Contemplation

Torrin received many strange stares from the night staff of the Merchant Guild.

Approaching the nearest runner, he asked to see Neil Wesler. The kid stared at him like he had three heads, not seeming to have heard him.

"Hello? Can I see Neil Wesler?"

It wasn't until the second time he asked the runner, waving his hand in front of his face, that there was any sort of reaction; the runner quickly sped off into the building, hopefully going to find Neil.

Looking down at himself, he finally realized what the problem was. His boots trailed bloody prints and his pants were covered in gore. Some of it had even gotten on his shirt, unfortunately.

'Ah, shit... Definitely not the best impression to leave with these nice people,' He thought solemnly, shaking his head at his actions.

'Why did I even kill those two? I could easily have walked away from such an easy fight...' His thoughts were conflicted. At the time he hadn't even thought of what he was doing... He had only felt rage. He could work on it, but until he found his revenge, he didn't think it'd go away. The real issue was his lack of control over his strength. In the end, he'd only wanted to knock them around a bit, but wishes couldn't change the facts.

The sound of someone clearing their throat roused him from his musings. Looking up, he saw Neil standing in front of him, a myriad of emotions warring for dominance on the man's face.

"Ahem, Mr Gram, if you wouldn't mind following me, I can show you to our wash room where you might... Clean up. If you'd like, of course..." Neil called over a runner to make sure the entrance was cleaned of blood.

Torrin acquiesced and was led to a large room containing a steaming hot bath that took up most of the space, surrounded by various soaps and shampoos. Neil explained the facilities, which were used by some employees who stayed on site or worked overnight---even guests who had traveled a long way might use them---and Torrin soon went to work making himself presentable.

A small side area containing water spouts and buckets was his first stop, rinsing himself of the dried blood, before soaking in the warm water of the main bath for a time, steam rising from the water, like hands reaching for the ceiling. As he sat in the water, he thought over his actions since coming to this world.

'This is not my world... These people... They don't even know what is happening. They don't know of the dark forces behind the scenes,' he thought solemnly, 'Just because I've been hurt myself, it doesn't give me the right to hurt others indiscriminately like I did tonight,' he sighed, 'I've been so angry since I died... Spending months alone in the woods hasn't helped... I've only become used to using violence to survive...'

A while later he was walking into the main room with a much clearer head. His mental state was still in turmoil, but taking the time to think everything over was useful.

Neil was waiting nearby and approached him swiftly, leading him to the same office they used earlier.

Neil scrutinized Torrin seriously as they sat at the table in silence, his face a mask.

"As we have signed a business deal together, Mr Gram, would you mind explaining to me exactly why you walked into my establishment covered in blood?" The man finally asked.

Torrin had decided to tell the truth... Mostly.

"I apologize for my appearance earlier, Mr Wesler. I was met with some trouble on my way to meet with you. A merchant I met with earlier today seemed to take a fancy to my ring," he wiggled his ring finger in the air, "And decided to send some... Talking beasts of some sort to take it from me. When I met with the merchant, I didn't have the glove at the time." Torrin explained, his face completely neutral.

"This merchant... Who exactly was it?" Neil asked, as writing materials appeared from thin air.

"The leader of the attackers claimed he was sent by Balder, of Balder's Boosts." Torrin answered with a relaxed tone.

Neil grunted in acknowledgment, slightly put off by the kid's calm gaze and tone.

"Alright," Neil put away the writing materials, "I'll report the attack to the guards and make sure they investigate. I am sorry our town has caused you such trouble, Mr Gram."

They sat there for a stretch, silence the only sound.

"If I may ask about these... Beasts you spoke of?" Neil asked tentatively.

"Oh? I've never seen anything like it. There were three of them and they could talk." Torrin explained excitedly, hoping he might get some answers from the man.

"And where exactly did you fight these beasts?" Neil asked.

Torrin began explaining the entire story to the man and even pulled one of the corpses from his pouch. This elicited a stifled shriek from the man, but Torrin chalked it up to him being squeamish.

Balder went on to explain his position of believing the trio of beasts to be humans, which Torrin found odd. When Balder insisted, Torrin thought back on the fight. Those three had been rather weak, much like the bandits he'd fought outside the forest. After grudgingly admitting that Balder might be right, they began a discussion of what might happen if his actions were found out.

After a lengthy discussion, the conversation switched topics back to business, and Torrin soon left the guild with 5 mid-tier Mana Crystals and 500 gold. He was also able to purchase the storage bag for only 2 of his B-rank Beast Cores, with Neil begging him to take it for free.

