Taking a bath for the second day in a row, Brett was starting to miss showers. He was so filthy that this was his second refill of the tub. The first one had turned pink and scummy almost immediately. Despite all his effort, he was still finding spots that sent brown and red clouds billowing out into the water when scrubbed.

When Alan finished cleaning up, he called out to them that he would go order food and wait in the common area. Ravenous hadn't bothered to respond. She was currently acting the least cat-like that Brett had ever seen. Sund neck deep into the water, she lounged against the wall of the tub with eyes closed in pure bliss. She only spoke, or moved at all, to request that Brett drop another hot rock in. The first time he came near, he had made the mistake of touching the water. It was near scalding.

Sucking his burned finger, he considered getting back into his own tub, but considering the prunes that his toes had become, he decided not to. Looking around, he was left with a slight dilemma. His clothes had been cleaned just like the last time he bathed, but that meant he only had his makeshift jorts and the old cloak Alan had left. He didn't really want to wear either of them, but he didn't have much of a choice. Leaving them on a chair for now, he stood up and stretched. In the mirror, he got a good view of his body. 

Going around without a shirt likely wasn't going to be in his future anytime soon. It was as Ravenous had warned him. His torso was crisscrossed with half a dozen raised scars. They were rather straight, but each was at least a quarter inch wide. Their pale whiteness stood out from his lightly bronzed skin. They might not stand out here too much, but back home, there would have been very few people who ever got such decorations. 

Poking at one that ran across his stomach, Brett found that it was malleable as his finger sunk into the little bit of pudge he had around his midsection. Is it just me, or is there a little less flab than a couple days ago?

A much more subtle scar ran for a few inches across his right cheek. Brett opened and closed his mouth a few times, watching the way his skin moved around it. It didn't limit his motion, but when he frowned, it slightly kept that side of his lips slightly higher. It didn't affect his smile at all, thankfully.

"I wouldn't worry about them too much if I were you." Brett jumped at the voice coming from behind him. He whirled around, hands coming up to give himself some modesty. Ravenous perched on the edge of the privacy screen, closing off his little area. 

Looking at his chest, she continued. "As you get to a higher level, wounds won't continue to scar this bad. Besides, they suit you… Or suit this kinda weird intensity that is growing around you. I can see it hanging in the air. It was one of the first things I noticed when we met." 

Brett didn't know how to respond to that, so he just nodded to her and sat on the chair to finish getting dressed. But Ravenous wasn't done yet. "But your already intense aura has only gotten stronger over the past couple of days. I mean, not many people without a class can get an A rank in a level 2 survival dungeon."

***  

Walking into the common room, Brett and Ravenous found Alan waiting just as he said he would be. In front of him sat three bowls of stew, a hunk of bread balanced on the edge of each bowl. Joining him, Brett sat down and gave a nod of thanks before digging in. Brett wasn't sure about his friends, but he was ravenous. Ravenous was as well, but that was to be expected.

It wasn't until the last bit of bread wiped the bottom of the bowl clean that Brett finally looked up. There was a slightly tense silence as Alan looked at him. Eventually, both men opened their mouths at the same time, causing each to hesitate for a second. Eventually, after a little bit of back and forth, he motioned for Alan to speak.

Eventually, Alan broke eye contact and looked down. "I'm sorry. I fucked up this morning and you got hurt." Alan took a deep breath before looking up and meeting Brett's gaze again. "I forget that not everyone can heal like the higher levels, and I was careless."

That was not what I was expecting. Brett was slightly taken back. Feeling the need to say something, Brett spoke up, "As I said before, it's okay. Seriously. I didn't expect the help y'all already given me so I can't complain. I would much rather be pushed hard and get hurt than be coddled. Seriously, we're good." 

Ravenous butted in. "You're such a softie, Brick. Anyways, it's still pretty early, I think we need to go shopping. Brett's going to need some clothes that won't fall apart next time."

"They didn't really fall apart, exactly. I used my shirt for bandages!" Brett protested. He’d liked that shirt, too. "Besides I only have 15 coins."

"Same thing, but maybe a little more armor than gloves and vambraces are in order too." Ravenous glossed over his objections about not having any coin. 

"He's going to need blades too. My dagger got barely used." Alan tossed in. Brett raised his eyebrow at the man and drew the dagger from his belt. 

"How can you tell?"

"Tip is slightly dulled from… what? Three or four impacts, is that it?" Alan said. Brett looked at the ceiling, trying to replay the exact moves in his mind. 

"Three, I think. Though one went into the ground after the stab." Brett confirmed. He offered the dagger back to Alan. "I don't think this really suits me. I can get my own blades later."

Alan waved it off. "I don't need that, it has no enchantments or stat boosts. I used to use it for eating. At least hold on to it until you get a replacement. It doesn't do to go unarmed."

Brett nodded and put the blade away, deciding not to say anything about his gun. They hadn't mentioned it; maybe he would ask about bullets in a less public place. They all stood up, and Ravenous hopped over to his shoulder perch as they walked out the front of the inn.