Key:

( ) = Speaker

{ } = POV

[ ] = Titles/Move names

Location: Runscav, Paradisial Plains

{Rex Yamamoto}

Date: 8 days since Merge

We followed Lance toward the town of Runscav. When we got to the perimeter of the town, I noticed that there were guards standing watch. A moderately tall wall stood behind them. They wore armour that had definitely seen better days. Dented and chipped in various different locations, it seems that these pieces of armor had been through quite a few battles. It wasn't just the armor either, the shield and sword each guard carried were also chipped and dented. It caused me to wonder how this town was doing, and more importantly, how safe it was to stay in this town.

As soon as they saw Lance, they made way for us and escorted us toward a large building known as the Adventurer's Association Hall. As we walked through the town, it seemed that the residents of this town were pretty lively, and they all had cheerful expressions on their faces. This only added to my already growing anxiety. The attitude of the people living here is the complete opposite of their soldiers' equipment condition. I take a look at Pops, and it looks like he's noticed it too. Something wasn't right about this town. However, we continued to act naturally. We couldn't give off any signs of hostility, otherwise we'd be dead. Lance could kill us both in an instant, so picking a fight with him wasn't even considered. We also realized if he had wanted us dead, he would have just let the Giant Centipede kill us. So, we continued as if nothing had happened.

On our way here, Lance had asked us if we would be interested in joining the Association as adventurers. Since we needed work, we readily agreed.

“Great! Let’s had to the Hall to sign you up!”(Lance)

Thus, we ended up going to the Adventurer's Association Hall, and in it was an even more lively scene than that of the town. The noise of drunken laughter and shouts filled the hall. We managed to find a seat in a corner of the hall. Before doing anything else, we wanted some questions answered.

"We'd like to ask you some questions. Mainly about this world, about this town, and about you, if you don't mind us asking that is."(Pops)

"I don't mind at all. Ask as many questions as you like, however, in return, I also expect my questions to be answered as well."(Lance)

"Huh?"(Pops)

"Well, just like you I am in need of information about your world. So wouldn't you consider it a fair trade?"(Lance)

We hadn't even considered the fact that he might want to know more about our world. Our minds had been in disorder due to his sudden appearance and strength. However Pops quickly recovered and responded.

"That's fine, it's reasonable for you to want something in return. Anyways, onto our first question. What is this world and how does it work?"(Pops)

"Ah, starting off with a pretty broad question aren't we? This world is called Jukaria. Residing in this world are various different species of both monsters and people. The monsters in this world, can sometimes raise havoc in populated areas. However, the regulation of monsters was something that was hard to manage. For instance, let’s compare the regulation of the monster population between a large city to that of a village. The city would be able to raise a large enough force to maintain or even wipe out surrounding monsters. However, a village would only be able to send maybe 2-4 experienced fighters and a number of volunteers. This would, as you might have guessed, lead to not only minimal reduction in the monster population, but the attacking party would also sustain a large amount of casualties. Thus, the Adventurer's Association was created to send support to towns that didn’t have a large enough force to deal with the local monsters. That was the original purpose behind the creation of the Association.

Now that monster levels have become more stable, the Association has broadened the list of jobs it takes. These include jobs as small as helping the locals, such as building a shed for a farmer or helping out a local restaurant as a server, to jobs that affect the whole region, such as military support or royal escort missions. The Association holds a large amount of influence among all the kingdoms and empires of Jukaria, as it has become a necessity due to the wide range of services it delivers.

Before I continue with talk about the Association, let’s talk about the people of this world. It’s imperative that you know the situations behind the various races of this world. There are a number of beings in Jukaria with levels of intelligence that are equal to or even greater than humans. These beings are categorized under 5 races.

Firstly there are us, the humans. The humans are by far the most technologically advanced, however they are also considered the weakest race in terms of physical strength. We are the second largest in terms of population.

Next would be the undead. The undead are a race that has ancestral ties with monsters. They had originally been monsters and had evolved and gained intelligence. Examples of the species that fall under this race would be skeletons and dullahans. In terms of population, this group is by far the smallest. Contrary to popular belief, those of the undead race have trouble repopulating their ranks due to the fact that the only way to add more members to their ranks is to wait for an undead monster to gain intelligence. This occurrence only happens, on average, around twice a week, therefore they are unable to refill their ranks as quickly as any of the other races. However, they are by far the most resilient. After all, they're already dead, so there aren't that man ways to "kill" them.

