As they got closer to the city, Zalia could see the cliff edge the city sat upon was actually the end of the continent they were on, the sea stretching into the distance. The two of them walked slowly towards the massive construction, entering the shadow of the huge city as the sun slowly fell behind it.
"I'm thoroughly impressed with the city. Who built it?" Zalia asked.
"I don't fully know," the man responded, scratching his head.
"A shame, I'd love to meet the person who designed it," she said.
"And why is that?" He asked.
"I bet whoever it was could design some really, really good looking armour," she replied.
The man just snorted in laughter.
Looking at the fortress, the design had a familiarity to her. It reminded her a little bit of how her new bow looked, the designs carved into its surface different yet.. similar.
They eventually arrived at the city gates, guarded not by two but six guards that Zalia identified as silver rank. The large gates had the same motif as the city, the dark shade of a keep within a glowing sunlight halo. As they approached the guards, they stepped aside to let them enter without a word, one even going so far as to bow to the duo,
"Who are you?" Zalia asked the man she'd been travelling with, suddenly suspicious again.
"No one important," he replied nonchalantly.
"Says the man with people bowing to him," she replied.
"Fair point," he said, before bowing to her and vanishing into thin air.
"You bastard," she said to the air, knowing he could still hear her.
Some of the guards were looking at her a bit oddly after the display but she ignored them, walking on.
She looked around the inside of the city, a little bit lost. Some of the buildings inside kept the theme of the city as a whole but for the most part they were just normal buildings, well, normal for this world. Materials weren't so much nailed and glued together as melded together via magic. She slowly began walking through the streets, taking in the smells of a city, frying street food, dust and the general odour of a large number of creatures living in close proximity. There weren't some of the usual scents she remembered from cities back in her world, trash and car exhaust so the experience was slightly better but not by much. She could hear street vendors hawking their wares, people chatting as they shopped or went about their business, the sound of a cart trundling past. The colours of houses and people's clothes vibrant, sometimes clashing and sometimes complimenting each other. All in all it was the chaotic jumble of sensory input that had made her leave civilization in the first place.
"You only have to stay as long as you have something to gain," she thought to herself.
She eventually found a small building jammed between two larger ones, a wooden sign gently swaying in the wind above the entrance. It had a mug etched into it, an apparently universal sign for an inn. She quickly went in, needing a break from the constant and overwhelming sounds of a city. She sighed with relief as the sounds faded a bit into the background. She hadn't found a notice board when entering the city but figured it was because they had a giant organisation to deal with any problems they had. Although, there must be one somewhere for the king to put out declarations, the city was a part of Endaria after all. At least she thought it was. She ordered a random drink from the large board above the bar and went to sit down in a corner at a small round table. There were a couple other people in the small room but not enough to make her feel quite as claustrophobic as the city itself did. She decided she wouldn't immediately go to the Morning's Shade and instead scout out the city by herself. A young woman came and put a mug down at her table, Zalia giving her a smile and a thanks, before returning to her thoughts. She was abruptly brought back out of them when she tried the drink, a slightly alcoholic drink with a mild sweetness to it. It was excellent in its mildness, not overwhelmingly sweet but just the right amount. Zalia drank a little more, considering her next steps,
"I could just go and ask what the entry requirements are but I have a feeling that isn't the right way to go about it. I'm sure there is something I can do to get their attention," she thought.
She was brought out of her thoughts again as she heard someone whispering, very, very loudly,
"Did you hear? The hidden himself was seen bowing to someone entering the city," they said.
"Oh good, here we go," she thought.
"He must have been trying to make a point, otherwise he wouldn't have let himself be seen doing it!" Their companion replied, whispering equally as loudly.
"I'm going to give him so much shit for that name. The hidden, oooh scary," she thought, smiling to herself.
After she finished her drink she went back out, trying to acclimatise herself to the city, its sounds, its smells and its sights. She wondered if the man, 'the hidden', was part of the Morning's Shade. It was more than likely and if he was someone important like those two in the inn seemed to think she might have already gotten the attention of the organisation. She didn't want to coast into the organisation based on her prior contacts but she had a feeling that wouldn't happen anyways. Hopefully, it would give them reason to at least consider a Tin ranker though and that, she would take.
She decided on waiting for the next day to try and enter. She had found that the organisation was based out of the keep in the city, something she had expected.
A surprise came at night when as the sun set past the horizon, the keep began softly glowing a warm white as the walls of the city faded to darkness, no longer reflecting the sun.
"Darkness in the light and the light in the darkness, how poetic," she thought, looking up at the softly glowing keep.
She went to sleep that night in a large wide boughed tree in a small park within the city, looking up at the warm lit keep.
