"Huh?"

Noah rapidly blinked his eyes at the notifications greeting his eyes. Despite having sufficient knowledge about the possible turn of events in case of his success, His triumphant smile couldn't help but strengthen even more by his accomplishment.

"Finally" Pumping his fists, he cried out.

Without wasting any time, he focused on the dialog box and confirmed the decision to accept the Profession. Constant rings registered to his mind. However, before he was able to go through the new stuff, Gul interrupted him.

"Seems like you got it, mate." He remarked from the side.

"Hmm, you helped a lot. Thanks" That was the absolute truth. Without him, he knew it would have taken him much longer to reach this point. Noah wasn't going to shy away from this fact. He wasn't an ungrateful prick, at least not when it came to this stuff.

Gul hummed in satisfaction and continued.

"Pack up, we are going to celebrate"

"What?? wait a min. My clothes at least." Not given any time to react, he was scooped up by his single hand and dragged out.

Left with no choice, he opted to be satisfied with just throwing out his gloves and covers back at his work desk.

Using his other hand, Gul pushed open the entrance doors to the forge, stepping into the store's front.

The customers looked to be generally surprised by the spectacle but he could see that every single store staff without missing a single one rolled their eyes at them. There was one exception, though who felt it was not worth his attention. Gul seems to think otherwise as he with himself in tow headed straight towards that someone.

"Zelus, the boy's got his profession. We are going out to Iggim's place."

"Noted."

"What do you mean noted? you are coming with us."

"..."

"I'm currently busy with the store. It's not possible"

"That's just your excuse. And you know I hate them. The staff can handle without you just fine."

"..."

An uncomfortable silence took hold as a staring contest began between the two. Silent conversations were exchanged before Zelus took the first action.

"Master had called me some time ago. I should go check..." Swiftly making a turnaround, Zelus prepared to make a run but a giant hand reached out for his collar.

Gul seemed to have been anticipating that as he turned slightly to the side and dodged it with considerable ease.

A smirk slipped out of his composed face. 'When would Gul realize that this level wasn't enough to catch a seasoned Rogue. He needed to do better than that if he wished to have any hope of catching him.'

His success was short-lived though, as another hand much, much quicker than the last one was waiting for him to reach his grasp.

Zelus's pupils shrank slightly but he didn't make any further movements resulting in him getting caught.

On the other hand, Gul had thrown Noah upwards and grabbed him with his other, now free hand. Look at this man juggling bodies around.

Noah was flabbergasted with the display. He couldn't even gauge what was happening. When everything settled down, he just found both of them hanging like laundry from Gul's hands.

"Now, Shall we go?" Gul asked in his usual cheerful voice.

"You're asking as if we have any other option" Zelus looked to have resigned himself to his fate.

"Does he behave like this often?" Noah tried to reach out to Zelus. They say joint suffering is the best catalyst for people to open up to each other.

Zelus glimpsed at him, keeping silent before ignoring him altogether.

His smile twitched. This attitude irked his nerves. All the professional courtesy he was showing was going down the drain. This was a certified asshat. No doubt about it. This was coming from another self-aware one.

"I'm talking to you"

"I know, It's just that I don't wish to engage in any meaningless conversation. You seem to be incapable of recognizing that."

"Oh, really? Says the one whose ass just got handed to him."

"Come on mates, we are celebrating. Especially you, Zelus. I was expecting you to be eager to meet him seeing as he is a young fellow like you."

Noah switched between the two in quick succession, confused by the odd statement.

"Huh, I'm not following."

"For elves, 100 years is akin to 20 for a normal human. Although age brings some semblance of maturity, his physique and emotions haven't fully developed. Therefore, you can consider him as a kid."

"Objection, I'm a veteran of battlefield. Calling me a kid won't change that fact."

"You can continue yapping, mate. I have said all that I need to whom I wanted to."

"Huh?" Zelus was a bit slow at the realization. His face paled as he stiffly turned to meet Noah doing an accurate troll face.

"Hello there...Mr. Elfling Jr. ?"

"I despise you and your goblin-brained companions."

This statement elicited nothing but a hearty laugh from the two recipients.

 

....

 

"This is the place" Gul released them from his hold at cue. Zelus landed steadily and coiled slightly to keep himself stable while Noah stumbled a bit before stabilizing himself.

Straightening his clothes, he turned to see where had he been dragged to supposedly celebrate the event.

His eyes darkened in disappointment as he was presented with a decrepit building from ancient times. At first glance, he could spot inconsistent architectural masonry, fitted with whitish-yellow bricks and a faded red ceiling. Warm yellow light passed through the wooden window sills giving some liveliness to the otherwise haunted house. The building has clearly been witness to a significant part of this place's history. The surrounding area was distinctly a different style and appeared of recent origin compared to this old museum.

