"I choose... option number one!"
And that was also the option chosen by the remaining thirty-five people. They were forced to pick one of the two choices presented by the king. Naturally, none of them wanted to die just yet, so everyone leaned toward the option that offered a way out rather than passively and ignominiously waiting for death.
"If all of you have decided to pick option number one, then good luck. Tyler, temporarily take these people to the army detention camp... Actually, no. Take them to 'that place'. Also, show them around the training camp tomorrow morning and proceed with selecting their own Guilds (classes)."
"Understood."
"Hey, so do we have to stay in prison cells for now?"
A young girl with blue hair and sparkling turquoise eyes asked, worried that the prison cells would be filthy.
"That's right. You will temporarily have to stay there until tomorrow morning. From now until tomorrow, you must choose team members to form a squad of at least five or six people. Once chosen, you will select your own Guilds. After everything is settled, you will undergo training with instructors. Anyone who fails to pick a Guild will have one randomly assigned by the military. Keep in mind that you won't get a second chance to choose, especially for mages."
Tyler explained the whole situation so everyone could understand. This meant that later on, they would have to debate among themselves who would join their respective teams.
Honestly, what was happening felt like a total nightmare for introverts or those with social anxiety. If they didn't actively participate in the discussion, they would surely be left behind.
"For now, just like before, you are not allowed to open your mouth to speak until you step out of here, because right now, you are still prisoners."
"Basically, you won't be locked up or guarded like regular prisoners, so don't worry about that. However, starting tomorrow, you must submit to military supervision. Remember to decide on your own teams today. Each squad can have a maximum of six members. That is the only advice I can offer you."
After speaking, Tyler instructed all the soldiers to step outside while escorting people like Grey to the house designated for prisoners—not to detain them, but as temporary lodging.
Everyone walked out in complete silence, as no one wanted their head severed from their shoulders.
"The prison house for captives isn't far from here, so... Red, lead them there. I have something to discuss with the king."
"Okay."
Red knew that place quite well, as Jack had mentioned it to him before. That area was now just a wartime memory with nothing special about it.
Taking the order, Red held up his finger in agreement and told a few others to come along. Naturally, the other soldiers agreed since they had nothing else to do.
"Hey, you guys are allowed to talk now."
Thanks to Red's reminder, everyone could finally speak freely.
"So in short, we have to stay behind iron bars now? What kind of hospitality is this?"
The small-statured teenager grumbled again, annoyed by a place that sounded filthy just by its name.
"According to Mr. Tyler, that's right. Nobody lives in the prison area anymore. It's been abandoned for a long time, located right next to Urus Cathedral. Back in the day, it was used to detain prisoners of war and war criminals."
Hearing the words "war criminals," everyone turned pale.
"W... w... war criminals?!"
The small-statured youth spoke in a trembling voice. Who would have thought? He was brave enough when picking on women, but turned out to be just a coward at heart?
"What a coward."
"Who are you calling a coward, you dark-skinned guy?!"
"I'm calling you one, shorty."
"Shut up!"
Since he had been untied earlier, the short guy rushed toward the dark-skinned teenager with the X-shaped scar on his right cheek, intending to throw a punch at him. Unluckily for him, the guy's body was as solid as a rock.
"Ouchhhhh!"
The short guy instantly pulled his hand back and clutched his fist in pain, even rolling around on the ground. It looked hilarious—did this guy want to play the clown to entertain the public?
(Shorty, huh? Sounds pretty funny.)
The surrounding crowd burst out laughing because this talkative, nosy, cowardly, terrible, and foolish guy kept rolling back and forth on the street. Even the townsfolk who had initially looked at them with disdain stopped to gather around and chuckle.
"Are you... trying to make a fool out of me?!"
"Who did anything to you? You were clearly the one who started trouble first. You insulted me for being dark-skinned, so I just talked back. What's wrong with you, shorty?"
It seemed this short guy and the dark-skinned teenager were always at odds. That was what the other thirty-four people were all thinking.
"Hey, scarred guy, nice comeback!"
The blue-haired teenager wearing spectacle-like glasses pushed them up with his thumb like an intellectual, praising the scarred youth—meaning the dark-skinned teenager.
"Are you complimenting me?"
"Yeah. Though anyway... calling each other by descriptions feels a bit weird, right? What's your name?"
"Name? My name? My name is..."
When asked for his name, he looked flustered because right now, his mind was completely blank, without a single name to answer with.
What was his name, how old was he, where was he from? These were common questions that none of them could answer, which was truly strange. This was surely why Tyler and the others, including the king, were so cautious.
"You don't remember? Then I'll go first. Not gonna lie to you, when I woke up I didn't remember a thing either, so... just call me Eric. The name just popped into my head."
(Which means it's not even his real name?)
Grey was genuinely puzzled by that.
"If so... Arthur... just call me that."
"Arthur, huh? Hey, how about you and I form a group?"
"You and me?"
"Yeah, I think we'd get along well."
(Hey hey, they're already moving to form a group?)
Meanwhile, Grey still didn't know who he should group up with, as he was quite afraid of social interaction.
