Ted rushed Aiden into his room and locked the door behind him.

Being shoved unceremoniously into a room had Aiden staggering forward, not that he couldn’t have prevented himself from staggering. He simply wasn’t interested in doing so.

Ted had been given the same room Aiden knew. He recognized it easily. The red rug that spanned the center of the room with the green design of a basilisk. The cream colored walls with elaborate paintings of great men—knights and mages alike—achieving one great conquest or the other.

There was one of King Brandis the first and the artist’s rendition of the time he’d single handedly slain a dragon.

Looking at it, Aiden almost shook his head. Poor man would be turning in his grave if he found out this was what they made of the story.

The kingdom knew the story by the painting. Brandis the first had found the dragon terrorizing the kingdom and, after days of fighting, had successfully slain it. It was the single achievement that had drawn those who’d lived in an unnamed space of geographical location at the time to name him king.

But Aiden had read the records, the real records. Brandis the first had dedicated his life to that battle, fighting alongside countless men. Yes, he had been the one to strike the final blow, but that victory was not his alone.

When he’d been named king by the people, he had ordered the record written, told the tale himself for the scribes to pen down. Sadly, when he passed, the royals and nobles had chosen to immortalize him as the strongest to ever walk the kingdom.

So they had lied, started slow, paintings first, then bards telling false tales at taverns. It was the little things, and in time, King Brandis, first of his name, became the only man to single-handedly slay a dragon in all of Nastild.

At least that was what Aiden had been told regarding why the records were changed.

Ted rounded on Aiden almost immediately as he followed after him. The action was quick enough to startle Aiden and he back away, increasing the space between them by two steps.

“Talk,” Ted ordered. “And don’t give me any bullshit. What’s going on here? What’s happening? Everyone’s confused but you’re not. How did you know that this—”

Aiden panicked. Where he had once stepped away from Ted, he covered the distance almost immediately before Ted could finish the sentence.

You have activated skill [Dash].

He blitzed through the distance, closing it almost instantaneously. His body weighed him down as he clasped his hand over Ted’s mouth, barely keeping himself standing.

Fucking hell, I haven’t missed that, he groaned, forcing his hand to stay over Ted’s mouth.

His body had learned the skill but was yet to acclimatize itself to it. As a result, reflexively using skills wasn’t synergetic. His body wasn’t reacting with the same speed as his mind. Right now, Aiden felt like an engine in a paper car.

Ted remained silent with Aiden’s hand clasped over his mouth, patient.

Aiden was at least glad for that as he looked into his brother’s eyes and shook his head vehemently. He’d seen when his brother had remembered their exchange before their summoning and had seen the realization in his eyes.

Even when Ted had pulled him to his room after dinner, Aiden had been thinking only of how to get his brother to simply listen to him, allow him guide his growth.

Now that he thought about it, he was stupid to not have thought of the possibility of Ted just blurting out the questions he needed answers to.

But Aiden couldn’t have Ted insinuating that he already knew of this world, at least not here. One did not so easily speak of anything within the palace walls.

“If there is ever a time for you to listen to me,” he told Ted, “I really hope that now is that time, brother.”

Ted continued to meet his gaze, kept it for a few more seconds before nodding. Only then did Aiden release him.

“But I have one question.”

Aiden nodded. “As long as it’s not about that, go for it.”

“Why the hell are you talking like that?”

“Like what?”

“‘If there is ever a time for you to listen to me,’” Ted repeated with as much royal haughtiness and aplomb as comically possible, “‘I really hope that now is that time, brother.’ You’re talking like a bad high-class movie character. You know, like royalty in a poor soap opera.”

Aiden chuckled. “Ignore it. It’s the way everyone around here talks so I’m getting into the mood of things.”

“Well, it’s Ted to you, Aida. Not ‘brother.’”

Aiden winced. He couldn’t remember the last time anyone had called him Aida before he'd gone to rescue Ted. In fact, no one but his family called him Aida, which he’d spent most of his childhood trying to make Ted stop. It was funny because Ted had been the one to give him the name.

