The otherworlders followed the incredible woman that was able to clear apart two thugs in a moment with just her words. Even her presence somehow deteriorated their mood, which only boosted her competence.
Most of all, she looked exactly like Valorie, proving that she really was the twin sister of Val.
However, Valorie’s twin sister known as Alissa hated being compared to her, and she had a nasty glower on her face throughout the entire walk towards somewhere she was leading them.
Hence why everyone around them just jumps to the other side, if not straight up ran away from her path. It was a strange visage. To Zeke, when Val approaches others, they all seem to crowd around her to enjoy her vicinity.
This one, on the other hand, was the exact opposite. If Val was considered a pleasant cat in the distance, then Alissa was considered a rabid dog who bites anyone who gets close… at least that’s how it felt.
But what really made him shocked was that Val never mentioned her twin sister at all. But considering her words, it may be that they had some leftover grudge between them.
He looked back at Mikella who stared ahead at the woman, seemingly at awe at what she saw the same as him.
“Hey… you okay?” Zeke asked, getting her attention and knowing what he meant as her shoulders relaxed a little.
“Yeah, sorry about that. I’m alright. I knew I shouldn’t be ready to fight in such a public place.”
“Was that your first time being discriminated against?” Alissa suddenly said, her prim voice shocking the two from how different it was to Val.
“Y-Yeah… sort of,” Mikella answered timidly. “I mean, I felt it before, but not so upfront about it.”
Zeke could guess what she meant. No matter how often their country tries to be progressive, there are always some elements of sexism. But Zeke was still staggering at how they reacted to her just answering for him.
“Well, I hope you get used to it quickly, because that’s gonna be the norm for you,” Alissa answered, much to both their displeasure. “Arcelot’s society is based on the idea that men would always have the best stat growth, skill improvement, and attunements far beyond what any woman can do. The best that woman can do is, of course, give birth to more of those ‘amazing’ men.”
“What?!” The two adults reacted in unison.
“That doesn’t make sense!” Zeke exclaimed. “We keep comparing stats all this time. Mikella has the same stat growth as me, better skill improvement, and awesome control over her attunement. There’s literally no difference between us. If anything, she’s better!”
Of course, the idea that a woman was lower than a man in terms of the system’s eyes was definitely something he disliked, but it went further than that. Believing in something so idiotic felt like an insult to every gamer in existence. It’s like telling a doctor who studied for years in medicine that their medicine causes autism. Just being told that by someone who has no clue how medicine works is enough to erase some brain cells.
“Well then,” Alissa turned back, her captivating features showing as her scowl lessened at him. “Looks like you’re decent. At least you know the truth. But unfortunately, nobody else would bother. Imagine being fed this whole time that women have less overall power than men in the system’s eyes all your life. At some point, it’s like challenging your mindset.”
“But then why spread that idea?” Mikella asked. “If it’s wrong, then why keep doing that?”
“Do you think women aren’t trying? You’re not the first, nor the last, to be upset about this,” Alissa said, her answer showing finality. “As I said, it’s a culture that’s been going on for centuries since Arcelot was formed. And unfortunately, studies across researchers have shown that there is some form of gap between men and women.”
“I’m pretty sure it’s because the men don’t share stuff like attribute fruits to women,” Zeke said plainly, figuring it out already.
“And you’d be right, but every man here would fight you to the death to prove you wrong. I suggest just keeping that to yourself.”
Zeke huffed, feeling more ticked off than he expected. Another reason he disliked this so much other than the obvious was that they all think they were better than Mikella. It may just be favoritism on his end, but he’d really like to see those guys fight her in a proper duel. After a whole year of sparring against her, he knew deep in his heart that she would win, hands down.
But then, they would just claim that she had attribute fruits crammed into her throat and taught the best skills since birth. Even though they were probably the same, in the end, their minds won’t change at all if it meant getting humiliated. That’s how everyone in the online player vs. player community would say in any game. Unfortunately, that’s just life.