"About that... I think that sounds pretty good?"
Once again, Arthur pointed at the short guy who had just stood up.
"As for him, no way am I forming a group with a rogue like that."
Arthur clearly disliked the short teenager, intentionally throwing him into a deliberate mock.
Being called a rogue, the short teenager instantly squirmed like a fish out of water. How could he accept being insulted as an uneducated rogue?
"Who are you calling a rogue?!"
"See that?"
"Arghhhh! Are you all treating me like a joke?!"
"Pretty much."
"Arthur... you... really don't respect me at all!"
(Will this short guy just drop it already?) Grey thought.
"Hey guys, can we save the chit-chat for later? I have to lead you to the temporary shelter, or it'll cause more trouble."
Left with no choice, everyone had to temporarily stop talking and move to their makeshift shelter—a prison for war criminals.
Along the way to the prison, Arthur and Eric talked about whether they could become teammates, and luckily the answer was yes.
During their conversation, Eric invited the girl who had been harassed by the short teenager the previous day to join their group, and she agreed—mostly because Grey was certain she was too scared and shy to refuse.
Besides that, what was there to say about Eric? Honestly, Grey felt Eric was smart, yet seemed a bit clumsy. Or perhaps that was just the face he wanted to show everyone, while his inner world remained unknown.
The girl Grey had spoken up for when she was harassed by the short guy seemed quite shy about it. By the way, her name was Emma. Judging by appearance alone, she was somewhere around 160 to 162 cm tall, with dark blue hair and dark eyes. Thinking about her appearance, Grey briefly had some dark thoughts, then slapped his own head to stop overthinking. Ever since he saw her, he had thought, "She looks pretty nice," or something along those lines.
(Forget it, this is a very sensitive matter. I don't want to touch upon it.)
Though he didn't say it aloud, the short guy somehow easily saw right through him, leaning in close, slinging an arm around Grey's shoulder, and whispering:
"Hey, are you feeling turned on?"
"Huh?! Wh... what?! I... I'm not!"
"Right from earlier till now, I saw you eyeing 'that.' You like it too, right?"
Grey immediately tried to deny it frantically. Wait, responsibility? It was as if he had just committed some dirty or awful act toward a girl.
"Don't... don't say things like that anymore. You're being disgusting!"
"Whatever! That's a man's natural instinct!"
(Does he feel no shame at all?! Don't just blurt it out like that!)
What if both of them lost points in women's eyes because of this? A dark future was already visible.
"Um... Red, may I ask something?"
While the group was walking, another girl spoke up wanting to ask about something—perhaps about tomorrow?
"Huh? What is it?"
Red, who had been walking with his hands behind his head chatting with others, turned his head back and asked.
"Do you know... if there are any tombstones around here?"
(Why is she asking something so strange?) Red thought, utterly puzzled.
"Why are you asking such a weird question? What do you need a tombstone for?"
"I... don't know either. But my memories keep telling me to go to a tombstone... so... I don't know what I'm saying anymore... I'm sorry for bothering you..."
Her voice trailed off until it could barely be heard, but Red still answered, partly out of basic politeness... or maybe because the person asking was a woman?
"Tombstones? As for that... tombstones no longer exist in Tenboku. It's an ancient matter from before I was born. The main reason comes from part of a curse haunting this world, alongside the fear of history."
(No longer exist? A curse? History? What does that mean?)
Grey found it strange. The last tombstones built? And what was this about a curse and fear of history? Did he mean this city had no tombstones? How did people bury their deceased relatives then? How could the dead rest in peace? This world was so strange.
"Or rather... the last time this world built tombstones was over four centuries ago. Since then, the law prohibiting tombstones has remained in place to this day. It's not a taboo, but it became mandatory."
(Prohibited? Why? Do they not respect the deceased? No, that's not it. He said there's no discrimination against the dead. But why?)
Grey thought to himself.
Besides, Red had mentioned "fear of history" earlier. That meant they might have found a way to stop the curse, but chose the old way out of familiarity or something similar?
Not respecting the dead? That sounded plausible, or maybe humanity rejected religions and worshiping gods? But as Red said, it wasn't because of discrimination, but for another reason—the curse Red mentioned.
There was another reason to refute the idea above: there were still active cathedrals running normally in the city, so they couldn't have banned religious activities or worship, but why?
Though it might not be worth discussing, banning tombstones? Red's answer struck the thirty-five of them as odd and made them slightly tense, because a ban on tombstones sounded surreal.
They secretly wondered if they died, would they die in cold indifference like that?
Why ban them? What was wrong with tombstones?
"As for why... you'll understand tomorrow. Anyone joining the military will definitely find out. Actually, no, let me rephrase. You'll know more about 'this'. Everyone knows the basic knowledge. It's just that civilians know the 'handling' of funeral affairs, while the military knows how to cope with it."
Hearing Red's explanation, everyone turned to look at the ordinary citizens of Tenro.
Normal?
(They know? They don't object? For four hundred years?)
How strange. Why would this kingdom ban tombstones?
