The adventuring team traveled up spiraling stairs filled with lamplights. They walked in a semi-comfortable silence with bouts of quips from Mangrik.

Darron walked in the center of the line with Gin. Secdrix walked in the front at a steady pace. Every once in a while, he'd stop. When the female rogue of the team appeared, Gin's eyes slipped away from her while she whispered in Secdrix's ear, then vanished. Secdrix whispered in Darron’s ear, and Darron nodded.

The Bronze Boar team turned around. At the same time, the female rogue of the team carried something wrapped in cloth. What everyone noticed was the sound of clicking coming from the clothing.

Darron stepped forward.

"Emy?"

"This creature has been following us ever since we met him."

She pointed at Gin, and his eyebrows rose.

"I."

Gin paused as he stared at the cloth. It was small enough to hold the creature that had been following him. Then Gin immediately understood.

"You mean that a Roach that has been following me?"

"A Roach?"

The team looked at each other. Emy shook her head.

"Roaches are much smaller."

Gin slowly walked over to the cloth.

"Drop it."

Emy dropped the snapping cloth-wrapped monster. The cloth fell open, and the little creature resembling a Roach crawled out of the bag and skittered backward up a wall. Then it stopped and stared at Gin. Mangrik pointed.

"That's a baby Stone skipper."

Gin stared back at the creature.

"What do you want from me?"

Ever since he encountered the Stone skipper and flicked the feisty little creature off the side of a cliff, it has been following and watching him. Still, it has never tried to attack him since, even when sleeping.

The creature did nothing but stare, and Gin stared back, none plus.

"Do you have any jerky?"

Darron looked at Mangrik. Mangrik reached into a pouch and pulled out a large strip of jerky. Gin handed the jerky strip to the Stone skipper. The creature paused, opened its pincers, snapped away the jerky, and crawled into the corner. Gin sighed.

"It's harmless. Let it do whatever it wants. When I first saw it, It was starving. I think after I killed a few Rats, this Stone skipper fed on the corpses and has followed me ever since."

Mangrik stepped forward.

"I see. It's a stray, but it's strange. Stone skippers aren't known to leave their nest."

Gin walked between Mangrik and Darron. Hours before, Gin told them about the armory, and they saw the two dead Rats. It turns out that there was a bounty on Bull Rats, and all he needed was its tooth.

The Bronze Boar team gave him half of all the armory. The problem was that he didn't have a way to carry anything, but Darron offered to put everything in a bag of holding.

"You never explained how you ended up here?"

Mangrik glanced back.

"I don't know. Someone tried to summon me, and I found myself in a cave."

"That must have been one powerful spell. These walls are thick. Any space mage would have difficulty teleporting down here from the surface. Still, from a different floor, that would be impossible."

Another floor? Maybe he met another underground floor in the caves? Gin thought to himself and decided to ask about it later.

"Yeah, if I ever meet the person who brought me here, he'll find out exactly how it felt. I almost died down there."

Darron chuckled.

"But you didn't, you are quite the survivalist."

Gin thought about everything he'd been through, and deep down, he craved it. He wanted to get lost again, fight, and grow stronger. He wanted to see what else he could do. His hands trembled with anticipation.

He's been fighting his whole life and now had a class like in his Dungeon and Dragon days with brothers and sisters. He'd have to see how far he could take it. He needed to learn more about what a Depth explorer did.

It could be related to travelers or archeologists, which means this class would be helpful in his travels as an adventurer.

They stepped out the stairs into a tunnel where two massive guards stood. Gin froze, and the two guards' skin glistened a light blue like stones in the lamplight.

"They won't hurt you."

"Wha?"

"They are half trolls. They are known as the Twins."

The two brothers' eyes ignored the team and peered at Gin.

"We guard against monsters, not possible visitors. Speak to the other guards at the gate."

The guard on the left looked at the one on the right.

"We don't get much visitors."

Gin froze.

"Wait, we're not going to the surface?"

"I'm sorry, but the surface is six weeks travel. Don't worry. In another three weeks, a large caravan will be transporting goods to the surface."

Gin's frustration grew. He's been trying to escape the caves to find an underground city. He looked at the team.

He started to grow angry, and then he realized that the adventurers didn't have to try to help. They didn't want to leave the Dungeon so soon, but they did it for him. It wasn't the surface, but there were people, and that counted for something.

