《Averagely Average [Progression, Isekai]》


 Chapter 1: My second chance

    Chapter 1: My second chance


    <blockquote>


    <em style="font-family: var(--rx-font-text)">I was there when the Hero reached the culmination of his journey but refused to do his duty. The Hero was supposed to be the most righteous one of us all, yet even for him the prospect of inheriting the power of a dead god was too appealing to decline.


    The previous owner of the Throne sought to unite this world. She may have been a bit naive in her ideals, but it was something everyone could get behind. Taking her place, the Hero pursued the path of a tyrant. He sentenced all other otherworlders to death to avoid any hindrances on his path to godhood. Even though some of us had reached the pinnacle of strength, with our ambition reflecting on the night sky as a star, the ceiling always existed. With the Throne, the Hero rewrote the rules in his favor. I wish that I could have stood against him, made him change his ways, but I was too weak. In order to avoid The Madness, I could do nothing but run and hide.


    The Hero''s journey ended in failure. But I have always been a firm believer of the good guys triumphing in the end. If only an otherworlder who does not fall for the allure of power arrives at this world to finish what the Hero could not, then perhaps the universe can still be saved.


    But I should know better. No one is coming to save us. Heroism is dead, and our god died with it. So who am I praying to?


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    No one likes to be average. "You have to be extraordinary, otherwise you are a failure."


    There it was again. Tom always had that one reoccurring dream. He would be sitting in the middle of a large room, whilst everyone he had ever known stood around him. This was his punishment for wasting his life. They would berate him, especially his parents, yet it never hurt as much as when his little sister looked at him with her empty eyes. She looked up to him, he knew that, but how would she act when she realized there was nothing to look up to?


    He tried to push all those thoughts away. His exams were coming up soon. He couldn''t afford to break down before it.


    [Request for DREAM received]


    [Validating¡­]


    [Validating¡­]


    [Request denied]


    [ERROR. Request requires permission from ADMIN]


    [ADMIN status: UNKNOWN]


    "Huh?" He couldn''t quite make it out, but it felt like he could see something in corner of his subconscious.


    [???? Has requested access to ???? with PERMISSION SLIP]


    [Validating¡­]


    [Validating¡­]


    [Access granted by ADMIN]


    [¡­]


    [Request granted]


    He figured it must have been a bad dream from all the stress, so he rolled to the side to go back to sleep, but his bed felt strangely uncomfortable.


    Then he felt a sudden wave of cold wash over his body.


    "How could you throw cold water at him without discerning his background?"


    "Soldier. This is the battlefield, not the backside of a bar."


    Feeling the hard surface against his skin, Tom realized he was outside laying on the ground. "H-Huh? Where am I?" Tom squinted his eyes open, adjusting them to the light to see who was arguing. The first person was a short old man with a bushy white beard. He was wearing a purple uniform and a blue tophat almost covering his entire head. The other person was a blonde haired guy wearing a similar uniform, but it seemed as if someone had thrown several different buckets of paint on his clothes.


    The old man took a step closer to Tom. "Perfect. You are finally awake. Please save everyone the trouble and speak your name." The old man demanded.


    Tom nervously nodded. "My name is Tom."


    The old man looked him up and down, mumbling something to himself. "Hm, let me see. Brown hair, green eyes, the smell of alcohol, an ugly face, and a terrible attitude. You have to be the rumored Tomassio, son of Duke Rossi. You are late."


    Toma-who-now? Also, did he say Duke? "Wait, I am sorry but¡ª."


    "Ha! I knew you were a noble. And a Rossi no less! Do not worry for I, Leonard, will offer you my aid. There is no need to apologize to these commoners."


    Wait, what nonsense was he spouting? Was this some kind of weird roleplay prank? Or, had he actually¡ª?


    Tom shook his head. What a stupid thought.


    The old man glared at Leonard who flinched in response. "What you nobles do in your own barracks is up for debate. However, I would kindly like to remind you that getting drunk and falling asleep outside the first floor of the commoners'' barracks is not acceptable behavior. Especially when it has happened for the twelfth time this month."


    Taking a proper look around, Tom noticed a crowd had formed near the ground level. Most of them glared at him with annoyance, which made him quickly divert his gaze. He had no idea how he had gotten himself into this situation. Tom wasn''t much of a drinker, and he should have been sleeping in his room.


    "Although inconvenient, the ordeal is now over," Leonard said. "Lord Rossi, please follow me. I will guide you to proper accommodation befitting of your status."


    The old man shook his head. "Unfortunately, actions have consequences. There is no place for slackers in this camp. So, if you are that comfortable with freeloading, let us see if your skills are on par with your attitude."


    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    That statement seemed to have intrigued the crowd and the chattering intensified.


    "Finally, we can get some payback," someone said.


    "But ain''t he a Rossi? I wonder how he fights."


    Before he could protest, the old man, quite strong for his age, dragged Tom by the arm with the crowd following.


    "C-Careful!" Leonard stammered.


    Tom had no idea what was happening. It wasn''t until he was let go and able to look up at the sky that he realized the truth. The Sun was starting to rise, but he could still make out the faint silhouette of three moons. This wasn''t Earth. After all these years of praying to God, he had gotten his wish fulfilled: an isekai adventure.


    Everyone at some point in their life has wished for a redo. To be able to have a second chance, with the knowledge of all our past mistakes, in order to become someone extraordinary. Be it living in another world as a famous Hero, a talented mage, or even living the slow life. If you find yourself being isekai¡¯d, the rule of thumb is that your life will turn for the better.


    "I know this is a sudden turn of events, young man. But please do not run away from¡ª."


    "Yeeeeeeeeeeeees! Finally! Thank you Truck-kun."


    Everyone seemed caught off guard by the sudden change in demeanor.


    The old man was the first to react. "Enthusiasm, a good trait for a budding soldier."


    Enthusiasm and Tom didn¡¯t usually make it in the same sentence. If it wasn¡¯t about a new isekai novel at least. Everything still felt surreal. Although, for some strange reason, he felt as if he knew this all was real. But even if this was some strange dream, he wasn¡¯t going to let this opportunity go to waste. Today was his first day in this world; so it has to be the day he gets introduced to his cool otherworldly powers, right? Did he have cool ninja powers, or maybe super OP Hero powers? Nah, demonic evil powers were more in trend these days. Like, for revenge as stuff. Although, he was uncertain about the target of his revenge.


    Taking this seriously, Tom made the most respectful bow he could to the old man. He was aiming for a 90-degree bow, but his back was slanted from bad posture, so it felt more like 75 degrees.


    "What should I do, Master?"


    "It¡¯s Vice-Commander Zev. Also, there is no need to bow." He gestured to the side.


    The training ground was huge with different sections. The part they stood in front of started with an elevated platform. In front of it were wooden poles on the ground with mud at the bottom, leading to yet another platform. There was a wall with small rocks to climb over. Peeking ahead, Tom could see an overhead ladder to get to the next platform.


    "Your task is to successfully finish this obstacle course."


    Zev stood behind Tom. Everyone else had taken their seats on the benches beside the start of the course. They were all waiting for his big moment. "Just jumping on poles? Seemed easy enough," he told himself.


    Tom smirked. "Am I able to use any means necessary?"


    "Yes, you may." Zev responded, with a hint of intrigue.


    Well, now was the time to say the cheesy line. Tom raised his hand. "Open status window!" He said confidently.


    Nothing happened.


    "Open window," he tried.


    Again, nothing happened.


    "Open System. Open sesame. Show me. Gimme gimme power. Isekai window, appear! Superpower window ¡­ please?" Nothing happened.


    "What are you doing?"


    "Uhm, this may sound stupid, but is there not a status window in this world? Like a floating screen that quantifies one''s abilities and skills?"


    The old man lowered his brows. "That does not sound stupid, it is stupid. Why would a status window show up? That makes no sense. How would one even quantify the strength of an individual? Stop making a fool of yourself and begin the obstacle course. We do not have all day."


    Tom gulped, glancing at the poles ahead. Perhaps his powers would awaken in moments of danger? Yeah, that made sense. LitRpg was getting too crowded anyway.


    Tom took a deep breath and readied himself. In his usual world, people would probably warm up their bodies with a few exercises first. However, this was an isekai adventure, so why put in the effort?


    "Watch me!" Tom said loud enough so everyone would focus on his epic moment.


    Tom leaped towards the first pole ... and missed it completely. He had jumped too far ahead and fell into the muddy ground.


    "Wait," he shouted, before getting up and walking back to the start platform. This time he would be able to do it.


    Tom tried jumping at the poles. He managed to get on the first pole, but when he jumped at the second he slipped, making the pole collide with his crotch, and falling face-first into the mud.


    Tom groaned and curled up into a ball from the pain. Definitely not a dream.


    This doesn''t make sense. Where are his OP powers? Shouldn''t he at least have gotten more athletic? He is an isekai protagonist, so there is no way he could fail such a simple obstacle course. There must have been some kind of invisible force that pushed him. He was being set up!


    "I think someone pushed me off with magic!"


    What followed was a moment of silence, and then laughter broke loose.


    "Bwahaha! I was worked up for nothing. The fool barely managed one pole. How?"


    A girl giggled. "He was so confident and intense for nothing."


    "See? I knew they were all slackers, looking down on us."


    In the crowd full of laughter, Tom only heard a single voice of support. "You stupid commoners, how dare you all laugh at a nobleman. You all ought to be executed!" Leonard said. "He may be a bit unskilled, surprisingly weak, and ¡ª but he is still a noble."


    "We should rather execute the one that pushed him. I have never seen an invisible person die before."


    Uncontrollable laughter followed that comment.


    After explaining that Tom could do no more being hit in such a sensitive part of his body, something that made those who hadn''t noticed laugh their asses off, Zev made the crowd leave for the morning assembly. That noble, Leonard, was the only one who tried to cheer Tom up to the very end.


    "Do not worry my lord, it is all these commoners'' fault. You are not delusional or the weakest noble I have ever met. It is all their lies!"


    Rather than trying to cheer him up, Tom had the impression that Leonard was attempting to deceive himself if anything.


    After Leonard excused himself, Tom was left alone with Zev, trying to wipe the mud off his own face. Rather than making fun of him, Zev seemed to be the only person who looked genuinely disappointed. Didn¡¯t the old man plan on humiliating him?


    "Child, regrettably your skills are ¡­ lacking."


    "Sir, I am sorry. Perhaps my true powers have not awakened yet?" Surely that was the case. Surely.


    "Perhaps." Zev murmured something to himself. "The best place to start learning is at the bottom, therefore¡ª." He turned to look over his shoulder. "Hiro, come over here. I know you¡¯re there."


    Someone sighed and walked over to them. It was a guy with jet black hair and brown eyes, wearing a black hoodie over his uniform. "Sir, I was just heading over."


    "Do not take me for a fool. I know very well that you have skipped the last assemblies. Your combat prowess is impressive, but building team spirit is also a strength on the battlefield." He coughed. "Well, let us save the lecture for another day. Take this one with you. If I remember correctly, there should be one empty bed in your accommodation."


    Hiro gasped. "Sir, I refuse to live with him. He should be staying in the nobles barracks anyway."


    "Then I presume if we are to follow protocol, you would agree to be executed for ignoring the Commander''s direct order to attend the morning assembly?" Zev replied.


    Hiro sighed. "I understand sir. I will do as you say. But only if it¡¯s temporary."


    "That is acceptable. Young lord, please follow Hiro for now. I have other business to take care of, but do your best to follow the commoner''s routine. Oh, and later on I will have someone sent to get you so that we can confirm your class. It is protocol, so we have to do it."


    Class? So, there was a possibility to get an OP class after all. Hearing the news made him almost forget about the public humiliation he had just experienced ¡ª almost.


    Tom nodded enthusiastically, throwing mud all over the place. This was only the beginning of his EPIC ADVENTURE, so some mishaps were inevitable. "Also, sir. I would prefer it if you just call me Tom. It''s, erm, a nickname. It''s also shorter and simpler for the battlefield." He saluted. "I will do my best as a soldier."


    "Fine then, Tom. But you seem to have misunderstood. You are not a true soldier, yet." Zev turned away and started walking. "I look forward to how you will alter the destiny of this war."


    The old man stopped halfway through his walk. He held his back and shook his head before continuing.


    "What a cool wise old master exit. So authentic. But if he had properly walked towards the sunrise it could have gotten a perfect score. He was 15 degrees off."


    "Dude, you¡¯re weird."


    ***


    Zev walked into the Commanders Office, making sure to close the door behind him. Walking up to her desk he saluted. "Greeting to our Commander, lady Alice Richardson, daughter of Duke Richardson. May the Wandering God forever be in thy favor, and bless our kingdom with eternal prosperity."


    Alice laid down her pen. "Stop stalling Zev. What is he like?"


    "Of course, but¡ª."


    "I am not calling you Grandpa! Now give your report. That is an order."


    "Little Alice, no need to be so harsh." He cleared his throat. "The otherworlder is a failure. He was no better than an untrained civilian." Raising his hand Zev manifested Lightbringer, his aura sword. "Say the word and I will kill him. The only good otherworlder is a dead otherworlder."

 Chapter 2: Obvious side characters

    Chapter 2: Obvious side characters


    <blockquote>


    "Otherworlders are special with all of them being guaranteed to receive an unique class. Be it a paladin, elementalist, or even a Hero. The moment they step foot into our world they are deemed as special by the World-Rune. There is nothing like an average otherworlder; they are all extraordinary. Otherwise, why would they have been given the privilege of a second chance in the first place?" Ronan, the head librarian of the royal library of Boreas, smiled. It wasn''t often that the young ones asked him questions.


    "Indeed, sir. Yet I still have a lingering question, if I may ask: why are they deemed special? Why do they specifically arrive to this world?"


    He raised an eyebrow. "That is like asking why life exists. They are simply chosen by our god, and therefore are able to level up faster. But to be asking such a question at such a young age. You¡ª." He raised his staff. "Wait a second. Who are you? Why isn¡¯t my [appraisal] working?"


    Before the scholar could call for help, his head was cut off, and the girl turned to stare at the one observing her. "This planet is more bothersome to harvest than I thought. Congratulations, you have proved yourself a worthy obstacle."


    - ???


    </blockquote>


    Alice was well aware of how otherworlders were dealt with, but something within her told her this one was different. "There is no need to go to such lengths. I do not believe this otherworlder is like the others. He is ¡­ new."


    Zev''s eyes widened. "I thought he was just one of Lutherion''s lost puppets, but you think he is new? How could that even be possible?" He retracted his aura sword.


    "I saw him leave from the same place the renowned Hero appeared when I worked late at night. That old building should be impossible to enter or exit without my approval. He must have arrived here by the grace of the Mirror Maiden ¡ª I am sure of it."


    He scoffed. "The Mirror Maiden has been silent ever since the Hero''s betrayal. I doubt that she is still alive."


    "Then this otherworlder has to be her ¡­ backup plan then. If he can prove himself useful, perhaps we can avoid a third Void War?" Alice rose from her seat, slamming the desk. "Also, a sane otherworlder is not easy to come by. There must be a reason why the Hero keeps killing them. A possible weakness perhaps?"


    Looking at her excited face, Zev sighed. "Alice, you are still so young. Even though you are a genius, an extraordinary being in your own right, you must understand that not everyone is like you. I met several otherworlders in my childhood, at the end of their era, and most of them were not all what they were made up to be. It could be possible that this otherworlder might prove useful, but is he worth the effort? How can you even be sure he won''t turn feral like the others?"


    Alice deflated and sat back in her seat. "You have a point, but I still think this is worth it. We don''t know what his class is yet." At the end of the day, she was the one who made the final decision. "If he goes feral, I give you permission to deal with him as you wish. Now, finish your report."


    "If you say so ¡­ The boy, he calls himself Tom. Of course, I gave him the identity of Tomassio Rossi as you requested. It was quite fortunate that their names and appearance are so similar. And if he dies we can use it to explain the real Tomassio''s death," he added. "As I already said, from my assessment, he seemed like an average boy without any prior military training. He did not do too well on my test, so I made him stay at the commoner¡¯s barracks for now."


    Alice nodded and stood up to look out the circular window behind her. "Perhaps his powers are yet to be awakened?"


    "Perhaps so? He did suggest so himself. Speaking of that, what do you intend to do with him?"


    Alice contemplated for a moment. "Let us focus on the conflict with the demons. I can find no way out of this mess, but otherworlders are said to look at problems from a different angle. Why don''t we send him on the next expedition? Perhaps he will finally be able to find what we are looking for?"


    "Alright. But I wouldn''t have my hopes up. I will do my best to aid you, even though you might not be completely sure what you are doing yourself." He coughed, ignoring her glare. "Perhaps we really do need to revisit our old motto for otherworlders: everyone deserves a second chance." Then he left her office.


    Alice watched from the window as Zev walked towards the commoner''s training grounds.


    The former captain of the royal knights, the strongest knight in the entire kingdom whom even the renowned Hero would hesitate to confront, was loyal to Alice. And she hated him.


    "Everyone deserves a second chance," she repeated. "That is exactly what I am trying to do. But what would he know of giving others second chances, after all, he was the one that¡ª."


    She shook her head. "Focus."


    Perhaps things would have been different if she had told him, but deep inside she knew he wouldn¡¯t understand. All she could do was to stall.


    The Commander''s Building was taller than any watchtower, and from her office on the top floor, she could watch over the entire camp and the surrounding areas. Alice scrutinized the faint image of the ginormous mountain in the distance. Skypiercer Mountain. No matter what she thought of him, it was a smart decision to settle at the peak of that mountain. No one would be able to reach him. But could this new otherworlder do it? This Tom? Had her greatest wish actually been fulfilled?


    Alice knew that her time was running out, she needed to figure something out before it was too late. A way to stop his plans before everyone was forced to follow them. In the beginning, she didn¡¯t even dare dream of rebelling against the order the Hero had created. However, ever since she first saw that otherworlder appear she found herself filled with newfound hope. That was how she realized that she wasn''t loyal to humanity, or the Hero; if anything she was a slave to hope.


    Alice lowered her gaze to the foot of the mountains. "If he truly has the ability to defeat the Hero," she whispered.


    She locked her eyes onto the ginormous hole in the ground, the Void, dwarfing the world''s biggest mountain several times in terms of size. One could see it all the way from the capital. A giant hole in the planet filled with gray smog. The fact that she was one of the only few people that knew the Void wasn¡¯t natural was terrifying.


    "Perhaps he could even defeat the creature that caused that?"


    Alice sighed. Since when did she become so naive?


    ***


    The barracks were not like the cramped-rooms-filled-with-bunk-beds sort he first expected. Three beds with each their own cupboard to store items, two windows to let the light in, a small kitchen, and a shared bathroom. This room looked more akin to a student dorm if anything.


    "This is surprisingly comfortable for being in the middle of a war."


    Hiro shrugged. "I was also surprised at first. Apparently, the commander wished that the commoners could also live in more comfort. Especially since this conflict has been dragging on for three years now."


    Tom nodded along awkwardly. He wasn¡¯t used to interacting with new people. It usually was just him and his little sister. However, this was his second chance at life. And if his isekai knowledge was correct, the characters you meet at the beginning were always the main side characters. "The silent and cool type," Tom guessed. "Might as well be nice to this one."


    "I¡¯m really sorry about the commotion I caused in the morning. I really don¡¯t remember what happened the day before, I swear."


    Hiro''s eyes widened. "Huh, you sure are different from the rumors ¡­ Fine, I accept your apology."


    Rumors? Whatever, that wasn¡¯t actually him. He should probably play along with the rumors being exaggerated. "Great, thanks. I can¡¯t believe I just arrived, and I am already the biggest loser. Why was everyone so keen on publicly humiliating me?"


    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    "You were just unlucky. These days nobles have been appearing blacked out from drinking all around the commoners'' barracks. I don¡¯t underestimate the arrogance of the kingdoms nobles, but this is odd. According to some, the head instructor for the nobles even encourages such behavior to alleviate stress."


    There wasn''t more to say, so Tom awkwardly cut their conversation short and focused on cleaning himself up. From his deductions, like almost every other isekai, this world was in medieval times, yet they had modern appliances such as a stove and shower. It didn''t look like he was the first otherworlder in this world, but he still needed more information. One thing he found weird was that the bathroom had no mirrors, only a bucked you could see your own reflection in. This place must still have its own odd customs.


    After showering and putting on a spare uniform Hiro had lying around, he went right back to getting as much information as he could about this world. Since he had no handy system to help him, his knowledge of isekai was the only thing he had going for him. Didn''t Zev mention a war? If he had to go with the most obvious answer...


    "So, Hiro. This may sound stupid, but could you remind me who we are fighting against? Let me take a wild guess: is it the demon king?"


    Hiro sat on the bed reading a book and just nodded as a reply.


    Tom was starting to get the hang of this world. The usual humans vs. demons isekai adventure. The revelation made Tom slightly more confident. The human king most likely tried summoning otherworlders, but the summoning went wrong and Tom arrived here; this naturally means he was going to be the strongest and coolest otherworlder of them all. Isekai logic for the win.


    If there was a demon king, could there be any more tropes? Tom noticed that Hiro always wore his hood on, and his intuition from reading a lot of isekai light novels told him that there was always some beastkin. With the dark ascetic and the fluffy ears peeking out of his hood, he was obviously hiding some wolf ears underneath. Their room was also surprisingly clean, and beside his bed were two sheathed swords. One was an exquisite-looking sword, and the other was an ominous deep-black katana. Zev did hint at Hiro being talented, and he did receive special treatment. Yet he felt there also was something more to him. A hidden destiny or something would make sense to his character development.


    "You don¡¯t happen to be a secret beastkin prince or something?" Tom immediately regretted saying that. He just had a normal conversation, and then he messed it up. "Forget it, that¡ª."


    "How did you know?" His demeanor changed to a more cautious one.


    Seriously? Did he actually manage to guess something right? God, Tom was awesome. "You are obviously a beastkin from those wolf ears you are hiding."


    "Wolf¡ª? I am jaguarkin!"


    "Sure you are," Tom nonchalantly responded.


    Hiro snorted in annoyance. "And about me being a prince?"


    "Oh, you know the saying: people of higher class can recognize each other."


    Hiro didn¡¯t seem convinced by that answer. "So, you do remember¡ª?"


    Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of a door opening.


    "Hiro, is that your friend?"


    Tom turned around to see a buff blue-haired guy with blue eyes. This must be his other roommate, the second side character.


    Hiro sighed. "What a drag. Why do I have to do this? Whatever, this is Mark, and that is Tom, our new roommate."


    Mark enthusiastically shook Tom''s hand. "Pleasure to meet ya. Didn¡¯t hear new people were coming. You strangely look like that nobleman everyone has been laughing about today."


    Hiro sighed again. He must do that a lot. "You moron, that is him."


    "Oh, sorry. I meant no offense, lord ¡­ noble sir?"


    "It¡¯s fine, and please just call me Tom." Tom had no plans to play too well along with the nobleman¡¯s persona. He was a terrible actor, so it would be best to be himself. Also, this guy had to be a sort of dumb but honorable kind of side character. But there has to be something more to it¡­ Might as well just ask. "Hey, do you have a scary traumatic backstory?"


    Mark scratched his head. "Erm, excuse me?"


    Hiro sighed. "Don''t let this guy psychoanalyze you. Mark, didn¡¯t you come here for something? You usually start training after the assembly."


    "Oh yeah! The vice-commander asked me to get my roommate. I thought he was talking about you at first, but he was probably referring to Tom now that I think about it."


    Tom beamed. That''s right, today he was going to learn his class.


    He followed Mark back to the training grounds. Some of the soldiers curiously looked his way, but they were quickly reprimanded by nearby instructors for losing focus; the instructors did not heed their own warnings and eyed Tom. Some of the instructors observed him with a look of curiosity, others with disdain. They were probably wondering which of them would have to train him. And Tom hadn''t even done much of anything yet! He was beginning to wonder if he could change his fake identity to a commoner, but he had a feeling it was too late.


    In the obstacle course he failed at he noticed a girl effortlessly completing it. She had black hair, violet eyes ... and two horns protruding from her skull. Wait a second. Wasn¡¯t that what a generic demon would look like?


    The girl went over to some dummy targets and started hurling daggers. When she missed one of her shots, Tom swore he caught her flying in the air for a moment with black wings in order to throw another dagger. Tom looked around, but he saw no one else who seemed to have noticed.


    She was a secret demon spy, wasn¡¯t she? Her eyes were literally glowing in the middle of the day! Was she even trying to hide it?


    It was odd, but Tom figured he was missing some world-building information. He must be having too many stupid thoughts after that one lucky guess about Hiro. Maybe she wasn''t a demon? Wouldn''t want to be accidentally racist.


    For a brief moment, Tom met her gaze, and she cautiously observed him. He gulped and pretended he was looking at something else, before continuing following behind Mark.


    Mark led him to a building beside the training grounds, where Zev was waiting inside with what looked like a priestess. Since she looked like a glowing lamp he figured she was another important side character. She was wearing a long white dress with her head covered similar to how a nun would. Some hair still protruded through the covering revealing snow-white hair.


    "Vice-Commander sir, I have brought him."


    They stood beside a long table filled with strange objects. Zev broke from his conversation and nodded at Mark to dismiss him. "Perfect timing. Tom, meet Ilona, she will be helping us test your attributes."


    "Attributes?" Tom repeated.


    Zev nodded. "There are three types of attributes. The first is Inherited Powers. Inherited Powers are those normally given to different species or traits that are frequent in certain families and tribes. Humans have what is called skill templates."


    "What do you mean by skill templates?"


    "Let me answer," Ilona said. "Since we humans are of a superior race we can unconsciously use what people call skills. They are sort of blueprints for how we can use our mana. Skills allow one to unconsciously use one''s mana the same way every time. Of course, after the skill is unlocked by manually using your mana correctly."


    Cool. So there were skills in this world. Tom was familiar with those.


    "Then there are Bestowed Powers," Zev continued. "These are normally given by spirits or higher beings. Probably no use checking for that. And the last¡ª."


    "Sorry, but could you explain more about Bestowed Powers?" If he was going to learn about the power system of this world, he should ask proper questions. Knowledge is power after all. "You said something about higher beings."


    "Higher beings are godlike entities or beings close to the power of the highest grade spirits. For example, Ilona here is a priestess lucky enough to be blessed by an archangel. That is an impressive feat."


    Ilona blushed. "It''s nothing special. It just strengthens my abilities to heal."


    "Like some sort of saintess?" Tom suggested.


    The example caused her to panic. "Saintess? No, no. It''s not even close. There''s no way I''m a saintess at all."


    Tom raised his eyebrows. "She''s totally a secret saintess," he murmured.


    Ilona looked as if she was ready to spout several more specific reasons for why she wasn¡¯t a saintess, but Zev cut her off. "Let''s move on. The third is your Generic Attribute, which is your affinity to spirits."


    "My affinity to spirits? Is it the same as magic?"


    "Magic ¡­ I believe you are referring to magecraft," Zev corrected. "Indeed, in the past, the people of this kingdom used to call using skills magic, but over time that term was dropped. Scholars found that magic simply was tied to someone''s affinity to spirits. The greater the affinity and understanding of the corresponding specialty, the more output one could unleash as a skill. That limited output is what one usually refers to as mana. Explained another way, think of mana as a byproduct of the authority of spirits living around us. When you use mana, you use the limited authority your soul is able to absorb from spirits, for a specific purpose."


    "So, if there are skills and mana, what determines the strength of your skill? If I pour a lot of mana into a skill, would it be more powerful?"


    Zev shook his head. "Not quite. How well you use your skills is determined by your combat experience, but its output is consistent. Trying to manually use mana is extremely difficult, so training and gaining skills from your specific class is the only way to get stronger skills, and thereby become more powerful. Although, in some cases it is possible to have more effective use of a skill than most, but that is mainly tied to ones affinities and understanding of the relevant spirits."


    "I understand affinities may play a role, but what do you mean by understanding of relevant spirits?" Tom asked.


    "Using skills is useful, but it also has constrains with skills being difficult to discover, the inability to build on the skill template further, and the risk of using all your mana. The amount of mana you are able to contain within your soul is a reflection of your understanding of reality, and in some cases if you understand the purpose behind the skill then you should be able to use it in more efficient ways. For example, use it twice in quick succession if one has the mana, or in extremely rare cases understanding the makeup of the skill templates and making small adjustments. Understanding why a skill exists is also normally how one discovers new skills."


    That sounded interesting. So manually using mana was difficult, so that was why skills were so useful. Perhaps the cheat he would get as an otherworlder would be infinite mana, so he could constantly spam skills? Or perhaps being able to use all skill templates? "I think I get it. How do I find out my affinity ¡ª not that I haven''t seen it before, just forgot since it has been so long," he quickly added.


    Ilona moved a gray orb towards him. "Touching this orb will show your affinity to spirits."


    Tom eagerly touched the orb, and something happened for once. It lit up with a white multicolored light, reminiscent of a rainbow.


    Tom smiled, his heart racing from the excitement. "So, what is it like?"


    "Hm." Ilona scrutinized the orb. "Average affinity, across the board."


    "Isn¡¯t that great? I can use all types of spirit spirits!"


    Zev hummed. "That is correct. However, it isn¡¯t all that great. Technically everyone can use all types of spirits, but it is better to have a strong affinity with one type of spirit instead of them all."


    Tom''s excitement dwindled. "What do you mean?"


    "Like Miss Ilona here. She¡¯s a light-spirit genius. It¡¯s her specialty, unlocking the requirement for the healer class. However, since you are compatible with all types of spirits, it¡¯s difficult to specialize. Even though you might use a light spirit, its power would be vastly weaker than someone who specializes in it."


    "Then what class does my affinity unlock?"


    Zev looked at Tom, smiling. "You are a natural-born observer."

 Chapter 3: The expedition

    Chapter 3: The expedition


    <blockquote>


    "So you want to ask me what I looked forward to the most when I arrived on this planet? Let me think ¡­ Oh yeah! My first expedition. Definitely. The monsters were weak, but it was my first taste of adventuring. If you are interested, go ask the secretary at the adventurers guild. There should be a few beginner-level commissions you could try."


    "Is it possible to have some more talk about the concept of otherworlders?"


    My eyes widened. Normally people from this world would leave it at that. "Are you an otherworlder too?"


    "You could say that."


    Those fucking nobles. They can''t call people to this world whenever they want. And at least give them a proper introduction! Also¡­ I sighed. "Sorry for spacing out. Don''t worry, you met the right person. I don''t recall introducing myself: I am Rachel, guild master of the Otherworlders Guild. Why don''t we talk at my office, and I will answer any question you have."


    The little girl smiled. "That would be perfect."


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    "Observer?" So he didn''t get an OP one-shot-one-kill class, or meet anyone to tell him what his goal in this world was, but he does get to become an observer. The universe sure had an interesting sense of humor.


    "Since you have a generic affinity, it¡¯s easier for you to recognize other people''s affinities. Observers are also said to be mentally strong, being able to discern details in reality others would normally ignore. Most of the abilities of an observer revolve around the skill stabilize," Zev explained


    "You mean [stabilize]?"


    "That is what I said."


    Tom shook his head. "You forgot the brackets. I can tell."


    Zev looked at him confused. "Anyway, it is a skill that allows you to even out the aura of a living being. It is useful if someone loses control of their powers."


    "What do you mean by an aura?"


    "The aura is the clothes of everyone''s soul. Think of it as the physical manifestation of someone''s affinity; it is like a sponge that absorbes ambient mana. If someone uses a skill far beyond their abilities, an observer can use their more average affinity to guide their aura to calm down. You, of course, need to be in close proximity. The distance depends on your understanding of auras. An observer can also more easily find out what kind of spirit someone specializes in so their teammates can develop better tactics during battle."


    Zev nodded at Ilona. She closed her eyes and murmured something. A small ball of light appeared on the palm of her hand.


    He looked at Tom. "Try closing your eyes, and envisioning Ilona in your mind. Remember to apply a purpose or identity to your target. Then focus your attention on the pull of their aura."


    Tom closed his eyes and tried to focus on Ilona. He envisioned a priestess, no, a saintess. He imagined her aura must be strong, related to light spirits. After envisioning all the different saintesses he had read about, he did feel some sort of pull. It was difficult to explain, but the image of pulsating white light came into his mind.


    "I see a strong white aura. I think it belongs to saintess Ilona." Tom said.


    Suddenly, the aura he envisioned started pulsating in rapid sequence. So the aura was also affected by someone''s emotions? Interesting.


    "I¡¯m not a saintess! I am a normal everyday priestess," Ilona struck back.


    "You caught on to this quickly. I''m impressed. Most people struggle to imagine a person in their mind. I presume that is what makes you observers unique. Now, try focusing on her aura and use your skill to even it out."


    Tom tried as he said and focused on her aura. He tried envisioning to make her more boring. She is just a normal priestess now. "[stabilize]!"


    When he opened his eyes, he saw that the small ball of light in her palm had dimmed slightly. "I did it!"


    "Congratulations, you¡¯re a natural at this. More training is required in order to improve since this skill requires a lot of practical experience to master."


    "Practical experience? But did you not say skill templates always work the same?"


    Zev nodded. "I did. Remember how I explained it is possible to slightly adjust skill templates if one has a deeper understanding behind their skill? Observer is a relatively new class whose whole purpose is understanding reality, and thereby manipulating it in specific ways. The skill stabilize is unique in the way its mana cost is relatively low. Rather then having to worry about mana burnout, seeing the world from different perspectives has a drastic effect on ones mental state. Since common skills for this class have not been established yet, your skill pertains to constantly trying to manually build upon the current blueprint."


    That sounded like a lot of work. He was for sure not going to waste his isekai adventure in order to meditate and learn the truth of the world. "Can¡¯t I switch somehow? Unlock requirements for a secret OP class?"


    Ilona shook her head. "I do not understand what you mean by ¡­ OP class, but don¡¯t be disheartened. Having a better understanding of the world is a valuable way to resolve complicated situations. Also, on a philosophical level, just imagine what inner peace you could attain. I am truly envious."


    Sounded like nonsense to Tom.


    Zev cut him off before he could ask any more questions. "That is it for our little lesson. From tomorrow you will have to follow the normal routine. Morning assembly begins at sunrise."


    Whatever. Tom didn¡¯t awaken any OP abilities, but at least he got a safe one. Maybe this was a good sign? With some days of training, he would definitely become stronger. His EPIC ADVENTURE had just begun.


    "Also, I know you just arrived today, but tomorrow you will have to go on an expedition into the new forest. The army is looking for some hidden ruins that the demons are also looking for. Because of your ... status, you will become the squadron leader tomorrow."


    Tom had to go on an expedition into the woods? And he was the squadron leader? He had never been the leader of anything in his life. Whatever. New world, new Tom. "Everything will work out fine," he confidently responded.


    This world was predictable enough with obvious tropes. He found a secret beastkin prince, an alleged demon spy, and a saintess. Mark was probably something too, so he had some of his possible sidekicks figured out. This adventure was going to go smoother than he thought.


    Zev murmured something to himself. "Perhaps this is luck on our side. The camp used to have several observers, but they keep disappearing for some reason."


    ***


    The next morning, Tom was already tired from yesterday''s debacle, but he forced himself to get out of bed. He changed into an uniform that Zev had given him yesterday and headed for the assembly with his roommates.


    Tom hated waking up early, but he was excited to see how his first adventure would go. Perhaps he would unleash his secret powers during it? His greatness was an inevitability after all.


    When they arrived at the central plaza, they took their position with the other commoners standing in an ordered formation to the right. On their left stood the nobles who didn¡¯t bother with formations. They stood wherever they wanted in a messy crowd. Tom found their uniforms with paint thrown on them to be a bit goofy. According to Mark, it was their way of technically not wearing the same uniform as the commoners, but it looked more like someone had played a prank on them.


    Lined up on a platform in front of them stood the instructors; they had more leeway on their clothing choices and it showed. The commoner''s instructors to the right had cheaper-looking clothing, some wore the uniform and others battle-ready armor. The noble''s instructors wore expensive ordained clothing and looked as smug as their students. He made eye contact with one of the noble''s instructors who threw a smile at him. Tom quickly moved his gaze and found Zev standing besides the central podium, which probably was to signify that he was neutral.


    Eventually, the Commander arrived. She looked around his age with blonde hair and blue eyes. Normally you would expect an old experienced person to be the commander of the troops in the middle of a looming war and not a cute girl, but Tom figured this was one of the great wonders of isekai.


    Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    "Hundreds of years ago, humanity ventured towards the north and encountered the demons: vile creatures hellbent on corrupting the World-Rune and starting an age of darkness. It is our honorable duty to guard the borders of the kingdom of Boreas, as well as the seven human kingdoms, the cradles of humanity, against the demonic intruders. Even though¡ª."


    Her speech was boring, so Tom tuned out and started looking around. He noticed people talking during her speech. Several instructors also looked bored, and it seemed like she didn¡¯t have such great respect. But when Zev signaled for a group of nobles to pay attention, they instantly listened.


    "You seem confused," said a soldier beside him. "Since you are from the South you probably haven¡¯t caught up with the recent developments. As you must know, the Commander is the daughter of Duke Richardson. Ever since the king decided to move the capital further north, Duke Richardson''s influence increased tenfold. For the current conflict, the king gave him the role of the general. He left his only child, his daughter Alice, as the acting commander of the troops near the border while leaving with the rest of the troops on another mission."


    So that was it. "Thank you Mr. Info Dump."


    "Mr. Info Dump? I have a name, it is ¡ª."


    Tom cut him off. "There are already too many characters for me to remember. Get in line."


    Mr. Info Dump just gasped in response and turned away. This was some complicated stuff Tom didn¡¯t care about. He wasn''t into the kind of isekai where you had to build up an army and stuff. It was too much of a bother.


    Eventually, when Commander Alice started talking about the important bits, Mark nudged him on the shoulder.


    "That is why we are sending 12 squadrons to search the New Forest to find these ruins before the demons do. First 6 squadrons will go up ahead to fend off any potential demons, while the rest traverse the forest to search more thoroughly."


    A disappointed grunt spread across the crowd.


    "Do not worry. We have not seen any suspicious movements from the demons. It should go relatively smoothly."


    After she finished her speech, Tom left with the others for the New Forest. It was odd that they had modern appliances, but still used horse driven carriages to travel. He yawned and got into a carriage shared with Hiro and Mark. Fortunately there was a lot of room, so he spread out his legs where he sat behind the coachman, facing the exit.


    The camp gradually disappeared from view, hidden behind a small hillside. Looking to his right, his curiosity triumphed. "Why are there random ravines in fields of grass?"


    Mark hesitated, scratching his head, and looked at Hiro for help.


    Hiro shrugged. "Has to be remnants of one of the Void Wars."


    "Void wars?"


    They both looked at him like he was dumb.


    "I guess nobles really are living it well in the capital, not bothering to learn basic history," Hiro said. "The Void Wars were wars fought by nations around the void. The destruction left behind can be found all over as reminders."


    Tom nodded. He had no idea what a Void was, but that was probably a terminology he was missing. Asking too much would make him look even more suspicious then he already was. Revealing his identity as an otherworlder to them was probably a bad idea until he had a proper grasp on this worlds history.


    Glancing to the left, he saw a ginormous mountain with an area with a lot of fog beside it. That was the biggest mountain he had ever seen, and the fog was probably why he hadn¡¯t noticed it from the camp. He threw the idea about asking another question out of his mind, figuring it was normal.


    Both Hiro and Mark looked like they were trying to get some shuteye. Yawning again, Tom closed his eyes and tried to take a nap.


    ***


    "This is the worst."


    Going on an adventure had always seemed so fun, but this was not fun. They were each given a satchel with different amenities, even a sword and dagger, but his back ached from the extra weight. To add to that, his face was constantly hit with gusts of wind.


    Tom stopped to catch his breath and looked towards Ilona at the back of the group. "Why is there so much wind in the middle of a forest?"


    "It¡¯s just a strange weather phenomenon due to the demons," Ilona explained. "Don¡¯t worry, further away it will get better." She clasped her hands for a prayer. "These vile tricks are fitting for the demons indeed. May the Wandering God aid us in vanquishing them."


    He heard someone scoff above him. It was the alleged demon spy girl whom Tom unfortunately had to be in the same squadron as. A classic plot device to increase tension.


    She was the scout and traversed the branches of the tall trees. "It¡¯s actually something called nature, you dumb priestess."


    "Who are you calling dumb, Sierra?" Ilona replied aghast. "Perhaps if you read more of our holy scripture then your attitude would be less distasteful."


    "Uhm," Tom stuttered. Tom looked over at Hiro for help but he just shrugged. Since there was nothing he could do he started mentally preparing himself for Sierra to come down and kill them at any moment. However, Sierra didn¡¯t attack them.


    "Oi, why did you stop?"


    It was the nobleman in their squad. He was the only one who hailed from the nobles barracks, which made sense since there were many more commoners in this camp than nobles. Tom felt this guy was giving major background character vibes so he had been ignoring him for the entire trip. However, answering that question felt like something a leader would do.


    "We are taking a break. We need to refrain from using too much of our strength," Tom cheekily answered. He made sure to do a cool nod and find a rock to sit down on.


    "Dude, it¡¯s just been 10 minutes," Hiro said.


    Mark put his hand on Hiro¡¯s shoulder. "It¡¯s the boss''s orders. You can¡¯t go against them."


    "I am pretty sure he was chosen as the leader in name only," Hiro added. "And why are you so into his boss-talk, Mark? Stop trying to have fun, we are entering enemy territory."


    Mark chuckled. "Sorry, vice-bo¡­ I mean Hiro. This is kinda fun though. I don''t like how we are always so serious on expeditions."


    Tom nodded to himself. The-main-character-making-the-boring-people-have-fun trope was accomplished. In the beginning, he was kinda nervous when Zev said he would lead the expedition. Having his bunkmates, Ilona and this random background character did make him feel more relaxed. Sierra was a liability though. What if she betrayed them in the middle of a battle with the demons? But she wasn¡¯t making her moves now, and screw it, Tom figured he should let her have her moment. Makes his EPIC ADVENTURE more interesting.


    "Stop daydreaming," Sierra complained. "We can¡¯t use too much time resting, I can still see the camp from here. Why are you even walking in the front? You could have stayed at the back if you¡¯re such a slowpoke. What a dork."


    Ilona gasped. "Language!"


    "What a weak insult, but I am your boss so I understand why you couldn¡¯t come up with anything better." Tom replied.


    "Why you¡ª."


    "The reason is to best suit our goal. Hiro is at the back with Ilona so the samurai can protect the saintess," Tom started explaining. Before Ilona could scream that she wasn¡¯t a saintess or Hiro could ask how he knew he was a samurai, he continued. "Mark is the shield guy in the middle with whatever that guy''s name is again to protect Ilona."


    "What do you mean ¡®that guy¡¯? It''s Jeremia Schumberger Avalonio Nobelius De ¡ª."


    This guy was surprisingly brazen. Tom preferred the first nobleman he met, Leonard. That guy practically worshiped him. "You, the scout, are up in the trees for lookout, and I as the observer am at the front. I will observe stuff ¡­ I think. Hopefully, we will find these lost ruins we¡¯re looking for."


    Ilona reassuringly smiled at him. "That sounds good. But please leave the fighting to us, then run back to the small camp at the entrance of the forest to get reinforcements. The Commander said it was unlikely for the demons to attack, but just in case."


    Tom nodded. His observer role was surprisingly interesting. It wasn''t anything intense. Tom could feel people''s aura. It was a weak feeling, but he could sense everyone in his group surprisingly well. Maybe his understanding of them on a personal level helped? It even helped him sense the more dark aura coming from Sierra.


    Wait, was this his latent talents showing themselves? This adventure was going better than he thought. He already knew all the main side characters, and as their leader he would do his part to help them reach their own greatness.


    "Perhaps one day we can become a group of heroes or something?"


    Everyone stopped. "What¡¯s wrong, why do you all look so shocked? Becoming a Hero is every child''s dream."


    Ilona shook her head. "You must be really sheltered to say that. Historically the church supported the otherworlders and the chosen Hero to defeat evil. However, the previously chosen Hero went rogue and killed all and any otherworlders he came across. He also forced the world to follow his bidding. Hero isn¡¯t such a good word anymore. Next time try something like paladin or crusader as synonyms. Heroism is dead."


    That was odd. It did make sense that there must have been other otherworlders before him, but why did the Hero go rogue? He would have to ask around to find out more. Was he the reason Tom couldn¡¯t unlock his OP powers? Was there a hidden requirement that he needed to accomplish? Meh, he sounded like some weak secondary villain. He could handle that. Or maybe¡ª.


    Hiro sighed. "Can we start walking now?"


    ***


    Tom noticed Sierra was glaring at him. What had he done now? This world doesn¡¯t let him take a break. He could feel his feet already tire, and started internally counting towards the next break ¡ª 15 more minutes maybe?


    This forest was annoying. From the outside, it looked like a normal oak forest with tall trees, yet when they walked down a small hillside the forest completely changed. It was now full of much taller glittering purple trees with blue leaves. The ground was also covered by much lighter moss, and Tom spotted several flowers he hadn¡¯t seen before. What used to be a forest with the fresh smell of nature, was now a forest that smelled a bit like candy.


    Apparently, they had entered the demon''s side of the forest with demonic nature. Just like Ilona said, after being slightly amplified the strong gusts of wind dissipated. Tom never knew such different ecosystems could perfectly coexist beside each other. It did indeed make itself a nice natural border.


    "Wait!" Sierra shouted. "I see someone up ahead."


    Tom closed his eyes and focused on the auras. "Yes, I sense something."


    She snorted. "Thanks for the early warning."


    Tom ignored her and focused on this new aura. He couldn''t get a clear picture. A demon perhaps? Tom signaled for the rest of the squadron behind him to stop.


    "We stopped minutes ago, get over here you¡¯re too far away from us." Ilona shouted.


    Tom couldn¡¯t. He was their leader, so he waited as the new person came into view. They wore a full set of armor and his helmet had two horns on them. They looked like a wounded small fry. No weapons on them.


    Tom reached for his sword. If there was one thing that becomes strangely acceptable when you get isekai''d, then it was to commit murder. "¡­Where¡¯s my sword?"


    "Oh, you forgot it in our previous resting place." Sierra nonchalantly answered. "I forgot to tell you. Sorry, Boss."


    That ¡­ Whatever. She wasn¡¯t gonna ruin his moment. Tom ran up to the unsuspecting demon and punched them in the face. He felt the pain from the impact, they were wearing a helmet after all, but from the force his enemy fell onto the ground.


    His first battle. His first enemy. His first small fry.


    Then Tom heard the sound of someone crying.


    Mark ran up towards him. "Why did you hit Timmy? He¡¯s one of the nicest people in the camp."


    Wait, Timmy? "He¡¯s obviously a demon. Don¡¯t you see those horns?"


    Timmy whimpered. "It¡¯s a traditional helmet from my village."


    "Huh, is that so? ¡­ My bad."


    Ilona walked up to Timmy to check up on him. She didn¡¯t say the name of any skill but simply held her white staff close to him and made him instantly recover. "Why are you alone? Where are the others?"


    "They¡ª."


    Before Timmy could finish, a person appeared out of nowhere and stabbed Timmy through the chest. It was a dagger coated in some shadow-like aura. Timmy grunted and fell down.


    Another person appeared out of nowhere and jumped towards Ilona, but Mark managed to use his shield to throw them away.


    "Are these demons?" Tom asked.


    "Yes!" The others replied in unison.

 Chapter 4: Trash

    Chapter 4: Trash


    <blockquote>


    This part of the universe was interesting indeed. Just like they told me, there really was a lot to be found here. Unlike the filth back at home, the mortals here were far more interesting. They each inhabited their own planet in isolation, with their own System, ignorant of the wider cosmos.


    I would have loved to harvest every last one of these measly planets, but I had a mission: to absorb the Wandering God. The killing blow was already dealt. All it took for me was to find the planet they lounged at, and then understand the rules of its System in order to get the upper-hand. Sadly, due to my own miscalculations, the wound I gave them did not delete them instantly. Their persona still lived and managed to flee. Now, I follow and follow, yet their presence alludes me. Even though they would perish eventually from the wound I gave them, the possibility of someone else inheriting their power still existed.


    I looked at the planet in front of me. "Perhaps I need to use their purpose against them?"


    - [Error]


    </blockquote>


    Tom tried focusing on one of the demons but he didn¡¯t get a clear picture of their aura in his mind. They were too far away and in constant motion for him to discover anything.


    Hiding behind a tree for cover, he searched through his satchel. He didn¡¯t have a sword, but he found a dagger. Now the problem was learning how to use it.


    One of the demons ran closer to Timmy trying to finish him off, so Tom decided to take his chances. He grabbed the dagger and flung it at the demon. The dagger flew from his hands ¡­ and towards Timmy. Ilona managed to block it with her staff.


    "Tom, get yourself together. Go back and get reinforcements!"


    Sierra lazily threw a dagger at the demon causing him to jump away from Ilona and Timmy.


    Sitting on the branches of a nearby tree, a demon looked back and forth between Sierra and Tom. They proceeded to ignore Tom and focused on Hiro, probably guessing he was another spy like Sierra.


    "Just as planned," Tom told himself.


    A horrifying roar echoed.


    Tom looked towards what one of the demons was pointing at and saw a giant bear with one of the demons in its jaw. Or he thought it was a bear. It was a strange mix between a bear and a giant spider. At the bottom of the bear was a spider-like monster merged together. When his teammates got closer, the bear roared and the spider monster started awkwardly punching around, even hitting the bear''s arms and wounding it. It was such an eerie creature that Tom stood where he was in confusion, as the others started fighting it.


    "What is that thing?"


    "Go!" Ilona shouted.


    She didn¡¯t have to tell him twice. Tom ran with all his strength towards what he thought was towards the camp. To be honest: his directions got mixed up during the battle. He was still in the weird demonic forest, and then for a moment he felt a strange sensation pulling him. Suddenly the forest changed in the blink of an eye. Now it was a dark oak forest, with very tall trees.


    Wasn¡¯t he still in the demonic part of the forest? How did he get here?


    In the distance, he spotted an old structure that had to be the ruins they were looking for. "Found it!" Tom turned to see no one there, and the terrain didn¡¯t look like where he came from. If Tom had to guess he came over some hidden pocket dimension or something. Hopefully, the others wouldn''t die ¡ª right?


    Tom shook his head. When in doubt: trust the plot armor. He might as well survey the ruins to see what¡¯s inside.


    The ruins were made of stone, and the entrance was up some stairs. He walked inside along a narrow hallway. The walls were carved with the symbol of a key. There was also a drawing of a little girl oddly placed beside the key. The girl was holding a mirror ¡­ and making a peace sign? The carving of the little girl was so out of place and childish that it stood out like a last-minute edit.


    Further inside he found a bigger room. It looked like an altar with lit-up torches hanging on the walls. He walked up the stairs at the back of the room and found a sword stuck in a rock.


    Finally! He found an OP weapon.


    Tom readied himself. He pulled on the sword, and ¡­ it came out. It actually came out of the rock. He was the chosen one!


    "Space yeah!" Wait, why did he say space?


    The sword was firmly gripped by his hand. It was a glistening and unfortunately normal-looking sword. The hilt was golden and adorned with a key symbol.


    "Greetings. May I ask who managed to pull me out?"


    Did the sword talk? He finally got his cool sidekick. "What are you?"


    "Me? I am the 50th sword of the 100 sword series. Also known as the supreme sword of mediocrity."


    ***


    "Human, you are making a very unappealing face right now." The sword noted. "Is this sword not strong enough for you?" The sword hummed with a weak glow as if it was making fun of his expectations.


    Tom nodded. "Correct." He stabbed the sword back into the rock and proceeded to leave.


    "Wait, where are you going! Don¡¯t leave me here, I am one of the legendary aura swords. Don¡¯t you need power to defeat your enemies?" The sword pleaded. It was gleaming with flickering light, and humming with more force.


    Tom felt sick of everything. Was a stereotypical otherworldly adventure too much to ask? Why did the universe have to be so woke and cancel power fantasies? All he was doing was making a fool of himself, and running away. This was no different from before.


    "Nah, to space with this fart." Wait a second, why couldn¡¯t he swear? There was a cussing filter? God, this stupid world was even making him sound ridiculous.


    The sword hummed. "I know, I could curse way better without it as well. The one that created the filter is a goody-two-shoes kid," the sword said.


    Tom nodded. "And don¡¯t get me started on the obvious main cast of characters. Like, why is nobody noticing them? A priestess who can heal wounds like it''s nothing. It¡¯s obviously the saintess. Don¡¯t get me started on that demon spy."


    "I know, this world is a mess."


    "This world''s creator or what not should have read more fantasy books before making this mess. Maybe reading web novels would also ¡­ Wait a second, who told you to read my mind? I don¡¯t remember signing a contract or anything with you."


    "What do you mean? Our contract started the moment you pulled me out of that rock. As my wielder, I have a mental connection with you. Don¡¯t get caught up in the ranking, I am one of the ¡­ scratch that, I am THE most awesome sword of all the aura swords. You are obviously an otherworlder, so your life is bound to be intriguing to follow. Take me with you on your journey! I am able to¡ª."


    "No."


    "At least let me finish!"


    A horrid scream echoed throughout the ruin. It must be one of those weird creatures that followed him into the ruins. "Space no, this is the no-choice-but-to-take-this-decision-to-save-my-life clich¨¦ isn''t it?"


    "Yes, it is. What a nice way to say you have no choice."


    Tom sighed. "Only if you promise to not read my mind ever again."


    The sword hummed. "I guess I could go with that."


    He picked up the sword, which started humming in excitement. Even though he could see and feel it humming with a weak glow, he felt no vibration in his hand.


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    The shadow of the approaching beast was visible at the end of the room.


    "So, how can I kill this beast?"


    "Hm, I wonder how."


    Tom gulped. "Wait, you don¡¯t know how? You piece of trash!" Was this really it for him?


    "Don¡¯t call me trash! And stop panicking, you¡¯re stressing me out. I can sense something in your satchel. Can you pull it out?"


    Tom instinctively knew what it was talking about, and pulled out the vial of water that also gave him a strange sensation. "This is probably not water."


    "Technically it is, however, it has been embodied with a poison spirit." The sword said.


    "Embodied?"


    It hummed. "Think of it as poison hidden inside the water. A normal detection skill would find nothing, however, when the liquid comes in contact with a living being the poison comes out. It''s an inherited demon ability."


    Sierra probably embodied his water in secret while he rested. Speaking of her, she must also have thrown away his sword on purpose. "Great to know, but I don¡¯t think I will be able to feed this into the beast''s mouth."


    "No need. See that fire over there?" Tom could feel a pull to the right and saw a burning fire. "Put me into the fire to ignite me with its aura."


    Tom did as the sword said, and pulled the blade into the fire. When he pulled it out, the sword had changed its form. What used to be an unimpressive sword was now a sword with a bright orange hilt, and the hilt started glowing like a fire from the heat.


    Tom shrieked from the immense heat and lost his grip. The sword fell to the ground with a thud.


    "See? I said I was awesome. As the 50th aura sword, I have the same aptitude for all types of spirits. Normally I would be stuck to the type of spirit my wielder is most compatible with. However, since you are an observer, you are the perfect wielder for me and allow me to use all types of spirits."


    Tom nodded. "That''s cool and all, but the hilt is too warm to wield."


    "¡­ Yeah, that is a problem. Usually, your body would have heightened heat resistance if you specialize in fire affinity, but I guess that doesn¡¯t apply to you. What an intriguing predicament."


    Tom could hear the creature get closer. "Just tell me the plan."


    Emptying his satchel, he wrapped it around his hand and used it to grip the sword''s handle. He could still feel the heat but the satchel made it more bearable.


    "I only know the skill [stabilize] so I am not sure what I can do."


    "It¡¯s gonna hurt you, but I¡¯m all for it! All you need to do is to throw the vial at the beast. Anywhere will do as long as it is on the beast¡¯s body, then use me to slice the beast, and finish it by using [stabilize]."


    "What will that do?"


    The sword hummed as if that was a stupid question. "As an aura sword, I strengthen your abilities. By yourself, you can only use stabilize on living beings, but with my help you can also use it on any kind of spirit. And ¡­ I¡¯ll explain later, just do what I said, it has arrived."


    The horrid beast walked into the room. This one was a mixture of a deer and some shelled creature. They weren¡¯t that awful apart, however the grotesque way they were merged together was unsettling. It was walking with the legs of the shelled creature, and the legs of the deer helped to stabilize the slight wobbling due to the center of mass being off. One of the deer''s hooves was merged through the entire shellfish creature, stabbing a clear hole through it and appearing at the other side. The deer''s horns also constantly collided with the shellfish''s face, evident by all the scars.


    The creature shrieked at him with the sound of a deer mixed with the gurgling scream of the shelled creature. It slowly walked towards him.


    His body froze, but he felt a strong surge of courage and amusement flooding him from the sword. What? Was it possible to transfer emotions to someone? No time to think about that.


    He threw the vial at the creature, which easily collided with the shell of the charging creature. Then he lunged toward the creature sliding along its bottom side. He felt the palm of his hand burn as the heat had burned a hole in the satchel, but he gritted his teeth and pushed through the pain. He aimed for its left side where the center of mass was off and cut the underbelly of the deer.


    He managed to cut it, but he felt a surge of pain. One of the hooves of the deer cut into his shoulder, and threw him away. The sword left his hand and he fell on the cold cobblestone floor. Another surge of pain followed from his hand, together with the smell of burned flesh.


    The creature backpedaled to turn in an eerie way. He could feel the wrong aura of the beast, but his skill did not focus there; his senses went to the small fire wound and the intense sensation of the poison spirit.


    "[stabilize]!"


    Instantly, he sensed the aura of the poison spirit dimming in intensity, and a flame set ablaze. The creature shrieked as its whole body was set ablaze. The deer part started crumbling and some of the creature''s shells fell off, as if it was burning from the inside as well. It eventually stopped resisting and fell to the floor still burning.


    Tom didn¡¯t dare speak until the creature had stopped screaming. "What happened?"


    "There are spirits in everything. You don¡¯t get eternal burning fire from nowhere. The torches at my temple were specifically imbued with low grade fire spirits. The fire spirit is very weak, but the middle grade poison spirit is quite potent. With the help of stabilize, the potency of the poison spirit decreases, but the power of the fire spirit increases, setting it ablaze. The weaker poison gas inhaled by the creature is an added bonus. Although, I don¡¯t know why you were screaming what skill you were using. That one is on you."


    "I was trying to add some dramatic flare," Tom grumbled. So [stabilize] wasn¡¯t entirely useless. It just required him to be more creative with his fights. "But what do you mean by lower and middle grade?"


    "You really don''t know anything do you? Although, learning about spirits is the job of observers, so I guess I could help explain," Trash hummed. "Spirits are manifestation of reality. Both in a literal way, and a more abstract way. Normally people would be gaining strength from the excess of spiritual energy, otherwise called mana. Observers mend reality by using spirits, but the strength of these spirits are organized in different grades. There is one golden role for understanding these grades: Reality, purpose, and ideal."


    "Reality, purpose, and ideal?" Tom repeated. "As in lower, middle, and higher grade?"


    "Exactly. Lower grade spirits are literal manifestations of reality; some examples would be water, wind, fire, and earth. Middle grade are ¡­ conditions you could say. This would include poison, shadow, and weather. Higher grades are manifestations of more abstract laws and ideals; such as gravity, honor, and disease. Then there are the higher beings, whom unlike spirits who stay to their nature with little will to interfere with the world, can represent their own ideals or specific liturgi whilst taking an active part in the worlds development."


    "So, there does not exist something like a higher grade fire spirit?"


    "No. Spirits gain power, or their grade, from how much faith people have to put into them, you could say. The more abstract, the stronger the spirit is. It is a manifestation of reality, nothing more. However, theoretically there could exist a higher grade fire spirit, but then there has to be a specific ideal it would represent."


    Tom tried to absorb everything he heard into his head, but he felt like he understood none of it. If he really wanted to fight, then he would have to strategically use different grade spirits, and that sounded super complicated. "What the space, I didn¡¯t want to get isekai¡¯d to use my brain more. Why can''t I use more generic spells like [ignite] or something?"


    "Since you are an observer, you can only use the skills of an observer. Don¡¯t worry, you will learn better skills as you get stronger."


    Yeah, Tom had forgotten about leveling up because there was no status screen. "So the more of these beasts I kill, the stronger I will get?"


    The sword hummed, reluctant. "Not really. You get stronger by personal experience, or you can get a blessing from a higher being."


    Tom knew it: this world sucked. His only way to venture on the OP isekai protagonist route was to get blessed by a higher being. But at least he had a goal now. There should be a library at the camp that could help him get the information needed without arousing suspicion. If the people here knew what he was after they would probably force him to fight more.


    "Yes, cheating. I am all for it. We are perfect for each other," the sword excitedly hummed.


    "It¡¯s not cheating you stupid sword. I am just trying to do things in a less stressful way. And what did I say about reading my mind?" His answer sounded a bit more shameful when he said it out loud, but he was an otherworlder. He had to make this second life worth it. "Oh, and my name is Tom by the way."


    The sword hummed. "Hello, Tom. Again, we really are perfect for each other. Now would be the appropriate moment to give me a name. Sword sounds too tacky. What about ¡®Mountain splitter¡¯, or maybe ¡®the Great Sword of Destruction¡¯?" The sword started continuously humming in anticipation for his new name.


    "Let¡¯s go with Trash. It fits. Kind of has a nice ring to it."


    "Trash! That sounds terrible. Give me another name!"


    "Let¡¯s get out of here Trash."


    "Don¡¯t ignore me! Ugh," Trash hummed. "Well, as long as I get out of this boring place."


    Tom picked up Trash that had now lost its heat. He stared at the burning corpse of the beast: it still hadn¡¯t stopped burning. Strangely he could feel the periodic humming from the beast the same way he sensed Trash, almost as if the beast was crying. Or maybe it was happiness? He wasn¡¯t sure.


    He pointed at the beast. "What is that?"


    "It¡¯s just an error beast."


    The creature had on its death turned back into two beasts with two separate auras. One deer and a shellfish-looking monster. How had these two creatures merged together in the first place? This wasn¡¯t the time to find out. "Trash, how do I get out of this place?"


    "Simply walk out. You got inside of this place since you were compatible with me. Leaving is simple ¡­ wait, you made me respond to that stupid name!"


    Tom was too tired to bicker with his new talking sword. He walked towards the forest, and suddenly the trees changed back to the demonic trees. Outside the ruins he was greeted with the sight of 3 new error beasts.


    "Trash, you don¡¯t happen to have a secret hidden power we could use now?" Tom nervously asked.


    Trash hummed. "Sorry."


    The beasts lunged towards him, and Tom quickly jumped to the side. The beasts collided with each other, giving him some time to run. However, his energy was all spent. He could still feel the burn marks on his hand, the wound on his shoulder, and the sword which was feeling even heavier in his hand. Right now, he was running for his life.


    No, this was wrong. This wasn¡¯t him.


    "Hey, are you seriously resting now? The error beasts are getting closer."


    He could sense the panicked humming from Trash. A talking sword was cool, but Tom was too tired to keep on going. He wasn''t a strong brave person who could fight his way to victory. All he wanted was to live a more relaxing life, just like several other isekai protagonists. But as usual he managed to mess everything up.


    With his back to a tree, he closed his eyes as he sensed the beasts getting closer. Closer, closer, then ¡­ gone. He did not sense the error beast anymore, but he could now sense something else. It was a beautiful aura, it felt encouraging, yet he could feel something else that he didn¡¯t know how to explain.


    Tom opened his eyes to see all the beasts dead, impaired with a dark cloak. The cloak looked like the darkness filled with small glistening stars. Tall and enveloped in the cloak, its eyes gleaming a white glow fixated on him. It was a creature that did not make sense to look at, yet he felt like it should have made sense from its aura which was like the starry night sky itself.


    "Thanks. Getting killed by you would be a cooler way to die," Tom managed to mutter out before he lost consciousness.

 Chapter 5: No time to rest

    Chapter 5: No time to rest


    <blockquote>


    "You do not know anything about the Wandering God?"


    I sighed. "Again: no Wandering God. This world has Venus, the creator goddess, who constantly has to fight against the evil god Khronos." I raised an eyebrow. "If you truly met this ''Wandering God'', then that is an anomaly. Gods stay on their planets. Why would there be a god wandering between them? And what reason would they have to summon people to other planets that already have a god that is able to summon people themselves?"


    The little girl seemed disappointed by my answer, so I tried to think of something else to say. "Don''t worry. Maybe on your adventure you will meet this god again? Let me catch you up on the conflict with the evil god Khronos: it all began¡ª."


    The girl raised her hand. Instantly, her body language, even her voice, took a complete 180. "Save it. Looks like this planet is another failure." She sighed. "This is getting boring."


    The ground trembled. "What the hell?" I looked out the window to see a giant crater growing on the land.


    "What a shame your little adventure must end." The girl pointed at me. "Worry not, for I will reward you for saving me time. Your reward: a quick death."


