Chapter 13 - A Carriage Ride (1)

Verity had shouted so loud, surely the people in the next city could have heard him.

At the sound of his voice, the woman with the cat ears pushed Verity away, a disgusted expression on her face. “Ise-what?...Are you a crazy person?” She wanted nothing more than to get back inside the carriage and leave this strange man behind.

‘Ah shoot, I totally said that out loud…’ Verity thought, embarrassed.

The man with the long cloak then approached Verity, much more politely than his partner did. He offered Verity a polite bow and extended a hand covered by a black glove.

“...Perhaps we should introduce ourselves first.” He wore a soft, gentle smile. “I go by Ash, and the beast woman next to me likes to call herself ‘Midnight’. May I ask who you are?”

‘Ash and Midnight… So cool!!’

Verity squeezed Ash’s hand, an awkward smile on his face. “M-my name is Verity. Nice to meet you!”

Ash retracted his hand, and although Verity missed it, he briefly glanced at Midnight, prompting her to reach for something behind her back.

“If I may be so bold as to ask. What exactly are you doing out here all by yourself?”

Of course, Verity couldn’t say that he had been transported here by a demon as part of the tutorial, so he lied.

“I’m… lost?” He told Ash.

Before Ash could reply, the beast woman interrupted. “I’m telling ya! This guy’s crazy! Let’s just leave him here and move on!”

But Ash ignored her. “Where were you going? Perhaps I can guide you in the correct direction.” He said, the soft smile never leaving his lips.

‘Ugh, this guy is asking all the hard questions…’

Verity knew nothing about this world, so he had to come up with a believable lie. He thought for a second, stroking his chin, but there was only one thing that came to mind. He had seen the trope many times, and didn’t see why it would not work in his situation.

He scratched the back of his neck and let out a dry laugh. “I’m… not sure actually. I can’t remember much…I was just here when I woke up…”

He was feeding them a bold-faced lie, and could only hope that they would believe him. He’d expected the woman, Midnight, to doubt him, or for Ash to question him further, but their expressions suddenly changed. Replacing their previous countenance, what showed on their face was closer to concern than anything else, indignation, even.

Midnight sighed, and shook her head as her gaze dropped to the ground. “Another one…?”

Ash frowned, and looked Verity up and down. “Yeah… the confusion, and the memory loss... It checks out.”

Even the carriage driver rubbed his hand over his face. “How many times does this make…”

What the hell were they talking about? Has this happened to them before?

“Excuse me, but are there others like me?” Verity asked.

They all seem pained at the question, so much so that Verity almost regretted asking. “You’ve surely forgotten this as well but it’s… the demon king’s curse.” Ash said.

Midnight clenched her fist and continued. “Makes people forget who they were… Oblivion they call it…” She looked away as she placed a hand on his shoulder. “Sorry for being rude earlier, I didn’t know…”

‘What kind of twist is this…?’

Now it was the young girl’s turn to speak. She had a soothing voice which seemed to have been trained since birth. The way you’d have expected a noble woman of older times to speak. “Please, traveler, ride with us to the next city. We’ll take you to the Holy Temple of Terras. They’ll take care of you.”

‘That easy?’

Verity was taken aback. This encounter had surprisingly gone much better than he had expected. Not only were they bound to be nice since they seemed to pity him, but they were going to let him ride along for free and enter the next city with them.

‘I guess I am lucky after all.’

Verity cusped his fist in his palm and bowed. He had seen it in a martial arts webtoon before and thought it would be appropriate here. “Thank you for allowing me to come with you.”

When they opened the carriage door for him, he grabbed his spear which had been planted in the ground, and entered with it. He sat next to the young lady on one side, while both Ash and Midnight sat on the other side of the carriage.

He had not noticed it before, but now that he had a closer look, the carriage they were riding on was quite luxurious. The seats were especially comfortable, made of a white fabric, and the whole interior was adorned with gold flowing in intricate patterns along the wooden walls. Even the air inside the carriage was different. A faint smell of roses filled Verity’s nostrils and calmed his mind.

Verity glanced at the girl beside him. ‘Is she really a noble?’

“So, seeing as to how you’re carrying a spear, you must have been a spearman?” The young lady said. Her eyes were gleaming as she eyed Verity’s spear. “Ah, but feel free not to reply if you do not remember. It’s just that… Oblivion affects individuals at different degrees… and I’ve always been fascinated with adventurers.”

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“Haha… sorry Miss…” Verity did not know her name.

“Eleanor!” She replied excitedly.

‘Ah, right. The carriage driver did mention it at the beginning.’

Verity coughed. “Sorry Miss Eleanor, but I don’t think I was. Though, I believe I wanted to learn it at one point.”

“Ah, if it’s that, then I can introduce you to a spearman ship school. There is a fee to enter, but it’s rather cheap, and if you just mention me, you’ll get a discount.” Ash said, also eyeing Verity’s spear.

Midnight sighed. “Then I guess you don’t have a class. Maybe you were on the path to getting one?”

This immediately drew Verity’s attention. “A class?” he said with genuine confusion.

A silence filled the carriage.

“...Is it that severe?” Midnight mumbled, a tinge of pity in her voice.

“Do you know of Terra’s Touch?” Ash asked him, as if he was talking to a child, but the lack of recognition in Verity’s face told him all he needed to know, so he proceeded to explain it.

He sighed. “...Terra’s touch is what grants humans, demi-humans, and monsters, skills, levels, and classes. It’s what allows us to surpass the limits of our bodies. It’s… everything!” He told Verity

‘Oh! He’s talking about the system!’

