When her eyes changed, it was so fast that it might as well have been the lights playing tricks on me. I wasn’t given time to give the eye flash any thoughts because I was splashed by some of Sam’s drink. I glared at her, to which she unapologetically smiled and shrugged her shoulders while continuing to eat more of the soup. I finished the hot meal and sipped slowly at the cool water provided. If this was the expected fare we would receive at this place, nothing could bribe me to stay anywhere else.
Our bowls were replaced with small plates covered by large slices of pie. “It looks like I have some fans. Nothing better than when people enjoy your cooking,” said the innkeeper as she handed us our forks. “Now savour these more slowly; no point in scarfing the thing down faster than you can taste it.”
The pie truly was delicious. It was more than just the taste of sugar and apples. It felt like every apple pie I’ve ever eaten was more of a cheaper imitation. After finishing the pie, I noticed that there was an increased warmth in my chest. The feeling slowly dispersed throughout my body and left me feeling good. In fact, I felt like all the tiredness from walking endlessly through the rain was gone. I looked up and noticed the innkeeper smiling.
“So now that you are no longer suffering from the rain’s chill, how about you tell me what brings you guys to the village?” she asked while she put the plates away behind the counter. She continued to start wiping down the bar, cleaning up any of the mess left from our frenzied eating. Sam ended up being the first to speak.
“Well, to be honest, we were lost in the forest. Had a vague idea there was supposed to be something here, and slowly followed the river this way,” Sam said, thankfully not mentioning we got dropped into existence out of nowhere.
She raised her eyebrow a little. “Oh? How did you end up getting lost in the woods? It's too early in the month for the caravans to be making their way here,” she asked curiously.
Sam looked at me to answer her question. I inwardly sighed. The woman seemed friendly, and the delicious food she served us without asking for money was certainly a plus in my book. I just wasn’t sure if I should be announcing that me and Sam were Reborns. We might end up getting ourselves in trouble if it turns out that we aren't exactly tolerated in this world. It might be for the best if I told a lie working around our lack of knowledge.
If the woman minded the brief lapse of silence, she certainly didn’t show you. “This might sound ridiculous, but we honestly don’t know,” I said hesitantly. The look she gave me was somewhere between intrigue and incredulity. “We are both suffering from a strong case of amnesia. There's nothing to us but our small clothes and our familiarity with each other,” I finished reluctantly. The idea might seem crazy, but if we could pass our ignorance due to lack of memory, it’d be for the best. Sam gave me a weird look but otherwise didn’t say anything.
The woman paused her cleaning and tilted her head. She regarded the both of us with slightly narrow eyes. Whether the lie was believable or not, the lady returned a comforting smile, seeming to accept our words for now. “That sounds terrible. Can’t say I’ve ever had issues with memory loss before, but I doubt it’d feel nice to not be able to remember anything,” she replied without a hint of insincerity.
“Yeah, it does. However, we just got to do what we can. Luckily, we didn’t get hurt during our small journey here,” Sam said. The woman hummed a small tune while nodding at Sam’s response. She casually and quickly topped off both our drinks before putting the cleaning cloth away and leaning on the counter.
“I’m glad to hear that. The Yidelwoods tend to carry a higher-than-average amount of beasts with elemental attunement here. All sorts of dangerous creatures call the forests their haunt. If it weren’t for the guard patrols and adventuring teams that pass through here, we would have a problem keeping the village safe,” she complained light-heartedly. “Well, let me be the first to try to welcome you to Edolus, the frontier village of Emberlake. We're new and small, but don’t let that fool you. With the dungeon that we recently discovered and the bounty of the forest all around, we’ll grow to be a proper town in no time!” she intoned warmly.
I looked over and saw that Sam was also smiling. Whatever happened these next few days, it was nice to know we were welcomed in this place. It turns out the woman’s name was Beranellia, to which she promptly told us she would only ever respond to Bera. We ended up spending another half hour making small talk and asking her questions. Despite our seemingly endless wave of questions, Bera answered all of them in stride. Apparently, the reason why we were the only ones currently sitting was due to pure coincidence. The guards didn’t normally enter till past seven, and all the usual folk were most likely caught indoors till the rain lifted enough. If we waited long enough, the slow trickle of the night crowd would slowly roll in.
