However, for the newcomers, the world was a different story. They arrived with nothing but the clothes on their backs—no protection, no weapons, and no experience. For five hundred Nagawira, a Starter Pack was not merely equipment; it was a life ticket, the only thing standing between returning to the city with their breath intact or never returning at all. And now, all that hope rested in Shiki's hands.
Why only five hundred?
Why not simply deplete the entire stock and lock down the weaponry of the City of Beginnings in one fell swoop? The reason was simple, and as cruel as the city's own system: storage space. Every Nagawira was indeed granted a personal inventory, but its capacity was limited. Five hundred Starter Packs alone left her inventory bursting at the seams, as if there wasn't room left for a single breath of air. To take more, Shiki had to expand her capacity—and that required Tower Coins, something she did not yet possess.
She had briefly considered a shortcut: selling the packs to other shops and using the proceeds to upgrade her inventory. But the City of Beginnings was always one step craftier. Starter Packs could not be sold to any NPC. There was no way to convert them into instant profit.
So, Shiki chose a longer, but far more lethal path. These five hundred Starter Packs would be equipped by herself and the members of the Four Seasons. With those basic weapons, they would descend into F-Tier dungeons, slay monsters, and gather Tower Coins. She would use those coins to expand her inventory, then return to Manny to seize more packs. It would continue like that, a cycle, like a machine that never stops.
And once the entire stock was finally under her control, Shiki would arm even more people, driving them deeper into the dungeons, and then sell the Starter Packs to other Nagawira at a price they could no longer haggle. As this chain began to turn, Shiki knew one thing for certain—she wasn't just distributing weapons. She was establishing a stranglehold over the arms economy of the City of Beginnings.
Shiki wasn't too worried about her secret being exposed—at least, not anytime soon. By moving through teleportation circles and making only brief stops at Manny's shop, she could collect the Starter Packs without raising suspicion. Among the hundreds of workshops on Blacksmith Street, it was nearly impossible for anyone to realize that only one shop held that specific supply. And before anyone could connect the dots, Shiki would have already ensured everything was secured within her inventory.
She stepped toward the teleportation circle with a thin, calculating smile. Soon, she would have enough Tower Coins to purchase an NPC shop in the East Zone. After that, the coins would flow into her hands on their own.
"Central Zone, east side," she commanded.
Light enveloped Shiki's body, and in an instant, she vanished.
Back on Blacksmith Street, the clanging of iron resumed its dominance over the air.
Dang. Dang.
Dang. Dang.
A few seconds later, the teleportation circle flared again.
Someone stepped out.
There was nothing unusual about their appearance—unobtrusive, drawing no attention. Yet their gaze lingered toward Manny's shop for a mere fraction of a second before they walked away like an ordinary visitor.
(Central Zone, East Side)
As the teleportation light faded, Shiki's breath caught for a moment.
The air in the Central Zone felt different—heavier, denser, as if every breath carried fragments of energy that pulsed warm in her lungs. The soles of her feet touched smooth, bluish-white stone that was cold to the touch, its surface polished by time, reflecting light from every direction. Even before she raised her head, she could sense the presence of something massive… something far too grand to be ignored.
When she looked up, the Dragon Monument towered before her.
The dragon's body seemed to be made of living crystal. Its scales reflected the sunlight into fragments of bluish-gold that danced across the walls and floors, making the entire zone feel as if it were inside a giant prism. Its neck curved gracefully around the pillars of the gates, its head tilted high until its silhouette blurred behind a thin mist in the upper air. From the monument's body, Shiki could feel a steady pulse of mana—like a giant heartbeat—radiating through her skin, making the hair on her arms stand up instinctively.
Around the monument, shimmering gates opened and closed slowly, their surfaces rippling like water touched by the wind. Each ripple carried a subtle sound—a low rustle, almost like a whisper—that could only be caught if one stood close enough. Its warmth licked her face, contrasting with the cold stone beneath her feet, creating a peculiar sensation as if the Central Zone stood between two worlds.
Shiki stepped toward the east side.
In the East Side, the air felt lighter. A fresh scent, almost like morning dew mixed with the fragrance of wet grass, filled her lungs. The F-Tier and E-Tier gates emitted a soft green glow, illuminating the smooth stones and glowing grass growing between the earth. The light pulsed slowly, in rhythm with the flow of mana, making the thin leaves shimmer as if brushed by moonlight. The D-Tier and C-Tier gates glowed a pale blue, colder to the eye yet still calm—not intimidating, just… inviting. This place felt like a threshold before something dangerous, but not yet close enough to make the heart race.
As Shiki shifted her body toward the north, the change was instantaneous.
The air became dry and heavy, pressing against her chest like an invisible hand. The ground around the B-Tier to S-Tier gates was blackened and coarse, its surface scorched as if burned by a fire that left no smoke. The light from the gates here did not ripple gently—it cut through the air, sharp and blinding, reflecting in the eyes like the flash of a blade. There was no scent of earth, no aroma of plants. There was only the faint smell of ozone and hot iron, leaving a bitter taste on the tongue. Shiki could even feel a faint vibration in the bones of her feet, as if the ground below was constantly throbbing with a power yearning to break free.