at him. In haste, he tried catching it only to find it heading towards him and nestling in his hand on its own.


    Looking over, he found a round-shaped object, slightly colorful in appearance.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    "Here, you can have this. A Food pill. Fruit flavored. My favorite." Noah looked over to the noble for the reason behind this. It felt awfully convenient for him to have one with him.


    "I don''t have the time to attend meals during my experiments." He said confidently, unabashed by his fruity-filled lifestyle.


    "Yeahh...We haven''t introduced ourselves yet. You may know it already but I am Noah."


    A slight smile formed on his face in apparent amusement.


    He ultimately decided to entertain Noah.


    Bowing over slightly in elegance, he introduced himself.


    "Hezor, Senior Mage, Accomplished Spell Caster from the House of Shaddarock. Master Alchemist-cum-Artificer. Granted the Viscount peerage through distinguishing in the Battle of Rozzkwot. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."


    "That''s a mouthful. Are you some kind of big-shot?"


    "This is my town."


    "Should I bow?"


    "Please spare me from that. This isn''t the Capital. You can interact with me normally. Just don''t act rude in public. Else, my secretary gonna give me an earful about maintaining appearances later on."


    "Sure, Bye, Hezor. I will come by sometime-The Town Hall, right. I will pay a visit in near future."


    He nodded and Noah went on his way.


    Staring at the entrance, Hezor mumbled under his breath.


    "The revisit. It may come sooner than you think..."


    Giving small gestures, he packed up the tree in his storage bag and teleported over to the Town Hall. He didn''t want the hassle to fly over there. The knights could take over from here. He was heading back to his studies. The mysteries of arcane were waiting for him.


    ...


    ''Sigh''


    What a harrowing experience. No, What a day.


    Noah''s figure slacked visibly as soon as he made sufficient distance from the field.


    Despite the conversation seeming calm and civil, the tension was felt by him the entire time. He hadn''t shown any untoward animosity towards him, at least. Though, he was still suspicious if he was plugged in the matrix nightmare or not. There was only one way to find out.


    Opening his Status Page,


    Many things were waiting for him. He checked the first by focusing on it, which caused it to expand into a system window.


    He focused on the culprits for his predicament. The Reverse Entropy one was more important to him. Concentrating on it, he was surprised to find it spluttering before starting to vanish.


    Weird.


    Turning to the other one, he was relieved to find it working normally.


    [Meditation ¨C A mental discipline through which one delves beyond the conditioned "thinking" mind into a deeper state of awareness. Harmonize mind, body and spirit.]


    [Recovery speed is boosted while in meditation.]


    Interesting choice of words. ''Harmonizing'', is it. Quite vague.


    At the core of meditation is the goal to focus and eventually quiet your mind. As one progresses, they will find that they can meditate anywhere and at any time, accessing an inner state no matter what''s going on around them.


    At least that''s what he remembered from an article on the net.


    Some even go as far as to say they are able to exert fine control over their body to the extent it would seem like superpowers. Extreme focus after cutting off the outside world.


    A somewhat unfamiliar concept for the average mind.


    Regardless, he was able to confirm the Akasha system was there. If he was still not awake and that monster was able to create all of that he experienced until now, he had no chance to begin with.


    Along the way, Noah popped the pill in his mouth.


    He smacked his lips. What the hell. This is dangerous.


    It was too sweet.


    This is some diabetes-inducing shit.


    Thankfully, the sweetness became bearable after some time.


    A fruity smell tingled his nose. He wasn''t finicky about the taste but this was good. It should substitute well for candy. He could also feel himself getting full as time passed by.


    He increased his pace towards the smithery.


    The surroundings felt blurred to him as he dashed through the streets.


    Soon, he reached his destination. Not stopping to gaze at the crowd, he entered the forge. Looking over, he found Gul working alone.


    Unfortunately, the observation wasn''t one-sided. Nearing him, Gul said.


    "You are late."


    "Something came up."


    He grunted. "Bring the ore cache."


    Noah went on to but was stopped before he could even so take a step.


    "Stop. What''s wrong with your body?"


    "Nothing..." He turned to see an impassive face. The ruse was up. "is what I would like to say."


    "Is that so." A nefarious look appeared on his face giving him a bad feeling.


    "And here I thought, we had some semblance of trust. Why not you be the errand boy today. Now, we are going for a complete overhaul of the training. Bring in the batches."


    "Why all this?"


    "I may like putting people in strenuous situations but it is no fun when I have already got a flimsy start. I need to beat the instructions in your body''s muscle memory through repeated practice."


    His statement may look completely justified but the wicked smile hanging there was saying the opposite.


    He may just die from this.


    Scrap that, he was going through hell. And that was saying something considering he had the opportunity to glimpse at the literal hells. Gul wasn''t embellishing it in any other way.


    The hours went by with him running back and forth around the forge transporting ore, finished blades and metal items.


    The sweaty atmosphere of the forge made it ten times worse. He didn''t have the leisure to complain about it.


    Why was he here, just to suffer. Not really, he was given some respite in the form of teaching the foundations. He made him go through the motions of basic hammering again, continuing to proper molding and shaping.


    "Not like that."


    "You need to be firm and decisive. These flimsy strikes won''t make anything, however long you keep at it."


    Wiping grime off his face using the cloth on his neck, Gul informed him.


    "We''re done for today."


    "But there''s still some time left."


    "Your body''s not capable of handling anymore right now. Come back fresh tomorrow."


    "What are you saying. I can stil- OH FUCKKK!" Gul reached out and squeezed his arm which sent a jolt of pain throughout his body. It felt as if dozens of needles were stabbing him.


    Yeah, he was not in good shape.


    Stumbling out of the forge, he traced his steps back to the Inn.


    After staying in this place for over a few days, the initial shock was starting to wear off. The exuberant city was showing its dirty sides. He could spot homeless stranded on the street occasionally. Mud-riddled children running off pick-pocketing. desperation is something that''s heavily prayed upon in society.


    On closer scrutiny, he could even see different features like small claws, reptilian eyes, furry ears. Hawking and bartering went around the marketplace. It felt grounded, in a sense.


    Reaching the Inn, he was staring at its entrance. He could only think about his friends. Whatever happened made him hesitant to go through the door. He knew they weren''t the ones saying all that but still, he wanted to postpone the encounter as much as he can.


    But his body looks to have other intentions. The food pill wasn''t enough. He needed to have dinner. Pangs of hunger wrecked his already tired body. Not seeing any other way, he headed towards the diner.


    Seating himself down on the bar top, he slid his palm over the counter feeling out the wood. While basking in his surroundings, he caught a glimpse of the crystal lamps. Those are bad news. Better stay away from them.


    Being alone gave him time to introspect.


    Or so he thought.


    "what''s with the down face?"


    A familiar voice caught his attention


    He swiveled his head to see the receptionist from yesterday. Her name...


    "Uh-um-"


    "Angie" She reminded him smilingly, looking not at all annoyed by him failing to recall her name.


    "Right. Angie, anything you want from me?" His memory seems to be failing him pretty often.


    "No, it''s just you looked worn out. So, I thought I could give a helping hand. What got you so worried?"


    "Oh, it''s just-"


    "...." He was stuck. Noah wasn''t comfortable with sharing something so private with someone he met just yesterday, no matter how nice they may be to him.


    "Haven''t been long since we met. It''s totally fine if you don''t want to say."


    "Sorry"


    "No worries. Here, have some Meryol. My treat."


    "Thanks"


    "I shouldn''t have to remind you. I am just there if you want to talk."


    He nodded while continuing to sip in silence. Not able to think of what to reply at such sincerity.


    He wasn''t expecting a stranger looking out for him. She could have just gone on her way. The previous day was mostly handled by Florelle. He was just there. Nothing more.


    Dropping off his head, he thought over his recent experiences. There was a clear dissonance between the cheerfulness of the town and the bleak and harsh outside world where every misstep is fraught with dangers letting out monsters that would put cult classics to shame.


    ''How was he to forget about it? Just go on with his life. Like before, hoping it would turn good someday. Or take matters into his own hands and fight back. It didn''t turn out quite nicely the first time, I suppose. But this time it wasn''t just about him and his sensitive ego. No, there was his life on the line.''


    What''s stopping anything from coming to butcher him. Well, there is Vanadis but that''s not the point. He needs to prep himself up. Cuz he doesn''t think this was going to be the last mishap he would do.


    How to fight back, though? Some things came to his mind. Find out more about the Soul and all the magic schticks. Gotta amp up the training. Search potential measures. What makes this world tick and how he could leverage it to his advantage.


    That noble looks promising but he gave him the heebie-jeebies. He would like it better to stay away from him. Maybe, Miss Florelle could help him with that. She seems capable. Trying to learn magic wouldn''t help in the short term. Some protective charm or something like that would do well. New Skills would come in handy. Meditation requires more practice. He could feel there was a lot more to it.


    A voice disrupted his thoughts and brought him out of his musings.


    "NOAH"


    His figure froze in tension as he was greeted with both Ava and Shaun looking terribly worried.


    "Hey, guys..."


    It felt uncomfortable to him, remembering the episode he had. That couldn''t be said for long, thanks to someone.


    She embraced him in a hug and then started firing off questions at him.


    "You feeling okay? The noble guy just rushed us off. We weren''t able to stay with you."


    "Yeah... I feel fine" Noah answered blankly, feeling disconnected from how his expectations turned out.


    "Really? It doesn''t look that way to me." She placed her hand on his forehead to check his condition.


    "We could pay Miss Florelle a visit just in case." Shaun chimed in, looked relieved after seeing him act normally.


    "Nah, it''s fine. Really haha.." His underdeveloped emotional receptors aren''t built to handle this much compassion. He would for sure overload and embarrass himself unless...


    "Now that I think about it, If you really wish to, you can cheer me up." In a bold move, he grabbed Ava''s hand and closed in inclining his head towards her.


    "I need some comfort here." And pointed at his cheek.


    "Hey-you!" She backed off in anger and readied to give a tight smack only to stop realizing his condition.


    "For real, man." Shaun shook his head seeing the scene. Now was not the time to act tough. Especially not in this way.


    "Couldn''t give a more expected reaction." Noah flashed a smirk at them.


    "Listen mister..." Ava entered her lecturing mode as Noah stood there with a smile nodding along.


    He was blessed to meet such people and able to call them his friends.


    ...


    The wind brushed past vibrant yellow leaves, a cool breeze flowing through the valley. The evening sun reflected off the distant rivers mountains.


    Forests of red, brown, and yellow spread down the slope and up again towards the faraway jungle on the other side of the valley. If one looked from a bird''s eye view, they could visibly see the forest becoming thicker the farther they went from the town to the point it looked somewhat sinister with dark foliage. An unnatural silence permeated the surroundings.


    The day soon ended as the townspeople went through the remainder of their daily routine.


    Through the darkened sky churning with clouds, pale moonlight shone on the forest brightening the environment.


    ''Grrrr''


    Gradual growling sounds started emerging shrouding the forest in a sinister atmosphere.


    Slowly, with a predatory crawl, figures could be seen roaming. Crimson beastly eyes showed up suddenly as if materializing from thin air.


    Their gaze roamed around as if assessing the environment before fading into shadows.

 Chapter 39 - Yknow, Im something of a Blacksmith myself.

    ''Sigh''


    Dropping the Meryol drink on the bartop, Noah lamented over his miserable life. Just thinking about it made his head hurt. The past week was really something. To the point that this was turning into something absurd. For proof, need to look no further than at him. His panda eyes would scare the crap out of someone. If he had to describe it, a zombie on depression should do it.


    ''Sigh''


    "You''re looking worse for wear."


    He glanced at the corner of his eye to see which busybody was there to disturb his cherished break. The only time he could unwind a bit during the entire freaking day.


    His eyes widened slightly, surprised to see that person here.


    A young woman was standing there in office wear, a mix of both modern and aristocratic. She was Asian, as evidenced by her facial features. Her straight jet-black hair let down like a waterfall behind her back. She was sporting smart glasses on herself with her dark eyes peering out through them displaying a nonchalant attitude.


