Yesterday I made my way up the hidden hiking trail I’d mentioned and spent a few hours just taking in the scenery. I’m proud to say I took the time to fully relax and reflect, rather than obsessively train like I usually do. As always, I did a lot of thinking, deciding that it would be best if I went to Ironwood City, rather than Seaside.

I was reluctant to admit that a non-significant factor in wanting to go to Seaside would be my comfort on the journey. It’s closer to High Village and the caravan is large and slow, I wouldn’t have to end a long day with a hunt if I wanted dinner. Plus, the road is better maintained and patrolled so less of a chance for fights to occur.

And considering that Seaside is an established merchant city, home to wealthy business owners and even the occasional foreign dignitary, it would certainly be a very nice place to live. Not like I even knew what made cities so much better than the towns I’d lived in, but since everyone was saying it, it must be true.

Alas, practically won out in the end, cutting short my dreams of living in the fancy coastal city. For now at least, Seaside isn’t going anywhere.

The fact was, the whole reason I was traveling in the first place was so that my improvement didn’t stall. I needed to experience as much of the world as I could to retain any half-decent Leveling and I needed to meet those that had first-hand knowledge of the System. The only knowledgeable people I had a shot at learning from weren’t the nobles who were taught about the System or the wealthy’s researchers who calculated aspects of it. My goal was the fighters.

Those who specialized in combat could be secretive with System tips as [Royal Guards] or as open as [Taven Brawlers]. While none would tell me their Skills or Classes, I bet I could convince them for general help to unlock a specific Class type or Skill of my own.

To be fair, my current plan of ‘travel to dangerous locations to meet people who do dangerous things’ was starting to seem pretty close to the adventuring I swore to avoid. But was the only reasonable option to gain a deeper understanding of the world if I didn’t want to risk myself like the people I wanted to observe. I was fine sticking to my little risks, like traveling or hunting or jumping off trees.

And even though Ironwood, which was essentially an overgrown lumber mill, only had a single dungeon controlled by the city, there was plenty of other activities around, since the city was so deep in the forest. Even on casual patrol jobs dozens of monsters would be killed, or so I’ve been told. It’s not like I’ve been there before.

Sticking to the decision I came to while in my meditative, peaceful state yesterday, I decided to get out of my head and make my way out of town. I put a note on my empty bed, thanking the owner for being a great land-lady, picked up my bag repacked to hold everything I own and left the building.

It took a while for me to make it to the main road since I kept readjusting my pack, but once it got settled I was already turning down the dirt path towards the Adventurers Guild. The main guildhall was located on the south side of a big dirt square. One of the three squares in High Valley. But while the main square and market square are cobbled and maintained, this square was packed with dirt and used for a variety of purposes.

Though it was still morning, the square was already heating up as the sun beat down on the town. The tall peaks that surrounded the valley somehow did not shade the town much at all during the summer months, despite reaching so high. Either because the real mountains didn’t rise from the valley within a day’s walk of the town, or they weren’t simply tall enough. Considering the ice-capped peaks in the heart of summer, I assumed it was the distance rather than the height, though.

Most of the people around here were quickly doing their work to stay out of the sun or milling around the edges of the square that provided shade. That meant the path was relatively clear, so I walked up the steps to the guildhall without trouble.

It wasn’t a particularly grand building, more so because there was no real need for Adventurers out here rather than the Guild skimping on luxuries for this branch, but the door was heavy and sturdy. So it opened and shut with a deep clunk. More than a few eyes glanced at me as I walked past the benches and tables near the entrance and made my way to the waiting clerk’s stalls. On the way, I felt an [Identify] wash over me. Looking over, I caught an [Adventurer] muttering something to his partner with a shake of his head, who sneered when she heard it.

Oh, you probably need to know a bit about [Identify] to fully appreciate that.

[Identify], ah what a Skill. Has always been such a pain in the ass. I mentioned how general skill slots are usually filled with basic things, right? Well [Identify] is the classic example. Considering its usefulness, quite easy to learn. Very weak initially but as it upgrades it becomes worth it. Blah blah, learn names of people, plants and animals, blah blah, see Levels, blah blah see Classes. Now, do you understand why I don't like it?

Identifying others is generally no big deal, especially when you don't look too deep. With minor effort you can see names, a bit more than the Level comes up, and add even more intent, you can see their Class. Higher levels or class-specific variants can give you skills or stats or tips or whatnot, but who cares.

And feeling an [Identify] does take some training if you want to detect when it just brushes past you to find your name or to figure out where it came from, or exactly how deep they sent the probe. Luckily for me, I had lots of opportunities to practice.

