The Mou estate was a grand place, with gardens aplenty and five large buildings each housing different Mou family members, staff, and livestock. The Mou mansion was a behemoth with over eighty rooms and six different halls, one for each floor of the building. Five spires jutted out toward the sky, one on each corner of the building, and another in the middle. Made entirely of stone, the mansion looked more like a fortress than a home. but I knew that at least one of the spires housed a classroom instead of armaments. That was where we had been taught every day.

I didn't care about any of that.

Heck, I hadn't even left the forest.

“Come back right before sundown and the dinner will be ready, along with the ingredients you'll need to craft the potions for surviving the Death March.”

My master voice echoed in my mind as I ran across the forest. Leaving me to my own devices was a common tactic of hers, and I suspected it had something to do with the closed door in her cottage.

“What's in there?” I wondered aloud.

My master had always kept the door locked tight, and I knew for a fact that there were several wards ready to zap me back if I attempted to go in there. However, whenever she needed ingredients that was where she turned to, never letting me in, but also kicking me out when she entered.

Normally, I would stay next to Telulah and continue to rub the pigs belly comfortingly. Today, I had something else in mind.

It was time to unlock the skills I’d had in my past life.

After several twists and turns deeper into the forest, I paused in front of a giant tree wreathed with pink leaves. There was a faint shimmer across its body, as though it was covered in a metallic filter, and the pink leaves dripped tiny orange lights onto the ground. Wherever they splashed, the grass grew more vibrant, and several forest critters and droves to sleep underneath the mighty trunk.

“Iron wood,” I murmured. “A precious ingredient if you know how to harvest it.”

This particular type of tree was an oddity in the forest. In my past life, I had stumbled upon it by accident, and I was glad to see that it was here even now, years earlier. I placed my hand against the trunk, feeling the cool bark underneath my palm, and sure enough, I soon spotted a rusted iron mass covered in the tree’s roots.

That iron mass was unrecognizable now, but once was part of a magical artifact from a bygone era, and the tree was suffering from magic poisoning. It was a common story in this forest, where people had once fought mighty battles against monsters on the daily. Unfortunately, the artifact was no longer usable and was no better than a hunk of scrap.

But the effects of its magic had long passed onto the tree, creating the strange effects around it and also altering its body.

“Status screen,” I said.

The familiar blue box appeared in front of me, but I ignored it.

“Come on,” I prompted my memories. "Remember the skills you had before.”

Each and every memory that I'd receive had come after experiencing an event related to them. I was hoping that I could jumpstart the process by staring at my status screen, and…

…My eyes widened.

"That's it," I grinned.

Without hesitating, I turned to the tree and gazed up to its highest branches. Several small animals had made it their home, tiny little things with four legs and fur. Their beady eyes watched me cautiously, but under the protection of the tree they were calm.

"Make way for a second,” I motioned to them. They ignored me and I shrugged. I’d given them warning, and what came next was their problem.

Gripping the sides of the tree with both hands, I dug my fingers into the bark. Supple as ordinary bark, but tough as steel, the iron wood was a fantastic material for blacksmiths to work into armor. Or so Eman had told me when I'd asked.

Today, I was going to use the bark for something a little different.

My back muscles tensed as I pulled myself up, and I grunted as my body screamed at me with questions. During my time in the estate, when the Patriarch wasn't watching, I'd been a curious kid eager to discover the world. That had led to me being fit in a way that allowed me to climb trees and walls with ease.

That wasn't me right now.

Not at all.

Oh gods, it hurt.

"I. Can. Do. It.”

My pained grunt was met with the chittering laughter of the forest animals as they watched my face redden and my arms strain against the wood. I ignored their mocking sounds as I pressed my fingers into the iron wood tree.

With a fierce pull, I lifted myself up.

“Come. On.” I half grunted, half yelled. “Unlock!”

Another pull raised me halfway up the tree. The little furry creatures had gathered ahead of me in a swarm, their chittering stopping as they stared at me with curiosity. A couple of them looked at each other as though to ask if I was crazy.

Maybe I was. Or maybe I was about to do something wonderful.

I felt a painful tug as my shoulders began to give up. Whoever I had been before I lost my memories hadn't been a fit person. It felt like my entire body would collapse if I tried to pull myself up once again.

But I refused to give up.

With a growl, I kicked against the tree, forcing myself upwards once more. My back tensed, and my shoulders froze as they faltered under the strain, but just as I was about to give up, an unnatural boost took a hold of me.

