The city’s wall was not close. Realistically Levi had another two kilometers to run before reaching the river’s edge. Levi had gotten several notifications during his time running to the kingdom, but he felt like he was down for the day. His legs were on fire, his lungs were ready to burst, and his mouth tasted like metal. Levi imagined he looked worse than he felt, his face probably a mixture of sweat stains and salty streaks down his face. He learned he could have the orbs of water refill his waterskins, which was handy. He kept downing the water, hoping there was some sort of benefit to drinking this much water.

“I think,” Levi said to Anza. “I’ve drank more water in these last couple hours than I have in several weeks. And that’s a problem.” Anza gave him a disappointed look. “For a magical beast, your expressions are crazy good. It looks like we are almost to the city gates. I think once we get to the river, I’m gonna have a quick dip. I wreak and would like to not smell like hot garbage when buying new attire.” Anza nodded emphatically. “Alright, relax. I didn’t get a chance to put on deodorant before I was taken!”

Levi pushed himself to his feet, dumped some of the water on his head, and started walking. His feet were throbbing; Jesus’ slippers were not the best footwear for exercise. He assumed he had several blisters, if not bloodied feet. With every step, pain replaced soreness. Levi had to stop frequently, but he kept going despite how painful it was. Levi refused to actually take a look at his feet, if he saw blood he would give up. Levi was a fan of violent movies, so gore and blood never freaked him out. If it was not his own. Anytime he saw his own blood he would either pass out, throw up, or get super queasy. He was not willing to experience it right now.

Reaching the river’s edge with his feet feeling ripped raw, Levi dipped them in the water. He gritted his teeth as stinging pain was met with the bitter bite of cold water. The water quickly washed away the blood and dirt and filth that was on Levi’s raw feet. Once the stinging died down moments later, it was soothing. Levi was beginning to feel rejuvenated. He got deeper into the water and his legs and calves were also beginning to feel some sort of relief. Levi was unsure why. Levi took off his shirt and belt and gave them to Anza, who was hanging out next to the water, dipping a tentacle in the water.

Grabbing some mud, he began rubbing down the important areas that caused the most body odor. He scrubbed and scrubbed. This was not better than soap, but it was better than just water. Eventually, after several scrubs and rinses, the rank body odor diminished, and he was able to return on his journey. A quick glance at the little man figurine showed where he was dealt the most damage. His feet and legs were no longer bright red but a muted yellow.

“Did the water heal me?” he asked, looking at his stamina bar fully replenished. “How is that possible?” Levi looked at his feet and saw his feet had completely healed over and callused. The skin was stronger than it was before. Not understanding how this world worked, he looked at the sky and saw it was slightly after noon. The sun had made its trek down toward the horizon. His stomach grumbled. He put a hand there and remembered the only thing he had eaten these last couple of days were those coins. He could use some real food.

The bridge leading to the town was about 200 meters long and 50 meters wide. It was big enough for people with carts to go both ways without issue. He noticed horse-drawn carts with various vegetables in the middle. There was a lane where people were walking. These were the first people he had seen in quite some time since the wannabe robbers.

The bridge was made of white river stone with some tan stone mixed in. It was an impressive structure; it looked like it would have taken many years to build. Levi got a good look at the outer wall that protected the city. It was a dark gray stone. Unlike the bridge, which looked like uneven pavers expertly placed, the wall was perfectly cut dark gray stone, placed one by one all the way up to the top, which was about 50 meters tall. Levi whistled at the size of the wall. It was more impressive as he got closer and entered the archway. Expecting to run into some guards he was pleasantly surprised there was no one there to stop him.

He gazed upon the city. It reminded him of a stereotypical medieval city except colorful. Buildings of all shapes and sizes and all types of colors littered the streets. There were main roads, side alleys, and sidewalks only on rows of shops, food stalls, and more. It was incredible. Every building was made out of some kind of colorful stone with brick roofing. Once they had entered the city, Anza was walking a little closer to Levi.

“Nervous?” he asked. It nodded. “Want to go inside me? At least until you calm down?” It nodded, and with a bright light, it entered back into its summoner. Levi’s nose drifted to the first smell of food. It was fresh meat being cooked over an open grill. Salivating, he made his way to the food stall.

“You look hungry,” the vendor said with a big grin. “I got two grilled steak kebabs callin your name!”

“Please,” Levi said, hunger overtaking any sense of logic.

“Two copper total, lad.” Levi pulled out the coins and handed them to the vendor. He took his first bite of the kebab, and almost melted. It was delicious. After eating, he could feel his logic coming back.

“This is delicious,” he said between mouthfuls. “You mind if I ask you a question?”

“Sure thing, lad,” the vendor said with glee.

“Can you point me to the nearest clothing store?” Levi asked.

“Down the street, that way there’ll be a good shop for discounted clothes,” the vendor said, pointing.

“Thank you. Can I have two more please?” Levi asked. The vendor laughed and gladly handed his customer two more kebabs. Devouring all four kebabs before he got close to the store, Levi sighed with satisfaction. He had not realized how hungry he had been.