We did end up finding out an answer to one of our most important questions. There was indeed an Adventurer’s Guild building in the village. Whenever a town had a dungeon nearby, there was always a building filled, at the minimum, with basic staff. The building was only four buildings down. Apparently, adventurers loved inns. Bera must have been able to tell just how excited we were over the prospects of adventuring because she gave us a wide grin and told us to hurry on over. We thanked her once again for the meal and information, to which she winked once more and said that she wasn’t worried since she was sure we’d be back.
Sam bumped me with her shoulder, nearly making me trip into the mud. “Hey!” I complained. She merely rolled her eyes and continued walking on like she didn’t do anything wrong. “Amnesia, huh? I doubt she believed that. At least we were ignorant enough that we could somewhat play it off,” Sam said while shaking her head.
“You put me in the spotlight, and there was no other way to ask obvious questions without the dumb lie. You come up with a better excuse next time,” I grumbled good-naturedly. Sam responded by sticking her tongue at me. We ended up picking up our pace, not wanting to spend any longer in the rain than we had to. The building we arrived at had no outward signs to indicate it was the correct place. Instead, the dead giveaway was how, instead of the smooth gray stone, like all the other buildings, it was made out of a black marble material. The doors themselves seemed to be made out of solid iron in place of wood. With no use delaying, I took the lead and pushed the door. It was surprisingly easy. Despite being made of metal, the doors themselves swung open without any resistance.
The inside of the building was not much to look at. In the corner were three small tables with chairs, which were made of the same black marble. There was only one guy sitting and seemingly napping in the corner. Across from the sitting area was a small counter with what looked like an elf reading a book. He had typical features one would expect: long, straight blonde hair, pointy ears, and his eyes were a piercing blue. His outfit was simple blue robes with gold embroidery. Next to the counter was a set of stairs heading to a lower level. While eyeing the sleeping man, I walked over and made my way to the counter.
Hearing my footsteps, the elf put down his book and looked in my direction. Noticing I was new, he stood and straightened up. As I approached, he greeted me. “Hello there. I’m surprised to see new faces around here. I thought I knew all the current adventurers and locals staying in the village,” he greeted. His demeanor was friendly enough, nowhere near the levels of Bera, though.
“Ah, we just arrived tonight. Me and my friend didn’t want to waste time and came here after a nice meal at Oleanders,” I responded back. Sam stepped behind me and waved to the elf when I mentioned her. He smiled back while steepling his hands on the counter. “Well, what can I do for you two this dreary evening,” he said.
“We’d, uh, like to apply to the guild. Not really sure how this works, if I’m going to be honest,” I said truthfully. The guild receptionist stared at me and then flicked over to Sam for a few seconds. I could tell he was curious, but he seemed professional enough not to outright ask. It seemed that playing young and stupid would keep getting us looks.
“That's perfectly fine. That is what I’m here for. Usually, the people who come to this building are generally already signed up as adventurers,” he said, while not directly commenting on our unusualness. “But we're always happy to have people join our ranks. If you’d like to sign up right now, we can get started on it right away.”
“That’d be great,” I said. He then proceeded to pull out a big leather-bound book. It was blue like his robes, but the edges were inscribed with faintly glowing golden runes. The next object he pulled out was a hand-sized white crystal that was smoothed out on one side. “If you’d gently put your hand on the crystal, we can record your information and get you two set up, “he said while motioning to the white crystal. He narrowed his eyes when I hesitated and looked at Sam. “We have to record basic info when registering anyone as guild adventurers. Without the information, we would be unable to complete your registration and issue your guild badge,” he said in a serious tone.
“What exactly does the stone do, and what about the book?” I asked cautiously. I was really hoping we wouldn’t have to reveal our status this soon without even knowing if we were going to get in trouble.
He looked me in the eye with suspicion before sighing. “It reads basic info about your status. It tells us your name, age, race, and tier, along with how many skills you possess. All info is completely confidential and is only ever used when we need records for specific events or jobs. The information itself only ever has to be updated when you receive a new rank or five years have passed. It will not harm you and will not be used to harm you. The Adventurer’s Guild has and will always stand as a neutral entity. We never prosecute our own unless it is under guild law,” he said with the air of a practiced speech.
