Longdale was a bustling little town situated just outside of the Allur Forest. The stone walls were thick, nearly 10 feet (3m), but that also accounted for the rooms built into the wall. Their height reached 25 feet topped with a proper crenellation that one would expect to see on top of a castle wall.

This town was popular far and wide for the low-level forest of Allur. Allur Forest provided an easy training ground for youths who were born with combat related jobs. Even low-level non-combat jobs aggregated here as the need for low-level equipment was high.

Trainers, like Morgan, also gathered here. The best, of course, charged for their service, but most people couldn’t afford them. The majority of the trainers were part of some sort of military, from mercenary companies to town guardsmen all the way up to the kingdoms army. The last group of trainers were like Morgan and worked for the Temple.

The Temple was one of the few sources of benevolence in the kingdom of man. Every year they took a lottery of poor youths and offered training to them. These were the few that didn’t have any obligations to fulfill once they reached a certain level. Morgan, being a Monk, was part of the Temple.

So the only choices when using trainers was to pay, serve, or be lucky. Those who were not lucky or didn’t want to serve and didn’t have money to pay still came, they were called the freelancers. Jude was considered one of these.

This was a lively town of youths. The average age that was considered to be an adult, or at the very least able to start leveling was the age of 15. Coincidently was also the lowest age Jude could pick when using the Character Creator. It was typical to spend 3 to 5 years in Longdale, after which you would go off to your profession.

Those who were not trained or trained by the Temple often became adventurers. Although the ones who did not have trainers more than likely died within the first year. After all, trainers like Morgan could easily protect his students in the field.

Those in the military obviously went to serve, but the ones who paid for their trainers were usually noble’s or wealthy merchants. They often went into the family business.

Jude, Morgan, and crew came into town with little problem. Longdale only required that they prove to be human and other than that there was no inspection or toll. Jude was happy about this as he had no money.

“You can stay at the Temple this night,” Morgan said, “but after that, you will have to fend for yourself. The Temple will put up travelers in most places, but here there are too many who need lodging.”

“I appreciate the offer. I don’t suppose you know how to make money here in this town?” Jude asked.

“There are a number of ways. The pelts of the wolves are one thing. If you can manage to not dice them up. The canines of the can also be sold. If you know herbs, there are plenty to pick and sell to an apothecary. And once you reach level 5 you can join a group and hunt goblins.”

Jude was already level 5 so that was convenient.

When they entered the temple courtyard Morgan said, “You will have to wait here, a Temple Maiden will come by and offer you some bedding and a meal.”

“Thank you for your generousity,” Jude said with a nod.

I guess I’m not getting a room? Makes sense I suppose. If I remember right, travelers often slept in courtyards or town squares in ancient times. This is definitely better than out on the street.

Jude didn’t realize how hungry or tired he had been until he sat down. Jude found a ‘comfortable’ place in the corner near the entrance. He wasn’t the only one here on the Temples hospitality. There were a dozen or so other youths, some milled around but most seemed too tired to make much of an effort.

The courtyard was rectangular and very spacious. A wide wooden walkway surrounded the yard and two large braziers were spaced out evenly in the center. As it grew darker, they were the only warmth in the yard, so Jude ended up moving closer and found his own little spot.

He noticed that the other travelers carried large packs with them, which made him wonder if they really did have access to the or if they just took with them more than they the could hold. If most or none had the then perhaps it was best to keep it to himself. He already saw the gazes of the youths that Morgan taught and the jealousy in their eyes.

Another’s jealousy could do wonders for your own ego, but could also present a knife in the back as well. Especially this world, it seemed much more barbaric than the one he had been born in.

Jude had always fantasized himself in a situation like this, but experiencing it first hand was much more daunting.

It was well past dark by the time the Temple Maidens showed up. The offered food of soup and bread. It wasn’t the best food Jude had ever eaten, but after this long day and the eternity of the Digital Plane, it seemed like heaven to him.

He made sure to savor every bit.

He was then given a blanket that was barely more than a burlap sack. So not much worse than what he was already wearing. Better yet, they told him he could keep it. Jude wasn’t one to turn away charity, especially when he needed it.

He made sure to thank the maidens for everything.

Then sleep then hit him hard and fast.

***

Jude woke up stiff and cold.

Dawn was just barely making its first bit of light. Jude had always enjoyed sleeping in, but as he turned from teen to adult on Earth, he had learned to temper his indulgences. So he woke up early.

He took this time as everyone else was still asleep to store his free blanket and put on his new boots.

Boots of Peace

10% Movement speed

1 Spi

1 Agi

Then he did some stretches to warm himself up and start moving his sore muscles.

There had been some bowls of water left out for washing, so he walked over to one and saw his reflection for the first time. He was young, a lot younger than when he and Murl got sucked into this dimension. His long dark brown hair looked like it needed a wash, but his eyes shown with a fresh green that brightened his face. Sharp features and sincere eyes were what he had gone for and it looked successful. It wasn't too far off from what he remembered was his original face either. Afterward, he quickly cleaned what he could without taking clothes off. That was a little outside his comfort zone.