You’ve heard about the stigma around the System-less, right? Well, in most people’s minds, being Class-less after Level 10 is pretty much the same thing. Let’s just say I wasn’t treated well when people would identify me, which was quite often when I was younger.

Luckily, the stronger you get, the more of a social faux-pas it becomes. Hell, even starting in the 2nd tier, it can be anywhere from an insult to an attack. At that point, your mental layers take conscious effort to peel away anything deeper than the surface level name, unless you’re strong (dumb) enough to ‘display’ your Level, Class, or any Achievement. Feeling someone [Identify] your Class probably means they’re looking for the best way to target your weaknesses and attack.

So random shopkeepers who would innocently [Identify] me, and see that my Level is much too low for my age, might decide to further check my Class, perhaps curious to see if it is just a rare class that takes longer to level. However, while they may have given in to personal curiosity before, very few would risk provoking a Level 18 just because he looks slightly too old. Being 20 is totally not too old though, right?

A bit of context, the first tier is structured in the Kingdom, as it's pretty much required to follow the one-Level-per-tier method from the introductory tier. I guess it’s so you are able to improve your Skills and get as many awarded Attributes as possible before the first Class upgrade at Level 20. It frankly doesn’t take much for a hunting party to quickly level any Snotty McRichFace by taking down monsters. Even us commoners sometimes power Level to 20 plenty fast, if there’s a monster horde prediction or war oh the horizon.

Adventurers or fighters who are in their second or third tiers couldn’t give less of a shit if I feel provoked, though. This is why people like that couple waste no time in [Identifying] to satisfy their errant curiosity. Disdain and pity are the most common reactions, but they don’t exactly affect me like rude service or pricy goods from disdainful shopkeeps. Apparently, some take that I didn’t select a Class as a direct insult.

I made my way to the counter and asked the friendly woman about the caravan leaving towards Ironwood. She confirmed it would be going today, and mentioned they were probably saddling up outside. Thanking her, I took my leave.

It’s not like I needed any confirmation. Or that the Guild could get me a spot in the group. But I learned it was always nice to have extra information when preparing to haggle and bartering for a space in a traveling caravan was my specialty.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

As luck would have it, the large dirt parade grounds that the Guild used for training also doubled as a warehouse/shipping area. Probably because the warehouses on the far side extend to the side of the market square and merchant ‘district’.

I exited the main Guildhall, walking down the steps toward the square, I faced the warehouses on the other side. Facing north, if you prefer cardinal directions. Before I could get to the parade ground proper, I had to pass back through the Guild’s ‘training grounds’, which are not much more than a requisitioned strip of the dirt square where the earth is packed down firmer.

It abuts the side of the square taken up by the Guild’s buildings, not that it’s impressive for the massive Adventurers Guild to pay for a block of cheap land in an isolated town. The only building in the complex I’ve been to is the main hall, but I’d assume the rest are dormitories or storage or just sitting empty.

I pass the training grounds and cross the wide road that exits the square to my left, connecting to the main north-south thoroughfare of the town. To my right, I can smell the town’s main stable complex. Much bigger than it needs to be, considering the couple of inns in High Valley have their own spaces and horses aren’t too common outside of merchant caravans, but it did seem to fill up at the busiest times of the year, right before and after snow made the valley’s exits impassable.

A few horses were being led out of the stable’s main gate, walking towards a large waiting wagon ahead of me. Workers were loading it from one of the open warehouses that made up that side of the square, and a [Merchant] zipped around checking to make sure everything was running smoothly.

How’d I know he was a [Merchant] without [Identify]? The good old-fashioned way: look for the wealthiest person around a trade caravan and if they’re in a constant state of panic about running late or damaged goods, that’s your [Merchant]. Bonus points if they’re micromanaging the work of every person they lay eyes on. As if they have more experience hitching horses than the coachmen or if they ever actually lifted a 100 stone crate in your life.

The [Merchant] was currently checking over the horses, making sure they had been cared for properly, I hoped. After waiting for a few minutes, the horses were led to a different side of the stables and he took out what appeared to be a journal. He was a tall man, maybe a few inches taller than I was, wearing a poofy black hat with a brim on the front. It seemed to be made of nice fabric, just like the rest of his clothes. Though, to give him credit, they seemed to have the occasional wrinkle, alluding to the fact that he may have contributed some physical work today.

I walked up to him, and as he stood beside the wagon, was able to fully appreciate it for the first time.

The wagon was a big boxy thing, made of wood coated in a dark brown lacquer. It had an enclosed rear tall enough for someone to stand slightly crouched, and sturdy-looking doors in the back. The front had an uncovered bench for the coachman, with none of the fineries I had expected a [Merchant] of his apparent caliber to have.

