《The Ronin System》 Death Is Only The Beginning It happened so fast, I didn''t even see it coming. I didn''t even get the chance to say goodbye to anyone. It was a pretty normal seeming day for me. My name is Qui Bai I was a Japanese American who decided to study overseas in Japan for college. I was pretty average looking, hardly any muscle but no fat either, with shorter black hair and dark eyes from my mother. I was studying history and felt that Japan was the perfect place to go, what with it being a part of my heritage. The cultural history of the nation fascinated me. How they developed practically without any outside interference until the Portuguese finally found them. The uniqueness of their philosophy and medicine was just as interesting along with their farming methods and alcohol. But in school, as a history junkie and anime fan I was always absorbed in my studies or hobby, not really bothering with too many friends. I always considered myself a loner, even if my mom said that I wasn''t. Walking back to my apartment after a long night of studying was pretty a normal night, I had made the walk dozens of times before, so I wasn''t really bothered by the area, only drug related crimes were reported here and even those were rare. Seeing that it was only a mile or so I never thought to bring anybody or anything for protection. That''s why when a crazy guy ran out in front of me with a knife, I may have panicked a bit. "Jus... Just gimme your stuff and go. I.. I''ll kill you I swear I will so GIVE IT TO ME." I took in the sight of the man before me with fear, nothing like this had ever happened here before. The sunken skin and bloodshot eyes of this addict were scary enough but the knife he was using scared me more. "Ok, I''ll give it to you, just put down the knife." I reach for my wallet after trying to speak calmly, not wanting to give the wrong idea and set him off, ready to give my wallet to him until, Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit."STOP! Your gonna trick me aren''t you? Just like them. I''m gonna kill them, but I''ll get YOU FIRST!" He was already close so when he lunged I could hardly do anything, and he slashes at my stomach, gutting me on the street. I fall to the ground in shock, looking at what I assume to be my organs on the ground. The pain is maddening, more so as I get push back and mounted, feeling a knife stab into my heart repeatedly. His mad eyes boring into me as he swears to kill people I dont even know. I can only watch, my eyes hardly open anymore as he gets up and runs. The last thing I hear are the sirens, the sounds of people yelling, and the tremendous cold biting into me as my vision finally fades and I cant feel anything anymore. A sudden warmth fills my body, fighting back the cold as I gasp for air, sitting up and looking around me. The smell of blood was so strong and a sudden extreme nausea make me puke up whatever was in my stomach, and got a good look at myself in the process. I was wearing a plain tattered kimono that looked cut by some type of blade. My reflection showed in the blood on the ground, I looked practically the same, just somewhat dirty. Taking in my surroundings, my eyes go wide as I realized I was at the scene of what looks like a small battle. Seeing that most of the dead looked to be wearing similar clothing to me, I assume that my faction lost. The gravity of my situation finally hit me. My breathing gets heavy and my legs wobble as I fall to my knees, unable to fathom how I got here, the sight of the bodies, the smell of death... my death. I retch, nothing more in my stomach as I lay in the blood of either myself or someone else, bloody tears streaming from my eyes as I try to stay conscious, to control myself and calm down. My situation only worsens as extreme pain wracks my brain and I get attacked with seemingly random memories that weren''t mine, ones of fighting, of family, of service and betrayal. Blood streams from my ears as I grip them and scream out to end it, just wanting the pain to go away. A mechanical voice cuts through the pain, relieving, like clear water in a well as it speaks to me. *Detecting extreme stress on hosts physical and mental state, activation of The Ronin Systems preliminary functions beginning in 5 seconds.* A Humble Start *Detecting extreme stress on hosts physical and mental state, activation of The Ronin Systems preliminary functions beginning in 5 seconds, 4, 3, 2, 1, Starting...* Suddenly, a refreshing feeling washed across my body as all of the pain from earlier disappeared without a trace, though I was still tired. Returning to my feet, I realized I could look around and I would feel no panic while looking at the corpses of my former comrades. *Congratulations to the host for activating the preliminary stages of The Ronin System. Would the host like a tutorial?* "Sure, I guess." *Very well, The Ronin System was created in order for you to pave your way through this world and eventually reach the apex. It has several different functions, however only the Status, Contract, and Sword functions are currently available. Status shows a comprehensive list of all of your stats including Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. Contracts are the equivalent of missions or quests, if you finish them, you get awarded by the system. The Sword function is unique to The Ronin System, It allows you to view your weapon in incredible detail, as well as upgrade it depending on the quality.* Hearing all this, I realized I had a cheat, hopefully. My surroundings certainly seem more gloomy than anything I''ve read, but it''ll make do. "System, where am I and how did I get here?" *The host died in his previous world and through unknown circumstances, ended up taking over the body of one of the deceased soldiers, one with many similarities to the hosts original body. The host''s location is currently unknown, however this is not Earth, but a separate plane of existence where war is everlasting, and Ronin can thrive if they so choose.* Curious, I call out Status in my mind, and luckily it worked and a screen popped up in front of me. *Name: Qui Bai Race: Human Class: Ronin Age: 19 HP: 7/20 SP:3/20 STR: 6 DEX: 5 CON: 3 INT: 13 WIS: 9 CHA: 1 No Current Lord No Skills Looking over my stats, I realize I seemed a bit weak. "System, why are my stats so low?" *Host was dead previously, so the hosts stats are naturally lower than the average persons, 10.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. Sighing at the inconvenience, I decide to open contracts and see if I have anything to help me get stronger. *CONTRACT: A New World You''ve been transmigrated into a whole new world, the possibilities are endless! Find out where you are and the current state of the land. *CONTRACT: Humble Beginnings You''re even weaker than the average man as you are! Train yourself to become stronger and worthy of the title of Ronin! Perform 100 push ups, 100 sit ups, 100 squats. *CONTRACT: A Weapon Every Ronin needs a usable weapon. Find one around the bodies of your former comrades. Seeing the 3 contracts, I realize that this may not be as hard as I originally thought. I take all 3 Contracts and start on finding a sword among the corpses. I feel like the system affected my personality a bit because I had no problem rummaging around bodies. I quickly realized not any blade will do, as even when I picked one up that seemed usable, the system didn''t complete the Contract. Around 20 minutes of scavenging later and still no sword, I look around a bit more carefully, rereading the contract, I quickly realize it said around, not on and said weapon, not sword. Looking around I quickly spot what looks to be a sturdy branch just outside the battlefield. Grabbing it I hear a notification *CONTRACT: A Weapon completed Reward: Bokken STR +1 DEX +2 CON +2 The stick begins glowing white, blinding me, and gives off an indescribable warmth. Upon opening my eyes the stick is gone, and in its place, a bokken, perfectly formed and glossed, not a single imperfection. *NEW CONTRACT: Practice You have a weapon, but have no idea how to use it. Swing your sword 1000 times to better understand how to wield it. Seeing the new contract I almost feel cheated by all the physical activity I''ve gotten. I wasn''t much of an athlete in my past life just because I hated exercise, but I suppose I have no choice. I decided to start with the actual exercise. I moved away from the battlefield, wandering until I found a small open area and began working out. It was when I hit 20 push ups that I realized... I really am too weak. My arms gave out and with a depressed groan I rolled over and tried the sit ups. Again at 20 my core was on fire and had to stop and try squats, which I didn''t fare much better in. I ended up repeating this until after about a half hour I finally finished the Contract. Hopefully I keep getting training missions so I can just grind it out in this forest until i''m unbeatable. *CONTRACT: Humble Beginnings completed Reward: STR +3 DEX +3 CON +5 CHA +1 *Your Strength has reached 10: Average- You can better control the force of your strikes. *Your Dexterity has reached 10: Average- You can better control the placement of your strikes. *Your Constitution has reached 10:Average- You are more resistant to blunt strikes. *CONTRACT: The First Trial Ronin''s lives are rife with challenging battles. Find a challenging opponent and fight to the death. ...This damn system. Nature Is Scary Although the system seems to want me to go fight a life or death battle with someone... I''d honestly rather not. So I started training with my new bokken, swinging it 1000 times, or until the system tells me to stop. Needless to say, I''ve never been so bored in my entire life. That and the system kept track of my swings, or the ones I did properly. The tediousness was mind breaking to say the least, but I dealt with it, in order to not die again I needed to be at least a little strong. During my long routine, I ended up asking the system a few questions, like why the change in my mindset? Why was I selected for a system? or if there was magic in this world. The only answer I got was for my change in mindset, which the system said was a passive I got just from the system called Mushin. Apparently in can get stronger or weaker depending on my mindset, and even change completely. The system even put it in my skills so I could know about it. 1000 sword swings later, I finished the Contract *CONTRACT: Practice completed Reward: Basic Sword Mastery 1/10 Rough Kimono Rough Hakama Rough Geta STR +2 DEX +2 CON +2 Seeing the rewards for the mission made me giddy. I could finally leave these tattered old robes behind. I immediately stripped out of my old getup and wore my new one and got a nice notification. *Full set worn, +2 CHA I did notice that I got no new contracts and the system answered before I could even ask. *The Ronin System is only in its preliminary stages, you must complete the other active contracts before you advance any further. So... I need to fight someone to the death, i''ll do that later. Either way, I need to find out where I am so I think west is always the way to go. And so my journey began, until I realized how hungry I was. Turns out, exercise takes a lot of energy, so I had to find some food. I''ll forage on the way, no rush. At least I thought that until I found a bear. Staring at the beast in front of me I started to actually realize that this wasn''t Earth. This bear was HUGE, almost twice the size of normal bears. and so, while just stopping from pissing myself, I slowly and quietly make my way backwards, trying not to alert the monster that I was there... but I stepped on a branch. The snap resounded in the quiet forest as the bear turned to look at me and I got to know what death actually looked like. Its coarse black hair matted with blood from a recent kill coated its face. Black eyes with seemingly no pupils almost seemed to stare inside of me as its gaping maw opened, its breathing ragged.