《A genius of none》 Chapter 0 : A twist of fate # Prologue # "This place is-.....odd. The grass is so green." Said a man. "Duuhh, it''s supposed to be..., I''m not sure where your getting at?" Said another man. "Alex, this isn''t the time to be joking. You''re well aware of what Crow is trying to imply." "I. am. aware. that grass SHOULD be green, Captain Jin." Jin held back the urge to facepalm so hard but-... looking at it differently, maybe it was Alex'' way of coping, given that they found themselves in this incomprehensible situation. "Haaa-...." Crow couldn''t help but sigh, before turning his gaze to Jin. "Do I have to spell it out for him?" "Are you trying to tell me I''m stupid?" He was. Though Jin kept that thought to himself. "I was hoping you''d realize." From the mocking tone of Crow''s voice, it was clear he was making fun out of Alex which in turn rouse a bit of the latter''s ire. "Enough." Said Jin in a commanding voice. "Focus on the mission." Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! "But captain... this is no longer a part of our mission." Protested Crow. "I mean, to put in simpler terms for Alex, maybe-.. we-.. urgh.. I don''t wanna say it." "Just say it." Said Jin, it was better for Alex who wasn''t the sharpest tool in the shed to realize as well. "Haa-....." Sighed Crow. "Well, I meant we''re no longer on earth." He turned to look at Alex. "Happy?" "How do you know for sure?" "I''m detecting higher levels of oxygen than normal. Even the atmospheric condition is optimal, meaning it''s not polluted. That''s why the grass is greener." "Sooo..?" "Earth was already VERY polluted, especially since its already the year 3020 that pollution has reached these levels. And I''m not detecting an ounce of pollution in the atmosphere right now. And-... the gravity is somewhat weaker, which all in all. Points to the fact that we''re no longer in our planet." Crow summed it up perfectly. Initially they were sent on a suicide mission. They were provided with the latest set of the military grade nanosuits equiped with state of the art weaponry readily available via molecular storage devices. The N34 nanosuit. It boast the highest in both offensive and defensive capabilities as well as its many other functionalities. They were supposedly tasked to take out a rouge scientist who was prepared to nuke himself to oblivion together with his captors, and the higher-ups wanted some live test data as well since the N34 nanosuit was just developed very recently. And who else better to send than to send some half-baked mercenaries on a suicide mission? Of course Jin wasn''t bitter about it at all since none of them were forced into this. Except for Crow. But this... this is entirely different than what he''d anticipated. "What''s that?" Said Crow, pulling Jin from his thoughts. He then turned to where Crow was pointing. There were people going towards them. Jin zoomed in to get a better look and what he saw shook him to his very core. "Long ears, pale skin and those model like skin and faces-..." Jin had read enough novels to have an idea at what was heading towards them. "Are those... elves?" Chapter 1 : First Encounter (1) ¡°What should we do?¡± Crow turned to look at his captain, Jin, who was also wearing the N34 nanosuit. They didn¡¯t look anything human, given that their heads were covered in a helmet, and eyes were covered by dark tinted visors. Even more so that their bodies were covered by metallic silver like muscles, which naturally makes it unfamiliar to the denizens of this world. The wheel on Jhin¡¯s head began turning, they weren¡¯t sure how they¡¯d be taken as, and they could just run and hide using their built-in cloaking technology. But, suddenly disappearing might spook them and miss a perfectly good opportunity to know more about this place. But the bigger question was...Could they even communicate? There was only one way to find out. ¡°Crow and Alex move back and cloak, I¡¯ll take point. Ready weapons, but do not engage regardless of hostile actions until I say so or until they reduce shield energies to 30%, got it?¡± ¡°Roger!