Chapter 258: City of Marriet

"Aethelgard," Nathan repeated. "And the United Kingdom of Albion is... part of Aethelgard?"

"Yes, sir," the girl said. "One of the three great kingdoms. Along with the Empire of Valdris and the Theocracy of Solara."

Three kingdoms. A continent called Aethelgard. A world that wasn’t his.

Nathan’s mind raced.

’Master,’ Mirko’s voice was sharp. ’What is happening?’

’I don’t know,’ he admitted. ’But I think... I think the throne sent me somewhere. Somewhere far.’

’How far?’ Kuro asked.

’Far enough that I don’t recognize a single name.’

The teens were still watching him, their expressions a mix of confusion and curiosity. The girl had her arms crossed. The shield boy looked nervous. The dagger boy was still angry, but he was also clearly trying to figure out who Nathan was.

"You’re weird," the dagger boy said bluntly.

"Dax," the girl warned.

"What? He is! Who doesn’t know where Albion is?"

"People from far... Far away," the shield boy offered.

"People from very far far farrrr away," the girl corrected.

Nathan almost laughed. These kids had no idea. They were standing in front of a Climber who had killed dragons, stopped a Cleansing, and stood before the Shepherd himself. And they thought he was weird for not knowing their kingdom’s name.

"What’s your name, sir?" the girl asked.

Nathan considered the question. He didn’t know where he was. He didn’t know what the political situation was. He didn’t know if there were people looking for him... allies or enemies.

But he also didn’t know anything about this world. And these kids were the only source of information he had.

"Cross," he said. "Nathan Cross."

The girl nodded. "I’m Mira. These two are Dax and Ren."

Dax was the dagger boy. Ren was the shield boy.

"We’re adventurers," Mira continued. "Well... we’re training to be adventurers. We’re students at the Marriet Adventurer’s Academy."

"Adventurers," Nathan repeated. "And you... clear dungeons?"

"Yes, sir," Ren said. "That’s what adventurers do. We clear dungeons, hunt monsters, and protect the kingdom from the demon king and his army!."

Nathan glanced at the boulder behind him. "That dungeon. The one I just... cleared. Was that yours?"

Mira’s expression tightened. "We booked it. It was supposed to be our first solo dungeon clear. But when we got to the boss door, it wouldn’t open. And then the dungeon reset and boom! you appeared."

Dax pointed at him. "You stole our boss!"

"Didn’t mean to."

"It doesn’t matter!" Ren stepped in. "The dungeon is reset now. It’ll take weeks for it to respawn. We missed our chance."

Nathan felt a pang of guilt. These kids had been waiting for this dungeon. Preparing for it. And he had accidentally taken their opportunity.

"Can you... rebook it?" he asked.

Mira shook her head. "The F-Rank dungeon queue is months long. We’d have to wait until next season."

Dax kicked a rock. "This is so unfair."

Nathan looked at the three of them. They were young. They were inexperienced. They were trying to become adventurers in a world that clearly had its own rules and systems.

He thought about his own journey. The Tower of Beginnings. The Tutorial Realm. The first time he had faced a boss monster and realized he might actually survive this life.

These kids were at the start of their own journey.

"Look," he said. "I’m sorry about the dungeon. But I have no idea where I am or how I got here. If you can help me figure that out, I’ll make it up to you."

Dax narrowed his eyes. "Make it up how?"

Nathan considered his options. He had money—or at least, he had materials he could sell. He had skills. He had knowledge.

"I’ll... help you train," he offered. "I’ve been clearing... dungeons for a long time. I can teach you a few things."

Mira raised an eyebrow. "You? You don’t even know where Albion is."

"That doesn’t mean I can’t fight."

Dax snorted. "Yeah, right. What are you, level 20? 25?"

Nathan didn’t answer.

Ren looked at him more carefully. "Actually... he’s got a lot of gear. And that bow doesn’t look cheap."

Mira studied him. She was the smart one, Nathan realized. She was weighing the options, calculating the risks and benefits.

"Alright," she said finally. "If you help us train, we’ll help you figure out where you are. Deal?"

"Deal."

She extended her hand. Nathan shook it.

Dax grumbled something under his breath. Ren looked relieved. Mira just nodded.

"Come on," she said, turning toward the path. "Marriet is a few hours away. We can make it before nightfall."

Nathan followed.

As they walked, he asked questions. What kind of monsters lived in the area? What were the adventurers? Did they have ranks? How did the dungeon system work?

Mira answered most of them. She was patient, thorough, and clearly knowledgeable. She explained that dungeons were ranked from F to S, and that adventurers received credentials based on their clear records. She talked about the Adventurer’s Guild, the Kingdom’s military, and the political tensions between Albion and its neighbors.

Dax and Ren chimed in occasionally—Dax with complaints about how hard everything was, Ren with sheepish corrections and apologies.

It was strange.

These kids were adventurers, something similar to climbes... but their world was so different from his own. No Towers. No Climbers. No TCA. Just dungeons and guilds and kingdoms. The classic medieval fantasy.

Nathan felt a growing unease in his chest, his past life as a gamer made all this knowledge easy to understand though.

’Master,’ Kuro said quietly. ’This world is not our own.’

’I know.’

’How will we return?’

’I don’t know yet.’

’The Young Lord should not lose hope,’ Shiro said firmly. ’You have overcome impossible odds before. You will do so again.’

’And we will be with you,’ Ororo added. ’Always.’

Nathan smiled faintly. "Thanks, guys."

Dax glanced back at him. "Did you say something?"

"Just thinking out loud."

"Weird."

"Dax," Mira sighed.

"What? He is!"

Nathan almost laughed again, the banter reminded him of his own party back home.

The path wound through the forest, eventually opening onto a dirt road. In the distance, Nathan could see the walls of a city... tall stone fortifications with banners flying from the towers.

The City of Marriet.