I was on the road to Oakway, the local town. Angus was taking me in the cart, the trip was not safe for a level 1, which gave me a chance to practice both [Disguise] and [Sense Mana]. The maintenance cost for the spell was less than my Mana regeneration, which meant I could hold it indefinitely. Not while sleeping though. I’d workshopped a new appearance with Angus and Milly last night, trying to find a look that was both different from me, and fairly unobtrusive. The last part was the hard part, because my Charisma kept shining through making even the blandest appearance notable. We’d settled on blond hair, and blue eyes with pale skin to go with my cover story of growing up in very sheltered environment. I’d bought [Memorise] in the hope that it would help me keep the details straight. It was kind of helping at this point.

Oh, and [Mana Development] had gone up while I was asleep, so that was nice. Angus had threatened to make me run alongside the cart to build up stamina, but I convinced him that [Mana Sense] would be more useful. So I was maintaining my disguise, while staring up at the sky.

It kept flickering out, when my skill failed, which was annoying, and I still couldn’t make out any details, but the endless turning of the great mana structure was endlessly fascinating to me. Above and below, wheels turned, while I accumulated skills.

[Mana Sense] Level 2 acquired through use

For gaining a skill level you have been awarded 1 XP

[Illusion Magic] Level 2 acquired through use

For gaining a skill level you have been awarded 1 XP

[Mana Sense] at 2 meant that it hardly ever failed, which was nice. Illusion magic at 2 made a big theoretical difference to my effect level, but I couldn’t see any different between the approximately 40 it had been before and the around 50 it was now. Oh wait, a new skill level meant new spells!

I’d already decided that [Conceal Mana] was a necessity, so I got that, and cast it immediately. It felt like I could choose between making my mana seem like a normal persons or hiding it entirely, but I had to decide when I cast the spell. I realise thats a little specific for a ‘feeling’ but thats how these skills worked. It was like the System was interacting with my mind and muscle memory to move me in the right manner or prompt me for the required decisions. Creepy, but convenient? It wasn’t like I could do anything about it. I opted for ‘regular human’ and proceeded to maintain it for the rest of the journey.

Which wasn’t to be long, because I could already see the town walls in the distance.

***

Angus left me at the gate, with a bag of food, a dagger and some instructions. It cost a copper to go through the gate (and another for the cart) so he said his goodbyes and left me to enter the town on my own. Oakway hadn’t looked like much when we were approaching, but now that I was closer, the walls looked a lot more imposing. They must have been 6 metres tall, with a overhang and some wicked-looking iron spikes pointing downward.

There were two bored looking guards at the gate, and a younger man not in uniform. “Name?” asked one of the guards.

“Katherine Meland”, I said.

[Deceive] Skill unlocked.

[Deceive] Level 1 purchased

For gaining a skill level you have been awarded 1 XP

The younger man wrote down my answer in a book.

“Purpose of entry?” the guard asked.

“Seeking employment”. Angus had told me how to answer the guards, but it wasn’t exactly hard to get in. The scribe wrote this answer down as well.

“Entry charge is 1 copper,” said the guard. I handed over the coin. He looked at it and then dropped it through a slot in a locked box. “Paid in full” he said to the scribe, who made a note. “Go on through,” he said to me.

“Thank you. Could you direct me to the Green Tanner inn, please?” I smiled at him and he blushed. Ok, maybe turn down the [Charm] a tad.

“Ah… down the main street until the square, then turn… right. You can’t miss it.” He stammered.

“Thank you again,” [Charm] seemed to want me to do a curtsey, so I let it take me through the motion. I moved gracefully, like I’d done it a thousand times before, even though I’d only seen people curtseying in movies. Manoeuvre completed, I moved on.

Oakway was a small but bustling town that boasted no less than 4 inns - 5 if you counted the Adventurer’s Guild, which had rooms available for members. The Green Tanner was a ‘locals’ inn, where the outlying farmers tended to stay when they came in to sell goods. Angus said it was honest and clean, and a good place to stay, as long as I had an income, which he assumed I would from adventuring.

