"Have both of you prepared everything you will need?"
"Yes, Grandma." answered Viel and Lux at the same time.
"Do you also have the food I cooked?"
"Yes."
Vera looked at her grandsons lovingly as she patted their heads.
Vera advised, "In case you encounter a stronger opponent, remember to run. The primary objective is to survive and live to fight another day. Do you both comprehend?"
"Understood, Grandma," they responded. "We will follow your guidance."
Eriol observed quietly from the sidelines as Viel and Lux prepared to enter Elysium, knowing they could return home whenever they pleased but also aware that most individuals spent weeks or even months in Elysium.
The duo had learned during their childhood lessons that a day in Solais equated to two days in Elysium, a fact that now evoked a sense of sadness as they prepared to embark on the long-awaited adventure and leave their grandmother alone in their home.
Eriol chose this time to pat their shoulder and give them some reminders.
"Using the ring of Arondight, both of you will be able to go to Elysium at any time. However, you still haven't set your return point," Eriol stated. "When you exit Elysium, your return point will be in a fixed location."
"Um, can I choose this residence as my return point?" asked Viel while Lux nodded.
"Of course. But, which part of this residence would you like to register?"
Vera, who was listening to the side, made a suggestion.
"Why don't you register the training room as your return point?" Vera proposed. "I have placed a ward over there to inform me when Lux is using the training room since that is the place where he would often faint when he pushed himself too hard. I think it is the most ideal location for this return point that you speak of."
"What a good idea!" Viel and Lux said happily as Eriol nodded.
"Let's go to the training room then," Eriol replied.
A few minutes later, Lux and Viel pressed the Arondight ring against the floor in the center of the training room in order to register it.
—-
< Return Point has been saved >
< Whenever you leave Elysium, you will automatically teleport to this place. >
—--
"Now, you're good to go," Eriol stated. "To activate the ring, you just need to say the words, 'Open, Heaven's Gate'. You can use this activation code to enter and leave Elysium."
Viel and Lux nodded and turned to their grandma.
"Grandma, take care of yourself while we're away." Viel said as he hugged her.
"Be safe and take care of each other." Vera replied as she gazed proudly at their grandsons. "I'll be waiting for your safe return."
Lux also hugged Vera and said goodbye.
Viel and Lux pressed their right hands over their chests.
""Open! Heaven's Gate!""
—-
After awakening, they discovered themselves standing next to a shimmering azure crystal that hovered in the air. It took some time for them to collect themselves and assess their environment.
It appeared as though they had arrived in a plaza, where a group of individuals had assembled. Certain individuals observed them with interest, while others regarded them with perplexity.
"Is that a Human?"
"What are humans doing in this place?"
"Did they get lost or something?"
"Should we call the village's guards?"
There was a sense of unease in his environment as if something didn't quite belong. Despite the presence of others nearby, some were a little taller than 95 cm.
The half-elves felt as if they were intruders, scrutinized by the stares of the group before them. Abruptly, a young girl with blonde locks and a determined grip on a mace drew near.
"Um, Big Brothers, are you lost?" the blonde girl asked. "Are you Humans?"
"No. We are not." Viel replied. "And we're Half-Elves, so we're only half Human."
The little girl's eyes sparkled as she looked at them with great interest. "Half-Elves? This is the first time I've seen a Half-Elf."
"You haven't seen Half-Elves before?" asked Lux.
The blonde girl shook her head. "This is Dwarven Territory. It is very difficult to see other races here. You are the first non-dwarves that have appeared in this territory since Elysium opened."
"Dwarven territory?" asked Viel in disbelief.
"Yes. This place is called Leaf Village. One of the Beginner Areas exclusive to the Dwarven Race."
They came to a realization about why they had felt like they didn't belong. It became clear to them that the people around them were…noticeably shorter.
'So they're Dwarves,' Viel thought. 'Did Eriol accidentally make a mistake when he set our coordinates?'
It was unclear whether their arrival in the Dwarven Lands was a deliberate act by the God of Games or not. Nonetheless, they knew one thing for sure: they were trapped in Leaf Village until they reached Apostle Grade.
"Um, Big Brothers, how old are you?" the blonde girl asked.
"We are both 16 years old as we are twins, but I am the older one. " Viel answered. "How about you?"