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. "Shit" I turn tail and book it in the opposite direction, not daring to look behind me after I heard the roar of what I assume to be anger and the thumping of its footsteps. *Fleeing from combat is a highly dishonorable act. If host continues, stats will be reduced by 5. This fucking system... Realize I don''t have much choice in fighting, I look around for something that could give me an advantage. I feel a hot breath on my back I act on instinct. Seeing a thick tree in front of my I jump and plant my foot, vaulting off of it, and somehow going over top of the bear, who collides with the tree. Landing behind it, I draw my ''Sword'' and get ready to fight. The bear turns around and I nearly wilt at the thought of fighting such a thing. *Conditions met, Mushin activated I blank out, the closest thing to describing how I feel would be thinking... without thinking. It was like a state of absolute focus. The beast of impending doom didn''t even bother me anymore. In fact, I even knew exactly how to beat it. Rather than waiting, I rush forwards and swing my sword down towards its skull. Upon feeling contact, I quickly retreat out of range, narrowly dodging a swipe at my torso. Watching as blood flows from its head I move to engage again, but the bear swipes first, so I move with the blow, arriving beside it and hitting practically the same spot, this time hearing a crack. It lets out a ferocious roar as I retreat again, charging toward me. I sidestep the charge, twisting my feet and quickly loosing another blow while it runs by. The final blow causes it to collapse forwards, skull crushed after 3 precise blows. *Opponent slain *Level up *Level up *Mushin Deactivated Looking at the corpse, my body feels heavy as I watch the notification pop up in front of me. "Status" *Name: Qui Bai Race: Human Class: Ronin Age: 19 Level: 3 XP: 0/100 HP: 38/38 SP: 20/20 STR: 12 DEX: 12 CON: 12 INT: 13 WIS: 9 CHA: 4 Skill Points: 4 No Current Lord Skills: Mushin- The mind without mind (Calmness is the cradle of power) Basic Sword Mastery 4/10 "System, how do I usually level up?" *Host can defeat enemies or complete tasks assigned by others in the world. Thinking slightly, I decide to put all of my points into Dexterity, if I don''t get hit I can''t lose. Not wanting to waste the perfectly good meat, I try to start a small fire... and fail miserably for quite some time. When I finally saw the sparks fly and embers flourish I literally let out a cry of victory. Using one of the blades I got from the dead soldiers from before, I cut up some of the meat and cooked enough to last me a day or so. By this point night had fallen so I set up a little shelter from sticks and leaves to spends the night in. My first day in this new world wasn''t so bad, only 1 life of death battle so far. Drifting off all I can think of is if I can live peacefully in this life, or if I really will have to fight to survive. The First Night When I laid down to sleep I quickly realized... sleep was a very bad idea. Being unaware of my surroundings while in an unknown land was pretty dumb of me. These thoughts raced through my head as I stared down several small car sized wolves that surrounded my camp. I only knew they were that big by guessing with my limited amount of light from my old campfire, and the fact their eyes were as big as my face. Scanning around for a way to escape, I spot a large tree with branches just low enough for me to vault on to. Rushing over, I jump up and quickly climb what I assume is roughly halfway up the tree. Almost immediately after, I feel a rumble as see 4 pairs of eyes glaring up at me from the darkness. Fearful, I clamber my way further up the tree and sit on a branch sturdy enough to hold my weight. The wolves, seeing that they''ll be unable to reach me, begin circling the tree, as if waiting for me t come down. Needless to say, I didn''t get much sleep that night. Waking up groggy, I sit up and sway to one side. Panicking, I flail around until I re catch my balance on the branch and peer down at the forest floor below me. Seeing no burly shadows waiting below I let out a sigh of relief and slowly begin my descent from the tree. Upon reaching the ground, I pack up the remnant of my camp that wasn''t ravaged by animals and head west again. The journey goes pretty smoothly if not for the fact my shoes were a little uncomfortable. At around mid day, I see the trees begin to thin out and I approach what looks like a cliff overlooking a savanna. In the distance I spot what look like the stone walls of a city. With a renewed energy, I briskly walk towards my salvation from the night, ready to finally be rid of the bugs and beasts of the forest. Quickly approaching the now imposing walls of the city, I realize I wasn''t the only one waiting to gain entry. I approach the line about 2 or 300 meters long and stand at the end, curious as to the long wait. In front of me is a man with a wagon with what looks to be various types of ores and even some precious gems mixed within. The wagon looks to be of rather mediocre quality, though the skilled looking guards and demeanor of the owner prove it to be anything but. I walk forwards, hoping to ask a few questions but am quickly stopped. "I can''t let you get any closer, this carriage is under the protection of the Suns Fire. I suggest you go somewhere else." "I was only wondering if I could ask a few questions, I only recently woke up in the forest without any memories." Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!Cringing at my poor reasoning of my ignorance, I keep a poker face, waiting for the guard to respond. "You can''t get any closer, but I could answer your questions if you like." Hearing him, I remember the contract I had out and decided questions about the world would be best. "First, where are we?" "We''re in the Thadour Empire, near the eastern border, this is the city of Essen. We''re also in the enter of the continent and a neutral territory. To the north is Alfgeir, made up of mostly barbarians. To the east is Kent, its an export based territory run by a king and what''s called a ''Parliament'' which is a bunch of advisers. To the west is the Nirean Dynasty, they have only had female rulers but are one of the strongest nations just because of their population. And to the south there is no kingdom, just a kind of wasteland nobody sane would ever go too. All the kingdoms are at peace right now so I think that covers everything as far as land goes." Nodding my head from the influx of information, I get a notification from the system. *CONTRACT: A New World completed *Reward: Map of the Thadour Empire *Compass *INT +1 *Inventory unlocked Happy at the gain of new items and a new function, I look back towards the guard. "Thank you, that was helpful. Is there any specific currency I should be aware of? Or a place to earn money in town or nearby? "Wait, you have no money?" The guard face-palms as he says "You need to pay a toll to even get into the city." I scowl, the fact I have no money was dreadfully apparent at the moment, I give a dog eyed look at the guard,, "I was hoping to become a mercenary, do you mind paying the toll for me, I''ll pay you back twice the amount later." The guard looked me up and down before he decided, "I''ll pay, but you need to go to the hall with me to register. Rather than pay me back, how about you help out with the next job, we were looking for an extra anyways. If you do well, I could even get you a permanent spot on the team, you''ll be paid for your work of course." The guard grins as he speaks to me, though my answer was a no brainer, I pretended to think for a moment, hopefully making myself seem cooler. "Sure, I suppose that''ll work." "Great! Let''s just wait until we''re in the city and I''ll bring you to register." Passing through the gates with no hitch because of the friendliness of the guard was a welcome surprise for me. I look around the street with wonder, considering I hated crowds and I only went out when it was dark and not crowded. I feel a clap on my shoulder and turn to see a smiling guard. "Alright kiddo, lets get going." He leads me to the guild, where I presume i''ll start my new life, the life of a Ronin! The First Test Walking around the city with my strangely upbeat guide, whose name I found out was Garth and he was from Kest. It seemed like he REALLY enjoyed talking, and that serious atmosphere of the caravan cramped his style just a bit. So while we were heading to get my registration done, all he did was basically chew my ear off. Another thing I noticed was all the weird looks I kept getting from passerby. I didn''t think anything was wrong until I realized that everyone was dressed practically the same, in a medieval European style... except for me. I chose to ignore the strange glances in my direction my just focusing on where I was going, or where Garth was going. Too long of a time later I finally got to the, as Garth put it, The Gathering Hall. It was literally just a big building with a long counter at the northern end, a huge billboard on the western end, and a small staircase toward the northeastern end, while the rest was just tables and chairs, as well as a bar. As I stand observing the happenings inside the building, Garth heads over to one of the many beautiful receptionists within the hall. I walk over after him and quickly have my dreams shattered as the woman I expected to see, was actually just a pretty man. At a distance one couldn''t tell the difference and seeing this, I realized that if I were to have romantic relations at some point, I would really need to be careful. After sizing me up, the receptionist pointed me towards a double door near the eastern part of the building while looking towards Garth. "Sir Rorik shall be his examiner, he''s at the far end of the courtyard." Garth, with his ever grinning face now going wider, moved towards where he pointed, with me quickly following behind. I noted that I felt many gazes land on my back while I walked away, I don''t know how I knew, but many of them didn''t feel friendly. Entering through the double doors, I exited the building into what looked like a large dirt courtyard of about 100 meters in length and width. Throughout the yard were many, what looked like mercenaries or those in training, practicing with others, either by sparring or training individual skills. I noticed that Garth walked towards a hulking man training someone at one end of the field. Again, quickly following him, I strolled through the field while watching people practice with their weapons. I noticed that many of their styles were... a bit different from my own. Shaking it off as something unnecessary, I kept following Garth until we reached the rather intimidating guy and he started talking as if they were old friends. "Rorik my friend! Its great to see you!" The large tanned man, presumably named Rorik looked over, but when he saw Garth standing there his look turned into one of both fury and disbelief. Without even an exchange of words, Rorik dashed towards Garth and threw a barrage of punches and kicks, seemingly with intent to kill. Garth''s smile disappeared for the first time since we entered the city as he parried blow after blow while they rained down upon him. Finally Garth spotted an opening and landed a quick strike to the abdomen, shoving Rorik back several steps.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. They stared each other down for a moment until Garth cracked another smile and said "Now now, I was told to find you so you could test a potential recruit to my company." It was then that Rorik finally noticed me, dressed in a strange garb, just a few meters from him. He looked towards me with the eyes of a predator finding his prey. My body went rigid as I looked at the man and I instinctively knew that if we fought... well it wouldn''t be a fight so much as a death sentence. "Alright then, let''s get this over with." He faces me and makes a look of intense concentration. It was then that I felt a horrible pressure fall onto my shoulders, as if I was being stared at by some kind of monster, something not human. Though the pressure was intense, I could still handle it. It was then that I noticed that the man named Rorik disappeared. My surrounding changed as I entered a battlefield, awash with the blood of friend and foe alike. I was staring down some kind of monstrous being, feasting on the corpses of the fallen. Fear washed over me as I felt my instincts scream at me to move, to get away from where I was. I hardly moved an inch before a hand was lain on my shoulder, ending the whole process. I was still in the yard, I was still facing Rorik, the monster nowhere to be seen. I turned behind me to see a still smiling Garth, a sense of both pride and astonishment gleaming in his eyes. "You pass, with flying colors actually." Rorik broke the silence by announcing something unexpected. I hadn''t even realized I''d taken a test. "What just happened, where did I go before?" Garth happily answered my question "Nowhere kiddo, its just that Rorik has been in quite a few battles so, his killing intent when focused on someone inexperienced can make them go a bit loony." I gape at the thought, someone in this world could almost kill me by just focusing a little bit. That was a bit too much for me at the moment as I let out a sigh of both relief and great stress. "To be honest I was pretty surprised you could move, Rorik may not look it, but he''s an A rank mercenary, which is really strong." "What do you mean not LOOK IT!" Rorik pounced on a laughing Garth as the enchanged blows a few more times, ending in practically a draw. Rorik, now slightly winded, looked towards me, "Now that you passed the first test, time for the second one. It just so happens that this trainee here also passed the test. Now I need to see if you have the guts to really be one of us. You see for the second test, you need to kill someone." I pause and look towards the youth who was practicing with Rorik a moment ago, there was a sharp glint in his eye that showed his intent to battle. Slightly fearful this came so soon, yet resolved to survive in this world, I just nodded to Rorik, showing my consent. "Alright then. First lesson, in the real world, there is no countdown." I was confused as to why he said that, until I saw the boy from before almost upon me, sword drawn. "Shit" Victory And Defeat Blanking out, I flinch as the sword puts a deep cut under my eye. I stumble backwards, tripping over my feet as I try to move away. My opponent, nice enough to give me a rest, looks at me with scorn, as if killing me by surprise was beneath him. As my blood flows down my face I draw my ''sword'' and ready myself to fight. I take a deep breath and focus, trying to activate my one active skill to give me some type of advantage. Seeing that I''m still filled with a mild amount of panic... I assume I failed. Noticing that I look ready, my enemy rushes forward again, this time to probably finish me. As I wasn''t ready at all and focused on trying to get my cheat from the system, I clumsily put my sword out to meet his and am quickly pushed back. As I continued to get pushed backwards, I instinctively try to use the balls of my feet to plant myself and stop moving. Instead, I tilt forward on my geta and fall forwards, my weapon coming down. Somehow while doing this, I manage to surprise him and land a strike on his shoulder. He steps back, surprised at my sudden attack but after he did, I tried to regain my balance by stepping backwards, once again tripping due to the impractical design of the geta given by the