Hehe. I chuckled while exiting the guild. After the initial shock, they bought all my coins.

I made eleven gold and seven silver. It should have been eleven gold and eight silver, but they took one as transaction fee. Fair enough.

Also, i had my new guild card in hand. Just some token made of steel, with my name, level, race and class imprinted on it. Ah, and guild rank, which was currently E for me, second lowest.

The 'Appraisal Orb' they used to get this information surprisingly did not recognize Polymorph as a race and instead just printed out Human. Well, Whispy told me so, but i had my doubts. Glad it worked. And unlike a certain goddess, no one seemed to be able so see my title. That made me feel at ease a bit.

Now, the next matter is revealing one of my affinities, isn't it?

[Yes. But today is almost done, so let's just find a place to stay the night.]

Agreed.

So i just walked around until we found a decent inn. Not overpriced, but not shady either. A small, but clean room. Two meals included. Affordable at twenty-one coppers for a night. A nice older man at the desk. Well, if you counted my time in the void, he was young, but nevermind.

The next morning i woke up feeling more refreshed than, well, i felt for the past two hundred years. Gods, that ought to be the world record for staying awake, at least for humans. Right. I am not human any more. That bit still creeps me out a bit. I can now say 'You filthy human! One of my kind would never do this!' or stuff like that and it would be totally legit. Damn weird.

[Good morning, Alira.]

Mornin' Fluffy! It is a great day, isn't it?

[Yes, yes. I have been thinking about how to unlock your affinity.]

And? Suddenly i felt uncomfortable, with a dark foreboding.

[I think being in serious danger for an extended period of time will do the trick. Normally that would be risky as fuck, but, you know, for you it is more like..]

..inconvenient? Because death is temporary for me?

[Yes, exactly.]

Oh jeez, Whispy. This day started so damn fine. And now i got to be executed by some bloodthirsty monsters?

[Well, i can't help it. Neither can you. So let's do this, so you can progress?]

Fine. After a good breakfast and a nice fat cup of coffee. And i need to get a dagger or something, so i can save my soul with the illusion of safety.

[Haha. Good idea. Maybe, some spare clothes too?]

Good idea. So, we are gonna go downstairs now. This girl needs her food. I put on my shoes and walked down the stairs, humming.

After a pretty okay meal, consisting of bread and cheese, mouth rinsed with coffee of just acceptable quality, i made way to the market again. Soon, i found a second-hand weapons dealer. No use to buy a noob like me new gear from the get-go. Not that i needed anything expensive, you know, to not die. Now that i think about it, that entity in the void must be fucking OP, handing out quasi-immortality like candy.

[Yeah, §'#& is of the league, after all.]

Whispy confirmed my thesis. Great. Don't you talk about the league, if you won't give me details anyway, i pouted.

In the end, i bought some almost new looking light leather-made gear and a simple steel dagger, sharp enough, but not high grade by any means. Four silver total, a total bargain, really. Next up, the quest board of the guild. Hmm, Wargs sounds deadly enough, what do you say?

[Big dogs with sharp teeth, fast, nimble, almost sentient? Perfect!]

Fuck you too, Fluffy, you are not the one who will get maimed.

[Sorry.]

As if you mean it. Apology accepted though. I just want this day to be over.

[Let's go die!]

Yeaaah, goooo. Now i was almost motivated, thanks Whispy.

[No problem.]

So i went on a stroll in the forest nearby i didn't even plan to return from. The closer i got, the more i regretted ever going through that fucking door in the first place. Before i could give in and turn around though, something growled right next to me.

No.

No, no, no, no, NO!

I pulled my dagger and aimlessly swung towards the two-meter ball of fur and teeth flying towards my face. As i expected, my pathetic attack had minimal effect. Something heavy hit me, and a blink later my throat suddenly hurt like hell. Then everything went dark. Great, i managed to hold myself in a fight for 0.2 seconds before dying.

The world went silent and my feelings started to calm, the now familiar sweet nothingness of the void enveloping me. Hm, how long will this reconstruct thing take? My status..

Name: Alira Wesz Occupation: None Level: 9 Class: Thief (Lower) Race: Polymorph (Human) Title: Harbinger of the Void Health / Max. Health: 0 / 280 (Reconstructed in: 18 hours, 15 minutes) Mana / Max. Mana: 280 / 280 STR: 6 INT: 12 DEX: 14 VIT: 8 CHR: 4 (This does not count as a stat) LCK: 6 (This does not count as a stat) Affinity: None (Locked affinities exist) Free Points: 8

Oh god. Eighteen hours? A wasted day, great. Whispy, you with me?

[Yes. I am part of your mind, not part of your body, so where ever your consciousness is, i am.]

Good. So, what do you think of my first real fight? I am honestly a bit proud i even tried to fight back.

[It was pathetic. But i guess for your first fight, it was ok. Next time, use Appraise first, to get some information about your enemy. That can be vital information.]

I totally forgot, thanks. How often do you think i have to do this shit, before i either stand a chance or unlock my affinity?

[Maybe a dozen or so more times, nothing too much.]

As i used to say earlier. Fuck me. Seriously, fuck me.