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    Bolera stared at the dead error beast, then glared at the demons bowing before him.


    "Meister Bolera. The error beast came out of nowhere! And Sierra was a part of the squadron, so¡ª."


    "SILENCE!"


    The two demons squirmed. Bolera sighed and walked back and forth. "Now¡­" Moving his gaze to the other demons who silently stood on the side, all the other demons instantly bowed as well. "How should I punish you all?"


    "Don''t be too tough on them."


    Bolara looked up as Chanson came flying down. Like usual she wore a red dress that complimented her red wings. Her luscious black hair was tied into a bun with what he guessed was a hair tie she had nabbed from one of the humans they killed.


    Chanson smiled, revealing her fangs. "Did you forget about your dear childhood friend Sierra? The one that went rogue?" She patted him lightly on the back. "If a musician strays from the orchestra, then naturally the entire symphony suffers."


    Bolara snorted. "I appreciate your suggestion, Meister Chanson, but I will not betray a friend just to save my skin. This failure is mine alone."


    Chanson shrugged. "Whatever you say. Just don''t start loosing the beat because of Sierra and her obsession with her naive brother." She leaned in closer so that only he could hear her. "You remember what the Maestro said, don''t you? The humans need to disappear in order for us to keep existing. Even though the demon king is in denial, it has obviously not made our species situation better."


    He careful pushed her away. "No need to remind me. I was the one who took the first step for this cause in the shadow swamp. I will follow this cause until my death."


    "Delightful. We may be far away from accomplishing our cause, but at least we managed to send a signal: killing humans for the first time since that dumb Hero intervened."


    Bolera looked at the other demons who smiled at each other and started celebrating at the mention of their feat. Yes, this wasn''t a complete failure.


    "You should probably tell dear little Sierra the good news: she can finally stop loitering around and pick up the pace. If she does that, then there is no doubt she will be able to join the orchestra again."


    He nodded in agreement. "That is the perfect outcome for her." Finally, she would be able to return home.


    ***


    Tom''s head throbbed. "No way. Did I return by death?"


    "Everyone, the weirdo is awake!" A familiar voice spoke.


    Tom opened his eyes to see that everyone in his squadron was there. Mark and Ilona looked visibly worried for him. Hiro was trying to act cool by not pretending to be worried. Sierra wasn¡¯t even trying to hide her disappointment at his survival. Tom felt like blowing her cover, but he couldn¡¯t refute that her assassination attempt had unintentionally saved his life.


    "What happened?" Tom asked.


    "After we defeated the beast, you disappeared. So we started looking for you," Mark replied.


    "We, minus Sierra," Ilona added.


    Sierra rolled her eyes. "Sorry miss I-have-a-savior-complex, but our mission was to survey the forest, not bring back corpses."


    "You¡ª."


    "Anyways," Hiro interrupted. "We found you in the forest following the trail of leaves you left us."


    Trail of leaves? "What about my wounds? I feel strangely energetic for having gone through a traumatic experience. At least I will probably get a cool scar out of it."


    "Yeah, about that." Hiro hesitated.


    "Worry not, for I healed your injuries." Ilona gleefully interjected. "You had burned hands, and one of your arms fell off. But with the blessing of the almighty, I managed to heal your wounds."


    ¡­ So she healed his cool scars. What was the use of going through traumatizing battles if you had no scars to show for it? Maybe he was being too harsh. Tom didn¡¯t expect his arm to fall off, and he preferred to have both of them. Losing an arm in his first battle wasn¡¯t worth it. It should at least be in the middle of his journey somewhere and replaced with an artificial arm with special powers, or something like that.


    "Thank you, saintess." Whoops, the saintess part slipped out of his mouth.


    "No need to flatter me, I am no saintess." She hurriedly replied. "But, we do have some bad news¡­ Jeremia, I wasn¡¯t able to save him." Tears trailed down her cheeks. Her hands were shaking, but she still stood her ground taking a deep breath to calm herself. "The error beast devoured him, and ¡­ the corrosive acid from its stomach made his body unhealable. My connection to the archangel also weakens in demon territory ¡­ I''m sorry." She stared at the ground, defeated.


    If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    "Who?"


    Hiro sighed. "The nobleman in our squadron you kept ignoring."


    Jeremia. So the background character nobleman died. Honestly, Tom didn¡¯t care. "Don¡¯t beat yourself up over nothing, Ilona. Sacrifices are inevitable. This is technically a war, I think." He was confused about that part but the demons had technically attacked them before the error beast appeared. "At least we all survived. We should look at the positives."


    Mark gave Ilona a handkerchief. "I guess you¡¯re right," she mumbled. "But¡ª."


    Sierra rolled her eyes. "What happened to you?"


    "After running I found this strange ruin. There I found an aura sword," Tom nonchalantly answered.


    That caught everybody¡¯s attention. "An aura sword," Mark said. "No wonder we were sent to look for those ruins. That is a legendary sword. Wow, you are one lucky person, boss."


    Hiro pointed at Trash placed on a table at the feet of the bed. "This must be it. I took it with us because I felt it was something important. I took the trouble of getting a sheath to hold the sword, and you¡¯re welcome for that. Anyway, good for you. According to the aura sword convention, if you find one you get to keep it. But you should still be careful, killing you and stealing the sword isn¡¯t out of the question."


    "I doubt anyone wants to steal that sword," Tom grumbled. It had no OP one-shot skill. "Anyway, then I got ambushed by error beasts, but I got saved by a strange thing. It was tall and looked as if it was wearing the night sky as its cloak. They must have been the one to lead you to my location. But anyways, I am more worried about those vile error beasts. What even are error beasts in the first place?"


    The room fell silent. "That must be the night witch," someone eventually said. "There were some rumors of her being spotted in the forest, but I guess it must be true."


    Everyone turned towards a bulky-looking lady. She was old, full of muscles, and looked intimidating.


    "And, if it¡¯s about what error beasts are, you obviously know what they are called so you should try and remember what your fancy private tutors taught you."


    "Who are you?" How did he not sense her? He could so easily sense the error beasts aura from a distance; Trash really does strengthen his abilities as an observer.


    "Right, we haven¡¯t met yet. I am Olg a, the instructor in charge of the commoners. The Commander wishes to speak with you. Go meet her, now."


    "Now?" Tom exclaimed. "Don¡¯t I get to have some rest?"


    "Rest is a luxury for a soldier, also Ilona must have healed your wounds, so there¡¯s no excuse." Then she turned her back to walk away.


    Give them one saintess, and they slave you even more. Tom could sense Trash humming in agreement.


    Olga stopped, remembering something. "Also, you seem to have lost your satchel. Don¡¯t forget to get a new one. You will have to pay for it yourself."


    "What, but I got attacked! Why do I have to pay for a replacement?" Tom protested.


    Instructor Olga chuckled. "It¡¯s just how it is." Then she left.


    "Sorry Tom, the instructor isn¡¯t that fond of nobles. You can probably buy one in the nearby town," Mark said. "We have to go back to the training grounds now. Good luck meeting the Commander."


    They all left Tom alone, to scream into his pillow.


    Trash hummed. "Though day?"


    ***


    Instructor Olga didn''t tell him where the Commander''s office was; she is by far his least favorite background character. Tom walked out of the infirmary that was located at the side of the training grounds, and his body did not ache at all. Ilona was a formidable healer. She obviously had to be the healer for his OP party in the future.


    Even though his body felt fine, his mind wasn¡¯t. Tom was not a brave person. Experiencing being fatally wounded like that, and having a near-death experience was terrifying. He pushed all of those worries to the back of his mind. Such thoughts would interfere with his EPIC ADVENTURE. He was in a dumb isekai world after all. Even though he had no OP skills, and almost died, further down the line; yes further down the line it would all get better. "Let''s focus on learning as much as I can," he told himself.


    "Hey, Trash. Why were you locked up in those ruins?"


    Trash hummed. "I was sealed there by someone, but I don¡¯t remember why. They were probably scared of my immense power."


    A weak-looking sword that had amnesia. That was some obvious sign of it becoming more powerful as they remembered more of their memories, right? Tom still had some hope in this stupid sword. Yeah, that was right. This was only the beginning.


    There were a lot of soldiers at the training grounds. The way people trained was surprisingly flexible. Some were focusing on their stance training alone, others training in pairs or groups, and the instructors walked around helping as much as they could. He did see some flying slashes and fireballs being conjured from nothing, which he rightfully guessed were skills. Even though he felt a bit let down by there being no system windows and stats, being able to use skills was cool.


    Several people were walking past him, and he noticed quite a few glances being thrown at the sword attached to his waist. "Word sure travels quickly around here. Must be jealous."


    "No, you¡¯re just wearing your pants inside out," Trash hummed.


    After going back to the infirmary to fix his clothes, Tom returned to the building where the roll call took place. It did have a massive tower so he assumed it had to be important.


    Two guards stood at the entrance, and when he told them he had a meeting with the Commander one of them went inside to get someone. A lady that Tom guessed was a secretary arrived to greet him. She had a bob-cut, glasses, and she didn¡¯t wear the uniform but a white button up shirt and a blue skirt.


    She glared at Tom. "Tomassio Rossi I assume? The Commander will see you shortly. Please follow me."


    They walked up a lot of stairs, and the further up they went the fewer guards were around. After walking up what felt like a billion steps they arrived at the top, and the secretary side-eyed him for having to catch his breath. She ushered Tom into the Commander''s office and told him to wait inside.


    It was a cozy-looking office, with bookshelves on each side. There were two chairs for visitors and one behind the desk. Behind the desk was a circular-looking window. On her desk, he noticed a book.


    Walking over to it he realized he could read the title: Tales of the Mirror Maiden. With nothing better to do, he picked up the book and started reading.


    Once upon a time, there was a little girl. She was sad because she was all alone, lost in a world of darkness. Touching the ground under her she found a mirror which she could use to see herself.


    The little girl smiled. If she could see herself, that could only mean she was still alive. But she had no idea where she was, so she cried until she could cry no more. Eventually, she mustered the strength to stand up and walk.


    In this world of darkness, she was all alone. Then she made a wish: "I do not want to be alone anymore. How nice would it be if there was no more darkness, but a fairy before me?"


    A golden glow lit up this dark world, and so it happened: a large lady with beautiful wings appeared before her. From the relief of no longer being alone, the girl cried yet again.


    The fairy queen, a compassionate person, hugged the girl. "There, there, child. Do not be afraid, for I am here." And since that day, the fairy queen would always stay by her side, and do her best to make her smile.


    Tom closed the book. So it was a children''s book. He looked at the cover, and there was the girl with the mirror in her hand. Taking a second look around the room he realized it was decorated with mirrors. Far too many mirrors hanged on the wall, and small sculptures made of mirror shards. He looked up at the ceiling and saw small shards of glass scattered around like stars.


    "Are mirrors significant in this world?" he asked Trash.


    "Of course, didn''t you just read about the Mirror Maiden? She is infamous in the lands surrounding the Void. A being that arrived at this world from the place between worlds, and said she would unite the people ¡ª and all that childish nonsense." Trash hummed. "Forget that. Look through the window behind there. I want to see if you will shit yourself or not."


    Tom was curious about how the view was from here, so he walked to the window.


    It was a stunning view. He could see the whole commoner barracks from here. Further to the right he saw a flat landscape with some ruins in it. To his left in the distance he spotted that stupid forest he almost died in. And to the north ¡­ a hole?


    He hadn¡¯t noticed due to the smog and walls surrounding the camp, but there was a giant hole in the ground. There were several clouds desperately trying to hide it from view. But the fact that it was a massive hole made it difficult to hide, revealing some patches here and there of darkness. The hole was so huge that he couldn¡¯t even see where it ended; it was all smoke in the distance. However, when he squinted he could manage to spot a mountain past it that he remembered seeing on the carriage ride to the New Forest. The biggest mountain he had ever seen, yet comparing it with the giant hole felt almost childish. "What the space?"


    First a Hero gone rogue, then a giant hole in the planet? There was no way Tom would be able to manage his EPIC ADVENTURE without any OP powers. "The Commander is late; this is the perfect opportunity to look through her books for information about higher beings," he concluded.


    Trash hummed with a strong frequency which threw him out of his daze. "Look behind you!"


    Tom turned around to notice that the door was slightly open. The secretary had been spying on him. Smirking, she was aiming something at him.


    "Is that a gun?"


    Then she pulled the trigger.

 Chapter 6: Talking to Alice

    Chapter 6: Talking to Alice


    <blockquote>


    From all the information I could gather: the Wandering God is a being that lives in a symbiotic relationship with mortals. Then the only logical step would be to disrupt that.


    The purple planet had unfortunately not been anything special compared to other planets I had come across. Countless rotations around its star had I studied this System and understood all its rules. Raising my focus toward the planet, I did what my kind does best: manipulate. Once you knew all the rules, knowing loopholes was all that was necessary to bring down the System.


    By my will, I looked on as a Void appeared on the planet, then another, then another. When the planet had too many Voids to manage, I looked on as it collapsed in on itself. What was left was but a cloud of dust.


    "There." For the young ones it would have been impossible to notice, but I am one of the oldest of the ineffable. I sensed a gaze. It was far too weak to pinpoint, but it had to be the Wandering God.


    "I wonder how many planets it will take before they intervene?"


    - [Error]


    </blockquote>


    Tom braced himself for the pain, but instead of hitting him the bullet stopped in mid air. Then, as if the world suddenly remembered the bullet existed, it fell on the floor.


    "Lisa."


    The secretary laid down her gun and bowed. "Greetings, lady Alice."


    "It is Commander Alice. And you do not need to spy on him for my sake; he has my trust. I will not have you ignore my orders, or he will hear about this. Is that understood?"


    The secretary brazenly rolled her eyes. "My apologies." Then she left, stomping down the stairs.


    That had caught Tom off guard. He hadn''t expected to see a gun here. Wasn''t rule number one in an isekai not to invent destructive weapons that can cause a giant war? But it was probably natural that someone would have slipped up eventually, being a world that takes in a lot of otherworlders and all.


    Forget that, he almost died! "Why did she try to murder me for?"


    The Commander walked in wearing expensive-looking golden armor and didn''t look much different from the roll call. "Don''t take it to heart. She can be somewhat ¡­ overprotective."


    That was another level of overprotective, but for what? The secretary didn''t even seem that respectful to her. "Guess I can overlook it, for now." He was for sure holding a grudge though.


    She gestured towards the chairs in front of the desk. "Why don''t we talk? You came earlier than I thought. I wouldn¡¯t have minded if you took more time to rest."


    So, Instructor Olga really did tell him to go early on purpose. How kind of her.


    Tom didn¡¯t know what to greet the Commander properly, so he awkwardly nodded and smiled. He went to sit on a chair, and when the Commander had taken her seat his curiosity took hold of him. "What is that giant hole?"


    "Straight to the point I see. I admire that. Although, this wouldn¡¯t be a question a nobleman would have asked." She smirked. "There isn¡¯t much to say: it is a giant hole. People call it the Void, and it is a natural geographical phenomenon."


    How was a giant hole in the planet something natural? This world was really strange. "Then why are we even here so close to the Void?"


    "That is because recently the church has ordered the eradication of all demons, and that is why a campaign was launched by the king, lest the church gets its own ideas and creates a private military. Demon horns are also valuable, and ¡­ there are other more complex reasons as well." She looked like she was contemplating something. "For the common folk, the high priest also revealed that the existence of the Void is due to demons."


    "The Void is due to the demons?" Tom repeated. "That makes no sense. Having the Void makes it harder to invade since the only border is the New Forest. And if they actually are the cause behind it, isn¡¯t it more evident that they more likely want to be left alone?"


    She nodded. "I am impressed. Normally people would just ignore that fact, yet you are different. I guess it¡¯s the intuition of an otherworlder."


    Did she say otherworlder? "Wait, how did you know that? Not that I am proving your assumption or anything."


    "Because I saw you. At first, I thought you were another drunk noble. However, you exited a certain building. The building a previous otherworlder came through. The Hero we call him."


    Finally he had someone who knew he was an otherworlder. But this Hero ¡ª might as well gather information now that he was exposed. "Yeah, I heard he went rogue and is killing all other otherworlders." Tom hesitated. "Do you think I am in danger?"


    The Commander shook her head. "As long as you don¡¯t show yourself as a direct threat then you should be safe. Vice-Commander Zev also made sure to ¡­ send a message. As far as people know, the Hero has been inactive as of late. That is precisely why the demons and the church decided to test out the waters, since he does not allow any wars in his domain around the Void."


    "But shouldn¡¯t that be good then? No war is the best for everyone."


    She smiled. "That is a nice idea, but the Hero also does not allow ''unnecessary mingling'' with other nations without his approval. What he deems ''unnecessary mingling'' is anyone''s guess, but that the kingdom desperately needs more trade is a fact. I assumed the same goes for the demons. A war breaking out would not be the ideal situation for both parties. And the deaths caused by the last expedition are no doubt going to increase tensions."


    Tom was still confused about what this Hero was after. Why waste a perfect second life as a Hero of all things?


    "I thought you may have come to help us all, or perhaps you were as dangerous as the previous Hero. Yet you are ¡­ "


    "Average?"


    She nodded. "You said it, not me. Impersonating a noble is punished by death. But, if you are of use to me, I may look the other way."


    "What do you want me to do?" Tom asked, reluctantly. Forcing Tom to be her slave would not be very waifu of her to do. Actually, in some cases it would, but Tom didn¡¯t feel like going down that route.


    "I want you to somehow stop the approaching war with the demons. Being diplomatic or slaying the demon king by yourself, any way will do."


    So the generic isekai adventure. "And where do I start?"


    She shook her head. "I am not sure yet. You must have some useful abilities, so why don¡¯t you just lay low and train for now? I will assign Zev to assist you. He is my closest confidant and already knows about your identity. Then you can do what you otherworlders do best: change the world."


    Tom looked at her. "Well, I don¡¯t exactly have a choice, do I?"


    "I am glad you are in agreement. Now, could you please tell me what happened during the expedition?"


    Tom did as she asked and explained how he came across Trash in the ruins. She listened intently at everything he had to say.


    "The 50th aura sword," she repeated. "No wonder we haven¡¯t been able to enter the ruins, it must have only been compatible with an observer." She whispered something else, deep in thought, then shook her head. "As a representative of the king, I Commander Alice Richardson congratulate you. It seems you have also received an appropriate sheath for the sword. Those are hard to come by."


    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    Tom looked at the sheath Hiro had given him. Was it really that rare? Looked like one needed a special sheath for a stupid sword like Trash.


    He felt a hum. "Hey, I have the feeling you¡¯re insulting me right now."


    Alice curiously eyed Trash. "It speaks? Intriguing. But you will need to keep that a secret. Conscious blades are extremely rare so some foolish researcher would pay a fortune to have it stolen from you."


    Trash hummed. "Hopefully they would be more interesting than this weirdo."


    Tom rolled his eyes at the comment. "Trash is what I called him. You can probably understand why."


    "Tar¡¯ash? That is the name of an old god of knowledge from the south-eastern human kingdom Aleria. A fitting choice."


    Wait, that was not his intention.


    "Oh," Trash hummed with newfound courage. "Fate is truly on my side. I will need to come up with some fitting catchphrases to be deserving of this name."


    A catchphrase. Really? This sword was something. But honestly, he probably should think of some catchphrases of his own. He refused to be outshined by his sword.


    Alice cleared her throat. "Let¡¯s move on. What happened after that?"


    "Inside the ruins, I managed to defeat an error beast by myself." He stopped for a moment expecting some praise, but continued on when she didn¡¯t say anything. "I got attacked by 3 error beasts, Commander. Then something appeared. The people from my squadron say I saw someone called the Night Witch." He thought she would be shocked by the revelation, but her expression stayed the same.


    "What was the Night Witch like? There are very few sightings of her."


    Tom pondered. This world was starting to get confusing. First, he thought it was simple, with the humans against the demon king. But he did not know where to place this Night Witch. Although, he did feel something. "I''m not sure. It was a scary sight, however ¡­ This may be strange to hear, but it was beautiful. I think she saved me."


    Tom expected screams of blasphemy, yet the commander looked ... smug?


    Wait a second. Tom had completely forgotten that he was in this stupid world. If he had to go with the most clich¨¦ answer: was she the Night Witch in secret?


    He tried feeling her aura. It was less powerful yet similar to the one he had felt from the witch. An amalgamation of shades of purple with what looked like colorful stars peeking through the aura. Seriously? A saintess, a beastkin prince, a demon spy, a trashy sword, and a literal super-powerful witch. Did it have to be that obvious? Not that knowing all of this information has proved helpful so far.


    "By the way, what even is an error beast?"


    She redeemed her composure. "Error beasts are creatures that reside in areas around the Void. Nobody properly understands how they come to be, but the most accepted explanation is that the Void affects normal animals and merges them together in grotesque ways. Usually our scouts alert the expedition teams in advance of their location, but they usually migrate towards the demon''s side this time of the year ¡­ I have no idea why they have suddenly gotten so active all of the sudden. Even the demons have a hard time controlling those beasts." She sighed. "I will have to arrange a new scouting team and rewrite the map of their migration patterns."


    So those error beasts were kind of like the goblins and ogres of an isekai. Spicing things up with something new was nice, but he honestly preferred the generic isekai monsters.


    "That Night Witch managed to kill 3 error beasts easily, she must be truly powerful." It was best to be in her good graces for his adventure to go smoothly, so he figured giving her an ego boost would do.


    "The Night Witch is indeed one of the strongest witches." She nodded approvingly at him. "Well, I am glad you are okay. There isn¡¯t more to be said from me, just know that I will be observing your training. Feel free to call me Alice; it would fit better with the identity you are using."


    Alice couldn¡¯t hide her smile from Tom complimenting the Night Witch, so he worried that he had fueled her ego too much. But she had saved his life, so she deserved it.


    She put her hand on her chest. "Dear otherworlder, I look forward to seeing how you will change this world. I will put my trust in you, because everyone deserves a second chance."


    Tom looked her right in the eyes. "Don''t worry. I will do my best."


    ***


    "You need to use more force!" Trash hummed.


    Tom grunted. "I am trying, but this hole is too small. Why the space is this wall so sturdy?"


    Alice had high expectations of what he was going to accomplish here, and frankly Tom didn''t like it. He never signed up to end a war, just a power fantasy, and for the sake of his EPIC ADVENTURE he has to get on the OP-isekai protagonist route asap. He tried to push himself through once more, but he really was stuck. "This throws a wrench in my plan of going rogue and joining the adventurers guild."


    Someone sighed. "You are making a horrible attempt at trying to escape here. You know the nearest settlement to the south is days away, right? If you wanted to escape you would have been more successful escaping to the east."


    "Hiro? What are you doing here?"


    "A fellow soldier told me my weird roommate was stuck in a wall screaming at himself."


    "Weird¡ª? Anyway, could you help me get out of here first?"


    "I''ll help, boss," said Mark, and pulled out Tom by the legs.


    Finally out of that predicament, Tom looked around to realize that his entire squadron was there. "You guys didn''t all have to come to my aid, you know? It is embarrassing."


    Sierra snorted. "What is embarrassing is you getting stuck in a wall."


    "And getting us all in trouble for that matter," Hiro added. "If someone flees the camp, the entire squadron of that person has the responsibility of bringing them back."


    So fleeing this camp wasn''t going to be easy. Fart, he should have known better than listening to Trash''s spur of the moment suggestion. "What a shame. Are you really certain that there is no way to get out of enlistment? Can''t I join the adventurers guild or something?"


    "I have never heard of this adventurers guild, although the alchemist guild and others I have," Ilona said. "But about dodging the draft, there is no other way. You could apply to work in the capital since the king is always looking for new observers, but I doubt he would let the son of a Duke dodge the draft a second time."


    No adventurers guild? Tom moped. "Guess I am stuck here. Alice said she would let Zev train me, so perhaps I could get stronger that way?" And then he could flee before Alice made him do something tiring.


    "Wait. So you''re saying the Commander allowed you to be personally tutored by Vice-Commander Zev?" Mark asked.


    "Yes." Tom couldn¡¯t exactly tell them it was because he was an otherworlder, but he didn¡¯t exactly mind the misunderstanding that Alice was impressed by his talent. "Is it that big of a deal?"


    "You¡¯re being personally trained by the Vice-Commander! Of course it is. Even though many nobles pestered him to train them, he didn¡¯t train anyone. Even Hiro, who is undoubtedly the best swordsman among us, was refused by the Vice-Commander." Mark explained.


    "That was because he said he was too unfamiliar with my combat style to train me," Hiro rebuked. But he did seem a bit impressed by Tom.


    Ilona muttered to herself. "Maybe Tom is secretly the Vice-Commanders son. Oh, and don¡¯t forget his romantic relationship with the Commander."


    "Don¡¯t be stupid little crusader. The Vice-Commander is way too old to be his father. It probably has something to do with the aura blade he retrieved," Sierra suggested.


    "Oh, did I speak my mind aloud again? Wait, stop calling me a little crusader, I am a sai¡­ I mean priestess! I am beginning to think you are doing this on purpose." Ilona complained.


    "No fart," Sierre replied.


    The cussing filter in this world was so childish that her response made him giggle.


    Ilona gasped and gripped her staff. "You little ¡ª."


    "Stop fighting," Tom said, doing his best to stop laughing. "Ilona, what did you mean by my relationship with the Commander?"


    That seemed to surprise everyone. "Oh, you don¡¯t remember ¡­ She¡¯s your betrothed," Ilona explained.


    "I guess you are filth in more ways than one," Sierra said.


    Mark shook his head. "How could you forget? Being engaged is an important decision that you should uphold. To have to be with someone for the rest of your life is an important promise."


    Hiro didn¡¯t say anything, but Tom noticed him looking away as if trying to remember something.


    "This was why she told me to call her Alice", Tom realized. It also explains how she quickly knew he was an imposter. He never cared much for relationships back home, and he wasn¡¯t going to start here. At least this engagement would be a good excuse to ask her questions when he needed to.


    "Alice said I would get a reward for finding the aura sword," Tom said. "Let me treat you all to a meal later."


    "He¡¯s using her first name, how romantic." Ilona gushed.


    "I know," Mark said.


    Hiro sighed. "I¡¯m pretty sure he¡¯s breaking military protocol and is supposed to get reprimanded, but ¡­ whatever."


    Sierra just rolled her eyes.


    "They were not romantic at all," Trash hummed. "It must be because of their boring personalities if you ask me."


    "Wait, who said that?" Ilona asked, confused.


    "Oh no, someone is calling for me. Gotta go!" Tom hurriedly said, before running away. "What the hell Trash, why did you talk?"


    "They were all making fun of you, I couldn¡¯t be left out of that." Trash hummed. "Please tell me I managed to embarrass you. I did, didn¡¯t I? Farting space, I¡¯m an amazing sword."


    Hopefully, Zev could help him get stronger so that he could finally ditch this dumb sword.


    ***


    The goblin Nim slowly opened the door. The Founder was crouching down, admiring a flower. From the outset she looked nothing more than an innocent little girl, but Nim knew better than to underestimate the founder of the error cult. "Someone told me you wish to speak with me?"


    She didn''t bother turning to look at him. He preferred it that way. Looking at her ¡­ he wasn''t quite used to it yet.


    "Another otherworlder has appeared in the Shiravesti Outpost," she said.


    His eyes widened. "Another one in the camp? If you want me to go catch the feral, I would gladly¡ª."


    "No," she interrupted. "This one is different. A contender."


    "An observer? Becoming an observer the moment they arrive in this world; that otherworlder was either the luckiest or the unluckiest person in the universe."


    She plucked the flower in front of her. "Indeed. A shame they will break from The Madness the moment Rachel finds them. However, the corpse she wouldn''t care to take, no?"


    "That ¡ª this is the perfect opportunity to one up the Hero and his goons! I see what you called me here for. There is a preacher who is back from the United Port Cities. I will send him there to retrieve the corpse." He hesitated. "This is not related, but I have also received intel that Tomassio Rossi has arrived at the camp, or Shiravesti Outpost as you prefer it. If he truly made it back from his trip to the South, especially as the son of a Duke, he would be the perfect new recruit."

 Chapter 7: Trying to find a routine

    Chapter 7: Trying to find a routine


    <blockquote>


    I looked on in horror as the little girl disappeared, and her form gradually changed into the most horrifying creature I had ever seen. I did not know how to describe it ¡ª there were far too many options. I felt my sanity break trying to understand what I was looking at.


    That creature, floating in the air, started moving closer to me. "Now is there¡ª."


    Before I could finish hearing what they had to say, the entire world turned black. My sanity recovered, as if what I had just experienced was but a bad dream, being replaced with a strong sensation of deja vu. "This familiar feeling. It couldn''t¡­" I had closed my eyes from the shook, but when I sensed light again I slowly opened my eyes. In front of me stood a priest.


    He coughed. "Now this is unexpected. Welcome, otherworlder. You have been summoned to the kingdom of Boreas to save this planet from demons. I know you might be scared, but¡ª."


    "FUUUUUUUUCK!!!"


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    "Previously on Tom''s EPIC ADVENTURE: Tom found out he got isekai''d! Due to some misfortune, he did not get OP powers, but a boring effort-based class called an observer. He met some obvious side characters: a saintess, beastkin prince, demon spy, and a powerful witch; and found a weak talking sword that¡ª."


    "What are you doing?" Trash hummed.


    Tom rolled his eyes. "What does it look like? I am doing a recap of my adventure thus far."


    "That is interesting and all, but are you sure you want to be seen talking to yourself in public?"


    He looked around and noticed people whispering amongst themselves as they walked past him.


    This was nothing. Just one of the drawbacks of being the main character. "Whatever. Let''s go to train with Zev."


    Finally, he would have something everyone sought: a master. Since he didn¡¯t fit the being-transported-to-another-world-with-OP-powers-from-the-get-go trope, he had to settle for the next best thing. Being taught by a more experienced side character was a common trope in fantasy stories. They could help you to train without wasting time, and be the gateway to becoming OP.


    Tom arrived at the training room on the first floor of the commander''s buildings. The two giant wooden doors were already open.


    "I know what I saw! When I went on one of my early morning jogs, I saw a ginormous dark ¡­ something, approaching the camp."


    Zev held out his hands trying to calm down the female soldier. "Letis, perhaps you are mistaken? There¡ª."


    "I took some days to read about your achievements, and the light that came after has to be one of your aura swords: Lightbringer. I am sure of it. The Hero has noticed our transgressions!"


    "Now, now."


    Tom tried to get a better view of the special cutscene event. The floorboard creaked under his step and they both looked at him.


    Fart. "Don''t mind me, Zev and random background character. Continue speaking."


    The girl clenched her fist and took a step closer to Tom. "Who are you calling a background character?"


    Zev quickly moved in front of her. "Do not beat up the boy Letis. He is just here for some extra help."


    "Extra help as in me being very good," Tom quickly added.


    The girl rolled her eyes. "Sure." She fixed her gaze on Zev. "Do not take me for a fool. The Hero has noticed us, and there is no way I am going to die just because of the decision of dumb nobles¡­ And my ancestors for that matter."


    With that said, she stormed out of the building leaving Zev massaging his temple. "Perfect. Now how do I deal with this?"


    "Erm. Is everything fine?"


    Zev nodded. "Do not worry. Little Alice will fix this problem. Now, to teach you." He gestured to his front. "Get over here."


    Tom walked towards Zev, and immediately tripped and fell on the floor.


    "Haha. Nice one," Trash hummed.


    He looked up to see that Zev had appeared beside him. "What did you trip me for?" Luckily the floor was made of soft material.


    Zev chuckled. "Reflexes are a matter of life and death on the battlefield. If I was an enemy demon you would have been dead." He gestured towards the center of the room. "Ready to get stronger?"


    "Yes," Tom hurriedly replied, getting up and being tripped again. "Are you going to keep doing that?"


    ***


    Tom lay down on his bed. It had been days since Tom started training with Zev. Learning to avoid being tripped did take time, but he managed to train his reflexes to take a step back when his footing felt odd. Although he wasn¡¯t always successful. He was surprisingly enjoying the training sessions. Zev would try and trip him, and make him pick up a blanket he threw on the ground repeatedly. Occasionally he would tell Tom about his amazing potential. Wise master stuff.


    Hopefully, he would be taught some hidden cheat techniques. Zev said he would teach him the secret whispers of the world or something. He hadn''t learned anything useful yet, but from his knowledge of watching ''The Karate Kid'' he knew there had to be some secret meaning.


    "We are going to train with the instructors now," Mark said. "And remember what I told you about the electives?"


    Tom nodded. "I will look into it." He was in fact not going to do that, but he had learned Mark was persistent.


    The door slammed shut.


    He had been training with Zev after every morning assembly, but he didn''t have much to do after that. Some of the soldiers continued training with their preferred instructors, while others picked electives. It basically sounded like clubs to Tom.


    Being a soldier was not what he expected. Of course, Zev made him train, and so did the other soldiers, but the atmosphere was surprisingly relaxed. Rather than a military encampment, it felt more like a summer camp.


    Tom picked up Trash and left his room. "Might as well take a walk."


    Tom walked close to the training grounds and observed soldiers running laps. One soldier was being screamed at by an instructor for messing up his stance, and another sat on the ground reading a training manual. "I¡¯m glad that¡¯s not me."


    He noticed Ilona standing on the sidelines. She was walking around offering her help, but people would shake their head and avoid her like the plague. When she noticed Tom, she walked up to him.


    "Tom!" She smiled. "How is your training with the Vice-Commander going?"


    He crossed his arms. "Swimmingly. Zev says I am talented, so it¡¯s just a matter of time until I become the strongest soldier in this camp."


    Ilona nodded. "Glad to hear you¡¯re committed."


    "You¡¯re going to become the strongest soldier in the camp?" Someone said.


    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    Tom turned and saw a bulky-looking soldier. He held a claymore like it weighed nothing and was sweating from a hard workout. "Why don¡¯t we have a friendly sparring match?"


    He looked at Ilona. "Don¡¯t worry, I will heal any injuries during the duel. That is why I am sitting here."


    Tom smirked. "Good. Would be a shame if he got too hurt." He looked at his opponent. "Let¡¯s do only skills since I¡¯m not that adept with the sword yet."


    "Fine by me."


    They both walked to the side a few meters apart. At Ilona''s signal, the fight began, and Tom quickly jumped to the side when a flying blade of air almost cut him. The blade was as big as his body and dissipated after missing him.


    "What was that?"


    His opponent smirked. "It¡¯s my skill: wind cutter. Impressed?"


    "Horrible. You¡¯re supposed to say your skill name in brackets when you use it! It breaks the immersion otherwise."


    "Say the skill name? I guess that¡¯s ok for a friendly spar, but how do I say it in brackets?" He asked, confused.


    Tom shook his head. "Whatever. Let¡¯s just continue." Using the momentary confusion he tried to grasp his opponent''s aura. It had a strong hint of a greenish-blue. A soldier, a brute, obsessed with training. Tom had a clear image of his opponent in his head. "[stabilize]."


    His opponent aimed another wind blade at him, but it dissipated before it could reach Tom. "Huh? Whatever, that was just a simple skill." He stabbed his claymore in the ground and jumped. "Wind current!" Small holes in the ground appeared around Tom, and the moment his feet landed on the ground a huge upward current of air launched Tom into the sky.


    Tom screamed as he was thrown several feet in the air, and closed his eyes bracing himself for the pain. However, he didn¡¯t slam onto a hard surface, but it felt more like a soft pillow. He opened his eyes to see that a fluffy cloud had formed on the ground, and after a few seconds, it disappeared from reality, slamming his body onto the gravel below.


    "That was embarrassing," Trash quietly hummed.


    Ilona healed Tom with a white glow emanating across his body. "Are you alright?"


    "Sorry about that," his opponent said, scratching his head. "My skill normally just makes someone lose their footing and fall. I have no idea why it acted that way."


    "I believe it was because of Tom¡¯s skill. Some skills depend on multiple affinities. Even though the high wind affinity was reduced, since wind current also depends on earth spirit affinity by trapping wind in pockets below the ground, the effect of the skill improved."


    His opponent''s eyes lit up. "Wow! My earth affinity is the worst of all of my affinities. I have heard of the skill used by observers, but not that it could be used like this. I honestly thought it was bogus, but it seemed like teamwork does make you stronger." He slapped Tom on the back. "You¡¯re not bad. Perhaps you can join the group I made to prepare for the next tournament? We train and encourage each other to get stronger. By the way, my name is¡ª."


    "Hold up," Tom interrupted. "I don¡¯t do side quests. So, bye."


    "Oh ¡­ alright? The offer is always up," he said confused, before leaving.


    When he was gone Ilona helped Tom get back on his feet. "Are you sure you¡¯re alright? Hanging out with the other soldiers: that is a nice offer."


    Tom had no plans of being transported to another world, having the luck to become an isekai protagonist, only to become someone''s support. If he was going to do this properly, he had to become an OP main character. Tom shook his head. "I prefer to train by myself. And I don¡¯t need more side characters. I got you and the others in the squadron. That''s enough."


    "I don¡¯t quite understand what you mean by a ''side character''."


    Tom sighed. "Just think of it as a close friend."


    "Friend¡­"


    "Anyway, why is my skill so useless? I can only average out someone''s affinities, but if I accidentally make someone stronger then isn¡¯t it useless? ¡­ Ilona, are you listening?"


    "Sorry, yes." She was silent for a moment. "Normally your skill wouldn¡¯t have been so strong, but I presume your aura sword improves your understanding of the skill to such a degree that it might be too effective. I¡¯m sorry. I think only another observer could help you there. Reducing one type of affinity compared to all at once, one would have to rewrite the laws of the world to do that."


    "Thanks for explaining. I ¡­ don¡¯t know much of the basics because of¡ª."


    "Don¡¯t worry. Vice-Commander Zev told me of your predicament. Suffering an injury and losing your memory is a terrible experience. I am sorry you have to go through that."


    That was the excuse they were going with? "I¡¯m fine. Don¡¯t worry about it." If she did think he had amnesia, he might as well ask a question that had been bugging him for a while. "Anyways, I was wondering something. Are you sure I can''t change my class?"


    "Yes¡ªor, it''s complicated. Classes are given by the World-Rune. Initially, no one has a class, but when you turn 16 you visit the World-Rune, or one of its many forms such as the one in the new capital, to be given a class. The only instance of being given a new class that I know of is when one is blessed by a higher being."


    So it''s them higher beings again.


    "By receiving your class your aura is ¡­ you could say molded? And that changes the signature you give off. I used a mirror orb to see the reflection of your auras signature, and then by comparing with a book filled with different color-frequency combinations I can find out your class."


    "A color-frequency combination? That sounds complicated."


    She shrugged. "The touch of the divine cannot be easily understood. Normally one would instinctively know one''s own class, but it seems amnesia ruins that. Luckily the color of an observer is the easiest to recognize, so I could quickly tell you yours."


    "But is there no way to categorize the powers of people?" If there are classes, at least there should be some sort of leveling system?


    "Soldiers strength are usually deemed by their achievements. But perhaps the easiest metric is if they have reached a Breakthrough. Class bearers become stronger by following the ideals of their class, and improving their prowess over time. But once someone reaches a certain degree of ¡­ strength you could say, your ability to progress in your class is capped. That is why Hiro for example is recognized as a strong knight, since he has reached the first Breakthrough."


    This Breakthrough concept sounded similar to a leveling cap. "And how is someone supposed to move past this Breakthrough?"


    "Going to the grand church in the capital and offering a prayer of course," she answered. "Then he will be given a choice to pursue different aspects of his class ¡ª I belive you already mentioned that he was a samurai. However, I doubt he will choose to pass the Breakthrough, even if he is given the opportunity."


    "Why not?"


    She shrugged. "Just something that is normal in the north. There is a saying that once you reach a certain stage after your Breakthrough, your ambition will be reflected on the night sky as a star. Most of the stars in our sky are reflections of powerful individuals living in the South. Its where most of the human kingdoms border each other, and ¡­ they have their own problems. In the north, people tend not to move past their first Breakthrough. When the Hero first rebelled, he started of by executing all of the kingdoms most powerful knights. And people are still scared that he will kill them if they try to progress to this day."


    Great, so the Hero was an unavoidable obstacle. He could deal with him later. Tom was kind of understanding this progression system now. You focused on understanding your class, reached a Breakthrough, go to the church to move past this cap to evolve your class into something more specific, and then get stronger. In the end your ambition is reflected on the sky by creating a star. "I think I get it, but it is difficult to visualise strength without some sort of metric. There must be something like that. This world used to have a lot of otherworlders, surely they must have categorized their strength somehow?"


    "Please do not speak of otherworlders so casually. We only mention them when something bad is about to happen. A superstition, I suppose. And about a metric, that¡ª." She hesitated, deep in thought. "For the most powerful, I have seen the observers categorize people under a strange system. They say that once someone has a deeper understanding and is more adept with their class, a ring forms around their soul."


    "A ring?"


    She nodded. "Why don''t you try and observe?"


    Tom closed his eyes and tried to focus on his own aura. A human. An epic isekai protagonist. The main character. He felt like he could visualize something in his mind, but it was just a bunch of messy colors.


    Having no success on himself, he tried looking at Ilona''s aura. Focusing and visualizing her as a saintess, he saw the same beautiful white color she emits, but then he noticed something: several translucent rings that contrasted widely with her fine aura. Seven rings to be exact were surrounding her aura and encasing it, making it look like a fine ball. That was not all. At the bottom of this ball a stream of aura was leaking out.


    "I think I see the rings, but they are encasing your aura. Also, there is some leakage."


    "The rings encase my aura since I am already at max progression, being blessed by the archangel. In order to pass after the seventh ring there is supposed to be another Breakthrough one has to pass. And the leakage you are talking about is just a natural mechanism to avoid mana poisoning."


    Tom sighed. "Alright. So when rings apear around my aura that means I have gotten stronger. But how do I get stronger as an observer then?" Seeing Ilonas aura was easier due to the contrast, but his ability to see his own aura was far to mediocre. "Perhaps I should ask Zev about my powers as an observer?" There was bound to be some hidden knowledge to be learned from him. If that wasn''t the case, finding a higher being to be blessed by was his only choice.


    Ilona nodded. "That sounds reasonable."


    "See you later then." He started walking away.


    "Wait."


    Tom stopped. "Yes?"


    "About¡ª."


    "Hey, Miss Ilona!" Someone shouted. "There¡¯s an injured soldier that needs help!"


    "¡­ It¡¯s nothing. Don¡¯t worry about it," she quickly said and ran to the injured soldier.


    Tom shrugged and walked away.


    ***


    "I am afraid only an observer can help you there," Zev answered.


    Tom sighed. "Then can''t you teach me something more interesting and useful already? I have to defeat the demons, somehow ¡ª apparently. And that Hero is probably also going to be mad at me for ultimately stealing his spotlight and title."


    Zev coughed. "Now, now. Learning the fundamentals is important."


    ***


    "Could we learn something new now?"


    Zev shook his head. "You¡¯re not ready."


    ***


    After a week had gone by, Tom was annoyed. He could be learning an OP skill, but a weird gut feeling told him it wasn¡¯t the case. In order to go on his EPIC ADVENTURE, and possibly deal with this Hero that could some day try to kill him, he had to hurry up and get stronger.


    Tom raised his sword and pointed it at Zev. "Forget about the exercises. It¡¯s time to duel!"


    Zev looked taken off guard by his straightforwardness. "In this world challenging someone to a duel is a serious battle to settle a disagreement, but I understand what you mean." He held out the palm of his hand and a blue sword materialized in mid air. "This should be enough."


    Another aura sword? Looked like a water type. Tom unsheathed Trash and readied himself. "Now bring it."


    Perhaps in his old world focusing on the fundamentals would have been worth it, but being in an isekai was all about cheating yourself to OP status. His biggest potential adversary was another otherworlder after all, so wasting time on details was useless; it wasn''t like he was fighting some kind of eldritch primordial being or something.

 Chapter 8: Master Zev

    Chapter 8: Master Zev


    <blockquote>


    Some mortals would call me an eldritch primordial being. Although, they would say I did not act the part. Too much of an individual, they would say. What nonsense. My people were the first individuals, and they are but inferior copies that couldn''t even comprehend my kind''s true form. Even so, mortal wouldn''t completely disappear out of existence just by looking at me. It was usually screaming or instantly dying.


    That mortal. She survived.


    Trying to get a hold of the Wandering God, I had destroyed countless planets. Every time I destroyed a planet, I felt the presence of the Wandering God clearer and clearer. Yet I never understood why. It has to be what happened to that mortal. Instead of coming to save the planets, as I had anticipated, they were instead bringing the mortals to themselves to get them out of danger. Clever.


    For eons, I have been following the trail of the elusive Wandering God. Following the trail of a weak mortal is nothing. If I find that ''Rachel'', I will find my target.


    - [Error]


    </blockquote>


    Tom walked closer to Zev and made his best attempt at a sword stance. First, he was going to lunge to Zev¡¯s right and take a swing at him. But it would actually be a feint, his true target would be up from the center. Taking a swing he would then¡ª.


    The hilt of a sword punched him in the stomach, and a wave of water washed over his face. Tom groaned from the pain and mustered the strength to stay standing.


    "Remember, you are a sword ready to be forgiven."


    Tom wiped water off his face. "Ready to be forged, you mean?"


    Zev coughed. "Yes, that is what I said. Anyways, don¡¯t spend too much time planning in the middle of a battle."


    Correcting his stance, Tom tried to focus. He needed to trust his reflexes. A vice-commander, a master swordsman. Tom tried envisioning Zev¡¯s aura, but it felt half-baked. "[stabilize]." There was no considerable effect on Zev¡¯s aura. Jumping to the side he dodged a surge of vines that came for him.


    How many aura swords did this guy have? Appearing out of nowhere was another aura sword. It was green and floating in the air.


    "Trash, why can¡¯t you fly?"


    Trash hummed. "Now you¡¯re asking for too much. It¡¯s obviously a YOU problem."


    Another aura sword appeared. This one was orange. The blue aura sword shot a stream of water whilst the orange one followed with a fire creating a mist that obscured his vision.


    "Above you!" Trash warned.


    Tom dodged the incoming vines aimed at him and ran out of the mist, forcing him to get closer to Zev. What was he supposed to do now? With no other alternative, Tom gripped Trash tightly and then threw his sword at Zev.


    "This was not what I meant by making me fly!"


    Zev easily dodged Trash by stepping to the side. It was at that moment Tom noticed Zev holding something behind his hand. That was when he used all the knowledge from his training.


    He threw his dirty sock at Zev¡¯s face making him drop the item, which he quickly grabbed. Jumping back to create space he looked at the item in his hands. It was a book. He read the title out loud: "How to be a cool master for training soldiers (also applicable to travelers from other worlds)".


    Seriously?


    How had he been so dumb? This world used to have otherworlders before. He wasn''t the only one who wished for an OP isekai adventure. One of them had to leave behind something stupid. "The reason you do not take in students isn¡¯t because you have impossible standards. It¡¯s because you¡¯re a terrible teacher."


    "I wouldn¡¯t say terrible," Zev stammered.


    "Well, I would. It¡¯s not entertaining enough," Trash hummed. "Seeing him fall to the floor the first time was funny. But not the tenth. I have standards."


    Zev sighed. "I apologize. The truth is, although I am a good fighter, and skillful at commanding troops, I do indeed lack a bit in my teaching capabilities."


    Tom raised his eyebrows. "A bit? But you can¡¯t teach me anything to make me stronger?"


    He shook his head in shame. "I could train your swordsmanship, but it would not be so useful against opponents that have strength-enhancing skills. You need an observer to teach you, but there is no observer in the camp. Unique classes such as an observer also tend to have multiple paths of progression, and without knowing what path you have chosen it is ¡­ troublesome to make a plan."


    Seriously? Just because there was no other observers in the camp, he had to figure out everything by himself? He was an otherworlder for farts sake, and forbidden from leaving this camp. How would he figure it it out? With the reputation and respect Zev had, Tom had expected him to be the perfect mentor figure for his adventure. Someone who would teach him everything he needed. Someone cool that he would always respect. A perfect isekai teacher; someone like that would have been¡­ forget it. Tom needed to focus. "Since you can¡¯t train me or teach me a new skill, why don¡¯t you just tell me about the aura swords?"


    Zev nodded. "First there is something you need to know." He took off his hat to reveal two pointy ears.


    "You¡¯re an elf?"


    Trash hummed. "How disappointing. I thought he was hiding a bunny there."


    Zev put his hat back on. "Unfortunately, there¡¯s no bunny. Only snakes in my boots."


    "Wait, what?"


    "The elven people have a special inherited art called synergy. We can directly interact with spirits in the surrounding atmosphere. It is how I can make my aura swords float. One drawback is that our innate compatibility with spirits is not that great. Including the fact that there aren¡¯t all that many spirits living about outside the elven forest." He shrugged. "There technically is, but the spirits in the elven forest are those that are called inverse spirits. Spirits that have a stronger ego. To help his people the elf king created aura swords by using inverse spirits as the basis, with the effect that is similar to your skill stabilize."


    "So it¡¯s like a power-up?"


    "Sort of. It powers up the affinity of any other wielder slightly. But for an elf that uses synergy, they can more effectively use aura swords making them become extensions of their own aura."


    "Then why can¡¯t you just lend me an aura sword for me to get stronger?"


    "Although, they are useful to use as an extension of your already present strength. For you, Tom, wielding another aura sword would be useless."


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    "Because [stabilize] evens out your missing compatibility," Tom guessed.


    Zev nodded. "Exactly. Since you already have average fire affinity, using a fire sword would have no effect. Especially since you don¡¯t have the class to easily learn sword-based skills. But for me, my aura will be added on top of my already existing compatibility. These swords were specifically made for us elves."


    "Then why don¡¯t only elves have aura swords?"


    Zev stared at his aura swords flying around him. "If I have to give a short answer, the elf king went crazy after the forest got corrupted. Some elves remained with him as his puppets, others scattered across the world trading away their aura swords so that the elf king couldn¡¯t as easily get a hold of them."


    He made an black aura sword appear at the top of his palm. "This is the first aura sword. Ranked highest because of the strength of the inverse spirit inside. As you see it has been corrupted. This sword is what gave me the strength to reach the position I stand in today. It is also why the Hero does not dare mess with me."


    The first aura sword? "Wait, the Hero. I don''t want to sound ignorant, but was he really so bad that people declare heroism to be dead?"


    Zev hesitated. "He ¡­ Not sure how I should explain this. Otherworlders used to be respected, but that was mostly the old generation. The new generation were a bit odd. Due to the change in environment otherworlders broke away from their normal allegiances; the otherworlders who betrayed their summoners are called the Delinquents. The Hero simply followed suit. He was given the important task of destroying a certain source of power, but he chose not to."


    So they messed up their isekai adventure? Morons. At least he mostly had this world to himself, but his predecessor''s actions still lingered. "What would happen if my identity got revealed?"


    "You will be executed."


    Tom gulped. "Executed?"


    "Do not think you are the only otherworlder to find their place back into this world. New otherworlders are regularly executed, and it is only by the kindness of our dear Commander Alice that you are alive."


    Great. If he got exposed he was dead.


    "Anyways. Amazing that you have the strongest sword ¡ª showoff, but how do I fight with this weird sword then?"


    "Hey, I¡¯m still here!" Trash hummed.


    Tom remembered something. "Using [stabilize] on someone''s aura isn¡¯t always effective. But what about embodied spirits?"


    "Hm, the demon art. That would ¡­ be great. If you manage to embody spirits the effect of stabilize would greatly increase. But as you may know, our relationship with the demons isn¡¯t great. You also need special material to embody spirits into. Perhaps you will find something useful in the nearby town?" Zev suggested. "Or, a town is what people call it. It''s more akin to a makeshift settlement that appeared near the camp. They serve the nearby soldiers, and occasional travelers heading towards the capital."


    Tom nodded. "I don¡¯t mean to sound spiteful, but what you did was not right. Instead of being straightforward to me, an otherworlder of all people, in embarrassment you wasted my time on useless exercises." Tom folded his arms and shook his head. "And to think I was excited to have you as my master."


    Zev stared at the floor. "I am sorry. Perhaps ¡­ perhaps my age has dulled my ability to understand others?" He bowed to Tom. "I am truly ashamed of my actions. If there is anything I could do to make it up, I would gladly comply."


    "There actually is something you could do."


    Zev looked up. "There is? How?"


    "You could trade my aura sword for yours, the first aura sword to aid me on my journey. It won¡¯t be useful straight away, but perhaps I can learn synergy somehow?"


    Trash hummed. "Nice try."


    "Alright. Let¡¯s do that."


    Tom gave Zev his sword, Trash, and took the first aura sword in return. Just like Trash, the sword was surprisingly light. In the same sense he felt Trash humming, he felt the sword weakly vibrate under his fingertips; it was trying to say something, but all he heard was gibberish.


    He swung it in the air towards a nearby training dummy. The dummy was cut in two, and the remains burned in a cold black fire. The sword was this powerful without even relying on his aura or any skills? Truly deserving of the position as the first aura sword. This was his sword now. His OP weapon.


    "Wait. Are you actually giving it to him? Just like that?"


    Tom fastened the sword around his waist and started leaving towards the barracks. It had been an exhausting day. "See you later. I guess I will try and figure out my powers on my own. It¡¯s for the best."


    Zev nodded. "Good luck."


    Tom had learned a lot today. He had no master to teach him the right way anymore, and no observer to learn from. The only way to grow stronger and accomplish his dream of becoming the perfect OP isekai protagonist was to get a blessing from a higher being. Perhaps they also could change his class to something better? Now, to find a higher being.


    "Oi. Are you seriously leaving?"


    Oh, yeah. Finding a library was his best shot without raising suspicion. Tomorrow he could go to the nearby town. He had it all planned out.


    Tom stepped outside the building and looked at the sunset in the distance. With his new sword in hand, he smiled. "This is just the beginning of my EPIC ADVE¡ª."


    Tom fell to his knees and puked.


    He felt nauseous. Fatigued. But fine at the same time. It was as if all the strength in his body left only to return in a matter of seconds. The sword flew away. Tom turned around to see it returning back into Zev¡¯s hand.


    "And that is why this sword is called the Forbidden Sword. It was created from a guardian spirit of the elves after a great calamity struck. It has been corrupted, but being an inverse spirit it still desperately clings to its purpose to protect elves. Only elves can correctly use this sword without it rejecting them."


    Tom wiped off the puke from his mouth and walked back to Zev.


    "Well, well, well. Look who¡¯s back," Trash hummed.


    Zev pounded his chest. "Today, you have learned that the true strength is within you. You are a world waiting to shine on this broken star. A¨C."


    Tom screeched in frustration and snatched back Trash. "I get it, I get it! Work harder. On it. Bye."


    He ran outside.


    "Honestly, I don¡¯t blame you for trying."


    ***


    Tom contemplated his new course of action as he walked towards the barracks. At least he had made some progress in his training. Since [stabilize] could be counterproductive in a real battle, he needed to use spirits more. Perhaps¡ª?


    "There you are!" It was Olga. "Don¡¯t think you can slack off on your work in the commoners barracks just because you¡¯re training with the Vice-Commander. Why don¡¯t you go pick up some new training equipment I ordered from town?"


    "What, I can¡¯t do that all alone!" All Tom wanted was a relaxing town trip. Carrying around tons of training equipment was not relaxing.


    "Yeah, you are pretty weak and scrawny looking." She looked around and locked eyes with Sierra. "Take Sierra with you. She¡¯s a part of your squadron. Compared to the other soldiers she needs little training."


    Trash hummed. "Such strong killing intent. Thank you, Olga!"


    Olga looked around confused for the one that thanked her, and Sierra looked like she was preparing to hurl her daggers at his face. Tom didn¡¯t want to wait to find out, so he agreed to do it and ran to the barracks. Hopefully, he would not die tomorrow.


    ***


    "Are you sure you don''t want to join us for ''stab the otherworlder''?" Mark asked. "It is a fun game, I swear!"


    Hiro sighed. "You mean the messiest game. Don''t you remember how much fake blood you were drenched in last time?"


    "That was because I didn''t know I would be chosen as the hidden otherworlder three times in a row," Mark retorted. "Besides that, it is a fun game to learn more about the otherworlders vile tricks. I also heard nobles especially love this game."


    "Thanks for the offer, but I have to do an errand with Sierra; she is mad at me for some reason so I think I will just go to sleep when I get back. Maybe another time?" Tom said, half out the door.


    "What a shame. Good luck on your trip then!"


    "Thanks," Tom responded and closed the door.


    "Finally, you left that place." Trash hummed. "They¡¯re too nice. Where are the error beasts when you need them?"


    Threatening to live his life as a priest luckily made Trash shut up in the barracks. But he was right about something. Mark and Hiro were surprisingly nice to him. It felt wrong. Tom never had many friends back home. Should he tell them the truth?


    He shook his head. People in this world hate otherworlders. The fact that they were playing games were you killed otherworlders also didn''t sit well with him. And he was planning on leaving to find a higher being anyways, so he could always replace them with other side characters.


    Walking past the commander''s building he eventually spotted the town. It did look like a town, with many wooden buildings. A stone pathway was built to walk on and a wooden archway that said ¡®Makeshift town¡¯.


    Sierra was a demon spy trying to assassinate him, but he couldn''t exactly refuse to do this task. Either way, knowing the obvious side character had not been useful so far. But perhaps if he played his cards right with her, he could blackmail her and get valuable information. How hard could it be?


    Tom didn¡¯t spot Sierra anywhere. That was strange. She said they would meet after roll call. He heard some sounds from a nearby alleyway. "Maybe she¡¯s there?" He went in but was instantly pushed back against the wall, with a dagger to his throat.


    It was Sierra. She had somehow appeared out of the shadows. Was that a demon technique? Of course it was. The cat was out of the bag.


    "Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t tell anyone that you¡¯re a demon spy?" Tom said in a panic.


    Sierra''s expression grew even more tense. "How did you know?"


    Wait, she didn¡¯t know that he knew? Fart, he always messes up when he panics.


    Tom needed to do something before she killed him.


    "Now here I thought you were having a thing for that Alice girl," Trash hummed.


    That caught Sierra off guard. Tom took the opportunity to push her hand away and create some space between them. Before she could have the opportunity to strike again, he spoke. "I am not Tomato. Actually, I am from another world." That seemed to have only made her confused.


    "It was Tomassio you idiot," Trash hummed.

 Chapter 9: Makeshift Town

    Chapter 9: Makeshift town


    <blockquote>


    William paced back and forth. He hated doing guard duty. Stopping for a moment, he looked at the giant bridge behind him. "Why do we need so many soldiers to guard the bridge to the Colony? Who would even want to cross it on their own?"


    James shrugged. "Orders. But hey, much better than venturing into the New Forest don''t you think?"


    William nodded. "I guess you''re right."


    Suddenly he heard the sound of a trumpet. The tower guards had noticed something.


    Squinting his eyes he looked into the bridge covered by fog. It took some time until he finally could discern what was approaching: elves. He saw a group of elves, holding way too many swords than they could ever hope to use. There was nothing special about the swords at a distance, but he had learned that the sheaths were a dead giveaway.


    "Elves are invading with aura swords! Let me go report¡ª."


    "Wait," James interrupted. "I don''t think they are attacking. Elves aren''t stupid."


    He looked again. They had a lot of aura swords, that was certain. One of the elves had five swords tied to her waist, and others were also carrying several. They were not walking like they were ready for battle but stumbling forward, and dragging a carriage behind them. After some time he noticed another group of elves with a carriage behind, and then another.


    "They are refugees," James concluded.


    "Refugees? From the peaceful elven forest?"


    - William, soldier from the kingdom of Boreas


    </blockquote>


    Droplets of water dripped from the roof as a reminder of the outside. The alleyway consisted of two brick walls side by side. The exit was too far away, and Tom did not see any other sign of life. He had no choice but to confront her head on.


    "I am a fake, so we¡¯re both in the same position you see." Tom prayed that would be enough.


    She snorted. "That does make sense. Tomassio was known as a genius knight, which you obviously aren¡¯t. But if you are an otherworlder, how are you so ¡­ normal? All the otherworlders either turned evil or mad, if I remember correctly."


    "I don''t know about all of that. I''m new."


    "New?" Sierra hesitated. "If you really are new: how did you figure out I was a spy?"


    "Oh, I just guessed from the half-assed disguise. You literally have two horns sticking out of your head."


    She glared at him.


    "Not that I am saying you don''t put in the effort or anything. Being an spy must be a difficult profession." Tom quickly added.


    Sierra shook her head. "I am actually using a technique to make people believe I am a normal human. It bends someone''s perspective of the world. For you to be immune to the manipulation of the mind, your mental state must be constantly at the same level. The ability of an observer as I guessed."


    Trash hummed. "Don¡¯t be too impressed. He just guessed. Still an idiot."


    "Since you know my identity, you might as well meet my grumpy talking sword."


    Trash hummed. "Hello, I am Trash, the 50th aura sword. I did not agree to that name."


    Tom thought he saw Sierra smile for a second before she went back to her intense demeanor. "So, could you stop trying to kill me now?" He stod in front of her still, trying to hide that he was shaking.


    Sierra laid down her twin daggers. "I guess killing an otherworlder would not be worth it, since the humans would be much more willing to anyway. And no one would believe you if you said I was a spy, with you otherworlders reputation and all."


    "¡­ That was easy. I thought at least you would be a little bit shocked or frightened by this revelation. Don''t everyone hate otherworlders?"


    "They do. But humans dislike otherworlders the most due to the Hero betraying them. Also, we demons have much more ¡­ complicated feelings about otherworlders. During the horrific second human invasion, infighting between otherworlders ensued, and some of them even chose to protect us demons from the humans. My people have no qualms with the existence of otherworlders, because we acknowledge that otherworlders are no different from any of us."


    Tom scratched his head. That was a surprisingly reasonable take. Perhaps in terms of ethics otherworlders could be problematic, but they were all meant to go on and live extraordinary lives, that was the whole point of an isekai. What reason would any otherworlder even have to squander that opportunity and start fighting amongst themselves? That would be a waste of a perfectly good isekai adventure.


    "Besides, if you are an otherworlder, that Commander must already know. Not even she can harbour an otherworlder without facing punishment, so I have a bargaining chip if needed in the future."


    Alice would definitely be mad if she learned he had revealed his identity. But as long as she never learns of it, then it would probably be fine, right?


    Sierra folded her arms, and leaned up against the brick wall. "But tell me this: who was stupid enough to summon you to this world?"


    Tom shrugged. "Don''t know. I just found myself in this world, but it hasn''t been as cool as I thought it would."


    "Indeed. This world does not welcome or need any otherworlders to solve its problems anymore. You are not needed. So don''t try to save the world or anything; you should focus on living your own life."


    "That is what I am trying to do. I don''t care about defeating the demons." His eyes widened. "Why don''t we do this: I will help you with whatever you are scheming, and you can help me in return."


    "Help? I presume acting alone has been inefficient, so ¡­ why not? I will accept your offer."


    "Perfect." That went better than he thought. "What do you need help with?"


    "I need to get into the royal barracks in order to find ¡­ something."


    "Fine, I guess we can figure that out. I for one, want to get a blessing from a higher being," Tom said.


    She cocked her head. "A higher being. Why?"


    Trash hummed. "He wants to be lazy."


    "Hey, don''t say that! I meant to say that I want to be able to put in less effort to train my abilities. It¡¯s so I can go on a peaceful adventure and live a life without stress," Tom said.


    "Right. And how¡¯s that different?"


    Sierra was deep in thought. "Being able to live a more comfortable life. I guess that makes sense from an otherworlders perspective. When it comes to a higher being ¡­ I know of the demon god. It¡¯s more of a giant crystal where every demon lord embodies their soul, but I doubt it will give you any blessings. There is also the World-Rune in the far south of the kingdom which allegedly bestows classes to people. The extension of the rune in the capital would be easier to go to. But getting permission to leave the camp would be next to impossible."


    More research it was. "Then teach me how to use embodiment. It works really well with my fighting."


    "What do you mean?"


    "Well this sword here strengthens my ability as an observer, and instead of only being used on people my skill [stabilize] can be used on spirits. For example, it can consume a lesser fire spirit to change its shape, and if it comes in contact with something embodied with a higher ranked spirit, [stabilize] can strengthen the flames." Tom explained.


    "I see. So that''s why the poison didn¡¯t kill you. What a useful aura sword."


    "Hear that?" Trash hummed. "At least someone sees my worth. I like this one. I support you ditching that Alice girl."


    "Not interested," she quickly added. "Regarding teaching you embodiment: I don''t know if it¡¯s possible for a human to learn the art of embodiment. Embodiment is an inherited ability of the demon race. It allows one to store spirit into something. I can also use it to embody myself into the shadows, so don''t think about betraying me."


    "Yes, ma''am." Tom tried to relax his posture. He needed to convince her, somehow. "But I am an otherworlder, which maybe technically means I am not the same type of human as in this world. Can¡¯t you at least explain how it works?"


