Chapter 166: Identity Cards
Moonlight washed over the group.
For a brief moment, it felt as though they were neither standing nor falling.
Dream and reality intertwined.
The boundary between them blurred until neither could be distinguished from the other.
Then, the light faded.
Everyone found themselves standing somewhere entirely different.
Silence filled the air.
"Wow."
The word escaped Caelum's lips almost unconsciously.
The place before him felt… Unreal.
As if someone had taken the concept of a dream and given it physical form.
Nothing appeared entirely impossible.
Yet nothing felt completely real either.
The air itself shimmered with countless abstract colors.
The colors behaved like thoughts drifting through a sleeping mind.
The atmosphere was vivid and almost alive.
It felt as though the world itself was gently breathing.
Caelum instinctively looked upward.
His eyes immediately widened.
Swimming gracefully across the night sky was an enormous whale.
Its body seemed woven from moonlight itself.
With every elegant movement, countless specks of starlight drifted from its tail like glittering rain.
"…"
Caelum stared in silence.
'Are there people living on its back?'
The absurd thought somehow felt completely reasonable in this place.
Around him, everyone reacted differently.
Sénior crouched down to examine the pale ground beneath his feet.
The soil looked like it was softly reflecting the surrounding light turning it into white.
Skyler was already wondering whether the glowing dirt could somehow be sold.
Nearby stood the tree beneath which they had arrived.
It was unlike any tree they had ever seen.
Its trunk curved gracefully toward the sky before dividing into branches that formed the perfect shape of a crescent moon.
And instead of ordinary leaves, silver petals gently floated around its crown without ever falling.
Every now and then, one would dissolve into tiny fragments of moonlight before quietly reappearing upon another branch.
Far beyond the tree in the majestic mountains, stood an ancient temple.
Moonlight cascaded down its countless stairways like flowing water, making the structure appear both impossibly distant and strangely close at the same time.
Then, everyone looked toward the sky and collectively forgot how to breathe.
The stars above them weren't distant points of light.
Entire constellations slowly shifted across the night sky like enormous paintings.
Some resembled graceful beasts.
While others wandered like travelers.
Several even appeared to be dancing among themselves.
The night sky wasn't merely something to observe, it was something that observed them in return.
The moon hung at its center.
It was immense, radiant and close enough that it almost felt within reach.
"W-Where are we…?"
Paul finally asked.
His voice sounded unusually small within the vastness of this mysterious world.
Before anyone could answer.
The crescent-shaped tree gently swayed.
Whatever had been hiding among its branches had now descended.
Thump.
Something landed directly in front of the group as everyone looked at it.
"Oh?"
Its voice carried an unmistakable note of curiosity.
"Are you all new here?"
The children blinked.
Because, the being standing before them wasn't human.
Not even remotely.
Its body resembled a perfectly smooth floating sphere nearly as tall as an adult.
Its surface gleamed with a soft pearly white radiance.
There were no facial features to it.
Instead, its expressions continuously formed and dissolved across its smooth surface, as though someone were drawing expressions upon them.
The expressions flowed effortlessly across its surface, changing with every passing thought.
The strange orb tilted itself as the expression of curiosity appeared on it.
Caelum stared at it.
'Why does this look like the interface of a mascot AI?'
The thought surfaced almost instinctively.
The floating sphere felt more like a friendly guide created to welcome newcomers here.
The orb blinked as a pair of eyes briefly appeared on its smooth surface.
"Do you possess a visitor pass?"
Its tone remained cheerful.
Before anyone else could answer, Seth stepped forward.
"I do."
Reaching into his pocket, he removed a silver card.
The orb floated closer.
The silver card gently left Seth's fingers and hovered before it.
Without touching the card, the orb simply opened a tiny slit across its body as the card slipped inside.
Soon, the slit vanished as the silver card floated back into Seth's waiting hand.
A pleasant chime echoed through the air.
And the orb's expression became noticeably more respectful.
"Special-Class Entry confirmed. Welcome back, Master Seth."
It said as the characters of 'Welcome back, Master Seth' appeared on the orb.
"As the holder of a Special-Class Visitor Pass, you are authorized to bring an unlimited number of accompanying guests into this Domain and for now temporary identities will now be created for each visitor."
The children exchanged confused glances.
'Domain…?'
Before anyone could ask, Seth gestured toward the children.
"One by one, place your hand on it and yes,"
He looked toward the various summons.
"That includes your summons and contracted spirits too."
Everyone entering this place needed to exist within its records.
Caelum stepped forward first.
The moment his palm touched the orb...
Warm light spread across his hand and the sensation was strangely comforting.
It felt less like touching an object and more like dipping his hand into a honey jar.
A few moments later.
A pale-white card slowly emerged from the orb.
It floated gently into Caelum's hand.
His name shimmered across its surface before fading away, replaced by symbols he couldn't recognize.
One after another, everyone completed the same process.
The orb treated every existence equally, whether Human, Ghost or Lich.
Even Grozni's Undead Knights and Hollow Liches were issued identity.
When Ryan's turn arrived, he cautiously placed his hand against the orb as another visitor card materialized.
Just as he reached for it.
The orb suddenly paused.
Its face slowly turned toward Ryan's shoulder.
"Hmm?"
Its eyes narrowed as it spoke politely.
"Sir, I believe your visitor pass expired quite some time ago."
The Heroic Thief Spirit froze.
"…"
The orb continued.
"Fortunately, since you are a guest accompanying Master Seth today, the renewal fee will be completely waived, and your pass will be updated."
The Heroic Thief's mouth opened before closing in relief.
He wouldn't have to pay that outrageous renewal fee again.
He finally understood exactly where they had been brought.
Then the orb looked elsewhere.
Its gaze settled upon Ryan's waist.
More specifically, upon the sword hanging there.
"Oh… It appears your sword companion does not possess an identity record."
"Would you like me to register him as well?"
Ryan blinked.
"Excuse me?"
He instinctively looked toward the old Sword Spirit.
'It noticed you?'
The ancient spirit remained silent for a while.
"Whether it noticed me or not changes nothing."
Even so, the old Sword Spirit found himself looking at the smiling orb with genuine caution.
This place was becoming far stranger than he had expected.