First Encounter

It resembled a small town rather than a "village". From as far as he could see, Franseid covered the natural land.

"I don't remember saying anything about it being small."

"Yeah, it's just how I imagined it, I guess…"

There wasn't any sort of "front gate" to keep out any unwelcome guests, only a pair of guards who looked no older than freshmen. It seemed as if their presence woke one of them up, who somehow managed to doze off while standing upright.

"Ah, Lady Adelaide! W...we didn't expect you back so soon!"

The guard on the left with short, brown hair slurred his words as he snapped into focus. After racing to greet Adelaide, both of the guards had their gaze shift over to Ren, looking him up and down.

--My clothes...I totally stand out!

"And your friend here...he's--"

"None of your concern."

Adelaide seemed to have some sort of authority over the guards, who listened to her as if she was their employer.

"Did you remember to collect coin from travelers today?"

She asked a question aimed at both the clearly inexperienced watchers of the village. A clear shiver rushed over the two guards as they exchanged nervous glances.

"About that…"

"Damien, that was your job today!"

The guard on the right, with poorly-groomed, blonde locks , interrupted the other, supposedly named Damien.

"What do you mean, Merth? I did it yesterday!"

The two bickering young guards stopped as they noticed the frosted glare from Adelaide, piercing them directly with contempt.

"We're sorry, Lady Adelaide…"

They both dropped their heads, apologizing in unison as they gave in. Ren could only stand there and watch in confusion at the peculiar situation.

--"Lady", I mean, she looks elegant, but nothing she said ever hinted at that. Why is she asking about them collecting coin anyways?

"Don't let it happen again, I'll be deducting it from your wages--next time, you won't be left off the hook so easily."

Her words came out abrasively, no hint of mercy or compassion as the unbecoming words left her noble lips. Merth and Damien only nodded their heads in compliance before Ren followed the young woman into the village, looking back to see the two guards still sulking.

"What was that about?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it."

Bluntly denied, he experienced that same razor-sharp edge tone she held against the guards. It started to feel like was being pulled along rather than accompanying this girl, who he was starting to feel he knew truly nothing about.

--No surname given, nothing about whatever her deal is with those guards...she's really keeping me in the dark here.

As soon as he entered the heart of the village, he could feel eyes scanning him from every direction. It was one thing to feel as though you were being watched, but he could blatantly see the villagers looking at him as if he were some sort of alien.

"--what the hell is with them? Don't they know it's rude to stare…"

"What do you expect? Look at the clothes you're wearing, you stick out like a sore thumb."

She didn't stop nor did she even spare him the effort of looking at him while talking. What she said was right, he remembered that same suspicious look he got from the young guards.

"True…"

In the crowd of villagers, squeezing through the narrow dirt roads, he couldn't so much as keep track of where she was taking him. As a recluse, this definitely wasn't his forte--pushing past people, having to brush against them as constant chattering filled his eardrums, it was a claustrophobic environment.

A flood of aromas invaded his nostrils--the welcoming, stomach-rumbling smell of freshly baked bread lingered in the air above, followed by the smell of burnt, heated metal as he came into earshot of metal being molded by a blacksmith.

Somehow--they ended up in a narrow alleyway, by himself, although it was better than the bustling streets the pair walked. At the very least, it was devoid of people and had some shade cast over it.

"Still--how the hell did we end up here?"

Before he could get his answer, he noticed two figures that he didn't notice at first, obscured by the darkness that presided over the alley. One was lanky, while the other obviously had a fondness for food, made obvious by the round gut he displayed.

"You've got some odd clothes on there."

The tall, slender man's voice came out in a rasp, wearing a wicked smile that hid none of his less than good intentions. The scars etched onto his face were telling of the bad choices that led him to this moment. In addition, their tattered, filth-covered clothes made it all the more clear what kind of people they were. Being with someone dressed lavishly like Adelaide, they stood out as prime prey for thugs like this.

"Look, we don't want any trouble, we just got lost--"

"Strip."

"Eh?"

"You heard him, give us your damn clothes before we knock your teeth out!"

