William paced back and forth. He hated doing guard duty. Stopping for a moment, he looked at the giant bridge behind him. "Why do we need so many soldiers to guard the bridge to the Colony? Who would even want to cross it on their own?"

  James shrugged. "Orders. But hey, much better than venturing into the New Forest don't you think?"

  William nodded. "I guess you're right."

  Suddenly he heard the sound of a trumpet. The tower guards had noticed something.

  Squinting his eyes he looked into the bridge covered by fog. It took some time until he finally could discern what was approaching: elves. He saw a group of elves, holding way too many swords than they could ever hope to use. There was nothing special about the swords at a distance, but he had learned that the sheaths were a dead giveaway.

  "Elves are invading with aura swords! Let me go report—."

  "Wait," James interrupted. "I don't think they are attacking. Elves aren't stupid."

  He looked again. They had a lot of aura swords, that was certain. One of the elves had five swords tied to her waist, and others were also carrying several. They were not walking like they were ready for battle but stumbling forward, and dragging a carriage behind them. After some time he noticed another group of elves with a carriage behind, and then another.

  "They are refugees," James concluded.

  "Refugees? From the peaceful elven forest?"

  - William, soldier from the kingdom of Boreas

  Droplets of water dripped from the roof as a reminder of the outside. The alleyway consisted of two brick walls side by side. The exit was too far away, and Tom did not see any other sign of life. He had no choice but to confront her head on.

  "I am a fake, so we’re both in the same position you see." Tom prayed that would be enough.

  She snorted. "That does make sense. Tomassio was known as a genius knight, which you obviously aren’t. But if you are an otherworlder, how are you so … normal? All the otherworlders either turned evil or mad, if I remember correctly."

  "I don't know about all of that. I'm new."

  "New?" Sierra hesitated. "If you really are new: how did you figure out I was a spy?"

  "Oh, I just guessed from the half-assed disguise. You literally have two horns sticking out of your head."

  She glared at him.

  "Not that I am saying you don't put in the effort or anything. Being an spy must be a difficult profession." Tom quickly added.

  Sierra shook her head. "I am actually using a technique to make people believe I am a normal human. It bends someone's perspective of the world. For you to be immune to the manipulation of the mind, your mental state must be constantly at the same level. The ability of an observer as I guessed."

  Trash hummed. "Don’t be too impressed. He just guessed. Still an idiot."

  "Since you know my identity, you might as well meet my grumpy talking sword."

  Trash hummed. "Hello, I am Trash, the 50th aura sword. I did not agree to that name."

  Tom thought he saw Sierra smile for a second before she went back to her intense demeanor. "So, could you stop trying to kill me now?" He stod in front of her still, trying to hide that he was shaking.

  Sierra laid down her twin daggers. "I guess killing an otherworlder would not be worth it, since the humans would be much more willing to anyway. And no one would believe you if you said I was a spy, with you otherworlders reputation and all."

  "… That was easy. I thought at least you would be a little bit shocked or frightened by this revelation. Don't everyone hate otherworlders?"

  "They do. But humans dislike otherworlders the most due to the Hero betraying them. Also, we demons have much more … complicated feelings about otherworlders. During the horrific second human invasion, infighting between otherworlders ensued, and some of them even chose to protect us demons from the humans. My people have no qualms with the existence of otherworlders, because we acknowledge that otherworlders are no different from any of us."

  Tom scratched his head. That was a surprisingly reasonable take. Perhaps in terms of ethics otherworlders could be problematic, but they were all meant to go on and live extraordinary lives, that was the whole point of an isekai. What reason would any otherworlder even have to squander that opportunity and start fighting amongst themselves? That would be a waste of a perfectly good isekai adventure.

  "Besides, if you are an otherworlder, that Commander must already know. Not even she can harbour an otherworlder without facing punishment, so I have a bargaining chip if needed in the future."

  Alice would definitely be mad if she learned he had revealed his identity. But as long as she never learns of it, then it would probably be fine, right?

  Sierra folded her arms, and leaned up against the brick wall. "But tell me this: who was stupid enough to summon you to this world?"

  Tom shrugged. "Don't know. I just found myself in this world, but it hasn't been as cool as I thought it would."

  "Indeed. This world does not welcome or need any otherworlders to solve its problems anymore. You are not needed. So don't try to save the world or anything; you should focus on living your own life."

  "That is what I am trying to do. I don't care about defeating the demons." His eyes widened. "Why don't we do this: I will help you with whatever you are scheming, and you can help me in return."

