Thomas is bored out of his mind. He and Jacob took over as guards of the Southern gate to the Starter Village early this morning and would not be relieved until lunch. The southern gate was even more boring to guard than the northern gate. Any new adventures would enter the village from the north. There were no adventurers currently in the Starter Area so only the occasional Reborn would possibly come from the south. Thomas is trying to distract himself by thinking about having a juicy steak for lunch when Jacob nudges him and points. A Reborn is exiting the woods bordering the village and as Thomas focuses on him, he is amazed.

He heard that Reborn sometime have a unique ability that lets them quickly advance, but he has never witnessed it himself. Thomas has lived an unexceptional life up to joining the Starter Village. On hitting age fifty, he realized that while he had made level thirty there was nothing special about his stats or skills. He didn’t have a girlfriend or wife; life has just passed him by. Something changed when he realized that, which is why he volunteered for a Starter Village when the System posted notices for interviews for positions in the Starter Villages. When he arrived the line of people was long even though only level thirty or higher could apply.

He waited his turn and considered all the other nervous people in line. The System could pay a person in many ways for working in a Starter Village. A sick relative could be cured, your debts could be paid, etc. The list was endless, only depending on the number of years of service you would have to pay. In Thomas’s case while he didn’t have a lot of money saved he also had no debt. Also, his immediate family was all dead, which just left himself. Thomas was interested in becoming young again to get a second chance at life. While there are potions and spells to make someone younger they are far too expensive for him to afford.

When his turn came, he took a seat in the small room he was escorted into. A tall muscular elf with long golden hair dressed in richly embroidered robes was sitting across the desk from him. After the elf queried Thomas’ status screen, he introduced himself.

“Greetings, I am Jason Greenbrook and I will be your System interviewer today. After looking at your stats and skills, you are qualified for a guard position in a Starter Village, but there are many others with higher stats and skills. Why should we pick you?”

Thomas was sure this question would come up, so after taking deep breath, he gave the answer he stayed up late thinking about. “I feel I have wasted a lot of my life, which is why I want a fresh start. I believe my mindset will stand me in good stead when dealing with new adventurers. I am very motivated to help as this is my only chance to turn my life around.”

The elf looked at him thoughtfully. “Here is what we will do. Your biological age will be set at 25, which makes you 25 years younger. While in the starter village you will not age. You will serve one year for each year you are made younger, which means 25 years of service. Since you are barely meet the level requirements, you will be assigned to Captain Varus’s barrack to be trained and the training will be harsh. You will follow all his instructions to the letter and be helpful and courteous always. These are the only terms offered, do you accept?”

Thomas accepted with tears in his eyes, feeling as if a heavy weight has been lifted from his shoulders. He went to the village two months later and met Captain Varus. Under Varus’s brutal training, the skills that Thomas had not leveled in a decade started to increase again. The guards would rotate between training and standing watches on the two gates in the village. His current partner was here to save his son who contracted a magical illness and would have died without treatment he could not afford without this service to the System. Today while on guard duty he meets a young Reborn at level three and already possessing a weapon.

George slowly approach the Village, which has a palisade of vertical logs about ten-foot high surrounding it, which tamper to sharpened points on top. There are two guards waiting at the open gated entry. It is obvious they have seen him and are patiently waiting him to arrive at the gate. George tries to Inspect both as he approaches, but doesn’t receive any notification for his efforts. I guess I don’t know how this Inspect is supposed to work.

When I get near, the guard on the right who seems the older of the two says “Good day traveler.” I return the greeting and check out their equipment. They both have spears tipped with bright steel, unlike mine. Both are equipped with chainmail with large thick leather belts that support a short sword and dagger. They are both sporting stout leather boots and leather helms with steel studs. The guards are staring at me intensely and appear somewhat surprised.

The guard on the right speaks again “Greetings, I am Thomas and this is Jacob, my partner. It is surprising to see you already at level three. You must have killed a lot of Horned Rabbits and you already have a weapon. Did you already enter the village from the north gate and then came back out to hunt?”