¡± - Both They were on top of a steep elevation and behind them was a forest, and since the elves weren¡¯t looking in their direction, then they shouldn¡¯t have noticed them yet. A web-like blue hue covered the two before they faded into nothingness. Only Jin remained, never taking his eyes off the crew of three elves approaching him. His heart raced. For all he knew they might blast him to kingdom come or something. They were totally in the dark as to how they got here in the first place, it wasn¡¯t unreasonable to think that alien looking-like individuals like them wouldn¡¯t be receiving a friendly greeting. Still, information was key. And for that, first and foremost, contact was necessary. ¡® Maybe.... Just maybe, this is all a bad joke. ¡® It was all Jin could hope for, in this seemingly absurd situation. The group of three elves consisted of 2 males and 1 female in the center. The three did not seem to carry any sort of weapon but from how fast they ran towards them, it looked as if they were after something. If that was the case, then meeting them suddenly didn¡¯t seem like a good idea. Jin could only hope he was wrong. ¡® Still, they¡¯re slow.. ¡® Jin¡¯s hands were sweaty, the anticipation was killing him. The girl in the center had long blond hair that reached-down to her waist, with two braids at the side. Her eyes were an emerald green and she wore a green sleeveless archer corset, shorts, a pair of uneven black gloves, knee high boots, and a hood. And as expected, she was as beautiful as a model. The moment they were 10-meters in distance away from him. The elves, having noticed Jin for the first time, stopped and glared. ¡°Who and what are you?!¡± The two male elves beside her, both raised a hand, and a ball of flame appeared. Jin was frightened, but the sound of the other two, still cloaked, took up arms and clicked their rifles, reassuring him to a degree. They got his back. ¡® Magic¡­.well the fireball itself shouldn¡¯t be a threat-.but. ¡® He was more shocked to realize that they even spoke the same language. But at least that was for the better, he didn¡¯t know what to do if they couldn¡¯t communicate. ¡°Answer!¡± Jin turned to look at the source of the demanding tone, and his movement made the two elves beside her twitch in fear, increasing the size of the floating ball of flame from the size of a fist, to the size of a ball. From how they reacted, it was clear they were shaken up from his appearance. He couldn¡¯t blame them, looking at the N32 nano-suit was intimidating if you didn¡¯t know what it was. But maybe he could use that intimidation to his advantage. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Jin stood tall, chin-up and assumed a confident and dominant stance. The three stared daggers at him. ¡°I¡¯m Jin, and as for what I am, a human.¡± Their expressions turned to one of shock, then turned to one of disgust. That wasn¡¯t the reaction he¡¯d expected at all. ¡°Kill him!¡± ¡®!?¡¯ Adrenaline shot through his veins. The ball of flame fired like an arrow, Jhin stepped to the side and dodged with minimal movement. The fireball flew by, missing him by a couple of inches. It was slower than he¡¯d expected. The three elves were staring at him, wide-eyed. They couldn¡¯t believe what just happened. ¡°Again!¡± The sharp and commanding tone from the blond elf, woke the two. This time, the three of them formed a ball of flame in their palms, pointing at Jin. ¡°Stop or else.¡± Commanded Jin, his voice deeper and robotic. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ¡®He-...He¡¯s definitely not human..¡¯ Erelia, the blond haired elf thought. The three had flinched and stopped the moment he said those few but very threatening words. From he¡¯s calm dodging from before and, now the very threatening voice that had absolute confidence, it was as if they were dealing with something else entirely. Something that wasn¡¯t human. This made the hair on Erelia¡¯s skin stand on end and made her cautious. ¡°You¡¯re not human, are you?¡± She pointed out. The human-like metallic thing that resembled the figure of a very muscular person ignored the question and presented his own. ¡°You asked, I answered. Then you attack me... Do you think you have the liberty of asking another question?¡± Jin said, menacingly. Normally Erelia wouldn¡¯t have a second thought than outright blasting him if he really was human and be done with it, but this man, though claiming to be ¡®human¡¯ was clearly not. Besides the reflexes and calm he displayed, no human would ever talk down on an elf. ¡°What do we do?