"Sounds so strange! Why ban burials? And it's not out of taboo? What happened? Tell us! What is that curse?!"
Another young man with red eyes and black hair questioned Red.
"I told you, you'll find out tomorrow. Mr. Tyler will probably explain it better."
Red reaffirmed firmly once more that Tyler would explain after they officially joined the regular army the next day. Meanwhile, Red continued providing more info to the group.
"Saying it's a ban on building isn't entirely accurate, or rather... the deceased will probably never be properly buried or rest in peace. Many places still conduct burials, but on the condition that there is no body, or the body is nowhere near the burial area—bringing dead bodies back is forbidden. Where they die, leave them there. Moving corpses is allowed, but burying or placing them near tombstones is forbidden. This law also applies to livestock and regular pets. Anyone breaking the law will be executed with the most gruesome punishments."
Red explained further, but in greater detail about this bizarre matter.
Even livestock and pets weren't allowed?
Burials without bringing back the bodies of the deceased or animals?
(What kind of burial is that? What is their purpose?)
Red added another sentence, but this time his tone turned dead serious:
"To put it simply... in this world, dying doesn't mean everything ends. After death, the deceased... will be pulled back into this world... to keep... fighting... until death. No, rather, they will never be allowed to 'die,' even if they want to."
"Hey, aren't you scared? Isn't that right?"
(Dying but never being able to die? What does he mean? Some mystical power?)
Grey tried to dig for answers based on Red's info, but he was completely clueless. He would have to wait for Tyler's explanation tomorrow.
After hearing Red's explanation, Arthur could sense the fearful tremble in Red's voice.
Was this matter really that terrible?
What was the hidden reason behind forbidding bringing back the bodies of the dead?
That was what weighed on the minds of the thirty-five people, even a rogue like the short guy sank into deep thought.
Banning tombstones? It sounded laughable, but the story behind it was far from pleasant.
Those thoughts haunted them all the way to their temporary living quarter, all stemming from that random question from the girl...
"We're here. Sorry about the state of it, it's been abandoned for a long time."
After showing fear in front of the group, Red seemed to return to his normal state.
Before them lay a vast piece of land exuding a gloomy and mournful aura. The iron gate serving as the entrance to this war criminal prison was covered in moss, with creepers growing wildly everywhere, clinging to walls or hanging in midair.
Looking through the gaps of the iron gate, Grey saw what looked like a spacious courtyard for convicts, where daily activities used to take place during free hours.
"Why... does it look so gloomy?"
"It looks like a haunted house."
"It really does."
"Hey, is it really okay to stay here? I feel a bit..."
Naturally, seeing the prison for the first time made everyone pale with fright, but there was no other choice.
"Let me open it. Since it's been abandoned, this gate is rusted, so it might be a bit tough."
Suiting action to words, Red stepped up to the iron gate, raised his right leg, and kicked hard, forcing it open. His physical strength was quite impressive compared to theirs.
The iron door banged loudly and collapsed to the ground, creating a metallic screech as it fell onto the cold stone floor.
"Um, hey! You guys are done with your work, you can go back now!"
After breaking the door, Red told the guards escorting the thirty-five people that they could rest.
"Okay! So we're done, right?! We'll head off then, Red! Remember to come back early, some of the spoils from yesterday's fight with the goblins can be sold, and we can buy new gear while we're at it!"
"Really?! Great, wait for me! I'm coming!"
(Hey, aren't you supposed to show us around the place?)
Grey internally complained about Red, though he was thankful for the guidance.
"Hey everyone, this is as far as I go. You can head inside to check things out. Tonight you can go to the army camp for food, or someone will bring food to you, and tomorrow you'll decide those important matters. Now I'm off to buy gear, see ya!"
With that, Red quickly ran back to his seniors.
When Red reached them, the senior soldiers smacked him on the head because he almost lost his life to goblins yesterday due to recklessness—specifically when his feet were injured. Besides that... they led Red to "see" Lisa.
"Hey, are you kidding me?!"
"Check it out ourselves?! How are we supposed to know?!"
"Heyyyy!"
"Come back here, Red!"
No matter how loudly they shouted, that idiot didn't turn back.
"He... really left?"
"Seriously, is he just like that short guy?"
"I don't think so. Compared to that short guy, he actually brought us here, right? Better than that blabbermouth."
Although he hadn't done anything since Red revealed the tombstone story, the topic somehow turned to criticizing the short guy, who hadn't said a word.
(He's not fighting back?)
Earlier that morning, Emma had been yelled at by the short guy, yet she still showed concern for him—in thought, if not in words.
"Anyway, let's head inside. It looks like it's getting dark."
With that, everyone stepped through the broken iron gate that Red had kicked down.
Over two hours passed since they entered the prison. After looking around, they decided they would rather sleep on the old beds inside the convict cells than sleep on the ground with all kinds of insects.
Arthur, Eric, and Emma took the corner rooms at the far end of the hallway, while Grey slept in a separate room.
Architecturally, the prison was nothing special—just stone, stone, and stone.
It had three floors in total, with about fifty cells per floor. Outside in the courtyard stood a smaller building containing solitary confinement cells for particularly dangerous criminals.
