Last Transmigration: Overland Of The Apocalypse

9

"Alright I think we all should just camp here tonight, it's already to late," Aria added. "first thing tomorrow morning we get on our way.

"Yeah great idea, I'm already too exhausted to walk anymore." Ray replied.

.......

Morning arrived quietly. The clearing looked different in daylight, broken branches deep claw marks and bandits bound together with strips of torn cloth.

The little girl slept peacefully against a fallen log, exhausted after everything she'd endured.

Nearby, Ray sat staring at the coin-sized black fragment that had dissolved into his body hours earlier.

He still couldn't understand it, neither could Lucian nor Kael.

"...Any idea what happened?" he asked.

"...None," Lucian admitted.

"If that truly was a System Fragment..." Kael said, he's voice unusually thoughtful "...It shouldn't have reacted to you."

Footsteps approached before anyone could continue. It was Aria, she spent most of the night questioning the surviving bandits one by one.

She was now holding a worn leather map, her sword remaining at her side..

"The child says her name is Lily," she said stopping a few paces away.

"mhm.." the little girl smiled sleepily.

Aria looked toward Ray. "I owe you an apology."..

"Really?.." Ray blinked.

"I judged you before understanding the situation." She added. "I won't pretend otherwise."

"That's... Surprisingly honest." Ray smiled.

"I like her more than I expected." Kael chuckled.

"So do I." Lucian agreed.

"The nearest city is roughly half a day's journey from here ," Aria added. "You'll come with me."

"...Not like I have a choice, do I?" Ray asked.

"No!" She replied.

"Fair enough!"

They wasted no more time and immediately began their journey it was quiet and long after a while, the forest slowly gave way to a stone raid. The first sign of civilization since Ray arrived here.

Massive weathered pillars lined the path, each carved with symbols unlike anything the M

Ray had ever seen.

Some depicted dragons, others angels,

Others creatures with neither human nor beastly forms.

"...What are these?" Ray asked.

Aria rested a hand against one pillar as they walked. "History." She replied. She said it so simply that Ray couldn't help asking another question.

"History of what?"

"The Fracture."

Lucian and Kael both fell silent.

"You've never heard of it?" Aria noticed.

"...No." Ray hesitated

She gave him a strange look. "...Then where exactly are you from?" She asked. "...A very... remote place."

"That's one way of putting it." Kael snorted

Several hours later... The road became busier.

Groups of armed men and women passed them in both directions. Some carried enormous hammers and others wore robes embroidered with glowing runes.

One woman even had a pair of translucent wings folded behind her back.

"...She's flying." Ray couldn't stop staring.

"Half-Aetherian." Aria replied as she gave one glanced at the winged woman."One of the races born after the Fracture."

"So..." Ray added"There are different races?"

She nodded.

"Humans."

"Beastkin."

"Aetherians."

"Drakari."

"Sylvans."

"Giants."

"And many more."

"The world changed fifty years ago. And honestly speaking, No one knows how many races truly exist anymore."

The MC absorbed every word.

"This really isn't Earth..." Ray murmured to himself.

The Hunters' Guild. A caravan rolled past them, its wagons were covered in iron plates.

The sides bore a silver emblem: A sword crossed with a twelve-pointed star.

"What symbol is that?" He asked.

"The Adventurer Union."Aria answered. "Most people call it the Hunters' Guild."

"They issue monster extermination requests, Escort contracts, Dungeon exploration, Rescue missions and They also determine Hunter Rank."

"So you're...?" He added "A Captain."

"No." She corrected. "A Third Vanguard Captain. There are only twelve, One for each Sector."

"Sectors?" Ray raised an eyebrow.

Aria immediately stopped walking. Ahead, the forest finally ended and Beyond it. The world opened.

Ray froze at the sure before him. Far below lay a sprawling city of white stone surrounded by colossal walls that stretched for miles.

Countless banners fluttered from watchtowers.

Airships drifted lazily through the sky, powered by glowing crystals.

In the far distance.. Floating islands hovered among the clouds and beyond even those, an impossibly large mountain pierced the heavens.

The sight stole his breath.

"...Welcome..." Aria said quietly. "...to the First Sector."

"There are twelve Sectors." She said pointing beyond the horizon.

"Each governs part of the continent each has its own ruler, Its own military, Its own Hunters, Its own laws." She added. "And Sometimes they do cooperate and Mostly they go to war."

Ray remained speechless, he had definitely expected a fantasy world but what he wasn't expecting was an entirely different civilization.

As they resumed walking, he noticed children near the city gates laughing as tiny orbs of water floated between their hands.

One little boy accidentally created a burst of flame instead, his mother sighed and immediately extinguished it with a wave.

"...They're using magic." Ray said.

Aria smiled faintly. "Basic mana manipulation. Children begin learning around the age of six."

"So everyone can use magic?"

He asked.

"No." Aria added "Everyone has mana sure, but not everyone can control it. Those who awaken an Authority become Hunters."

The line to enter the city stretched for hundreds of meters. Merchants, mercenaries travelers, nobles, monster hunters, beast kin traders. The city felt so much alive.

Guards checked identification papers one by one.

When it became their turn, the captain of the gate guards saluted Aria immediately.

"Captain Valen." She nodded. "I've completed my investigation."

He looked toward the MC.

"...And him?"

Aria hesitated.

For the first time since meeting him she didn't know what to call him. Criminal? No. Hunter?Not yet. Civilian? Hardly.

Finally she answered. "...A person of interest."

The guard frowned.

"...Meaning?"

She looked directly at Ray "...Meaning I intend to find out exactly who he is."

The captain stepped aside and the enormous gates slowly opened.

Immediately Ray crossed the threshold, a faint notification appeared where only he could see it.

---------------------

Location Discovered

Aurelis - Capital of the First Sector

Civilization Detected.

New Features Available:

✔ World Map

✔ Guild Registration (Locked)

✔ Market Analysis (Locked)

✔ Legacy Archive: Synchronization Pending

____________

Just as the notification faded, ERROR.exe flickered for a fraction of a second.

Only one line appeared.

[ "You've returned... though you don't remember it yet." ]

The message vanished instantly.

Ray immediately stopped walking "...Returned?" He repeated.

Lucian frowned. "What is it?"

"It's nothing Ray replied.'