[Well? What is your answer, Yuxia Laogang?]
The mysterious voice said again. There were echoes to the sound as if two people were speaking at the same time.
"Wh-who are you? How do you know my name?"
I asked with both fear and suspicion.
[Who I am and my wisdom is of no importance to you. For what truly matters to you now is an opportunity to redeem yourself.]
I could not help but be taken aback by what the mysterious voice just said.
It was true.
What I really wanted was a way for me to be free of this suffocating feeling of being a failure.
"Can you give me that second chance that I'm looking for? Will you give me the opportunity to atone for my faults?"
[There is this new forged land which is like nothing you've ever seen. There you will find what you're looking for.]
A new forged land?
I knew many folk songs with cryptic lyrics. But this term was more absurd than the most inexplicable of them all.
"Where is this forged land? How can I get there?"
[It is a realm of higher dimension. A land where one could gain power by sacrificing others through an absolute method called 'synthesis.']
Devouring someone for the sole benefit of another. Not an alien concept in Tchakra.
Disciples in martial arts sects trampled each other to become the strongest in their school.
Entertainment establishments competed and, sometimes, destroyed each other to dominate the industry.
[I can bring you to this place…for a price.]
Of course there was a price to be paid for this gift of an opportunity.
"What do you need from me? I've lost everything."
I said while looking around the ruins of the Dragon Weaver Pavilion.
[Commit yourself to the master of the new forged land and join their army of heroes.
[Obey their will and overcome every trial they set you upon.
[Only then you would attain what you desire.
[Surrender yourself to this agreement, and I will bring you there.]
Master of the forged land? It did not seem the voice was talking about itself.
Army of heroes? Apparently I was not the only one being offered this peculiar venture.
Trials? Could they be the atonement I was looking for?
"If I agree to do whatever you just said, will you bring me to this forged land? How can I be certain you won't break your words?"
[You may refuse this offer. You are not forced to agree. You shall decide your fate, Yuxia Laogang.]
I could not help but chuckle.
This cunning bastard.
Basically I just had to take a leap of faith, without knowing for sure whether I would be landing on solid ground or falling fast to my death at the bottom of the ravine.
My eyes then caught the corpse of the boy whose cold hand I was grasping.
Well, what did I have to lose?
The Ancient Gods knew how desperate I was right this moment.
"Fine. I accept. Bring me to this weird place you talked about!"
It was then that a blinding blue light began to envelop me.
The glow was ethereal and inflicted me with odd sensations.
I did not remember how long I was trapped inside that light. I just knew I lost my consciousness when the light and the weird feelings began to overwhelm me.
By the time I reopened my eyes, I found myself standing inside a grand circular chamber. A grand magic circle was carved on its smooth marble floor.
All my wounds and injuries had mysteriously healed. The sharp debris puncturing my body were nowhere to be seen.
My wide-sleeved magic attire I used as my performance costume had returned to its perfect state.
I ran my hands through my body to make sure I was truly okay.
It was then that I realized I was not alone in the chamber.
Standing around me were four people.
A veil-cladded woman carrying curved swords on her back.
From the way she was dressed and the tone of her skin, I assumed she was from Tsahanam.
A rough-haired girl dressed in pelt clothing.
The design of the ivory spear she carried was nothing like I had ever seen in Tchakra, nor it resembled anything I had seen from Tsahanam. So she must had been from the west.
A cream-haired girl in frilly western dress.
I could sense some mana emanating from her. She was a mage.
And a disheveled middle-aged man.
Another westerner judging from his clothing. He was a mage too.
All of them were staring each other in suspicious way. Clearly they were not acquaintances.
I doubted them to be otherwise given the contrast in their appearance and possible backgrounds.
But they all also wore confused gazes.
"What is this place? How did I get here?"
The cream-haired girl said.
"I was in the mountain hunting just now…"
The rough-haired girl added.
"Did a mage kidnapped me? I don't remember coming here."
The Tsahanam woman said.
I frowned at her statement.
"Kidnapped? Didn't you choose to come here?"
The others in the room immediately turned their faces to me. Shocked.
"Chose to come here? What are you talking about?"
The disheveled middle-aged man asked.
"We're here to join master's army of heroes. We're here to fight in the trials that the master will send us to."
I stated to them.
They all were taken aback by my answer.
More confusion struck their faces.
"Hm… I don't know why but I feel like I have to agree with the Tchakran. It's like what he told us really make sense. "
The Tsahanam woman said with a frown.
The disheveled middle-aged man nodded.
"I do feel like I need to obey this master he talked about without question. But I can't tell why."
The rough-haired girl scratched her head in frustration.
"It's weird. There are things that just suddenly appeared in my head."
"Synthesis? Master? Obligated battles? How and when did I learn about all of these?"
The cream-haired girl said with a frown.
It was then that the door of the grand circular chamber slowly swung open.
The light of day peered through the room.
The five of us then walked through the threshold, stepping onto the unfamiliar world outside.
Clusters of constructs stood before us.
Workshops where crafters forged weapons and equipment.
Storages where people scurried into and out with various supplies.
And a vast training ground where multiple armed-combatants practiced their skills.
With towering grand walls bordering the entire area, this whole place seemed like a small bustling town.
No. A fortress.
With light from the strange rainbow-colored sky shining down on me, I nodded to myself.
"So this is the forged land."