[MA] 426. Nmara (Patreon)

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[A/N: I'll leave 1 chapter to be released after I return. Things are crazy tiring around here. My apologies—again.

Announcement: I'll take a week off in June, from the 1st to the 8th. I need the time to organize a lot of stuff in my life.

Chapters this week: 1/1

Late chapters: 1

Next chapter: Tuesday, 11th]

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Shen noticed the Karma strands as he approached the city. The lines went from golden to black, with red undertones in the middle, and extended everywhere. After some distance, they became transparent and then invisible. Some lines were thicker than others and took longer to disappear.

The city in the distance was a hub of karmic connections, so many that it looked like a golden sun to his Allvision. It clouded his special ability, preventing him from seeing too far through them.

The buildings themselves resembled a mountain range. Skyscrapers hundreds of stories tall were spaced between each other, with shorter constructions in between, creating veritable valleys here and there. On top of that, the buildings in the city center were the tallest. They were also made primarily of wood and crystal glass with silvery and golden details, looking fancy and almost rustic at the same time. Their shapers were mostly square with rounded edges, with some sharp edges here and some entirely circular buildings there.

Wood gave way to brick, and crystal to colored glass that formed mosaics, the further one got from the city center. Brick then became stone and the glass became less artistic at the outskirts.

A massive light blue metal wall surrounded the city, which was big enough to host a few tens of millions of people. Gray metal towers half the height of the tallest central buildings were placed every few hundred feet on the wall. The wall and towers were manned by mere Proven Conceptualizers, but there were enough to cover the whole perimeter. They wore D+ dark blue and gray uniforms and carried mismatched weaponry. Everyone had a C+ crystal orb floating close to their heads, which Shen guessed improved their perception. He wasn't close enough to see the object's enchantments yet.

He could, however, see the enchantments on the metal wall and towers. Like the alloy itself, they were peak C-tier. They were also a wonder to look at. Shen didn't understand half of the runes, symbols, or concepts involved, but he estimated he would need at least a few dozen attacks to break through with his full power.

Overlords flowed freely inside the city, but none went over the walls to enter or leave it. There was a lot less traffic on the massive doors than Shen expected, which was easily explained by two factors.

First, almost everyone he could see was a cultivator. Less than ten percent were weaker than Conceptualizers. That meant no need for extensive food production or distribution, as qi sufficed for sustenance. Cultivation also decreased the need for sewer and waste disposal systems, as even Initiates didn't need toilets, and most Conceptualizers could use qi to burn garbage without leaving even ashes behind.

Second, massive underground chambers were used to grow food for the people who needed it. Some of the food was more than just for sustenance, too, as it was E-tier or higher. The number of restaurants Shen could see also suggested people ate for pleasure.

As Shen and E'livia approached, he noticed that more than a few of the guards on the walls used a D- ring to send signals to a nearby outpost. The building had twenty beds in a shared dorm and a few offices. It also had an underground prison with a dozen empty cells. Three people were currently there, the stronger being a Proven Overlord sitting by a fancy desk in his office. His secretary, an Unproven Overlord, sat on a desk of her own in the antechamber. Lastly, a Proven Conceptualizer attendant sat by the building's front desk.

The secretary's C+ ring received the signals, and she used the ring to call a few of the wall guards. A moment later, she stood up, said something to her boss, then left the office by the window to come to the wall.

She arrived above the city entrance moments before Shen and E'livia did.

The woman was a wood elf, as was over half the city's population he could see, which explained the love for wood in the city center. It also explained why the city had so many parks, trees, and greenery.

Wood elves were skinnier and shorter than high elves. They were equally beautiful but of a less imposing standard. Their traces were more delicate and comely, their hair was light brown or black, and their eyes were mostly green or brown.

The woman wore the same uniform as the other guards, except hers was C+ tier. The tight pants and overcoat were dark blue, and the boots and long shirt were gray. A white hieroglyph-like eye was etched on her left chest. She had light brown hair tied in a professional bun and beautiful green eyes. Her left pointy ear had seven golden piercings.

She looked like an actress barely out of her adolescence who had been picked to play a soldier who was supposed to be much more badass than she could pretend to be. At least, until you looked at the C+ sword on her hip. It wasn't sheathed, just hanging from her belt. The hilt was black, and the crimson blade created and dripped blood every few seconds. Her pants had an auto-clean enchantment but were stained after extended contact with the constant stream of blood.

"Halt," she said in Shaft Common. "No going over the city walls. Use the doors."

Her voice was half-business-like and half-bored. She didn't want to be there but also wasn't distracted. The way she looked at Shen and E'livia made it clear she was ready to fight if it came to it. She would lose, but as long as she resisted for a few moments, backup would arrive. Not to mention, the wall should also be enchanted to support her in some way.

Shen and E'livia slowed down, and Shen replied, "Can I find information about the Deep Path anywhere in the city?"

He used the Overlord True Language, and the woman's eyes widened slightly.

A moment later, she replied, now using the Overlord Low Language, "Everyone must use the doors." She hadn't understood the question in the language she didn't speak. But her voice was less bored. She was both alarmed and trying to sound respectful.