I turned towards Sam and got close. “Do you think we risk it? If this all goes wrong, we better run like hell,” I whispered.
“This seems like a perfect opportunity for us. Might as well make a leap of faith. As you said, if this turns south fast, we book it out of here,” she whispered back.
I stepped back up to the counter and apologized. He waved me off, saying it was perfectly acceptable. Slowly, I put my hand on the crystal and felt a small sucking sensation. It took me a second to figure out what was happening, but I realized that it was slowly draining some of my mana. The cool sensation that I felt when activating a skill appeared on the palm of my hand. The drain wasn’t large in any way, but the crystal slowly started to glow red. After a dozen seconds, the crystal was now glowing visibly enough and was completely red. The book opened itself up to a new page, and black text started to appear. When the page stayed the same without any new words, the crystal slowly dimmed and turned back to the opaque white from before.
The guild receptionist shifted over and began reading my status. Within an instant, I could tell he was shocked due to him freezing up. The next minute was spent with him constantly looking up and giving me a double, then triple take as he kept re-reading the page. Eventually, he stood up and straightened his robe out before asking Sam to repeat what I did. He had a complex expression on his face while he waited for Sam’s status page. After the book started writing down her own page, Sam retook her position behind me. Idly, I noticed the sleeping man was positioned differently. If we had to run, I did not like having a potential threat behind our backs.
The guild receptionist finished reading Sam’s page and closed the book. Putting away the crystal, he tucked the book under his right arm. Straightening once more to help regain his composure, the elf gave a small bow.
“I would like to apologize for treating you with suspicion regarding the status reading. I… wouldn’t have guessed that this was why you were reluctant,” he apologized quickly. He stood up once more. “I’m sorry for delaying your application even further, but I must bring your case to the guild master.”
I scowled at the new turn of events. Someone who was a guildmaster would probably be powerful. And if our magic so far has been any indicator of how things stood in this world, then I’m pretty sure we’d have absolutely no chance of escaping if they wanted to keep us here. Sam visibly tensed, and her hands slowly balled into fists. Seeing this, the elf apologized once more and told us to wait while he disappeared downstairs.
I blew out my breath that I didn’t know I was holding. “We're so screwed if we have to fight some dude strong enough to run this place,” I said tersely. Sam put her hand on my shoulder and gave a weak smile. “Hey, they might just be someone who is completely administrative. Maybe they’re no more powerful than you or me,” she said, not sounding like she believed in her own words.
The elf reappeared and apologized once more before he had us follow him. The stairs were short and led to a hallway with three rooms. Two were on the left and right, while the third final door was at the very end. He quickly explained that the door to the left led to a storage room, while the door to the right led to the appraisal room. The third door was where the guild master’s office resided. Knocking once, the receptionist told us to head on in and then made his way back upstairs.
The room itself was of medium size. There was a decently sized bed in the back, along with a nightstand. Around the room were small paintings of various designs, with small little blue crystals providing light. Towards the front of the room was a large desk made of black marble, with various stacks of paper and the blue book from before. Sitting behind the desk was a large man in a basic white shirt, brown pants, and a green silk cloak around his shoulders. His hair was a dark blonde, and his eyes were the colour of emeralds. I wouldn’t call him model perfect, but the man was ruggedly handsome. I half expected to find a giant scar running across his eye, but there was none. Beyond the well-groomed beard, his skin was unblemished.
“Come sit. There's no need to be afraid,” the man said in a deep voice.
We sat down, and I examined the man again. His smile didn’t look forced, and there didn’t seem to be any aggression in his demeanor. Besides the well-defined muscles that showed even underneath his clothes, he didn’t feel dangerous. That changed the moment I looked into his eyes. His emerald-coloured irises showed power. Behind the easy smile was what felt like the vastness of a great tree. I could easily imagine his hands like ironclad vines that I could never escape from. His presence loomed over me, much like his physical height. I don’t know how he brought such images to my head just by looking him in the eyes, but I was right. We wouldn’t escape this man.