In the courtyard stood two dragon statues with wide-open mouths containing pipes for water flow. Two lion statues rested on stair railings above cubic pedestals.
Above the interior entrance was a carving of a large eagle crossed out by two diagonal lines, with its mouth wide open, next to a man thrusting a spear into its mouth. What kind of carving was that?
Before coming here, the royal palace had a similar carving, but without the crossed lines or spear-wielding man. Instead, the eagle was colored in five shades: white, blue, green, lavender, and beige.
The courtyard included an exercise area, basketball and soccer courts, stone benches against matching stone walls, and various facilities for prisoners' leisure time.
The three floors featured long hallways extending along both sides, forming a central square void so inmates could communicate across levels.
The prison roof was a solid stone dome with a large glass skylight over the central square, allowing sunlight to stream down during the day.
Night finally arrived.
"Alright everyone, time to decide."
The group gathered outside in the courtyard near the stone benches.
Gentlemen yielded to ladies, which almost everyone agreed to, except the short guy. The others had to physically drag him from his seat.
It was pitch black outside, and dinner was delivered directly by the military, but...
"Are you kidding? Just a piece of bread and this bland, awful-tasting soup?"
"How is this supposed to fill anyone up?"
"Not to mention we have to pay back a debt..."
"Arghhhhh! I'm going to die!"
Almost everyone complained, dissatisfied with the meager meal provided by the military.
Compounding their troubles, they had to pool one million Tengo to buy back their freedom. Failure to do so within a year meant permanent exile from Tenboku and a ban on entering any other kingdom. However, selecting option one meant they would soon receive entry papers for Tenboku.
That was without considering how to manage expenses once they became regular soldiers.
Countless survival issues piled up, forming an intimidating stack of challenges.
"Alright everyone, let's discuss today's main topic. Let's decide who will be in our squad."
Although Eric already had a team, he acted as the host of the discussion.
"Currently, I have my own team: myself, Arthur, and Emma—three people total. We need three more. If anyone wants to join, prove why we should pick you!"
(Sounds a bit dramatic.)
It sounded as if Eric was superior to everyone, expecting them to bow. That was something Grey didn't quite like about Eric.
Eric's voice lowered, adopting a serious tone as the discussion host.
"I have a question."
A pink-haired girl wearing glasses and a t-shirt raised her hand, catching Eric's attention.
"Oh? What would the young lady like to ask?"
(Why is he suddenly talking so smoothly?)
It sounded fake.
"Hey, aren't you taking this too seriously?"
Arthur found Eric's sudden shift in attitude puzzling.
"I... I think he's... getting a bit too into character?"
"Haha... hahaha..."
(Why am I laughing? What's funny about this?)
Grey thought his own reaction was strange.
Emma laughed awkwardly as well. Was she feeling the same way?
While Grey was distracted, Emma suddenly struck up a conversation with him.
"Do... do you want to... join our group?"
"Oh... I..."
(How should I answer?!)
Grey and Emma shared a mutual trait: social anxiety.
Proof was that when the short guy yelled at Emma, she didn't talk back, while Grey was too shy to express his thoughts before a crowd. Or rather, Grey only spoke up earlier out of annoyance toward Ash.
Was he truly timid, or did he just find speaking up too troublesome?
In short, they shared many similarities regarding social interaction.
While Emma and Grey were talking, the discussion between Eric and the pink-haired girl concluded.
The girl, named Petra, decided to join Eric's team, and Eric stepped down from hosting to let everyone discuss freely.
Petra was a strong-sounding name.
During their discussion, Petra mentioned an unexplainable affinity for hunting and nature.
These feelings were familiar yet strange, much like the girl who asked Red about tombstones.
"So... you'll be in our team?"
"That's right! I think this group suits me, so I joined!"
Arthur still seemed skeptical, wondering if Eric made a mistake.
"Are you sure, Eric?"
Arthur pointed at Petra, showing suspicion.
"Hey, pointing at people... especially women... is very rude, you know?"
Petra felt annoyed by Arthur's suspicion. Being suspected for no reason naturally caused annoyance.
"I'm sure, Arthur. Trust me. Looking at our team: we have your muscular build, Emma's quiet nature makes her good for solo tasks, and Petra will be useful if we get lost. As for me, as the leader, I'll provide smart tactics."
(Solo work... how is that useful here?)
Maybe Eric saw something Grey didn't?
"Pretty confident, aren't you?"
"Watch your mouth! I'm the leader here!"
"So what, Mr. Arrogant?"
"Better than you, shorty."
"What?! Are you calling me annoying like that short guy?!"
"So what? You look similar, you'd make a good pair."
"Shut up! I would never date that guy!"
(Why are they arguing all of a sudden?)
Meanwhile, discussions among other groups were wrapping up.
Eric's team still lacked two members. Emma, who had been paying attention to Grey, asked the others for their opinion.
"Him? The guy who talked back to the short guy for you this morning?"
Eric looked toward Grey.
"I think... he's... fine..."
Eric looked doubtful, while Arthur thought it over.