    Though obviously not in the mood to talk, there was no escaping from this.


    "It''s Seo-Yeon-ssi, huh."


    Noah took a sip out of the drink. He had come to know her from their group. She stood out as the most active one to everyone. Making rounds in the town. She took it upon herself to act as an informant. Gathering new info and sharing them around, for a price of course.


    "Nothing new. My condition''s just acting up."


    "That so. Just in case, you should consult someone. No need to look at me that way, I''m just saying."


    She said seeing Noah give an annoyed look.


    "You think I haven''t, Ajhumma"


    Her right eye twitched.


    "You shouldn''t act rude like that. Here I thought we could be considered good acquaintances. That''s why I give you a special discounted price."


    Even someone as dense as him could predict where the conversation would be steering towards from a mile away.


    She could be stingy as fuck. Don''t look at him. He was telling this from first-hand experience.


    "Sheesh, ok Noona. What brought you here? If I''m not wrong, you should be in Town Hall right now."


    "Lunch break. I''m here for usual." She seated herself beside him and leaned on the countertop.


    "Oh, my ears are all open." A business opportunity, it seems.


    "The transcripts first."


    "No good acquaintances now, eh?"


    "This is business. I like to keep personal matters separate from it."


    "Sure, sure. Here you go." Reaching into his satchel by his side, he took out a few scrolls and handed them to her.


    And for whatever reason, if anyone was having the ridiculous assumption of him acquiring a magic bag within a week here with no prior contacts or resources, I would like to say, you''re precious.


    Of course, He would have loved to have a magic bag. Alas, its price is off the roof with even the most basic ones starting from 1 gold coin. In his opinion, it was no different than daylight robbery. If one isn''t able to wrap their heads around that, let me make it more clear. An average household here earned in silvers in a year.


    Meanwhile, Seo-Yeon finished checking out the scrolls.


    "Is this all?"


    Pointing to the scrolls, he began explaining.


    "That''s general knowledge and this one is the political landscape. I would say that''s aplenty."


    She seemed to be satisfied with how quickly she stashed it in her bag.


    "Hmm, Sounds good. This stuff should take a good chunk of your time. How do you make space for it? "


    "Let''s just say I have got a lot of free time."


    A small chuckle escaped.


    "Got something to share."


    "No, it''s just I imagined you scribbling through the night writing these scrolls like a madman."


    "Sooo, anything new popping up?" He wished she would just move on. He was waiting for her to hold her side of the bargain.


    "Well, firstly, there is the gang who attempted to escape again."


    "They are quite stubborn, aren''t they? What is it, the third time already? When are they going to learn?" Their attempts had made them the talk of the town, especially around the Trainees. Guess it was something to entertain the people who have been suddenly disconnected from the net.


    "I know, right. But hear me out, the more important part was that they were let through."


    "Oh, interesting. Continue."


    "Apparently, the patrol guards became tired of checking over all the time and allowed them to leave through the gate. Those fools." She snickered after finishing..


    "Hmm, I take it there is little to no chance of them coming out of this."


    "Yeah, the forest is not made for inexperienced Trainees. My sources told me that even Professionals go out in groups when attempting long expeditions in the Creep."


    "Still, that is coming short of the info. You need to give me more to play with."


    "How about the fact that there are few wizards residi-"


    "Mages"


    "What?"


    "Formally, They are called mages."


    "Yeah, mages whatever. The point is I got a few addresses here. Some of them are running magic shops. And one of them even teaches personal lessons for magic."


    "Hmm, I know most of that information. Only the lecturer one piques my interest a bit. Give me something more."


    "Oh oh oh, someone should backpedal a few steps. I''m running a business here. I give you the information in return for your work. Whether it is useful to you is not of my concern."


    "Really? I got some sources too which can help me gather this info, for free too."


    "Noah, you don''t want to do this."


    "I ain''t asking much. Just a piece that is actually worth something."


    She stood stoically not buckling under pressure. Well, guess what, Two can play that game.


    "Just to let you know,  there was this one book I came across that detailed some pretty important topics like the market economy and all."


    The stern facade cracked a bit as she reassessed the pros and cons.


    He knew the cat was in the bag. Someone who was information-hungry like her won''t let something like this pass by. And sure she opened up eventually.


    "Okay, I heard some snippets. It''s a juicy one. There is a festival coming sometime next month here."


    "I''m listening."


    "Many VIPs are going to make a visit. According to local people themselves, It is pretty much unprecedented for the festival to gain that much attention. "


    "You think it has something to do with us being here?"Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    "No clue regarding that. Only speculations but I would bet my money on something going on behind the scenes."


    This new info got him into thinking. He looked towards her for any more clues.


    "That''s all I got." She could read his thoughts just from the curious look he gave her.


    "Right." He responded absentmindedly, his mind thinking over what it could mean.


    "I should head back now. Break''s almost over. See you later."


    "Yeah"


    She finished her drink and left the place.


    Not getting anywhere with it, he decided to leave it for later.


    ''Yawn, I should take a nap.''


    He wasn''t able to have a proper sleep the entire last week. Hope he gets some rest.


    Who was he kidding? As if he had that privilege.


    Resting his head on the table, he closed his eyes to catch a small respite.


    ...


    Noah abruptly opened his eyes to a familiar yet strange scenery.


    He was standing in the hallway on the floor of Inn he was staying on.


    "Of course. Ah shit, here we go again."


    Swiftly gauging his surroundings; readying himself for an upcoming assault.


    The nightmare, yeah that one. It turned out to be a stubborn son of a bitch. Almost every night turned into a tussle between the monster and him. That bastard was thinking it was some kind of game. Always luring him to different levels. Sometimes in the open training field, other times in the town center, and then there were some other obscure places like the bath. That was some sicko mode shit. All he wanted was to sleep.


    The worse thing was that it was learning. At first, he was summoned in open spaces allowing him to escape easily but gradually spaces are becoming more confined. New tricks like ambushing, cornering, dual-pronged approaches were making an appearance in their fights. The last time was in the Town Hall.


    ''There it is''


    The squirming mess of black goo was crawling up from the stairs. Looking back, he could spot a similar situation.


    "Oh, aren''t you feeling naughty today? Can''t face me head-on, you sick-fuck."


    One can see the whole fiasco had taken its toll on him.


    Ripping out a painting, he aimed at the goo and gave a solid spin throw. The makeshift shuriken traversed the distance between them within an instant and ripped out a solid chunk. He has had enough practice throwing various furniture in the last couple of days.


    Another thing. It is becoming weaker by the day, thankfully for god''s sake.


    He had to take care of it fast, he had no interest in losing more sleep than he was already losing.


    "No choice but to bring out the big guns."


    Reaching out, he ripped out the crystal lamps from each side of the hallway.


    "HAHAHAHA" It made the mistake of throwing them in the Inn, which is filled with crystal lamps placed almost everywhere.


    Charging maniacally straight at the monstrosity now standing upright in a humanoid form, he threw the first one.


    The monstrosity acted fast by slapping it to the side but still an explosion rocked the floor. Within the window of opportunity provided by it, he threw the second one.


    This one managed to hit a major part despite its obvious attempt at dodging.


    The hallway got splattered all over in the explosion while he dived in coming out the other side. He then made a run out of the Inn.


    After a decent amount of distance was placed between them, his vision started blurring signaling his successful escape.


    Finally, He was allowed to have a decent sleep rest of the way.


    ...


    The nap was short-lived. It had to be. For that cheating freak also grew stronger the longer he slept at a time. Because of course, it did. So, he had to take several short naps instead of long periods of sleep to rest his body.


    How did he come to know all this? primarily observational analysis. And some well-meaning advice from Hezor.


    Okay, it was mostly the latter. There was a letter placed at his desk when he got home that same day detailing possible situations he could be facing and countermeasures against them.


    Quite generous of him, if he were to say.


    There was only this thing he had to nitpick about, that is he had to be read that by Nephra for him to understand what the fuck it wanted to convey.


    Stretching himself out in front of the Inn, he readied himself for the big day.


    "Carpe diem, I guess."


    Noah carried on toward his workplace.


    ...


    Entering the shop, he greeted Zelus. The manager of Anvil Artisans. The guy he first met when he entered the Forge.


    Zelus gave back a nod in acknowledgment.


    Quite shocking, isn''t it? Such a young-looking guy handling the business.


    Keyword looking.


    Looks can be deceiving, especially in a fantasy world. A near hundred-year-old adult elf shouldn''t be entirely out of the realm of possibilities, right?  RIGHT?


    He wasn''t much talkative. And by that Noah meant that he was strictly a stick-to-the-point guy. Apart from the first time he had met him and the short convo that followed, he couldn''t count a single time he had taken the initiative to start a conversation with him.


    That''s why he took the revelation as calm as a brick,


    In the aftermath of an earthquake after annoying the heck out of him for the better part of the last week. After all, He took Zelus as someone from the same age group. Plus the sweet bonus of making relations with someone on the inside. How could he resist it?


    Now their entire interactions could be summed up in the few greetings they gave each other upon passing by.


    ''Sigh''


    He was sighing a lot lately. What could he do otherwise, the world seems to be after him.


    The first time he tries his hand at anything new, something disastrous seems to be waiting at the corner ready to screw him over.


    Hopefully, this day could turn his lucky stars.


    Entering the forge, he marched towards his workstation.


    Nearing there, he began with a check over his tools and made sure he was adequately equipped to handle today''s challenge.


    Soon, steady footsteps reached his ears announcing his master''s arrival.


    "Make yourself ready" Gul said with a solemn look, in a rare instance of seriousness.


    He responded by nodding with a similar look. Today was a very momentous day. He couldn''t mess this up if he wished to progress.


    He was ready to start.


    Picking up his now trusty hammer, he started practicing on some armor plates right away. Very basic but a great exercise for smithing. Allowing him to practice shaping and moulding pretty effectively.


    That''s why it had become kind of a staple for him to work on plating. Most here now knew him as the guy who spent way too much time hammering down those plates.


    What could he say? He enjoyed the activity. And anything more was mostly out of his reach right now. He needed constant supervision if he had to churn out something decent.


    That''s why today was important. He would finally attempt making a good bladed weapon by himself.


    "The forge''s ready." Gul reached out to him while wiping his sooty hands using a cloth.


    Nodding, He got on to quickly finish the present batch and collected his tools. He needed them if he was to succeed in his endeavor.


    Moving over the granite floor, the fire from the nearby forges was reflected in his eyes.


    With him stopping in front of the design table, Gul began speaking.


    "I want you to make me a single-edged short blade with a ring guard. Nothing too crazy. You should be able to manage it, I suppose."


    "I hope so" Noah muttered under his breath anxiously.


    "Well, Best of luck mate. I will be watching from the sidelines this time." Saying so, he stepped to the side gesturing him to begin hammering.


    it''s showtime.


    Bringing out a new ingot, he shoved it in the flaming forge.


    While letting it soak in the heat, he closed his eyes to condition his mind for the upcoming challenge.


    Clanging sounds echoed in his ears, the noises around him became muffled.


    He was ready.


    His eyes opened wide and the striking began.


    Noah envisioned the shape he wanted it to be. A single edge blade with a ring at back, should be around 50cm approximately. No need to make it harder than it already was.


    After a week of basic smithing.


    This should be pretty easy, right?


    WRONG!


    The base blade was somewhat doable for him but the extra single ring added a whole another layer of complexity to the craft.


    ''Well, a man''s gotta do what he''s gotta do.''


    He was already being late to the party with many among their group having acquired their Profession.


    Though, he had a sneaking suspicion that it had something to do with his particular group and not the general census.


    Whatever, all he knew was that he needed a W.


    The blade was beginning to take shape. Checking over the blueprint as he went forward with the smithing, the outline of the blade was turning more and more distinguishable by the minute.


    Here comes the clutch. Holding the blade steady over the oil drum, he submerged it in a swift motion.


    A hissing of smoke and vapor reached his ears as red hot metal came in contact with oil. Along with a small-scale fire show to top it all off.


    It seemed to have gone well.


    Looking over, he checked signs for any warps and cracks.