He held his hands up. “Before we begin, I just want to make it clear that you two are safe. I have no intention of hurting, maiming, or killing you. This is all just procedure,” he said in a nonthreatening tone. “There is actually a protocol to whenever one of your kind shows up. For some strange reason, you guys always either manage to make your way to the Adventurer’s Guild or the temples first.
His words put us at ease. Now that we knew we weren’t going to be killed, I saw Sam relax her shoulders as I did. “Are Reborns common then? If you guys have a protocol, it must happen often enough,” Sam asked.
He rubbed the scruff of his face for a moment before answering back. “No, not really. I’ve only ever met one Reborn, and I’m pretty well-traveled. They weren’t fresh like you. They had been living in this world for about half a century when I met them. It’s not that you people are common enough of an occurrence, rather that we always pay attention when new ones show up,” he said before pausing.
“There has never been a Reborn that remained small and unnoticeable. Even those who go on and choose less combat-inclined paths always find that the world shifts around them. Whether you last mere decades or centuries matters not. Interesting times forever follow where you tread, “he said in a serious tone. “You’ll find out all this in due time. First, let me welcome you to the world of Inoria. My name is Brelten Giltollo, current guild master of Edolus.” Breltan made a seated half-bow before resting his hands on the black desk.
“Thank you, Guildmaster. I’m Cyrus, and this is Sam,” I introduced myself while pointing to me and then to Sam. Brelten nodded at our introductions. “So, are we allowed to become members of the guild?” I asked.
His smile widened. “Yes, most certainly. Having Reborns join us here in Emberlake will make this boring post worth it,” he said with a glint in his eye. “I’m sure you guys have plenty of questions, and frankly, so do I. If you don’t mind, may I see the Legacy mark on your wrists?”
Seeing no reason to deny his request, I held up my left wrist. He stood up and held my wrist up, and he faintly traced the lines of the upside-down triquetra. He released my arm gently and repeated the same process to Sam. When he was done, he sat back down. “Fun fact: your symbol is actually inverted. The symbol is supposed to have the triangle tip pointed up instead of down. Only Reborns have the inverted symbol,” he said with small excitement in his voice. “If I may, I’d love to know what your legacies are. You don’t have to answer if you don't feel comfortable sharing. That knowledge is highly personal.”
I frowned a little. While I trusted the man so far, the book didn’t seem to write down what our skills or perks were. The information could easily end up meaning the difference between life and death if we ever had to worry about other people. Sam seemed to share my thoughts since she didn’t readily offer up her marks description.
The man sighed before leaning forward. He reached to his right to open a drawer in his desk. His hands came out from behind the desk, holding an ivory box wrapped in blue silk. “How about this? For telling me what your Legacy means, I’ll offer you both a mid-tier skill stone from my personal collection. In addition, I’ll even answer as many questions as you want for the next hour or two,” he said.
Another skill stone would be immensely helpful. And if I wanted to ever be able to take care of myself, I needed to get something other than a healing skill. There was just one minor blip. “Why do you want to know, and why would you offer us something so valuable for them? Are skill stones not as valuable as they would seem? We have no idea how anything works in the world. Something that can give you magic powers feels like it should cost a lot,” I asked him.
His eyes widened slightly at my questions. “Sorry about that. I still have to adjust to your lack of common knowledge. Let me address your last statement first. Skill stones are very valuable. While you’ll find skills used everywhere, the common rabble would be lacking any skills themselves. The higher the skill, the more it costs. Even artificial skill stones that we create for common skills are usually priced in gold. And we can get to tiers later. I’ll give you two a specially made primer that will hold the basic knowledge needed for Reborns to begin the adventuring life,” he said. Brelten leaned back in his chair and made himself more comfortable. “To answer your other questions, well, it’s simply a matter of curiosity. You have to understand that what you have is beyond rare. Our current kingdom only has eight families with a Legacy. Amongst the guild, there is only a smattering amount in the higher ranks. Any chance to find more knowledge about this subject is seen as important. A single Legacy can affect so much, and everyone everywhere is always striving to find how to acquire it more easily.”
