26 Volume 3 - Chapter 2 (2/2)

The speaker was Caucasian, a man with a balding head of hair and a slightly bulging stomach. His eyes, however, brooked no argument as he looked at Micheal expectantly.

”I'm a newcomer that just arrived from the First Layer.” Micheal smiled politely as he spoke, his voice at a slightly higher pitch than it used to be. It matched his slightly more delicate appearance and added to his disguise. It also wasn't something he did on purpose. The poison that had stained his skin and altered his appearance had also altered his voice.

”Oh? Have you been through the New Chosen Walkthrough?” The guard perked up slightly, looking at him expectantly again.

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”Yes, I have. I have decided to remain undecided for now. Everything is just so overwhelming.” Micheal held up a hand and rubbed his head, showing a hint of the very real exhaustion he felt.

The guard nodded his head sympathetically. He then reached into a small bag he had attached to his waist and brought out what looked like a small, white poker chip.

”This is your Identity Token. Do you have the Ki Cultivation Ability?” The guard studied Micheal for a moment.

Micheal let out some of his Earth Tier Ki, the green energy glowing lightly around his body.

”Oh!” The guard's eyes perked up as he saw this, his voice immediately becoming slightly more respectful.

”Yes. Well, if you infuse your Ki into this Token, it will leave an imprint that will be recognized as yours. You can use this to enter any of the Free Camps. Since you've chosen to remain undecided, be aware that you only have two weeks until you will need to choose a Baron or a subsidiary group to join.” The guard's voice came off very matter of fact, as if he had said this line many times before.

And, indeed, he probably had.

The New Chosen Walkthrough referred to the various stages where speakers were set up in the Spawning Ground, telling newcomers about the Second Layer. Micheal had skipped it because he'd already listened to it once before.

In order to maintain the Human Alliance, and keep the Human race stable while there were so many potential enemies out there, all new arrivals were told they had to join one of the Four Baron's Syndicates, or one of the subsidiary groups that were allied to one Baron or another.

Doing so would grant you special privileges and allow you to access certain private Camps, and various other benefits that came with joining each force. You would also be locked down, however, and required to go through some amount of training and do various odd jobs for each group.

The Ancient World was inhabited with large tracts of ferocious beasts and creatures out of legend. The various humanoid races populated about 70% of this land, but the rest was swarmed with powerful monsters.

Humanity's Spawning Grounds had been located in one of the safer areas, within the territory of the Divine Might Sect.

The 'Human Alliance' system was a relatively stable one that had, thus far, turned out good results for humanity. Life right now was as safe as it ever would be on the Second Layer if you were in one of the four Baron's Syndicates.

”Thank you, I understand.” Micheal nodded his head and then infused a strand of green Ki into the white token. He watched as the token shivered in his hand, a faint, green imprint forming upon it.

The guard then proceeded into another spiel, explaining how any act of violence was banned in the city, how theft would be punished extremely seriously, and that guards regularly patrolled the Camp. He managed to convey all of that information in roughly 20 seconds, a record in Micheal's eyes.

”Don't forget, sir. You'll need to make a choice in 14 days!” The guard gave him another cursory glance as he pulled out a clipboard.

”What did you say your name was? It can be a nickname or a title, but it will be bound to your Identity Token.” The guard pointed at the poker-chip like object.

Micheal hesitated for only a split second before replying,

”Legion. I go by the name Legion.” His voice was emotionless.

The guard gave him one last nod as he wrote that down and then waved Micheal forward, his eyes already trained on the next person in line.

Micheal moved through the gate immediately, his eyes flicking to the side as he glanced at the Byren guard.

The humanoid had taken a single glance at Micheal and then ignored him completely, turning his attention to other incoming humans. The man's gaze had felt a lot like a normal human's gaze, one that was bored and expecting nothing.

Seeing a Byren guard here, working with humanity, wasn't at all unusual. After all, the Four Barons, by this point in time, should've formed an official alliance with the Divine Might Sect, a huge organization composed of mostly Byrens. Given that humanity had spawned in their territory, such an alliance had proven vital to secure.

The Byrium Race wasn't participating in the death game that was the 7 Layers. As a result, all of the invading races had done their best to seek out allies among the Byrens, clinging to any support they could foster.

The Byrium Race was a race of powerful warriors that had a natural 3 Star Physique, the Emerald Mind Physique. The natural makeup of their bodies allowed them to have an easier time when cultivating Ki, allowing them to make great strides in power with less effort.

They also had a few other special powers. One of them was the ability to tell how strong a warrior was with a single glance.

In actuality, humanity had discovered that the power was linked to the green gem in their foreheads. It gave a Byren the power to lightly scan another creature, gaining a general understanding on how powerful their physical body was.

By the standards of the Second Layer, Micheal's physical stats ranked him as a Third Rate Warrior, nothing very special and an all-too-common sight.

That was exactly how Micheal wanted it, for now. He had no reason to draw attention to himself, yet, though that wasn't going to last long.

Micheal walked past the gate and found himself inside a bustling town, full of mostly humans.

The grounds of the streets were made of paved, grey stone, meandering off into the distance. To either side of this road were a slew of medieval-looking buildings, structures that were only a couple of stories high at most. Most were made out of brown wood, with orange tile rooftops.

Dozens of people walked back and forth, talking cheerfully. Unlike the First Layer, the streets of this Camp in the Second Layer had an upbeat, cheerful attitude, almost as if one had come back to Earth.

”Oi, get out of the road!” A loud voice interrupted Micheal's musings, coming from his left.

In his sweep of the street, and the nostalgia that came with it, Micheal had inadvertently walked into the middle of the paved road.

He quietly walked out of the road's center, and off to the side were various other humans walked, glancing behind him at the speaker.

An armored man riding a sleek, black motorcycle had driven to a halt, glaring at Micheal in an annoyed manner. The fighter was wearing a set of black leather armor and had two large guns strapped to his back.

When he saw Micheal move, he revved his engine and raced forward, moving down the center of the stone road.

Micheal nodded his head when he saw that. It was possible to get a wide assortment of vehicles now, and actually put them to good use, through the Shop.

Micheal took a deep breath as he let it really sweep over him.

The Camps, the Four Barons, the Sects…

He really was back.

'We can get started on everything tomorrow.' Micheal made the elective decision instantly as he turned his attention to the various buildings on the side of the road.

'For now… let's find an Inn and get some rest.'

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