With someone approaching him Ethan stopped walking, thinking it was better to keep his distance than to walk into an unknown situation. While his perception was higher it was not on a level he was comfortable with. He watched as the man jogged towards him, still smiling when he stopped in front of Ethan’s ice soldiers.

  “Hello traveler, what brings you to our small town?” The man asked while looking not in the least bit scared that he was surrounded by soldiers that promised a frozen death if he made the wrong move. Ethan decided to keep his cards close to his chest and returned the same smile the man gave him. “Oh I have been travelling since we arrived back here and was looking for a place to rest. I crossed the forest…” he pointed away from the mountains and into the dark forest. “...and saw the smoke coming from your town and decided to investigate.”

  “You traveled through the forest? Impressive, we only go to the edge of it to cut down trees. Well traveler, why don’t you come with me and I will introduce you to our mayor, I’m sure he would love to hear your tale.” The man kept smiling without break even while talking, the corners of his mouth didn’t lower.

  “Oh that would be wonderful, also you can call me Nathan.” He smiled once again at the man who turned around and walked back towards the town, Ethan and his soldiers following him with some distance. The man seemed to put a lot of trust in Ethan not attacking him, he found a reason why that was the case a moment later.

  Because at that moment they seemed to cross an invisible line. Ethan felt like insects were crawling all over him, followed by an unpleasant tingling down his spine. The feeling lasted only for a split second and was followed by a notification that forced itself into his view.

  *Update* You entered the Safezone of a settlement, while in the safezone you have to follow certain rules or you will be punished by the system.

  He waited for an explanation of what these certain rules were but like always the system didn’t think it was necessary to explain anything. Ethan looked at the back of the man but he was still walking ahead of him. When they got closer he started talking about the town.

  “When we arrived there were around twenty groups of us scattered along the shore of the lake, can you imagine so many people? Thousands of them all thrown into this world. Well we gathered everybody here and started building the town you see now! The mayor did a great job coordinating everybody. He made all our lives so much better and now everybody is happy!” The man turned his head, the smile he presented looked just a bit more creepy than before. The whole situation got weirder by the minute, he didn’t even realize that he forgot to identify the man. Instead Ethan became even more wary of this man and the stories he told.

  “Thousands you say? The town doesn’t look that big where do all the people live?” Ethan asked, slowing his steps just a bit. This man gave him, the ice wizard, literal chills. With the system in place there was no way he could harm him but at this point he wanted to know more about this town while at the same time just leaving right here and now.

  “Well they live underground of course! Silly question, you can’t see it from here because of the palisade wall but the town hall is standing on top of a giant stone formation and there was a cave below that we explored. What we found was a massive cavern filled with all kinds of things!”

  “A massive cavern? You don’t say…” Ethan raised an eyebrow, was the system providing space underground for a reason? Inside the mountain range made sense but here in the middle of the forest? Another point just got added to his list. While the man talked they reached the entrance to the town and he was almost happy when he saw grim looking guards manning the gate. In total there were around fifty guards on the walls and around the gate. At least for this part he could see more guard posts to his left and right. That in itself wasn’t abnormal but did a town need so many guards?

  One of them stepped forward and held his hand up, his palm facing the man and Ethan. “Hold, what is the business of this traveler?” Before Ethan could answer the man, put on his best creepy smile and answered for him, his eyes on the other hand got colder. “He’s here to see the mayor after a long journey, he won’t cause any trouble. Remember your job guardsmen.”

  The guard looked on edge but nodded stiffly and stepped to the side. “You may proceed, but…be careful.” The last two words he said while staring into Ethan’s eyes, the guards gaze flicking back to the creepy man. He understood what he meant, there was something wrong here, very wrong. He just had to figure out what but he would bet his new equipment on the mayor, especially since the creepy man seemed to put a lot of trust into him.

  “Of course, I will…” he nodded to the guard who relaxed a bit and returned to his post, other guards came over and whispered into his ear. He shushed them and pushed them back to their post but at the same time he grabbed a medallion that was hanging on his belt and pressed on it. Ethan watched until they vanished from his view and kept following his creepy guide into the town.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  The houses were all made from wood, they looked a bit rough in their execution but sturdy enough to withstand nature. The path they walked was just packed earth that saw hundreds of feet traversing it every day. Everything looked normal but the smiling inhabitants put Ethan on edge, another shiver ran down his spine as he continued to walk behind the man.