    His mood turned downcast instantly. Unfortunately, there were a lot of cracks. A big warp also showing through. Definitely not desirable, to say the least.


    ''Should he turn it and start over or continue through?''


    "Give me that" Gul''s stoic voice halted his musings.


    Turning over, he handed the unfinished piece of mess to him. What was he to do, argue him? Please, he had an entire week to get to know him. He knew how much of a pain in the ass he was all the time. He referring to both himself and Gul. Birds of the same feather, something like that.


    Gul took the still skin-melting blade and held it with his bare skin. Not so skin melting now, is it?


    Taking a file test, he ran the filer over the edge and as expected, it failed spectacularly. It meant that-


    ''Snap''


    The blade was snapped in half by Gul through some casual use of force.


    Yeah, that. As one could see, Its hardness was, Umm, let''s just say it was not quite up to mark.


    "Try again"


    He wasn''t going to argue. That blade was going to be subpar at best.


    Bringing out a new one, he tried again with concentration.


    Regaining the mindset, he set out at doing it properly this time.


    The hammering went well like last time. He spotted the metal was heated up evenly.


    Now Quench


    After dipping, he continued agitating it along the length of the blade letting it stir a bit.


    Taking it out, he eyed it closely.


    ''Phew''


    Quenched successfully.


    Onto the next step. Making a ring


    Remember the phrase.


    "Punch makes a hole, drift enlarges it open."


    Taking the two aforementioned tools, he began his task.


    Aligning the punch over the desired spot, he hammered down. and again. and again. over and over.


    Making sure to do it steadily.


    A single wrong hit could turn the entire attempt at waste.


    After creating a small hole, he switched over to the drift and repeated the previous steps. Only this time with more force.


    Attempting to enlarge it open.


    Satisfied with his work, he moved on to do the rest.


    His body moved with a rhythm of the forge, now accustomed to the pungent smell. He felt invigorated basking in the fire of the forge.


    The practice took over as he instinctually cranked out the hammering.


    Gul slipped out a slight smirk over the sight.


    ''Huff huff''


    Out of breath, he stood over his creation.


    A bubbling smile was on his face satisfied knowing he did it.


    There was a sleek single-edged blade with a ring guard sitting on the work desk. Its wooden handle shining with brand new polish. Inspecting in the light, its razor-sharp edge gleamed menacingly. This blade wasn''t just a showpiece, it was an actual weapon.


    *Prerequisite requirements met*


    *New Class Unlocked - Blacksmith*


    [Blacksmith - Workers by trade, blacksmiths are able to do marvelous things with their forged metals. This Profession primarily uses hammers to craft. They heat ores in a forge and shape it on the anvil. Their plethora of tools helps them to refine the crafting process. Whether it be for a weapon, armor, or something as basic as a simple tool, a capable blacksmith can create just about anything. But only a truly accomplished smith can improve on what has already been made.


    Base stat growth per LVL : +0.1 Strength, +0.1 Constitution, +0.1 Endurance, +0.1 Willpower


    [Confirm?]

 Chapter 40 - Hot & Spicy

    "Huh?"


    Noah rapidly blinked his eyes at the notifications greeting his eyes. Despite having sufficient knowledge about the possible turn of events in case of his success, His triumphant smile couldn''t help but strengthen even more by his accomplishment.


    "Finally" Pumping his fists, he cried out.


    Without wasting any time, he focused on the dialog box and confirmed the decision to accept the Profession. Constant rings registered to his mind. However, before he was able to go through the new stuff, Gul interrupted him.


    "Seems like you got it, mate." He remarked from the side.


    "Hmm, you helped a lot. Thanks" That was the absolute truth. Without him, he knew it would have taken him much longer to reach this point. Noah wasn''t going to shy away from this fact. He wasn''t an ungrateful prick, at least not when it came to this stuff.


    Gul hummed in satisfaction and continued.


    "Pack up, we are going to celebrate"


    "What?? wait a min. My clothes at least." Not given any time to react, he was scooped up by his single hand and dragged out.


    Left with no choice, he opted to be satisfied with just throwing out his gloves and covers back at his work desk.


    Using his other hand, Gul pushed open the entrance doors to the forge, stepping into the store''s front.


    The customers looked to be generally surprised by the spectacle but he could see that every single store staff without missing a single one rolled their eyes at them. There was one exception, though who felt it was not worth his attention. Gul seems to think otherwise as he with himself in tow headed straight towards that someone.


    "Zelus, the boy''s got his profession. We are going out to Iggim''s place."


    "Noted."


    "What do you mean noted? you are coming with us."


    "..."


    "I''m currently busy with the store. It''s not possible"


    "That''s just your excuse. And you know I hate them. The staff can handle without you just fine."


    "..."


    An uncomfortable silence took hold as a staring contest began between the two. Silent conversations were exchanged before Zelus took the first action.


    "Master had called me some time ago. I should go check..." Swiftly making a turnaround, Zelus prepared to make a run but a giant hand reached out for his collar.


    Gul seemed to have been anticipating that as he turned slightly to the side and dodged it with considerable ease.


    A smirk slipped out of his composed face. ''When would Gul realize that this level wasn''t enough to catch a seasoned Rogue. He needed to do better than that if he wished to have any hope of catching him.''


    His success was short-lived though, as another hand much, much quicker than the last one was waiting for him to reach his grasp.


    Zelus''s pupils shrank slightly but he didn''t make any further movements resulting in him getting caught.


    On the other hand, Gul had thrown Noah upwards and grabbed him with his other, now free hand. Look at this man juggling bodies around.


    Noah was flabbergasted with the display. He couldn''t even gauge what was happening. When everything settled down, he just found both of them hanging like laundry from Gul''s hands.


    "Now, Shall we go?" Gul asked in his usual cheerful voice.


    "You''re asking as if we have any other option" Zelus looked to have resigned himself to his fate.


    "Does he behave like this often?" Noah tried to reach out to Zelus. They say joint suffering is the best catalyst for people to open up to each other.


    Zelus glimpsed at him, keeping silent before ignoring him altogether.


    His smile twitched. This attitude irked his nerves. All the professional courtesy he was showing was going down the drain. This was a certified asshat. No doubt about it. This was coming from another self-aware one.


    "I''m talking to you"


    "I know, It''s just that I don''t wish to engage in any meaningless conversation. You seem to be incapable of recognizing that."


    "Oh, really? Says the one whose ass just got handed to him."


    "Come on mates, we are celebrating. Especially you, Zelus. I was expecting you to be eager to meet him seeing as he is a young fellow like you."


    Noah switched between the two in quick succession, confused by the odd statement.


    "Huh, I''m not following."


    "For elves, 100 years is akin to 20 for a normal human. Although age brings some semblance of maturity, his physique and emotions haven''t fully developed. Therefore, you can consider him as a kid."


    "Objection, I''m a veteran of battlefield. Calling me a kid won''t change that fact."


    "You can continue yapping, mate. I have said all that I need to whom I wanted to."


    "Huh?" Zelus was a bit slow at the realization. His face paled as he stiffly turned to meet Noah doing an accurate troll face.


    "Hello there...Mr. Elfling Jr. ?"


    "I despise you and your goblin-brained companions."


    This statement elicited nothing but a hearty laugh from the two recipients.


    ....


    "This is the place" Gul released them from his hold at cue. Zelus landed steadily and coiled slightly to keep himself stable while Noah stumbled a bit before stabilizing himself.


    Straightening his clothes, he turned to see where had he been dragged to supposedly celebrate the event.


    His eyes darkened in disappointment as he was presented with a decrepit building from ancient times. At first glance, he could spot inconsistent architectural masonry, fitted with whitish-yellow bricks and a faded red ceiling. Warm yellow light passed through the wooden window sills giving some liveliness to the otherwise haunted house. The building has clearly been witness to a significant part of this place''s history. The surrounding area was distinctly a different style and appeared of recent origin compared to this old museum.


    It stood out quite a lot among the taller buildings with glass windows, and not in a good way.


    "Kinda underwhelming, in my opinion."


    Gul didn''t look the least bit annoyed by his comment. Instead, he just gave him a knowing smile as if he was used to such a response.


    "Just wait till we head inside, mate. I want to hear your opinion then."


    He stepped forward reaching out to the door handle and twisted the knob.


    The door creaked open accompanied by the loud chime at the door.


    "Welcome." A rugged voice greeted their arrival.


    "Sup, Iggim. Our new junior here had a great day today. We''re here to celebrate. Bring in 3 specials for us." Gul said patting Noah in the back.


    The individual name Iggim looked to be a considerably old guy. Wrinkly face, multiple spots, sagging skin, yup. This was a real elderly person. He was putting this out because the man acted completely in defiance of his physique. His eyes were lively and jumping around assessing his figure, his movements though slow, were steady and composed. He could feel the vibrant soul inhabiting the old man''s body.


    While he was busy eyeing the old man for a bit too long for comfort, Gul exchanged some words with Iggim.


    "Spicy as usual?"  "Yeah"


    "You got it, brother!"


    Rolling up his sleeves, he went on to prepare their order.


    The three men seated themselves waiting patiently for their order to complete.


    Noah checked out the place. It looked to be well-maintained and classy compared to the stale exterior. The atmosphere was close to an English pub here. Except for the open kitchen at the back.


    At last, Noah found himself at peace and was excited to open up the Log.


    [Status Log]


    *Blacksmith Profession Selected*


    *LVL UP*


    Profession: [Blacksmith] reached LVL 1Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    +0.1 Str, +0.1 Con, +0.1 End, +0.1 Will {% Bonus from Talents}


    Bonus Records Acquired!


    *New Skill-[Smithing] Granted*


    *New Skill-[Tool Mastery] Granted*


    Internally, Noah squealed in delight like a little girl. No, that doesn''t feel right. A more apt description would be a small-time YouTuber getting viral for the first time. He would know, he had experienced that before. The excitement just overwhelms you for a moment before you return back to reality.


    Finally, something to show in return for all that sweat he poured out. By now, it should be enough to drown him multiple times over. Maybe not, but he was feeling the burn handling multiple avenues without any visible results. He had a few gains here and there but this was his first big one.


    These few lines of text were his savior, so to speak.


    Noah never expected that he would one day pose like an influencer in front of a mirror checking himself out. ''What can I say, anything for the abs!''


    All these stat gains were slowly adding up. The training and practice at the smithery were doing their part for him. Add in the growth potion, he was growing by the day. both metaphorically and literally. His height did grow by a few cms.


    His body looked to be in an exuberant synaptogenesis child learning period.


    The LVL UP made it even more prominent. Enough for him to feel the effects during his learning.


    His mind was absorbing new knowledge like a dry sponge. It''s the secret behind how he was able to grasp and read the Eqin language from the books he borrowed from the library. That so in just a few days.


    Is this what those with ridiculous IQs experience?


    There was a feeling of unprecedented clarity in his thoughts. Things that would be out of reach for him some time ago are now within his capacity. The mere thought was sending goosebumps to his body.


    And how could he forget the hyped-up Skills? The entire week he had been keeping his distance trying to prolong the time someone inquired about his Profession. Now, though he was ready to flex those Text abs on them. It didn''t matter that they seemed pretty basic, it was infinitely better than having none.


    No, this wasn''t him being salty for all the times his two buddies were flaunting their Profession in front of his sorry ass. Pfft, he wasn''t that jealous in the first place.


    He needs to open up his Staus Page in order to have a long careful look. Though, something caught his attention more at the moment.


    "Gul"


    Noah''s ears pricked up in curiosity, he hadn''t heard a single word out of Zelus''s mouth the entire way. What did he want to say now?


    "you can have my stew, I will be fine with staying out."


    "What''s this, mate. You chickening out now?"


    "I just don''t identify myself as a sadist. I think this is nothing but a waste of time. Change the order to something more tame."


    "Oho, one wouldn''t exactly think that when seeing your schedule. How do you even make time for visits?" Gul looked to have made a jab at Zelusl, at least from what he could gather from their expressions.


    "Visit who?"


    "You know who."


    The atmosphere felt colder all of a sudden.