  "Help? I presume acting alone has been inefficient, so … why not? I will accept your offer."

  "Perfect." That went better than he thought. "What do you need help with?"

  "I need to get into the royal barracks in order to find … something."

  "Fine, I guess we can figure that out. I for one, want to get a blessing from a higher being," Tom said.

  She cocked her head. "A higher being. Why?"

  Trash hummed. "He wants to be lazy."

  "Hey, don't say that! I meant to say that I want to be able to put in less effort to train my abilities. It’s so I can go on a peaceful adventure and live a life without stress," Tom said.

  "Right. And how’s that different?"

  Sierra was deep in thought. "Being able to live a more comfortable life. I guess that makes sense from an otherworlders perspective. When it comes to a higher being … I know of the demon god. It’s more of a giant crystal where every demon lord embodies their soul, but I doubt it will give you any blessings. There is also the World-Rune in the far south of the kingdom which allegedly bestows classes to people. The extension of the rune in the capital would be easier to go to. But getting permission to leave the camp would be next to impossible."

  More research it was. "Then teach me how to use embodiment. It works really well with my fighting."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Well this sword here strengthens my ability as an observer, and instead of only being used on people my skill [stabilize] can be used on spirits. For example, it can consume a lesser fire spirit to change its shape, and if it comes in contact with something embodied with a higher ranked spirit, [stabilize] can strengthen the flames." Tom explained.

  "I see. So that's why the poison didn’t kill you. What a useful aura sword."

  "Hear that?" Trash hummed. "At least someone sees my worth. I like this one. I support you ditching that Alice girl."

  "Not interested," she quickly added. "Regarding teaching you embodiment: I don't know if it’s possible for a human to learn the art of embodiment. Embodiment is an inherited ability of the demon race. It allows one to store spirit into something. I can also use it to embody myself into the shadows, so don't think about betraying me."

  "Yes, ma'am." Tom tried to relax his posture. He needed to convince her, somehow. "But I am an otherworlder, which maybe technically means I am not the same type of human as in this world. Can’t you at least explain how it works?"

  She hesitated. "I guess I could try. The power of a spirit is fairly constant, but by temporarily stealing its compatibility its form slightly moves away from reality, yet its nature stays the same. It’s all about changing perspective."

  "Changing perspective?" Tom repeated.

  She nodded. "Yes. Spirits are beings that are mended by desire and emotions. Water and fire spirits only exist since we ourselves personify aspects of reality. When I embody myself into the shadows, I change my perspective to think of myself being a part of the shadow. Similarly for embodying a liquid, you use your desire to make the spirit change its perspective and become a part of the water," Sierra explained. "Although, there is another way, but it only works in my homeland."

  "That’s … confusing."

  "That's how inherited powers work. It’s probably impossible for you to do it, but I can try making a few embodied items for you. I was getting low on supplies anyways."

  ***

  They walked through the main road. The road was made out of cobblestone, and most of the building on each side were made of bricks. Glass windows revealed the occasional boutique. Tables and chairs all occupied this time of day by people enjoying their food. It looked like a normal mediavel looking town. However, the electric lamps besides the main road contrasted with the aesthetic.

  Since he had been training with Zev the camp had felt devoid of people most of the time, the other soldier mostly spent their time on the training grounds, but there were surprisingly a lot of people in Makeshift Town. Soldiers with their families, merchants, people who had settled here for a new life, and even a robot.

  …wait as second.

  "Why is there a robot here?" Tom marched across the street. It was made of metal, shaped like a soldier wearing spartan armor. On its chest was a plaque. "XEF0234, trash collection bot?"

  The robot stopped besides a trash can. It attempted to take out the trash bag, but its hands collided with the trash can. Unfazed, the robot continued trying, but repeatedly smacked into the metal frame.

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  "Not as advanced as I thought,"Tom mumbled.

  Someone dressed in a green jumpsuit walked over to the robot. She proceeded to take out the trash bag and handed it to the robot. The robot took the trash bag in its hands and continued walking across the street.

  Sierra walked past Tom, waving her hand at the woman. "Hi, Misha. I reckon the robots aren't as useful as promised?"

  Misha sighed. "Tell me about it. When I told them I needed more help I wasn't talking about getting one of the capitals robots. The infrastructure is different here so you have to get it reprogrammed, otherwise it gets stuck in places and—." She leaned down grimacing. "Forgetting to clean up stains. How the space can people miss the trash can; like, its right here!"