system. Falling backwards, both of them slip off as I hit the ground. Stumbling back to my feet, I look towards him completely seriously, now without shoes and breathing heavily, waiting for another attack. Noticing that he wasn''t pressing the attack, I look around me, seeing weird looks on the faces of bystanders. It was then that Garth barked out a hearty laugh, one that was exceedingly long. I even saw that he was crying while doing it. Letting out a small frown, I turn to Rorik, wondering what was happening. He looks me dead in the eye and said "That was the worst excuse for an exchange of blows that I have ever seen." My face flushes a deep shade of crimson as I get laughed at by several passerby as well. Nobody even tries to comfort my wounded heart. When Garth finally decided to stop laughing, with tears still in his eyes he says "You have no proper training do you?" I nod my head in response, not wanting to embarrass myself any further. "Well I guess we''ll have to start from the ground up then. Rorik?" "Yea yea, Seeing as you hit him, even if it was by accident, your at least E rank." Confused I ask "I thought it was a fight to the death?" "No, we just say that so you''ll go all out. You wouldn''t have beaten him anyways, what with him being on the cusp of B rank." I look towards my old opponent who stares me down with a look full of disdain. It somehow makes me angry that such a person could limb the ranks when he looked about the same age as me, yet i''m still at the bottom of the ladder. "Oh yeah, what are the ranks and their meanings?" Garth quickly answers my question "It goes from F to S normally, F being a normal person and S being basically a natural disaster." The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident."How can a person be a natural disaster?" The answer was obvious "Talent." "Which is also something you lack." adds Rorik very bluntly. Sighing, I realize I still have a long way to go to live worry free. I take a look a people around and me think of all the hardships they had to go though to get stronger. Though I don''t really want to do that, I''d rather take a shortcut, but the system doesn''t seem to want me to. Either way, I still need to fight a life or death battle, so I might as well find some enemy or something. "Is there anybody I can fight with who''s around my level then?" Rorik thinks for a moment "Well most recruits practice on criminals, they agree to get beat up because it lowers their sentence." "I guess I''ll do that then. Would you mind letting me train on one?" Rorik nods and calls over what looks to be an average guy on the field. "This guy here will be your dummy for a bit. One the other end of things you could ask him to fight to the death as well. This time it''ll be for real though." He smirks as I nod my head. "I need actual combat experience, so the best way is to actually fight someone. Let''s go." The criminal actually smiles, even as I draw my weapon he still has a stupid grin on his face. After he gets his weapon Rorik calls out "Begin" This time I take initiative and rush forwards, swinging upwards towards his chin. I miss as he steps to the side and slashes forward, hitting my side and leaving a light wound and cutting my clothes. Before he can escape again I spin and thrust backwards, landing a blow on chest and hopefully cracking a few ribs. After getting back into stance, I watch him cough up a small amount of blood as he glares at me, bloodlust filling the air. *Mushin Activated We exchange blows again and again, I come out with light or even no injuries every time. The criminal was worse off, the initial blow to his ribs throwing off his combat effectiveness and allowing me to gain the upper hand. One final exchange happened as he thrust forward in a desperate attack which I manage to sidestep and counter by slashing towards his head. It connects as I hear a sickening crunch, his skull being crushed by the force behind the blow. He slumps forward, blood oozing from his head as I coldly look at the body hit the ground. Seems like Mushin does more than just make me calm, it effects everything, maximizes my effectiveness, or turns me into a psychopath. As I ponder the effects, notifications fill my head. *E Rank opponent killed 50 XP gained *CONTRACT: The First Trial completed Rewards: STR +4 DEX +2 CON +2 *System Upgrade has begun. Time left- 30 seconds I look at the system upgrade about to start and realize I can finally get more contracts. Hopefully ones that won''t kill me, or do anything close to that. Maybe i''ll get a store, or inventory, or even some ultra cool skill. *Upgrade Complete Functions Unlocked- Upgrade Function: allows one to trade weapons and armor to the system to upgrade the hosts current equipment. Honor Function: The Ronin are merely samurai without a master, you must be honorable both in combat and out. If the host does he will receive rewards, if not he will be punished. Well... that seems pretty fancy. A Job After killing my first opponent I stare down at the lifeless body, showing a surprising lack of emotion. I chalk it up to the passive effects of Mushin but it still bothers me that my mental state hasn''t changed whatsoever from killing someone. Seeming to notice my gaze, Garth puts his hand on my shoulder and tries to comfort me. "Its alright, we all have a first and we all remember it vividly. You don''t need to like killing, but its necessary in this world we live in." I nod my head, looking into his eyes I can see that he really feels that way, and it makes me wonder just how many lives he''s taken to think like that. "Ahem." Rorik interjects with an abrupt grunt."Now that you killed your first and fought without those stupid sandals, I can see you really are an E rank, which isn''t bad for a starter. You won''t even need to train before you go on missions, though I think you should up your combat experience before you go." "Actually I don''t think so. Getting out into the field would be better for your growth. You can fight without holding back, without constraints. A real battle." Garth adds his opinion to the mix, which looking at my lack of money, I just so happen to agree with. "I''ll take a job for now. But one without too much fighting please." Garth laughs at my unwillingness to fight as he walks back towards the hall to tell the receptionist my predicted rank. I take one last look at Rorik who started training the recruit who beat me earlier before I wipe the blood off my face and followed Garth, ready to hopefully make some money. Upon entering the hall I was met with a receptionist who gave me what looked like a form of ID that said my name and rank. Upon receiving it, I was informed it was needed to enter any city, as well as to take jobs at any of the guild halls. Now looking towards the wall of jobs, I feel a bit overwhelmed by it and the amount of people in the building. Looking for the ever jovial Garth seems to be an impossible task as I make my way to find something to make a bit of money. Seeing a few of the requests, my jaw hangs low. Things like gathering were pretty common, but there were some for clearing entire camps of bandits, dangerous animals, I even saw one for slaying a drake towards the south. Seeing the existence of things like drakes in this world, I assume there should be things even stronger than that. My desire to grow stronger only grows seeing the strength of the people around me, and with my system, maybe someday soon i''ll join their ranks.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. I end up deciding on a short escort mission, apparently an apothecary wanted a bodyguard while they went out gathering. The processing was surprisingly quick and I was told to meet my client at the gate in about an hour. Seeing it was about noon, I decided to look for Garth quickly to tell him where I''m going. Seeing that he''s done so much for me in this short time, I feel like I owe it to him. He ended up finding me though, scaring me with a "Hey there!" from behind. I look towards his grinning figure and notice a bundle under his arms right before he shoves it into my arms and hands me a slip too. "Seeing that your equipment is a little torn up and your about to go on a job, I went to the trouble of getting you a new set of something you might find a little more comfortable. That and I registered you with my company seeing that you are in my debt." He says the last bit with an almost serious look on his face. I look through what he got me and notice a simple leather jerkin and pants, as well as a pair of travel boots. "Maybe you won''t trip when you get into a fight with these!" His laugh is a stark contrast to my scowl as I leave to change. Quickly doing so I see Garth waiting for me at the entrance of the Hall, waving me over. "That look suits you better I think, but be careful out there. Animals aren''t the worst thing you''ll find in those woods." Seeing his rare seriousness I nod my head. "Thanks Garth, I''ll pay you back when I have the money. And I''ll be sure to watch myself." Saying that brief goodbye I retrace my steps to the gate I arrived in and wait for my supposed client, seeing i''m about 10 minutes early I think. "Are you supposed to be my escort?" Thinning The Pack "Are you supposed to be my escort?" I turn towards the voice and find a rather haughty looking woman facing me. She stood, idly crossing her arms as she looks me up and down with piercing blue eyes, as if judging my worth. Her dark hair framed her face as she nodded, satisfied. "That depends on if your the apothecary I''m looking for or not." I take a quick look around and find others walking off to finish their contracts as I turn towards her once again. "That would be me, I''m Cassandra. Who might you be, I''ve not seen you around here before?" "I''m a little new here, I''m Qui Bai. Hope we get along." I extend out my hand, which she takes in her own and bows to me. "My safety is in your hands." *CONTRACT: The Apothecary Protect Cassandra as she collects supplies. *CONTRACT: A Novice Reach Level 10 *CONTRACT: Train Reach Intermediate Sword Mastery I nod my head, slightly shocked at both being bowed to after this recent meeting and the sudden notifications, but put it to the back of my mind as she started towards the forests near the town. During the trip, she makes casual conversation about things like my unusual name, my bokken, and what company I work for. The venture was surprisingly uneventful as I watched her collect her ingredients. Upon inquiry. I learned that it was to make a kind of healing salve that can close smaller wounds. Seeing that mercenaries often got hurt, it was in high demand and she needed to restock. Seeing that she was finishing up, I look closely to make sure nothing happens on the way back. After walking about halfway through the forest my hair starts to stand on end. The feeling of being watched floods my body and adrenaline slowly starts pumping through my body as I quickly scan my surroundings. There was still at least two hours of daylight left but the dimmer light causes my vision to fail me. I quickly spend whatever points I have into Dexterity and notice an improvement from before. It was then I ran towards Cassandra at a blinding speed, the points spent well worth at as a wolf leaps from the brush towards us. I draw my weapon and swing at its open mouth, connecting and sending it flying back where it came from. I ready myself for a fight as I spot movement from two other spots, my eyes flicking back and forth as I try to position myself to protect my Contractor. I feel them circling us, the point I put into Dexterity in full effect as I barely track their movements through the dim light. I notice Cassandra was quivering behind me, looking around in a panic. It was then that From behind me, another wolf lunged at Cassandra, who was an easier target, but I was faster. Spinning around, I push her to the ground and swing at the wolves head, hearing a sickening crunch, it fall several feet from me, dead. I have no time to celebrate as two other charge the now prone Cassandra. Once again making use of my advanced Dexterity, I reach down while intercepting one and throw a stone at the other, accurately hitting its eye, causing it to miss Cassandra by a hairs breadth. It was then that I felt a great pressure forcing me to the ground. Looking up I see the snarling maw of a wolf, saliva dripping down as I hold off its ravenous bites to my throat. Looking over I see the other wolf shake off its eye injury and slowly close in on Cassandra. Improvising, I bring my foot up to the stomach of the wolf and kick it off, over top of me. It lands in front of the Cassandra, but the hesitation of the other after seeing its pack mate reappear allowed me to return to my feet and return in front of her.