After the world discovered The Oneness, the United States—the first nation to uncover teleportation gate technology and find the otherworldly realm later called The Oneness—made a historic shift.
Not long after, the U.S. changed the name of NASA to TheOneness Association, turning its primary focus toward pioneering exploration of this mysterious new dimension.
At first, people thought the U.S. would monopolize teleportation gate technology. But for reasons unknown, the Oneness Association distributed the technology worldwide—though still under its strict supervision.
The association had absolute authority over the teleportation system that linked Earth to The Oneness. Some countries accused it of interfering in international affairs, but in the end they all had to comply.
The benefits drawn from The Oneness were simply too immense. Because of this, the management system of the Oneness Association became the global standard.
Now, Nawa had arrived at the Oneness Association of Thailand.
The building was a colossal tower, so tall that from his vantage point he couldn't even tell how many floors it had. Players from across the country traveled here to use the teleportation gate into The Oneness.
The teleportation gate installed at this branch wasn't the largest in the world, yet its value was in the hundreds of billions of baht—more expensive than constructing the nation's largest international airport.
And still, it could only teleport a few thousand people per day, a surprisingly small number compared to Thailand's nearly one hundred thousand registered players.
Fortunately, players didn't teleport every day. Most of them lived inside The Oneness itself, only returning to Earth for important business. That kept congestion at the teleportation gate manageable.
Nawa stepped inside the building. Its size rivaled that of a mega shopping mall, complete with escalators and glass elevators.
Holographic images and dazzling lights filled the space. If this had been five years ago, the city would have needed to shut down power for an entire district to keep this place running. But nowadays, just a few energy crystals could power the whole tower for months.
Most of today's technology ran on energy crystals rather than fossil fuels. Unlike nuclear energy, these crystals caused no pollution and carried no danger. Oil had become as obsolete as coal—something that existed, but no one used anymore.
The people's attire here was just as eye-catching: suits of medieval armor, wizard robes, ninja outfits, even flowing garments resembling the martial heroes from old Chinese wuxia films.
It was like the ultimate gathering place for players. Nawa felt as though he had stepped into a real-life MMORPG.
At the center of the building stood the skeletal remains of an enormous creature. It didn't look artificial. Its size and shape resembled a dinosaur from Jurassic Park—but this one had wings.
Nawa guessed it was the skeleton of a wyvern, or perhaps even a dragon.
The shops inside didn't sell smartphones or fashionable clothing. Instead, most sold weapons and artifacts—items essential to players.
These were displayed in glass cases like gold in a jewelry shop. Each item wasn't for show but carried special properties, granting stat boosts to the buyer.
Nawa wandered past the shops, inspecting prices. Even though he had no money to spare now, he wanted to gather information for the future. Yet nearly everything cost as much as a house or a car.
The weapons for sale were mostly ancient—spears, swords, bows. Modern weapons were absent because The Oneness contained an energy that nullified advanced technology. Guns, explosives, and electronics all failed, reduced to useless scrap.
Even ordinary steel from Earth grew brittle there, turning soft like clay—incapable of cutting even a monster's hair.
Attempts had been made to craft modern weapons from materials in The Oneness, but the properties of those materials differed too greatly. The results never matched the effectiveness of ancient-style weapons.
Thus, players relied on weapons forged from The Oneness's resources. Though primitive in design, when enhanced with player skills and knowledge, they possessed destructive power equal to—or even greater than—modern arms. Some high-level players could unleash skills rivaling missiles.
Weapons and equipment in The Oneness were divided into eight tiers:
Normal Equipment – Power Level 1–10
Good Equipment – Power Level 11–30
Premium Equipment – Power Level 31–70
Rare Equipment – Power Level 71–150
Epic Equipment – Power Level 151–300
Unique Equipment – Power Level 301–700
Legendary Equipment – Power Level 701–1000
God-Tier Equipment – Power Level 1000+
So far, the highest equipment publicly known reached only the Unique tier, wielded exclusively by the world's top players.