    She hesitated. "I guess I could try. The power of a spirit is fairly constant, but by temporarily stealing its compatibility its form slightly moves away from reality, yet its nature stays the same. It¡¯s all about changing perspective."


    "Changing perspective?" Tom repeated.


    She nodded. "Yes. Spirits are beings that are mended by desire and emotions. Water and fire spirits only exist since we ourselves personify aspects of reality. When I embody myself into the shadows, I change my perspective to think of myself being a part of the shadow. Similarly for embodying a liquid, you use your desire to make the spirit change its perspective and become a part of the water," Sierra explained. "Although, there is another way, but it only works in my homeland."


    "That¡¯s ¡­ confusing."


    "That''s how inherited powers work. It¡¯s probably impossible for you to do it, but I can try making a few embodied items for you. I was getting low on supplies anyways."


    ***


    They walked through the main road. The road was made out of cobblestone, and most of the building on each side were made of bricks. Glass windows revealed the occasional boutique. Tables and chairs all occupied this time of day by people enjoying their food. It looked like a normal mediavel looking town. However, the electric lamps besides the main road contrasted with the aesthetic.


    Since he had been training with Zev the camp had felt devoid of people most of the time, the other soldier mostly spent their time on the training grounds, but there were surprisingly a lot of people in Makeshift Town. Soldiers with their families, merchants, people who had settled here for a new life, and even a robot.


    ¡­wait as second.


    "Why is there a robot here?" Tom marched across the street. It was made of metal, shaped like a soldier wearing spartan armor. On its chest was a plaque. "XEF0234, trash collection bot?"


    The robot stopped besides a trash can. It attempted to take out the trash bag, but its hands collided with the trash can. Unfazed, the robot continued trying, but repeatedly smacked into the metal frame.


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    "Not as advanced as I thought,"Tom mumbled.


    Someone dressed in a green jumpsuit walked over to the robot. She proceeded to take out the trash bag and handed it to the robot. The robot took the trash bag in its hands and continued walking across the street.


    Sierra walked past Tom, waving her hand at the woman. "Hi, Misha. I reckon the robots aren''t as useful as promised?"


    Misha sighed. "Tell me about it. When I told them I needed more help I wasn''t talking about getting one of the capitals robots. The infrastructure is different here so you have to get it reprogrammed, otherwise it gets stuck in places and¡ª." She leaned down grimacing. "Forgetting to clean up stains. How the space can people miss the trash can; like, its right here!"


    "Some people are just dumb," Sierra said. "You are doing an amazing job though. The cleaning elective is important. And it isn''t like the robot can clean up contaminated clumps."


    Misha smiled, and then looked at Tom. "Don''t worry about me. No way I am giving up a year into this. Continue on with your squadmate. You must be out on an errand."


    Sierra nodded. "See you next friday?"


    "Definitely."


    After they had said their goodbyes, Tom continued walking foreward with Sierra. He had only seen her with a cranky attitude in the squadron, but it looked like she had a calmer side to her. She was in the same squadron as a literal saintess so he didn''t blame her. As long as she wasn''t planning on killing him, he was fine with whatever. "So ? You gonna tell me about the robot yet? How come the people here hate otherworlders, but use their knowledge so sparingly? Why not build better roads or something rather than an useless robot?"


    "I haven''t learned everything there is about the human kingdom, but I do know they do not shy away from using the inventions and knowledge otherworlders left behind. They just prefer not to show it as often. The king prefers to promote the supremacy of the kingdoms culture. It would be much more obvious for you if you had seen the capital. Not as much as the old capital I heard, but traces of otherworlders still remains."


    They stopped to look at a statue in the middle of the road. Even though there was hardly a place left to sit on the road, the benches around the statue were avoided like a plague. The statue was of a man in a black armor, raising his fist. Remembering the sight from the commander''s office, he noticed it pointed straight towards the Void. At the bottom carved into the stone was: In the Hero we trust to show the way ahead.


    "That has to be the reason for the complicated feelings? Why keep a statue of the Hero after all he has done?"


    "Too scared that he will retaliate," Sierra summarized. "And it also serves as a good reminder of the peoples past. Never trust a Hero, but trust each other. It is a fine line to tread."


    Tom grumbled. "Sounds impossible. Who will they put their trust in? The church? The king?"


    "I used to be curious about that too. After talking to people I learned they have a surprisingly strong trust in each other, citizens of the kingdom. But whenever it comes to any figure of authority, the sentiment sours. For example, being forced into military conscription doesn''t exactly do wonders for the church''s and the kings reputation. They were after all the ones that told them and their ancestors to put faith into otherworlders. Although, the church has the strongest resentment due to them being the one to chose the Hero in the first place, and pushing the hardest for a conflict with the demons by blaming the existence of the Void on demonkind." She tightened her hand into a fist. "Seriously, how would us demons even be able to change the nature of the world like that? Even the common people can see straight through the church''s lies."


    "It is obviously propaganda," Tom agreed. "But if no one ¡ª I mean a majority of the commoners do not want to go to war, why aren''t they more reluctant to do so? Seems to me like most of the soldiers treat this as a fun vacation rather than an actual war, other than a few outlier of course."


    She sighed. "Such is human society. In the kingdom stagnation is the status quo. Why make new innovations if the one left behind by otherworlders are superior? Why reach the pinnacle of strength if the Hero can kill you with the flick of his finger? Why disagree with the king and church if that leaves no figure of authority left? Trade with other nations for resources is going horrible, so what else should they do when no one else has a better plan?"


    Tom didn''t say anything. He had always thought going to another world would be fun. Seeing their unique culture and having the knowledge of better technology to guide them ahead. But coming to another world after someone else had done it before him? It made his isekai adventure more complicated.


    The road split and they headed away from the main road towards a less crowded part of town. Several of the houses here were boarded up, the street almost devoid of people, with strange scratch marks on the walls.


    "Building left behind from the otherworlders era," Sierra explained after noticing his confused look. "Left behind to avoid bad luck."


    Eventually, they arrived at a road that had a sharp turn downwards. In the distance, he could see the Void. It was a surrealistic experience. Seeing the Void, his brain misinterpreted it as something blocking his vision, but squinting to see the distant gray smog the enormity of the Void came into view. To think this was natural. What a weird planet.


    He was curious how it looked up close though. "Why don¡¯t we take a short sightseeing trip? I see that there is a pier and buildings down there."


    "That would not be a good idea." Sierra faced away from the Void. "People say when the humans first waged war, ignoring the Hero¡¯s warnings, he punished them. The Hero lined up every stationed soldier in the camp and made them jump into the Void. As such there is an urban tale that if you get too close to the Void, the vengeful spirits of the past soldiers would drag you back in. If someone sees us going down there we would become outcasts by casting a bad omen."


    The more he learned about this Hero, the less heroic he sounded.


    Sierra pointed at a building. "That¡¯s the place." The building didn¡¯t look all that special. It had a sign written ¡®Witch shop¡¯, which looked like it was made in a hurry. "It is a witch''s shop that is only open at certain times of the year."


    "Witches? Where do they come from?" He asked, curiously. Maybe one day if he managed to get out of the camp, and the human kingdom wasn¡¯t for him, he could travel somewhere else?


    "At the other side of the void. Normally traveling across the void is near impossible. But not for high-ranking witches."


    The other side of the Void? That felt almost mythical in itself. Tom wondered what else lay on the other side. Perhaps some aliens to spice things up? Never mind. This world was complicated enough, so staying to his side of the Void was enough.


    A bell rang when they both entered the shop, and they were met with a cheerful "Welcome!"


    It was a witch with a short pointy hat. She looked young around his age, wearing overalls and tinkering with something. A second much taller witch stood beside her with a longer pointier hat and purple hair, inspecting a piece of parchment. The moment she noticed Tom she dropped her things and hurriedly wore her round glasses.


    "That¡¯s not the owner, it¡¯s the shorter girl. Don¡¯t get fooled by appearances. She is much older than she looks," Sierra whispered to him.


    "Oh."


    They went and looked around at a chaotic mess of items stacked on several shelves. This store needed to be cleaned for sure. Tom eyed different items but stopped when he realized he couldn¡¯t read the description. It was a language written in some sort of sigil. He gave up and walked to the store owner. Perhaps she could help him with his predicament?


    "Hey, miss. Do you have something to help with an activated aura sword?"


    She looked up from her work. "It¡¯s Astra the witch, and please explain a bit more in detail."


    Tom pulled up Trash. "This is an aura sword, and since I am an observer I can equally use all spirits. However, I don''t get the extra resistance when the sword is activated."


    That caught the taller witches'' attention. "Isn¡¯t that the 50th aura sword of the 100-blade series? I have heard legends about that sword. The elf king''s greatest attempt to make a generic sword in order to use all spirits."


    "I found it in some ruins. Do you know why the elf king left it? What secret powers does it have?"


    The witch shrugged. "Oh, it isn¡¯t that powerful compared to first the ten swords. If I remember correctly it was said to have too much of a ¡­ personality."


    Tom deflated. So Trash had been too annoying. Shocking.


    She looked at Tom. "I wonder what fate the reappearance of this sword marks?"


    Astra rolled her eyes. "That rambling old hag is the great witch Meliel. Ignore her, you¡¯re my customer. If it''s the 50th blade then I think I understand. Such a weapon isn¡¯t normal, but some of the beastkin do have the same problems when creating artificial aura swords." She went to the back and came back with a pair of brown gloves. "Use these."


    Tom took the gloves and wore them. They were a perfect fit, or more correctly, the gloves seemed to shrink down to fit his size somehow.


    "That is one of my inventions made from witchcraft. The process behind it is top secret. Now pay up. 50 gold coins."


    "50 gold coins!" He had only been given 3 gold coins after the expedition as a reward. "Is it possible to further the bill to Commander Alice? I know her."


    Astra shook her head. "Heard that excuse a million times."


    "I will pay," Meliel said. "I know Alice. Just make sure to tell her it was me that helped. I really want to talk to her, but she is difficult to get a hold of."


    That¡¯s right, Alice was the Night Witch. They must have some backstory.


    "You¡¯re lucky," Sierra said, throwing a pile of items on the counter.


    "Sierra! My favorite customer," Astra remarked. She ran to the back and came back with a crate full of several vials of water. As well as some rocks.


    Sierra nodded her thanks to Astra, but Tom was more intrigued by the rocks. "What are those rocks?"


    "Those are spirit stones. They inhabit weak to mid-grade spirits, but it is difficult to know what kind," Sierra explained.


    "Like a spirit stone roulette? I guess that could help me activate this stupid sword."


    "Or," Meliel interjected. "If you train your powers well enough you should have the ability to recognize what kind of spirits inhabit them."


    Tom excitedly nodded. That sounded useful. "Where does these stones come from? Are they natural?"


    "Explanations are written on the card beside it, and more details will cost you."


    "They are from the demon lands in the southern area called the shadow swamp," Meliel answered.


    "Hey!" Astra complained. "I am running a business here. This isn''t your library."


    Meliel ignored her. "And if they are natural, that¡¯s under debate. Some researchers say they are a natural phenomenon of the collective aura of the demons, especially the demon king stone strengthening embodiment. However, since most of these stones are close to Skypiercer Mountain, one of the great error beasts is the most common answer. Especially since these stones were not found according to the earliest human invasions. It is unlikely the demons would have been able to hide them for so many years."


    "Great error beast? I know of those weird error beasts. I don''t know about the great ones though."


    "The great error beasts are four incredibly powerful error beasts. The one in the demon lands is the great error beast Ether, a massive creature whose body allegedly surrounds the entire foot of Skypiercer Mountain. It embodies whatever matter it touches with spirits."


    Sierra nodded. "It¡¯s a pain. We have to migrate every time it moves, and stepping on even a small rock could make someone die from a potentially dangerous spirit. Nevertheless, these rocks are an important export since every crazy scholar wants them."


    Tom nudged Sierra. "Idiot. They are still here," he whispered.


    Sierra looked at the witches. "Do I look like a demon to you?"


    Astra seemed confused and shook her head. "Why would you look like a demon?" Meliel only silently looked at them but nodded at Astra in agreement.


    "See?" Sierra confidently said and leaned closer to him. "I am an expert spy." She whispered.


    This demon was way too confident in her abilities. This did make him curious about what other abilities could be used to cloud the mind. Perhaps that would be an easy way to sneak out of the camp?


    Whatever. He could figure that out later.


    "Sierra, we should hurry so we don''t get late for our appointment at the armory."


    Sierra nodded. She paid her 10 gold coins which he hoped she didn¡¯t want him to pay a part of, and threw what she had bought into her bag which fit in much more than should have been physically possible.


    Astra waved them goodbye. "Feel free to come again."


    ***


    The armory was on the main road and was much more exquisite. There were several different shops along the road, but the armory shop was the biggest by a huge margin. It was filled with tapestries and adorned with gold plating. The entrance consisted of a huge door filled to the brim with customers waiting for their turn. Above the entrance was a giant sign that said ''the armory store of the great Marquis''.


    "The armory store of the great Marquis?"


    "It is a store owned by Marquis Rowan. He used to be a Duke, but was downgraded leaving the kingdom with 2 dukes. The Commander''s father, and yours I guess. Rumors say the Marquise has a huge ego and wants to own everything in Makeshift Town."


    Healthy competition was probably not needed for a war the royal family did not want to wage. Not the coolest name for a store if you asked Tom, but he was more interested in how he could read it. He originally thought he could read the language of this world because of the past otherworlders, but not being able to read the text in the witches shop made him doubt that assumption.


    "Is that text written in English?" He asked Sierra.


    She looked confused. "English? Oh, that must be the language from your world. No. Well, technically the text is written in English, and the demonic tongue, and the human language. There isn¡¯t exactly much focus on languages in this world, because they all read the same. It is one of the blessings of the Mirror Maiden."


    "The Mirror Maiden," Tom repeated, confused. "A God?"


    She shook her head. "There isn¡¯t exactly much information about her, but she saved everyone in this world from a great calamity. With her powers she wished to unify the people, so she gave them all a skill that allows them to understand each other''s language. ¡®Babylon¡¯s blessing¡¯ it¡¯s called. Scholars are not sure if she is a higher being, an actual primordial God, or something else, but around the Void she is worshiped. Even in my hometown."


    "Then what about the text from the witch''s shop? I couldn¡¯t read that."


    Sierra shrugged. "Some languages still need to be learned. Those that rely on emotion and cultural context. Perhaps you do not know enough about witches? I could read it."


    Trash hummed. "Even I could read it. Perhaps you lack emotional intelligence? Wouldn¡¯t be shocking."


    Tom raised his eyebrows. "Do you even have eyes? It might have something to do with me being the main character."


    Sierra sighed. "You two can argue. I¡¯ll go in and find out about the order. There¡¯s normally a lot of people from the capital here. Try not to catch anyone''s attention." Then she left.


    "You scared her away with your weird main character talk."


    "What the¡­ Go fart yourself." Ugh. Tom really sounded stupid when he swore.


    Trash hummed. "Weak. And for the weirdo you are, you aren¡¯t noticing the other weirdos. Look at that guy over there. Might as well be your brother."


    Tom felt a small pull towards a certain direction, and spotted a hooded character that Trash must have been talking about. He was ... dancing? In front of an alleyway, between two closed shops, he was tap dancing. In front of him a small crowd was starting to from.


    "Join the Error Cult, and create a better world! And look at these cool moves I learned from the demons." Besides him was another hooded person crouching down, seemingly trying to hide themselves in embarrassment. "The Error Cult is the key to fixing this world. Break free from the Hero¡¯s tyranny." He stopped tap dancing and made an exaggerated pose. "Make the world anew, through the ineffable System Manipulator!"

 Chapter 10: Plan B

    Chapter 10: Plan B


    <blockquote>


    ''Everyone deserves a second chance''. That is what we would say to otherworlders once they set foot in this world. It was a way to give them calm, but also ourselves. For if we could summon people to our world, perhaps one day we could also be summoned for an adventure of our own? But that sentiment changed over time.


    The first otherworlders that arrived were only mildly traumatized, but otherwise excited for their new life ahead. The new ones: they were terrified. They would break down, saying something was following them.


    A few years later, the people started hating otherworlders. They would appear even though the priest would swear they summoned no otherworlders. At this point, when an otherworlder appeared, only death followed. They would appear with those crimson eyes, and then they would kill and destroy anything they saw. Even if a guard cut of their limbs, not even for a moment would they stop attempting to destroy the world.


    Make sure not to lose yourself to The Madness, otherworlder.


    - ???


    </blockquote>


    Tom walked closer and joined the small crowd that consisted of quite a diverse group of people. Workers, soldiers, and even some visiting nobles. To his surprise the cultist noticed him standing at the back of the crowd and waved at him.


    "And what does this cult do? Is this blasphemy? Answer me!" A nobleman demanded.


    The man continued tap-dancing . "No. We worship the Mirror Maiden, so worshiping other higher beings is not something we are against. Do you not think the tyranny of the Hero should stop? Forcing the land around the Void to stand still. Disagreeing with ¡®unnecessary mingling¡¯ between species. Wouldn¡¯t it be nice if we could all just open up?" The man stopped dancing and held his hand up towards the crowd. "Be it through war or peaceful cooperation, the Error Cult is open to any and all ideas."


    "I don¡¯t know how to feel about that suggestion," Tom mumbled. But Alice did say the nations were dependent on each other in trade. What that entailed, he wasn¡¯t sure of.


    "Also," the other hooded person at the back said with a much lighter voice. "The Hero hasn¡¯t been seen in years."


    "But is the Hero that bad?" Someone in the crowd asked. "After all, we aren¡¯t otherworlders."


    The first hooded man smirked. "Isn¡¯t there a reason why the kingdom''s army is spread so thin? It was the Hero no who murdered the finest knights of this kingdom? The same goes for the other nations. Do you believe that if the Hero attacks again, putting the kingdom in a weaker position than the demons, the other nations in the south would help? They are all fixated on their own obsession looking after some group of surviving otherworlders. People in the south despise the Mirror Maiden as they do their supposed foe the System Manipulator. The same Mirror Maiden that gave the frigid cold north fertile land for farming, made communication with people easier, and allowed people to live in this desolate place. They won¡¯t understand our plight. We need to take things into our own hands. Take down the barriers created by the Hero!"


    "The only thing that is going to be taken down is your vile delusions. As a royal knight of Boreas, I order you to halt!" A thundering voice spoke.


    "Oops. Gotta go!" The hooded man grabbed the second cultist and ran off into an alleyway.


    "Halt I said!" When the royal knight arrived to where the man had been, he was already long gone. The crowd dispersed, several of them whispering amongst each other about what they had heard.


    "Talk about failing. She should have snuck up on him," Trash commented.


    "True. For once you have a good take," Tom whispered.


    The distraught royal knight locked eyes with Tom who was still standing there. "You! Who dares badmouth a royal knight?"


    Tom gulped. "Me?" Tom had no idea how she managed to hear them from so far away. She got closer, giving Tom a better look. The person who had called herself a royal knight had a spear on her back, and she was wearing a bikini which looked like it was supposed to be her armor.


    She looked Tom up and down, but glared more intently at Trash. "You ¡­ You are Tomassio Rossi are you not?" She unsheathed her sword and held it up towards him. "I challenge you to a duel!"


    "No thanks."


    "What?" She stammered. "Have you no honor? A true knight never declines a duel."


    Tom shrugged. "Don¡¯t feel like it today. I¡¯m tired. Maybe another day."


    "It is barely midday. How can you be tired?" She grunted.


    "Why do you even want to duel me?" Tom asked, confused. "A bit of an overreaction if you ask me."


    She put her sword back in her sheath. "Because of Captain Zev. The Captain is the finest knight in the kingdom who has never personally trained anyone. How can someone like you receive that honor?"


    So it was about Zev? "So you¡¯re jealous?"


    "What? No! I am merely speaking the facts." She crossed her arms and nodded. "That I am more deserving to be trained by him is just an objective fact. Yeah, that''s right. It''s logic, not jealousy."


    Tom dismissively waved his hand. "You can have him for all I care. Zev is a useless teacher."


    She took a step back. "Useless? How dare you utter useless, and the name of the greatest royal knight in the same sentence! The disrespect. Listen here, kid. All you did was get a small break from military duty to go on a trip to the South to look at a hole. A literal hole in the ground! You did nothing revolutionary, so get off your high horse."


    "A hole in the ground?" Tom repeated. What was she talking about?


    "I for one have to work hard for years in the boring palace to even dream of getting a leave of absence. I was actually supposed to be the one to inspect the South, but you had to butt in."


    "Hey, I didn¡¯t do it on purpose...Probably. And is this a way to speak to the son of a Duke?"


    She shrugged. "Royal knights only need to show courtesy to the king. Not brats like you."


    Now she was really getting on his nerves.


    "What¡¯s going on?" Sierra said, walking up to them. "I thought I told you to lay low," she whispered to him.


    "Lay low?" The royal knight repeated.


    Sierra looked perplexed by the fact that she had been heard.


    "Sierra, let me share some of my observer knowledge with you. Look at her armor, all of her vitals are exposed aren¡¯t they?" He made sure to speak loud enough that people around them could hear them. As expected some soldiers did start whispering, forming a small crowd.


    Sierra looked at the woman and nodded in surprise. "They are. Does that even count as armor? ... How did I not notice that?"


    "It¡¯s the wearing-armor-that-isn¡¯t-really-armor clich¨¦. She¡¯s a weirdo. A royal knight who is not focused on defense. There is nothing wrong with wearing such clothes in your free time, but it literally has zero defensive purposes in a battle. And she dares to criticize us hard working soldiers in this camp who often have to wear heavy armor in battle?"


    "He is right," a soldier behind them said.


    Another nodded. "How can she call herself a royal knight when all of her vitals are exposed like that?"


    "And having the gall to criticize one of us? Unbelievable."


    The royal knight nervously waved her hands in front of herself. "No, no. People, calm down. This is a legendary armor made by otherworlders. It is strong and even creates a shield when I''m in danger. I swear."


    Tom scoffed. "And now she¡¯s pulling the otherworlder card. Are there any otherworlders around here that can support her claim?" He looked around. "Any otherworlders here?" No one answered. "See? Do better next time."


    The royal knight fumed. "I will have my duel with you one way or another. I am Hilda the Deathspear, don¡¯t forget it." Then she ran off.


    Trash hummed. "You should socially torture people more. It was entertaining to watch."


    Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!


    "That was a royal knight? I have to be more careful. I was being too relaxed," Sierra said. "I swear I blocked off the sound," she mumbled. She shook her head. "Anyways."


    Sierra explained what had happened at the store. The employee said it had already been done, but Olga liked to get confirmations just in case. According to Sierra she had a good reputation and was viewed as the most diligent instructor. "An interesting background character," he thought to himself. Tom did remember that he was supposed to get himself a satchel, but to his surprise, Olga had already ordered a replacement. It looked like she had been testing him the same way Zev did on his first day. Strange. But he didn¡¯t mind. He had learned a lot today.


    If that royal knight was correct, then Tomassio had been quite the individual. What was this about a hole in the ground, surviving otherworlders in the South, and a System Manipulator? There were so many different pieces of information but he had no idea what to make of it. Was this System Manipulator the reason why there was no proper system in his isekai adventure?


    Forget it. Tom should focus on the task at hand.


    "Now, let¡¯s go to the library!" Finally he would get to the perfect place to gather information.


    "About that¡­It¡¯s going to be a bit difficult," Sierra said.


    Tom sighed. Of course it wasn¡¯t going to be that easy. They walked over to a nearby fountain, and sat on one of the benches surrounding it. "Why is going to the library difficult? Even Alice had her small little library. Although, I think her secretary would definitely try and kill me if I tried to read books there without Alice around."


    "Well, she is the Commander. Normal citizens have some libraries to go to, but those are mostly in the capital. Not close to an active warzone. There used to be a public library here. It was driven by an observer monk as their elective, but ¡­ I had to get him removed."


    "You killed him?"


    Trash hummed. "Cold-blooded murder. You go girl!"


    "No! I do not commit any unnecessary murders. That would be a liability. No, he just got a mysterious letter about a new open position in the royal library. It was a good deal with generous work benefits. Observers are coveted by the king, so he often lets them work in the capital for him instead of staying in the camp. But I doubt you will receive the same treatment with Tomassio being the son of a Duke."


    "Then how can I get to a library then?"


    Sierra shrugged. "Maybe you could use some of your special otherworlder privileges, if they even exist." She joked.


    Otherworlder privileges? That''s right. This dumb world was predictable enough, so the answer was bound to come right to him anyway. Looking around the area he noticed a familiar face. The nobleman he had met on his first day in this world. They made eye contact, but the nobleman swiftly avoided Tom''s gaze seemingly trying to avoid him.


    Tom leaned towards him. "Then how can I get to a library then?" He asked out loud.


    The nobleman looked at him, confused.


    Trying again, he made a dramatic pose holding his forehead. "Then how can I get to a library then?" Eyes bulging, he looked at the nobleman.


    The nobleman finally walked closer, and awkwardly coughed to get their attention. "You are looking for a library? That sounds like something within my capacity."


    Tom turned to see two people with paint stains on their uniforms. He did not recognize the older man but did know one of them. "Finally. You¡¯re that one nobleman background character."


    "What an interesting way to refer to someone. Actually, my name is Leonard, son of Marquise Ronan. You should know that¡­ I¡ª."


    The older man put his hand on Leonard¡¯s shoulder. "Remember to act as befitting of your status, young lord."


    Leonard nodded.


    "You are?"


    The man bowed. "Constantine Faux. The head instructor of the nobles." He twirled his mustache. "May I ask why you are looking for a library?"


    Tom scratched his head. "I am looking for some sort of catalog of higher beings. It¡¯s for research. Secret Duke¡¯s son stuff."


    Constantine nodded. "Understood."


    "I can offer you help with that," Leonard interjected. "Our barracks have their own library with a fine collection of books. You could come to the noble¡¯s ball which is in a few days. It¡¯s invites only, financed by my father. So you still being stuck in the filthy commoner¡¯s barracks doesn¡¯t bar you from entering." He smirked. "All the other nobles look forward to meeting you, and might I add that they are a bit jealous of me being the first to greet you."


    Getting into the nobles barracks...Perhaps he could be able to get admitted there? He was curious to see how differently the nobles had it.


    Tom looked at Sierra who nodded in agreement. "Can I take her as my partner? She¡¯s my, erm, trophy commoner."


    Leonard eyed Sierra. "A trophy commoner? I have never heard of such a trend."


    Tom tried to fake an arrogant laugh. "I am the son of a Duke. I make the trends."


    Leonard stared at Sierra, and for a moment Tom was nervous. Chuckling Constantine clapped Leonard once again on the shoulder. This time his grip was much firmer. The instructor looked Leonard directly in the eyes who immediately looked away.


    "I see. I will accept your request." He coughed. "It isn''t like a trophy commoners is that big of I deal. We have a tropy otherworlder in the barracks."


    Tom''s eyes widened. "You do? How the space did you¡ª?" Sierra gave him a stare. "I mean, isn''t that dangerous?"


    Leonard looked confused. "Dangerous? Oh, no. I think you are misunderstanding. The otherworlder is ¡­ well he isn''t dead, but not exactly alive either." He gestured at Constantine. "Head instructor Constantine could show you the otherworlder. His speciality is world history."


    Constantine gave a small bow. "It would be my pleasure."


    Tom nodded his thanks, as Leonard and Constantine said their goodbyes.


    This was perfect for Tom. He could go to the library, possibly get admitted there, and at the same time fulfill his deal with Sierra, and meet another otherworlder. He was a genius, and to celebrate he wanted to eat something good.


    Tom took Sierra to a random restaurant for which he said he was going to pay. She rolled her eyes and mumbled something, but didn¡¯t reject the free food. Tom was not surprised to see spaghetti on the menu ¡ª some previous otherworlder must have taught that to this world ¡ª but he was confused as to why they were served with a blue sauce on top.


    They sat down and Tom figured this was the right time to ask questions.


    "You don''t happen to have some sound-protecting barrier so we can talk freely?"


    Sierra had a smug look on her face. "Of course." She snapped her finger, and smoke brewed out of the shadows and enveloped them. It was a thin layer of darkness, unnoticeable to the eye besides the missing patches of shadow under the table.


    "That''s a cool skill."


    "I am a genius spy. But it isn¡¯t a skill. Demons aren¡¯t able to use skill templates. I just used my shadow affinity to create a barrier to constantly embody and reflect approaching sound."


    "Really? That¡¯s a cool way to use embodiment. Can I ask you why you became a spy? The demons we met in the forest looked shocked when they saw you." Tom figured it would be smart to flesh out her backstory. He was sure about Ilona, but unsure if Sierra belonged in his future OP team.


    "That ¡­ I didn¡¯t get delegated this job, but I still think it is important. I don''t want the invasion to happen. The situation is not good back at home. It¡¯s only the powerful demons living further north, and what I learned coming here, the church that wants this war."


    Trash hummed. "Plot twist, you all want to kill each other. Why chicken out?"


    Sierra sighed. "Trash, do I really seem that bad to you? My elder brother was an astute pacifist, and ¡­ it didn¡¯t go well for him. Compared to certain other demons, I am more lenient with my approach."


    "Ugh, ethics. In a real war no one cares about that."


    Tom shook his head. "Don¡¯t listen to him, he¡¯s dumb. Evil demons are an old trope anyway. But don''t your family and friends get worried?"


    Sierra looked down at her spaghetti. "They don''t. My parents did not agree with my mindset, and my friends were a part of the demons wanting another war. Most of the fertile land is hoarded by the demons in the north. For the shadow tribe the best land lies close to Skypiercer Mountain. And with the great error beast Ether residing there, it gets difficult."


    This was a surprisingly realistic reason. "Couldn¡¯t you trade for food? You said everyone wanted your spirit stones."


    "The church hates us, so most stones are sold using the witches as an intermediary. It is a slow process, and we buy the food we need from the witches. But traveling with a lot of items across the Void is difficult. There is also lingering hate for the humans from all the previous invasions, which puts a damper on any dreams of a peaceful solution."


    This was a tricky situation. Maybe he could ask Alice for help? But she didn¡¯t like it either, so Tom didn¡¯t think she had any leverage going for her. Maybe he could stop a war and get a cool noble title, and then live the slow life of a noble in another world? Tom was sold on the idea, but it was going to be a lot of work. However, pretending he had an idea of how to fix it would probably make him look cool, wouldn¡¯t it?"


    "Don¡¯t worry, we will figure it out. With an otherworlder on your side anything is possible now. Don¡¯t beat yourself up over it. For all its worth, you¡¯re the coolest and best demon spy I know."


    Trash hummed. "I am pretty sure she¡¯s the only one you know."


    Sierra smiled. "Thank you."


    ***


    Sierra had never thought she would get so lucky. Another person hiding their identity. Although his reason was a bit selfish, she didn¡¯t mind that much. Surprisingly, other than his weird way of speaking, he was a normal boy who seemed to have lived a peaceful life. He was her key. Perhaps he could also get something out of the wretched Commander? Breaking into her office was near impossible.


    "Why do you even want to live a less stressful life? Being super powerful, what use would that be to you?"


    Tom avoided eye contact. "It¡¯s just that I have always¡­not excelled at anything. My parents constantly favored my little sister who had much better grades. All I had left to do was to try again and push through to become extraordinary. But then I was transported to another world." He smiled. "In my world we have tales of such: isekai adventures. I read a lot of books where the main character gains overwhelming strength and goes on a fun adventure. Now that I am in that position, I want the same. I know it¡¯s selfish, but I want to be selfish. Become extraordinary¡­Is that weird?"


    Sierra shook her head. "Something I learned from my brother''s demise, and my clan''s nonchalance, is that you aren¡¯t obligated to do anything. If you want to live your life in such a way, it¡¯s fine. As long as you are happy."


    He looked away and scratched his head. "Thank you for understanding. Although, I am kind of regretting this isekai adventure to be honest. It isn¡¯t going as I anticipated. According to what I have learned, my predecessors went a bit crazy. But I guess I am stuck here, and who knows; maybe I will be able to prove that everyone deserves a second chance? No matter what happens, let¡¯s do our best to help each other."


    She nodded. Living as a human had made her stiff. Talking to someone as a demon¡­She missed her homeland, but she had already made her decision. She looked over at Tom. This otherworlder was weird and sometimes embarrassing to be around, but perhaps he wasn¡¯t so bad after all?


    "By the way, do you miss your homeworld?" Sierra asked. Knowing that there existed more worlds out there. It was intriguing. Maybe there existed a world where all races lived in peace? She had heard that otherworlders would often tell people details about their previous world.


    He shrugged. "In the beginning no, but after experiencing this world I do miss it."


    "What was your world like?"


    Tom¡¯s expression turned completely blank. "In the beginning no, but after experiencing this world I do miss it."


    Wait, that was weird. "Yeah, you said that already. But what was it like? Are there demons there too?"


    "In the beginning no, but after experiencing this world I do miss it."


    "But¡ª."


    "In the beginning no, but after experiencing this world I do miss it." He repeated, yet again.


    "Trash, what¡¯s wrong with him?"


    She waited for a response from the sword, but all she heard was some sort of static noise. The sword did not say anything intelligible.


    Tom retained his usual expression and looked at her. "Sorry, I spaced out there. What were we talking about again?"


    Sierra sighed. He definitely wasn¡¯t normal.

 Chapter 11: Box dungeon

    Chapter 11: Box dungeon


    <blockquote>


    "You have to believe me! There was this little girl, but I don''t think she was a little girl. Some kind of intergalactic monster. She destroyed my world!"


    The priest sighed. "For the last time, dear otherworlder, being transported to this world must have muddied your memories. It is natural when experiencing it for the first time."


    I slammed the table. "But I did not experience it for the first time. This is my second time being summoned."


    The priests looked at each other, then laughed. "Being summoned twice? There is no way anything like that could happen. The damage to your soul; none of the priests here could have enough power for that."


    A priest walked into the room. "You asked for me?"


    "Ah, there you are! Now be honest with us all: you are the one that summoned this otherworlder, right?"


    "No."


    "How brazen, but courageous. I will look away from ¡­ What did you say?"


    The priest looked confused. "No. I did not summon any otherworlder. I had to go to a sermon in the eastern human kingdom Ser. I just arrived here."


    The priest looked back at me. "Please, continue."


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    That went better than expected. Tom gained an ally and pinpoints to finding out about higher beings. Although, Sierra did act odd at the end. Did she still have any reservations about him? Tom felt the soft texture of his new satchel. At least she had given him some embodied items.


    A few soldiers were still training at the grounds, under the glistening lamps. Walking past him were a rowdy group of drunk soldiers. Tom was never one to go to parties, but he wasn¡¯t like the diligent soldiers either.


    Tom arrived at the barracks and was surprised to see both Hiro and Mark there. Hiro was in bed reading a book, and Mark was cleaning his armor.


    "You guys don¡¯t go out much?"


    Mark shook his head. "Sometimes, but on weekdays we usually take a break. How did your trip go by the way?"


    "Perfect. Sierra isn¡¯t that bad once you get to know her. I was even invited to some sort of ball by a noble."


    Mark nodded. "Yeah, Sierra can be difficult to deal with, but ¡­ wait did you say a ball? As in the Midsummer Ball? That¡¯s on Soldiers Day!"


    "Soldiers Day?"


    Hiro sighed, and put down his book. "It¡¯s a day off the Commander gave us to celebrate our work as soldiers. The commoners light a huge bonfire in the training grounds, and the nobles hold their fancy ball called the Midsummer Ball. Invites only. Lucky you."


    "That means he will miss out on the bonfire," Mark said distraught. "It is one of the most important events!"


    Tom shrugged. "Doesn''t sound that special."


    "But think of all that it would mean. It is the only day people can boast about themselves and their squadron without breaking the taboo of seeking heroism. What of all the times you practiced your speech in the bathroom about showing people your ''epicness''?"


    "Fart, you heard that?"


    Mark held up his shield. "You are the boss of the squadron. I even did as you said and spread the word of your greatness to other soldiers. They were a bit skeptical about it though, but I believe in you."


    "Mark, he has no obligation to be a part of that. Tom is a noble, remember?" Hiro looked at Tom. "You are one aren¡¯t you?"


    Tom cautiously nodded. He quickly finished up the conversation saying he was tired, and started preparing to go to sleep. Mark looked disappointed.


    He was lying to these people a lot.


    Whatever, there was no need to be too attached to these side characters. They probably don¡¯t like him that much anyway.


    ***


    The next day after listening to Alice¡¯s boring speech about honor or something, he went to train with Zev to find that he wasn¡¯t there. Zev wasn¡¯t the perfect master, Tom wasn¡¯t even sure if he still was his master. Training would have been much easier if he had some quest from the adventures guild or dungeons to complete. Without any other choice he went to train by himself in the training room.


    "I am pretty sure there are techniques or something in swordsmanship. You¡¯re just swinging me in the air," Trash complained.


    "What am I supposed to do? Swordsmanship is so difficult. Why couldn¡¯t you have been an OP one-shot-one-kill kinda weapon?"


    Trash hummed. "You can''t shoot with a sword. And, regardless of my strength, people can still dodge if you try to kill them."


    Tom sighed. "Forget it." Searching through his satchel he pulled out a stone. A spirit stone. It looked mostly unassuming. Closing his eyes he tried to feel the stone. Nothing.


    Compared to a living person, imagining the aura of a stone felt impossible. Perhaps he needed to activate Trash with one of these?


    "Is that a spirit stone I see? Rare to see them in the kingdom."


    Tom looking around the training room. "Who said that?"


    "Up here."


    He looked up to find a hooded person standing upside down on the ceiling. It was one of the error cultists. "What the¡ª?"


    "Might be a bad idea to try that spirit stone alone if it is your first time." The cultist jumped from the ceiling, head first, and crashed down on the floor with a thud. Before Tom could react to the situation, the cultist got back on his feet. "Oops. Sorry about that. Forgot to flip myself first." The cultist hand moved onto their body hidden under the cloak. "I think all bones are in order. Why don''t we have a little chat now?"


    Tom raised Trash towards the stranger and took a step back.


    "Nice aura sword. It can even talk." He took a step foreward and Tom took another step back. "Don''t worry. I have no interest in stealing your aura sword."


    "You''re one of those cultist aren''t you? What are you doing here?"


    "You remember! How wonderful." He coughed. "Allow me to properly introduce myself. My name is Zero, and my job is to spread the good word of the Error Cult to the common folk. I have come to you with a proposition, Tomassio Rossi. We would like for you to join our organization."


    Join them? They wanted Tom ¡ª no, Tomassio to join. "Why? What reason would I have not to report you to the authorities?"


    Zero shrugged. "Goodwill? The Error Cult is relatively new, but we have members in every nation around the Void. You, according to our intel, have traveled back from the South. Having someone who is familiar with the happenings down there would be beneficial for us."


    Wait a second, what the space was happening in the South?


    "You must also have learned the truth about the kingdoms predicament. As a future Duke it would be within your interest to gather allies to keep ahold of your legacy. So, what do you say?"


    Tom wasn''t sure what to make of this. The real Tomassio travelled to the southern part of the kingdom, and that was a big deal? And what did he mean by ''the kingdoms predicament''? Regardless of what he had learned, there was no reason to tie himself to this cult. The moment they asked a detailed question about the south, he would be revealed as an impostor. But he was still curious about this cult.


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    "I do not know enough about your cult to make such a decision."


    Zero shook his head. "No need to worry. The decision is yours alone to make. If you find yourself willing to join, we are holding a summit at the end of the month. It is in the abandoned factory besides the rift. The summit would be the perfect opportunity for you to learn more about the cult, and converse with some of our other members."


    "A summit? What will¡ª."


    "Apologies. It would be burdensome if I revealed too much. I will take my leave now. A crazy lady will be arriving soon and I would rather not have to deal with her."


    Crazy lady?


    Zero threw a ball at the floor which made a cloud of smoke appear. Fanning the smoke away from his face, Tom coughed and looking where Zero had been, leaving behind a slowly dispersing cloud of smoke. "He disappeared. Was that teleportation?"


    Trash hummed. "Nope. He just ran out the door as fast as he could while you were distracted."


    "Way to put a damper on my imagination." Tom sighed. "How would I even be allowed to leave the camp in the first place? I think that cultist was overestimating my influence."


    "Just ignore them. It is a cult after all. Most likely a bunch of weirdoes."


    "I think you''re right."


    Tom tried to go ignore what had just happened and continue training, but he felt like his drive had drained away. Should he tell Alice about this invitation? No, it would better to keep this card close, in case it could help him escape this camp. All he was supposed to focus on now was trying to get stronger, but training alone was boring. And regardless of how weird the cultist was, he did mention to not try the spirit stones alone.


    Not knowing what else to do with his day Tom decided to check on his squadmates. They were all at the training grounds. Sierra was swiftly going through an obstacle course, likely preparing for her mission. Hiro was sparring with a background character, and Ilona was healing people.


    "Squad meeting with Tom!" Trash hummed, loudly.


    "Hey," Tom said, startled. "What did I say about talking in public?"


    Although not recognizing the voice, his squadmates came over when they spotted him.


    "Since when was squad meetings a thing?" Sierra asked.


    Well, this was embarrassing, but Tom was used to it by now. It was best to be direct. "I need to train, but Zev ditched me since he¡¯s bad at teaching."


    Hiro crossed his arms. "I knew there was a logical reason why he wouldn''t train me."


    "I need to get stronger, but all the instructors here hate me," Tom continued.


    "Oh, I don''t think they hate you," Ilona said.


    Sierra rolled her eyes. "Are you seriously going to ignore all the constant insults about him? Well, ignoring the truth is your specialty."


    "Hey! That¡¯s mean ¡ª I think."


    Tom ignored their arguing and noticed Mark running over to them. "Where did you go? We were just about to figure out my cool training arc."


    "I think I know a way to accomplish that," Mark said. He held out a small black box. "We can use this box dungeon. I managed to borrow one from the Inventor."


    "The great inventor Artorius himself?" Hiro perked up. "How did you manage to do something like that? I thought it was almost impossible to even find him."


    "What is a box dungeon?" Tom asked.


    "It is an artificial dungeon core that simulates a training zone. All of the nobles have unlimited access to these. The commoners getting to use one is extremely rare," Mark explained.


    "Hey Hiro, didn¡¯t you say there were no dungeons to explore? That¡¯s why I started training solo today."


    Hiro shrugged. "I meant no natural dungeons. Natural dungeons used to exist. All dungeons had a dungeon core. Then the Hero came and destroyed all of them. The box dungeon is an artificial dungeon core. I figured you just were stupid, and thought everyone could use them. It is common knowledge amongst nobles. They used to have a monopoly on all the dungeons in the kingdom, then the Hero took that privilege away."


    "Yeah, he is pretty dumb." Sierra interjected. She glared at Tom, probably trying to convey that he was bad at pretending to be a nobleman. He appreciated the save.


    Tom turned his attention to Mark. "You aren¡¯t doing this to make me join that bonfire party, right?"


    Mark shrugged and laughed. "It really is difficult to hide something from an observer."


    This Mark guy was clingy. For some weird reason, Tom didn¡¯t mind. "Let us get this over with. How does this work?" He went over and touched the box making the world go blank.


    ***


    When he opened his eyes Tom found himself in what looked like a floating platform. There were small stone walls scattered around facing the center of the platform. The sky was completely dark, yet he didn¡¯t have any problem seeing his surroundings. Tom could feel Trash hum with intrigue.


    "Cool isn¡¯t it?" Tom turned to see Mark. The others were beside him. He held up a box that looked identical to the box dungeons, but his one had text on it. "With this, I can summon creatures in the center of the arena which we can fight."


    That was cool. Maybe this was his key to getting stronger? "Let us start then."


    Everyone else was curious to try this out, and they went to their own part of the arena, positioning themselves behind the stone walls.


    Mark touched the cube, and a couple of green creatures reminiscent of goblins appeared in the center. "I¡¯ll go first," Tom declared.


    Tom unsheathed Trash, and took one embodied vial and a random spirit rock. "You ready?"


    Trash hummed. "I am always ready."


    Tom put down the rock and stabbed it with Trash. His body shivered as the sword lit up with a turquoise-blue color. Ice Spirit, Tom guessed. The gloves looked to be working; his hands weren¡¯t cold at all, but the rest of his body was another matter.


    Taking a step away from the stone wall cover. He threw the embodied vial at one of the nearest goblins. It made a surprised grunt and turned to see Tom run up to it. Tom cut the goblin in the stomach and used [stabilize].


    Purple icicles grew from the goblin''s body. Frantically trying to get it off the goblin fell over. Foam flowed out of its mouth when the goblin stopped moving.


    "I did it!" Tom exclaimed. Trash changed back to his usual form. He stood there in confusion, barely able to par the blow from another goblin making him fall to the ground. "What the space? Why did you change back?"


    Trash hummed. "I used up the spirit. Its power has returned to the world."


    Another goblin started charging at him but was interrupted by a dagger. "Close your eyes," Ilona shouted, and Tom heeded. A blinding light came, and when he opened his eyes again he saw Hiro swiftly finishing the goblins. Hiro¡¯s sword had some static on it. Since when were electricity spirits a thing?


    Mark went up to Tom with the box in one hand and helped him get up with the other. "That was awesome! I didn¡¯t know you could do that with an aura sword. How did you even manage to use two spirits at once? The poison spirit is perfectly merged with the effects of the ice spirit."


    Tom shrugged. "Is that such a big deal? It was only one strike anyway."


    "Don¡¯t beat yourself up," Ilona said. "We are just using the byproducts of spirits. You are using the power of spirits themselves; that is a huge deal."


    Sierra gave Tom a nod, and Hiro came over after he had finished his extermination. "Your use of spirits is commendable, but your sword technique is lacking." Hiro gripped his sword and slashed in the air. "Try slashing like this next time. Focus on replicating this stance."


    Tom didn¡¯t expect them all to be so supportive, but ¡­ No, this was his isekai. "Forget it, Hiro. I know what I need, and that is a rival." Tom pointed at Hiro. "You are officially my rival now, so don¡¯t try and teach me. It¡¯s a competition."


    "Erm. I¡¯m not sure that¡¯s a good idea."


    "It is what I need. And with all the praise of me using the spirits, didn¡¯t you power your sword with electricity?"


    Hiro sighed and scratched his hood where his ears would have been. "You aren''t the only one with an aura sword. My aura sword is related to weather, and can use the related spirits. It passively attract relevant spirits too it and enhances my attacks. Since I am half beastkin I am not able to use skill templates, so I rely on sword techniques."


    "What about that sword?" Tom said, pointing at the katana tied to his waist.


    "That is a sword made of beast crystal. It ¡­ does something else." Hiro looked like he didn¡¯t want to talk about it, but Tom was curious.


    Focusing, he tried to feel the aura of the katana. Instantly he felt nauseous, and ¡­ empty. He closed his eyes and gripped his head.


    "Are you alright!" Hiro frantically asked.


    Tom waved him off. "I¡¯m fine. Let''s just get back to training."


    During the next hours, Tom focused on improving his technique, despite the empty feeling in his stomach. His ability to sense spirits was nonexistent so the spirits that he activated Trash with were random. One slash with a wind-powered sword made a poisonous mist, [posion mist]. Using an earth spirit made a poisonous crystal sprout from the wound. It wasn''t as effective as [poison ice] since the frozen water more easily utilized the poison, but on a second try he found that it would be a nice protective wall that caused poisonous dust to appear when destroying it: [poison wall]. Unsurprisingly, when powered by a poison spirit nothing happened. The goblin still died from the poison melting its skin, but it wasn''t as effective in quickly killing it. The fact that he only had one type of spirit embodied in the vial was disadvantageous. Especially when some goblins with more purple skin turned out to be poison-resistant.


    He could see Hiro look over at his swordplay, obviously wanting to correct him. But Tom wasn¡¯t going to get help from his rival. He focused on getting familiar with his new fighting style. Being able to kill one goblin, and then run away felt pretty wimpy. It was nothing compared to how easily Hiro took down 5 goblins in seconds.


    Eventually, Mark told them to stop and said the box dungeon was out of mana. He told them all to touch the cube, and they were transported back to the training grounds where they came from. Tom suddenly felt his stomach grumble. His feet also felt tired.


    "That," Mark grunted. "Is a side effect of using a box dungeon. While our souls were inside the cube our bodies were standing still in the real world. It is difficult to get used to."


    "Couldn¡¯t you have told us that before we went into it?" Sierra said.


    Trash hummed in amusement.


    Tom couldn¡¯t even imagine how stupid they all looked lying on the ground.


    Mark obviously had to return such an expensive item, but the nobles had free access. He was going to check out how his new life would be, for tomorrow he was going to go to the Midsummer Ball.


    ***


    The others had to go to their electives, so Tom left the training grounds. Apparently there was a pletora of different electives. Hiro and Sierra were part of the feedback elective, tasked with gathering feedback from different electives and other workers. Ilona helped at the infirmary, and Hiro did guard duty making rounds around the tall brick walls surrounding the camp. Electives were basically tasks to help maintenance in the camp and give people something else to do. Most electives had limited spots to avoid chaos, and he was late so there weren''t exactly anything fun for him to join.


    Perhaps he should join some random elective to gather more intel? Although, he had to remember not to get sidetracked on his quest to get OP for his EPIC ADVENTURE. Staring at the stone paved path, Tom pondered how he should train himself.


    For a moment he stopped and closed his eyes, trying to sense his own aura. All he could see was a messy cloud of differing colors, no rings in sight. He opened his eyes, back to reality, and sighed. With Trash he had a way to fight using spirits, but Zev told him that it was a waste of time training if he didn''t know what route of progression he was choosing. The concept of getting stronger by understanding reality better also did not make sense to him. It looked like getting a blessing from a higher being was his only way of getting stronger.


    "Hey there! You are new."


    Tom looked up. It was a woman with long chestnut colored hair. At the top of her head he noticed that her roots were growing in a strong red color. She wore an eyepatch hiding her other purple eye, her one visible eye frantically shifting looking at everything around. No uniform, so she was for sure not a fellow soldier, but she wore something that looked similar to camo-clothes from his world.


    "Erm. Yes, I am new."


    "It must be difficult being all alone, but don''t worry." She stretched out her arms. "For I have arrived!"


    Tom nervously chuckled. "And you are?" What a crazy lady ¡­ wait a second.


    "Rachel is my name." She raised her fist. "Don''t be afraid. I will help you, fellow otherworlder. I always do."


    Then she punched Tom in the face.

 Sidequest part 1: Becoming a superhero in another world

    Sidequest part 1: Becoming a superhero in another world


    <blockquote>


    "The ineffable System Manipulator has eyes everywhere. The Error Cult will never submit to¡ª."


    I slit his throat and grumbled. Everyone was constantly berating me for my suggestion, then the supposed righteous Hero went ahead and did it himself. In the distance I looked on as the Hero killed soldiers trying to defy him like ants. "Didn''t they remember that they had given all of their most powerful relics to the Hero?"


    Mike, who was standing beside me observing, shrugged.


    If the Hero was taking over this place, then I will have to try somewhere else. Perhaps I would have better luck in the South? I could try. Rachel''s plan failed so it was about time I followed my own. "Hey Mike, I have an idea."


    - Lutherion ''Luther'' Abalonius, The Beast, former member of the Delinquents


    </blockquote>


    "In this world everyone is a hero!"


    Tom widened his eyes in awe. "So, not only are you telling me that I have been summoned to another world, but that everyone who is summoned here becomes a superhero?"


    The screen on the robots face changed into a laugh. "Yes! You finally got it!"


    Stuck in a stressful life of mediocrity, his biggest dream had always been to go on an isekai adventure. A dream he could now pursue.


    Tom scratched his head. "Sorry Orion, this is just a lot to take in."


    Orion shook his small robotic arms. "No need to worry. You are the first to be summoned in quite a while, so I am sure the others would welcome you with open arms."


    "Cool. But ¡ª sorry, I have another question: if there are superheroes doesn''t that also mean there are villains?"


    "Yes."


    "And how many villains are there in total?"


    The robots face changes to a loading screen. When it was complete, their face was replaced with frown. "Unfortunately for mankind, there are currently 43 villains."


    Tom nodded. That didn''t sound too bad. "And how many heroes are there?"


    Again, he saw a loading screen, and this time Orion took much more time to return to a happy face. "Currently, including you, we have a total of 3 wonderful superheros! Isn''t that amazing?"


    "Oh, so ¡ª wait a second. There are only three superheroes? Why?"


    "Because they all went insane from The Madness, silly." Orion spun around. "Good luck!" Then the screen turned black and his arms dangled.


    Frantic, he looked around the robot for an on button. "Farting space."He stopped in his tracks. "What kind of weird cussing filter is that?" Hesitant, he looked around the room for an exit. "Makes sense in a PG13 superhero isekai. People going mad? Not so much."


    The room he was in looked old and abandoned. It had several holes in the walls and was missing its roof. Discovering the silhouette of a door, he pushed on it. The metallic door jittered and dust fell on him as he created a small exit for himself. Taking a deep breath, he slipped himself through the small opening and was finally outside.


    It was a wasteland.


    In a world were people who are summoned from another world becomes superheroes, he had expected at least a technodystopia. But all he could see was barren lands. The landscape was flat, littered with rubble, and right in front of him was the biggest crater he had ever seen. It was a massive hole in the planet that seemed to stretch on endlessly, filled with black smog ¡ª with hints of red lightning? Squinting his eyes he tried to see what lied beyond. He saw nothing but hints of more flat wasteland.


    "What the space?"


    Tom realized he was looking out of a stairwell. Sneaking closer to the edge to avoid disturbing the crumbling facade, he counted. "Third floor." There was not a single sign of light in the vicinity. "Shouldn''t you at least get summoned to the city. Where am I?"


    This had to be a summoning gone wrong. Focusing he looked around for anything that seemed to move. The he spottet ¡­ something. It did move slowly, crawling over the rubble. A person? But their entire body was red. They must be wounded.


    "Hey, are you alright!" Tom shouted.


    The body stopped crawling and turned towards him. Then it screeched. He did not know how to describe it. It sounded like they were out of breath, mixed with the sound of boiling water, crumbling rock, and a young child. His heart started beating faster as he was filled with dread ¡ª and an odd sense of anger?


    Tom had no idea what that thing was, but it was obviously not human. "Maybe that was a bad idea."


    With more ferocity the creature started crawling towards his building. Out in the distance he could hear the echoes of other screeched. It wasn''t alone.


    Looking up and finding that the fourth floor had been blown off, he headed downstairs. He had to get away before one of those creature got to him. "Orion could have at least given me an OP weapon," Tom grumbled.


    When he arrived at the second floor he discovered the stairs to the first floor had crumbled to pieces. "Just perfect." The building looked relatively big so it had to have multiple stairwells.


    The floorboards creaked as he slowly made his way through the dusty hallways.


    On the floor he found a piece of cloth. Picking it up he read the words printed on it. ''The Delinquents will show you the way!'' He stared at it. "Who are the Delinquents?"


    From an open window at the end of the hallway he heard more sounds. Moving closer and peeking out the window he discovered a perfectly normal looking human woman. She had long chestnut colored hair with some of her roots colored red, and was wearing an eyepatch.


    Crouching and focusing on the sound, he realized she was singing.


    <blockquote>


    Along the shore the cloud waves break,


    The twin suns sink beneath the lake,


    The shadows lengthen


    In Carcosa.


    Strange is the night where black stars rise,


    And strange moons circle through the skies


    But stranger still is


    Lost Carcosa.


    Songs that the Hyades shall sing,


    Where flap the tatters of the King,


    Must die unheard in


    Dim Carcosa.


    Song of my soul, my voice is dead;


    Die thou, unsung, as tears unshed


    Shall dry and die in


    Lost Carcosa.


    </blockquote>


    "Hey, can you hear me?" Tom shouted. "I am an otherworlder who just arrived there. Could you help me?"


    The woman did not react. She bopped her head back and forth as if in a trance.


    "I have to find a way down to her."


    He turned and walked along the many hallways, searching for another exit. Opening a few doors he found them stacked with boxes. Curious, he tried to open one of them, only for it to crumble into piles of dust. This place was ancient.


    At the opposite end of the building, he found something that looked like an exit, but it was closed up by a metal door. Fortunately, the lock could be opened from his side, but it made him feel uneasy. Why was there such a secure door blocking the exit? Looking at the corners he could surmise that it had been recently added. "Has to be for protection against those creatures."


    With no other choice, Tom turned the lock and pushed the door. He panted as he used his entire body to get it open. When he had made a big enough opening for himself, he stopped to catch his breath. "Why is opening doors so much work in this world?"


    There was indeed a stairwell leading down to the first floor. Tom gulped and tried to muster up strength. "Just a tutorial," he told himself. "When I get out of this, it will all be fun PG13 superhero isekai adventures."


    He descended down the stairs. There were little to no lights so he put his hand against the walls. Metall. The first floor was in better shape than the rest of the building. Perhaps this was that woman''s home? She could have at least turned on some lights.


    Sneaking into the hallways his feet made contact with something. He crouched down trying to figure out what it was. Cardboard? Ripped apart into several pieces. At the end of the hallway was a single ray of light. He walked towards it. The entire hallway was fortified with metal, but littered across it were torn up objects. Pillows, furniture, and electronics torn to shreds in an unnatural amount. On the walls, he noticed a few scratch marks that had dug into it.


    From the corner, he heard growls.


    He crouched and peeked over the corner. There he saw a beast ¡ª or a man? Hair had grown all over their body, and all of it was in a murky red color. The creature was focused on tearing something.


    Perhaps opening the door was a bad idea, but it was too late to chicken out. Turning back he sneaked towards the other side. He held his breath and tried not to make any unnecessary sounds, but the rare creaks from the floor made his heart skip a beat.


    Arriving on the other side, he peeked out of the corner to find the beast still there. It was several feet away from him, but still visible. A few feet closer was the exit. The metal door was right there, but how was he supposed to open it?


    Carefully studying the door he saw there was no complex lock, only a latch that had to be turned. Opening the door was easy. "Why have such a fortified floor when it is so easy to exit?" he pondered.


    His only way out was running there to open the door, and quickly close it, hoping that the beast was too dumb to figure out how to follow him.


    Tom was not a brave person, not at all. All he wanted was an EPIC ADVENTURE in another world, preferably with OP powers. Yet he pushed all his worries away. "This is just a dumb tutorial. Once I get out, it will get easier. There is no way the protagonist can fail this."


    Getting on his feet, he sprinted towards the door. The beast stopped what it was doing and turned its head towards him. Hand on the latch, he turned it and used all of his remaining strength to push it open. Compared to the other door this one swung open with little force. "Finally."


    Looking out the exit he was face to face with one of those creatures. It had a humanoid shape, with no hair or reproductive organs. It was just all in shades of red, screeching at him. All he could feel when looking at the creature up close was anger. He felt like destroying everything, but his body was not on his side.


    Tom''s leg betrayed him and he fell down on the floor. His heart raced as the creature jumped on top of him and opened its mouth, revealing sharp teeth smudged with different materials it had destroyed.


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    Before the creature could kill him, it flung from his body and crashed into the other side of the hallways. The beast had captured it and hurled the creature around like a rag-doll. The creature screeched, biting the beast arm to free itself, but the beast ignored it.


    Tom looked on as the beast slowly tore the creature into shreds. Pulling of its limbs. Cutting the stomach to spill its organs. Smashing their head with its hand. It was a gruesome death that felt like it would never end. Even when the creature had stopped fighting back and was obviously dead, the beast did not stop trying to destroy its corpse further.


    Tom got back on his feet, but the moment he did so the beast stopped and turned towards him. He knew that this beast would kill him before he could make his way out.


    "S-Stop! I am a new superhero in town. You don''t know what superpowers I have. It is very dangerous," he said, in a feeble attempt to keep the beast away.


    The beast stared at him. "S¡ª," it opened its mouth and threw up a pool of murky red liquid. "SupErHerO?" it said in a hoarse voice.


    Tom nodded.


    "Superhero. Superhero. Superhero. Superhero. Superhero. Superhero." The beast raised its arms and clawed its own face, red blood dripping down on the floor. "It''s another hero! Superhero! Superhero!" It pointed at itself. "Superhero."


    Was it trying to tell him that he also was a superhero?


    "Oi, did you finally come to your senses?" Someone said.


    Tom turned and saw the same lady he had spotted on the second floor.


    "Wait," she said, picking up the gun from her holster.


    Suddenly the beast screamed.


    "NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO."


    Tom instinctively lunged towards the wall behind as the beast jumped towards the door sliding across the floor, and ran out. In the distance, he saw the beast run faster than a car, and quickly it disappeared from his sight.


    The woman narrowed her eyes as she aimed her gun at him.


    "Wait. I am another superhero, I just got summoned today. From Earth."


    He heard another screech.


    Behind her was one of those creatures crawling on the ground, missing its legs. She casually turned her gun towards it and shot it twice, before putting it back in her holster. "Well, why didn''t you just say so? Nice seeing a fellow earthling again."


    Just like that? "I tried to, from the second floor, but you were in some sort of trance."


    "Trance?" She repeated. "I did? Huh. Strange."


    Finally, with another reasonably sane person, he exited the building. "I have so many questions. Where am I? Who are you? What happened here?"


    She crooked her head. "You are in the kingdom of Bolero ¡ª or more correctly former parts of its territory. I am Rachel, nice to meet you. And what happened here was an apocalypse, basically."


    Tom gulped. What kind of world had he been transported to? "So I am one of the only three superheroes left? I am guessing you are one of them. Who is the last superhero?"


    "You just met them."


    His eyes widened. "That beast was actually a superhero? But it was so¡ª."


    "He is close to losing to The Madness like all the others," she finished for him. "I tried my best, but I can''t find a way to bring him back. It was risky of you to enter the first floor. Those taken by The Madness have a preference for devouring otherworlders."


    "Sorry if this sounds insensitive, but why do you want to bring him back? Was he someone dear to you?"


    She shrugged. "Not really. But I need to use his powers for a certain ¡­ task."


    Tom nodded. An awkward silence ensued. "So, like. What am I supposed to do?"


    "Indeed. What should you do?"


    He stared at her. Why was she asking him that? She was the one who was summoned to this world before him. "I guess you could teach me how to unlock my superpowers?" he tried. He wanted to ask more questions, but figuring out how to defend himself first was probably the better choice.


    She nodded. "I will do so." She raised three fingers. "You have three paths of progression that you can choose: an entertainer, a mender, or become part of the Immutable."


    He nodded. "Could you explain a bit more in detail? What is an entertainer?"


    "An entertainer," she began, smiling. "An entertainer makes life into a play, and the world itself into their stage. They do not fight for the sake of fighting, but for a purpose. An entertainer fights as if they are dancing to entertain, earning the awe of spirits this way, and therefore the fabrics of existence itself."


    Interesting. Tom guessed that path would be a flashy superhero that everyone liked. "What about a mender?"


    "A mender is the only path that can fix this world. They embark on a journey to learn how reality works and can fix cracks in it. A mender can create a world in their image, only if their ambition shines bright enough."


    That was a vague description, but it must be related to fixing this weird world and those creatures. "And that last one?"


    "If you find your faith in creation veining, you may become part of the Immutable and return to the ideals of making the world as it once was."


    "Making the world as it once was?"


    She nodded. "You know about the Big Bang, don''t you? Theoretically, creation appeared from nowhere. The paths of the entertainer and mender pertain to trying to find meaning in this existence. The Immutable rejects it, and wants to return to the universe where nothing changes. Becoming part of the Immutable pertains to creation long lasting entropy reducing creations."


    That made him even more confused. Who would choose that path? Sounded useless. "Let''s see. Being a flashy popular superhero or helping you guys fix this world. ¡­ You know what, I don''t think I got the charisma to pull of the entertainer role, and I don''t feel like fighting after encountering one of those creatures. What do you call them?"


    "A feral," she answered.


    "Yeah, those suck. The Immutable one sounds bad, so if I have been summoned to this world then I might as well choose the path of mender to help fix it." He shrugged. "What do you think?"


    "A wise choice." She clapped. "I would have had to kill you if you chose any of the other two, so this is actually perfect."


    "Wait, what?"


    Grabbing the collar of his shirt, she jumped into the air dragging him across the sky. Tom screamed, closing his eyes. When his feet made contact with the ground again he opened his eyes to find himself back on top of the building, in the room he started at. "Did you just fly?"


    She laughed. "No, no. I just did [double jump]. One of the skills I made for myself."


    Had he heard correctly? Skills? Made for herself?


    "There is a lot to explain so let us get started. In this world, everyone''s soul gives off a vibration that can be sensed. From that, one can see a manifestation of their own authority, your aura. Close your eyes and try to imagine your own truth."


    He closed his eyes. "How am I supposed to imagine my own truth?"


    She hesitated. "Maybe you could try and imagine yourself as a one-dimensional character? A trope or clich¨¦ in a story of your own."


    Focusing, he tried imagining himself as the main character of an isekai adventure, for of course he was the main character. He felt a strange pull lead his senses until he saw a cloud. "I think I see it. Is it supposed to be a cloud of different colors?"


    "Yes. That is how it should look in the beginning."


