"Sigh~" Karan sighed loudly while sitting in the shade under a tree. He has now been in this small forest for almost a week. He was very hungry, since there weren't many animals in this forest, and even if he had found some, they were very small, like rabbits.
The rabbits in this world were also very hard to hunt since they were very fast and also had a horn on their forehead that they could use to attack if they feel threatened. Since Karan had already figured out their behaviour, it was much less dangerous for him, but they were still hard to kill because of their speed.
"I really need to find a human town or a village... I hope it'll go better than last time. It shouldn't be a problem anymore, because of my human appearance. I still wonder how I got it..." He said and looked towards the small river nearby.
"Maybe if I follow that river. I'll get somewhere. Let's do that when I'm done resting." He closed his eyes and drank a bit out of his water bottle he crafted himself out of rabbit hide.
After some time-
"Alright, let's go search for people!" He fastened his bottle to his belt and started walking along the river.
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After hours of walking and resting, he saw something in the distance. "That looks like a city!" He joyously exclaimed.
As he looked around, he could see a dirt road about 20 meters away from him. He walked towards it and went on to the city gates, where people had lined up, waiting to get inside. At the front, there were guards clad in full iron armour and a man that looked like he was checking something the people that wanted to enter gave him..
'Wait, do I have to have a permit or something to get through? Crap...' He thought to himself, trying to figure out what to do if that was truly the case.
As time went on, the line got shorter and shorter before him, when finally he was in front of the gate.
The man started talking and Karan remembered that he still couldn't understand their language.
As the man started to look annoyed, Karan tried to tell him that he didn't speak their language.
The man said something to the guard next to him, who then grabbed Karan's arm and led him to a building nearby.
'It's probably not good to resist, so I guess I'll let them take me for now.' Inside of the building was a small table and four chairs. The guard pointed at the chair, which probably meant that he wanted Karan to sit down, so he did. Soon after the guard left, a young man came in with two guards and sat down opposite to him.
He had short brown hair and small round glasses. As he sat down, he layed a ring down on the table and shoved it toward Karan.
The man waited calmly as Karan picked the ring up and put it on his finger.
"Do you understand me now?" The man asked and Karan looked confused. He nodded and looked at him.
"Good, if you're confused, that is a ring that lets you understand our language and also speak it. Now, it seems that you're not from here, so might I inquire as to where you are from?" The man asked and smiled.
"I-" Karan looked surprised to hear his own voice saying words that he wasn't actually saying. "- I'm sorry, my name is Karan and I woke up in a forest pretty far away from here. I followed a river and finally arrived at the road that led here." Karan didn't mention the things that happened before he woke up with his human body.
"Hm... So you woke up in a forest. Do you not know where you were before that and why you woke up there?" The man asked and looked at him intently.
"I'm sorry but I don't know how I got there." Karan bowed his head slightly in an apologetic way.
"It looks like you truly don't know. Do you have any money on you?"
"Unfortunately, I don't. Is that a problem?" He asked, concerned.
"Well, since you probably don't have an Identification card or a guild card, we would need to make you one, which would cost 50 silver coins. But since you don't have money, that would be a problem."
"Well, can't I maybe give you the money afterwards. If I could get a job in the city, then I could get money."
"That would be possible, but then there will be an additional 10 silver coins on top of the other 50." The man wrote something down before looking at him again.
"It can't be helped then, I guess. Could you tell me where I could get money fast? I don't like being in debt."
"Well, if you want money fast, you could become an anventurer. But the amount of money you make depends on your abilities. You don't look that weak, so maybe try that out. Here's a small map for you. that building marked on the lft is the guild, you can't miss it. And if you continue on that way, there will be a cheap inn you can stay at. Also, since you can't speak our language, you can keep that ring. But I would strongly suggest you learn it, if you're planning to stay here. That is all, so I will take my leave now." He said and stood up and left, one guard with him.
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The other guard waited for Karan to stay up and then led him to another room, where he gave him a letter with a wax seal on it. He then showed him the way out and left shortly after.
What Karan then saw was a giant city with houses of all sizes, shops and full streets. He also saw some people that wore nice clothes and rode in carriages. 'Probably nobles, huh.'
'Now, the map says this way.' He walked down the left road and saw many shops that sold different things. Some sold common clothes, some food, others cheap accessories and whatnot.
As he continued on his way, he soon came to see a giant building that looked more like a small mansion than a guild hall. Normally you would expect them to look rough and dirty, but this one stood out from theo thers. It wasn't just the size, but also the quality of the materials used and how clean it was.
'Let's get a job then.' He said and entered.