“Got it, Teddy.” He moved away and sat on the edge of the massive bed in the room. “So is there anything else you want to talk about, besides what you were about to ask?”

“Let me see.” Ted turned thoughtful and leaned against the door. “Oh yes, there is one thing. Maybe two. Seeing as you had a conversation with people who are from this world—still feels trippy being in an isekai situation—do you have any idea why words keep popping up in front of me?”

“What has popped up in front of you so far?”

“I guess there’s charisma,” Ted said, then he waved his hand around in front of him, making different gestures. After a few gestures and very silent mutterings, he stopped. “Sorry, wanted to pull it up and show you but I can’t.”

“It’s fine, they showed me how to handle that actually.”

“How?”

“Well, you just hold your hands out on both sides like you’re making a star shape and shout ‘status!’ as loud as you can.”

Ted just looked at him.

A moment of silence stretched between the both of them. It was pregnant with distrust. Aiden was sure he could taste it if he stuck his tongue out.

“I call bullshit,” Ted said finally. “You’re just trying to make me look like a fool.”

Aiden cocked his brow quizzically.

“How would I possibly be trying to make you look like a fool, Teddy?” He gestured around the room. “We’re the only ones here.”

“Still don’t believe you,” Ted insisted. “I have a feeling you’re just trying to get me back for that time I made you believe the lights at Chuck E Cheese were voice activated.”

Despite all he’d been through, Aiden still remembered that day. Even now, the thought of it still left him with a touch of embarrassment.

Ted laughed. “Had you screaming ‘Chuck my cheese!’ at a light switch for a whole minute.”

“I was five, Ted. No one holds a grudge that long. Besides, if that was my intention, you’d have an audience here as well. And you don’t.”

Aiden waited patiently after that, keeping every expression from his face as he waited for Ted to come to a conclusion.

Is this how much we didn’t trust each other eleven years ago? he wondered. Well, not exactly eleven years ago, but…

He wasn’t sure how time references in time travel worked. To him it was eleven years ago, but right now it was less than twelve hours ago.

“Alright then,” Ted said with a triumphant smile, bringing Aiden back. “You go first.”

Aiden actually chuckled. “You’re serious?”

“As a Chuck E Cheese lightbulb,” Ted smirked.

Aiden got up from the bed with a tired groan. “Anyone ever tell you that you’ve got trust issues, brother?”

“Yes,” Ted answered easily. “All my exes. Now show me. And what did I just say about that ‘brother’ nonsense.”

“Yes, yes.” Aiden waved his complain aside. “Your name’s Teddy and I should call you Teddy.”

“Ted,” his brother corrected.

Aiden ignored the correction and stood with his feet shoulder length apart and held his arms out to the side.

“Status.”

He didn’t shout it, simply said it in a slightly louder tone than what would be used for a normal conversation and his personal information appeared.

[Name - Aiden Lacheart]

[Species- Human]

[Age - 19]

[Class- None Lvl 0]

[Affiliation]

None.

[Title]

None.

[Skill]

[Tongue of the Visitor (Mastery 100%)], [Kick (Mastery 42.21%)], [Palm attack (Mastery 51.22%)], [Evade (Mastery 68%)], [Shoulder Thrust (Mastery 9.02%)], [Dash (Mastery 48.20%)], [Resilience (Mastery 2.12%)] [Sword Strike (Mastery 11.12%)].

Stats

None.

“Whoa!” Ted’s jaw dropped, amazed.

He walked up to Aiden as Aiden dropped his arms and took a casual stance.

“How do you already have so many skills?” Standing beside Aiden, Ted leaned forward to get a closer look. “And why are all of them for fighting?”

“I had a long conversation with a knight, that’s why.” Aiden dismissed the notification with a thought. “What kind of skills did you expect me to get? Baking? Now your turn.”

Ted paused to look at him. “Alright.”

He shook his arms out beside him and skipped a bit, like a fighter loosening themselves up. He did it twice more, then rolled his shoulders.

“Hopefully today,” Aiden said, feigning impatience.

“I don’t know how you could just do it without hesitation, but this shit’s embarrassing.”