And a flood of gentle memories seeped into my mind.

The memories guided me to shift my hands into the right positions for climbing, and to press my feet for leverage. I remembered to use my core and back, and I held back a scream as my untrained muscles moved in ways they weren't used to. But it was enough to get me up to the closest branch, which was as thick as I was.

I reached for the branch and forced myself up, the forest creatures scattering as my head swarmed with memories.

“Heck yeah,” I groaned in victory.

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I collapsed onto the branch, my legs dangling over the side and my entire back fitting with ease. Several of the creatures jumped into my stomach, staring at me with their little eyes, but I ignored them because there was something more important grabbing my attention.

My vision was filled with blue boxes.

[Congratulations! You have unlocked the skill: Climbing (common).]

[Climbing has reached tier 0.]

[Requirements to unlock Climbing(passive) have been added. 1/2 met.]

[Requirements to reach Climbing tier 1 have been added. 1/4 met.]

Climbing (common): You’re really pushing yourself today. Be careful or your soul might not be able to take it. But don't listen to me, I'm just trying to save you a painful death.

Climbing is a great tool often used by humans to enter places they weren't meant to. Perhaps you'll find use in a skill as ancient as your race.

Tiers:

Tier 0: Unlocked. Climbing will become a more intuitive process for you.

Tier 1: Locked. Climb four different types of surfaces to unlock. Requirements completed: 1/4.

Passives:

Tier 0 Passive: Locked. Climb four different types of surfaces to unlock. Requirements completed: 1/4.

Tier 1 Passive: Locked. Rank skill up to tier 1 to unlock requirements.

"I did it. I DID IT!”

My joyful shout echoed across the forest. The first time I unlocked a skill was a fluke. The second time had just been wishful thinking.

Doing it for a third time proved I could unlock my old skills with ease.

“Hang on, what's this?” I paused.

There was a section of writing in my skill description that wasn't there in my memories.

“System?” Is that you?” I asked.

A blue box appeared in front of me.

[You’re really pushing yourself today. Be careful or your soul might not be able to take it. But don't listen to me, I'm just trying to save you a painful death.]

A shiver ran down my spine. “What does that mean?”

“GRACK!”

I stopped in my tracks as a guttural cry rang out through the forest. It was a primal roar of fear and terror.

“Master?” I swiveled toward the sound, turning over on the branch and launching myself to the ground without hesitation.

The forest critters scattered at the roar, chittering loudly in panic as I cut through the crowding trees.

If I'd been of my right mind I might have realized that the cry was far too high pitched and panicked to have been my master. And that she'd never cried out in the time I'd known her. But as the tips of the branches dug into my skin I heard another cry, followed by a third, and I picked up my pace.

Moments later I emerged into a clearing. It was a small area, only a few dozen feet wide, and I froze as several tiny children with purple skin scurried into view, darting out of the foliage and shrieking into the air.

No.

They weren't children.

They were monsters. Or maybe members of another race. Their faces were long and stubby, each as bald as a baby but with elongated ears that were shaped like bat wings. And their limbs were skinny and lanky, like a tiny elongated human. Their dirty vestments of cloth were battered and torn by the branches of the forest, and they waved daggers around them as they screamed.

Relief flooded through me. These strange little beings were the ones I'd heard. My master was safe. Then I frowned. Several of them were bleeding, and the terror in their eyes was unmistakable.

“ROAR.”

Oh. Crap.

The clearing shook as something on the opposite end of me forced the trees aside, causing the mighty trunks to wail in pain. Leaves fell and the purple creatures shrieks grew in volume, and I took a step back as a shadow appeared over them, growing larger with each step its owner took.

Two beings emerged into the clearing. The first was one of the tiny purple creatures, scurrying for its life. Unlike the others it had a small tuft of green hair in the middle of its scalp, pointing outwards and shaped kind of like a dagger, and it was wearing robes similar to a wizard.

Behind the robed creature was a horror I'd never seen before.

“What the heck is that?!” The shout escaped my lips.

What emerged from the clearing was a monster wreathed in the shadows of the trees it felled. It was as tall as my master’s cottage, with skin that looked like bark. In fact, I would've mistaken it for a tree if it hadn't been moving, or if it hadn't had four large arms each the size of the ironwood tree’s branches. It had no hands, and instead its arms ended in sharpened points, as though it had whittled away its own wrists to dedicate them to killing.

