A few trucks were used to build a barricade out front, with tons of desks acting as gap-fillers. It was just directly around the entrance though, seemingly being just one more layer that would stop monsters from intruding.
Seeing the group approach, some people opened up the back of one of the transporter, helping everyone inside, before opening up the side door and letting them back out within the confines of the wall.
"Did everything work out?" one of the people standing guard asked, and the investment banker quickly nodded his head.
"Yes! I completed the quest, as planned!"
"Perfect. That means we've got most people covered now," the 'guard' let out a relieved sigh, before laying eyes on Ashton, "And... who are you?"
Ashton stared back for a moment, before remembering he was being spoken to, "Right, me, sorry. I'm Ashton, a friend of Samuel Penn?"
The young man in front of Ashton smiled immediately, looking around, "Oh holy shit, no way! You found him?!"
One of the five people working at Calibur shook their head, "No, the other way around... he found us."
"I told Sam I'd be here before the third quest, I don't know why this is so surprising. I'm just a little early."
"Uh... right. Anyway, just come on inside! Sam's upstiars, in the Calibur meeting room. Sorry, these guys need to head back out with the next people that still need to get their quest finished, so..."
Ashton shrugged, "All good, I'll find it. Thanks for getting me here, you five."
Without hesitation, Ashton walked past everyone and stepped into the building. The foyer was filled with people preparing more barricades or makeshift weapons, as well as those that were getting a few simple tips on how to actually use those weapons against the monsters. Shockingly, it seemed like there were a few folk here that actually knew a thing or two about how to fight.
'It's just been a day, and they already adapted this fast?' Ashton thought to himself. A few of the people down here were looking over at him, though they didn't mind him too much and soon continued to what they were already doing.
Ashton approached the stairwell. The sign said that Calibur Games was on the second floor, so nothing too high up.
He climbed up the stairs and headed to the office space's entrance. The moment he pushed the glass doors open, he could hear a sound from across the space. Another door had been pulled open.
"Holy- Ashton!" a man yelled out, quickly followed by footsteps. It was Sam, running right at him with a broad smile on his face. He was really a hulking figure of a man. The moment he got to Ashton, he stretched out both arms and pulled him into a deep, strong hug, "You're okay! Thank god you're okay!"
Ashton flinched heavily the moment Sam touched him. For one, he was still in a fair bit of pain from last night. And also... it had been so long since anyone had hugged him. It was unnerving. Ashton wanted to enjoy it - this was his best friend he was talking about, after all. But it was just too much for him right now, and so he slowly pushed Sam away.
"Take it easy, big guy. I'm happy to see you as well."
More happy than Ashton could ever describe in words. Sam had been his best friend since they were kids, and now after a lifetime stuck in hell, Ashton could actually see him again. If he could remember how to, he would have started to cry by now.
Of course, to Sam... they probably just met a few days ago. He looked down at Ashton. It was like he was trying to see if he was hurt anywhere. But he rather noticed how weird he looked first.
"Since when did you dress like this? And where is your stuff, did you not grab a bag? Wait, did you pick the lantern as your reward for the tutorial?!"
Ashton glanced down at the small metal and glass box, "Is it really that bad? I think it looks pretty nice. Oh, and I picked up these clothes at Market Street yesterday."
"Wait... Market Street? Are people over there okay?"
"Eh, I wouldn't say anyone's 'okay' right now, but they've built some walls like you guys did," Ashton explained, looking around, "Speaking of, it looks like you've really got stuff under control here."
Sam laughed, "Fuck no, I'm reeling. I am not made for this much responsibility."
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"You sure? It looks way more organised than I would have expected."
The smile on Sam's face slowly faded, "Right, dude... I have to talk to you. Come with me for a second."
Sam quickly turned around, leading Ashton down the hallway and into one of the offices. The wall was made of glass, so it wasn't exactly 'private', but it was better than nothing for a one-on-one conversation. Ashton could guess what this was about.
But he wasn't really focused on that. Rather, he was more curious about this room. The sign on the door said 'Samuel Penn - Art Director'. There was one of those large drawing screens on the desk, and a ton of drawings and sketches hanging on the walls. The parts that were actual walls, of course.
"Neat space you got here."
"Huh? Oh, yeah, thanks? Just sit down, okay? I have some stuff to ask you," Sam pointed at one of the swivel armchairs on the opposite side of the room to the desk, and Ashton quickly dropped down on it. It was so comfortable, he'd love to melt into the leather and never get back up, if he could.
Sam also sat down, but he leaned forward nervously, while Ashton started spinning the armchair around in a circle.
