I told him and with nothing else to do I went looking around the city. It was very large. I wouldn't be able to see it all in one day. The walls were nearly 50 feet tall and went all the way around. There were many gates and inside there were many different sections. Unlike the first town I stayed in there were all kinds of races here. Elf, Dwarf and Beastmen of many kinds. I asked someone for directions to a library and they suggested I go to a guard shack as they had maps of the city there. I did just that.

The guard was in a guard shack that looked like a British police box from one of my favorite shows. This one was Brown though… not Blue. He was helpful and showed me the map on the side of the box. I realized that as cities go it was well laid out. Different sections of the city served different purposes. There was a warehouse district near the river for bringing in goods and next to that was the merchant center. Various shops were located there according to the guard. Then there was and inner section where nicer shops with professionals like high end tailors and artificers could be found. This was also where the gentry lived. He said Hotels in that area could go for 10-20 silver a night. A quick calculation in my head and realized this was $250-$500 a night. Martha’s was looking better and better! I would leave those hotels for the Gold rank adventurers! There were two libraries in town and several book stores. The libraries he said were expensive to get into (5 silver for one and 10 for the other) and only used by the upper class and researchers, but that if I had the coin, I could gain entrance. Just… probably not looking like I did.

When he said that I realized I was still wearing dirty farmer’s clothes and leather armor and hadn’t bathed since my Ogre job. I wasn’t covered in blood, but there was a little on me and I sorely needed a bath after running for an hour and then fighting. I asked him if there was such a thing as a bathhouse in town. He laughed and said yes and pointed out where on the map. I brought up my map to see if I could pin point where and got surprised by a notification.

MAP FOUND! INCORPORATE NEW MAP INTO PERSONAL MAP?

Yes. No.

I selected yes and then put down a few pins for places the guard and shown me. I thanked him again and asked if it was customary to tip and he said it wasn’t, but thank you. I took off to the bathhouse to make myself presentable. Women kept looking at me and made me even more conscious of how I looked so I hastened my steps. ‘I must be making them nervous with how I look.’ I thought. ‘I’m not a serial killer. Really!’ I couldn’t get to the bathhouse quick enough.

After my bath I put on my nicer tailored clothes and felt much better. There hadn’t been any mirrors in the bath house as it was a low end one, but I still felt I had to look leagues better than I did before. Most places didn’t have mirrors I noted. Even the ones that did only had ones that were polished bronze. I hadn’t even seen one of those in this town yet.

The first place I went was somewhere I wanted to get some information from. When I found it I took a good look before going in. I was standing in front of a rather ostentatious building. Rather than beautiful it was like everything about it was fancy to look fancy. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but I didn’t like it. “So this is the temple to the three gods?” I muttered to no one in particular. I wanted to know more about the ones in charge here. It seemed like they were very different from the Gods in my old world. Not that I knew much about my old worlds Gods other than they were my soul’s parents and were focused on our progression. I entered the temple and found a few regular people donating money and leaving, but I wanted information so I looked for someone who I might ask. I noticed a kind looking older woman in a robe and went up to her.

“Hello there!” I said. “Do you have a minute? I am a new Guided and wish to ask a few questions if I may.”

She looked at me blinking for a few seconds. “Did you just say you are a new Guided?”

“Yes. I arrived near Large Falls and have recently relocated here. They didn’t have a temple in Large Falls so I wasn’t sure who to ask questions about the gods here.” I said.

“Oh my,” she started “I never thought I would meet someone touched by the god of guidance! I would be happy to help you. What questions do you have?”

“Well... I guess I would have to start with the gods. I understand there are other gods as well as the god of guidance. Who are they and what do they all do?” I asked.