    "I don''t have any recollection of anything that might correspond to what you are saying."


    "Maybe I might just be mistaken. I would have to make sure to confirm it with that person."


    The tension continued escalating to a peak. The situation felt like he was sitting on a powder key about to go kaboom.


    "You wouldn''t do it."


    "Why not?"


    "Asshole"


    "Big or small?"


    "Stop"


    "Stinky or smelly"


    "You''re doing this on purpose"


    "How did you know?"


    Zelus cursed under his breath in his native Elvish before acquiescing. "I''ll do it this time. In return, you won''t mention this again."


    His grin vanished instantly as he spoke "sincerely".


    "Deal."


    ''I don''t know how much you should believe in that. Guy clearly loves to mess around.''


    While Noah was telling himself never to mess with Gul for the nth time, Zelus tapped the table randomly being in a bad mood from the big fat L.  He became impatient by the stares gradually and cried out.


    "WHERE''S THE LAMB SAUCE?"


    A small snicker couldn''t help but slip out by Noah.


    "What now?" Zelus snapped back at him.


    "Nothing." How could he explain the memetic history of Earth from something that occurred half a century ago? He could only blame himself for his weird interests.


    "Hmph, I don''t wish to know anyway. I bet it would be something retarded."


    "Here, enjoy"


    One by one, Pots of red-hot stew were served before them by Iggim.


    An explosion of fragrant smell assaulted his nostrils bringing with it a mix of spices and herbs. The spice irritated his nose. Not gonna lie, it stung a lot. Still, his appetite was worked up by the odor.


    ''I feel betrayed but in a good way.'' Spoke too soon.


    Zelus''s face turned into a grimace as he was faced with the bright red stew. Gul saw the hesitance and poked with his elbow urging him to make up his mind. The reminder seems to have worked as he took a spoonful and dug in, channeling the spirit of self-sacrifice ingrained in him as a soldier. For him, the consequences far outweighed any pain he had to suffer drudging in the loo.


    Gul''s face was brightened up like a bulb seeing his actions. ''Ah, the blissful ignorance.''


    "AHHHHHHHHHHHH"


    Noah could feel shivers down his spine from hearing that man let loose his blood-curdling scream from an honest mistake.


    "Not again" Gul looked saddened to see his friend collapse from the overwhelming spice. How much was it sincere was up for debate.


    "I should stop recommending it to everyone. Then again, my shop is only known for this. I had dug myself a grave there. Whatever, the fault''s on them not researching what they were up against." Iggim joined with the remarks.


    "..."


    "This is ridiculous. Why would anyone eat this stuff?"


    "For the thrill, of course."


    "It feels ridiculous until it isn''t"


    The old fellas looked to be enjoying the situation. Most likely, a part of their plan even.


    ''they''re batshit crazy.''


    "More personal tutoring for you" He yelled before aggressively slamming the bowl into his face.


    Noha looked flabbergasted by the display. Iggim stood by the side staring at him as if saying why was I keeping still. Like any other person, he caved and followed in Gul''s footsteps, being curious about the taste. Picking up the spoon, he tried a bit to check the waters.


    "Oooh" The hot stew burned his tongue slightly while simultaneously sparking a chain reaction there.


    "This is an acquired taste"


    "I can see that." The burn had begun spreading in his mouth. Whoa, this was something else. He needed something, something to stop this hellish torture.


    "Do you have any*cough*thing to drink? *cough*"


    "Would Meryol be fine?"


    "It would be *cough* awesome"


    Iggim brought a jar and large cup and poured down the drink for him.


    He gulped down the drink. It mellowed down the spice to something he could tolerate; made the dish bearable, allowing him to enjoy it. Iggim should make it customary to have one with this.


    His speed picked up as he started cleaning up the stew.


    Before he knew it, a clean pot remained before him. All in all, he really liked the dinner. Maybe he would revisit this place later.


    A burp came out, his stomach seems to agree.


    Zelus had come to very soon after that and ordered something else. Gul finished the fastest and started chatting. He told him Zelus wasn''t able to handle much spice. That''s why he brings him here regularly to try to improve his tolerance.


    "So... how did you come here?" Iggim asked aloud while wiping the dishes with a dry cloth.


    "He came with the Trainees." Gul answered in his stead. The conservation went back-and-forth between them.


    "Voluntary or Spontaneous?"


    "It looks to be the latter"


    "Switching to someplace new is a humbling experience. The strange feeling of alienation finding yourself alone. Making sure not to stand out. Most of all, the unspoken rules are the hardest to figure out."


    "You speak like someone who travels a lot." Noah answered curious about his experiences.


    "I had indeed been provided the opportunity to visit many locations."


    "As expected from a spy." Zelus chimed in; his words felt a bit hostile to him.


    "spy?..." Noah turned to Iggim for answers only to be given the scare of his life.


    A rictus grin made itself shown. He could feel the wickedness in the smile.


    "...I don''t think this is something I should know about." Noah felt a bit terrified. Actually, a lot by the sudden change.


    "Its out in the public. Do you feel okay speaking about it, Iggim?" Gul explained to him but he wasn''t much relieved by the information.


    "I had passed that phase years back. Why not entertain this young man about the politics of this world? Kid, do you know how many times the kingdoms here come close to War over something trivial?"


    "A lot, probably."


    "More than you can imagine. Few people are willing to lay down their lives for a bunch of power-hungry maniacs who dream of only power and conquest. Question is, how do you get them to?"


    "How?" He had a feeling he wouldn''t like the answer.


    "That''s where we come in. Instigate the public, sabotage critical infrastructures, whatever your mind is able to cook up, we did it and more."


    "I remember there was this one time I had to beat a bunch of old men. It made me stop for a moment to think, what I was doing? But then I told myself "you should have thought of that earlier". I was already too far gone."


    "I was young at that time. And like all young men, I was impulsive. Didn''t knew the cruelness of the real world."


    "Told myself, "I can push past this and leave this world after some time" and continued to ignore the gradually heinous crimes I committed. The time came a bit too late."


    "it''s like the sun; it''s in plain sight but the danger escapes your senses."


    "Eventually, one day, a senior spy reached out to me and I was given orders to start an uprising. That was when the guilt came back. I was horrified by how lives would be lost by my actions. But I managed to rein in my emotions again."


    "Did you actually do it?"


    "Unfortunately, yes."


    "This isn''t a fairy tale. I attempted to but thankfully failed anyway. The main spy was caught beforehand and tortured for information. The entire operation was a bust. The rebellion was put out before it could gain traction. Thinking as a soldier, I set out to recoup my losses and laid low waiting for the next order to arrive."


    "I did not know at that time but the empire had collapsed from internal conflicts. Moreover, I had even caught the kingdom''s suspicions. I was on the run, trying to keep undercover by moving from place to place, staying far away from the capital in the outskirts. It took another 13 years before the news came through. The entire time I was working for a lost cause."


    "los ¨²ltimos de Filipinas...A soldier fighting for a lost cause." Noah mumbled softly.


    "In this world nothing is permanent .... just be happy and live your own life. I regret that I found it the hard way"


    A sigh escaped Iggim''s lungs. This was a man whose soul is tormented by his past.


    "War does not determine who is right, only who is left. As a survivor, I couldn''t find a purpose so I headed back to where it started, back to this town. Surrendered to the viscount and here we are."


    Despite trying to play it off lightly, only a bitter smile was left on the wisened face.


    "If you self-pitying drivel is over, I am leaving." Zelus stood up abruptly and left the shop in the same manner.


    Noah was confused by the event. Something was wrong. He whispered to Gul "Why did he act like that?"


    "The war, the same war he was talking about, we were deployed on the frontlines. Some of our friends stayed back during that uprising. They were not so lucky."


    "Oh, I am sorry."


    "Don''t worry. It happened a long time back. We have gotten over it..." Gul looked back wistfully at the door "...mostly"


    "..." The quiet felt suffocating to him. His presence felt unnecessary here. He had the urge to leave the two alone.


    "I should get going, too. Thanks for the dinner, Iggim." He made a sprint out of the store.


    Getting out, he was surprised to find an empty street. Looks like he headed back.


    "What do you want?" A voice came from his side, frightening him a little. He looked to see Zelus leaning by the wall.


    Steading his breathing, he calmed down and spoke up.


    "I just thought we could get to know each other a little better. I was thinking you could show me around. I am new to this place, after all."


    "I decline, there isn''t anything that interests me in your proposal."


    He made a short jump, holding onto the ledge before pulling himself in a spin to the ceiling. Landing on the ledge, he made another jump up the wall before using it as a foothold to wall jump up to the roof. Two seconds, he disappeared from his vision.


    What was even more surprising was he made no noise at all during all the flamboyant acrobatics.


    "Showoff" It seemed unnecessary to do this to intimidate him and make him stay away. Instead, he just made himself a bigger target in his sight. Noah had decided to go after him. He was going to make him cough up those skills.


    Dark clouds began spreading across the sky, shrouding the pale blue moonlight from the third moon he had come across so far.


    ...


    On the way to the Inn, he spotted the library by the other street. A grand building with stone stairs leading to a giant doorway. He could see some rooms lighted up behind the crystal windows.


    Maybe she is staying back on her duty or something like that.


    Light flashed in the sky before the rumble of thunder knocked on his ears.


    Is there still time for checking it out?


    His hair got ruffled up by a sudden wind. The windy breeze also made him notice the worsening sky. While he was still hesitating over the decision of whether to go or not, a single drop of rain hit his face.


    "Apparently not"


    The rain picked up its intensity and was pouring down heavily. He ran down the streets in a hurry.


    A silhouette stood behind the window curtains on the second floor of the building observing Noah and the streets with an indifferent gaze.


    "Not today, huh?"


    Out of the shadows, a slender hand reached for a steaming cup of tea. A ring adorned with a crest of a tree stripped of its leaves graced her index finger. She took a sip and turned to flip the pages of the book resting in her hand. A smile emerged on her face as she muttered softly to herself.


    "What a shame."

 Chapter 41 - Starry night

    "Bloody hell, The horrendous weather here..."


    Is this England or what?


    Continuous showers kept pouring in for the past few days. Maybe it''s the season? This could use some digging on his side. Yay, another reason for him to go through the mountain of literature in the library.


    Squeezing out as much water as he could out of his shirt in an attempt to lessen the wet feeling a bit, He ran back into the Inn. There was Angie there, handling the reception. She looked to have a few words with him. Specifically, regarding his state at the moment.


    "Head straight to the Bath, if you will. I shall prepare some robes for you to change into."


    "Thanks, Angie. You''re the best." Saying in a rush, he waved at her and made a run for the bath.


    "Just doing my job, Noah. Can''t have you making a mess here..." Angie could only stare in exasperation at the empty hallway as he was out of her sight before she could complete her sentence.


    Sliding the bath doors aside, he stepped into the changing zone. There, he threw his wet sloppy mess of wearables in the laundry basket to take it out later. Right after which he made himself comfortable in the bath.


    Within a few minutes, his eyes started drooping as the tiredness caught up to him. Mr. Atlas here was headed for a sweet ol'' slumber.


    Oblivious to the passage of time, he was in the dreamscape as evident by the light snores coming from him. Unfortunately or fortunately, he was soon abruptly woken up by loud knocks on the bath doors.


    "I''m leaving it here. Don''t forget to take out your laundry." Angie said so after placing the robes on the side and headed back to her post.


    "Not good. How long was I out?" Noah rushed out the tub in a panicked manner before the surroundings registered to him. Angie most likely saved him the hassle of confronting the ripoff symbiote. A bit late and he would have been tussling around with the Imprint.


    His calm didn''t last long though, as the same surroundings reminded him of the grave danger he was swimming in at the present.


    ''Please, let the regular times be passed by now. I am seriously not in the mood for a recap of that day.'' Squinty eyes continued to be pointed at him for the better part of the week because of the mishap that day. The ladies sure knew to hold onto a grudge. Now he knew not to get between sweaty ladies and their baths. It is proven to produce quite an adverse reaction.


