It was getting late. Jinhyung was a little grim.
"Hey, it's just a sword—a cheap one at that. You can just buy yourself a new, better sword."
"You're right, but don't you think it's weird someone would steal this sword while there are better choices at the market?"
Now that he brought that up, it was indeed quite odd. I wouldn't even take his dirty, chipped sword for free.
"Don't worry, maybe some poor one desperately needed a weapon, and they used all of their coins for other stuff; really, don't bother with it."
"Let's go get a new one."
I knew he would want to go buy a new one right away; without a sword, he was like a shrimp without its shell. But I really wanted to just go to my place and sleep—nothing more, nothing less. I was tired.
"Hey Jinhyung, uhm, can we go buy stuff tomorrow?"
"Why do something tomorrow when you can do it now?"
"I am very tired, like I just want to sleep right now."
"Are you trying to escape me again?"
If he starts to doubt me every time... this would become really annoying.
"Hey, look; it's already [11:36]. I depleted all of my magic, and I am but a normal human, I can get tired too."
"I see. I will wait for you tomorrow at [7:00] before your cabin. Bye."
The door opened, and he smiled at me. It was somewhat sweet seeing him overcome his grumpy obsession with swords for my sake.
"See you."
----------------------------------------
The next morning, a standard electric sound resonated at exactly [6:45]. The Nixie clock had an alarm built-in.
The bench wasn't so comfortable, but it was still better than the rocks on which I slept for the past month.
Each cabin had a personal toilet with a sink. I ignored if the water was potable, but I still drank it. I washed my face and styled my hair.
When I got out, it was already nearing [7:00]. I didn't want to get hit by Jinhyung for being late.
"Open."
I still used voice commands, huh?
"Hey," I greeted an empty corridor. I looked around and eventually found him. He sat by my door with seemingly closed eyes.
He was as dirty as yesterday; he reeked of dirt and sweat. Freak.
"HEY."
I almost screamed this time.
"I hear you; stop screaming," mumbled he through stiff, sleepy lips.
"If you hear me, then get up and let's go."
Eventually, he did stand up; he was definitely not a morning person.
When we exited the elevator's capsules, he looked at me with relief. Was he a dog or something?
This time around, something new was happening at the market; people studied the items no longer.
They were more interested in the people. One gathered around swords to meet with people interested in swords and so on. Most people just wanted friends, but some wanted to find pearls and recruit them. What a shame. People should fight together for their beliefs, not their talents.
"Hey Fred, look at this Jikdo."
He pointed at a straight black blade a little shorter than a meter. It looked good; I lacked any knowledge of swords to notice anything else. I looked at the price, and my eyes opened wide.
"750 coins? Are you going to spend almost all of your money on a sword?"
"No amount of money is too much for a good blade. Take a closer look; it's infused with magic crystal powder in order to increase the magic conductivity."
I shrugged, "If you say so."
I still wasn't convinced about the worth of such a blade, but I wouldn't argue with him; he liked it, and after all, it was his own money.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
While he was playing with his new toy, I went over and looked at what magic supplies I could purchase. Jinhyung followed me in silence, still bewildered by his sword.
Unlike swordsmanship, there wasn't a clear path for choosing magic equipment. At first, I wanted a staff or a wand, but I quite liked using my bare hands. Maybe some amulets or artifacts would be great.
Oh there it was—a cylindrical black stone on a slim silver chain.
-Item-
Witchstone pendant
Cost: 450 coins
Passive: Absorbs magic energy.
Active: Release stored energy.
Crafted from the tombstone of a powerful witch.
Simple, but useful. There was a limit to how much energy I could hold on my own; increasing this amount would give me an edge in fights where the result was uncertain. I decided to look for a little bit longer before buying it.
I noticed something: people were avoiding me. Or, more likely, avoiding Jinhyung. Well, I would also avoid a smelly swordsman practicing techniques with a magic blade.
I didn't complain; I had no intention of talking with my rivals. I considered everyone apart from Jinhyung my enemy. Once we met in the next car, I couldn't trust anyone but him.
"Hey, look at this, Fred."
He pointed at a dusty tome.
-Item-
Empty Grimoire
Cost: 500 coins
Active 1: Store the current magic sequence.
Active 2: Execute a stored magic sequence.
Sequence Slots: 3
Old grimoire with a leather cover and silvery ornaments.
"You can use this to steal techniques and execute them without learning them perfectly."
This was indeed an interesting item. It was as powerful as its user was aware. Magic required high concentration, and maintaining high control over the spiritual flow was almost impossible while in combat.
With this, I could do both at the same time. Jinhyung wasn't wrong either; this could be used in many ways, and I believe most of them were still way above my competence.
I took both the grimoire and the pendant. The book was quite small and could fit in one pocket.
I decided to wear the pendant; it was uncomfortable, the stone felt like an ice cube on my skin, a slight cold grasped my chest even though it wasn’t in contact with my skin.
"If you are done, we can go eat if you want, but I already have a bit of food,” proposed Jinhyung.
"I have some stocks too, and yeah, I have nothing else to buy."
"Then, the next trial await us," he said pointing somewhere forward with his sword.
"Wait, before we go, are you sure you don't want to wash your clothes at least?"
"Why? We are about to get dirty again anyway."
It was unbelievable; he was really like a child.
"You stink."
"Shut up."
With this short and quickly-lost war against the bad hygienic practices of Kim Jinhyung, we went to the Gate.
When we arrived, this place felt different. Physically, it was the same, but something was off. It was the smell; it wasn't the pine smell anymore, it reeked blood. The scent of the Gate room was the only clue we got on the next car; this stench of death was everything but reassuring.
I looked at Jinhyung's face, and he too felt it. He grinned.
"My blade will soon be put to use."
"I fear so."
The Gate was currently closed; the only reason that I knew off for that apart from nighttime would be that someone was using it right now.
Most people were still at the market or the cafeteria; they realized that being the first to enter a car didn't give any advantage and decided to take things easy, but those before us were different.
It took about two minutes before the Gate opened itself. As we entered, the usual procedure was interrupted, two car selection panels appeared instead of one. With them a small notification popped.
-Notification-
Two tickets detected, the highest clearance ticket will be used.
If all of the party members possess the same clearance, the first interaction will be registered.
I looked at Jinhyung with wondering eyes.
"I don't care; you can use yours if you want."
As soon as I received his permission, I chose the newly available '2-trial' without hesitation.
I wondered, would adventurers ever work together on a large scale? First, a scouting team, then select the most optimal clearing group; that way, everyone could complete the whole train with minimal casualties. But this was an utopian dream. Humans would never work for the good of anyone but themselves and their close ones.
Then the Gate completely opened itself. Unlike last time, I wasn't blinded. Jinhyung stepped out and laughed.
"I told you we would get dirty anyway."
The second car was under heavy rain; everything was in sorry shades of grey, vegetation was almost null, and ugly mud was everywhere.
Clouds filled the sky so densely that I didn't know if it was day or night.
But this wasn't a boring sight—far from boring. On a hill stood an enormous castle, with towers so high that they seemed to pierce even the dark sky. I could see no end to this castle, as if the more I looked, the larger it grew.