She looked thoughtful for a moment and then started in a voice that made me think I was getting a lecture she gave many times and probably to little children. When she did a soft glow like when I leveled up surrounded her

“A long time ago there were three gods. The god of life, the god of war and the god of guidance. They weren’t called that at the time and they weren’t even gods. They were just like us. It was a time of danger and disorder. There were also very few people as they would get eaten by monster that ran rampant. The three gods fought and fought. They got so strong that first they stopped getting hurt or sick. Then they stopped aging. Then they developed their mana to the point their power was so great they were called gods. One day they looked around at the world and realized no one else had made it. All the others that were like them… who loved and thought and helped one another were all gone. They were sad and lonely so the god of guidance spoke and said ‘I will bring others here.’ The god of life said ‘when you do I will help them when they die to come back to life and create a cycle so that life continues.’ The god of war said ‘and I will help them grow and become strong during their lives.’ With that the god of guidance searched the stars and finding no others, went through the very fabric of the universe to another and there found life in abundance. He went to many worlds and brought back those who would thrive here. This is the story of the three gods.”

“Wow.” I said. “How does anyone know all of this? Are the gods someone you can talk to? Is there a record of this?” I asked.

“That is an excellent question young Guided. This has been passed down for generations now. Hundreds and thousands of years. The gods do occasionally talk to us. Mostly these days they just quietly live among us without us knowing who they are. They did all this so they wouldn’t ever be lonely again after all. If they do want to relate a message, they will often go to a temple to do so. Everyone knows when a person has been given a message from one of the gods as they glow when they relate the message or perform their task. What I just told you was one such message and when it is repeated word for word the speaker glows as you saw I did.”

I thought for a moment. There was a lot to unpack here. When I looked up, she was still looking at me patiently smiling and I said “I understand. I have a lot to think about now. One more question before I go to ponder all this. What do the gods want for us?”

“For us?” She asked. “I would say that we lead interesting lives. When this life is over the goddess of life will take our soul and we will be washed of our memories and put in a new body to live all over again. You will live many lives so make them interesting!”

I thanked the woman and went to go somewhere to think. I went walking and found a nearby café. Sitting there I compared what I had just heard to what I had learned from my soul’s mother. It was hard to even compare. My mother had made it clear that she was working to help all of her children grow. That she and her husband’s whole purpose was about their children growing and becoming more. This world’s gods just seemed bored and looking for entertainment. They didn’t even care about us progressing. If anything, they were stopping progression. All these years and they just recycled people. Not letting them improve. Not only had they stolen me from my planet they were stealing people’s potential.

What could I do though? I wasn’t even the strongest human. How strong would a god be? I decided to keep getting stronger, but for now I would put it out of my mind. One thing I knew though. Letting the gods know how strong I could get would be dangerous. That and they walked among us so it could be anyone.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

I wasn’t too hungry and I knew I had dinner waiting back at the inn in a couple hours, but wanted a small snack. Plus they had an outside eating area and I could people watch… or Analyze. I wanted to start getting a feel for what was normal for stats for various races and especially humans. I needed to know if I was going to blend in.

I sat and ate some bread and drank some herbal tea while I Analyzed and cataloged everyone that walked by. I soon found some interesting patterns. For one thing if two different humans were the same level they were almost exactly the same stats. There were usually a few points extra here or there. For example everyone of my level had a speed of 14 if they were human. No exceptions. They might have an extra point of discipline or knowing what to say, but speed, speed of thought and Knowledge was high on all of them. ‘Fast and Crafty’… isn’t that what Kattie had said about us humans? This must be why.

A few stronger people went by as did some Beastmen and that is when I realized how strong Beastmen were. Beastmen were head and shoulders above everyone in terms of strength. Rolf had an Attack of 6 at level 47. A Beastman of my level had a Attack of 14-16. Damage that they could take was still low across the board. I was the highest I had seen of any race or level other than an Ogre. It looks like I had made myself a weird hybrid. I didn’t see any Elves while I sat, but based on Marybell’s stat I knew of she had to have high Wisdom for magic.