¡± Asked the elven man with green hair, a hint of urgency in his voice. For all Erelia knows, he could just be a demon in disguise or something else entirely. They couldn¡¯t move carelessly. And having gotten off on the wrong foot, it was even likely that that humanoid thing, could attack them. Even worse was the fact that they didn¡¯t know what it was capable of which severely worried Erelia. ¡°For now, we simply need to know what he wants.¡± Replied Erelia, before turning to look at the steel humanoid. ¡°As for your question, it was merely inevitable when you claimed you were human. Need I say more?¡± The steel humanoid was silent for a moment. ¡°How come?¡± The confusion in his tone was clear. ¡°You¡­ really don¡¯t know??¡± ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± Said the steel humanoid. ¡°Erelia¡­ we do not have the luxury of dealing with this, it is clear he doesn¡¯t know anything so he¡¯s not human. We need to find those humans who ran from us and be done with it.¡± Whispered the blue haired elven man. He was right. ¡°Then we need not to concern ourselves with you. As long as you don¡¯t stand in our way, then we will leave it at that.¡± Said Erelia, giving the two elven men a quick glance before the two lowered their hands and the moment they did, the ball of flames in the air, disappeared just as quickly. The steel humanoid was silent again. And after the silence, he said. ¡°Do you really think you can just leave after hurling that fireball at me?¡± His words irritated her. ¡°Tsk. Then what? You want compensation of some sort? Don¡¯t be stupid, you claimed to be a human so it was only to be expected.¡± ¡°Then I want to know why it¡¯s only to be expected. Then we¡¯ll be even.¡± Erelia thought for a moment. Delaying this any further would only serve to delay their mission even further. ¡°Fi-¡± She suddenly noticed a hooded silhouette from the forest, behind where the steel-humanoid stood. Watching them. ¡°!¡± The hooded silhouette and Erelia made eye contact, making the hooded silhouette bolt at full speed. Erelia pointed and shouted. ¡°It¡¯s the humans. After them!¡± the two elven men gave chase and Erelia addressed the steel-humanoid. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you later, wait for me if you wish however, there is something we have to do right now.¡± She didn¡¯t make in movements seeing as the humanoid didn¡¯t give its answer yet, however- It nodded. Seemingly understanding her circumstances. She then gave chase as well, carefully eyeing the humanoid just in case he did something. But he simply let her pass and did nothing. What was that about? She thought. She couldn¡¯t get around what that thing was, but since it didn¡¯t give chase to them then it only led her to believe that it wasn¡¯t in anyway related to the humans. They did pass by this place, so it was impossible that the humanoid wouldn¡¯t have seen them. Erelia shook her head, now wasn¡¯t the time to think about it. She re-focused on her goal as she simply resolved herself to address the mysterious creature another time, but she did however promise herself that she¡¯d talk to the creature and answer its question after her mission. Chapter 2: First Encounter (2) ¡°Tail them while remaining cloaked.¡± Ordered Jin, a web-like blue hue surrounded him as well before he disappeared from plane sight. His vision then turned to a deep red, and he saw the other two, Alex and Crow who was also cloaked. He¡¯d turned on his thermal vision so they could see each other. The three then began chasing after the elves, and while they were on their backs, Jin saw a window on his screen appear. He saw the face of a man with crew cut pitch black hair, dark eyes with a brow arched up. This was Crow, and how he actually looked without the suit on. [ So why¡¯d you let them go if we¡¯re just going to follow-them? ] [ I enhanced the audio detection in the suit when they whispered to each other, and apparently, they¡¯re chasing some humans.] Replied Jin, implying something. [I see...] Said Crow his expression relaxing a bit. He didn¡¯t need to be told anything else to know what it was for. It was clear that Jin wanted to see how it would play out between the races as they haven¡¯t met any other humans yet, it was a perfect way to understand their relationship with one another. With that in mind, they¡¯d probably gather more intel, than just conversing with the unwilling elves. [I still can¡¯t believe this is all real¡­] The goofy voice belonged to Alex, a bald african-american man, whose