Shen tried High Language next, "Can I find information about the Deep Path anywhere in the city?"

She opened her mouth to reply, then closed it, sighed, and said, also in the High Language, "I was hoping to hide from politics. Forcing me to reveal my status was very impolite of you."

Indeed, people were eavesdropping. Shen didn't care about their reactions, but the wall guards and the three random people entering the city had reacted to him using True Language. Now, they also reacted when they found out the woman could speak High Language.

Shen smiled weakly. "My apologies. I'm new here and was hoping to get a well-connected guide. I was unsure if anyone without the proper background could point me in the right direction and wasn't willing to take the time to figure it out."

The woman was upset, though not furious. Still, she wouldn't just let it go. "And thus, for your selfishness, you pull me back into a world of intrigue I struggled so hard to escape."

Shen shook his head. "I already apologized, but we both know I didn't force you to reply. You're curious about a drow and an aeonian appearing here out of nowhere and believe it is worth it to make a connection rather than keep your façade going. You're made of the same politics you seek to flee from, aren't you?"

In fact, Shen believed she was there precisely to find interesting figures like him. She was a scout for whichever force was behind her. She likely only replied to High Language because Shen showed he could speak the local True Language first.

Now, she was testing his shrewdness or something—

"Wrong," the woman said, interrupting his thoughts. "I do need to answer. It's in the City Guard regulations. I didn't want to be stationed at a Wall Outpost, but without a known background force to help me, politics pushed me here." She sighed again. "But I guess if it weren't you, someone else would've talked to me sooner or later. As a mere Low Guard, I must abide by the request of an esteemed High Guest like you. I'll guide you, but you still need to go through the doors. Wait for me after you come in. I'll contact my boss and return."

Then, she flew over the walls back in the city. Evidently, the City Guard could ignore the rule about using the door.

Her reaction and the City Guard regulation showed how important the languages were in the Shaft. Shen was considered a High Guest by simply speaking the local High Language. Although any local High Organization was unlikely to treat him with the same respect as the wood elf just because he was a High Guest, those at the lower strata of society were supposed to show him some respect. The City Guard likely had a strong backing, but it was obviously in their best interest to have low-level members accommodate the requests of well-connected individuals, whoever they were.

Shen and E'livia landed and went through the tall and massive doors. The city wall was thick enough that they had to walk a corridor a few yards wide to come to the other side. Four Proven Conceptualizers in City Guard uniform were guarding the entrance but didn't ask him anything. Shen doubted they were supposed to question Overlords. At most, they sent word to their superiors, as the guards manning the wall had done.

A pristine stone street with a few shabby inns waited on the other side of the wall. The Wall Outpost wasn't that far, and the wood elf quickly returned. She gestured for Shen and E'livia to take to the skies and nodded to them.

"I'm Low Officer Nmara. My boss told me to waste your time with a city tour while he runs a background check on you. I suck as a guide and feel sorry for you, but at least it means not doing paperwork." She smiled weakly.

That was the first time her serious face smiled, and she was obviously merely enacting a joke she was ordered to tell. The smile was forced, yet it multiplied her beauty, making her gorgeous. Shen felt saddened at whatever experiences she had gone through that made her hide herself as a Low Guard and not seem to have any reasons to smile. He could see the deep sadness in her, so it wasn't just an aloof personality.

"Haha," Shen replied dryly with a weak smile of his own.

Nmara was surprised at his answer for an instant, then legitimately chuckled at him. It gladdened Shen.

She said, "I must ask, and my boss is listening: what's your name, and who allowed you to learn the Overlord True Language?"

"I'm Shen, and I was taught by Habnor."

She chuckled again. "Sure he did." Then, as Shen looked confused at her, she widened her eyes. "You're not joking?"

He shook his head. "I didn't know Senior Habnor for long, and he wasn't a pleasant conversationalist, but I didn't expect him to be some kind of evil guy who never teaches anything to anyone."

The obligation to answer who taught Shen the language was the greatest weakness of Habnor's desire not to get caught up with Shen or vice versa. Still, he had guessed Habnor had an exceptional identity if he knew—and could teach—even the Ascender True Language. Then again, if even a random Low Officer from the Overlord Realm recognized the name, it might be more special than anticipated.

"Senior Habnor?" Nmara replied unbelievingly. "Do... Do you mean Realizator Habnor, True Disciple of the Pillar of the Axioms of Isolation, Warden-Emperor of the Overlord Realm?"

"Oh," Shen replied. "That explains a lot. That sounds like him, yes."

The Axioms of Isolation sounded quite stupid, to be honest. However, it explained why Habnor could keep Karma from affecting him or Lariel without using a Realization. He could probably ask his master to use the Axioms of Isolation to help him. Using those Axioms to Isolate the two of them should be easy enough.

It also explained why the Gardener trusted the guy wouldn't be killed and replaced no matter how long passed. Pillars couldn't be easily killed, and a beloved True Disciple had strong backing. A Warden-Emperor sounded like a ruler with a lot of power. It wasn't lost on Shen how Habnor had neglected to teach that detail to Shen when they talked.

Shen was very, very glad he hadn't decided to test the guy's patience back then.

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