Volume 1: Awakening Chapter 1 This is life
In this world, everything has a name. For example, if you see a magical wooden tool with four legs under someone's butt that can support the body, you will know that its name is a stool. By analogy, you can also know that the wonderful, plump and soft thing on the stool is called a butt.
Yes, that's the name, and no one knows where it comes from. There is a saying that the creator god Darmos spent seven days creating the world, and then spent another seven hundred years naming the things he created. To be honest, whenever I think of this saying, some funny scenes always flash through my mind, such as: our all-knowing and all-powerful father of the gods squatting in the mud, solemnly announcing to a fat livestock with his voice that resounds through the world: "This thing is called 'pig'!" But the livestock is completely unaware of this great honor, and expresses its dissatisfaction with the nosy old man who woke it up from its nap with a loud grunt, then rolls modestly in his mud puddle, and then continues to sleep soundly.
But really, it doesn't matter if a pig knows its name is a pig, but it's a problem if a person doesn't know the name. You can't say to someone, "I just came from that place, where there is a lot of that thing, and that thing is very beautiful and looks like that thing." If you say that, I bet no one will understand what you are saying.
So, as is customary, I will tell this story using the names we all know. If you find that one of these names doesn't fit what it refers to, I'm sure you're right, because a name is just a name, and we call it that by accident.
Like everything else, everyone has his own name, such as me. My name is "Jeffreys Kidd, the Gate Guard". I don't like it at all because it's hard to say and doesn't sound very impressive. But I don't know when I started to call it this name, just like a pig is called "pig", which is just an accident.
Let me tell you about me. Yes, my name is "Gate Guard Jeffreys Kidd" - I have already said this - I am a guard at the gate of Campnavia. Campnavia is located in the middle of the Kingdom of Dranmeia, and the Kingdom of Dranmeia is located in the southeast of the Falvi continent. Outside the Falvi continent is a vast ocean called the "Comet Sea". It is said that it was originally a land, but was later smashed into an ocean by a comet that fell from the sky, hence the name. There are many unknown islands on the Comet Sea, and it is said that there are more and larger unknown mysterious continents on the other side of the Comet Sea - of course, that has nothing to do with me.
There are many intelligent races living on the Farvi continent, such as humans, elves, dwarves, tauren, goblins, deep gnomes, etc. Each race has a relatively fixed living area. For example, Dranmeya is a country dominated by humans, but you can often meet travelers of other races here, mostly elves and dwarves, mainly because the dwarf country Goldstone Castle and the elf gathering place Moonbrook Forest are adjacent to Dranmeya. Travelers of other races can also be seen occasionally.
In addition to race, there is another method used to distinguish mainland residents that I must mention, and that is the concepts of "air travelers" and "natives".
According to the explanation of the authoritative magic theory, the world we live in is just one of billions of vast planes. In the wider space, there are infinite space worlds unknown to us. There is a kind of intelligent life in this world, they are born with the ability to travel through time and space and walk in the boundless universe. This is the so-called "spacewalker", and there are some people who are born to survive only in one plane world, this is the "native". The ability of the spacewalker does not change with his race. Whether you are a dwarf less than five feet tall or a burly and tall minotaur, you may become a spacewalker and disappear in this world at any time and travel between planes.
It is not easy to tell whether the person in front of you is a "skydiver" or a "native". They look very similar and there is no significant difference in appearance. However, there is a difference between the two. Natives like me are honest people who don't like to talk and don't walk around. They just do their duties or run their own businesses. Those skydivers are curious guys. They like to run around and often make trouble for no reason, and they enjoy it. They are born adventurers. Exploration and travel are all their lives; they are also born optimists. They call themselves "players", as if their lives are just an interesting game and "playing" is the only meaning of their lives.
My most important job is to stand at the city gate and receive these people who travel through time and space.
If you are a natural born air traveler and this is your first time in Campnavia, I will dutifully tell you: "Don't get too close to the jungle outside the city, traveler. It's not as safe as it looks. About two months ago, a group of wild dogs suddenly appeared there. They often attack passers-by, causing panic in the city. Sheriff Gerard is worried about this matter. If you think you are strong enough, you can hunt three wild dogs and send their fur to the sheriff's office. Mr. Gerard will reward you."