Levi entered the store and heard a small bell ring behind him. It was less of a store and more of a shop. A voice appeared from the back. “Just a second,” he heard some clattering, and then a very small man with sharp ears and pointy teeth came out. “Yes, may I help you?” The man had pale green skin and a sharp tailor-made pinstripe black suit.

“Are you a goblin?” Levi asked.

“I am,” the goblin replied. “The name is Hentay the Tailor. How may I help you?” The goblin gave Levi an assessing look, then said, “Never mind. Wait right there.” Hentay turned away in a hurry to the back room.

“Well, that was rude.” Levi said to himself. Watching as the goblin rushed off to the back room to grab materials. He walked back with some measuring tape, a step stool, and lots of cloth.

“Okay okay, we have to fix this,” Hentay muttered to himself. Just loud enough for Levi to hear and continue to be insulted. “Hmm, yep, alright. Yep,” Goblin continued to mutter while moving inhumanly fast around the standing human man. “And done, you’re in luck my friend. I have some clothes already made in your size, come come come…” he hurried Levi along.

Toward the back of the shop, a selection of clothes was hanging on a rack. The goblin told Levi to look at it. Levi followed instructions and started looking through the clothes rack. With each touch, a small text box appeared describing the clothes and their added effects.

Item: Simple Tunic - Black

Item: Simple Pants - Blue

Item: Summoner’s Robes - 0 star

The most basic form of summoner’s robes

Growth item.

“Summoner’s Robe,” Levi mused. He grabbed it off the rack and had a look. The robe had multiple layers that looked like they could be taken apart with a zipper. He grabbed the robe and put it on. The robe was an interesting color it was a dark blue mixed with a slight lavender, it had golden trim. The sleeves were the same color and had the same trim, but they were tight around his arms, snug like a hoodie. The robe went down to his feet, covering his entire lower half. It didn’t cling as tightly to his body as typical armor but hung a little looser. There was a cloak with two pins with a symbol similar to the ritual circle he had created. He put the cloak on, and it completely covered his face, obscuring it from all eyes. The cloak was also the length of his robe and covered the outside. Levi imagined this is what a trench coat without buttons and added a hood would feel like.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“That looks good on you my friend,” Hentay said. “Very good, that is a magical item. That will grow as you grow. Are you a summoner?”

“I got accepted into the summoner’s guild and I’m making my way over, I just needed some clothes… as you could tell.”

“Yes… you did…” the goblin said, almost insulted Levi walked into his store with such awful pieces of cloth he had the audacity to call clothes. “Summoners are rare and often ostracized. Perhaps, until you become an apprentice, you get another set of clothes…”

“Sure,” Levi said. “What’s the local fashion like?”

“Well, that depends,” Hentay said. “Are you looking to show wealth, power, and authority?”

“Not really, I’m looking to fit in…”

“I assume you have a familiar?” The goblin asked.

“I do,” Levi said suspiciously. At that moment, Anza came out and stood next to Levi.

“Aahh, a Mimic, a young one at that… how did you manage that?” Hentay said with a raised eyebrow. “You’re new to this town, aren’t ya?”

“That obvious?” Levi asked.

“To a trained eye like mine,” Hentay said. “You have foreigner written all over you! But worry not, the great city of Arcross welcomes all travelers! With all due respect, young man. A Mimic one as beautiful as this shows that you are not a regular man. Familiars are hard to come by only those with a special ability allow it, every class can have one but very few are lucky enough to get that ability.”

“I see,” Levi mused. “So, what do you suggest I wear?”

“Hmm,” the goblin mused. “The guild will give you some basic robes, but they will not be as good as the ones you have… I would suggest something that can go under the robes that still provide some slight bonuses.” the goblin hobbled over to another rack. He was rummaging through the rack and pulled out two more pieces. The first piece was a shirt that clung tight to the body and went just past the waist. The second piece was pants that also clung tight to the body and went up to his belly button. The top was vibrant azure, and the pants were white.

“Those look nice,” Levi said. He walked over to it; the material was ridiculously soft. “What’s this made from?”

“Cloud-Lizard hide and a blend of lava sheep wool,” Hentay said with pride.

“Very good,” Levi said. Having no idea what either of those creatures was. Levi saw a cloak on the wall and went up to it.

Item: Cloak of Chaos - 1-star

A cloak made from chaos energy can only be worn by a user capable of using chaos magic.

Growth item

Added effects.

“Oh,” Hentay said with a devious tone. “Is that something you fancy?”

“I do,” the cloak in Levi’s hand would cover one arm completely and cover the majority of the other chest and upward toward the shoulder. It had a hood attached to the back of the cloak that went behind his calves. It was a beautiful cloak that confused Levi. For it being a cloak of chaos, it was startlingly peaceful. Dusk sky blue with soft clouds would slowly move throughout the cloak. There were bits of orange from the setting sun, creating a gradient effect. The trim of the cloak was black.

