The morning fog hung low over the streets of Backlund, clinging to the stone buildings like damp cloth. Shen stepped onto the narrow sidewalk and pulled his coat a little tighter around himself.
Even after three weeks, the air still felt strange.
Back on Earth, cities had smelled like gasoline and dust. Here it was coal smoke, damp wood, and the faint scent of the river drifting through the streets. The mixture wasn't pleasant, but he was slowly getting used to it.
The cobblestones were still wet from last night's drizzle. A carriage rolled past, its iron wheels scraping against the stones while the horse snorted clouds of breath into the fog.
Shen walked along the street quietly, hands in his pockets.
Workers were already moving through the district. A few men in worn coats hurried toward the factories with their lunch tins. A woman opened the shutters of a bakery, letting out the warm smell of fresh bread. Somewhere farther down the street a newspaper boy was shouting the morning headlines.
"Morning edition! Tussock Times! Dockside disappearance investigation continues!"
Shen slowed slightly when he heard that.
Disappearances again.
That wasn't exactly rare in Backlund. In a city with millions of people, gangs, cults, and Beyonders, people vanished all the time.
Still, hearing it out loud made the world feel a little more real.
He stopped near the newspaper boy and bought a copy for a copper coin.
The paper was still damp with fresh ink. Shen unfolded it while walking.
The first page had the usual mix of things: political discussions in Parliament, a trade dispute with the Intis Republic, and several smaller articles about crime in the East Borough.
One headline caught his attention.
"Unusual Lights Reported Near Sewer Maintenance Tunnel."
Shen raised an eyebrow slightly.
That sounded suspiciously like the type of rumor that often showed up in Beyonder circles.
Of course, it could also just be gas leaks or drunk dock workers seeing things.
He folded the newspaper again and tucked it under his arm.
The fog shifted slightly as the wind moved through the street. Shen could hear the distant sound of ships' horns from the direction of the harbor.
Backlund was huge, but the river always reminded people where the city's lifeblood flowed.
His steps slowed as his thoughts drifted back to the golden words that had appeared in his mind that morning.
Pathway: Unbonded.
He still had no idea what that meant.
The name itself felt strange.
Most pathways in Lord of the Mysteries had clear themes.
Hunter. Spectator. Seer. Bard.
Even if someone didn't know the exact abilities that pathway gives, the names gave hints.
But Unbonded?
Shen quietly repeated the word in his mind.
Unbonded could mean freedom. Independence. Something that refused control.
Or it could mean something else entirely.
Something detached from normal pathways.
That thought made him frown slightly.
In this world, there were not only the twenty-two pathways controlled by the orthodox churches, cults, and secret organizations,
There were also the Outer Deities.
And their pathways were… not something anyone sane would want to touch unless they were suicidal or desperate.
Shen rubbed his forehead lightly.
"Hopefully not that," he muttered.
If this pathway originated from an Outer Deity, then drinking the potion would be less like becoming a Beyonder and gaining power, and more like volunteering to lose his mind and asking for suicide.
While he was thinking, he suddenly discovered a shocking truth he had not considered since his transmigration to this world.
The realization that he was not yet corrupted by the knowledge he had.
Is this a benefit of being transmigrated?
He turned onto a wider street where the fog had thinned a little. Gas lamps still burned weakly even though morning had already arrived.
As he walked, his thoughts drifted toward another possibility.
Maybe he shouldn't gamble on the unknown pathway at all.
After all, he knew several safe options.
The Seer pathway.
Klein's future path.
Shen knew many of the potion formulas, but for Seer and Hunter he knew them all the way up to Sequence 0.
Not to mention the acting methods for this pathway—he could take reference from Klein, who walked this pathway all the way to Sequence 0, allowing faster progress.
But thinking about that made him shake his head almost immediately.
No.
Absolutely not.
Choosing the Seer pathway meant stepping onto the same road Klein would eventually walk. Meaning he couldn't advance further than Klein if he ever wanted to reach higher sequences.
Though he could later switch to its adjacent pathways, Marauder and Apprentice, it would be hard to advance smoothly and he did not have the formulas and rituals to smoothly advance to either Marauder or Apprentice at high sequences.
And that road came with a very specific problem.
Amon.
Shen had read the novel.
He knew exactly how terrifying that monocled parasite could be.
Becoming a Seer or any of the cowardly trio meant eventually running into Amon who could turn him into one of his avatars without hesitation or mercy.
He was not like Klein, who possessed a Sefirah and had the support of the Evernight Goddess, which made Amon reconsider whenever he faced him.