  What became apparent after walking for a while was that the town was built on a flat hill that rose towards the middle of it. What also changed was the material, the closer they got to the center the more stone could be seen, houses had foundations made of rough looking stone slaps and one building was built entirely from stone. That very stone building caught his attention because when he looked over a man wearing a more elaborate guard uniform stepped out of it but before the man could walk onto the street a patron sitting on a bench next to the entrance made him trip over his leg.

  Ethan’s creepy guide walked just past him, not even acknowledging his existence but Ethan stopped to help the man back to his feet while giving the person who tripped him a mean look. That guy just smiled like his guide. Ethan identified the man, something he had forgotten to try with the others. If he was honest the feeling they gave off repulsed him from even trying. This man on the other hand didn’t feel like that.

  [Human - Level 35]

  *Update* Classes revealed due to high enough perception!

  That…was new, Ethan in general didn’t use Identify enough and he felt like it was weird to use it on his companions under the mountain but now he could reveal classes? He should have invested into perception a long time ago. Especially since it just revealed crucial information. He would have loved to do that with his Jacques, knowing what class he had could give him a clue on how to fight him.

  *Update* Revealed classes

  [Guard Captain - Level 35]

  [Warden of Valor - 43]

  He was the guard captain? Like all those guardsmen? Ethan was kind of surprised by that. But in terms of levels the man was no pushover. When he was back on his feet Ethan saw that his eyes were filled with hate as he looked at the creepy guide but all of that vanished once he focused on Ethan.

  “Thank you my friend, I’m sure the person just made a mistake” he smiled and looked over at the people staring at them. Ethan didn’t even notice it at first. “Well my friend you should keep going, I kept you away from your business long enough.” He patted Ethan on the back and gave him the same look the guard at the gate gave him. “Stay safe.” Then he just walked away at a brisk pace.

  Ethan looked after the guard captain for a while before turning back to his guide. “Should we continue Nathan?” the man asked, still smiling but now it looked a bit more strained than before. Ethan nodded and continued up the path towards the mayor’s house. At this point he wanted nothing more than to book it like the guard and run away but now he was committed. When he tried to look into the stone building a very, very fat man was moving into the doorway. He was smiling but with him not having a single tooth in his mouth he only saw bleeding gums and saliva dripping down his multiple chins.

  What kind of fucked up place is this…I want to go back to the mountain. Ethan thought to himself and shivered again, he stopped looking around and just followed the weird man up the hill. Only when they reached their destination did he look around again. There he saw the mayor’s house, calling it a mansion might have been more accurate though. Just below the mansion was the stone formation, a gate constructed of thick wood was set into the wall, behind it the entrance to the cave system the man talked about. There were two lines, the one on the left were people waiting to go inside, on the right people walked out. The ones walking out of the cave carried woven baskets filled with ores, mushrooms or some kind of red plants.

  The man guided him away from the cave and towards the mansion’s entrance, there were stairs built right into the stone. Ethan stopped next to the man and raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you going further?” The man stopped smiling for the first time which looked even weirder than before. He shook his head violently. “No, no, no, no…we never, NEVER go further than here. The mayor already knows you’re coming Nathan and gave his permission so you can go up.”

  “How does he know? You know what, nevermind I will just talk to him…stay safe or whatever.” He walked up the stairs, his soldiers forming a close protective wall around him. The moment he took the third step he could feel it, slimy fingers trying to reach his mind. Looking for a place to nest and infect him like a parasite laying an egg. Ethan pushed his aura out, suddenly the air around him was filled with unblinking eyes of frost and judgment. “I wouldn’t try that if I were you.” Ethan’s soul was like a snake, waiting to strike especially through his connection with Nora it had grown stronger.

  The fingers pulled away from him, Ethan knew that the man was no match for him, he could feel it. Now it was his turn, he smiled but it looked anything but friendly. He cracked his neck and pushed the wooden gate open. Time to get some answers.