Despite knowing what they were referring to, Verity ultimately told them that he had no idea what they were talking about, for fear of differences between his and their system. This increased the worry on their faces, and they became even more gentle toward Verity, almost treating him like a psych ward patient. This did make him uncomfortable, but if ‘I forgot’ was a sufficient answer for any question they asked him, Verity could not complain.

Apparently, Ash used to be an instructor of his town’s adventurer academy, but recently quit because he was inspired to get back into the adventuring lifestyle. Because of this, Verity was also able to extract much more information from Ash as he was eager to tell him. The system was frustratingly vague, but Ash seemed more than happy to fill in the gaps.

They started by telling him the basics. The place he was in was called the Terras Kingdom, where its citizens worshipped the goddess of the earth, Terras. They believed that she was the source of their ability to use skills and the like. Ash spoke of neighboring nations, the culture, and even their favorite foods. It was all very interesting, but that was not what Verity was most curious about.

By adeptly probing, he was able to steer the conversation in the direction of classes.

Ash leaned against the cushioned seats of the carriage, gesturing with his hands as he explained. “Take the spearman class, for example. It’s a basic combat class that most people who wield spears obtain at level five. Its first and second skills are 'Spear affinity’ and ‘Spear body enhancement.’” He glanced at Verity’s spear. “They’re skills that only those of the spearman class can obtain, just as ‘mana sense’ is reserved for the mage class. We call those class-exclusive skills. No matter how hard they try, a swordsman will never learn ‘spear affinity’. It’s locked to the class”

Verity nodded, attentively listening to Ash. He would probably never get such a clear explanation again.

“Those skills allow a spearman to have a considerably greater understanding and prowess with the spear than a non-spearman.” Ash continued. “Of course, even with the class, there are still levels of talent, wit and physical stats, which is why we rank adventurers.”

‘So it’s not all about skills…’

Ash was about to continue, when Verity asked a question. “What if someone who was not of the spearman class wanted to learn the spear?”

Ash smiled, as if he had heard that question many times. “That’s a good question. It’s possible, and may even have its advantages at times. Take a priest, for example. If they train hard enough with the spear, their class may advance to paladin! That said, while it has happened, it is rare. Most paladins started as paladins when they reached level five.”

Midnight scoffed. “Basically, you should forget about it.” She cut in bluntly. “It’s not because you aren’t a spearman that you can’t learn spear aura or something like it, but since it’s a class exclusive skill you’ll never get the real deal.” She gestured sharply with her hand. “Meaning that your aura will suck in comparison to a real spearman who has the skill.”

Verity frowned. He honestly doubted that his class would evolve, as it did not seem to fit into what a ‘typical class’ should be. This meant that if he wanted to learn how to fight, he needed to accept that he would never be as good with the spear as a real spearman. This stung a little, but he was glad to understand where he stood.

Ash raised a hand, his expression thoughtful “Well, that’s true… but there are other variables.” He said, not fully agreeing with Midnight.

Verity sat up, curiosity reignited. “What kind of variables?”

“Let’s say, two fighters learn the same style, have the same weapon, and the same skills, then of course the one with the class will win.” His gaze turned pensive. “...But what if one had a Masterwork weapon, while the other’s was Crude? What if one had a considerably better style? What if one was smarter? What if one had so much more talent that it even surpassed the ‘spear affinity’ skill?”

Midnight groaned, throwing her head back. “Is it about her again?! The Heavenly Sword?”

Ash shrugged, a faint smile on his lips. “What can I say? She’s a Druid, of all things, who achieved the Ultimate Skill of the swordsman class without the help of Terra’s Touch. She’s said to be on par with the Spear of Hell, even. I admire her deeply.”

‘The Spear of Hell and the Heavenly sword… That’s almost poetic.’

Midnight crossed her arms with a dramatic sigh. “She’s the exception of exceptions. We don’t know if this guy was, or is a spearman, but don’t get his hopes up.”

Despite what she said, Verity was getting his hopes up. Though he couldn’t say that he regretted picking the Fool class, he had always dreamed of wielding a weapon and standing on the frontlines. Now, he just had to hope that he was talented.

With those last words from Midnight, he noticed the young girl standing next to him, was silently listening to the conversation. Her eyes were full of wonder, and Verity could infer why. If she was truly a noble, then she must have been sheltered her whole life, held far away from adventurers, and even farther away from danger.

He wasn’t sure whether that was a bad thing, but he did feel a tightness in his chest when he saw how excited the conversation made her.

Before he could ask more questions, partly to entertain the little girl, however, the carriage came to a sudden stop.

Midnight sighed. “Ugh, what is it this time?”

“Please… come out.” The carriage driver whispered from the front.

Ash grabbed his sword, and both him and Midnight exited, closely followed by Verity who was holding onto his spear. Surprisingly, no one stopped Verity from exiting the carriage, but he was instructed to stay back by Midnight.

“I have a bad feeling about this. Please stay inside this time, young lady.” Ash muttered to Eleanor.

She promptly nodded and watched as the three of them left.

A rough looking middle aged man with a round belly and a greasy beard greeted them when they exited the carriage. Verity realized that they had left the grassy plains and that they were now crossing a dense forest, though the dirt road was still clearly visible.

The man was accompanied by others resembling him in their hygiene. At least ten or so of them.

‘These are really bandits…!!’ Verity thought, his heart beating with a mix of fear and excitement

The large one at the center brandished his rusted blade and spoke to the group. “Ah travelers!” He said with a wide smile that revealed a row of yellowed teeth. ”Welcome to the Green Forest, but… It’s a dangerous place, you know? Luckily we offer safe passage… for a price!”