Jean trudged behind everyone else, their footsteps crunching lightly on the forest's thick grass. All he could smell was the damp grass and the abundance of moss. The sound of bugs chirping felt a little creepy. The others in front of him were talking to each other, as if nothing about this scared them.
He watched them all joke around; they all would laugh at Ronan's jokes. Jean didn't try to budge in on the conversation. It felt soothing, not having to talk to others. He knew he had a small social battery. Ever so often, Jean would wonder why his system felt so weak at times. Basic skills, glowing lights. You could barely say it helped at all.
They walked further and further into the dark forest, the moonlight's god rays filtered through the trees. As the thick mist began to clear, they saw it.
A village.
It was quiet. It felt almost lifeless; they didn't see anyone from afar. There were dozens of wooden houses, the windows seemed shut. It looked a little uninviting. A few dim torches were placed along the dirt road; for a second, it seemed as if someone wanted them to go to the village.
"Do you guys see anyone?" Elise asked.
"There are probably two answers to your question. The villagers are either sleeping right now, which is most probable, or we are still in the trial and have to fight something."
Jean felt a little sick to his stomach when he looked away from the village, as if he needed to go towards it. The village felt as if it was calling to him... Jean felt as if he needed to go there.
Ronan gripped his spear and waltzed forward. "If this is some sort of trick, I'll just fight my way out of this."
Callum ran towards Ronan, trying to stop him. When he eventually caught up to him, they were already in the center of the town. "You idiot, you're going to get us all killed."
When Jean's eyes locked off of Callum, he noticed many eyes had been watching them.
An old man walked out from the crowd; he seemed a little surprised. He had a grey beard that stopped at around stomach level. His clothes seemed a little ragged but appeared well maintained. He looked up at Ronan.
"Uh, wow. New arrivals?" he asked.
"Sir, where are we?" Elise asked as she pushed Ronan and Callum aside.
"What do you mean, where are we. You completed the fourth door?" He looked a little suspicious.
Lydia stepped forward and answered, "Yes. We came through the fourth door. How do you know that?"
"Well, majority of the people here went through those doors. We all eventually ended up here." He then walked over to Jean. "You look fresh. Still got some fight in your eyes."
Jean noticed the man's eyes; they seemed tired. Ancient even. Jean asked, "Where the hell is this place?"
"You're in the Safe Zone," he clicked. "Well, sort of. It's a little bit safer than the doors. But... it's still dangerous."
"Safe Zone?" Ronan echoed.
The old man gave a laugh. "Not really a safe place. You can still die here. Mercenaries, bandits, and beasts. Anything really. It might sound like a living hell, but beyond the fifth door? That place? That place is like hell itself. I would suggest you give up. It's a dungeon that less than 100 people have completed."
"100 people doesn't seem that low. There have to be at least 20 people here," Elise said, thinking the odds of beating it weren't low.
"Oh, we got a clever girl over here. No, kiddo. There are thousands of people here. Some people started families here. Some of the kids don't even know what's past the doors."
"People have had kids here? Wait, how long have you been here for?" Elise asked.
"Around fifty years," the man said casually. "I got here when I was around that boy's age over there." He then pointed to Jean. "Tried to escape once. Barely made it back. I don't think I will ever try again."
Jean seemed a little shocked. Fifty years?
"Why haven't you guys found a way to beat the fifth door?" Lydia asked.
"Because most people die before they have the chance to find anything out. After a while, most people found out it isn't that bad to just live here. Some people made a life here. The kids born here never saw the fourth door. They don't have systems. The kids are just regular humans without the systems," the old man stated.
The group went quiet for a second, still trying to digest what they heard.
"Hey, so how big is this place anyways?" Callum asked.
"Uh, probably about twenty miles by twenty. It's sort of like an island. I remember trying to use a boat to escape; it didn't go so well. There's forests, lakes, some mountains. We have everything we need. A few other villages, too," the old man responded casually.
Jean sat on the edge of the well, not understanding the full grasp of the situation.
"People just gave up!?" he asked, with a serious expression.
The man shrugged Jean's question off. "You can think of it as cowardice. Me? I call it wisdom. To fight for decades and not give up—you wouldn't be human in my eyes. You learn when to stop." He seemed a little depressed, trying not to consider this place a prison.
Lydia wanted more answers. "What about the systems? Do people still train? I want to leave this place."
The old man suddenly seemed a little more jolly. "Now that's where everything gets interesting. So far, there are five main systems here. A couple strong people eventually made their own factions."
He pointed to Callum. "You. You're a knight. A Guard system. Most people would consider your system the strongest."
Then to Lydia. "And you. The mighty fine Fantasy system. I would say the most useful by far."
To Ronan. "Cultivation system. It is a little bit weaker in the start and is hard to train, but over time, it can be the most powerful."
Elise. "Magic system. A much more common one—only people with great intellect can use its full potential."
Jean sat there hoping for the man's praise.
