The inn had grown quiet. Most of the guests had already left, and the owner was busy cleaning up the last of the mess, wiping down tables and chairs.
In the corner sat the same kid, Arthur. He had just finished his meal.
'Arthur?'
Nirael's gentle voice echoed in his mind.
'Hm?'
'Is it really okay to leave Alex alone?' she asked, concern slipping through her usually calm tone.
Arthur looked up slightly, thinking for a second.
'Nah,' he answered, standing as he waved to the innkeeper.
'He'll be fine. That caretaker is there.'
He could feel Nirael's confused silence at his response.
Of course, it didn't make sense. Alex had just been caught between two clashing Numen users. If it were Arthur, Nirael probably wouldn't be as worried. But this was Alex — weaker than your average goblin. If not for the [Aegis] Arthur gave him, the boy might've already passed out cold.
And what did Arthur mean by that caretaker?
Did he know something she didn't?
Arthur stepped outside. The sun hit him immediately — harsh and stinging against his skin. He looked around the street, squinting slightly, then took a low, steady breath.
'Let's go, Nirael. Alex needs some "product" to sell.'
'Where to?'
'Where?'
He paused, tightening the strap of the bow on his back and adjusting the sword at his hip.
'We're going hunting of course'
Meanwhile, at the orphanage...
The clash of Numen still lingered in the air. Not as sharp now, but thick enough to taste.
Mel's expression had shifted, anxiety now clear on her face. Thalia, meanwhile, still wore that crude, unbothered smile. Calm. Unmoving.
Opposite her sat the same guy, Alex.
His face seemed calm. Focused. Controlle-
'I am FUCKED.'
Maybe not.
The air started to ease. Mel lowered her Numen's pressure. Thalia noticed it and slowly followed, though she kept her own intensity just a touch higher, just enough to remind everyone who still held control.
'Oh my god. Thank god,' Alex thought to himself, nearly collapsing inward from relief.
The pressure lifted, lingering only faintly like smoke after a fire.
He peeked at Thalia. She sipped her tea, the one served by that same quiet caretaker.
Then he peeked at Mel. Her hand clutched her chest as she exhaled deeply.
"I apologize, Headmistress," she said at last, bowing her head.
Thalia's voice came cool and measured.
"It's not me you owe an apology to, is it?"
Mel clicked her tongue softly and turned toward Alex instead.
"I apologize," she said, clearly forcing the words out.
Alex blinked, flustered. "Haha, it's fine, Miss Mel."
She looked up slowly.
And Alex instantly felt it. The deathly chill behind her glare.
"Mel," Thalia interrupted.
Her smile was gone.
The caretaker quietly rose and left the room, her footsteps ghostlike on the wooden floor.
'W-What did I do?' Alex asked himself.
Thalia sighed softly. Her expression softened, and she turned back to him.
"I apologize, Sir. She's always... hostile toward guests. Especially men."
Alex gave a dry, nervous laugh. "Haha... it's fine, Miss Thalia."
A small voice broke the silence.
"Hello, mister."
Alex turned his head.
Mary stood beside him, looking up with a shy smile. Beside her was the same brunette caretaker from earlier. Neither of them seemed fazed by the clash that had just taken place. Maybe their senses weren't sharp enough… or maybe Mel and Thalia had kept their Numen so tightly controlled that ordinary people couldn't feel a thing.
Either way, it only proved how skilled those two really were.
"Hello, Mary," Alex greeted with a soft smile, a breath of fresh air after all that pressure. "How's your foot?"
She looked down at her leg, now wrapped in clean bandages and wearing a pair of worn sandals.
"It's okay. Jenny wrapped it earlier."
"That's good," Alex said.
The caretaker beside her stepped forward, her tone warm and polite.
"Um, excuse me. Thank you so much for finding Mary and bringing her back safely."
"Ah, no problem," Alex replied, waving it off. "I just happened to run into her."
She nodded with a grateful smile.
"Ah, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Jenny. I'm one of the caretakers here at Lotus Children Orphanage… and the younger sister of the Headmistress, Thalia."
"I see. I'm Alex," he said, giving a slight bow.
'That explains it,' he thought.
