As the crimson light faded from around him, Noah opened his eyes as he felt solid ground beneath him. The air was cool and crisp, carrying the faint scent of morning dew and wildflowers.

He placed a hand on his chest as he felt the place where the sigil was imprinted hurting slightly. Blinking, he realized that he was neither dead nor was he back at his home. 'Fuck, did I just get transmigrated to another world?'

He slowly raised his head, the sky above him was a brilliant blue, but it wasn't the same as his earth.

Instead of one sun, there were three: one golden, one red, and one pale white, each casting an ethereal glow over the landscape. 'Fucking hell, 3 suns? How are they not colliding with each other from gravity? Or even how is this world even sustained?'

But just then, the air buzzed with the murmurs of confused voices.

Noah's gaze lowered from the sky as he looked around himself. He was standing in the middle of a small village. Roughly constructed houses with thatched roofs lined the dirt path, and the villagers dressed in simple tunics and robes stared at the newcomers.

Their expressions range from curiosity to pity.

Around Noah, other humans were materializing in flashes of crimson light, each bearing the same sigil glowing faintly on their chests. 'More unlucky fucks.'

As soon as getting a hold of themselves, some stumbled, disoriented from the sudden transfer, while others dropped to their knees, weeping or trembling. A few stood frozen, their eyes darting around in panic.

Noah's eyes widened as he instinctively checked his chest. The sigil was still there, etched into his skin, pulsating faintly as if connected directly to his heart.

He swallowed hard, finally realizing the deep shit he was in. 'Fuck, I'm really not on earth? I just hope this world is not like Protect The Titan or Devilwoman Laughbaby.'

The villagers began to gather around the newcomers, whispering among themselves. Some pointed at the weeping people, their faces showing either amusement or concern.

From among the group of villagers, a man stepped forward. His thick beard and weathered face showed his years of experience, and his movements carried the confidence of someone in a higher position.

The man coughed and cleared his throat, and the murmuring voices from the villagers quieted down.

His voice was deep and calm, reaching the ears of even those who were going crazy due to the extreme simulation, "Everyone, listen carefully," he began, addressing the group of roughly 30 humans who had appeared. "I know you're scared. I know you are confused. But you need to calm down and li-"

"Calm down?" A fierce-looking man in his forties stepped forward, his face contorted with anger, "Are you with that monstrosity that brought us here?" His voice was sharp, cutting through the air as he pointed a finger toward the man.

'Is this an idiot? If he was with that monstrosity he wouldn't be calming down your ass.' Noah thought to himself looking at the man.

The bearded man's expression didn't change in the slightest. He raised his hand, palm outward, in a calming gesture, "I understand your anger," he said, doing his best to seem gentle, "But I assure you, we are not your enemies. We've been through this as well."

"Through this?" a young woman from the group cried out, her voice trembling. "What is this? Where are we? Why did that thing choose us?"

The bearded man nodded solemnly. "This is the Eternal Bloodlands," he said. His words were filled with such weight that they made everyone's heart drop. "You've been brought here to survive. To fight. To grow stronger. It's not fair, and it's not kind, but it's the reality you face now. The reality we faced long ago."

'Fuck, you could have softened your words a little.' Noah groaned inwardly.

Chaotic murmurs spread through the group as panic began to set in. Some shouted questions, while others clung to each other.

Noah stayed quiet, his mind racing, 'Eternal Bloodlands? Fuck why does this name seem like the place I wouldn't want to be in.'

"Silence!" the bearded man bellowed, his voice booming over the crowd.

The newcomers quieted down, their eyes locking onto him. "Listen to me carefully. If you don't get a grip on yourselves, you won't last a day here. The Bloodlands is not a playground. If you want to survive, you need to focus and work together."

'No shit,' Noah clenched his fist while his gaze darted around, looking at the villagers who didn't seem to want to die from despair, 'Phew, looks like this world isn't that harsh if the villagers can have the spare power to show pity to us.'

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Noah thought before his gaze turned back to the bearded man. The bearded man continued, his tone softer now but no less strict.

"My name is Garrick," he said. "I'm the head of this village. And like you, I was once brought here from another world. I survived because I listened and learned. You can do the same."

A tall, thin man near Noah spoke up, his voice trembling. "What… what happens if we don't? If we can't fight?"

Garrick's eyes hardened. "Then you'll die," he said bluntly. "The monsters on the Eternal Bloodlands will not wait for you to improve by lazing around. Those mongrels roam beyond this village, ready to hunt and devour you at a moment's notice."

Noah's lips trembled at Garrick's blunt words, he took a deep breath and stepped forward, "Why us?" he asked, "Why were we specifically chosen?"

Garrick's gaze met his. "Chosen? Yes, you can indeed say you were chosen. But don't for a second think it's a second chance at life. I'm sure whatever life you had back on your home worlds was millions of times better than whatever you will have here."

