I jerked upright in bed, awoken by the memory of my death. A half-choked scream escaped from my lips as I was startled awake. Heavy droplets of sweat covered my skin, and my heart was beating like I had just run a mile. It hadn’t been just me that died in that casino. Including the hotel above, several hundred people died at the Cagliostro. Did all of them end up in Ferrum? Was it just me here?

In that moment between sleep and reality, a terrifying thought occurred to me. Was the world of Ferrum that I was experiencing a mere hallucination? Was I still standing there, waiting for the ceiling of the Cagliostro to strike my head and flatten me like a bug?

I placed a frantic hand to my abdomen, now significantly smaller than it was in the dream, and felt around for the rebar impaling my side. There was nothing, no pain and no evidence of a metal shard ever piercing my body.

I let out a sigh of relief. There was no reason to believe that the past ten years had been a long hallucination existing entirely within my dying mind. It was frankly absurd that I entertained the possibility for even a moment.

The memory of the Cagliostro made me wonder if any of the other victims of that terrible earthquake had made their way to Ferrum. Would I run into Liz if I traveled the world for long enough?

Would I prefer it if other people from Earth made it to Ferrum? That certainly was a thought. Though it would make my status as a Reincarnate less special, I would certainly appreciate having some support on my quest to prevent a major war in Rubigo and save the world from the God of Judgment.

As I considered the implications of my dream, I noticed that a small line of text had appeared at the top of my vision.

Skill Acquired: [Triage]

A moment after I read the line of English text, it disappeared. I gained a new [Skill]? That was the first one I had gained since I arrived on Ferrum.

It was funny in a cruel way. The word “triage” haunted me throughout my entire career as a physician. To me, it represented the point when you had to simply let a patient die. When I dreamt, I was followed by the faces of those who I left to die.

What is [Triage]?

I formulated and sent a message just like I did when I spoke with that ghost with whom I shared a brain. Unlike [Hellfire], [Observe], [Sickly], and [Intelligent], I had no idea what [Triage] did. This new [Skill] wouldn’t be helpful if I didn’t know how to use it.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

With little fanfare, a paragraph of text filled my vision completely. The font was large, so I couldn’t see anything else until it faded away.

[Triage] allows its user to immediately perceive and understand all injuries, diseases, and maladies affecting a single person. [Triage] can be used on any creature that is alive or has been dead for less than three days. The target of the [Triage] Talent must be less than two meters away from the user.

I asked the question as a shot in the dark. I had no idea that the System would respond to my questions. It made me wonder if the System would answer any of my other questions. I wondered if it would answer any of the questions I had about Lothar or King Theophrastus.

Regarding the content of the message, I immediately realized the incredible utility of [Triage]. The game recognized a “malady” as a form of extreme mental illness. The fifth and eleventh [Prayers] were used for curing maladies. Sometimes, I knew, maladies were the result of a congenital illness, and [Prayer] could only temporarily suppress the malady’s symptoms.

Beyond that, I would have to test [Triage] out to determine the scope of its power. If someone’s appendix were about to burst, would [Triage] inform me of the problem? I was unsure of how the Talent would manifest, as well. If someone caught Tuberculosis, would [Triage] tell me the name of the disease, or would it merely tell me that the patient had contracted a respiratory disease?

I was just about to ask a few more questions to the System when I noticed the faint, frantic ringing of bells in the distance. There were only two bells in town: the one by the church and the one on the watchtower. There was no reason for any bells to ring that late at night. Something was wrong.

I sprung out of bed, temporarily forgetting that this new body of mine should not move that fast. A slight twinge of pain emanated from my core, and I had to slow down. The body I had in my dream, middle-aged and impaled, was much more mobile than the child’s body I was trapped within.

Slowly, I lifted my cane from the place where it had fallen when I fell into bed. Just as I began to walk toward the door to my room, a familiar voice began to speak within my mind.

By the gods below, it’s already happening!?

Thale started to speak, but his words were not paired with a surge of some strong emotion. That had not happened before.

What’s happening?

Demon, how old are we?

Great, he was calling me “demon” again.

This body just turned ten years old.

I’ve been asleep for ten years!? What did you do to me!?

That had been the most he had spoken at once. I was starting to prefer it when he was asleep.

I didn’t do anything to you. Also, I’m not a demon. Now, tell me what’s happening!

They’re coming…

The edge to Thale’s voice suddenly softened. He was fading quickly.

Who!?

A single, quiet word played in my head, and the same word appeared in runic script at the top of my vision.

ᛓᚧᚮ

Orcs.