I indeed could not miss the inn. If I hadn’t been able to read the sign, the depiction of a pair of bright green pants would have been a clue. Entering, I found myself in the common room, with tables and bar. It was clean, at least by medieval standards- the sawdust on the floor was fresh and unstained. The room was about half full with patrons, eating lunch. I made my way over the bar, where an older man seemed to be in charge.

“Harold Riley?” I asked.

He looked back at me. “I am. And who might you be”

I curtsied, almost taking myself by surprise. “My name is Katherine Meland”, I said. “I was hoping you might have work available.”

At this, a few of the nearby patrons perked up, and I could feel them checking out the upcoming ‘talent’. I really need to work on that blending in disguise. Harold was also looking me over. “I can write and do sums.” I volunteered, looking back at him. It seemed to me that those would be useful skills. It seemed to surprise him.

“Aye, you’re -“ he cut himself off, and looked away, embarrassed. He picked up a tankard and started polishing it, apparently so he could focus on that and not me. “Well, I’ve got the work right enough.”

“Just one thing though,” he said before pausing. “If you’re… A lot of pretty girls working in a tavern are looking to make a little extra money on the side. Upstairs.” He glanced at me, and I tried to keep my expression in check. Angus hadn’t mentioned this. Was I expected to…

“Not in my establishment though. If thats what you’re looking for, you want the Horse and Spider across town.”

I sighed in relief. “I wouldn’t expect anything less from an establishment recommended by Angus and Milly.”

“You know them?” he asked. “Well, ah, good. Glad we got that sorted out.”

“Does that mean I can expect not be harassed by the patrons?” I asked. He scowled and glared around the room.

“Most of my regulars know how to behave in public, but theres always a few. If you need to dump a tankard on someone, the first one of the night is free, after which you’ll have to pay for them.”

“Understood.”

“The shift is from sunset till second bell, pay is 4 copper a night, unless you want room and board, in which case its 2.”

“I’ll take the room, please.”

He nodded. “Ellie will show you where… you don’t have any things?”

“I’m afraid not,” I said, ignoring the obvious question. “If its alright, I’ll come back later? I need to pick up some necessaries from the market.”

“Aye, thats fine. Just be ready by sunset.” I nodded and took my leave.

I was still planning on joining the Adventurers guild, but I wanted something more stable to fall back on. Angus had said that adventurers made good money, but I didn’t want to burn my savings waiting on money from killing random monsters. What if nothing spawned this week? Also, I can’t say I was confident on a new career based on killing monsters when I’d killed my first fox only yesterday. Still, stable income established, it was time to investigate the Guild.

The Guild was on the other side of town, only 2 doors down from the Horse and Spider, which I now knew to avoid. As I approached, I saw a few men enter and one man leave. They all looked… rough. I guess thats the adventurer look. I thought to myself. They’re only one step above hired killers after all. Do I really want to join them? Steeling myself, I pushed open the door and entered.

Inside was a large open area. There was a raised area around the entrance, so I could pause and get a good look at the place. The majority of the area was given over to tables, much like the Green Tanner, but the bar was over to one side. There were fewer people in here right now, probably because they didn’t serve food. At the back of the room were doors leading further back and stairs going up. The patrons were mostly, but not entirely, male. All of them looked… disreputable. They were dressed in mismatched armour, and all of them had weapons. Some of them had noticed me and were openly staring.

Opposite the bar was another raised area, separated from the main room by a railing. It contained a large notice board and a woman behind a counter. That was probably where I had to go.

“Hello, and welcome to the Adventurers Guild!” she said as I approached. She was blonde and older than me, but not by much. Her smile wasn’t exactly fake, but it was professional.

“Um, hello.” I said. “I’m interested in joining the Guild, and I wanted to know what was involved.”