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. My breathing was ragged after the short exchange with the two now very angry wolves. Looking down I see some shallow cuts on my arms but nothing serious as I revert my attention back to the wolves. Taking the initiative after the short respite, I kick a stone towards one and and rush the other, but my plan backfires as it dodges and zeros in on me, seeing me as more of a threat. They both leap at me and time seems to slow down. The starved looks in the eyes of the two show a resolve to die here. I drop to my knees and rise with enough force to drive by bokken nearly through one wolf. The other land and lunges again from behind me. Still having one near me, I turn and throw it atop the other. Seeing them on the ground I rush over and quickly dispatch the two. A quick hit to the head mashes their brains as I gasp for air, adrenaline still flowing from the fight. Looking down at my wounds, notifications ring in my head. *You killed Wolf x3 XP Gained: 300 *Level Up *Level Up I look towards the shocked looking Cassandra, "Let''s get the fuck out of here." A Rest Managing to return back to the town with no other incidents, Cassandra and I went to the guild to report the mission a success. I''m met with the forever mischievous grin of Garth at the door, as if he knew I would return. Seeing Cassandra move to the desk, I follow her and end up receiving payment, 30 coppers, enough to get a meal and room for a night or two. *Contract Complete: The Apothecary Rewards: Healing Ointment I look for Cassandra but find she has made a quick escape. I hear a stifled laugh to my side and see Garth once again there. "You have pretty bad luck with women don''t you? I mean she practically ran out of here." I frown at the bluntness of his words and choose to ignore him and leave to look for an inn. "Wait a minute! I didn''t mean it I swear, i''m sure your great with women!" I grit my teeth and feel a vein bulge on my forehead as I look towards him, a dark glint in my eye. "Now that''s a scary look, sorry if I hit a sore spot but I was just gonna recommend an inn to you, it''s the same one my company uses." I nod as he leads me out of the hall and towards the inn he was talking about, it had an odd name, ''The Scarlett Paradise''. Upon entering, a cheers resound through the room. The modestly sized inn is packed with mercenaries of all shapes and sizes, all with the insignia of a sun burning brightly. Between the tables run maids with varying features, catering to the needs of the large party. Garth immediately joins the fray, seeming to know everyone by name as he happily takes drink after drink from them. Realizing he won''t be any help in finding a room, I look around and find a lone old man, the only calm one in the whole room cleaning glasses off to the side. Squeezing my way past the men barring my way, I take a seat next to him and wait for him to finish cleaning. He looks over to me, "I assume Garth dragged you here to get a room right?" If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it."Yes sir, I only got to the city today and Garth paid for me to get in, so I owe him one." He only smiles in response. "Well that''s nothing new I suppose, most of the company is made up of people he just picked up off the street. I guess you could say they''re all his kids, one big family." I look over among the crowd and see Garth enjoying himself with the others. Them laughing together makes me wonder what my own family is doing right now, my eyes gloss over at the thought of them at my funeral, leaving my mother and sister by themselves was heart wrenching, I couldn''t even savor the feeling before I was forcibly calmed down. "Well then kid, how about you hand over a few coppers for the room and chat with me a little bit. Those hooligans probably forgot all about little old me anyways so it''s nice to have some company." "Sure, I don''t really think I''d fit in with all the racket over there anyways." So the night turned short and I talked the night away with the old barkeep. I found out his name was Ed, and he used to be a Mercenary before he retired. He told me stories of his many adventures, of wars he''d fought in, the bloody battlefields, the people he''d met, and even an encounter with an S class, though he only saw from a distance. Though when I told him about my repeated run ins with wolves recently, his eyes got sharp, almost scarily, before they turned back to normal. "You might want to be more careful around that forest. If my instinct is right, a monster may have been spawned. It''s not often that you see wolves attack people so desperately unless something is taking away their food supply." "I''ll remember that next time I go out, but I don''t really know what a monster is in the first place." "I''m not surprised considering their rare around here. Think of it as a mutated animal, though it doesn''t always have to be an animal. Anything can end up a monster depending on what it did while it was alive. When things die, they release their spirits back into the world and are recycled, monsters reject that cycle, and usually go mad in the process. All they want is to preserve themselves by taking the spirits from anything it see''s. So if you find one, you should run, not even Garth would fight one carelessly." Nodding my head in understanding, we make some more small talk until eventually, weariness overtakes me after the long day, I get the key to my room and part ways with the rambunctious group to return to a blissful sleep, wondering what else this new life has in store. The Temporary Party Staring at the unfamiliar ceiling, I''m overcome with a feeling of homesickness for the first time coming to this world. Sadly I can''t reminisce for long as my door flies open from a strong kick. "Wakey wakey our newest recruit!" I sit up to see the ever grinning mug of Garth staring back at me with what looks like a stamp in his hand. Noticing my gaze fall to his hand, he speaks up "This is to put the insignia of our company on our clothes, seeing how you do still owe me I decided to go ahead and get one just for you. Temp member or not." As he speaks I get ready for the day, just dressing poorly, what with the holes in my new clothes. After, I end up with the symbol of Garth''s company emblazoned on my chest. *Lord Registered Garth: The Silent *While under a lord, host must obey all orders until the lords death or honor is compromised. *While fighting for a lord, EXP gained is increased and bonuses are gained based on the lord. Reading the sudden notifications I feel... only slightly cheated. Looking over to my new ''lord'' I feel like this could cause some problems in the very near future. After going down to the common area, take a second just to look at the sword screen and what it involves, seeing that I''ve put it off. *Bokken: A basic wooden sword without an edge. Made for training purposes. Minor boost to stats while training when equipped. Tempering Points: 23 *Upgrade? *Evolve? Curious, I think of evolving it and quickly come to regret my decision. My sword starts to glow just enough to cover it. I scramble to try and hide it somewhere it won''t draw attention, like under the table. I look around and see nobody really noticed, except Ed. He was looking at me, eyes wide and his mouth open. I just pretend nothing happened, holding my sword against the table so nobody can see it until I get a notification. *Evolution Complete. Received Pardus: A Wolfs Bane I take my sword out from the table to take a look at what happened and am pleasantly surprised. It had a simple black sheath with a brown engraving towards the hilt. The grip turned black with what looks like a coarse brown rope to prevent slipping. I half draw the sword and find strange lettering carved into the back of the blade. They give off a faint glow until I sheathe it and look towards Ed, seeing his reaction. All he does is wave me over to him as he goes into the back, I quickly follow. Upon entry, I find out that its a room with several barrels of what I assume to be alcohol and a kitchen. Looking over I see Ed leaning against one of the counters looking at my sword. "Now I think you owe me an explanation, young man. If I find your answer satisfactory I can let you go, If not then..." I see him draw a sword from somewhere I couldn''t see. I feel an intent similar to what Rorik could put out coming from the old man in front of me. Retired or not he was probably a pretty strong figure in his prime. "I''m just as in the dark as you, I don''t know what happened it just started glowing. You can even look at it, I really have no idea." Sweat drips down my face as I talk, unsure of how he''ll take my half lie. I quickly invest my last two points into Dexterity, knowing that if we fought I couldn''t win, only try to run. "Throw me the sword." I throw him my weapon and watch him pick it up and look at it closely. observing the runes, a look of confusion crosses his face. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings."Do you know what these mean?" I quickly shake my head as he returns to looking at the runes before sighing and handing it back to me. "Sorry for the scare, its just that looked a lot like magic to me, and I can''t be too careful." "Magic? You mean magic is real?" "Just as real as you or me. Thing is most of those mages aren''t the nicest folks to be around. They like to sacrifice people to their gods for more power. Whole cities have been wiped off the map just from a whim of some of them. Garth may be strong, but he''s a little ignorant sometimes so a mage tricking him would be pretty easy." I nod my head, immediately understanding the threat, yet confused. "But if I were a mage couldn''t I just, like, incinerate you or something? Why would you try to fight me?" "I had to take that chance i''m afraid. Either way, you may want to hide that sword from other people. If my hunch is correct, its either a living weapon, or your some kind of mage and just don''t know it yet. Could be something else, but that''d be out of my area of expertise." Suddenly, a rambunctious Garth kicks open the door. "What are you two doing back here! Old man I need Bai for a mission today so stop holding him up!" "Yes yes, go on then, i''ll just find something else to keep me busy." I follow Garth out of the back and am greeted by four others waiting for us. Two of them were pretty big, covered in armor, one with a sword and shield, the other with a great sword. One other man was dressed rather lightly, almost like me except he had two daggers instead of a sword. Finally there was a woman with a bow, with eyes that looked at me like I was prey. "Now then Bai, this is your party for today. You five are going out to thin a big pack of wolves in the area. They''ve been really aggressive lately and the town decided that they were better off dead. Location is in the southern forest, good luck, and keep watch, some weird sound have been heard lately. Either way, the worst you''ll have is a bear or something so you''ll be fine. Adios!" Garth basically skips out of the inn as I look towards my new party. "Well I guess i''ll start, I''m Qui Bai, but just Bai works." The big guy with a great sword speaks up first "We honestly don''t care, we work as a party just fine without an extra, just sit back and watch." The two bigger men and woman leave and leave me with the other guy. He lets out a sigh and looks towards me. "Sorry about them, they just don''t like new people very much. I''m Dan, its a pleasure." He hold out his hand and I take it, shaking it firmly. "I hope you don''t hold it against them, they''re good people once you get to know them I swear. "It''s fine, I don''t know how strong you guys are but i''m sure I can pull my own weight." "Well, most of us are E class, while Mark is D class and the defacto leader of the group, the one that was rude before. As a whole we''re pretty set but with wolves you can never be sure. That''s why Garth added you to the team. I think it''d be best if you just stood back with Amy, that ranger from before. Make sure she doesn''t get hurt. Other than that, it''ll be a pleasure working with you." I give a curt nod while asking "Just how dangerous do you think this could be anyways?" "At most we''ll get around twenty wolves in total. Mark can take most of them, its up to us to support him and make sure nothing goes wrong." Leaving it there and making small talk, we make our way out of town to the southern forest, meeting up with the other 3 halfway and walk in silence the rest of the distance. The tree''s giving off an eerie feeling as we approach. The wind whistling through, sounds that almost make you believe someone''s whispering. I can''t help but feel odd as we travel, almost like i''m being watched. Nothing of note happens as we travel, I notice a grumble from my party members, something about no action. Until I see an eye, It disappears as quickly as it came as rustling comes from the nearby bushes. I''m not the only one who noticed as Mark readies himself. A long howl sounds out through the dim forest as a mist settles upon our group. I draw my sword as a certain cold settles into my bones. My breathe turns misty while my eyes dart back and forth, looking for any sign of an enemy yet finding none. I hear a scream cut short and whip around only to see a now headless Amy, someone I hardly knew, crumpled on the ground. Not far away, I see a shadow, standing on two legs, it chewed the head of my former party member. It''s eyes a bright yellow, freezing me in place as it looked my way, fur matted with blood, whose I don''t know. Its ten foot figure intimidating the largest of men. *Contract: Survival A beast of legend has sensed your presence and deemed you a threat. Choose to stand your ground, facing a monster of the likes you''ve never seen, or flee and desperately try to preserve your life. Survive *Contract: Survive A beast of legend has sensed your presence and deemed you a threat. Choose to stand your ground, facing a monster of the likes you''ve never seen, or flee and desperately try to preserve your life. Fear grips me, only now realizing the gravity of the situation. We already lost a member, even the system thinks it''s useless. Will I really die so soon after coming here? Why did I have to come here? Why couldn''t I refuse? I see pairs of hungry eyes glare at me through the darkness, only visible because of my enhanced Dexterity stat. I look to my party and see them frozen, petrified at the sight of their dead companion. I hear a growl coming from the creature in front of me, the gravelly sound sends shivers down my spine, as if someone or something, was breathing down my neck. "You..." A single word spoken, eyes that see straight through me, an aura of blood lust that put Rorik''s to shame. An impossibility... it was sentient, it could be communicated with. I feel a glimmer of hope