"Adventuring is not easy."

"If you plan on becoming an adventurer, signing up as a security detail on the Caravan should be easy. They might need someone like you."

Mangrik laughed and smacked Gin on the back.

The guards said nothing as they went back to staring into the darkness.

Darron turned.

"Welcome to the Under City of Ekril. "

A glowing crystal sat above the city, even larger than the light crystal in the Dungeon, and stood high in the cavern above an endless city carved from stone.

The city sat below the exit of the Dungeon. A rope ladder led down to the entrance of the gates with more guards.

"We won't be going that way."

The mage waved his hand.

“[Stone wall]”

A wall grew and turned into a slide that led down to the city's entrance—Darron smiled.

"Wow, that's incredible."

"It's amazing what you can do with just the tweak of a spell."

Gin's mouth fell open for the first time as he watched someone perform magic as casually as focusing and pointing. Emy jumped on the slide and slid down to the gate. Mangrik laughed and jumped on the slide. Secdrix said nothing as he stomped down the slide.

Darron shifted his hand, and the slide went back to being smooth.

"Is that Earth magic? Or some telekinesis?”

Darron laugh.

"You know a bit about magic, do you? I'm a water mage. This wall is the only earth defensive spell I've ever learned."

"Can you teach it to me?"

Darron smile.

"Maybe you can start with something smaller, like a light spell, to begin with, but I have to tell you now that not everyone has the magic capacity."

I can take a test.

"Yes, a test."

Darron froze as his mind caught up with what he said.

"Sure, when we have time. "

As Darron hopped down the slide, Gin realized he hadn't been on a slide since his mother. He pushed the thought into the back of his mind.

If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"Hold!

Who is this young man? I Don't remember him leaving the city. I don't think I've ever seen him before."

The guards wore armor resembling grey stone, which shone like metal. Under the helmet, Gin saw human faces.

"We found him wandering around in the Dungeon. He says that he was lost."

Emy leaned on the gate lazily,

"Secdrix already confirmed that he wasn't lying. "

"Yes, but we need to ask him our questions, and we need the guard captain. This entire city is protected. We can't just let some random vagabond enter the city."

The guard sighed and waved a hand to another guard in the back. It was some sign language that Gin had never seen before.

"Everyone new must go through the same process."

After waiting a few minutes, an older man with a salt-and-pepper beard appeared. He carried a medium-sized axe on his waist and did not seem to have any other weapon. Four guards marched behind him at a steady pace.

"Darron, Mangrik, Secdrix, and Emy. You are back ahead of schedule. I hear we have a visitor."

His eyes landed on Gin.

"Good day, young man. I hear you were lost, but according to the facts, it's improbable."

Sharp as a blade, the guard captain's gaze pinned Gin to the floor like a deer caught in headlights.

"The Bronze Boar team may enter. If your friend here is as innocent as you claim, he'll be fine. We only have to ask him a few questions."

Darron lifts a finger.

"I am not in the mood today, young Ordil, do as I say."

Darron's words caught in his throat.

"Just do as he says, and you'll be fine."

The Bronze Boar team began to walk away.

"Oh, you can find us at the Ugly Pearl Inn."

The guards said nothing as the team entered the city.

The guard captain turned.

"You must be starving, Follow me."

The first thing Gin noticed was the large amount of workers walking the streets. Many of them carried axes.

"I'm sure you've seen a Miner before. The Windstrider family owns this entire encampment.

The mining is why we're all down here."

"You guys make swords?"

"Yes, The Under City produces Smithing materials."

"That's awesome. I could buy a better mace.

"Hmm."

The guard captain gave Gin a side eye and continued walking.

"Where are you from?"

Gin was resolved not to tell anyone he was from another world, but he still didn't know anything about the world.

"I'm from far away. I was on my way home. One minute, I walked up a ramp, and the next, I was surrounded by stone and darkness."

"I see, and how old are you?"

"I'm eighteen."

"What is your family name?"

Gin froze. His last name?

"My last name is Arrow."

They stopped at a stone building attached to the city walls.

The guard captain walked into the building, and Gin followed with concern bubbling in his stomach, and then a lady screamed. Gin turned, and everyone was staring at the Stone skipper. A man with an axe Marched toward the Stone skipper.

