I couldn’t see any of the cloaked man’s facial features, but his grip was a testament to his strength. I tried to release my right arm, yet he didn’t budge. His hands were covered in thick dark brown gloves that seemed to be made of leather, but his grip strength was still great.

The way this person appeared out of nowhere was quite astonishing. He had amazing stealth, and great physical strength to back it up.

I used my free arm to pull the Glitcher radar from my storage ring as fast as I could. As soon as it appeared in my grasp, it started beeping as fast as it did when I met Vivian for the first time. A miniature silhouette of the person holding me appeared on the gadget’s screen, indicating his identity as a Glitcher.

So, the reinforcements that Vivian called for have finally arrived…

My focus was on the person in front of me, so I didn’t know whether he came alone or if others accompanied him. His identity was still a mystery to me, but I had an inkling about it.

When I evolved my class for the first time, I went unconscious and had a strange dream. Inside it, I met two people who wore the same outfit that I, Vivian, and this mysterious guy wore.

One was a female with quite a different build from Vivian, and the other was a man called Albert. He had a build and a voice that were quite similar to those of the person that was holding my arm.

I wasn’t sure whether this guy was Albert or just a random Glitcher trying to boss me around. The resemblance was apparent, but I couldn’t be sure.

I guess I’ll just ask him…

“Have we met before?” I asked, “I think I recognize your voice, but one can’t be too sure.”

“Albert Haltrshtuk,” he nodded, “Leader of a group of nomads that are somewhat similar to you, in addition to other minor titles that you’ll find out later. As for now, I need you to confirm that you won’t kill the Warhoog the moment I let you go.”

He was asking me to allow Karflel to live, but I considered him too dangerous even in his current pathetic state. He could have some trump cards hidden, or even call for reinforcements at the very least.

“Jason Stubbs and I’m glad to be an acquaintance of yours,” I replied calmly, “Anyhow, I’m not sure what you’re planning to do with this piece of garbage, but I expect you can extract some information from him, no?

“Oh, I know you, you’re quite the sensation! As for this amputee, of course, we’ll extract everything we can from him,” Albert -who was still holding my arm- replied with his hoarse voice, “We’ll find out where they took your friend, even though I believe you already have an idea about his whereabouts. Besides, this Warhoog’s value is incredible, he should make for a great bargaining chip and an even greater source for confidential information”.

“Wa…Wait, what’re you talking about? And how come you’re claiming the rights to my life as if I was a random animal you saw on the street,” Karflel still had the spirit to complain even with the impending doom, “Just so you know, I’m an important member of the Troopers! They…They will not be thrilled after finding out that I can no longer resume my duties.”

“Yeah yeah, don’t worry,” Albert waved off his free arm, “Not like you can work without any of your limbs, and I doubt you’d be in the right mental state to recover them after we’re done with you.”

The Warhoog raised both of his eyebrows instantly, and his whole body started shaking without uttering another word.

Yikes, he’ll probably get tortured for days on end…

Death would’ve been an easier pill to swallow for Karflel, and he wasn’t getting it today.

After confirming to Albert that I wouldn’t try to kill the Warhoog, the former released my arm and approached the pitiful creature.

He touched Karflel’s forehead with his index finger, which caused the latter to disappear immediately.

Transportation magic? Or perhaps a Storage spell? This might even be his latent ability…

I could only observe for now, as questioning someone with a high standing like Albert about his skillset wasn’t a good idea even if we were the best of friends.

After effortlessly sending away a whole living creature, Albert dusted his hands off

As the hood fell back, Albert’s facial appearance was revealed. Like a middle-aged man, he had silver hair that was gathered in a ponytail on the back of his head. He had a slightly thick beard that was carefully trimmed and shaped up.

His eyes were brown, and thick eyebrows hovered on top of them. He had a warm smile plastered on his face, one that exhibited an air of confidence and wisdom that could not be faked.

“Sorry for the rocky start, but I didn’t have many options at that moment,” he shrugged, “We’re expecting great things from you in the future, but for now, you can enjoy your time and grow steadily.”

Many cloaked figures appeared from the shadows, where they dwelled without any signs of presence. After running a quick count of their numbers, I estimated there to be at least thirty of them. They surrounded Albert from all sides except the front one and none of them uttered a word.

Talk about ominous!

“Well, I don’t know what this Glitcher business is all about, but I’ll wait and see for now,” I nodded with a smile, “Can’t sign up for this without knowing much about your group’s agenda, and what I have to do with it all, can I?”

“I totally understand, but you’ll come around,” he rubbed his hands together, “People like us are but few in this day and age, and we better stick together. Our latent abilities are blessings and burdens at the same time, but they’re priceless nonetheless.

I nodded, despite not understanding much of his mysterious figure of speech. After concluding our exchange, Albert approached Vivian and greeted her. Their conversation turned serious instantly, and they spoke about the ongoing operation.

My latent ability was one of the biggest mysteries on my plate, and I didn’t make sense of it at all. I still had the Quetzalcoatl medal that I gained from the temple in the tutorial, so I might use it to ask that deity about this latent ability of mine. However, it still required the blood of a follower of the feathered serpent for it to work, that’s why I’ve been saving it up until most humans came back from the tutorial.

Not that I have high hopes for it to work flawlessly, but it was still worth a try.

Furthermore, these Glitchers seemed too eager to scout me as a potential member of their group, something that didn’t happen in my previous life at all. I wondered about the reason for that but had no clues. The only being who had the answer to most if not all of my questions, was Loki, but he wasn’t cooperating at all.

Maybe I should’ve ditched him and chosen another deity’s blessing… He’s not helpful at all!

Suddenly, both Albert and Vivian approached me. The serious air around them disappeared, and they seemed as friendly as they could be.

“Alright, Jason. The operation is going as well as it could, and everything is moving smoothly,” he pointed toward the room that was holding the hostages, and I could see all of the Glitchers helping them, “It’s quite amazing what a large group of people can do in a short time when coordinated well. We’ll release the fighters as soon as we’re done with the hostages, then we’ll help everyone get back to their homes.”

“I appreciate your efforts in helping me earlier, Jason,” Vivian bowed toward me, “If not for your help, this mission would’ve been a complete failure. You can rest easy now, our people will take care of it all.”

“Not a problem,” I nodded with a grin, “By the way, now that you’re standing next to Albert, some thoughts occurred to me. You resemble humans, but it’d be an incredible consequence for humans to have appeared on multiple planets across the universe.”

Honestly, I couldn’t tell them apart from humans at all. Sure, Vivian’s white hair made her stand out, but albino humans existed and thus such a characteristic wasn’t a clear indicator that she wasn’t a human.

Albert clasped his hands together and explained.

“We’re not humans, neither of us is,” he pointed towards the cloak that I was wearing, an identical one to his and Vivian’s, “Thanks to this. Generally, it allows for easier communication, but in my case, it saves you from a burden that might be too much to handle.”

Huh?