    After drying himself with the towels while acting jumpy, he donned the robe and tucked the basket filled with his laundry under his elbow. Thereafter, he fled the location. A commendable decision considering what he encountered next.


    Along his way back, he witnessed the swarm of females heading for their daily ritual.


    ''I should thank my lucky stars for today. That was a close shave.'' Noah was tired of this charade; barely escaping every day. He couldn''t help it. Gul was clearly at fault here for dismissing him this late. Noah was considering shifting his schedule a bit forward, letting everyone have a go first. He could reasonably do this. It''s not like he was sleeping for the majority of the nighttime.


    After dropping the laundry basket at the collection center, he made a check off the list of things to do in his mind just in case he forgot something.


    "Nope"


    He seems to be in the clear. Slinging the still yet-to-dry satchel over his shoulder, he headed back to his room.


    Twisting the knob, he took care not to make too much noise. His roommates could be in bed.


    A strange sight greeted his vision upon entering the room. On one side was Shaun going through some notes under the lamp while Ava was collapsed on the sofa haphazardly, her arms and legs splayed with her head plunged in the cushion. He didn''t know what to address first.


    ''Better start on with Shaun, I guess.''


    With Ava, he wasn''t fancying his chances of getting lectured just for giving the simple reminder to sleep on her bed. In fact, it was all but waiting to happen.


    "Hey, how was the day?"


    "Pretty much the same. Kitchen Nightmares airing all day long." Shaun visibly shivered when saying this. Someone''s got a bad case of PTSD.


    "That bad, huh."


    "Still, the lvls ain''t stopping no more. I got my Cook Profession to LVL 3 today. Hey, are you even following?" Shaun cheered up a bit remembering his gains. He then saw Noah looking somewhere else.


    Noah was eyeing Ava on the other hand. The unsightly manner in which she was lying on the sofa. In his mind, he was considering utilizing the opportunity sent his way. A few pics and he would have some blackmail-*cough*-negotiation materials at hand. Never know when you might need it.


    "Yeah, continue on." Noah turned back to Shaun. Maybe not today. The position wasn''t compromised enough to garner the potential of negotiation material.


    "Let''s move on from me. What about you?"


    "Me? I just got my Profession." He pointed at himself and replied.


    "kinda late to the party, aren''t you?" Shaun didn''t forget to take a jab at him.


    "At least I got in" Noah wouldn''t admit but that was a critical hit. His face scrunched up in indignation.


    "Don''t act sulky now. Look, here''s my 2 cents. You can still catch up easily."


    "You think so?"


    "Maybeeee...ok, I will stop now." Shaun was ready to tease him some more but stopped upon seeing Noah''s pouty face.


    "what were you up to today?" Seeing him stop, Noah''s expressions relaxed as he continued with the previous topic.


    "We were given an assignment. I thought I would try a hand at a combined dish from Earth and this place. Something like pierogi should be fine as a base, I guess?" He has been looking through the recipe book for ideas.


    "Why a polish dish, out of all? And something so generic."


    "I am part-Polish after all." Shaun''s eyebrow twitched hearing the ignorant statement. But he chose to let it go as he may have done it unintentionally.


    "you are?" This was news to him.


    "1/8th"


    "That doesn''t count." Despite being a Half, he can''t call himself either a Brit or a Desi. Who does he think he is to even consider himself Polish? 1/8th is next to nothing.


    "It does"


    "No, it doesn''t" Ava, all of sudden chimed in.


    "The resident expert has spoken" Noah backed her up. Shitting on Shaun would always take priority for him.


    "Who are you calling "resident?" She growled back at him.


    "It does. I ain''t accepting otherwise. Moreover, mind repeating yourself, Noah. I didn''t catch the latter half clearly." Shaun sensed the change in the tides of this battle and seized the opportunity.


    Dammit, that was a good one Shaun. Noah could feel he was at a disadvantage. He could only do one thing.


    "What do you mean? If it''s about you having a hard time in the kitchen, I empathize with you." Try to divert their attention.


    "Now now, don''t try to stray away from the topic. We were having a serious discussion. What were you saying about my cherished pierogi? Something about it being generic." But Shaun wasn''t going to fall for such rookie tactics.


    "Oh that. it''s just stuffed dumplings made out of plain bread." Noah said without any fluctuation in his voice.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    Had Noah not realized that it was a trap?


    Shaun''s eyes shot open the instant those words registered to his mind.


    "You had the AUDACITY, to say PIEROGI is plain bread."


    "You are twisting my words now. I said..."


    "Mate, I felt the german inside me die."


    "I thought you were Polish?"


    "Die"


    "I kid" Noah held up his hands in surrender. He was backed up in the corner with no way out.


    "You better be, our friendship was in jeopardy." Shaun felt gratified with being able to make Noah eat his words. Today was his dub. B¨®g Honor Ojczyzn.


    "You can be a drama queen. What were you going to do? Throw your pierogis at me?"


    "You dare talk shit about my pierogis again?"


    He wasn''t about to let him just road roller over his body. He had his weakness in his grasp. Some may call it cowardly but he would call it tactical retreat.


    "Miss Florelle doesn''t seem to be the Gordon Ramsey you claim her to be seeing how much free time you have on hand to be arguing with me right now." Justifiably so seeing its effectiveness.


    "Crap, I need to do this soon. I will take care of you tomorrow morning" In haste, Shaun returned to his desk to finish his assignment. Evidently, it took precedence over trash-talking to him.


    "Looking forward to it. Dobranoc."


    Noah trotted towards the bedroom while waving back to Shaun with his back facing him. Ava joined him midway and whispered in his ear.


    "He looks like he wants to unalive you."


    "He wishes he could." Noah looked back to see him still occasionally glaring daggers at him.


    "I can never understand how you two are still friends despite all the shit talk."


    "Men you see, though simple in nature are complex creatures. There is this strange dichotomy present within boys. In movies, we look for sex. In porn, we look for the story." Noah gave a blank stare towards the distance while reciting those lines. He then paused dramatically for a moment before delivering the punchline.


    "That is the duality of man"


    "More like degeneracy of man." Ava wasn''t impressed in the least by his performance.


    "Semantics."


    "You''re not gonna deny that. Whatever, I feel stupid arguing this with you. Leaving that aside, Is the sun rising from the west today? You normally arrive an hour or two from now."


    "FYI, it does rise from the west here. Observe the sky sometimes."


    "Answer my question."


    "Gul, my instructor, freed me sooner for the party he threw on getting my Profession. Spared me the time for having dinner."


    "Well, Congrats."


    The duo neared the partition in slow steps.


    "Thanks. Speaking of being late, shouldn''t you be in bed by this time?"


    She stopped in front of the entrance to their bedroom and twisted around to address him. "I am going for just that. And you look to have a long night ahead of you"


    "You know it. I''m nocturnal in that sense."


    "Isn''t your condition improving?" She looked a bit worried about him.


    "It is. but my sleep patterns are already fucked beyond repairs." Noah rubbed his hair roughly in frustration.


    Ava was relieved knowing it wasn''t his condition worsening.


    "Well, good luck to you then."


    "See ya"


    She headed inside the room while he stood around in contemplation. What should he do tonight?


    Looking over, he could see the expeditiously studious Shaun packing up too. He nodded to him as a good night which he responded to in the same manner.


    Guess his time of the day starts now. Better begin with something very urgent. He had a look or two back in the diner but a proper look was necessary. Sitting on the sofa, he opened his Status Page.


    [Status]


    Name: Noah


    Race: Human(F) - LVL 2


    Profession: Blacksmith - LVL 1


    Status: Healthy - [Blessing: Universal Tongue (Limited)] [Blessing of the Titanos Ragnarok]


    Talent: [Intelligent] [Focused Mind]


    Stats


    Strength: 1.6


    Agility: 1.3


    Vitality: 1.4


    Constitution: 1.5


    Endurance: 1.6


    Perception: 1.3


    Intelligence: 1.8


    Wisdom: 1.7


    Willpower: 1.9


    Skills: [Language] [Meditation] [Smithing] [Tool Mastery]


    [Smithing]


    The art of refining raw materials and combining them to create or improve pieces of armor or weapons. Acquired upon learning sufficient knowledge of metal weapon recipes, like swords and daggers. The higher your skill level, the better your chances of crafting high-quality items.


    [Tool Mastery]


    Unlocks through acquiring basic proficiency with tools and crafting devices. The skill allows users to handle tools to a proficient degree while simultaneously gaining an instinctive understanding of their proper applications.


    He has seen the trickle of stats from both exercise and meditation throughout the week. This gave him the awaited confirmation that stats can be improved not just from LVLs but through other methods like training too.


    The two new skills were welcomed by him regardless of how basic their descriptions were. It was pretty clear what these skills entailed. [Smithing] was him hammering all day every day and [Tool Mastery] could be attributed to the garage of tools he had to use in the past few days. All from the basic hammer and anvil to the obscure ones like punch and drift.


    ''I got my Profession today. Most likely I should be expecting a few LVL ups on my way in the next couple of days. I didn''t die in any of the dreams today so no extreme headaches either.''


    The day is going to be complete without any hiccups? Then, There was a party thrown for me.


    What the fuck is going on?


    This is kinda freaking me out.


    To borrow a line from a classic Soviet film: "Murky doubts are wracking my mind"


    I''m not used to this.


    If this was a week before, his thoughts would go everywhere and he wouldn''t be able to do anything productive. Now, he doesn''t need to worry for he had found a new and effective way to remedy that. Meditation. Not the simple calm your mind stuff. This was the real deal. If he were to put it into words: his mind enters into an entirely new state of being.


    Noah rubbed his hands in anticipation. Then, he stepped towards the only cupboard in the drawing-room before pulling out a Morwo leaf from the leftmost drawer.


    Surprisingly, this purple-leaf was faded out and looked shriveled, a far cry from the previous vibrant look. A bunch of these was passed to him along with a short note by Miss Florelle the day after. She told him the "lord" had provided those for him.


    Opening the note, he was informed that these were dried Morwo leaves of inferior quality. Now, why was he treated with such discrimination, you ask?


    Well, apparently his sensitivity was way too high for regular consumption. He had to make do with this. Now, should he be flattered by this treatment? The note did say that it was better for him not to rely on these for initiating the meditation process. They were external stimulants and he would need to learn to do it without the Herb in the future, anyway. He agreed with it, for the most part. The thing that was making him scratch his head was this one-way note exchange.


    If this was everything, it would be fine and dandy but no, there was more. The problem was, the notes didn''t stop coming. Every day, during the morning session with Miss Florelle and Nephra, he was passed another one of these.


    He dug deeper through the same drawer and took out a bundle of wrinkled sheets of paper.


    The irritating part was it was filled with either nonsense or mundane stuff.


    He didn''t know how to reply to "How was your day? Did you visit the market?". Was he supposed to say it was fine?


    And what did "Abooga Haruman" even mean? He was almost certain this wasn''t a proper word. He even checked the dictionary to be sure.


    Trying to reach out to him turned out to be futile as he was out of town. At least, that''s what the staff told him. This left him stumped. He could do nothing but continue passively accepting the notes.


    Ugh, what was so interesting about him anyway? The only thing he could pinpoint was his relation to Vanadis. That could be the motivation behind this unusual communication. Or was he reading too much into it?


    Noah exhaled a long breath. Better start his meditative session.


    He plopped the leaf inside his mouth and chewed on it to release the juices. Since it was much more diluted in dosage, he had to do this to consume it. Slowly, a feeling of tranquility spread within his mind.


    Noah made a beeline to the balcony attached to their room. Sliding the curtains aside, he stepped out. Looking up, he could see the wooden ceiling did its work keeping out the rain.


    Meanwhile, there looked to be a missing crystal lamp on the far side of the balcony wall. Only a few Inconspicuous holes and scratches were left as evidence of its prior presence.


    The heavy rain looked to have stopped quite some time ago with the clouds parting to give him the view he looked forward to every night.


    Taking in the smell of the moist earth, he sat under the starry sky.


    He found it exceptionally easy to meditate within the silence of the night. Closing his eyes, he focused all his attention on his breathing.


