Chapter 424 The Otherworlders Arrive
~VWUUSH~
A swirling blue portal, like a vortex imprinted in midair, appeared a short distance from the Southern Gate of the Adventurer City.
For a moment, it merely stood still, merely illuminating the night with its bright hue and causing the air around it to tremble.
Then, silhouettes began to emerge from within it.
Nine humans, along with a rabbit, marched out of the spatial rift. There was purpose in their aura, and their footsteps interrupted the silence that filled the barren path.
Once they all came out, the warbling space collapsed on itself and vanished from sight.
In no time at all, the darkened path returned to the way it was, save for the ten strangers that now stood there.
"I can't believe Sir Ralyks just dropped us off without even bothering to show us around." The first to speak was, of course, Justin Blake.
His face dragged around as he complained, pointing towards the entrance of the city that stood at least a hundred meters away from them.
"The least he could do was transport us straight to the entrance."
Everyone ignored Justin's complaints. They knew the true reason why he was complaining, and that was because Ralyks didn't respond to any of his jokes.
Even when he was being serious, he was treated coldly.freewebnøvel.coɱ
Of course, the same applied to everyone, but it seemed Justin took it personally.
The only one who reacted as strongly as he did—perhaps a bit more extreme—was Belle Vanitas.
"Hicc… hicc… Sir Ralyks, why were you so cold to me?" Her muffled whispers quietly echoed in the night. "Even after we haven't seen for so long…?"
Everyone ignored her too.
Belle had been sobbing like this for a while now, and since she showed no signs of stopping anytime soon—despite the initial attempts to pacify her—they all gave up on the cause.
A few students still shot her concerned looks, but most just paid attention to the task ahead of them.
"Sir Ralyks was probably busy. He has a lot on his plate, and he did previously mention that he was going to be investigating some matters." Adonis had to speak up and address everyone, even though he already did so before they appeared here.
"So please, let us all cooperate and behave ourselves well."
None of the Otherworlders were aware of this, but the real reason 'Ralyks' didn't speak to them was because he was a mere duplicate hurriedly charged with bringing the students to the Adventurers City after a specified period of time.
Before transporting them to the checkpoint, the duplicate was to spew out exposition about the Adventurers City, as well as to once again guide the actions they were to take once they arrived.
Once it was done with the task, the clone transported them to the city and vanished itself.
"Hm. Even if he was busy, I feel like he should have at least lodged us somewhere." Alicia spoke up, her tone hinting a little concern.
"EXACTLY! Alicia gets it!" Justin yelled out, though he was ignored yet again.
"Isn't it a bit irresponsible on his part, as an adult, to just drop us off in a City we've never been to before? What do you think, Rey?"
"I completely agree with you, Alicia." Rey responded to the inquiry with a sharp, almost preplanned tone. "It's pretty late. It's not safe for us to be out so late at night without adult supervision."
In a way, Rey just rephrased everything Alicia complained about, yet somehow managing to make it worse.
"T-that's not really what I…" Alicia slightly slapped her palm on her face and sighed.
Rey had completely missed the point.
"We're adults in this world, Rey, Alicia. Sir Ralyks was generous enough to save us days of travel by transporting us here despite his busy schedule." Adonis spoke up, finally gaining everyone's attention once again.
"We should be grateful to him and focus on the mission we have been tasked with."
Once again, none of them realized just how wrong they were in their line of reasoning.
Who could blame their ignorance, though?
The real reason 'Ralyks' didn't transport them so close to the City, or lodged them into an inn, was because the man behind the mask didn't want his face to be seen in the Adventurers City.
Chances were high that he would be exposed as a fraud once the Otherworlders noticed that no one was paying him any mind, despite supposedly being a strong Adventurer.
Even if he could escape such accusations by claiming to be in disguise, Rey didn't want to take the risk of drawing attention to Ralyks—especially when he wasn't in full control of the version he sent to fetch everyone.
Besides, he was still unsure if Adrien was pulling the strings from the shadows.
For the safety of his plan, it was better to dissociate Ralyks from the Adventurers City, instead placing the focus on Jet and from the shadows.
For the safety of his plan, it was better to dissociate Ralyks Lux.
"Just as planned, we will have to change our names and faces before entering the city."
The reason for that was simple.
Since they would soon be officially recognized as the champions of mankind and heading to the front lines, they couldn't be seen as Adventurers.
As such, no one in the Adventurers City, not even the higher-
ups, could know of their true identities.
Even if the Guildmaster and his posse were in support of the alliance now, there was no knowing how things would be in the future.
In order to play it safe, they had to take on different monikers and disguise themselves using the ultra-rare sets of rings that could cast a disguise on the wearer.
The set of nine rings was a courtesy gift from the Reaper Group, a newly established business that desired to forge a relationship of interest with the Royal Council.
Of course, many considered this incredibly convenient and guessed Ralyks was behind it. However, without proof—and with the need for the rings—they quietly accepted the presents.