It stood out quite a lot among the taller buildings with glass windows, and not in a good way.

"Kinda underwhelming, in my opinion."

Gul didn't look the least bit annoyed by his comment. Instead, he just gave him a knowing smile as if he was used to such a response.

"Just wait till we head inside, mate. I want to hear your opinion then."

He stepped forward reaching out to the door handle and twisted the knob.

The door creaked open accompanied by the loud chime at the door.

"Welcome." A rugged voice greeted their arrival.

"Sup, Iggim. Our new junior here had a great day today. We're here to celebrate. Bring in 3 specials for us." Gul said patting Noah in the back.

The individual name Iggim looked to be a considerably old guy. Wrinkly face, multiple spots, sagging skin, yup. This was a real elderly person. He was putting this out because the man acted completely in defiance of his physique. His eyes were lively and jumping around assessing his figure, his movements though slow, were steady and composed. He could feel the vibrant soul inhabiting the old man's body.

While he was busy eyeing the old man for a bit too long for comfort, Gul exchanged some words with Iggim.

"Spicy as usual?"  "Yeah"

"You got it, brother!"

Rolling up his sleeves, he went on to prepare their order.

The three men seated themselves waiting patiently for their order to complete.

Noah checked out the place. It looked to be well-maintained and classy compared to the stale exterior. The atmosphere was close to an English pub here. Except for the open kitchen at the back.

At last, Noah found himself at peace and was excited to open up the Log.

 

[Status Log]

*Blacksmith Profession Selected*

*LVL UP*

Profession: [Blacksmith] reached LVL 1

+0.1 Str, +0.1 Con, +0.1 End, +0.1 Will {% Bonus from Talents}

Bonus Records Acquired!

*New Skill-[Smithing] Granted*

*New Skill-[Tool Mastery] Granted*

 

Internally, Noah squealed in delight like a little girl. No, that doesn't feel right. A more apt description would be a small-time YouTuber getting viral for the first time. He would know, he had experienced that before. The excitement just overwhelms you for a moment before you return back to reality.

Finally, something to show in return for all that sweat he poured out. By now, it should be enough to drown him multiple times over. Maybe not, but he was feeling the burn handling multiple avenues without any visible results. He had a few gains here and there but this was his first big one.

These few lines of text were his savior, so to speak.

Noah never expected that he would one day pose like an influencer in front of a mirror checking himself out. 'What can I say, anything for the abs!'

All these stat gains were slowly adding up. The training and practice at the smithery were doing their part for him. Add in the growth potion, he was growing by the day. both metaphorically and literally. His height did grow by a few cms.

His body looked to be in an exuberant synaptogenesis child learning period.

The LVL UP made it even more prominent. Enough for him to feel the effects during his learning.

His mind was absorbing new knowledge like a dry sponge. It's the secret behind how he was able to grasp and read the Eqin language from the books he borrowed from the library. That so in just a few days.

Is this what those with ridiculous IQs experience?

There was a feeling of unprecedented clarity in his thoughts. Things that would be out of reach for him some time ago are now within his capacity. The mere thought was sending goosebumps to his body.

And how could he forget the hyped-up Skills? The entire week he had been keeping his distance trying to prolong the time someone inquired about his Profession. Now, though he was ready to flex those Text abs on them. It didn't matter that they seemed pretty basic, it was infinitely better than having none.

No, this wasn't him being salty for all the times his two buddies were flaunting their Profession in front of his sorry ass. Pfft, he wasn't that jealous in the first place.

He needs to open up his Staus Page in order to have a long careful look. Though, something caught his attention more at the moment.

"Gul"

Noah's ears pricked up in curiosity, he hadn't heard a single word out of Zelus's mouth the entire way. What did he want to say now?

"you can have my stew, I will be fine with staying out."

"What's this, mate. You chickening out now?"

"I just don't identify myself as a sadist. I think this is nothing but a waste of time. Change the order to something more tame."

"Oho, one wouldn't exactly think that when seeing your schedule. How do you even make time for visits?" Gul looked to have made a jab at Zelusl, at least from what he could gather from their expressions.

"Visit who?" 

"You know who."

The atmosphere felt colder all of a sudden.

"I don't have any recollection of anything that might correspond to what you are saying."

"Maybe I might just be mistaken. I would have to make sure to confirm it with that person."

The tension continued escalating to a peak. The situation felt like he was sitting on a powder key about to go kaboom.

"You wouldn't do it."

"Why not?"

"Asshole"

"Big or small?"

"Stop"

"Stinky or smelly"

"You're doing this on purpose"

"How did you know?"