He paused to let what he said sink in. “I know it doesn’t say so on your status, but there is one very important detail left out,” he said before breathing in a deep breath. “That lovely little mark on your arm is something that you and your next five generations of children will share. Your children inherit the same Legacy. Needless to say, if you ever find yourself in the royal capital, prepare to fend off marriage requests with a firm stick. After all, you're now an extremely sought-after stud. A piece of meat noble families will be clawing at each other to acquire,” he finished with a look of extreme mirth in his eyes. Brelten laughed when he saw the growing look of disbelief on both of our faces.
“So, what do you say? Would you like to make a deal?” Brelten asked once more.
Being a prized bachelor aside, I knew that I was going to accept. I doubted Sam would mind, either. I schooled my face and looked him in the eyes. “I accept. Would you like me to send you a description of it through the system?” I asked while he continued to chuckle lightly over our reactions.
“Yes, that way, there is no need for traceable records. I’m ready whenever you are,” he replied.
I mentally selected the specific information and sent it over. This Grand Weave was very convenient. Sam must have sent over her own status because she gave me a brief nod. The look of excitement was evident in her eyes, and I couldn’t blame her. More magic was never not going to be an exciting prospect. After committing the info to memory, Brelten sat back once again and was in obvious contemplation. He was silent for a full two minutes before he finally looked back at us.
“Sam, you’ll make one hell of a woman someday. Few manage to experience the sea in this kingdom due to us being square in the continent's lands. I’ve been on a couple of voyages in my time, and the waters of the world are nothing to underestimate,” he said while nodding to Sam. His emerald eyes switched to mine, and I saw a faint glow flicker. “You might just become an absolute terror. If it works the way the description implies…” he muttered. Brelten cleared his throat before he slowly undid the silk on the ivory box.
“Thank you for sharing that with me. Even if nothing comes from the new information, there's always the basic pleasure of acquiring such limited and unique knowledge, “ he continued. When the blue silk fell away, he pressed his thumb to the seal of the box, and it snapped open with a faint click. Inside the container were four cascading rows. Each row looked like it held ten slots, but only the first two rows had all of them filled. The third row had seven, while the last row only had three. He plucked four stones from the second row and laid them down, side to side, next to each other. Each stone was a different colour, while they all had the same cube shape. Looking back at the box, I noticed that they were more solid in colour than the first row but lacked clarity and smoothness from the third onward. They were still made of the same crystal-like material as the skill stone Cal handed to Eraztis.
Two of the stones were green of different shades, while the other two were both red and white, respectively. Brelten pointed to the white stone first. “This skill stone is a wind-aligned passive skill called Steps of Air. It’s a passive ability that boosts your natural running speed and balance. I acquired this early on, but I’m unsuited for wind-aligned mana,” he said. Images of the tree and vines I saw before came to mind. I could see how something as unbending as a tree would find difficulties in something flighty like wind. It did make me wonder if people had certain affinities for magic. Before I could ask, he continued on to the next stone.
“This stone is another passive ability,” he said while pointing towards the darker green crystal. “While not being a movement-enhancing skill, this does affect when your feet are on the ground. Rooted Defiance is a skill that binds you towards the earth with roots of mana. You’ll find yourself much, much harder to be able to move when you don’t want to. I’d have used this skill if I hadn't already made use of its higher tier version.” He moved his hands to the final two stones. The red stone had what looked like an inner orange glow, while the other stone was the colour of fresh grass.
“Unlike the other two, these skills are actives. Much like the wind stone, this Resplendent Flame didn’t fit. Normally, the skill allows the user to shoot forth vibrant crimson flames. I really don’t know how it would morph and change for both of you. While I know you lean more towards the water element, Sam, your Legacy would override any issues that may usually occur. That said, I don’t think you should take this skill personally. If you do, I look forward to seeing how it shifts to become more useful to an Ocean Warrior.”
Sam nodded in return. “I don’t think I’ll choose that one either. Thank you for the advice,” Sam said. Seeing that his warning was accepted, Brelten pointed to the last stone.
“This last skill is called Snaring Vines. This skill, in particular, should be a variant of a certain rose bush whose thorns carry minor paralytic poison. If you look closely enough, you can see smokey flecks of bright green. I got this skill as a reward from a certain poison-heavy dungeon during my time in the second tier,” he finished. He gave an easy smile. “So, please pick one. They may not be the highest tier skill, but they are solid and, in time, can easily become powerful.”
