Chapter 1 - Prologue

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"It's strange."

The man tilted his head, perplexed. No matter how much he contemplated the situation, those were the only words he could muster.

"It's truly bizarre."

He understood the existence of hunters and the monsters from another world that gathered through dungeons connected to dimensional portals.

He also grasped the concept of an association that managed all these circumstances and the series of processes that allowed one to draw upon their mana through martial arts.

Yet, the question persisted.

"Why do these people live like this?"

To a man who had lived in a world where the survival of the fittest reigned supreme, this society was nothing more than a product of absurdity.

The absurdity lay in the fact that those possessing immense power could only follow the orders of individuals who had risen to authority solely through academic background. Just as preposterous was their powerlessness to object to laws that undermined their own position.

The laws of this era proclaimed that all human abilities were equal.

Ultimately, this very proclamation made even public authority possible.

It was a byproduct of a different age—one where no individuals were capable of destroying tanks with a single hand or evading missiles. The law itself held no power; rather, the direct sanctions accompanying it held the real power.

But even though that proclamation lay shattered, the world seemed to carry on as if nothing had transpired.

Why did they follow the law so diligently? Why didn't they wield their might to the fullest? Was it due to the morally-oriented society? Were there any other sanctions in place?

These thoughts tangled and looped endlessly.

Grappling with these paradoxes, the man soon arrived at the core of his relentless pondering.