"After the world's discovery of 'The Oneness', the United States—the pioneer of teleportation gate technology and the first to uncover the alternate dimension later known by that name—soon underwent a massive transformation.
The nation rebranded NASA as 'The One Association', shifting its primary focus toward the exploration and colonization of this new frontier.Initially, the global community expected the U.S. to hoard the teleportation technology for itself.
Yet, for reasons shrouded in mystery, The One Association chose to distribute the technology across the globe. However, this gift came with a catch: everything remained under their strict supervision.
The Association maintained absolute authority over the entire teleportation network leading into The Oneness.Despite accusations of international interference from some nations, they ultimately yielded.
The resources and benefits offered by The Oneness were simply too vast to ignore. Consequently, The One Association's management became the singular, iron-clad standard worldwide.
Now, Nawa stood before 'The One Association of Thailand.' It was a colossal structure, rising hundreds of stories into the sky—or perhaps more. From his vantage point, there was no way to tell just how many floors it truly possessed.
Players from all over the country flocked to this site, all sharing a single purpose: to pass through the teleportation gate and step into the world of The Oneness."
The teleportation gate installed within The One Association of Thailand was far from the largest in the world, yet its value was staggering—hundreds of billions of baht.
It was more expensive than the construction of the country's largest international airport. Despite its cost, the gate could only handle a few thousand people a day, a minuscule number compared to the nation's player population of nearly a hundred thousand.
Fortunately, players did not use the gate daily. Most spent their lives within The Oneness, returning to the real world only for essential business. This kept the gate's traffic manageable, preventing total congestion.
As Nawa stepped inside the building, he was greeted by a space as vast as a mega-mall, filled with winding escalators and glass elevators.
Holograms shimmered and neon lights dazzled the eyes. Five years ago, powering a building like this would have required blacking out the entire city, but in this era, a few energy crystals were enough to keep the entire complex running for a month.
Consequently, most modern technology had shifted from fossil fuels to energy crystals. They were pollution-free and lacked the hazards of nuclear power. In this day and age, oil had become like coal—an obsolete relic that no one used anymore.
The attire of the people milling about was equally surreal. There were warriors clad in medieval European plate armor, figures in wizard-like robes, and even those dressed as ninjas or martial artists straight out of a wuxia film.
It was as if this place had become the ultimate hub for players. To Nawa, it felt less like reality and more like he was standing in the heart of a massive online game.
In the center of the hall, a colossal skeleton was on display. It didn't look like a replica; it looked chillingly real. Its size and shape were reminiscent of a dinosaur from Jurassic Park, but with one striking difference—it had wings.
Nawa thought to himself that this must be the remains of a Wyvern, or perhaps even a Dragon.
The goods sold in the shops here were not mobile phones or fashionable clothes typically found in a standard mall. Instead, most storefronts showcased weapons and artifacts—the essential tools of a Player.
These items were displayed in glass cases like high-end jewelry in a gold shop. They weren't sold for their aesthetic appeal; each piece possessed unique properties and could boost a Player's various stats.
Nawa wandered past the shops, checking the prices. He knew that once he became a Player, he would eventually have to purchase these things. Though he lacked the funds now, there was no harm in gathering information—hoping, perhaps, to find something affordable. But after browsing several stores, he found only price tags that could easily buy a house or a luxury car.
The weapons for sale were mostly ancient types: spears, swords, and bows. Modern weaponry was nowhere to be seen because of a mysterious energy within The Oneness that didn't exist on Earth.
This energy rendered modern gadgets and firearms completely useless, turning them into mere scrap metal. In fact, even ordinary Earth steel changed when taken into The Oneness; its hardness and durability plummeted until it was no better than clay, unable to even cut through a monster's fur.
Despite attempts to forge modern weapons using materials from The Oneness, the properties of those materials were fundamentally different from Earth's. They simply couldn't be fashioned into advanced technology.
Even when successful, the results were far less effective than the 'primitive' weapons like the sword, the spear, or the bow.
As a result, the weapons used by Players are forged from minerals and materials harvested within The Oneness. Yet, despite being simple tools no different from those used by ancients, these 'primitive' weapons are by no means inferior to modern ones.
When combined with a Player's skills and the arcane knowledge brought back from The Oneness, their destructive power rivals—and often surpasses—modern weaponry. Some high-level Players can unleash skill attacks as devastating as a tactical missile.