The man turned.
Then paused for but a moment.
"And uhh, you... You don't fit the five."
Jean knew it was useless from the start.
The old man grabbed Jean's arm to take a closer look. "Yours is... custom built?"
Jean shrugged, pulling his arm away from the old man. "I don't really know what it does."
"It must be a Unique system. It's quite rare, but most of them are just flat-out terrible."
Jean looked down at his arm. The plate began to hum again, pulsing dimly.
The man noticed. "Hey, you're still alive, aren't you? It must do something. Just give it time."
Jean didn't respond to the man.
He then looked at the group. "Most people join factions here. There are training camps—I would suggest you go there. At least if you want to escape, that is. Even if you don't plan on fighting the 5th door, you might as well get a little stronger."
Callum asked, "Do the factions get along with one another?"
The man nodded. "Sometimes. We all don't really fight one another. We all have a common enemy—the dungeon. Sometimes we have disputes, rivalries. You'll see."
Lydia leaned behind Jean. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Jean mumbled. He knew he wasn't. Everyone seemed so much better than him.
"Hey, you'll find out what your system does in no time. Just give it a little more time."
Jean gave a little smirk. He felt embarrassed.
As night fell, villagers began to peer through their windows. A woman yelled for her children to come inside. A man sat on his porch, seemingly smoking something. The people here were real.
"There's an inn on the east side of the village," the old man said. He then reached his arm out and pointed. "Ask for Mira. She'll let you stay for free for a couple weeks."
"Thank you," Callum said with a bow.
The man began to push them in the direction he told. "Just go get some rest. It isn't that safe at nighttime."
They watched the old man rush into the shadows. The group then walked towards the east. Jean lagged behind a little. The man's demeanor seemed a little strange. Why was he in such a hurry? Jean thought to himself. He then turned—seeing he was a little behind, he began to run.
"Did you see the armor that guy was wearing?" Ronan said in excitement. "That's the stuff they wear in wuxia novels!" he squealed.
Jean didn't really understand what he was talking about. He never really read novels. He mainly played video games.
The two moons hung low. The plate embedded in his forearm began to shimmer faintly, as if it were imitating the moon. The interface was still buggy—sometimes it didn't respond when Jean called to it. He didn't think much of it.
They eventually reached the inn. It was a big, sturdy-looking building. It had warm orange lighting spilling out the windows. There was no sign—just an open door. A few people stood next to the door, chatting, drinking, laughing. It looked so strange. How could people not view this as a prison?
When they went inside, they were punched with the smell of firewood and roasted meat. A cheerful woman who seemed to be in her mid-30s greeted them.
"You must be the new bloods," she said with an attractive grin. "I've already got rooms for you. You'll be bunking with one another, but it's better than sleeping on dirt, though."
The group thanked her, and she handed them the keys to the room. Before they even reached the stairs, the door had opened.
A tall man in silver armor walked in. Two others in similar armor followed.
"Newbies?" the tall man asked Mira.
"Yep, they just got out," she responded.
The man then surveyed the area. Jean and his group stared at him. "Let's welcome you properly," he said as he towered over them.
Over the next hour, the energy had lightened up. Chatter came from every direction. It seemed as if everyone wanted to talk to them—whether it was inviting them to their faction or just to join a party together. They would introduce themselves by faction, system, and experience. One by one, everyone eventually started making friends.
The tall man pulled Callum aside. He began to ramble on about aura pressure, sword intent, and the importance of self-control. All stuff Jean wouldn't understand.
Ronan got invited to sit with a bunch of cultivators. They all began trading their little books, training with one another, as if each were a long-lost cousin.
Elise flipped through pages with a bunch of others who were showing her the basics of magic.
Lydia sat at a table with a bunch of Fantasy users. They all were comparing their stats, eventually talking about what games they used to play on Earth.
And Jean?
Some approached him, but they all awkwardly walked away after he showed them his glowing plate. It was like he had an infectious virus.
He did see a group like him, but even they didn't want him. One could use a random skill that changed every morning; another could borrow people's powers for an hour. Jean couldn't do anything. He was practically a normal human.
"Looks unstable," one man said. "Sorry, our group is already full with people."
He wasn't angry. Just felt a little... alone. It's not like he wasn't already used to being alone. It was just that he thought everything could be different in this world.
He eventually ended up sitting next to a fireplace. Everyone had found mentors, friends—even learned new techniques.
Eventually, Callum walked over to Jean to ask, "We're meeting the Knightsguard tomorrow for sparring. You should come."
"Maybe."
Callum walked back to the tall knight he had been talking to.
His system wasn't cool. It didn't even have a name. It practically looked like a ticking time bomb at times.
He then glanced down again.
The plate flickered again. A new message appeared:
[You are alone. Good.]
[Strength blooms where weakness cannot hide.]
Jean let out a shaky breath.
Maybe he was the only one like him.
But maybe... just maybe.