Digitize: Rebirth of the Silver Death God

After following behind Felick for a while, Nero and Ryo arrived within a spacious outdoor garden with neatly carved wooden chairs and a small table. The fragrance of roses wafted through the open air as the colorful flowers painted a calm, refreshing scenery.

Felick smiled at this before he turned around and looked at Ryo; his eyes had a strange glint as he walked by him and brushed his shoulders, as if Ryo sensed something, he stealthily took something into his arms and didn't watch as Felick left the area.

Nero didn't notice the subtle change even though he stood behind them; as he had arrived at this area, his attention was more on the surroundings and the decorated door from a nearby building.

'This place is good, mother always said a woman's heart rest at her home, maybe she's not a bad....'

Nero was about to make an assumption, but before he could finish his words, the door of the nearby house opened with a slam as Yullia walked towards them with a cold look on her face.

"Boy, you've got some explaining to do. Otherwise, you can forget about leaving today!" Yullia said in a somewhat angry tone as she stared at Nero.

Nero looked at her a bit puzzled as he reassessed his previous thoughts, 'Mother might have been wrong...'

As he recalled her words, he couldn't help but make a contemplative look while he pondered, 'Hmm, what does she want me to explain? I'm sure that I've done nothing to... wait...'

Nero was about to make an assessment, but as if he only realized, his eyes widened as he glanced at Ryo while thinking, 'Is she angry about Ryo? Crap. I had forgotten that I was the only person invited; this darn stalker had somehow managed to join alongside me.'

As if Yullia knew his thoughts, she gave him a deep look as she spoke, "Little Handsome, you are going to have to explain why you've brought an unknown person with you? I don't recall handing him a..."

Yullia was about to say something, which caused Nero's face to turn dark. He had no idea how to clarify this situation; he certainly couldn't say Ryo was his stalker from an unknown party.

Luckily for him, though, Ryo seemed to have been prepared. He stared at Yullia and cut her speech off by holding out a card as he spoke, "I trust that this card is enough to explain my purpose, so there is no need to over-analyze the current situation."

Ryo's sudden interference angered Yullia; she was about to teach him a harsh lesson. Still, as her eyes ran over the card, they narrowed as she saw the letters UEG along with a strange symbol of a ring along with two human silhouettes connected by chains at its center.

'UEG High Command, and that symbol, could he be that child's Life Retinue? If so, how could this boy have such status?'

Yullia thought with a more stern look on her eyes as she shifted them from Ryo to Nero, Nero having no idea of what the card meant, made a confused look which caused Yullia to frown even more. Her thoughts were now unknown to all.

'What's the card all about?' Nero thought as he looked at the card in Ryo's arm, but he couldn't figure anything out despite observing it.

Not long after, Yullia seemed to have calmed down as she had a more gentle look on her face; she stared at Nero and spoke with a smile, "Little Handsome, I didn't know you were such a man with status, it looks like I've been hoodwinked, you'll definitely need to take responsibility for this later. As for now, let me officially welcome you and your friend here to our Blood Steel Society."

When Nero heard this, he looked at Yullia and Ryo in shock, he didn't know how that cards caused her to change her manner, but after thinking a while, he decided not to let it get to him.

Yullia nodded at Nero's ability to adapt and focus; she continued to speak, "I trust that you've already heard of your duties as a Blood Steel Society member, but as newbies, there are a few things that I should impart onto you. Now that you've joined us, you can be regarded as Junior Members; these are personal that are at the Novice Rank as Digitizers. There are no more than a hundred plus novices within the current generation of our society with the addition of yourselves but as novices. You aren't entitled to major obligations. Instead, this is a period by which you should all focus on improving yourselves and growing as strong as you possibly can using every opportunity in the Novice Zone."

When Nero heard this, he clenched his fist tightly as he had to claim any opportunities he can get; strength is the most fundamental rule in all society.

Ryo seemed unphased by this, as he had long since put away the card and focused once more on his mobile phone.

