Stepping outside the Hut, Eve looked at the high wall almost two miles away, cutting the skyline in half. It was an imposing structure that demanded respect and confusion in equal measures.

Oh, sandstorms. Eve thought as the realization hit her. Duh!

Glancing at her family beside her, she took a last look at everyone, ensuring no issues with their clothing. Sara, Rin, Ren, and Jenny were all garbed similarly to Eve with weapons, pouches, and appropriate magical foci at hand. They looked like a band of female mercenaries without question. Thomas, James, and Tim looked like disreputable merchants with shifty eyes. If she didn’t know better, Eve would keep her purse clutched in one hand as the three fake merchants passed her.

Turning back to face the Hut, Eve raised her right hand, pumping mana along with the connection between her house and her. Slowly the Hut gradually shrank until it turned into a tiny palm-sized Hut. Eve was impressed at the spatial manipulation involved to create the result. Nota had informed her of the possibility, but the Hut had done the heavy lifting. When questioned, Eve’s home had shown unwavering confidence in the possibility. Considering the spatial shenanigans already at work on the inside of the Hut, this really shouldn’t have been surprised.

I can always investigate this later, the benefit of being immortal. Eve thought. Now, for the fun part of traveling, lucky for me, I have the Isa Rune to keep me cool!

“Are you certain you will be able to buy your bounty off?” Sara said as Eve approached the group after putting the Hut away in a pouch. “Because if you can’t and Lady Eve has to get involved, you will be enjoying the floor for a year minimum. Without me.”

Thomas flashed a roguish smile and said, “The practice has been in place longer than the city has existed. Changing the policy would make all those dirty second and third noble sons who put a hand to banditry into dire straits. Relax, short of the Lord of Judgement making a personal appearance. We will be fine.”

Sara gave a sharp look before moving to stand a step behind Eve. Rin and Ren took position on Eve’s flanks, while Jenny was in the small space between Eve and Sara. It was a simple formation that ensured the most vulnerable of them, Jenny, couldn’t be grabbed and spirited off in a crowd. Thomas, James, and Tim didn’t need a formation since anyone stupid enough to grab a Tier 2 Rogue or Crystal mage deserved what they got.

Eve gestured to the sand before them creating a large piece of paper that everyone could step onto. Once the entire group was aboard, the paper rose a slight distance above the sand before shuttling off at a decent pace. She took care to ensure the speed didn’t rip the lower Level members of her family off the transport by accident.

After only a few minutes, the group arrived at the tail-end of a long line leading into the city overseen by several bored guards. The guard’s expressions clearly indicated they wished to be posted anywhere else, preferably inside somewhere cooler.

Eve reached into one of the pouches arrayed on her body to prevent anyone suspecting her use of inventory and pulled several small thin passports out. Ignoring the bulging look of shock, Eve distributed the expertly forged paperwork among the group.

“How?” Thomas whispered in shock.

“Boss is a person of many talents.” Sara said, the smirk in her voice clear, “If it weren’t for needing to whitewash your existence, we wouldn’t have even bothered to stop here.”

“Tsk,” Thomas replied, rolling his eyes while his brother James grinned off to the side. “If I had known we had an expert Forger on hand, we could have made a bit of money on the side as well.”

Eve gestured for him to explain, and Thomas readily complied, “There are always those without the proper paperwork to enter or leave the Oasis. Creating the right stuff can be worth a pretty large amount of coin to merchants in a hurry. Time is money and all that. Do you want me to make inquiries?”

“Yes. Details first, don’t accept anything without consulting me.” Eve said curtly. While she wasn’t averse to making easy money, she didn’t want to be dragged into something complicated. “Is there anything entertaining to do in the City while you handle removing the bounty?”

Thomas looked thoughtful for a moment before replying, “The biggest attractions in Oasis are the Dungeon, the Arena, the Slave Market, and the Garden Pools. If any of these places interest you, I’m certain James could show you around while I handle my end.”

Eve zeroed in on the two that interested her turning to James to say, “The Arena and the Garden Pools sound interesting. Do you know what I can expect from them?”

James nodded and replied, “The Arena allows for System backed wagers between contestants for anything from gold, Stats, even Skill Slots. Of course, the higher the wager, the more lethal the fight is, usually. The Garden Pools are a fantastical botanical garden fed from a section of the Oasis itself which has been carefully crafted for centuries. Rare aquatic plants and animals abound within.”

Eve glanced at her Status before deciding to take a look at the Arena first. If it was possible to pick up Skill Slots and Stats, it might be worth further investigating.