Zelus cursed under his breath in his native Elvish before acquiescing. "I'll do it this time. In return, you won't mention this again."

His grin vanished instantly as he spoke "sincerely". 

"Deal."

'I don't know how much you should believe in that. Guy clearly loves to mess around.'

While Noah was telling himself never to mess with Gul for the nth time, Zelus tapped the table randomly being in a bad mood from the big fat L.  He became impatient by the stares gradually and cried out.

"WHERE'S THE LAMB SAUCE?"

A small snicker couldn't help but slip out by Noah.

"What now?" Zelus snapped back at him.

"Nothing." How could he explain the memetic history of Earth from something that occurred half a century ago? He could only blame himself for his weird interests.

"Hmph, I don't wish to know anyway. I bet it would be something retarded."

"Here, enjoy"

One by one, Pots of red-hot stew were served before them by Iggim.

An explosion of fragrant smell assaulted his nostrils bringing with it a mix of spices and herbs. The spice irritated his nose. Not gonna lie, it stung a lot. Still, his appetite was worked up by the odor.

'I feel betrayed but in a good way.' Spoke too soon.

Zelus's face turned into a grimace as he was faced with the bright red stew. Gul saw the hesitance and poked with his elbow urging him to make up his mind. The reminder seems to have worked as he took a spoonful and dug in, channeling the spirit of self-sacrifice ingrained in him as a soldier. For him, the consequences far outweighed any pain he had to suffer drudging in the loo. 

Gul's face was brightened up like a bulb seeing his actions. 'Ah, the blissful ignorance.' 

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH"

Noah could feel shivers down his spine from hearing that man let loose his blood-curdling scream from an honest mistake.

"Not again" Gul looked saddened to see his friend collapse from the overwhelming spice. How much was it sincere was up for debate. 

"I should stop recommending it to everyone. Then again, my shop is only known for this. I had dug myself a grave there. Whatever, the fault's on them not researching what they were up against." Iggim joined with the remarks. 

"..."

"This is ridiculous. Why would anyone eat this stuff?"

"For the thrill, of course." 

"It feels ridiculous until it isn't"

The old fellas looked to be enjoying the situation. Most likely, a part of their plan even.

'they're batshit crazy.'

"More personal tutoring for you" He yelled before aggressively slamming the bowl into his face.

Noha looked flabbergasted by the display. Iggim stood by the side staring at him as if saying why was I keeping still. Like any other person, he caved and followed in Gul's footsteps, being curious about the taste. Picking up the spoon, he tried a bit to check the waters.

"Oooh" The hot stew burned his tongue slightly while simultaneously sparking a chain reaction there.

"This is an acquired taste"

"I can see that." The burn had begun spreading in his mouth. Whoa, this was something else. He needed something, something to stop this hellish torture.

"Do you have any*cough*thing to drink? *cough*"

"Would Meryol be fine?"

"It would be *cough* awesome"

Iggim brought a jar and large cup and poured down the drink for him.

He gulped down the drink. It mellowed down the spice to something he could tolerate; made the dish bearable, allowing him to enjoy it. Iggim should make it customary to have one with this.

His speed picked up as he started cleaning up the stew. 

Before he knew it, a clean pot remained before him. All in all, he really liked the dinner. Maybe he would revisit this place later.

A burp came out, his stomach seems to agree.

Zelus had come to very soon after that and ordered something else. Gul finished the fastest and started chatting. He told him Zelus wasn't able to handle much spice. That's why he brings him here regularly to try to improve his tolerance.

"So... how did you come here?" Iggim asked aloud while wiping the dishes with a dry cloth.

"He came with the Trainees." Gul answered in his stead. The conservation went back-and-forth between them.

"Voluntary or Spontaneous?"

"It looks to be the latter"

"Switching to someplace new is a humbling experience. The strange feeling of alienation finding yourself alone. Making sure not to stand out. Most of all, the unspoken rules are the hardest to figure out."

"You speak like someone who travels a lot." Noah answered curious about his experiences.

"I had indeed been provided the opportunity to visit many locations."

"As expected from a spy." Zelus chimed in; his words felt a bit hostile to him.

"spy?..." Noah turned to Iggim for answers only to be given the scare of his life.

A rictus grin made itself shown. He could feel the wickedness in the smile.

"...I don't think this is something I should know about." Noah felt a bit terrified. Actually, a lot by the sudden change. 

"Its out in the public. Do you feel okay speaking about it, Iggim?" Gul explained to him but he wasn't much relieved by the information.

"I had passed that phase years back. Why not entertain this young man about the politics of this world? Kid, do you know how many times the kingdoms here come close to War over something trivial?"

"A lot, probably."