Torrin walked down empty streets, avoiding alleys to get back to the inn. Not a single person walked the street he was on and he felt more alone than ever. With the moonlight beaming onto his face, he let his mind wander.

'Mom and Dad... I hope you're still alive and that my sister is doing well... Perria, did you also come to this world? Or is your soul stuck in some ancient artifact, used as nothing more than energy?'

His thoughts wouldn't stop coming, each one adding another weight to his shoulders.

'Martha? Tim? Tom? Why did they take you from the village? I'll find you guys and make sure you're free...' Though he didn't personally have many interactions with the kids, the memories of Little Lark compelled him to care, at least a little bit.

He made it to the Playful Badger and swiftly found his room. As he sat on his bed, he stared at his hands. The hands that had been covered in blood only hours before.

'Why was I so brutal? I used to be honorable, a High Warrior of the Darule Kingdom... I knew what I was training for, why I wanted to fight. Now? Do I really throw everything away for revenge? I feel like I'm lost; I have no bearings, nothing tying me down and helping keep my grounded...'

A sigh escaped his lips as he lay back and closed his eyes. He couldn't even bring himself to study tonight. Sleep was hardly a relief from his troubles as he found himself back in Perria's room. He relived the worst night of his life once more.

A knock rang out in the quiet room, a call for breakfast following.

Torrin grumbled groggily as he stretched, a yawn stretching his mouth wide. A tendril of mana set the lamp ablaze and he studied the empty room.

'Nothing tying me down...' he repeated in his mind, heading to meet Bell to see what was in store for breakfast.

As he ate, he came to a decision. He decided to go ahead and sell all of his cores and the rest of his miscellaneous belongings before leaving the town. With his new dimensional bag and the gold he'd earned, he'd have no problem stocking up on supplies before heading out.

Finishing up the eggs and dried fish, he headed out. The morning sun shone down, gracing the world with its warmth and light. The trip to the Merchant Guild went quickly, and taking the back alleys, Torrin found no sign of the bald thug he'd tormented the night before.

He grimaced at the memory, 'I am not fit for society any more...'

The Merchant Guild was as busy as ever, and he was soon in another meeting with Neil.

"Mr Gram. I'm surprised to hear from you so soon. How can I help you?" The man's face was once again cheerful, but his smile didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Mr Wesler. I'm heading out of town and need various supplies. I was hoping you might make a recommendation? I also have a few more cores to trade with you."

The conversation was over quickly, he'd sold mostly everything and received more mana stones. The pouch around his neck now had nothing but two dead bodies, an empty backpack, a pouch full of gold, and a stack of mana stones in a corner.

Walking the streets, he visited a shop called "Mana Emporium", where he purchased a variety of spells. A fireball spell, an ice lance, ice wall, earthen spikes, air blades. The spells were all basic tier spells that a novice could learn on their own, though a teacher was recommended.

Torrin could care less about the spells themselves, as he could already make a mana bomb and that was far stronger than those he purchased. What he wanted was to study the elemental parts of each spell. A mana core would usually develop a single affinity, locking you into a certain spell type. Some cores would adapt to multiple affinities as well, but from what he'd learned it wasn't the most common thing until a mana core's later stages.

Since Torrin had neither an affinity nor a mana core, he wanted to understand how to come up with spells using multiple elements. If he could understand the runes that made up the spells, he could use the neutral mana from his ring to cast them. At least he thought so.

The next stop was at a store named "Ping's General Goods", where he purchased a map of the continent, a map of the general area, and a new coil of rope; along with various cooking utensils and whole bags of spices and herbs for cooking.

'No more wolf jerky for me, we'll be having luxurious meals from now on,' he thought happily.

Walking around, he saw a sign that depicted a bottle and leaf. The place was an alchemy shop called "Herbs and More", and just as the name suggested, that's what it had. Torrin purchased a few different books on Alchemy, before heading to the Blacksmith.

"Welcome to the Chen Family's Smithy. Please, allow me to assist you with anything you may need while you're here." A young man with short black hair greeted him as soon as he walked in the store.

Torrin smiled to the young man, "Hello, I wanted to see what swords you had in stock."

The young man swiftly led Torrin to the second floor of the establishment, where he was shown many different blades. They all seemed mediocre at best, and wouldn't be able to do anything that Stix couldn't.

They had a distinct lack of Rune-Enchanted blades, which is what Torrin was looking for. He was told they were custom ordered, but he didn't want to wait around long enough to get it. After talking with Neil the night before, he wanted to try and leave town before trouble found him. In the end he just perused the shop casually, hoping to find something suitable.

