Chapter 33: GATES: Embodiment of Sins and Malice Part 1

The GATE is like a portal appearing out of nowhere. It was like it came out of a fantasy anime right now, but ever since I became a Magician, these things are no longer a mere fantasy, it's now part of reality. As soon as I get my body inside the portal, it felt like it was being squashed by gravity amplified thrice. I quickly grab one of the items inside the bag before I get squashed to death. It was the lightweight bead, one of the items used if you felt like you will get squashed inside the GATE. It allows your body to get used to the pressure around you without being burdened.

After eating the bead, the heaviness I felt was alleviated and I can move properly again. I adjusted my eyes around and I realized that this place is very gloomy. You can say that this place is like looking at a creepy forest where evil lurks around in movies. It's not that dark but I can't see much around which is why I didn't like the feeling here. I properly put on the gloves and the Brass Knuckles in my hands this time around.

The brass Knuckles did not respond like what I expected it since they say that these knuckles are a sentient being. However, I didn't care much about it. What I am more concerned about is to find enemies so that I can start collecting items. When I took a step forward, an interface appeared before me like a game.

"Welcome to the Shibuya GATE. You are the first customer to be here today. We will be awarding the first customer with a Mana Potion for you to use."

Alright, this looks like a game indeed. Now I wonder what is going on here, it looks like this is the way the GATES work. Then the voice on my phone started talking again.

"This game feature is made by myself. I made this kind of stuff so that all magicians are able to get into the GATES easier. You can use this feature to look at pieces of information for the items and monsters you encounter. Convenient right? I am so innovative!"

"No sh*t, I already read this kind of stuff in novels. Did you think that you are the one who invented it first?"

"So you want to remove this feature? I can turn it off ya know," the voice said, threatening me.

"No, don't do it right now. I need it," I said immediately.

"Say that this feature is innovative and I am a genius."

"What a shameless woman..." I mumbled.

"By the way, this only works inside the GATES. Don't expect this to work in the real world because I am not an idiot that would keep on helping someone even in their homeland. This is a help for the sake that the survival in the GATES is increased exponentially.

In the end, I complied with the wills of the voice. But I made sure that I can get a strike in the future once an opportunity arises. Although it was a gaming type of feature, it doesn't appear to be a complete one since all the features can do is to recognize creatures and their descriptions. Items too are being given descriptions but that's it, nothing more, nothing less. It might sound useless if you compare it to most system novels but I don't think so. In this foreign land, enemies and foreign objects are what make the GATES world alive.

Due to this, many magicians and other explorers tried to venture into the GATES for the first time and it resulted in death and the likes. The survival rate of the GATES is very low, causing the GATES to cause imbalance and produce monsters which leads to the attacks of monsters in the past that the people mistaken as yokai monsters. To make sure this won't happen again, magicians are forced to once again venture the place and with strong people leading the explorations, they finally found out lots of good things to do and take inside the GATE and what to do to increase the survivability rate of the explorers and that was the beginning that the mechanical voice to help people using this function.

Still, it doesn't mean that the GATES survival rate has a very high-rate now. Even with the app's help, many people are either killed in accident or they are killed by greed. Anything can happen and it's not always the voice's fault they would die. Anyways, let's go back to my situation.

"What are you monologuing there for? Are you getting high or what?"

"Shut up! And please take care of your business!"

"Hmph, I don't know if you are getting crazy or not," the voice said.

"You really piss me off but for the sake of the program, I won't beat this phone up but once I am pissed by you again, I won't hesitate to pull you out of the phone stupid voice!"

"Let me see you try!~"

"DAMN SH*T"

...

After our bickering, I started to continue the exploration. So far, there are still no monsters around and whatever I do, this place is just creepy as f*ck that you might think that everywhere you hide, there will be someone staring at your back. I don't easily get scared by these guys, it's just that it is taxing out here. Still, its been a while but I didn't get to find any monsters around. But what I found here is very interesting. A way back, I found a few herbs crumpled together and with the inspection skill which is one of those skills to determine the item's description, I found out that most of them are medicinal plants necessary for making out potions.

(Ember Moss)

Tier1-Ingredient

Description: Item that is mostly used to increase the power of the magic users that controls fire. Works poorly if eaten raw but works positively if used as a tea leaf and food ingredient.

(Frosty Grass)

Tier1- Ingredient

Description: A grass type that appears silver outside and cold as ice on the inside. It raises the mastery and affinity of someone using the magic of ice. Not so effective to other elements but it won't work on fire users much.

(Healing Stem)

Tier2-Food Ingredient

Description: Eating this would recover your health a bit. Of course, this won't help you heal fatal ones but only wounds heal.

I don't know if it was me or just this place is a very good place that is allowing me to get me to earn lots of items that work well with me especially the Healing Stem. Since injury will always be very common and cannot be avoided, items like this can really save someone. However, this peaceful atmosphere of me picking up items and gathering them, will not last forever. Before I knew it, a demon appeared. This time, it looks like a fat guy full of pieces of jewelry in his body but he looks like he has been killed due to the color of the skin which is grey. And as always, the info appeared.

(Man of Greed)

Tier 1-Enemy

Description: The malice that took form due to the greed of people. It has a tendency to keep on being greedy and eat flesh. They might look human but don't be deceived which somehow costs you your life if you trust this creature. Has lots of tendency to explode.

DROPS: Mana Shards