Free Web NovelChapter 10: The Perks of Being Average
When mana first arrived in this world, society was exactly the same as medieval Earth. But the arrival of mana did not just evolve the plants and animals; the planet itself became a massive, living thing.
Individual territories evolved, gaining their own unique consciousness and creating independent planetary systems right on the surface.
Because of this, the physical size of the world expanded massively, stretching the distances between lands to a terrifying degree.
Survival within these newly awakened, chaotic territories quickly became completely impossible for ordinary humans. The wild energy and sentient lands would swallow them whole. But that was when the ancestors of humanity discovered a desperate loophole.
They found out that if they managed to locate and forcefully claim the core of a territory’s consciousness, they could take absolute ownership of the entire land.
By doing this, they could force the sentient territory to submit, stabilizing the region so humans could safely build their settlements inside it.
The Azure Lotus Sect was one such claimed territory. It was a single peak of the Dragon Bone Range, which consisted of nine other untamed peaks. A whole human settlement had developed right under the tamed Peak, birthing the Azure City.
When a territory was claimed from the untamed lands, a massive Light Shield would appear, covering the whole territory under its protective glow.
The place would become completely safe under this shield, with the suppressed consciousness of the land actively preventing any massive attacks from the wild beasts outside.
Rhys was currently walking along the paved stone paths of Azure City. Although the Inner Courtyard of the sect was located at the absolute peak of the mountain, the Outer Courtyard and the labor division were right at the bottom.
Because of this, it only took him about half an hour to climb down the winding mountain stairs and enter the bustling city streets.
He did not take Diamantakos with him today because he did not want anyone to recognize him. Diamantakos was a stunning white horse with a very distinct diamond mark on her forehead.
She was easily recognizable even by some of the sect disciples who hung around the lower stables. Rhys, on the other hand, was the complete opposite.
Rhys’s appearance was not anything special. He was the average among averages. He had common dark hair and light brown eyes that made him completely invisible in a crowd of people, and his height was just an average five feet eight inches.
He was not handsome enough for people to stop their work and stare at him in awe, nor was he ugly enough for those same people to look away in disgust and fear.
[You are a Celestial Origin, host. If you truly want to look handsome, you can easily alter your physical aesthetic parameters using your status template,] the system noted, its silver text popping up at the edge of his vision.
"Why should I?" Rhys muttered under his breath, keeping his head low as he followed behind a crowd of people moving in the direction of the MSFRM.
Being average had its own hidden advantages. He would not be targeted because of his handsomeness or his ugliness. Most people would simply look right past him and not care about him at all.
In his past life on Earth, Rhys had actually experienced this firsthand. At first, he had been pretty depressed about being so plain. He used to hate how invisible he felt in school and at work, until he eventually grew older and heard about the absolute horrors experienced by both incredibly ugly and incredibly pretty people.
He used to have a friend back on Earth who was just plain ugly. The guy’s facial features were like an amalgamation of completely different, mismatched shapes thrown together.
He had the kind of face that made strangers stare in immediate disgust, while little children would literally run away from him in sheer fear. Rhys had listened to a lot of sad, heartbreaking complaints from that poor guy over the years.
People would never give any importance to his words in a conversation, they would constantly cut off his voice during group discussions, and they automatically assumed he was a bad person just based on his looks. Back then, Rhys had been incredibly glad that he was not ugly.
Then, on the flip side, Rhys later became good friends with an insanely pretty girl.
She was always the absolute center of attraction wherever she went. Everyone loved her, doors were constantly opened for her, and people always rushed to help her with everything.
Her life seemed completely perfect from the outside, and Rhys had felt a deep, ugly envy toward her for a long time.
Until the day she got completely drunk at a bar and finally opened up to him.
She cried about how everyone only cared about her outer beauty, and how all of her actual hard work, late nights, and intelligence were completely overshadowed by her face. freёwebnovel.com
To the world, she was not a real person with feelings; she had simply become a pretty vessel for people to look at.
She was constantly harassed, and she could not even tell who her real friends were because everyone wanted something from her.
Those two friends made Rhys realize just how fortunate he actually was. Being completely average meant he was naturally invisible.
No one would ever bother him or suspect him of anything unless he went out of his way to do something special.
If he worked hard in the dark and became someone truly worthy of praise, everyone would judge him purely on his merits, rather than branding his success on his genetic luck or dismissing him because of an ugly face.
So, being average was more than enough for him. It was the perfect camouflage for a guy trying to farm lifespan right under the noses of powerful mages.
Eventually, the crowded stone street widened, and Rhys finally reached his destination.
The building for the Magi Society For Rogue Mages was absolutely massive. Unlike the elegant, traditional wooden pagodas of the Azure Lotus Sect, the MSFRM headquarters looked like a giant, imposing fortress made of dark, volcanic stone.
Thick iron chains ran down the sides of the walls, anchored deeply into the ground, and a large, glowing blue crystal hovered silently right above the main entrance, pulsing with defensive magical energy.
Two heavily armored guards stood at the heavy iron doors, their eyes scanning the incoming crowd with sharp, cold intensity.
Rhys took a deep breath, adjusted the collar of his plain outer jacket, and walked straight through the heavy doors.
The interior of the hall was loud and chaotic. The air smelled faintly of cheap ale, iron, and old parchment. Dozens of rogue mages, mercenaries, and bounty hunters were walking around, some shouting across the room while others quietly studied a massive, glowing bulletin board covered in quest papers.
Rhys walked past the rowdy mercenaries and made his way toward a long, polished wooden counter at the far side of the hall, where several receptionists were handling paperwork.
He picked the shortest line and waited patiently until a young woman with a sharp ponytail and a tired expression looked up at him.
"Welcome to the MSFRM," she said, her voice completely flat and rehearsed. "Are you here to post a request, submit a monster core, or buy supplies?"
"I’m actually here to register as an independent mage," Rhys said, keeping his voice calm and even.
The receptionist blinked, her eyes doing a quick, subconscious sweep of his plain clothes and completely average build.
"Rank?"
"Initiate..."
She wrote it on a paper and gave it to him.
"Go straight from here, then sharp right to the testing room. Place your spellbook on the testing stone. Next."
Her gaze was already on the person behind him, clearly showing she was not interested in any further questions.
Rhys gave her a small nod as he went to the testing room.