“It’s necessary.”

“Maybe. But it’s also embarrassing. Being able to do it just like that is something.” Ted took a deep and calming breath. “I tell you, Aiden, you’re a better man than I am.”

Ted set his feet apart, held his arms out to the side, and said, “Status.”

He closed his eyes, wincing in embarrassment when he said it so he obviously couldn’t see the outcome.

“Seeing anything?” he asked Aiden, eyes still closed.

“Open your eyes and take a look.”

Ted opened his eyes and saw nothing.

“Hey,” he complained, bringing his arms down. “It didn’t work.”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Aiden shook his head in exasperation and went back to sit on the bed. “Of course it didn’t. I told you to say it as loud as you can.”

“But I said it the same way you did.”

“Trust me,” Aiden said. “That’s not how I said it the first time. Since it’s your first, you’ve really got to put your back into it. And yes, you’re correct. You have no idea how embarrassing it was. But it beats doing it in front of the entire group.”

Ted let out a frustrated sigh.

“This is bullshit,” he muttered, but brought his arms up again.

He shook his arms free, loosening them up, before holding them out and straight to both sides.

“STATUS!”

His voice was loud enough that Aiden had a feeling anyone in the next room probably heard him.

He’d closed his eyes again, but this time he didn’t ask Aiden if it worked. Instead, he opened his eyes to see for himself.

Nothing.

Aiden burst into laughter. He clutched his side and rolled off the bed. He’d done it for kicks and giggles. But he’d had no idea he would enjoy the look of utter embarrassment on Ted’s face as much as he currently was.

“You fucking arsehole!” Ted swore at him. “You little shit! You played me. You’re still salty about the Chuck E Cheese thing.”

Aiden was chuckling now, his laughter dwindling. He still held onto his side and was still on the ground, lying on the red carpet.

“Oh God!” he said between chuckles. “I wish I had a phone to get that on camera. That was grand. And hilarious. I can’t believe you actually did it.”

“That’s not nice,” Ted said, folding his arms. But Aiden could see the small smile twitching at one corner of his brother’s lips.

He stopped laughing but didn’t get up from the ground. “I swear you had me almost panicking when you asked me to do it first.”

“But you did it, though,” Ted asked, confused. “So how come it worked.”

When Aiden’s satisfaction subsided, he got up from the carpet. “Mine worked because there is an actual way to do it. Just think of what you’re capable of and it will appear.”

“Just like that?”

“Uhuh,” Aiden nodded. “Just like that.”

Ted closed his eyes and it took him almost ten seconds before he opened it. It was another second before he spoke.

“That’s trippy,” he said, staring at nothing.

“You’ve got to wish for me to see it too,” Aiden said, walking up to him. “If not I’m just going to be watching you stare at nothing which will just make you look like a madman to me.”

“Oh.” Ted paused. “How do I do tha—never mind.”

A moment later, Ted’s notification appeared and Aiden stood beside him.

“So you see here and here.” Ted pointed at two skills. “That’s the charisma. I got it when I was chatting up Ani. So I just went with it to see if anything else would pop up. But nothing did.”

Aiden studied Ted’s information.

[Name - Theodore Lacheart]

[Species- Human]

[Age – 21]

[Class- None Lvl 0]

[Affiliation]

None.

[Title]

None.

[Skill]

[Tongue of the Visitor (Mastery 100%)], [Charisma (Mastery 9.08%)]

Stats

None.

No Demon King title, he noted.

In Aiden’s previous life, he hadn’t checked Ted’s information until after they had actually started training. And he hadn’t been the one to actually check. Ted had asked to see Aiden's to know what skills he’d gotten at the time before showing him his own.

You can never be too careful, Aiden thought.

“I get charisma,” Ted said after a moment. “But what’s Tongue of the Visitor?”

“It’s a skill that will help us learn languages faster than we normally can,” Aiden answered. “It’s designed to help us communicate better.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Ted agreed. “I thought everyone just speaks English since the King spoke it, too. Then I ran into one of the maids and found out she couldn’t speak English. And I couldn’t understand a word she was saying.”