watching the beast hesitate as it watches us. My hopes shatter as my party, consumed by fear, recklessly throw themselves towards the monster. It lets out a roar and moves so fast it almost teleports and slashes at Mark, who surprisingly blocks it, barely. I see him get knocked back several meters, his sword with gashes in the blade. Seeing that they can at least hold off the creature, I turn tail and try to run. My best bet is to try and make it out of the forest. I sprint as fast as I can away from the battlefield, I still hear the sounds of fighting coming from the four as they struggle to survive. Eventually even that fades, all I can hear is the sound of my heartbeat as I run, keep running, go faster. I see the light of day at the end of the forest, the canopy opening up, the mist dispersing. I only have a few dozen more meters, only a little more and I''ll have survived.Stolen story; please report. A black shadow enters my vision, blocking my path. The fog returns as a growl echoes through the area. My body goes cold, looking forward is like looking towards my own death. There lies the body of Mark, the rude pseudo captain, the D rank mercenary. His body was thrown from behind me, turning around I see those cruel eyes staring back at me once again. I run towards the opening, trying to get back, as close to town as possible. Almost as if it was toying with me, it reappearing in front of me just... watching. As I sit frozen, my heartbeat and breathing the only sounds, it speaks again. "I... see. You... aren''t one... yet...you are?" I look towards the monster confused. Not understanding what it means, what its saying. Though I did know I wasn''t leaving here alive. I took a deep breath and sharpened my senses for the battle to come. I draw my sword, the runes glowing a molten red, as if excited. I see the wolves eyes dilate as it lets out a roar once again. *Mushin Activated Time slows as I try to remember, how did it attack? It rushed forwards and slashed with its right hand. I saw it disappear from my sight and I duck low to my left, only to feel a breeze pass over me and see the beasts hand where my head just was. I steel my gaze and reverse my grip, slashing at its arm, trying to remove it, at least land a blow. I manage to scratch it, just barely drawing blood before it jumps backwards, howling in what I assume to be pain. I see the wound bleeding far more than it looked like it was supposed to, the blood was even turning black. My sword starts to glow, almost like it enjoyed the taste of blood. Distracted by the glow, I failed to notice the enemy in front of me. Looking forward I lock eyes with the beast, seeing only hatred in those bloodshot eyes. I feel by ribs crack as I fly backwards from the blow, a tree stopping my flight as I collapse to the ground. Coughing up blood, I plant my sword into the ground, trying to get to my feet. My bones creak as I slowly stand, black spots fill my vision as I look up, expecting to see death coming towards me, but I don''t. I see the back of someone who I was never happier to see. He turned to me, trademark grin lost, a look of calm, a glint in his eye the only thing betraying his rage, something that scared me more than the wolf in front of me. As the tension left my body and I collapsed back onto the ground, I was left with little but a sentence. "Well fought, but its my turn. I''ll take care of everything." Rescue *Garth POV Skipping out of the inn, I decide to go take a peek at what Rorik''s doing. Maybe I''ll be able to get a rise out of him again. Walking along the streets, I see so many friends and a feeling of pride wells up within me as I watch them living their lives. As I walk up to the hall, I see so many children I''ve brought up. They''re all turning out fine as it is, I even see some getting married, having kids. It makes me think of my new kind of ''ward'' Bai. He seems to be on the right track, but I see a hidden darkness there. I hope I can keep him on the right path, like a have with the others. But i''ll worry about that another time. Walking into the courtyard I''m greeted by the sight of Rorik training his recruit again. I feel like he pushes the poor boy too hard, but I suppose he still cares in his own way. I wait for them to finish their little sparring session to approach them. "Now now, you don''t want to run him to the ground do you?" Rorik looks over, the mild frown he always had plastered on his face. "Don''t tell me how to teach my students, I can get along just fine without your nagging." Rorik throws a hard punch at me, which I expected and sidestepped. This causes Roriks frown to deepen as he looks like he''ll attack more. "What do you think of Bai?" My sudden question catches him off guard as his stance falters. He looks to ponder for a moment before giving his answer. "Well, he''s definitely a unique one, even compared to the rest of your bunch. Needless to say, he''s got some willpower though his swordsmanship could use some work. Altogether he''s not a bad catch, just a bit too eager to jump into things. That and he seems a little too ready to kill, it''s like he always goes for it. He has this calm look on his face, even if his action betray that." "That''s what I thought." I scratch the back of my head, realizing that he pays a lot more attention to detail than I do. I realize again why I kept him around as long as I did. "Either way, I sent him out with Mark and the others to subjugate that wolf pack down south. Hopefully some socializing will be good for him, and the combat experience could help too." Rorik freezes and gives me the look that makes me feel like an idiot that he''s given me so many times before. "You did what?" "I sent them to subjugate some wolves, why?" "Where?" "The Southern Forest." Rorik plants his face in his palms and sighs deeply. I start to feel some concern, I have no clue why he''s acting like this, but he''s probably exaggerating as usual. Finally he raises his head and looks at me.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. "You need to go find those kids. I heard some rumors of a Werewolf escaping captivity near the wasteland. If those kids find it... they won''t stand a chance." Seeing the grim look on Roriks ever grim face, I still feel like nothings wrong. The wasteland was pretty far from here, and as fast as Werewolves are, I don''t think it could cover that distance. "Well, how long ago was it? A day or two?" "Two days ago." "Then I''m sure it''ll be fine. Those kids can handle themselves either way. Just one werewolf might be rough but they can get through it." I walk away and wave my hand, "I''ll check with Ed just in case, either way, thanks for the scoop Rory!" "DON''T CALL ME THAT!" I hear him call out as I run from the building. Making my way back to the Inn, I think over what Rorik said. I''m sure that a Werewolf wouldn''t be able to make it this far, even a strong one would struggle to make it in a short time. That is if they made it past the other stronger beasts from here to the wasteland. Reaching the inn, I shout "HEY OLD MAN!" And kick open the door. I look around and don''t see him and head to the back where I see him cooking what I assume is lunch for himself. "Yes Garth, maybe you could enter normally for once. I may have a heart attack if you keep it up with these stunts of yours." "Well I had a question. What do you know about a werewolf being in the southern forest?" Ed frowns, and a knowing smile forms on his lips. "Garth, you should know that their homeland is far from here." "Yeah, but Rorik said one escaped from a caravan near the wasteland." A scowl appears on Eds face and his eyes light up, as if remembering something. "Bai said something about starving wolves being pretty common in the surrounding forests. That they seemed really aggressive for some reason." My stomach drops, sweat starts to pour from my face as I look towards Ed. "Lend me your sword." Ed nodded and gave me his old broadsword, as sharp as it was 20 years ago, when it was first forged. I look at Ed one last time and make my way out. "Garth... Be careful." I break into a sprint out of the town, heading to the southern forest. I hear a howl sound out from beyond the treeline and keep running, faster than before. My heart thumping in my chest as a fog starts to cover the area. I stretch my senses to their limits, trying to find where they are, any kind of fighting. I hear a band from the east and head that way, making sure not to get lost. A howl sounds out from in front of me as my vision clears. I''m greeted by a sight that makes my blood run cold. I see Bai fighting... something. It looked like a werewolf, but it wasn''t. The pitch black fur, matted with blood, the teeth. sharpened to points and its claws glowing in the dim light. I see Bai get thrown back into a tree, I hear the cracking of his ribs, audible even at my distance. I feel something I haven''t felt in a long time. A calm overtook my body as I rushed forward to Bai, staggering to his feet. I enter the view of the monster and step in front of Bai, muscles tensed, ready for a fight I wasn''t sure I could win. I see Bai look up in shock, an expression I haven''t seen on him before. Seeing his bloody face, I assure him, "Well fought, but its my turn. I''ll take care of everything." It looks like relief flooded over his body as he collapsed to the ground and I revert my attention back to the enemy in front of me. In the corner of my eye I see the body of Mark, headless. I bite my tongue, the pain sharpening my senses as I ready myself to breathe in one last time. It howls and rushes towards me, black fog covering my vision as I stand my ground and whisper, "Everyone, I''ll avenge you... I promise." Garth The Silent *Garths POV Seeing the rapidly approaching monster, I feel the air flow through my body, expanding my muscles, sharpening my senses. I jet forward, making a small crater, clashing with the monster head on. I slide to the left, turning to slash at its exposed side and cutting it deeply. It swung its arm back in response, forcing me to block it. I take two steps back, the shock from the blow making my arms shake as it turns to me, closing the distance. I jump, leaping over its head, trying to land some kind of decisive blow. I manage to land a vertical slash down its back before I landed. Taking advantage of my landing, it rushed managed to slash at my chest, I stepped away just in time, escaping severe injury. We clash again, trying to overpower one another with brute force. It was then I saw the wounds I''d inflicted were healing at a visible rate. Forcing it back, I observe it in its entirety and see only one spot not healing. Just beneath its right arm, was a wound dripping black blood. Seeing my new target, I change my tactic, letting it attack, trying to find an opening. It was then that I managed to see, the initial clash is with its right arm, it swings wide! Retreating once again, I watch for its movements, waiting for it to try and strike. Seeing it cock back in preparation for a charge, I ready myself for an all in attack. It''s feet leave the ground as it rockets towards me. I turn my body underneath it and plant my foot as I thrust into the open wound, driving myself forward. I saw the sword start to melt after it entered its body. Shocked, I release the sword and retreat again, almost at my limit. It looks towards me, hatred in its eyes as it blindly charges again, faster than before. Its head falls as it charges forward and grazes my stomach, knocking me to the side. I gasp for air, having my breathing start causing me to nearly black out from pain. Still reeling, I stand and look over to the monster, lying on the ground. Seeing no movement, I assume its dead and check my condition. Besides the wound on my chest and some broken ribs, doesn''t look like a bad fight. I turn and find Bai on the ground, sword still out, unconscious but still breathing. I let out a sigh of relief while going over, curiously going over his sword.