(That guy...)
For some reason, Arthur felt a sense of reassurance looking at Grey, despite the negative energy surrounding him.
"Please?"
Emma pleaded with the team. Seeing her look hurt by their hesitation, Petra voted to support her.
"Sounds good! He did protect you from that short guy, right?!"
Hearing Petra bring it up, both Arthur and Eric came to a decision.
"Fine, that works."
"Looks fine to me."
"Alright! Let me invite him!"
Eric walked over to Grey, who was sitting gloomily by himself.
"Hey, want to join my group? By the way, what's your name again? Sorry, Emma is pretty bad at communicating, as you can see, so she forgot to ask your name, but she wants you on the team. So, do you want in? Either way..."
Eric glanced around, implying most people already had teams.
Understanding Eric's point, Grey nodded.
"Sure... sounds fine."
"OK! That's settled then!"
Eric pulled Grey up and led him to the team.
"So we need one more person, right? Who's left?!"
Petra and Eric looked around for a final member, but unfortunately, the last remaining person was...
"Why do we have to accept this short guy?!"
Eric and Petra, who had been bickering moments ago, now strongly objected to Ash (the short guy, who finally revealed his name). Team up with him? No way.
"Who are you calling short, you Erirokopararoko guy?!"
"What... huh?! What on earth is Eriokopa or whatever?!"
"That's your name!"
Furious at having his name mangled by a useless rogue like Ash, Eric grabbed Ash by the head with his right hand and punched him in the face.
Ash wasn't one to back down easily. He scratched Eric's right arm repeatedly with his nails, causing scratches and sharp pain that forced Eric to let go.
Ash seized the moment, rushed at Eric, and landed a punch right on the leader's face, knocking his glasses to the ground.
Eric pushed Ash away, stood up, picked up his glasses, and put them back on.
"You Erikoroma guy, you're just a bookworm trying to act tough!"
"I told you my name isn't Erikoroma! It's Eric!"
"Same thing!"
"How is it the same?!"
Immediately, the two fools threw themselves into a brawl, while Grey and Emma stood by as onlookers, unsure how to stop them.
"Grey... um, do you think... we should stop them?"
Emma spoke up in her usual timid voice.
"I think... maybe not? They look... like they're having fun? Aha... ahahahaha..."
Once again, Grey forced an awkward, tasteless laugh.
(Again! Why am I laughing, you idiot? What's funny about this?!)
While Grey wondered why he was laughing so foolishly, Emma noticed his strange head-shaking behavior.
"Is... something wrong with you?"
"Ah... no, it's... nothing..."
(She noticed! See that, you idiot? You just lost points in her eyes!)
Emma didn't know what Grey was thinking, unaware that her teammate was overthinking romance or dating.
Just as Ash had said that morning, it was probably just natural instinct.
(But you have to control yourself!)
In short, Grey and Emma were both fools. Afraid to voice opinions or express themselves, they were completely terrified of communication. Identical in that regard.
"Let go of me, shorty!"
"Then stop calling me shorty first!"
"Why did you mangle my name then?!"
"Because I wanted to! It's fun!"
"How is it fun?!"
Eric and Ash kept bickering and fighting without stopping.
(What about Arthur? Is he going to stop them?)
Arthur, with his muscular build, grabbed both idiots by their collars and scolded them.
"Cut it out, both of you. Eric, as the leader of a squad, you're acting foolish and hot-headed over this guy's taunts? And Ash, stop causing trouble for us. Stop mangling people's names."
"Got it, big guy."
Hearing Ash's lingering taunting tone, Arthur dropped him to the ground, causing Ash to land hard on his butt. Arthur then delivered a light punch to Ash's head, making the short guy hold his head and roll around screaming in pain, which looked hilarious.
"Ouchhhhh!"
(He could be a comedian.)
Grey harbored negative thoughts about Ash, though calling them negative might not be entirely accurate.
Meanwhile, Petra approached Grey and Emma—marking the first time she interacted with Grey.
"You're Grey, right? You're the one who spoke up for Emma this morning when Ash yelled at her?"
She pointed at Emma while asking Grey.
Being named directly, Emma shrank back from the stranger once again.
She seemed even more timid than Grey.
"By the way, Eric and Ash are really... TWO - BIG - IDIOTS, right?"
She emphasized "two big idiots" deliberately, expressing annoyance that a squad leader would lose his temper over taunts from an annoying short guy.
"I don't know where this group is heading."
Petra complained, feeling she might have made a mistake joining Eric's squad. But complaining changed nothing now, as everyone had already formed squads.
"Hey, those two finally stopped. I think we should get some sleep. It's getting dark, and everyone else has gone inside."
After Arthur resolved the fight between Eric and Ash, he noticed everyone from the earlier discussion on the stone benches had moved inside the prison. It was getting late, and they needed to sleep early for tomorrow's journey.
"Looks like they left the soup behind?"
Eric noticed the mess in the area they had just occupied, pushing up his glasses with his middle finger.
Everyone had eaten the small pieces of bread to fill their stomachs, but the soup was mostly left untouched.