  "Some people are just dumb," Sierra said. "You are doing an amazing job though. The cleaning elective is important. And it isn't like the robot can clean up contaminated clumps."

  Misha smiled, and then looked at Tom. "Don't worry about me. No way I am giving up a year into this. Continue on with your squadmate. You must be out on an errand."

  Sierra nodded. "See you next friday?"

  "Definitely."

  After they had said their goodbyes, Tom continued walking foreward with Sierra. He had only seen her with a cranky attitude in the squadron, but it looked like she had a calmer side to her. She was in the same squadron as a literal saintess so he didn't blame her. As long as she wasn't planning on killing him, he was fine with whatever. "So ? You gonna tell me about the robot yet? How come the people here hate otherworlders, but use their knowledge so sparingly? Why not build better roads or something rather than an useless robot?"

  "I haven't learned everything there is about the human kingdom, but I do know they do not shy away from using the inventions and knowledge otherworlders left behind. They just prefer not to show it as often. The king prefers to promote the supremacy of the kingdoms culture. It would be much more obvious for you if you had seen the capital. Not as much as the old capital I heard, but traces of otherworlders still remains."

  They stopped to look at a statue in the middle of the road. Even though there was hardly a place left to sit on the road, the benches around the statue were avoided like a plague. The statue was of a man in a black armor, raising his fist. Remembering the sight from the commander's office, he noticed it pointed straight towards the Void. At the bottom carved into the stone was: In the Hero we trust to show the way ahead.

  "That has to be the reason for the complicated feelings? Why keep a statue of the Hero after all he has done?"

  "Too scared that he will retaliate," Sierra summarized. "And it also serves as a good reminder of the peoples past. Never trust a Hero, but trust each other. It is a fine line to tread."

  Tom grumbled. "Sounds impossible. Who will they put their trust in? The church? The king?"

  "I used to be curious about that too. After talking to people I learned they have a surprisingly strong trust in each other, citizens of the kingdom. But whenever it comes to any figure of authority, the sentiment sours. For example, being forced into military conscription doesn't exactly do wonders for the church's and the kings reputation. They were after all the ones that told them and their ancestors to put faith into otherworlders. Although, the church has the strongest resentment due to them being the one to chose the Hero in the first place, and pushing the hardest for a conflict with the demons by blaming the existence of the Void on demonkind." She tightened her hand into a fist. "Seriously, how would us demons even be able to change the nature of the world like that? Even the common people can see straight through the church's lies."

  "It is obviously propaganda," Tom agreed. "But if no one — I mean a majority of the commoners do not want to go to war, why aren't they more reluctant to do so? Seems to me like most of the soldiers treat this as a fun vacation rather than an actual war, other than a few outlier of course."

  She sighed. "Such is human society. In the kingdom stagnation is the status quo. Why make new innovations if the one left behind by otherworlders are superior? Why reach the pinnacle of strength if the Hero can kill you with the flick of his finger? Why disagree with the king and church if that leaves no figure of authority left? Trade with other nations for resources is going horrible, so what else should they do when no one else has a better plan?"

  Tom didn't say anything. He had always thought going to another world would be fun. Seeing their unique culture and having the knowledge of better technology to guide them ahead. But coming to another world after someone else had done it before him? It made his isekai adventure more complicated.

  The road split and they headed away from the main road towards a less crowded part of town. Several of the houses here were boarded up, the street almost devoid of people, with strange scratch marks on the walls.

  "Building left behind from the otherworlders era," Sierra explained after noticing his confused look. "Left behind to avoid bad luck."

  Eventually, they arrived at a road that had a sharp turn downwards. In the distance, he could see the Void. It was a surrealistic experience. Seeing the Void, his brain misinterpreted it as something blocking his vision, but squinting to see the distant gray smog the enormity of the Void came into view. To think this was natural. What a weird planet.

  He was curious how it looked up close though. "Why don’t we take a short sightseeing trip? I see that there is a pier and buildings down there."

  "That would not be a good idea." Sierra faced away from the Void. "People say when the humans first waged war, ignoring the Hero’s warnings, he punished them. The Hero lined up every stationed soldier in the camp and made them jump into the Void. As such there is an urban tale that if you get too close to the Void, the vengeful spirits of the past soldiers would drag you back in. If someone sees us going down there we would become outcasts by casting a bad omen."

  The more he learned about this Hero, the less heroic he sounded.

