2. The Common Hub of the Lower Sanctum

2. The Common Hub of the Lower Sanctum

The System greeted her as she entered the most wonderous place she had ever seen. Thousands of colors overwhelmed her as splendor twinkled in her eyes.

Light shone from the transparent ceiling which was so high above that whisks of clouds could be seen passing as low as the half-way point. She at first thought the ceiling was made of glass. But it was so clear that there may have been nothing there at all.

The Hub unraveled itself as far as she could see. In the center of it all was a massive circular structure that saw hundreds of people enter and exit without end; parting ways or following one of the gaping corridors that lead to different parts of the Hub.

Now that she realized it, the Common Hub closely resembled a multi-floored Airport, furnished in a half-modern, half-fantastical aesthetic; and infused with a medieval twist. The floors were paved with smooth black stone, and the structures were made primarily with polished pale marble.

The signages, which displayed outrageously long distances, like the bathrooms at over a kilometer away, caused her to remember the existence of perhaps the most important thing in any fantasy setting.

Magic.

“It’s hovering there with nothing attached.” She whispered to herself in disbelief.

These floating signs were not the only evidence of magic in this boundless place.

A sparkling cape was spotted following a cat-girl wearing a witch’s hat. Another person could be seen holding a staff with a flaming red gem, probably used for explosive magic. There were floating papers with undecipherable symbols and phrases; ribbons writing out the words of a mute child; and people wielding tomes and wands rather than blades.

And here I am in comparison… I know I hardly stand out, but I still feel completely out of place. At least my uniform isn’t the weirdest thing around. Seeing that… ‘those’ also exist here.

What she meant by ‘those’ was a certain trope depicted in popular fantasy culture back on Earth.

Bikini. Armor.

Low. Body. Coverage. Armor.

Why was that a thing?

She didn’t know.

And to be completely honest, she didn’t care. At least not as much as she was willing to admit. It was only two or three people out of the crowd of hundreds. But considering that they existed in the first place – she ended up pondering on an interesting question.

How closely was HP and one’s body tied? If she was, for example, stabbed then would she bleed or just lose HP?

Let’s see what this System has to say about that. I’ll just cycle through what’s there and see if I get anywhere. Status.

Not very helpful. How about the big 4 professions down there?

Her face lightly contorted at the sight of that meager explanation. But she should have seen it coming.

Man. So it’s just a normal punch. Why the hell is that an active skill? Where’s ‘Kick’ and ‘Bite’ at then? Unless that’s covered by the Brawler profession? Wouldn’t this kind of profession be available to everyone?

She sighed, following the path towards the massive dome-like structure which was pinned in the center of the entire Common Hub. Hundreds of pillars held the roof of the mega-structure dozens of meters high.

The inside was like that of a grand hall and was split into 3 distinct rings, each accompanied with its own array of pillars.

Lavish furnishings were laid beautifully underneath each pillar of the outermost ring. She counted at least one hundred different sections; many of which were already occupied by adventurers and a receptionist seated on the opposing couches.

They all wore a suit similar to the Raoul’s. Whether they were male, female, or half-snake – their entire bodies were covered in the black clothing, and the white undershirt beneath.

Also, not to forget the black tie.

What else is there to figure out?

Hah… You know what, these professions don’t give much information at all. What about the other skills and abilities?

Minor wounds implies that you CAN get hurt. So bikini armor is just as absurd as I though. But then again, what the hell do I know?

That’s better! Alright! Now how about my Passives!

This is an interesting one. It would mean basic life support and first aid will be a life saver if I happen to run out of mana. I can’t tell how unique it is because I don’t know if our techniques from Earth exist here. I guess if magic can do it better, then there’s no point in doing in any other way.

“Dimensional storage?” She whispered curiously to herself.

“HEY! Speak like you’re trying to invoke it!” A high-pitched voice suddenly commanded.

Frost instantly turned to the source. A short woman dressed in one of the suits abruptly presented herself before her with tightly folded arms. A pair of black wolf ears flapped through her long, luscious black hair. Behind her was a tail almost identical to the Raoul person, save hers was shorter and much fluffier.