"It's a Stone skipper. They don't typically leave the nesting hive but are very dangerous. Pincers powerful enough to dig through solid stone. Don't worry, I'll get rid of it."

Gin stepped in front of the man.

"The Stone skipper is with me."

Gin growled, glared at the crowd, and walked after the guard captain. The Stone skipper followed. The guard captain stared at the creature and then at Gin but said nothing.

Gin noticed that the stone skipper seemed to know precisely where his awareness ended and somehow tried to stay within its range. It was disconcerting, like being able to see in three hundred sixty degrees.

Gin sat in what looked like a cafeteria.

"This doesn't look like an interrogation room."

"I have a detect deception skill. Mr. Israe has a detect lie skill, and last but not least, Nix behind you has a rare skill. So far, you seem like an honest person. I will begin with the hope that you are as Ernest as you seem. Do you have any intention to harm the city of Ekril?"

"No."

"Did you always know this city existed?"

"No."

The question went on for hours, asking the same questions in different ways. The exciting thing about questions is that when you don't know anything, questions can bring about answers like puzzles that fit together.

Gin found they were in some Tower on the second floor, which ships materials out of the Tower.

One of the outer families built Ekril. Not one of the families from the upper floor.

When asked about the upper tower families, the guard seemed to become fearful as the mere mention would cause trouble. Through his awareness, the heartbeat and breathing of the guards changed.

The guard Captain had a bubble around him, something unseen, similar to Gin's awareness but solid, giving off the distinct feeling of determination and infallibility.

The world was called Gol, and they were in the Tower of Mnepires. Gin knew he was no longer on Earth, but the information made his head spin.

"Okay, it seems you really from far away. I don't know where this Florida is, but I'm confident it's outside this Tower. I have no wish to make your life and mine turn into something unpleasant. Do me a favor and stay out of trouble while you wait for the Caravan."

The guard captain bowed, and Gin, appreciating the etiquette, bowed back.

"Don't worry about about me. You helped me a lot. I didn't know much, but now, I can relax with what I do know. Which way is the Ugly Pearl Inn?"

City Street was more relaxed when he first entered the city. Work hours seemed to be over, but Gin could hear the music playing and drunk singing as he walked down the street.

No homeless people were running around, but he spotted a few children playing in the streets. Gin turned a corner to a small Inn with the sign of a Pearl with the face of a Dwarf. Gin smirked at the joke and pushed the door open.

Card Game adventurers were minding their own business. Over in the corner, Gin spotted Secdrix, who took one look at him, and his Draconic Features frowned.

"May I sit?"

Secdrix glared at him, and subtle sweat ran down his back. The one thing Gin understood more than anyone else was aggression and intimidation. He decided to ignore it.

"I'm looking for Darron. He has my stuff."

"You think you will get your stuff back, is that it?"

Gin took a moment to catch the mood that Drake was giving off. He looked drunk, but his eyes studied him like he was waiting for something.

"Why wouldn't I get my stuff back."

Secdrix took a sip of his cup without breaking eye contact.

"Because we never signed a contract."

Gin pulled out a chair and sat down.

Secdrix's brow furrowed.

"I never said that you had permission to sit."

"Hmm. So your team decided to keep my stuff?"

"That's right."

The massive Drake stood and pressed his arms down on the table, and the stone cracked. His eyes began to glow red.

"I said, get out."

Gin's mind drowned in disappointment and anger. Betrayal, just like back home, he trusted the wrong people again. He wanted to walk away, but He looked up into the eyes of the massive Drake. He stood and took off his pack. The adventurers began to exit the inn in a wave of bodies.

"Secdrix is about to go on another Rampage!"

Gin's voice was calm.

"I'm going to kick your ass."

Through his awareness, Gin sensed a twitch. His left fist slammed into the secdrix's right eye. Secdrix covered his right eye and screamed. Gin tried to step back, but Secdrix was faster. A large tail slammed into his side, and he flew into a wall.

The force knocked the win out of him. Gin gasped for air as he struggled to his feet. He looked up, and the Drake was standing over him. Secdrix dropped his bag in front of him.

"I don't like picking on the weak. Just walk away. Fighting a gold ranker is suicide."

"Give me back my things."

Gin slowly stood and strapped on his backpack.

"No."

