Yeah, magic is the obvious choice isn’t it. I mean, I’ve got so much of it I hardly know where to start. Oh wait. Yes I do. I need to learn how to sense and manipulate mana before I even attempt to use the actual magic abilities that I already have.

“But before even that.” I glanced around at the absolute mess of a scene in front of me and then at the young fish-eared girl passed out in my arms. “I should really get these people taken care of.”

Without a moment’s delay I moved to the largest building in the village. It appeared to be some sort of gathering hall, the alderman’s house, or more likely both, and then I laid the girl down in a corner of the biggest room I found. I repeated the process several times, first taking the children, and then going after the older and more feeble looking members of this settlement, before turning to the able-bodied ones who remained.

Most had fainted, or exhausted themselves at some point, likely when the pack of monsters showed up, but a few of the calmer or hardier types were still awake. Though they couldn’t move or speak, they totally stared at me in what I can only assume was a mix of relief and confusion. After all, I was a complete, and if prior reactions were any indication, hideous, stranger in some of the shabbiest clothes imaginable.

I get it! Okay! I look awful! And it doesn’t help that no one in this new world has ever seen a t-shirt or jeans before, ragged beyond recognition as mine might be.

With the imminent threat to their safety settled, I checked the villager’s statuses, but it looked like it’d take a few hours for any of them to recover from the paralysis so I started back out into the night to try and scrounge up some sort of antidote. The grandour venom’s description stated it’s favored by hunters so it only makes sense that they’d have some way to undo it right?

It took me a few accidental home invasions, but Uriel’s analysis eventually led me to a building packed with various weapons, vials, and other containers, some of which had traces of poison and venom on or around them.

I poked about and finally stumbled across a few vials on a well used workbench that held what I was looking for.

Grandour anti-venom: A mixture of one part grandour venom, one part water essence, and one part goga leaf extract. A few drops will eliminate the effects of grandour venom after ingestion or provide immunity for an hour afterward.

“Great! And since I only need a few drops for each person, I can get away with using what’s here!” I mumbled. “Because there’s no way I’m pulling off any chemistry or alchemy or whatever other poppycock is needed to make this stuff… That can come later… maybe… if I feel like it… And preferably during a more reasonable hour!”

With my hands filled with vials, I beat a hasty retreat back to the Alderman’s hut and got to work prying open everyone’s mouths before carefully dripping in three or so drops of the anti-venom. But why is it so hard to open their mouths? I get that their muscles are all locked up, but the amount of effort needed is freaking ridiculous!

Plus, by the time I got each one of their traps open and went to apply the potion, my blasted hands were shaking so much from the effort that the simplest part of the whole affair became the most insufferably tedious!

“And of course the effects are delayed… .”

Difficult though it may have been, my mighty strength and agility scores of ‘able’ somehow proved up to the ruefully redundant task, and by the time I finished with the last paralyzed villager the first of my duly dosed hopeful friends had regained enough of his motor functions to sit up.

Time to have a nice long chat with the Alderman! After all, he was the obvious choice to free first since I want to suss out what happened before I arrived, and negotiate for what I want from this village.

Name: Craig, just Craig

Species: Anadreth

Health: 14/14

Mana: 35/35

Endurance: 12/12

Strength: 11

Agility: 7

Speed: 13

Toughness: 2

Spirit: 35

Status conditions: paralysis (weak) Anti-venom (ongoing)

Titles: Old-fart; Alderman of Kormath; Devout; Retired Imperial General

Abilities:

Leadership lv: 22

Mana sense lv: 3

Mana manipulation lv: 17

Lightning essence magic lv: 16

Command lv: 34

Magic strike lv: 42

Body fortification magic lv: 19

Light essence magic lv: 6

I watch the system labeled old-fart shakily sit up, stretch his gangly arms, and then attempt to regain his footing. It didn’t go so well for him so I lent a hand to the surprisingly warm man, before backing away so as not to invade his personal space any more than I already had.

He blinked his deep brown eyes at me a few times, rubbed them, took another appraising look, then remembered himself, straightened up, and slicked back his mostly gray hair behind a pair of deer-like antlers. “F-forgive me, friend, it appears I’ve forgotten my manners this eve. My name is Craig, and I serve as the Alderman of this humble village of Kormath. Might I know the name of our savior, and from whence you hail?”