Next are the beastmen. The beastmen are a humanoid race with various animal-like and fish-like characteristics. A few examples of the types of species that fall under this race would be: bearmen, rabbitmen, fishmen, and lionmen. Strong and prideful, they are the strongest race in terms of physical capabilities, examples being flight and the ability to breath underwater. The various monster species are also gifted with various different physical capabilities. The beastmen’s mastery over their gifts is what sets them apart. From a young age, beastmen go through intensive training to learn how to use their abilities. By the time they are adults, they have full mastery over their abilities. Their population, however, is never stable. Although they boast the 2nd largest population among the 5 races, the beastmen population is static due to many internal conflicts. The beastmen are a warlike race, and part of the intensive training that they go through when they’re young is training so that they can become warriors. This is the main weakness of the beastmen.

Next is the monster race. These monsters were not classified as undead, and had evolved a millennia ago and gained intelligence. The monster race's strongest attributes are their inhuman abilities. Examples of these abilities would be breathing fire and petrifying their enemies into stone statues. As you have probably guessed, the species under this race include dragonmen and gorgons. Their race’s biggest weakness is their intelligence. Although some among them, such as vampires and gorgons, do possess above average intelligence, the majority of the beings of this race actually have low intelligence, making negotiating with them both extremely easy and difficult.”

“Wait a second. If there is a monster race, what do you call monsters like that giant centipede?”(Pops)

“Those are referred to as demonic beasts. I’ll go into more detail about them later on, but for not I will explain the last of the races.

The last race, the fairies. This race’s most identifiable traits are either their wings, long lifespan, or they're beauty. Examples of species that fall under this race include elves and valkyries. They're lifespan is probably their greatest strength. Able to outlive any other race, they have seen and lived through many different major events, causing the beings of this race to hold be unrivaled in terms of knowledge. However, their weakest attribute would most likely be their beauty. It may sound stupid, but in their beautiful appearance is a double edged sword. Due to their unmatched beauty, they're in high demand in the slave trade, and, well, I don't think I really need to explain any more than that....."

"Yeah, I think we get the picture."(Pops)

"So let's get back onto the topic of the Association."(Rex)

"Ah, so the boy finally speaks, by the way, you two have yet to introduce yourselves. It only seems fair since I gave you my name."(Lance)

"Ah, right, my name’s Takeru Yamamoto. This here is my stepson, Rex."(Pops)

"Takeru and Rex huh? Those are definitely unique names around these parts, I'll tell you that much. Anyways, how about we sign you up first, it'll be a lot easier for me to explain how the Association works once we've done that."(Lance)

We left our table and headed toward the Association registration counter. Once we had filled out all the required forms, Pops and I were given a metal wrist cuff. I took some time to inspect mine before putting it on. At the center of the wrist cuff, there was a copper plaque. Not only that, there was something strange about these cuffs. At first glance, they looked like regular metal cuffs. However, the inside of these cuffs felt more, well, alive. I called out to Lance to try to figure out what it was.

"Hey, Lance, what's the inside of this thing made of?"(Rex)

"Ah, it's a preprogrammed parasite. Once you put the cuffs on, the parasite will merge with you. Around two centuries ago, the heads of the Association's science department were able to get the parasites to adapt, or upgrade, the user's body. You'll see what I mean when you put it on."(Lance)

"Hey, is this gonna hurt?"(Pops)

"Yeah, it'll sting a bit but that's about it. Well anyways, hurry up and put them on."(Lance)

Although I was a bit hesitant, I attached the cuff onto my right arm.

"Gah!"(Rex)

Damn, that did sting! It's like a nail was just hammered into my arm! However, I noticed something had changed. A menu had suddenly appeared on in front of me.

"Ah, I see you've finally noticed it. What you're seeing is the menu for managing and keeping track of both your skills and stats. Only those who where these types of cuffs are able to access them, and the only way to get them is through joining the Association. The Association also hands these out to affiliated governments so that they're military and artisans have access to the various skills related to their jobs. How it works is that you have to select what you want to see with your mind. Not gonna lie, it's a pain at first, but you eventually get used to it."(Lance)

Huh, so that's how it works. I select the stats page to see my current stats. Currently, they look like this:

Name:

Rex Yamamoto

Strength:

120

Dexterity:

135

Agility:

125

Intellect:

110

Vitality:

100

Luck:

105

Charisma:

100

Huh, so these are my stats. I wonder how it works though.