Gin raised his fist. Secdrix growled, and then he began to laugh.

"Ha ha ha ha."

Secdrix looked back.

"I see why he lived so long down there. He doesn't give up."

Darron walked down the stairs, and Emy stepped out of Secdrix's shadow.

"Sorry about that. We had to find out how you survived in the Dungeon."

"I didn't sense a bit of fear from him. He was going to fight me."

"May I have my thing?"

Darron handed him a pouch of coins.

"Thirty-five gold. It's all yours."

Gin turned and walked away.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"I don't play games like that. You don't know what I've been through."

Gin remembered passing several inns on his way to find the ugly Pearl. He entered an inn called Clippers and Stompers. Gin didn't get it. He marched in, and a large woman with purple skin and webbed ears wiped down the bar counter.

"Good evening. How much is a room?"

Her mouth opened, filled with sharp teeth.

"Two coppers for a night, two silvers, and you can stay for a week. We have breakfast for free every morning, first come, first serve. Please don't bring any trouble into my inn, or else I'll be one of your problems. You get me?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"None of that. My name is Phyla."

Gin dropped two gold on the counter. Phyla glared at him.

"I said silver, not gold."

Then she smirked.

"Stop trying to butter me up. You already have a room. This money will show that someone brings breakfast to your room as long as you are here. Don't go around flaunting your money. That's a good way to get chomped in the back street. Now get out of my face before I try to buy you a drink."

Something about the inn and the genuine what you see is what you get attitude of Phyla—drained his anger away. Gin wanted to thank her, and the only way he knew how was to pay more for the room. The room was cozy, with a bedstand and a view into the city's busy streets. Gin dropped his things and fell into a soft bed.

Gin awoke the next day. He looked through the window, and everything looked brighter as if a filter had changed instead of a dim glow. The giant crystal in the sky filled everywhere with morning light.

Gin walked into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. The first thing he noticed was two dots on his forehead. There was a basin of water to wash his face.

Gin began scrubbing the markings away only to notice that every time he touched them, it was as if he was touching bone. It was bone. Gin felt a pit in his stomach.

"What the hell is happening to me?"

His awareness picked up the stone skipper. Gin turned.

"Hey, little buddy. Maybe I should name you since you'll keep following me like a stray dog."

Gin stared at it.

"How about Spot?"

The stone skipper's head tilted.

"No? Well, how about, let's see, are you male or female?"

The stone skipper stared at him.

"If you can understand what I'm saying, move to the right."

The skipper moved to the right. Gin wasn't surprised.

"Move to the left if you are female or stay where you are if you are male."

The stone skipper moved to the left. Gin grinned.

"I got it. Ada. "

Gin sat on the floor before Ada and asked the one question bothering him.

"Why do you keep following me? Is it because of my awareness?"

Then Ada's pincers went clack, and his awareness felt charged as if electricity activated in the air, but it wasn't electricity. It was something else similar to his sensing ability but new.

"Wha..Do that again."

Gin leaned closer, and Ada's pincers clicked, and Gin felt it again. He tried to copy how the energy rippled along his awareness for the next hour, and Gin spoke. At the same time, Ada listened, and Gin practiced his ability. It was like moving molasses. Every time he focused on his awareness, it parted like the sea, which was new but not what he wanted it to do.

Then he snapped his finger, and his awareness sensed the vibration in the walls. Someone walked up the stairs and stopped at his door. There was a knock, and then the person's steps disappeared.

Gin smelled the food before he opened the door—eggs, bacon, something that looked like a green sausage, and vegetables.

It all smelled delicious. Gin closed his eyes and devoured the plate of food. Ada ate the vegetables and almost bit off his finger for the last bacon.

Gin bathed and felt his forehead again before walking down the stairs to a single person surrounded by knights eating. Gin looked around, and Phyla had a giant wooden mace on the counter.

"This one showed up a few minutes ago. Browny here just came in, sat down, and said he's the Lord, but if he doesn't leave in the next few minutes, we will have some problems."

The Lord glanced at Phyla with a bit of worry. He wore a Brown tunic, vest, and robe with leather gloves. Gin thought it was a bit much as he only wore a

T-shirt and cargo pants. He made a mental note to dress similarly to the people. Then the Lord looked at Gin. The man had a beak nose, yellow eyes, and reddish-brown hair.