⪼ ⪢ ℋ 𝒶𝓃𝒹 ℋ ⪡ ⪻
The next morning came rudely as a couple of kids ran through the park, screaming as they played. They were kicking around some small circular object, the activity apparently a worlds spanning sport. She went through her usual morning routine, stretching and going for a run. It started in the park and moved through a section of the city, flying at speed past people casually walking to work or otherwise. She saw a whole array of different people and even someone flying overhead on the wind. She paused for a moment to watch the person in flight, determined to find some ability that provided her with her own flight. Continuing her run she arrived back in the park to practice her sword work. She still wasn't any good but with enough work and maybe some sparring partners she hoped to get somewhere with it. After a half hour practicing the basic forms and strikes Tristan had shown her she stopped when given a notification, looking at her other ones while she was at it,
Congratulations! Mobility has reached Tin 2.
Congratulations! You have learnt how to use two different weapon types at a basic level. You have unlocked weapon proficiencies.
Bow - Weapon proficiency
Tin - arrows shot from a bow you are using have increased speed and impact based on rank and level of this skill.
Sword - Weapon proficiency
Tin - you can wield a sword faster and hit harder with it based on the rank and level of this skill.
Based on the proficiency of your skill with the bow, 'Bow - Weapon proficiency' has reached Iron 1. This will not increase further until all your classes have reached Iron.
Bow - Weapon proficiency
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
Tin - arrows shot from a bow you are using have increased speed based on rank and level of this skill.
Iron - arrows shot from a bow you are using have increased penetrative power based on the rank and level of this skill.
"Ohhhh shit, that could be really strong," she thought.
She didn't know if shooting a bow in a public park was looked down or prohibited but she was too excited not to try. She pulled out her bow and shot an arrow at a nearby tree. The speed at which the arrow flew had more or less doubled, meaning the impact it had doubled. She went up and looked at the arrow now buried a good ten to twelve centimeters into the tree. She tried to pull the arrow out but only succeeded in snapping the shaft, leaving the arrow tip and about a third of the shaft stuck in the tree.
"Well damn," she muttered.
One arrow down, she was still quite happy and excited for what the skill meant. She could basically use a bow with half as much draw weight for an equal amount of power as she had previously. Obviously she wasn't going to do that but it meant she would have a multiplicative effect on any increase in draw weight she might gain. She was hoping her heirloom bow would increase in draw weight from some means when she reached Iron rank in her classes. Or that it did anything when she reached Iron rank at all.
Over the course of her morning she had been preparing herself, trying to feel ready for whatever she was about to get herself into but the addition of the two skills, one currently much more impactful than the other, she finally felt up to the task. She didn't know if they would make her just sign some paperwork and be done with it but she had a feeling she would be required to prove herself in some way. She steeled herself and started walking.
⪼ ⪢ ℋ 𝒶𝓃𝒹 ℋ ⪡ ⪻
She stood before the large doors of the keep. It was actually less of a keep and more of a complex of interconnected spires. The ground around the structure was a large well landscaped garden with winding paths, water features and benches. The air was beautifully fresh and the large garden damped out the sounds of the city around. All in all it made for a refreshing and relaxing atmosphere that Zalia liked very much. She had been dreading staying in the city to learn from the organisation but seeing the surroundings she would be staying in if she was accepted, she could handle it. Before her sat one of the largest spires, itself being relatively central and having many covered walkways leading between it and the nearby spires. Some of the walkways were between the higher floors leading through the air. Beside the large doors set into the polished dark stone of the building stood two guards. Each of them wore a unique set of armour, both variations of a light leather armour incorporating metal plates and embellishments. One of them held a short spear most likely used in close combat rather than as a support in a shield wall and the other had two sheathed short swords the blades of which curved very slightly towards the ends. As she walked closer, they gave her a nod; the spear wielding guard pushing open the door to let her in,
"You're expected," she said.
"I am?" Zalia asked.
The woman simply gestured for her to enter. Zalia walked in to see a large circular room, well appointed with a few comfortable looking benches and a soft, light grey carpet along the centre of the room. The rooms only lighting was a soft glow coming from the very stone the building was made of. At the back was a set of stairs that went up and split to either side, leading to a floor further above. At the very bottom step stood a cloaked and dark figure looking her way,
"I've been expecting you," it said ominously.
"You!" Zalia exclaimed, recognising the figure as the man she had been travelling with.
She heard a chuckle from the door behind her.
"Me!" The man exclaimed back, immediately forgetting to maintain his dark and mysterious pretense.
"Thought I'd find you here," she said.
"Damn guard at the gate ruined the whole game," he sulked.