“Yea.” Aiden moved back to the bed. “If you want to know more about the skills, just focus on them and they should expand.”

Aiden laid down on the bed, allowing the fatigue from his training with Valdan really take him this time. In seconds, his eyes were drooping.

“That’s epic!” he heard Ted exclaim as sleep took him. “Charisma gives me a high chance of being liked by a stranger on our first meeting. Talk about super first impression.”

Sleep and fatigue took Aiden a moment later and everything else Ted did or said was lost to him.

…………

Aiden was woken up by a knock on the door the next morning. His first reaction was a frantic patting of the bed. His mind ran a quick marathon as he bolted upright on the bed.

Spell Binder, he thought, eyes darting around the room.

He couldn’t find his enchanted sword, and he had no idea where he’d left his coat. There were enough enchantments on both items to constitute a military crime in most kingdoms. The room was also strange, not his. And he couldn’t remember when…

Aiden’s mind settled uncomfortably as memories of yesterday came flooding back to him. Another knock came from the door and he dropped his head in his hands with a groan.

There was no Spell Binder because he hadn’t created it yet. And he didn’t have his enchanted coat either.

He got up from the massive bed and walked up to the door. Ted had apparently slept on the ground on top of the carpet despite all the space on the bed, which didn’t come as a surprise to Aiden. Ted had never liked sharing a bed unless he was romantically involved with the second person.

“Not even his own brother,” Aiden muttered as he unlatched the door.

Using a latch to secure a locked door felt far too insecure to him now. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d slept behind a door with just a latch.

Note to self, he thought as the door opened to the sight of a young man in a robe. Secure lock enchantments.

The man stared at him in confusion, then at Ted’s lying form, then back.

“Lord Lacheart,” he greeted awkwardly and unsure.

Aiden gave the man his nicest smile and returned the greeting. “Scribe.”

…………

The hall they stood in was large. In fact, large seemed like an understatement. It had at least four different entrances and was as wide as a stadium. But it was merely a room in the palace.

Sam was sure of it, because he had been entirely aware of every single piece of information he could get from the palace. Even now he could still remember how he’d gotten here. Eight left turns, five rights, two left curving hallways, and a straight path. And three different doors.

The man in a red flowing robe who’d woken him up this morning and spoke with the worst understanding of the English language Sam had ever heard had at no point led him out of the palace.

Unless this is like those western novels with doors that lead to completely different places from the ones behind them, he thought, staring at the man in a green robe, standing in front of him.

Sam wasn’t entirely sure how he felt about that. Magic being cast with wands didn’t feel like something he would enjoy. He prayed it would not be the case as everyone else began gathering, each of them led in through the nearest door by their own men in flowing red robes.

Once again, staring at the man standing in front of him, Sam hoped they weren’t about to be handed wands.

Of all the fifteen of them gathered, there were eight girls which, Sam noted, kept the ratio of girls to boys in favor of the girls, and he had done his best to remember as many names he’d heard last night as he could.

Beside him, one of the boys, Rodney, cupped his hands over his mouth and breathed air into them from his mouth. He sniffed it and shivered away from it.

“I really hope they’ve got toothpaste,” the boy muttered to himself.

Now that Sam thought about it, he hadn’t even checked if his room had a bath yesterday. He’d spent the first few hours in his room walking about and jumping and rolling on the ground. He’d tried a cartwheel and ended up with a result he would rather die than share with anybody.

In summary, he just spent the first few hours before dinner reveling in the fact that he now had a fully functional body, instead of legs that didn’t work and arms that twitched anytime he tried to use them.

Then the time after dinner had been spent thinking of all the things he could do and be in this new world. In his new home.

The king hadn’t specifically said what the ‘Rising evil’ was, but Sam was willing to bet it was some kind of demon lord.

When everyone was gathered and attentive, the man in the green robe addressed them.

“Good morning, young lords and ladies,” he began in English and a strangely Hispanic accent. “I hope you were all satisfied with your sleeping quarters as well as your dinner.”