As I was about to get up to leave, I notice a woman looking at me out of the corner of my. I looked at her long enough to hit her with Analyze

Name: Sara Long

Race: Human

Level: 38 (78%)

Age: 35

Attitude towards you: Curious

Wisdom 15 (Mana 3, Mana Control 1, Knowledge 14, Mana Regen 1/10min)

Intellect 12 (memorization 2, recall 2, Speed of thought 8)

Strength 26 (Attack 5, speed 18, endurance 3)

Constitution 9 (Resist Poinsons 3, Vitality 3, Protection 3)

Agility 8 (control of movement 3, balance 3, learning new skills 2)

Will 11 (Discipline 3, Ability to overcome adversity 3, desire to win 3, resistance to charm or intimidate 2)

Charisma 18 (Good Looks 2, Luck 2, Communication 3, negotiations 3, leadership 3)

Skills: Creator 32, Bow Mastery 24, Mana Sight 4, Scroll Making 24, Singing 14

I was reading through everything when she popped up right in front of me pointing at my nose.

“That! What did you just do when you looked at me?” You’ve been doing it every time you look at people passing by for a while now.”

Startled, I took a look around and no one else was sitting out here so I looked back at her. She was a 5 foot short little thing wearing a robe. I would say she was attractive. Maybe cute in a serious, nerdy kind of way was the best way to describe her. On Earth I would assume she was into kittens and reading books about young wizards.

“what do you mean.” I said rather lamely. Communication stat was letting me down in my startled state here.

She bent forward and looked right in my eyes and said “Do it again. Right. Now.”

I wanted to know what she was seeing so I hit her with Analyze again.

“YES! That! What did you just do?”

I wasn’t sure how much was safe to say so I kept my answer vague. I am assessing people’s strength level. Like I can tell you are mid Iron Rank if you are an adventurer.”

Her eyes nearly popped out of her head and she got even closer looking at my eyes. “You have the Analyze skill?” she asked in an excited whisper. This time she looked around before looking back at me and I nodded my head. “Hurray!” She said jumping up and down. “You have to come with me!” She grabbed my hand and started to pull me. The problem she had though was that she was half my Attack and even less in size and weight. She didn’t move me an inch. She looked back at me shocked “how are you so strong so young? You know what I don’t even care, you have to come with me… please?” She was almost begging me now. What was with this girl. Her emotions were all over the map.

“Ok, look” I said “explain a little more or I’m not going anywhere with you. How do you know about the Analyze skill? Where do you want to take me and why?”

She looked like she was about to burst and then sat down, still holding my hand like she was afraid I was going to run away from her.

“Every researcher knows the Analyze skill. It is one of the rarest and most sought-after skills for us. With it at a high enough level you can unlock lost secrets and even discover new paths forward known only to the gods. I want you to come with me to my lab. I have so many things I want you to Analyze. Please? I will pay you for your time of course. I’ll pay a gold bar a day!”

A gold bar was worth 100 Gold coins and not used in normal commerce very often. Just between merchants for large transactions or countries. I could stay at Martha’s for the next 45 years for that.

“and all you want me to do is Analyze things? You won’t tell anyone about me or try to do anything to me?”

She looked shocked “Yes. Just Analyze things. We may need to work on getting it leveled, but I know how to do that and once you do you will share what you find with me. As for telling someone else I would NEVER! You are my new secret weapon. I will reach master tier in the creator skill before I’m 40. I could reach the pinnacle of master rank!” She was starting to look off and slowly standing up getting more and more excited as she talked.

I put my hands on the sides of her face and turned her face back to me. When I was sure she was looking at me and not her future I said

“I’m not against the idea. I will go with you to check out your work shop. If everything looks good, I will work with you on my rest days when I’m not hunting. I’m an adventurer first.”

She looked thoughtful. “but I don’t want you to get hurt.” She puffed out her cheeks like a chipmunk looking to the side and then suddenly looked back at me “I know I’ll load you up with safety gear. We will keep you safe for sure!”