Their faces really are almost identical… well, except in one particular area.'
Alex's eyes scanned both sisters, just slightly. Jenny was… more gifted in that regard.
And then it hit him. A chill far colder than Mel's glare.
It wasn't Numen.
It was worse.
"What are you thinking about, Sir Alex?"
Thalia's voice was right behind him.
He froze.
She stood there, eyes closed, smiling. But her face twitched, just enough to show it wasn't really a smile. Both of her hands were clenched tightly on her thighs.
"Ah-haha, nothing!" Alex blurted. "I was just thinking… you two really do look similar!"
Thalia slowly sipped her tea.
"I see. I thought your eyes were focused on… something else."
"I don't know what you mean! Haha…"
'She's dangerous!' Alex screamed internally.
Meanwhile, at the town's gate...
Arthur walked alone, just passing the two guards stationed at the entrance.
"Halt!"
One of the guards shouted, stopping him in his tracks.
"Where do you think you're going, kid?" the man asked, narrowing his eyes.
"Ah, I'm going to gather some herbs in the forest," Arthur replied casually.
"By yourself?" The guard raised an eyebrow, clearly suspicious.
Arthur scratched his head, pausing a beat.
"Umm… yes?"
No matter how experienced Arthur actually was, to everyone else he was just a thirteen-year-old kid.
"Wait, are you an adventurer? Doing this for a quest?"
'Eureka,' Arthur thought.
"Yes! I'm an adventurer," he declared, maybe a little too quickly.
"If that's the case, show me your identification. Every registered adventurer in Whitecave carries a guild card."
'Damn, I'm screwed.'
He didn't have one. He'd promised William not to go "adventuring". At least, not officially.
'What do I do now?'
'Maybe just say you lost it and the guild is making a new one,' Nirael suggested calmly.
'You think that'll work?'
'Yes. He looks gullible enough to believe it.'
Arthur glanced at the guard. He did look... kinda new.
"Kid?"
Arthur cleared his throat. "Umm, actually... I lost it. The guild's currently making me a new one."
The guard squinted at him, eyes scanning him up and down.
'So it didn't work, huh?' Arthur braced himself.
Then-
"Hahaha!" the guard burst into laughter. "Clumsy one, huh? Alright, go on. Finish your quest!"
'Wait... that worked?'
"Um… yeah, thanks," Arthur mumbled.
"Go on, scram."
Arthur nodded quickly and jogged off through the gate.
Back at the checkpoint, the guard returned to his partner.
"You sure you wanna let him go?" the second guard asked.
"He's an adventurer. He'll be fine. Guild trains them not to go overboard."
"Did he have his identification?"
"Nope. Said he lost it."
The second guard fell silent for a moment.
"…Aren't guild cards soul-bound or something? Like… really hard to lose?"
The first guard blinked.
"Wait. So you're saying-"
"He's lying."
They both stared out toward the road. Arthur was already gone from sight.
"If anything happens to that kid, I'm not covering for you."
"…I'm doomed."
The same crooked boy now sat perched on a thick branch, nestled high among the forest trees. A bow was drawn, an arrow nocked and steady. His golden eyes narrowed, fixed on a boar the size of a cow, calmly munching on berries in the clearing below.
'I don't think your arrow could do much to that boar, quite frankly, Arthur,' Nirael murmured, her voice amused.
'Of course it will. Watch,' Arthur replied with quiet confidence.
He inhaled slowly. Then, without warning, a surge of red mana shimmered across the bowstring and wrapped itself around the arrow like a living flame.
He let go.
The arrow snapped forward. It tore through the air. Fast, precise, and struck the boar clean in the neck, just past the bushes. The beast dropped without a sound.
'Impressive,' Nirael said, Impressed.
Arthur leapt down. He pushed through the underbrush until he found the beast, collapsed in the clearing. It thrashed faintly, legs kicking out as foam bubbled from its mouth. The arrow had pierced its throat and cut off its air. Death, though silent, had not come swiftly.
"Ekhvtia, Ngmbah," Arthur muttered.
He drew a dagger and drove it into the center of the boar's skull. The creature went still.