Yullia at the duo strangely as she continued speaking, "Now, I've told you of what you need to do as novices, but you have yet to learn how to even go about it. I shall enlighten you both on a few secrets; the Novice Zone though large by many times compared to our world, is still just a small space within the boundless World of Promise. There are many different Secret Zones, Dungeons, and Digital Quest Relics looming in unknown areas. Each of these things can gain you lots of experience, weapons, and even unique skills. However, a few Special Events in every zone can allow Digitizers to see a rise in strength much more quickly. These are known as Special Legacy Events; while the upper zones have more than one, the novice zone has only one Legacy Event, which is the yearly trials known as the Gate of Legends."

Nero listened keenly to Yullia's words, as though he knew some of these details, he didn't have an in-depth understanding.

Yullia once more continued to speak, "Generally speaking, after novice arrives at Level 10, they would immediately accept their Inheritance Bit Quest. Only by doing so could one quickly achieve a rise in power, allowing them to venture from the beginner's area into the Novice Central Lands. By traveling those regions and overcoming all obstacles, can one truly achieve the peak of Novice Rank and accept the trail of Ascending to the Upper Zones. If luckily, your path will be smooth, as some people even found traces of rare chain quests that can lead to unique discoveries in the Upper Zones. However, most times, that path can be one of the difficulties with nothing gained despite exploring and struggling for extended periods. Hence, it has become an unspoken rule for all novices of a certain generation to limit themselves at Level 10, even pushing back their Inheritance Bit Quest for the sake of entering the Gate of Legends. After all, doing so will save them a lot of trouble and make their path to ascension much easier."

When Nero heard this, his eyes flashed with realization as he thought, 'Interesting, so that's how it is, it's no wonder why I haven't seen any person at the levels beyond 10 in even the town. The rest must have more or likely advanced to the Novice Central Lands, but as for everyone else, they are likely waiting on the Gate of Legends.'

Not wasting any more time, Yullia then wrapped up her words, "So, as you could have pretty much realized, the Gate of Legends for this year is at the end of the coming week. To be granted access, one would need to attend the DU Meet. You will need a race token to show signs of allegiance, and only members of a society or from powerful families can earn such a thing."

Nero frowned as he heard those words; he looked at Yullia and asked, "Wait, so this DU Meet, what is it that we're going to do there? Do we have to compete for that token?"

Yullia smirked as she replied, "Hehe, you're quite sharp. Indeed, you'll need to prove your mettle against each of the other talents, but... there are cases where you won't need to fight at all, for instance, if you are qualified in the Novice Ranking List. You will be given a token directly, but that will still be up to everyone to decide, anyone can challenge a Ranker to claim their token, many persons prefer to keep a low profile and rise without showing their names on rankings."

'Hmph! Even if they do challenge me, I'll make it such that they'll never think such thoughts again...' Nero thought with a cold look in his eyes, unknowingly releasing a slight amount of murderous desire.

Ryo looked at Nero and nodded as if he liked his current change; Yullia smirked at this while in thought, 'Oh my, this handsome boy is bold, huhu... I can't wait to see his results.'

After wrapping up her thoughts, Yullia stared at them and spoke close off, "Good, I've said what I needed to say. You are both free to go about your business, but do please remember, the date for the DU Meet is Friday next week, so please strive to prepare yourselves as much as possible by then, following it is the Gate of Legends, which is on Sunday."

When Nero and Ryo heard this, they both gave Yullia a look before nodding. Nero smiled and spoke, "Great, Aunty Yullia. I'd like to thank you for the details provided. I shall ensure to do my very best at that DU Meet, take care."

After saying those words, Nero then left as Ryo followed along with a moment's hesitation, as expected of a tail.

Yullia stared at Nero's back with flashing eyes as she murmured, "Heh, such confidence, I'm eager to see his results..."

Following those words, a soft wind blew across the surroundings, rustling her dress along with her hair, as she soon after faded in the surroundings.