"More than you can imagine. Few people are willing to lay down their lives for a bunch of power-hungry maniacs who dream of only power and conquest. Question is, how do you get them to?"

"How?" He had a feeling he wouldn't like the answer.

"That's where we come in. Instigate the public, sabotage critical infrastructures, whatever your mind is able to cook up, we did it and more."

"I remember there was this one time I had to beat a bunch of old men. It made me stop for a moment to think, what I was doing? But then I told myself "you should have thought of that earlier". I was already too far gone."

"I was young at that time. And like all young men, I was impulsive. Didn't knew the cruelness of the real world."

"Told myself, "I can push past this and leave this world after some time" and continued to ignore the gradually heinous crimes I committed. The time came a bit too late."

"it's like the sun; it's in plain sight but the danger escapes your senses."

"Eventually, one day, a senior spy reached out to me and I was given orders to start an uprising. That was when the guilt came back. I was horrified by how lives would be lost by my actions. But I managed to rein in my emotions again."

"Did you actually do it?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"This isn't a fairy tale. I attempted to but thankfully failed anyway. The main spy was caught beforehand and tortured for information. The entire operation was a bust. The rebellion was put out before it could gain traction. Thinking as a soldier, I set out to recoup my losses and laid low waiting for the next order to arrive."

"I did not know at that time but the empire had collapsed from internal conflicts. Moreover, I had even caught the kingdom's suspicions. I was on the run, trying to keep undercover by moving from place to place, staying far away from the capital in the outskirts. It took another 13 years before the news came through. The entire time I was working for a lost cause."

"los últimos de Filipinas...A soldier fighting for a lost cause." Noah mumbled softly.

"In this world nothing is permanent .... just be happy and live your own life. I regret that I found it the hard way"

A sigh escaped Iggim's lungs. This was a man whose soul is tormented by his past. 

"War does not determine who is right, only who is left. As a survivor, I couldn't find a purpose so I headed back to where it started, back to this town. Surrendered to the viscount and here we are."

Despite trying to play it off lightly, only a bitter smile was left on the wisened face.  

"If you self-pitying drivel is over, I am leaving." Zelus stood up abruptly and left the shop in the same manner.

Noah was confused by the event. Something was wrong. He whispered to Gul "Why did he act like that?"

"The war, the same war he was talking about, we were deployed on the frontlines. Some of our friends stayed back during that uprising. They were not so lucky."

"Oh, I am sorry."

"Don't worry. It happened a long time back. We have gotten over it..." Gul looked back wistfully at the door "...mostly"

"..." The quiet felt suffocating to him. His presence felt unnecessary here. He had the urge to leave the two alone.

"I should get going, too. Thanks for the dinner, Iggim." He made a sprint out of the store.

Getting out, he was surprised to find an empty street. Looks like he headed back.

"What do you want?" A voice came from his side, frightening him a little. He looked to see Zelus leaning by the wall.

Steading his breathing, he calmed down and spoke up.

"I just thought we could get to know each other a little better. I was thinking you could show me around. I am new to this place, after all."

"I decline, there isn't anything that interests me in your proposal."

He made a short jump, holding onto the ledge before pulling himself in a spin to the ceiling. Landing on the ledge, he made another jump up the wall before using it as a foothold to wall jump up to the roof. Two seconds, he disappeared from his vision.

What was even more surprising was he made no noise at all during all the flamboyant acrobatics.

"Showoff" It seemed unnecessary to do this to intimidate him and make him stay away. Instead, he just made himself a bigger target in his sight. Noah had decided to go after him. He was going to make him cough up those skills.

Dark clouds began spreading across the sky, shrouding the pale blue moonlight from the third moon he had come across so far. 

 

...

 

On the way to the Inn, he spotted the library by the other street. A grand building with stone stairs leading to a giant doorway. He could see some rooms lighted up behind the crystal windows.

Maybe she is staying back on her duty or something like that.

Light flashed in the sky before the rumble of thunder knocked on his ears.

Is there still time for checking it out?

His hair got ruffled up by a sudden wind. The windy breeze also made him notice the worsening sky. While he was still hesitating over the decision of whether to go or not, a single drop of rain hit his face.

"Apparently not"

The rain picked up its intensity and was pouring down heavily. He ran down the streets in a hurry.

A silhouette stood behind the window curtains on the second floor of the building observing Noah and the streets with an indifferent gaze.

"Not today, huh?"

Out of the shadows, a slender hand reached for a steaming cup of tea. A ring adorned with a crest of a tree stripped of its leaves graced her index finger. She took a sip and turned to flip the pages of the book resting in her hand. A smile emerged on her face as she muttered softly to herself.

"What a shame."