Chapter 27 - Welcome to Estraia!

<p>As we got closer to the town, and it came fully into view, Raeki got more excited, and we had to hold him back as he tried to run off in that direction. Raeki was a true tank, which means his only equipment right now was 3 shields. The one the size of his torso sat on his back at all times. He kept the other two in a cube, but when we were fighting, he only really used a shield that was almost taller than him. It was almost comical how small the boy was in comparison to the shield, but he wielded it extremely well. I hadn't seen the second one, but Raeki had told me it was just an exact copy in case his main one broke.<br/><br/> The town wasn't much to look at now, as it had roughly 12-foot walls surrounding it. Nothing stalwart, but enough to protect them from anything up to the Large Slime I had fought. It had several cuts and chips upon it, and was clearly weathered, but otherwise seemed well-maintained. Colored roofs peek above the wall in unorganized spatters, trying to catch the three of us approaching. Surprisingly, the tops of the houses seemed much more modern than I had expected, but how modern the houses themselves were was yet to be seen. As we approached the gate in the wall — two large doors with piston-looking poles on the top and bottom edges that sat like replacement hinges — we saw a man who was obviously a guard with his classic suit of plate armor raising his hand up in a cordial wave.<br/><br/> "Welcome to Estraia, young people. What brings you here?"<br/><br/> Raeki pipes up before Eniyala can respond. "We're looking for my dad!"<br/><br/> The guard raises an eyebrow, his tightly fitted glistening helmet lifting slightly from the action. "I see. Are you a party?"<br/><br/> "Yes," Eniyala replies, clapping a hand over Raeki's mouth as he opens it to talk again. "I am the party lead." She points with her finger over air, swiping it a couple times before flipping it over. I can't see it now, but she has already shown me what she was doing.<br/><br/><br/> The day after she saw my Life Statscreen, she had come to the same conclusion as the message it had given me. "We shouldn't show anyone your messed up Statbook before we know more about it," she had said, fiddling with her fingers for a moment. After messing with my Stat screen as well, a few new messages appeared.<br/><br/>[Eniyala Ignios ("Eni") has invited you to her party.]<br/>[Accept? Y/N]<br/><br/> I accepted it mentally with a raised eyebrow. "Did you put a nickname in my Statscreen?"<br/><br/> She gives me her usual even look. "It's easier than 'Any-yalla Ig-nee-os,' isn't it?"<br/><br/> I shrug in agreement. "Just asking."<br/><br/> She directed me to the Party screen, showing me our three names over three green dots on a map. The map itself was blank aside from the dirt road we had been walking, but that wasn't the point. "If we're in a party, when we get to town they should only need to see my Statbook to confirm all of us, as our names are right there for them to check."<br/><br/><br/> I hadn't fully understood how they could confirm right there, but now, as I watch the guard look over the names and map locations of our party, I see firsthand where the technological advancement of Puria was.<br/><br/> The guard pulls a small square from a pocket on his leather-and-metal-wrapped chest, and I watch green Mana spread into it before it expands, forming a rectangle that fits snugly in his palm. As more Mana fills it, the side facing the man lights up, confirming what I knew it was.<br/><br/> A Mana-powered cell phone.<br/><br/> I felt my jaw drop, and Raeki had to nudge me to bring me back to my senses. Closing my mouth, I smile innocently as the guard looks up, giving us a thumbs up. "You guys check out. You're good to go!"<br/><br/> With a wave of his hand, magical air flows inside the pistons, forcing them to pull the doors open. They creak in complaint, but comply, swinging open to reveal a surprisingly alive town, with a decent number of people strolling the streets. <br/><br/> People bustle about on the main street, making way for metal horses powered by some kind of Mana. Some of them stand alone, powered off. Several people have their heads stuck in similar phones as the guard's. I marvel at the sight, before Eniyala grabs my hand and pulls me along into the crowd. The doors slowly close shut, a soft thud signifying it had sealed.<br/><br/> "Woah," was all I could say as I look around. Everything seemed much more advanced than your usual fantasy setting, but I wasn't complaining. A sudden question entered my brain as I saw the advancement of technology. "Hey… do you guys have flushable toilets?"<br/><br/> "How primitive do you think we are?" Eniyala replies, with a tone suggesting it was a stupid question. We had been traveling, and their house was ruined, so I hadn't gotten a good look to see a bathroom yet, but this gave me new hope, and I fist pump triumphantly. "Thank the Gods."<br/><br/> A few people gave me weird looks, and Eniyala gave me a swat with an apologetic smile. "Sorry. He's not right in the head," she explains to one lady. The lady nods in understanding before clutching her basket closer to her chest and running off. I am sure my dumbfounded look only adds to the story, but I'm too bewildered how quickly Eniyala had socially decimated me to care. <br/><br/> "Where do we go, Sis?" Raeki asks, fully confident in her ability to navigate. It wasn't unfounded, clearly, as the girl lifts her hand to point at a building with a neon shield and two swords above the door. "That's the Adventurer's Building," she states, walking in that direction. "Ah, finally, back to the fantasy element," I say, slipping back into what I actually knew about.<br/><br/> It was clear what the Adventurer's Building was for. It was where people got their adventurer's license, and took quests.<br/><br/> As we approached the normal-seeming building, I felt my excitement rise. What would it be? Some kind of old bar look? A wide, open area? Whatever it was, it would be surreal.