face popped up as a small screen in front of Jin, the same way it did for Crow. This was how they communicated with each other without having to be heard from the outside, since the nanosuit is actually sound-proof, they use audio detectors and built-in speakers as a medium between the suit and the outside which was how Jin was able to communicate with the Elves, but if they need to communicate amongst themselves, then they only need to use the communicators. [ Well.... ] Said Jin, before adding on. [ I know this is all really surreal, but what choice do we have, other than to believe it?] And though the three kept on a stoic expression. Jin could tell that the other two were feeling just as anxious as he was. And as much as he¡¯d like to just sit around and have time to contemplate things, he couldn¡¯t. He felt lost, and it was quite clear that the other two felt the same way. As the leader of the team, he had to give them commands to at least give them a sense of direction. Even if, he himself didn¡¯t exactly know why they¡¯re even here in the first place. [ But...what about the mission? ] Asked Alex, in an uneven tone. Jin glanced at him. [ It doesn¡¯t matter. Not anymore. ] Replied Jin, before saying. [ But-.. right now, we need to focus on our current mission. And that¡¯s, to find out more as to what the hell is happening, and that¡¯s exactly why were following them, to find out anything we can. ] [ Yeah.... ] Said Crow before adding on. [ Guys, it seems like they¡¯ve found their target.] Jin raised a fist, the footsteps behind him went quiet. There was a clearing in the middle of the forest, and at the center of the clearing were two hooded people. One, carried a basket behind containing yellow colored fruits that resembled eggplants and other strange looking fruits, he had large frame but from the look of his hands, it was clear he was thin man. The other hooded individual was smaller, with a petite frame and from the tone of her skin and hip to waist proportion, it was clear she was a woman. The two hooded individuals were surrounded by the three elves. Each elves had their palm raised, pointing the very same fist sized fireball they had pointed earlier at Jin, the two. [ Stand by and ready non-lethal incapacitating rounds. ] The two gave one another an odd look, before nodding. It was then that Jin slowly headed towards the two hooded individuals. ---------- ¡°Surrender the fruits you thieving humans, and perhaps we will give you a swift death.¡± Said Erelia in a demanding tone. The hooded man stood in-front of the girl and raised an arm, protecting her. ¡°Please, let her go and just kill me instead! It was my idea! Please Ms.Elf!¡± Pleaded the man and much to his horror, his plea was met with an exasperated sigh from the elves. The red haired elven man shook his head. ¡°If you wanted her to live, you should¡¯ve thought twice before bringing her and taking her with you to steal from us.¡± The man clenched his fist in frustration. ¡°Grr.. but we had no choice!! We¡¯re-.. Our families are going to starve!¡±This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°Enough human.¡± Erelia¡¯s tone became dark and oppressing. Her gaze was one directed to a bug, rather than a living being. And just from him talking back to her, fed her up. ¡°I¡¯d have preferred and refrained from burning the fruits, however, if you do not hand it over now, then it can¡¯t be helped.¡± ¡°Geh.! No-.. noo! Please don¡¯t!¡± The man pleaded again and this time he knelt and clasped his two hands as if he was praying. ¡°Please spare us!¡± The hooded woman also pleaded and knelt down. Seeing this, something seemed to snap in Erelia as she hurled the fireball to the humans,the two fired theirs as well. ¡°Nooooooooooooooo!!!!!