“No, I just came from the Starter Glade this morning.”

“Where did you get your weapon from then if you don’t mind me asking?”

“I made it in the Starter Glade using the materials there.”

Thomas and Jacob look at each other before Thomas asks. “How did you do that?”

It seems like my abilities maybe unique if they are acting this surprised. “I have some skills from my previous life. Since I am new to this world I don’t know much about what to expect, could you tell me a little about the village?”

The guard seems like he wanted to continue his questions before he caught himself. “Of course. This is the Village of Delvalle. It exists to help until you reach the tenth level. There is a Tavern where you get some starter quests and information about the Starter Area we are in. There is a Blacksmith, Tailor, Alchemist, Church, Bathhouse, General Store, and Barracks. There are clear signs on each building. I would start with the Tavern and you get the first seven days lodging and meals free.”

“Great, I could use a meal after having nothing in the Starter Glade. I’ll start with the Tavern first. Thanks.”

I head down the dirt street to the large well-built building constructed of whitewashed stucco. Dark wood beams support the red tile roof. There is no stable. I head in and pause at the door to allow my eyes to adjust to the lamp light inside. There are several polished wood tables with a huge hearth across the room. On the left is a long bar with the sole occupant polishing the bar. He is a large man with beefy arms wearing a large apron over a tunic. He gives me a big smile as he watches me taking in the room.

I walk over to him and he says. “Greetings. I am John the owner of this fine Tavern. Looks like you are new, but already at level three, very impressive.”

“The guards said the same thing. I was hoping to get some lodgings and find out some more information about the world.”

“Sure, that’s what the village is here for. To start with you will get seven days of lodging for free including 3 meals per day. If you are going out hunting or gathering let me know the previous night and we will have a meal ready that you can take with you.”

He pulls out a key from under the bar and hands it to me. “You are on the second floor, up the stairs to the left of the bar. It’s the first door on the left. You also get access to the bathhouse the first seven days as well. On the bed in your room there is a backpack that is yours with some items to get you started. The room is five coppers a night after seven days, ten if you want to include meals. The bathhouse is two coppers per use. The backpack includes a small book that describes the world and some basic information. Why don’t you go to your room, read that book, and then come down to get some lunch?”

“That sounds like a great idea. Thanks.” I head up the stairs and unlock the door. The room that greets me is spacious with an open window that lets in a nice breeze. There is a writing desk, one cabinet with a medium size mirror, along with a bed with a glowing lamp on the nightstand by the bed. I will have to ask how the lamp works. As promised a backpack rests on the bed. I take a seat on the bed which is softer than I expected. The backpack contains a coil of rope, fire starting kit, common knife, roll of bandages, beef jerky (5), canteen, bed roll, tattered waterproof cloak, and a small book. I put the cloak on, it has a nice hood. Then I crack open the book and start to read, which brings up a new prompt.

Do you wish to speed read this book, A Beginner’s Guide? Yes or No.

I select yes and suddenly I lose control of my hands, which start rapidly flipping pages, while my eyes unfocused as they scan down the pages. It is weird that my eyes don’t seem to focus on the words, but at the same time I know exactly what’s on the pages. After a few minutes I complete the book as it crumps to dust and vanishes, getting a new prompt.

You have learned the skill Reading, 10 XP awarded. Basic 1.

You have learned the skill Lore, 10 XP awarded. Basic 1.

I am especially interested in what Lore is, so I focus on this new skill.

Lore

Basic 1 (0%)

This skill works with the Inspect skill to allow the user to identify people and items covered by the knowledge this skill imparts. Currently only one book of Lore read. Read more books to increase your chance to identify new creatures and items you encounter.

This must be why my Inspect is not telling me much when I use it. I head downstairs after putting my spear in my inventory for now. I walk to the bar and sit down. The owner puts a large bowl of stew with a large piece of crusty bread down in front of me, followed by a large mug of foamy beer.