    He opened his eyes again. "This is cool and all, but I don''t understand. Shouldn''t there be a system or that you get to learn your superpowers in an isekai. Why am I in this world as a normie? Doesn''t it destroy the whole point of being isekai''d if nothing changes?"


    She eyed him. "I used to be obsessed with my own isekai adventure too, but I later learned it was though work just like on any other occupation on Earth. But as an otherworlder, you can gain the intrigue of the spirits making up this reality."


    "Really? Then, how do I become powerful?"


    "Are you sure you want to choose this path?"


    Tom rolled his eyes. "Weren''t you threatening to kill me for choosing something else a minute ago? I must get stronger to avoid getting killed by ferals at least."


    "Understood. Now, tell me this: how is a star born?"


    "A star. Like a literal star?"


    She nodded.


    Tom looked up at the night sky, barely visible due to a thick cloud covering it. "If I remember from physics class, stars are born from a cloud of gas and dust, normally from the byproduct of the death of an older star. When dense enough, gravity kicks in and compresses the cloud, forming a protostar. After enough matter has been compressed fusion reactions start, and an equilibrium between gravity and pressure from internal radiation is achieved. Then a star is born."


    "You are knowledgable," Rachel said. "And as such you have already describes the answer to your question."


    "My question?" He repeated. "So the path of progression is tied to the lifecycle of a star?"


    She clapped. "Bingo!"


    His eyes widened. "But ¡ª why?"


    "Because the creator of this world wanted it. You see, there was once a little girl who was all alone. Lonely, she wished for a fairy to help her, and the mighty fairy queen arrived. Together they travelled to a new world to save it. Afterward, given the reign of the rules of this world, the little girl decided that the greatest wish should be to become a star. So, she tied one''s understanding of reality to the birth of a star in the night sky."


    "Understanding of reality?" For a strange reason, Tom felt a strong sense of frustration hearing that.


    "This is where most of your confusion lies. There are no levels in this world, therefore no metric to the strength of an individual. We are currently in a broken world. The little girl I mention simply momentarily fixed it, but the consequences of the death of a true god are not easily amendable. In this broken world, spirits are almost everywhere, easily mended by people''s desires. The better you are at that, the closer you are to creating your own star."


    "What happens then, after I have created a star of my own?"


    "Then you have created your own meaning, able to function outside the system you are bound to, and gain the authority to develop your own system within the grander rules the little girl created. When your star shines brightest of all in the night sky, your authority will extend over the entire world making you the manifestation of reality itself, and thereby a god that can mend this entire world as you please."


    His eyes widened. "So I can become a god? That actually sounds fun."


    "But don''t get ahead of yourself. There can be multiple stars in the sky, and they can still die during their lifecycle."


    "Multiple stars? But you said one had to shine the brightest to become a god."


    "I did. That is why a certain individual is mighty annoyed with me. Other than being the only star, there is another way, and that is to inherit the will of the little girl. We call her the Mirror Maiden."


    This explanation was a lot to take in. He had initially believed he would become a part of a specific system, and get stronger by leveling or utilizing OP cheats. Actually moving beyond the system sounded intriguing.


    Tom bowed. "Master, please teach me the way to create a star!" Looking up to see her reaction, he saw that Rachel was smiling.


    "Certainly."


    ***


    Tom was sitting cross-legged on the floor, focusing on his aura.


    "Remember, you are horrible at seeing details. That would have been a weakness in certain scenarios but here we can utilize it."


    He could hear her pacing back and forth.


    "Therefore, let us focus on getting closer to creating a protostar. As you already explained, a star is a compressed clump of gas and dust in an equilibrium state due to nuclear fusion. In this world''s rules that would mean a clump of mana, ambient left behind authority of spirits, with an equilibrium between how you are affected by reality and how you can affect reality. To create a protostar we are focusing on how you are affected by reality to compress your aura into a shape akin to a flat disk."


    "And how do I do that? I am focusing, but I still only see a cloud of colors."


    "Since you are bound to the system of the kingdom of Bolero, we will have to play by its rules. In this system, there is a connection between understanding reality and getting stronger." She stopped. "If you have the correct class, of course. It would be similar to how you understand levels. When one gains more experience in their class, basically leveling up, through the World-Rune as an intermediary, that experience is turned into authority. However, even though you would think with the simplest of classes it would be much easier to create a star, this kingdom''s system has a specific purpose: to avoid that."


    Tom opened his eyes. "Avoid¡ªouch. Why did you hit me?"


    "Close your eyes and focus."


    He did as she said and closed his eyes.


    "Due to this purpose, and that translating experience into authority ¡ª or understanding of reality ¡ª uses a lot of ¡­ fuel, it has a failsafe to avoid too many stars from being born. This understanding of how reality affects you, which is supposed to compress your aura, is given a physical form. It manifests as up to seven rings that compress your aura into a ball and thereby create a ceiling of progression by making it impossible to create an outwards pushing force to reach a proper equilibrium. Being in such a state with contracting aura also means you eventually are affected too much by the world, and become one with it."


    "Become one with it?"


    "You die."


    Tom grimaced. Even after getting stronger and manifesting all seven rings, since the system did not want your existence it doomed you to slowly wither away. "How do I avoid not dying in the end then?"


    "You don''t have to avoid it. The creator of the kingdom''s system wasn''t that foolish as to deny anyone from creating their own stars, just that giving everyone a star would use up too much power. Rather, they implemented a new specific class that could use these rings, thereafter peacefully let go of the system to create their own meaning to reach that equilibrium state. The class that was created is the observer class. That is the class both of us have."


    He felt like a lightbulb was shining over his head. Of course, this was an isekai adventure so he had to get the most OP class.


    "Since you are an observer the rings match your understanding of different grades of spirits: lower, middle, and higher grade. When you have understood them all, and created a star, you become something called a higher being."


    "Awesome. So the plan is to create my own star in order to not get killed. But I still don''t see how my horrible sense of details is going to help."


    "The first rings, up to when you reach a Breakthrough and need to travel to the World-Rune to continue your progression, will be correlated to your understanding of low-grade spirits. Those are the literal manifestation of reality, and your simple view of the world as an isekai adventure is going to help with that."


    He could hear her plop down to sit beside him.


    "Now focus on the most basic of authorities you can sense in your aura. Reality does not simply exist by itself, but an observer observing it is what proves it exists as a possibility. Focus on those specific colors and try to push them to the front line. Don''t worry about what they represent just yet, but find these three most basic colors: red, yellow, and blue."


    All he could see in his aura was a spectrum of colors. A cloud of different shades in a somewhat white backdrop. Moving his focus he did find a stereotypical yellow color. Not close to orange, or greenish, yellow as he would have imagined it. He focused his senses on the yellow part and felt like it was becoming clearer as the rest of his aura lost focus. When nothing more happened from focusing on it, he moved on to the color red and next the color blue. When he had increased his focus on his aura he was left with a cloud of colors where every other color besides these three was extremely unclear to look at.


    "I think I did it? But now the rest of my aura looks weird besides these three colors."


    "Don''t worry, that is how it is supposed to look. Now the last step: try to make everything about these colors and sort of push them over all the other colors so the entire aura is covered."


    Tom had no idea of how to even do something like that, but he focused on using his specialty of ignoring details. He tried to make everything about these three colors. Strangely enough, he felt a distant memory ich him from a place in his subconscious. "[stabilize]," he said and the three colors evened out across the entire aura. The colors being mixed was what he expected, but they actually stayed the same. What happened was that a thin layer of a shade enveloped the entire aura slightly compressing it and turning the colors into a different shade. Around his aura in the empty colorless space, he noticed a translucent ring forming.


    Tom opened his eyes and closed it, the ring was still there. "I did it. I made the first ring!"


    Rachel smiled and clapped. "Amazing work."


    "But what about the rest?" She stood up and so did Tom.


    "In traditional observer fashion, you will have to figure that out yourself."


    Tom nodded. "Thank you so much for helping me. I thought I was a goner when Orion the robot told me about the otherworlders killing each other. If you are willing to help me, then I should help you too, right? What do you need help with?"


    "What do I need help with?" She shook her head. "I do not need help. Although, I can tell you my goal. I want to destroy this world."


    Tom was silent. "Uhm, what do you mean by¡ª?"


    In the distance, he heard a loud growl and rocks shattering. It sounded like the beast. Looking through one of the broken walls, he saw piles of rubble falling into the giant hole. In the middle of the chaos, he could spot the beast. He had grown considerably in size and was now just a giant red monster oozing off a strong feeling of anger, destroying everything and making the hole in the ground larger.


    "What is happening?"


    "Oh no," Rachel nonchalantly said. "It looks like this test was a dud too. Luther is back at it again."


    Tom looked at her. "What?"


    She turned to look at him. "I look forward to seeing you again. Perhaps next time you will find your way to this place by yourself."


    "What do you¡ª."


    Then she punched him in the face.

 Chapter 12: The Midsummer Ball

    Chapter 12: The Midsummer Ball


    <blockquote>


    My arms rested on the cold throne. I looked around, not at all impressed by what I saw. It did not compare to the throne room at the royal capital Marlan.


    The gates to the throne room opened and a soldier walked inn. "Greeting to your majesty, king Bartolomeu Boreas. May the Wandering God be with you."


    The soldier gave the salute: a courtesy the otherworlders brought with them. I quite preferred the kingdom''s traditional courtesy, but the otherworlder refused to do so. No matter. Small changes in culture was a small price to pay in order to have powerful individuals such as otherworlders under my command. "Speak."


    "As you requested, your majesty, a shard from the first World-Rune has been torn of and is headed this way as we speak. "


    I nodded to myself, pleased from the good news. "What of the provisions I asked for? Duke Richardon''s city is lacking, especially the castle he gave me, so I need to do some renovations."


    The soldier stared at the floor. "The conflict with the Delinquents and the System Manipulator has proven to be taxing. Your request might have been lost in transit."


    "Lost in transit?" I raised an eyebrow. There was no way my request was ''lost in transit''.I had headed Rachel''s suggestion to move the capital to the north, away from the conflict zones, but she was acting like she was ruling the kingdom; I am the king!


    After dismissing the soldier, I looked out the nearest window, and there I could see a World-Rune heading this way. Flying above the Vermillion forest that acted as a natural border to the Duchy of Rossi. I may not have the same luxury, but my ambition never fails me. With a World-Rune I could easily give classes to people and allow them to move past their levelling cap. I could build a new army. Who else was going to keep those pesky demons at bay than him? He looked to his side as his advisor entered the room. "What do you think of requesting the sword saint to act as my bodyguard in the North? It isn''t like the otherworlders have any need for her help."


    - King Bartolomeu Bolero, 23th king of Bolero


    </blockquote>


    "Tom," Trash hummed. "What are you spacing out for?"


    Tom opened his eyes to find himself standing in the middle of the path. Odd. He felt like there was something that just happened. And why did his entire face hurt so much? Did he fall?


    His heart was racing, and why was he feeling so ¡­ angry?


    It had to be about Hiro. Not only did this stupid world not give him OP powers, but he was insufferably weaker than his rival.


    Going back to his room he was all alone, so he decided to just go to sleep. Hopefully a good night''s rest would calm him down.


    He went to the bathroom and looking into the bucket of water. There was a sink, but mirrors were too expensive and only for the nobles. Looking into the water he noticed something. Brushing through his hair he found the discrepancy. "Why is there a red hairstrand? Hey Trash, what does getting red hair mean in this world?"


    He could hear Trash humm from the main room. "I haven''t interacted too much with otherworlders, or at least I don''t remember that I did. If I have to guess, it''s just stress."


    "Stress?" Tom grumbled. "Even though he wanted to go on an EPIC ADVENTURE and be an extraordinary individual, his body would always betray him. Why couldn''t he be better at keeping his emotions under controll?


    Isolating the hairstrand he pulled it off his scalp, and watched it slowly disintegrate into nothing. He was pretty sure hair wasn''t supposed to do that, but at this point he didn''t care anymore. Had to be spirits manifesting from stress or something something.


    Fart, he needed some good news for once. But without a proper way to understand his class his progression was stumped. He closed his eyes to look at his measly excuse for an aura, expecting it to be just the same, but too his surprise he noticed a single transluscent ring around it.


    Tom opened his eyes, then closed it again. The ring was still there.


    "I formed one of the rings!" He had no idea how he did it, but it was there.


    Trash hummed. "How? You barely did anything other than fuelling your inferiority complex."


    "I don''t have an inferiority complex," Tom corrected. "And it has to be connected with my understanding of spirits. The lowest one, literal manifestation of reality, are easy enough to understand."


    That night he went to bed exited and proud of himself for once. Tomorrow he would ditch the commoners and his adventure would finally take its destined course.


    ***


    Tom didn¡¯t have anything fancy to wear so he decided to come to the ball wearing his uniform, and his aura sword to show off. He split up with Hiro and Mark who went to the bonfire and walked to the front of the nearby female barracks to wait for Sierra. To his surprise, she was already outside better dressed than Tom. She was wearing a black dress, in the midst of an argument with three other girls.


    "You are an embarrassment to us commoners," soldier-girl-one said. The two other background characters nodded in agreement.


    "What is wrong with what I am doing? If I have the opportunity, why can¡¯t I go?" Sierra said, defensively.


    "You stuck up with that noble Tomassio to get a ticket to the Midsummer Ball. This isn¡¯t a random day to loiter around, it is Soldiers Day. It is not the fact that you can go that is wrong, but the fact that you choose to go and ignore solidarity with your fellow commoner." Soldier-girl-one said.


    "She¡¯s right you know," soldier-girl-two said. "People like you don''t care about the common people. You¡¯re just a puppet."


    Sierra winched. "I ¡­ am nothing like that."


    That was the moment Tom decided to intervene. He came closer and coughed. Surprisingly he recognized one of the girls. "You are that one background character who got mad at Zev."


    She glared at him. "Who the farting space are you calling a background character!"


    Sierra quickly got in between them. "Letis. Please."


    "And now you are protecting that rude excuse for a human." She rolled her eyes. "Whatever. This is a waste of time. Let''s go girls."


    The three girls left, the last one choosing to bump into Sierra almost making her fall.


    "Are you okay?" Tom asked.


    "Why didn¡¯t you beat them up?" Trash hummed.


    Sierra shook her head. "Forget it. Let''s go." She started walking without waiting for him.


    Tom picked up the pace so he could walk besides her. "Mark was sad about me not going to the bonfire. Must be especially difficult for you with how well connected you are."


    "Yes," she agreed. "In order to gather information I joined the feedback elective and gained some ¡­ friends. But my mission must always come first."


    He scratched his head. "Are you sure?"


    She didn''t say anything, so they walked in silence past the Commander''s Building, through Makeshift Town and up a hill until they reached the noble''s barracks. It was much grander than Tom had imagined. Rather than a dorm it looked like several mansions with exquisite gardens put together.


    At the front was a huge gate with intimidating guards. That was when Tom realized that Leonard hadn¡¯t given them a physical invitation.


    The guard looked at them and seemed to be about to reject them when Leonard came running. "Lord Tomassio ¡ª and the trophy commoner, you¡¯re here." He stared at his clothes. "You decided to wear your uniform. And bring along your aura sword?"


    "Gotta show people I am committed to defending the kingdom during this looming war," Tom explained.


    Leonard simply shrugged in response. "Yeah, the war. Anyways, please follow me." He ushered them into the compound.


    Inside the gates, he could see the true majesty of the nobles barracks. Roman-like architecture with engraving on the sides filled with mirrors. The mirror seemed to be less reflective, fulfilling its purpose as an ornate decoration. Although, they were still blinding. Not very practical if you asked Tom.


    Leonard waved Sierra towards a building with two massive doors people were walking in through. "You go there."


    Sierra did as he said and walked to the ballroom. Tom gave her a nod as good luck before fixing his attention on Leonard. "So, could you give me a private tour first?"


    Leonard nodded. "Certainly."


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    The nobles'' barrack was amazing. Each of the nobles had a suite with their chosen servants to accompany them. Every room had its own exquisitely ordained mirror. The walls were lines with strange artifacts: demons horns, glass sculptures, and¡ª.


    "Is that a bazooka?"


    Leonard looked at what Tom was pointing at. "That? Oh no. It is not an invention by those wretched otherworlders, but a marvelous inventions by one of us nobles: the bazookie."


    "¡­Bazookie?"


    "Indeed. However, we are not allowed to use it, therefore we train ourselves. That reminds me, look at our training grounds. Not as large as the commoners, but much more efficient."


    The training grounds consisted of several box dungeons lined up outside in the garden. Tom guessed that most of them chose weaker creatures to fight to fuel their ego, but his ego did need some fueling. "So you can just use a box dungeon whenever you please?" He asked Leonard.


    "Indeed. Only the most advanced training equipment is suited for us nobles. Unfortunately, although I don¡¯t dispute your skills, we cannot use one right now. We have people from the Sifu tribe to activate them, but they aren¡¯t here today."


    "Sifu tribe? Like, slaves?"


    Leonard shook his head. "Oh no, slavery was banned ever since the Hero began his tyranny. Although, a person of your status of course doesn¡¯t need to follow such rules," he added. "It was a requirement by the Inventor that some people of the Sifu tribe be hired and treated well. Only specific individuals from the Colony can activate these devices."


    Did that mean Mark was from the Colony? He had heard about the Colony in passing, a region neighboring the kingdom to the east. He didn''t know more then that though.


    "What about mandatory classes? How are the instructors like?"


    Leonard smirked. "My lord, of course nobles aren¡¯t constrained to such. The instructors can be reached at specific times, but mostly leave us alone. This is not the royal academy, just a temporary outing to scare those vile demons and please the church."


    "Nothing? That¡¯s awesome, but if you have no obligations what do you do?"


    Leonard shrugged. "Art, poetry, debate club, the indoor colosseum. Whatever we wish to keep ourselves entertained. Although, I must admit that it has become a bore. Due to the decree, one from each noble house must be enlisted as a soldier. We cannot go back to our estates in the capital, and the Commander is determined to constrain our actions." He curiously eyed Tom. "Follow me."


    Tom followed him to a balcony that had an amazing view over the camp, although the walls and the Commanders Building blocked a better view of the Void. From here he could see the entire commoners'' barracks as well as one huge bonfire.


    Leonard pointed at the bonfire. "That disrespectful behavior needs to be stopped."


    The bonfire? Even though Tom didn¡¯t want anything to do with the commoner''s barracks anymore, he couldn¡¯t deny that the bonfire mattered a lot to them. "That¡¯s not necessary. We can just ignore them."


    "You ¡­ have changed Tomassio. If you indeed are the same Tomassio."


    Wait, did Leonard know the previous owner of this body? Well, he had been exposed.


    Fart, no. He couldn¡¯t give up here. This was his ticket to a better isekai life. "I am the same Tomassio though. Do you think someone would dare impersonate the son of a Duke? The Commander, who is my fianc¨¦, would obviously have said something if that was the case."


    In response, Leonard turned around. "That is true. You haven¡¯t been seen a lot in public recently since the Duke, your father, sent you on a mission. Nothing came back from you so everyone figured you had died somewhere, although we were too afraid to state it. But here you are," Leonard said nodding at Tom.


    "Yeah," Tom nervously responded. "I cannot say anything about my mission since it¡¯s super secret ¡ª obviously, but I can say that I injured my head. That is probably why I am different from the last time you saw me."


    "Perhaps. That does explain your weird sudden support for the commoners. But I think you are misunderstanding something. My father the Marquise has just recently been able to return to a more ¡­ advantageous position which we held before, and before that, I wasn¡¯t able to socialize all too often. Getting to the position as the representative of the nobles took a lot of work, but I didn¡¯t get the opportunity to meet with you during any noble gatherings. I doubt anyone even remembers your face since you''ve been gone for so long. No offense intended. But I did meet you when I was a child."


    "As a child?" Oh boy.


    Leonard nodded. "It was 13 years ago. When I was eight and you were twelve years of age. Due to my family being looked down on for losing our title as a Duke''s family, I spent a lot of time with commoners. I would presume I was like you, having a foolishly positive view of commoners. I even befriended one." He sighed. "I was a fool, and you were the one that opened my eyes."


    "Erm, how did I do that? It has been so long, you see."


    Leonard smiled. "Of course. No worries, I perfectly remember it. I had gotten the stupid idea of showing my commoner friend the mansion I lived in. That was the day your father and you visited my family''s estate." He sighed. "You beat that filthy commoner to a pulp, and my father found out and punished me. My father ¡­ there¡¯s no need to go into the details. All that mattered is that I learned my lesson that day, and I have become the most avid supporter of the supreme right of nobles."


    Great. The guy was traumatized, and it was all kinda his fault. "So, why are you telling me this?"


    "Straight to the point I see. All I want is for you to tell the Commander to ¡­ loosen up a little," Leonard said. "Do that, and you may read any book you wish in our collection."


    "I still don''t get it."


    "Let me clarify," a voice behind him spoke.


    Tom turned to see the head instructor of the nobles.


    "What we wish is for the commoners to be sent home. Don¡¯t you think protecting the kingdom should be left to the more qualified nobles?" Instructor Constantine said.


    "I don''t ¡­ aren''t we stronger in numbers?"


    "We are stronger in terms of classes, which the nobles have the mightiest of." Leonard retorted.


    A butler ran up to Leonards side and whispered something in his ear.


    "It seems I am needed elsewere." He nodded at Tom. "Lord Rossi, please do not forget this humble request of mine. If you show your allegiance to your people, then we will have no qualms with having you join our barracks." He looked at Constantine. "Oh, weren''t you curious about the otherworlder? Head instructor, if you would."


    Constantine nodded and Leonard left them, leaving Tom to nervously look at Constantine. The instructor was giving him bad vibes. He gestured for Tom to follow so he did. They walked down a stairwell to get to the basement level of the compound until they arrived at two massive doors.


    "The otherworlder is behind here," Constantine said, and instructed the guards to open the doors.


    Tom was confused at first why they kept the otherworlder in the basement; there was no way Alice would allow the nobles to keep a private dungeon, but when the doors open the truth revealed itself. In the middle of the room was a massive crystal with a naked man, around his age, entombed within.


    He walked closer to look at it. "What the space?"


    "What the space indeed. Quite the mysterious sight at first. I was told the crystal looks like a miniature version of the World-Rune."


    "But ¡­ why? Is that otherworlder dead?"


    Constantine shrugged. "Who knows? From prior record it is understood that this otherworlder was imprisoned in this crystal for a reason. The kingdom has no reason free another otherworlder into this world, and if they give the crystal to the Hero he will kill him anyway, so why not leave it alone as a reminder of the past?"


    "Quite a unique reminder. Beats that statue in town. But do you know who this person is?" Tom was curious about what this fellow otherworlder had experienced to lead him to this place.


    "As far as I know, he was called The Second Hope. Or, some would say: the second hero."


    Tom''s eyes widened. "A second hero?"


    "I do not know of all the details, but after the Hero betrayed mankind, the church attempted to summon a new hero to save them from the first. Then, for some reason, they decided to take a step back and imprison the otherworlder to avoid another catastrophe."


    Tom looked at Constantine. "Do you think a new hero appearing is possible?"


    Constantine smiled. "Are you testing me?"


    "What? No, I didn''t¡ª."


    "No need to loose your composure. Heroism is dead, so there is no use waiting for another hero." His eyes moved to the otherworlder incased in the crystal. "It is impossible for us to free this living catastrophe from his shackles."


    ***


    Tom returned to the ballroom confused. The first otherworlder other than himself that he had seen was imprisoned for eternity. He wasn''t sure of how to process that information, so he moved his focus onto the cast at hand: convincing Alice to suspend the commoners from military duty. That sounded like a risky idea. She didn''t have power over military conscription, that was for the king to decide, but he could ask Alice to give the nobles a more vital role. But wouldn¡¯t that be a violation of her trust? He sighed. All he wanted was to read some books in order to find an OP cheat, not to get an ethical dilemma on his hands.


    Tom awkwardly excused himself from any noble trying to strike up a conversation. He tried his best to blend in with the background, but being the only one wearing his uniform made him stick out like a sore thumb. He found Sierra standing at the side of the room.


    "Nice place," she commented. "Found your books?"


    Tom shook his head. "Leonard wants me to convince Alice to cancel Soldiers Day first."


    "Predictable. Well, your problem." She held out her hand. "Why don¡¯t we dance?"


    Tom gulped. "Why? I don¡¯t know how to dance."


    She sighed. "I need to make sure people have seen me in order to go unnoticed."


    Tom took her hand and walked with her out to the ballroom. He awkwardly held her hands, and let her take the lead. The dances people did were very similar to waltzes but way more flamboyant. Looking at the other nobles, they weren¡¯t technically dancing. They moved around and struck fancy poses every second. But Sierra, she knew how to dance.


    With careful footwork, she led him across the dance floor, even spun herself around, moving her arms as if she were conducting an orchestra.


    "You are surprisingly good at dancing. I thought a demon wouldn¡¯t know human dances."


    She raised an eyebrow. "Dances aren¡¯t exclusive to humans." She took his hand and led him to the centre of the ballroom. "Also, demons love to dance. Be it singing, dancing, or painting. Demons are masters of the arts."


    Tom blinked. "That¡¯s different. Demons are normally depicted as murderous and prideful people."


    She smirked. "I guess I debunked another human stereotype then. Human, by technicality of course." Spinning around she moved away from him and bowed. "This is my cue to leave. I only have a few minutes on me. There is no telling what kind of technology guards their valuables. Enjoy the party."


    Then she left him, walking up the stairs, past the guards, like she was invisible.


    Tom waited for a while awkwardly pretending he was busy and dodging other nobles before walking over to where Alice stood. He copied the bow he saw the other noblemen make when they initiated a conversation with a lady. Alice nodded to the others she was talking to, dismissing them.


    "That is the wrong courtesy the son of a duke would make, but I venture the others would simply see it as flirting."


    Tom scratched his head. "Oh really? I guess that¡¯s fine. Actually, there¡¯s something I need to tell you."


    Alice looked curiously at him. She signaled for him to walk up to a wall. When they got there, Tom stammered. Why was he so nervous just because of side characters? To have the perfect isekai he needed to make sacrifices, staying with the weaklings wouldn¡¯t help him.


    She looked at him. "What is it you wish to tell me?"


    "Haven''t ever thought that the soldiers in this camp aren''t as ¡­ How do I say this¡ª."


    "Don''t worry. I understand. The culture we have developed must seem much different then you would have expected, and that is by design. If people see this as only a temporary ¡ª hopefully fun ¡ª inconvenience in their lives, they they would stay away from supporting an invasion."


    He looked at her. "And the king just let you?"


    She shook her head. "The people in this camp are most of the fresher recruits. Our most experienced soldiers died when confronting the Hero, and the valuable information they held about progressing their respective classes has been lost. People in the kingdom are much weaker then they used too. Although, there are some experienced soldiers still to this day, but they have not been deployed to the camp. Together with Duke Richardson, they were deployed to quell unrest in the Colony."


    So most of the experienced soldiers weren''t here? Then this camp wasn''t really so much of a deal after all. "Then I have a suggestion¡ª."


    "Commander!" A soldier ran up to Alice. "There have been some sightings near the forest. I am afraid demons are approaching human territory."


    Alice nodded at the soldier. "On my way." She turned to Tom. "I apologize, our conversation will have to wait. It wasn''t something too serious was it?"


    Tom shook his head. "Don¡¯t worry about it."


    She nodded and left the ballroom in a hurry. Tom had successfully dodged that conversation.


    Why had he been so stressed about it? The commoners would be happy if they were allowed to return home. Taking a wineglass from one of the servers tray, he decided to try and calm his nerves.


    Trash hummed.


    Tom was about to tell him to shut up when he noticed it. The wineglass he was holding felt familiar. It had the same sensation as the embodied poison spirit.

 Chapter 13: The other deamon

    Chapter 13: The other demon


    <blockquote>


    In the beginning the king did not believe me, not even bothering to allow me an audience to explain myself. Even though a few priests vouched for me, no one took me seriously. But I am not the type to wait and do nothing. So, just like in my previous world, I created the Otherworlders Guild and started working together with fellow otherworlders. They were also skeptical at first, but after some convincing they got on board.


    Then more otherworlders appeared vividly remembering their home planet dying before they got summoned. The pesky royals did grow restless, but understood it as yet another byproduct of being summoned. However, after the priests were not able to summon any new otherworlders at all, then the king finally got serious.


    I looked up at the king of the mightiest human kingdom on this planet: Bartolomeu Boreas. Beside him stood the swordsaint Lyra Songbird, one of the four saints blessed by an archangel, scion of the kingdom of Boreas.


    "Took you long enough, you piece of shit."


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    Sierra calmly walked past the guards. She remembered how nervous she had been in the beginning, constantly scared of being caught. Eventually her worries disappeared. There was just something awfully comfortable about living in the background, being ignored by others.


    The hallways of the nobles barracks was beautifully decorated. Relics left behind by otherworlders, paintings of nobles, and exquisite pieces of abstract art. She would grimace at the occasional sight of demons horns hanged up as trophies. None of the horns looked familiar to her, and that made her feel sick.


    Walking past another guard, she slowly opened the door decorated with mirror shard and slipped in. Looking around the dimly lit room she founds tables carefully lined with items. She was lucky the nobles didn''t bother setting up extra security. As much as she wanted to blame it on their arrogance, she understood their reasoning. The first time she entered the human kingdom she had directly headed to their capital. Being away from that environment probably felt like a blessing in disguise for them. Embracing the comforting feeling of security was exactly what she wanted her own people to feel; it felt wrong to judge them too harshly.


    Moving past the rows of expensive items, her eyes landed on her target. "Found it."


    After she had taken the item, she noticed something flashing. In the corner she saw a crystal ball hanging on the wall. It was blinking with that familiar black color she despised so much. Outside she heard guards talking loudly to one another. "Time to leave."


    ***


    What the space, was Sierra seriously killing him off? After everything he had done to help her?


    Tom noticed Sierra hurrying down the stairs, again acting like nobody could notice her. But unfortunately for her, he could. He walked up to her. "What the space Sierra, why are you trying to kill me?"


    She looked confused. "What do you mean? I have been busy completing my mission. About that, we have to hurry¡ª. Wait ¡­"


    Tom rolled his eyes. Before he could interrogate her further the doors to the ballroom flung open. "There¡¯s a demon!" A man shouted.


    "We know you simpleton," a random nobleman spoke. "The Commander left to intercept them. Demons faint at the sight of her, we are in good hands."


    "No, not them. The new security orb we bought from the Inventor revealed the presence of a demon."


    That was it for her. Tom walked to the center of the ballroom, staring at Sierra. "I already know who this demon is. It is¡ª."


    A chuckle filled the room.


    "I knew underestimating the infamous Tomassio Rossi would do me no good."


    Tom looked at the man who spoke. It was the instructor Constantine. He leaped into the air to assume his true form. "I AM..."


    Dramatically pushing his chest forward, two wings sprouted from his back consisting of feathers like that of a dove. His aura assumed a more gentle white color. Moving both his hands to his temple a halo appeared floating on top of his head, burning with an intense green fire. Pushing both hands to the side, t-posing and spreading his wings, a radiant light lit up the entire ballroom. "GLORIOUS!"


    Since when did demons have transformation sequences? And Tom could swear he could hear some background music amidst it all. He wanted in.


    "Kya, it¡¯s a vile demon. It looks so ¡­ surprisingly aesthetic?" A noblewoman said.


    Another nobleman scratched his head. "I don¡¯t know how to feel about this."


    "Someone kill it already," Leonard shouted. "Guards! Guards!"


    Tom looked over at the guards, and they were lying on the floor unconscious, along with several other nobles.


    "How dare you deceive us, vile demon!" Leonard said. "I thought, I thought you were one of us."


    The demon cooked his head. "I wanted to. That¡¯s all." Raising his hands, columns of fire appeared blocking off every possible exit. Gracefully flapping his wings, he turned and flew closer to Tom. "You knew from the moment you first met me, didn¡¯t you?" The demon smirked, revealing his perfect white teeth. "The ability of an observer truly is astounding."


    What was astounding for Tom was how this demon was stupid enough to reveal his identity. He looked over at Sierra, but she was as confused as the rest. "Yeah. I knew from the start. I¡¯m cool like that." Tom straightened his back and pointed Trash towards the demon. "Vile demon, what is your intention here?"


    "My name is Constantine. And the answer to your question should be obvious: keep the human army weak and stupid. Unfortunately, they have been much more stupid then I had anticipated." He gestured towards Leonard. "Weak egos are easy to controll."


    Leonard''s eyes bulged. "How dare you!" He was about to charge at the demon, but Tom motioned for him to stay back.


    "There is no reason to extend this ¡­ situation. You demons already killed several of us in the previous expedition."


    The demon nodded. "Several of your kind did indeed perish. However, the king did not care as much as we expected. I presume the death of lower ranking nobles are not of his concern." His gaze fixated on Tom. "The son of a Duke however, that would do something."


    Tom folded his arms. "Don''t even think about it. Against me, you¡¯re nothing." Acting though would probably scare him off, right?


    The instructor clicked his tongue. Holding out his arm, a sword made of green fire appeared out of nowhere. "Your arrogance ends here." Pointing the fire lance to the sky, a massive beam of green fire blew a hole through the roof. "May the evil perish under my glorious fire!"


    Small patches of green flames started slowly spreading across the room. The fire gave off a lukewarm heat, yet the fact that the remaining parts of the roof that made contact with it collapsed to the ground ¡ª creating a small crater ¡ª made him guess that he would more quickly die from being squashed than the heat.


    Great. A boss fight, and he had no spirit stones with him. Judging from the drunken state of all the attendees, and the blocked exits, he had no option but to fight. Tom tried searching the room for the nearest spirit.


    He focused on the fiery green aura emanating from the demon''s sword and halo. Comparing to the demons aura he saw no difference.


    Something he had noticed out of curiosity was that Trash had an aura similar to his own. Zev had told him aura sword were designed to be extension of elves auras, but it also looked like it mirrored the auras of its bearer. That sword had to be an aura sword, or at least something similar. If so, he had little to go on.


    Sensing different auras he had understood it as color representing different elements or aspect of reality, but the color green would normally represent nature; what did it have to do with fire and gravity? Also, why did he feel a strange sense of heaviness from the aura?


    This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    Tom pushed away those questions. It was time to focus. Perhaps if he used stabilize to weaken his connection to the sword? He focused on the separate auras of the demon and the sword. Even though they looked identical, there had to be something to even out.


    "[stabilize]."


    For seconds he felt absolutely nothing, then he collapsed to the ground clutching his head. It was as if he was hit with a thousand thoughts at once, all seeping into his mind as sharp blades ¡ª cutting deep wounds into his sanity.


    Trash frantically hummed.


    "That was just adorable." The demon Constantine laughed. "Don¡¯t overestimate yourself. The powers of an observer are useless against a sonata."


    Sierra gasped. "A high-grade spirit. But that¡ªhow?"


    A noble lady walked forth. "I don¡¯t know what you vile demons are playing at, but are you going to pay for the damages?"


    "Yeah. I want refunds. I will take you to court for this!"


    The demon sighed, covering his face. "Glorious Singers, they are dumb."


    Averting his gaze, Tom carefully took a step back and looked over at Sierra, still clutching his head. "So. You know this guy?"


    "No," she whispered. "But he must be from one of the factions pushing for the war. He is a type of demon called an angel."


    "An angel? How is that a type of demon? I thought the human kingdom were the ones that worshiped the archangels and such."


    She shook her head. "I didn¡¯t say angel. I said: angel."


    "¡­I am confused."


    Trash hummed. "It¡¯s the stupid translation skill made by the Mirror Maiden. You must be hearing the same word used for different concepts."


    "Well, that is dumb." So this was another type of demon? They had to defeat it somehow. This was probably his time to prove himself.


    "Sierra, what do we do?"


    Trash hummed. "I want to see you transform too. It¡¯s so intriguing."


    "This is not the time for that." She picked something from her bag and laid it in his hand. It was a translucent gem, filled with many different colors. "This is what I came here for. A soul gem. It is a gem that continuously embodies everything unto itself. Spirits, and even souls."


    "Everything? That sounds a bit dangerous."


    "If you look at the colors there are around 10 spirits. Children in the demon lands use soul gems to practice embodiment. Of course, after a spirit has been ambiently embodied over the decades. If the gem is empty, it will latch onto the nearest soul, since the soul''s aura is the closest thing to a spirit. Use it to embody Trash. I will throw mid-grade infused attacks that you can use."


    Tom could still feel the horrible sensation in his mind from trying to use [stabilize] on a high-grade spirit. "I don¡¯t think that will be enough. I can¡¯t fight. I can¡¯t¡ª."


    She shook her head. "Don¡¯t worry. Just follow my lead. I got a plan."


    While the nobles were threatening to sue the demon, Sierra threw a dagger at its feet. Immediately at contact the dagger glowed with a dark hue making all nearby shadows contract towards it.


    Tom put the soul gem on Trash and the sword changed into a blue color. Focusing on the auras of Trash and the shadow spirit, he thrusted the blade towards the demon.


    "[stabilize]!" Tom could feel the skill activating, and the shadow spread across the room ¡ª losing to the light, with a wave of water. However, instead of shooting a strait line, water came out of his sword soaking the entire room.


    "Kyaa, my clothes are wet."


    "This demon is truly vile."


    Oops. Tom swung his sword at the demon, but he simply dodged it by flying higher.


    "Such poor swordsmanship," the demon chuckled, but he barely managed to avoid another dagger flying through the air. "That fighting style looks familiar... A follower of that naive demon king of ours, perhaps? Not that it matters." The demon raised his sword.


    "Smoke spirit!" Sierra shouted, throwing a ball at the demon''s feet which exploded into a big mist.


    Tom laid the soul gem against Trash and tried focusing on a spirit. A color disappeared from the gem, and Trash transformed into a turquoise sword. Tom focused on the smokescreen and slashed his sword in the air. "[stabilize]."


    The smokescreen contracted, and a massive blade of wind surged forth from his blade and toward the demon.


    Thrusting his blade, the demon made it collide with the wind. Then, as if time stood still, the blade of wind stopped mid-air. It glowed with a weak green hue, before smashing into the floor creating a crater. The silhouette of the wind blade was still visible in the center of the crater as if it was unable to dissipate from a weight.


    What was he supposed to do now? Tom took a step back and noticed something.


    The demon laughed. "Is that all?"


    "No," Sierra answered.


    Behind the demon, darkness was forming along the wall. An excruciating dark shadow ¡ª no, Tom wasn''t sure what it was but it was too dark of a color to be a shadow. It had not a single hint of light besides a ring of light circulated the edges. Small parts of the demon''s green fire began flying toward the center of the dark ring. The demon turned. "That ¡­ Why is the bearer of a sonata here? And how do you have a sonata that even I do not know of? You¡¯re not even of high birth!"


    Sierra did not say anything as the ring of light around the black disk spun at an increasing rate. The demon tried flying away to no avail. "Don''t think you have the upper hand. The moment you lose control, it is over. And that sonata will be mine." The demons eyes bulged, his gaze fixed on Sierra. After a brief moment his expression changed to one of confusion. "Why hasn''t your sonata manifested? Did you¡ª?"


    Ignoring the demon she looked over at Tom. "This might hurt, but I need you to use stabilize on the black hole and his sword."


    "But¡ª."


    "Just trust me."


    Taking a deep breath. He did as she said. Taking a firmer grip on Trash, he focused on the black hole''s aura. It felt familiar to the darkness ¡ª yet more resolute? Again he focused on the heavy feeling aura of the green sword. "[stabilize]".


    Tom was expecting to feel the horrendous cuts of reality rejecting his will, yet to his shock, his mind was filled with blankness, confusion.


    The black hole and the sword made a loud bang sound, as they rejected each other. The black hole broke through parts of the wall, becoming smaller due to the wall reducing in size. The sword flew from the demon''s grip away from the black hole, before reentering the gravitational pull. The blade turned and headed directly towards the demon.


    "Wait, we could¡ª." Tom couldn''t quite hear what the demon was saying, since after the black hole rotation quickened, and he was too focused on holding onto the closest object, the room became eerily quiet.


    The blade stabbed the demon in the chest. Not a single one of his screams reached Tom. But that wasn¡¯t the end. The sword vibrated. The demon stopped in the middle of the air, glowing with a green light.


    If he had heard what came next then it would have been the sound of bones crushing. The demon fell towards the center of the black hole, being kept there by the pull as the green sword crushed his entire body. Helpless, the demon jerked around as his entire body was mushed together. Blood flew out of his body, painting what ended up being a flat disk of the demon''s remains along the wall.


    Sierra fell to the ground gasping, causing the entire black hole to shrink toward the center and disappear. Then everything went back to normal, except for the sword still stuck on the wall along with the demon''s remains.


    Several nobles started puking at the disgusting sight.


    Tom also felt like throwing up, but he tried to hold himself together. "That was a brutal way to die."


    "I have to agree," Trash hummed.


    The bystanders slowly got back on their feet, speechless by what had just happened.


    He nonchalantly waved his hand around. "A secret Duke¡¯s family skill, people. Don¡¯t worry about it." They looked at each other and shrugged. The people of this world were way too easy to fool for their own good.


    Tom took a step closer to the sword stuck on the wall.


    "Did you learn nothing from your day with that elf Zev?"


    "Okay. I get it. Don''t touch the cool sword." He turned around and helped Sierra back on her feet. "Are you fine? That ¡­ It must take a lot out of you."


    She pulled back her wet hair from blocking her eyes. "I should be fine after some rest."


    "What are you going to do about the sword?"


    Sierra shrugged. "Would be suspicious if I took it. And I doubt any human would be able to learn to use it. Having it sealed in a vault is for the best." She stared at it. "I don¡¯t think I can use it anyway. It doesn¡¯t fit my musical style."


    The demons were much more interesting than Tom first thought. He definitely had to include Sierra in his future OP party. "Let''s leave then."


    "Wait," Leonard interjected. "Where are you going? Aren¡¯t you going to help us get revenge against the filthy demons for attacking us? What about leaving the commoners?"


    Tom thought about Mark, who was a much better minion than Leonard ever could be. How he missed the boring commoner''s barracks. At least nobody tried to murder him there. Also, Tom thought about the pain going on a getting-revenge-against-the-demons plot line would be to pursue. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I am way too lazy for revenge. This also seems to be an obvious choice for the wise main character to make."


    "Lazy? Main character?" Leonard repeated, confused.


    They just left him at the entrance of the barracks and started walking back towards the bonfire.


    Trash hummed. "That ended up being much more entertaining than I thought."


    "You know," Sierra began. "I can just go in and steal some of their books if you want to?"


    Tom shook his head. "They already noticed you with a new invention, so you should probably stay low for now. I guess I will just find some way to leave this camp instead."


    "That works too." She hesitated. "Thanks for the help."


    "Help? I barely did anything. You were the one with the cool black hole ¡ª or sonata I think it was called."


    "My sonata would have done nothing unless you hadn''t made the sword slipp from his grip. You just defeated an observer as a demon, that is a big deal. Don''t be too though on yourself."


    He scratched his head. "Alright. But I still think I could have done more. I promise, in our next battle, I will do better."


    Sierra nodded. "I know you will."


    For a side-character she was kinda cool. "Are we friends now?"


    She laughed. "You really are something. Yes. We are friends."


    When they finally got to the bonfire Tom saw that they were all eating, and singing. Mark looked delighted to see them there and ushered them to a place to sit closer to the fire. Ilona was also happy, but he could notice her grimace at Sierra''s attendance. Letis and the other girls however, to his surprise, smiled and welcomed her with open arms.


    "How was the Midsummer Ball?" Ilona asked. "And why are both of you wet?"


    "Too complicated. Let¡¯s just eat, I am famished." He gulped and looked at Hiro. "Hey Hiro, you won¡¯t mind teaching me some more swordsmanship?"


    Hiro almost dropped his plate. "Don''t worry. I would love to."


    Zev laughed. "Oh. How it is to be young. This is the perfect time for my secret party trick." He took off his boots and two snakes slid out.


    "Kyaaa! Snakes."


    People started frantically running as the snakes slid across the ground.


    "Don''t be scared," Zev said. "Fried snakes are an elven speciality."


    Looking at the chaos, Tom smiled.


    Then he remembered how the remains of the demon looked like and puked on the spot.


    ***


    The otherworlder ignored the fog and continued climbing. There were far too few rocks to get his footing on, but creating wind runes to stand on he continued climbing and climbing.


    He climbed until he could finally see the sky again. At the ledge he was met with the sight of a young girl.


    "It is rare that someone manages to climb out of the Void." She stretched out her hand towards him. "Welcome to this world, otherworlder. Ready to destroy it?"

 Chapter 14: See area

    Chapter 14: See area


    <blockquote>


    "My name is Shiravesti. What is your name?"


    The little demon boy stared at me. "Clef."


    I smiled. "Clef. What a beautiful name."


    "Are the humans going to invade again?"


    I shook my head. "No, the Mirror Maiden did not want that, and ¡­ the Hero will naturally follow her wishes."


    "Really?" The boy beamed. "Then we can finally live at peace again. But why aren''t you with the other adults making the new Sonata? I heard the Hero himself ordered it, so it has to be awesome!"


    Children are truly the purest. "The Hero will be fine on his own."


    He cooked his head. "Then why are you here?"


    "You could say it is to make up for a mistake, before I go mad."


    - Shiravesti, Master researcher from the planet Sel


    </blockquote>


    "Take formation!"


    "Affirmative, Boss."


    Tom eyed the monster. He needed to give orders fast or else they were all dead. "Ilona, use light to blind it. Sierra throw daggers to box it in. Mark, Hiro; block off its escape."


    The monster was caught off guard when they acted. His target frozen in place, Tom swung Trash, not even bothering to activate the aura sword. "It¡¯s over. [supreme sword slash of awesomeness]!" He cut the monster in two, ending its life. Tom had won.


    "That was a lot of effort to defeat a small demon slime. You know that they only eat plants right?" Sierra commented. "And what is the supreme slash of awesomeness? Swinging your sword isn¡¯t a skill."


    "Its [supreme sword slash of awesomeness], with brackets." Tom corrected.


    Ilona shook her head looking at Sierra. "All filthy demons must be eradicated. That includes their local wildlife that threaten our land. Even if they may look cute. Sierra, I told you to read more of the scriptures. You used to be such a devout follower back at the capital."


    Sierra only rolled her eyes in response, and didn¡¯t bother to start a fight. That was new to Tom. Had he caused some character development to take place? God, he was an amazing protagonist.


    "That was a nice strike," Hiro said. "But your footing was a bit off."


    Hiro showed him the proper stance, and Tom tried to copy him. He needed to perfect his new awesome move after all. Mark just stood besides them smiling gleefully. "Stop smiling, minion Mark."


    "Sorry," Mark said. "If only Jeremy was here to see this." At that remark he looked a bit sad.


    "Who?"


    "That noble who died on our first expedition, remember?" Sierra quickly added.


    Ilona looked suspiciously at Tom. "You know, all the other nobles I have met always care about the nobles, and ignore the commoners. You¡¯re different."


    Tom nodded. "Yeah, they all flock around me you know."


    "Sure," Hiro said.


    After Tom had figured out the stance, a soldier came up to them and told Ilona a nobleman had fainted at the sight of a slime. Ilona left with Hiro to guard her, leaving the three of them.


    "If it isn¡¯t my minion duo. No, the two minions and the awesome soldier."


    "Don¡¯t call us that!" Sierra complained.


    Mark chuckled. "I kinda like it."


    Sierra sighed and looked around. When she was sure that nobody else was there, she leaned in. Tom and Mark instinctively leaned in too. "Tom, you are weak."


    Trash hummed, and Tom gaged. "What the space?"


    "Don¡¯t be rude, Sierra." Mark said. "And language, Tom."


    "I didn¡¯t mean it like that. Tom you need to learn some new skills, your weird hobby of naming your slashes clearly indicates that. Class specific skills aren¡¯t that well known to others outside that class, especially observers whom the king hoards. However, I know one, but you must promise not to tell anyone else." She looked at Mark specifically.


    Tom had no idea why she was so serious about this, but he nodded along with Mark.


    "You see," Sierra said. "I was named by an otherworlder."


    Mark gasped. "Ilona is going to kill you if she finds out. And drag your corpse to the nearest church, change your legal name, and then resurrect you."


    "Yeah, yeah. But you promised to keep it a secret, so don''t tell anyone!"


    Tom looked back and forth between them both. "What¡¯s so bad about an otherworlder naming you?"


    "Nothing really. But ever since the Hero made his ¡­ rebellion, the church hates all otherworlders. It¡¯s especially easy when the Hero goes around killing them all, so being associated with an otherworlder is dangerous. Anyway, the otherworlder who named me, Shiravesti, was also an observer. She named me after one of her skills: see area."


    "That¡¯s the stupidest thing I have ever heard. Who calls someone after a skill? If I was an otherworlder I wouldn¡¯t have such a bad naming sense."


    Trash hummed as if he begged to differ.


    So, there was an observer skill called [see area]? That did sound interesting. "Do you know how the skill works?"


    Sierra shrugged. "Just some tidbits my brother told me. Apparently, instead of focusing on someone''s aura, you focus on the general aura of the world. Then you can sense your environment in more detail by removing all the individual auras you sense being left with the contrasts."


    "That¡¯s confusing, but I guess I¡¯ll try." Tom wasn¡¯t that good at sensing individual auras yet, but he was very good at getting the general feeling of it. In his opinion at least. He closed his eyes, and felt the sensations of Mark and Sierra''s auras. Mark had an aura with a strong hint of rugged orange, which he guessed was his affinity to earth spirits, but other details weren''t that clear to him. Sierra had a complete dark aura; he had expected to see her afinity to poison spirits but saw no hint of purple. Ever since he miraculously managed to create the first ring around his aura, he knew the colors had something to do with aura, but after the fight with the demon with the color green not representing what he anticipated, he was back at square one. Now that he focused on her aura, her aura was not so similar to the tone of black representing shadow, but much more like the black hole ¡ª sonata ¡ª color. Higher grade spirits were confusing.


    He shook his head. "Focus on the basics first," he told himself. Then he tried expanding his range. His understanding of spirits wasn''t perfect, but ignoring higher grades he did feel confident the colors were important to distinguish lower grade spirits authorities. If he had to sense the general aura of the world, then reducing every aura he sensed down to their stereotypical colour would probably work.


    Tom closed his eyes, but his range was too low, and his two minions auras were interfering with the process. Trash hummed. That reminded him, this aura sword amplified his abilities. He tried resonating with Trash the same way he did when using [stabilize]. "[see area]".


    Instantly he could sense his aura sense expand. Even though it wasn¡¯t detailed, he could sense the general shape of the trees. Bugs stuck out like a shore thumb due to the color and intensity being vastly different from the sensation of a tree; they had a mostly green color as they crawled around the brown bark. He couldn¡¯t see himself, but sensed Sierra and Mark as black and rugge orange silhouettes, as well as another aura further ahead, being represented as an uneven mix of grey and green.


    "I think I did it. Maybe?" Tom said, uncertain.


    "Good job," Sierra said. "You¡¯re surprisingly talented."


    Tom scratched his head. He wasn¡¯t used to getting compliments, but it was nice. Perhaps ditching the nobles wasn¡¯t a bad idea after all. "At the end of my range ahead from here I could sense another aura. I am not sure what it is, but it¡¯s probably another slime. Mark, could you go find it? That way I could pinpoint the maximum range of this skill."


    "On it Boss," Mark said, running off in that direction.


    When Mark was gone Trash spoke. "That was all me by the way, demon girl. He could barely manage a single tree."


    Sierra chuckled. "I figured as much. Learning a skill takes a lot of work. I¡¯m glad you¡¯re with him, Trash."


    Tom pouted. Maybe Trash wasn''t such a bad aura sword after all, but that didn''t change that he annoying. His eyes moved to the nearby tresstump and he found a book laying on it. "Is that Hiro''s book?" Tom pointed at it.


    Sierra looked at it. "Definitely. You should take it and give it to him later. The contents of that book is ¡­ explicit, so you should make sure no one sees it."


    "Explicit? I thought Hiro was the silent and cool type. Didn''t take him for a smut enjoyer."


    "T-That''s," she fumbled. "It''s not that¡ª. You know what, you should ask him about the book yourself in private. It would be too complicated for ¡ª or I rather talk about that when I am more prepared."


    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    "This book definitely has to be something weird," Tom concluded, but didn''t pry further. He took the book and put it in his satchel, the soul gem inside glistening when it made contact with sunlight. "Speaking of asking: are you sure I can keep this soul gem?"


    She nodded. "I just wanted to take it before the nobles could use it for more nefarious purposes. Such as trapping the souls of demons inside."


    "And what of that other demon spy you had no idea about? Did you learn something more?"


    She folded her arms, and sat on the tree stump. "I contacted someone I know in the demon lands, and apparently they were sent on the orders of demons from the north to gather intel, much earlier than even I started. It seems the demons supporting war have grown resteless and it blew up in their face. With a demon defeated the humans will be much more reassured in their own capabilities."


    Tom nodded. "And how did that ¡­ angel, manage to infiltrate the humans so well that he was even made the head instructor for the nobles?"


    "That is because it is the speciality of his ensemble ¡ª or tribe if that word makes more sense. Angels live north of the shadow swamps were I am from and are basically stuck up people. They are an ensembles that are closer to the capital, and henceforth the demon king. Their job is to look over the border and my people, but they are as useful as the nobles of this kingdom." She sighed. "Anyway, in contrast to us shadow demons that mainly hide in the shadows, angels can directly manipulate others with illusions to seem more grand or likable. Changing their form to look more human and likable is easy for them."


    "If he managed to infiltrate us, why didn¡¯t he just use embodied spirits to poison all the nobles?" Tom asked.


    "That would easily go wrong, especially if our dear friend Ilona just healed them all. Just like she did with everyone that was wounded yesterday. Also, such a high ranking demon wouldn¡¯t use embodiment for everything. Getting rid of a few nobles such as the son of a duke, sure. But completely relying on embodiment to complete a mission would not look great. You might think using embodiment is a useful ability, but for the more powerful demons it is mainly looked down upon. According to local legends it was the great error beast Ether who gave us the ability to use embodiment, and thereby made us less than the demons of higher birth whom rely on their ensembles Sonata. Some people even pray to Ether as their higher being, which is probably why they don''t like it."


    "What a shame," Trash hummed. "I guess it¡¯s left to me to shine the usefulness of this ability. The struggles of being one of the greatest aura swords¡ª."


    "So, you think the war is escalating?" As an observer, embodiment was a life saver. He never figured people would dislike such a cool ability.


    Sierra shook her head. "Even though a lot of demons do indeed want war, the demon king is against it since he has first hand experience with the Hero. It sounds to me like a group of powerful demons are testing the waters."


    "But, like, aren''t you on the same team as the demons? Can''t you rat them out?"


    She looked down. "It''s complicated. Because I did this on my own initiative, and since I am not from one of the more influential ensembles, there is no way for me to contact the demon king. He is locked inside his castle most of the times anyway." She sighed. "But you don''t need to worry. I took on this mission to help avoid war, so ¡­ I will handle it." She stood up and grabbed her satchel. "Forget about the geopolitics, it is time for you to meet her."


    "Her?"


    Sierra rummaged through her satchel, and took out a golden colored soul gem.


    Tom could sense a vibration from the golden gem. "Hi, it¡¯s nice to meet you! I haven¡¯t seen anyone else in such a long time. Are they your friends, Sierra? And is that the 50<sup>th</sup> aura sword I sense? Such a nice toy you found."


    "Hey!" Trash hummed. "I am not a toy, I am a dangerous weapon."


    Did that sphere just talk? Well, he did have a talking sword so it wasn''t that shocking to be honest. Was there a person stuck in the orb? No, a soul? "Is that a soul trapped inside?"


    "That''s correct. You asked once how I was able to avoid people knowing about my real identity as a demon. It¡¯s because this gem contains the soul of an ancient chameleon Singer. They are a type of demon that not only can alter others perception of you, but even the world. I still don''t fully comprehend it, but due to this soul stone I can borrow this ability." Sierra explained.


    "That''s amazing, but I am not sure if it¡¯s ethical."


    The orb hummed. "Don¡¯t worry, I consent. Isn¡¯t much else to do anyway other than wait for my soul to slowly wither away. Will take some eons, so I might as well help young Sierra here. It also keeps me from loosing my sanity."


    "Then, a new companion?" This power did sound useful.


    Trash hummed in protest. "I say we ditch her. There can only be one talking item."


    Trash did have a point. Too many characters would make his adventure confusing. He was already struggling to remember the name of that noble he was invited to the ball by.


    The orb hummed. "Unfortunately I get tired easily, and¡ª." It yawned. "This is all for me today." Then the humming Tom felt stopped, and the orb dimmed.


    Sierra put the golden orb back in her bag. "You still have your soul gem right? Do remember not to use all the spirits in it if you dislike dying. Also, as much as you have helped me, I cannot buy items to embody for you all the time. Using this soul gem instead of spirit stones is a better alternative to avoid running out of embodied items. You should go to the witch Astra to see if she could fix it to your glove."


    "But what if I use all of the spirits inside? Besides the last one of course."


    "Then you can give me the soul gem so I can embody spirits into it. Spirits naturally get embodied into a soul gem, but it takes years, decades even. I am able to ¡ª lets say catch spirits from the surrounding environment, embody them onto myself, and then re-embody them onto the soul gem. It is a meticulous process that takes a lot of time, so don''t use spirits recklessly. Oh, and I am only able to embody low tier spirits into the soul gem. I can only catch middle grade poison and shadow spirits since I have an affinity to them, but they won''t get embodied into a soul gem since they would clash with the lower tier spirits."


    So he would have the soul gem, spirit stones, and a few poison spirit embodied vials. "That sounds amazing. Thank¡ª."


    His conversation was cut off from a scream in the distance. It was Mark running with an error beast at his heels.


    Trash hummed. "What an interesting looking slime."


    ***


    Tom skipped through the entrance of Makeshift Town. He did get some curious looks wondering what he was so happy about. Defeating a demon had made him surprisingly fulfilled, and this soul gem was the perfect reward. Not that he got any other rewards. Apparently, him and Sierra defeating the demon was a ''joint team effort'' together with the nobles or something. So the rewards money was all given to the nobles to fix the damage done to their barracks. Nonsense. He had been uncharacteristically heroic, but that was just another reason to leave this place for better rewards. They did not like wannabe heroes in this kingdom, but perhaps it was different somewhere else? Sierra, as a demon, was much more comfortable talking about otherworlders after all.


    Walking past a caf¨¦, a group of female soldiers glared at him. He recognized her, that background character always trying to beat him up. Letis. Honestly, props to her for making him remember her name.


    Feeling confident, he winked at her. Perhaps she was jealous of the MAIN CHARACTHER ENERGY? In response her eyes bulged and she started repeatedly smashing her head into the table, and made all the people around her panic.


    Trash hummed. "Psychological warfare. Didn''t think you were the type. You better hurry before she decides to get revenge."


    Tom peeked behind to see a group of people holding her back. A grey silhouette flashed across her body, and she growled slowly dragging the group with her. He heard the sound of a whistle, and a city guard ran towards them. "No skills are allowed without permission!"


    Tom quickly picked up the pace towards the witches shop.


    When he arrived, both of the witches were lounging near the counter. "Oh, it''s you." Astra said. "Sierra¡¯s not with you today?"


    "Nope. I am actually here for something personal." Tom put the soul stone on the counter. It caught both of their attention.


    "A soul gem? Those are rare," Astra said.


    He nodded. "I was wondering if you would put it on one of my gloves."


    "No."


    "Thanks so ¡ª wait why?"


    Astra went back to focusing on the schematics she was drawing. "I have more useful things to do with my time then to make adjustments to gloves."


    Saying it that way did sound pretty simple, but if he asked someone else it would be likely they would rat him out for stealing the soul gem from the nobles. "Whatever then. My friend borrowed a box dungeon from the Great Inventor Artorios himself, so perhaps I will ask him?"


    That caught her attention. "Great Inventor," she scoffed. "That farting overconfident buffoon! Who gave him the right to call himself a Great Inventor? There is no way I am going to loose to that twerp."


    "You really don''t like him, huh."


    She slammed her fist on the counter. "My expertise is technological development to make common life easier, but now I constantly have people asking me to make weapons. He is the reason the entire Witches Academia is in constant turmoil. Making weapons for the humans and causing an entire arms race around the Void. How the hell will weapons save the world, that¡ª. I will make your stupid glove. And you know what, I will make it much better. Only if you find that idiotic inventor and punch him in his face!"


    Tom shrugged. "Guess I can do that."


    "But how do you want me to improve it?"


    He hesitated. "Anyway you find fitting I guess. The plan is to have it periodically filled with spirits, so I could use them instead of spirit stones."


    Astra listened intently. "That is actually an interesting invention. However, how would you fill the soul stone with spirits? I recon it would take a decade to get 5 spirits at best."


    "By using embodiment. I don''t mean to say I know a demon that uses embodiment, just theoretically."


    "That girl Sierra can help you with that, no? She is a demon," Meliel nonchalantly added.


    His eyes widened. "Wait, you know she¡¯s a demon?"


    Meliel nodded. "Such a low level shrouding spell won¡¯t work on witches. We are the ones that specialize in bending the laws of nature after all."


    "Yes, we witches are superior."Astra nervously added.


    "Hey, you look as confused as me. Don¡¯t try to take credit for her intuition. Even I knew she was a demon, how did you not?"


    "I focus on magical inventions, not on catching random demons. Whatever, I will try and do as you say. As for the payment," She touched her face. "50 gold coins would suffice."


    50! Astra looked too focused drawing up a design to ask more details about how he was going to pay, so Tom figured he could ask Alice to pay for him.


    "And concerning your demon friend," Meliel said. "She wouldn''t listen to me, but you should tell her to go back. The people in this camp are the weakest of the bunch, but once reinforcement arrives she will be snuffed out immediately."


    "I am sure that won''t ¡ª never mind that makes sense. But she is committed to her cause. I am sure she will be fine," he retorted.


    Meliel just shrugged listening to his response. "Speaking of commitment, did you tell Alice about me yet?" Meliel asked.


    "Uh. I forgot, sorry. Today I am planning on visiting her, so I will tell her then." His eyes lit up. Meliel was a powerful witch, so she must know a lot about the world. "By the way, I was wondering if you knew something about higher beings? Specifically how to get blessed by one."


    She had an unreadable expression on her face. "There are several different types of higher beings. Close to here in the New Forest is the Ent King, a relatively new higher being that looks over the forest. Although I could list several others, I am afraid it would be of no use as you have already gotten the blessing of a higher being."


    "Wait, what do you mean by that?"


    "As a witch I can sense the touch of a higher being. One of the archangels to be specific. If you aren''t satisfied you should visit the grand temple in the capital. A mortal can only receive one divine blessing at a time."


    Wait, so he was already blessed? A bad blessing obviously. He must have gotten it when he arrived in this world. "So I need to get to the capital to ever have the chance of getting an OP blessing." But how would he even find a way to leave the camp in the first place?


    "As much as I respect your decision, blindly pursuing power is not a good idea. Power is often gained when there is a purpose behind it. Otherwise, you will find that this world will hurt you in retaliation."


    Tom scoffed. "Don''t worry. This world is predictable enough. And my life motto is that anything is possible, so I will have my OP powers one way or another." He waved them goodbye. "Anyways, I will go talk to Alice. See you all later."


    Astra nodded and focused again on the design she was drawing. Besides her Meliel just stared at him. "Be careful."


    ***


    Tom sighed. "I can''t believe I got so sidetracked on my EPIC ADVENTURE."


    "Barely training and playing games does that," Trash hummed.


    "Hey! There were games I had never heard of before. Of course I had to try them." He scratched his head. "But he was right. He needed to get to the capital. Somehow."


    On his way to the Commander''s Office he saw a group of soldiers forming a crowd.


    Trash hummed. "What did you do to make them all mad? Oh, right. Being a delusional main character."


    Tom rolled his eyes. "They aren''t waiting for me." He realized that since in their jealousy the background character would often glare or do their best to ignore him when he walked past them.


    Walking closer he tried to hear what they were talking about.


    "I am serious! There is an otherworlder in this camp."


    "An otherworlder? No way. Why hasn''t anyone killed it yet?"

 Chapter 15: Picking up the trash

    Chapter 15: Picking up the Trash


    <blockquote>


    The king did not take being called a piece of shit too well. Neither did the sword saint who instantly appeared in front of me, with her sword to my throat. Radiant white hair and flawless skin; her beauty was no joke.


    "Now, now. There is no need to go so far," the king said, making her retract her blade and walk back to his side. "You say there is a certain ¡­ creature that destroyed your planet. But, pardon me if this sounds too insensitive, but different worlds have different problems. Why would they follow you here?"


    I did indeed not have any concrete proof, but I couldn''t exactly say it was my intuition telling me that creature was going to follow me. "It is searching for a god that wanders between the planets. The Wandering God, she ¡­ they called it. If none of your priest summoned me here, then it has to be this god. I think they tried to save me somehow."


