Chapter 3: Commoner?
It may have been a little different compared to what Alex had heard, but it didn't stop him from following the last instructions of the middle aged man.
First arrivals are usually manageable for most people, but the middle aged man's words spoke of how much danger there would be to avoid throughout the process. Alex was pretty sure that even though he had an easy start, that wouldn't always be the case.
'What was it that man said again..? Right! Check my details.'
Remembering the last useful piece of information the man said to him, excluding the obvious 'Don't die', Alex churned his brain to try and decipher what that meant.
He had taken note of his rather normal clothing and even glossed his eyes over the surrounding environment, looking at every 'detail' he could see. However, he was still left confused. Why would the man place such importance on something as simple as this.
But while he was racking his brain trying to figure this out, that floating rune-like structure appeared in front of his eyes once again, repeating the same welcome message it had sent out earlier.
'Is this supposed to be the details he was talking about?'
Indeed, as soon as he focused on the holographic runes in front of him, many different options were presented to him. Soon, he found a rune titled 'Details' and concentrated on that one.
'This has gotta be it... Right?'
Sure enough, a long panel appeared in front of him.
[Details]
Name: [Alex]
Age: [17]
Talent: -
Trait: [Commoner]
Trait Description: [Commoners are the most numerous inhabitants of the Universe, with no unique abilities or skills, they are considered just above Slaves in the cosmic hierarchy.]
Rank: [Seeker]
Soul Core: [F- (Inactive) 0%]
Unable to speak, Alex kept staring at the short list of details, digesting exactly what they meant for him.
'Why is it so... normal?'
A sigh escaped his lips and he was unable to stop his disappointment from clouding his thoughts.
He didn't know what he was expecting, but he was at least expecting more than this. Maybe a simple magic ability to shoot fire from his hands? Maybe a superpower to fly short distances?
Surely the Primordial Expanse wouldn't choose someone so untalented like him, right?
'They say that any trait is a useful trait, but mine doesn't even do anything!!'
Alex let out a self deprecating chuckle before he dismissed his details, which he had long confirmed only he could see.
"Is something funny, kid?"
The bulky man opposite Alex threw out a question, ending the silence in the carriage.
"Just had a funny thought, didn't realise you could hear me chuckle. Sorry if it bothered you, or whatever."
Clearly Alex didn't learn much about communication from the mines.
"Well keep it down, brat, we don't want your 'funny thoughts' luring any nearby beasts to attack, do we?"
A moment later, he added:
"Can't you see we already barely made the evacuation? We don't want you creating more trouble for us on the way."
Alex simply scoffed in response. How could any nearby beasts hear his slight chuckle when the constant rattling of the old wooden carriages would drown it out.
Suddenly, a third voice joined the conversation coming from the other occupant of the carriage. This one sounded gentle.
"The nearby forests have already been cleared of beasts. Stop spouting nonsense due to your clear dislike for the boy. Also, I would advise against making an enemy out of him."
"Oh really? Huh. Why exactly is that?"
Alex listened silently from the side after hearing the man's sarcastic remark.
"Can't you see those scars all over his back and head? He has been marked. He is an outsider, who knows what kind of powerful backing he has?"
Upon hearing this revelation, Alex was shocked to hear this!
These people were natives of the Primordial Expanse!
However his heartbeat quickly slowed back to normal when he thought about it more. He had heard that there were native humans of the Primordial Expanse, but he thought those were just exaggerated stories to scare kids.
"So what? His backer could be millions of miles away for all we know, this kid could die and they would never find out."
The gentle sounding woman simply shrugged.
"It's your choice whether to listen to my advice or not."
The bulky man scoffed and refused to speak any more.
Their conversation was cut short anyway by a shout from one of the well armoured horse riders at the front of the procession.
"Stop the caravan! We will camp at the clearing ahead for the night."
Following the head soldier's order, each carriage came to a stop and the occupants inside stumbled out, tired and exhausted. The clearing in mention was just big enough to accommodate the thousand or so people, with the large and heavy carriages being used as cover for the biting wind.
The other soldiers were busy tending to their horses, tying them with a rope to a few of the carriages and feeding them.
The villagers gathered around a newly erected bonfire, all huddled up close together to protect themselves from the elements.
Alex found a spot for himself in an area with less people, taking note of the bulky man from earlier looking in his direction with an arrogant smirk.
'Nothing different about the humans of this world compared to mine, that's for sure.'
With the bonfire blazing, the soldiers started dishing out some food and water rations to each villager. With over a thousand people to feed, Alex, just like everyone else, was given a single cup of freezing water and a few pieces of hardtack.
Some of the more middle class looking villagers showed discontent at the meagre amount of supplies, one even tried to demand a higher share than others.
"Ptui! I served my pets more appetising meals than this!"
The more rebellious ones were quickly shut down when the first person who spoke up took a punch to the stomach, vomiting up what was left of his rations.
Luckily for Alex, he was used to such conditions from his times in the mines so he didn't kick up much of a fuss.
"Our village was just attacked, effectively putting us under martial law. Therefore, what I say goes. You are all equal under my eyes, so do. Not. Push. Your. Luck."
With a final warning from the head soldier, the more rebellious ones gulped as they looked at his hand resting on the still blood stained sword around his belt.
Alex looked around his vicinity one last time before resting his eyes. Many others soon followed suit and drifted into a sleep under the silent night — However it wasn't long before this silence was broken.
Thundering and crashing noises rang from the direction the carriages were left.
In the next few moments, Alex's eyes snapped open and the first thing he saw was something huge crashing through the supply carriages.
'I knew my luck wouldn't be as good as it seemed...'
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