“Of course,” she replied. “As a starting adventurer, a bronze plate is just 5 copper, with an upkeep of 2 copper every year. Theres no qualification required, aside from Level 2, and it entitles you to discounts for rooms here, free entry to the town and access to Bronze-rated jobs on the job board.” She gestured to the notice board that I’d seen before. You also get access to the local dungeon - access to any Dungeon in the Kingdom is for Guild members only, according to the King’s Decree.“You also get access to the bar, but I don’t think thats going to be a big selling point for you. ”

“Heh, yeah.” I looked over at the ruffians below. “You’re not surprised I’m interested? I’m not exactly…”

“Like those guys?” she asked. “Those guys are the dregs of the adventurers guild.” she had raised her voice for the last sentence, making sure they heard. She got a few jibes and cheers in response, but none of them seemed truely insulted. “Spending the afternoon drinking instead of doing jobs.” She looked back at me. “I assure you, the Guild accepts all kinds, but the more professional types are going to be under represented in the Guild bar.”

“I see.”

“Don’t worry, your safety is guaranteed within the building.” She pointed to a pair of serious looking men wearing chain mail. I hadn’t noticed them before, they were discretely standing at the edge of the room. “We operate under the Kings Charter, you know, so we have to take action if our members become unruly… or unlawful.”

“Huh.”

“Actually, I should mention that criminals aren’t allowed to join. You need to swear that you haven’t committed any crimes on the Truthstone.”

“Truthstone?”

“Yes. You do the whole induction while touching it so the information collected for the King is accurate. Its just name, level and profession. And the crimes thing.” She did something with a lever behind the counter, and a crystal ball came up through a hatch. I stared. It looked… well kinda tacky. A glass ball sitting in a frame of… copper and brass? I could see runes on the metal though, so I suspected that this was the first magical item I’d seen.

The woman put her hand on the ball. “My name is Paige,” she said, and the globe glowed blue. “I have two noses,” she said and it turned red. “Want to try?” she asked me.

My mind was racing as I put my hand to the globe. I needed to beat this if I wanted to conceal my Worldwalker status. There was just no way for someone to be a Level 1 Phantasmal Artificer without that trait. An obvious solution occurred, but surely they’d thought of it already? Maybe I could test it and write it off as a joke or an error or something if it failed.

[Static Image]

“I come from a land where everyone walks around upside down all the time”

Paige giggled. The ball turned red, as far as anyone could see, but I could see through my own illusions and knew it had turned blue. Interesting. No one else seemed to react, so it seemed like this would work. Also interesting that it registered what I said as being true. It wasn't literally true, or maybe it was from a northern perspective, but the ball had known what I meant.

“Did you have any other questions? Or would you like to sign up?”

“Can I take a look at the jobs first?”

“Of course. Can you read?” she asked and I nodded. “Great, so the format is like this.” she pulled out a piece of paper from under the counter. “The first row of stars is the ranking - one star is bronze, which are the only jobs you’ll be able to apply for. The second row is the risk - how dangerous the job is. The final row is the reward. Generally you shouldn’t expect more than one difference between the ratings, but sometimes you get a 3 star risk thats too low paying for the silvers to touch. Or an easy, high paying job - but those get snatched up pretty quickly. Under that is who lodged the job and a description of what the job is, and also if its been attempted before. Go and take a look at the board.”

I did as she suggested and took a look. There were several bronze jobs posted, and they all looked menial. Killing rats in the sewers, fetching this plant or this animal part… The pay was better than I was getting though. Even the one star jobs looked like they’d pay 15 copper for just one days work - assuming I could find enough of the requested materials. I looked at the silver ranked jobs, and they paid in silver. The gold jobs… did not pay in gold, just more silver, for the most part. I went back to the desk.

“How do I qualify for the silver jobs?” I asked.

“A silver plate is 1 silver, with an upkeep of 5 coppers per year. You need to be Level 3 and have completed 10 jobs successfully. Ready to sign up?”

“I guess so, I-“ I stopped, looking behind me. One of the thugs that had been sitting at the bar had wandered up and joined us.

“Ah,” said Paige. “Katherine, I should introduce you. This disreputable fellow is Raynard, the deputy Guild Master. Unlike all the other sots here, its actually his job to be in the Guild hall when the Master is unavailable.” She gave him a dirty look. “Though most would say his job also involves not drinking during the day.”