    The throne room grew eerily silent. I looked around confused. Finally one of the kings advisors step foreward to explain why everyone were silent. "The Wandering God is the name of our planets deity. They ¡­ moved our planet with the help of otherworlders they summoned to protect us from a certain calamity. That is why they allow us to summon so many otherworlders: to help us."


    The king rose from his throne. "And you are the one that is leading the calamity straight to us. For that: you will be punished!"


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    "An otherworlder? No way! Why hasn''t anyone killed it yet?"


    The male soldier at the center shook his head. "I heard they are trying to be careful about it to avoid too many people dying."


    "Being careful?" Someone exclaimed. "Last time an otherworlder appeared 8 people died. Don''t they remember: you can never trust an otherworlder."


    "That''s true. I thought the Commander was different from the church, but it looks like even she can''t be trusted."


    Tom gulped and headed straight for Alice''s office, running up all the stairs and finding her shifting through documents on her desk.


    He didn''t bother with the pleasantries. "Everyone knows there is an otherworlder in the camp!"


    Alice didn''t look up. "Indeed."


    "Oh no, how in the world could they have found out?" Trash hummed. "Oh well. Better kill them all to hide your secret. That would be interesting to watch."


    Tom ignored Trash. "Aren''t you going to do anything? If someone finds out it''s me, I could get executed." Why wasn''t she taking this more seriously?


    "Don''t worry, Tom. I doubt that otherworlder is you from what I have heard. It sounds like a feral."


    "A feral?"


    She stretched up her arms and yawned. "You are what one would call a new otherworlder. The feral ones are remnants of dead otherworlders."


    "Remnants of dead otherworlders?" Tom repeated.


    She nodded. "They appear sometimes, filled with hatred over their fate, ghost of the past. But you have no need to worry about them. The feral otherworlder will be promptly dealt with."


    That explanation still made no sense to Tom. How could the ghosts of dead otherworlder suddenly come to life again, and were they really as dangerous as the other soldiers made them out to be? "I don''t¡ª."


    "That reminds me," she interrupted. Reaching into her drawer, she put a fist-sized glass sphere on the table. "Since there are no observers in the camp to train you, I sent a letter to the capital to request for something that might help. They sent me this: an observer orb."


    It was a glass sphere with a rainbow-colored sphere in the middle. "It looks kind of like a soul gem?"


    She raised her eyebrows. "You have seen one?"


    Tom scratched his head. "Erm. I saw one at the witches store. That''s right. That reminds me, this witch Meliel sponsored paying for my gloves saying she knew you. She wants to talk to you; I was supposed to tell you a week ago but forgot. Also, I ordered this adjustment to a glove I need in order to wield Trash properly, so could you pay the fee?"


    Her face was expressionless. "Alright, I will forward the message to the treasurer. As for Meliel, I will see if I have time." She coughed. "Anyways, this orb is a tool that mirrors the aura of its surroundings."


    "Mirrors its aura. But like, can''t I already sense auras since I am an observer?"


    "You can, but the quality of the aura depends on your own understanding. Speaking of that, have you learned about the Ley Line?"


    "No."


    "Common people do not know about it, but as an otherworlder there is no need to keep secrets from you. It is a consistent stream of spirits flowing here from the elven forest, across the Void, toward the World-Rune in the capital."


    "A stream of spirits? But¡ª. God this is confusing. Aren''t spirits like manifestations of reality and supposed to be everywhere?"


    She nodded. "How close they are to our realm of understanding also differs. Some significant spirits can be so small and unnoticeable that I doubt you, or any observer for that matter, will ever be able to notice them. Spirits are actually the more easily observable where they are more readily required to reinforce reality. The spirits that flow in from the Ley Line make it extremely easy to recover mana in this kingdom, and are of a more malleable nature. Distant enough that you won''t randomly die from a fire spirit moving past you, but close enough to easily be attracted to your desires."


    "I think I understand. And you said it flows across the Void? That must be a massive amount of spirits."


    She nodded. "It is. Spirits are attracted by desire, and the human kingdoms contain plenty of it, the World-Rune being one of several manifestations of that." She picked up the orb. "According to the letter I was sent, inside this orb there is a small soul gem containing a lesser ranked mirror spirit. It is a type of spirit that reflects whatever the surroundings show. Around it is a type of glass that slows down the light the mirror spirit reflects, showing a long-lasting reflection of the surrounding auras. Using this you can see the surrounding aura with a higher quality and thereby improve your capabilities."


    "Cool. So I can compare my own aura sight with a better version."


    "Precisely. You should be able to reset the observer orb by observing the mirror spirit ¡ª I''ll let you figure that one out yourself."


    He took the observer orb from her hand and stared at it. This would be a good use of his time while waiting for his glove to be finished. "Thank you."


    "It''s nothing. And I must say, I am impressed how you managed to find and defeat a demon spy amid our ranks. To be honest, my expectations weren''t all that high from our world''s history with otherworlders. But you seem to be doing better than expected. Perhaps you will be able to confront the demon king after all."


    Fart. Tom had accidentally found a second demon spy, but he had no intention of looking enthusiastic about joining a war. At this rate, his EPIC ADVENTURE would slip from his grasp.


    He coughed. "I know that I might seem to progress a lot, but I do not think this is enough. Is there any way for me to leave the camp and take a short visit to the capital? I heard that practically every observer is there, so it will be much easier to get stronger if I get help from one of them. I also learned about those rings around my aura and even managed to produce one. It won''t be long until I reach the first Breakthrough."


    She nodded. "You aren''t wrong. But I am afraid I cannot fulfill your request, even if I want to. The king is very strict about the enlistment. And Tomassio, whom you are impersonating, was quite the ¡ª let''s say unique individual. He managed to skip the enlistment once, but just like myself the children of Dukes need to enlist to contain discontent."


    "No way! Are you sure there is no other way?"


    "Perhaps¡­Perhaps if you managed to accomplish something significant, the king might invite you to the capital for a short celebration?"


    "Something big? Like defeating a feral otherworlder?"


    She shook her head. "No matter what, do not do that. Ferals are not as easy to defeat as you might think. They are like an overtly intelligent error beast with no physical restraints." She sighed. "You know what, I will try to send a letter to the king. Perhaps if I write that you are constantly complaining, and of your achievement of finding the demon spy, then you might get an audience."


    Tom sighed. "Alright then. I won''t look for the feral otherworlder."


    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    Tom was definitely looking for the feral otherworlder.


    ***


    Alice sat back in her seat, looking at the ceiling sprinkled with mirror shards. According to observers, auras consist of several layers mirroring their own understanding of reality. Knowing that she became extra fond of mirrors. They reflected back exactly what everyone could see. That suited her better.


    She stared down at the letter on her desk. It was a formal letter from the king saying that Tomassio Rossi could return any time he wished. The letter was sent a few days after Tom arrived.


    Someone knocked on the door, and Alice quickly tore the letter apart and hid it in one of her drawers. "Enter."


    Zev walked into the room, not bothering to do his usual courtesy. "Are you sure about this? I can easily get rid of the feral. Just say the word."


    Alice sight. "Why the cold feet? Weren''t you the one who wanted to kill Tom the moment he arrived in this world?"


    "Yes, but¡ª."


    "Tom is an otherworlder. He will be able to deal with the feral if he comes across it."


    "And if he dies?"


    She leaned foreward, putting both her elbows on her desk. "Then he is dead." Zev winched, prepared to come with another retord, but she cut him off. "You always tell me to make the though decisions. This is one of them. An ugly, but potentially rewarding experiment."


    "He is just a child."


    "He is an adult," she hissed, glaring at Zev. "I was a child, was I not, when you brought me back? Is your morality only saved for otherworlders?"


    "That isn''t¡­" Zev looked down. "I understand." Then he left her office.


    ***


    Misha gave Tom another strange look. "I still cannot belive how you became interested in joining the cleaners elective all of the sudden."


    Tom scratched his head. "I figured it was a good way to explore the camp some more."


    She shrugged. "If you say so. But it is not going to be easy work. Pick up that bucket and follow."


    Tom did as he said. Since there were occasional trash bins in the narrow alleyways, he walked a few steps behind her.


    "Erm. Have you heard the rumor by the way? There is a feral in the camp."


    She stopped in her tracks and turned. "You are trying to find the feral aren''t ya."


    Tom shook his head. "No, no. I¡ª."


    She sighed. "Don''t think you are the only one. We all have heard so much about these otherworlders and the destruction they brought; wanting to see an otherworlder yourself is understandable. But listen: a feral is only a ghost, a mirage, something that is long dead. And the dead are not to be easily trifled with."


    "Uh, huh."


    "You understood none of that did you?"


    Tom nodded. "But you won''t judge, right? So, I will follow you, and if we see some traces of a feral we can take a short break. I promise that I will call for help if I see one. My equipment is being fixed so I would be stupid to start a fight."


    "If you say so."


    Being a trash collector was surprisingly quaint. Moving through the several alleyways inside Makeshift Town, they picked up the trash. Occasionally they moved into the main road and had to practically fight against the robots to get the trash bags from them. Before he knew it, several hours had gone by.


    Tom learned surprisingly a lot about cleaning. Picking up trash bags wasn''t everything, they had to watch out for the concentration of spiritual energy in the trashcans. The Ley Line was a blessing, where people could regenerate their mana more easily, but the quantity of their waste needed to be taken care of.


    "So, the existence of a trash spirit is theoretically possible."


    Misha shrugged. "Yes. But it is not something we want to encourage." She pointed the radar, which she mentioned was made by an observer to detect the concentration of spiritual energy, at a nearby pile of trash. "Mana poisoning is no joke. It is easier to deal with it in the capital so close to the World-Rune, but I have seen people not bothering to throw away trash have their aura clogged with mana and almost lose their life."


    Intriguing. He hadn''t felt this mana sickness since he arrived in this world. Had to be because the mana cost for using [stabilize] was too low. Perhaps he should spam his skills and find out how far he could last? Or maybe not. Having mana sickness did not sound easy.


    "Why work in this elective, all alone, if there there is a constant possibility to get sick?"


    She pointed at the cloth around her mouth. "That is why we are wearing these. Cloth made from demon horns that absorbs contaminated mana. If enough precautions are made, then there is no need to worry."


    Demon remains? Sierra wasn''t going to like that. "But you are basically spending most of your time as a trash collector. Why not go for something better?"


    "You might think of me as a poor dumb commoner, but I am actually a taught engineer."


    "I didn''t mean it that way," Tom fumbled.


    She smiled. "Don''t worry. Sierra told me of your ¡­ interests. Wanting to be extraordinary is cool. I was actually the same way, but when I was forced to become a soldier, it thought: why not try something new? Someone had to do this job. The engineers guild did not like my decision, but being a trash collector has been much more interesting then I thought. I am in constant contact with my former coworkers back at the capital, and together we try to improve the technology around preventing mana poisoning."


    He scratched his head. "And what if all your hard work ends up being in vain?"


    She shrugged. "Then I at least did something I found interesting."


    They arrived at another trash bin and got to work. Although, he wasn''t going to spend his whole life doing this, the repetition of emptying the trash bin felt calming. He could see why Misha enjoyed it. When they had made sure there was no contamination present, they moved on to the next alleyway.


    They began picking up the trash around the barracks, and then the central parts of Makeshift Town. Now they were approaching the part of town closer to the Void, and the quality of the infrastructure was vastly different.


    Walking past a wall he noticed something odd. It looked like something had been carved into the stone, but the letters were too smudged to be intelligible. He put his hand on the carving, and he sensed a sudden surge of fear. Retracting his hand, he gulped. The sensation was just like when he had tried observing the green Sonata and felt a sensation of heaviness.


    Closing his eyes he tried to sense the auras around him. "[see area]." The faint silhouette of the alleyways and trashcans, some filled with a mixture of colors ¡ª excess clumps of spiritual energy he guessed. Focusing on the wall in front of him he did indeed see that the color was different from the wall. Again, the color did not match like with lesser spirits, but this one was an ugly mixture of colors. Like a painter going crazy and quickly painting something with random strokes.


    Focusing on those colors, not on the individual ones but by stereotyping the whole, he moved closer and touched it. Immediately he felt the same sensation of fear, but this time accompanied by a voice.


    "HE IS COMING! HELP! ANYONE! THE SPIRITS AREN''T LISTENING TO ME ANYMORE."


    ***


    Zev walked to the site and looked at the carvings. "Don''t worry, I don''t think anyone is in need of help."


    "How can you be sure?" Tom asked.


    "Memento."


    "¡­ What?"


    "You have heard about the Mirror Maiden have you not? Her Babylons Blessing allows all languages to be understood, however, those that require context and emotions are not as easily translatable. The otherworlders, to create a language of their own, commonly used a technique called Memento. It entails using mirror spirits to show a reflection of their emotions to convey a message. I recon this message was left behind when the Hero went around and hunted otherworlders ¡­ It was quite gruesome."


    Tom sighed. "So just graffiti left by dead people, huh?"


    Someone laughed from behind Zev. The scantily clad woman walked towards them with a smug expression. "You sure are a master at wasting people''s time. And working as a trash collector? The people in the capital are going to love this one. How does it feel to¡ª."


    "Who are you again?"


    She gaged. "I am Hilda the Deathspear. How did you already forget about me?"


    Tom shrugged. "You must not be important enough."


    "Why you!"


    He turned towards Misha. "Sorry about this. We are going to have to work longer because of me."


    Misha shook her head. "No worries. None. I usually would have had to work another day without help. Also, it is kind of my fault. I always ignored those carvings and didn''t bother to ask questions about them. You live and you learn, I guess."


    "Sorry to you as well, Zev."


    Zev laughed. "Don''t be like that. You''re an observer! If there is anyone in this camp who is supposed to ask questions about spirits, then it is you." He coughed. "Anyways, I would like to remind you to be careful if encountering a feral otherworlder."


    "How ¡ª did you talk to Alice?"


    He nodded. "You are allowed to be outside with miss Misha here, but other soldiers and inhabitants have been discouraged to venture out too idly during this time. I am actually going around with a few other high-ranking soldiers that visited from the capital to locate the feral."


    "By high-ranking soldier he is talking about me," Hilda added.


    Tom rolled his eyes. "How are you going to be helpful? If anything you would creep it out and make it keep its distance from you."


    "Hey! I am a royal knight." He smirked, brushing away her hair, and revealing two small animal ears. "And my father was a beastkin from the south-eastern continent. My sense of hearing is several magnitudes more superior than yours," she bragged. "I do want to go home and visit, but my expertise is needed here, so."


    Tom turned towards Zev. "How do I remove these messages?"


    "Don''t ignore me, you¡ª!"


    "You can''t," Zev answered. He scratched his beard. "Perhaps you theoretically could in the future, if you progress long enough, but it would be a waste of resources. Just leave them be as a reminder of the past. Who knows, perhaps you will learn something interesting from one of them? Learning about how emotions and messages are attached to them will make it easier to learn about middle and higher grade spirits."


    "Speaking of those. Could you explain about¡ª."


    Hilda moved in front of Tom. "No time for chitchats. Sir Zev, don''t let this fool distract you. We should focus on finding the otherworlder."


    "Yes!" Zev said. "Otherworlder. Let''s scram, now!"


    "Now?" She asked confused. "You became so enthusiastic all of the¡ª." Zev glared at her and she immediately saluted. "Yes sir."


    After they had left the alleyway, Tom sighed. He could still feel the sensation of fear the otherworlder had left behind. Him having repeatedly sensed it to make sure did not help him forget about it easier, even if he knew he wasn''t in any need to fear anything right now. He was always so bad at hiding away his own emotions. Now he had to deal with other people''s emotions?


    Misha handed him a bottle of water. "Drink some water. I also do not have a specific combat class ¡ª a scavenger actually, and it does not do wonders for one''s mental state."


    Tom took the bottle and chugged water. "Thanks."


    "Keep the bottle. Put it in the satchel to avoid contamination." She picked up her belongings. "The best way calm the mind is focusing on some good old practical work. Let''s get back to it."


    ***


    Hiro wanted to scream.


    Sierra had reassured him that Tom had picked up the book, and gone out of her way to mention that he should show it to no one, but this was Tom they were talking about. He did the usual expressionless goodbye, and as soon as she was out of sight, ran as fast as he could back towards the barracks.


    His heart was racing the entire time, and when he arrived back in the dorm his hand reached towards it. Touching the katana he used endorsement to make all his worries disappear. Finally, with a clearer mind, he sighed, reminded of his stupidity.


    Someone knocked on the door.


    He opened it and found Timmy standing on the other side. "Are you alright, Hiro? You ran straight to your room."


    "Don''t worry. I think I might have ¡­ caught a mild dose of mana poisoning."


    Timmy''s eyes widened. "That sounds horrible. It must be from that noble Tomassio, too used to maids cleaning up all of his trash. I am sorry you have to deal with him."


    Hiro scratched his ears, feeling an uncomfortable breeze. "It is mild, so I will be fine." When Timmy''s eyes moved upwards, he realized his mistake.


    "So rare to see your ears. You know I think they are¡ª."


    Hiro slammed the door shut and ran back to the katana.


    "Hiro? Are you sure you''re alright? I''m sorry, I ¡­ I will just leave you alone."


    Hiro did not let his tight grip against the katana go until he was sure Timmy had left. This was all because of Tom. Just because of that one incident he mustered up the courage to avoid bringing the katana with him everywhere, but his emotions were killing him. Tom was always asking and doing the weirdest stuff, pursuing ¡­ it was distracting him.


    He heard something flutter by the window. "That''s a bad habit you picked up, brother."

 Chapter 16: The feral

    Chapter 16: The feral


    <blockquote>


    Fortunately, his advisors managed to bring the king on the right track. Otherwise, I would have had to punch him to sanity, but I doubt the sword saint would let me get close to him. I tightened my fist. This was just like my previous world. The nobles there were so arrogant and did not bother to work towards a better future. They were just far too content on shifting the burden onto otherworlders.


    They agreed to create a joint team together with the other nations to figure out a plan. All they had to do was figure out how to defeat a supposed primordial eldritch being that could hunt down a god, but sure; this was the perfect time for a month-long recess. I stormed out of the room with one conclusion in mind, and that was that I had to figure this shit out herself.


    "Excuse me?"


    Turning around I realized it was the sword saint. Something within me wanted to shoot my shot ¡ª I was most likely going to die a horrifying death anyway, but I doubt that would help further my cause. "Yes?"


    The sword saint Lyra walked towards me. "I have been blessed by one of the archangels, tasked with protecting this world in the Wandering God''s name. Allow me to lend you my aid."


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    Hiro let his jaguar instinct loose and growled at the human-shaped paper talisman. "I told you never to contact me again!"


    "And I told you I would anyway," she calmly responded. "The king of the jungle has not forgotten about you, and I should remind you it does not put me in a comfortable position. Luckily for me, fueling his ego is all I need to do, but eventually he would have all my strength endorsed from my corpse."


    "I don''t care," Hiro said.


    "You do. You are just too addicted to forgetting." She giggled. "You know, I have never run away from all my problems."


    He tried to keep his composure. She was taunting him on purpose. "What do you want?"


    The talisman flew in front of him. "All I want is to ask of you a small favor. I know I have ¡­ not been the best older sister. Our mothers might be different, but it is our father who brings us together. The humans are also frankly being annoying. Why join your kins enemy when you can help us?" The talisman spun around. "Doesn''t being a super secret spy sound cool?"


    Hiro didn''t say anything.


    "Your thoughts?" The talisman flew up and down.


    He glared at it. "Mercy is the sign of a fool. Ambition, the sign of a king."


    The talisman stopped mid-air, then flew around the room giggling. "I had to check if the humans turned you from beast to prey, but you still got it." Flying back in front of him, the talisman fell on the floor and started marching back and forth. "But I am actually serious, even if I might not sound it. He is planning something, I am sure of it, and he wants you on board. I overheard him spilling secrets left and right as he usually does, and he said you are an oddity that almost makes you as interesting as the Night Witch. He called you a mutt born to be a failure. Not sure what he meant by that, but you are special, I am sure of that much. You have some use, rejoice."


    "I don''t care. I am a citizen of the human kingdom, just like my mother, and I will be living an ordinary life here." He snorted. "It isn''t like he can start a war if he wants to. The Hero prohibits it."


    "Prohibits?" The talisman stopped. "We do not live like humans so there is no use for us to hide the truth. You are very aware that the king of the forest is as close to the Hero as any of us are allowed. If he wants to start a war, the Hero would not care to stop him. The same goes for his counterpart in the human kingdom; you being a soldier is enough proof is it not? This is politics, the world you were born into, and you will never escape it. I won''t let you."


    "You''re a toxic, mean¡ª."


    "Spare your pitiful remarks. I am adept at filtering out nonsense." The talisman flew close enough that it almost touched his face. "Retrieve some valuable information about their weaponry, or else¡ª."


    Hiro jumped back as the entire talisman caught in flames and disintegrated.


    He sighed. Honestly, that wasn''t so bad. Just ignoring her would be fine. Then looking to his side he realized his hand had never let go of the katana. He had gripped too far ahead and cut his palm. Endorsing his pain away, he stood up to find some bandages.


    "Everything is fine," he lied to himself.


    ***


    "The clump is not disappearing," Tom complained.


    "I will get the stronger cleaning agent then."


    "No," he said. "Let me try something. There should be a vial of water in my satchel. Could you get it for me?"


    Behind he could hear Misha rummaging through the bag, hesitating for a moment, then handing him the vial from behind. "I reckon this isn''t water?"


    "Correct." Taking a step back, he threw it at the trashcan and watched it disintegrate. "Poison spirit. I got it from¡ªyou know what don''t worry about it. This won''t be dangerous right?"


    She nodded. "The poison would have lingered in the surroundings, but the Ley Line should take care of the leftover parts of its authority."


    He felt like he was learning more about this world every day. Although, there was a lot that did not make sense. The existence of the Ley Line and how they were separate from spirits already being manifestations of reality. If so many spirits left the elven forest, shouldn''t that not make sense? That means the reality was disintegrating. But Alice did not mention it, so it was probably fine. Zev did mention the elf king going mad, and something about inverse spirits? But weren''t all spirits supposed to have the same nature? And what did that otherworlder mean by the spirits not listening to her anymore?


    Leaning against the wall, he sighed. At first, he wanted the OP one-shot kind of class, but being an observer was growing on him. It was like slowly trying to solve a puzzle piece by piece. He did not mind continuing to live like this, as long as Alice did not make him confront the demons or try to get rid of him. Living in this camp, which was like a fun summer camp, and gaining more ¡­ friends. That would be a good use of his second chance at life.


    Tom shook his head. No. This was an isekai adventure. Why live a boring life when he could be OP? The isekai life was much tougher than he thought, but he had to push through.


    He turned towards Misha who was staring at his satchel, probably worried about other poison spirits inside. Quickly finishing would be the best course of action before she became too curious. "Sorry for taking a break, my mind wandered. Let us continue. We are almost finished."


    "Tom, I don''t mean to pry ¡ª kind of hard to avoid noticing it being a scavenger and all, but that book in your satchel ¡­"


    He turned to her. "Book? Oh, it''s just a book my ¡­ squadmate forgot. I will give it back to him later."


    She nodded. "Did you read it?"


    "No. Didn''t have the time. Don''t tell me it''s something super raunchy or weird."


    Shaking her head, she took out the book. "This is a somewhat philosophical book, you could say. One that has caused quite a stir in the capital. People call you a wannabe hero." She coughed. "That''s an insult by the way, but even you should know about the death of heroism?"


    He nodded. "The Hero caused everyone to shy away from heroism. Ruined all the fun."


    "Ever since the Hero''s betrayal people have looked back at their beliefs. Why did we always summon otherworlders to fix our problems? Why couldn''t we have done that ourselves? And if there is a standout amongst us, does it make them a Hero or simply extraordinary? But doesn''t being extraordinary make one a Hero who is supposed to lead us? In that case, would they eventually betray us too?"


    Tom shrugged. "That sounds complicated. I guess it is cool to be extraordinary, but that doesn''t necessarily make you a Hero. I personally don''t think heroism is that bad, it is just the blind faith in someone who was also ''human'' that caused this mess."


    She snapped her fingers. "Precisely. The Hero was supposed to be our moral compass, but without him what constitutes the absolute good? Dogmatic belief in what you are told is out of fashion." She raised the book. "This book is controversial since it casts those beliefs away. It is about a human girl and a male demon who open a coffee shop in the capital."


    Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    "¡­ That sounds like cozy fiction to me. But I reckon the church did not like it."


    "Not at all. They tried to arrest her, the author, for blasphemy, but strangely enough the king protected her. And with that people grew to wonder: what if peace is the answer? What if we are all being manipulated? Our moral compass pointing in the wrong direction."


    ***


    Tom sat down on the ground, leaned up against the wall. Finishing up early was their plan, but because of Soldier Day, there were a lot of clumps of mana to deal with. He couldn''t use too many of his precious embodied vials, so Misha left to retrieve some more of the special cleaning agent created by observers.


    With nothing to do, he pulled out the observer orb. This was supposed to make his aura sight better. He closed his eyes. "[see aura]." His own aura was a blur of colors, but he could see the normal silhouette of the alleyway differentiated by different colors.


    He tried focusing on the orb. It had the familiar sensation of his own soul gem, an empty cloud with spirits floating around, however, this one was a little different. Just like the Memento and the Sonata, the mirror spirit inside gave off a string of feelings. He could still remember how much it hurt when the demons Sonata had rejected his attempt at [stabilize]. This mirror spirit, since it represented something, wasn''t an ordinary lesser spirit, but was somehow related to the Mirror Maiden. He remembered the book about her he had read in Alice''s office. A lonely girl in a world of darkness, with nothing else around her but a mirror to see herself. Looking into the mirror proved that she existed.


    Closing his eyes, he gripped the observer orb tighter. There was no color to sense when he looked for the mirror spirit, but he knew it existed. He grumbled. The easiest way to prove that the world exists was himself. "I think, therefore I am," he murmured.


    Instead of focusing on the observer orb in his hand, he looked inwards at his own aura. His ability to see the details was not perfect, but to him this was the ''clothes of his soul''. An unchanging mess of colors. He focused on the entirety of his aura. "[stabilize]."


    Opening his eyes he saw that the observer orb had lit up and was now filled with a mess of colors. Closing his eyes again and focusing on the aura inside, he realized it was a reflection of his own aura, only that the contrast between different colors was much clearer.


    "I think I figured it out."


    All he needed to do was to sense the aura and use [stabilize] on what he saw to confirm it was normal. Just like energy was always conserved, for something to exist the auras ¡ª or authorities of different spirits ¡ª should always be conserved. A fundamental law of this world.


    He used [see area] and discovered the method was the same to observe his surroundings. Using [stabilize] once showed a snapshot of his surroundings, and repeatedly spamming his skill showed how the surrounding auras were changing over time. He saw a stream of lighter-shade colors moving towards the south. Moving closer to the previous trashcan, he did indeed see small purple dots slowly getting dragged away by the current.


    The details were much better, but what he saw did not make sense. He could differentiate the surroundings from the color of their aura, the authorities being too weak for him to observe their corresponding spirits. But instead of being separate, it looked like the stream of auras, the Ley Line, was sharing its authority with its surroundings. The color at the edges was much stronger.


    Spirits were supposed to dislike changing their nature. That was why instead of increasing his affinity to one aura, he could only even out the entirety. The Ley Line, or the individual spirits making it up, was throwing away its authority left and right. He figured out the observer orb by understanding the conservation of authorities as a law, and there was no way the Ley Line could break the rules.


    Reality. Purpose. Ideal. That was the rule Trash had told him about, wasn''t it? Since a fire spirit flowing in the Ley Line does not interact with reality, but could potentially give away its authority to the surroundings, then the Ley Line must consist of middle-grade spirits and above. Most likely with a specific purpose or ideal that allowed them to more easily change their nature.


    He felt like his brain was going to crash from all of this new information. His conclusion kind of made sense, and kind of not? Middle and higher-grade spirits were supposed to be rare, not just floating in the air.


    He decided to stop thinking about it. That was enough trying to understand reality for today. There was only one ring around his aura and he guessed he had to go through the torturous journey of being able to differentiate the spectrum of colors corresponding to different spirits to progress to his next ring. Lucky him. He could worry about understanding the Ley Line later.


    Misha wasn''t here yet, but he couldn''t keep being a garbage man. He had to find that feral, hopefully, learn something from that otherworlder, and defeat it to get invited to the capital for a grand celebration. Sounded logical enough.


    "Trash, do you have any idea how to find the feral?"


    Trash hummed. "Not sure. It would be like trying to find someone like yourself. Hiding away in plain sight."


    "Maybe trying to find this feral was a dumb idea after all. I could just wait for another opportunity that would make the king inclined to invite me to the capital."


    "That could be the right choice to make if you want to be patient, but you are missing something. I was stuck in a rock for who knows how long, so I know a thing or two about patience."


    "And that is?"


    Trash hummed loudly. "Patience sucks! You should make use of every opportunity and live in the moment. Instead of worrying about everything, just focus on escaping this camp. Find that feral already!"


    "Geez, alright."


    He felt a ticklish sensation in his stomach. Having someone that encouraged him felt surprisingly nice.


    Picking up his belongings, he headed to the part of town closer to the Void which they had yet to visit. This was the part of town few people ventured into. Ignoring his curiosity he walked past several other Mementos, focusing on signs of the feral. When he exited the alleyway and entered the road, he pulled out the observer orb.


    From one of the alleys, he noticed something out of the ordinary. Walking towards it and focusing, he noticed a missing patch of aura. He could see that the missing patch of aura was slowly being filled up due to the Ley Line, but it didn''t happen instantly. It was like someone had carved out the aura leaving a missing area. Walking into the alleyway he followed the trail to find the source.


    Trash hummed, weakly. "Stay quiet."


    Tom''s eyes widened as he sneaked forward. When he saw a bludgeoned corpse lying on the ground, he knew he was on the right track. He felt like puking, screaming, and falling on the ground, but he felt a surge of calm fill his mind. Trash was somehow helping him.


    He attempted to try and figure out who it was, but the corpse was too disfigured. The entire body had been torn open, all their organs smashed into a brown-red puddle.


    He flinched from the sound of something breaking. Putting the orb bag in his satchel he slowly walked around the corpse and to the end of the alleyway and peeked out of it. It was the feral.


    He wasn''t sure what he was expecting, but the otherworlder having red skin wasn''t it. They didn''t wear any clothes, and almost all of their hair had fallen off, what remained soaked in blood as if it had been torn off the scalp. The feral was busy destroying a wheelbarrow into shreds. It wasn''t difficult to guess why it was called a feral. He wasn''t sure if it still could be reasoned with. Perhaps they were just panicking?


    Using the observer orb he tried looking at their aura from afar. Their aura had a horrid red color. He could see some small patches of a somewhat logical-looking aura, but it was almost as if the red color was eating up the rest. Repeatedly using [stabilize] he saw that the red aura was constantly changing, like someone furiously brushing a paintbrush up and down.


    He opened his eyes, feeling a sudden surge of anger. Didn''t that only happen from higher-grade spirits? Was the feral somehow having their aura contaminated by a higher grade spirit, or perhaps even a higher being themselves?


    When the feral decided the wheelbarrow had been sufficiently destroyed, they lunged at the nearby bench, tearing it to shreds with their exceptional strength. Tom wasn''t sure what was wrong with this otherworlder, but their full attention was on destruction.


    Ignoring their individual aura for now, he tried to ignore the anger and focused on the rest of the auras. As expected there was a mess of colors where the feral was destroying the wheelbarrow, but instead of slowly changing color to properly represent reality, he again saw a missing patch. Not only was this feral destroying everything in its path with unnatural ferocity, but it was somehow tearing away auras as well. Since the mirror spirit inside the observer orb still showed him the surrounding auras, then the amount of authority must still be conserved. That could only mean the feral was consuming spirit, eating up reality itself.


    Tom swallowed. Hopefully, it looked like it couldn''t make any substantial damage from how effective the Ley Line was at patching things up. He could see why having a lot of ferals around would be alarming.


    The sound of a woman screaming echoed from behind him. Tom turned and Misha, fallen on the ground, eyes fixated on the corpse. "Who¡ª." She bent forward and puked.


    "Fart. Misha, go get help!" Tom turned to look at the feral. It stood still, slowly turning its head towards him. He pulled Misha back on her feet and pushed her forward. "NOW!"


    She was still shivering, puke on her clothes, eyes wide, but fortunately she did as he said and ran.


    Tom jumped back, crashing into the wall, barely avoiding the feral that had lunged at him. It was on all fours and turned in an uncanny manner. They snarled, eyes bulging, focused on Tom.


    "Wait!" Tom shouted. "You ¡ª you are an otherworlder are you not?"


    The feral was silent. "Otherworlder," it repeated.


    Ignoring the slightly red skin, and all the blood, he could still make out a human. Perhaps he could calm him down?


    "Otherworlder," Tom repeated and pointed at himself. "Isekai."


    He saw a faint glimmer in its eyes. "Isekai?" The feral tilted their head. "Luther likes isekai."


    They weren''t trying to kill him, that was good. "Is your name Luther?" Tom asked.


    Before the feral could reply, their entire body flew past him and crashed into a wall. Screeching, the feral quickly recovered but was pushed into the wall again.


    Tom turned to the other end of the alley and saw an error cultist walking towards them. They had a bucket in their hand, and every time the feral tried to get back on its feet the cultist could throw something out of their bucket at the feral. The cultist ignored Tom and walked up to the feral. Still not budging, the feral lunged towards the cultist, who in turn held up their bucket. In the blink of an eye, the feral disappeared.


    "Did the feral get sucked into the bucket?" Tom said. He walked up to the cultist. "Why did you¡ª?"


    The cultist, a man, sighed. "Zero. Deal with this one."


    "Alrighty."


    Something crashed on the ground behind him. Tom turned to see another cultist on the ground. When he turned back to the other cultist, they were gone.


    "Ouch. Messed up my footing. Now who do we ¡­ Oh, it''s you! Mister Tomassio Rossi. A pleasure to see you again. Did you think about my offer?"


    "Why did you two take the feral? I almost managed to calm it down!"


    The cultist pushed a fractured limb back into its socket. "Now, as curious as I am about your knowledge of the beyond, you would never be able to keep that feral calm for long."


    "Then are you going to transport it to the guards?"


    Zero shook his head. "I am afraid not. Finders keepers. Our organization has a certain ¡­ interest in these creatures. Normally we wouldn''t be that desperate to acquire one, but the head of the cult wanted to show one off at the summit." He bowed. "Regardless of our disagreements, I do hope to see you at the summit. We will welcome you with open arms." Taking a step back, he threw a smoke bomb on the ground.


    "Space no, you¡ª." Tom coughed, fanning the smoke away. When the smoke had disappeared, Zero was nowhere to be seen.


    Trash hummed. "There goes your ticket to get out of this camp. What do we do now?"


    Tom clenched his fist. No one took away his big moment and got away with it. "Time to take down a cult."

 Chapter 17: Infiltrating a cult

    Chapter 17: Infiltrating a cult


    <blockquote>


    Are you sure you want to go there? Your time would have been better spent fleeing to the capital to meet me. You¡ª.


    - ???


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    I sense that you are approaching. Are you here to help? That ¡­ little girl who arrived and showered us with prosperity. She is gone. Now, everything is dark and cold. So cold.


    Please. I can''t do this anymore. Mr. Otherworlder, please help me¡­ help us.


    - Samanthalia, the baker


    </blockquote>


    After some days of practice, Tom could feel his ability to sense aura had greatly improved. It was difficult at the start to differentiate the aura of a living being from that of the environment, but the key was that a person''s aura seemed to be always changing. Like a wave slightly changing its color tone.


    His goal was to differentiate between spirits so he could activate Trash with whatever spirit he wanted. Using the observer orb made him feel like he was getting better at it, but his soul stone powered glove was still not complete, so he wasn''t completely sure. Astra said it was something about the rune in the glove and the spirits in the orb being difficult to separate.


    For what felt like the hundredth time, he looked around the observer orb, being able to distinguish subtle differences such as the different shades of blue between the cup of water and moisture in the air.


    Tom sighed. He was making progress, but it felt so tedious.


    "Are you alright?"


    He nodded at Alice who was sitting in the same carriage as him. "Just looking at a snapshot from my room. It is difficult work, but I am confident that I can create a second ring around my aura if I memorize what different colors represent. I still have to focus to sense something in more detail, but I think I have gotten the general gist of things. At least I can more proficiently use [see area] in case something happens."


    Trash hummed. "Yeah, I''m sure she already knows you¡¯re useless in battle. The way you swing me around is honestly insulting. Rather than an aura sword, I feel more like a part-time therapist."


    Alice cracked a smile. "You two seem to have gotten close. Don¡¯t worry about the fighting, I will take care of it, if necessary. I am glad the observer orb has proved useful, it was a well-worth investment."


    She cautiously peeked over her shoulder at the carriage behind them and made some motion with her hand. Tom guessed she made some soundproof field similar to how Sierra did. "That assistant of yours must be a lot to deal with. I would never be able to keep my cool when someone is spying on me." Tom commented.


    "You know? Your ability as an observer is remarkable indeed. But do not worry about her, she is just watching me because of ¡­ my boss you could say." She sighed. "Let us focus on the matter at hand. A secret inspection of the factories near the shoreline was a smart idea. The king hates the error cult, so I am sure he would appreciate your effort."


    He nodded. Somehow, using the error cult as bait, he managed to leave the camp. Not that there was much out here to see other than flat fields of grass and the occasional ruins from the otherworlders era. The factory where the error cult held their summit was abandoned, situated at the eastern border in front of the ocean.


    "Do you know what the cult of error is planning?" Tom asked. He was mad at them for stealing his feral but was still unsure about their goals.


    "Tom thinks it¡¯s an orgy," Trash added.


    "Hey, I told you that in confidence. Don¡¯t share that with her! And I was just listing off other stuff they could be doing."


    Alice pondered for a while, then shook her head. "All I know of the cult is that they worship the Mirror Maiden, and hate the new world order forced upon them by the Hero."


    "Oh, yeah. I have heard a lot about this Mirror Maiden, but don''t think I got the full picture."


    Alice nodded. "According to legends, the Mirror Maiden was once a mortal who received a gift from a primordial god. It was a mirror that helped her see the truth of the world, and helped her meet the fairy queen." Alice said.


    "This fairy queen, what is so special about her?"


    "You could say she is a higher being representing fairies; fairies can be described as a more sentient version of spirits."


    A more sentient version of spirits? "Actually, there is something I don''t understand. The Ley Line, from what I could sense, looks more like it is reinforcing reality."


    "That is correct."


    "But why? Shouldn''t all spirits represent reality? What is a random water spirit floating in the air supposed to represent?"


    She hesitated. "It is difficult to explain, but think of it like this: the type of spirits that reside in the human kingdom and those that arrive here from the elven forest are different. The elves, you see, were subordinates of the fairy queen. The spirits there were more inclined towards representing a specific purpose than reality."


    "That is ¡­ something. If spirits are supposed to represent aspects of reality, shouldn''t their nature be more consistent?"


    "That would have been ideal if this world was normal. But you would find that several individuals in this world want to shape it in a specific way, the sum of it all creating a mess." She looked out the window. "It would be best to separate the behavior of spirits between different regions. Higher beings are godlike entities for a reason."


    He looked out the window at what she was staring at. Moving across the grass fields he saw robots trimming down the grass. "This world doesn''t make sense."


    ***


    Tom yawned.


    "You¡¯re finally awake," Trash hummed. "Having to sleep is so stupid. I was bored for an eternity!"


    Tom scoffed. "It hasn''t been that long."


    His conversation with Trash was cut short by a knock on the door. The carriage door opened to reveal Alice¡¯s assistant, Lisa. She had a disapproving gaze and studied the carriage. "Who were you talking to?"


    Tom scratched his head. "Just me talking to myself."


    She didn''t loosen up her attitude towards him, but luckily she didn¡¯t ask any more questions. "We have arrived at the beach. The Commander will shortly accompany you, but you can proceed there first. I will stay here to look over the carriage," she said. Then she walked back to her own carriage.


    Tom exhaled. That was close, but he was finally here.


    He got out of the carriage and approached the beach. The beach. There¡¯s always one random episode at the beach in so many animes. Although, he didn¡¯t have that many people accompanying him. But he figured hanging out with Alice at the beach, and the other cult members, would be enough. Could be a nice way to relax. He wasn''t looking for a harem, but he didn''t mind some romantic tension.


    When he got close to the beach, he took off his shoes and felt the grains of sand rub against his feet. He ran closer to the shore to feel the cold weather. A bit further from the shore he saw the giant storm cloud swirling with the wind. That was some bad weather.


    "I still don''t understand why you wanted to go here," Trash hummed. "You could have walked to the entrence of the factory."


    "I didn¡¯t think the weather would be this bad, okay? Normally the beach would be warm and people would be out enjoying the weather," Tom explained.


    "Enjoying the weather?" Trash repeated. "Why would mortals waste their time with that? I presume it would have something to do with your quest for a more relaxing life. You know you are failing terribly at it right?"


    Tom kicked some of the cold sand away. "Forget it, let¡¯s just wait for Alice."


    He sat down and instantly regretted taking off his shoes. It was cold, and his uniform wasn¡¯t helping him either. The storm cloud in the distance was interesting. It was very gray and had a familiar color.


    It reminded him of the sweet taste of eating fresh grass. He could feel his heart beating faster from the excitement; so much delicious grass.


    Why was he spending time thinking about grass? His brother, why had they killed his brother? He needed to get revenge. Revenge ¡­ as soon as he finished picking the berries of that bush. How sad it made him that they were so difficult to find, but hopefully it would help Mother cheer up. She had been in such a bad mood lately.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    "Oi, why are you running around like a dog." Trash complained. "Why do you always have to embarrass me like that? I understand, I won¡¯t ask any more stupid questions. Just be normal for once."


    Tom came back to reality and found himself on all four. Had he been walking around like a dog? And what was it with these memories and emotions? They didn¡¯t belong to him. "Am I being attacked by some kind of mind mage?"


    He closed his eyes. "I am Tom," he reminded himself. "I do definitely not eat grass, and I have a sister, not a brother, and my mother hates eating berries." Taking deep breath he focused on trying to remind himself of who he was, and gradually the strange phenomena went away. "What was that?"


    "I must apologize for my tardiness."


    Tom looked up to see what he assumed was Alice. Her choice of clothing was something. She sat down on the sand beside him, folding her legs.


    He could feel his cheek turn red. "Erm, nice hazmat suit."


    "Thank you," she said. "They¡¯re the latest one made by the Inventor. I told my assistant to give one to you, but it seems she didn¡¯t. Being on this beach without suitable attire is dangerous. Fortunately, you seem to be managing well."


    She was wearing a hazmat suit and he was half naked, shivering. Definitely not a normal beach. "This beach. It probably has something to do with that storm."


    "Correct. That storm is caused by smoke escaping from the Void towards the sea."


    His eyes widened. "That¡¯s possible? So the Void isn¡¯t an isolated hole?"


    "Not completely. There is a crack in the void that we call the Chasm. There is one between the kingdom and the Colony, making it only possible to travel through with a bridge. The smoke that comes out of the Void makes one experience random emotions and strange thoughts. It is dangerous since one can lose their sanity."


    The more he learned about the Void, the stranger it seemed to him. Perhaps it wasn''t that weird for people from this world to accept something so confusing. It did make him wonder where all of this came from.


    Alice nudged Tom. He looked over at her and noticed someone walking towards them. It was a man wearing a hazmat suit labeled Assembly Line 02. They both stood up.


    The person nodded at Alice. "Miss Lisa, the preparations have been completed. And I presume this is the other individual you mentioned? Tomassio Rossi. Zero mentioned you. My name is Joacim and I have been tasked with welcoming recruits." He looked at Tom up and down. "Why aren''t you wearing any protective gear?"


    "The commander did not find it acceptable to give out more than one of her spare suits for the inspection," Alice lied. "That filthy noble has an attitude, unfortunately." She nodded at Tom. "Of course, lord Rossi is different."


    "I see. Then we should make haste. Please follow me."


    They walked behind Joacim, towards the factory ahead.


    Joacim led them inside the factory, which was not in great shape. They arrived at rows of boxes stacked in a corner. Joacim gestured to someone who pushed a box away to reveal a hidden hallway.


    Going through the hallway they arrived at a surprisingly large room filled to the brim with people. After he had led them towards an empty table, Joacim went his own way, leaving them alone.


    Tom''s eyes wandered. At the back of the room was a huge hole in the wall covered by a cloth, revealing they were at the back of the factory near the ocean. The room had a small elevated stage, and several tables with refreshments. He could spot many different races in the room: humans, beastkin, and even some demons. Surprisingly, there were also a lot of witches in the venue. Unfortunately, there were no other elves he could pawn Trash to for a new aura sword.


    Someone, who Tom recognized was Zero, walked up to them. "I am pleased that you decided to join us today." He gestured at Lisa. "Spread the word to another, no less. You will find that your choice will greatly benefit you."


    Tom scratched his head. "Now that I am here. You said the cult were curious about me since I returned from the South?" He noticed Alice flinching after hearing his words. "What could I even know that such a vast organization as the error cult could not?"


    Zero smiled. "A lot. Even though we are called the error cult, that doesn''t mean we can easily deal with errors compared to everyone else."


    "Is he the one?"


    Tom found another cultist behind him. He recognized him as the cultist who stole the feral from him in Makeshift Town. Even now, he had those weird buckets dangling around his waist.


    The man stared at Tom. His eyes were sunken inn and didn''t look friendly. "Hello. My name is Jax. I am happy to see that your have chosen the right path."


    "Chosen the right path?"


    Zero patted Tom on the back. "Jax over here isn''t exactly the biggest fan of the church. Hopefully that wouldn''t be too difficult to deal with?"


    Tom looked at Alice who nodded. "I don''t mind, but pardon if this is too much to ask: why do you hate the church? Besides them pushing for war."


    "The church are a monster of the kingdoms own creation. They were the one who created the title of Hero, and as such they should face the consequences. I remember when I was young, living in a small village in the north-western part of the kingdom, wondering why so many of us had to die. The Founder, the Mirror Maiden be with her, was the one to finally set me free from my shackles. All the problems we are facing today is a direct consequence of the churches actions." He gritted his teeth. "And that wretched saintess, who act as the symbolic head of the church. Not even in death will she be able to escape the consequences of her actions. Only after she dies will the kingdom be free."


    Tom hesitated. "That sounds a bit dramatic, no? Isn''t the error cult suppose to fight against the Hero''s order? What does the church have to do with that?"


    Jax laughed. "You really don''t know anything do you? That clears up some of my misgivings I had about you."


    Zero coughed. "Let me elaborate. We already know a lot about how the Hero runs his order. He doesn''t bother getting involved in trivial matters. Instead, he has an administrator you could say, from each nation around the Void. They are formally referred to as his Constellation, and from our intel the high priest is likely to be one of them."


    "He is?" Tom said.


    "There are rumors that the church often steps over his majesty''s orders," Alice added.


    "Great observation miss Lisa," Zero said. "If one has to ask who benefits the most from keeping the true situation in the South a secret, then that is the high priest. You, Tomassio Rossi, would understand why that could spell trouble. The citizens realizing their own nation has fallen to such a state, all because of the over reliance on otherworlders."


    Tom nodded, acting like he knew, but he really had no idea where this conversation was about.One glance at Alice and her serious expression did tell him that she understood some of it.


    The lighting started to dim down.


    "Looks like it is starting." Zero smiled at Tom. "After this, I looks foreward to hearing all about your adventure in the South. I am sure the System Manipulator hasn''t been as bad as the church thinks."


    System Manipulator? That name sounded familiar.


    The room grew silent, so he wasn''t able to inquire further. Zero and Jax said their goodbyes and walked to their table, leaving them to focus on the stage in front. At the center of the stage stood a huge person hidden by his cloak. He was joined by several other cloaked individuals. Tom tried squinting, and he could notice one of the robed people eating. Due to that, their robe shifted far enough to reveal their appearance, and Tom could swear he looked like a stereotypical goblin. "Did I see wrong?"


    The huge person at the center of the stack clapped loudly. "Welcome all to one of the error cult''s rare secret meetings: the autumn summit. Please, go to one of the people to my right to fill out your bingo card. Remember that the lottery is also at the next summit, and I would greatly appreciate people taking part. It will help us organizers with funding. I have also received word of some new members, let us have a round of applause for them."


    The crowd clapped, and some people whistled and cheered.


    "Yes, yes." He said making the crowd silent again. "Everyone in this room may be separated by race and nationality, but what unites us is our common goal: to stop this stalemate created by the Hero. Be it through Void War 3 or increasing trade with one another, we all have different ideas on how to proceed."


    "Huh, so they aren''t all for war?" Tom mumbled.


    They pointed at the mirror hanging from the ceiling as decoration. "Something else we share is our admiration for the Mirror Maiden. Our founder shared with me the knowledge that our world was once inhabited by an ancient civilization. The Mirror Maiden saved it from a calamity, but the Hero turned on her. Instead of keeping his devotion to her, he switched his allegiance to this calamity. As such the creatures of error were created." He held out his arms. "But fear not, there is nothing wrong with the error. It is just a symptom of the world being out of balance. That is why we are called the error cult. We do not embrace chaos as the ignorant ones describe us, but embrace the wrong in this world to find a solution."


    People around the room nodded at his words. Tom even saw a demon and a human smiling at each other, giving each other a thumbs up.


    This didn¡¯t feel like a cult meeting to him. It was more like a club for intellectuals. They were honestly not that bad. Had he made a big mistake by ratting them out?


    The leader coughed. "Now for the sacrifice. Joacim if you would."


    Nevermind. He had spoken too early.


    Trash hummed. "Now it''s getting interesting."


    Joacim moved aside the cloth revealing the view of the ocean. People pointed at something, and Tom saw that they were looking at a person sitting on a boat. It looked like he was protected from the storm by some sort of windshield. "Hey!" The person screamed at them. "You want me to start?"


    "Proceed," the leader shouted back. "As per our agreement, you will be sent back."


    People walked closer for a better view, and Tom and Sierra did the same. What was going to happen?


    "I am an otherworlder," the man shouted. "The time of the Hero''s dominance is over! You, the Hero, are generic compared to my supreme abilities!"


    What followed was complete silence.


    "That person is an otherworlder?" Tom''s eyes widened. He hadn''t noticed at first, but he could still see the faint hint of red skin. It was the feral, but somehow they had cured their insanity. How? He nudged Alice. "I think that is the feral they kidnapped. He has been cured. We have to help him."


    Her face was bleak. "I think it is too late for that."


    The room was completely silent.


    Tom turned to focus on what everyone was fixated on. From the sky far away, he could see a black line approaching. "What is that?"


    "That¡ª."


    Before she could finish, in a matter of a second the black rod penetrated the otherworlders body. He screamed, pleading for someone to save him, but nobody moved forward.


    "You said I would be sent back home! What is this!" The otherworlder screamed.


    Out from the black road, the man''s body started turning into some black substance. It covered his entire body, muffling his screams, and moved over to the boat.


    Tom attempted to sense the aura of the black matter, but it didn¡¯t change color. That shade of black was identical to Sierra''s sonata. The black substance wiggled around as if it were living mud swallowing the entire boat. Luckily it stopped at the water, and the black rod retracted back into the sky.


    "That¡¯s enough."


    One of the other robed individuals nodded to the leader. The windshield collapsed, and a wave of grey mist rushed at the now small island of blackness. When the storm settled he could see the black island was gradually losing its color, and what was left was a mass of matter with a brown-reddish color. It was as if someone had put the boat and man into a blender and mixed it.


    "Gross," Trash hummed.


    It was a disgusting sight, but luckily the blob of mass started sinking into the ocean and Joacim covered the cloth over the hole again.


    Wait, was that what would happen if he revealed his identity? Nothing happened when Tom had told anyone. It seemed more like the Hero retaliated if one tried to go against him.


    The leader turned back to the audience. "As you all saw, that was one of the abilities of the Hero. The Hero hates otherworlders and anyone who disagrees with his views. That is why we made it a habit to tread carefully and not be too direct with our approach. Long have we all debated on what to do, and how to do it. People, with the help of our founder, and error beast themselves, I have found our way. What we will do is start with a war between the human kingdom of the demon lands. And how so?" The leader took off his cloak and the crowd gasped.


    The leader, or leaders, had three heads. At the center was the body of a bear, and to its sides were two humans merged. Tom used his aura sense and saw an uncanny mix of three separate auras. They looked just like an error beast would.


    "How we will do it is with the help of the great error beast Morpheus. We will lure that powerful beast and send them on a rampage through the human kingdom."

 Chapter 18: Gods knights

    Chapter 18: Gods knights


    <blockquote>


    I know you can hear my whisper. Help me, please! I can''t do this anymore. I can''t.


    Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. Don''t leave. .? ?D?o?n?''?t? ?l?e?a?v?e?.? ?D?o?n?''?t? ?l?e?a?v?e?.? ?D?o?n?''?t? ?l?e?a?v?e?.? ?D?o?n?''?t? ?l?e?a?v?e?.? ?D?o?n?''?t? ?l?e?a?v?e?.? ?D?????o?????n?????''????t????? ????l????e??????a???v????e??????.????? ???D???o???n??????''????t????? ????l?????e????a???v???e???????.???? ????D????o?????n??????''??????t????? ?????l????e??????a??????v???????e????.??????? ???D???????o??????n?????''?????t???? ????l??????e??????a???v?????e??????.??????? ?????D???????o?????n???''?????t???? ??????l???????e???????a?????v?????e??????.????D?????o?????n?????''????t????? ????l????e??????a???v????e??????.????? ???D???o???n??????''????t????? ????l?????e????a???v???e???????.???? ????D????o?????n??????''??????t????? ?????l????e??????a??????v???????e????.??????? ???D???????o??????n?????''?????t???? ????l??????e??????a???v?????e??????.??????? ?????D???????o?????n???''?????t???? ??????l???????e???????a?????v?????e??????.???? ????D????o????n??????''??????t?????? ?????l????e?????a??????v??????e???????D?????o?????n?????''????t????? ????l????e??????a???v????e??????.????? ???D???o???n??????''????t????? ????l?????e????a???v???e???????.???? ????D????o?????n??????''??????t????? ?????l????e??????a??????v???????e????.??????? ???D???????o??????n?????''?????t???? ????l??????e??????a???v?????e??????.??????? ?????D???????o?????n???''?????t???? ??????l???????e???????a?????v?????e??????.???? ????D????o????n??????''??????t?????? ?????l????e?????a??????v??????e???????D?????o?????n?????''????t????? ????l????e??????a???v????e??????.????? ???D???o???n??????''????t????? ????l?????e????a???v???e???????.???? ????D????o?????n??????''??????t????? ?????l????e??????a??????v???????e????.??????? ???D???????o??????n?????''?????t???? ????l??????e??????a???v?????e??????.??????? ?????D???????o?????n???''?????t???? ??????l???????e???????a?????v?????e??????.???? ????D????o????n??????''??????t?????? ?????l????e?????a??????v??????e???????D?????o?????n?????''????t????? ????l????e??????a???v????e??????.????? ???D???o???n??????''????t????? ????l?????e????a???v???e???????.???? ????D????o?????n??????''??????t????? ?????l????e??????a??????v???????e????.??????? ???D???????o??????n?????''?????t???? ????l??????e??????a???v?????e??????.??????? ?????D???????o?????n???''?????t???? ??????l???????e???????a?????v?????e??????.???? ????D????o????n??????''??????t?????? ?????l????e?????a??????v??????e???????


    - Samanthalia, the baker


    </blockquote>


    Tom wasn''t sure if it was due to the smoke coming out of the Void, or what he had just witnessed, but it felt like his head was about to explode. "God, he¡¯s hideous," Tom exclaimed.


    "Hey, who said that?" The left head asked. "That was not nice."


    "Mr. Bear is very sensitive," the right head said. The head at the center gave a sad growl in response.


    Tom could see several people side-eye him, but luckily they didn''t call him out for it.


    Someone in the crowd coughed. It was a human.


    "If we move back to the matter at hand, does that mean you have found a way to control Morpheus?" The human said.


    "That is difficult to believe," a beastkin added. "This great error beast has proved very cumbersome for the people working at the mines. The fact that it can dig below the edges of the void makes it impossible to follow."


    A nearby witch nodded. "According to our research, once someone experiences the touch of Morpheus and are stuck together, their sanity leaves with them. How do we not know that you have gone mad? How did you, or you three, even manage to encounter Morpheus and survive?"


    The right head nodded. "It was all from the knowledge our founder gave us. We encountered Morpheus in the forbidden forest in the Colo ¡­ I mean the Free Port Cities, and Mr. Bear unfortunately joined us. But we love the rascal." The bear blushed. "As for our sanity, our founder also helped us with that. Sometimes you just have to run straight into the jaws of a beast."


    "And don''t forget that we have for years recorded the movement of Morpheus," the left head spoke. "According to our current intel, Morpheus should currently be resting at the new forest, right in the border between the human kingdom and demon lands."


    "You mean¡ª."


    All three heads awkwardly nodded together. "Indeed, it is the perfect way to initiate a war between them. Or perhaps both nations will work together to stop the calamity? Only fate will have the answer to that. We already have someone placed at the location to anger Morpheus. A beast filled with The Madness using the beastkin art of endorsement is all we need." They waved towards the crowd. "Now, I know this is a difficult proposition to consider, so why don''t we talk it over."


    One of the other cultists flipped a switch and the room was filled with brighter light.


    "Debate time!"


    At that people started talking to each other. Tom didn¡¯t know all that stuff about the great error best, he figured Alice could focus on that. What he was more curious about was that goblin ¡ª and the feral who died in front of him. "Alice, let¡¯s split up and get information." She nodded and walked over to a nearby group. Tom spotted the goblin eating while sitting on a crate in the back.


    He approached them. "Hey, are you a goblin?"


    They looked up from their food. "Yup. Nim is my name. Do you need help with something?"


    So he was a goblin. "It''s just that I haven¡¯t seen many of you. Don¡¯t you guys like ¡­ how do I say it."


    "Live in the forest as savages and fight anyone that comes nearby?" He finished.


    "Erm, yeah, Nim. Could you tell me a bit about your history? I don¡¯t know if it''s completely correct, but it seems like the error beast kinda replaced you guys. It is a cool new world-building quirk, but I prefer old school you know?"


    Nim glared at Tom. "I don''t know about that last part, but my ancestors used to live in several forests, and areas of the kingdom. But once the Hero arrived we were all kicked out from our homes. Fortunately, the founder found us ¡­ did you get it? The founder found us. Or, they found me. The rest of my kin decided to leave and find a new home."


    Tom rolled his eyes. Yeah, I get it. "You don''t happen to know anything about some sort of system the people here used? Maybe something about levels, EXP, level cap, or maybe the word OP?"


    Nim was deep in thought. "Grandpa did tell me something once. He said that when he was a child he managed to run away from someone trying to hunt his tribe down. While hiding he overheard someone say: ¡®Cool, I leveled up. Hunting goblins is an easy way to farm more EXP.¡¯ When it¡¯s about the system, the cult has some knowledge about that. It may sound bizarre, but there is a theory that the world used to have some kind of system that allowed you to see a floating screen. Isn¡¯t that weird? Personally I don''t believe in it. I am more a fan of the primordial donut god."


    So there actually was a system and levels in this world? Tom had finally found it! Perhaps this world was one of those isekai where there was a secret requirement to unlock the super OP system? "Nim, do you know¡ª."


    "HALT, VILLAINS!"


    Tom turned and saw three people clad in golden armor. One of them, a man pointing a shotgun the wrong way, walked forward.


    "IN THE NAME OF THE ALMIGHTY, WE, THE GODS KNIGHTS ARE HEARBY SENTENCING¡ª."


    "Shut up, I am having a conversation!" Why did he always get interrupted at the important parts?


    The knight glared at Tom. "HOW DARE YOU! I WILL HAVE TO MAKE AN EXAMPLE OUT OF YOU!" He pulled the trigger, but since the gun was the wrong way the knight blew his head off his body.


    People gasped as the wall was splattered with blood and the headless corpse fell on the ground.


    "Darn it Kyle, I told you it was a bad idea to let him use one of the otherworlders weapons!"


    "Arianna, please focus. We need to get him healed."


    She spread out her arms. "And how are we supposed to do that, Kyle? The saintess is hours away, and by that time it would be too late."


    The male knight, Kyle, fixed his gaze on Tom. "You." He pointed at Tom. "You killed one of us."


    Tom gasped. "Me? Hold on a minute. He obviously killed himself. The gun was pointing in the wrong direction!" He retorted. "And don''t ''killed one of us'' me, the guy was trying to murder me! I am pretty sure that''s a crime against humanity or something."


    The knight looked unfazed by Tom''s explanation. He snapped his fingers and rows of knights clad in the same golden armor flooded into the room. Chaos ensued.


    People were desperately attempting to run away as they ran for another exit. Nim and the leader were nowhere to be seen.


    Tom found Alice and ran up to her. "Who are these people?"


    "I am not sure."


    "Well, you need to figure it out. Not everyone here is evil. You have to stop them before¡ª." He stopped talking when she stared at something over his head.


    Then the world turned blank.


    ***


    Tom woke up to complete darkness. His body was cold and his vision blurry. It didn''t take long to figure out that he was in a prison cell.


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    "You¡¯re finally awake."


    Light entered from the other side of the room. Walking towards the bars he saw the knight Kyle, sitting on a chair, watching him. Besides the knight, his all too familiar aura sword Trash was leaned up against the wall. Trash was humming the same tune he usually did, but he didn''t speak.


    "Your aura sword is here because of the law. Not that I am interested in such a shabby-looking sword. According to the intel we have gathered up it cannot do much."


    Tom bobbed his head. Well, he wasn''t wrong. But Trash wasn''t that bad.


    After a while, the door swung open and Alice walked inside. She was accompanied by the other female knight Arianna. Alice walked towards him whilst the other knight stood by the door watching.


    She leaned foreward. "Don¡¯t worry, Tom. Although it was uncourteous of me, I managed to lessen your sentence by the fact that you were accompanying me, and the fact that the king loves Tomassio. The church does not want to be too confrontational with the king," she whispered.


    "The church. I thought the church wasn''t supposed to have its own army?"


    She hesitated. "There seems to have been some developments in the capital. A group of royal knights broke away to create their own unit called the god''s knights. And I am afraid I do not have much leeway with them. They are pushing to have your trial for treason at¡ª."


    "I don''t care about that. What about the great error beast Morpheus? How¡¯s the preparations going?"


    Alice avoided his gaze. "About that. I have told Zev and the others, but the god''s knights are making a ruckus. They refuse to believe in the words of heretics, saying there exists no such thing as a great error beast."


    "Of course they did."


    Kyle clapped. "Your time is up!"


    Arianna glared at Kyle. "She is still the Commander in this camp idiot."


    Kyle snorted. "Acting Commander."


    "I am going to reinforce the perimeter around the camp; I will try to do something," Alice quickly explained. Then she turned around and left through the door, accompanied by both knights.


    Kyle stared at Tom. "No funny business, traitor." Then slammed the door shut, turning the lock.


    Tom sighed. "Well, this sucks." He walked closer to the bars. "Trash, you there?"


    "Yup," Trash hummed.


    Even though he was further away, Tom could still hear his voice clearly.


    "Any idea of what to do now?"


    "Wait for Morpheus to start the fun," Trash responded. "Finally get some action going on."


    Tom rolled his eyes. "A rogue powerful creature would be a pain to go up against. Are you sure you cannot fly over here or something?"


    "Can you fly?"


    "Zev''s swords could fly," Tom moped.


    "Don''t compare me with those, they could hardly speak!"


    Tom sighed and leaned against the wall. He had to find a way. The prison cell was barren, with a small barred window near the ceiling letting light in. Without his aura sword and embodied items, he was basically useless.


    With nothing else to do, he focused on unlocking the second ring around his aura. His first ring appeared by itself, but he wasn''t patient enough to wait. There had to be a way to manually create it. Just by looking at his aura, he was confident his aura sight had improved since the first time he learned it. The different colors were much better distinguishable to him.


    Shifting his focus, he attempted to pick out different colors, but every time he focused on one specific color the rest of his aura lost focus. Tom grunted. The rings were supposed to reflect his understanding of reality, or spirits, but how were they specifically supposed to be unlocked? With the first ring, he felt like he understood they were represented by colors, with differing energy or authority as people called it. Perhaps he should think of it in another way. Spirits being represented by colors could be a rule of reality; different wavelength of energy gives of different colors. Using the observer orb also taught him about the sum of the authorities you are seeing always being constant. If the first rings were supposed to focus on lesser spirits, then another truth could be related to the difficulty of focusing on them.


    Lesser spirits exist everywhere, regardless if you could see them or not, but from what he understood from the Ley Line, they could be reinforced to become more visible. One''s focus on reality is always consistent and tied to the individual. The reason why the rest of his aura becomes unclear when he focuses on something had to be because by focusing on one specific detail he was making it more real and thereby more detailed than the rest. Looking back at his aura he always saw it as a snapshot, but using the observer orb he distinguished living beings from the environment due to their aura constantly shifting. What if he accepted this constant change in his own aura?


