‘The hell? Those are runes!’

John was shocked with what he saw.

As Vulgad spoke the magic words, characters of the runic language formed in the air corresponding to each word.

Flummoxed, the Human looked to the Dwarf.

Vulgad held up the ring his tent had shrunk down to, a smirk on his face. Rather like a child showing off a toy on the playground.

“Pretty neat, Innit? I got it off an Elven bard damn near a decade ago. Saved ‘is life I did.”

“V-Vulgad- eh -ah… When you did that, you saw the shapes too right?”

This time it was the Dwarf’s turn to be confused. And a little miffed at not receiving awe for his shrinking tent.

“What’re ye on about? Shapes? Ye a wizard er some such?”

“When you said those words. I saw shapes in the air. And no, I’m not a wizard, why do you ask?”

Vulgad stroked his beard. He really played his part as wise old man perfectly.

“Wizards, mages, sorcerers, an’ all manner of casters connect wit’ the mana aroun’ ‘em. Since most of ‘em have such a high sense fer mana, they happen to see things where mana is thick. Like a cloud of smoke by a fire. ‘eck! Some of ‘em taste an’ smell it too.”

‘Mana? That sounds similar to… Oh, now that makes sense. That ‘mysterious energy’ eh?’

“Like I told you Vulgad, I was taught not to use the system. I don’t know much, but I do have a mana sense skill. You mean to say I can see mana because of it?”

“Yer only a level one though, ‘ow can ye possibly ‘ave a high enough mana sense? If ye don’t mind me askin’, what rank is the skill? From what I know, ye need a high rank tah visualize mana.”

‘System, show the skill Mana Sense.’

Skill Name: Mana Sense

Rarity: Uncommon-2

Type: Magic Sensory

Family: Intelligence

Rank: 4

Description: The user has the ability to sense mana around them.

Usage: Passive Use

Cost: None

The most integral skill for any aspiring mage.

“It says here that its rank 4.”

Vulgad bursts into a fit of coughing.

“What! Yer pullin’ me chain now! Level 1 an’ a rank 4 skill? That can’t be true. Me best skill barely made rank 3 a few moons ago.”

‘I take it that that’s not normal around here. I guess he would have gotten suspicious of my weirdness eventually, this just speeds things up.’

John stared at the flabbergasted Dwarf, contemplating.

‘I wonder if I can tell him. And if so, how much to tell?’

Trusting others was not something that came naturally. He had trained himself not to.

But he had to admit, he was in over his head. A little help could go a long way right now.

“Vulgad, I have something I need to admit to you…”

If looks could kill, Vulgad’s would have at the very least maimed him.

“I’d say so. I jus’ thought ye were an odd duck. Maybe ye really were raised wit’out usin’ tha system. But now, you’ve shown me ye got big secrets. The type that attract attention. An’ attention means danger. I don’t take kindly to bein’ put in danger lad.”

“I swear Vulgad, my secrets won’t endanger you. You’re probably the only one who knows about me, well, besides some far-removed outliers.”

“John, whatever yer secrets are. I wanna ‘ear em, but later, when we’ve set up camp.”

“But y-“

“I said later! I need tah think, an’ the tent won’t ‘ave any pryin’ ears.”

The Dwarf was vehement as his words were shouted. John felt like a kid again. Cowed into submission by his elders.

With his tent-ring placed on his finger. Vulgad stormed onward, following no particular path in the wood, but resolute in his direction.

Baff wandered over and looked oddly at John.

“What was tha’ about?”

John looked at the back of the greying Dwarf.

“We’ll have to wait and see Baff. Just wait and see…”

***

John and company had moved at a fairly quick pace for walking off the beaten path.

John was surprised at his own endurance to be quite honest. Either the system made endurance work differently, or John’s saviors had given him a body that was in damn good shape for his rebirth. He may not look like some top-notch athlete, but he didn’t remember feeling as healthy as he was now.

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Speaking of his appearance, he should ask Vulgad if he had any mirrors in that tent of his.

‘Oh, right…’

John had been trying to avoid thinking about the look he’d gotten in his last conversation with that particular Dwarf.