While the Snaring Vines sounded interesting, I heavily favoured the fire skill. Everybody knows the stereotypical fireball. If I could get a summon that could do the same, I’d be set. It would solve my lack of combat prowess easily. The movement skills were useful, but I had no plans on being a tank or needing to run away. Surprisingly, Sam was the one to decide first. She reached over and grabbed the skillstone for Steps of Air.
“Hmmm, I was hoping you would pick that one,” Brelten commented. He cocked his head and put his hand on his chin. “And you, Cyrus?” he asked.
I gave every skill another look before I cemented my pick on the fire skill. Reaching out, I grabbed the fire skill stone. Brelten nodded happily at my choice. He then put the other two stones back in the case and closed it. Retying the blue silk around the ivory box, he returned it to his desk drawer. “Now that you have your rewards, I’m willing to answer all questions for the next hour. You may come in tomorrow evening to ask any follow-up questions you may have after you’ve read the primer.” He said seriously.
The next hour was spent by the three of us discussing basic knowledge that we should know moving forward. He handed us both a tiny pouch containing five silvers each, along with two small white, leather-bound books. He waved off our thanks and said that it’d be enough to pay for lodgings at Oleanders. When we finally turned to leave, he reminded us to visit Talis before we left to acquire our badges. Talis apologized once more and handed us two small diamond-shaped pins. They looked like cut pearls, and they were given to all tier-zero adventurers. Bidding him a goodnight, we made our short walk to the inn.
“Think that went well?” I asked Sam. She snorted and punched me lightly on the arm. She held her new skill stone up, letting the moonlight hit the crystal and let it shine. The air rippled in front of her, and she plunged her hand into the small blue portal that appeared. “Besides having to learn information like a tourist and a child, we did great,” she said.
I shared her joy. I planned on using the skill stone tonight once we got situated in our rooms. Pushing open the small wooden doors, we walked into a lively room. Unlike before, the inn was filled with people. I saw mostly humans, but there were a couple of elves as well as a pair of cat-headed humanoids. From our discussion with Brelten, I learned that the two cat people were called Beastkin. Apparently, this world had different races of beastly humanoids that were basically anthropomorphic animals.
A few people took notice of us as we walked in. Most of the attention came from the table of guards by the right wall. Bera saw us coming and patted her hand on the counter next to two open seats at the bar. We made our way through the chatty crowd and sat down and relaxed. “You get yourselves settled over at the guild then?” Bera asked warmly.
“There was a minor issue when we tried to register, but we met the guild master and solved it. Walked out better than we came in, at least.” I replied. “Oh, that reminds me, I want to thank you again for the both of us. You’ve been amazingly helpful so far. And we’d like to know if we can get rooms for the two of us.”
She waved her hand dismissively. “Think nothing of it, Cyrus, I’m always glad to help. And yes, I have two rooms available. It’ll cost you a silver a night for the two separate rooms. That comes with a meal in the mornings, and if you want to make use of our bath, it’ll be another ten copper. Extra meals are usually around twelve to fifteen copper, depending on what you order. Considering your money situation, I’d be happy to offer the first night free,” she said while smiling. I swear, this woman was a saint.
I fished out seven silvers from the two pouches of coin Sam had given me hers earlier. “I’d like to pay for the next three days if you don’t mind. And I want to pay you back for the hot food earlier. That pie was amazing,” I said cheekily.
Bera laughed and scooped up the coins. “Flattery will get you everywhere!” she said while winking at me. We spent the rest of the evening making small talk with Bera while eating a healthy plate of ribs. The guards who were staring earlier were apparently happy that we were normal paying customers. They didn’t give us any attention for the rest of the night. Sam and I went up to our rooms an hour later and wished each other goodnight. We agreed to meet for breakfast.
The room turned out to be simple but cozy. It was spaced wide enough that I could take five steps from wall to wall. There was a wooden bed that had an actual mattress with clean green sheets. Even if the day was long, I didn’t feel an ounce of tiredness. I pulled out my red crystal from earlier and held it in my hands.
It was time to contract a new familiar.
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