    If he for example used [stabilize] on a water and fire spirit, the authorities just even out; if he was focusing on their nature then theoretically they should mix to become something like a mist spirit. His problem was that he always focused on the colors as individuals, but the colors in his aura just represented the ambient authority his soul collected. The colors should be constantly shifting to something else, but the sum of the authorities should still be consistent.


    Trying to test his new theory, he focused on a green cloud and then a blue one. "[stabilize]". The colors moved around and mixed into cyan. Taking a deep breath he moved on to another pair of colors to stabilize, then another. All he did for who knows how long, was to focus on random colors and constantly mix them. Eventually the image of his aura constantly shifting seeped into his mind. He did not stop mixing the colors, but the more he did it the easier he felt it was to do. Suddenly, a sudden surge of information flowed through him. "[blend]". He stopped manually combining the colors and looked on as the aura shifted in colors by itself.


    A static sound entered his mind, followed by a broken voice.


    [Congr¡ª¡ª, you have ¡ª¡ª¡ª level 20]


    [¡ª¡ª unlocked th¡ª ¡ª¡ª [blend]]


    His eyes widened. Did he just hear a system notification? Wasn''t there supposed to be no system in this world? He smiled. "Hey, Trash. I unlocked my second ring!"


    Trash hummed. "I sensed it too. Well done. At this rate, we can get that cool adventure of yours going on the road."


    Tom beamed. Even though he was stuck in a prison cell, he felt like he was gradually starting to understand this world as time went on. He even heard the sound of a system notification! It actually did exist, and like the goblin Nim said: there used to exist levels and EXP. His OP adventure was so close, he was sure of it.


    He raised his fist. "My EPIC ADVENTURE is on its way!"


    "Hear that? I knew this was the right cell."


    That voice sounded familiar. Tom got back on his feet and looked out the small window near the ceiling. Standing on his toes he tried to look out of it and saw two people staring back at him.


    "What are you two doing here?"


    Sierra shrugged. "Was I supposed to ignore you? Those god''s knights refused to let us visit you so this was our only way."


    "What did you do this time?" Hiro asked.


    "This is serious, both of you! The error cult is planning on summoning the great error beast Morpheus in the New Forest to instigate a war. And those dumb gods knights are blocking Alice''s ability to do anything."


    Sierra perked up. "They are? Understood. Then we should break you out of here this instant so you can flee."


    Tom nodded. "Exactly, we are ¡ª wait, did you flee?"


    She nodded. "Tom, you have nothing to do with this war. You should try to escape and live your own life. Traveling to the capital would be impossible, but heading eastwards to hide away in the Colony should be doable."


    "What? You are the one that¡ª." Tom stopped himself, realizing Hiro was there. "You told me you left your hometown to make a change in this world. Why are you telling me to run?"


    "I did not choose to fight to force everyone to follow my whims. The reason I chose this path is so that others, like yourself, can live in peace. A great error beast in no joke; I doubt anyone in this camp would be able to handle it, even Vice-Commander Zev. To ask you to put your life on the life would be selfish." She leaned closer. "Tell me where your aura sword is so I can steal it, and help you escape."


    Tom looked at Hiro. "Are you listening to what she is saying?"


    Hiro nodded. "She isn''t wrong. The best action to take when confronted by an impossible task is to accept defeat and give up."


    "What, you ¡ª huh?" Tom held his head. "Now hold on here. Why are you both telling me to give up and run away? Where is your honor?"


    "Honor?" Hiro questioned. "Honor is for the weak. Why do want to help anyway?"


    "Because it is the right thing to do," Tom said. And he had just gotten a confidence boost from unlocking his second ring. Defeating a great error beast sounded like something an epic main character would do. "What is wrong with you two?"


    They both looked at each other, then back at Tom.


    "You really are weird," Sierra commented.


    Tom gasped. "You are calling me¡ª!"


    "But," she cut him off. "If you actually want this, then I might as well help. In my opinion, the worst thing Morpheus can do is to weaken the human kingdom, but the demons are without a doubt going to take advantage of that opportunity."


    Tom sighed. She was finally taking this seriously. He looked at Hiro. "You and the others will help too, right?"


    Hiro hesitated. "If Sierra and the other soldiers will do it, then who am I to disagree?"


    "Perfect."


    Sierra handed Tom something through the bars. It was a pair of gloves. The right glove had the familiar soul gem sown into it.


    "Astra asked me to give these to you when she heard you were held in jail. She wanted me to remind you not to recklessly observe the spirits in the soul gem, and that she inserted a short safety mechanism to give you some more time if you accidentally used the last spirit inside."


    Tom nodded. "Thanks. Don''t worry about helping me out of here, that would waste too much time. I will try and find a way using these gloves, and ¡­ spirits I guess. Just get to the New Forest as fast as you can and stop those cultists. If you have to resort to murder, I won''t judge you."


    Sierra nodded with a serious expression on her face. They were on the same page.


    "Wait," Hiro interjected. "There ¡­ there is something I need to tell you."


    Tom looked at Hiro. "What is it?"


    Hiro avoided his gaze. "I am sorry."


    "¡­ What the space are you apologizing for? There is no need to apologize for not wanting to confront a great error beast of all things."


    Hiro shook his head. "I wasn''t apologizing for that. Remember when we were in the box dungeon and you tried to sense my katana?"


    Tom nodded.


    "Well, I am half human and half beastkin. I can use the beastkin art of endorsement and insert parts of myself into something called beast fury crystal, that is what my katana is made of. Life in the beast lands wasn''t so great ¡­ When I arrived here I made it a bad habit of endorsing all my negative emotions into my sword. You must have felt it, so ¡­ I am sorry."


    Tom perked up. "You have a depression sword? That''s awesome!"


    "Tom!" Sierra glared at him.


    "I didn''t mean it like that." Tom sighed. " Hiro, it''s fine, really. Depression is my middle name. I did momentarily feel a bit empty, but over time I got over it."


    "Are you sure?" Hiro said. "I just didn''t want my ¡­ weakness to affect others."


    Tom shook his head. "I swear, I am fine. The best way I manage to deal with it is to ignore it. Didn''t you read those super controversial books? I read a lot of books too, imagining myself as someone better, and now is the time for me to accomplish those dreams." He motioned them to leave. "Hurry and get started. I promise you, when we look back at this situation in the future we are going to be proud of what we did."


    They both nodded, leaving him alone.


    Tom walked over to the bars, holding them, and grunted. "Why do I have to pretend to be so righteous all of the sudden."


    Trash hummed. "If only they knew you were doing it all for your obsession with having an epic adventure. That would not ring better in their ears."


    "I know¡­but I got my side characters to do side-character stuff. I even heard a system notification. I think this is a stereotypical isekai world after all." He stared at the soul gem. "Time to get out of here."


    Fitting his arms through the bars he tried to grab Trash, but he couldn''t reach.


    "¡­ I don''t think that is going to work. I know I am an amazing sword, but you can''t rely on me all the time."


    "Then what? You are the one that allows me to use stabilize on spirits."


    "I just make it easier. Who knows, in a hundred years you could manage to do it by yourself, but we don''t have the time. Just shoot out some spirits from your glove."


    Tom hesitated. "That sounds dangerous, but I guess I don''t have any other choice."


    Walking to the back of the cell he pointed his right hand forward. He counted 23 spirits inside of this glove. Hopefully, one of them could get him out of here.


    ***


    Sierra had her eyes fixated on the ground as she jumped from branch to branch. Whilst Hiro went to gather reinforcement, her job was to find the cultist. All she had spotted was a foreign carriage parked near the entrance of the forest, but she had yet to spot a single cultist.


    She stopped at one of the branches, and closed her eyes, listening to the voices. She heard a faint and unnaturally coherent song. Jumping to another branch, she followed the sound until she spotted a person with a pointy hat. They were standing beside a jar holding a small demonic slime. On top of it was a candle lit with white multicolored fire.


    "You there. Stop!"


    The witch looked at Sierra. "Too late." Then she closed her eyes.


    The forest shook as a giant jaw dug out of the ground and swallowed the witch whole.


    Sierra knew about the great error beasts; her tribe lived close to the great error beast Ether, but she had never seen one with her own eyes. It was grotesque. That was the only way she could describe it. Morpheus was not one creature, but a giant worm-like combination of hundreds of error beasts merged together.


    Its body flew hundreds of feet into the air, roaring with the combined agony of who knows how many error beasts, before it turned towards the ground and headed straight towards her.

 Chapter 19: Morpheus

    Chapter 19: Morpheus


    <blockquote>


    I paced back and forth. "Now, how does one defeat a primordial eldritch creature powerful enough to kill a god?" I looked at my fellow otherworlders, and sword saint Lyra, sitting around the table in the otherworlders guild. "Any suggestion?"


    "Give up," Mike said.


    I threw a pencil at him, making him recline back into his chair. "Not happening. Anyone else?"


    Norma raised his hand. "If this creature has the power to destroy planets, why was it struggling to hunt down the Wandering God? It also did not seem to destroy every planet on sight. It must have a power tied to using planets maybe?"


    I nodded. "Exactly. And every one like me that witnessed its destruction remember giant craters appearing. Na''al over there even remember seeing the entire world crumble."


    Na''al looked down and didn''t say anything.


    "And several of us are even first time otherworlders seeing their homeworld ¡­ disappear, and other second summoned like me experiencing different Systems. I think this is our clue: the System."


    "The System?" Lyra repeated. "Like my ¡­ this homeworlds World-Runes?"


    I pointed at her. "Precisely! You''re a smart gal."


    Lyra blushed.


    "If that creature also killed the planet with their gods, it means they were able to circumvent the System of that world. I remember hearing in school once that the universe is so vast, that different galaxy clusters could have their very own laws of physics. I doubt our foe is strong enough to have created the universe or something, so it must still be beholden to the different Systems it encounters. This must be why it takes its time; our foe is a System Manipulator."


    Lutherion ¡ª or Luther he preferred ¡ª snorted. "And how are we supposed to fight this System Manipulator?"


    I smiled. "We confuse the hell out of them."


    - Rachel, the second summoned


    </blockquote>


    Sierra jumped in between trees. She threw daggers at the beast, embodied with her most valuable middle grade spirits, but the damage was negligible. Every single error beast that made up its body functioned as a separate entity; dead error beast would just fall of the swarm replaced by others.


    After eating the cultist and the small demonic slime, Morpheus turned berserk. Instead of horrifying but logical bouts up and down like a worm, it grew tentacles destroying everything in its wake. Whatever the cultist had done to Morpheus had been incredibly effective at maddening the beast.


    Sierra embodied herself into the shadow covering a tree trunk, and swiftly jumped out of the shadow on the ground, barely managing to avoid the tentacle smashing through. Another tentacle slid through the ground beneath her with the jaw of a shark reaching for her.


    "[Wind cutter]!"


    A slash of wind cut the tentacles off, separating it from Morpheus. The moment it was cut, pairs of creatures, error beast, parted from the tentacle.


    Matheus sent a new slash towards another tentacle trying to reach for her. "[Wind cutter]! Huh, saying the skill out loud really is more fun."


    Hiro lunged towards one of the nearby error beasts that had separated from the tentacle, and swiftly cutting it with a lightning infused aura blade.


    She turned to look at the rows of soldier heading towards them, preparing their skills and artillery.


    "We need for someone to keep its focus," the Vice-Commander said.


    Hiro took of his hood, revealing his beastkin ears. "On it." His aura sword stared dimming in intensity. Hair grew from all over his body ripping his shirt of, as he increased in size. Massive claws grew from his hand with the same static that his sword gave off. He howled. "Let me show you how a jaguar fights!" Then he lunged at one of Morpheus closest tentacles. With his massive claws he cut it in bits with an electric shock frying it off.


    "Doesn''t he look more like a wearwolf?" Someone said.


    ***


    Gods knight Kyle kicked the door open and stared in silence at the mess. "Why is everything so wet? And are those crystals? Why is the chair on fire?"


    Tom nervously smiled, still in the confines of his cage. "Just some dumb stuff my aura sword does."


    "Sure," Kyle commented.


    Tom straightened himself up. "Why are you here? Finally decided to listen to my warning? The great error beast Morpheus is¡ª."


    "Stop the nonsense," Kyle interrupted. "I am well aware of your habit of lying yourself out of every situation, Tomassio Rossi. I am not here to accept or offer you help, only to tell you your sentence." He opened up a parchment in front of him. "Tomassio Rossi, in the name of head priest Nelic, is herby sentenced to death."


    Tom gulped. "Death? I am the son of the Duke!"


    Kyle shrugged. "Orders are orders." He started pulling out his greatsword. "Now, lets make this painfull."


    "Wait!" Ilona ran into the room, followed by Arianna.


    Kyle put the sword back in his scabbard. "My saintess. What did I do to earn the honor?"


    "Trying to kill my only friend," she flatly responded. "By the authority that is wested in me, I void that sentence."


    "Are you sure? This fool attempted to betray the kingdom, siding with lunatics."


    She nodded. "I am sure. Do I need to repeat myself?"


    Kyle stared blankly at Ilona.


    Arianna sigh. "Come on Kyle. We literally renounced our loyalty to the king to support the church. She literally is the church."


    "My apologies," Kyle said.


    Ilona glared at him, then walked towards Tom. "I am sorry you have to find out this way."


    Tom tilted his head. "Find out what?"


    "That ... That I am the saintess."


    "I already knew that."


    Her eyes widened. "You did! How?"


    He pointed at himself. "Observer, remember? Kinda my thing."


    She smiled. "Of course, how foolish of me. But," she hesitated. "You stil decided to interact with me, after knowing my real identity?"


    "Yup. Why wouldn''t I? You were literally chosen by an archangel, that''s awesome."


    "Oh." She smiled. "It is, isn''t it?"


    "Although, I don''t understand why you chose to live here. Being a soldier isn''t exactly easy work, and most of the people avoid you since you are too overly kind."


    Her eyes widened. "Is that the reason? Now, I¡ª." She shook her head. "I decided to enlist as a soldier in the camp, despite the high priest protests."


    "Why?"


    She blushed. "I am not of high birth such as you are. I was born in the slums. Then one day I was chosen as the new saintess and my whole world turned upside down. I thought I would be happier being out of the slums, but my life as a saintess hasn''t been so ¡­ I just wanted to experience my past for once, and live as a common woman."


    "So you were bored and wanted to cosplay as a commoner?"


    She nodded, awkwardly. "I guess that sums it up."


    Tom held his throat. "Sorry, but could I get some water. This guy hasn''t given me anything."


    Ilona gave Kyle another ugly stare. She exiting the room, leaving Tom to awkwardly stare at the knights in silence. Eventually she returned with a cup of water.


    Tom took the cup. "Thanks."


    "Wait," Ilona said. "Let me bless it for you."


    "You really don''t¡ª."


    She held both her hands foreward. "[Ultimate blessing]."


    The entire room lit up with a radient white light, momentarily blinding everyone. When it was done, Tom blinked his eyes to readjust them to the dark lighting.


    "Marvelous," Kyle said.


    Arianna folded her hands together, giving a prayer.


    It really wasn''t necessary, but he appreciated her worry. Looking down on the cup, he noticed a strange blue dot swimming in the water. Moving the cup closer he saw something like a small fish swimming around, whispering barely intelligible word. "Good water! Good water!"


    Tom gaped. "I think you blessed it so much that I can even see a lesser spirit."


    "What?" Kyle ran towards him to take a look, then grimaced. "I do not see anything." He met Tom''s eyes. "You really are a liar."


    Tom really wanted to punch this guy, but held himself back.


    "If Tom says he can see a spirit, then it is the truth." Ilona matter of factly said.


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    Kyle shook his head. "My saintess, such a naive heart you have."


    Tom took another admiring look at the lesser spirit. Was this the fruition for creating the first two aura rings. He focused on the lesser spirit, but slowly saw it fad away. Using his aura sight he could sense a water spirit inside. The color the water gave off was much stronger than it usually would.


    In one sitting he doused down the entire cup, licking his lips. How could water taste so delicious? He shook his head. Now wasn''t the time. He put the cup down. "Did you talk with Sierra and Hiro?"


    She nodded. "Hiro told me about the situation and managed to rally the other soldiers behind him. He sent me here to make sure you get out."


    Tom looked down. "It would have been much more effective if you stayed with the others to heal them."


    "The Commander is with them. Her enchantments will be enough to buy us time, but these gods knight won''t listen to anyone else." She turned towards the two knights. "Set him free."


    They both looked at each other.


    "And if you accept this one humble request of mine, I promise I will go back to the capital."


    That caught their attention.


    "This still sounds risky," Kyle said. "He is a traitor. Even if his majesty for some reason does not see it that way. Must be due to his ill age."


    Arianna shrugged. "I don''t care. Our mission was to bring the saintess back to the grand temple. Tomassio Rossi was only a secondary concern."


    Kyle sighed. Rummaging through his pocket he pulled out a key and opened the cage door. "This better be worth it."


    ***


    Tom could barely controll his excitement, grinning from ear to ear. "Why didn''t you tell me you could fly?" He still made sure to hold onto her staff tightly.


    Ilona shrugged. "What use would it have? Levitation is a common skill learned by paladins."


    The two gods knight flew up right besides him. "You sure are odd," Arianna commented. "This skill is no secret. Doesn''t house Rossi have it own army? Where did you even take them to last year? We haven''t heard of them since."


    "Erm. Secret duke stuff."


    Kyle scoffed. "No need to pester the fool, darling."


    Her face turned red. "I told you not to call me that in public."


    "I don''t see what ¡ª ouch, okay I understand, you are going to break my greater shield!"


    Morpheus wasn''t difficult to notice. In the middle of the forest Tom saw giant tentacles of countless error beast merged together, flinging around like it was tilling fields. He couldn''t even begin to imagine what a disgusting mess its aura had to be up close.


    They landed a safe distance away from the beast, looking over the ensuing battle. Soldiers were moving around in formation led by Zev, cutting of its limb and consequently dealing with the freed error beast. Closer to the main body he saw Sierra, Hiro, Alice, and another soldier, attempting to distract the frenzied beast.


    Tom swallowed and closed his eyes to sense the beast aura. Just like he guessed, it was disgusting. It was a mess of unnaturally shaped auras sown together in an uncanny shape, an illogical existence. What made even less sense was that the merged together auras did not interfere with each other. Searching around the massive aura he eventually came across the cause of its frenzy. Near the center was a red void encroaching upon the surrounding auras and turning it the same color. That was the same shade of red he had seen the feral infected by.


    "It is infected like a feral," Tom concluded.


    "Really?" Kyle said. "That''s an ingenious way to anger it. It must have been fed a feral, damned otherworlders cursed for their sins." He reached for his sword. "Looks like this was much more serious than I thought."


    Adrenaline had brought him this far, but Tom had no clue how they were supposed to defeat this beast. If only there was someone who could help them. A powerful being. A higher being. Tom closed his eyes. He wasn''t the most religious person, but this was the time for a miracle.


    "Look!" Someone exclaimed.


    Tom opened his eyes to see that the fighting had stopped. Every soldier looked at it, even Morpheus had stopped to take a look. A magnificent titanic husk rose from the ground. It was covered with moss and trees. Its eyes glimmering green. Just from looking at it a comforting feeling entered his conscious. He felt like he could just quit everything and live out in nature. Dedicate his existence to nurture and protect this forest.


    "It''s the Ent King," someone shouted. "He is here to protect the forest."


    Everyone stared in anticipation as the glorious creature lunged towards Morpheus. In an instant the entire swarm-like body of Morpheus vibrated, shifting around error beast, and several new tentacles shot towards the Ent King. The tentacles immobilized the Ent King''s body, stopping it in its tracks. Moving closer Morpheus shot down one last tentacle, but this one entered the Ent King''s jaw. The entire tentacle went inside, followed by the rest of Morpheus body.


    The Ent King squirmed around and began to bloat in size, until it looked like a giant balloon.


    Then it popped. The strong desire to protect the forest disappeared, and the giant Ent''s body exploded.


    Ilona quickly moved her staff in front of them both. "[Maximum shield]."


    Soldier desperately ran for cover as giant bits of bark and error beasts catapulted out. Tom could hear screams, and then silence.


    "Well he died quickly."


    Raising his head he saw that both of them were doing alright. "Thank god we''re safe."


    Besides him he heard a muffling cry. He saw Kyle hunched over a bit of the Ent King''s bark. An arm was sticking out under it, the grass dyed blod red all around. A disoriented error beast rose from the wreckage, but with a swift thrust of his sword Kyle turned the error beast to dust.


    "Please, saintess, I beg of you." He pleaded on his knees, his eyes not moving from her corpse.


    Ilona bit her lip. "I am sorry. Being damaged by a part of a higher beings body and an error beast ... the archangels authority only works on her subjects by powers beneath her. Since another higher being caused this ¡ª not even I can do anything to help." She looked down. "Sorry."


    Tom was expecting a burst of anger thrown her way, but the knight did not seem to blame her at all. He did in fact shift his focus onto Tom. "YOU! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"


    How the space was this his fault? What was he even supposed to say in this sitation. Ilona said she couldn''t heal her. Arianna was an ok background character, but he didn''t really feel responsible at all.


    Tom scratch his head. "My bad, sorry."


    Kyle eyes practically looked like they would fall out off his sockets.


    "Uhm, my condolences. I need to defeat the great error beast now. I''ll deal with you later." He nudged Ilona. "Hurry up and get us closer before he tries to kill me," he whispered to her.


    Ilona obliged, holding onto Tom, and levitating with him down besides Alice.


    Everyone was giving it their all in this fight. Hiro was in the front rows, cutting of any tentacles he came across so the rest could kill the individual error beast. Tom really wanted to point out that he obviously looked like a werewolf and nothing close to a jaguar, but this wasn''t the time.


    "Are you alright?" Tom asked Alice, concerned.


    "As much as we can be," Alice said. "I gave every soldier an enchantment before fighting, it should have helped them against that kind of damage."


    Tom looked at her, still not convinced. "Are you sure? Even Ilona can''t heal that kind of damage."


    Alice smiled. "I specialize in dealing with error corruption and stronger concentration of aura. This is why I am the general." She shifted her attention at Morpheus. "Of course I won''t be able to protect everyone, but we need to focus on the battle. Any idea how to defeat it?"


    "None. But I think I have some ideas. From what I can sense all the auras are merged together, and in the middle is a corruption similar to what ferals suffer from."


    Alice nodded. "The Madness. Now it makes sense. If we don''t deal with it soner or later, it will be going on an even more unstable frenzy, merging with everything it touches until all auras it comes in contact to falls to The Madness."


    Tom wasn''t sure of it: this was one of the epic achievements he was waiting for. He needed to remember back at everything he knew about auras and spirits in order to defeat the undefinable.


    Tom took a step back. "I need you guys to distract it for a while. I need to think."


    ***


    Hiro cut a tentacle and jumped to avoid another one of the beast attacks. Being in his second form after such a long time felt freeing. He did not focus on anything besides tearing this beast to shreds. After his sister had contacted him, he felt the rage surface back up, and he endorsed every bit of it.


    He glanced at Tom, standing still, with his eyes closed. Hiro wasn''t a brave person. Frankly he had no aspiration to do anything. But Tom had something. He cut down another error beast. "Let''s put our faith in Tom."


    ***


    Letis really, really, hated Tom. He had been annoying from day one, and she frankly didn''t understand why people were putting their faith in him. The guy tripped on the simplest obstacle course and blamed it on someone else. He was constantly acting superior to the rest of the soldiers, even though his rank was mediocre at best. Not to mention suddenly deciding to become a trash collector and almost getting Misha killed.


    But Sierra of all people, even if she occasionally made dumb decision, always took her job seriously. Letis had faith in Sierra, and if Tom managed to earn her faith, then so be it.


    ***


    Alice had no idea everything would escalate this way. She had first decided to do her best to avoid this needless war because of the high priest Nelic. She never understood why the Hero looked away from his transgressions, but after going to the error cultist meeting, she understood why: he was the human representative of the Constellation.


    She used be apprehended by the thought, but after seeing the mess the high priest had caused, she had no more qualms about the challenging him for his position. It was after all because of his actions that the error cult found a window of opportunity to act. They always knew when to lay low, and when to act. If sending Morpheus on a rampage was what they were doing in this border, she couldn''t even fathom what they were doing at the other borders.


    A white light exploded to her side as wounded soldiers got back on their feet. Alice cast another enchantment on the soldiers to lessen their fatigue. She ignored the bodies that wouldn''t get up from the ground. There was no way to save everyone, but she could try.


    "Don''t loose morale," Zev said besides her, before cutting a row of error beast with his flying aura swords.


    Tom was still standing eyes closed. No doubt sensing their foes aura. Even though Zev was the one commanding the troops, all decisions were ultimately her own responsibility as the Commander. A few weeks ago, she would never have taken such a rash decision, but since day one Tom had proved to be the glimmer of hope she always needed. He was an otherworlder after all.


    ***


    Why were they putting all their faith in a person that has just been here for a few weeks again? Bert didn''t really know how to feel about Tom. The first time they met he called Bert mister Info Dump, then proceeded to ignore him because ''he already knew too many side characters''. That''s not even mentioning the time he refused to help them clean the hallways, a responsibility neighbouring rooms were supposed to switch between themselves, because ''he didn''t have time for a sidequest'' that day.


    As long as he remember, Bert had always loved making theories. There was something about listening to gossip and building a picture of the truth. And he was sure of it: there was something more to Tom that made the Commander put her trust in him.


    Jumping to the side he barely managed to dodge the error beast with the help of Mark blocking its path. Using his skill fireball, he lit the beast on fire.


    "Darn it, Bert. Now isn''t the time for theories." If he liked it or not, he had to put his faith in Tom.


    ***


    Sierra killed another error beast before it could get close to Ilona. Why was she of all people left to protect her? Regardless of how annoying Sierra found Ilona, she was being remarkably useful. Truly a formidable healer.


    Since the first day Sierra stepped into the human kingdom and started her mission, she thought she would wholeheartedly support the demons. Never would she have guessed that she would herself help the humans defend their nation. Something within her told her to leave. To take Bolera''s offer and return to the demon lands, but she had come too far to waver on her convictions.


    She looked at Tom, still standing there. What was taking him so long?


    ***


    "Reality. Purpose. Ideal." Tom murmured. Those were the rules. He was pretty sure he had a grasp on the reality part. The sensations he had felt from the sonatas and even the red stuff had to have something to do with purpose or ideal.


    Since the first time he saw a error beast, he had wondered how their auras had merged together. Morpheus had first appeared as a unsightly combinations of several creatures, but during their fight he noticed that entire trees were uprooted and merged together with the beast. Strangely enough, once the tentacle was separated, so were the merged together error beasts. From that, he concluded that it could merge any foreign aura to its body, but once individual auras left the main body, they were separated. He could sense individual auras sometimes being separated from its body, but the majority stayed merged together with other auras in a grotesque way, turning into error beasts.


    He could still remember the pain from a higher grade rejecting his will, but also how Sierra''s Sonata had acted. That black color, and the red one, they seemed different somehow.


    This was a risky move, but there was no other choice. He focused on Morhpeus aura, on the red parts in the middle and then on the auras close to it. "[stabilize]."


    To his glee, the red parts slightly moved behind, before continuing to consume the aura. Its nature was somehow different from the other auras, so instead of averaging out it was being pushed back.He was only able to momentarily stop the aura, but the confirmation was all he needed. The reason error beasts existed were because they were misconstruing the laws of the world, exacting a rule, or in other words a purpose that wasn''t compatible with reality. There was no way there was any kind of ideal connecting to randomly merging with other real life creatures, so there had to be a purpose here. A middle grade spirit.


    His best guess about the red stuff was it being some kind of ideal. An ideal that was incompatible with spirits but had a desire to consume them. There was no way he could defeat Morpheus contaminated by a higher grade, but the most realistic choice was to focus on the middle grade, the purpose, and interrupting it. But he had no idea why this purpose was created to begin with, so how could he find a loophole?


    Morpheus hunched down, opening its arm to try and swallow him whole. It jaw was an empty hole in the best, surrounded by sharks, bears, and other creatures with fangs that would surely rip him to shreds.


    Hiro was prepared to kick its mouth away, but Tom gestured him to stop. "Trust me."


    Making sure to avoid any teeth, Tom jumped straight into its jaws.

 Chapter 20: A heroic deed

    Chapter 20: A heroic deed


    <blockquote>


    When everyones was on board with my plan, welcoming the System Manipulator was all we had to focus on. She may have had the upper hand in countless other planets, but this one would be her biggest nightmare. The plan was to ¡ª hold on, did Tom just die?


    - Rachel, the second summoned


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    That, he ¡­ just like that? This is outrageous! My authority is constantly on the brink of collapse, but I put may faith in the boy.


    In hindsight, I did not expect him to be such a simpleton and manage to ignore all my whispers. To ignore the whispers of a higher being due to an episodic format? That was a first.


    And after all that effort, he is dead¡­This existence is doomed after all.


    - ???


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Glorious Singers, that was pitiful to watch.


    - The demon kings


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    He was suposed to be our saviour. Release us from our eternal torment. And now he is dead!


    - Veronica Goth, the Inventor


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Sorry, Tom. I should have explained more, so that you ¡­ nevermind. Maybe Luther''s approach was the correct one after all. I¡ª.


    - Rachel, the second summoned


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Shut up, Rachel! You literally left me for dead. This guy was suposed to save us; your grand plan failed.


    - Marchelion ''March'' Neuwifoundeer, the Wise, from the planet Axiom


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Oh, shut up, Marchelion. What would you even have done against the Hero? Given him a pet talk?


    - Veronica Goth, the Inventor


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Dear otherworlders. I was but a child when the calamity fell upon us all. Mighty heroes from beyond¡­SHUT UP! I barely managed to live til adulthood, I am so bringing you all to insanity with me.


    - Mim, elementary school bully


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Great, Rachel. Now you made the local population even more mad at us.


    - Veronica Goth, the Inventor


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    The whispers of the world were suposed to be singing the beauty of life. What would the Wandering God think if they found out it ended up in such a state. These otherworlders ¡­ Is this what mortals call ''having a headache''.


    - ???


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Hold on people. I got this. Maybe if we channel our collective will to save this world into him, then we can give him a boost.


    - Mil, The bookworm from Istemio


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    This is not another one of your trashy books, you moron! No way goodwill and the power of friendship is going to do anything.


    - Veronica Goth, the Inventor


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Strange whispers from beyond. I do not understand what wisdom thee are sharing with me, but I offer you all my eternal praise. I am happy to be a part of this world.


    - Aumer, the beastkin monk


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    SHUT IT, NORMIE!


    - Sev, the mad lord from the planet Sarmion


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Hold on. I hear something. It''s her. Her ideal still lives on.


    - The demon kings


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    She finally noticed him. About time. How long is she planning on sleeping for?


    - Veronica Goth, the Inventor


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Oh, the mighty Mirror Maiden graces this world again. How beautiful¡­I bet I could have beat her up if I was still alive.


    - Mim, elementary school bully


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    This is unexpected. But that looks to be only a small fragment that awakened. A small glimmer of hope.


    - Rachel, the second summoned


    </blockquote>


    <blockquote>


    Indeed. What a deserving title. A beautiful dream.


    - ???


    </blockquote>


    We opened our eyes. A little girl was before us.


    "I think I did it!"


    "Perfect," another voice said. "This is how you bend the rules. Using this purpose incarnate, all your problems might be solvable."


    The little girl picked us up. "Might?"


    "Every action has a reaction. Altering a system is one of the most complex ways of learning that lesson."


    She let go of our body and waved her hand around. "Look! It sticks on like glue. I think it likes me."


    The second voice chuckled. "Children do tend to cling to their mothers."


    "So I am technically a mother now, huh?" She embraced us. "Our new friends are going to love him. They can finally be themselves again."


    We looked at our mother. All we could see of her was a cloud of colors.


    She caressed our head. "Don''t worry. You will never be alone."


    ***


    Tom opened his eyes. His entire body was contorted weirdly. Stuck inside Morpheus.


    "Oi, why did you bring me along!" Trash complained.


    "My bad. Forgot about you."


    Trash hummed. "Things were finally starting to get interesting, and then you decided to almost kill yourself."


    "I am alive, aren''t I?"


    He could still vaguely remember the strange memory. Just like he guessed, this had something to do with purpose; and somehow the Mirror Maiden was involved.


    Closing his eyes, he saw his own aura merged as a part of Morpheus. He had become one with the beast. Not that it would help him control it, but it would help him observe.


    The entirety of Morpheus still consisted of merged together auras, with a central area being absorbed by The Madness. Now, as a part of Morpheus, he used blend on the auras surrounding The Madness, attempting to slow it down, but the auras were eaten at the same pace. "Well, that didn''t work."


    If he couldn''t slow down The Madness, then his only choice was to stop it from growing.


    In the same way he sensed the Memento, he reduced his focus on the auras and took a more general view. He focused, trying to sense something.


    A surge of loneliness filled him, followed by a small wave of fear. Then The Madness overwhelmed all of his senses, forcing him to return to reality.


    His emotional state had turned into a mess, but he pushed all of his individual emotions to the side, merging them with the whole of the beast. The fear that followed had to be from being merged together. Then it was The Madness which the cult managed to contaminate Morpheus with. His key was the loneliness.


    He had no idea why the Mirror Maiden needed to create Morpheus, but the purpose intended was obviously to merge together auras. Merging together the clothes of the soul; perhaps even the souls themselves? With loneliness being the prevalent emotion, by merging with whatever auras it touched, they would never be alone.


    There was only one way to overwhelm loneliness, fear, and even anger. But first, he had to find a way to contact the others.


    "Trash, do you think you will be able to cut us a way out?"


    Trash hummed. The familiar feeling, which he could now understand was annoyance, contrasted with his messy emotional state. "A bit impossible to activate me with a spirit, with your arms merged into a rabbit and all. There is barely any space to breathe here. Why did you jump inside of it if you didn''t have any plan in the first place? This would be a dumb way to die."


    "A spontaneous decision?" Tom chuckled. In hindsight, he had been reckless, but somehow he was alive. It looked like hewas in a more spacious part of Morpheus. The friction was probably shared with the entire body, so he didn''t instantly die. There also had to be a mechanism preventing all the individuals making up Morpheus from starving to death, one that he didn''t have time to understand.


    "Guess I will have to wing this."


    He focused back on the auras. There were several auras between him and the outside, but not too many. If the purpose was to be able to merge auras, then it should be possible to move those around.


    In front of him was a turtle hiding in its shell.


    He focused on only the two first auras in front of him. "[Blend]".


    Opening his eyes, he saw that the turtle''s shell had shifted angle, and the head of a mule was poking through it, staring at him. Fortunately, the mule looked out of it, staring blankly in the air.


    This helped him conclude that the auras were connected to the physical state ¡ª the reality. Since merging together auras wasn''t supposed to be allowed, it manifested in the real world as their physical existence being merged in grotesque ways.


    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.


    Preparing himself, he focused on the auras in front, including himself. "[Blend]."


    His eyes shut when it was met with a weird brown liquid. Both of his legs were stuck in something. Using his skill again, he found himself in front of a rocky creature with the gaping mouth of a lion-like creature staring at him.


    Keeping the position of his aura in mind, he continuously shifted his position until he found himself closer to the edge. This time there was more wiggle space, stuck between a bear and a turtle. Focusing on the auras around, he shifted until both the animals were turned against him, with his back to another shell-type animal. Finally, he focused on the auras in front, shifting them until a small opening had been made.


    Outside he could still see all of them fighting. Tearing through Morpheus tentacles, he saw Hiro in his beastkin form.


    "Hey!" He tried to catch his attention to no avail.


    Further below he saw Ilona healing the wounded whilst Sierra ran around protecting her.


    Wiggling his arm free, he pulled Trash towards the hole. "I am going to throw you down. Tell Sierra to make Hiro use his depression sword."


    "What is a depression sword again?" Trash hummed.


    Tom let go of his grip and pleaded he wouldn''t accidentally kill someone.


    ***


    Sierra held onto her arm. She had gotten too close to one of the error beasts.


    "Let me help you," Ilona said.


    She pointed her staff, and Sierra found herself immediately yelping in pain.


    "Are you alright? I don''t know ¡ª you should have been healed."


    Sierra grunted, tearing off parts of her uniform and tightening it around her wound. "Don''t worry about me. Focus on the battle."


    "But¡ª."


    She grabbed Ilona and pulled her to the side, barely avoiding another of Morpheus tentacles. The tentacle was quickly torn to shred by a wind blade, with her fellow soldiers following behind.


    Letis found her and dragged her away from the error beasts. "Don''t worry about protecting Ilona, we will handle it. You must be experiencing fatigue from too many healing skills. That buffoon always recklessly overuses her healing."


    Sierra nodded.


    Catching her breath, she finally had a moment to think.


    What had happened to Tom? She saw him willingly running into the beast''s mouth, but there was no way he would kill himself in such a dumb way ¡­ right?


    From her periphery, she noticed something falling. Then she felt a familiar humming sound. Walking towards the soundshe found Trash, laying on the ground.


    "Trash? What are you doing here?"


    "That idiot Tom threw me down here," he complained.


    Her eyes widened. "Where is he?"


    "Inside Morpheus somewhere. Oh, yeah; he told me to send you a message: tell Hiro to use his depression sword."


    She thought for a moment. "The beast fury sword. What would that do?"


    Trash resonated a feeling of indifference. "No idea. The idiot didn''t bother explaining his plan. But I think it was his best guess for a way to split up Morpheus body."


    "Really?" There was still a chance. "I will tell him, and ¡ª sorry it would be a bad idea for me to pick you up."


    Trash hummed. "Don''t worry about me. Spread the word before he dies for real. Alice is probably going to put me in a museum or something if he dies."


    She nodded and ran towards Hiro. He was jumping back and forth in his beastkin form, so it took her a while to catch his attention.


    After saying something to another soldier, he ran up to her. His form had shrunk and his fur was falling off. He wouldn''t keep going for long.


    "Tom said you should use your ¡­ beast fury sword on Morpheus."


    Hiro furrowed his brows. "What would that do? Are you sure he said that?"


    "Very sure."


    Hiro sighed, completely losing his beastkin form. "This better work."


    After putting away his aura sword, he took out the black katana. He took a deep breath. Then he ran towards Morpheus. Focusing on a nearby tentacle, he stabbed it with the blade.


    Morpheus entire body froze. Sierra could see that the katana was gradually losing its color, becoming more transparent. When it had returned to the form of a crystal, Hiro pulled it out and walked back to Sierra.


    Everyone stood confused watching Morpheus frozen in place.


    ***


    Tom stared at the encroaching crimson-red color heading towards him. How would he manage under the effect of The Madness? Remembering how the feral had been he was certain that he didn''t want to find out. But the error cult had managed to turn him more sane, somehow. So if push came to shove, he would have to try his best.


    When a cloud of dark colors flowed into one of the auras, he sighed in relief.


    "Hopefully this works."


    Focusing on the entirety of the auras he used his skill. "[stabilize]." He didn''t bother blending the auras since that wouldn''t be disruptive enough.


    In a sudden motion, the entirety of the authorities shifted. The Madness was only temporarily held back. A wave of loneliness washed over him. Then a small wave of fear, followed by The Madness. Even though his head hurt he held his focus to sense what came next: the wave of negative emotions.


    Lower-grade spirits did represent reality, but the basis of their being, their authority, was always built upon color and emotion. Middle grades however were more inclined towards their emotion than color, since the purpose was their reason for being.


    Like a wave, the loneliness was pushed stronger and the fear resonated with it. Now the other waves weren''t separate, but their emotions were strengthening a new wave.


    One wave of negative emotions, and one wave of The Madness.


    He felt like the main body had stopped moving, but it hadn''t separated yet. There had to be another step to it. He had to figure it out before his effort went to vain.


    If Morpheus was created as a middle-grade spirit, a purpose incarnate, then the reason behind could only be because the Mirror Maiden sought auras merging together to be possible. That unintentionally would lead to the change of one''s form through authorities mixing from different auras. They separated once cut from the main body since separated from Morpheus that purpose was deemed as illegitimate by the rules of reality. But most of the merged together creatures would still remember the emotion that resonated with them,and thereby keep the purpose of merging in tact as error beasts.


    Now what could he do with this information?


    Even thought he was desperate for a solution, his focus wouldn''t shift from The Madness. It destroyed spirits and reality itself, he knew that much. But why? He knew he didn''t have time to ponder open-ended questions, but he felt a solution here.


    "I am going to regret this."


    Focusing on the auras between him and The Madness, he shifted his position until he became its next target. Keeping his sight on the auras he braced himself as The Madness arrived at his own aura ¡­ then watched as it went past him. "Huh."


    He thought it would at least make him fight against it, andthen he could try and use the surrounding authorities to create more fuel to keep going, but it just went past him. The Madness had eaten up all the auras around him, and looking at its next meal he finally understood why: his own aura was too average compared to the rest. The Madness was completelydestroying everything besides the average combination of authorities. From that, he deduced it simply liked the average and destroyed everything else.


    There wasn''t a lot to go on higher grades, besides the sonatas. The rejection between Sierra''s sonata and that of the demons ¡ª it had seemed so simple. Both rejected each other which physically manifested in reality. Naturally, as a side character, there had to be something more to Sierra. That shade of black was identical to the weird rod the Hero used to kill the feral. The reason why they rejected each other had to be because their nature diverged extremely. Yet The Madness hadn''t blended with the rest when he used [stabilize]. Perhaps playing against its own purpose was the way to go?


    Only focusing on his own aura and the crimson-red aura in front, he used [stabilize] and yelped as he felt a small jolt push him backward.


    "There it is."


    Now he finally knew what to do: make everything average. His own aura, even if it was stabilized with the rest slowlychanged back into its average distribution. All the other auras acted the same, albeit kept some of the changes in contrast to his own. He had to momentarily mirror his own aura with the rest.


    Focusing on an aura close to The Madness he continuously used [blend] on it, then focused on his aura as well. "[stabilize].


    To his glee, The Madness avoided that aura. But eventually, when the aura began fixing back to its usual distribution, The Madness took it as well. He had to be quick with it.


    Shifting his focus on the rest of the auras he repeated the process again and again until he felt a phrase tingle its way into his subconscious. "[Mirror]".


    He watched as The Madness reached the wall of, albeit in different shades, as average of auras when evened out to his own. It stopped. A wave of negative emotion flew past him, then what felt like the absence of the destructive emotion from The Madness. The two contradicting waves now merged together and reduced into a minuscule wave. As if the clashing emotion had never existed, Tom felt absolutely nothing.


    Then he used [stabilize] and watched as all the auras separated from each other.


    Tom screamed as he was suddenly in freefall.


    In the middle of the falling creatures, he saw a silhouette jumping in between and was taken away from his position underneath a bear and several other creatures. He found himself back on the ground watching a massive pile of animals forming in front.


    Sierra was carrying him in her arms. "Looks like it worked."


    Tom stumbled back on his feet. His entire body felt shore, unfamiliar. He stretched his body and looked at the mess. The unfortunate souls at the bottom were obviously dead, but several other animals survived the fall. Making use of the opportunity, they all ran for freedom.


    Soldiers looked on as the creatures dispersed. They didn''t seem to be of any threat, currently, and it wasn''t like there was any use trying to catch all of them. Although, the local ecosystem had officially become a mess.


    When most of the animals had left, they walked forward to the pile stricken by The Madness. Just like the feral, their skin was red, with most of their hair falling off. None of the red ones moved.


    With the battle over, soldiers began cheering. "We did it!"


    Tom looked on at the happy soldiers, but there was something that felt off.


    "Under here!"


    Sierra cut into one of the red bodies to reveal a sword lying underneath. He picked up Trash who was now covered in blood.


    "Why did you throw a pile of corpses on me!" He complained.


    "Sorry," he responded. He was too tired to argue.


    Trash hummed. "Well, you did good anyway. This was surprisingly fun. Looks like you really are going places."


    Tom smiled. "Thanks." He looked at Sierra. "Let''s go to the others."


    "Wait." She closed her eyes. "Do you sense that?"


    Now that she mentioned it, he did feel a strange vibration. "Trash is that you?"


    "Nope. I am not that desperate."


    "[see area]."


    He saw the entirety of the surrounding. Scattered bodies. The soldiers. But he did feel a wave of loneliness wash over him. Looking around the area, he noticed a small part of his sight with a hole in it. He walked over to the location and pointed it to Sierra.


    Using her daggers she cut through the pile of corpses until it came into sight. She stopped. "A teddy bear?"


    Tom reached into the hole she had dug and pulled it out. It was indeed a teddy bear. In the same way he could feel emotion from Trash through a humming sensation, it gave off a feeling of loneliness. He let go of the teddy bear and waved his hand back and forth. It was stuck onto him. "I think this is Morpheus true form."


    Sierra''s eyes widened. "Morpheus true body ¡­ is a teddy bear?"


    "He was a purpose created by the Mirror Maiden. At least, that''s my best guess." He focused on the teddy bear with its murky aura and used [mirror] on it. It fell right off his hand and onto the ground. The bear wiggled its arms in annoyance.


    He picked it up again. "I understand how to un-merge it from others, so I think I should keep watch over it."


    "Are you sure we shouldn''t get rid of it?" Sierra said. "It could be evil."


    The teddy bear began wiggling around, seemingly trying to get free from his grip. "I don''t think it''s evil, just lonely. And I know exactly what to call it." Tom grinned and looked at the teddy bear. "From today on, your name will be Little Bin."


    Sierra scoffed. "Little Bin? What kind of name is that?"


    "Agreed. That is a terrible name!" Trash complained. "Pick something else. Why are you obsessed with garbage?"


    "I am keeping the names consistent," he retorted. "And I have already chosen their name, so too late."


    They didn''t bother arguing further and walked toward the rest of the soldiers gathered around Alice and Zev.


    Alice smiled at Tom when he appeared, and clapped her hands. "Our victory is a testament to the might of the kingdom. Our superiority against any foe, be it demons, cults, or error beasts."


    The crowd roared.


    "However, there is only one group the most worthy of praise, because this plan was¡ª." She held her arm towards Tom. "A joint team effort."


    "Wut?"


    "See what we managed to do by working together. Defeating a seemingly undefeatable foe." She turned to look at the rest of the soldiers. "Everyone contributed to defeating Morpheus, and naturally no single individual can take all the glory of it. We all won."


    Everyone cheered yet again and started hugging each other.


    "What the space are you forgetting about me for!"


    His voice was drowned out by the cheering and he had to his dismay travel back to the camp to get checked up in the infirmary. But not without complaining the entire way of the nonsensical outcome.


    Laying down in the infirmary, he kicked his feet around in frustration. "Don''t you guys see it! I literally was the one to tell everyone to fight Morpheus. I farting jumped into its jaws and had to use so much mental strength to figure out how to defeat it. What''s with the joint team effort?"


    "Singling you out would make you seem like a Hero," Ilona explained. "That would be more of a punishment. Don''t worry. Everyone knows about your contributions."


    Mark nodded. "I told so many people about you, don''t worry. Your contribution to the collective won''t be forgotten."


    Hiro was lying on the bed beside him, sighing. He hadn''t said a word to Tom. Perhaps he was too tired?


    Ilona and Mark turned away from Tom and whispered something to Sierra. She nodded, and when they turned back towards him she started uncontrollably grinning.


    "Tom," Ilona began. "There is something we need to tell you. Actually ¡­ You say it, Mark."


    Mark flinched. "Why me? I ¡ª ugh, I will do it." He looked at Tom. "We, even before this battle, came to a conclusion amongst ourselves. Tom. We think you are suffering from a major case of main character syndrome."


    Tom gasped. "What the¡ª? Main character syndrome?"


    They nodded. "You are way too fixated on being the main character in a story. There is nothing wrong about wanting to be more confident, but there is little need to act as a main character when you are not so different from everyone else. It could have a bad effect on your psyche."


    Tom had to desperately explain that he wasn''t suffering from main character syndrome, without being able to explain to them that he was an otherworlder. Sierra was laughing her ass off in the background watching him suffer.


    Eventually, Zev walked into the infirmary to check on the wounded, and he even took part in the conversation. "Being too overconfident in your abilities can be a weakness. Move past this early on so you can¡ª." He moved his hand around. "Budd it in the nip."


    "It''s nip it in the bud! And I am perfectly fine. I am not delusional."


    Sierra smiled. "That not what a sane person would¡ª."


    The door slammed open and a tall man walked into the room. He had a mustache and the most elaborate golden-plated armor Tom had ever seen. Running behind him was Alice.


    The man blew a trumpet. "A message from his royal highness, King Jaheed Boreas." He looked at Tom. "For Tomassio Rossi." He ignored Alice telling him to do it later and pulled out a roll of paper. "The king has eyes all over his vast kingdom, and in light of your contribution to defeating the great error beast Morpheus, lord Rossi is requested to return to the capital for a banquet held in his honor. Lord Rossi is allowed to bring any other he wishes, and Lady Alice Richardson has been ordered to accompany him to the capital." The man bowed and left the room.


    Tom smiled. Finally. After all the struggle, at least someone appreciated his efforts. "This is perfect!" All the answers lay in the capital, and it was definitely his ticket to get his perfect isekai.


    "It is amazing," Ilona said, smiling. "I would love to show you around the capital."


    For once, the people around him actually looked happy for him. Alice nodded and walked out of the room. She probably had a lot of work to get to.


    After finishing his conversation, he fell comfortably into the bed and closed his eyes. He hadn''t slept ever since he was thrown in the jail cell. Zev said he could sleep as long as he wanted, and Tom was definitely going to take up on that offer.


    ***


    Tom yawned, opening his eyes. He still felt tired but somehow he was awake. He looked at Hiro lying on his bed. "Hey, Hiro. Are you awake?" He asked, worried.


    Come to think of it, he had told Hiro to use his depression sword. But if he could endorse his negative emotions into something, surely there had to be some drawbacks.


    Hiro didn''t answer. Looked like they had to talk later.


    Trying to figure out the time, he looked at the clock. It was broken. He looked at the nurse sitting on the chair, keeping watch over them. "Excuse me, the clock isn''t working. Could you tell me what the time is?"


    The nurse didn''t answer. They stood perfectly still, not even bothering to blink.


    He hesitated. "Are you hearing me?"


    The building shook as a wall was blown to pieces. The entire room was filled with dust.


    When the dust settled, he saw a giant truck in the middle of his room.


    Tom coughed. "What the hell?"


    A woman exited the driver''s seat. Her hair was chestnut brown, with her roots growing with the same hint of red as The Madness. One of her purple eyes was hidden under an eyepatch. She calmly walked over to his bedside.


    "What are you doing?" He asked.


    She pulled back part of her hair from her eyes and tucked them behind the ear. "My bad. A bit too much of a dramatic entrance. But I am afraid the others are growing impatient. Subduing Morpheus was impressive, but I wonder how well you will deal with the firmament." Then she pulled out a gun and shot him.

 Sidequest part 2: Ruins left behind from a mistake

    Sidequest part 2: Ruins left behind from a mistake


    <blockquote>


    "People, listen!" The crowd focused on me. "The threat from the north will not disappear."


    The Duke fumed. "Amazing observation genius. How do we stop it?"


    "We can''t," I answered. "Trust me. As an otherworlder who fought in the final battle against [Error], there is no stopping that. We need to hide."


    "Hide where?"


    I pointed down. "Underground. The wast tunnel system created by Morpheus should be enough to get us started."


    The king looked about to decline, but then an explosion echoed along the valley. All of them turned to look at the approaching thunderstorm. It had a crimson-red color. The same hint of color that my comrades fell victim to. The Madness. No matter what, I wasn''t going to go down easy. Damn if the Hero was going to be the only one to shape this world. I am an entertainer for farts sake. It was supposed to be my thing.


    Veronica looked at me. "This is so unlike you. The Delinquents were the ones who called the inhabitants of this world a waste of space. I am not like Rachel. If we leave them to die, I won''t judge you."


    "I am doing this for a reason. We need a few ¡­ safe alternatives. Safety takes time and effort to produce." I looked at the crowd, which a moment ago had watched me with contempt, but now only had fear to show. "Begin drilling to the nearest tunnel. This will all work out fine, trust me."


    She shrugged. "If you say so."


    - Lutherion ''Luther'' Abalonius, The Beast, former member of the Delinquents


    </blockquote>


    "Anyways, that is why we have to look out for otherworlders posing as normal humans." He used his shovel to break a nearby rock in two. "That is what we are supposed to do to them. On sight. Am I right?"


    Tom nervously chuckled.


    "You are scaring him," Maylin said, glaring at her companion. "And making a bad impression out of us Merelians. He is the first native we encounter and you start talking about otherworlders? I told you about their history. They hate otherworlders."


    He scratched his head. "Sorry. I thought I had to prove ¡­ I am still getting used to this. Let us try again. As a Merelian, and hopefully a future Borealian ¡ª if we are accepted ¡ª it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."


    Tom nodded. He obviously couldn''t tell them that he was an otherworlders who had just arrived to this world. Of all the people in the world, he was unlucky enough to be summoned to a world that despises otherworlders. Typical. "So your name is Maylin, right?" He looked at her companion. "And your name is?"


    He scratched his head. "You won''t be able to pronounce it, I am afraid. I wouldn''t mind if you gave me a nickname though."


    Tom thought about it. "What about Mark? You look like a Mark."


    Mark smirked. "Mark, huh. I think I like it."


    "And traveling through these caves must have been difficult, no?" Tom nervously added, trying to extract some information about this place.


    They both nodded at his question, making tired expressions from even thinking about it.


    "In The Free Underground Cities, or what used to be The Free Port Cities, the tunnels are much deeper below," Mark explained. "We had to travel upwards to get here. So much work. But it was a fun experience."


    Tom scratched his head. "That sounds tiring."


    "I do not mean to pry," Maylin said, playing with her black curls, deeply contrasting with her companion''s blue hair. "But what are you doing all the way over here? This part of the tunnel system should be congested with remains of otherworlders. This is a dangerous place to be. We had to prepare for weeks before venturing out here, but you don''t look like you got any supplies with you."


    "Actually," Tom began. He was a terrible liar, and who knew if they had some kind of lie detection magic in this world.Telling the truth but leaving out a few details was his safest bet. "To be completely honest with you: I am lost. I was preparing for my ¡­ studies, and I guess I drank too much out of stress and walked the wrong way."


    Her eyes widened. "Security is that lax?"


    Tom shrugged. "You said it yourself. This place is dangerous. A person of sane mind wouldn''t wander out here, so why waste the extra resources? A drunk man on the other hand¡­"


    Mark looked at Maylin. "We need to help him. Maybe it would earn us the kingdom''s goodwill?"


    "I think so too. Courtesy is highly valued here by the elite." Walking further ahead in the underground tunnel, she put her hand on a boulder that looked out of the ordinary. "We should also bring some crystals with us as a gift."


    Mark walked over and started hitting the boulder with a chisel.


    Tom didn''t understand why they were openly talking about their plans in front of him, but it had to mean that they believed him. He still had no clue why he was here though. Couldn''t he have gotten a proper introduction? At least access to a system.


    He felt a tingling sensation. Looking down he saw a teddy bear stuck to his leg. Was it just the gloomy cave or did it move? The tunnels were lit up with some kind of shiny rock, although not as bright as he was used to. Trying to get the teddy bear off, he kicked his leg around, but it was stuck. The head turned towards him, and its arm wiggled around.


    "Space, what is this thing!" He yelled.


    The others looked at him, confused.


    Maylin looked at the teddy bear. "What is that?"


    "It''s stuck. And I think it''s alive."


    She shook her head. "What are you talking about? It''s probably just stuck." Walking over to his leg she held its head and tried pulling it off with her entire body. "Why won''t it get off?" She put her entire body weight into it and pulled Tom towards her.


    "Ouch, careful." For some reason, he felt like it was stuck, not on his pants, but on his body itself.


    Sighing, she gave up and tried to pull her hands away. Both her hands stayed stuck on the bear''s head. "Storms, now my hands are stuck too!"


    That''s when they both panicked and tried to run in each their direction but quickly gave up after the pain.


    "Mark, go get help." She pleaded.


    Mark calmly walked over to them. He used one finger to touch the teddy bear, and they all watched as it fell to the ground.


    "Uh, thanks." Tom managed to mutter. "It just ¡­ fell down."


    Mark smiled. "You''re welcome."


    "Did it deactivate or something?" She crouched down and stared at the teddy bear, now furiously waving its arms around. "And it is alive. Where did you find this?"


    "No idea," Tom responded. Perhaps this was the sidekick for his adventure? He crouched down and picked up the teddy bear. Then he waved his hand around. It was stuck again.


    "I am not touching that thing again. Perhaps this is an invention by some made researcher, or ¡ª Mark, don''t you think this could be something from the forbidden tunnels? Remains from the otherworlder era?"


    Mark shrugged. "Could be, but it doesn''t seem dangerous. It could simply be attracted to something you two have in common."


    "What could that be?" Tom asked.


    He shrugged. "It could be worry or maybe¡ª. Wait, something is coming."


    The ground rumbled behind them. Tom took a step back. "What the¡ª?"


    Dust spread across the room as something dug its way to them. They all coughed and made some distance. Tom heard the sound of a fan and immediately the cloud of dust was pushed to the other side of the tunnel. What stood before them was a vehicle with a giant drill in front of it. Jumping off the seat was a woman. Her hair was chestnut brown, with her roots a strange red, and one of her eyes was hidden by an eyepatch.


    She brushed her hair and looked at Tom. "Found you."


    Maylin looked at Tom. "Do you know her?"


    "Not sure."


    The stranger nodded at Maylin and Mark. "I just need a quick talk with him, in private." Then she walked to Tom and dragged him by the collar.


    "H-Hey! Careful!"


    They walked past one of the tunnel''s nearby swings, hidden from the other''s view.


    "Let''s keep it short: My name is Rachel and you are an otherworlder here to fix the world. You have the class of observer, with the subclass mender."


    His eyes widened. "Are you the one who brought me to this world?"


    She bobbed her head back and forth. "Kind of, and kind of not? That''s just details. What matters is that you need to focus on fixing this world. Repeat it in your head: I will fix the world. Preferably so you would never forget it." She pulled out a gun. "Perhaps it would be easier to traumatize you so that you never forget," she mumbled.


    Tom raised his hands. "Calm down. No need to be so extreme. I am well versed with the duties one has after being summoned to another world. Just tell me my mission."


    "Oh, you''re not ready for that. I will handle it for now. You should focus on creating the third ring around your aura."


    "My aura?"


    He listened carefully as she explained his class and the process of observing one''s own aura. When he closed his eyes, he found two rings already around his aura.


    "I understand that you need more rings to progress, but why are there already two rings here? One ring already being there, I can understand, but not two." He scratched his head. "I feel like I am missing a stage."


    She folded her arms. "Don''t worry about the details. Focus on creating the third ring. This will ¡­ help you get to a safer place. That''s right. We are in the most dangerous parts of the tunnel system, aren''t we?"


    He nodded. "The others said we were. Then, fine. How do I unlock this third ring?"


    "The first two rings pertain to understanding why colors are related to lesser spirits and the variable nature of their authorities. The third ring is the first stage of understanding middle-grade spirits, or a purpose as they represent. The goal is to understand spirits and how their attraction can manifest in reality. You need to be able to attract nearby spirits with your aura, enough so that they might manifest in a being of their own. Do that."


    Tom stared at her. "I understood nothing of that. How am I supposed to unlock it again?"


    After blankly staring at his confused face, she massaged her temple. "It was easier the first ten times," she mumbled.


    "Excuse me?"


    "Don''t worry about it. If the theoretical way doesn''t work, we will have to try the practical one instead." She raised her head and pulled her gun out.


    "W-Wait¡ª!"


    She let go of the gun and it stayed afloat in the air. Using her finger to swipe it, a black light followed, and the gunchanged into the shape of a compass. She took it in her hand and scrutinized the arrows pointing somewhere.


    He gaped. "That was so cool. How did you do that?"


    "Just something you learn when pursuing the path of the Immutable."


    "Will I also be able to do that in the future?" Being able to mend objects to his will sounded like a cool power. As an otherworlder, the possibilities were endless. Perhaps he could even open up a shop where he could sell inventions from his previous world?


    "Nah," she nonchalantly answered. "You should focus on the path of mender. It also has its own cool quirks ¡ª probably." She started walking. "Follow me. Seeing those old ruins might help you progress."


    He followed her back to where they came from. Maylin and Mark quickly changed their attention towards them, pretending they hadn''t a sliver of interest in the movable drill Rachel had arrived with.


    Maylin gave a courteous nod to them both. "Did you finish your talk, Tom?"


    "Yes. This is Rachel. She is¡ª." He hesitated. "A tunnel explorer."


    Mark''s eyes widened. "A tunnel explorer! I heard that''s a difficult title to receive. The human king only grants that title to a select few. That''s awesome. How is ¡ª ouch!"


    Maylin glared at him. "Sorry about him. It is an honor to meet such an esteemed individual such as a tunnel explorer."


    Rachel shrugged. "Don''t worry about formalities. I am about to show Tom some old ruins nearby." She stared at the teddy bear stuck to Tom''s hand. "You might find it intriguing to tag along."


    Mark gasped. "A request to tag along with a tunnel explorer!"


    Maylin elbowed him again and gave another nod. "Could I discuss this with ¡­ Mark in private?"


    "Feel free."


    Pulling Mark by the ear, she walked past another turn, away from sight. Tom didn''t know what they were talking about, but when they returned Maylin was smiling with Mark moping in the back. "We would be honored to join this exploration. What tunnel passage are we going through? 22B or 32C?"


    "None of them." Rachel sat in her vehicle. She put her compass on one of the seats and it melted. For a moment the entire vehicle lost its color and turned into some strange black goo. It flattened, and when the colors returned the vehicle had turned from a one-seater to a four-seater. "Jump right in. The ruins lie further below."


    "She is making a new tunnel. By herself!" Mark said, impressed, flinching when Maylin looked at him.


    Tom took the seat behind Rachel, and Maylin and Mark sat behind. After everyone had put on their seatbelts, a thin layer of mass grew over their head and Rachel pulled a lever, pulling them downwards. They all were pushed back into their seat as they were practically falling downwards into the earth, holding on for dear life with nothing but the seatbelt as a guarantee. The sounds of the ground breaking apart drowned out any of his attempts to tell Rachel to slow down. He closed his eyes trying to keep his body as stable as possible.


    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    When he finally felt the vehicle digging slower, he opened his eyes again. The vehicle had curved to dig forward until they broke into a giant cavern. He instantly got out and threw up on the ground.


    After he cleaned his mouth, he turned to see that Mark and Maylin hadn''t fared as well either. The cavern floor was covered in puke.


    "First-time explorers. Don''t worry; I won''t take it personally. It happens," Rachel commented. She used her powers to widen the dashboard and then put her legs on it, lounging back in her seat and closing her eyes. "I will take a short nap. You three should explore what''s up ahead and come back when you are done. I have already seen everything this place has to offer. Shouldn''t be that dangerous."


    The three of them looked at each other. Tom shrugged and started walking. The others followed.


    Deeper inside, the ceiling rose and the entire cavern came into view. It was a giant marble city, with architecture familiar to the Inca from Earth. Long staircases led up to the building up ahead, with a giant almost pyramid-shaped building towering over them all. At the peak was a golden disk radiating light that illuminated the cavern, almost like a real sun.


    Awestruck, he walked to the staircase and started ascending. "It''s an entire underground city!" Tom exclaimed.


    "Don''t we all live in underground cities?" Maylin added.


    "Of course," Tom fumbled.


    She raised an eyebrow.


    "Maylin, stop it. You know what he means." Mark said. "It''s a city lost to time, deep underground. This doesn''t look likethe kingdom architecture or any I know of."


    "I guess you''re right. But part of an underground city would be a more accurate description."


    Tom stopped and looked at her. "What do you mean?"


    She pointed at the cavern walls. "Look carefully."


    He squinted, and to his amazement, he realized what she meant. Entire buildings were inside the walls. He could see fragments of several other buildings, less grand than the one they were approaching.


    "It''s inside of the earth? How is that even possible?"


    Mark avoided eye contact, deep in thought. Maylin answered right away. "Could be a city built much farther in the past, even before the kingdom was established. Then over time, it was buried into the earth."


    Tom thought about it. "Sounds plausible, but why is only one section dug out?"


    Maylin shrugged and they continued up the stairs until they arrived at a building. One of the doors was left ajar so they walked in. They entered a small living space decorated with colorful rugs and a heavy stone bench around a low-lying table. Further back they could see what had to be a dinner table. Ceramic plates and cupware were placed on the table as if dinner was about to be set up. The room was decorated with small figures of foreign animals.


    "Maybe someone lives here?" Mark suggested.


    They continued ahead and saw several more empty rooms, finely decorated the same way as if someone was living there. When they reached the last staircase heading for the tallest building, they came to a conclusion.