Leaves fell to the side, uncovering its head, but where its head should be was the end of a trunk, and carved into it were six eye sockets, fleshless and lifeless except for a bright green glow that reminded me of the wards in the garden.

The monster’s gaze fell onto me, and the world began to spin as a flashing blue box appeared in my vision.

[Warning: The gaze of the Heiunalrum has fallen upon you. Your mind is being—]

A sharp pain in my temple caused me to grab my head, accidentally swiping away the system notification, and a wave of panic rushed through me.

“My mind is being what? MY MIND IS BEING WHAT?!”

My shout echoed through the clearing, louder than the last, and the tiny purple creatures jolted, turning their daggers toward me. Then, as they spotted the newcomer, a strange emotion flickered in their eyes. It was hope.

Those poor little bastards thought I could do something about this.

“Grack!” One of the creatures raised its dagger toward me, then pointed it at the giant monster behind it.

Then it shrieked as the monster turned its gaze toward it.

Suddenly, the fear in my mind cleared, and I could think again. “Oh heck no,” I whispered. “Was that magic?”

A tremble ran through my spine. In my past life, there was a reason why the Alchemist’s Children had stayed with the Patriarch so long, even if it was the worst time of our lives.

This world was a dangerous place. Regardless of whether you were a child, or a mighty clan, you were never safe.

The Alchemist’s Children’s existence was enough to prove that. Fifty thousand orphans and dispossessed was a large number, but it was a given when monsters could raze cities and towns overnight.

“Grack, GRACK.” “Grack!” “GRACK!”

The Gracks, which is what I mentally labeled the tiny purple creatures, cried out in defiance as the monster lumbered fully into the clearing. It was slow to move, I noted, but that didn't matter when the clearing was so small. The purple Gracks skittered around it, stabbing helplessly at the monster’s legs as it passed by them.

A Heiunalrum. That's what the System had called it. The name didn't call forth any memories, but I didn't have to know what it was to know it was deadly.

“Grack!” One of the Gracks froze as it was caught in the monster’s gaze, and then it fell to the ground, spasming. Several of its friends cried out, but it was too late.

The monster’s leg came down, a thick bark hoof speeding towards the quivering Grack’s head.

“GRACK…Grack?!”

The little Grack’s shout of surprise echoed out in the clearing as the monster’s hoof stamped down on empty ground, sending a spray of dirt outward as it dug deep into the earth’s flesh.

I rolled across the grass, cradling the purple creature in my hands protectively as it squirmed in surprise.

“Aw, damn it,” I murmured. “Why did I help you?”

When it realized it wasn't dead, the Grack looked up at me with wide eyes. I ignored it. I'd jumped into the fray without thinking, and now I was going to pay the price.

With a sturdy push I lifted myself up. The world slowed down around me as adrenaline pumped through my veins.

Above me, the sunlight disappeared as the Heiunalrum wrenched its hoof out of the ground and stood to its full height.

I dropped the Grack onto the ground. “Go.”

The purple creature was stunned, but a swift kick of my foot jolted it into action and it scurried across the ground in fright. The Heiunalrum turned toward me, all six of its sockets glowing brighter as its anger grew, and I shivered as I stared into its gaze, a new sensation spreading across my body.

This wasn't fear. It was so much different.

All I felt was pain.

A cry shot out of my lips as a thousand needles flooded through my veins, taking the place of my blood and shredding the muscle around it.

I dropped to the ground, my knees digging into the earth, and the clearing shook as the Heiunalrum shifted its body, smashing the tips of its sharpened arms toward me. If they hit I'd have half a dozen foot-wide holes carved into me.

My legs faltered as the pain of the Heiunalrum’s magic tunneled through my body.

It hurt.

Oh damn, did it hurt.

But I'd felt pain before…

With a roar of defiance I forced myself up, leaping out of the way and slamming my shoulder into the ground as I dodged the incoming attacks.

Forced forward by the momentum and its weight, the monster’s arms collided with the ground, sending a ripple across the clearing as the world trembled at its might.

As the monster tried to pry itself free, six glowing orbs turned toward me, trying to force me down with their magic. Once again, pain flooded my being, but this time it was halted, and before I could fall to my knees, my mind struck back, forcing the pain to subside.

“I guess I got some useful stuff in my past life,” I growled.

A single blue box hovered in front of me, mingling with the weary smile on my lips.

[Congratulations! You have unlocked the skill: Pain Resistance(rare).]