Reynard seemed unaffected by Paige’s scorn. “Indeed. And as a Guild official, if you’ve got any queries or problems, you can come to me to resolve them.” He smiled, or maybe it was a leer.

Great. “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.” I said, thanking [Conversation] for keeping my words polite and my expression in check.

“So, lets sign you up before Reynard says something to change your mind.” She glared at Reynard a bit more. He just laughed and backed off a few feet. “Now, name?”

[Static Image]

“Katherine Meland.” I said, and she wrote it down on what looked like standardised form.

“Profession?”

“Apprentice.”

“Level?”

“Two.”

“Have you committed, or are you wanted for any crime in the Kingdom of Latora?

“No.”

“Allright then.” She took a small bronze plate and placed it on the form she’d filled out. “If you could place your hand on the plate please?” I did so, and she placed her hand on mine and concentrated. I could feel magic going through me, and I activated [Sense Mana] in time to see a swirling pattern of mana coalesce under my hand where I couldn’t see it.

“There you go!” Paige said, releasing my hand. I raised my hand to see that the bronze plate was now engraved with the details I’d given her. “This plate serves as your identification as a guild member. Its locked to your mana, so if someone else holds it… “ she demonstrated by picking up and handing it to me. As soon as she did, the shiny metal turned black, only to revert once it was in my hand.

“That will be 5 coppers please, and welcome to the Guild.”

“Will you be taking rooms here?” asked Reynard, with what I’m sure was an ulterior motive.

“No, I’ve got accommodation elsewhere.” I handed Paige her coppers, and she made some more notes in a ledger.

“Well, you’re now an accredited member in good standing of the Oakway Guild Hall!” said Paige brightly. “Please remember that your behaviour will reflect on the Guild, and on the King.”

“Right. I’ve got to go now and do some shopping. I’ll be back tomorrow.”. I thought about curtsying again, but this didn’t seem like the place for it, so I just turned and left.

Exhausted and defeated, I fell back on my new bed. I’d thought the Adventures guild would be the hard part of my day, but I’d reckoned without the Market. What a nightmare! The crowds, the stink, the dust but worst of all… the haggling! Nothing had a price listed, everything was negotiable, and I didn’t have a Bargain skill! Well now, I had one. But before I’d gotten a skill unlock, I’d stammered my way through about 8 transactions, each of which I’d either paid too much or gotten run off for insulting the vendors mother. It was uncanny how as soon as I switched to trying to buy something, my (now) normal eloquence abandoned me and I became a blithering idiot. A couple of times I even slipped back into speaking English - which was crazy, because normally I wasn’t even aware that I was speaking a different language.

Anyway, eventually I got [Bargain] and then things went much more smoothly. I had gotten most of what I wanted. I looked at my worldly possessions laid out on the small table in my room. A large knife (a gift from Angus), a second dress and underclothes, a hairbrush, paper and ink, a canvas satchel with multiple pockets. Oh and 3 copper, which was all that was left from my Modest Means.

I contemplated my [Status].

Name

Kandis Hammond

Profession: Phantasmal Artificer Level 1 [Unspent Ability Points] 14 Age 24 [Unspent Skill Points] 1 Abilities [Unspent Development Points] 3 [Strength] 3 [Unspent Spell Levels] 20 [Agility] 3 [HP] 30/30 [Finesse] 3 [Stamina] 60/60 [Soul] 3 [Mana] 98/120 [Intelligence] 4 [Charisma] 9 Skills [Body Development] 1 [WM: Dagger] 1 (2) [Stamina Development] 2 [Deceive] 1 (2) [Perception] 2 [Charm] 1 (2) [Identify] 2 [Conversation] 1 (2) [Scribe] 1 [Dodge] 2 [Calculate] 1 [Jump] 1 [Mana Sense] 2 [Climb] 1 [Mana Development 1 (2) [Run] 1 [Illusion Magic] 2 (5) [Stealth] 1 [Creativity] 1 [Memorise] 1 [Disguise] 1 [Bargain] 1 Unlocked Skills [Enchanting] [Intrigue] [Research] [Teach] [WM: Axe] Traits [World Walker] Level prerequisites for Professions are overridden. +1 bonus to all stats [Gift of Tongues] All languages are understood. [Female] +1 bonus to Charisma [Silent Casting] Allows you to cast spells without a chant [Subtle Casting] Allows you to cast spells without gestures Spells Mana [Static Image] Creates an unmoving image of a single object not more than 1 cubic metre in volume. (upkeep 1/hour) 5 [Light] Creates a light that can be moved, brightened, or dimmed. (upkeep 1/hour) 5 [Unseen Sound] Creates a sound from a source you designate. (upkeep 1/hour) 5 [Simple Invisibility] People and Creatures are unable to see you. (upkeep 3/hour) 15 [Disguise] Modify your appearance and clothing as required (upkeep 3/hour) 15 [Conceal Mana] Hides a casters mana from others (upkeep 2/hour) 10