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. The runes were still glowing, as if wanting something. Curious, I took the sword and stabbed it into the monster, wondering what would happen. Sadly, nothing did, the runes just glowed brighter for a second then disappeared. I sheathed the sword and looked over to Bai. I had no idea how I was gonna carry him back with both of our injuries, but I had to figure it out. "You look pretty beat up." Hearing the voice, I brace myself for a fight, stepping in front of Bai and peering into my surrounding, trying to find the source. "Easy there, you shouldn''t move so much with those injuries, even if you think their minor." I see the ever frowning Rorik followed by Ed approach. I relax as they come over, taking in the destruction of the surroundings. "Well it seems you were busy, and I was right." Ed shows a slight smile as he looks toward the corpse of the recently slain monster. "Though I really wish you didn''t destroy my sword in the process." "Well, I didn''t really have a choice here old man. If anything, if not for that old wound, I would probably be dead right now." Curious, Ed and Rorik go towards the body and inspect where I stabbed into. It looks like the black blood was still there, having ate away at the sword, it was behaving like normal blood. "What''s this other stab here?" Rorik points to the spot on its back where I stabbed Bai sword into. "I wanted to test something, so I stabbed Bai''s sword in it but it didn''t do anything." Ed frowned then let out a sigh. He walked over to Bai and looked him over, while Rorik came over to me and started treating my injuries. "How could this thing beat you up so much?" Rorik looked at me either confused or concerned, I couldn''t tell. "Maybe I''m losing my touch." Rorik let out a scoff at my words and stood up, finished treating me. I look over to see Ed carrying the unconscious Bai on his back, ready to leave. Before I go, I gather some dried sticks and leaves with Rorik and throw them on the body and light them. The fire rages in the desolate area, letting off a pungest smell as it simmers back down and we leave. They didn''t ask any questions on the way, I had to think of how a monster could make it this far north. In the best case, its just a stray... in the worst, I didn''t want to think about it. Reaching town and arriving back at the inn, it was already dusk. A healing salve was applied to both mine and Bai wounds, Ed carried Bai up to his room while I collapsed in my own, exhausted. Another day done, though that monster makes me think... what was it doing up here? Eh, I''ll think about it tomorrow, as I give in to the sweet temptation of sleep. Lucky Break *Bai''s POV I''m scared... Mushin had no effect as I ran through the forest. I feel something breathing down my neck, something terrifying. I know if I stop running I''ll die, I can''t stop, I won''t stop. My sword is nowhere to be found, the comfortable weight i''d grown used to no longer there. A root, springing up from the ground catches my foot and I stumble, unable to catch myself. I hit the cold, dew covered ground and turn behind me. A shadow stands over me, salivating. Its gaping maw showing only razor sharp teeth, Its claws bloody, from unknown prey. I look into its eyes and see no emotion, no hatred nor hunger. The pitch black sclera and carnivorous yellow pupils stare into me, right before it charges me with a snarl. I shut my eyes, ready and waiting for my inevitable death, which never comes. My eyes snap open as I rocket to my feet, peering into my surroundings before a sudden pain rocks my body. I collapse back down onto my bed and look around. I notice I''m back in my room in the inn. I see my bloody clothes looking brand new to the side, piled neatly in the corner with my sword resting on top. Looking down at myself, I see a thick layer of bandages around my chest. I feel around for broken bones or any open wounds only to find none. Looks like I''m in debt again, I sigh out loud and hear footsteps coming towards my door. The handle rattles as it swings open, revealing three figures who enter the room. Rorik, with a trademark frown entered fist, followed by Ed, a kind smile on his face, and Garth entered last, he looked haggard and pale, a forced smile on his face. "Now then, I assume explanations are in order." Ed takes the initiative, looking towards the others as he speaks. He turns to me, a glimmer of sadness in his eyes. "The party you went out with is all dead, I suppose that''s the first thing you''d like to know." I nod my head, I expected this from the beginning, I knew it would happen before I even ran. I wasn''t foolish enough to try and fight something that far out of my league. "Second, is about the monster you fought. It wasn''t a werewolf in case you were wondering, although similar. It was adventurers call monsters, not specifying any type but it''s just what they''re called. What you saw was a werewolf turned monster, something that made it far stronger, yet it lost its consciousness in the process." "That doesn''t explain how it happens in the first place? Why would it attack us? And what was it doing here?" "That kiddo, is something we don''t know either. The most we can say is that it''s basically a being that craves destruction. Something that somehow, you wounded. You see, the heart of a monster isn''t in one place, it changes position to ensure it has no weak point. But you drew it to a position before you blacked out." "Saved my ass in the process too." Garth waves and gives his piece, his haggard look contrasting the gleam in his eyes as he talks. He sits on the end of the bed, seeming too tired to even stand as he looks towards Ed. "As I was saying, you somehow hurt it, and I have a strong suspicion it was that sword of yours. It somehow drew out the heart and let Garth kill it, though not without getting hurt himself. I''d like to ask now just to be clear but... just who are you, Bai?"Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Though I see Garth is relaxed, I see a curiosity in his eyes as well. Rorik and Ed however, I see glints of hostility hidden behind their concern. I think quickly, not wanting to give away too much, but unsure of what to say. "Well I''m not so sure myself actually. I just kind of woke up in the forest a few days ago. I do know what the sword is, I mean kind of. It''s name is Pardus, and I''m pretty sure it has an extra effect on wolves, though I didn''t really get to test it. But that''s honestly all I know." A frown forms on all of their faces, I''ll take a wild guess and say they don''t know what to say. Seeing that I honestly don''t know who the owner of this body was, it was true. "Then I guess we''ll just keep an eye on you, seeing that the monster seemed to want to come after you specifically, I think there''s something off... with either you or that sword." Ed gets up to leave, but not before giving me another once over as he walks out the door, leaving me with Garth and Rorik. "I know he seems a little serious, but he''s just worried about you and all of us. Don''t worry either, you can still do missions and stuff, just probably with a guardian. At least until we find out what drew that thing to you." "Speaking of, it looks like it beat you up pretty bad. I thought you were an A rank? I don''t think I could have hit it if it was that strong." "Yeah, It would have been easy if I knew where its heart was at the start, and it didn''t heal so damn fast. The only reason I figured it out was that cut you made under its arm. When the heart is wounded, it lets out a kind of ooze or acid, which I found. After finding that it was easy pickings from there, shame it took so long." "Maybe if you payed attention from the start, you wouldn''t have been beat up so much." "Maybe if you were faster I wouldn''t have had to fight alone in the first place." "Maybe if you didn''t rush off we could have gone together." "Maybe if you weren''t so slow, I would have." "I''m NOT slow!" I watch the bickering of the two with a soft smile on my face. Seeing them like this kind of takes the stress away. Even if I owed Garth a debt I couldn''t ever repay, I think it''ll be worth sticking around a little while anyways. "So how long until I''m ready to go again?" Rorik turns and looks me up and down quickly. "I give it a week, then another to train a bit before I let you take any more jobs. Though that''s more for Garth''s sake than yours. He needs to heal up a lot more than you do. Either way, I think it''s time for us to go, get some rest." I nod, watching Rorik help up Garth, holding him to make sure he can stand on his own. As they make their way out I shout out. "Garth... Thank you." I get that trademark smile as he looks towards me again. "No problem, just try not to make it a habit." He lets out a heart laugh, that turns into a cough as he leaves the room. The door shuts and I''m left by myself, in the silence. Until a notification pops into my view, *CONTRACT: Survive Completed You have played against the odds and did the impossible. You escaped with your life, and even assisted in the killing of a monster far above your current strength. Well fought! *Rewards: 10 Skill Points *Intermediate Sword Mastery 1/100 *Many gods look down upon your weakness *You have obtained the interest of The God Of Swords *Yebisu''s smile lands upon you *CONTRACT: Train Completed You''ve started on the path to supremacy! Just remember, you''ve only scratched the surface. *Rewards: STR +2 DEX +1 CON +3 INT +1 WIS +1 *CONTRACT: Train Reach Advanced Sword Mastery. I look at the long string of notification, shocked by the sudden power boost and gods. Last time I checked Yebisu was the god of fishing, which I''ve never done. I won''t deny it or anything, it''s just unexpected, and it didn''t tell me what it did. The rest are just simple stat boosts, and I even got Intermediate Sword Mastery! Satisfied by the turnout, I lay back and sleep, hoping the week passes quickly and I can leave again. After all, I can''t get stronger laying in bed, I think. New Partner I was holed up in my room for about a week, just as I was told to do. Whenever I was visited by either Garth or Ed, their gazes were filled with lingering suspicions. I know they wanted to know where I came from, who I am, and why I''m here. Given the help they''ve showed me, i''d even tell them willingly, had I known myself. Sitting in bed, gazing at the ceiling, a multitude of feelings hit me at once, now that I''d had time to think things over. My life was entirely different from what it was, I hadn''t had time to process it because of all the stress but... I wasn''t meant to be here. This wasn''t my body, this wasn''t my country, not even my world. I was just an outsider, someone with no place to go. Now that I think about it, maybe that''s why the system was given to me in the first place. Someone who doesn''t truly belong anywhere, a wanderer, a Ronin. Looking over myself, I was scarily similar to how I once was, but I knew it wasn''t really me, call it a lingering feeling. A stressful sigh escapes me as I bring my feelings back under control, Mushin''s lack of effectiveness somewhat comforting, knowing I wasn''t just some kind of mindless killing machine. I take the time to really go over what the system has given me, knowing I hadn''t explored its depth entirely in the time I was here. *Level: 5 XP: 50/400 HP: 38/38 SP: 20/20 STR: 18 DEX: 21 CON: 17 INT: 15 WIS: 10 CHA: 4 Skill Points: 10 Lord: Garth The Silent Skills: Mushin- The mind without mind Intermediate Sword Mastery 1/100 *Sword: Pardus The Wolfs Bane Upgrade? *Honor Points: 13 Seeing my jump in stats and skill points from when I first came here, a grin broke out over my face. Despite my apparent lack of charisma, all of my stats were pretty high. I''d have to ask Garth when I see him whether or not I can go up in rank soon. Though seeing the long way to my next sword mastery I was put off slightly. Wondering what the honor system was really for, a description popped up in front of me. *The Honor System is used to provide passive buffs or debuffs depending on the actions of the user. Rather than act as a true morality system, it is more similar to having you maintain a code of neutrality as is common with all Ronin. The more you maintain this standard, the more points you get, the more buffs you receive. Though while acting against the system, having a higher rating will provide an equally debilitating debuff. Looking over the screen I realize the function is something of a double edged sword. Though seeing as how I don''t have any buffs I assume it''s not high enough to do anything just yet so I slide the issue under the metaphorical rug. The sword function was of more interest to me, I tapped the icon and a holographic sword popped into view. It was a replica of Pardus, complete with the runes inscribed. I could view the durability of the weapon as well as the rarity, which was divided into common, rare, epic, and legendary. It also featured an evolution screen, filled to the brim with question marks. It seems like I won''t be able to see anything for a while, at least until I get stronger. I look over to my sword and see it letting out some type of pulsing energy once in a while. Seeing the upgrade function, I decide to use it, seeing that I doubt anyone would visit me now. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report itFiery orange symbols written in a language I don''t understand seem to glow through the sheath, letting off a heat I could feel even from my distance. After a few seconds, the heat fades and the only difference is a small rune appearing at the bottom of the sheath, which the system seemed to take as a part of the weapon now. Looking over the sword screen I see no major differences beside the increased durability of the blade. Somewhat disappointed with the outcome, I lay back and slowly wait for the day to end. Tomorrow I could start training again, and hopefully do something to repay my saviors, maybe even rank up. Or so I thought. "What do you mean rank up? You literally just started, and got injured on your second job. Do you really have a death wish? I honestly don''t know what Garth see''s in you, your so reckless..." And so the next day, I got a very stern talking to by Rorik, who was fully convinced I was a masochist and just wanted to get hurt. I look towards Garth, hoping for some backup but all he did was shake his head at me. Seeing nobody willing to step up and help I just listen quietly, looking at the ground. After he seemed to finish, I finally look up with the absolute most resolved look I can muster, which wasn''t a very good one because of my low charisma, and see Rorik meet my gaze with his for several seconds before sighing. "Fine, but you need to train first. I need to see if your really ready to rank up or not. That and..." He looks over with a grin towards the guy I saw when I first came here, the one who managed to cut my face and probably lower my charisma even more. "Ted needs a training dummy too, so use him to fight with until I think your good enough." I pause, stifling a laugh as I look over at my new partner. Looking him up and down, I see his short, cropped hair, masculine face, and intimidating aura into account before choking out. "Your name is Ted?" His gaze sharpens as he nods my way. I look over toward Garth who''s nearly beet red and biting his lip, and drives me over the edge. "PFFT" Laughter echoes through the field as Garth and I double over, unable to catch our breath. Tears stream down my face as I point at him, trying to be serious. "TED, for such an incredibly tough looking guy, your name REALLY makes me think otherwise. Do