    As per Rylee''s instructions, merely beginning your meditation allows you to unconsciously draw in primal mana from your surroundings and convert it into mana of your own use. Granted, it is an insignificant amount that cannot be used for any purpose other than to maintain and gradually strengthen your astral form i.e. your soul.


    ''Right now, if I''m not wrong, my soul is in a nascent stage. And through continuous meditation, I''m able to grow it to a size where it will undergo some sort of metamorphosis and something amazing will happen.''


    Seems about right.


    Practicing his breathing also brought other benefits. Such as his mental stats increasing. Who would have known you could improve your Intelligence through Meditation?


    "Allow your instincts to guide your breathing. Don''t exert your will. Let the body do the work." Rylee''s words echoed in his mind.


    He did just that. Relaxed his body, mind and spirit. Progressively, his senses became fine-tuned and he was able to access his "sixth sense". Their sessions had not yet reached this phase so he could only give it this name. What he had managed to do instead was extensively test out this new sense of his.


    The first thing Noah found out was that his sense was exponentially more potent inside his body compared to outside. The outside was like a fog of darkness compared to the X-ray he was given of his internals. His breathing, heartbeat, even the electrical impulses, he could sense it crystal clear. Regrettably, without any directions, he was left to his own devices to explore this sense and the results have been mixed so far.


    Prolonged periods of practice have made him more adept at accessing this state and his sense has objectively improved. He was now able to zoom in on any part he wished without much delay and with further clarity.


    While this may sound he was doing considerably well, he was overall disappointed by his performance. All he did was improve quantitatively. That is not to say he didn''t like this change. After all, any change is better than no change. But he would like to have some qualitative improvement.


    This sense of his right now functioned just as a glorified X-ray-cum-MRI Scanner with a touch of ultrasonic in the mix. His intuition was screaming at him that it would do much more than that. The merely probable theories he had were enough to wake him up at night.


    His patience was growing thin by the snail pace the meditation session was proceeding with. Why couldn''t that guy just get done and over with the basics?


    ''Oops''


    His agitated emotions destabilized his meditative session. Despite trying to stabilize, it seems his practice today was completed.


    He was a bit disheartened by his mistake. However, having made good progress today gave him some solace.


    Standing up, he stretched his limbs to allow the blood to circulate back again.


    After a session, not only his mind but his body too felt rejuvenated. Could Meditation substitute for sleep? An interesting idea.


    Just then, his ears picked up on a series of footsteps coming from the inside.

 Chapter 42 - A Brief Study

    Just then, his ears picked up on a series of familiar footsteps coming from the inside. A smile appeared on his face hearing the consecutive small thuds followed by short cries of pain.


    He leaned himself on the railing enjoying the night view waiting for the ditzy fellow to show herself.


    The curtains slid aside as her voice recited the words he scribbled in the notes. He shouldn''t have left those out in open.


    "In this playground of the universe, we are in search of what game we are a part of. Mathematics is the playing of games. Science is finding out which game you''re playing..."


    "And philosophy is wondering if it''s really a game that you are playing" Noah finished Ava''s sentence before continuing. "What woke you up this late?"


    "What is this?" Ava said turning his notes she held within both her hands towards him.


    "A bit of trolling, I guess."


    "You don''t even know yourself." She caught him there. He wasn''t even sure what was the purpose behind writing that. Maybe there wasn''t a purpose. Maybe, he just wanted to write something to take his mind off things.


    "You look less disturbed today," Ava remarked seeing him in a better mood than past.


    A part of him took great offense at that.


    "Oh, quite the contrary. You haven''t even scratched the surface. I was recently enlightened, No, given a glimpse of the truth. Ignorance is bliss is a very true statement. The horrors of "reality" will leave the majority of minds paralyzed. This...this is just an illusion of calm." If only he could utter that out loud. It sucks not even having the coura-


    Noah''s eyes widened in panic on seeing a surprised look on Ava''s face. It literally jump-scared his heart.


    "Did I say that out loud?"


    "Quiet a bleak thought process, if I say so myself."


    He became silent trying to muster some sort of response.


    "When the reality of your flimsy mortality hits you with the force of a truck, I would say that''s an appropriate response."


    An understanding look graced her face as she replied. "So that''s what going on in your mind. Guess I can''t fault you for thinking that way."


    Noah didn''t like the look she gave him. "You don''t realize, we are covered in death from head to toe"


    "Of course we are, by the time we have started talking, a million of your cells have died."


    "Not the time for Vsauce references. You know I''m talking about something else."


    "Aren''t you thankful to be alive?" Ava interjected, gazing at him with earnest eyes.


    "I accept that I''m alive, but thankful is too strong a word." He said impassively and continued.


    "See that" Noah pointed at the celestial body occupying a good chunk of the canvas that was the night sky. The natural satellite was whiter than its counterpart at their home planet. A large crater occupied its center caving in its ginormous rocky surface. That part was mostly veiled in shadow and looked much darker than the rest from the ground.


    "illa Tosenka. Translated roughly to God''s eye"


    "It does evoke that imagery. What about it?"


    "It makes me question my sanity every single time I see it. My mind shuts down when I realize I have faced something horrifying of that scale. Not to mention this foreign world. Multiple moons. decked in their own creepy fashions. All that''s waiting are two suns to complete the collection."


    Noah''s hands trembled just recalling that Lovecraftian figure.


    "If we had two suns here, there would probably be memes about how your shadow is less lonely than you."


    She attempted to lighten the mood but it only came out as awkward. The two went silent as the mood fermented.


    "You know, when you were having the seizure, I was terrified." Ava spoke out softly as she looked up at the night sky.


    The way she worded that sentence, he had caught onto the tremble in her voice. Never had he ever seen her sound so genuinely terrified of something.


    "I didn''t tell you two about it but I had a vision of you the night before that day. Of you, laying lifeless within my arms. To see my nightmare realized before my very eyes was nothing short of horrifying." She reached her quivering right arm out and made a grasping motion towards the moon.


    "I didn''t know...that." Noah was confused about how to reply to that. Not the first time in the day even when this happened.


    "Of course not, you would be in for a hell of an interrogation had you known about it." Dropping her raised arm, she turned to face him and gave him a mask of a smile.


    "So, don''t think you are alone in that feeling."


    "...."


    "..."


    Awkward...


    "Um...The feng shui of this place is terrible."


    Ava sighed. She hadn''t ever seen a worse attempt to change the topic. She could only help him some more.


    "Isn''t there anything you would like to show me?"


    "What could I, no, in fact, there is one thing." He remembered the thing he had been working with the entire week while trying to keep it a secret from the two.


    Noah turned to the corner of the balcony. A pile of items was stacked there. In a lackluster attempt to present it as ordered, they had covered it with a cloth. Uncovering the cloth, there lay a single dismantled lamp among the pile of cables, chargers and adapters.


    "What the fuck, Noah." She exclaimed. "Vandalism wasn''t what I had in mind when I asked that."


    "Shhhh, wait till I tell you more about it." Noah hastily covered her mouth with his hand to stop her from waking up the entire neighborhood. "Your opinion will change for sure."


    After Ava quieted down, he removed his hand slowly. Her face looked awfully red. He was worried that he applied too much force.


    Picking up the lamp, he removed the cover he had already pried off beforehand. Then, reaching inside, he took out a plate carved with silvery and gold circuitry. In the center of which was a notch where a blue crystal was fitted. The crystal had presumably gone through cutting and thereafter polished to perfection. The most fascinating part was that the crystal and plate looked like they constituted a single thing. This was mostly because the circuits also ran over the surface of the crystal giving it a mystical bearing.


    "See this, what does this remind you of?" Noah asked pointing at the plate.


    "Circuits. Specifically, ICs." Feeling calmed enough, she traced the dense network of lines intertwining on the plate.


    "It''s a marvel to observe, isn''t it. There''s a lot going on in this small piece. Despite tinkering with it in all my free time, I still know next to nothing about this equipment." His eyes shined brightly as he continued explaining with increased pace.


    "Yet, if I had to guess about what the process was, I''d say some sort of power generation by continual loops in cycles. This is a self-sustaining loop of energy. Drawing mana not just from the crystal but the crystal itself acts as a conduit for gathering primal mana from the space around it. You know what this means, it is replenishing itself-"


    "Slow down nerd. You''re going way too fast. You won''t get any girls this way."


    "Did you know? Isaac Newton died a virgin."


    "Is that supposed to be admirable?"


    "I...don''t...think so." He felt himself cringe repeating those same words inside his mind. What was he thinking? Bad Noah.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    "Great. Now, tell me more about this perpetual glowing lamp you claim to have found." Ava cheered inwardly for managing to even out the score.


    He cleared his throat and resumed back from when he stopped.


    "Similar to electrical circuits, these circuit lines act as a transmission medium for mana to pass through. Somehow, the mana is transformed into light energy. Moreover, it is incredibly efficient by the looks of it. I asked Angie how long does it take before she needs to replace the crystal. You won''t believe what she told me."


    "Don''t keep it to yourself now. What did she say?"


    "Never"


    "So that''s how you came to this conclusion. If that was true, why isn''t everything mana-powered?"


    "There are a few caveats."


    "I knew it. It was sounding too good to be true. Don''t tell me they cost an arm and a leg to get."


    "That and they also take a long time and effort to be manufactured. Every single one needs to be cut in precise dimensions and then treated through multiple arduous processes before it is ready."


    "So this is this world''s microchips."


    "Pretty much."


    "And what you were about to do with it? I reckon you weren''t just admiring the design of it."


    "I was thinking of experimenting with the mana flow. Trying to fiddle with its resistive properties. See what makes it tick. Maybe I would chance upon something good." Taking out a small filer from his pocket, he used it to nudge out portions of the circuit in different directions.


    "There...bada bing bada boom" This way he would know if the output was affected in any significant manner by the changes.


    "You did not just bada bing that." She was astonished hearing the words coming out of his mouth.


    "Why not? If you have problems with it, it''s too late for that." He said and waved over the device in a steady manner to start its operation. It lighted up normally with the usual delay.


    "There are multiple problems with your approach. The first being that it wouldn''t work. Do you even have the slightest idea how it works?" Ava''s annoyance only increased seeing the unconcerned manner he went through with this experiment.


    "When you pray for rain, you got to deal with the mud too." Noah''s attention was already occupied with the plate. So far, nothing stood out as different to him. Only some slight flicker in the light.


    "You''re basically saying that it''s impossible for you to tell when it will go wrong, if it will go wrong, and how it will go wrong. Something tells me it''s going to go wrong."


    "I am prepared for either scenario." Just then smoke started coming out of the displaced parts.


    "The only thing humans are worse at than not blowing up each other is predicting the future. You are about to speedrun both at once." Ava yelled at Noah seeing the situation worsening exponentially by the second. Sparks were now jumping around the contraption. The whole thing looked like it was going to blow any second now.


    Before the sparks could come to any fruition, Noah yanked out the crystal from the center decisively. The sparking died down at once.


    "Relax, this is not my first rodeo with this." He said while juggling the crystal in one hand.


    "Never, I say never do that in front of me again."


    "You have my word." Noah held up his free hand and gave a bogus vow.


    "I''m not joking Noah. if that thing won''t kill you first, I sure will."


    "Jeez, calm down. Nothing bad happened, right."


    "Oh, just hear this guy." Ava moved around in circles with visible frustration before coming to a sudden halt.


    "Here goes my sleep. Add this to the tension of going inside the Creep." She grumbled aloud.


    "Creep? What Creep? Is it the jungle? Were we going inside today?" Noah replied absentmindedly while noting down his observations in the notes. Displacing the circuit placement created smoke and sparks i.e. heat and electrical energy instead of light. Were the displacements the main cause behind this phenomenon? Needs further tests.


    "You don''t pay attention, do you?"


    "Then, I should get some sleep, shouldn''t I? Need all the energy I can get. You can look over my project. Just don''t blow anything up." He added in a condescending manner.


    Needless to say, Ava didn''t like the way he said that.


    "Come here, will you." She said bitterly and reached out with both her hands towards his retreating figure.