Tomorrow I’d find a job to do at the Guild, get a level and improve some skills. But right now, it was time for my first shift.

I’m going to die. Or get fired. Wait, which is worse?

[Stamina Development] Level 3 acquired through use

For gaining a skill level you have been awarded 1 XP

[Charm] Level 2 acquired through use

For gaining a skill level you have been awarded 1 XP

[Disguise] Level 2 acquired through use

For gaining a skill level you have been awarded 1 XP

[Calculate] Level 2 acquired through use

For gaining a skill level you have been awarded 1 XP

Work had been Hell. I had so much less Stamina than the other girls! Harold had thought I was shirking at first, so I had to run my Stamina down to where I got dizzy. The only thing that saved me is that once I’d proved I could calculate, he let me rest while counting the takings and managing the tabs. But those breaks had been oh so short. The work itself wasn’t so hard at least. I gather some people had trouble memorising who ordered what, but that wasn’t a problem for me. Once the shift was done I staggered up to my room and fell unconscious. Now it was… late morning or early afternoon, and it was time for me to get up, but my body did not want to move.

Come on, move! How are you going to eat if you don’t go downstairs?

With that logic, hunger moved me out of my room. Fortunately, I remembered to re-cast my disguise spell. And my conceal mana spell just in case.

The Green Tanner didn’t do a special breakfast, which was just as well, as I’d have missed it. The food available was bread and cheese, with stew being available in a few hours. I elected not to wait, on account of me being starving. Harold gave me a stern look, but nodded to me.

“Not bad for the first night. Work on that Stamina, though.”

“Yes, sir”. I winced. “My development already went up one last night.” It felt weird to be talking about my own stats with another person, but that seemed to be how it worked in this world.

“I heard you made quite a spectacle of yourself at the Market,” he said. I blushed. Word travelled fast!

“Yes?”

“If you need someone to Bargain for you, ask Cerys.” Cerys was his wife, currently busy in the kitchen. I’d met her last night, along with the other serving girls, Charlotte and Eve.

“I… needed to get the skill unlock.” Was that giving too much away? It must be kind of weird picking up a basic skill like that at my age right? But Harold just nodded.

“Its a good skill to have.”

I just nodded and took my leave. I wanted to find the Dungeon today and get my second level.

At the guild, Paige gave me directions and some basic guidance as to what would be found there. Apparently the first level was mostly lizards, and their main value was in their hides. Since I didn’t have the skill to skin them, I’d have to bring back the bodies, which would sell for a lesser price and I wouldn’t be able to carry as many. Paige let me know which lizards were worth money and cautioned me about going deeper.

“The next level down is guarded about five of the Threat 3 lizards and the boss. They don’t come out of the cave, so unless you’re good at close combat in the dark, its a nasty fight.”

I thanked her for the warning and headed out. The Dungeon was about half an hour out of town, and there was a well travelled dirt path leading to it. The entrance didn’t look like much, just a cave entrance in a hill, but they’d build a low stone wall around the area to keep kids out. Apparently if you built over a dungeon in a way that blocked the flows of mana, either the dungeon died, or the building would fall apart.

I’d passed a few early birds coming back from the dungeon, but there wasn’t anyone about right now. I cast Invisibility and stepped into the cave.