Though rumors spoke of Legendary gear hidden within The Oneness, none had ever been obtained. As for God-tier equipment, no one had even seen it—existing only as a theoretical rank.
Nawa's eyes sparkled with wonder as he looked around. Then something caught his attention: a staff topped with a black crystal the size of a tennis ball.
He remembered it well. It was the same kind of magic crystal his grandfather, Alfor, once used to create a protective barrier for him and his werewolf friend to train. Those magic crystals existed in abundance inside the Rainbow Cave—the very place once occupied by the White Snake.
What stunned him wasn't the staff itself, but the price tag: 5,5xx,xxx baht. If he'd brought back just a shard of broken crystal from that cave, he could have become a millionaire. Even the smallest piece he remembered was larger than the one fixed onto this staff.
Nawa wondered how much his Dragon Scale Shirt and Lek Lai Armguard might be worth. But now wasn't the time to reveal them. He was still too weak. If anyone tried to take them by force, his life would be in danger.
For now, he would keep them hidden, using them only to increase his chances of survival in The Oneness.
Besides weapons, the shops also sold potions of staggering prices. Many items were things he'd never seen before—even back in the Himmapan Forest.
There was enchanted rice labeled at thirty thousand baht per gram, talismans ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions, and rune-carved stones.Eventually, he reached the skill and technique section.
Back in the Himmapan Forest, the only thing he had learned was meditation, since none of the available skills matched his innate ability of telekinesis. Here, however, he hoped to finally find skills that resonated with his psychic powers.
Nawa wandered around for a while, only to find that none of the available skills suited his telekinetic powers.
More than half of them were attribute-enhancing skills—strength, speed, endurance—which were more fitting for psychics specializing in biocontrol, the ability to manipulate cells within their own bodies.
The only skills Nawa could actually train in were techniques—combat styles or weapon proficiencies—that didn't require any psychic foundation.
But Nawa wasn't overly concerned. With his deep understanding of the fabric of space-time, he could adapt his telekinesis to achieve feats no one else could imagine.
Even if there weren't any skills tailored to him, just having information about the existing ones was useful. At the very least, it gave him an idea of the current capabilities of players in this world.
Although the main focus of players was monster hunting, battles to the death between them weren't uncommon. After all, within The Oneness, there were no laws, no surveillance—nothing to stop humans from killing one another over disputes of interest.
The association's building turned out to be far larger than Nawa had imagined. Despite walking for quite some time, he still hadn't found the player registration area. He realized that if he just kept wandering aimlessly, he could search all day and still not find it.
"Excuse me, do you know where the player registration area is?"
Nawa asked a beautiful woman who seemed to be an association staff member. She was dressed in a formal business suit, standing out from the others.
"The registration area? I think it's on the 15th floor," she answered, giving him a sweet smile.
Nawa was surprised by her choice of words—I think? But he continued asking anyway.
"And which part of the 15th floor would that be?"
"The entire floor is for player registration," she explained.
"Honestly, I'd love to walk you there myself, handsome, but I have to hurry. The guild master of The Future is about to give a press conference in the basement, and I'm on duty. Good luck with your exam!" She flashed him another smile before hurrying off.
Nawa's eyes gleamed—not because of her attention, but because he had just learned something valuable. This was a rare chance to see an A-rank player, one of only ten in the entire country.
Knowing that the whole 15th floor was for registration, he wasn't in any rush; it would only take a few minutes to get there anyway. For now, he decided to attend the press conference first.
After all, he wanted to see what an A-rank player was really like. Even if he wouldn't get to watch them fight, he wasn't about to miss the chance to witness one of the strongest ten players in the nation with his own eyes.
When Nawa arrived at the basement, he found an expansive space, almost like a concert hall or an exhibition arena. A large stage stood in the center, prepared for the press conference. Rows upon rows of chairs filled the area in front of the stage.
