Chapter 1 - Start of a New Life

[Tenth month, Twenty-Seventh day, 4E 1894]

On a small island, inside a small town, there was a roughly built wooden building, filled with gaps and forcefully held together with seemingly randomized panels of wood and nails, reeds, and some twine to hold the whole thing together.

Inside the wooden building, there sat a boy with dark brown hair, and bright green eyes. His skin was a bit pale, and while being about 6 feet tall, was quite scrawny and thin for his size. His skin held a bit tightly to his face, putting more emphasis on his cheek and jaw bones.

He was sitting behind a counter, gently tapping a finger against the countertop while staring blankly at the door.

Rowan wasn't quite sure what to make of what was happening. Two days ago, he had died back in his home on Earth, and woke up here.

The boy whose body he was in was also named Rowan, which was odd but also simplified things. It would be horrendously annoying to have to get used to a new name.

With acquiring the body of this Rowan, came his knowledge as well. It turns out that the world he was in was known as Faentar, also known as the Faentar Realm.

'This world is one of fantasy. I can't believe I saw an elf and dwarf outside earlier.' Rowan thought.

Although his new memories told him that there were various races, magic, and even gods and goddesses, he still didn't believe in it until he saw it for himself.

Rowan couldn't help but lean back a little and rub his forehead a bit. One of the most interesting things about this world, was that everyone had a system, similar to ones he had read about back on Earth. It was most commonly known as the Status Screen.

"Status." Rowan says.

-----

Name: Rowan

Age: 15 years and 11 months [Born: Eleventh day of the Eleventh month, 4E 1878.]

Titles: [N/A]

Level: 0

Classes: [None] [1 Slot Available]

Professions: [Woodworker Lv. 2]

HP: 30/30 (VIT x 10)

HP Regen: 0.03 per minute (VIT / 100)

MP: 0/20 [Unavailable] (INT x 10)

MP Regen: 0.02 per minute (INT / 100)

Stats:

STR: 4

VIT: 3

DEX: 4

INT: 2

WIS: 3

CHA: 2

LUK: 4

Phys ATK: 4 (STR)

Mag ATK: 2 (INT)

Phys DEF: 3 (VIT)

Mag DEF: 2 (INT)

Phys PNTR: 0%

Mag PNTR: 0%

Conditions:

Unique Ability: [Dormant]

Skills:

[Pickpocketing Lv. 1] [Woodworking Lv. 2]

Abilities:

[Wood Inspection Lv. 1]

-----

This was his Status Screen.

The stats were the thing which stood out to him the most. None of them had even reached 5 yet, and the issue was that 5 was the average for a regular adult who had no Class.

It wasn't exactly bad, but it could be so much better. His skills spoke for themselves. [Pickpocketing Lv. 1] was something that the original Rowan had got in his childhood, while the [Woodworking Lv. 2] and [Wood Inspection Lv. 1] were things which came with his class. Of course, they were both level 1 initially.

And that leads on to his class, with a bit of story behind it.

Rowan is an orphan, and has been for his entire life. When he was a baby, he was dropped off at the orphanage in town, where he grew up.

In this town, Strata Town, there wasn't really much going on. It was a small town, on an island, about as far away from the center of the world as you could get. The mana in the surroundings was abysmal, leaving the number of valuable resources at such a measly amount that there were no reasons for a person to come here. There was nothing to offer.

The town being considered 'poor' couldn't do it justice. It was in squalor. Around 60 years ago some poor noble tried to colonize it, but shortly after bringing people over, he realized how dreadful the surroundings were. There were practically no metal ores, very minimal space for farming, and there were no valuable things here which could benefit him.

So, he packed up and left.

The people in the town now were either some of the people that stayed here since they had nowhere else to go, were the descendants of those that tried to colonize the area, or were criminals, exiles, or people that just wanted to be away from everything.

Living in an area like this growing up, Rowan decided to try his hand at some criminal activities and ended up learning how to pickpocket in order to have a better life. Better meals, warmer clothes, and just perhaps something valuable from pickpocketing too.

Atleast, that's what he started out doing. Not even a few months after starting, Rowan was caught, given a beating, and then the people were told around town about his actions. In the end, he got a bad reputation, and everyone was careful around him.

At the age of 13, he decided to try and get a profession for himself.

That's how he found a [Carpenter] in town who went by the name of Old John. Old John was one of the initial people who came to this town and helped construct it about 60 years ago.

He asked Old John to teach him something which he could do for himself. The island lacked resources, including wood. There was some, but not a lot. A few trees here and there deeper into the island.

After learning some of the basics, Rowan learned the profession [Woodworker]. Due to the large lack of wood on the island, most of his knowledge was away from things like buildings or large pieces of furniture, and was more aimed at smaller items made from wood carving. Utensils, Plates, bowls, small chests, trinkets, handles of iron items like swords or daggers, and sometimes doing repairs on items or homes.