Equipment and items found within The Oneness are categorized into eight distinct ranks:
Normal: Power Rating 1 – 10
Good: Power Rating 11 – 30
Premium: Power Rating 31 – 70
Rare: Power Rating 71 – 150
Epic: Power Rating 151 – 300
Unique: Power Rating 301 – 700
Legendary: Power Rating 701 – 1,000
GOD: Power Rating exceeding 1,000
Currently, the highest-ranking equipment revealed to the public is the Unique rank, possessed only by the world's elite Players. While rumors persist of Legendary weapons existing deep within The Oneness, no Player has ever been confirmed to own one.
As for the God rank, it remains a purely theoretical tier—a classification set for anything that might surpass the power of a Legend, though no human has ever laid eyes on such an item.
Nawa wandered through the displays with wide-eyed wonder, but his gaze suddenly locked onto a particular staff. At its tip sat a black crystal, roughly the size of a tennis ball.
He remembered it vividly. It was a magic crystal just like the ones Grandfather Alfor had used to create the force field for his training with his werewolf friend. Such magic crystals were abundant in the Rainbow Cave—the very same cave that was once the lair of the White Snake.
What truly stunned Nawa was the elegant price tag displayed in front of the staff: 5,5xx,xxx Baht.
He couldn't believe it. If only he had brought back even one of those broken crystal shards from the cave, he would already be a millionaire many times over, as the smallest fragments he saw there were many times larger than the crystal on this staff.
Nawa wondered how much his Dragon Scale Armor and the Lek Lai Armguards he was wearing might be worth. But now was not the time to show them off for appraisal.
The first reason was simple: he was still too weak. If anyone decided to steal them, his life would be in immediate danger. The second reason was that he needed them to increase his chances of survival once he entered The Oneness.
Besides weapons, various types of potions were also available at equally steep prices. Many items Nawa had never seen, not even during his time in the Himmapan Forest.
There was 'Enchanted Rice,' priced at thirty thousand baht per gram; talismans ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of baht; and stone tablets carved with ancient runes.
He continued wandering until he reached the food court area. These restaurants served dishes prepared with ingredients sourced from The Oneness—just like the place his mother worked.
There was also a massive supermarket selling raw monster meat. Some cuts were the size of a six-foot bed. There were monsters resembling crocodiles, tigers, and many others Nawa didn't recognize. They were stored in a gigantic walk-in freezer with glass partition walls.
Nawa eventually came to a halt at the section dedicated to skill books and technique manuals.
During his time in the Himmapan Forest, the only thing he had truly mastered was meditative absorption (Jhāna), as he hadn't found any skills compatible with his base ability, Telekinesis. He harbored a faint hope that this place might finally offer a skill suited to his psychic power.
However, after browsing for a while, he realized that none of the skills were a match for his Telekinesis.
More than half were stat-boosting skills—enhancing strength or speed—which were designed for those with Biocontrol abilities, a type of psychic power that allows one to manipulate their own body cells.
The only skills Nawa could actually learn were weapon techniques or combat forms that required no specific psychic foundation to master.
In truth, Nawa wasn't overly concerned. Given his profound understanding of the space-time field, he could adapt his Telekinesis to perform feats far beyond anyone's imagination.
Even without finding a perfect skill, the information he gathered was invaluable; it gave him a clear picture of the current power levels and capabilities of Earth's Players.
He knew that while a Player's primary goal was hunting monsters, life-and-death struggles between humans were common.
Within the lawless reaches of The Oneness—where no cameras watched and no rules applied—it was a grim reality that people would kill one another over the simplest conflict of interest.
The association's building turned out to be far larger than Nawa had imagined. Despite walking for quite some time, he still hadn't found the player registration area. He realized that if he just kept wandering aimlessly, he could search all day and still not find it.
"Excuse me, do you know where the player registration area is?"
Nawa asked a beautiful woman who seemed to be an association staff member. She was dressed in a formal business suit, standing out from the others.
"The registration area? I think it's on the 15th floor," she answered, giving him a sweet smile.
Nawa was surprised by her choice of words—I think? But he continued asking anyway.
"And which part of the 15th floor would that be?"
"The entire floor is for player registration," she explained.
"Honestly, I'd love to walk you there myself, handsome, but I have to hurry. The guild master of The Future is about to give a press conference in the basement, and I'm on duty. Good luck with your exam!" She flashed him another smile before hurrying off.
Nawa's eyes gleamed—not because of her attention, but because he had just learned something valuable. This was a rare chance to see an A-rank player, one of only ten in the entire country.