"Alright everyone. Let's go!"
Chapter 425 The Inn Incident [Pt 1]
The Adventurers City wasn't particularly known for its beauty.
It resembled a simple town, though there was an abundance of large buildings within its territories. This was to accommodate for the many residents that chose to live there.
Since Adveturers often spent their time away from the house, sometimes even traveling out of the City for Quests, many of them preferred to lodge in Inns rather than rent a place of their own.
There was also the option of buying land, or a house, but it was very rare to see Adventurers opt for this option.
Not only was land in short supply, since most people didn't care to sell their properties, there was no real reason for an Adventurer to be tied down to a property they would never use.
The only ones who would consider this option were Adventurers who had families, but even they preferred renting a house to buying a property.
At the very least, there was the chance of changing locations if one went with the former.
In any case, the allure of the Adventurers City wasn't in its external appearance, which was probably why the Otherworlders who now walked down the street of the big city didn't feel much of an electrifying sensation.
They appeared more lost than excited.
"Are you sure you know where to go, Adonis? Maybe we should just ask around?"
This question came from Eric, rather than the usual blabbermouth Justin. The latter had long taken the hint and was now sulking silently.
"I'm sure." Adonis responded calmly, not looking back to see Eric's frustrated face.
Unlike most of his classmates, Eric actually wanted to properly explore the Adventurers City since he had always been an avid fantasy fan.
He felt it was a shame they weren't being given the opportunity to split and explore on their own.
'I want to talk to some Adventurers and get a feel of this place!' Eric flexed his glasses and felt his nerd spirit being set ablaze.
He was the only one who thought like this, though.
Everyone else couldn't wait for Adonis to lodge them in an Inn, considering how uncomfortable they felt to be walking outside at night.
The Adventurers City was no slum, by any means, but compared to the Capital it was sorely lacking. It was easy to spot some safety and health violations, both of which would never fly in the Capital, in many areas of the City.
Plus, the stares they received from passersby was a little unnerving. Adventurers had a certain glare that made them appear threatening, so it wasn't strange for them to cast them on people—even if they were total strangers.
The students weren't particularly threatened by those glares. They were pretty confident that they could take on most of the Adventurers who shot them looks.
The fundamental problem was the fact that they were inexperienced.
None of them had ever left the Capital. Even when they explored the town back then, they never strayed too far from the central marketplaces and glamorous hubs.
They certainly never stayed out late either.freёwebnoѵel.com
All of these rules were broken at once, and with so many new experiences clashing upon one another, the teenagers wanted nothing more than to find their rooms and relax.
They never thought they would miss adult supervision so much.
Fortunately, Adonis knew exactly where he was going. In a few minutes, they arrived at their destination—a prestigious-looking building by the standards of the city.
Compared to what the students were used to, the architecture was a little shoddy, and the overall design could use some improvements.
Beggars couldn't be choosers, though, so they simply swallowed any kind of criticism they had and trailed behind their leader.
"Excuse me, Miss. I'd like to lodge a Group Room for my party." Adonis approached the receptionist with such ease and confidence, almost as if he had done this a million times.
Honestly, most people in the shoes of his classmates would have displayed shock—considering how they were all strangers in this place.
However, everyone present was already used to Adonis being this way.
He always knew just what to do in every situation, and his ability to act on the spot was unrivaled. After displaying this skill so many times on Earth, and even when they were transported to this strange land, many people weren't surprised any longer.
The guy was just a genius.
"What Capacity would you like? We have—"
"Maximum Capacity." He said, cutting her short, though not in a rude manner. "Is that available?"
"Yes. That will be 10 Bronze Coins a night, plus free breakfast in the morning."
Many students marveled at the price of their residence for one night. They expected it to be a lot more expensive, considering what they were used to in the Capital.
Even the cheapest Inn cost a little more than what they were getting for a room that had maximum capacity.
They even added free meals for everyone to the mix.
Considering how the Adventurers City was as much a hub of activities as the Capital was, and it generated quite an ample sum of national revenue, one would have expected things to be expensive here.
But, they were ridiculously cheap.
That just went to show the disparity that existed the further South one went in the map. Since the Adventurers City was up North, the cost of living was—as expected—relatively low.
"Thank you, Miss." Adonis slightly bowed his head in courtesy and paid the money.
The young lady behind the counter instantly blushed, and even the others who weren't attending to them started whispering to themselves while giggling.
Once again, the students were reminded of just how charming Adonis was.
Perhaps it was because they saw him so often, they had gotten desensitized to his captivating handsomeness.
Even with his disguise, which only aged him up to a mature age, he looked very splendid.
"Come on, guys." Adonis turned away from the desk and dangled the keys in front of his classmates. "Let's go."
A few students exchanged knowing stares and threw their hands in the air while laughing to themselves.
"As expected of our Hero…"
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