    "What do you mea-Umphhh" Unfortunately, he made the grave mistake of turning his back towards such danger and was consequently dragged back outside by the clutches of the female. He was rendered unable to even utter out his cries of fear as the two hands clamped on his speaking appendage.


    ...


    With the arrival of the early dawn came the invitation to a promised new day.


    Footsteps resounded within the hallway outside their room as the daylight began unwrapping the hues of the world.


    Nephra jogged to a stop in front of their doorstep. After waiting around a few minutes, she found no sign of Noah''s presence.


    "Not again"


    She twisted open the lock with a master key. Then rushed inside only to come to a sudden halt a few steps in upon witnessing a strange spectacle.


    There were the two, seated across the sofas, trying to fully concentrate on the task at hand despite their current states.


    On one side was Noah with his back slouching who looked haggard enough to pass off as an addicted gambler. Though, he was doing fine compared to Ava who was even struggling to keep her eyes open. The dark circles under her eyes were a fine touch.


    A handful of cards lay within their grasps. A pile of which was gathered between the two on the table.


    "I''m done" She slammed her cards on the table, sick of this hour-long strenuous game.


    "Hey, I was just on a streak." Inwardly he was more than happy to drop it. It had already gone on for far too long in his opinion.


    "What in the hell...?" Their match-off was interrupted as they noticed the guest.


    "Good morning..." Ava yawned. "...Neph".


    Noah also put down his deck and acknowledged her presence.


    "Oh, morning, could you wait for a moment? I will be ready in just a minute." He headed inside to get himself changed.


    Nephra stepped within range of the table out of curiosity.


    "What happened last night?"


    "We just got a bit carried with this." Ava gave a sheepish smile as she answered. She then stretched herself and slowly stood up.


    Neph couldn''t help but check out the cards. Reaching out and feeling them, they felt a lot smoother to her hand than the ones she had seen before.


    "I am going to catch a few winks in and hopefully wake up in time for training. See ya later." Yawning, she stumbled back into the bedroom.


    "Sure" Neph looked completely enamored by the cards.


    Noah got himself dressed in record time and hurriedly grabbed his stuff before heading out towards the door.


    "Let''s go" He picked up his satchel and slung it over his shoulder.


    She placed the cards back in their original pile reluctantly.


    Stepping in the backyard garden, Nephra went ahead to begin her classes with Miss Florelle whereas he stopped by the streamside fountain for a quick face wash. Quite convenient to say the least. After feeling refreshed and wide awake, he took out the required textbook from his satchel. Then, he sat under the main tree.


    Enjoying the sight before him while going through wonderful pieces of literature topped the list of his favorite things to do during the day, a close second was his night meditation.


    Rhythmic clangs of wooden swords in the background sounded like a melody to his ears.


    He lost himself in the pages of text. For him, learning new stuff always feels like a treat.


    "You look to be having quite the fun." He turned his head up to see Miss Florelle standing before him, donned in her usual training garbs.


    "These stories are quite interesting." Building on his command over this new language was a priority for him. Therefore, he made sure to borrow books regularly from the town library.


    He had learned over the experience of learning multiple languages that folktales and the like can help a lot. For example, when he was studying Japanese, Momotar¨­, Yuki-Onna were some short stories he had thoroughly read. Evidently, it was quite effective as he still remembers most of them even though he hadn''t given a glance at any of them in years.


    "They are for sure." Taking a glimpse at the book he was holding, she smiled at him. "Borrowing from the library, you don''t even need me to tell you to do it. You''re quite hardworking. Unlike a certain someone." Then swiveled her head in a certain direction.


    Following her gaze, he found Nephra sprawled on the ground in the corner, covered in sweat and panting fiercely. He almost felt pity for her. keyword almost.


    "I heard the Trainees will be heading out into the Creep today."


    "Me too." He grumbled under his breath.


    Being able to hear it with her senses, Miss Florelle became confused by his words.


    On the other hand, Noah recalled an important tidbit about her and asked immediately."By the way, do you have any advice for me? As a former adventurer."


    Her posture straightened as she answered back.


    "Let me see...make sure not to stray far away from your leader. Also, don''t go too deep in the Creep. Other than that, be alert and attentive to your surroundings. This much should suffice for your first time in the Creep."


    "Sure, but is there anything in particular that needs extra caution?"


    She thought for some time before a grave look appeared on her face.


    "If you come upon a rotten smell in the jungle, turn around and run away that same instant."


    Nodding solemnly, he hammered her words in his mind. He knew not to make light of her serious reminder.


    "I''m grateful to you for all the help and advice."


    "I''m happy to help. Good luck to you and your friends. I should head back to the inn now. Customers should start streaming in soon." She looked at the risen sun hanging high up in the sky before moving on.


    On the way back, she picked up the still Nephra from the ground and carried her back on her shoulders.


    Noah shook his head at the sight and began his own morning routine. He went with a warm bath, had a quick breakfast along with a glass of Meryol. Can''t miss that obviously. He then headed out with the others to the training field.


    Reaching their portion of the field, he spotted Knight Rylee along with the other Trainees. Multiple crates with open covers were put on display before him. Recognizing the leather equipment and weapons from the forge inside them, he nudged the other two and guided their gazes to the crates with his eyes.


    The two quickly focused on the crates and began scrutinizing them.


    Soon after, Rylee addressed their group stoically.


    "Gear up"


    They looked at each other and stepped forward in unison to choose their pick of medieval equipment.


    Noah decided to go with the practical approach and reached for a shield at first.


    He fitted his hand in the enarmes(leather straps) of the wooden shield. It was padded with leather on the inside.


    Then, he went for a trusty knife.


    The knife seemed to be as simple as they come and was just a small steel blade attached to a wooden handle. Sliding it back in its scabbard, he tied the leather strap around his left thigh.


    The quality of all the items was rather good, in his opinion.


    Adjusting his satchel, he tightened the strap around his waist like a belt to make it easier for him to move in.


    For the armor, he went with the basic ones for the chest, arms and legs. Along with a pair of sturdy-looking boots, which he put over his sneakers. He strapped them around his body according to memory. Working in a forge had its fair share of benefits.


    Next, he had to tighten them to his fit.


    He was now fully geared up.


    At first glance, He looked like an actor from a Lord of the Rings movie.


    Just then, a few rings went on in his head as multiple notifications greeted his vision.


    *New Quest Granted!*


    [Quest: First Blood - A creature needs to hunt; not only to sustain itself but also to grow. Present yourself worthy of evolution through a successful hunt.]


    Main Objective: Solo kill a higher LVL Monster


    Rewards: Bonus Records


    New Skill Records


    A small smirk crept upon his face.


    Taking a deep breath of the fresh air, Noah clenched his fist around the enarmes. He felt a bit nervous. But more than that, a weird feeling began bubbling up inside of him. A feeling of excitement.

 Chapter 43 - Medieval problems require medieval solutions

    After feeling certain about his arsenal, Noah checked up on his buddies.


    Only to be befuddled by their current state. Ava and Shaun were fumbling around with the leather equipment in their hands.


    The two looked to be having quite a lot of trouble getting in their armor.


    By some unknown method, His thoughts somehow seemed to reach them. For in the very next moment, their pleading eyes turned to him. Noah shook his head at the sight. Though, realizing he had no other choice, he stepped closer to help the two.


    Noah focused on Ava first. Since she was clearly going to be part of the frontline together with him, he needed to be extra careful with her.


    Making slow circles around her, he began giving instructions and only intervened where she couldn''t do it on her own. He made sure they themselves were doing the bulk of work just so those two wouldn''t depend on him for this in the future.


    Tightening the straps around her torso and waist, he released the breath he had been holding onto for some time. Looking over, he saw Shaun had been following along all this time.


    Phew...


    Saved him the effort of repeating it for him.


    Now, He just had to point out the few mistakes he noticed, and they would be done.


    ...


    Crossing his arms, Noah nodded with satisfaction as his gaze swept over the two of them.


    Although with some difficulty, they had finally managed to put on their armor.


    Noah mentally patted himself on the back for this one. That was a job well done, even by his standards.


    They appeared fully ready to face any challenges coming their way; their eyes sharp and focused. It''s amusing how the addition of just a few inches of leather protection affects people''s psyche.


    While he was busy in his thoughts, both had started appraising their weaponry, including a short recurve bow in Shaun''s hand and a long sword in Ava''s.


    He still couldn''t find any dagger or anything of that sort on them, which felt very odd to him.


    "Why aren''t you two picking up a dagger?"


    He wasn''t one to shy away from presenting his thoughts, especially when it concerned their safety.


    "What do you mean?" "For what reason?" The two looked perplexed by his question.


    "To use, of course." Noah''s eyes rolled up upon hearing their responses. Especially the one from Ava; the ignorance behind that statement.


    He gave a long sigh of resignation.


    "What''s with the sigh, HUH?" Ava recognized that sigh. And safe to say she wasn''t a fan. Especially considering what comes after.


    "This should do, shouldn''t it?" Whereas Shaun was genuinely curious regarding what was the problem with their current choice.


    Noah began explaining the reasoning behind his advice.


    "I don''t know about you guys, but I''m not going in there to hunt down the big baddies. Still, I know to take something extra when trying to venture into someplace that dangerous."


    His posture switched to one of a lecturer as he stood straight with his feet shoulder wide and flat on the ground. One hand went to his waist and the other pointed straight at them as he began his tirade.


    "I see nothing other than that bow. What are you going to do with that toothpick when something big takes fancy on you? Try to bash its head with that. You should know better, no? A dagger is pretty much essential when venturing out in the wilderness. I thought this much should be basic knowledge to you. He didn''t ram any of this in your mind?"


    "Go easy on me, will you? Just because I live with him, it doesn''t mean I would magically know all this. You know he isn''t there at home most of the time." Shaun put up his hands in front as he tried putting up excuses, but he knew the reality of the situation.


    "Is that so? It didn''t feel that way to me when I came over. I distinctly remember getting bombarded with loads of tidbits and trivia during the brief time I was there alone with him. Man, that was exhausting to deal with, now that I think about it."


    "Sorry about that, he can be a bit of a pain."


    Ava deliberately and loudly cleared her throat in order to stop their repartee.


    "Who''re you two talking about? Let me in on it, will ya?"


    The two glanced at each other before Noah instantly stepped back.


    "Go ahead, I would let you have the honor." He was more than happy to give him the spotlight on this one.


    Shaun shook his head left and right. This guy...


    "Sure, sure. Well...you see, he...my guardian is a bit of a peculiar identity. How do I say this?" He was scratching his chin, unsure how to proceed further.


    "You may have seen him on social media. In fact, I would say he''s quite a celebrity on the internet. Have you heard of..."


    "Drake Falcon?"


    ...


    "Ahhh-choo"


    At the same instant, Galaxies apart from their current location, on a distant planet, and in the middle of a dense jungle, a burly human sneezed. He looked to be in his early 30s. The man donned in hunter garbs was taking a rest at the moment. A bloodied spear was lying just beside where he was sitting.


    The man reached out with his blood-drenched hand and wiped his nose. Though he stopped halfway, realizing the mess he made on his face.


    "For Cern''s sake, is Shaun talking crap about me right now?"


    He felt an urgent need to do something about all the blood.


    Tilting his head up slightly, he began taking in all the surrounding smells. Through his recently gained beast-like sense of smell, he sniffed out a source of water near him.


    He was about to make a run straight in that direction. However, he quickly paused in his tracks upon remembering the hunt. Swiveling his head around, his sight focused on the corpse of a saber-toothed tiger the size of a bison lying at a foot''s distance from him.


    "Can''t forget about you, can we?"


    Bending down, he placed his grip around the carcass. With a single solid pull, he lifted it with ease and put it on his shoulder. Then, using his foot as a hook, he launched his spear upwards and caught it with his free hand.


    Now, with a monster carcass in tow, he headed towards the water source to clean himself up after the successful hunt.


    ...


    "Who??" Ava answered back, the name not ringing any bells in her mind.


    "You don''t know him?" "What?" Her response baffled the two.


    "Not really, I just vaguely remember his name coming up a lot in news for his "stunts". I don''t really spend much time on social media. Much less follow that sort of content." She shrugged.