"Hey, Lance, could you explain to us how the stats system works."(Rex)

"Sure. First, the stats system shows your an overall assessment of some of your traits and characteristics. These should be displayed to you, but I'll say them just in case it may be missing. The traits and characteristics that are listed should be as follows: strength, dexterity, agility, vitality, luck, and charisma.

Strength is pretty self explanatory, it's a measure of your physical strength. Definitely something you want to keep track of if you're thinking of going into a profession that requires heavy labor.

Dexterity is a measure of how nimble you are, which is a pretty important stat you need to keep track of if you're thinking of going into a profession that's more, well, secretive.

Agility is a measure of how quick you are. Another good stat to keep track of if you're going into professions on the more illegitimate side.

Vitality of how tough your body is. The higher the vitality, the longer your lifespan. It also shows the overall amount of damage your body can take before you kick the bucket. Definitely something you might want to invest some time into.

Luck, is a measure of your, well, luck. It's not really something you can change though unless you master certain skills that boost your overall luck.

Charisma is measure of your ability as a leader. It pretty much shows how well others will react toward you and if you'll be any good in a profession with more responsibilities.

The average number for any of these categories, in terms of human standards, should be 100, and there aren't any limits to how high the numbers can go. Although, I haven't ever heard of anyone with stats that surpassed 500. However, I wouldn't be surprised if they were slightly higher, since I did find you traversing the Scorching Wastes."(Lance)

"Yup, you're right, all my stats except for vitality and charisma are higher than 100."(Rex)

"All of mine are above 100, although charisma and dexterity are only slightly above it."(Pops)

"Hah, that definitely met the expectations I had for you two."(Lance)

So all of Pops's stats are over a hundred. Well, that's to be expected. Pops doesn't really like to talk about his past that much, but from what I could tell, it was pretty rough, so this didn't really surprise me. However, there was one skill in particular that I wanted to find out about...

"Hey Pops, what's your luck stat at?"(Rex)

"My luck? 247."(Pops)

247! What the hell! No wonder you've been able to get so much money! With a luck status like that, he would have probably survived the Giant Centipede's ambush!

It took me a few minutes to calm myself down from the initial surprise of his luck status. I then asked Lance to explain the skill/class system as well.

"The class system is split into two categories. One passive, and one offensive or support. You can pick one class from each of these categories. Each class comes with its own unique skill, however various classes do have similar skills. Once you pick your preferred classes, they'll become your new class. You can end up having more than one, however, you'll have had to completely master your current class to be able to do so. You can also switch classes, but you'll lose any progress you had made in that class. Your interface should also recommend a class for you based on your stats."(Lance)

Huh, so that's how it is. I scroll through the list and see that I've been recommended the offensive class of [Ninja] and the passive class of [Hunter]. After reading through a description for both of them, as well as the skills obtainable through that class, I decided to choose them. Pops ended up going with [Swordsman] and [Blacksmith]. He chose [Blacksmith] as his passive so that he might be able to produce his own bullets and do maintenance on his weapons. These classes were actually pretty good choices to start off with.

"Ah, a ninja hunter and a swordsman blacksmith, a good pair if I do say so myself! Anyways, I'll be give you my final bit of information now, and then it'll be your turn.

What I'm going to be talking about next is the Associations ranking system. The Association places ranks on both demonic beasts and adventurers. In terms of demonic beasts, they're listed in terms of threat level. Threat levels are assessed by how much damage they can cause. From smallest to greatest threat level, the ranks are scavenger, raider, warrior, plague, and apocalypse.

Scavengers tend to just be pests or nuisances that townspeople want eliminated.

Raiders level demonic beasts are those who have begun to raid village supplies, which may or may not have resulted in the death of several civilians.

Warrior level demonic beasts are those who have killed around 20 civilians without having been subdued. Their skill level is equivalent to that of a knight.

Plague level demonic beasts are those who have begun to to wipe out several settlements. Their skill level is equivalent to that of a platoon of a kingdom's royal knights.

Apocalypse level demonic beasts are those who have wiped out cities. These demonic beasts require at least two kingdom's armies with a decent amount of mages in each to kill them.