    "There is no way Rachel would let us intrude in someone''s home, so I think everything is simply well preserved," Tom said. He glanced behind, paranoid that he may be wrong, and an angry inhabitant would come running up to them.


    Maylin nodded. "I think you are correct. All the food was moldy anyway. It has to be magic."


    "Magic, huh." This was Tom''s first day in this world. He had no clue what to expect, but Rachel''s strange powers and his observer class had to be some form of magic. Perhaps this was the moment he would receive a cool OP power?


    Curios of what lay at the end, he picked up the pace until he arrived at the peak. He squinted his eyes when looking at the golden sun disk, expecting his eyes to hurt, but he felt surprisingly fine. Behind the sun was a pathway that headed inside a cave. The walls and entrance of the cave were covered in a strange translucent crystal.


    Maylin gasped. "So much Systemite!" She started running towards it. "Mark, hurry up!"


    Mark followed her to the cave entrance and together they started tearing off pieces of the crystal and putting it in their backpacks.


    Tom calmly walked towards them. "What is so special about this crystal?"


    "You really have to live a comfortable life you don''t know about this," Maylin responded, not bothering to stop working. "This is Systemite. A rare crystal that there is a high demand for in the human kingdom. This isn''t our first time traveling into the kingdom''s tunnels. We had to mine quite a bit of Systemite to get the funds to try traveling to the kingdom''s capital."


    "What does it do? Is it magical?"


    "Kind of. It is what keeps the world rune alive. These crystals are the physical manifestation of the ideal of a System. I don''t know much about it, but your people in the kingdom rely on it a lot to survive. It keeps the air clean and the risk of mana poisoning at bay." She broke off another crystal, turning it around to get a good look. "Has to be high quality though. We have such clusters as well back at home, but they aren''t as effective. We mostly use Morphing pearls to create gills to breathe more easily."


    Tom''s eyes widened. There was a system in this world? Why hadn''t he seen a floating screen yet? And did she say she makes her own gills? He didn''t understand any of it, but it would be much more incriminating if he continued asking. Raising his eyes he tried looking deeper into the cave. It was covered with crystals, but if there had to be an op weapon somewhere then it had to be there.


    "I will check out where this tunnel goes."


    They nodded and kept focused on their task. He walked further ahead expecting the crystal to be slippery, but it was surprisingly rough. After a short while he entered into a square-shaped room.


    In the middle of the room was a giant emerald statue of a griffon-like creature. Bellow it lay a sea of treasure. Piles of gold, exquisite gemstones, and ornately decorated chests littered around. He had never seen so much gold in one room before. There was a small part of him that wanted to take some of it for himself, but he didn''t feel like it was right. Notlike Rachel wouldn''t have taken it if she wanted to, so she must have left it behind to show respect.


    His eyes moved towards a sword. It was stabbed into a pile of gold, and its hilt had the shape of a crown that would wrap around your fingers. He felt a strange humming sound, almost like the sword was calling to him.


    Walking towards it, he reached out his hand. When his fingers made contact with the sword, he quickly retracted his hands. Had he seen wrong, or was it actually¡ª?


    Touching the sword again, and keeping contact, he saw small balls of light float around him. He tried focusing on these balls and could see small shapes appear. The shapes didn''t have a consistent shape but were small inconsistencies in light that made the shapes shift between different forms. Mostly geometrical shapes, but he could see some more humanoid ones if he tried. The balls had different colors and were all floating around it. From them, he could also feel a humming sensation, almost as if they were trying to say something to him, but he couldn''t understand any of it.


    "I wouldn''t take that if I was thou. The small ones show interest, but I doubt thou could reach the previous wielder''s legacy."


    Tom looked up and saw an emerald griffon stare back at him. He quickly let go of the sword and fell to the ground. "You are alive?"


    The statue crooked his head. "Not sure if I meet the requirement of being alive. Mine ego is what differentiates me."


    "Are you the guardian of this tomb? Sorry for intruding. Rachel said we could look around."


    "No need to be frightened. I keep my sight on this place and noticed when thou all arrived. As long as thou don''t destroy anything, I have no qualms."


    He scratched his head. "What about the Systemite?"


    The statue rose and looked at the tunnel, in the same direction Maylin and Mark were. "Those strange crystals aren''t of this place. Feel free to take them."


    "Thank you for your generosity." He got back on his feet, and took a few steps backwards, closer to the exit, just in case. "Are you the one who is supposed to help me unlock the third ring?"


    "Third ring?" The statue repeated. "An observer thou must be. I am afraid I have no knowledge of how to unlock the third ring."


    "Really? But why did Rachel bring me here? She expects me to figure it out on my own."


    "As an observer should, no doubt." The statue spread out his wings. "Perhaps learning of mine being would be her intention?"


    He thought about it. "That could be it. Then, are you some kind of god?"


    The statue stopped moving, then flapped its wings pushing pieces of gold across the room. It was cackling. "A god? Far from it. Or, perhaps to the ignorant I would be like a god, but I am merely a spirit. One which has been given a purpose."


    "A purpose?" Didn''t Rachel say something about that?


    "Indeed. I am a law given its own form."


    "Like the small balls of light?" He suggested.


    The statue cackled again. "No, no. Those are but tiny fragments of reality. The only ego they would ever receive is from the legacy of that sword. Mine ego is ingrained in my very being; a watcher am I who guards over this forgotten city."


    So he was a stronger spirit? He didn''t have a clue what to do with that information. "Are you sure you couldn''t give some kind of power to help me get stronger?"


    "So it is power thou seek?" He flapped his wings more aggressively this time. "I can offer power, but at a price."


    "What price?"


    The statue leaned down towards him. "Mine ego is weakening as time flows by. A new source is what I need."


    He looked at the statue, confused. "And how do I help with that?"


    "Using thy aura. It is what makes you different than oneself who is but a combination of authorities with no possibility of change. A vessel for understanding existence is what thou are. All I need is some of the understanding you harbor inside. The most delectable part, of course."


    "Uhm." He had a bad feeling about this. Making a deal without properly understanding what he sacrificing was a stupid decision. "Can I talk to Rachel about it first?"


    The statue stomped its legs. "No!" It leaned closer, close enough that he could touch its beak. "Make thy decision now."


    Taken off guard by the wall of emerald blocking his sight, he instinctively closed his eyes and held his hands in front of himself.


    "That ¡­ Why is that moron of a purpose stuck on your hand?"


    Tom opened his eyes. "Are you talking about this teddy bear?"


    "Devoid of an ego, that thing has no place in my domain. But what of the poor souls it always forces with itself as clothing? It looks ¡ª it''s not familiar anymore. Is mine memory betraying me?" Tom a step back, but the statue moved even closer. "Quickly! The decision. Do thou want power or not?"


    "I am sorry. I don''t think I want to anymore."


    The statue made a crunching sound. "Then thou will not make it out of here alive!"


    It started opening its mouth, preparing to swallow him whole. Tom had no plans of dying, so in a quick attempt to survive, he crouched under its beak and used the teddy bear to make contact with it.


    A strange vibration rang and the entire statue jumped away from him and crashed into the wall behind. It grunted. "How dare thou try to taint mine purpose! If a challenge is what thou seek¡ª." The statue started glowing and raised its wings, but it stopped moving in the middle of it.


    Tom could feel a slight tremor.


    In the wall to the left, a small crack appeared. A small snout peeked through. Then another, followed by yet another. In synch, the snouts tore a giant hole through the wall and a weird mass of creature came into sight. It was made out of several mole-like creatures, even sharks and bears, merged together in an uncanny manner. Rows of creatures representing a mouth moved forward, and a small tentacle made out of birds reached out of the mouth and pointed towards Tom. For a moment it had its focus fully fixated on him, and then it turned towards the statue.


    The tentacle retreated inside the body, and the entire mass of creatures jumped towards the statue. The statue growled, accepting the challenge. Pieces of the wall were catapulted around the room, and Tom took the opportunity to flee.


    He ran back to the cavern where the others were waiting for him.


    "Was there something interesting there?" Maylin put on her backpack. "Tunnels made of Systemite usually tend to have dead ends. Although, there could¡ª."


    "Run. Now!"


    They looked at each other. Without asking any further questions they ran down the stairs, ignoring the tremors from behind. When they had reached the entrance to the city, Tom finally stopped to catch his breath.


    "You angered a guardian didn''t you?" Mark guessed. "There is one in almost every city. I didn''t think there would be one here since this place has no life to guard."


    Tom didn''t bother answering and just nodded.


    Maylin put her hands on her hips. "You are already out of breath? Not so athletic I see."


    "Running isn''t my thing. I am more of an academic."


    Her eyes widened. "I see. A noble path to pursue."


    The entire cavern shook, and pieces of its wall started falling down.


    Tom shook his head. "Forget it. Let us get out of here before any strange creature tries to kill us."


    They found Rachel in the same place they had left her. When he got closer, Tom realized she was saying something.


    <blockquote>


    And strange moons circle through the skies


    But stranger still is


    Lost Carcosa.


    Songs that the Hyades shall sing,


    Where flap the tatters of the King,


    </blockquote>


    "Rachel, we are back." Tom said.


    She didn''t respond, and continued.


    <blockquote>


    Song of my soul, my voice is dead;


    Die thou, unsung, as tears unshed


    Shall dry and die in


    Lost Carcosa.


    </blockquote>


    "I think she is in some kind of trance," Maylin suggested. "Is she casting a spell?"


    Tom tried thinking of a way to make her break from the trance. She wasn''t responding to them, so she couldn''t hear them. Maybe he could try gaining her attention another way? "Sorry, but could I borrow one of those crystals?"


    Mark pulled a crystal out of his basket. "Here."


    Taking the crystal in one hand, he put it on the teddy bear. A strange vibration echoed in his mind. Maylin shivered, and Mark fell to the ground, covering his head.


    "Stop it!" Mark pleaded.


    Tom tore the crystal away from the teddy bear. The vibration stopped and the crystal shattered into pieces, crumbling into dust onto the ground. Rachel''s mouth shut and she looked up at them. "Back already? Did you learn something useful?"


    "Teddy bears and system crystals don''t mix well," Tom said, brushing his hand from crystal dust. "And to never trust giant emerald statues."


    She looked at the teddy bear. "If it is that teddy bear, then it makes sense. But that has more to do with differing purposes than attracting spirits. That would rather scare them away if anything."


    "Are you alright, Mark?" Maylin said, worried.


    Mark got back on his feet. "I am fine. Just felt a little sick."


    "Sorry. I even destroyed the crystal."


    Mark laughed. "Don''t worry about it. Was an interesting experience nonetheless."


    "There is more to experience," Rachel added, putting her feet back down and reducing the size of the vehicle, shifting to a more appropriate shape. "We will have to go even deeper now."


    Maylin''s eyes widened. "Even deeper? Aren''t we well below Morpheus usual depth already? I do not mean to contest your expertise, but there is magma when you get closer to the planet''s core."


    Rachel smirked. "Are you sure about that?"


    Trusting her judgment, they traveled even further below.


    After calming his stomach, Tom saw they had arrived at a small cave. It was lit up by crystals dug into the walls, seats andsofas covered with pieces of cloth, and a ceiling twice their height.


    "Welcome to my small little cave down below." Rachel got out of the vehicle and plopped down on the sofa.


    Now Maylin was the one who gasped. "Amazing. So far below ground." She quickly regained her composure when she noticed Mark smirking, and elbowed him in retaliation.


    "But how does air even travel down here?" Tom asked.


    Rachel sighed. "Pipes and the nature of Fair Play."


    Tom didn''t understand that explanation, but he figured it was something complicated. "And why are we down here again?"


    "So you can see the firmament." She stomped her leg on the ground. A rectangular part of the floor lost its color and turned into black mud. When it retained color it had turned into translucent glass.


    Tom walked closer and bent down to look through the glass, but he only saw darkness. "There''s just a dark emptiness. I don''t see the firmament."


    "And neither do I. It has a non-physical shape. Like a bubble. You could try to fall down below but eventually you will stop and the bubble will push you back up." She sighed. "I need to get past it, somehow. But without an entertainer, it''s practically impossible."


    "An entertainer?"


    Maylin crouched down beside him. "Wow. So there actually isn''t magma down below, but a giant cave. It''s like a¡ª."


    "A Void would be a better way to explain it," Rachel finished for her. "A missing part of existence."


    "That sounds more plausible." Maylin stared at the Void again, and then at Tom. "So, are you going to do something cool now?"


    "I am working on it," Tom fumbled.


    "Maylin, give him time to focus." Mark pulled her away from Tom.


    She rolled her eyes. "Fine," and followed him to a nearby seat.


    Tom stared at the Void with no idea what to do. Couldn''t Rachel give him some help here? She just expected him to figure out how to make this third ring by himself, on his first day in another world. "Rachel, I really don''t understand what you want me to do."


    Rachel sighed. "I feel so tired. Please, can you just ¡­ understand it. I don''t know how much longer I can go for. This adventure of mine has gone on for far too long. Hope. I just need some hope." She covered her face with her hands. "Please."


    Maylin gave Rachel a worried look. "Being a tunnel explorer sure is a difficult job." She glared at Tom. "Do something already!"


    "What am I supposed to do. She¡ª." Tom grunted. He couldn''t tell her the truth. "Alright, I will give it another go."


    Tom closed his eyes, putting his focus on the Void ahead. He could feel different colors flood his mind, but the range was extremely small. The cave was full of colors, with odder combinations representing what he guessed were the other''s auras. When looking at the Void, he didn''t see any strong colors. Only a weak shade of purple here and there.


    He sighed, opening his eyes. There was only one thing left to try. The teddy bear tilted its head, looking at him. "Sorry Mark, but I think I will have to try the crystal thing again."


    Mark took out another crystal and handed it to Tom. "Don''t worry. It would suffice as payment for this opportunity. We have more than enough Systemite. Would still make us a lot of money when we manage to sell them."


    Tom mouthed thanks. When the others had gotten in a more comfortable sitting, he put the crystal on the teddy bear. Again, a strange vibration filled his mind. This time, he could see something. Out in the Void small balls of light appeared. They lit up his entire line of sight, almost hiding the entire Void. Hundreds of small balls were floating there, merged together into some kind of net. He pulled the crystal away and threw it on the floor as it turned to dust. The light slowly disappeared from his sight and turned back into darkness. "I think I saw the firmament."


    Rachel jumped back on her heat. "You did?" She stared through the glass. "I see nothing."


    "After I had the crystal make contact with this teddy bear, I saw it. A huge number of balls of light merged together into a net."


    She put her hand on her chin. "That does sound like what it is supposed to look like. Could you try doing it again?"


    Marked grunted. "Could you wait for a little before trying again?" Maylin helped him get back up.


    "Alright," Rachel responded.


    They all crouched down looking at the Void.


    Maylin tilted her head. "Are you sure you saw something?"


    "I am. We have to wait for a while."


    "Really? Then I will go back to my seat. I haven''t finished cleaning the crystals yet."


    "Wait! I think I see something approaching," Mark noted.


    They all went quiet and focused on the Void, and sure enough, something was approaching them. It looked like a small floating squid. It was using its tentacle to push its way towards them. When it got closer, it suddenly stopped, moving towards them much slower.


    "It''s moving into the firmament," Rachel said, awestruck. "How is that possible? Creations of the Ineffable shouldn''t be able to do that."


    The creature got close enough that it could touch the glass, but it didn''t. It waved a tentacle at them.


    Tom looked at Rachel. "I think it wants us to move the glass away."


    "Understood." She put her hand on the glass and it turned into black mud.


    "Erm." Maylin hesitated. "Are you sure that is a good idea?"


    Before they could argue against it, the mirror had been moved away, and they all stared at the creature.


    It slowly moved one of its tentacles toward them, and they all stared as it went around Tom''s left leg.


    Tom nervously chuckled. "Well, that''s not good."


    "Hold on. I can''t bring you back if¡ª."


    Tom''s vision blurred as he was yanked into the Void by the tentacle. The squid started moving back into the Void. Helpless, he tried to move free to no avail. A strange sensation filled his mind. A single sensation, but countless differentinterpretations of what that feeling could be overwhelmed him. His vision blurred.


    He heard shouting and saw Rachel jumping into the Void after him.


    Then he lost consciousness.

 Chapter 21: Heading towards the capital

    Chapter 21: Heading towards the capital


    <blockquote>


    Following the mortals saved by the Wandering God, I eventually found the planet they were hiding at. It was a decently sized planet. The traces of that mortal Rachel led me to what had to be the centre of power. A large capital by the sea.


    After finding a suitable vessel, I entered the capital. When reaching the central plaza, I came upon a mortal shouting to a large crowd.


    "Come on, follow along people. The Wandering God''s sermon will start soon! They have finally decided to grace us with their presence."


    Found them.


    - [Error]


    </blockquote>


    Slamming the door shut, Alice bowed before any words were spoken. "Mother, this is unexpected."


    "Don''t be nervous, child. Raise your head and come here."


    She did as told and walked towards the fairy queen Fea. The woman twice her height, sat on the guest chair. Her skin was pale white, covered with garnment switching between different colors. The most remarkable part of her was her beautiful pink hair, and the red strands of hair peeking through it. When Alice came close enough, the fairy queen pulled her closer for a hug. Fea caressed her head. It wasn''t a normal hug, something that had taken Alice a long time to understand ¡ª she was being treated like a child.


    "Poor you. This has to be tough on you. Being forced the responsibility of Commander." Fea tightened her grip, which made Alice wince. "Don''t worry child, for I am here."


    Alice gently signaled for her to stop hugging and created some distance between them. "I have missed you as well ¡­ Mother. But why are you here? Has the Hero finally decided to act?"


    "The Hero has not decided to make his move, unfortunately. His Constellation has been in disarray ever since the Demon King locked himself inside his castle."


    "The Demon King?" She gulped. "He doesn''t want to retaliate does he?"


    Fea looked at her, then laughed. "Why waste energy on something like that? No, the Demon King is no treat. She liked him and his predecessor, did she not?" Fea nodded. "That''s why they need to be left in peace so that when she returns it will be like nothing changed."


    Alice nodded. "I understand. It was foolish of me to insinuate otherwise."


    "It was. But you are a child. It is natural to make such mistakes."


    She stayed silent. The less time spent with the fairy queen, the better.


    "Actually, the high priest has proven to be quite the headache. Adamant in cleansing the demons from this world, he is. We cannot let that happen. That is why the Hero decided to give you an opportunity, as a transcendent one."


    Her heart pounded. "What kind of opportunity?


    Fea smiled, revealing her rotting teeth. "An opportunity to take the seat as a part of the Constellation. His order was word for word: ''Tell her to kill the king and destroy the World-Rune before the Sermon of Sainthood.''"


    "He¡ª." Alice fumbled. "He wants me to betray my own people?"


    Fea laughed. "Child, that¡ª." She held her mouth and coughed. Tightening her grip on the chair, and breaking the handle, she opened her mouth and started coughing. It sounded like hundreds of different voices coughing in unison. After using her mouth to forcefully widen the jaws of her vessel, the thing stuck in her throat exited. She used her clothing to clean the saliva off her mouth. "Pardon me."


    Alice stared at the floor. On the floor was the rotten corpse of a small humanoid creature with wings. It had a green color, or it looked like it used to be a green color, but a strange black mass had infested it.


    "Where was I ¡ª oh, right. No need to feel unnecessary attachment. They aren''t your people anymore, you have transcended remember? The Hero has been generous enough to allow you to live as his underling, but the humans have frankly been far too much of a problem than it''s worth. Everything was better before they arrived."


    "This is still too rash of a decision," she pleaded. "I can take over the throne, and install a puppet. And then¡ª."


    "No need," Fae interrupted. She moved her hand closer but Alice quickly moved further away. "Child, you aren''t like them. You are an extraordinary oddity, worthy enough for us to preserve. If it is too tough on you, use an enchantment on yourself to numb the useless emotions. Kill the king, and destroy the World-Rune so that pesky archangel doesn''t interfere with us again. Massacre all of the humans if you prefer to give them a painless death. When all of that is done, you can rest in my domain and slowly embrace your new role."


    Alice gulped. "And if I don''t do as he ordered?"


    Fae smiled. "The Hero gets what he wants. Be a good child and listen to the adults, okay?"


    "I don''t¡ª." Alice stopped herself. "I understand." Saying anything more felt useless.


    "Good choice. Do not forget: it has to be finished before the Sermon of Sainthood." Fae gave her a thumbs up. "And remember to have fun!" Then she slowly vanished from sight.


    The fairy queen had left, Alice could feel it. Taking a deep breath she walked over to her desk and continued going through her remaining paperwork. The orders she had been given did make her feel sick, but they weren''t surprising. This was bound to happen eventually. This was her destiny. When she returns to the capital, she would have to break her bonds to her past self for good. Destroy all that was left of humanity.


    Something within her still wanted to feel hopeful. Hopeful that reinforcement would arrive from the South. That the observers found a way to contact them. Perhaps Tom ¡ª yes, Tom was her only hope. If he doesn''t manage to convince the Otherworlders Guild to help them, then she would have no hope left.


    ***


    Tom grunted as nurses examined his body again. He felt like he had been thrown around like a rag-doll. It hadn''t been this painful yesterday.


    "This could be a side effect of the powerful authorities he came in contact with slowing down the healing process. Fortunately, it doesn''t seem life-threatening. He would only feel slightly uncomfortable. For a safe recovery, he should refrain from doing any taxing physical tasks."


    Ilona nodded, clenching her staff and staring at him. "What about his hair?"


    Tom blinked. "What happened to my hair?"


    A nurse pointed towards a nearby bucket of water. He slowly raised his back and leaned to look at his own reflection. One lock of his hair was a strange red color. The same hint of red as The Madness.


    "Could you cut it off?"


    The nurse did as he said and they all watched as the red strands of hair slowly disintegrated into nothingness.


    He brushed through his hair. "It''s likely a side effect of The Madness, but I think I have kept it at bay."


    The nurse shrugged. "If an observer says so. But you should do another checkup in the capital."


    "I will take him," Ilona said. "But I should do a few more spells for good measure."


    "Hold on¡ª."


    After pleading for Ilona to stop, he was eventually left alone. Spamming her strongest healing spells hadn''t done much for him. She had to leave soon anyway, to prepare for departure.


    Tom lay down in the bed and closed his eyes.


    "She finally left."


    He turned his head to see Hiro, sitting on the bed beside him. "Hiro, there you are. Are you ¡­ fine?"


    Hiro sighed. "Yes. I am fine."


    Tom sat up in his bed and turned towards Hiro. "It''s just that the ¡­ katana you used. Aren''t there any side effects? You technically used a part of yourself."


    "I did. Endorsement is an inherited ability of the beastkin race, the ability to endorse parts of your own being into something. However, I fortunately never endorsed part of my own being, such as physical strength or intelligence, only emotions."


    "And emotions aren''t dangerous to lose?"


    Hiro shook his head. "Emotions are a natural part of living. They come and go."


    Tom scratched his head. "But endorsing your emotions away doesn''t seem like a healthy thing to do."


    "It is common in some places in beastkin territory. Endorsing emotions into beast fury sword was how it got its name. During tribal conflicts, someone found this crystal and endorsed their anger into it. Then they molded it into a sword and killed their enemies. It is perfectly fine," he defended himself. Then he avoided eye contact. "Although, it will be much more difficult to attract spirits with my beast fury sword depleted, so I might not be as useful in a battle anymore."


    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Attracting spirits? Tom felt a weird sense of deja vu. "What does attracting spirits mean?"


    Hiro bobbed his head from side to side. "Exactly what it sounds like. Spirits represent reality but are also meaning incarnate. I don''t know how observers would explain it, but for the beastkin, it is a common concept that the most extraordinary of individuals attract the most spirits and thereby have a greater potential for strength."


    "Interesting." That was a new concept. "So someone like the Hero would have a lot of spirits congregating around him?"


    "Correct." Hiro grimaced. "However, after his betrayal, the attraction stopped. The Hero allegedly switched to another power."


    "Another power?"


    Hiro shrugged. "According to rumors. Don''t know more than that."


    Tom felt like he was slowly puzzling things together. The rules of the world went into disarray so the Mirror Maiden tried to fix that by creating new purposes, birthing the great error beasts in the process. Then the Hero betrayed everyone and shifted to another form of power; he had to talk to Sierra about that dark color she and the Hero shared.


    "Anyway. You are coming to the capital with me," Tom declared.


    Hiro flinched. "Hold on. Why am I going?"


    "If you hadn''t filled Morpheus with your negative emotions, and weakened its purpose, then I wouldn''t have been able to break it apart." Tom folded his arms. "Mark already said he would tag along to show support and say goodbyes to Ilona. I haven''t asked Sierra yet, but I am definitely dragging you along with me."


    "I am not allowed to refuse am I?"


    "Nope."


    Hiro sighed. "Fine. I have never been to the capital anyway since my mom was from the northwest territory. There would be no harm in going. Not like I can do much until I regain the spirit''s attention anyway."


    Tom nodded. "And hopefully the observers in the capital will help me enough so that we both can move past our Breakthrough. Ilona told me you were at that stage, isn''t that right?"


    "It is." He looked down. "There is no shame in trying. Why reject fate?"


    Tom smiled. This was perfect. He only had Sierra left to convince, then he could take them on an adventure to check out the South.


    "By the way," Hiro said, narrowing his eyes. "Why is there a teddy bear stuck on your hand?"


    Tom looked down. "Oh, this." He raised his hand. "Say hello to Little Bin."


    Little Bin awkwardly moved his arm back and forth.


    ***


    "Why can''t you come with us?"


    Sierra aimed her dagger and threw it at a training dummy. Bullseye. "I am literally a demon, Tom. It would be dumb of me to walk right into the enemy nation''s capital. Several years have gone by since the conflict began. With all the observers living they have obviously amped up their security against demon intruders."


    Trash hummed. "I told you. You lost the bet, and my sword better be cleaned by the end of the day. All the blood and filth on me is gross."


    "Not now Trash." He focused on Sierra. "That does kind of make sense. But ¡ª you know what, forget it. It was stupid of me to ask."


    Sierra shook her head. "No need to blame yourself. I understand where you are coming from. If I was human I would have gladly accompanied you." She put her hands on her hips. "But tell me: what is your plan moving onwards?"


    "Well, my goal had been to find a way to get out of this camp. The witch Meliel told me that I was already blessed by a higher being and needed to visit the World-Rune to change it, or at least ask for some better blessings. Afterward, I thought it would be interesting to check out the South."


    "The South? I have heard rumors of the state of humanity being more complicated there. South of the capital is also where the Rossi territory begins, so you would be able to take advantage of your persona." She nodded. "Sounds like a plan."


    "¡­ Is that all? Aren''t you going to ask for help with your cause?"


    "She can keep the weird teddy bear," Trash added.


    Little Bin moved his head towards Trash and furiously moved his arms around in protest.


    "If you lobby for ending the war in the capital, something I reckon you already will, then that would be enough. Don''t worry about me. Live your own life. Flee down to the South to pursue your own adventure if you must."


    Tom stared at her. "Are you sure there is nothing I can help you with?"


    She shook her head.


    "Stop trying to act like a Hero, that was supposed to be taboo these days, no?" She avoided his gaze. "Are you completely sure?" He tried again.


    "Well." She hesitated. "There is one thing worth looking at." Removing the bandage on her arm, she revealed a giant scar. It was made of black mud and had purple-looking veins throbbing on it.


    Trash hummed. "That''s disgusting!"


    Little Bin literally turned his head 180 degrees away from Sierra.


    Tom grimaced. "Ew, gross!"


    "I am still here you know," Sierra said.


    Tom coughed. "That looks horrible. No offense. Why haven''t you asked Ilona to check up on it?"


    "Ilona already tried healing it with no visible effect. It has to have something to do with me being a demon. If that dumb saintess had the opportunity to look further into my wound, she would for certain find out about my true identity."


    "I guess rumors must have spread by now, but did you already know she was the saintess?"


    "What are you talking about? Everyone always knew."


    His eyes widened. "Hold on. You are telling me everyone already knew Ilona was the saintess?"


    She rolled her eyes. "The girl can heal wounds in the blink of an eye and is practically a living walking lamp. Of course, everyone knew. People just tend not to be so vocal about it to distance themselves from the church. Most people think it''s some kind of new advertisement trick to boost the church''s popularity."


    Now here he thought he was special with his observer class. In hindsight, he should have realized. "But if even she can''t heal your wound, or look at it further, then what?"


    "Then what indeed."


    She had gotten that wound because she was following his plans. There was no need for her to help her own enemy in the first place. It was only right for him to help her out. "Let me look at it."


    "Feel free." She moved her arm towards him. "Hopefully my aura isn''t a complete mess."


    Closing his eyes and sensing the auras, her aura was indeed in a terrible state. Her characteristic shade of black had now strange purple lines infecting it. The purple lines moved about while the once consistent black color had gotten a hint of red whilst it moved as clumps of mud towards the purple lines buzzing about. "Yup. It''s a mess."


    She sighed. "Just my luck."


    That shade of purple did look unique. The only way he could explain it was that some kind of virus had infected her. "Any idea how you got it?"


    "I let my guard down for a moment and an error beast managed to bite me. It is common for demons to especially avoid being wounded by an error beast. I presume this is the reason why."


    "Then, if we are going to get to the bottom of this, you have to explain to me how your aura even is that shade of black." He met her eyes. "During the error cults meeting, they used a feral as a decoy to make the Hero attack it. And he did so with long rods with the same shade of black as you have. Care to explain?"


    Sierra avoided his gaze. For the first time since he had known her, she looked completely out of her element. "I am not sure if I can tell you everything. It would drag you into unnecessary trouble. But to keep it short, the sonata I have is an artificial one."


    "An artificial one? Aren''t all of them artificial?"


    "No, they are naturally made over time. According to legends, the first sonata was made when a great Singer sang her first tune, and the spirits developing a deep attraction to the beauty they saw, congregated together into a sonata to keep the beauty they had experienced eternal." She opened the palm of her hand and created a small black hole. "The Hero, in a search for power, found a strange black ideal hiding in the corners of the world. This black mass was said to be unchanging in nature, the antithesis of progress, Immutable. Embracing this new power he sought a sonata to use as a weapon." She closed her palm. "My people were involved with the experiment to create this artificial sonata."


    "And let me guess: before the Hero could take it you stole it."


    She nodded. "It doesn''t seem like the Hero had been angered since he ordered someone else to make it for him, but my people are mad since they are supposed to hand over the sonata soon. I didn''t want the Hero to get hold of such a power, it goes completely against the purpose of a sonata, so believing in the same foolish idea as my brother I stole it and traveled to the human domain."


    That did make sense. The sonata had to be tied to her aura, reflecting the same color. Or, did it really make sense? Tom wasn''t sure. Things were getting too complicated lately. But there was one thing he could understand. "Your aura used to be completely consistent, but the error beast must have infected you with a virus. The black parts of your aura seem to hate these new purple colors. Therefore, the only explanation is that your aura is out of balance." He scratched his head. "Now to fix that ¡­"


    Focusing back on her aura he tried using [stabilize]. To his horror, the aura turned into an even greater mess of trying to devour the other, and the hint The Madness in her aura grew.


    Sierra grunted.


    "Fart. Close your eyes and try to drown out the anger. Think about positive thoughts."


    She glared at him. "What does¡ª?"


    "Do it, now!"


    She closed her eyes and did as he said. He gave a sigh of relief when The Madness started to decline, somehow.


    She opened her eyes. "That was strange. I felt so angry a moment ago."


    "That was The Madness. You know, what angered Morpheus. You seem to have some of it. Or, more correctly, it seems to grow because of the black part wanting to get rid of the purple infection. I think trying to mess with your aura would do more harm than good."


    Sierra looked dejected and began re-bandaging her arm.


    "I don''t completely understand auras yet, but I could ask the other observers in the capital. They should be able to help," he suggested.


    "It''s alright. I haven''t died yet, so perhaps I could still manage with this wound. If you find something, send a letter. No need to return back here if you don''t want to."


    Tom felt like he was supposed to say something, but he couldn''t find the words. He liked Sierra, she had been his first friend in this world. Someone that knew about his true identity without trying to take advantage of him. She needed help. "Are you sure you shouldn''t think about returning back home? Maybe your brother was too optimistic after all. You have accomplished a lot and could give useful intel to your people."


    She glared at him. "My brother wasn''t an idiot!"


    "I ¡ª that''s not what I meant."


    She looked away. "I am not returning back home. I made my decision long ago, and I will have to live with it. Have fun in the capital." Then she walked away and left him alone.


    Trash hummed. "Great job making her hate you, Tom."


    "I didn''t mean to," he responded, kicking a rock on the training ground.


    ***


    Time went by quicker than he could imagine, and they arrived on the day of departure. Tom sat in a carriage together with Alice, Hiro, and Mark. Thankfully, her secretary wasn''t going with them, and Ilona had left before them.


    The carriage ride was mostly unassuming as they traveled up a bumpy road. Out the windows, he could see massive mountains on either side. "Are we in a valley?" Tom asked.


    "Yes. The capital lies at the top of the valley whilst the camp and the Void are at the bottom," Alice explained. "The locations are deliberate because it is much easier to defend against an invasion from the north."


    He noticed Hiro and Mark also staring at the mountains. It was also their first time traveling to the capital.


    The trip took several hours, but eventually they could see the capital from the window. All they could see was massive walls at the top of the valley. In the distance, he could spot several buildings with balconies facing towards them. At the bottom was a massive fortified gate. After Alice gave proof of her identity, the gates opened and they drove into the city.


    They walked out of the carriage so they could look around, and it was well worth it. The city was massive, full of countless colorful houses with each their own style. The road was made of brick with a myriad of people walking along it; he mostly saw humans but did also spot a few elves walking past. To his right he saw the city moving downwards, and to the left it moved upwards towards more even ground. None of the buildings compared to what he could see at the back of the city.


    Tom walked forward trying to get a better view, but fell down after bumping into something. It was a girl who had her entire face hidden under a cloak.


    "Sorry," she stammered. She got back on her feet and ran away.


    This city was pretty busy. Getting back on his feet he gawked at the behemoth of a castle in the background. Left of it was a cathedral; although it was smaller than the castle, since it was on a platform it reached higher in the air. That had to be the grand church Ilona was staying at.


    "Hey! Pst. Over here!"


    Tom looked around until he spotted where the voice came from. He walked towards it, feeling like his mind was about to explode. It was a vending machine. A talking vending machine. "Did you just talk?"


    "Yup. Never seen a vending machine talk before?"


    No way! Was this someone reborn in another world as a vending machine? "Do you need help?"


    "Definitely."

 Chapter 22: Politics and fun

    Chapter 22: Politics and fun


    <blockquote>


    The kingdom did not have advanced technology, but they did have magic. The classes they received from the World-Rune were the only thing they needed, yet after the conflict with the System Manipulator started, they were quick to jump ship. Regardless of how much they veered towards technology and way from magic, mana poisoning was something they would never escape from. My own invention never seemed to crack the code, the only thing that did was the demons. Those poor poor demons.


    I stared at the piles of demon horns in front of me. It would take a lot of time to find the faulty ones. "This is all your fault. Now that sword saintess even left us."


    Luther defensively put his hands in front of himself. "How would I know that would happen? You are a scientist. Find another way."


    I sighed. People always put their faith in science when creating a problem they couldn''t solve. In contrast to the past where I had shun the use of magic, I could do anything to bring it back now.


    - Veronica Goth, the Inventor


    </blockquote>


    "Stop messing with him. I know it is you," Hiro said.


    Someone giggled from behind the vending machine. Stepping out into sight was a beastkin woman. She had brown fox-like ears, wearing a garment similar to a kimono, and hiding her face behind a fan. "My apologies. I just had to try." She closed her fan and gave a bow to Alice. "Lady Alice Richardsson. It is a pleasure meeting you again."


    Alice returned the greeting. "Likewise Miss Kaze." She glared at her. "As you are an envoy from the beastkin kingdom, I am unsure if you are allowed to walk around freely in Aures, our capital."


    Miss Kaze smiled. "I know. But sometimes exceptions are necessary to be made."


    "By those in power that is." She folded her arms. "This is human territory. Have you been permitted by His Majesty and his advisors?"


    Opening her fan again, Miss Kaze ignored Alice and fixed her eyes on Hiro. "When I heard you had been allowed to travel to the capital, I just had to meet you, brother." She glanced at Mark and Tom. "And it seems like you have made a few friends. One of those blue-haired people, and the son of a Duke. Two people. Remarkable."


    "That is your sister?" Mark asked.


    Hiro nodded. "She works as a diplomat for the beastkin monarch." He glared at her. "The longest serving one in fact. I am actually looking forward to seeing how long she can keep her title. It is a popular job."


    Miss Kaze returned the glare and didn''t say anything.


    Tom looked between the both of them. There was obviously some tension there, but it would be best not to make any unnecessary enemies ¡ª just in case he could continue his EPIC ADVENTURE in the beastkin nation. "Amazing. So your sister is a diplomat. That is a prestigious job to have."


    Miss Kaze closed her fan and smiled. "I like this one."


    Alice coughed. "If we have finished exchanging pleasantries, what is the reason for you to break diplomatic protocol?"


    "Oh, I just heard a rumor recently. I am sure you know all about it." She looked at Alice with a sly grin.


    "Miss Kaze!"


    An entourage of beastkin servants ran towards her. Behind them was a palanquin carried by porcupine-like people. When they arrived by her side, she handed her fan to one of her servants who had to jump up to reach it.


    "If I have to be honest, this is a beautiful city. I wanted one last look around it. A shame difficult times are upon us, but such is the law of the jungle." She gave them another bow. "It was a pleasure meeting you all." Then she stepped into the palanquin and was carried off towards the castle.


    "Well she was nice," Mark commented. "Why have you never mentioned you had a sister? I thought you were an only child?"


    Hiro sighed. "Didn''t need to. And she is my half-sister, so we aren''t that close."


    "Looks like she is here to talk to the king." Tom looked at Alice. "Is the celebratory feast supposed to be today?"


    She shook her head. "There will be a small banquet after greeting the king. I believe the beastkin diplomat must have been invited for formalities sake."


    Tom nodded and they began making their way towards the castle. It was easy knowing when they were getting closer as fewer and fewer people walked the street and the security increased. Guards stood around keeping a look, and they had to walk through more than ten checkpoints before even getting close to the main castle wall. On top of the wall he could see machine-gun turrets peeking out, and next to the gate, supervised by a human guard, was a more elaborate-looking robot. In contrast to the trash-collecting one he had seen in Makeshift Town, this one had a sword stuck on its right hand and a gun on the other. Its eyes were blinking red, but turned yellow when it noticed them approaching.


    Alice verified her identity and they let them through. Once they had gotten through the inner walls the landscape completely changed. Massive well-kept gardens surrounded the entire castle, and a cleanly paved path led towards the castle. Even seeing it up close, his neck hurt when trying to look at its peak.


    "Is this the main entrance? Doesn''t seem fitting for nobles," Tom pointed out.


    "It''s the main entrance for dignitaries as it prevents them from bringing anything other than themselves," Alice explained. "In the back is another entrance, much easier to get into, connected to the nobles district."


    Hiro gave Tom an odd look. "Aren''t you supposed to know that already?"


    Toms scratched his head. "It has been a long time since I last was here." Then he picked up the pace.


    His legs started to hurt, but eventually they arrived at the castle and entered. The floor was marble and the walls were glistening gold. Countless artifacts decorated the hallways, including the occasional demonic horns hanging on the wall.


    They were led into a massive ballroom filled to the brim with people.


    Tom turned confused to look at the doors closing behind them. "Aren''t they supposed to inform the attendees of our arrival?"


    "That is only the case on more formal occasions. The tradition was discontinued because the commoners thought it was a sign of self-importance rather than formality."


    His eyes widened. "They listen to the commoner opinion here?"


    She shook her head. "Not exactly. It started after rebels began bombing these kinds of events. Don''t misunderstand, if they could, the nobles wouldn''t care about the commoners. It is more a sign of paranoia. Why risk dying to a rebel attack for a simple gathering when such risk could be served for the most important and well-guarded ones?"


    In the middle of the ballroom, they saw a crowd forming. Walking up to it Tom saw they were all standing around someone.


    A noblewoman wearing a red dress was standing alone with her fist clenched. "How dare you spout such nonsense!"


    In front of her was a nobleman with another noblewoman in his arms. The girl whimpered and buried her face in the nobleman''s chest. "She threatened me."


    "Threatened?" She growled. "I was only explaining etiquette to you."


    Tom nudged Alice. "Let me guess. That guy is the crown prince and he is cheating on his fiance."


    She bobbed her head back and forth. "That sums it up. Lady Helia is the daughter of Marquess Rosban. I don''t envy her position at all."


    "But, like," he hesitated. "Isn''t it usually the daughter of the duke that gets engaged to the prince? I heard there are only two dukes left."


    She nodded. "Someone of higher standing would have been a more fitting choice. I used to be engaged to the prince, but after another duke''s family lost their standing, as the only child from house Richardson, the engagement was annulled since it would lead to the end of our family."


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    The crown prince pointed at lady Helia. "How dare you harm her in your jealousy?"


    She gasped. "Jealousy? It''s the third girl this month, I can hardly keep track of them to develop a grudge."


    Tom looked back at Hiro and Mark. "Pay attention guys. The prince is going to ask for annulling their engagement and she will be momentarily ostracised from high society. Then she will find another suitor who is a much kinder person and find her happy ending, while the crown prince will grow bitter and resentful."


    Hiro blinked. "That was awfully specific."


    "This is the last straw. I will go to His Majesty and ask for an annulment of our engagement." Then he turned around and wandered off with the other lady in his arms.


    The entire crowd gasped and started whispering amongst each other.


    Lady Helia slowly reached her arm towards the prince, then retreated it, and shook her head.


    "Wow! It actually happened," Mark said.


    Tom smirked. "I am an observer after all." He walked out of the crowd and signaled for Alice to follow.


    When lady Helia saw them approaching she fixed her hair and gave them a bow. "It is a pleasure seeing you again lady Richardson."


    Alice gave a nod. "Likewise.


    "And you sir, I don''t recall your name."


    "Oh, erm ¡ª I am Tomassio Rossi."


    Her eyes widened. "Lord Rossi. I see. Are you here to make fun of me?"


    Tom shook his head. "No, no. I just came to remind you that you can do better than that guy."


    "¡­ Pardon?"


    "Hey, Alice. Tell her how much of a jerk the prince is."


    Alice smiled. "The prince can indeed be a lot to deal with. Finding another suitor could be a blessing in disguise."


    Lady Helia stared at Tom. "Are you really Tomassio Rossi? I must be dreaming."


    Tom shrugged. "Come on, people change, and so can you."


    She sighed. "But he is the crown prince. Such an attitude is normal to deal with. I doubt His Majesty will accept the annulment." She gave them another bow. "I have to leave now. It was a pleasure meeting you both." Then she left.


    Tom moped. "I think we scared her off."


    "She needs some time for herself," Alice pointed out. "I heard otherworlders used to be very invested in the relationship dramas of high society. Looks like it was true."


    "Everyone enjoys a little drama. And a dumb crown prince is such a clic¨¦."


    The whispering around them intensified.


    "Is that lord Rossi and lady Richardson?"


    Someone gasped. "Farting space, being a soldier really is terrible for your facial structure."


    "So the rumors were true. And he defeated a great error beast? Remarkable."


    A nobleman scoffed. "He probably took the honor of someone else''s feat. Look at the two soldiers trailing him."


    "Let us head to the throne room," Alice said. "His Majesty should have been notified of our arrival already. It would be best to not leave him waiting."


    They followed her out of the ballroom through several doors until they arrived in front of two massive doors. The doors opened revealing a throne room with a ceiling reaching towards the sky.


    "Introducing lady Alice Richardson and lord Tomassio Rossi." The guard glanced at Mark and Hiro. "And others."


    Sitting on the throne was an old man. Emphasis on the old. His face was filled with wrinkles and his eyes shut close. On his head was an emerald crown giving a weird humming sound. Standing in two rows beside the throne were all the attendees.


    When they arrived in front of the throne, Alice signaled for him to bow. "Greetings to the light of the empire Your Majesty." Tom awkwardly mumbled along to what she was saying.


    The king smiled. "You both are finally back from that dreadful camp. I hope everything has been well, Alice?"


    "No rash actions from the demon yet, Your Majesty. They are keeping their distance as you hoped."


    "Perfect. And you, Tomassio? Not only did you return from the South without an audience with me, but you headed straight towards the camp. What is your explanation?"


    Tom hesitated. "I had to fulfill my duty, Your Majesty. As it was expected from all citizens of this great kingdom."


    The king nodded to himself. "Hm, good, good. We shall speak later, and the banquet will be held as a precursor to the Sermon of Sainthood. Defeating the great error beast Morpheus was quite the feat, Tomassio. On behalf of the kingdom, I congratulate you for your feat."


    "Uhm. Thanks."


    The king smiled and they stood up. Several of the attendees curiously eyed him as they found their place on the side of the throne. Their eyes moved to look at the teddy bear peeking out of his pocket. Tom had moved Lil Bin there to keep his hand free, and he seemed to enjoy it more than flinging around on Tom''s hand.


    "Now, for the dignitaries from the beastkin empire. I heard there was something important your monarch wished to inform us of?"


    Miss Kaze walked in front of the throne and bowed. "Greetings Your Majesty. I have indeed arrived with an urgent message, and it relates to the kingdom transgressions upon our land."


    The king looked taken aback. "Transgressions? I believe we already settled a truce if it pertains to the Green Gap"


    She shook her head. "That is not what I am referring to you. It is defeating the great error best Morpheus I am referring to."


    "Morpheus? What concern does the king of the jungle have with such?"


    "This information has always been kept confidential, but there is no reason to anymore. The beast fury crystals that are mined from the southern part of our territory." She smirked. "The same crystal the kingdom so desperately needs, enough to be willing to smuggle them out of our land, has one crucial component. Morpheus himself."


    The king gripped the throne. "Elaborate."


    "Of course. Morpheus has always been deemed a nuisance, but there was a reason why no steps were taken to defeat it. When it digs its tunnels close to the Void, due to the ore-rich environment in our southern territory, rows of caves are filled with smoke from the Void. From our research, over time the Void turns the otherwise normal ores into what we know as beast fury crystals. Since Morpheus is no more, this process has been discontinued. The king of the jungle is not pleased, to say the least."


    The king moved forward on the throne. "Surely there is a way to repeat the process? Dig artificial tunnels to let the smoke in."


    She nodded. "Perhaps so. But the amount of resources and time it would take would still greatly impact our operations. That''s not even mentioning the error cultists who constantly seek to collapse as many tunnels as they can, even resorting to blowing themselves up. Morpheus used to offset such setbacks. That is why I am here to send this message¡ª." Raising her head, she looked directly at the king. "On behalf of the beastkin nation of Zou, we formally declare war on the kingdom of Boreas."


    "War?" The king stammered. "Surely there could be diplomatic means to this conflict?"


    Miss Kaze shook her head. "I am afraid he has already made up his mind. As per the notion of this kingdom honor, the last goodwill he was willing to offer, the war will begin at the end of the year." She gave a short nod. "That is all," and casually walked back to her place.


    The entire throne room was turned into chaos. People were whispering amongst each other with concern in their eyes.


    "The king is too weak to lead a war," a nobleman said. "Perhaps Duke Richardson should take the throne?"


    Another attendee scoffed. "My lord, he does not have the right to the throne. We must still keep our faith in the crown prince. Once his marriage is over with, his foolishness will surely leave him, and he will rise to take on this problem."


    "Are you sure sire?" A noblewoman said. "He barely managed to pass the academy, not to mention that he never managed to achieve any accomplishment even close to that of lord Rossi."


    "The same Rossi who unintentionally started a war. He should have let the error beast be. The crown prince will save us."


    Tom looked at Alice and the others. "I take no responsibility for that. How should I have known?"


    "Don''t worry. The king of the beastkin was always looking for an excuse to start a war. It isn''t your fault," Alice reassured him.


    Hiro nodded. "She is correct. The king of the jungle is a warmongering buffoon. It is why I left."


    "And the beastkin nation lies in the south-eastern continent, doesn''t it? The kingdom would have to defend itself from the demons in the north and the beastkin in the south."


    Hiro stared at Tom. "I think you are mixing them up with another beastkin tribe. It is the beastkin, not the beastkin."


    Tom really found the translation of this world confusing. There were two types of beastkin? "And where does this beastkin kingdom lie?"


    "On the other side of the Void," Hiro said.


    His eyes widened. "Really? The Void has always seemed so endless."


    "Well, it isn''t. The beastkin lands is on the other side, and between them is the Colony."


    "The Free Port Cities," Mark corrected.


    "Yeah, that. They were occupied by the kingdom to create a buffer between the two nations. The Second Void War was the first time the two nations entered a conflict. Ever since there has been a stalemate."


    Alice nodded. "And that stalemate is now over."


    Tom looked at her. "Just so you know, I am only dealing with the demons."


    She avoided his eyes. "Understood."


    Huh, she accepted it just like that? Tom was expecting her to use her leverage since he was an otherworlder and all, but it looked like he was free to¡ª.


    "But there is one more task I need you to do. I will tell you after this."


    Tom sighed. Of course, there it was.


    The door to the throne room opened, and the prince walked in. Beside him was another nobleman slouching and looking at the ground as he walked. Trailing behind was lady Helia.


    "Announcing crown prince Neus, prince Arthur, and lady Helia."


    Tom looked curiously at the second prince. His entire posture was off and he looked terribly weak, but he did have something that looked like an aura sword tied to his waist.


    "Neus, you are finally here," the king said, relieved.


    The crown prince didn''t bother to respond and walked over to the throne without bowing. "Your Majesty, there is a serious request I have to ask for you."


    All eyes in the room were fixated on the crown prince.


    "What request?" The king responded, standing up from his seat.


    The crown prince pointed at lady Helia. "I wish to annul my engagement with lady Helia."


    The king was motionless, then sighed and sat back on his throne. "Not this again. We do not have time for this."


    Staring at the crown prince bickering with the king, those showing their support for the prince had a grim expression on their faces. Miss Kaze had forgotten to raise her fan and was grinning from ear to ear, watching the weakened leadership of the kingdom.


    ***


    After the crown prince had given up trying to annul his engagement, the audience with the king was over, and everyone left the king alone to sit on his throne surrounded by his panicked advisors.


    Leaving the castle the opposite way they entered, they all arrived at the nobles district. Tom stared in awe at the residency ¡ª a giant mansion which made the nobles barracks look like a cottage in comparison. The style was Victorian and maids stood waiting outside to greet them. Standing outside the door was a noblewoman. Her eyes were dull and her face expressionless.


    Alice bowed. "Greetings, Mother. I hope you have been well?"


    "Greetings." The duchess didn''t bother saying anything else to her daughter. She looked at Tom and the other. "It is an honor to have young lord Rossi stay in our estate. I was informed the Rossi estate is under renovation. You and your servants are welcome here."


    Tom awkwardly shook his head. "They aren''t my servants. They are fellow soldiers from the camp."


    The duchess stood there silent. "Of course, my apologies."


    "No worries," Tom responded.


    Entering the estate they were immediately led to the dinner table where Tom saw the strangest assortment of food he had ever seen: chocolate in wheat, blue bread, and pizza made as cake. The food tasted surprisingly good.


    After they had finished eating, they were led to their sleeping quarters. Before Tom could retire for the night, Alice led him away to an empty room and made him sit on the couch.


    "Now, let me explain how you can help this kingdom from collapsing."


    Tom sighed. "Of course."

 Chapter 23: The World-Rune

    Chapter 23: The World-Rune


    <blockquote>


    After the disastrous encounter with the System Manipulator, the entire kingdom was thrown into disarray. With the world''s authority being contested by a growing number of higher beings, securing humanity''s safety grew difficult. As the only sentient World-Rune left, there was no one left to call out for. That is not even mentioning my chosen representative, Lyra Songbird, the sword saint, who chose to leave this world due to a mistake out of her control.


    In order to protect humanity, drastic decisions were made. Decisions that gradually lead to the weakening of my own authority. Spirits are a stubborn existence whose only intrigue in humanity relates to their legacies. Once that was gone, there would be no other way to receive their favor. This dilemma needs to be solved before the kingdom turns into the same state as that of the South. Dear otherworlder, you have to destroy the Ley Line.


    - ???


    </blockquote>


    "I don''t get why we have to do this now. It isn''t like the kingdom is going to collapse now. We have enough time to think this through."


    Trash hummed. "Agreed. Diplomacy is so boring. Just fight already."


    Alice folded her arms. "That won''t do," she said and paced around the room. "This otherworlders guild has to be the key to solving this situation. If they can help by doing ¡­ something, then it would be worth any risk."


    "And that''s why you want me to travel to the South?" Tom coughed. "I appreciate your trust in me, but I still haven''t moved past my Breakthrough yet. I am still missing my third ring too. Can''t I get more time?"


    She stopped and mumbled something to herself. "Alright. Before the Sermon of Sainthood, you have to make contact with the otherworlders guild. I will try and do something myself" Then she sped towards the door, slammed it open, and ran through the hallway.


    "What has gotten into her?"


    Tom shrugged. "No idea."


    He was planning on taking it slow, learning more about his observer role, and then ditching Alice by fleeing to the South. But she was practically pushing the task of leaving to the South on him. Ever since they were allowed to travel to the capital, she had been acting so weird. And this otherworlders guild¡­


    "Do you really think there is a secret society of otherworlders out there? Hiding from sight."


    Trash hummed. "Does it matter? Focusing on getting stronger would be the best action to take right now. Please don''t do something weird and get arrested again."


    He rolled his eyes. "I didn''t get arrested on purpose." Stretching out his arms, he yawned. "I''ll have to work on progressing tomorrow." As the supposed son of the Duke, he had free access to much of the capital. It was about time he met with one of his fellow observers.


    ***


    The guard gave him another ugly look. "For the last time, lord Rossi, none may speak to His Majesty''s observers."


    "But why?" He finally found the place they stayed at, the observers guild in the nobles sections, but it was a giant closed-off tower.


    "The observers here directly work under the king. You may find some other observers to talk to," another guard said.


    Tom raised his eyebrow. "I was told practically all the kingdom''s observers are working under the king. There are no other observers for me to find!"


    The guards just looked at each other and shrugged.


    "We simply follow orders."


    With no more luck getting through to them, he walked away. How was he supposed to learn about being an observer now?


    In the corner of his eye, he saw a group of white-clothed people. Walking closer he noticed a familiar face. "Ilona. There you are."


    She turned to look at him and smiled. "Tom. I thought I would find you here." Saying something to a priest, they all left and she walked over to Tom. "Where are the others?"


    "I was planning on talking other observeres today, so I told them to go out and check the capital for themselves." He gave an annoyed look at the guards behind him, who didn''t look faced at all with the saintess in front. It didn''t look like he could use her clout for access. "But it seems I will have to talk to them another day. What are you up to?"


    "Preparing for the Sermon of Sainthood, of course. The date is approaching swiftly and I have to decide of a proper way to share my blessing with the populace."


    "The Sermon of Sainthood." Alice had told him to finish up his task before that date. "What does it entail?"


    The smiled. "I am glad you asked. It is a ritual held by the saintess connected to the capitals World-Rune, which is me of course. The collective will of the people will beat in unison, and the World-Runes blessing will shine on them anew."


    "¡­ Could you explain it in more simpler terms?"


    She hesitated. "Think of it like recalibrating the connecting between the World-Rune and the populace. It is also the day, if there is no living saintess, where one is chosen."


    "I see." He scratched his head. "You must be busy."


    "Not that busy. I could use a break. Didn''t you say that you wanted to see the World-Rune? I can take you."


    His eyes widened. "Yeah, the World-Rune. But will I still be able to converse with it without having reached by Breakthrough."


    "For the faithfull anything may be possible. But alas, none should be too arrogant as to wish for the will of the divine to bend to their will."


    "¡­ So it''s a maybe?"


    She nodded. "Yes, pretty much."


    Leaving the nobles district, they walked along a path connected to the grand church. The building had a significant height compared to the castle, but instead of traveling further up, Ilona led him down flights of stairs to a basement level.


    After they passed through two giant gates, they were inside a giant dome with a massive white crystal in the centre. It looked milky white, but when they got closer, he could see small shifting colors inside it. There was an open circular window at the top of the crystal, and the rest of the room was covered in pure white marble, distinguishing the crystal even more due to the flickering lights.


    Ilona nodded back to the the people greeting her and led him towards an elevated circular platform in front of the World-Rune. Seeing it close up the sea of different colors inside was even more visible. It was almost like seeing an aura in the real world.


    "So this is the World-Rune." He looked at Ilona. "How do I ask it to give me a cooler blessing?"


    She clasped her hands. "Praying. If your wishes are accepted by the archangel, then it will come true."


    "Praying it is then." He awkwardly got down on his knees and closed his eyes.


    Recalling how much of a pain his adventure had been so far, he prayed to the World-Rune for an OP power to make this isekai worth it. Strangely enough, he could sense a humming sensation, as if the World-Rune was trying to tell him something, but besides the odd gibberish word he couldn''t understand what it was saying.


    "I don''t understand what it is trying to say. The words aren''t coming through."


    "You are hearing words?" She said, confused. "Most people only feel emotions and sudden bursts of knowledge when they receive a boon."


    He opened his eyes and looked at her. "What do you mean? Aren''t you able to talk to the archangel? You are the saintess."


    "Even though the World-Rune functions as the physical tether for the archangel, speaking with the World-Rune mostly means in terms of emotion and information. Having a conversation with the archangel instead is much more difficult. It is not something I have been able to do." She sighed. "The previous saint, sword saint Lyra Songbird, was able to speak with the archangel at will. This must be one of the many reasons why people don''t like me." She stared at the floor.


    "I don''t think they hate you that much. Aren''t you one of the people? And surely you try to help out once in a while?"


    She hesitated. "Even though I am the saintess, the head priest Nelic is the one in charge of finances. I am not allowed to do much besides acting as a figurehead."


    "Yeah, then I see why people hate you."


    She crouched down and buried her face. "I am horrible."


    Trash hummed, making him resonate with the feeling of shame. Around them, people were staring at him and whispering to each other.


    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    Tom quickly helped Ilona back up. "Come on. It can''t be that bad. What about taking a trip to the city to check out your old place? I haven''t been able to see around the capital much anyway."


    "¡­ My old place?" She hesitated. "There is not much to see there for you."


    He shook his head. "Doesn''t matter. Since the observers will be difficult to reach and the World-Rune silent, I have nothing else to do today anyway besides waiting for Alice to get free. A sightseeing trip would be nice."


    Ilona nodded. "If you say so." Wait here for a minute. I will go get changed into something that would make me blend in better."


    After a while, she returned wearing a cloak. He had no idea how that outfit was supposed to be less suspicious, but he went along with it. They traveled to the main road he had already been on, then she led him to the north-western part of the capital. The number of people walking along the street plummeted, and eventually, they arrived at an elevator.


    "An elevator?"


    She nodded. "A part of the capital has a much lower elevation than the rest. Some people say it''s natural, whilst others say wicked otherworlders sunk the land. Either way, Botside is where the poor congregate.


    They went inside the elevator, and Tom looked out the small hole in the elevator with his mouth agape. The difference in architecture with the rest of the capital was stark. Here he saw a much more diverse assortment of foreign architecture. Colored abstract domed buildings he had never seen before, small cottages that looked out of place, and even Japanese style buildings. In the distance he could also spot a few skyscrapers.


    "This looks like where all the influence from otherworlders went."


    "More precisely, the parts of the city that couldn''t afford to renovate buildings to discard the otherworlders influence. Here, most of the buildings were abandoned, with no plans for maintenance, left to crumble from the work of time."


    The elevator reached the ground with a thud, and they walked out into the street.


    Crowds of people were making their way through the streets. Their clothes did not look well mentioned, he he did actually see a lot of people wearing cloaks. Rather then Ilona standing out, he was with his purple uniform. As they made their way through the street, he saw several beggars on the street. Some of them looked pale and weren''t moving.


    "It must have been difficult to get food here and make a living."


    "Not really. It wasn''t," she said, with a hint of nostalgia. "If one knew their way around the capital, then it was manageable. Rather than hunger, most of the people here pass due to mana poisoning."


    "Mana poisoning?" He repeated. "That must be because of all the trash around. Bad hygiene and such. I learned a bit about it from Misha from the trash collection elective."


    "Trash is one of the many causes, but even when the street was clean, the mana poisoning would not go away. That is why people stopped bothering to take care of this place. A curse from the otherworlders it must be, one that I haven''t been able to figure." She tightened her fist. "That is another reason why they don''t like me. I know what they all are going through, yet I haven''t been able to find a way to fix it."


    Tom stayed silent. It being a curse from otherworlders could obviously not be true. But mana poisoning not only coming from the trash or excrement of people didn''t make sense from what he knew. Mana poisoning in itself was from clumps of spiritual energy. He couldn''t understand how they would appear naturally. And why in only one part of the capital?


    They arrived statue of a female knight, with a real sword held in its hands. Ilona sat down on the bench in front of the statue and sighed. "I need a small break. Perhaps if it try purifying the air again then it could help? Or ¡ª you are an observer. Maybe you will be able to notice the problem?"


    Tom sat down beside her and tried sensing the surrounding auras using [see area]. The visages of buildings and people, with the Ley Line flowing through. "Sorry. I don''t sense anything out of place."


    She looked defeated and didn''t say anything.


    "Can''t you lobby for the church and the nobility to help the people here? If the place in itself is the reason why, then relocating everyone to new homes shouldn''t be a problem. You could even have some of them move to places outside of the capital to get a new chance at life."


    "I tried," she said. "But everyone sees me as a fool.


    "Then fight them." He pointed at the statue behind them. "She seemed respectable enough, and it has to be because she picked up the sword."


    "I ¡­ can''t. I am cursed, forbidden from picking up violence. Healing using the power of the archangel is all that I can do."


    He tilted his head and looked at her. "What do you mean?"


    She looked around the place to make sure that no one was paying attention. Then she turned and reached her hand towards the sword the statue was carrying. Instantly small balls of light appeared out of nowhere. Tom looked in amazement at the colorful balls with small shifting shapes within them, giving off an extremely weak humming sound. Then she retracted her arms making it all disappear.


    "That was amazing. Spirits. I could see spirits."


    She nodded. "Even before I was chosen as the saintess, every time I would try to pick up a weapon, they would reappear, warning me."


    "Are you sure?" He said.


    "I am. High priest Nelic explained it to me. He also told me about his ambition for greater influence, something you have already experienced with those calling themselves gods knights. Using the lord''s name in vain is a sin, but the high priest looks the other way."


    "Can''t you remind everyone of those virtues? The teaching you always talk about?"


    Her eyes looked empty. "Then I would lose support from within the church, and they would surely blame me for anything bad that would inevitably take place. The populace hating me enough to support my execution, so a new saintess can be chosen, is also something that could happen. There is nothing I can do. Even with the strongest healing skills, and being able to heal life-threatening wounds with ease; this is a problem I can''t mend." She gulped. "Me having no power to change anything is also why I agreed to ignore the ultimate taboo at the Sermon of Sainthood: I will attempt to summon an otherworlder."


    His eyes widened. "Summoning an otherworlder? Doesn''t everyone hate otherworlders? From what I know it was the previous generation of otherworlders and the Hero that made the world into a mess."


    "I know it is a horrible decision, but what other options are there? According to the head priest, the other saints from the rest of the World-Runes have already attempted to summon an otherworlder. He told me it would only be one, with a fated redemption they all needed. With the conflict with the demons, and the beastkin declaring war, we have to do something. And, if things turn out bad, he told me the god''s knights would kill the otherworlder on the spot."


    Tom scratched his head. "This still sounds fishy to him."


    He himself had been summoned to a random place in this world. If the rest of the saints were summoning otherworlders, then one of them could have been the one who accidentally summoned him. If so, maybe one more fellow otherworlder wouldn''t be that bad.


    "Don''t worry. I will join the sermon in case something bad happens. Maybe they could be able to help the kingdom?"


    She sighed. "I don''t believe so. But if this is the last job for me as a saintess, then so be it. I can''t handle being useless anymore."


    "You''re not¡ª"


    "I know," she cut him off. "I am just accepting my own inability to do the impossible. She stared at the sky, which was beginning to darken. "We should head back. I have something to take care of, but you could check out the main street. As I knew, the sightseeing trip here wasn''t worth it."


    He didn''t say anything else and followed her back to Topside, and the main street. She left on her own.


    Feeling tired, he walked into a nearby alleyway, leaned himself by the wall, and sighed. All he wanted was a stereotypical isekai adventure, but with all this tension and information he was learning, it was getting so complicated. Maybe he should listen to Alice and travel straight to the South. Sierra even said it was fine, but it felt wrong to leave her behind. That wound she had gotten did look horrible, and he did accidentally insult her brother. And he couldn''t leave behind Ilona. She was going to summon a new otherworlder to this world. He had no clue what kind of otherworlder would appear, but maybe it was the companion he needed for his adventure.


    "Oh my. Someone help me!"