"You are the new visitor, correct."

His voice was pompous and cocky.

"Who are you?"

"I oversee the city of Ekril. My name is Lord Gylan of the Windstrider family. "

Gin interrupted him.

"Let me guess, you are here to kick me out of the city?"

"I'm here to keep the city safe, ensuring you sign this contract."

"A contract? Why would I sign that?"

"There are two ways you can leave this city."

"One is me buried in the backyard?"

The Lord gave him a pointed look.

"Contracts are ironclad. Contracts are how most deals are taken care of in the Tower. If one of us breaks the contract, the Tower takes action. I can't force you to sign this contract. "

"But you're completely fine threatening me."

He raises his hand in retreat.

"I'm stating the fact, young man. I don't make threats."

During the interview with the guard captain, all the questions led to this conclusion. Everyone in the city is a part of the family. The adventurer, the innkeepers, and the miners probably signed a similar kind of contract. A city kept secret by the families outside of the Tower.

"I need assurance that you won't try to kick me out after I sign the contract."

The Lord pulls a scroll and rolls a long sheet on the table.

"Go on. "

"I need two or three days to gather my things before I leave."

The Lord froze and looked at Phyla.

"No, trying to leave the underground alone is dangerous, boy. Leave with the."

"Shut your mouth, or you'll be leaving too. Done."

Gylan scribbles on the contract.

"Well, that was easy. I wanted to convince you. I gave you a week in case you needed more time. See, I'm not completely heartless."

He ate some more eggs and rose.

"You'll have an hour to sign the contract after it disappears, and you haven't signed the contract. I will send more guards to remove you from the city. Knight Enryn here will watch you while you're in the city.

Be gone by the end of the week."

Gin said nothing because he didn't plan to wait for a caravan. The way out of the city was close. He had questions, armor, and weapons to buy, and then he would be gone. He looked at the contract and began to read.

"Wait, this is a contract of employment."

The Lord turned at the door.

"If you are interested, we can employ you, and you can help protect this city."

"I'm not interested. I don't like when people I don't trust play games. Plus, there is nothing special about me. I'm a nobody."

The Lord's eyes opened wide, and he smiled. Then Gin saw that the Lord was much more interested than he let on. Gin tried to find out when the contract expired. The employment would end when his first child turned sixteen. His first child? Gin glared at the Lord as he began to speak.

"You can become a Tower climber under the Windstrider family. We can equip you with the best weapons and armor."

"If I signed this without reading. It would have been like shackling myself to you. Your family."

Gin stood.

"I'm not even that strong!"

"But you survived out there for how long, like a day, a week? With a low-level class. What would you be able to survive at a higher level?"

Gin balled the contract in his hand and tossed it on the floor. He walked up the stairs.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"You're not here to listen."

"It's rude to walk away during a conversation!"

"Not if it's a madman rambling out loud and won't listen to what I'm saying."

"Just listen. You fought Secdrix."

"No, he kicked my ass. "

"You still tried to fight back, and he has a skill called [overwhelming fear]. He used it on you and told you to walk away. But you stood and still tried to fight. You are fearless."

"I was afraid."

"But you still did it. You have potential. Enryn has been using his [intimidation] skill."

Gin realized something was coming from the knight. Still, his mind registered him as another potential enemy, no matter how big.

The thing wasn't that he was fearless. The thing is that he was afraid all the time, but he chose to keep moving forward.

"So, what?"

He started to March back down the stairs.

"So what are you going to do? Lock me up. Force me to join your little family. Make me do whatever you want because I might be a great puppet. I haven't even been here a day. I wanted to thank The Bronze Boars for helping me, but you ruined that, too. Now you are here telling me I'm special after you tried to trick me into signing some contract. You were probably hoping I couldn't read."

The Lord began to look slightly uncomfortable.

"Now that you know that, I will never say yes. What are you going to do? Force me into it?"

Gin stared into the Lord's face, and everything stood still for a long time as if everyone held their breath. The Lord blinked as he looked away. He placed a different contract on the table by the door and left.

Gin waited for a few more minutes, then glanced at the contract. This contract was shorter, mostly about not telling anyone about the city's existence. He searched for a fine print. Read the contract over. He added never to contact, then signed the contract to tie loose ends. Then, he chose to leave that day.