It was something that Zeke basically explained multiple times to the point where he streamlined everything. Explaining it once to Cronus, another with Alissa, and now with the three; it wasn’t much of a surprise.
Mikella would’ve liked less life-telling stories about themselves, but it wasn’t like she can expect everyone to be around at once. Plus, the reason this takes so long is due to the fact that no matter the person, everyone would always ask the same questions.
“A world without the System? You’re kidding me, right?” Hamil asked with disbelief.
“No monsters or magic? Just how the hell did you guys fight?” Saang shook her head.
“How do they travel around? Do they still develop tools and the like? How do they handle anything food related?” Kote asked, sounding more and more curious.
Despite his earlier silent notions, Kote’s eyes shone at the prospect of another world where most of their common sense was invalid. It sort of reminded her of Zeke whenever he gets excited, making him slightly more likable in Mikella’s standards.
She didn’t know why he needed to cover himself up so much, but that was clearly his own business and none of hers. She can respect that.
As for the other two, they were just as dumbfounded as Alissa was. Hamil looked like he couldn't even comprehend half of the things Zeke said, and Saang looked more concerned as to how on earth did their version of humanity ever survive for so long. Mostly because it sounded so boring that they might as well kick the bucket early.
Mikella can definitely understand that much. Since it was taking a while to answer each question, causing even Mikella to add in her own tidbits every once in a while, they kept ordering from the diner and taking a while. Compared to before, this was a lot more relaxing, aided thanks to the pleasant atmosphere of the diner as well as the music soothing their senses.
She was actually starting to have fun, talking at lengths about something that for once, she and Zeke knew more than anyone else. That doesn’t happen regularly, so she glowed with enthusiasm.
Eventually, the topic about the towers and their experiences in this world came out. This was where the mood dived to solemnity, especially after hearing about the results of the last tower back at the biodome.
The idea of otherworlders dying without even knowing the reason why brought everyone, including the excited Kote, to a standstill. Hamil frowned, Kote looked down, and Saang looked outright furious.
“You’re serious?” Saang said. There was nothing jovial in her tone. Her fingers balled into a fist as she stared at them. “And one of them’s a kid?”
“...Children shouldn’t ever be there to begin with,” Kote shook his head. “They’re not even ready for the initialization, much less for a dungeon.”
“We were lucky that we managed to survive on our own,” Mikella added. “I’m thankful that we had Zeke using his barriers to protect her.”
Zeke looked pained, reminded once again of his loss of skill. Still, that doesn’t put aside Mikella’s appreciation of him.
“I can’t do that anymore, though. Cronus made sure of that.”
“And what’s with that anyways?” Saang pounded the table, enough force to at least show her frustration. Mikella was thankful the ward was put in place to dampen the audible noise. “Who the fuck cares if people find out about his little spell project he has going on?”
“You know how it is,” Hamil explained, though he showed sympathy. “Cronus can’t legally create new spells on the fly. So it made sense that he can’t just reveal to anyone he made a new one, let alone a customized one.”
“Wait, illegal?” Zeke asked in surprise.
“But… this place is a literal country of magic!” Mikella’s hands rose in disbelief. “How can you ban making new spells? And even the damn Lord is banned from doing this?”
“There’s a good reason for it, though,” Hamil raised his hand to ward off the frustration on the otherworlders’ faces. “Imagine creating a spell that can practically commit genocide to a city, or to utterly impact the stability of the pocket dimension. Hell, imagine a spell that subtly controls everyone’s minds, taking their free will away. If anyone creates a spell whenever they want could end up with unknown ramifications that could put everyone in danger. And yeah, even Cronus is susceptible to that–he’s the one that made up the rule.”
“That’s… that does make a lot of sense,” Mikella deflated, lowering her head.
“Does that mean that Cronus is planning on keeping it a secret forever?” Zeke asked, curiosity warring in his eyes. “What’s the point of creating a spell like that in the first place?”
“Cronus is the sort that does a lot of things behind everyone’s back. It’s the reason why the country doesn’t destroy itself like the other countries,” Hamil continued. “Granted, he can be a bit of an ass, but I’m thankful that he’s in charge and not one of those nobles. There’s a lot to say about those weasels.”
“So I’m guessing nobles aren’t very well-liked,” Mikella said, her tone dry. “We actually met one of those bastards when we were just leaving. They were saying a bunch of crap about how women shouldn’t talk over their husbands or something…”
That alone got the two men across from them to look away. Saang, however, stared directly at Mikella.
“That’s because it’s true,” Saang said. Her tone was stable and almost sagely. It was utterly different from her usual self. “Unfortunately, society doesn’t really see women at the same standards as men do.”
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“That’s just dumb,” Zeke said. “There’s not even evidence or proof of that being true.”
“Tell that to the nobles,” Saang said. “There are even some noble women who loved that idea–in other words, the only thing they have to do is look pretty and young forever, not having to do shit at all.”
Mikella cringed at the idea, literally. She actually shivered at the thought. She can’t imagine how boring their lives must be, always having to pretty themselves up and doing whatever they can to appease their husbands.
She can understand some women preferring that, and that she had no right to judge. But she just hated that kind of lifestyle.
“I can tell that it makes your skin crawl,” Saang flashed that shark-like grin. Actually, her teeth actually looked mildly sharpened. “I think I’m starting to like you.”