    "Well, there''s nothing much else to know. He''s known for surviving like a cockroach in the harshest places on Earth. Still...no socials. Really? Not even a little?" This was news to Noah. Been almost two years since they first met and he was still learning something new about her every day.


    "I mean..." she said, "I have a few accounts which I use from time to time just to keep up with the world. But other than that, I don''t think so."


    "Whoa, we found a dinosaur here today, folks." Noah''s brain couldn''t comprehend how someone in this day and age could be so out of touch. Someone forgot to add the one to the 20th century. In fact, the 22nd century itself was around the corner, just shy of knocking on their doorsteps.


    "Wait a minute. " His eyes widened as he continued, "this means all those times you joined in on the trendy stuff with the "popular" folks. You were just masquerading as someone else, weren''t you?"A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    "You might not know this, but there''s something known as socialization that you need to do when living in a society." Ava''s eyes deflected momentarily before she retorted back.


    "We''re deviating from the topic." Shaun tried to steer the conversation back.


    "There''s not much else to be said, really. She''s been exposed."


    "Listen here...Noah." Ava was inwardly seething for a moment before she hurriedly calmed herself down. "You seem to keep forgetting about yourself. Is a single shield and dagger enough to handle the big baddies you mentioned? Now, I would gladly handle it all with Shaun here, but babysitting you will be too much, even for us. Right, Shaun?" She made sure to pat Shaun on the shoulder multiple times just to drive the point to Noah.


    Shaun facepalmed out of habit. These two just can''t settle down for a second.


    "That''s because I haven''t yet found something fitting in my grip. I have giant hands, see?" He showed his large palms out to the two just so they can''t rebut his claim.


    "If that is true, you better hurry. I don''t think there is much left to choose." Using his thumb, Shaun pointed at the equipment crates, now running out of weapons.


    Noah adopted a thinking pose as he contemplated his present choices before something came to the forefront of his mind.


    He smacked himself on the head. How could he forget about that?


    Doing a sudden turnaround, he dashed out of the field.


    "Hey! Where are you going?" Shaun reached out a bit too late to catch him while Ava remained stunned by his sudden flight.


    "Just remembered something. You two can go on first. I will catch up." Noah waved to them without looking back.


    His destination: Anvil Artisans


    ...


    The morning goers surrounded the central town plaza like a giant wave, waiting to engulf the commercial district. As soon as the market opens up, the wave will begin flowing and branch itself in all directions.


    A significant part of the traffic usually diverts from the road he was currently taking.


    Storming through the streets, he dashed towards the Forge.


    As he approached the property, his eyes lit up. The setting felt magical, as always.


    Smoke bellowed from a large flue. The comforting smell of burning oak filled the air and warmed his spirit. As he approached the aged storefront, he felt caught in time. There was nothing to suggest that he haven''t warped back to the 17th century.


    Other than the fact that there were fantastical carriage beasts, Demi-humans, and whatnot roaming around.


    A narrow dirt road led to the salvage line in the back, and the fabled Anvil sign sat above the entrance. The backdrop was something out of a postcard as vibrant, large trees encircled the store''s back.


    The clanks of steel became louder as he got closer.


    The Blacksmiths were already working. Their discipline was clearly on point. He couldn''t help but feel invigorated.


    After spending almost a week here, it felt nice to be here. To come back every day with renewed vigor to learn something fresh and exciting.


    Old metal light shades hung from the wall, inside which resided crystal lamps similar to those at the Inn. Their light was soft and appealing to the eyes.


    On the other hand, the morning was getting brighter by the minute.


    Gul was a strong and hulking beast of a man and thus easily spotted from distance. He found him swinging his hammer with brute force. That much force was unnecessary unless...


    Noah was able to judge from a single glance that the forge was not completely heated up.


    Did the firewood got soaked by yesterday''s showers?


    As he entered further, he could see the soft glow of the flames play on his face helmet as he prodded the timber with a large steel rod. The radiant heat became stronger as he got closer.


    "She is taking a while to fire up. Looks like I need to replace the wood." He mumbled, though his loud voice left little missing from his ears.


    Embers flew up from the flames; as they traveled upward with the heat and extinguished like shooting stars.


    Gul looked unfazed to see him here so early in the morning.


    "Give me a minute, Noah!" he said in a jolly voice upon sensing his presence. Then, without elaborating anything, he stood up and headed in the direction of the storage room.


    Noah stood still, confused by Gul''s actions. He hadn''t yet spoken a single word to him.


    Shrugging, he focused his thoughts and begin searching around.


    The store walls were decorated with tools of war that would go back decades, if not more. Every wall was decked with enchanting weapons, each looking more magical than the ones before it.


    Though that was not what he had come here for. Giving a brief look at the workbench, he didn''t see it lying there.


    Where is it? It should be somewhere around here.


    He began rummaging through the crates, still not finding his prized toy.


    By now, the sun had taken over from the light of the fire and the lamps. The moisture and dust in the air glowed in the sunlight like a pathway into the Forge.


    Soon, his ears picked up Gul''s clomping steps approaching him from behind. Noah dusted his hands off and stood up from his crouched position.


    Turning himself around, he came face-to-face with the giant. His heavy leather apron and face mask made him look menacing.


    If only one hadn''t spent their last week toiling under his tutelage. Then, this display of intimidation was nothing short of annoying.


    Gul pulled up the helmet cover and made his smirking face visible to him.


    A chill went down Noah''s spine as his mind jumped around in a frenzy, trying to figure out the reason behind that smile. Before he could though, Gul threw him the thing he was holding onto behind his back.


    Instinctively, Noah caught onto it.


    Whoa...His arm buckled under the unexpected weight. What the hell.is..this...


    "No way"'' His mouth went agape as his sight rested upon it.


    There lay in his hands a familiar-looking sword nested comfortably in its new scabbard.


    Pulling it out, the blade looked polished and ready to use.


    "Steel Fang" was now engraved upon its spine in the Eqin script.


    "I thought you would prefer to use it," Gul remarked from behind. "instead of just letting it catch dust."


    "You knew I would need it?"


    "C''mon mate, I won''t be much of a mentor if I didn''t know that much."


    Gul could see that Noah''s new possession had completely fascinated him.


    He would have proudly let him keep looking if he wasn''t already late to the venue. Clearing his throat, he pointed at the grandfather clock to let him know.


    Seeing Noah panic and pack up in a flurry before running out made a chuckle escape from him.


    ...


    The rendezvous location was somewhere ahead of the training fields; on the outskirts of town.


    By now the sky was bright, the risen sun had warmed up the trainee''s faces as they stood in lines awaiting their turns.


    Palisade walls blocked their vision into the Creep. Only the soldiers perched up on trees and watchtowers could possibly see through what resided in those woods if they wished to.


    The knights were handling the team distributions along with the stationed Rangers.


    "...Survival. It ties in with resilience and adaptation..." Commander Sanders stood in the front giving them the motivational talk they needed just before jumping into a deadly forest.


    "Why is he taking so long?" Knight Rylee asked Shaun and Ava in a subdued tone, trying his best to not disturb the speech. Yet his tapping toes and folded arms told them enough about his mood.


    "He should be here any moment." Shaun was giving his all to buy as much time as he can.


    Ava was on the lookout for his arrival, not just to keep check but more so because she didn''t wish to be on the receiving end of Knight Rylee''s frigid stare.


    As she swept her gaze across the entire proceedings, she could spot "her" in the corner near the watchtower. There stood a person covered head to toe in a dark cloak. It was the little bit of red spilling out of her hood that gave away her identity to Ava. Their mentor stood beside "her" looking bored out of her mind, even more than usual. Well, she couldn''t blame her. The speech felt like it started ages ago, even to her who was used to this kind of stuff.


    Though, her presence near her confirmed she was indeed looking at "her".


    Looking to wish "her" good luck, her eyes bore into their figures to get "her" attention somehow. Although with no success. Yeah, go figure.


    When she was about to give up, there was a slight movement coming from her mentor''s side.


    She could see her mentor scratch those pointed ears looking like she wanted to just be done and over with her annoying stare. Thereafter, she nudged "her" with her elbow before pointing lazily in her direction.


    They immediately made eye contact and Ava waved at "her" to which she responded back, albeit a bit hesitant.


    Just when she was thinking about approaching "her", a sudden voice made Ava''s thoughts halt in place.


    "What did I miss?" Noah''s whispering into Ava''s ear made her almost jump in fear.


    "Don''t scare me like that. Where were you?" She hissed.


    With overdramatic hand motions, Noah guided her eyes to the ''Steel Fang'' strapped to his back. However, this didn''t seem to excite her much. Instead, she turned back to look at whatever she was looking at before.


    "What ya staring at?" He asked grumpily. The reason being his hopes of showing off his baby were dashed abruptly.


    "I was just saying hello to...my..." She had glanced back only to be astonished to see her ''friend'' absent from her previous position. "...friend."


    It was as if she vanished in the instant her eyes left her. Don''t tell me...not again.


    "friend?" He could see no one that would fit that description where she was looking over, besides a tall woman in a ranger outfit. Y''know the usual one with the lethal bow, arrows, and daggers on display.


    His gaze seem to have caught her attention instantly as the lady stared back at him.


    It couldn''t be her, right?


    She looked to be a D?kk¨¢lfar, as seen from her pointy ears and pale ash skin. Not to mention the silvery-white hair loose around her shoulders.


    Look at him, using big boy words. One thing he was curious about was the race names. Were they the same on Earth?


    So, would Zelus be a Lj¨®s¨¢lfar? Who knows? His memory wasn''t that good. Y''know...to remember the entire Norse mythology.


    "Whatever. Leaving that aside, why is that guy staring at me like he is ready to beat me to a pulp?" Noah stealthily pointed to Knight Rylee beside them.


    "Who knows" she couldn''t be bothered in the slightest to help him after that. Noah turned to Shaun who ignored him the same.


    Looks like he pissed off every single one of them. ''Sigh''


    The time crawled past as the speech continued at a snail''s pace. It was another half an hour or so before it finally came to a close.


    Wasting no more time, Knight Sanders began the roll call, weirdly starting with them.


    "Rylee Blackstein"


    "Follow behind me" He ordered firmly and so they marched onward with him.


    Knight Sanders glanced over at their group and gave everyone a proper look before nodding to Rylee.


    "I will hand over their responsibility to you. Make sure they are safe."


    "Understood, Commander." He saluted in the official knight etiquette; placing his enclosed fist over his chest. Then led the group straight into the Creep.


    ...


    "Urnih Yunniac" Knight Sanders called onto the next roll.


    The dark elf Urnih followed up on the summons as she called over the young girl hiding behind the watchtower.


    "Let''s go"


    "Hmm" the girl affirmed meekly.


    As they were moving along, she probed her out a bit.


    "You know that boy?" Her earlier actions couldn''t help but pique her curiosity.


    "Not really" the girl replied indignantly, much to her surprise.


    "Oh, what''s this?" Urnih tried digging in deeper. "looks like you two got some history."


    "Urni, please." She bit her lip in vexation.


    "Fine, fine, I will leave you be." That was unusual for her. She had yet to see someone evoke that much of a reaction out of her before, maybe besides her other student.


    "Just a reminder though, be careful around him."


    "What do you mean?" It was the girl''s turn to be surprised this time. Her mentor seldom gave her advice, especially a cautionary one.


    "It''s nothing much but..." She peered at Noah''s group in the distance, this time with her Elven magic eyes. The world changed before her eyes as monochrome tones took over the scenery. The town and people were visible in different shades of white and gray. With the exception being the forest canopy which started oozing dark miasma.


    Any common person seeing the miasma would feel a sort of instinctual repulsion and fear. After all, the miasma was comprised of dead spirits and residues.


    Strangely, the same miasma could be seen around that group, centered around Noah specifically.


    Soon after, she saw an illusory haunting figure emerge from black miasma, enveloping Noah completely. The alien evil spirit continuously attempted to consume him. Yet the boy behaved as if it was just wind brushing past him.


    "I got a bad feeling about this"