"Makes sense, it tasted terrible."
Petra agreed with the consensus, as the soup was indeed extremely bland and unappetizing.
It contained only a few vegetables and unseasoned broth.
"Anyway... I think it's late, we... should sleep early."
"Who gave you the right to decide, you guy?!"
(Here we go again.)
This time, Ash directed his criticism at Grey, who bluntly retorted.
"I'm not 'you guy,' I have a proper name. It's Grey."
Grey replied politely, though still using informal pronouns with this useless guy.
"Oh really? Then greetings, Mr. Gloomy!"
"Then what are you, a pile of ashes?"
"Don't go mangling my name, Mr. Gloomy!"
"Then don't mangle mine or Eric's names either."
"Are you nitpicking with me?!"
"Not at all."
"You clearly are! Super obvious!"
"I just don't want to talk to you anymore..."
"You're clearly ignoring me!"
"That's true."
"Don't ignore me, you idiot! You dare look down on me?! Let me tell you, I am a brave Great General!"
(This guy sure boasts a lot.)
"Then weren't you grabbed by the collar just now, pile of ashes?"
Arthur echoed Grey's mock. Being called a pile of ashes made Petra and Eric burst out laughing, surprised that Arthur would say such things.
"Shut up!"
"What's wrong, BRAVE - GREAT - GENERAL?"
Arthur deliberately repeated Ash's words. Ash was so embarrassed he looked like he wanted to dig a hole to hide in.
"Alright, enough everyone, let's go to sleep. Stop arguing out here."
(Didn't you just argue earlier too?)
To be honest, Grey couldn't understand what idiots like Eric and Ash were thinking.
Looking around, night had fallen completely, so the squad decided to head inside the prison to sleep.
Eric, Ash, and Grey, who had been arguing fiercely moments ago, now looked gloomy and exhausted, as if a wave of fatigue had washed over them.
Emma and Petra were the first to enter, chatting happily together.
Grey didn't dwell on it, as these were just his passing thoughts.
Following the two girls were four males: the loud, annoying Ash; Eric, the leader who always tried to look smart and serious; Grey, who was timid and shy; and Arthur, muscular, straightforward, and unhesitating in voicing his opinions.
The prison was completely quiet as everyone had returned to their rooms.
All of them now had to face a dark future approaching.
Time passed quickly, as if only five minutes had gone by, and dawn began to break...
The next day, Red, Tyler, Anthony, and old Jack came to escort the group to the military camp.
They set off shortly after sunrise.
Golden sunlight streamed into the now-empty prison through gaps. The area was fully blockaded, as the thirty-five people were moving to a brand-new residence—military tents. After that, they could slay a few goblins to make money, rent rooms, buy gear, and pay off the absurd one million Tengo ransom.
According to Tyler, the military camp was located on the western outskirts of Tenro.
Outside Tenro lay dense forest, but the road from Dragoma Mountain to Tenro was a straight path, allowing immediate arrival after crossing the mountain range.
Jack explained in place of Tyler when Alex (a purple-haired teenager wearing an unzipped hoodie, member of Charles's squad, and one of the physically strongest among the thirty-five) asked about goblins. Jack replied that nearby ruins or small villages housed goblin or orc tribes, which they could slay for money.
However, near Tenro, goblins made up the majority. Most hobgoblin, elf, and dark elf tribes gathered in the southern part of the Xavier Kingdom on the outer section of the Guildermo continent, especially in the Einz Kingdom, which was now occupied by hobgoblins.
The procession marched straight through the forest west of Tenro, spotting smoke columns in the distance.
"We're here. This is the military headquarters of Tenro. By the way, Tenboku's territory extends only to Dragoma Mountain. From Verse onward, it belongs to the Sylvana Kingdom. Or rather, Verse is an autonomous region carved out of Sylvana. Additionally, the Franken Gulf coast of Verse belongs to us, currently occupied by the border expeditionary force."
Tyler shared this information to ensure Grey's group wouldn't cause trouble or conflicts with other kingdoms.
Boom!
"What was that sound?"
Ash quickly asked about the booming noise.
"Ah, probably mages training. Today, the leaders of each Guild came down personally to instruct you."
"Instruct us?"
"Yeah. To save time, this is when you choose your Guilds. Remember, you can only choose once and cannot change. Special cases like mandatory military service offer a second chance, but magic users can only choose Mage or Paladin."
Mentioning Paladins, Tyler turned to ask Anthony if Viktor—the Paladin leader—would attend.
"Viktor? I doubt it. He said he had personal business to handle and submitted a request to the king. Alexander also mentioned Viktor's been busy with something lately."
"Now that you mention it, I notice it too. Makes sense, Viktor is famous for keeping his work quiet. He rarely reveals what he's doing unless ordered by the king. Nothing we can do about it then."
Putting that aside, the main concern was how the thirty-five people would select their Guilds.
Jack built upon his student's words:
"Can you guess why the Mage Guild doesn't allow changes? By the way, before hearing detailed explanations about each Guild, everyone will be tested for magic aptitude. Don't worry or feel ashamed if you can't use magic, because..."
