"Then I woke up in the middle of the plains and wandered around for a couple of days before you found me," Caedus said, finishing his story.
Umbra was listening silently as Caedus recounted his story. Honestly, Caedus was unsure if Umbra was even listening and only asked about the blood and grime to be polite.
There was a short pause after Caedus finished, where the only noise was the wind against the grass and the light footsteps that were approaching the enormous city.
"Humans can be worse than most monsters, demons, and beasts. However, you still persevered over that challenge. I am sure your grandfather would be proud of you." Umbra said while sighing.
"..."
Caedus stopped in his tracks for a second, letting Umbra get a little ahead of him in pace. He closed his eyes for a brief second, remembering his grandfather's last moments again before stepping forward again.
Changing the subject, Caedus decided he had more questions.
"So you mentioned earlier, about 'ascending', what did you mean by that?" Caedus asked eagerly. He wanted to satiate his curiosity and figured there was no time like the present.
"Well, to be frank, Iridia is one of the higher realms, where sentient beings can 'ascend' from their lower world. Each world is different, but typically, when an individual comes here alone, it means they have become too strong for their world; most lower realms have safeguards that can kick them out. So to speak. In your case, it definitely isn't what happened." Umbra said, turning to look at Caedus up and down before turning his head.
"The more common way people come to Iridia is from a mass exodus from their world. Mostly due to an impending disaster that would have destroyed most life there. So the realm opens a Keyhole, allowing the population to leave their homes and build a new home in Iridia. Of course, there are some who just hop from one dimension to another, and most of the population on Iridia nowadays are born here. But it has happened. And seeing how you are alone, it's obvious it's not through a mass exodus, so in conclusion. I don't know how you got here."
"...Yeah, me either," Caedus said, pondering the thoughts of the new information he got.
"I wouldn't think about it too hard, honestly," Umbra said, waving his hand in dismissal. "Maybe someday you will know how you got here, but you more than likely won't know soon."
Caedus nodded in reply.
As a few more minutes passed in silence, the wall that surrounded the lone mountain city rose up taller the closer the pair got. It was so large that Caedus found it hard to believe that it was man-made. It has to be over a hundred meters tall.
Craning his neck to try and see the top of the wall, Caedus spotted silhouettes walking along it. They seemed to be guards patrolling the top.
Lowering his gaze, Caedus looked at the gate itself, and he was even more in awe than he was compared to the scale of the wall. The gate was massive, just as the wall, and perfectly proportioned, with its width and height seemingly equal. The gate itself was black metal that seemed to reflect no light, but to contrast the gate's darkness, a silver-colored tree adorned it. Despite it being only an ornate symbol, Caedus could feel the intricacies of the gate's design.
The trunk of the silver tree seemed able to withstand thousands of years of weathering. The deep roots spread far and deep, showing how ancient the tree depicted is. The branches themselves stretched to the top of the black gate. Almost disappearing into the darkness with how thin the branches got at their ends.
"Beautiful," Caedus muttered under his breath.
As Caedus kept admiring the gate and the adorning silver tree, he felt a hand grab the back of his collar. Turning his head, he saw Umbra holding him lightly.
"Let me talk to the guards, got it? The captain I know should be on duty today, so he should understand the situation a little. Plus he likes me a lot" Umbra said proudly before letting go and stepping in front of Caedus.
"Captain! Long time no see!" Umbra flashed a charming smile as he approached the armed group of about a dozen men.
They all wore silver and black armor with the same tree symbol on their chest plates as the one adorning the gate. Each soldier seemed to have their own personal weapon as none were the same: some had a spear, others a halberd, and others a sword. And none of them looked weak. In fact, for some reason, he was unsure if Umbra next to him would be much of a match.
The guards stationed in front of the gate all straightened their backs in unison upon hearing Umbra's voice. They all focused their attention on him, and they all seemed to give the feeling that they all rolled their eyes.
'What kind of reaction...' Caedus thought to himself.
Out of the group of guards, a large, burly figure stepped out in front. Attached to his hip was a larger war axe that seemed extremely heavy.
With an obvious frown on his face, he responded to Umbra. "Not long enough." The captain said with a tired tone.
'They don't seem to be fans of him.' Caedus thought, feeling anxious if he would be able to get into the city.