Now, the adventurer rankings. These are based off of one's own skill. There is a certain amount of tasks and quests you must have completed before you are eligible to take a promotion test. If you pass the promotion test, you will be promoted to the next rank. These ranks include copper, bronze, silver, gold, platinum, iron, obsidian, cobalt, titanium, quartz, and diamond. As you can see, it takes quite a while to reach diamond rank. I myself have managed to get there, but it did take me quite a few years, even with my power as the [Void Mage]."(Lance)

So there are 11 different ranks for adventurers, well that explains what the copper plaque on the cuff is. Wonder what level of mission each rank is allowed to perform. Furthermore, Lance is actually a top rank adventurer. Well, I guess it's to be expected. His powers speak for themselves. Anyways, right after telling us this, he asked us to tell him about our world. We told him how our world's technology was much more advanced than that of this world's. He was pretty excited about the mention of our world’s weapons. We gave him a brief description of our world's military power and said we would give him a demonstration of how a gun works later. He was pretty excited about it, guess weapons were something of a hobby to him.

While we were discussing about our world’s weapons, we ended up on the topic of weapons of mass destruction. We began to discuss about the ability of our world’s nations to fight back should any nation from Jukaria decide to invade. When we brought up how a nuke would most likely not be effective due to void magic, Lance suddenly said,

"Oh, there's no need to worry about that. I'm actually the only void mage around. Like I said earlier, I'm rare among my kind, the mages. That's because, unlike the other mages, I had obtained my powers through conquering the dungeon."(Lance)

When he saw our puzzled looks, he seemed to have understood we had had some sort of misconception about mages, and began to explain how both magic and mages worked in this world.

Magic in this world isn't like the traditional kind you find in fantasy books, where it's some sort of energy that's everywhere and can be easily manipulated. "Magic" in this world is more like a physical enhancement to one's body. Like how an adventurers cuff will upgrade their bodies as they unlock new skills, magic is something that will change the very structure of one's being so that they are able to control it. In fact, once you become a mage, a new class and skill tree will appear in your class screen, and will give you the appropriate skills for the type of mage you are. The powers you can get from becoming a mage are inhuman, however, the chances of obtaining such power are quite low.

Magic is something you can obtain through a magic gem, which can only be obtained after completing a dungeon. However, the success rate of conquering a dungeon are less than one percent, and entire 64 man raiding parties have been completely wiped out in their attempts to gain said power. Lance had been a part of one of these raiding parties, and he was the only survivor. Nowadays, it's more common for these powers to be passed down within a family, as the child of a mage is able to inherit their powers. The child of two mages have a possibility to gain both their parents' power, and those that do tend to become mages who are unrivaled in this world. Another method is for a mage to transfer some of their power to another. However, if the person who is receiving the power is incompatible, there's a 90% chance that they'll die. Therefore, in the case of nobility, mage's rank at a level only second to that of a monarch.

However, power that are passed on will never be equal to that of the original. When magic is passed on through any means, those who are able to attain that power receive a weaker version. An example Lance gave us would be fire magic. The original user of fire magic is said to have been so strong that his fire could melt iron armor within seconds. His disciples’ and children’s fire magic, on the other hand, was much weaker. At best, it was only half the strength of the original. Although it was still a deadly magic, it could never reach the high temperatures that the original could.

After he stated the drawbacks, Lance revealed to us one of the advantages of transferring magic.

“Luckily for us, magic doesn’t degrade any further after it’s been transferred from the original user. This means that we can keep various types of magic alive.”(Lance)

After this explanation, he told us, who he had already guessed might have wanted to become mages, that another raiding party would be attempting to conquer the dungeon in around 4 months time, and if we wanted to have a chance of surviving, we'd at least have to reach cobalt rank.

Before we parted ways, we asked Lance one more question.

"Lance, what's your relation to this town, or better yet, Draacia Kingdom?"(Pops)

"Ah, I'm one of the mages in service to the monarch of the Draacian Kingdom, however, I requested to be able to stay in this town when not needed, as this is my home town. Due to it's location being quite close to the Scorching Wastes, we occasionally get the stray demonic beast that arrives at our city. Ever since I was given permission to stay here, the casualty rates have dropped, as I'm able to repel all intruders with my void magic. Well, anyways, it was nice meeting you two. If you ever need any help, or have anymore questions, just come find me. I'll be at the town hall."(Lance)

With that, Pops and I parted ways with Lance. We headed to the Associations inn and ended up sleeping till the next day. With all that had happened today, I think a good, long rest is the least we could get. As we awakened the next morning, our first days as adventurers began.