“But… just as a fair warning,” Hamil said, looking almost guilty at the two women, especially at Mikella. “Sometimes we might have to do quests sent by nobles themselves. And other times we might notice some clients with… similar ideas to the nobles. That’s where you need to swallow your pride and just…”
“Act demure?” Mikella sounded out. Hamil almost looked pained, but Mikella flashed a smile. “Don’t worry. I understand that. I promise I won’t do anything troublesome. If I do, Zeke here will make sure I don’t.”
Zeke looked actually troubled, his eyes widening as though he was asked to bring the Studded Star over to his side. Mikella scoffed and pushed at him lightly.
“Oh come on, I’m not that bad.”
“Have you lived with yourself this past year?” Zeke asked incredulously. That earned him a rightful punch at his shoulder.
…Damn, that was harder than she expected. Those muscles of his were showing in droves.
Still, her pride wasn’t diminished as he winced at that. Hamil on his part looked relieved, showing an eager smile.
“Don’t worry though. None of us here are fans of those assholes, so outside of public view, say and do whatever you want.”
“I’ll take you up on that,” Mikella agreed easily. “So… what do you guys think?”
The trio looked at each other, carefully considering and conversing silently. They had a fun chat, but in the end, they now know the truth of their origins.
After a long moment of silence, Hamil spoke up.
“Do you want us to sign a contract?” Hamil spoke, surprising the otherworlders.
“It’s only natural that you would ask us that,” Saang said, noticing their surprise. “I’m certain you know the value of that contract, right?”
“We do,” Zeke spoke up. “But… that feels like…”
It wasn’t as though the two hadn't considered the option. Then again, these were Cronus’ men, in other words, people that aren’t technically their allies in truth. Asking them to be under contract would be pointless as that’s just asking them to put more orders onto themselves. If it were them, they wouldn’t like that very much, and if they could, they would deny it completely.
“We have no issue,” Kote spoke up, surprising the two. “If you’re worried about the potential backlash, that’s what we deserve if we blab stuff like this out loud.”
“Not that we can,” Saang pointed out. “Who the hell is going to believe us if we do? But that doesn’t make you guys feel better, right?”
“We want you to trust us,” Hamil said. “Plus, hearing you guys out… we know you’re good folk. You can set the terms however you want, too.”
“Just… make it reasonable, okay?” Saang asked, pleadingly. “Just the stuff people won’t believe outright is all fine, right?”
Mikella chuckled when Hamil sent another glare at her. Saang shrugged as though saying ‘what, it’s a good point’ to him. Looking back at Zeke, he looked assured and wanted to do it. Honestly, she wants to too, for various reasons.
So they started the process of doing a contract. They discussed at length about the terms, and what would happen if all three blabbed about their origins to anyone other than Alissa, Cronus, and Isabelle, the three other people they told the truth to.
Unfortunately, the contract demanded that they go at full length on what grounds they want covered, including all sorts of scenarios on whether they would be tortured for this information, or bribed for the sake of their personal health and life. On that matter, Zeke decided for the two of them that should the worst occur, they are allowed to tell the truth… in the most vague, unhelpful way possible.
To everyone’s delight, they agreed easily. If it were some top of the line jackass, they'd keep it a secret at the cost of their lives, but clearly the two weren’t so distraught to force them to put their entire lives for people they barely knew, so that much was forgivable. In other words, the contract was made solely for trust, and punishing heavily on those that planned to use their information for their own selfish gains.
Which isn’t asking a lot from a contract, but it was suitable. Soon, the two otherworlders saw the notification displaying their finished contract.
Your contract has been established.
Zeke and Mikella Arcan demand that Hamil Tarvosh, Saang Riotul, and Kote Mannachisa will never, under any circumstances, reveal their origins to anyone other than the three discussed earlier, Lord Cronus, Alissa Mon-treant, and Lord Isabelle.
Should the aforementioned three go against the contract, they will be punished with the following:
Loss of 5 levels.
Loss of 1 attunement rank.
Loss of 3 highest level Rare or above rarity skills of either General or Acquired.
May the contract forever stand against the test of time and trials.
The notification pretty much excluded every single detail they put out, including the special circumstances they discussed. It took over two hours to do, with Zeke taking up most of the writing while Mikella added in some helpful tips.
There was no way in hell she could pay attention for that long for something so damn detailed. Thankfully, Zeke’s job in his old world specialized in this sort of thing, so he wrapped it up extremely quickly.
So the contract was established, and Mikella felt something overpowering dominating the cover of her core. It was a comforting weight, as if she was assured that everything was alright. Zeke looked the same, but the same couldn’t be said about the trio in front of them.
They winced, with Saang gritting her teeth in clear discomfort. They didn’t look like they were in pain, more like as though they were suffering a mild case of stomachaches in a matter of a second. Once the feeling left her, the trio each let out an exhale of relief.
“That’s never a great feeling,” Saang let out a sharp breath. “Glad that’s over with.”
“Thank you again for doing this,” Zeke said, inclining his head in gratitude. Mikella did the same, no doubt about that. “Even though you didn’t have to.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Kote mentioned. “Saang always bitch and moan about everything.”
“Oh screw you, you gigantic edgelord.”
“Hearing that is actually praise coming from a shortstack like you.”
While the two bickered with Saang immediately showing her camaraderie with a good flip of the bird, Hamil spoke out over them.
“I think we got everything covered now. So how about we digest with a bit of exercise?”