"I'm twelve! I just entered Elysium. My name is Colette!" replied enthusiastically Colette.
"Colette? You have a very beautiful name. It suits you perfectly." said Lux.
The little Dwarven girl smiled sweetly after receiving Lux's praise.
They were going to ask more questions when several Dwarves surrounded them and Colette.
"Colette, stay away from these Half-Elves!" a Dwarf with light-brown hair shouted as he raised his sword. "Have you forgotten what our Elders told us? Humans can't be trusted!"
"But, they're not Humans," Colette argued. "They are Half-Elves."
"They're still half Human!" the dwarven boy shouted. "Humans cannot be trusted!"
Colette faced difficulty in reasoning with the other Dwarf children as they all expressed their opinions.
In the end, they could only smile bitterly. Viel glanced at Colette who had a troubled expression on her face.
"My name is Viel, and this is my brother Lux." Viel said as he signaled Lux. "Take care and have a good day, Colette."
Without another word, Viel and Lux left the teleportation gate to explore Leaf Village.
If possible, they didn't want to start a conflict as soon as they entered Elysium. Since the situation was turning for the worse, they decided to just leave in order to prevent the worst-case scenario from happening.
"Lux, I think the best idea is for us to divide and come together again at dusk."
"I agree. We meet at the teleportation gate?"
"Fine with me"
They both said goodbye, agreeing to meet at the teleportation gate.
Viel walked around Leaf Village trying to memorize it. He learned long ago familiarizing himself with his first village was part of the basics when entering Elysium for the first time. He didn't lose the two years waiting for Lux, he studied Elysium and made strategies with what he remembered about the book.
Leaf Village wasn't big, so it only took Viel one or two hours to reach his desired destination, Grandma Annie's Candy Shop.
"Hi sweetie. Are you a friend of the other Half-Elf?" asked the kind old lady when she saw Viel.
"Hi, it's a pleasure to meet you. Yes, he is my little brother. My name is Viel."
"Hi Viel. My name is Annie, you can call me Grandma Annie. Would you like some candies? The first ones are free, but the next time you will have to pay for them."
Viel remembered that Grandma Annie's candies were able to restore Health Points and 50 Mana Points, so he didn't shy and accepted them wholeheartedly.
"Thank you very much, Grandma Annie. I promise you that I will come again for more of your candies. Bye!" Viel left and headed to his next stop.
He wanted to go to Randolph's Smithy, but in the end, he decided to go to the Adventurer's Guild to register himself as an adventurer.
The registration itself was quite quick. All he needed to do was drop his blood on a small blank card, and all of his information was registered automatically.
—-
< Guild Card >
Name: Viel Von Kaizer
Age: 16
Race: Half-Elf
Rank: (None)
Registered in Leaf Village
—-
"Your registration has been successfully processed, Sir Viel." a pretty dwarf with dark-brown hair bowed respectfully as she presented Viel's Guild Card to him.
Unlike Colette who was only a little above 91 cm tall, the Guild Receptionist was at least 137 cm.
After bidding goodbye to the receptionist, Viel went to the teleportation gate to meet with Lux.
When he reached it no one was there, so he decided to wait for him. After half an hour Lux appeared.
"Hi Brother! Sorry for being late."
"Don't worry. How about we rest at an inn for the rest of the day, and explore the outskirts of the village in the morning?"
"Ok!"
"Do you have the money that Eriol give to us, right?"
"Yes."
Eriol had told them that he was going to give them a freebie of 100 Elysium Copper Coins, and 2 Silver Elysium Coins when he arrived in Elysium.
Each Elysium Silver Coin was equivalent to 100 Copper Coins, and one Gold Elysium Coin was equivalent to a hundred Elysium Silver Coins.
Elysium Coinage was the universal currency that was used in Elysium. The gold coins that they used in Solais had no value whatsoever in Elysium.
The innkeeper personally escorted them to their designated rooms after they had paid 5 Elysium Copper Coins for two rooms each.
It appeared as though the man was concerned that Viel and Lux might enter other areas and disrupt his other patrons, potentially harming his business.
Viel and Lux went to their rooms after saying good night to each other.
"A year in Solais is equivalent to two years here." Viel muttered. "I must be as strong as possible to become the winner of the tournament."