His gentle but dignified voice broke the otherwise silent but still slightly tense atmosphere, and succinctly placed the few struggling villagers who heard it into a more relaxed mood. My guess is that’s probably the leadership ability in effect. But holy moly! Are anadreth deer people? I’m pretty sure I caught a glimpse of a bushy little tail when he stumbled, and his legs looked like they could bend in some pretty funny angles, but most of all I wish I could’ve seen his antlers in his younger years! From the filed down stumps that remain on his brow, it looks like he had a mightily impressive set on him!

He stared at me for a moment longer, then smiled, and nodded before I realized that I had forgotten to answer him. “Oh! Sorry. I’m Anon Amos. And I’m…” I scratched the back of my head. “Well I guess I’m not really from anywhere specific to be completely honest.”

He seemed to relax a little once I’d responded, and bobbed his head several more times. “A traveler, and a very well seasoned one if the design and state of your garb is to be taken into account. But it is a fair and blessed wind that brought you here to us this night, for I know not how we would have survived that debacle if you hadn't appeared.”

No kidding, you guys were screwed… But at least he’s being nice about my… unique appearance. And I can understand them without issue too! Maybe this little visit won’t be so bad after all.

“Hey, it’s no big deal! I’m just glad everyone’s gonna be okay… Though I am more than a little curious how everyone wound up drinking venom spiked booze. Was that part of the celebration?”

Cause it’d be pretty weird if it was… .

He shook his head, and rubbed his stubble coated jaw. “No, it’s not part of the festivities. Especially since mixing the venom with alcohol attracts the grandour…” He glanced over at where the fish-eared girl I’d rescued from those very monsters lay sleeping. “And I’ve my suspicions about who might’ve mixed the venom in, and why.”

I followed his gaze over to her scrawny form, and frowned. That would explain why she was the only one not paralyzed, but why would a girl so young do something so malicious? And why would she then lead the monsters away from everyone before any harm could be done?

“I don’t understand?”

Craig sighed. “She’s an orphan. We’ve tried to raise her as best we could, shuffled her from family to family to see if she’d take a liking to one, or at least to a profession, but she never did. Due to that, she never learned any abilities, and likely grew to feel that we didn’t want her or that she was a burden… . I doubt her intentions were wicked, she probably just didn’t know or remember that the venom would summon the monsters, but due to our treatment of her and the fact that we neglected to explain our reasoning, perhaps it’s only natural something like this would happen.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Why didn’t you explain then?”

He lowered his head, and awkwardly rubbed an elbow. “I… We wanted it to happen naturally. For her to find her place I mean. She was very young when her parents came here, when they died, and in my experience it’s best to give the grieving space… I failed to acknowledge or account for the fact that she is a child, and now she’s grown to resent us all for robbing her of a productive future.”

I glanced back at the girl and activated Uriel.

Name: Letta

Species: Calminth

Health: 6/8

Mana: 2/2

Endurance: 1/10

Strength: 4

Agility: 5

Speed: 10

Toughness: 1

Spirit: 2

Status conditions: exhaustion (weak) depression (weak), self loathing (new)

Titles: Orphan; Lonely soul, Faithless; One who resents life; Seeker of Hope (new)

Abilities:

Woodcarving lv: 1 (dormant)

Fishing lv: 1 (dormant)

Carpentry lv: 1 (dormant)

Hunting lv: 1 (dormant)

Weaving lv: 1 (dormant)

Brewing lv: 1 (dormant)

Herbalism lv: 1 (dormant)

Mana manipulation lv: 1 (dormant)

Mana sense lv: 1 (dormant)

Swimming lv: 1 (dormant)

That’s. That’s some pretty heavy stuff. But it doesn’t look like she’s given up either.

“I dunno. If what I’m seeing on her status is true, then she hates herself and her situation more than any of you, and she can be plenty productive. I mean, she’s got even more abilities than you do!”

Old Craig’s head shot up and his eyes opened so wide I feared they’d swallow up the rest of his face. “Y-you mean you can see her status?! Mine too?! And what do you mean she has abilities?! If she did then surely she would’ve used one and we would’ve seen!”