Jack coughed mid-sentence, and Tyler took over for his aging teacher.
"Because the Mage Guild has the highest death rate, the lowest physical strength, and the smallest numbers. Counting goblins, hobgoblins, orcs, skeletons, etc., excluding elves and dark elves... magic users make up only ten to fifteen percent."
"And above all, nobody wants to become a mage."
"Huh?!"
"Why so few!?"
"Why wouldn't anyone want to? It sounds so cool, shooting flashy spells!"
"I want to be a mage!"
Though they said that, they probably didn't even remember what a "mage" was, let alone understand what it meant to be one.
"If you want to know more, step inside and everything will be explained in detail—from Guilds to the 'curse abandoned by history.'"
"Makes sense, better to inform them early."
Anthony agreed with Tyler's plan.
This was what Red had mentioned earlier when a girl asked about tombstones.
"Sorry to interrupt, but what I plan to inform you about is... the curse of The Immortal King."
Instantly, Tyler's tone turned stern again, sending shivers down everyone's spines.
"The curse of The Immortal King?"
"Yeah, and the matter about tombstones too."
(Tombstones? Did Red tell him?)
Everyone turned to look at Red, assuming he had revealed it to Tyler.
"I am very serious when explaining these two matters, so listen carefully."
"Alright, let's head inside."
With that, Tyler led the group into the Tenboku military headquarters in Tenro.
Following Tyler, they reached a purple tent displaying a fabric-embroidered logo of a human casting magic with a staff.
Inside sat a pure white crystal orb that reflected anyone who approached.
"Alright, place your hand on the crystal orb one by one. If it glows red, you have no magic. If it glows blue, you do."
Jack gently explained how the magic testing crystal worked, and everyone followed instructions.
Testing took about ten minutes, and the results matched Tyler, Anthony, and Jack's expectations.
Only six out of the thirty-five individuals possessed magic aptitude; the rest had none.
"Oh? Six people? Well whatever, congratulations to those without magic. Seems you still have some luck."
Given Tyler and Jack's explanation of the Mage Guild, nobody found the strange congratulations surprising.
Among the six magic users, Eric's squad surprisingly had two, while two other squads had no mages at all.
The six magic users were:
Eric's squad: Emma and EricCharles's squad: AlexElsa's squad: FreyaLeo's squad: Conan and Tracy
"Bummer, I can't use magic!"
Ash immediately expressed disappointment as the crystal orb gave no response other than glowing red. This made the short guy visibly upset, and he complained while criticizing Emma and Eric for having magic.
"Wow! You can use magic, Emma!"
"Anyway, congratulations."
"Hey! Why do Erikoroma and timid little Emma get to use magic?!"
(Is this guy jealous? But still, Emma and Eric can use magic? Well, I expected I wouldn't have it, but Arthur doesn't either? That surprises me.)
"Whether they can use it or not has nothing to do with you criticizing them."
Arthur stood up to protect Emma and Eric from Ash's complaints. Ash felt he deserved magic more than they did.
"Hey, don't take advantage of Emma being shy to criticize her."
"Hey Petra, since when are you so close to timid little Emma?!"
Before Ash could say more, Eric landed a punch on his mouth to stop him from picking on teammates. Ash was truly beyond help. However, Eric's bare hand got covered in Ash's saliva. It was unclear what Eric thought about punching such a dirty spot.
Unlike Eric's squad, members of Charles's, Elsa's, and Leo's squads congratulated Alex, Freya, Conan, and Tracy for being part of that ten to fifteen percent, while promising to protect their mage teammates.
Looking around, everyone silently agreed that Charles's squad looked like the strongest, despite having only five members.
"Listen up, testing is complete. Everyone step outside. I'll explain Guild details and The Immortal King's curse."
Everyone followed Tyler's command and left the magic testing tent, gathering near the campfire to listen. Tyler would briefly and accurately explain each Guild, followed by introductions from Guild leaders.
Since Guild names clearly indicated their roles, long explanations weren't necessary.
"Let me introduce: this is Clair—leader of the Assassin Guild. Next to her is Jay—leader of the Tank Guild. Next is Rosemarry—leader of the Mage Guild (which comprises healer mages and combat mages), who is also Clair's adoptive sister. Next is Kai—leader of the Warrior Guild. Second to last is Asher—leader of the Marksman Guild. And finally, Viktor—leader of the Paladin Guild."
"As for Guild Leader Viktor, he requested absence due to personal reasons. We ask for your understanding."
Veterans in the military gathered and acted unbothered by the Paladin leader's absence, as it had long become a routine occurrence.
Tyler introduced the Guild leaders one by one. Among them, Jay—the Tank Guild leader—had the most muscular and solid build. In terms of overall strength, most agreed on Kai—the Warrior Guild leader.
"Before explaining strengths and weaknesses of each Guild, I will officially cover known information regarding The Immortal King's curse and the infamous Skeleton race. Listen carefully and don't miss anything."
To ensure everyone absorbed the information, all thirty-five individuals remained quiet.
The soldiers dispersed, as most already knew this information.
