The city where Oliver currently resided—City No. 23 in Epecella State—was a vast metropolis divided into several districts: East, West, North, South, and a central Core District.
Recently, a horde of 600 Pteranodons had attacked the outer eastern district, causing over 10,000 casualties. This area was home to the poor and weaker life awakeners.
Had the monsters ventured deeper into the eastern district, where stronger combat awakeners resided, the casualties would have been significantly lower.
But now, Oliver was ready to venture outside the city and see the monsters for himself.
He wasn't reckless, though. He had no plans to go too far into the wild. The outskirts of the city were dotted with small satellite bases where awakeners could hunt rift beasts, harvest their monster cores, and earn money. These bases were safer than venturing into the wilderness, and Oliver decided that this would be his first step.
He took one last look in the mirror, checking his appearance.
'I really look mysterious and cool,' he thought, admiring his reflection.
'Now, I just need to think of a cool name.'
----
There were only two gates to exit the city, one between the East and South Districts, and the other between the North and West Districts. This layout made the city very secure from monster attacks, except for the rare anomaly of flying creatures.
As night fell, Oliver sneaked through the shadows, making his way towards the city gate. When he arrived, he saw a long line of people waiting to exit. They were likely awakeners heading to the satellite bases.
"Everyone, don't push each other," a guard called out.
"Line up and show your ID cards."
Public Protection Bureau soldiers were diligently checking and scanning ID cards before allowing anyone to board the transport vehicles.
Oliver watched from a distance, pondering how he could sneak out undetected. He needed a better plan than simply walking through the gate.
'Hmm, let me think,' he looked around, observing the situation. As he watched, a transport vehicle approached the gate.
'This will do it,' he decided. As the vehicle neared, Oliver's body began to morph into sand, his clothes transforming along with him. When the vehicle passed by, he slipped inside unnoticed, blending into the shadows.
'Perfect,' he thought as the transport vehicle moved through the gate.
But Oliver didn't know that a secret technological detector at the city gate. As the vehicle exited the city, an invisible ray scanned it.
In his elemental form, Oliver sensed the scan and realized he was in danger.
'Shit, is this some kind of detector?' He was ready to flee when suddenly the celestial flame inside his sea of consciousness sent out a ray of light through his body. The flame's power seemed to make the detector ignore his presence.
'This world is really dangerous,' he thought, a chill running down his spine.
'You never know what kind of means anyone has. And it was never disclosed in school that there was a detector in the city wall.'
As the transport vehicle continued towards its destination, Oliver felt the loss of stamina maintaining his elemental form.
'This is currently my limit,' he thought, feeling the energy drain from him.
He carefully moved to the vehicle's trunk, hiding in the small space without moving.
----
After another hour and a half, the transport vehicle finally arrived at one of the satellite bases. The night had fully settled in, the darkness providing perfect cover for the hunters.
Oliver slowly retreated from the vehicle, his body returning to its normal state. He found himself in a small camp within the base, lights flickering in the distance. The area was quiet, but there were a few people around, most of whom seemed to avoid him, whispering among themselves.
"Hey, look at that guy," one person said, eyeing Oliver.
"Woah, he's cosplaying as the god of death," another joked.
"Let's go confront him," a third suggested. "He's trying to be all mysterious."
"Haha, it'll be fun," someone else added. "It's been days since I've had a good fight."
The group of people began approaching Oliver, who was sitting silently on a bench.
'Finally, these kinds of people are approaching me,' Oliver thought
But as the group drew closer, a strong, tough-looking man with a long beard and a bald head intercepted them.
"Hey, what are you doing?" the man shouted at the group.
"Ah, Trainer… we were just going to meet that guy," one of the group members stammered.
"Is it just meeting?" the tough man asked, his voice stern. "You brats who just awakened your powers last year are really ignorant."
The arrogant leader of the group was visibly annoyed. "Why do you have to say we're ignorant?"
The tough guy's eyes narrowed, anger flaring in his gaze.
"It was my mistake that I didn't really teach you the rules of the wilderness," he said sharply.
"Listen to me carefully: don't mess with unknown things."
The group fell silent, sensing the seriousness in his tone.
"The unknown isn't always dangerous," the tough guy continued,
"but if by chance you provoke something dangerous, you won't even know how you got wiped out. Do you know the strong squad Lionheart?"
The group nodded nervously, the name sparking recognition in their minds.
"Do you know how they got wiped out?" the tough guy asked, his voice growing darker.
The group members glanced at each other, their arrogance fading into unease. They were arrogant but not fools. They didn't dare speak.
The tough guy didn't wait for them to answer.
"They provoked something they shouldn't have," he said, his voice cold.
He then turned his gaze towards Oliver, who was still sitting quietly on the bench, his entire body covered in a robe.
"And looking at him," the tough guy said, his voice dropping to a near whisper,
"my instinct warns me of danger… greatly."
The group's bravado crumbled, their faces paling as they looked back at Oliver.
"Always believe in your instinct," the tough guy finished, before turning and walking away towards his squad, leaving the group of young awakeners standing in stunned silence.
Oliver watched the scene unfold, with confusion.