Race: Witch

Class: Witch of the Library

Profession: Talismanic Librarian

Level: 500

Health: 9,000/9,000 (90 HPs regen)

Mana: 27,000/27,000 (27,000 MPs regen)

Stats: Str 900; Dex; 900; Con 900; Wis 2,700; Int 2,700; Charm 0

Free Stats: 412

S/S Slots: 0

Skills:

Bond Familiar

Phylactery (Familiar)

Aura of the Library I (0%)

Spells:

Transcendent Transfusion (0%)

Paper Plating (0%)

Domain of the Library I (0%)

Mental Traits:

Bibliotheca Mind (0%)

Physical Traits:

Bibliotheca Body (0%)

“Let’s visit the Arena first, then the Garden Pools,” Eve stated, finalizing her choice. “Do you know anyone at the Arena that can provide us more information?”

James nodded and said, “There’s old man Iron, the dwarf in charge of repairing weapons and armor who could probably tell you anything you wanted to know. As long as you bring some decent alcohol, it shouldn’t be hard to learn anything he knows.”

Eve rolled her eyes at the blatant stereotyping and said, “Let’s drop by a store to pick up drink first, then introduce me to the dwarf. Sara and Jenny accompany Thomas to pay the bounty off. Tim, go pick up anything you can from the local criminal elements. Rin, Ren, and James will be with me. If the Arena is worth it, we might farm out some Skill Slots and Stats. It all depends on what the dwarf can tell me.”

Nodding, the group turned back to the line moving forward slowly. Eve spent the wait entertaining the girls with ever more complex origami. Sara and Thomas held a whispered discussion in low voices while James and Tim chatted about local criminal hangouts.

When it was finally her family’s turn to pass through the gates, everyone flashed their paperwork and placed their hand on a crystal orb. When the orb lit up for Thomas and James, the guard raised an eyebrow at it.

“Paying my bounty off, sir,” Thomas said. At a nod of understanding, the guard provided a small note for both men.

“Make sure to pay it off within twenty-four hours, or they’ll send the Hunters to pick you up, lad. Those freaks won’t care if you have the coin at that point since you are just a walking bag of loot to them.” the older guard said before waving them through.

“Don’t even say it,” Sara said as they eased into the crowd. Thomas merely replied with a wide smile of victory. It was clear the previous conversation had probably been about whether or not they would be stopped at the gates.

Shrugging as the three splits from her group, Eve turned to James and asked, “Where do you recommend we get a drink from?”

James paused a moment before replying, “There’s a good spot for rotgut close to the Arena. Since it’s on the way, let's go to The Wood Table Bar.”

Nodding in agreement, Eve attached a small paper bracer to everyone’s left arm and said, “In case of emergency, snap the bracer. Just in case.”

Once the bracelet safeguard was in place, Tim vanished into the crowd while James moved to head in a northern direction following the streets. Eve looked around as they traveled, letting her mind catalog various sights. The crowd was thick on the main streets looking like something reminiscent of New York from Earth. On the side streets, however, it was similar to the crowd found at a bazaar with people stopping at street stalls for food, weapons, clothing, and more.

Storefronts were almost exclusively on main streets, with only the rare seedier-looking shops having an entrance on a side street or alley. While moving, Eve noticed that the quality of materials stores and structures in town shifted gradually as they moved north. Where sandstone and basalt were common closer to the gate, wood became more prevalent as they moved along.

With the dearth of trees that can be naturally sourced nearby, wood turned into a luxury item. Eve thought. Even though they are sandwiched between two layers of the forest, wood is still a sign of status.

Eve absently knocked the hands of a small urchin that attempted to near the pouches on her hip away. The almost reflexive action was due to the recent gains she had made in the sandstorm. Learning that she could shift attacks into her inventory, even if they involved mana, had been a major factor in her choice to switch to Soul Sheets. Armor was a thing of the past now that she could use her spatial manipulation skills to remove the need for it.

I suspect spatial manipulation is something that anyone would normally gain at a much higher Tier. Eve theorized as they moved through streets that garnered more signs of wealth. If the ability to produce mana is gained at the higher Tiers, then the need to defend from Space or Time attacks is likely. I am willing to bet that within the Depths, the creatures outside of Reality don’t play by the standard rules of space-time.

Glancing at the clothing around, Eve shifted the outfits of her group to match. It wouldn’t do to look like urchins themselves as they moved into wealthier locations. Nothing sets a person out like wearing the wrongs clothes in an upper-class neighborhood. The onlookers nodded as if it was only expected, and Eve suspected the surrounding people figured she had removed a glamour revealing their true dress.

Which is correct, except anyone looking with a sight like my own would realize there was no glamour on in the first place. Eve thought as her guide James finally turned towards the northeastern section of the city. The buildings grew shorter, allowing what could only be the Arena into view in the distance. Magical world, magically titanic Colosseums, duh.

