Chapter 228: The Mysterious Western Safe Zone.

The Northern Safe Zone’s unique bloodline-based power system had naturally shaped the way its society developed. Unlike the Eastern Safe Zone, where guilds and the Hunter Association formed the backbone of civilization, the North had gradually evolved into a society centered around clans.

Over the years, countless clans had emerged throughout the region, ranging from small families with relatively weak bloodlines to powerful clans whose bloodlines could produce Warriors capable of standing at the highest levels of strength.

Since bloodlines could be inherited by offspring, bloodline preservation had naturally become one of the most important aspects of their society.

Marriage wasn’t simply a matter of personal choice in many clans, it could also be a means of strengthening the family.

Powerful clans would marry into other powerful clans, combining their bloodlines in the hopes of producing offspring with even greater potential.

Some sought rare bloodline combinations, while others focused on preserving particularly powerful ancestral traits.

Over time, the entire social structure of the Northern Safe Zone had gradually been shaped around this system.

Yet, despite how interesting Kael found the Northern Safe Zone’s development, one particular detail continued to bother him.

The identity of the Supreme Leader.

Kael’s fingers lightly tapped against the document as he thought about it.

"Was he some kind of Awakener?"

It was the most obvious possibility, but the more he thought about it, the less sense it made.

The Supreme Leader had apparently appeared during the earliest days of the apocalypse. If he had been an Awakener, then he couldn’t have been awakened for very long when he first appeared. The Tower itself had only become known during the early stages of the apocalypse, and the Eastern Safe Zone’s current system had taken time to develop.

So how had someone who had only recently awakened possessed an ability powerful enough to completely change the fate of an entire region?

Kael narrowed his eyes.

Something didn’t add up.

There were too many gaps in the information, and the more he tried to connect them, the stranger the entire situation became. Unfortunately, the documents didn’t contain enough information about the Supreme Leader himself for him to reach any meaningful conclusion.

For now, there was no way to figure it out.

Kael eventually let the thought go and moved on to the next safe zone.

The Southern Safe Zone.

Compared to the North, the South wasn’t nearly as unusual. Its power system was essentially the same as the Eastern Safe Zone’s, humans awakened their powers by killing monsters and leveling up.

The real difference lay in how their society was structured.

Unlike the Eastern Safe Zone, which existed as one massive unified territory, the Southern Safe Zone was made up of several smaller nations that had come together under a single banner.

They were governed by a Council of the Round Table.

Twelve members sat on it in total, each representing one of the twelve nations that made up the Southern Safe Zone. Together, they created and enforced laws, handled major political decisions, and governed the safe zone as a whole.

Kael nodded slightly as he read through the information.

"Not bad."

It was certainly a more complicated system than the Eastern Safe Zone’s structure, but there was nothing particularly strange about it. Twelve nations maintaining their individual identities while cooperating under a single governing council made sense.

Then Kael reached the final file.

The Western Safe Zone.

His interest immediately sharpened.

Unlike the Northern and Southern Safe Zones, there wasn’t much information available about the West. The documents themselves were surprisingly vague, containing only scattered details and brief observations.

Apparently, the Western Safe Zone was considered some kind of holy land.

The people living there were described as extremely religious, with the majority worshipping a deity known as the Great Sun Goddess. Some of the reports even went as far as describing the inhabitants as religious fanatics.

Kael’s eyebrows twitched.

"Religious fanatics?"

He continued reading.

Then he reached the section describing their power system, and his expression slowly changed.

There were no Warriors or Awakeners here. Instead, the Western Safe Zone had individuals known as Apostles, or Holy Children.

According to the information available, these individuals were said to have been blessed by the Sun Goddess.

That was it.

There was no detailed explanation of what that blessing actually meant. No information about the abilities they possessed, no clear description of how their power functioned.

Kael stared at the page for several seconds.

"How mysterious."

He finally closed the file and shook his head.

He had been quite happy when Vice President Jonas sent him information about the other safe zones. He had been curious about them ever since learning they existed, and now he had finally gotten the opportunity to learn more.

Yet somehow, the information had only made him even more curious.

The North had a mysterious Supreme Leader and an entirely different bloodline-based power system.

The South had twelve nations united under a single council.

And the West apparently worshipped a Sun Goddess and possessed Apostles who received mysterious blessings.

The more Kael learned, the more questions appeared.

He leaned back against the bed frame, allowing the documents to rest on his lap as his gaze drifted toward the ceiling.

"Well, I guess I’ll find out once the tournament begins."

The tournament was only about two weeks away.

To prevent any one safe zone from gaining an unfair advantage, the leaders of the different safe zones had apparently agreed that the tournament would consist of four separate challenges. Each safe zone would have the opportunity to host one challenge on its own territory, meaning the participants would eventually have to travel between the different regions.

And according to the information he had just read, the Eastern Safe Zone would host the first challenge.

That meant in roughly two weeks, Kael would finally have the opportunity to meet people from the other safe zones.

He couldn’t help wondering how the Hunter Association intended to handle the entire thing, though.

The existence of the other safe zones was still being kept hidden from the general public. As far as ordinary citizens knew, the Eastern Safe Zone was the only surviving human civilization on the planet.

Would the Hunter Association reveal the truth before the tournament began?

Would they announce the existence of the other safe zones to everyone?

Or would they continue keeping the matter classified and simply explain the tournament without revealing too many details?

Kael considered the possibilities for a moment before shrugging.

"Whatever they decide isn’t my concern."

He had more important things to worry about.

Just as he was beginning to reel his thoughts back in, his phone suddenly rang.

The unexpected sound broke the silence of the room.

Kael reached for the phone and glanced at the screen.

Vice President Jonas.

He accepted the call.

"Hello, Mr. Kael."

"Good day, Vice President Jonas. Hope you’re doing well today."

"I am. How about you?"

"Same."

There was a brief pause on the other end before Jonas spoke again.

"Did you get what I sent to you?"

"Yes. I just finished reading it."

"Oh, that’s good."

Another short silence followed.

Then Jonas’s tone changed slightly, becoming more direct.

"Let me not waste your time and cut straight to the chase."

Kael’s expression became slightly more attentive.

"Mr. Kael, have you considered moving from where you currently live to another district?"