¡± The man screamed at the top of his lungs as he jumped and hugged the girl, in a vain attempt to protect her before the fireball reached them. The fireballs exploded in a violent manner, sending a shockwave and creating a thick veil of smoke and dust. It was clear from the combined power of the three fireballs that they were as powerful as a grenade. And what Erelia heard, shocked her. It was the soft sound of whimpering and crying. They shouldn¡¯t have been able to make a sound, not after a direct hit. Erelia thought she might¡¯ve narrowly missed them, but they should be severely injured. She channeled a fireball again in her palm, this time intending to finish the job. She waited for the smoke to clear, and the moment it did, what she saw next shook her to her very core. Her hairs stood on end at the sight of a muscular silver humanoid, standing there with an arm raised. It was surrounded by a mystical transparent blue hue of light forming a dome around it. Impossible. It was truly an impossible sight. But she had no choice but to believe her eyes. The ground around the blue hue of light was devastated by the explosion, but everything inside the dome of light was untouched and unharmed, including the two hooded individuals. Never had she seen anything like this before. The hooded man who was clutching on the girl with all of his might. Felt something was odd. He should be dead. He slowly opened his eyes, and there he saw the silver muscular humanoid in front of them. ¡°Wha-what??¡± His face and voice was filled with confusion, he then noticed the faint blue hue of light that surrounded him, and in that instant, he realized. He was saved. A great flood of relief flooded over him and his eyes clouded over, droplets of water forming. But that feeling soon faded and turned to one of sheer terror when a sharp voice called out. ¡°Why did you save them?!¡± The man looked at the silver humanoid in fear and in awe. He couldn¡¯t voice out his opinions because it felt like something was stuck in his throat. But his pleading gaze was enough to tell what he wanted. The silver humanoid then turned to look at him, where eyes should¡¯ve been, was instead a dark visor of some sort. Not that he knew what it was. It then turned its gaze on the elven woman. ¡°Take em out.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Erelia¡¯s eyes widened. It wasn¡¯t the answer she¡¯d expect as she was about to voice her opinion, a sound of dart being fired reached her ears. *Fwhoop* *Fwhoop* *Fwhoop* It was then she felt something stuck to her shoulder, and her vision started to blur. She suddenly had an uncontrollable urge to sleep, her body fell tired and she fell to the ground. Her gaze was directed to the silver humanoid. She burned its image in her mind before she fell asleep. It wasn¡¯t just her, the two other elves were also down on the ground. The sight was unbelievable to the two hooded individuals. They were flabbergasted. They both couldn¡¯t fight an elf alone, and now this thing took down three in a blink of an eye. ¡°T-thank you.. Thank you!¡± Shouted the man but as soon as the silver humanoid turned its gaze towards him, he was filled with terror. He realized, this wasn¡¯t human, and definitely not an elf nor any race that he knew off. It was in the heat of the moment that his brain didn¡¯t register. But now that he took a good look at it, his brain registered that it was a mysterious and yet powerful being. His mind became a mess. It was then that the thing looked at him from top to bottom, before turning its gaze to the woman, who had hid herself behind him. He also eyed her from top to bottom before saying. ¡°You two are unharmed. That¡¯s good.¡± Said the humanoid in a somewhat relieved tone. A sense of relief again hit the hooded man. From its words, and from its actions from before, it was clear it wasn¡¯t out to get them. ¡°Our benefactor¡­ thank you for saving us¡­ but-... it might seem rude to ask but,... uhm.¡± The hooded man paused, feeling a grip on his strong grip on his arm. He looked behind, it was from the girl who was shaking her head, telling him he shouldn¡¯t saying anymore. ¡°You were gonna ask what I am?¡± The two flinched. ¡°N-noo... definitely not. That would be rude.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind answering your question though, but before that, let¡¯s move. I merely put them to sleep.¡± The humanoid turned its gaze to the three elves before gazing back at him. ¡°They¡¯ll probably wake up in an hour so we need to get out of here.¡± Realizing the implication, the hooded man clenched his fist. ¡°But if they¡¯re asleep, then couldn¡¯t we¡­. Kill them?¡± his gaze was filled with hate and anger to the point that his clenched fist began to shake. The humanoid looked at him. Was it contemplating something? He decided to explain. ¡°I mean, we at least have that right since they also tried to murder me and my daughter!¡± The humanoid was silent, before shaking its head. ¡°Until we get answers from you. No one is killing anyone.