Baff on the other hand, had actually been pretty friendly on their trek, a big contrast from when they met. John was pretty sure it was due to Baff’s own loneliness. Vulgad seemed to care deeply for him, but he was like a strict grandfather. Seeing as it was just the two of them until John came along, he could imagine the younger Dwarf was starving for some more youthful company.

The absent barbs about John’s height and Human status gave him the feeling that he could initiate a conversation with Baff.

“So Baff, where are you and your master headed to?”

The apprentice gave a startled glance over his shoulder at John.

“Oh, master don’t tell me all tha’ much about where we’re goin’. ‘e says that ‘you’ll see when we get there’, but who knows what he means by tha’. Our next stop’ll be in Lumis though. Master said somethin’ bout seein’ an’ old friend.”

“And what type of place is Lumis? Is it very big?”

“Wow, ye really are from some backwater ain’t ye? Never even ‘eard of Lumis! They call it the shinin’ jewel of Tyrshal, the capital. I’ve never been meself, but I’ve had stories told to me from traders an’ the like fer years.”

“What do the stories say about it then?”

“Oh, they say its so big, ye can spend weeks there an’ still be walkin’ new streets every day! That those streets never go dark, always lit by sunlight or mage lamps. Their cathedral takes it a step further an’ is like a sun brought down to Cuerus!”

‘A cathedral? I thought the system was all they needed. Maybe they worship God here. Hell was real enough.’

John couldn’t help from smiling at Baff’s exuberance. He never got to act so excitedly in his youth, his father made sure his son felt his own unhappiness at that age. Often with the use of a fist or a belt.

“Sounds awesome, how much farther is it from here?”

“We should be getting’ there around a week from now, accordin’ to master.”

“Cool, and where did you guys come from?”

Already John knew Baff had an atrocious tell when he was being untruthful. Following the question, Baff’s stride faltered a bit and his posture stiffened ever so slightly.

“Oh, ye know. I jus’ was a poor boy livin’ wit’ me mother in a minin’ town. Gela’s Hearth is the name o’ the town. Master was passin’ through an’ saw me fightin’ wit’ some of the local boys. ‘e said I had potential, an’ that he’d turn me into a great warrior. The last couple of months is ‘istory I guess.”

‘He’s hiding something, Vulgad is too from the sounds of it. The honesty street goes both ways you old coot!’

“That’s really great Baff! You're lucky to have a master like Vulgad. He seems like he’ll teach you right.”

The young man’s cheeks blushed, John could swear that despite being behind him, there being his thick beard, and the mane of head hair, that his blush was as clear as day.

‘He’s as transparent as glass. I think he’s just about as bad as it gets!’

Vulgad’s voice broke through his musing.

“Hey! Pick up the pace back there! I wanna make it there sooner rather than later!”

***

Vulgad wasn’t kidding about picking up the pace. They kept a light jog —long strides for John really— until the suns started to set. The unnaturally clean forest floor was the only reason they could move faster than a meander.

Baff had asked about why it was so clear of leaf litter and shrubbery.

Vulgad explained that it was because the Halflings didn’t want to let anyone pave a road through their wood. So, the middle ground was easy to navigate forest land.

As long as John made sure to avoid the occasional stray root, he was fine. The traveling was meditative in a way. It wouldn’t be all that hard to clear his mind. Or, contemplate the mysteries of magic.

Where magic was concerned, John was in the figurative deep end with stones as his floats.

Well maybe not that bad, but he was rather confused about all of it. Then there was his skill…

Skill Name: Rune Writing

Rarity: Unique-?

Type: Magic Casting

Family: Intelligence

Rank: 1

Description: The user writes in the language of magic itself.

Usage: Active Use

Cost: Mana

The very words of creation. Use them wisely, as some things are better left unsaid.

The Unique rarity should have tipped him off that runes were a step above your standard magical fare. Considering that being able to sense mana was merely ‘uncommon’ in the grand scheme of things.

He wanted to understand how his interaction with runes made him so special.

