I cleaned myself up as best as I could, but my clothes were still in rough shape. Washing them in the bathtub would mean waiting for them to dry, and without a spare set, that wasn’t an option. So, I scrubbed out the worst of the dirt and slipped back into my school uniform, feeling at least a little more presentable. To my surprise, the soap they had was just as good as the shampoo I used back home.

As I was buttoning up, I heard a knock at the door. I hurriedly pulled on my pants and cracked the door open. It was Phobe, standing there with a bundle of clothes in her hands.

"Here, wear these" she said, handing them over. "Your clothes are in bad shape."

“Oh—thank you, ma’am,” I said, a bit taken aback by her kindness. “I really appreciate it.”

She gave a small nod before heading back to the bar. I glanced down at the clothes she’d given me. I quickly stripped off my uniform and slipped into the new outfit. The tunic was long and dark, made of a durable fabric that reached down to my mid-thigh. The trousers were simple but well-made, brown, and snug at the waist, tapering neatly down to my ankles.

On my right shoulder, there was a piece of light armour—solid metal with a matte finish—that extended down my upper arm to my forearm. It was practical yet sleek, designed to offer protection while keeping flexibility. The gauntlet was reinforced but still allowed for a good grip, making sure my sword holding arm was safe… as if I’d swing a sword once. On my left shoulder rested a piece of brown light armour that provided some protection, from which a dark blue cape draped smoothly. I could let it hang down to conceal my entire left arm or rest it on my back, the thing wasn’t hard to move with at all.

After adjusting the belts and checking that everything fit properly, which took more than ten minutes since I had no idea how these old clothes worked, I stepped out of the room and went to a small mirror at the end of the corridor. I stared at my reflection: my eyes were still half-open, and my face looked as forgettable as ever. It looked like I finally returned to my roots.

“Shit, Ax,” I muttered to myself, shaking my head slightly. “You look ridiculous.”

I made my way back to the counter, holding my school uniform in my hands, and caught Phobe’s eye. She was busy pouring a beer for a patron who looked far too drunk to know which way was up. He swayed in his seat, barely managing to keep himself upright.

Once she finished pouring, Phobe turned her attention to me, giving my new outfit a quick once-over. "Looks good on you," she commented, a hint of a smile forming on her lips. "It was my son’s."

"Thank you, ma’am," I said, feeling a bit awkward under her gaze. "Can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead," she replied, wiping her hands on her apron as she leaned on the counter.

"These, uh, the translucent boxes that appear... you know what I mean?" I fumbled, unsure of how to phrase it.

She gave me a puzzled look. "Translu—what now?"

"You know, the boxes," I said, my voice trailing off as I realised how strange it must sound. "You don’t have that?"

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

A faint smile tugged at the corner of her lips, almost like she was trying to hold back laughter. "Kid," she said, shaking her head gently, "you need some rest, I think."

I nodded quickly, feeling my face heat up with embarrassment. "Yeah, you’re probably right. Thanks again, ma’am. I’ll be sure to repay your kindness someday."

"Heh, you better," she said, her tone lightening up with a touch of humour.

I left the tavern and focused on my next destination: The Guild. If I wanted to survive in this world long enough to find my way back home, I needed a roof over my head. And to get that, I had to earn some money. I didn't know anything about this country's economy or how much things cost, so I’d have to learn as I went.

Pushing open the double doors of the Guild, I took in the scene before me. The room was crowded; adventurers of all shapes and sizes gathered around long wooden tables, some nursing mugs of ale, others sharpening their weapons. A large board with papers on it dominated one wall, plastered with all sorts of quests.

I shut the door behind me, taking a deep breath to steady myself before heading to the counter. Standing behind it was a burly man with a no-nonsense expression, who glanced up as I approached.

"Hey," I said, doing my best to keep my voice steady. "I’m here to pick up a quest."

The man barely looked up from what he was doing, jerking his thumb toward the board behind me. "Board’s over there. Pick a quest, rip the paper off, and bring it here."

"Right. Thanks," I muttered, turning to face the quest board.

As I scanned the papers pinned to it, my stomach tightened. Every quest seemed impossible: slay goblins, hunt bandits, clear out ruins. They all demanded skills I didn’t have, the kind of tasks that could easily get me killed.

"Hey!" the man called out, waving his hand to get my attention. "How old are you?"

"Sixteen, sir," I replied, trying not to let my nervousness show.

He raised an eyebrow and shook his head slightly. "In that case, you’re looking at the wrong board. Those are for adults. The board next to the door is for your age group."

"Oh," I said, embarrassment creeping in as I quickly turned to the other board. "Got it. Thank you."

This smaller board had far fewer quests, but they were more manageable—tasks like collecting flowers, carrying supplies, or looking after animals. Relief washed over me as I scanned the options. I settled on two quests: one to gather a type of flower that only bloomed at night and another to find a missing dog in a district called Forha.

I ripped the quest papers off the board and handed them to the man at the counter. He glanced at the papers, then set them down.

"Alright, two redama flowers, that'll get you five silver coins. You can also pick one, that’ll get you two instead of five. And finding that lost dog without a leg, that’s only one gold."

I nodded, trying to mask my unease. "Hmm," I grunted in acknowledgment.

"Name?" he asked, grabbing a pen to jot something down.

"Axel Millo."

He scribbled my name on the papers and looked up at me. "Let me know when you’ve finished the quests. Good luck out there."

"Thanks," I said, hesitating for a moment. "Uh, do you have a map by any chance? I’m not sure where to find that flower."

He reached under the counter, pulling out a folded map and handed it to me. "Usually, I’d charge you two silver for this, but this one’s on me," he said with a smirk.

"Thanks, that’s generous." I said with a dull voice.

"By ‘on me,’ I mean I’ll deduct the cost from your reward when you complete the quests," he added with a knowing grin. "This isn’t a charity, kid."

"Still a good deal," I said, shaking my head slightly but grateful for the help.

"Yeah, yeah," he replied, waving me off. "Good luck, kid. Don’t get yourself killed."