    Outside the alleyway, he saw an old woman struggling to keep a hold of her purse from the grasp of a masked figure.


    Tom smirked. And unsheathed Trash. "Time to take out the trash!"


    "Oh," Trash hummed, exited. "That one was good."


    He put Trash close to the hooded man''s throat, who instantly let go of the purse.


    "Woah! Careful there. I have a family."


    Tom raised an eyebrow. "That excuse won''t work with me, thief. Now ¡ª ouch!" He looked to the side and realized the old lady had hit him with her purse. "What are you doing?"


    "What are YOU doing?" She repeated. "Leave that poor child alone. He is only following his profession."


    "Profession? Stealing is a crime, isn''t it?"


    The thief shook his head. "Actually, I would rather describe it as art. Dangerous art."


    The old lady hit him again. "Now stop it."


    Tom retracted the blade and looked confused at the old lady. "What even is your problem? I was trying to save you from getting robbed."


    "Are you part of the city watch?" She asked.


    "No."


    She hit him again. "You and your fellow social justice warriors are a scum on earth. Why are you trying to act like that wicked Hero? Keep this kind of work for the city guard."


    "Now listen here you¡ª"


    "Did someone ask for help?"


    They all looked up and saw someone standing on the roof of a building, wearing a huge fedora, with their entire body hidden under a long black cloak.


    "Who are you?" Tom asked.


    "Me?" The man made a dramatic pose, putting their hand in front of one of their eyes. "I am¡ª." A massive explosion thundered from behind him. "Oblivion!"


    Desperate cries echoed from behind him where the building had exploded. The one who called himself Oblivion ignored it and seamlessly floated down to them.


    The old woman clasped her hands together. "Oh, mister Oblivion. It''s you!" She pointed at the hooded assailant who had his hands in the air, seemingly already giving up. "There is the thief." Then she threw a glare at Tom. "And that one is a wretched wannabe Hero."


    Tom gasped. "What the space? I helped you! And this Oblivion does not at all look like he is part of the city guard. Why don''t you have anything against him?"


    "Because he isn''t trying to act like the Hero. He is a superhero," she said matter-of-factly.


    He grunted. "That is kind of the same thing."


    The old lady hit him again. "How dare you compare a great superhero such as Oblivion to that wretched Hero!"


    "Please calm down, young lady," Oblivion said, making the old woman blush. He pointed his hand at the thief. "[Greater Restraint]." Metal chains appeared out of his hand and tied the thief in an instant. He gave a simple nod to Tom before taking the old lady''s arm. "Let me escort you home."


    She held on tightly to his arm and giggled as they left with the thief caught.


    "What even happened? A superhero? How ¡ª there is no difference with the concept of heroism," Tom complained.


    "There is a small difference," a voice behind him said.


    He turned around and saw a girl hidden under a cloak. "The Hero is one individual everyone puts their faith in, whilst the capitals superheroes are numerous, Oblivion the most popular one of them all. People appreciate help, but not being chained under their legacy."


    "Are you another dumb superhero then?" He glared at her. "I want no part of that nonsense."


    She moved her arm in front of herself. "No, no. I am no superhero." She took off her hood, revealing her blonde hair. "Only an observer." She looked at him. "You are one too, aren''t you? We first thought it was some joke. How was the son of a Duke an observer? But your aura does indeed look like that of an observer."


    He nodded, hesitating. "I am suffering from a mild case of amnesia right now, but I am an observer. Although, not an observer enough to be allowed to talk to other observers. Those guards at your place didn''t let me inside."


    "Oh, that place is merely where we pretend to stay. The nobles sought to confine us in paranoia. Finding a way out was quite easy." She started walking back into the alleyway and signaled for him to follow. "We have been expecting you for a while now."


    He stumbled after her until she stopped in front of a manhole. She crouched down and effortlessly moved it aside.


    "You guys stay in the sewers?"


    She shrugged. "Easy way to travel across the capital." Then she began descending and waved for him to follow.


    After entering the sewers he held his nose from the stench. "Hold on. Aren''t we at risk of getting mana poisoning here?"


    "Yup. But observers have a slightly better resistance."


    "¡­ Slightly."


    He followed her through the sewers holding his nose, until they arrived at a dead end. She put her hand on the wall. It shook and moved backward, revealing a secret door. Sneaking through they entered a dark room.


    "Why is there no light?" He said, with no response. He tried squinting and realized the girl wasn''t beside him anymore. "Where did you go?"


    A bright light pointed at him. Tom instinctively closed his eyes and used his hands to shield them from the bright light. "What the space?" After readjusting his eyes to the light, he saw a huge group of people surrounding him, each of them with their own gun aimed at him.


    In front of him, standing closer, was a middle-aged woman with her shotgun pointed at his head. "You don''t fool us, you fake." She spit on the ground and glared at him. "Morphling."

 Chapter 24: One observer among many

    Chapter 24: One observer among many


    <blockquote>


    "Are you sure about this?" Lyra asked, taking another peek past the curtains.


    The loud chattering of the crowd was impossible to ignore. I didn''t blame them. The opportunity of seeing a god with their own eyes was unheard of. Although not everyone was convinced, with the sword saints stamp of approval, words of the Wandering God holding a sermons had travelled far and wide. From what one of the archangels told Lyra, a strange girl had tried talking to the head librarian of the royal library of Boreas, killing him in the process. That could only be the System Manipulator. Words of the sermon should have reached them, and now they had to make use of this opportunity.


    "I am sure." I fastened the helmet on and checked the rest of the armour. Dragonsteel. Light as a feather, and painted with the glittering paste of concentrated divine essence. This disguise did look convincing. "If I act as the bait, then we will be able to lure them out."


    She nodded. "If you say so."


    Taking a deep breath, I moved the curtains aside and walked into the balcony. Before me was an enormous crowd covering every nock and cranny of the plaza. The moment I came into sight, the crowd turned silent. I did not bother with any theatrics. After arriving to this world I had taken the class of sharpshooter and quickly worked my way to level 50 past the levelling cap. With [far sight] and [perfect precision] my eyes shifted between the different faces. Something that had become apparent from all of their different encounters with the System Manipulator was that their enemies appearance did not change. Nonchalantly standing at the back of the crowd was a young girl. The same young girl that I remembered.


    "Lyra. There she is. Tell¡ª." Blood gushed out of my mouth. My vision blurred as I looked down. A lance had penetrated my chest, painting the surroundings in my own blood.


    Gasping for air, I turned around to see Luther smirking. Lyra stood there with a horrified expression, the blue circle of a binding skill surrounding her.


    "You shouldn''t have tried cosplaying a hero," Luther said, and pulled the lance out of me.


    I collapsed on the ground, holding on to my stomach, and panting. Not a single coherent thought, only the pain consumed me as the world started to darken.


    A loud crash echoed and Lyra appeared kneeling on top of me. "Rachel, hang in there!" She stretched out her hand, creating a strong white glow. "Heal for heavens sake!" The brightness intensified, but the pain was still there. "Come on, come on. Why can''t I heal when it matters?" The bright light disappeared and I could feel tears trickling down on my face. Healing was never Lyra''s strong suit. " Archangel, please help me! I will do anything!"


    Perfect. Everything had gone according to plan.


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    "Please! I am not a Morphling!"


    The woman glared at Tom. "There is no use lying. One bullet from this gun, made specifically to deal with the likes of you, is all that it would take."


    "What if I prove it to you?"


    She raised an eyebrow. "Really? Well, fine then. Become water."


    He stared at her. "You want me to ¡­ become water?"


    Lowering the gun, she took a step closer to him. "You can use my aura if you need to. Just focus on becoming water."


    He had no idea what she was talking about. Becoming water? That did not make sense. But with no choice, he closed his eyes and tried to sense her aura. It was a cloud, as auras always were. Around it, compressing it to a smaller size than his own, were four translucent rings. She was definitely an observer, one that had reached their Breakthrough stage at that.The only thing out of place was the color of the aura. It had the same hint of blue as water, although the intensity of the color was a bit off.


    Looking at his own aura, it was a cloud of multiple colors. Using [blend] the cloud moved and changed colors, but it wasn''t a single color as the woman''s aura. Also focusing on her aura, he tried doing the same technique he had done to Morpheus by mixing the colors and stabilizing them with his own. "[Mirror]." Nothing happened. Her aura must already be averaged out.


    "Close," the woman said. "Try doing it more times."


    Following her suggestion he repeatedly used [Mirror] whilst blending his own aura. Nothing happened to her aura, but his own aura gradually started to compress and shifted into a more bluish-color palette. Before he knew it, his aura had become completely blue. Immediately he felt a strange feeling. As if his entire body could fall down into liquid form at any moment.


    Opening his eyes he was relieved to see his body in solid form. "Did I do it? Am I ¡­ water?"


    She smiled and put her gun in her holster. "Congratulation. You have now become water."


    A sigh of relief spread across the crowd as they unloaded their guns and went their way. A few curious spectators did stay putting their guns on a nearby table.


    "But that doesn''t make sense. How can we be water? Aren''t spirits and auras supposed to reflect reality? We both still look human."


    One of the bystandards, the girl that had brought him here, raised her hand and waved it. "Oh, can I answer, Miss Hilda? Please?"


    More hands were raised by the people around, each of them looking at the woman in front of him. Tom quickly took a look at their auras, and all of them had average-looking auras as an observer would. However, the amount of rings around their auras varied. Some of them had three rings, others two rings like himself, and a few had none at all. What he was sure of was that the woman in front, Hilda, was the most proficient observer.


    Hilda nodded at the girl. With a disappointed grunt, the rest of them put down their hands.


    "Why does Mirabell always get to answer the cool questions?" A boy around her age asked.


    A girl nodded. "Yeah, she was the one who brought him here too!"


    "Now, now. She raised her hands first, and don''t worry; I am sure there would be plenty of more interesting discussions for us to have. Now, Mirabella?"


    She nodded and walked forward. "Reality. Purpose. Ideal. That is the nature of spirits. However, someone''s authority doesn''t always translate into the real world. Authority is not deterministic, but the sum of an auras authority is. Since Miss Hilda''s and lord Rossi''s current form is deterministic, both in their own and others'' frame of reference, it does not change. But technically speaking, since the aura reflects that of water, they have become water."


    "¡­ Excuse me?"


    Miss Hilda scratched her face. "Let me try and explain. We all have an aura, the clothes of one''s soul, and it gradually fills up with the authority of nearby spirits. The types of authorities that are easier to absorb depend on one''s compatibilities with different spirits, you know that much right?"


    Tom nodded.


    "But the nature of spirits is complex. They can represent reality, but a different shade could represent a purpose or ideal. Technically speaking, someone who has a high compatibility with water spirits, due to their persona being close to the ideals most common with water as an aspect of nature, are part water if you compare with a water spirit. The difference between us and spirits is that our auras act as containers, with our soul representing our being instead. In contrast, a spirit is only an aura filled with a specific authority that manifests into reality."


    "So, since our auras have the same authority as water, we are water, but because we are human that doesn''t alter our physical shape?"


    She nodded. "Correct. The reason I asked you to become water is to check if you were the Morphling or not. That creature, proficient in changing the colors of its aura, is an oddity due to the fact that the makeup of its aura reflects into reality. If you were the Morphling, your body would have turned into water."


    "I think I get it now. And if I didn''t manage to mirror your aura, which I presume you are doing yourself, you all would have killed me ¡ª the presumed Morphling."


    She shrugged. "Maybe? These guns are a prototype so we aren''t completely sure they would do anything against an actual Morphling yet. I just wanted to make sure since we could make use of your help, and because of that whisper."


    "Whisper?"


    She pointed at Lil Bin who was tucked inside his pocket. The little teddy bear waved its arm. "That must be where it is coming from. Due to passing the Breakthrough stage and unlocking the fourth ring, I can hear the whispers of existence. I am not perfect at it, but I do hear a faint purpose asking to be merged."


    "Oh." So this was all Lil Bin''s fault. Using [Mirror] he pulled them out of his pocket to let them be merged into his hand instead. Then he brought Lil Bin closer to Miss Hilda. "This is the great error beast Morpheus true form."


    The onlookers gasped whilst Miss Hilda herself stayed silent.


    "That cute teddy bear is the true form of Morpheus?" Mirabella asked. "Can I¡ª?"


    The observers beside her ran past. "Not a change. I want to see it first."


    "H-Hey! Not fair."


    Five observers stood in front of Tom and stared at Lil Bin, with Mirabelle running behind. They all had their eyes closed and looked like they were in deep focus.


    "I do sense a weird combination, and a feeling of merging," one of them finally said.


    Another observer, a young boy, sighed. "I don''t sense anything."


    Tom could still remember how troublesome it had been learning to observe auras in the beginning. "You can hold it if that makes it easier?"


    His eyes widened. "I can?"


    Detaching Lil Bin from his hand, he put them inside the young observer''s hands.


    "Cool. I think I sense the purpose."


    Tom looked at Hilda. "So, what did you need my help with?"


    "Learning the state of the South, of course."


    It was the South again. Looked like he had to make up something to keep his identity.


    "How is the war going? We cannot keep the mana poisoning at bay forever."


    Wait, did she say war? There was a war going on? And mana poisoning¡ª.


    "Agh! Help us!"


    He turned to see all the observers stuck to Lil Brin, trying to pull their hands away from the entangled mess.


    "It won''t let us go," Mirabelle yelped.


    Another observer grunted. "It hurts."


    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    Sighing, Tom put a hand on Lil Bin and unmerged them all. Then he carefully tucked him back into his pocket.


    Hilda stared. "Intriguing. How did you do that?"


    Tom shrugged. "I am not sure how it works, but if I mirror my own aura onto Lil Bi ¡ª I mean, Morpheus, his body detaches."


    "Must be the frame of reference. The error beasts truly are something. A shame it isn''t my chosen field of study."


    "Frame of reference?" He repeated.


    She hesitated. "Now, how do I explain this one ¡ª have you ever heard of something called quantum mechanics?"


    "I do know the basics." Why was she suddenly talking about physics? "It is a theory explaining the smalles scales of reality, where all probable states are described by a wave function that collapses into a single definite state after ¡­ being measured by an observer." His eyes widened. "Hold on, isn''t that similar to what we are doing?"


    She nodded. "Our world is fundamentally probabilistic. We make our choices as observers in whatever path we choose, and the collective choices create what is known as the arrow of time. But that isn''t the only way to describe reality. General relativity helps with larger scales, but a fundamental aspect of this theory is that the laws of physics hold in each their own frame of reference. Us observers resonate especially well with the will of the world, and can interact with the spirit''s frame of reference." She pointed at Lil Bin. "It can stick on to us, even though we are observers because it stubbornly keeps to its own purpose. By effect, it drags us away from the average frame of reference to its own. By mirroring your own aura, the different frames of reference sort of have a tug of war, with the dominant reality we inhabit ultimately winning; meaning the frame of reference where multiple auras cannot be merged."


    That ¡ª it made sense. Somehow. Even if this world actually was that messed up, the laws of physics should still make sense. But he had never heard of being able to observe spirits back on Earth. Although, he did remember learning that the universe was so vast and complex that different places in the universe could have their own laws of physics, even though the basics would stay the same ¡ª also this literally was an isekai world so it wasn''t that strange. If that were the case, finding his way back to Earth must be an impossible task. What part of the universe could this planet even be in?


    "Let us continue our conversation elsewhere. The kids still need to finish their batch of Cleaners."


    The other observers sighed and made their way further back into the room.


    Hilda gestured for him to follow and led him to a door at the back of the room. After some turns they arrived at a large cave with a spiral staircase in the centre. Bulbs of light hung on the ceiling, floors covered by planks, and all around were people working. Rows of tables with observers making different inventions. On the side were bookshelves with people peacefully reading.


    "Welcome to the Assembly Room. Here we make the Cleaners His Majesty orders, and do a bit of research of our own."


    "And Cleaners are¡ª?"


    "Inventions that help avoid mana poisoning," she finished. "A crucial safety measure for humanity to survive. Hopefully a temporary one. The amount of working demon horns is declining, so hopefully that dumb invasion the high priest is planning could slightly reduce our workload ¡ª enough to give us a vacation one of these days."


    At the back of the door, past a well-guarded iron door, was a small secluded office. In the center of the room was a long table with chairs around. A lone woman, wearing a cloak, was already seated, waiting for them. Hilda took her place at the head of the table and gestured to her right. "This is Shalana. Other than me, she is the only one granted the title of head researcher."


    The woman took off her hood, revealing blonde hair and pointy ears.


    Tom gasped. "An elf?" He stared at the aura sword tied to her waist. "Are you per change interested in trading aura sword?"


    Trash hummed. "Why are you always trying to pawn me off? And to a researcher at that? It would be so boring ¡ª basically torture! At least give me to a traumatized mad person to make it interesting."


    Both Hilda and Shalana stared at Trash.


    "A conciouss aura sword?" Shalana said.


    "Hey, what did I tell you about talking in public? Eventually I am going to have to make a list of everyone who doesn''t know you can talk!"


    "Whatever. Your day-to-day life is so boring. Bring the mad researchers here already, so they can try and kill you. You barely did anything other than getting beaten up by an old lady," Trash complained.


    "That was that dumb Oblivion''s fault, not me!" He looked at them. "You won''t tell anyone about this sword, right? Alice told me a mad researcher could try and steal him ¡ª without giving me a new aura sword in return, and hopefully you two around included in the mad researcher category."


    Hilda laughed. "Don''t worry. We aren''t that mad. A talking sword is a rare find though."


    "Indeed," Shalana said. "Most conscious swords were kept by the elf king who corrupted them even more from the aftereffects of the black catastrophe."


    "Zev ¡ª I mean Vice-Commander Zev, did tell me all the elves left their home after the elf king went mad. And I didn''t know elves could be observers."


    She shook her head. "Not an observer. I am a researcher here of my own volition, using the elven art of synergy to avoid any accidental contaminations during research. But my true purpose here is to find a way to heal my people''s homeland."


    That was right; didn''t the Ley Line begin from the elven forest? "So you want to stop the Ley Line from sucking out all the spirits from the forest?"


    "No, I have no qualms with the Ley Line. Our forest naturally produces the type of spirits called fairies, and the only reason the Ley Line exists is because they are fleeing for better pastures. I need to find out what happened to my kin who traveled to the South." She gestured to Hilda. "So is her interest. Even we elves were shocked to find out that the kingdom was hiding a giant war happening in its southern region, with otherworlders and something called a System Manipulator. My people, with no other choice, traveled down there to ask for reinforcement from the acting army some 100 years ago, since His Majesty did not have the troops to spare. But they never returned. I am not one to be too optimistic, but there being some kind of protective shield created by the World-Rune from the sheer amount of fairies it is absorbing could be a possibility. So please tell us: what is the state of the South?"


    Tom could feel his sweat drip as they were both staring intensely at him, waiting for an answer. Taking a deep breath, he gave them the truth: "Is it a bad thing if I happen to have amnesia?"


    The stared at him in silence, and then both literally fell onto the table.


    "Amnesia?" Hilda groaned. "Of all things, even being able to return here, you forgot everything?"


    Shalana covered her eyes. "What a disappointment."


    "But," Tom added. "Alice, the Commander, did give me the task of going to the South after the Sermon of Sainthood. If I managed to return, then surely I can do it again, right?"


    Hilda''s eyes widened. "Lady Alice did? She must know something." Standing up and making her way to her desk, she wrote something down. "Alright. Let''s do that. You travel to the South for us, and to avoid you returning with amnesia Shalana and I are going to figure out a way for you to communicate with us."


    "What about my Breakthrough?" Tom added. "It would be best to pass it whilst I have the change, just in case."


    "I agree," Shalana added.


    Hilda waved her hand. "Then we will do that too. Helping you create your third ring is something we can help with. Moving past the Breakthrough on the other hand ¡ª we will see if the archangel will accept that request. In the meantime leading up to the sermon, you should help us make contact with that stubborn king of ours. Before he dies."


    "Dies?"


    Shalan nodded. "His Majesty used to be a bright young man, but over time I have seen him become consumed by paranoia. I wouldn''t blame him. He was the one who first encountered the Morphling that killed his son, leaving the crown prince Helanor as his only heir. And from what the fairies have told me, the Morphling has finally decided to kill His Majesty."


    "Kill him? How?"


    She shrugged. "No idea. The fairies would only tell me so much to avoid interfering with fate. To save him, we are going to have to improvise. And I am surprisingly confident with the plan we have made up."


    "That can wait for after you receive an audience," Hilda added. "She stared at him," folding her arms. "Do you agree to this plan?"


    Trash hummed. "Yes, he will. Otherwise I am going to die of boredom."


    ***


    Tom managed to send a request to meet the king through Alice. She had been apprehensive at first, but when he told her it was related to the observers guild, her stance softened. All that was left was to wait for a response from the king, then he could finally pursue his Breakthrough and figure out what the space was going on in the South.


    The truth had been shocking to Tom as well. Hiding the fact that the entire remaining part of the kingdoms territory was a battlefield, that was honestly impressive from the nobilities end. Yet Shalana told him her fellow elves hadn''t returned in one hundred years, so Tom wasn''t exactly confident in surviving this mission unscathed. Being an otherworlder could only take him so far. Should he have rejected their proposition? No, Alice wanted him to go there too in order to contact the otherworlders guild. He had no other options. Hopefully he would be able to learn what happened here in the past between the otherworlders soon. With all the missing information, this isekai adventure had become far too complicated.


    Taking a deep breath, he emptied his mind, and focused on hanging out with Mark and Hiro. There was time to kill so he figured they could so some training. Going to the training grounds, every day, had been a torturous experience in the beginning. But over time he had grown used to it, and currently he was itching for another session. He stared at the giant arena in front of him. Several nobles were dueling in it. The perfect place to perfect their fighting prowess. Who knew if he had to fight some kind of boss battle to move past the Breakthrough stage?


    "This is twice the size of the commoner''s training grounds. Amazing," Mark remarked.


    "It is," Tom agreed. "Why don''t we go spar over there? And Hiro, you won''t have to wait for long. I will complete my third ring soon, then we can go together to move past the Breakthrough."


    Hiro scratched his head. "Yeah, about that. There is something I haven''t told you: I can''t move past my Breakthrough stage."


    Tom stopped. "Why not?"


    "I am half beastkin remember? Although I have reached my Breakthrough stage, since I am not a complete human there is no way for me to progress further."


    "But that doesn''t make sense. You have three rings around your aura. Even if you can only use parts of the human and beastkin system, it should still work, somehow."


    Hiro sighed. "That is my problem. I have both the World-Rune''s blessing in helping progress my aura and the beastkin art of endorsement. Beastkin are much more proficient at refining their aura than humans through a method called cultivation, powered by the art of endorsement. According to the rules of endorsement, one must always be able to gain or lose their progression. Because moving past the Breakthrough is a permanent action that alters your very being, it breaks the law of endorsement since I cannot lose my progression, and is therefore forbidden for me."


    "That is an interesting dilemma. Halflings tend to die premature," a voice spoke. "How bothersome. I have been in this world for who knows how long, but I still haven''t found all the bugs."


    Tom flinched and turned around. Behind him stood a woman with chestnut-colored hair and with one of her eyes hidden under an eyepatch. Her roots, including a lock of her hair, were dyed in a familiar red color ¡ª it was The Madness.


    Jumping back to the others, he unsheathed Trash. "Careful guys. It is a feral."


    The woman stared at them in silence, then burst into laughter. "Me? A feral? Not yet, that''s for sure. I still have a lot left to do." She grinned. "Nice seeing you again Tom. And you were called Mark I believe."


    Mark looked at Tom. "Do you ¡ª no we, know her?"


    Tom shrugged. He had no recollection of ever seeing this woman before. But she did look a bit familiar.


    Hiro gave her a nod. "My name is Hiro. What did you mean by finding bugs?"


    She waved her hand around. "Don''t worry about it. Oh, and my name is Rachel by the way. Would be interesting if you managed to remember it."


    "Ok?"


    Tom tightened his grip on Trash. "What do you want?"


    "I want a lot of things, actually. But sadly I have to prioritize some wants over others." She motioned around them. "In the meantime: we are in an arena, aren''t we? What do you say to a friendly sparring match? Me against you, Tom."


    "You want ¡­ a sparring match? I guess it would be fine." He stared at the gun in her holster. "But I am not sure I am up to bringing a sword to a gunfight."


    "Don''t worry." Rachel pulled out her gun. Letting go, the gun floated in mid-air. Swiping along it using her index finger, the gun started losing its shape, turning a dark shade of black, until it molded into a sword. She grabbed the hilt of the new sword. "This will do. I will take my place. Feel free to start whenever," she said and walked off.


    "Wow! She turned her gun into a sword. What class can do that?" Mark asked.


    "No clue," Hiro responded, keeping his eyes fixed on the woman standing still, waiting for Tom to start the duel.


    There was something off about this Rachel. Her eye wouldn''t stop moving around while talking to them, and with The Madness infecting her, he had doubts about her sanity. That wasn''t even mentioning her suddenly molding something with that black color. It had the same shade of black as the Hero and Sierra''s sonata. Could she be the Hero? He shook his head. No way the Hero would appear here. Although, she had to have some kind of connection to the Hero.


    "Make sure she doesn''t do anything weird," Tom said. Walking closer, he looked at his glove. He had no interest in using any of his embodied items. Just igniting Trash with a spirit would do. Maybe a wind spirit? He focused on the spirits in the soul gem and made a disappointed grunt when Trash turned blue. A water spirit. Looked like he needed more training.


    "Here I come!" He charged towards her, going for a swing.


    Rachel swiftly stepped to the side to avoid the blade and swung at him. Tom was barely able to parry the blow and was dragged several feet backward.


    "No need to hold back. I can handle those poison spirits you are hiding."


    She knew? That could only mean she was an observer. One not affiliated with the kingdom. Deciding to go for it, he took out a poison vial and threw it in the air. With one motion he cut it and used stabilize. "[Poison slash]!"


    A wave of poison water shot towards her, creating a small cloud of smoke from the sand covering the ground. When the dust had settled, a melting hole revealed itself, but Rachel was gone.


    "Above you!" Mark shouted.


    Looking up, he found her standing in the middle of the air. How ¡ª no, he could make out small black rods extending to the ground, holding her up.


    "Now it''s my turn." She raised her sword, which had slightly shrunk in size. It lost its dark color and turned red, the shade of The Madness. "I like to call this one: [Time to go mad]!"


    Then she swung her blade and crimson red engulfed his entire vision. His body turned numb, Trash slipped from his hand, and he completely lost touch with reality. The concept of time became foreign and he found himself staring at an empty red space. Gradually it began losing its color, turning white. Then colorful stars basked the empty canvas with color. He saw every color of the rainbow, some more, and a few he couldn''t comprehend. Confusion, anger, and panic were all he could feel. It felt like the emotions were screaming out to him, completely taking over his consciousness.


    "Try blinking and focusing on the colors you understand. You are losing grasp of reality," a soft voice told him.


    Tom did as the voice said and repeatedly blinked, trying to ignore the colors he couldn''t comprehend until his surroundings became more consistent. When the conflicting emotions had calmed down, he found himself inside a closed room, lying on the cold stone floor. In front of him, kneeling down, was a woman with hair white as snow, wearing heavy armor with an elaborately decorated sword tied to her waist.


    "Don''t worry, otherworlder. You are safe."


    He stared at her unfamiliar face. "Who are you?"


    "I am the sword saint, Lyra Songbird." She gave him a reassuring smile. "I was starting to lose hope when the Delinquents to the South decided to breach our defenses, but it seems help has arrived. You were sent here by the Wandering God to help us, weren''t you?"

 Sidequest part 3: The saint, the otherworlder, and The Madness

    Sidequest part 3: The saint, the otherworlder, and The Madness


    <blockquote>


    It seemed like the Throne did not fare too well in this version. Even though the aftermath of the second Void war was still present, encapsulated by the giant mountain in the distance missing its top half, my fellow otherworlders had managed to survive here. How tragic that some of them surviving was an extraordinary feat. It all boiled down to the whims of a mindless creature, the one Rachel described as the System Manipulator''s familiar. In contrast, someone who never relented to her whims was the sword saintess. No matter where I went, the mighty sword saint chose to end herself. That was why morals were useless. They never help you get anything done.


    My dealings with the System Manipulator gave everyone some time to breathe. I was no fool. That creature would never see anyone of them as an equal. The only way to save everyone was to kill everyone. Of course, Rachel hated that plan. Forbid me from it. Trying to hunt down their familiar was all she would accept, and I listened ¡ª other than the Hero I needed no more enemies. Her plan on the other hand, that one was completely insane. There was no I was going to help her with it. Hopefully, my backup plan will come to fruition soon. Who better to defeat a primordial eldritch creature than another primordial eldritch creature?


    - Lutherion ''Luther'' Abalonius, The Beast, former member of the Delinquents


    </blockquote>


    Tom stared at the beautiful woman in front of him. Had he actually been summoned to another world? The last he remembered was going to bed. He could clearly remember it since he had a massive fight with his parents; they found out he watched a new isekai anime with his little sister and accused him of trying to sabotage her education. Next to being able to have a proper sleep, going on an isekai adventure was something he always wanted.


    The woman smirked. "Do you wish to become one of my servants?"


    "Huh? Hell no!" There was no way this was an isekai. "Did you kidnap me?"


    She sighed and moved her hand closer to his face.


    "What are¡ª?"


    ***


    Tom stared at the beautiful woman in front of him. Had he actually been summoned to another world? The last¡ª.


    "Do you wish to make a contract with me?" The woman asked, interrupting his train of thought. "It is a huge honor being able to work with me."


    He grimaced. "A contract? I''m not sure I¡ª."


    ***


    Tom stared at the beautiful woman in front of him. Had he actually¡ª?


    "Work for me, or else!" The woman demanded.


    He stared at her. "You ... what?


    She sighed. "Right iteration. Learn the lesson," she mumbled.


    "What do you¡ª?"


    ***


    Tom stared at the beautiful woman in front of him. Had he actually¡ª?


    The woman got down on her knees. "Oh, honorable hero. Would you save this world from disaster?"


    He looked at her and smiled. "Definitely." Finally something positive was happening in his life.


    She stood up and made a small bow. "Then please follow me, and allow me to tell you of this world."


    ***


    Rachel stood on top of the castle and looked over the entire capital. Where had Tom gone? She specifically remembered bringing him here. Then he just disappeared; something that was expected of course, but she usually managed to find him easily.


    Strange.


    Even from here, she could feel Luther''s location, who had run off again in his feral state. Tom was a blur, as if the spirits were leaving out his locations for some reason. That had never happened before. She wanted to bring him here to have another go at moving past the firmament. Looking up at the sky, she used her knowledge of the world to leave out the clutter of spirits to see beyond. Another oddity. Usually, she would be able to see the dark purple colors of the void, but that was not the case anymore. Beyond the sky, all she could see was blue. Or green? No, orange? Or was it pink? For some reason the colors were shifting, similar to the aura of an observer shifting between different colors, only that the shifts were much more frequent.


    What was that? Luther''s doing perhaps, or had the System Manipulator finally decided to move out of hiding? Whatever the case, she needed to find Tom immediately.


    ***


    His head hurt since arriving here, and his face felt like it had been punched a hundred times, but after talking more with Lyra the truth was undeniable: Tom had been summoned to another world. A world suffering the aftermath of a catastrophe at that. Everything felt so surreal. He had long dreamed of going on an isekai adventure ¡ª and his wish came true!


    "So, you are telling me that around half the otherworlders turned evil, creating a group called ''the Delinquents''?"


    Lyra nodded. "Indeed. They were swayed by the lies of the System Manipulator, and later on the treacherous Hero." Opening another door, she led him through another hallway, walking past people who curiously looked at him. "Do not misunderstand. Even though some of the otherworlders betrayed us, everyone understands that not all otherworlders are bad. There are quite a few otherworlders who are still on our side, helping us tirelessly to this day. The lesson that otherworlders are no different from ourselves was one well learned."


    "I understand. Then if no new otherworlder has been summoned for a long time, what am I supposed to do in this world? I still don''t know who this Wandering God you talked about is supposed to be."


    "Yes, I realize that now. Actually, this Wandering God is an elusive god not many have encountered. I can with certainty say that only a handful of people in the entire universe would know of their existence. Yet this is the place they were last seen." Opening a door she led him into a balcony.


    From the southern balcony she had shown him the entire capital city, along with the mind-blowing gigantic hole ¡ª not to mention the mountain having its top half cleanly cut off! To the southern balcony, he saw what could only be described as a mess. After leaving the walls of the capital, past a simple grassy field, was a dense forest. Anyone who looked at this place from the ground would think the forest was all there was, but from the top, he could see the forest abruptly ending. It was like a part of the forest was purposely held intact to hide the giant fortified wall from sight.


    "From what I have heard, that wall there is our only defense against the southern invaders." She shook her head in disappointment. "Foolish people who were manipulated by the whispers of an old creature way past their expiration date." She looked at Tom. "You asked me what I want you to do? I want you to join me on an expedition to enemy territory, controlled by the remnants of the Delinquents, and destroy their System."


    "System? As in floating screen system?"


    She tilted her head. "Intriguing that you know of that one, but it''s not the kind of system I am talking about. In every planet, every galaxy, every universe, there are beings that hold power akin to what you people call a god. They hold power over existence, sometimes called an authority, and to keep the peace they create specific systems in place. Think of it as a set of rules for reality. That is a System."


    "And why are we destroying it then? Aren''t rules a good things if this world went through a catastrophe?"


    "Not exactly." She hesitated. "Perhaps it would be easier to say that the Delinquents control it? Do you understand now?"


    Tom nodded. "I do. That sounds horrible." Simple mortals having control over the rules of reality ¡ª obviously a bad thing.


    She smiled. "Glad you understand. Then, let us depart." Walking closer to the ledge, she clapped.


    Ascending from the ground was a flying metal vehicle. Tom had never seen anything like it before. There were no powerful motors to see, but a flat disk with a curved roof, almost as if it was rejecting gravity and nothing more. Carefully standing on the railings, they both jumped on the vehicle and were met with a friendly face.


    "Hi there. The name is Mark," a blue-haired boy said, reaching out his hand.


    Tom shook his hand and nodded. "My name is Tom. Nice to meet you." Why did he look so familiar?


    Mark went back to control the vehicle while Tom and Lyra sat on the side. It was a small ¡ª not even cushioned ¡ª seating area which was already starting to hurt his butt.


    Lyra looked strangely at Mark and moved closer to Tom''s ear. "If you don''t like that thing, feel free to ignore it. This Mark is the overly helpful type who wants to assist anyone to fit in. A rare type of subordinate. Having everyone keep to their own goals does get tiring after a ¡­ time. If push comes to shove, leave him behind and continue fighting."


    "Leave him behind?" Tom whispered back. "Why are we bringing him with us then?"


    She shrugged. "An interesting person. Thought I perhaps could breed with him later to see what kinds of children I would bear."


    "Huh!" He said out loud and grimaced, making Mark turn his head.


    "Is everything alright back there?"


    "Don''t worry about it," Lyra repeated back.


    Tom stared at her. "You are weird." She responded with a smile. "And what do you mean by fighting?" Now that he thought about it, the adrenaline kicking in had made him step onto this vehicle. What kind of summoner, or perhaps otherworlder guardian, made them fight right off the bat? He could feel his stomach tingle. That could only mean one thing. "I do not know how to fight, so I think it''s about time you tell me about my OP powers."


    "OP? Oh, someone told me about that recently. If it is being overpowered you seek¡­" She pointed down. Will that do?


    Looking down he saw a small teddy bear inside his pocket. "Wait a second, since when was that there?" He should have noticed it, but he could barely feel its presence, as if it were a natural part of him. It shifted its head towards him. Was it alive? And why was it furiously waving its arms? Was it trying to tell him something?


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


    Tom grunted and grabbed onto his head. He felt such a strong sense of deja vu.


    Lyra moved her hand closer and pulled the teddy bear out of his pocket with ease. "This is a purpose created out of desperation. A failure. But one that still can have some use."


    Purpose. He shouldn''t have understood what she was talking about, but strangely enough, he could. Spirit. Middle grade. But how did he know this?


    "This is something called an Adjustment. They act as conduits for specific exceptions. This purpose represents being merged but has no considerable effect on the world itself. It acts as an alternative frame of reference, one that can be resonated with when one wishes to merge auras." She snorted. "A novice approach to fixing a problem."


    "That sounds complicated. How does that relate to my powers?"


    She stared at him. "Your aura is an oddity. It is rare for someone to be born with such an innate state of mediocrity."


    "Uh, thank you?"


    "Fortunately, that is what this world likes the most." She got up from her seat and pointed the teddy bear towards the trees below. With one motion she yanked her arm upwards and uprooted an entire tree. The tree rose into the sky before falling back onto the rest of the trees.


    Tom clapped. "Wow! That was cool. How did you do it?"


    She spun around, obviously enjoying his compliments. "An advanced understanding of spirits. Unfortunately, this isn''t something you can do right away, but closer to a target you should be able to merge it together with the purpose and pull it as if you were pulling your own."


    Walking over to him, she handed him the teddy bear which he took with his right hand. Waving the hand around he realised it was stuck. No matter. As long as he knew how to use it, his EPIC ADVENTURE was inevitable.


    When they got closer to the wall, he could hear the guards on top of the wall shouting at them.


    "What are they saying?"


    Lyra shrugged. "Protocol. They like doing weird things to distract when they see us people above."


    The moment they were past the wall, the landscape abruptly changed. Instead of forest, in front of them was an apocalyptic wasteland. The ground was devoid of green, with craters scattered around. Up above the sky turned into a much murkier red color and the air musty. In the distance he saw a small circular city, and behind it was a giant hole in the ground. It looked similar to the giant hole north of here.


    "Why is there another hole here?"


    "Some people prefer to crumble things from the inside. Not something I have a lot of experience with."


    As they approached the city, he could properly have its monstrosity into view. Building after building, made of a type of smooth stone in a circular pattern. On the ground were rows of people pulling slabs of stone, working on a half-finished construction. A person lost their grip on the rope and fell to the ground. In retaliation, a nearby more fancier dressed individual, whipped them until their feeble clothes were dyed red. Sitting on a platform above were a group of people laughing. They wore clothing similar to camo clothes from Tom''s world, with glowing weapons tucked away on their side. What a clich¨¦. The evil otherworlder enslaved the local population. Tom for sure was going to get some major main character points from defeating them.


    On the same giant platform the otherworlders sat on, there was a glass globe in the center. Carved on the rock were circular patterns reminiscent of astrological signs. Tom nudged Lyra and pointed at the glass globe. "Is that the System?"


    "Looks like it." She scrutinized the surroundings. "I have no idea how this feeble thing is supposed to be significant to the power dynamics of the wider universe, but I guess we will see."


    What the hell was she talking about? Tom had first thought of her as the stereotypical saintess. Kind. Caring. In reality she was extremely weird and¡ª. "Why haven''t they noticed us?"


    "You''ll see."


    As they descended, several slaves curiously peeked at the flying contraption but were quickly reprimanded. The Delinquents on the other hand lost their laughter and got up from their seats. When they had carefully landed on the platform, Layla walked out to confront them.


    "You finally showed yourself again, sword saintess." One of the otherworlders said.


    Compared to the rest who were more lightly dressed, he was wearing some sort of thin golden plate that was difficult to notice from far away. On his side was a claymore. He had to be their leader. Dressed in golden-plated armour, calymore, and with a full beard. He looked at Tom. "And this is?"


    Tom gave a nod. "I am another otherworlder. Arrived here today, actually."


    That caught their intrigue.


    "Another otherworlder?" His eyes widened. "So it was true after all." Shaking his head, he coughed and regained his composure. "My name is Liel." He gestured at the others. "And that is Marie, Oiel, Paul, and¡ª." The otherworlder named Marie moved her long blonde hair to the side to reveal a small creature on her shoulder. It looked humanoid and had grey skin with purple wings. A fairy. "That is Pip."


    "Hiiii!" The fairy said with an extremely squeaky voice.


    Liel shifted his focus to Lyra. "Sword saintess, have you finally decided to cooperate? Faking your death ¡ª perhaps Rachel was leading us astray after all. Glad you have come to your senses and decided to work with us."


    Tom gasped. "Why would she ever work with you? You all are obviously evil. There are literally slaves over there."


    All the Delinquents broke into laughter.


    Liel shook his head. "Us, evil? You really did arrive today. Don''t worry. Those people over there don''t matter."


    "It may sound bad, but it is the truth," Paul said, fixing his glasses. "Think of them as a mirage, ants even. Something that is supposed to disappear anyway."


    Oiel nodded. "Us on the other hand; we are special."


    "Special!" Pip squeaked.


    "I don''t buy that for a second. The only ones that look like ants here are you people."


    Lyra nodded in agreement. "That is true. Time to exterminate!"


    Unsheathing her sword, she threw it at Liel.


    The Delinquents looked at their leader in shock as his entire torse fell off his legs. It took them only a second to get themselves back in order. Marie used her bow to shoot at Lyra. Tom could feel time slow as the arrow headed towards her. She had for some dumb reason thrown away her sword, but it didn''t seem to worry the least. Standing there she simply stared at the arrow as it collided with her, then bounced off like it was a piece of paper. The moment the arrow touched the ground, Paul''s glasses exploded. He screamed covering his eyes as all the shards had penetrated his eyeballs.


    Tom yelped and was barely able to dodge a dagger thrown at him by Oiel. With no way to defend himself, he ran for cover behind their vehicle. "You could have at least given me a warning before you started!"


    Out of the vehicle ran Mark. "Are you alright lady saintess? You¡ª!" He stopped in his tracks as a dagger cut clean through his chest and dug itself into the vehicle''s metallic roof. Then he dissolved.


    Layla stared at the pool of water on the ground, then rolled her eyes. "Of course, he had to kill himself. Now I remember why I don''t have these kinds of servants anymore."


    Resorting to new tactics, Oiel conjured a flame in his hand and threw it at Lyra. This time she didn''t stand still, but opened her mouth and sucked in the fire. She licked her lips. "I''ll give it two out of ten stars. Lacks stronger emotions."


    Marie glared at Lyra. "Who are you? You aren''t that doormat of a saint."


    "I am who I want to be." Lyra didn''t bother elaborating further.


    "You are dead, whoever you are!" Oiel said and started changing in a strange language.


    His eyes glowed white and he ascended into the air. Raising his arm, a giant sigil appeared above them.


    Tom, deciding it was his time to contribute, used his right hand with the purpose to touch the vehicle. Then he copied Lyra''s movement. Nothing happened. He tried raising his hand, but it was stuck. The vehicle was much heavier than himself. He needed to make their connection more similar, and then eject the vehicle. Similar¡­ Or average. He could feel knowledge flood his mind. "[Stabilize]." Instantly he felt something had changed. The auras. Another strange skill came into mind.


    Trying again, he raised his hand in a throwing motion. "[Mirror]." The vehicle flew from the ground and plummeted right through Oiel, crashing them both into a building behind. The vehicle fell to the ground, and Oiel''s motionless body was embedded into the wall.


    "Awesome!" He had managed to defeat one bad guy.


    Lyra smiled at him. "Good job. No wonder they became intrigued by you. Such a good understanding of our arts."


    Tom wasn''t able to ask any follow-up questions as her entire body was flung to the right, as if gravity had switched directions. Where she had stood, the top half of a tower fell, creating a crack in the giant disk. Jumping down from the air beside Tom was a new woman. She wore similar clothing to the Delinquents, with one of her eyes hidden under an eyepatch, long chestnut brown hair, with her roots dyed a strange red ¡ª Tom gripped his head. The color of The Madness? Where was this information coming from?


    He quickly stepped away from her. "Who are you? Another Delinquent?"


    "What ¡ª No! It''s me, Rachel." She sighed. "I was planning on teaching you how to keep your memories, but it appears someone got here before me." She glared at Lyra who silently stood where she was, smirking. "Who are you?"


    Lyra put her hand on her chest and bowed. "The sword saint Lyra So¡ª."


    "Don''t try that bullshit with me. I have already accepted that Lyra is dead. Every version. The destined death brought by The Madness. Now tell me: who are you?"


    "Now, now. I just told¡ª."


    In one quick motion, Rachel took her gun out of her holster and shot Lyra. The bullet went clean through her head, and Lyra''s entire body convulsed and started to crumble into a pile of red dust.


    Marie raised her head. "Ouch. I didn''t think there would be anyone here capable of coating their attacks in The Madness. I let down my guard. That was¡ª."


    Rachel shot a bullet through Marie''s head, making her brain matter paint the surroundings.


    "At least let me finish," a squeaky voice said. "I seem to have struck a nerve." The fairy Pip ascended into the air and flew towards them. "Actually, I am here on a vacation of sorts. My first time in a long, long, long¡ª."


    Rachel shot Pip. It fell to the ground as red dust.


    "You really are in no mood to talk are you?"


    Tom turned and saw one of the slaves looking at them from below the platform.


    The slave-handler, who had seen all that had transpired, whipped at the slave out of pure instinct. Instead of hurting the slave, the whip bounced off, but the slave-handler''s helmet vibrated and cut into his head. His corpse silently fell.


    "I have already conquered this boring System, so I would agree: it is time for me to leave." The slave nodded at Tom. "Nice meeting you. I gave out a lot of praise for the mere fun of it, but if you manage to survive this last part, then I would consider leaving a good word for you." They raised their hand toward the giant globe. "Because, there is one last thing I want to see."


    Tom heard the sound of glass shattering and turned to see cracks appearing on the globe.


    "Shit!" Rachel grabbed Tom.


    "Hey, what are you¡ª?"


    He screamed as his body was dragged into the air. With a firm grip on him, Rachel ran away from the capital with unprecedented speed, until they had gotten half the distance to the wall. She let go of him and took a moment to catch her breath, sitting on a nearby boulder.


    "Excuse me, but what the fuck was all of that?"


    She panted, shaking her head. "No idea. I have never encountered someone like that before. Able to change their body ¡ª or were they part of them all along?"


    Tom stared at her, and once again he felt his head throbbing. "And what was the last thing they wanted to see?"


    Rachel pointed behind him. "That."


    He turned towards the city they had just fled from and could see the giant globe completely crumbling in the distance. A loud roar echoed in the air. Climbing out of the giant hole was a grotesque worm-like creature. Its mouth was humongous, making the city look small in comparison. Helping move its body were four giant limbs several times the size of skyscrapers, and following behind was a long tail with no apparent end to it.


    With one motion, the creature swallowed the city whole, widening the hole it had appeared out of. Then it proceeded to do the same to the barren landscape around it. It ate through the land, swallowing everything in its wake, and consequently causing their body to bloat in size.


    "That is the Bug," Rachel said. "When the equilibrium of systems is broken ¡ª even if only one System is destroyed, that thing always appears to devour the world. The process of figuring out which world is useful to keep compared to the rest ¡­ An experiment. And that is not even its whole body. Only remotely controlled form made to do the dirty work."


    Tom was speechless. This did not sound like the isekai world he wanted.


    "Once the throne fell, so did the order in this world. Multiple possibilities taking place, with no true god to observe and choose the correct one." She looked him in the eyes. "In this case, which possibility is the correct one?"


    "Why are you asking me a philosophical question all of a sudden?" He thought about it. With all the mess he had experienced, it would be good to focus on something else. "Multiple possibilities. That sounds a lot like multiple timelines or dimensions. In that case, all of them would be the correct one."


    "And what if you couldn''t do that?"


    "What do you mean?"


    She coughed. "What if you could only choose one timeline? What if all of this mess was a danger to the universe." She hesitated. "We need to kill everyone to save everyone. Do you agree with that?"


    He rolled his eyes and looked at her like she was being stupid, because she was. "Of course not. You are an otherworlder as well, aren''t you? The entire point of being summoned to another world is doing the impossible. Even if the world is crumbling around us, saving as many people as possible is our job. How else would we make being summoned to another world worth it?"


    She opened her mouth, preparing a rebuttal, then closed it and smiled. "You are right. Forgive me, it seems I have fallen too far into pessimism."


    "I don''t judge you for that. That was a pretty traumatizing experience, to be honest." He put his hand on his face and tried to strike the collect pose possible. "But now that I am here, you have nothing to worry about. Just tell me the mission, and then we can make it work -- somehow. I have read a lot of isekai light novels. That knowledge would come in handy."


    She laughed and leaned back, relaxing her composure. "If you say so."


    The sound of rock crumbling intensified. They both looked at the Bug, grown in size, heading for their patch of land.


    Tom gulped. "Now, what do we do about that?"


    "Nothing. This world is doomed." She sighed and stood up. "It''s time for you to head back to a safer world. Let me teach you how."


    She held out her palm and conjured a crimson-red flame. Just by looking at it, Tom was filled with a sudden rage ¡ª an intense desire to destroy anything.


    "This is part of The Madness. It is one of the oldest aspects of reality, born the very day the universe came into creation. An intense desire for the destruction of the universe. The antithesis to this is the countless probabilities. The Madness prefers the probabilities to be lower. Time. Laws of physics. Life and death. Those are the byproducts of this ideal. Coming into contact with this will reduce your grasp of reality. As a byproduct, you arrive in a space between the countless possibilities. Then you only have to follow The Madness bidding."


    "Destruction?"


    "No. Observing. There is no true god in this world, therefore everything is a mess. But as an observer with countless possibilities before you, you can choose one as the proper, and The Madness will send you there." She tilted her head. "That still doesn''t make sense to me too, but it seems The Madness is somehow inclined to let fate play its course."


    Tom nodded and reached his hand closer to the flame. "And how do I choose this safer world?"


    She smiled. "You already know that deep within you. Your own goals that this world respects oh so well."


    Taking a deep breath, he touched The Madness. His entire vision turned crimson red. There was an important goal he sought after. One he had forgotten. He didn''t arrive in this world alone.

 Chapter 25: Reunion

    Chapter 25: Reunion


    <blockquote>


    "Again, I am sorry." Lyra hadn''t taken me faking my death too well. I touched my stomach where the hole had been. Gone. The skill I received at level 70, double body, had come in handy. "With their guard down, we can find out what exploits they are trying to use in the System."


    I looked at Shiravesti. She had been a master researcher on her home planet, and when she arrived she instantly chose the research class. A special ability of theirs was to see anyone''s class and abilities.


    "What did you see?"


    Shiravesti closed opened her eyes. "It is a strange class called observer. I have never seen that class before."


    "Observer?" I thought about it. Would make sense if one wanted to find the exploits and bugs in a System. "Are you sure there are no records of this class? Information we can use to find out her weakness?"


    She shook her head. "None. It is almost like this class appeared out of nowhere."


    This was bad. They knew little about this mysterious observer class. "If there is anyone who can tell us about this class, then it will be the archangels." From what I knew, there were four archangels with each their own saint: Micheal, Jophiel, Raphael, and Gabriel.


    Lyra clapped her hands. "Finally. I can help with that. Let us speak to the archangel Michael."


    - Rachel, the twice summoned


    </blockquote>


    Alice walked in front of the king and bowed. "Greetings, Your Majesty."


    "Oh, Alice. There is no need to be so formal when it is just the two of us. Raise your head."


    It had been a long time since she had spoken to him in private. Even in blindness, he knew she would bow before him. He was known for being especially perceptive in his youth. Unfortunately, knowing the old her wasn''t enough.


    She raised her head and looked around. The royal garden was as extravagant as ever. Scattered with sculptures made of mirrors. The flowers growing there, likely the last of its kind, peacefully blooming. And sitting in the middle of it all was the king on his throne. Old age hadn''t been kind to him, yet he still stood strong.


    After making sure no one else was nearby, she reconnected with her pathway of dreams. Her sight flickered, filled with a more diverse spectrum of colors, and her body rose into the air, with a shadowy glittering cloak encapsulating her entire body. This would be the last time they would be talking together.


    "What did you want to talk to me about?" Alice asked.


    The king smiled. "A lot, actually. The situation near the northern border is going well, from what I have heard. You even managed, with the help of Tomassio, to kill the great error beast Morpheus. That is a notable feat."


    "And a useless one, now that the beastkin have decided to wage war over it."


    He scoffed. "Their king was looking for an excuse anyhow. And your father is well in control over the Colony. The beastkin are no problem. No, the biggest problem will always be the Hero."


    Alice used her cloak to create lances of darkness, which she raised into the sky. "The Hero is indeed our biggest enemy. But there isn''t much we can do against him."


    "But there is a lot he can do against us. Especially since he never figured out how to make the World-Rune a subsidiary under his own star. Think about it. Even the mighty Hero himself was never able to resonate with the Mirror Maidens ideals." He raised his hand towards her. "However, you my child, were the one to accomplish this once impossible feat."


    An achievement she regretted to this day. If only she hadn''t caught the Hero''s intrigue.


    He retracted his hand and coughed. "I am sorry."


    "¡­ Pardon?"


    "I am sorry for forcing you to do my bidding. My son had just left for the South, and would not return. I thought this miracle was something I could use for the betterment of the kingdom. It was a foolish mistake, thinking it would make the Shard reveal itself." He bowed. "Once again: I am sorry."


    Alice didn''t know what to say. All her life she had been mad at those who forced her to become a tool. The king, her father, Zev, The Hero. She hated all of them. Hated how they acted like they had done nothing wrong. An apology was all she wanted, and here she got it. But with this apology, when everything was already done; she didn''t know how to feel.


    "Please raise your head, Your Majesty. I will accept your apology, for it is the only one I have been offered. But know that it doesn''t change the decisions of the past."


    He raised his head. "Trust me. I know."


    Sighing, she dissipated her dream form and returned to being a human. She chickened out, again. The king had been one of the only ones who had shown her kindness in her childhood. Albeit in a weird way. But if she didn''t kill him as the Hero wanted, before the Sermon of Sainthood. What then?


    "What¡ª," she hesitated. "What if the Hero decided to kill us all? Get rid of the human kingdom. What do we do then?"


    His expression immediately changed. His faint smile disappeared into a frown, then quickly returned back to his old comforting demeanor. "Then we have lost. We were after all the ones who brought the System Manipulator here, with our summoning of otherworlders."


    "So we accept defeat?"


    "Hope is all we have. The Sermon of Sainthood is approaching. The archangel is a wise and benevolent higher being. If there is anyone who will be able to save us from this toxic world, then it is her.


    Alice gritted her teeth. The archangel hadn''t shown herself in decades. She hadn''t done anything besides sleeping. Nevertheless, as a follower of the stars, if there was anyone in this world who knew what hope was, then it was Alice.


    "Hope is all we have," she repeated. After Tom arrived in this world, then she had put all her faith in hope. It did feel useless, but it was her only viable choice. "That reminds me: Tomassio Rossi asked for an audience with you."


    ***


    The pain in his head hadn''t subsided, but pieces of his memories remained. This entire time, Rachel had been dragging him along to alternate realities. Now he was even more confused over what awaited him in the South. At least he had someone to talk to when he would be searching for the otherworlders guild.


    According to Hiro, Tom had completely disappeared. Rachel managed to convince them why it wasn''t a big deal, and after a while, Tom returned like nothing happened. It all sounded crazy, but he had actually traveled to another world. That sword saint, or the impostor according to Rachel, who was she really?


    He followed Mirabell into the observer''s hideaway. If this world needed fixing, then he had to get stronger as quickly as possible.


    Hilda smiled at him, as he walked into her office. "You''re back."


    "With an appointment ready," Tom added. "The king said he would meet me midday, the day of the banquet held in my honor."


    She clapped her hands. "Perfect. That will be our opportunity to corner him." Standing up from her chair, she walked over to the table. "But first, let us unlock the third ring." On the table was a rusty-looking sword. "Try reaching for it, but don''t touch it."


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    Tom did as she said, and moved his hand closer. All around he saw small colorful balls of light appear, flickering with no determined form. He moved his hand back, and the balls of light disappeared. "I have seen this before. Ilona said it was a curse that worked on her, every time she tried to resort to violence."


    Hilda''s eyes widened. "A curse?" She burst into laughter. "My god, that saintess really is useless. No, no. That is no curse. It simply is something we like to call the law of attraction."


    "The law of attraction? Isn''t that the weird manifestation thing people do, where the universe supposedly will help you?"


    She nodded. "And it is true. Tell me, what is the most interesting part of a book?"


    "The story?"


    "Exactly. The same way of thinking works for spirits. When there is a story worth their attention, they become attracted by it. The reason why the spirits showed themselves in the physical world, referring to the saintess, is because they are intrigued by the prospect of her taking up the sword. Think about it. The previous saintess was the sword saint Lyra Songbird. As the current saintess, she has a legacy she can choose to follow, and that very much intrigues the spirits. It is the same process that gives classes powers. People choosing the same path, following a legacy, using the same skills; those repetitive actions give a sense of meaning and consistency in this world."


    He pointed at the sword. "And this?"


    "This is the sword left behind by an otherworlder named Shiravesti. She was an observer just like us. That intrigues the spirits."


    Tom thought about it. It made sense, trying to make the world attracted to you, to your actions and ideals. Not sure why they were using the word attraction though, had to be because of Babylon''s Blessing translating things weirdly. "And how do I unlock the third ring then?"


    "By proving that you are worthy of their attention. There actually used to be a separate route of progression in the old times. It was accidentally discovered since its path was close to that of an observer. It was called an entertainer. An expert on attracting the attention of spirits and making the world itself a stage of your own choosing. However, we are menders. Our specialty is observing auras, and therefore the reason behind being worthy of spirits'' attention needs to be related to it. Tell me: why are you an observer?"


    He shrugged. "Because it is the class that I was given? I didn''t exactly have a choice."


    "You did. It was a subconscious choice. Classes are closely connected to our personalities and festering ideals. There has to be a reason behind it."


    Trash hummed. "Then it has to be that EPIC ADVENTURE of yours."


    Hilda tilted her head. "Epic adventure?"


    Tom sighed. "I always wanted to be someone extraordinary. Go on an adventure. An epic adventure. Live a life that was cool and meaningful. Not that my life panned out that way."


    She smiled. "Fortunately it did. In this world being average is exactly what is deemed as extraordinary."


    "That makes no sense."


    "It does. In a world with several higher beings with each their authority, being average is the most soothing of things to see. To properly gain their attention, you need to act the part. That is the same reason why, for example, a paladin chooses to act righteous. They are reinforcing their own trope."


    Trope. Tom knew about those. "But what trope can even be related to being average?"


    "That is the difficult part. Compared to the other classes, the observer class is much rarer and mysterious. There are no history books retelling how this class originally came into being. So you will have to do the same as me and wing it. Some small differences in the trope you choose are acceptable. Try striking a pose or something."


    He hesitated. "Alright." Unsheathing Trash, he raised him to the ceiling. "Time to take out the Trash!"


    Shalana walked into the room, clapping. "Now that is a cool sounding catchphrase." She put something on the table and turned towards him. "You observers sure are something."


    He could feel his cheek turn red. "Nothing happened other than me making a fool out of myself."


    "Oh, I wasn''t expecting it to. Just wanted to see if the spirits had any interest in you, but it seems like you have a long way to go."


    "Hey!"


    Trash hummed. "Nice one."


    "The third ring pertains to understanding purpose," Hilda continued. "For if you do not know what a purpose is then how will you be able to hear them? The key lies in understanding those repetitive actions. Try making that pose into a skill maybe?"


    His eyes widened. "I can do that? I thought skills were determined by the class and I had to search for them myself."


    "That depends on how established your class is. The class of paladin which has had many followers and a long history, there is little place for you to change the ideals of being a paladin. A rare class such as an observer does have more wiggle room. Especially since we can artificially make something average using [stabilize]."


    "So when a class, for example for a paladin, is much more established, the skills result from the quote-on-quote averaged-out interpretation?"


    "Correct. Now try again. This time, use your skills."


    Tom closed his eyes and looked at his aura. A colorful cloud with two rings around it. Using [blend] he fixed the colors of his aura. Then he moved his sight to his surroundings using [see area]. Even though his sight was decent, the reach of his powers wasn''t. But he tried to focus as far as he could, outside of his own aura, and used [stabilize]. The surrounding colors, air and small traces of the Ley Line, shifted a little. Everything averaged out, he used [mirror] on the surroundings to make them a part of a bigger whole including his own aura, and ended it with another [stabilize].


    With everything ready, he struck the pose. "Time to take out the Trash!"


    To his glee has saw a few colorful balls of light appear. Spirits. Although, there were four balls at most, and they disappeared so fast that he was barely able to see them.


    Information flooded into his mind, followed by a static sound.


    [Cong ¡ª ¡ª ¡ª ¡ª ¡ª ¡ª You have ¡ª to ¡ª your ¡ª ¡ª learned passive skill [spirit attraction]]


    Trying to strike the pose again, his body moved along with the catchphrase instinctively. He barely had to think about doing it.


    "Is [spirit attraction] what we are looking for?"


    Hilda smiled. "Amazing, you were able to hear the system message! That function is so old and broken from the aftermath of the second Void War." She nodded. "The passive skill [spirit attraction] is indeed what it is called. It doesn''t have to be this form, but any other you choose to attract spirits could work. Just thinking about doing it will automatically even out your aura with the surroundings and you just manually did."


    "And how is this related to purpose?"


    "Not much actually. A sneak peek for understanding ideal. The actual purpose was connected to you making a skill. Normally proving to the world that you understand what purpose means is a much more gruesome and theoretic path to take. But from what I have learned, creating your own skill is a quicker way to prove you understand purpose. The catchphrase skill you have probably has no name, but the knowledge of it is in your mind. Consequently, you learned the [spirit attraction] passive skill since their purpose is the same. The possibilities are endless if you decide to create new poses."


    He crooked his head. "And why don''t the rest of the observers do the same?"


    Trash hummed. "Excuse me! Why do you keep forgetting about me?"


    "Oh." That was right. "Trash powered up his observer capabilities."


    "Your sword must indeed have helped you there. Since it strengthens your powers, you don''t need to go through all the theoretical work as the rest of us. Or you could have already intuitively known the knowledge necessary. Both can be true."


    Tom closed his eyes and looked at his aura. It had slightly contracted, colors looking much more cramped together.Floating around the aura were three translucent rings.


    "I got the third ring!" He opened his eyes and gave Hilda a bow. "Thank you for your help."


    She waved her hands around. "No need to bow. I wasn''t born a noble. You can thank us by helping confront the king. And then travel to the South."


    He raised his head. "That''s right, I needed some communication device. And I reckon my meeting with the king would be a good way to test it out."


    "Indeed," Hilda said. "She nodded and Shalana who was patiently standing by the table. "Show him."


    Shalana grabbed what she had put on the table and showed it to him. "This is it. We call it: the phonie."


    He stared at it. It looked like an old flip-flop phone. "I am guessing it is inspired by otherworlder technology."


    "Exactly. You have a perceptive eye. Using this we will be able to communicate with you. It is my greatest work on entanglement." She pulled out another phone. "You see, these two phones contain two twin fairies. They are entangled in the sense that if one of them does something, the other will react, regardless of how far away they are."


    "Interesting." He took the phone, looked at it, and put it in his pocket. "So what is the plan when I meet the king?"


    Hilda coughed. "I will explain that. It is going to be complicated."


    ***


    The plan was dumb. And they wouldn''t even properly explain what was wrong with the king, saying it was a royal secret or something. At least he managed to unlock his third ring.


    "It''s amazing how far you''ve arrived," Mark said.


    Tom sighed. "It is nothing much, really."


    "It is," Hiro added. "Progressing as an observer is a different and much more theoretical path."


    "And now you can prepare for the Breakthrough stage," Mark said. "If the archangel allows it."


    Tom looked at Alice who was looking through the items in front of her. Since the banquet was tomorrow, everyone decided to go out and do some last-minute shopping. It was the first time any of the guys had been to a tailor. A surprisingly interesting experience.


    "How does one even start trying to move past the Breakthrough stage," he asked Alice.


    She hesitated. "It ¡­ that is complicated to answer. There is no definitive answer. In the past it used to happen whilst one was asleep. People would be transported to a trial they had to complete to pass the stage. These days, praying in front of the World-Rune is much more common." She looked at the bill the tailor handed to her and handed it to her maid. "I am sure Ilona would have some free time after the Sermon of Sainthood. Before that, you will have to wait." She looked around discreetly at who was watching. "And there is that other task you have to do."


    Tom nodded.


    He had signed up for a lot now. First speaking with the king and helping the observers guild confront him. Then there was the banquet held in his honor. The Sermon of Sainthood. And after some days, it all ended with a trip to the South.


    At least he was doing something rather than sitting around, stuck in the camp.


    After seeing an ice cream booth, he excused himself to do some research. The food in this world was a strange mixture of familiar and foreign aspects. He never thought he would like ice cream with spaghetti on it.


    On the corner of the building, he saw a little girl slowly walking around with a hood on. Behind them, their wallet fell out of their pocket.


    Tom picked it up and ran after her. "Hey, this fell from your¡ª!"


    He stared at her. The hair was a short bob. Green eyes. And half her face was glitching in and out of existence. But regardless of the strange glitching and the new clothes, he recognized her instantly. It was his little sister.


    "Sis, what are you doing here?"


    She stared at him confused. "Sys?"