Two days later…

 

Milo found a [Priest] at the nearest town's local church to unclass him and with the old man's help, found an apothecarist to get rid of the scar—all free of charge. The [Priest] had paid for Milo's unclassing and for the apothecary's treatment out of his own pocket.

 

It was the first time Milo had ever received such a kind gesture from someone.

 

He thanked the [Priest] a million times over and relied on his vitality to stomach the hunger pains.

 

***

 

Milo slept in the wilderness for many nights. But he wasn't starving. Using the invisibility cloak, he snuck inside the manors of the rich and stole their coin to use for his own use. He bought himself a new set of clothes that didn't make him look like a stereotypical beggar. After that, a sword to protect himself—not that he knew how to use one—or at least give the illusion of strength.

 

***

 

Milo stared into the stars and relished the sound of nature as he wondered how long he had been out when he had originally been captured, and how the [Inquisitors] brought him to the Faringel Slave Mine so quickly in the first place. The only thing that came to mind was teleportation. Milo felt flattered if that was the case.

 

***

 

The guard stood still for a second as [Identify Person] activated.

 

The following information appeared in front of him, visible to everyone who looked.

 

[Milo, Son of George; Level 1 Farmer]

 

Milo readied his hands to reach for his hood, ready to disappear at any moment. Once he pulled the hood over the top of his head, he would completely vanish.

 

The guard, wearing a red cloth under his leather armour, glanced at Milo's left cheek. Uninterested, he said to Milo, "Where'd you escape from?"

 

Milo gave an internal sigh of relief. There was a law in Grecia that allowed smaller numbers of [Slaves] to become free men if they successfully escaped. This was to prevent [Slaves] from coordinating in larger numbers and rebelling.

Just by seeing Milo's age and level, and because he had never seen him before, he came to an immediate assumption.

 

Milo was merely worried that they would remember him from ten years ago. Why did [Inquisitors] raze his village to the ground?

 

Milo responded, "Faringel Slave Mine."

 

The guard's partner flicked open a notepad and scribbled something onto it.

 

"Faringel? That's pretty far away. What sort of business would an ex [Slave] have in Greenlodge?"

 

"I'm here to meet with my uncle, Bill. I don't exactly remember the name of the place, but he owns a tailor shop here in Greenlodge."

 

"Bill? Are you sure your ears aren't painted on? That's the best tailor shop in all of Greenlodge. Probably even the entire state. All the posh and specials wear his stuff."

 

Milo gave a firm nod, "Yeah. That Bill."

 

The guard looked impressed in a way and shrugged.

 

The guard nodded at him, "Well then, I'm sure Milo here isn't stupid enough to try and impersonate Bill's nephew. You can go through."

 

Milo asked before he left, "Do you know where my uncle's shop is? I've actually never met him before."

 

The guards rolled their eyes and after giving him some simple instructions, Milo thanked them and went on his way, the guards then continued to screen the next person in line.

 

Milo walked under the portcullis, through a small inner chamber, and exited into a bustling street of voices and trodding footsteps. The sun brightly lit the walls and cobblestoned path of the town's roads.

 

Following along the main road like the guards said, he passed a market full of people shouting at him, attempting to hawk their goods and wares. He passed a few blocks of storied residences, and eventually exited onto the eighteenth left on the main road—Milo had been counting the entire time.

 

He entered into a quiet street that was only several paces wide. The buildings here were single-storied, with only a single building taller than the rest. The two-story building had a sign sticking out from it, a suit and tie drawn onto its wooden surface.

 

Milo walked along the street and looked through the window, spying an emporium of suits, ties and trousers on the inside. Seated at a desk deep within the establishment was a beautiful woman. Gone was the baby fat of her younger years. High cheekbones pulled against pale skin as her eyes scanned the design of the suit alongside another man with luscious and shining black hair.

 

Milo was speechless.

 

That woman was his sister, Lisa.

 

He pulled open the door with all the strength in his arm and strutted over, his mouth agape as he marvelled at his sister. How did she escape?

 

A million thoughts were racing through his mind as he entered the colourful emporium.

 

But his path was swiftly blocked by an intimidating wall of a man.

 

"Who are you?" He said, staring down Milo with a threatening gaze.