  Sierra pointed at a building. "That’s the place." The building didn’t look all that special. It had a sign written ‘Witch shop’, which looked like it was made in a hurry. "It is a witch's shop that is only open at certain times of the year."

  "Witches? Where do they come from?" He asked, curiously. Maybe one day if he managed to get out of the camp, and the human kingdom wasn’t for him, he could travel somewhere else?

  "At the other side of the void. Normally traveling across the void is near impossible. But not for high-ranking witches."

  The other side of the Void? That felt almost mythical in itself. Tom wondered what else lay on the other side. Perhaps some aliens to spice things up? Never mind. This world was complicated enough, so staying to his side of the Void was enough.

  A bell rang when they both entered the shop, and they were met with a cheerful "Welcome!"

  It was a witch with a short pointy hat. She looked young around his age, wearing overalls and tinkering with something. A second much taller witch stood beside her with a longer pointier hat and purple hair, inspecting a piece of parchment. The moment she noticed Tom she dropped her things and hurriedly wore her round glasses.

  "That’s not the owner, it’s the shorter girl. Don’t get fooled by appearances. She is much older than she looks," Sierra whispered to him.

  "Oh."

  They went and looked around at a chaotic mess of items stacked on several shelves. This store needed to be cleaned for sure. Tom eyed different items but stopped when he realized he couldn’t read the description. It was a language written in some sort of sigil. He gave up and walked to the store owner. Perhaps she could help him with his predicament?

  "Hey, miss. Do you have something to help with an activated aura sword?"

  She looked up from her work. "It’s Astra the witch, and please explain a bit more in detail."

  Tom pulled up Trash. "This is an aura sword, and since I am an observer I can equally use all spirits. However, I don't get the extra resistance when the sword is activated."

  That caught the taller witches' attention. "Isn’t that the 50th aura sword of the 100-blade series? I have heard legends about that sword. The elf king's greatest attempt to make a generic sword in order to use all spirits."

  "I found it in some ruins. Do you know why the elf king left it? What secret powers does it have?"

  The witch shrugged. "Oh, it isn’t that powerful compared to first the ten swords. If I remember correctly it was said to have too much of a … personality."

  Tom deflated. So Trash had been too annoying. Shocking.

  She looked at Tom. "I wonder what fate the reappearance of this sword marks?"

  Astra rolled her eyes. "That rambling old hag is the great witch Meliel. Ignore her, you’re my customer. If it's the 50th blade then I think I understand. Such a weapon isn’t normal, but some of the beastkin do have the same problems when creating artificial aura swords." She went to the back and came back with a pair of brown gloves. "Use these."

  Tom took the gloves and wore them. They were a perfect fit, or more correctly, the gloves seemed to shrink down to fit his size somehow.

  "That is one of my inventions made from witchcraft. The process behind it is top secret. Now pay up. 50 gold coins."

  "50 gold coins!" He had only been given 3 gold coins after the expedition as a reward. "Is it possible to further the bill to Commander Alice? I know her."

  Astra shook her head. "Heard that excuse a million times."

  "I will pay," Meliel said. "I know Alice. Just make sure to tell her it was me that helped. I really want to talk to her, but she is difficult to get a hold of."

  That’s right, Alice was the Night Witch. They must have some backstory.

  "You’re lucky," Sierra said, throwing a pile of items on the counter.

  "Sierra! My favorite customer," Astra remarked. She ran to the back and came back with a crate full of several vials of water. As well as some rocks.

  Sierra nodded her thanks to Astra, but Tom was more intrigued by the rocks. "What are those rocks?"

  "Those are spirit stones. They inhabit weak to mid-grade spirits, but it is difficult to know what kind," Sierra explained.

  "Like a spirit stone roulette? I guess that could help me activate this stupid sword."

  "Or," Meliel interjected. "If you train your powers well enough you should have the ability to recognize what kind of spirits inhabit them."

  Tom excitedly nodded. That sounded useful. "Where does these stones come from? Are they natural?"

  "Explanations are written on the card beside it, and more details will cost you."

  "They are from the demon lands in the southern area called the shadow swamp," Meliel answered.

  "Hey!" Astra complained. "I am running a business here. This isn't your library."

  Meliel ignored her. "And if they are natural, that’s under debate. Some researchers say they are a natural phenomenon of the collective aura of the demons, especially the demon king stone strengthening embodiment. However, since most of these stones are close to Skypiercer Mountain, one of the great error beasts is the most common answer. Especially since these stones were not found according to the earliest human invasions. It is unlikely the demons would have been able to hide them for so many years."