I stopped him from grabbing onto my already ragged shirt, God forbid he rip it off in his fluster, and tried to calm him down. “Uhhh… Well… I mean… I have an ability that lets me peek at others' statuses, though all the abilities she has are listed as dormant, so…”

I really wish Uriel would tell me what that means.

Craig huffed and puffed, and then his admittedly meager strength left his arms and he stumbled away. “To think an unknown observer would happen upon our humble Kormath, and one so skilled as to be able to read the system deeply enough to determine that our Letta has a chance after all.”

Frustrated by his vagueness I internally shouted at the system. What the heck is he talking about?!

To my utter shock, the system answered, as smugly calm, and infuriatingly composed as ever.

I frowned even harder. And I take it this ability is rare? And while you’re answering my questions, what even is a dormant ability anyway?

Ohhh. That makes sense. But you didn’t answer my other question! And that doesn’t explain why he thinks I’m an observer because I don’t have that ability!

I got no response.

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I see the system is as choosey as ever, but at least I got some answers, and hey! Maybe I can just ask Craig.

“Sooo, are observers like… rare or something?”

He stared at me, jaw slack, as if I had just crawled out from under the ol’ metaphorical rock. Then he threw his arms up and bellowed. “Heavens yes! Rare and revered! Since the only other creatures that can so freely view God’s system are the sacred Elder Beasts who are said to have been among God’s first creations!”

His enthusiasm was so intense that I could practically feel it pushing me back. I tried to think up some way to tell him I wasn’t one, but then Uriel buzzed in my head.

Notice:

The ability Understanding is an advanced form of observation. Abilities advance only once the possessor has fully mastered and integrated the ability into their being and the new ability will unlock even greater benefits. Please note some abilities can't advance, and others can do so multiple times.

I.E: Digging --> Pit Boss --> Mining Marquis--> Excavation Emperor

Oh great. So I’m even fancier than even I thought I was. Hooray! Not! I can’t believe things got so derailed from my original purpose!

I forced a smile. “Uhh, right, thanks for explaining all that. But I really hope you won’t go gabbing that to anyone, I kinda like my privacy.”

And yeah, I know, that makes me a huge hypocrite, what of it?

Craig composed himself once more, and coughed to clear the air. “Yes, of course. We are a self-sufficient and isolated village already, but we would never dream of betraying or inconveniencing our savior.” He then gestured to the rest of the freed villagers, who just so happened to be passing the time by idly watching our little back and forth from the sidelines. “If there’s anything we can do to repay you, we beg you only ask. We are well within your debt. Your grace.”

“Your grace?”

Who the heck’s your grace? Why the heck are you calling me that?! I only just met you! I’m not special!

Again, the system spoke.

Joy of joys… The system’s sense of humor and poor timing are still alive and well too.

I’m pretty sure a vein bulged out of my forehead at some point, and Craig along with those who saw my expression shrunk back. Maybe as a result of my intimidation ability activating. I didn’t know, or care to find out. “You don’t need to call me that, and I honestly don’t need a whole lot. Just some new clothes, a place to stay for a little while, and maybe some magic lessons if you’re up to it.”

Craig knelt, and placed a hand over his heart. “Yes, of course. Only the best for one who can witness the true glory of God’s creation!”

I grimaced. This… this is going to be worse than I thought.

#

Letta didn’t know what she had seen. A hallucination? An angel? A ghost? Some sort of monster? It didn’t make sense. Why did that person look so much like her? Like she imagined her parents would? Was it all just a coincidence, and a relative showed up looking for her? Or was she overthinking it?

Unconsciousness took her. And in her sleep, a strange all erasing comfort stole away her worries in the form of the vague sensation of being carried by a pair of gentle, unshakable arms.

As soon as she was laid down on a hard yet familiar floor, that comfort faded. Fear and self loathing assailed her in the form of nightmarish versions of the other villagers, furious with her, and coming to take their righteous vengeance.

She struggled to escape those phantasms, both in her dream and out, but before she could be captured and punished a massive hand interceded. Letta watched it push away her imagined monsters, then felt yet more hands lift her into someone’s lap, then she became aware of that same someone’s fingers as they combed aside her unruly hair.