Without hesitation, he carved open its stomach. Nestled near the ribs was a white, translucent mana core — no larger than a coin pouch. He pocketed it quickly, then summoned a thread of mana to tie the hind legs to a low-hanging branch. Blood began to drain in a slow, steady rhythm.
'Where did you learn all this?' Nirael asked, her voice curious, almost impressed.
"You accessed my memory before, didn't you?"
'Yes, we did. Well, Veluria did. But she could only see the parts of you connected to us. We don't know much beyond that.'
Arthur nodded. "I lived with the elves for a while. After the North fell in the war, we fled south. Tried to hold our ground there. I picked up a lot from them — how to hunt, how to survive. Even their habits."
'The words you just muttered… was that one of their traditions?'
"Yeah. I don't know exactly what it means. It's old elven — something they say after killing prey. A prayer, I think."
'Knowing the elves, it's surprising they'd teach any of that to a human.'
"They didn't." Arthur paused, breath short as he worked through the thick hide. His body wasn't built for this yet, but he kept going. "Apparently, I have a high affinity with spirits. Lucky, since I was in the elven kingdom — the only place that allows you to be an [Aethermancer]. Got blessed by a priest there. Made their saint jealous, too."
He sat back, wiping sweat from his brow.
"And it was only thanks to that we even stood a chance against the Celestials. Without their help. Everyone's help, forget victory. we wouldn't have even touched the Celestials' feet."
He sat there in silence, putting his dagger back to the sheath at his chest after cleaning it up. Waiting as the blood slowly drained from the boar hanging above. The forest was quiet, until a soft rustle broke the calm behind him.
Arthur spun around.
His bow was already drawn, arrow nocked and ready to fire.
But nothing. No movement. No sign of life.
Still, his gut is telling him.
Something is coming.
And he was right.
Five green-skinned creatures emerged from the bushes—each slightly shorter than Arthur. Their twisted grins widened as they spotted him... and the boar. Yellow, jagged teeth bared. Long ears, hairless bodies, only a crude strip of cloth covering their lower halves. Some held rusted daggers. Others carried worn wooden clubs.
"Goblins," Arthur muttered.
'Physically weaker than an adult human, but they always come in groups. You'd need to be at least an E-rank adventurer to handle three alone... and we've got five.'
"W-Where did you learn that?" he asked aloud.
'Alex, this morning,' Nirael replied calmly.
Arthur remembered. Alex did chatted with a few adventurers in the market.
The goblins began to spread out, circling him. His back pressed against the tree where the boar still hung.
'Arthur… you'll be fine, right?' Nirael's voice held a note of concern.
He exhaled, steady.
"You should be worried for them."
He fired.
The arrow flew, whistling through the air, and struck the goblin in the center of the group, straight through the skull.
The others flinched. The closest one on the right, let out a sharp screech and lunged.
Arthur sidestepped with a sharp leap, drawing his next arrow mid-air. As the goblin turned, he released. Another clean headshot.
Three remained. They charged together.
Arthur dropped his bow.
The one in front swung wildly with a dagger. He dodged and slammed a kick into its ribs, sending it tumbling.
The two behind, each wielding clubs, attacked in unison.
Arthur ducked low, sliding beneath one of them. In the motion, he grabbed the dagger from the fallen goblin's belt and stabbed upward. Straight through the second's skull.
The last club-wielder came again, swinging high.
Arthur leaned back and countered with a brutal hook to its jaw, knocking it sideways.
The dagger-wielding goblin from before stumbled back to its feet and lunged. Aiming right for Arthur's stomach.
He kicked upward, knocking the blade from its hand, then slammed a fist into its face. The goblin collapsed.
The dagger dropped at Arthur's feet. He picked it up as both survivors staggered to their feet, regrouping in panic.
They hesitated.
They had underestimated their prey.
Arthur raised a hand, fingers curling provoking them.
"Come."
The bare-handed goblin snarled and charged. Arthur vaulted over it, twisting mid-air, and threw the dagger straight at the one still armed with a club.
The blade buried itself in its head.
Only one remained.
It froze.
Then it ran.
Arthur calmly picked up the bow he had dropped, pulled another arrow, aimed, and let it fly.
The goblin collapsed before it reached the dense trees.
Another headshot.