By this point, others who worked at the temple were now up and busy. One of the Temple Maidens noticed him and waved him over.

“Since you don’t seem to be like one of these lazy ones, come this way and have some breakfast.” She said with a smile.

“Thank you,” Jude replied.

He was lead through a maze of hallways to a dining hall that was probably only used for temple workers. Morgan was there who called him over to sit by him.

“I see that someone of your age to have skills like you must have already developed good habits,” Morgan said.

“I’m not sure if I’m as good as you said, but I appreciate the compliment,” Jude replied.

Morgan chuckled, “You're even humble too. I wish I had a companion like you when I first started out. Things may have turned out differently.”

“Can you tell me about the temple?” Jude asked.

“Yes, we worship the Unknown God, said to be the creator of worlds. Our mission, however, is a little different than other religions, we wish to return the Message to the Sender.”

Jude’s scalp went numb, this sounded all too similar to the objective he gave the NPC’s he had sent into this Universe long ago. He truly hoped that he wasn’t responsible for this religion.”

“Who or what is the Unknown God?” Jude asked, not wanting to know more about the Sender.

“We believe that the Unknown God is the God of the Sender who sent the first peoples to this world.”

Yup, Jude was pretty sure he knew who the sender was now. Though he was unsure how they knew that the Sender had a God. Still, it seemed to fit, since it was true.

Morgan talked a while more about the Temple giving Jude a basic understanding of it by the end of breakfast. Interestingly enough the ‘Myth of Murl’ was mentioned. Though Morgan didn’t personally know much about it.

“There’s not much else I can do for you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of the Temples services. Why don’t you come with me and we can use the Status Orb.” Morgan suggested.

There was no reason to reject his offer so Jude went with him.

“Just place your hand here,” Morgan said after they entered a room near the entrance.

On a pedestal was a large glass ball the size of two hands put together. Jude placed his hand on the object and it lit up. He felt a tingling sensation as if something connected to his Modicuit. Then above the ball, his full status was shown, it looked exactly like it did when he called it up for himself.

*status

“A rank V skill! That’s really impressive. And you are already level 5.” Morgan was surprised.

Jude decided to ask how multi-classing worked, “I see I also have the Warrior job, how do I level that?”

“It’s true, you do have the Warrior job, but it’s one of the easiest to get. I would recommend that you stick with Wizard. It’s better to specialize rather than to spread yourself out. If you start leveling every job you get, eventually you will be average at everything and not very good at anything.

“For example, if you got to level 30 with Wizard, you would have access to and , then you would also have access to the 2nd tier class. But if you went 15 levels into Wizard and 15 into Warrior you would lack both of these higher tier skills. Of course, you would also gain weapon and armor proficiencies which aren't bad, but you can just add a Warrior to your party to cover those weaknesses.

“Lastly is the stats balance. Going straight wizard or related class will increase your Spirit (Spi) more which will, in turn, increase your damage. But if you take up warrior, your Strength (str) will increase. This will leave you average at best when attacking with either sword or magic.”

“I see, that’s a lot to take in,” Jude replied.

“I’m glad you understand. Here I will give you one last gift. This is a map of the newbie area. It will help you find your way around. I also recommend finding some people to party with.”

“Thank you once again, Morgan. You’ve done a lot to help me and I really appreciate it. I will definitely repay your kindness in the future.”

“There’ll be none of that,” Morgan said cheerfully, “Now go along, you have enough ambition that I’m sure you are eager to get out there!”

***

Jude hadn’t had the time or place to really look into his new skills. So, for now, he was relying on the two he knew best, Spectral Weapons and Spectral Shield. However, there was one he thought he might need to add.

Spectral Objects was the ability to create pretty much any solid object he wanted, though temporary. He decided to see if he could use it to skin the wolves from yesterday.

“.”

He cleanly sliced the head off a .

“.”

A small knife appeared in front of Jude, however instead of the real like blades of Spectral Weapons, this one was smokey and he could clearly see through it. He could also easily control it like the Spectral Weapons with the added bonus of it not costing as much mana to keep it out. In fact, it was practically negligible.

The problem came with its strength. It was quite weak. He had to physically grab the knife to even cut into the and then it broke after an inch of cutting.

He was going to need to spend some time making this skill better. Lucky for him, he could see his Modicuit so refining the skill only took 30 minutes or so and he raised it to Rank III.

Now came the task of bitterly skinning an animal.

Jude had seen some YouTube videos of it in the past, but this would be the first time he had done it himself. Remembering the videos gave him an idea. This time he attached the wolf corpse to some Spectral Ropes and held it firmly by all the corners. Spectral Objects was now strong enough to do all this with only a small mana drain.

He then took the knife, guided by his mind and began to skin the wolf.

It was a poor job, but passable. And he gained a new skill!

Skinning

Rank I

Allows you to be proficient in skinning basic animals.

Jude skinned another 9 wolves before heading to the next area.