The passageway began to wind around itself as they ascended, stretching up for what felt like miles. It only took about half a minute to climb, and that was with the two warriors lowering their speed out of concern of being noticed. That never became a problem, though, as the tunnel was completely empty.

  By the time they reached the top, Jonathan had started to notice smells wafting down the passageway from above. The smells of cooking, and of less pleasant things. Of rotting meat, and old blood. Of refuse. It was a complicated melange of scents, and one that was viscerally evident of a city.

  The tunnel ended in a barred metal door, one infused with the stability and strength of Earth. On his side, there was a small handle, so rather than breaking the door down, Jonathan simply opened it. The hinges squeaked slightly as he pushed the solid metal door open.

  Jonathan stepped through into a side street, with a few shifty looking individuals lurking around. The buildings were quite close to one another, casting the alley in darkness. One of the rogues standing about nearby turned slightly, a threatening look on his face. His hand shifted down towards his belt, reaching for a knife. Jonathan leveled a glare at the man, and sent a pulse of his aura out. To his surprise, the layabout did not merely pale, but collapse, foaming at the mouth. At that display, everyone still nearby ran.

  “That was easy,” Jonathan said to Eliza. “He must have been a lot lower level than I thought.”

  “If there are billions here, like the size suggested, then most of them probably aren’t beyond Tier 1,” Eliza replied. “I smelled cooking earlier. Just that is good evidence of Tier 1s being around. The smell of sewage is even better evidence.”

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  “They are just people, after all. None of them have any of the boons granted by Angranor to the Circle Lords and their servants. They’re trapped here, just as much as we are.”

  “From what I’ve seen, it’s more like everyone is trapped in here with you,” Eliza muttered.

  Jonathan scoffed, but didn’t challenge her. He knew that she was at least somewhat right. His rate of progression was utterly absurd, and his strength for his level even more so.

  Idly checking the unconscious ruffian’s aura as the man lay on the street, Jonathan realized that he had been a Tier 4. Not exactly powerful, but Jonathan was sure that at the same level, he wouldn’t have collapsed under a slight amount of aura pressure from a Tier 7. Compared to any normal warrior, Jonathan was two Tiers stronger than his own, or perhaps even more.

  Leaving the supine man in the alleyway, Jonathan headed off towards a narrow patch of light at its end. The alley opened into a much larger street, easily as big as an interstate highway from Earth. It was hundreds of feet wide, and packed with people. Most of them were in some form of military attire, with one common theme.

  A small version of the city’s crest emblazoned somewhere on their outfits. Contrary to what Eliza had said, there were few Tier 1s. In fact, there were many units of soldiers who were higher level than Jonathan himself. He even felt a Tier 8’s aura drifting around somewhere. While he knew he could win easily against one, Jonathan wasn’t sure about his chances if an entire army showed up.

  He and Eliza edged through the crowd, keeping quiet as they moved. Both hid their auras, not wanting to draw too much attention to themselves. They were here to find information, not start a rebellion. Jonathan wanted to level up significantly before facing the next Circle Lord.