I stood up. “Ok then. Let’s go check out your shop.”

She grabbed my hand again… this was becoming a thing now, and started to rush off. Luckily, I had already paid my bill so I followed her. We started to go into the nicer inner city and she led me to a large stone manor. She opened the door and at the sound a maid appeared and started to say something, but Sara waved her off and dragged me down into a basement where a very busy looking work space was. I didn’t recognize half of the things I was seeing. Some I did. Like an artifice that I knew was for starting a fire that looked half made. Artifices were expensive items that had some magical properties.

My little guide stopped and started to sort through drawers finally having relinquished my hand. I thought of a question

“Sara, how is your main job creating artifices. You also make spell scrolls yes?”

Sara stopped. Turned and looked at me with a smile. You have already raised Analyze to the 8th tier?” That is wonderful! What do you see for my skills?”

I read them off to her: Creator 32, Bow Mastery 24, Mana Sight 4, Scroll Making 24, Singing 14. I smiled at her. “I would very much like to hear you sing.”

She blushed bright red “I, I, I couldn’t. I’ve never sung for anyone except my teacher and family.” She said.

“Hmm. I think you need me more than I need you here don’t you. You are going to sing for me when I ask or this isn’t going to work out.” I said with a smirk.

“Oooh you bully! I… I will sing if you will work with me, but if you ask me to you will forfeit your gold that day!”

“Deal!” I said.

She looked at me with timid eyes for a minute then something caught her attention like a dog noticing a squirrel. Did you say my Creator skill is 32? As in the 32nd teir? I’m almost master level now! Just 3 more.” She started dancing around and said “best day ever!”

I decided to try to get back on track “So artifice vs. scroll?”

“I do both, but my main focus is Artifice. How much do you know about Artifice creation?” she asked me.

“I don’t know. Not a lot. I know they are made for people who can’t do magic. That is about it.”

“Not quite.” She said. “You see the Artifice control node still needs magic. It just pulls it out of the person using it and creates the effect which then continues using ambient magic, not the person’s.” She paused looking at me as if to decide if she should say more. She seemed to come to a decision and asked “This is much more useful to us humans than scrolls. Do you know why? Wait are you human? Are you part Elf?”

“No I’m 100% human and no I don’t know why. Please enlighten me.”

“Well you see we humans aren’t born with much mana. Even I, who can see it, can’t move it around or use more than the little we are given. Teenage elves who reach the mid Bronze rank as an adventurer already have more than our strongest mages ever gain. You could take the strongest scroll and learn the skill, but without the magic to power it, the knowledge is useless. Take that same human with their weak mana though and give them a strong aritifice and they can perform many of the same feats as an Elf mage of the silver rank. Take this for example” She pulled a small pendant from a under her rob. “This is a shield artifice. It was made by an Elf with the Shield Spell. I will activate it using a bit of my mana.” A soft glow surrounded her in a dome shape. “Go ahead and try to hit it with something.”

I gave it a push and then grabbed a piece of wood and gave it a good whack and it didn’t even shimmer.

With a satisfied look on her face she said “You could hit it all day if you wanted. Unless an Ogre or Beastman of sufficient strength hit it, the shield will continue to protect me without requiring more of my mana. That is why I have devoted myself to studying and making artifice. To level the playing field for human adventurers. Everyone seems to be happy explaining away our weakness compared to other races as payment for our ability to have more children. I detest that thinking. I decided we are smart and that is what we will win with!”

I nodded and said “I love it. My father always said when you fight someone that outclasses you all you have is tools and strategy. You will make some amazing tools. I will help you.”

Sara beamed at that. She would have had me start right then… and probably had me work through the night, but I said I would be back tomorrow. It was time to eat and get some sleep. I did borrow a book on beginning artifice work though as I don’t sleep as long as other people anymore. I didn’t want to come knocking at midnight so I would prep for it.