¡± Said the humanoid in a soft but firm tone. ¡°Now, let¡¯s move before they wake up.¡± The hooded man simply grit his teeth. He knew he had no choice. He didn¡¯t want to incur the wrath of the mysterious being so he simply nodded his head before gazing at his daughter, who also nodded her head in affirmation. ¡°Right¡­ let¡¯s go.¡± Chapter 3 : A new world ¡°This is far enough.¡± Said Jin, stopping before looking around. They were in a clearing deep within the forest with a river flowing nearby. He looked around and he could see that the trees twisted and turned in a strange way and not one of them was anything he¡¯d ever seen before. Reinforcing the fact that this was in fact a strange new world, different from Earth. ¡°Haa-...Haaaa...haaa-...¡± The hooded man took some time to catch his breath before looking at Jin with an odd gaze. ¡°Uhmm¡­ benefactor--¡± ¡°Jin.¡± interrupted Jin. ¡°Call me Jin.¡± The hooded man nodded then looked back at Jin with an anxious gaze. ¡°Right. Sir Jin, uhmm¡­ why did you help us?¡± Jin became silent. He¡¯d initially wanted to hear more of conversation between this man and the elves, but he also prepared if things went south. He couldn¡¯t just stand there and watch another human being getting killed for no reason at all. It was common sense. But thinking about it now, maybe he could get something out of this ordeal he found himself in. ¡°Uhmm..¡± Jin looked at the other hooded individual, the woman. He¡¯d forgotten she was there because she¡¯d been silent for a while now. It was then that Jin had realized his silence must¡¯ve made them uneasy. He cleared his throat before saying, ¡°Sorry, I was just lost in thought. Anyway,¡± Jin thought some more, what was the first thing he¡¯d wanted to ask them. Would they even answer him? Jin hoped so. After all, he just saved them from getting blown to bits so they should be grateful right? Even Jin wouldn¡¯t lie to someone who¡¯d save him if he was about to lose his life¡­.but that¡¯s assuming if he didn¡¯t want to die in the first place. Oh well, it never hurt to ask did it? And the first thing that Jin thought about asking was, ¡°What is this place?¡± The hooded man and girl looked to one another, before the man responded, somewhat unsure. ¡°The forest of Lemar, sir Jin.¡± ¡°No. No. Sorry, let me rephrase that. What¡¯s this entire place called, what¡¯s the planet¡¯s name?¡± The hooded man stared oddly at Jin. ¡°S-sorry sir Jin but, what¡¯s this thing called ¡®planet¡¯? ¡± [Seriously? They don¡¯t even know what a planet is?] said Alex, his screen popping-up in the side of Jin¡¯s screen. [Well, they¡¯re wearing clothing that resembles clothing from the dark ages. Maybe they haven¡¯t discovered planets yet? ] said Crow, his face popping-up besides Alex¡¯Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. Jin ignored the two and continued asking. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s just another term we use to refer to the world.¡± ¡°Ohh, the world. I see, in that case--¡± The hooded man went quiet, it was strange to him that someone wouldn¡¯t know what the name of the world was. But since he didn¡¯t see any demerits in saying something that almost everyone knew, he continued. ¡°Aurelia. It¡¯s Aurelia.¡± Jin felt a boom in his heart, butterflies in his stomach. They really were in fact in another world. [ Shhiiiieeeeeetttt¡­.] - Alex Crow was silent. As Jin was taking his time to process everything in his head, the concerned voice of the hooded man brought him back to reality. ¡°Sir Jin I¡¯m sorry to ask, but¡­ what exactly are you?¡± What should he say? He could say tell them honestly or he could say something entirely different. If he¡¯d say he was human, they probably wouldn¡¯t believe unless he showed himself underneath the suit. But even then, maybe it was better to hide the fact that he was human since it seemed like there was more to being ¡®human¡¯ than simply being an asshole to the entire world. Jin was lost in thought. He then looked to the left of his screen where he could see the faces of his two comrade while they were actually cloaked. [ Stop lookin at me like that. You¡¯re the captain, think of something.] Said Alex, clearly displaying the fact that he didn¡¯t like to think about complicated things. [You could simply say we¡¯re the race called ¡®aliens¡¯ and continue to interrogate-... err I mean ask them some questions.] Said Crow. A fine suggestion. ¡°I¡¯m called an ¡®alien¡¯ ¡± said Jin. ¡°Oh, and I wanted to know why the elves would just kill you over some stolen fruits.