"How did you...? You know..." he started, and Ashton looked back at him whenever he could, still spinning the chair around.
"Yeah?"
"How did you know about the- Jesus Christ, can you fucking stop already?" Sam jumped up and grabbed the armchair, stopping Ashton. The two stared into each other's eyes for a moment, "I'm not going to beat around the bush. How did you know about the system coming, just from that earthquake?"
Ashton slowly opened his mouth, trying to figure out what to say, almost instinctively trying to find an excuse. But... he didn't want to lie to Sam.
"... Do you have any... 'constellation' watching you?"
"Hm? Constellation? What do you mean?" Sam asked, not quite sure what to say, "Do you mean those weird message that keep popping up? The... uh, 'Shadow behind the Throne'?"
Shadow behind the Throne... Ashton didn't know a lot about that constellation. The Summoner was a complete loner, not counting their summons, so that constellation was never interested. The one thing that he knew was that they enjoyed when someone was pulling the strings behind the scenes. Or rather, when a 'leader' was only such in name, and someone else had the real power.
If that was the case, it looked like Ashton was right to trust in Sam. He was basically the leader of this place, then, or at least close to being it.
Ashton sighed a bit, "Okay, that makes it pretty annoying."
The Shadow behind the Throne was also an incredibly annoying trickster. Though they enjoyed watching when others pulled the strings behind the scenes, they kept trying to do so as well, but failing miserably. They caused a few wars between people sponsored by certain constellations.
Ashton let out a loud groan, "Observer. I've got a proposal for you."
It took a few moments, in which Sam just looked around confused, until a message appeared before Ashton.
[[Observer in the Veil] is listening to your proposal with half an ear]
Of course they were still there. Ashton figured they never left, and were just quietly watching so that they could learn more about him while he let down his guard.
"If you block any constellations, including yourself, from viewing this space for the next twenty minutes, I'm going to tell you how I learned magic," Ashton suggested, and once more, nothing happened for a few moments. Sam was just confused what his best friend was yapping about right now.
"What's-"
"Shush," Ashton interrupted him, and a new message quickly appeared.
[[Observer in the Veil] makes a counter-proposal]
[You have a New Quest! [Bonus Quest - The Observer's Proposal]]
[Bonus Quest - The Observer's Proposal]
[The [Observer in the Veil] has heard your words and instead offers a counter-proposal. Instead of first providing their help, they wish to hear the truth and will then decide. Your explanation will be blocked from other constellaitons]
[Goal - Explain to the Observer how you know magic, to their level of satisfaction]
[Reward - 15 Minutes of Private Conversation]
[Failure - [Observer in the Veil]'s boredom]
Ashton stared at the message surprised. A bonus quest? Constellations didn't usually throw things like this around. Of course, this all did come with a bit of a risk. More constellations would be paying attention to something like this. The Observer in the Veil wasn't exactly a weak or unknown constellation, after all. And them giving out a bonus quest? That would be big news very fast.
'I guess I keep forgetting how crazy it is to know legitimate magic on earth at this point,' Ashton thought to himself, as he looked at the message hovering in front of him.
[Do you wish to accept the Quest? [Yes]|[No]]
As Ashton selected 'Yes', he could feel something in the air change. As if all the noise from around him just disappeared. Even Sam, sitting right in front of him, was basically muted.
And so, he started, "I have knowledge of a lifetime in another world. One that has already undergone the advent of the system. In that world, things like magic were as common as breathing. I was going to leave that knowledge behind, but with the system coming here as well... I had no other choice."
That was it. He didn't need to say any more than those few sentences for a new message to appear in front of Ashton's eyes.
[You have completed the [Bonus Quest - The Observer's Proposal]! The reward will now be executed]
[You have 15 Minutes to hold a private conversation that no higher being may listen in on]
"That easy, seriously?" Ashton let out a laugh, staring at the messages. It seemed like the Observer had some kind of way of figuring out if someone was lying or not. At the end of the day, whether it was vague or not, the idea that someone here already knew of the system and of magic before either was introduced here, most have been enough to 'satisfy' the constellation more than enough, automatically fulfilling the quest's conditions.
That being the case, Ashton had to hurry. He looked at the man in front of him, his best friend.
"We have fifteen minutes to speak. So... don't interrupt me when I start."
Sam looked back at Ashton, confused, "Man, what the fuck is even happening? What did you just do?"
"I can explain that part later. Just... listen. Yesterday, at 8:56am, I disappeared. A few seconds later, I was back. In those few seconds, I became the tool of a being I can only call by the name of 'Summoner' now. That Summoner forced me into a world called Lumia."
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