“Anyway, let’s get over here. I want to leave this place as soon as possible.”
Alissa said as she led the four straight towards what looked like a small bus that levitated off the ground. It was rectangular in shape, with some odd runes visibly showing along with some of the artistic carvings on the surface. Zeke was sure that this was made with some form of ore and metal that worked perfectly for making a ride.
The group went on to this levitating bus-like vehicle, paying the fee for the ride. What surprised the otherworlders was that Alissa placed her hand on what looked like a metal cube with glowing lights on the edges of the top. When her hand landed on the surface, the cube’s light glowed with a bright gold, then a low chime echoed out. He noticed that she poured in mana into the cube as she poured in enough times for all the people in their group.
Once everything was settled, the group headed into the small bus, seeing several lush chairs across the walls of the bus rather than in rows. Alissa went to sit at one of the empty chairs and so the group followed suit. Zeke noticed Zoan actually glowering at the ground, not staring at anyone else.
It was possible that she was upset that they won’t be going to any libraries anytime soon, which honestly, he felt the same way.
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
The bus then lifted off the ground, floating way above the other buildings in the vicinity as the bus headed out of the section where they were just at. Clara wanted to look over, but quickly stayed composed to avoid bothering the noble residents.
Thankfully the bus seemed to make it easy for people with sub-races like Mikella with wings. The chairs had enough to keep her wings tucked tight, but not so uncomfortable that it was a chore to keep them pinned. Mikella easily let her wings stretch a bit sometimes, then put them down, easing her expression by loads.
Zeke took notice of the others in the bus, most of them being nobles by his estimate from the way they were dressed. Some had extravagant perfumes, and others were basically dressed in gold from the looks of it. All of them looked over at the four, and sneered at them without doing much else.
He was starting to see the difference in the citizens immediately after that. The supposed ‘nobles’ versus the ‘commoners’. Of course, there were barely any commoners besides them, their clothes meant for battle rather than just for looks.
Throughout the silent ride, they passed over the noble district and headed off towards the outer edges. According to Zeke’s eye, it looked like the city was a giant octagon shape, seven corners that probably dictated each section with one extra connected straight to the center where the nobility, and by extension Lord Cronus, was at. It included the estate that could be seen even from this distance, nearing the top-right portion of the noble district.
As they traveled, Zeke decided to tell Clara about it, as learning how it looked can be easier to navigate, letting the girl to seriously study the sight as well as she could. Unfortunately, Zeke failed to realize that his sight was overall better than any human in the old world, so she could barely see anything but a glob of tiny things that looked very, very far away from her.
He had to rectify that at some point. It made sense that someone not even initialized into the system couldn’t keep up with him.
Soon the ride ended as Alissa took off, bringing the group with her as they left the bus with ease. Once the bus floated up to continue its schedule, Mikella asked what was burning in her mind for a while.
“What was that weird cube thing you put Mana into?” She asked.
“Mmh…” She hummed. “I shouldn’t be surprised you don’t know that. It’s a toll for users to pay for services. In this city, you can use Mana to pay for certain services.”
“Mana?” Zeke asked. “That can be used as a currency? What about the coins?”
“Those are still valuable. As I said, the Mana is for certain services. The city is built on runes on top of runes, each one costing loads of Mana to keep functioning. That bus for instance relies heavily on Mana, so it made sense that the driver would ask for Mana from its residents to keep it afloat. The driver then gets paid in coins for the service to the city government.”
“Huh…” Zeke nodded.
With that, Alissa continued on without adding anymore details. It looked like she’s not the type for small talk. That still boggled Zeke as he tried to recognize the different currencies.
So coins are still useful for some, but Mana is also taken in. It reminded him of the taxes the Aetheric Federation forced on their residents, but on all their resources and not just Mana. If it was just Mana, he could see some sense, but having to pay with kinetic energy and even life energy was taking it too far for his liking. Still, he needed to realize that in this world, such things are actually physical and thus capitalized.
