I'll be honest; I was already so overstimulated with everything that had happened to me so far - a new world, magical powers, being an entirely new person, getting knocked the fuck out, and more - that I can barely remember that first shift through the drudgery and bone weary effort required. I don't even remember when Aldrous left!

Vague memories run through my head of running about as if mad, between delivering plates and mugs to mopping vomit to clearing tables to washing dishes to going back and doing it all over again.

Never could I tell you how long that shift lasted either as all those memories blurred in my head as if it was one contiguous moment with nothing in between and no sense of time.

All I know is at some point someone sat me down, and put another bowl of soup or stew in front of me and a mug of water - and at this point, I was too tired even to know what it was I was eating, or care - and I mechanically shoveled it down, my head almost landing in the bowl as I fell forward after finishing and on the verge of passing out.

Sometime after this Marie (still looking as vibrant and energetic as she was before, how!? I was supposed to have fatigue resistance! And increased stamina!) called over one of the cooks, who helped me stand and walked me outside the front door of the Salty Clam.

We walked, me on his shoulder, down the side alley right behind the tavern, and lo and behold, there was a small compound with a front garden and a circle of squat buildings arranged in a large C around it.

If I had been in my right mind the first time I viewed this, I might have guessed - and correctly so - that these small buildings were owned by Marie and kept for the use of staff or rented out.

Convenient, that.

I don't remember being put to bed but clearly, I was - even as everything faded to black (The fourth time in 24 hours; when I hit play, when I finished character creation when I got knocked out, and now - too many times in one day!) and I heard a-

Ding!

In the very core of my being. I was all of a sudden aware of a moderate increase in my stamina and a major increase in my magicka. Hm. I wonder what contributed to that? Class? Race? It can't be through effort, while the stamina would make sense the magicka would not.

Has to be class or race. I suppose later testing will have to be done to figure that out. If I was forced at gunpoint I'd put a finger on the custom class doing that, but I'm open to being wrong.

Either way, I now had a new perk point to spend! And here's a slight problem:

I was almost completely unsure what I wanted to spend it on. Enchanting takes a large overhead in terms of supplies, most of which will be wasted on crap as I level the skill - a problem I'm sure shared by many enchanters.

I'd almost want to pick the Bone Collector perk, but it's not like I have access to dead bodies or the wherewithal to go out and make some at this point in my career - hell, I don't even have any ability to do so unless I used Mage Light to blind someone to fall off a cliff, or got a very lucky assassination on someone with no armor using Bound Dagger.

And that's discounting the effort needed and cleanup to get the bones from the body... I'm hardly a skilled surgeon, and what a mess that will end up making. Can you imagine what people would say if I showed up at the Salty Clam covered in blood?

At the same time, if I was to ignore Bone Collector for the moment, what if an opportunity came along and I missed it?

I don't want to mishmash my abilities and start spending perk points in unrelated trees just yet either, what if I discover levels are capped, and therefore perk points, and therefore can't get as many perks as I need to flesh out the trees I already have?

There's the option to go Mystic Binding and strengthen the one weapon I have to some appreciable degree, but I'd prefer to leave off spending perk points to improve a spell that creates and requires me to use a melee weapon - though I'm sure something like Bound Bow or Bound Crossbow exists, it's not like I have them yet.

Honestly... I think I'm going to invest in the first perk of Heavy Armor.

Heavy Armor Unlocks the ability to regenerate stamina and magicka while wearing Heavy Armor. Slightly increases the armor value of each piece of heavy armor if an entire set of it is equipped.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

The investment towards being able to effectively cast in Heavy Armor is probably the largest one I have, so it makes sense to start putting extra points towards it as I can, interspersed for when it makes sense to invest into other important places.

I'll have to spend some of my hard-earned coins once Marie pays me on some pieces of heavy armor so I can begin raising the related skill and keep investing extra points. While I'm not a fan of the encumbrance, I suppose my race making me slower than most gives me a disadvantage at trying to run away, so the extra protection from any danger isn't unappreciated, even if it isn't my first choice. It does give me a better chance at standing and tanking hits, not that those are things I want to do...

Speaking of that, I wonder how health, stamina, and magicka values are measured in this world. I didn't "lose health" when Tim punched me after all, just got directly knocked out. The numbers, or "increase" to those statistics from leveling seem more of a quantified measurement by whatever is running the background of the system here for everyone, rather than a deterministic measurement.

Seems to me like health is realistic to material damage vs. hardiness and resistance, rather than some game-like effect. And the same with stamina and magicka, actual real physical resources the system is just telling me have increased (whatever the reason why could be) rather than something the system itself determined or controlled.

I felt a mental click as I confirmed the placement of my point, and everything faded back to black before I awoke in what I would consider mid-morning the next day. I think my fatigue reduction may have affected my need for sleep to some degree as I felt sure I should have naturally slept until noon or later given the night I had, and yet I still felt very rested.

The room was small no doubt, with a bed in one corner and a dresser next to it, and a desk beside the only door that led out. No bathroom or privy stall, then.

Swinging my legs off the bed and pushing myself up to stand, I noticed my muscles were much less sore than I had expected. Fatigue resistance again I assume.

I left the room and found myself in that courtyard garden I vaguely remembered from before. I peered around and discovered one of the squat buildings had a sign hanging above the door frame labeling it as a bathroom.

After using the facilities I stood in the courtyard for a moment, doing some light stretches to enjoy my new body and ensure I was fully awake. I realized I wasn't anywhere near as hungry or thirsty as I would normally be - has to be because of Necropolitan again. Rather a good thing, not needing to spend money I don't have yet on a need to feed myself.

Walking back around the Salty Clam to enter it from the front, I went to open the door only to find it locked. I suppose I shouldn't be shocked, they are normally only open at night from what I gathered...

I pounded on the door and to my shock it opened moments later, Marie standing inside and giving me a funny look.

"Ahh, Dekar!" She said, holding the door mostly closed and blocking the opening with her body. "What do you need?"

"Well, Miss Marie..." I smiled at her and began, "I'm hoping to get those coins that were discussed, for my daily pay. Assuming my services were rendered well enough last night to deserve them." And gave her a questioning raise of an eyebrow.

"I'd have to say you do deserve pay Dekar, and I'm expecting nothing but for you to do even better tonight so I'm surprised to see you already up. Just hold here for a moment, and I'll go get your pay."

She left the door slightly cracked but walked off somewhere inside. I waited there patiently for a few minutes, and finally, she returned with a small handful of coins - a silver piece and a few coppers.

"Here you go Dekar, not bad for a night's work as we split any tips between all the employees so the pay isn't as bad as you'd think especially including room and board. I hope this is satisfactory?"

"Of course Miss Marie, and I look forward to seeing you tonight!" I responded, giving her a wave as I turned to walk away - time to go explore the city and see what we can find.

I think I'll try and find some writing materials first to try and jumpstart my magical research, or perhaps a piece or two of heavy armor. Either one will help though I expect I'll need to sign to the fighters guild to get help leveling my armor skill, and I'm sure the mages guild would help me with my magic.

It should also be said I saw what she was trying to hide.

There in the corner of the octagonal bar, glimpsed through the crack in the door as she was away.

A metal helmet.

Aldrous' helmet.

So he never left after all. You go, Miss Marie!