 

Milo stood his ground and stared back. "I'm Lisa's brother," he stated firmly.

 

The man squinted his eyes at him and silently activated [Identify Person].

 

[Milo, Son of George; Level 1 Farmer]

 

He elicited a 'hmm' and looked Milo up and down appraisingly, "That's a pleasant surprise. Come then, I'll lead you over."

 

Milo was shocked that his uncle had a dedicated [Guard] for his own shop. He wasn't able to identify classes like the [Guard] could, but he could tell what his job was. He was big and dangerous. Easy to infer his class from there. He had met too many to count over the last month of his travels. They were the people he had to deal with the most.

 

And they always had [Identify Person] to make his life harder. Some let him through but others forced him to don the invisibility cloak and make a run for it. There was the law, and then there were those who would gladly sell vulnerable slaves back to their plantations for quick money.

 

The [Guard] led him to the vintage wooden countertop located at the top right corner of the shop.

 

Lisa and the man noticed his presence and lifted their heads up from their work, ready to attend to the customer before them. Lisa had a strange expression on her face when she saw Milo as if she was trying to remember if she had seen this man before.

 

Lisa, "Good afternoon, Sir."

 

Milo smiled from cheek to cheek as he replied, "Good afternoon, Lisa. You remember your little brother…Milo?"

 

Lisa shook her head as she continued to look at him strangely, "What are you…"

 

The man before her was tall and muscled. His arms were burly and covered in hair. He wore an expensive kind of leather travelling wear, a white undercloth, and black boots. His hair was long, blonde, and tied back into a bun.

 

He looked like he hadn't had a good wash for days. Slowly, the pieces fell into place and the distant image of her younger brother melded onto the face of the man before her.

 

She skirted around the counter and touched Milo's cheek with her left hand. Her jaw dropped as tears welled up in her eyes.

 

"Milo?" Her voice choked as she uttered the name of her little brother whom she hadn't seen in over nine years.

 

Milo smiled and pulled into an embrace, his hand pulling against the black fabric of her corset.

 

"I'm home, Lisa."

 

The black-haired man had a look of astonishment on his face.

 

***

 

Milo and Lisa talked well into midnight as both recounted the last nine years of their lives apart from each other.

 

Apparently, as soon as the first fires towered into the sky and smoke engulfed the village, her father-in-law had interrupted them in the middle of the act and the whole of the extended family had rushed down to the river.

 

The men would've stayed and fought if Lisa's father-in-law hadn't seen the red-robed [Inquisitors] flying through the village and slaughtering everyone. [Piercing Sight], a skill that he would usually use to peer into dark and muddy waters, had ended up saving his family's lives.

 

They had escaped up the river and after a few days of travel through the wilderness, they made their way to Greenlodge and had been there ever since. Lisa now worked in Uncle Bill's [Tailor] shop as a seamstress, and Thor, her father-in-law, and her three sons worked as [Fishermen] along the nearby river. They didn't thrive in Greenlodge. They merely survived.

 

Life had been tough for her. The standards of Bill's [Tailor] shop were sky-high, and only a few of her works had been accepted by her uncle over the years, but as her levels had increased and she gained more experience, she was steadily becoming better and better at her craft.

 

After Bill had heard of the tragedy, he voiced his regret and apologised to Lisa for never visiting. Apparently, Bill and George, his father, had gotten into a very big argument the last time they had seen each other, and so they mutually cut each other from one another.

 

But Bill was not someone to forego favours from the past. So every year, he would send a large sum of money to his brother in payment. It was to pay him back for believing in him and trusting him with his part of the inheritance to help him achieve his dream.

 

And now Bill, bound by family ties and feeling a sense of duty to his dead brother whom he wished had reconciled with, took care of Lisa and her family to somehow satisfy his lingering ghosts. Lisa said that Uncle Bill wasn't a friendly person, but he made damn sure that everyone close to him lived as best as possible.

 

Lisa and her family all lived in a manor owned by Bill.

 

As Milo and Lisa finally decided to fall asleep, he walked back to his room with a candle holder in hand. As he arrived back in his room, snuffed out the light, and tucked himself into bed, he thought about what he was going to do next.