“Eat up.”, he says. “I will fill you in on some information most beginners ask and then you can ask any questions you have. First, it’s obvious you are one of the reincarnations, so you don’t know much about this area or the world. The System maintains this area and all the people running the stores and maintaining the village are working for the System in exchange for rewards. The System creates this area for both the people reincarnated by the gods into the world and the people of the world who want to take up a life of adventure. This is a religious rite of passage to many.

You will find most of the basic services, spells, and equipment available here. This area has a max level limit and you must leave within 1 day of achieving level 10. On death you will respawn in the cemetery on the edge of town. You will only have what is in your inventory and any soul bound equipment. Anything not soul bound outside of your inventory will drop with your body and anyone can loot it including yourself if you make it back to where you died before someone else. Also, half of the money on you drops. Once you get to a town you will want to open a bank account to deposit money, so you only carry as much as you need. Each time you die you also lose a level. If you are level 1 and die that will be your final death and you will not come back. You will respawn within one hour per level you had before you died. You can be attacked at any time. If you are attacked in the village the guards will defend you if they see the attack. There is no safe area except for certain dueling and arena areas, but none of those exists in the Starter Area, so don’t worry about those for now.

Now if you are interested in quests, all the shop owners have several you can ask for including myself. Now you have one serious decision to make. You are what we call a Reborn, which is a person reincarnated in a new body. As such while you are in a Harrow body you are not one. You will now see you have a Title of Reborn. Like any title you can hide it, which means new people will treat you as a Harrow. If you mislead them it may incur a negative favor with the System and you will seriously regret that if it happens. It is your choice though, but I would not hide it. That’s it unless you have some questions.”

I finish mopping up the last of the stew with the bread and gulp it down with a last draught of beer. “That meal was great. You’ve given me a lot to think about. Where would you suggest I start at?”

“Well you can earn more XP two ways, by taking gathering quests from the various shopkeepers or by hunting in the forests around the village. At your level the Horned Rabbits to the South will give low XP, but the Grey Wolves to the South East and South West will be hard with only one person. The last group that enter the Starter Area left three days ago, so currently you are the only new person here. If you want to hunt I would suggest grinding on the Horned Rabbits until you hit level 4 or take some gathering quests.”

“I have a question about language. I seem to be talking and seeing notifications in my native language. How does that work?”

“Well the System is translating for you and does that for everyone. Here there is only one common language for all intelligent creatures, which keeps things simple.”

“How about Lore? The book increased my Lore. Are there more Lore books here?”

“Yes. The standard set of five Lore books are available at the General Store for one silver each. They will teach you about all of the common creatures of the world and common items you may find.”

“I do have one other question, which is kind of embarrassing.”

“What about sex?” John says with a smirk.

“What? No, well that would be interesting to, but I haven’t had to use the restroom, since I got here and while it sounds like there is somewhere to take a bath there is nothing in my room or around the Tavern to take care of that.”

John, just looks at me confused for a minute and then wrinkles his face in disgust. “Oh, you are from one of those universes that doesn’t have magic? Here no one must use the bathroom. The magic system takes care of wastes from the body.” He paused and shivered as he said. “I am really glad I am not in your old world. It just sounds disgusting.”

“It has its moments. What about transportation? Do you use magic for that too?”

“We have gates at the main cities, which can transport you to any other city for gold. There are teleport spells that are about twice the cost, but they can take you anywhere you have seen. Then there are magical mounts that can carry you quickly from place to place by air, land, or sea. Finally, there are more mundane mounts like horses, but they are the least favored by adventures because of their slow speed.”

“I can’t think of anything else at the moment to ask, do you have any quests?”

“Sure gather 20 pieces of Horned Rabbit meat for me. You will get 1 copper per 2 pieces of meat.”

“Thanks, I will head over to the other shops before starting on that.”