  "Great error beast? I know of those weird error beasts. I don't know about the great ones though."

  "The great error beasts are four incredibly powerful error beasts. The one in the demon lands is the great error beast Ether, a massive creature whose body allegedly surrounds the entire foot of Skypiercer Mountain. It embodies whatever matter it touches with spirits."

  Sierra nodded. "It’s a pain. We have to migrate every time it moves, and stepping on even a small rock could make someone die from a potentially dangerous spirit. Nevertheless, these rocks are an important export since every crazy scholar wants them."

  Tom nudged Sierra. "Idiot. They are still here," he whispered.

  Sierra looked at the witches. "Do I look like a demon to you?"

  Astra seemed confused and shook her head. "Why would you look like a demon?" Meliel only silently looked at them but nodded at Astra in agreement.

  "See?" Sierra confidently said and leaned closer to him. "I am an expert spy." She whispered.

  This demon was way too confident in her abilities. This did make him curious about what other abilities could be used to cloud the mind. Perhaps that would be an easy way to sneak out of the camp?

  Whatever. He could figure that out later.

  "Sierra, we should hurry so we don't get late for our appointment at the armory."

  Sierra nodded. She paid her 10 gold coins which he hoped she didn’t want him to pay a part of, and threw what she had bought into her bag which fit in much more than should have been physically possible.

  Astra waved them goodbye. "Feel free to come again."

  ***

  The armory was on the main road and was much more exquisite. There were several different shops along the road, but the armory shop was the biggest by a huge margin. It was filled with tapestries and adorned with gold plating. The entrance consisted of a huge door filled to the brim with customers waiting for their turn. Above the entrance was a giant sign that said 'the armory store of the great Marquis'.

  "The armory store of the great Marquis?"

  "It is a store owned by Marquis Rowan. He used to be a Duke, but was downgraded leaving the kingdom with 2 dukes. The Commander's father, and yours I guess. Rumors say the Marquise has a huge ego and wants to own everything in Makeshift Town."

  Healthy competition was probably not needed for a war the royal family did not want to wage. Not the coolest name for a store if you asked Tom, but he was more interested in how he could read it. He originally thought he could read the language of this world because of the past otherworlders, but not being able to read the text in the witches shop made him doubt that assumption.

  "Is that text written in English?" He asked Sierra.

  She looked confused. "English? Oh, that must be the language from your world. No. Well, technically the text is written in English, and the demonic tongue, and the human language. There isn’t exactly much focus on languages in this world, because they all read the same. It is one of the blessings of the Mirror Maiden."

  "The Mirror Maiden," Tom repeated, confused. "A God?"

  She shook her head. "There isn’t exactly much information about her, but she saved everyone in this world from a great calamity. With her powers she wished to unify the people, so she gave them all a skill that allows them to understand each other's language. ‘Babylon’s blessing’ it’s called. Scholars are not sure if she is a higher being, an actual primordial God, or something else, but around the Void she is worshiped. Even in my hometown."

  "Then what about the text from the witch's shop? I couldn’t read that."

  Sierra shrugged. "Some languages still need to be learned. Those that rely on emotion and cultural context. Perhaps you do not know enough about witches? I could read it."

  Trash hummed. "Even I could read it. Perhaps you lack emotional intelligence? Wouldn’t be shocking."

  Tom raised his eyebrows. "Do you even have eyes? It might have something to do with me being the main character."

  Sierra sighed. "You two can argue. I’ll go in and find out about the order. There’s normally a lot of people from the capital here. Try not to catch anyone's attention." Then she left.

  "You scared her away with your weird main character talk."

  "What the… Go fart yourself." Ugh. Tom really sounded stupid when he swore.

  Trash hummed. "Weak. And for the weirdo you are, you aren’t noticing the other weirdos. Look at that guy over there. Might as well be your brother."

  Tom felt a small pull towards a certain direction, and spotted a hooded character that Trash must have been talking about. He was ... dancing? In front of an alleyway, between two closed shops, he was tap dancing. In front of him a small crowd was starting to from.

  "Join the Error Cult, and create a better world! And look at these cool moves I learned from the demons." Besides him was another hooded person crouching down, seemingly trying to hide themselves in embarrassment. "The Error Cult is the key to fixing this world. Break free from the Hero’s tyranny." He stopped tap dancing and made an exaggerated pose. "Make the world anew, through the ineffable System Manipulator!"