The round, yet still muscular one piped in, clearly not much is going on up there as he was quick to resort to violence.

"Urr, Ally, you wouldn't happen to have any more mana left in the tank, would you?"

"Unfortunately, mana doesn't replenish that fast--and after calling me that, I don't think I'd help you even if I could."

Adelaide didn't seem worried in the least, standing behind Ren as if using him as a meatshield.

"Well...I didn't want it to come to this, but I guess it's time to test my main character powers privileges out!"

Ren wore a nervous smile, raising his fists as he squared off with the two alleyway thugs. Besides praying for natural blessings, he was relying on the thugs underestimating him--getting confident in their numbers and at his less than intimidating build.

--Which means, they won't expect me to take the initiative! "He who attacks first always wins!"--somebody said that, right?

Closing the gap between him and the slender thug with greasy, long black hair, he reared his fist back before sending it against the man's nose with all of his strength. In his mind, he expected the man to be sent flying against the furthest wall, potentially crashing through it after breaking through the sound barrier. What did happen, was the lanky man stepped backward a couple of feet as crimson fluid leaked from his reddened nose.

"Where the hell are my improved stats at--?"

"You'll pay for that, shitstain!"

This time, it was the boulder-shaped man rushing towards him with his head lowered, taking up the entirety of the narrow hallway--which left no room for swift maneuvering. If he tried to get out of the way of the large thug's bull-rush, it would put the girl in danger.

--I guess I've got to man up, or hero up! Whatever, just find a way to counter his rush!

If he tried to take it head-on, the size disparity would result in him being run over. There was only one option--go for the legs. There was no way moving at that speed, carrying that large of an upper body, that the man would be able to fight against a takedown.

He dropped his stance, charging forward as he lunged at the man's lower half.

"Heave-ho---!"

Ren gritted his teeth as he pushed with all of his strength, managing to knock the goliath over as the top of his head smacked against the large man's surprisingly solid stomach. He was unable to take advantage of the fallen over thug, getting up just in time to avoid a haymaker from the lanky one.

"Was I always this awesome? I only feel a bit lighter, but otherwise--I don't think anything has really changed with my body."

"Bastard--! So you've got some spunk, do ya'?"

The round thug stood up with the help of the other, a feral rage inhabiting his grey irises. Ren noticed the man must've hit the back of his head when he took him down, watching as the thug shook off the pain as his maroon locks flailed behind him.

"Don't take your anger out on me! You picked this fight and now I'm pretty pissed!"

Ren snapped back, thriving with a new sense of confidence after successfully standing up for himself, in front of a pretty girl, no less.

Going for another telegraphed straight-right, the weaselly thug evaded the punch and countered with a left his own, feeling his boney knuckles drive against his nose.

"Payback--!"

The thug laughed as his tongue hung out from his mouth, holding his fist up as if it was a holy sword.

"I don't want to hear about "payback"--are you just going to keep ignoring the fact that you started this?!"

Ren rubbed his sleeve against his throbbing nose before raising his guard again.

--"Everyone thinks they're a hero until they get slugged in the face!" That's what my old man used to tell me. I'll have to thank him if I ever get the chance!

It wasn't much, but being prepared to be hit was as good an asset as a solid defense or offense. If he wasn't ready for that, he likely would've broken down into tears or froze out of fear.

That fresh confidence soon diminished as he watched as the thugs reached into the pockets of their trousers, the heavy one revealing a pair of brass knuckles as he slid them over his fingers. On the other hand, the slim thug pulled out a rusted, yet still terrifying and lethal dagger.

"Ah, I think there's been a misunderstanding here. My clothes? You can have them. I think maybe I just had a bit much to drink at the tav--"

As he was busy making excuses in fear of his life, Ren had no chance to react to the brass knuckle-covered fist as it slammed against his fragile chin. He swore he felt his brain bounce against every side of his skull as he fell backward onto the ground, feeling as light as a feather.

Seeing stars dance above him, he soon saw nothing as his vision flickered, leaving him in total darkness before his consciousness slipped away from him.

--Ah, is this how my other world fantasy adventure begins?