The Dawn of the New World

Near the southeast end of the old Endless Forest, a small village stands alone just outside the forest's boundary.

This village is the last safe haven before the undergrowth starts taking over the land in its entirety. It rarely sees any visitors throughout the year unless there is a massive food shortage or the spiritual beasts crossing over, in which case the Hallvard Clan sends its fighters to help the locals and keep the peace.

It is a small settlement with barely fifty residents and no more than twenty buildings in total yet right now, the buzzing of crowds that were teeming with passion makes it match one of the three bustling cities in grandeur.

Hundreds upon hundreds of people belonging to all kinds of different races and species were gathered in this nondescript spot.

Close to two hundred large tents were pitched outside the village. When viewed from afar you could easily distinguish the tents into three large sections, each with a slightly different style.

The tents on the bottom left were white and green in color with the majority of the individuals entering and exiting them being the MOST normal-looking humans here.

The ones opposite to them on the bottom right were white and orange in color, with the majority of individuals being also resembling humans in their physical characteristics but 2-3 times larger than an average human from earth.

They were muscular to the extreme, both males and females, with large weapons strapped to their backs or sides of both the sharp and blunt variety. They were also hairier in general with a few of them even looking quite beastial.

The third set of tents on the top were black, red, and white in colors, looking the most diverse of the three. These tents had the least number of people passing through them with the majority belonging to various demihuman species.

They were still bi-pedal but possessed extra features like tails, beastial ears, snouts, faces and some even had paws and claws instead of normal hands and feet. Species like these were quite common in the Beast World but on this planet, this was the first time they were seen natively.

Individuals from each camp gathered around and mingled with one another, for the most part.

There were a few of them from each camp that didn't seem to be enjoying themselves like the others. Their expressions were cold and they were quite high-strung, keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings while carefully moving through the crowds trying their best to keep low profiles but with one or two of them wearing long hoods that covered all of their faces, it had the opposite effect.

Members from the Demihuman clan were in a party of six. Two females with exaggerated muscular and feline features identical to that of cheetahs, while the male had the head of a ferocious black wolf with pierced ears and a large physique.

They were escorting two hooded figures let by a handsome bespectacled man with white cat ears, trying to mix in with the crowd, albeit unsuccessfully.

All the nearby people that saw them moved aside and bowed from the waist with radiant smiles and revered expressions, whispering amongst themselves in low voices that were still easily picked up by them.

A conversation taking place between two teenagers with fox ears and tails was picked up by the wolf demihuman.

"Is that them? From the main Hallvard Clan?"

"It looks like it."

"Then if the rumors are true, those two in front should be the young daughters of the Clan head right?"

"Maybe, I don't know."

"Go check!"

"Fuck off, I'm not going! Do you not see their guards?!"

The wolf demihuman who was listening in on their conversation couldn't help but grin and puffed out his chest unconsciously. He looked towards them with a haughty smile.

"Heh, damn straight! Who do you think this lord here is-" as he was talking down to the two teenagers, he didn't look ahead and bumped into the two hooded figures with full force, sending them crashing into a nearby food stall.

"No! My Ladies are you okay!?" the muscular females ran up to them trying to help them stand up but froze mid-stride.

Their hoods had fallen, revealing four scrawny demihuman children underneath. They were sitting over each other's shoulders in pairs of two, pretending to be two normal-sized people.

"Damn it! The cover is blown, scatter!" one of them shouted and they all jumped left and right in different directions, disappearing within seconds.

The crowd as well as the guards were in total shock. Only the bespectacled man with white cat ears was able to react in time, throwing a white fruit at one of the children.

"You damn mongrels! Where are the princesses!?"

Just then, the ground started shaking. A bright golden light appeared in the sky, passing over the village and crashing in the Endless Forest with a loud boom and a small earthquake.

Someone started screaming, setting off a chain reaction of panic and confusion.

"We're under attack!"

"Run for your lives!"