"Knowing how to stay quiet is good."
Tyler looked over the thirty-five recruits, while Jack, Red, and Anthony stood talking with the Guild leaders. They didn't need to listen because they had heard it before—especially old Jack, who had known it for over forty years of service.
"First, as Red mentioned, yesterday you wondered why this world bans bringing back the corpses of the deceased or living creatures, right? Now I will answer that question."
Tyler removed his iron helmet, placed it on the ground, and began explaining thoroughly.
"According to recorded history, about four thousand years ago, there existed a race called Skeletons. Skeletons were originally dried bones of deceased living beings—not just humans, but goblins, hobgoblins, orcs, elves, dark elves, and animals. After death and decomposition, these corpses gained consciousness and became known as Skeletons."
Hearing Tyler explain the origins of Skeletons, some among the thirty-five hesitated, while others wondered how this related to their question.
"But how does that relate to our question?"
"Just keep listening."
Tyler resumed his serious tone.
(Is it really that scary?)
"Originally, decomposed corpses would remain ordinary Skeletons. But at an unknown point in time... an entity known as The Red King arose, commonly known today as... The Immortal King."
"The Immortal King was an ordinary Skeleton who possessed a distinctive red skeletal structure, brilliant military leadership, and tactical genius. He united the Skeleton race and formed the Monster Alliance against humanity."
"For centuries, humanity fought against the Monster Alliance and the expansion of the Skeleton race. Along with his absurd power, he granted races like goblins, elves, dark elves, and orcs the ability to evolve, gaining high intelligence and social structures similar to humans. Naturally, this included Skeletons."
(So that's why they suspected us of being goblin allies?)
"Then, at an unknown time, a horrific event occurred."
Tyler's voice dropped significantly lower.
"We discovered that the corpses of the deceased... no matter if we cremated them or used decomposition magic... would never decompose. When we try to interfere with natural decomposition, the corpse reverts to its original state. This applies to animals and hostile races alike, leading Skeletons to evolve into a higher class called Red Skeletons, categorized under Undead—in other words, biological immortality."
(Unable to interfere with natural decomposition?)
(An immortal race? Could we...)
These thoughts naturally passed through the minds of the thirty-five recruits, who had been completely ignorant of this information.
Tyler paused, observing their expressions before continuing.
"Corpses that cannot decompose naturally turn into immortal Skeletons or flesh-devouring zombies over time. Deceased humans, hostile races, and animals evolve into part of the immortal Skeleton race. Soldiers who die on the battlefield, thinking they can escape this cruel world, are dragged back by The Immortal King's curse. Dead soldiers are left on battlefields rather than brought home for burial, because bringing them back means they will turn into immortal Skeletons and harm those around them. Once transformed into immortal Skeletons, killing them becomes impossible."
(What?! What kind of insanity is this?!)
Grey was shocked by these facts.
"Are you kidding?! Dying cold like that?!"
"How can that be...?!"
"You're not joking, right, Tyler?!"
"Please tell us you're joking!"
The recruits were thoroughly stunned, struggling to accept the truth.
"Do you think I'm joking?"
Tyler remained dead serious.
Looking toward Red, Jack, and Anthony, Grey noticed... Red was crying?
It was a rare sight for Red—whom Grey met only yesterday—usually energetic and cheerful, now crying.
(Don't tell me...)
Red had participated in the battle at Verse yesterday.
That meant one of his comrades died in that battle.
(Because of me.)
Grey blamed himself for falling unconscious.
Jack, Anthony, and Red risked their lives to protect them. Meanwhile, Grey and the others fell unconscious, were loaded onto carriages, and returned safely without a single scratch.
(You idiot, it's all your fault! Why did you lose consciousness?!)
Grey hit his own head, but Eric and Emma quickly stopped him from doing something foolish.
"Hey, what are you doing, Grey?!"
"Grey... don't do... foolish things!"
(It's all because of you! Because of you...!)
"That is why this world bans building tombstones or burying the dead. However, one can choose not to bring the body and build a tombstone without a corpse. To do so requires official permission from local authorities."
Tyler addressed the tombstone issue, delivering his final words on the Skeleton race and The Immortal King:
"When corpses die and become immortal, they retain the living habits of their former selves. They repeat actions their original bodies performed continuously throughout their existence. Even magic—if the original body used magic, the immortal form retains the ability to cast it."
That was one major reason why nobody wanted to become a mage—at least within common knowledge and mages' understanding.
"They die, only to resurrect in another form. They wander endlessly seeking life, slaughtering without emotion. No hatred, no fear, no weakness, no sympathy, no fatigue. Fighting eternally, without end. Unable to rest or receive a proper burial, no matter how painful the world was before death, they are pulled back into this cruel world. That is this world."
Death does not mean everything ends.
Death does not mean release.
Death does not mean rest.
In this world, death... means endless torment.
It lingers forever, spreading death across the land.
When a living being dies, the immortal Skeleton race grows.
They die, only to resurrect with an immortal body.
Unable to be released, unable to rest.
In other words...
Death itself is the curse of this world.