Her crimson eyes drilled into hers as Frost finally realized that this woman was talking to her.

“Like [Dimensional Storage]?” Frost placed a heavier emphasis on the skill name, and at once, the System popped up.

“Exactly right! If you got something you wanna chuck in then just reach into the storage. You wanna take something out? Reach into the storage. Heh. Even a child would get it.”

“Yeah. They wouldn’t need any tutorials or prompts for something so obvious.” Frost’s words oozed with sarcasm. She was somewhat annoyed that this was somehow considered ‘obvious’. Though to begin with, it might have been for the inhabitants of this world for all she knew.

The woman shoved herself close as she scrubbed the back of her head obnoxiously. She was close enough for her heat to be felt, and for her… dog-like scent to be smelt. It wasn’t putrid or anything. More than anything, it seemed like the woman hadn’t washed in some time.

So… pretty bad still.

“You get it then! Aha! We’ve been getting people complaining about how to use it for the last hundred hours when it’s right there! Glad you’re not one of them!” She joyfully said.

So I’m not lacking common sense then. That is absolutely NOT obvious at all.

Wait.

“Hundred hours? Like what, a shift?” For some reason that was what caught her attention the most.

“Urgh. Don’t call this line of work a damned ‘shift’! Life of a Moon~ Defenders of the Nexus they said! Now look at us! Working as a damned receptionist when we could be out there subjugating monsters and the Corrupted! Not our fault the Arbiter’s blind as a bat! The Beholders aren’t any better either! And don’t get me started on those Exalted!” She suddenly vented and fell into a heavy pant afterwards.

“Are you ok?” Frost bent slightly to meet the woman’s gaze.

“YES I’M OK!” She snapped. “Listen. Between you and me, let’s pretend you have the Mark of Judgement. That way we can climb out of this hellhole! Good deal? Great deal. Hm~!”

“Sorry. No deals. No anything. I just came here for help.” Frosty bluntly said.

At this point I’M not the one that’s going to need help. But I kind of feel bad for her. I’d also go crazy if I had a 100-hour shift as well.

“Oh, why didn’t you say so!? C’mon! You gotta speak up if you wanted help! What are you, a lost child?”

P-patience, me. You’re a professional. A nurse. You’ve dealt with people like this before.

Suddenly, from seemingly out of the blue – two more people rapidly approached.

“Sister~! Don’t go planning an attack without us!” Another identical voice exclaimed as an array of clapping footsteps followed.

“Please sister Cer! Ber! Don’t say something so cunning!” A third identical voice cried aloud, and before Frost could even blink – there were now 3 short, fair-skinned wolf-girls in front of her, all melded together in a messy embrace.

“What are you saying Res!? Cer is right! Let’s take our friend here straight to that Beholder!” The one with the unstyled hair exclaimed.

“Stand up and strike while they’re still distracted!” The one with the ponytail announced.

“Stop! We’ll get into trouble! You two! Please stop saying those things!” The final one with the black twin tails pleaded, glancing over to Frost with an apologetic look. “I’m so sorry about them! Cer! Apologize right now!”

“Grr. Take a joke Res. I obviously wasn’t going to waltz into the Floor of Judgement uninvited. Oh and sorry.” The unstyled woman said sarcastically as if Frost wouldn’t notice.

“Reverse psychology. I like it!”

“Geez you two!”

… no. No, I’ve never dealt with anyone like this before.

I have front row seats to a comedy skit. Except this isn’t a skit at all. Though I wouldn’t say people DIDN’T act like this on Earth. Huh. I guess there’s all sorts of people no matter where you go.

But bikini armor still takes the whole damn cake.

“Sorry to interrupt, but do you know who else I can ask for help?” Frost casually reminded them of her presence. As amusing as the scene was; there were more important things to attend to. “Everyone looks occupied as far as I can tell. I don’t even know what the inner booths are for.”

“Wasn’t I going to help you!? I take back my apology –!” The ponytailed one was instantly gagged by the twin tailed woman.

“Please Ignore her. Miss, please follow us over there.” She pointed to a nearby set of red couches. “Allow us to offer you our services to the best of our abilities.”