He took a pause, probably in case there would be a response. There was none. During the pause, however, his eyes darted to the side in curiosity.

It was a momentary thing, but Sam turned to follow his gaze and found Ted guiding Letto away by the shoulders, engaged in an inaudible conversation. He was leading the boy from the gathering and the man in green didn’t seem bothered by it.

The reaction of the person Ted had come in with, however, was questionable. The person, Aiden, simply shook his head with an amused smile.

Are they about to play a prank on him? Sam wondered. Don’t tell me this is going to be that kind of story.

It was unfortunate, but it turned out that every gathering had a bully. And whenever there was a bully, there was always a bullied.

Sam wasn’t deluded enough to think of himself as the main character in some story, but he wasn’t beyond being the character that taught the bullies a lesson. And while he really wanted to get in Ted’s way, right now wasn’t the time.

Ted had the size advantage on him. And Sam wasn’t a fighter…

Not yet.

“It has been brought to our attention by one of our knights,” the man in the robe continued after one more quick glance at Ted, “that there are aspects of our world that are quite similar to things that occurred in your world…”

This had to be a joke, right? Sam’s mind ran wild with giddiness. He had no idea what the man was talking about, but he had his hopes.

Game mechanics, he pleaded. Please say game mechanics.

“… And while that is a good sign,” the man went on. “I have been instructed to teach you all on how to navigate this… concept. First, and most importantly, each of you have what is called a personal interface. And you do not call it up by—”

“STATUS OPEN!” someone bellowed.

Everyone turned in confusion to find Letto off in the distance with Ted, standing with his legs apart and arms out to his sides. He was making the shape of a star.

The man addressing them ran a tired hand down his face.

“As I was saying,” he continued, drawing everyone’s attention back. “To call up this personal interface please do not shout out the words ‘status’ or ‘status open’ as your companion just did. It does nothing and only serves to disturb those around you…”

The man went into a quick explanation of what they should expect as Ted and Letto returned. Letto came walking back with an embarrassed frown, while Ted gave his brother a thumbs up with a wide grin. The only sign of an absence of animosity was when Letto punched Ted’s shoulder playfully.

As for the expectations of the king, the man told them that over the course of a month, they would have rigorous trainings designed to find their strengths and weaknesses. According to him, some of them would either develop affinities for magic or the martial arts or they could end up being good at crafting.

They would gain varying skills and devote themselves to the skills with the fastest growth. In this way, they would gain levels, and at their tenth level, the gods would bestow upon them a variety of classes to pick from.

“Most of our citizens tend to be gifted with a list from three to five classes to pick from,” the man said. “However, we are expecting you all to be offered more, judging by the necessity of your presence here.”

“And what if we don’t display any affinity?” a girl, Tara, asked with a raised hand.

The man shook his head.

“There are no beings without an affinity,” he answered. “If you do not have something you are good at, it is simply because we have not found it. And our intention is to find it before your tenth level.”

Someone else asked if it would take them a month to get to their tenth level since the man said they would be trained for a month. The answer was simple. It would not.

They were expected to reach their tenth level within a month, a week extra at the most. Then there would be weeks of rigorous training designed to help solidify their abilities and have their skills and their classes ingrained in them.

The aim was to make the entire concept of skills and classes second nature to them. There were faster ways, but it seemed the king had chosen the safest and most foundational way.

The faster way was far more dangerous, and seeing as they were not yet pressed for time, the king had chosen against it.

Sam wasn’t a religious person but he found himself praying for a magical affinity. He was willing to settle for an affinity for the martial arts, as the man called it, but the last thing he wanted was to end up with a crafting affinity.

Hate was a deep word, but he truly disliked classes like herbalists and alchemists and blacksmiths in the stories he’d read. They were supporting classes. And no matter how much authors and anime tried to make them cool, Sam simply wasn’t born to support.

Further to the man’s explanation, they were expected to train first thing in the morning under the tutorship of an instructor who would teach them the different magical arts in case anyone developed an affinity for it. Only after that would they have breakfast. Then they would proceed to learn the language of the kingdom which wasn’t expected to take long for them to master.