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Inside, there was a giant hall with white marble pillars that came down to the floor, a big reception with many people there. The receptionists were all female, and the ones standing in line were men and women of different sizes with different statures and different clothes and equipment.. Then, to the right there was a dining area with a small bar that served mostly beer to the more rough looking people. To the left, there was a large boards with lots of papers on it and lots of people standing in front of it.
As he continued looking at everything, he walked towards the reception, where he stood in line behind a large bulky man that was a head taller than himself. He wore mostly iron armor and had a big warhammer on his back.
As some time went on, the line got smaller and soon, he stood in front of a beautiful lady with dark blonde hair, green eyes and voluptuous breasts.
"Hello, how may I help you today." Heretta asked nicely and smiled.
"Ah, hello. I'm new in this city and someone told me to get a job and an ID here. They also gave me this." He said and handed her the letter, which she quickly opened and nodded.
"Alright, your ID is already paid for, so in order to make you one, we need to know your class and your aptitude for magic and such. Please put your hand on this crystal." She took out a big white crystal about the size of a football and placed it in front of him.
"Alright." Karan agreed and put his hand onto the crystal. It gave of a white glow for a second before quickly stopping again.
"Thank you." Heretta said and pulled out a card from under the crystal that said:
Name: Karan Geghan
Class: Dark Pugilist
Attribute: Darkness Age: 24 Race: Human
Fighting Strength: C
Growth Potential: SS
"Good god! A Growth Potentional of Rank SS! We humbly welcome you to our guild, sir!" She hurriedly said and bowed deeply. As she shouted this, the whole guild hall turned towards them and loud gasps were heard.
"Uhm, so what happens now?" He shyly asked while the whole guild hall was filled with whispers.
"Ah! Of course, please follow me, sir!" She stood upright, gave him the card, came out from behind the counter and showed him to a door nearby.
As they entered, she told him to sit down on one of the couches that were in the middle of the room.
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Shortly after, the door opened and a tall man with black hair and expensive looking clothes entered.
"I humbly welcome you to our guild. I am the guildmaster Hexan. Let us talk, please." He bowed his head slightly and sat down on the couch opposite to Karan.
"So, I heard that you were quite the talented young man. May I see your Guild ID?" He asked nicely.
"Uhm, sure, I don't mind. But might I ask what is happening?" Karan asked, confused, and handed him the card.
"Well, Karan, if I may call you that?" He asked and continued as Karan nodded. "You are a very special individual, like myself. You have a Growth Potential of SS, which means you can become someone with the Rank SS. There are only a few beings like us in this world. We are on par with ancient dragons that could destroy entire nations. And to answer your question, everyone is excited to see a new human appear that could be a potential SS-Rank." He said before looking at the card.
"You're flattering me, guildmaster. Is it really that special?" He asked.
"It is, the last one to appear was me. And I am already quite old, 62 to be exact." He laughed slightly and looked intrigued as he looked at the card.
"You're 62 years old?! But how, you look like your only in your 40s!" He looked flabbergasted as to how he looked this young.
"Hahaha! This is what you call rejuvenation magic. It was performed on me by an old friend of mine. Normally, I would already have gray hair and lots of wrinkles." He chuckled and looked at Karan before giing him the card back.
"Dark Fugilist, a class I have never heard of before. It seems to harmonize with your darkness attribute. It has to be pretty strong to influence your class. Now, the letter said that you woke up suddenly in a forest nearby and don't know what happened to you before waking up." He suddenly looked very serious and gave off an intimidating aura.
Karan just felt something like a slight breeze brushing against him.
"That is indeed what happened, I woke up in a small forest to the north of here and then walked along a river until I arrived here." He answered calmly.
"You don't seem to be lying... And that village incident was to the south of here... I'm sorry, but I just wanted to confirm something." He then turned normal again and smiled at Karan.
"It's fine. So, I am in need of equipment but have no money, do you know where I could get something like that?" He smiled.
"There is no need for money, the guild will provide you with the best equipment you could ask for. It will probably take a few days to make, so I apologize for that." He bowed slightly in an apologetic way.
"Ah, nonono, it's okay. Thank you. But why would you give me equipment for free?"
"Well, we have to nurture someone like you, so you do not die because of lack of equipment." He answered as Heretta suddenly came back in.
"S- Sir, I'm very sorry but the king requests your presence at the castle." She bowed deeply.
"The king? Hm, well Karan, that will be all then for today. I will send someone to you to get you some clothes and a place to live. I will see you soon." The guildmaster quickly left before Karan could say anything.
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"Haaaaa...." Karan sighed late at night as he laid in his bed that was provided by the guild. It was a king sized bed with comfortable pillows and mattress.
Right now, he was in a big house where he was left alone after the attendant from the guild left him with the keys, clothes and some money.
"This is pretty comfortable... I'm also pretty tired~" He mumbled while yawning before drifting off to sleep.