you still live with your mother? Do you happen to know any alcoholic teddy bears by any chance? Maybe a distant brother or cousin?" I look over to Garth, who was currently rolling on the floor, much to my amusement. It felt good to laugh like this after all the seriousness after I got here, even if it was at the expense of someone. I suddenly feel two very distinct killing intents focused in my direction. Rorik and Ted, both seem to be a little bit angry with me. "Violence is never the answer you know? Maybe we could work this out? I mean, just because your name is dumb doesn''t mean you take it out on me, right?" The intent almost doubled as Rorik passed Ted a wooden sword and he started walking towards me, stoic as ever. "Well, I think its time for me to go, maybe Garth can entertain you guys a while." I run past Garth who had just wiped the tears from his eyes as he looked around confused. A blur passed him, chasing after something as he felt some killing intent lock onto him. He looks over to see Rorik with a smile on his face. "Looks like I need to teach you and your apprentice some lessons now." A cold sweat dripped down his back as he got ready for a very tiring fight. I kept running away from Ted, maneuvering around the field using my newfound dexterity. I let out a laugh, seeing my escape near. A shadow blurs past me and I see Ted''s figure in front of me, slashing out with his wooden sword. I hit the deck, avoiding the strike as I roll back to my feet. Ted passes me a wooden sword. "We start now." And so a very angry Ted started his training. Training My hell began with a single swing, I guess my joke wasn''t very funny, nor appreciated. But I quickly realized that this fight wouldn''t end so quickly, at least as fast as last time. I was well aware of how much stronger Ted was than me, but I hadn''t just been goofing off during this week either. When everyone left, I ignored the pain of my injuries and trained every day, not improving my stats at all, but adjusting my body to its new strength and familiarizing my body with my newly advanced swordsmanship. It was well worth it, and hopefully it showed the results I wanted here. I parry the attack with difficulty, my hands numbing as the blades collide as I rapidly get pushed back. I quickly retreat, widening my stance in the process, readying for the flurry of blows that may follow. Nothing came as I saw him staring at me. I cover myself hastily, "You shouldn''t stare like that, I feel like your undressing me with your eyes." I pretend to be embarrassed and distract him but I only get a low growl in response as he readies himself again, this time circling around me to try and find an opening. I take the initiative and step forward, opening with an upwards strike, missing as expected but I bring my sword right back down, yet he sidesteps with time to spare, as if predicting my moves. Leaving an opening, he takes advantage, lunging at my side with a thrust. I quickly turn and swipe at the thrusting sword, knocking it off target, having it only graze my side. I use the momentum to spin and try for a low swipe. My sword hits the ground, a foot suddenly on top of it as Ted''s wooden sword rested on my neck. "I win." He lifts his foot from my sword and looks at me with a thoughtful face. Looking over I see that Garth and Rorik have made their way to us as well, both seem visibly surprised, at what I don''t quite know. "How exactly did you manage to last so long against Ted? I mean, he is almost a B rank Mercenary." "No." Rorik corrected, "He is a B rank now, he passed the test while you were off doing whatever. You shouldn''t last more than an exchange or 2" "So I can go up to D rank right?" "No" "No" Both of them reply simultaneously, shattering my hopes of ranking up quickly. "You look like you''ve been training with your sword, your technique makes up for the lack of physical strength but not enough to fight on par with other D ranks." Rorik pushes the harshness of reality back onto me. I look towards Garth, the bundle of joy, hoping for some type of good news.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. "Actually, If you get a little stronger, you probably could actually get to D rank. I give it a week at most before you can pass the test." "I give it a month." Rorik adds his very biased observation towards my training. "Well seeing that your only satisfied when something''s perfect, if you train him it would probably take a month." Their bickering is interrupted by someone I didn''t expect, "3 days." I turn to look at Ted, who was looking at me with a predatory glint in his eye, as if I was prey. "I will get him to D rank in 3 days." "That''s quite the promise there, hope you can do it then." Garth shrugged off the statement, I don''t think he cared because it was pretty close to his guess. Rorik only shook his head and left, leaving Ted and I to our own devices. Slightly fearful of what was to happen, I get a new contract right as the 2 left. *Contract: Rank Up You have been offered a chance to reach the next rank, make use of it. Become more accustomed to your new body, allowing you to reach the next level. "We shall start now, draw your weapon." I ready myself, hoping for mercy, but getting none. So began my hellish training for 3 days. All I did during the day was fight, I fought not only Ted but other Mercenaries as well. He said it was to keep me from adapting to fighting one type of opponent. I faced all types, ranging from hulking brutes to rangers and rogues. When I wasn''t fighting, I was either eating, sleeping, or doing one of the strange obstacle courses set up for me. It seems they were pre made and were used to train you to dynamically react to your environment. It had everything from swinging logs and rope climbs to almost lethal pitfalls and dart traps. Needless to say, I was battered and bruised the entire time I trained, but it was worth it, because the afternoon of the third day, I got a notification. *Contract: Rank Up Your control over yourself has exceeded that of normal people by a large margin, you have stepped into the realm of the superhuman, D rank! Rewards: +2 STR +1 DEX +3 CON +3 INT +2 WIS +4 CHA Seeing the large boost in stats, An exhilarating feeling fills my body, as if some kind of bottleneck was broken. What followed was a comfortable warmth that seeped into my muscles, tempering them. I look towards Ted, my trainer the past few days. "I''m ready for the test." "Very well, I will be your instructor, if you pass we will register you as a D rank, if not then you keep training." He called over an enormous beast of a man and quickly explains to him what he''ll be doing. I assume the man was a D rank, what with the slightly more dangerous aura he gave off compared to E ranks I''ve fought. He hands him a wooden great sword, then hands me a smaller wooden sword. We stand apart from each other, roughly 10 steps, waiting for the signal. My muscles tense in anticipation until I hear him shout out, "Begin!" D Rank Advancement "Begin!" I seize the initiative, rushing forward with a slash near his hips. He jumps backwards, narrowly avoiding the sudden blow, but quickly counters with a slash aimed at my head. I twist my body to the side, spinning and using the momentum to strike upwards, barely landing a blow on his arm. He retreated slightly and I hold my ground as we stand watching each other. Looking for any openings to exploit. We both rush forward, clashing a half dozen times until we separate again, sweat visibly forming on both of our brows. My hands numbed from parrying stray blows that nearly made contact. Looking around at the dusty field around me, I realize I could make use of it. Rushing forward again, the giant seems to prepare himself for another flurry of blows, which never comes. I stop several steps from him and sweep my leg along the ground, kicking up the dust and blinding him in the process. He throws his hand over his eyes as I duck low and thrust my sword towards his throat. He moves his hand away just in time to see the tip of my sword laying at his throat. I pull away as he drops his weapon in surrender, and I throw the sword to a different recruit as I look towards Ted and notice that a small crowd had gathered. Both Garth and Rorik were watching, One with his trademark grin and the other scowling slightly more than usual. There were also a bunch of lower ranked Mercenaries watching, looking to mostly be D ranked. Ted looked to be writing something down until he looked up at me. "You passed, with flying colors actually. Seeing that you beat him without any injuries and even managed to parry the attacks of someone stronger than you shows your skill is quite good too, if not a bit clumsy. I would have passed you just based on that, but you even managed to win, using your environment is an important part of fighting. You would do best to remember that, you could have saved yourself a lot of trouble had you done that from the start. I''ll go get you ranked up, just relax for now, it''s been a hectic few days for you." I think over the lecture he gave me and realize most of what he said was true. Replaying the fight in my head I notice several things I could have done better, like minimizing movements, or attacking blind spots rather than whats next to me. "Good job kiddo! You just won me 20 silver." Garth had a huge grin on his face as he walked over. "Congrats on the rank up by the way, knew you had it in you." Rorik let out a muffled "Hmph." as he came over, a mild amount of pride showing in his eyes. "Well, I didn''t think i''d attract a crowd just from this though. Is getting up to D rank that big a deal?" "You bet it is. D rank is like a test for mercenaries, you''ll end up being recruited to other companies now, if you weren''t in mine already of course. Mind you that now you''ll mostly end up doing missions with others, at least you should. There are still solo contract but you might find them a little harder than normal." "He says that, but he means that most D rank and above you end up fighting. Your''e better off in a group because if a group of bandits or monster shows up, you''d probably end up dead." Rorik the forever bringer of happiness corrects Garth with a sigh, still shocked at his lack of care.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Remembering what happened to my other team, I let out a soft smile, "I think solo missions suit me better anyways. I fight better without having to worry about anyone else." Garth and Rorik nod their heads in unison, understanding why I would choose to do so. Garth''s smile seems forced, seeming to know the reason why I made my decision, they were friends of his after all. Ted comes back to break the awkward atmosphere and hands me what looks like a silver I.D. It had my name, rank, as well as a description of how I look. "This is your new form of identification. When you go out on missions, show that to your contractor to prove that you are who you say. And when you rank up again, go swap it out for a different, updated one." "To think you''d be giving tests so soon, I didn''t think you''d actually get him to D rank in 3 days. Looks like my training wasn''t a waste after all." Rorik''s eyes gave away the pride he felt towards his young protege. Ted let out a small smile, "Well I didn''t really think I''d enjoy teaching this much. Maybe after I retire i''ll work in the field like you do." "It''d be nice to have some company, seeing that I only ever have Garth to talk to. And you know how annoying he is." "I''m not annoying, you just can''t take a joke." "I can take jokes just fine, yours are more like insults." "I beg to differ, everyone but you laughs so it must be a problem with you." "They laugh AT me Garth, how about you actually pay attention for once and look at why they''re laughing." Seeing the two bicker again, I look towards Ted who returned to his stoic persona and just shrugged his shoulders, seemingly used to this. Seeing the sun making its way to the horizon, I return to the inn, seeing Ed when I enter. "Hey there kid, how was training? Did you make it to D rank?" "Luckily, he had me fight this other D ranker, big brute of a guy. Hit like a truck but I managed to beat him." "What''s a truck exactly?" "It''s a figure of speech, he hit really hard. My hands when numb just redirecting his attacks." "Well you needed to use your superior speed and tactics to make up for it then. Good to know you passed, congratulations on become a D ranker. Hope you know things only get harder from here." "I''m aware, and ready. What rank were you when you retired Ed?" "It doesn''t matter, thats all in the past. I''m just an inn keep now, thats all you should know." I narrow my eyes at his answer, expecting something a bit different. I suppose everyone has their secrets but that was a blunt way to dodge the question. "Alright, I wont push you then. I''m off to get an early night. See you in the morning Ed." "See ya kiddo." I make my way up to my room and collapse onto the bed. It was a long day after all, maybe i''ll ask Garth what rank Ed was, and why he want''s to hide it. But thats a problem for tomorrows me. *Ed POV I go back into the kitchen, the throbbing of old wounds makes me grit my teeth in pain as I take out an ointment from a nearby draw. Pulling off my shirt I apply the ointment to my left side, looking down the wound seems to have gotten worse. The grotesque mass of flesh that made up my left side served as a bitter reminder of my Mercenary days. Stretching from under my arm to my hip, my flesh caved into a red mass, similar in shape to a bite mark. There as no skin to speak of, only muscle visible, and even that seemed to be deteriorating. The ointment helped soothe the constant pain but it was losing its effect. Soon i''d have to find something else to ease it. Memories spring up in my head