¡± The hooded man clenched his fist. Clearly there was something about the question that frustrated him. ¡°It¡¯s natural for elves and beastmen to be like that to us humans¡­ after all, we don¡¯t have magic like the elves and we don¡¯t have the strength of the beastmen. To them, we¡¯re merely ants that they step on everyday. Us humans-... are just, really, really weak.¡± Said Jin bitterly. The hooded girl clenched the hem of her cloak as well. Seeing the two somehow shocked Jin. ¡®Humanity is weak??¡¯ such a thought never occurred to Jin ever since he was born. And that was because of the sole fact that humanity had advanced so much, that everything was under their control. Everything except the frontiers of space. Humanity was the apex predator back on Earth. But here they were weak?? Jin had no choice but to swallow that fact. He¡¯d already seen them beg for their lives and they didn¡¯t even fight back. What other choice did Jin have other than to believe them? It was clear that humanity here might lack the technologies they possessed on Earth. ¡°I see..¡± Said Jin but as soon as he was about to ask another question he noticed the hooded man¡¯s lips move. ¡°Sorry to distract you sir Jin but we need to go, it¡¯ll be night soon.¡± Said the man with a bit of urgency in his voice as he looked up at the sky. Jin looked to the time in his screen and it was still 3:00 pm, that¡¯d be far from night time. Though this was a new world entirely different from earth so the time of earth may not hold true to the residence of this world as well, looking at the sky it was clear it was still in the middle of the afternoon. ¡°Is something wrong? Isn¡¯t it far from night time though?¡± ¡°T-that¡¯s true...¡± Said the man visibly shaken, ¡°but as I¡¯ve said, we humans are weak. We don¡¯t have the magic of the elves and the physical abilities of the beastmen so we might not reach home before dark out.¡± Seeing the man¡¯s reaction, it was clear he was afraid of the night. Making Jin wonder, ¡°Why? What happens at night?¡± The man, and his daughter too, both looked at Jin with widened eyes. The man spoke. ¡°Don¡¯t you know about the demons?¡± Chapter 4: The world of Aurelia Upon hearing the word demons, Jin unconsciously looked at Alex and Crow¡¯s face. From the look of their faces it seems like they too were thinking the same thing as Jin. ¡°So these demons¡­ what do they do exactly?¡± Asked Jin, wanting to know if it was something their advanced tech could handle. The hooded girl clenched her fist before the man could speak. ¡°They-... the-¡± The hooded man began stuttering. His eyes darted around and his body began shivering. He shook his head. ¡°I-..I¡¯m sorry¡­ I ca-..can¡¯t tell you right now.. I¡¯m sorry¡­ my wife they-... I lost my wife.¡± [ It looks like he¡¯s experiencing some PTSD ] Said Crow. [ Looks like it... ] Replied Jin. It was clear that these people were more scared of the demons than they were with the elves. Clearly, they were bad news. ¡°That¡¯s alright. You don¡¯t have to force it out. ¡± Said Crow, wanting to shift the focus. ¡°So, about these demons. How do you avoid them?¡± The man was still huffing, still somewhat recovering from the PTSD. And in place, the hooded girl answered. ¡°We hide in our home. The demons hate the light¡­. No-.. rather, they can only survive during the night because the light of day would destroy them.¡± [ So kind of like those videos games? ] Commented Alex. [ Or maybe something even worse? ] Added Crow. Clearly, the two were letting their imaginations run wild however, it was the same for Jin as well. The hooded man, having recovered somewhat. Took a deep breath before adding, ¡°Yes, that is the case. That¡¯s why we need to head home. You should too.¡± ¡®Ting!¡¯ Like a bulb lighting in Jin¡¯s head. He somehow thought of a perfect excuse. ¡°I don¡¯t have a home...¡± Said Jin dejectedly, trying to gain their sympathy and taking advantage of the fact that they owed him their lives. ¡°Could you let me stay in yours? At least, just for the night.¡± Hearing the steel humanoid¡¯s plea, the two flinched. Then looked at one another with a worried look. ¡°Sir Jin.. I¡¯m¡­ very sorry but-¡± ¡°But father-...he saved us.