Prista (2)
Being one of the closest cities to the center of the Underworld, it was one of the most popular first-stop for newbies going towards the Western Frontier. The geography of the known Underworld is a square, consisting of a western, northern, eastern, and southern frontier. The Western Frontier had the lands of the Poison Monarch to the north, the Queen of Blades to the far west, and the Overlord of Brutality to the south. Under the jurisdiction of the Overlord of Brutality, Prista was a relatively safe city that acted as a recruiting and resting post for many newbies. For this reason, it was known as a "starter" city, a place where newbies no more than the 1st phase would head to.
Karl was an aged man that retired from a life of adventuring and fighting in his youth. He never had any talent for fighting, reaching only the first stage. So he signed a contract with the city of Prista that granted him some farmland in the countryside and guaranteed protection from bandits and the like in exchange for his hard work as a farmer. He was more likened to this lifestyle, a simple and peaceful one where he didn't have to worry if he would die the next day.
Being a citizen of Prista, he would see thousands of newbies flock to the city after the selection, and he has seen people with some bizarre talents. There was a boy who had a flock of birds all over him, a boy with the head of a chameleon, a girl who was moonwalking the entire way to the city, a girl who bounced across the road like a rabbit, and a countless number of talented individuals who were starting off their journey. However, never in his life has he seen a stranger duo walking through the main road. One of the boys seemed like a typical newbie, except he had crystal-clear blue eyes and features belonging to an angel. Even more surprising was his insanely strong power, emanating the aura of a 3rd phaser. However, the most impressive one was his companion, an even younger-looking boy around 12 or 13 years old that released the full pressure of someone in the 7th phase; a supreme might almost reach Overlord's rank. Karl quickly returned to his work, hoping that the monstrous duo would leave him be.
"Hey, you over there," Maxim called out to Karl, who was just about to run back to tend to his crops.
"Y-y-yes?"
"Come with me."
-------------------------------------------------------------------
<
"H-hey guys, what are you planning to do in Prista?" Karl nervously looked behind, only to see the duo intensely staring back at him.
"I me-mean, I don't need to know, just curious," Karl coughed a little and went back to focusing on his task of driving the wagon. Before long, they reached the main gate.
"Halt. Identification?" called out one of the two guards manning the castle gate. He wore the traditional chainmail uniform of a city guard and had a stern expression.
Karl flashed the bracelet that the Sanctuary gave him during his selection. The bracelet is the invention and the parting gift of the greatest engineer in the world, Kaiser. It has an identification number assigned to each person. It serves the multi-function of containing a transportation hex, allowing adventurers to send the monster bodies they earn to the Sanctuary. It is nearly impossible to replicate with Underworld technology, meaning it is a precious identification tag that cannot be forged.
The guard checked the identification tag and fetched out a small notepad marked with identification tags and names.
"Karl, in the second phase? Is that right?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"What's your business with going to the city?"
"Just my usual monthly routine of delivering fresh produce to the market." Karl broke into a cold sweat against his will, realizing that he hasn't had to lie in a while.
"It says here that you aren't scheduled to make a supply run yet. Mind if we check your wagon? Security purposes."
"Ahh-- I really don't think that's necessary," Karl nervously started fidgeting, making the guards even more suspicious. Even more alarming was the fact that the guard felt a suspicious presence in the wagon. The guard nodded towards his partner, giving him the signal to move in and inspect the wagon.
"Wa-wait," Karl frantically tried to stop the guard, but the superior guard in the third phase pushed him off. The guard climbed onto the wagon and searched under it. The only thing he found was a bunch of wheat.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Meanwhile, Eve and Maxim were already deep inside the city walls. When the wagon approached the city gates, Eve had asked Antares to teleport them both to a random alleyway of the city.
"So this is how your teleport ability works. That's broken." Maxim said, surprised at how easy and inexpensive the teleportation was.
"It takes quite a bit of energy out of me, though. The last time when I teleported all the way to the Underworld, I had to sleep for 18 hours afterward."
"Ah. Also, if you had this teleport ability, why did you ask me to call the farmer and use his wagon?"
"Oh... I was tired and didn't want to walk anymore," Eve grinned and started to walk out of the alleyway.
<
In the marketplace, Eve saw people casually chatting and trading goods. Red banners were hanging around all over the place to mark the area as under the lands of the Overlord of Brutality. Stalls were placed all over the side of the street, with people busily bargaining and having fun. Eve saw kids running around on the street, without a care in the world.
<>
"So, what are we doing here?" Maxim asked, slightly disturbed by the mood of the whole scenario. He wasn't used to peacetime, always being on the frontline.
Eve paused for a second, before taking a deep breath.
"We are going to nuke this place."