The last traces of her nightmare faded, her awareness of her position too, and she melted into a sweet serenity the likes of which she had never known.

The next thing she knew, soft peach colored daylight was creeping through her eyelids, and she slowly stirred. She couldn’t remember much of what happened the day before through the haze of the best night’s sleep she’d ever had, but quickly recognized the interior of old Craig’s common room, and the arms of the one who held her.

Suddenly wide awake, she jumped up and jerked free of that strange person who had clearly brought her back to the village after stopping or driving away those grandour. Why here though? Everyone will hate me!

Her eyes darted around, but no one else seemed to be nearby. Oh no! Don’t tell me they’re dead and that… stranger only stayed here to pass the night! But the smell of fresh bread along with the familiar sounds of the village’s usual morning hustle and bustle reached her, and her dread morphed into confusion. Hold on. Is everything fine? But if everyone’s okay then why haven’t I been beaten? Why was I allowed to stay the night? What’s going on?

Before she could decide whether or not to run outside to face her fears or look for a place to hide and never come out, a soft hand caressed her cheek and pulled her attention back to the corner of the room.

She stared at the hand’s owner, at the face of the only other calminth she’d ever seen, and blinked repeatedly as it shifted and changed ever so subtly. Depending on what angle she took, or on how the light hit, the face changed from male to female, from how she imagined her mother, to how she pictured her father, and then to something that was both, neither, and wholly… more.

Transfixed. Her mouth hung open, then snapped shut, only to dangle open again. She muttered. “How? Who? Who are…?”

The strange being offered a smile so warm that the chill of her prior dread sublimated into calm in an instant. Then they spoke. “Me? You can call me Anon. We met last night, if you remember, after you so bravely led the grandour away from the others.”

Tears filled her eyes. Hot. Heavy. Tears.

Tears at having had the distant memories of her parent’s voices unearthed simultaneously. Tears at allowing herself to feel the unconditional goodwill of another for the first time in years. Tears at hearing this person so convincingly state that what she did was brave, without even the slightest hint insinuating that the whole situation was her fault.

“No… No. No. No!” She sniffled, and snorted as a bubble of snot popped an inch from her face. “It was me! It– it was all me! I forgot– And then I–”

The hand that had caressed her cheek wrapped around her so smoothly and naturally that for an instant she could’ve sworn that it had happened a million times before. And Anon’s all too kind voice spoke again, softly this time, right into her ear as they rubbed her back. “I know. And you’ve been forgiven.”

All the twisted emotions within her, all the nasty, brutal, relentless feelings that had pushed her away from everyone, that had convinced her that she didn’t, and couldn’t, belong anywhere or accomplish anything, snapped against those words like brittle twigs against a mountain.

And from behind the pieces of those shattered emotions more tears fell like an endless tide. Only they were not born of her guilt or unanswered longing, but of pure, simple, sweet, relief. I’ve been forgiven? I… can be forgiven? Me?

Anon held her tight, and whispered. “Let it out, sweetie. Let it all out. I’m here. You’re here. And here we’ll stay. Until you’re ready to stand again.”

Letta cried.

And Anon let her.

#

A little over an hour passed before Letta stopped bawling. The villagers kept their distance, but every so often, one or two would poke their heads in to check on her, or me, or both, before heading back off to attend to, well, life.

Someone left our breakfasts by the door, and unsurprisingly it was grandour meat and bread that looked maybe a few days old. I didn’t move, or even think about touching the food, until Letta was good and ready, and I didn’t eat much until she had fully settled and tucked into hers first.

Hoo boy, nothing like a traumatized kid to start off the day. But… I looked down at where she sat munching away in between my sprawled out legs and smiled.

I finished my food, set the simple wood plate aside, and stretched. “Oh well! Time to get moving!”

Letta glanced up at me with wide eyes, utterly adorable the whole time I might add, then scrambled to her feet, and collected my set aside plate and added it to her own. “Uh… um… Where– where are we going?”

Dawww! You want to come with me? Actually, that’s not a half bad idea!

I patted her head, flicked aside a lock of unruly hair, and smiled. “I’m going to go get some magic lessons, and you’re going to decide which of your abilities you’d like to awaken first!”