Lunch would come after their language studies, after which would come their tutelage in the martial arts. Then they would have dinner and their freedom to do as they wished within the palace's confines.

At the end of his presentation, Tara raised her hand once more.

“Yes, Lady Wilson?”

“When do we get to go out of the palace and see the rest of the kingdom?” she asked.

“When you are able to communicate quite fluently in our language,” he answered simply. “And when we are sure that sending you out would not result in dire news of your health conditions. Your safety, after all, my Lady, is of utmost importance to us. Also,” he added, addressing everyone now, “I offer my deepest apologies for not introducing myself properly. My name is Eliad Reinhardt, and I am head Scribe of the palace.”

There were slight murmurs regarding what Eliad had said about their ability to leave the palace. Some people commented on how it made them feel like prisoners, while there were those that weren’t so bothered by it.

Sam didn’t understand the group that felt like prisoners. Were they so pampered and spoiled that they thought they could just head out with their very own interpreters? And what about the possibility of death? They were in a world were magic was real and people got stronger with every level.

Forget being robbed by a thief with a knife. They could step outside and be robbed by a thief with a firebolt.

One thing was for sure, Sam wasn’t leaving the palace until he could handle himself.

When the murmurings came to an end, Eliad turned to a section of the gathering, unbothered by whatever he had heard from the murmurs.

“Lord Lacheart,” he said in a very respectful tone.

“I got you. Talk to me,” Ted replied with a casual air, while Aiden simply rolled his eyes at his brother’s response.

“My apologies, Lord Lacheart,” Eliad said with a bow. “I was actually referring to Lord Lacheart.”

“Yes.” Ted grinned impishly. “You called and I’ve answered.”

A small frown creased Eliad’s lips but he schooled it masterfully. Clearly, he was not sure how to navigate his current conundrum. It was almost as if calling them by their first name was somehow a taboo.

“Alright, that’s enough.” Aiden smacked his brother’s arm. “My deepest apologies for Lord Lacheart’s behavior, Scribe Reinhardt. You have my complete attention. And you may call me Aiden. If not for anything, then for the simple purpose of avoiding such a… complication.”

Aiden had a touch of his brother’s playfulness in his tone, but Sam found himself being irked by something else. His mannerism. Aiden spoke like he was some grand lord, speaking in false tones and assumed lexicons.

Nobody spoke like that apart from the people they’d met here who could speak proper English.

Does he think that pretending will make him better than us? Sam thought, hiding his scowl.

One of the kinds of people he hated in the world were the pretentious. Those who acted like they were better than everyone else, rejecting who they were, and believing their own lies.

There was no way this was the way Aiden talked. The boy had to be faking it.

While Sam deliberated, Eliad bowed a little lower, giving Aiden his response.

“I would not dream of it, Lord Lacheart,” he said. “To address you without a title would be an insult. A more appropriate way to prevent this type of experience from happening again will be sought and found.”

Aiden waited for a moment, then shrugged. “Then I will leave it in your able hands. So, what did you wish to tell me?”

“I only wished to inform you that while the magic instructor is on their way, and Sir Denid is to instruct in the way of martial arts in the evening, I have been recently informed of your displayed affinity for the martial arts. As such, Sir Valdan has asked that I inform you that he will be expecting your presence on the training ground used yesterday this morning. If you would like, I will be more than happy to guide you there.”

In all his pretentious haughtiness, Aiden took his time to think about it. In the end, he shook his head.

“That will not be necessary, Scribe Reinhardt,” he said. “However, please inform Sir Valdan when you see him that I will see him in the evening.”

Eliad stiffened slightly but schooled his expression once more. “I will pass that along, Lord Lacheart.”

When he made his exit, heading for the nearest one in the room, Sam seethed quietly in anger.

Aiden Lacheart was someone who looked down on people and thought he was better than them. He was pretentious and false, and Sam knew his kind of people.

One of them was the reason he’d ended up with a disabled body in what was now his old world.

It was official, Sam did not like Aiden Lacheart.