'Whooooo' Nirael screamed in excitement 'That's what you get, you dumb green creeps!'
Arthur was surprised and amused at the same time. Nirael always had a calm demeanor. It was his first time seeing her like that.
Suddenly, a pop-up appeared in front of Arthur.
[You have leveled up]
[You have leveled up]
[Skill Point Earned +1]
[Skill Point Earned +1]
[Skill Point Earned +1]
[Skill has leveled up. Archery: D → D+]
[Basic stats has increased:]
[STR: 11 → 13]
[AGI: 12 → 14]
[INT:20 → 22]
[VIT: 7 → 9]
[WIS:15 → 16]
[Name: Arthur Vargris Age: 13 (33) | Race: Human | Basic Stats: STR: 13 | AGI: 14 | VIT: 9 | INT: 22 | WIS: 16 | CHA: 15 | LUC: 20]
[Status | Level: 3 | Skills Point: 3 | Essence: [???] | Classes: -Hero (U) -Regressor (U)]
[Skills: - Nous (C) -Aegis (C) -Theiris (D) -Veritas (S) -Archery (D+) -Swordsmanship (D+) -Speech (F)]
'Congratulations, Arthur. You've increased your level to Level 3. Each level earns you one [SP]. You can use them to unlock skills you might potentially gain.' Nirael explained.
'What do you mean, "potentially gain"?' Arthur asked.
'For example, you mentioned you have high spirit affinity, right? But to summon a spirit, you normally have to go to the elven temple and be blessed by an elven priest.' Nirael paused 'You don't need to do that now, with the [System]. You can awaken [Aethermancer] using SP.'
'That's neat.'
'So... where do I use it?'
A different window appeared in front of Arthur.
[Skills Window]
Under it, a long list of skills appeared. Skills Arthur could or once possessed in his previous lives. [Aethermancer] was listed among them. But his eyes were fixated on one:
[Jack of All Trades]
It wasn't generally considered a strong skill. It prevented the user from becoming a true master in any single field. But that was exactly why Arthur needed it. Many scholars theorized that perhaps, if someone lived thousands of years, they could become the Ultimate Jack of All Trades.
Why a thousand years? Because if someone lived long enough, honed every skill they touched, and learned from every master. They could surpass specialists in each of those fields.
That's why the skill was seen as "useless" for those seeking the peak. You couldn't beat a master with mere tricks. Even the elves, who lived longer than any race had never achieved it.
But Arthur had his genius.
His past lives.
And the Avatar system.
He could become just that.
[Jack of All Trades] - Requires 10 [Skill Points] to unlock]
"Ten? That's manageable, no?" Arthur asked.
'Yes,' Nirael answered.
"Why is it so cheap? People underestimate this skill, but for those who live normal lives… this is a really desirable one. Not many people have it. I figured it'd cost way more."
'Maybe because of your experiences from your past lives, Arthur,' Nirael replied. 'You learned many things you needed to survive. These are skills you could potentially possess. That's why it's cheap. I suppose you were already close to achieving it before.'
"I see… I have another question."
He scrolled through the list while speaking.
"How do I get SP faster? I know leveling up helps, but is there any other way?"
He paused, noticing something. "Also, I leveled up twice, but I got 3 SP. Why's that?"
'Skill Points can be earned from improving your actual skills. Your archery improved, yes? That's why you got an extra point. Also, most skills can be learned naturally. SP isn't just for unlocking new ones, it can also be used to evolve existing ones.'
"Makes sense."
Arthur closed the window and crouched by the goblin's body. He retrieved the arrow he'd fired, then began piling up the corpses.
'Shame… if only I could bring the goblin corpses-'
He paused mid-thought.
Then he opened the skills window again, quickly skimming the list.
There it was.
[Dimensional Pouch]
A skill from his past life. It could hold an unlimited number of items. Rare, convenient, and incredibly useful.
[Dimensional Pouch] - Requires 5 [Skill Points] to unlock]
"Okay. Not as expensive as I thought." He nodded. "Jack of All Trades can wait."
He stood up, strapping his bow across his back.
"Buckle up, Nirael," he said, voice steady with purpose.
"We're going to farm some SP."