<br/><br/> Instead, it looked almost like a lobby from my modern world.<br/><br/> My mouth gapes at such a disappointing scene. The room had dark walls, with circular tables placed throughout the main area. in the back, a long desk was cut into multiple sections with glass separating the people behind it from the people coming in. On the right side, there was a bar and simple-looking stove, where the workers cooked and prepared drinks furiously for numerous people sitting at or near the bar. They weren't particularly loud, but it was a decent crowd, so the boisterous laughter still rang out in the large room. On the left, as I had guessed, was a quest board, but it had two sections. One was digital, powered by Mana, that Adventurers could swipe through, and the other half was traditional, with sheets of paper detailing the quest details in handwriting.<br/><br/> Eniyala smacks me again to bring me to my senses, and we begin walking to the back desks. Except…<br/><br/> "Ah, fresh meat, is it?" A large man, and I mean large, suddenly blocks our path, finishing off a clear glass of beer with a satisfied "aaah." He brushes his frizzy beard free of leftover alcohol before giving a halfway-toothless grin down to the three of us. "What brings you newbies here?"<br/><br/> Even in a new world, testosterone still controls the male mind in this way, it would seem.<br/><br/> As I eye his oversized muscles with disdain, Eniyala steps up fearlessly, spinning a pen-sized rod in her hand. "None of your business. Now, we need to get to the desk, if you'll move."<br/><br/> The man belts out a laugh, and my arm lowers, fingers extended. 'I don't know who he is, but he gives me classic villain vibes.'<br/><br/> "Now, now, can't a man introduce himself to a pretty lady and her party? The name's Azello Paulderain."<br/><br/> "That's so crazy, 'cause I don't remember asking," I say without missing a beat. Eniyala shoots me an even look, which I know is her telling me no. I know there's already no going back, so I step up, staring up at the man who's now eyeing me. He reeks of the drinks he has already downed, his eyes a little unfocused. 'I can probably take him.'<br/><br/> Then, with no warning, his fist comes at my gut. I've instinctively moved, but it still catches my side. I grimace, but he isn't done. He continues the motion, throwing me in the air with a twist of his fist, and I go flying back spinning. A helicopter blade is sent — no, I'm sent crashing into a few tables, landing with a thick thud on the ground.<br/><br/> "Ow," I mutter, checking my health.<br/><br/>[Health: 25/45]<br/><br/> Lovely. The drunk brute can almost kill me in two hits.<br/><br/> As I stumble to my feet dizzily, holding my side, he continues. "What a rude cockblock. Does the little runt want to get in the way too?"<br/><br/> He grins at Raeki, taunting him, and Raeki steps in front of his sister protectively as he summons his shield. "Stay back, Sis. I got this."<br/><br/> "Now is not the time, Raek—"<br/><br/> Before she can finish, the man raises his hand to slap the ever-living shit out of a little kid. However, before he can even begin the motion, his body freezes. <br/><br/> An intense murderous intent strikes his body so harshly it shudders, and frozen in place he looks to see a boy standing where he was thrown, UnHoly Raze resting nonchalantly in his hand as if it were another beer mug.<br/><br/>[Critical Eye+ was activated.]<br/>[Target in sight.]<br/>[Please select an area.]<br/>['Head' was selected.]<br/><br/> Disappointingly, I could only select large areas on his body, but his head was enough. My lips part into an ugly sneer as I stare down the man. "Whatcha doing, 'buddy?' 'Bout to hit a kid?"<br/><br/> As I lift the blade up, a dark purple energy spreads across it, flickering black lines tracing along it.<br/><br/>[Slash+ Skill was activated.]<br/>[10% Dark Magic activated.]<br/><br/> 'So soon again? Nice.'<br/><br/> Azello drops his brute-brained head down before sullenly returning to his table in embarrassment. Satisfied, I return my sword to my inventory, looking around. Everyone is frozen, but as I look at them, they hurriedly return to what they were doing as if they hadn't seen anything. Confusedly, I walk back to the siblings, massaging my sore shoulder. "The hell is their problem?"<br/><br/> Even the siblings seem bothered, as they act overly fine, dragging me towards the desk. Thankfully, the receptionists didn't seem to be in the same weird mood. Maybe it was because they were farther away, or just couldn't be bothered by a bar fight. As we approach a young man, he looks up and smiles, putting an orange-glowing phone away. His spiky hair matches the color, and his green eyes inspect each of us carefully. <br/><br/> "New faces! Welcome to Estraia. Are you here to register?"<br/><br/> Eniyala looks like she wants to say yes, but finally she shakes her head. "We're looking for someone, actually. A Gaslion Ignios? He should have taken up a quest here about a month ago."<br/><br/> The receptionist nods, tapping away on something like a tablet in front of him. Finally, he stands. "Right this way. And, in advance, he will have to stay with us about another month before you can have him."<br/><br/> Oh, no.<br/><br/> I place a hand reassuringly on Raeki's shoulder as the man opens a small door next to him, stepping out with us. He leads us to a door, down a hallway, and down a turn until we stop in front of a generic door.<br/><br/> "I'll let you guys have some space."<br/><br/> He turns and walks back the way we came, and turning back to them, I open my mouth, but Eniyala shakes her head before I can speak. "Come with us. Please."<br/><br/> I can hear the waver in her voice. I look at Raeki, who's also trembling, and I nod. I understand why she's asking, and don't say more.<br/><br/> After a few long minutes of preparing themselves, they open the door. Inside, a motionless figure laid in the single bed in the room. Eniyala takes a step in, reaching for the light.<br/><br/> "Dad?"</p>