"Not long enough?" Umbra paused for a second before laughing obnoxiously. "Oh, man! You're as funny as ever!" The guards behind their captain shifted their feet awkwardly, avoiding looking in Caedus' and Umbra's direction. The captain of the guards, who had stepped forward, just stared at the cackling Umbra without even smiling.
*AHEM* Caedus cleared his throat loudly, trying to get Umbra's attention.
Umbra glanced back before wiping his tears away. "Haha, anyways, can he come into the city with me?" Umbra jammed his thumb towards Caedus.
"Does he have papers?" the captain said with a bored tone.
"Well, no, he doesn't," Umbra said, scratching his head.
"Then no." The captain turned on his heel to walk back to his comrades before Umbra called out again.
"Don't worry. My clan will handle the paperwork. He is a new ascended after all." Umbra said with a mischievous grin.
The captain paused his walk and turned around slowly to look at Caedus.
"He hasn't awakened his soul, though." He said with raised eyebrows. "Oh god, don't tell me there was another mass exodus."
"No, no, no, nothing like that. In fact, we are unsure how he got here, but hey, he just came from one of this kingdom's home realms!" Umbra said, turning his body slightly and raising his hands as if he was showcasing something on display.
"Oh? Which one are you from lad?" The captain looked into Caedus' purple eyes with curiosity.
"Um, I am from Earth." Caedus said.
"Ah. Interesting. So you will take care of the paperwork, right? Does he know what that means for him?" The captain turned back toward Umbra.
'Huh, what's going on? What does it mean for me?'
"Well... I was going to tell him when we got inside the walls. It's not like he has a lot of options anyway." Umbra said seriously, as if a switch flipped back on and he was back to his normal self.
"Alright then, I will. Kid, there are a few ways for someone to get citizenship in the Ironwood Kingdom." The captain said with a sigh.
Although the concept of documents and citizenship wasn't unheard of to Caedus, since he read a lot growing up, the idea that he would be put in this situation wasn't something he was prepared for. But he thought of the Endless Plains he had just escaped, and he knew if he couldn't get into the city, a sure death awaited him.
"And what ways are those?" Caedus asked, staring at Umbra, who just shrugged his shoulders and mouthed 'I was gonna tell you.'
"The first way is contribution. Do you have anything the Kingdom might need in terms of knowledge or value?" The captain said.
"Do you need to learn any hunting skills or anything about where I am from?" Caedus asked hopefully.
"No. Most of the greatest minds from Earth came here hundreds of years ago. The Kingdom really has no interest in the current affairs of Earth. And hunting isn't new to us. The second way to get citizenship is through servitude. A clan, guild, sect, merchant troupe, noble, or royalty will sponsor you, but you are meant to serve them for 10 years." The captain said side-eyeing Umbra.
"Definitely no." Caedus shot an angry glance at Umbra, thinking the worst. 'Was this bastard going to try and keep me as a slave? Before he could say something he might regret Umbra spoke up.
"Why the hell would you say that one second?! Plus you are well aware my clan rarely takes humans in as servants." Umbra asked. "Caedus, that is NOT what I was going to sponsor you for." The said quickly, seeing the anger visible on Caedus' face.
Caedus could see a trace of a smile lingering on the captain's stern face when he saw the outraged Umbra. 'Ah, is this a type of humor? Just trying to irritate people?' Caedus felt a vein on his forehead bulge a little.
"Another is adoption, seeing how you are older, I'm guessing you are officially an adult, so you would need documentation from a high-ranking official stating that they are adopting you into their family." The captain continued.
"Fourth way-"
"Oh my crow! Are you really going to go through them all?" Umbra loudly said.
"I planned on it."
"..."
Caedus spoke up, trying to speed up the process. At this point, he hasn't had real food in days, so he was getting a bit impatient. "Umbra, how many are there?"
"A few dozen. This guy is just trying to screw with me." Umbra rolled his eyes. "I'll just tell you so this guy stops messing around." The captain lightly clicked his tongue, but didn't continue on. "The only real option for you, Caedus, is to have my clan sponsor you to join the Ironwood Kingdom's military after your service has ended, and you will officially be recognized as a citizen of the kingdom."