It would be much easier if he could actually do rune writing. As it was now, he couldn’t access his mana in the same way he did in hell as a disembodied soul. When he sensed the mana before, manipulating it was as easy as breathing. Actually, he did treat it like breathing.

Now that he had a body, the mana around him seemed like it was oblivious to his attentions. He tried to poke and prod it as he had before. All he was met with was zilch, zero, nada, nothing, a heaping pile of no-good phooey.

John was at a loss for what to try next. His nearing conversation with Vulgad weighed on his mind, distracting him.

Speaking of which, the currently seated John’s attention was grabbed by the aforementioned Dwarf approaching.

The camp was already set up, and they all had eaten a silent meal. It seemed to be yet another cut of meat Vulgad had stashed away.

John looked up at Vulgad and gave a smile that he hoped hid his nervousness.

“Ready Vulgad?”

“Aye, we’ll talk in tha tent. Baff’ll watch camp fer us.”

Without further ado, John followed the Dwarf that could easily kill him into the private area to have a tense conversation. What could possibly go wrong?

‘Nothing hopefully’

Upon entering the not-tent, Vulgad continued to a separate room off to the side of the enormous space. John followed into the next room

This space was a bit different than the theme of the rest of the tent he had seen thus far.

The scene was actually quite comical to the Human. It was a study. Not unlike the one he and Jerry shared their conversation in before he woke up in the world of Cuerus.

Vulgad sat in a fine leather chair, his familiar silver inlaid pipe held lightly to his lips. He gestured to the seat across from him. Perhaps John was destined to learn most things in dusty old studies. The coincidence was odd to be sure.

“So lad, ye wanted to tell me tha’ truth right? ‘ere we are, spill yer secrets.”

“First, I need to know, what did you mean by prying ears earlier today? Who would be listening to us all the way out here?”

Vulgad raised a bushy old eyebrow at him.

“Tha’ ‘aflin’s ‘ave ears everywhere. An’ I supposed ye didn’t mean to include them in yer secrets. Their folk always tend to be unnoticed in important meetin’s an’ such.”

“Gotcha, thanks.”

“…”

“So, where to begin…”

“At the beginnin’?”

“Heh, yea that might be best”

***

There, in Vulgad’s study, John finally let loose his story on a listening ear. Vulgad proved to be a superb listener. He only asked questions when they needed clarifications. Or he was a little too shocked to let some facet of the story pass.

John told his story for a few hours until he finally reached the point where he came upon the Dwarves.

“Lad, yer somethin’ right outta legend. Never thought I’d see a damned soul come back from the pit o’ ‘ell."

An odd look came over Vulgad

"I’m sorry to be suspicious of ye, but ye gotta tell me why ye were down in them infernal depths. Wasn't too bad of a crime I 'ope?”

John nodded his understanding.

“Well, that is probably the most mundane part of my past Vulgad. I was a poor kid without any prospects. I found that the easiest way to make a life for myself was by stealing the wealth of others. By the time I died, there was no other way I’d would have considered living.”

The Dwarf was rummaging around on a shelf and finally pulled out a crystal. Which he promptly handed to John.

“’ere. Tha’s a truthstone. I need ye to swear on the truth of yer statements, an’ I need you swear ye ‘ave renounced yer life of thievery. Then our issues will be settled.”

“I swear, that all I’ve told you is the truth, and that I’ll never steal unless in the direst of circumstances.”

The stone shone a bright, white color.

'Magic truth detector. Neat.'

“Haaahh… I guess tha’s acceptable. But we’ll be ‘avin’ words about this rune writin’ skill o’ yers. I’ve never ‘eard of anythin’ like ‘em. I mean, a language made of magic! Yer presence on Cuerus’ll complicate things further than they already are.”

“Does it have to do with Baff? I know you guys are hiding something. I think you need to clue me in on some secrets of your own now.”

The Dwarf gave a long, tired sigh.

“Mistress fate works in the most mysterious o’ ways don’t she John?”

“I think I’ve seen that first hand.”

“Yea, I ‘spose ye ‘ave.”

They both lapsed into silence.

Vulgad, preparing for his own tale.

John, happy to have shared some of the weight of his.