Knowing that the whole 15th floor was for registration, he wasn't in any rush; it would only take a few minutes to get there anyway. For now, he decided to attend the press conference first.
After all, he wanted to see what an A-rank player was really like. Even if he wouldn't get to watch them fight, he wasn't about to miss the chance to witness one of the strongest ten players in the nation with his own eyes.
When Nawa arrived at the basement, he found an expansive space, almost like a concert hall or an exhibition arena. A large stage stood in the center, prepared for the press conference. Rows upon rows of chairs filled the area in front of the stage.
He had never seen a press event like this before and found himself curious. The seats near the front were filled with reporters, including the woman who had guided him earlier. It seemed he had misunderstood—she wasn't an association official, but a journalist.
Before long, the crowd stirred. Everyone turned their gaze toward the same direction as a group of people entered. Leading them was a middle-aged man whom Nawa recognized immediately.
Five years ago, he had been a successful young businessman who left his family's enterprise to pursue a career in politics. But when The Oneness was discovered, he abandoned politics to found The Future guild. Within a short time, the guild had risen to become one of the top three in the nation.
Click, click, click!
Flashes from countless cameras lit the room as Tana, the guild master, stepped onto the stage. Nawa frowned. There was no aura, no pressure radiating from him at all.
To Nawa, he looked no different from an ordinary man. Yet that, in itself, was terrifying. To conceal his strength so completely—this man was no less dangerous than the foes Nawa had once faced in the Himmaphan Forest.
"Thank you all for attending this press conference," Tana began.
"I'll get straight to the point. As you know, The Oneness has no laws. Anyone who enters must rely on their own strength to survive. The only safeguard is one's own power and the allies one trusts. This is why groups form, from small parties to massive guilds.
Guilds have greatly reduced the losses from monster hunting. However, the dangers of The Oneness are not limited to monsters or its brutal environment. One of the greatest threats comes from players themselves.
Statistics from the last three years show that the leading cause of death in The Oneness is not monsters—but murder. Over three-quarters of those deaths were caused by other players. The root cause is simple: no laws, no consequences."
Nawa recalled the information he had once seen in an internet café after returning to Earth.
Player devices had a built-in punishment system: if a player initiated combat and killed another, their rank icon would turn red, and their system functions would be disabled for a time.
Red-named players became targets for everyone, since killing them not only removed the mark but also yielded a bounty from the system—and all items stored in their dimensional vault would drop upon death.
It was a deterrent meant to discourage killing. But it wasn't perfect. Many still exploited loopholes, torturing their victims into committing suicide to avoid the penalty. It was cruel, merciless, and tragic.
Tana's voice hardened.
"From today onward, The Future Guild will put an end to this. We will take responsibility for protecting lives and upholding justice within The Oneness.
Any player who commits atrocities—even if they do not bear the red mark—will be treated as an enemy of our guild. We will begin enforcing this in the kingdom of Jotundia, the stronghold of Thai players."
The room erupted in murmurs. Reporters raised their hands frantically. The guild's spokesperson pointed to the journalist Nawa had spoken with earlier.
"So you're saying The Future Guild will act as law enforcement in Jotundia?" she asked.
"That's correct," Tana replied calmly.
"We will establish a headquarters in the capital of Jotundia to handle reports."
Another reporter asked,
"But what if criminals have the backing of other guilds? How confident are you that The Future Guild can stand against them?"
"Our guild has three A-rank players, dozens of high-rankers, and countless other capable members spread throughout Jotundia. We also have the support of the kingdom's military. This will not be an issue."
"Isn't this effectively a declaration of war against the other top guilds—like Earth Tigers and Sky Dragons?" another pressed.
"I don't see it as war. We are not competing for resources. We are protecting justice," Tana answered evenly.
"Have you coordinated with the other guilds?" the female journalist asked again.
"We've notified them, both in Thailand and neighboring countries. While we haven't received official responses yet, I believe they'll support us."
"And if they refuse?" she pressed. The hall fell silent, tension thickening.
Tana's expression sharpened.
"Then I will still uphold justice. If criminals act in The Oneness, we will punish them—regardless of who they are or what guild supports them."
BOOM!
The podium exploded, splinters of wood scattering across the stage. People near the front were thrown back, but Tana, standing closest, remained untouched—not even a scratch.
"You arrogant fools!"a voice roared.
"The Future Guild dares call itself the law in The Oneness? I, Singkhon, will do as I please! If you're truly strong enough, then come and stop me!"
A young man with tanned skin, clad in ancient military armor, shouted from behind the reporters.