This should have been a strange thing. I had never been to the jungle outside the city, and I didn't remember when I knew that the sheriff of this city, my immediate superior, was named Gerald. But no matter which guy I met who came to the city for the first time, he would repeat these words faithfully and faithfully. What's even stranger than this is that for a long time, I didn't think there was anything strange about all this.
As far as I know, almost every person who came to Campnavia City received this not-so-generous bounty, but no one ever told me to cancel the order to hunt wild dogs. According to this number, the number of wild dogs must be astonishing.
If you kill three wild dogs and happen to be in the mood to talk to me (I don't know why, this kind of "coincidence" always seems to happen, I guess it can only be attributed to the fact that I am a very friendly person), I will ask you to do me a favor:
"You seem to be a tight-lipped guy. I have a private matter to ask you." I would point to the guard standing across the road and say to you. The guard's name is "City Gate Guard Fred Guderian". He is my partner since I took over this job. But we rarely talk. He is a rigid and proud guy. No matter who wants to talk to him, he will only say to you:
"Don't cause trouble in the city unless you think your bones are stronger than my sword."
He said so because he had a fine sword, a black, extremely sharp sword that seemed to have been passed down from his ancestors. He was always very proud of this sword and always liked to show it off.
"This is related to my partner..." At this time, I will whisper to you, "...You know, he always likes to show off his sword, always saying that his sword can cut through anything, and I happen to know that there is a kind of wood called 'iron wood' that is harder than steel, so I have a small bet with him, which is to find a piece of wood that his sword cannot cut through. I heard that Mr. Rama in Tuluo Village has such a piece of wood. If you can help me borrow it, I will give you half of the bet as a reward. However, Mr. Rama doesn't like others to touch his things, so it's best not to let him find out when you are 'borrowing' it."
I am sure that you will bring me what I need in a little while, and then I will let my partner try his sword. Of course, I will win the bet, and you will get your reward. This happened again and again, without any suspense. I don't know why I am so happy to repeat this bet again and again. I can only explain it by saying that I particularly like to see Fred's astonishment.
If you want to find someone in Campnavia, you can ask me. I will mark the location of that person on your map, such as the butcher Langsco, or the pharmacist Elder. I must admit that I am a diligent guard. Although I have never seen those people and don't know what they look like, I always know where they will be and never make mistakes. Maybe some people will find this incredible, but I have become accustomed to it. In fact, there are many things like this that I accidentally found out.
If you stay in this city long enough and complete a series of tedious tasks, such as delivering a love letter full of typos for Pierre in the tavern, helping the stonemason Dakela who specializes in carving tombstones in the abandoned wild temple to find new stones, collecting debts from hired farmers for Baron Porter, and finding appetizing candied haws for the anorexic sister-in-law of the hotel owner, etc., I will tell you:
"The city of Campnavia is protected by the Star Knights, and the public security has always been good. But not long ago, a group of bandits came from the Sabertooth Mountain in the east of the city, specializing in robbing merchants. No less than 20 caravans have been attacked. We need some strong volunteers to eliminate them. Bring me the head of the bandit leader, and you will be recognized by the Star Knights and become a friend of this city."
Some impatient fools rushed to challenge the bandits without waiting for me to finish. I have to say that in their hearts, besides courage, there is only stupidity. If they are willing to listen to me, I will tell them:
"You'd better find a few reliable companions. You will find that they are more trustworthy than the weapons in your hands."
I often saw those ragged, hot-headed fools who chopped their swords and axes like rusty iron sheets being chased to the city gate by no less than thirty robbers like ducks. Some of them made this mistake more than once. The most miserable guy I have ever seen was chased by robbers until he was only left with a pair of pants. He still sat at the city gate and sighed and shouted: "These robbers are so hard to kill!" At that time, I stood at the city gate, glaring at the unlucky guy with extreme disdain, without saying a word.
Serves you right! This is what a person who lacks manners and doesn't listen to others finish their words deserves!