as I go through the daily process, the job I shouldn''t have taken, the traitor, the monster, my wife... I shake my head, clearing it of the unnecessary memories. A tear falls from my face as I dress and ready myself for the night to come. I give one last look at myself and seeing that I looked to be in good shape I head out to the bar with a smile on my face, greeting my next customer. A Companion As I awoke, the sun''s rays pierced through my small window, birds chirp outside, and the sounds of people filling the streets echoed through the cool morning air. I crawl out of bed, stretching as I make my way down to the lobby of the inn. The sounds of people come through from the streets, and those who celebrate from jobs completed or those leaving from jobs taken become louder as I make my way down. Greeting Ed quickly as I walk out the door, I breathe in the morning air as I walk the street to the guild. Though it hasn''t been long since I''ve come to this world, and I certainly miss my old one, theirs a kind of peace here that isn''t like anything from my old world. It''s something I feel like makes my life better than before, something special. A slight smile on my face, I walk into the guild, ready for my first job as an official D rank mercenary. I approach the board as scan the papers that line it, looking for something quick, one that won''t be too dangerous or long term but pays relatively well. Most of the requests are long term, things like guarding cargo, exterminating dangerous beasts, or delivering messages. I look over towards the entrance to the field and see Garth''s familiar face talking to what looks like another high level mercenary. Curious, I start to make my way over, but Garth seems to notice and holds up a hand, motioning for me to stop. This draws the attention of the other man, who gives me a short glance before returning to conversing with Garth. I patiently wait for them to finish talking and as the man leaves, a rare serious face surfaces on Garth. "Well now, that''s a problem." Looking over to me, a bright look appears in his eye as he rushes over to me. "Now, Bai... we''re friends right? You owe me a favor too right? Well I have a little bit a job for you to do, it might take awhile but it pays pretty good." "That depends on what it is. I''d rather have the details before actually agreeing." "Sure, sure, lets talk about it over a drink." "Its the morning." "So? That makes it better." "I think i''ll pass. How about you just tell me." Garth looks heartbroken, almost as if i''d stolen his soul. "You would really turn down a drink... from your savior." He wipes a fake tear from his cheek. "I thought you were better than that... I guess I was wrong." He turns around and slumps away, seeming to be incredibly depressed. I let out a sigh, "Just get me juice or something, lets just go." He turns around, his former depressed persona just a memory as he practically runs to the bar, ordering some drinks i''d never heard of. As we took a seat and the drinks came Garth began explaining the details of the job. "So basically, its a caravan escort. Your gonna be going around the kingdom and trading with emissaries from other countries, mostly. You''ll be taking time to trade with some smaller villages and towns along the way too." "Doesn''t sound too bad then, how long would I be out, would I have a team, and what do I need to worry about along the way?" "Well you''ll be gone for the better part of the year actually. Another company''ll be sending some of their D ranks, I think around 20, and a C rank. We''ll be doing the same but I don''t have too many takers for the job. The length, you know." "That still doesn''t tell me why it needs so many mercenaries guarding it. Just what are we transporting that needs so much protection?" "Weapons and supplies. This is neutral territory so we can sell to who we want. It''s just some people wouldn''t really like us giving supplies to their enemies. That and the occasional pack of wolves do show up every so often." "Well how big a caravan are we talking about here?" "I''d say around 200 wagons, so something like 500 people, maybe more. Its not too big actually, I''ve been on ones with 4 or 5 thousand people in them." "Sure, I guess I can go. Gives me a chance to see the world outside of Essen." "Oh yeah, speaking of jobs, you have a request. She specifically asked for you actually." I shoot up an eyebrow as Garth points to the counter where I only see the dark hair and shapely figure of a girl talking to the receptionist. She turns around and her eyes seem to glow as she spots me as she quickly makes her way over. "You know how rude it is to not say goodbye before leaving? I did save your life after all, Cassandra." Her face flushes a light shade of red as if she remembers herself running out of the hall. "Well I... had a place to be." "I suppose you did then. Apothecaries must get a lot of work in a town full of mercenaries. Though I''m curious as to what exactly you had to run off for? "I was filthy! You did some job protecting me didn''t you. It took me ages to get those stains out of my clothes!" Though she seemed angry, a cheeky grin covered my face as she was talking. I look over to Garth and see his mouth agape, his eyes coming out of his head. "Bai I had no idea you two were that close." He recovered quickly and had a dirty look on his face. "I guess i''ll leave you two lovebirds alone then. Bai, the caravan leaves in two days at sunrise, best be ready by then." "I got it, see you around then." As Garth leaves he gives me a wink and saunters off to the practice field, I assume to go bother some other unlucky guy. I look over and see Cassandra has blushed an even deeper shade of red, only now realizing what she''d said.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. "IT WASN''T LIKE THAT!" She shouts after Garth as I let slip a laugh, earning me a glare from my employer. Seems Garth was rubbing off on me a bit too much. Deciding to break the off from the former atmosphere I ask, "So whats this request you need me for? Same as last time or something a little different?" She seems to compose herself quickly as I ask about the job. "It''s pretty much the same kind of thing, I just need to go a bit deeper into the forest this time. I''d like to have your company though, especially seeing as you recently ranked up. I was shocked when I ''d heard, ranking up that fast isn''t easy you know?" "Yeah, it was a lot of work. Either way, when do you wanna head out?" "Now actually. I''ll need most of the day to collect everything." I nod and rise from my seat, Cassandra leads the way out, her swaying hips a slight distraction as we make our way out of the town. *CONTRACT: The Apothecary Part 2 Cassandra has returned and asked you to protect her once again. Make sure she returns safe. When we entered the forest I was largely on edge. My hand rested on the handle of by sword as I cautiously looked into my surroundings. Hardly any movement slipped by unnoticed under my watchful gaze. Sudden noises belonging to squirrels or rabbits startled me to the point of almost drawing my weapon. My being on edge seemed to unnerve Cassandra so I tried to relax but despite my best efforts, the ever moving shadows of swaying trees caused my hair to stand on end. "You know you didn''t have to come out here again. I know what happened... with the monster." My eyes sharpen and breath quickens at the mention but I force myself to calm down. I let out a sigh and release the grip of my sword. "It''s fine, I''m just a little on edge is all." "Well I suppose that''s to be expected, you did almost die after all." "Thats not why." I take a deep breath and think over the events of that day. The sense of powerlessness I had was overwhelming. I couldn''t do anything to help, I just had to push it off to other people. The fact that the mountain gets taller the more I climb sticks is stuck firmly in my mind. The head of that captain who''s name I cant even remember, the screams of pain as I fled, it was all still fresh. I grit my teeth as my nails dig into my hands, the pain bringing me back to the present. I look over at Cassandra''s worried look and give her a soft smile. "You can go back if you need, the forest seems calm enough, and I think I can handle myself." She flashes a small dagger at her waist in my direction. "Don''t worry, I''ll still protect you." Her face flushes slightly at my words as she whips back around. "Shut up and pay attention! If I die because of your flirting i''ll come back and haunt you." I start to keep a more casual lookout, the working figure of my employer taking most of my attention. Sweat dripped down her brow as she worked carefully pulling up a variety of unique looking plants. Her dedication to her work was admirable, and she seemed relatively well respected based on the greetings people gave out while we left the town. It seems like I''ve made quite a few friends in high places since I''ve come here. Hearing the whistle of the wind as it flows through her hair was an intoxicating sight. "Cassandra, come here." I call out, as she looks towards me, confused. I focus on my surroundings, noticing the lack of insects and animal sounds. I draw my sword and shift towards where I hear a twig snap in the underbrush. 3 Arrows pierce the air in slow motion, moving towards Cassandra and I. Moving faster than I thought possible, I appear next to her and cut the arrows out of the air. "Come out!" I shout out to the woods, and 5 dirty, haggard looking men rush out of the brush with their swords drawn. The glint in their eyes shows greed and as they look towards Cassandra... Lust. My gaze hardens as I look at the men, more arrows coming from the woods around me. I again cut the arrows from the air and sheathe my sword. "What the hell are you doing!" "Just watch." I take half a step forward, lowering my body and thrust out my arm, hitting the first bandit in the stomach. He doubles over but before he gets launched backwards I grab his sword arm and swing him in front of another bandit. Following this, a slash comes from my left, I evade it by leaning slightly, grabbing his arm and snapping his elbow. Another slash comes from my right, but I manage to put the man in front of the blow, cutting down his chest... a lethal wound. He falls to the ground as I see more arrows come from the brush. The bandit, enraged after killing a comrade, thrusts forwards to my stomach, trying to gut me. I step towards him, throwing off the strike as use his momentum to throw him in line with the arrows. He dies as soon as they hit him. The last bandit, looking up at me in terror, scrambles to his feet and takes a wild swing at me as the 3 archers come out and attack me as well. Their desperate fight was laughable as I dodge the clumsy swing and take out the bandit at his knees. The archers, seeing their last companion fall, abandon their attack and start to run. Seeing the slow speed of the fleeing bandits, I rush forward, my sword flashing as I claim their heads. After wiping my sword off on their clothes, I walk back to Cassandra, looking at me with more than some amazement. My gaze lands on the two surviving bandits, fear evident in their eyes as they beg for mercy. "If we had begged... would you have spared us?" Their eyes widened as I brought my blade down onto them, killing them instantly. *Killed Bandit x8 XP: 400 *Level Up *Skill Gained: Unarmed Combat Mastery 40/100 "Well I guess you saved me again." Cassandra looks at me, slightly pale but still well. "You seem to have a knack for attracting danger, don''t you." "Not usually, I think its you. I''ve only had problems when you came out with me." "Then why didn''t you pick someone else?" She turned slightly red at the question. "Because... I feel safer with you." "Well that''s nice, now hurry up so we can get back. I''m starving." She clicked her teeth in annoyance as she walked away, looking for more herbs. A small grin forms as I watch her go, I noticed I''m getting more fond of teasing her as time goes on. I really hope I don''t end up like Garth. The rest of the day went by without incident. When we made it back to the guild to return the job, Cassandra didn''t bolt out of the door this time. "Thank you for saving me, again." "Well, it is my job. Oh and I''m leaving in two days, so don''t bother looking for me at the guild again. I have a long job to go on. I probably won''t be back for the better part of the year." Her eyes seem to light up at my mention of leaving. "It''s on the caravan going around Thadour right?" "Yeah, how''d you know?" "Because I''m taking it too! It''s to get more experience treating people with battle wounds." "Really? Well I guess I''ll see you there then." *CONTACT: The Apothecary Part 2 Completed Rewards: Healing Ointment x2 "Yeah!" She practically skipped out of the hall as I watched her leave. I let out a sigh as Garth appears, clapping me on the back. I look over and see him shaking his head while watching her go. "Ah youth. You should enjoy it while it lasts, especially if its with a lady like that. I don''t see why you don''t make a move, she obviously likes you. Maybe old uncle Garth should go talk to her." I bite back a curse and just look at him, a sharp glint visible. "Please mind your business Garth." He just laughs and grabs my shoulder, feeling no sense of threat whatsoever. "Either way, what do you say we go drink the night away eh. You leave soon after all." I let out a laugh, "Sure, lets go." When we get to the inn we''re greeted by a group of rowdy mercenaries, all celebrating for no apparent reason. Even Ed looks surprisingly happy today. "Alright boys, LETS DRINK!" "YEAAAHHHHH" I laugh at their antics, I don''t think i''m gonna remember much of tonight, as i get pushed into the group and start one of the shortest yet longest nights I''ve ever had.