What really surprised me was the size of the wagon. It was bigger than I expected and everything about it was so thick I didn’t know how even a team of four regular horses could pull it all day. Assuming he had horses raised with Systems or mana, I assumed anything was possible though. This wagon didn’t look anything like I’d seen before. It did look sturdy enough to be an armored transport for gold or something ridiculously expensive in a big city, though.

Spotting some raw ore in an open crate, I shrugged, assuming he probably decided on a stronger investment for his heavier goods.

“Hello there, might you be the [Merchant] who is running this caravan,” I said in my most professional tone. It was so much easier to approach it that way instead of like a social call.

“Oh, uh, yes… what do you want?” He replied much more on edge than I would’ve expected based on his prior appearance.

Trying to remain unperturbed I said, “I was told you are headed to Ironwood today and I was hoping to come with you.”

“I’m sorry we aren’t doing any passenger tickets. We’ll be moving quickly. Good day,” he replied.

“That’s not an issue, I carry my own supplies and do my cooking. I just like traveling with safety that comes from larger groups,” I continued with my usual lines.

“We were planning on taking anyone. Wait, who did you hear about this from?”

“Oh, the Adventurers Guild referred me,” I said, pointing back at the Guildhall. All they did was point me in this direction and I didn’t explicitly say I was an Adventurer, but those were details he didn’t need to know.

That must’ve been what troubled him since he relaxed and became much more friendly.

“Ah, why didn’t you say so. My name is Borris, who might you be?”

“Call me Leo, I’m originally from Cold Harbor.”

“What a wonderful city!” He complimented since it was quite obviously just a town. “I am coming north from that area. Are you with that party of Adventurers I requested?”

“No, no I’m not. I actually don’t have a combat Class, so I am technically not an Adventurer. That’s why I need groups like these to get city to city,” I joked. With a group of actual Adventurers coming along, not clearing up the slight deception now might become a problem. Plus, Borris seemed nice enough.

“Yes, you and me both,” he laughed. “That’s why I have my guard as well. If you’re not working with them, I’m sure we can work something out.”

I pulled out my coin bag and handed it over to him. The few silvers left clinked as it hit his palm.

“I spent everything else I had on necessary supplies, but I hoped 5 silvers would be enough to share your protection, as there’s no cost to you,” I said. I went all in, hedging that he would respect honesty from the start rather than starting at 1 silver and haggling up to 5.

“Well protection on the road, true, but you also get to sleep soundly at night. I would have suggested 10 silver if only to give as a bonus to the guards themselves for the extra work.”

I stayed silent, knowing that I had nothing beneficial to trade if I wanted to keep my soon-to-be shiny new boots.

“Ah alright, consider it generosity from this old man,” he finally said, despite still appearing to be in his thirties. “But if we do ever get into trouble, I’ll expect you to help out.”

I started to speak up about how unfeasible it would be to contribute at all compared to the other guards, but he cut me off.

“I know you can’t fight, I just don’t want you to run away at the first sign of trouble. Stay near me and do any menial stuff we may need if we encounter any bandits. I’d surrender before we lost too many and they wouldn’t kill you anyway. What do you say to that?”

Hesitating, as it was a bit closer to danger than I preferred, I took a second to agree. When I did, though, I was pleasantly surprised by what I received in return.

A handful of coppers appeared as if from midair and he dropped them into my hand.

“If that’s your last coin, you may need a bit of spending money. Your change from the fare, if you will.”

“Thank you, that means a lot,” I said, really meaning it.

“I’ll introduce the Adventurers to my crew here, just after midday. Be there then, since we’ll leave right after. We’ll make camp at the edge of the valley tonight so we can make it up and over the pass in one day. After that, the fun begins.”

“It was nice to meet you, Borris.”

“Nice to meet you, Leo,” he replied but was already halfway around the cart.

I was pleasantly surprised by how well that conversation turned out, especially considering how it started. Haggling was never my strong suit, and I only managed it slightly better than normal social interactions. Feeling like I was improving both my progress toward another awarded Charisma and my ability to have a normal conversation, I walked to the edge of the square with a skip in my step. It was time to get some training in before we had to leave.

Name:

Leo of Cold Harbor

Level:

18 (8,471/19,000)

Age:

20

Class:

N/A

Attributes:

Strength

14

Constitution

17

+1 (18)

Dexterity

13

Intelligence

16

Wisdom

13

Charisma

11

Free Points

18

Professions:

Achievements:

[Reminiscent Traveler]

Skills:

(Slot Open)

(Slot Open)