Fortunately, most people are not that stupid. They can always eliminate this group of annoying bandits and bring back the head of the bandit leader. As I reminded, most of them are three to five people who complete this difficult task together, and this is also the most puzzling part: no matter how many people the adventure team eliminates this group of bandits, each person has a head of the bandit leader. I have many doubts about this: what would a person with five heads look like, would these heads quarrel with each other, would they disturb each other if they snore when they sleep... and so on. But because I never figured out the reason, these questions will not bother me for a long time.
Although I always give these adventurers the Star Knights Medal, which symbolizes courage and will, as a reward for destroying the bandits, there is actually no sign that they have really destroyed the bandits. Because no matter when I give them this task, they can always bring me a few identical heads. Sometimes I would also have wild thoughts, imagining that there is such a forest on the Sabertooth Mountain, with leaves all over the fields. Whenever the autumn wind blows, the branches are full of the heads of bandit leaders. The happy adventurers wear picnic clothes and carry baskets. They happily take the heads and put them in the baskets, looking forward to the upcoming Knights Medal, and agree to come again tomorrow...
Like all my unrealistic ideas, this evil thought never lasts long in my mind.
No city allows fighting, and this is also true in Campnavia. Fighting in the streets is not allowed. This is probably the only law I know of in Campnavia. However, even with this law, those over-energetic airmen do not always obey it. Every day, there are always several fights between airmen on the road to the city gate, and in bad situations, it can even turn into murder. And stopping these situations from happening is also one of our responsibilities.
Just a few days ago, two air-related people who had just entered the city had a dispute over a transaction. During the dispute, the dwarf ranger seemed to want to ease the atmosphere, so he used a rather intimate tone to greet the female family of the elven magician in a friendly manner. I think this may have touched on some traditions of the elves. The elven magician was furious and threw a fireball at the dwarf. I kept my duty in mind. When I saw this situation, I rushed over with my partner Fred to stop them. The elven magician actually wanted to attack us. Unfortunately, his magic was too unfamiliar, and I was probably only at the level of an apprentice. He didn't even touch our clothes when we got close to him. He was beaten up with fists and feet until his face was covered with peach blossoms. We threw him into the detention center again. He stayed there for a whole half day and was released only after he paid a fine.
This is everything about me, my life and work, all the people and things I meet every day. My life is peaceful and mediocre, and I am satisfied with this peace and mediocrity, and I have never thought of any change. In fact, real life seems to be like this, without magnificent scenery, colorful scenes, and stormy adventures. Insignificant trivial things come one after another, filling your time. I thought I would live like this until the end where I can't see the edge, just as it has been from the beginning when I have no memory until now.
I didn't expect that a small accident would change everything.
It was an ordinary morning, no different from any other morning before. The city gate was wide open, people were coming and going, and I stood straight at the city gate, not looking around.
At this time, two short traders were trading in front of me.
"...No, at least 20 copper coins, no less. Otherwise, go find someone else to buy it." One of them shook his head like a windmill. Like the person he was trading with, he was also an ordinary human, with an ordinary figure and an ordinary appearance, but the armor on his body was better than the other person's, with more solid sewing and stronger leather.
"Okay, it's a deal, twenty is twenty..." The buyer gritted his teeth and nodded in agreement. He took out his wallet and urged, "...Hurry up and give it to me, the server will be shut down for maintenance soon."
"It will be ready soon!" The seller hurriedly collected the money, then took out a roll of things from his waist bag with great effort and handed it to me. But they were standing too close to me, and the confused seller actually stuffed the roll in the wrong direction and put it in my hand.
According to regulations, I am not allowed to accept anything from passers-by while on duty. If this happened in the past, I would return the things to the person and then politely say to him:
"I cannot accept any gifts from you. It is my duty to serve you."
But this time, just as I was about to return the transaction item, it suddenly got dark.
No, it wasn't just the sky that was black. The earth, the city walls, the pedestrians, the trees, everything in this world suddenly lost its color in an instant and fell into chaos. That color, which was even darker than black, filled my eyes and all my senses. The world seemed to suddenly disappear in a desperate void, without a sound or color. I could even feel myself suddenly disappear without a trace, even my soul no longer existed, leaving only a dead emptiness.
I want to say that at this moment, I saw the scene of the end of the world.
At the moment before the darkness that filled the sky and the earth descended, I heard the careless seller scream:
"Oops, I chose the wrong trading partner..."