¡± Said the hooded girl, cutting the hooded man, her father. The man closed his lips before looking over at the steel humanoid then looking back to his daughter. ¡®He¡¯s clearly hesitant. But what for?¡¯ Jin thought. If it was inviting a man who just saved your and your daughter¡¯s asses, logic dictated that he¡¯d at least let him stay for the night. At least, to Jin it didn¡¯t seem like an unreasonable request.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°But-..¡± Said the man, still looking back and forth between his now frowning daughter and Jin. [ Maaan¡­ this guy is selfish! You should¡¯ve let him get roasted Captain. ] Said Alex in irritation before adding on. [ We saved him, right? How hard is it to- ] [Shut up Alex. The captain knows what he¡¯s doing¡­ I hope.] Said Crow with uncertainty in his voice. Jin ignored the two and quietly stared at the man. He could always just cloak like Alex and Crow then follow the two, but Jin wanted to see if he could just be invited in rather than snoop around. That way he can continue to ask questions and know more about this world called ¡®Aurelia¡¯. The man still seemed hesitant, it took a bit of time before he finally uttered something. ¡°Sir Jin, really.. I can¡¯t thank you enough for protecting me and my daughter. But, I just can¡¯t take you with us.¡± His daughter flinched. Then she took her hood off, revealing short messy brown hair and hazel eyes. Jin felt that her appearance gave off the impression of a hard working farm girl who wasn¡¯t afraid of dirt and mud. Her brows were furrowed and creases were formed between her brows. It was clear that she was quite irritated. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you!¡± The girl said, yelling at her father. ¡°Are you really gonna leave sir Jin like this? After what he¡¯s done for us?? Seriously???¡± The man, her father, opened and closed his mouth a few times. His words couldn¡¯t come out. He didn¡¯t know what to say. At this point Jin was already weighing on his mind whether he¡¯d just let them go and stalk them or continue this charade. The former was sounding more plausible as of now. ¡°Sir Jin¡­¡± The man spoke softly. He lowered his hood, and just like the girl. He had brown hair with hazel eyes. However, he had sunken cheeks and tired eyes. He looked like a hobo who hadn¡¯t eaten in days. Even Jin, Alex and Crow were taken aback by how he looked as the three never expected to see a malnourished man underneath that hood. But despite his appearance, he looked directly at Jin¡¯s visors with a firm conviction. ¡° It¡¯s not that I¡¯m ungrateful of what you¡¯ve done.. It¡¯s just that-.. I can¡¯t endanger everyone else just for my own selfishness.¡± ¡®Everyone else?¡¯ It was at that moment that Jin was starting to realize why this man was being so difficult. He¡¯d originally thought that the ¡®home¡¯ that the girl was referring to was a house with only the two of them. It seems that there was more to it than just a simple home. ¡°I see.¡± Replied Jin, thinking of having one last attempt at it. ¡°I can promise you I won¡¯t be any sort of danger, and that I can even protect you, your daughter and everyone else. At least, during for the night that I¡¯ll stay-¡± Hearing the word ¡®protect¡¯ the man¡¯s eyes quivered. ¡°-but I won¡¯t force you.¡± Continued Jin before adding on, ¡°If you feel like I¡¯ll be a danger then I¡¯ll simply leave you alone. And this will be the last time we¡¯ll see each other.¡± The man looked at his daughter who squeezed his hand tighter. Her gaze seemed to be pleading her father, hoping he¡¯ll accept. Jin crossed his arms. He was hoping the man was going to accept, since it¡¯ll save him the hassle of cloaking. The man still seemed to hesitate, but this time it looked like he was properly weighing the other option as well. He¡¯d seen first hand that Jin had blocked the fireball spells of the elves with ease, and he took down the three just as easily. Having the protection of the steel humanoid was quite the tempting offer. But the same could be true to Jin and his daughter. If he carelessly let this strange creature inside his home, who knows what the consequences would be. If elves were easy to this thing, how much more a helpless human like Jin? The problem was the fact that he was completely unaware that underneath the N34 nanosuit, Jin was fully human. ¡°So what¡¯ll it be?¡± Said Jin. The man clenched his fist, seemingly having made his decision. ¡°Then¡­ let¡¯s go.¡±