Even worse, if anyone supporting Klein noticed another Seer progressing too fast, such as the Evernight Goddess, it would attract her attention as well.
Shen had zero interest in becoming a pawn in someone else's destiny.
He exhaled slowly.
The Hunter pathway was another option.
That one was very tempting.
The combat ability alone made it attractive. Hunters were strong, practical Beyonders. They survived well in chaotic environments.
But there was also a problem with that path.
The Demoness pathway.
Hunters and Demonesses were deeply entangled.
And Shen had absolutely no desire to get involved in the complicated and dangerous mess surrounding demonesses.
He had read enough in fanfics to know that path came with more trouble than it was worth. Even though its abilities were more to his liking—except for turning into a woman at Sequence 7.
Shen scratched the back of his head slightly as he continued walking.
There was also the Spectator pathway.
That one was extremely appealing.
The abilities were useful, subtle, and relatively safe compared to many other pathways.
A Spectator could observe emotions, manipulate emotions and situations, and survive by thinking instead of fighting.
For someone who knew the story of this world, it would actually be a very good choice.
But that pathway also had a serious problem.
The Psychology Alchemists.
More specifically…
A certain Russian priest.
Shen didn't know if he would ever run into Klein in the future, but if he did, being part of the Spectator pathway might draw the attention of people who watched that path closely. Especially that Russian priest who might pay close attention to Klein as the one who possesses Sefirah Castle.
That was the last thing he wanted.
He sighed.
"Every option comes with problems."
The fog thinned further as he reached a busier district.
Shops were opening. A few carriages passed by carrying merchants or minor officials heading toward work.
Shen slipped a hand into his coat pocket.
His fingers brushed against a few coins.
He pulled them out and looked down.
Two pounds.
That was everything he had.
Shen stared at the coins for a few seconds before letting out a small breath.
"…Right."
Here he was seriously thinking about becoming a Beyonder while holding only two pounds.
The potion ingredients alone would cost dozens of pounds at minimum.
Some rare ingredients could cost hundreds.
Even basic mysticism materials weren't cheap.
Shen closed his hand around the coins again.
This was where Klein had been incredibly lucky.
Klein had been pulled into the supernatural world through the Nighthawks.
They had given him guidance, protection, and even the chance to drink his first potion.
Shen didn't have that kind of opportunity.
There were no Nighthawks knocking on his door.
And honestly, he wasn't sure he wanted that kind of attention either.
Being recruited by an official church meant being watched.
It meant responsibilities.
And it meant restrictions.
Shen preferred something a little more… flexible.
He slipped the coins back into his pocket.
"So first step," he muttered quietly.
"Somehow find a way to make money."
Without money, even the safest pathway would remain out of reach.
That was why he was heading to Bravehearts Bar.
It was one of the few places in Backlund where Beyonders, bounty hunters, information brokers, and smugglers occasionally crossed paths.
Not openly, of course.
But if someone paid attention and asked the right questions, they might eventually find their way into a Beyonder gathering.
Shen had no intention of rushing things.
For now, he just needed information.
And maybe a few connections.
He turned down a narrower street where the buildings leaned slightly closer together.
The smell of alcohol drifted faintly through the fog.
That meant he was getting close.
A few rough-looking men stood near the corner talking quietly. One of them glanced at Shen briefly before losing interest.
Shen kept his pace calm and natural.
Acting nervous in a place like this would only draw attention.
After another minute of walking, he finally saw it.
A wooden sign hung above a heavy door.
The painted letters had faded a little, but they were still readable.
Bravehearts Bar.
Muted noise came from inside. Laughter. Glass clinking. A chair scraping against the floor.
Shen stopped a short distance away and looked at the entrance.
For a moment, he didn't move.
This was the first real step.
Beyond that door was the hidden side of this world.
Beyonders, potion formulas, occult knowledge, and dangers.
Shen exhaled slowly.
The golden words in his mind appeared again briefly.
Pathway: Unbonded.
He still had no idea what it meant.
But after thinking through all the other options, the unknown path didn't seem quite as unreasonable anymore.
At least it had appeared in his mind like some kind of cheat every transmigrator has, right?
Hopefully it wasn't a trap from some distant cosmic horror.
He shook his head slightly.
"Well…"
"If I'm going to gamble, I might as well start somewhere."
Shen stepped forward.
The wooden floorboards creaked faintly as he climbed the short steps toward the entrance.
He reached out and pushed the door open.
Warm air mixed with the smell of alcohol and tobacco drifted out to meet him.