SWORD GOD IN A WORLD OF MAGIC

Shang saw a bit of his young self in Oliver. Sure, Shang had already been different from Oliver back then, but there certainly were similarities.

“Earth?” Oliver asked with a shocked expression. “What do you mean?”

Oliver tried to seem oblivious, but Shang could easily tell that Oliver knew what Shang was talking about.

“You are not the first person sent from Earth to this place, and you won’t be the last. These words have been said to me by my predecessor, and now I’m speaking them to you,” Shang said evenly.

“Just like you, I have come from Earth. I was sent here when I was in my early twenties, and I was a retired professional MMA fighter back then.”

Oliver still looked shocked.

There was someone else from Earth here?!

He had thought he had been the only one!

“So, you also came from Earth?” Oliver asked.

“That’s what I said,” Shang said coldly.

Oliver flinched a bit at Shang’s cold voice. Oliver couldn’t imagine someone like Shang being from Earth.

“What was your job on Earth?” Shang asked.

Oliver looked a bit uncertain. “Well, I was researching semiconductors.”

“What’s that?” Shang asked.

“I basically designed microchips.”

Shang furrowed his brows. “That doesn’t seem very fitting to this world. Why did the God send you here?”

Oliver scratched the back of his head with an embarrassed and nervous smile. “Well, I also loved playing RPGs, and I-“

“The missile?” Shang asked with raised eyebrows.

“No, not the missile. You know, role-playing games,” Oliver quickly corrected.

Shang’s brows furrowed. “Please keep your sex life out of this discussion.”

Oliver looked even more shocked and appalled. “No, that’s not-“

“Why did the God send you here?” Shang asked again.

Oliver wanted to correct Shang regarding the RPG thing, but he couldn’t bring himself to say anything. The pressure Shang exerted compelled him to follow his commands.

“I was also an amateur strongman. I never really made it to the professional circuit due to my studies, but I enjoyed it.”

Shang nodded.

“I think I was chosen because I have been working in research but also because I’ve had some regrets. My job was paying very well, but it also filled my life with grey boredom.”

“Makes sense,” Shang answered. “Tell me what happened after you came here.”

After that, Oliver began to tell Shang about his life here.

He had been in this world for a little less than three years.

In the beginning, he had lived in the middle of the Empress Cobra Zone.

Living there had been incredibly dangerous, and he had nearly died several times.

However, he learned how to survive by staying in the territory of a very powerful beast. The beast was so powerful that it completely ignored Oliver, while the other beasts didn’t dare to come close.

Oliver had no idea where he should go or what he should do. He traveled around, but he only found more swamp wherever he went.

Eventually, about a year later, he came across a Mage that was hunting in his area.

Oliver went to the Mage, and the Mage told him where to go with an annoyed and disgusted voice.

Oliver reached a small village in the Empress Cobra Zone, and he lived there for a couple of weeks.

After living there for a bit, Oliver heard of Duke Whirlwind and the Storm Eagle Zone. He had heard from the God that the strongest warriors in the world lived there and that it would be a good place for him to start.

No one paid a weak Soldier Stage warrior any attention, and he was let through to the Storm Eagle Zone with only a small inspection.

Oliver waited a couple of months for the next tryouts for the Warrior Academy and joined.

He had only barely passed.

“Only barely?” Shang asked with a raised eyebrow. “You lived in the wilds for a full year. How did you only barely pass?”

Oliver looked with shock at Shang. “I had to defeat a Pest Cat! I think a year is a very short amount of time! I was only a normal guy on Earth! A year prior to that, I could have never imagined felling such a mighty beast!”

Shang furrowed his brows.

Then, he looked at the power of Oliver’s body.

“You’ve been in this world for three years?” he asked.

Oliver nodded.

“Why are you only at the Mid Soldier Stage?”

“What do you mean with only?” Oliver asked. “My current body is barely 17. Considering that I managed to reach the level of my current classmates without having any foundation before I arrived here, I would say I’ve done well for myself.”

Shang’s brows furrowed.

At that moment, Oliver no longer reminded Shang of his past self.

“How do you train?” Shang asked.

Oliver told Shang how he trained.

It was essentially a high-intensity workout from Earth. It was about as intense as the training routine of a professional athlete.

“You do know that you are no longer on Earth?” Shang commented.

“Of course,” Oliver answered with a bit of annoyance.

By now, most of his fear had vanished, and he definitely wasn’t the biggest fan of Shang’s arrogant and cold demeanor. It was like nothing Oliver did was good enough for Shang.

“Then why are you training like you are still on Earth?” Shang asked. “Have you not realized the power that Mana has?”

“I don’t have time for more training,” Oliver said.

“What could be more important than training?” Shang asked.

“Seeing the world, having a social life, learning more about Magic, learning more about the surroundings?” Oliver answered with an annoyed expression.

Shang looked evenly into Oliver’s eyes for several seconds.

‘He’s not like George or me,’ Shang thought. ‘From my perspective, he only has the determination and willpower to become an average Commander Stage warrior at the very most. I don’t see any value in training someone like this.’

‘However, my perception can’t compare to the God’s. There must be something special about him that I can’t see.’

“Fine, you live your life however you want. It’s not up to me,” Shang said.

“You’re right. It’s not,” Oliver said with a venomous voice.

Shang didn’t get angry.

“I will now tell you everything you need to know. The God told me to inform you about all the relevant things, and I will do that now.”

“He told you?” Oliver asked with shock.

He hadn’t expected that the God could talk to them when they were already here.

Shang nodded. “First, regarding the trial-“

“Wait a second,” Oliver said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“So, you’re only here because he ordered you?” Oliver asked.

“Yes,” Shang answered.

Oliver’s brows furrowed. “And if he didn’t order you? Would you have come here?”

“I have more important things to do,” Shang answered immediately in a neutral voice.

Oliver slowly closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

After some seconds, he released his deep breath. “Do you need anything from me?”

“No,” Shang said. “I only need to tell you about the relevant things.”

“Not interested,” Oliver said with a curt voice.

Shang raised an eyebrow. “Not interested?”

“Yes, I’m not interested. You can keep your information to yourself.”

Shang frowned. “Are you throwing a tantrum because I’m not helping you out of the goodness of my heart?” Shang asked with a deadpan voice.

“I have morals and standards,” Oliver said. “I’m not interested in receiving ingenuine help. If you want to help me, good. If you don’t, then don’t.”

“Are you seriously jeopardizing your future because of some pointless ideology?” Shang asked.

Oliver’s eyes narrowed, and his spear floated back to his back. “Do you need anything else from me, or can I leave?” he asked with cold politeness.

Shang looked at Oliver for a couple of seconds.

“You can leave.”

Oliver nodded once, said a cold goodbye, and left the room.

Shang remained in the room for a while longer and scratched his chin.

Then, he also left the room.

As he said earlier, he had more important things to do than to pacify some Soldier Stage warrior’s hurt feelings.