It had made some money for him, and he was able to find lots of scrap wood around from broken buildings and other materials from the island to build himself this shack he was living in, which doubled as his shop.

"Show me description of a [Woodworker]." He spoke.

-----

[Woodworker]: Increases learning speed and ability with wood working, and making things out of wood. Increased familiarity with woods of various kinds. +1 STR and +1 DEX per level. Gives skill [Woodworking].

-----

"Sounds pretty basic, but could be useful." Rowan spoke again. "And show me the description of the different stats."

-----

STR, meaning strength, the physical power of the body.

VIT, meaning vitality, the lifeforce, healing ability, and endurance of the body.

DEX, meaning dexterity, the agility, nimbleness, accuracy, and control of the body.

INT, meaning Intelligence, the memory, mental power, and ability to use magic.

WIS, meaning wisdom, is the perception, insight, and ability to use knowledge.

CHA, meaning charisma, is the force of personality, and the ability to use charm, deception, persuasion, and acting skills.

LUK, meaning luck, is how fortunate and lucky someone will be in their day-to-day life, or in moments of need.

-----

Rowan reread them for the third time today and couldn't help but sigh a little. "My stats are truly low. And that is with 2 STR and 2 DEX from my profession." He said.

Taking a glance outside, he saw that it was around noon. After thinking it over, he stood up. Wearing a pair of sandals made from reeds, and a pair of pants and a shirt made from a rough cloth, he walked outside his small shack and walked to the building right next to his.

Opening the door, he saw the dim insides of another shop. A few pieces of furniture and wooden wares were spread around the shop.

"Hey, Old John, are you awake yet?" Rowan called towards the back door.

There were the sounds of rustling before the door opened.

"Yeah yeah, quit your blabbering, I'm up." Came the voice.

As the door opened, there stood an elderly man. He was wearing some rough cloth clothes similar to Rowans own. Nearly bald, and with a short white beard. There were wrinkles covering his face and his eyes were dim. He was a little hunched over, but was holding himself up with his cane.

"Got any plans for the day?" Rowan asked while watching Old John walk towards his usual rocking chair.

"Nope. Just another day of sitting here doin' nothin'." Old John said.

When Rowan looked into his eyes, Rowan could see Old John's dim eyes. He was truly getting on in his years, and it looked a bit difficult for him to even move now.

Rowan frowned a little, but the frown went away. "I will go get us some fish soup." He said.

Old John just gave a nod, so Rowan went into the back room of the shop. On one side of the room was a bed, a dresser, and on the other side was a small kitchen and storage area. Where there used to be a large pile of wood, there was now an empty space. Rowan grabbed a pair of bowls and spoons before walking out of the shop and down the street.

After handing over a few copper coins, Rowan returned with the fish soup and handed Old John a bowl.

They both sat there in silence, quietly eating their lunch.

"I think I am going to leave." Rowan eventually said.

"Finally decided, eh? It took you long enough. There is no use staying here." Old John said with a small nod.

"In the past, I used to think that as long as I stuck it through here, things would eventually get better. But I guess I finally realized that it wasn't. The trees I planted won't grow for a few decades, so what am I supposed to do until then? I might as well move on to greener pastures." Rowan said.

"This place is truly desolate. It's no place for a [Woodworker], or any profession using wood for that matter. Maybe a few [Plant Weaver]'s could make due here, but we definitely can't." Old John said. "Wait here, let me go grab something."

While Old John went into the back room, Rowan looked around the shop, and towards a table.

[Wood Inspection]

[Wood Table: A basic table made by a skilled craftsman.

Material: Horned Aeleaf

Crafter: Old John]

Rowan's ability still hadn't increased beyond the first level ever since he acquired it. What it tells him is what the item is, and what it's made from. Because he knew who made it, the crafter showed up as well.

While he was thinking over the possibilities of this ability of his, Old John walked back in before setting a book down on the counter.

"What's this for?" Rowan couldn't help but ask as he looked at the title.

"Since you're planning on leaving, then this should be of some benefit to you. There is no use for it here." He said.

Rowan leaned over and read the title aloud. "[Trees of Thee up to Grade Three]. I am assuming this is about trees then?" Rowan asked.

"Of course. There are so few kinds here, that you never needed to learn about others. Take that book back to your home, and once you finish, come back to me. There is something I need to tell you before you leave. Wait, when are you leaving?" Old John realized before turning and peering at Rowan.

"Well uhh, maybe two or three weeks? I need to get some stuff done here first. I don't plan on leaving until after my sixteenth birthday." Rowan said.

"It is so soon? I remember when you were a wee lad going around snooping in peoples' pockets. Now look at you!" He couldn't help but laugh a little when Rowan made a small bashful look.

"I am not doing that anymore, and yeah, it's in two weeks." He said.

They both chatted a bit, before Rowan took that book and went back to his shack, and sat down and began to read.