"It's what you deserve for trying to be so dark and mysterious all the time and eliciting bowing from people," Zalia explained.
She squinted her eyes at the man suspiciously,
"You know I have been here for a single day and people are already whispering about the mysterious new stranger you were seen bowing to," she said in annoyance.
He laughed,
"Oh good, I don't want to be the only one who has to deal with it," he said cheerfully.
"Bastard," she whispered, now approaching the man.
"I assume you're here to 'lead me to my destiny' or some other such mysterious nonsense?" She asked.
"Exactly," he said in complete seriousness, nodding.
"Follow along then," he said cheerfully and started walking.
"I heard one other thing while I was out and about yesterday," she said, taking on a cheeky tone.
"Oh?" He asked, suspiciously.
"Some person called, 'The Hidden' ooOooOohh," she said, trying to sound as spooky as she could.
"Nooo," he groaned.
"Oh yes," she replied.
"Please, I hate that name so much. Gods damn the sycophants," he moaned.
"Gods?" She asked.
He looked at her weirdly,
"I come from somewhere remote," she said in explanation.
"Even the remotest people's know of the gods, at least the ones people have met," he said.
"Wait, people have actually met them?" She asked.
"Yes," he replied, looking at her uncertainly.
"Are you sure they weren't just on a lot of drugs?" She asked.
"The meeting gods part wasn't what I was uncertain about," he said looking at her with interest.
"Somewhere really, really remote," she explained further.
"It seems so," he murmured.
During the chat he had led Zalia up a flight, through a tunnel, up two more flights, through another tunnel, down a flight, through another tunnel and finally up three more flights to a hallway. At the end of the hallway stood a door,
"Just go through there, some people will interro- I mean ask you some questions and then tell you where to go from there," he said, a smile on his still hard to see face once again.
"Alright, guess I will see you around," she said.
"Yes, you will," he replied, a spark of mystery in his tone again.
She ignored him, walking to the door, opening it and going in,
"Oh, my god," she said in sheer exasperation, sighing deeply.
Behind a small but wide podium stood three people. On the left was an extremely large woman built like a bodybuilder. She wore a heavier set of armour made entirely of an unknown metal. On the right an intelligent looking man with a hawkish face wearing a light wizardry robe in shades of black and grey. In the middle, and the reason she was so exasperated, stood the man once again, his form as indiscernible as always.
"You," Zalia said, pointing at him, "are intolerable." Looking to the other two she added, "Zalia, excellent to meet you."
The woman raised an eyebrow looking at the figure in the centre while the man on the right looked mildly annoyed at her tone.
"Good to meet you Zalia, I am Hildebrandt and these two are my colleagues Matthias and.. the hidden," she said, smirking towards the end.
Zalia grinned widely and the shadowy figure just looked at Hildebrandt with a look of betrayal.
"Tell us about yourself," she said.
"I am a hunter from the north, far north where the snow falls. Due to reasons I won't disclose I only gained my magic as of two or three weeks ago. I'm here to educate myself on what exactly it all entails and perhaps help some people along the way," she said, "I also.. learnt that receiving three classes is very unusual."
Hildebrandt just raised an eyebrow again at the last part, the hidden only giving a slight smile but Matthias' face was visibly twitching.
"Interesting. If you are interested in joining us you must know that for your first year here you will be required to do as instructed and work within a group. Is that acceptable?" Hildebrandt asked.
Zalia thought it over for a minute. Working within a group wasn't a deal breaker, though definitely not ideal to her. Having greatly restricted freedom was going to hurt as well if she did choose to join.
"Will I be allowed to leave the organisation at any time I choose?" She asked.
"Yes, but you most likely will not be allowed back in if you do so." Matthias replied.
She thought for a moment more.
"I can accept those terms," she finally answered.
"Only a year, it's a steep price to pay for information but I can do a year," she thought.
"Wonderful. Usually, we would test you on three things. One, your ability to deal damage. Two, your ability to perceive things. Three, your ability to hide. However, our colleague here," she said, nodding towards the Hidden, "has already determined you are very perceptive indeed. Tell us, can you track?"
"I was a hunter for many, many years before I even got magic and with it came an ability to track even better. Yeah, I can track," she replied.
"Acceptable. In that case we will test you on your ability to strike a single and numerous targets and your ability to hide from a single or numerous persons. Other abilities will be taken into account but these three general areas are a part of what makes up our organisation. Finding an enemy, killing an enemy and hiding from whatever remains." Hildebrandt said.
"I can agree to that, when do we get started?" She asked.
Hildebrandt smiled,
"Immediately," Hildebrandt replied.