"As for why you were chosen?" He paused as if mulling over his words before he continued in a weary tone, "None of us know why the Seraph chooses its victims. But what I do know is this: you're here now. And whether you like it or not, you will need to learn how to survive."

The crowd fell silent, the gravity of Garrick's words settling over them. Noah looked at the faces around him—some tear-streaked, others pale with fear—and then back at Garrick. 'Survive huh,' he thought, 'But how?'

"Fine," Noah said, taking a deep breath, "How can we learn to survive in this world?"

Garrick turned towards Noah, his gaze heavy, "The sigil on your chest," he pointed toward the chest of Noah, "That will help you to awaken the thing you need to survive in these Bloodlands."

Noah raised an eyebrow and gently placed a hand on his chest. The sigil pulsed faintly.

"What are we supposed to do next?" Noah raised his head and asked again.

Garrick raised his head and looked at the suns high above the sky, "There is no time to rest, you guys need to head out before the sun sets or else the beasts in the wilderness will become far too active."

Everyone's on the scene began to panic as they knew nothing about what awaited them further. Noah took a deep breath, his heart beating wildly, 'Fuck, where are we heading out to?'

"MEN! Bring out the weapons!" Garrick loudly yelled as the villagers scattered and began taking out a few racks of weapons.

Garrick pointed at the racks, "Choose which weapon you want to take, all of them are specifically crafted by the village blacksmith for monster hunting. They might not be comparable to Soul Weapons, but they are good enough for newbies like you."

The 30 or so Earth humans darted their gazes from one rack to another, not being able to understand why they had to choose a weapon.

"NOO!! I don't want anything of this! Give me my phone back!! My snap! My Ig! I don't want to stay in this godforsaken world." A young woman broke down and cried loudly as she saw the lines of weapons neatly arranged in front of her.

The surrounding people's gazes filled with pity as they saw the girl.

'Is she an idiot?' While Noah's thought turned to another side as he looked at the girl weeping on the ground.

"Godforsaken? We might very well be forsaken by the gods whom we prayed to in our worlds." Garrick's heavy voice sounded again, this time showing his years of weariness.

"There is no god in this world, as for those who proclaim themselves to be Gods? They are not much different than gods due to their absurd strength." His eyes shined as he reached to this point, "And the chosen ones can reach the realm of Divinity. Only if they get a high enough Class when they Awaken after gathering Soul Energy."

Everyone's breathing on the spot slowed, even the crying girl raised her head to stare at the old man.

"Wh-what do you mean by this?" One of the bearded men among the group asked.

"That's why I said you guys don't have time, if you don't get your Class as soon as possible, you might die in a few days due to Soul Poisoning." He seriously said.

Everyone stirred as the threat of death was not something they were willing to face so soon.

"NOW! Choose a weapon for yourself, you don't need to be proficient in it. You will learn slowly…as long as you don't die." He finished saying and moved aside to let the people choose.

The bearded man who questioned Garrick in the beginning was the first one to move, he looked at the weapons which ranged from Long Swords, Daggers, Short Swords, Bows, Spears, Shields, and a few more.

"I will take this." The bearded man said, reaching out for a Greatsword from among the many weapons.

It was a simple weapon, but with a sharp edge which flashed with a silvery hue.

The others looked at each other before slowly moving forward and taking their weapons of choice, Noah being among them.

'What should I choose?' Noah thought, looking at the choice of weapons in front of him.

'A greatsword like the previous guy will be too much for me, my body can't handle it.' He moved ahead from the greatsword and paused at the daggers.

'Hmm…if I'm going to fight monsters, then the range of these weapons will be quite problematical for me.' He shook his head and inspected each weapon.

'Bow? Nah, if a monster got in close range I won't be able to defend myself. Long Sword?' He finally paused and took out the long sword from its sheath.

He felt its weight on his hand before swinging it a couple of times to check its balance, 'This will do, it has both range and length for killing even large beast like a bull.'

Noah thought to himself before sheathing his sword back and taking it.

Soon, everyone chose their weapons and went back to their initial positions.

Garrick stepped in front of them again, "So, looks like everyone has made their choices huh? Good." He nodded and counted the people.

"Since there are 30 of you, you can make groups of 5 to hunt down monsters in the outside, but let me remind you. There are both pros and cons of hunting in a group, your progress will be low as the Soul Energy will be distributed between the 5 people based on their contribution. While hunting solo, all the Soul Energy of a beast will be gathered by a single individual."

He paused, looking at the conflicting faces of the people as they considered making groups or not. "This is my advice as someone who has survived in these desolate lands, make a team and hunt together. Now the rest is up to you guys."

Sighing slightly, he sat down on a nearby chair, waiting for the people in front of him to make their choices.