Chapter 1: Trimming Donkey Hooves

Harvest Moon.

In Meister County, at Flashgold Town, the courtyard outside Habsburg Manor.

A slender, black-haired boy stood in a corner of the outer courtyard, holding his head where a large lump throbbed, as he stared blankly at the empty expanse of the yard and the towering castle in the distance.

"Hiss! Where is this place?" Rein cradled his aching head as he took in his surroundings.

In the courtyard, a group of teenage boys in coarse tunics formed a half-circle, watching a large, muscular adult man trim a donkey's hoof.

"This... this is hoof trimming???"

Rein was flabbergasted!

Soon after, a flood of memories surged into his mind, passing by like images in a slideshow!

"My name is now Rein, and I was accidentally kicked in the head by a donkey an hour ago. The lump on my forehead hasn't subsided yet."

"The adult trimming the donkey's hoof is the blacksmith of Habsburg Manor."

"....."

Suddenly, the still dazed Rein heard the loud rebuke of the hoof trimming master.

"You little brats, didn't you eat your breakfast? Can't even hold down a donkey's hoof!"

"Hurry up, hold it down!"

Two young servants were sweating profusely as they tried to hold the donkey's hoof, but their youth rendered them shaky against the strong animal.

Rein shook his head as he watched; both young servants, like himself in this body, were weaklings who naturally couldn't hold down the hoof!

According to the memories in his mind, the original occupant of this body had joined the Habsburg Manor's servant training only two days ago, only after his family squeezed out most of their savings and greased the palms of the manor's servant chief to finally secure a spot.

In this world, there's a custom where nobles with lands generally select a small number of people to become official servants through servant training and examination, grooming them from a young age.

Typically, positions for male servants include coachman, guard, cook, baker, butcher, wine maker, blacksmith, dog trainer, falconer, and so on.

After three months, the manor will organize an assessment to recruit five outstanding young servants to become official household servants, including two blacksmith apprentices, two guards, and one dog trainer.

So, the training content for this batch of male young servants is all centered around these three positions.

"An otherworldly version of civil servant exams?!"

An idea suddenly popped into Rein's mind.

"Transferring here is one thing, but is the goal of my diligent efforts really to become someone's servant? What kind of nonsense is this?!"

"That's just nuts!"

At that moment, the chattering rattle of conversation exacerbated Rein's headache, which was already throbbing from a donkey's kick.

Enduring the pain, Rein glanced sideways and saw several tall young servants in clean linen tunics not far from him, pointing and laughing at him while bursting into boisterous laughter.

"Kicked by a donkey... too hilarious!"

Upon seeing these individuals, related memories of the original body slowly emerged in Rein's mind.

These "elites" among the young servants were all children of the town's shop owners, effectively the "rich second generation." They stuck together and frequently bullied other young servants.

Rein, having just arrived, was no exception and was immediately set upon by them, daily tasked with cleaning the dormitory—a job that should have been rotated among the young servants according to the rules.

"That one with the thick eyebrows is the son of the town's tavern owner, nicknamed Thick Brows."

"The freckled-faced one, the son of the town's hotel owner, nicknamed Freckles."

"The one in brown linen shorts is the son of the town's tanner, he's alright, no nickname."

"...."

"Damn, how useless! To be bullied by a bunch of kids?" Rein lowered his head to look at his scrawny body and shook his head helplessly.

After the group mocked Rein for a while, they began to chat about various topics, and Rein, needing to understand this world, pretended not to care while listening intently!

"Did you hear? Albero Town, not far from our Flashgold Town, was attacked by a wandering ogre last night, many were killed or injured," said the boy with freckles softly.

The freckle-faced boy's family owned an inn; he was one of the only two well-informed rich kids.

"Is it true, why has it been all this kind of news lately! Just a few days ago, I heard from the merchant caravan that there seems to have been a cult sacrifice in Monheim Town, and quite a few people died," the thick-browed boy said with a terrified look on his face.

The thick-browed boy's family runs a tavern, another person who's well-informed on the latest gossip.

"Ah, if only there was a chance to go to County Town, life there is much safer!" the tanner's son sighed and said.

"It's not that easy! Only if you can make it through the selection and become an official guard, then get noticed by superiors and transferred to the main household in County Town, which is extremely difficult," the freckle-faced kid shook his head.

"Yeah, but no matter what, becoming an official guard after passing through the manor's selection is the first step..." the thick-browed boy said confidently, waving his sturdy arm.

"....."

Rein, hearing the content above, couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

"Ogres?"

"Cultists?"

"Could this be a Transcendent world?"

Rein couldn't help feeling a little excited, worried, and full of yearning in his heart!

He just didn't know what sort of Transcendent world this was.

There was very little related memory information in his mind!

Because his original self had never ventured outside the limits of this small town, he had never encountered monsters or any mysterious existences.

However...

Wandering Bards and mercenaries coming from afar often brought all sorts of incredible news, about monsters frequently lurking in the night, gigantic sea monsters in the ocean, haunted houses in busy markets, and highly fatal plagues, among many others.

The previous him would always treat these stories as if they were fairy tales.

Listening to the tone of the rich kids, could these stories be true?

Rein stroked his chin and pondered for a while.

"Next group, Rein, George!" Baal shouted.

Hearing his name, Rein immediately stood up and joined a boy with light yellow short hair, beginning the arduous task of pressing down on a donkey's hoof.

At that moment, Blacksmith Baal stepped forward, easily picking up a large iron shovel and began to trim the overgrown, bent hooves of the donkey.

However, it seemed there was still some inflammation in the center of this donkey's hoof, a faint trace of pus oozing out during the trimming process.

"Hee-haw!"

The robust black donkey, suddenly feeling pain during the trimming, let out a loud bray, its body violently shaking and struggling.

Rein immediately went all out to secure the donkey's hoof in place, preventing it from moving and affecting Baal's trimming.

In less than two minutes, sweat was already pouring down Rein's forehead, and his black hair began to stick to his forehead in clumps as his strength was nearly depleted.

"Luckily, this is the last hoof of this donkey."

"Once we're done with this black donkey, the next group of apprentices will take over, and I'll be able to rest for a bit and catch my breath," he thought.

"Watch closely, you need to be bold yet careful when trimming hooves, and keep your wrist loose..." Baal demonstrated and explained as he worked.

When the last hoof was finished, Rein and George collapsed onto the ground like deflated balls.

Their wilted appearance immediately drew laughter from the "rich kids" standing by!

Faced with such mockery, George's face flushed with anger, but Rein remained indifferent, even pausing for a moment.

Because a transparent box suddenly appeared on his retina and automatically flipped to the second page.

On the second page were several lines of small text and a bunch of icons.

[You have assisted in hoof-trimming work; comprehension improved!]

[You have learned a new Skill—Hoof Trimming]

[Your Skill Hoof Trimming received an upgrade, Experience +1]

[Congratulations! You have triggered the Job Panel—Blacksmith Apprentice]