He had never seen a press event like this before and found himself curious. The seats near the front were filled with reporters, including the woman who had guided him earlier. It seemed he had misunderstood—she wasn't an association official, but a journalist.
Before long, the crowd stirred. Everyone turned their gaze toward the same direction as a group of people entered. Leading them was a middle-aged man whom Nawa recognized immediately.
Five years ago, he had been a successful young businessman who left his family's enterprise to pursue a career in politics. But when The Oneness was discovered, he abandoned politics to found The Future guild. Within a short time, the guild had risen to become one of the top three in the nation.
Click, click, click!
Flashes from countless cameras lit the room as Tana, the guild master, stepped onto the stage. Nawa frowned. There was no aura, no pressure radiating from him at all.
To Nawa, he looked no different from an ordinary man. Yet that, in itself, was terrifying. To conceal his strength so completely—this man was no less dangerous than the foes Nawa had once faced in the Himmaphan Forest.
"Thank you all for attending this press conference," Tana began.
"I'll get straight to the point. As you know, The Oneness has no laws. Anyone who enters must rely on their own strength to survive. The only safeguard is one's own power and the allies one trusts. This is why groups form, from small parties to massive guilds.
Guilds have greatly reduced the losses from monster hunting. However, the dangers of The Oneness are not limited to monsters or its brutal environment. One of the greatest threats comes from players themselves.
Statistics from the last three years show that the leading cause of death in The Oneness is not monsters—but murder. Over three-quarters of those deaths were caused by other players. The root cause is simple: no laws, no consequences."
Nawa recalled the information he had once seen in an internet café after returning to Earth.
Player devices had a built-in punishment system: if a player initiated combat and killed another, their rank icon would turn red, and their system functions would be disabled for a time.
Red-named players became targets for everyone, since killing them not only removed the mark but also yielded a bounty from the system—and all items stored in their dimensional vault would drop upon death.
It was a deterrent meant to discourage killing. But it wasn't perfect. Many still exploited loopholes, torturing their victims into committing suicide to avoid the penalty. It was cruel, merciless, and tragic.
Tana's voice hardened.
"From today onward, The Future Guild will put an end to this. We will take responsibility for protecting lives and upholding justice within The Oneness.
Any player who commits atrocities—even if they do not bear the red mark—will be treated as an enemy of our guild. We will begin enforcing this in the kingdom of Jotundia, the stronghold of Thai players."
The room erupted in murmurs. Reporters raised their hands frantically. The guild's spokesperson pointed to the journalist Nawa had spoken with earlier.
"So you're saying The Future Guild will act as law enforcement in Jotundia?" she asked.
"That's correct," Tana replied calmly.
"We will establish a headquarters in the capital of Jotundia to handle reports."
Another reporter asked,
"But what if criminals have the backing of other guilds? How confident are you that The Future Guild can stand against them?"
"Our guild has three A-rank players, dozens of high-rankers, and countless other capable members spread throughout Jotundia. We also have the support of the kingdom's military. This will not be an issue."
"Isn't this effectively a declaration of war against the other top guilds—like Earth Tigers and Sky Dragons?" another pressed.
"I don't see it as war. We are not competing for resources. We are protecting justice," Tana answered evenly.
"Have you coordinated with the other guilds?" the female journalist asked again.
"We've notified them, both in Thailand and neighboring countries. While we haven't received official responses yet, I believe they'll support us."
"And if they refuse?" she pressed. The hall fell silent, tension thickening.
Tana's expression sharpened.
"Then I will still uphold justice. If criminals act in The Oneness, we will punish them—regardless of who they are or what guild supports them."
BOOM!
The podium exploded, splinters of wood scattering across the stage. People near the front were thrown back, but Tana, standing closest, remained untouched—not even a scratch.
"You arrogant fools!"a voice roared.
"The Future Guild dares call itself the law in The Oneness? I, Singkhon, will do as I please! If you're truly strong enough, then come and stop me!"
A young man with tanned skin, clad in ancient military armor, shouted from behind the reporters.