They landed on what Zeke could guess was the top first corner of the octagon shaped city. It was a well established section, with the buildings immaculate and clean, though not as detailed and ornate as the section from before. If he had to put it into perspective, it was like visiting downtown in the old world as he saw multiple people of every race, sub-race, and culture clamoring about. There was one single thing that united them all.
Mana. It was everywhere, just like before. He wasn’t sure how, but the magical energy was practically suffusing the area. Scent of street food crowded the air as multiple voices overlapped one another in their various accents and tones. It was loud, obnoxious, and Zeke already noticed Clara hiding within herself from so many people, her head tucked close down her neck as though like a turtle. Zoan, of course, stood proudly at the front, and somehow it got everyone’s attention as they somehow stood away from her along with Alissa. It was a strange sight.
“Where are we heading?” Zeke asked, noticing the dozens of buildings that were mostly used for selling products and services of anything one can imagine.
“To my home, of course,” Alissa said as though it was obvious. “I am charged with taking care of you four for the remainder of your stay.”
“So… umm…” Mikella stammered, not really finding a way to say anything.
“Please refrain from talking about ‘her’ until after we head to my home,” Alissa said, her tone already spiking up at the mention of the word.
The two decided to do just that. Eventually they soon reached what looked like the residential district of the section and finally found themselves in what looked like a rather fancy looking house.
It was a tall home seemingly made for the modern person of the old world, but there were some signs of runes hidden here and there according to Zeke’s eyes. Honestly, it beat Cloud and Val’s home by a mile in terms of modern aesthetics, but it certainly lacked that ‘homey’ feel the two had from Eve Glade.
It had the white color as its main theme, but there were hints of soft pink and yellow that decorated some of its parts. It was almost like a flower of intricate design among the sea of mostly white marvel homes who mostly focused on how pretty it looked. This house felt natural, as though it kept at its own pace for years without ever diverting from its path.
Once they entered inside through the door that Alissa unlocked just by putting her hand on the knob and using her Mana, they were met with a large living room.
Furniture was placed around, several tables and shelves filled with books and other devices Zeke had no clue what they were used for. He could see the kitchen at the other side of the room with an open window with a wide rectangular view, filled with appliances that were actually made for their purpose rather than with runes like in Cloud’s house.
Once everyone was settled after another journey through the town, the adults sat at the table near the kitchen while Clara and Zoan sat to the side, with Clara looking around the new home with wide eyes.
“Gods, finally.”
After everything that they have seen, Alissa suddenly melted onto the table, her prim and proper composure breaking apart into a rather exhausted woman having to deal with unnecessary work. She still didn’t look relaxed, probably because now she had permanent guests come to her house. She looked at them all, scowling at them as though they wronged her somehow..
“...Alright, so explain yourselves. Who the fuck are you?”
That took them by surprise. Zeke and Mikella looked back at each other, not expecting this turn of events.
“Umm… you don’t know?” Zeke asked, more nervous than before.
“The only thing I’m told by Lord Cronus is that he needed me to take care of bumpkins who don’t know their way around a playground much less the entire city. Then he said that taking care of you all was the highest priority for me and if I failed, I would be demoted to a lackey. I’m sure you know how he works by now–he uses us like tools to do his bidding, and doesn’t really bother with more explanations because he has better things to do with his time.”
The two adults knew that by heart, but it was still a shock to hear.
“And then you have insulted me by comparing me to that idiotic sister of mine. So I’m ecstatic to hear about you and where you came from,” Alissa said, her sarcasm dry as a desert.
“Uuh…” Zeke moaned, not really knowing how to answer.
“It’s a… it’s a long story,” Mikella said, rubbing the bridge of her nose tiredly.
“I got all day,” Alissa said with a spiteful tone. “So gab away.”