After going through barrels of swords and other weapons, Torrin was beginning to lose hope of finding a weapon he could use instead of Stix.

Something on a shelf near the back of the second floor finally caught Torrin's eye. It was a piece of metal that shone brightly to his mana sight.

"Excuse me, what exactly is that metal?" It was a lump of unrefined metal that sat with a light layer of dust over it. Even through the dust, the metal reflected the dim light from above intensely. The light reflecting from the ore seemed brighter than the light above, causing a strange phenomenon.

"That is our family's Star Heart Bronze. It was found in a rock that had crashed to the ground from the heavens." The man replied seriously.

'So it's from a meteorite?' Torrin thought to himself, interested in the piece of metal.

"How much for it?" Torrin asked curiously.

"Oh, well... No one has ever been able to refine the metal, so it has never been sold. Please, allow me to call on Mr Chen." The reply was quick, followed by an even quicker departure of the employee.

'Hmm, unable to be refined? I bet Grams could find a way to make it work. Maybe? She's super old, so surely she's come across blacksmithing tricks, right? Or maybe she knows a guy.'

The wait wasn't long as a tall man soon appeared. The man had a creamy, tan skin tone, with eyes dark as night and hair that matched, thin strips of silver beginning to show near his temples. The pressure the man passively emitted made Torrin's brows shoot up. His expression was serious as he approached.

"Young man, are you the one asking about our Star Heart Bronze?" Mr Chen's voice brooked no argument, his tone implying he wasn't actually asking.

"That'd be me, yes. It's beautiful, and something I've never heard of before. My master has a myriad of talents, and I'm sure they could find a use for this ore." Torrin replied respectfully, hoping it might help.

The man's face softened a bit, "No one has ever been able to forge this before, when placed in a fire it only sits there, unphased. I know it is just gathering dust on that shelf back there, however, it is something that has been in my family for generations, selling it doesn't seem right."

"I can assure you that my master would be able to put this metal to good use. If you are not willing to sell it, I understand. But... Would it not be better for the metal to finally be crafted, instead of gathering dust? I mean no offence, of course." Torrin replied with a bow, unsure why he was even going this far for the metal.

Furrowed brows and crinkled forehead indicated the man's thinking mind as he stared at Torrin. His gaze drifted to the ring Torrin was hiding under his glove and Mr Chen slowly let out a long held breath and nodded his head slowly.

"It is as you say. It would be better for it to be put to use." A smile finally showed on the man's face, as he reached out his hand. "My name is Song Chen. It is nice to meet you...?" He trailed off.

"Rin Gram." Torrin said with a smile, shaking the man's hand. "How much would you sell the ore for?"

"Hmm... I'm unsure of what I could take for it. It is priceless, in all honesty," Song Chen began cautiously, his gaze drifted back to Torrin's hidden ring, "But your words do ring true..."

"Well, that's..." Torrin trailed off, trying to find the word, "Good? Haha..." he finished with a weak chuckle.

Minutes passed as Mr Chen stared at the ore in silent contemplation.

"Little Gram, how about this? If you can assure me that you would be able to put this ore to use, I will give it to you for no charge. You have an aura about you that radiates sincerity in this regard." The man surprised Torrin by spouting nonsense.

"Eh?! Mr Chen, please. I would never be able to sleep at night knowing that you've given this to me for free. Here, I have one thing that you may find useful." Torrin produced his last remaining B-Rank core, handing it to Mr Chen.

"Oh, but it will not be free. How about you show me the blade that's born from this? Yes, that will be payment enough." Mr Chen smiled almost sadly as he offered the deal.

Torrin didn't have a great understanding of prices. At all. But this ore seemed to call to him and he knew he couldn't take it without some sort of exchange.

"Take it, Mr Chen. As a sign of my gratitude at the respect you have shown me. This is something your family has held for a long time, and I appreciate you parting with it." He stated, handing the man a B-rank monster core and bowing politely to the older man.

The man's face broke into a wide grin, "Little Gram, you are unlike most boys your age. You show respect to your elders." He said as he walked to the back to retrieve the ore.

A few more pleasantries followed, before Torrin left the store, only to be stopped cold as he saw many guards standing outside.

Guard Captain Dane's voice rang out, "Rin Gram, you need to come with us. There have been allegations laid against you regarding thievery and murder."

Dane approached without pause, locking a circlet around Torrin's wrist, and grabbing his arm, leading him away.

'Huh... Didn't see that coming...' Torrin had no time to react, he was completely caught off guard. He contemplated his options and decided following along would be in his best interest. It looked like Neil had been right.