She looked a little dejected at first, but when she finally processed what I said she stared at me in disbelief. “I? Me?”

I crouched down, and gave her a small hug. “Yes, you. And let me just tell you so that you can stop doubting yourself. You have a lot of potential. And I mean a lot! From hunting, to fishing, to carpentry, to magic! You’ve got it all! You just need to decide where to start.”

She looked away, and I watched as her eyes darted around the room, she fidgeted and rocked on her heels, clenched and unclenched her little fists, then met my gaze and said. “Magic! Let’s do magic!”

I grinned, and whispered. “Then let’s go.”

The morning sun painted the brighter blue sky and sparkly clouds in only the most brilliant and flattering of hues, and numerous small birds alighted to and from to fill the air with their melodies sweet and clear.

The scent of blood faded under the aroma of cooking meat, as the majority of the villagers worked to haul in, break down, and cook the frankly overwhelming amount of grandour meat from last night.

I guess they dug up the beasts from where they got buried. I glanced at my mundane looking walkingstick. Still can’t believe I made something so… powerful on my first go.

The village itself was of a simple design. The Alderman’s hut and other communal buildings were at the center, while the residential huts circled around them. A single wide path led from the main entrance, marked by a basic wooden gate sans the fence, and led all the way to the lakeshore, where the majority of the cooking was taking place.

The buildings themselves were, well, respectable for such a small community. Stones of various sizes made up the foundations and the lowest, say, foot or so of the walls, then fairly evenly cut planks comprised the rest of the construction, with thatch and yet more stones used for insulation on the roof.

They didn’t look to have much in the way of livestock, though there were several penguin-esque and wooly goat type creatures in a couple pens off of one of the communal buildings, so I guess they have milk and eggs?

That said, the soft, cool earth beneath my bare feet was as pleasant as ever, since it turns out that they didn’t have a dedicated cobbler, and I didn’t feel like wearing sandals.

“Ah! You’ve arrived!” Old man Craig waved to us from the center of a semicircle of about five other people. He seemed far livelier today than he had last night, likely due to the fact that he’s no longer affected by the venom, and he bowed. “I have gathered here all the magical practitioners within Kormath confident enough to teach their disciplines to others.”

He gestured to the ones beside him and they, in turn, bowed.

Great! He’s not calling me your grace anymore, but it seems he’s still stuck on the whole formality thing… Though, I'm probably being too harsh. Best I can tell, this world, or at least the country we’re in, likely still functions off of the feudal system, so he probably had all this stuff hammered into him, since he’s a former imperial general and all.

“That’s really great! Thanks for putting it all together so quickly.”

“You honor us. It was nothing at all! The least we could do!” He then cleared his throat. “But let us begin. How much do you know of magic?”

I tilted my head. “I know there are some twenty four disciplines of the four elements, that they can be combined and used in concert, and that they need the mana manipulation and sense abilities in order to be used, so I was hoping we could start there.”

He blinked, and the other teachers muttered in surprise amongst themselves. He quickly silenced them with a hand gesture, and continued. “Then let’s start with some breathing exercises. Inhale, then exhale. As you do, feel the air flowing through your lungs, then picture your blood as it travels through your veins.”

I did as he asked, but only after Letta declared. “Like this, Anon, watch me!”

With her encouragement I imagined my vital fluids on the move, and then Craig added. “Keep going, and focus on nothing else. The mana you need is already inside you, and it flows much like blood, and is refreshed much like breath. By doing these things, you should be able to acquaint yourself with the power within, and, in time, learn to sense and manipulate it far more efficiently.”

I’ve no idea how long we continued like that, since I closed my eyes, but I overheard one of the other teachers say to another. “I wonder what disciplines they’ll have an affinity for? Craig can teach the light and lightning essence, Corra has body recovery, Rochelle knows a little order essence and mind over matter, and I’ve got body empowerment and sensory magic. If they can’t learn any of those, then they’ll be out of luck, but regardless, it’ll be interesting to watch.”

I suppressed the urge to laugh, and maintained the pace of my steady breathing. I suppose she made a good point. I hope Letta can learn something. As for me, the question is more along the lines of what should I choose first?