Eve had seen pictures of the Roman colosseum on the internet, but the monstrous structure in front of it put that to shame quite handily. The entire building was almost three-quarters the height of the city wall. Runes, glowing magical mana bleed off, and containment fields meshed, separating each floor by color. There was no doubt in Eve’s mind that it was bigger on the inside than the outside. She suspected the structure housed a population no less than the actual Oasis. Likely most of the said population were gladiators, bests, and trainers, though.

As they moved, closer Eve asked, “Does the Arena operate on a twenty-four-hour schedule?”

James nodded agreement before saying, “The betting never stops since the System ensures all debts are paid in full without delay.”

Impressive. I bet the bookies would love for something like that to exist back home. Eve thought, looking at the crowd shifting in and out between the entrance pillars. A place like this is a license to print money.

James moved towards a two-story building off to the side that had a signpost denoting a plate, knife, and mug, the universal sign for food and drink on this world. Following along, Eve knocked another urchin’s grubby hand from attempting to pickpocket her. Her eyes narrowed as she was able to see through Aura that it was the same child who had made the previous attempt. Moving with uncanny speed Eve’s hand snaked out to grab the munchkin before hoisting her to eye level. The dirty face of a young girl around Jenny’s age met her.

“Who sent you?” Eve asked, holding the girl in front of her by her armpits with both hands.

“Da sneaky boy.” the grubby urchin said.

“Describe him to me,” Eve replied. Listening to the urchin, an unflattering description of Tim emerged. “Why would he send you my way?”

“Sparklies, kin see dem.” the urchin replied.

Able to see mana? Quite a rare ability. Eve thought, giving the munchkin a critical eye with Aura. Worth keeping. She’ll clean up well. Jenny needs a playmate too, and someone with street smarts could work.

“James, lodge us a room for the night at the Wooden Table. The girls will stay with me while you go inform the dwarf to meet us. If he has any issues, promise him enough alcohol to drown in for the night.” Eve said, reaching out with her power to send a message to each of the bracelets she had left with the others in her family. Turning her attention back after that was complete to the urchin being held up before her, Eve said, “You can stay with us, but I’ll require your name and a bath from you first.”

The urchin squirmed before going limp and muttering, “Bad lux. Mah nim iz Penny. Water iz ebil.”

“Penny, place your thumb on this piece of paper here,” Eve said, holding up a Contract while shifting the urchin to one hand. “If you sign this, I will ensure you never go hungry, always have a comfortable bed to sleep in, and help you grow stronger. You can look at these two girls to see what life could be like.”

Penny gave a sidelong glance at both Ren and Rin before pressing her right thumb to the paper Contract. When it vanished in a sparkle of light, the urchin gasped. Eve held Penny with minimal effort as James led them into the Wooden Table. A quick exchange with the bartender secured a room for the night. Eve hadn’t been sure if rooms were available earlier, but upon seeing the Arena, she decided it was highly probable. The expense was negligible to Eve, even with the addition of a bathing tub to the service.

Rin and Ren took great delight in scrubbing Penny clean while Eve laid out additional beds in the room with her paper. James handled ordering room service, making sure to order enough for the entire group.

At the same time the food was arriving, Thomas, Sara, and Jenny arrived. A paper table large enough to seat everyone and chairs that ran the length of space allowed for comfortable conversation during the meal. Roasted potatoes, steak, and vegetables in ginger glaze sauce filled everyone’s bellies easily.

After her family finished the meal, Eve sent the younger members to bed first. By boxing each bed up with paper, there was no worry that light or sound would wake the children.

“Any issues?” Eve asked, finishing sealing each of the children up so they wouldn’t be kept awake.

Thomas grinned as Sara rolled her eyes next to him and said, “Negative. Everything has been paid, stamped, and registered for approval by the local City Lord’s beaurocracy.”

Eve’s lips raised in an amused grin before standing up to go to her own bed. Tucking in, she layered Sara and Thomas’s bed with an extra box to prevent the enthusiastic noises from disturbing others. Eve ruminated over a few theories on her current combination of abilities while lying back on her own bed.

While I cannot attack or defend with normal paper anymore, I still have incredible utility. Eve thought. Unfortunately, paper money doesn’t exist in this world. The crystal cards that banks use neatly eliminates the chance of me forging my way into currency.

Checking her own bank card she pulled from inventory, Eve grimaced. Moving to a new location was expensive in all sorts of ways. If the dwarf they were visiting in the morning could confirm a few key points, she would gamble a great deal in the Arena. Setting the swords and daggers in unobtrusive places, Eve sealed her own bed in a paper box.

I can’t wait to harvest leeks in the Arena. Eve thought as she drifted off to sleep.