“Very well, sir,” Hentay said. "Let me ring you up then.” Hentay grabbed all the gear Levi was purchasing and went to the counter. “Alright, young man, the top and the bottoms will run you for two copper pieces each, the robes as a set are one silver, and the cloak of chaos is three silvers. But because I convinced you to get the top and the bottom, I’ll give you a discount and make it two copper pieces total.”

“Wow, thanks!” Levi said. He plucked out four silver pieces and two copper pieces from his inventory. He handed it over to the goblin in exchange for the clothes. Levi put the clothes in his inventory, and the player customization box opened. Levi put the clothes in different outfit tabs and picked the casual wear with the cloak of chaos. Dark swirls began swirling around his body. As soon as it ended, he was wearing his new outfit.

“You’re not evil are you, young man?” Hentay asked quietly.

“What? No, of course not,” Levi said shocked. “Why do you say that?”

“You have a familiar who is a being of chaos, and you can wield that cloak. You look great in it by the way.”

“Well… the familiar allowed me to practice chaos magic so it makes sense why I can do both.”

“That’s fair,” the goblin mused. “No one, unless they are deep in their magical items’ knowledge, should know your cloak is one of chaos. Or your familiar either for that matter, but for those who are. Be cautious young man.”

“Wow, thanks,” Levi said. With a grateful nod, he walked out the door. He made his way to find a place where he could sleep. Battling fatigue, he couldn’t find anything. He asked around to see if someone could help him find the guilds. Someone pointed him towards the town center. There were steps to climb, and all the guilds would be on that level of the city.

His body protested when he saw the stairs. About 500 stairs stood between him and his potential destination. With a groan, he made his way up, step by step. After what Levi described as his personal hell, he finally arrived at the top. Levi hated his old self.

“Come on man, why couldn’t you have worked out so when you get transported to a new world full of magic and lacking in technology, like elevators, you wouldn’t be so damn tired.” He admonished himself. Anza gave him a look. “I know,” he said. “How could I have predicted all the stairs.” He smiled a goofy smile and kept walking.

The guild district was massive. He had no idea it would be this big. There was a large square in the middle with food stalls, drink carts, picnic tables, individual tables, and places to hang out. There were so many people of various races, classes, shapes, sizes, and colors. All hanging out and relaxing or studying. There were several giant buildings that were several stories tall, and a city block wide each. Each guild building had a wall with towers and a gate that was guarded by security to enter. Above the gate archway there was a golden symbol indicating which guild was what.

Levi recalled seeing three of the five symbols already, the other two were easy to deduce. The first symbol that he hadn’t seen before was a shield covering two spears, he assumed it was some sort of knight guild. The second symbol was a bow drawn with an arrow, rangers. The next symbol was the one on the cloak of that girl, Piper, the two small daggers crossed. Then there was the symbol of the book that the girl Anna had on her cloak. Lastly, there was the summoning circle he had seen on his summoner’s robes cloak.

Finding his destination, Levi made his way to the checkpoint. No one paid him any mind until he got close to the gate. Different groups were pointing and whispering as he got closer. Levi noticed this guild seemed to be particularly emptier than all the other guilds. As he approached, there was no guard in the stall. He looked around and found a bell.

“Hello there,” a woman’s voice said. Scaring Levi for his troubles.

“JEEZ,” Levi said, jumping up. “You half-scared me to death.”

“How may I help you,” she said without paying attention to Levi’s fear.

“I uhhh, got summoned here. My name is Levi Winters,” he said unsure.

“Oh,” she pulled out a book and started to thumb through it. Yes, you certainly did. Right this way, Mr. Winters.” The gate opened, and the woman stepped out from behind the checkpoint. She was quite small, less than five feet tall. She wore robes similar to the ones he saw Anna wearing, just smaller. She walked at an extremely quick pace. Levi had to do an awkward walk or jog to keep up with her.

“Welcome to the Summoner’s Guild, Mr. Winters. I am Professor Egret. We are expecting our largest class of Summoners this year, you and one other student!” She said with excitement. “I’ll show you to your dorms. At our guild, we require you to wear our standard robes. You may wear whatever cloak you desire, with shoes as well. But the robes are mandatory. Now, we won’t be having any other introductions today, so lunch and dinner are provided at high point and dusk. Once you are settled, please explore the guild campus and get familiar with everything. If you need any assistance, find me at the gate. Here is your dorm room; you have a suite all to yourself. Very well Mr. Winters, I look forward to getting to know you.” she said, reaching out a hand to shake. Then walked away.

“That was certainly strange,” Levi said. Peering into his room.

Item: Cloak of Chaos

Allows the user to hide their aura from anyone.

Quest: Make it to the Summoner’s Guild - Completed

Reward: 3 Gold coins

Reward: Chaos Gem

Objective: Go to the city of Arcross in the Onyx Kingdom - Completed

Reward: 1-star token

New Quest: What it Takes to be a Summoner (0/5)

Objective 1: Basics of Magic

Objective 2: Basics of Summoning

Objective 3: Basics of Training

Objective 4: Basics of Attributes

Objective 5: Basics of Ritual Magic