Chuck rolled over and groaned in agony. It felt like someone was hammering a nail into his head with one of those air nailers. He tried to open his eyes but even the dim light felt like it seared into his retina's. He needed water. He didn't even recall what had happened the night before, just a strange dream of monsters and magic. When he recovered he was going to text his friends and see if they could shed some light on last night's activities.

He managed to roll over and crawl out of bed, whoever's bed it was. He looked around at the rough walls with his bloodshot eyes. Was he in one of those old-timey reenactment villages? His friends must have played one hell of a prank on him last night. He could hear noises coming from down the hall. Hopefully, the employees wouldn't be too mad that his friends dumped him here to sleep it off. He checked around the room, it was clear of vomit. At least he had that going for him.

He steadied his arm on the table as he stood up. Something clinked against it as he rose. Curious as to what it could be he looked down. Wait... was that a sword strapped to his waist? Just then everything came rushing back to him. All of his missing memories, and the realization that this was not a prank. He rushed out the door and ran down the hall. He stumbled past a few people that only glanced at him as he burst through the front door, voiding his stomach on the rough dirt in front of the building.

Sweat was pouring down his face and he was panting heavily as his mind sorted through his memories. Memories of his past life. He remembered being sick, in a hospital and hooked up to all manner of machines. He remembered it was late-stage cancer and the doctors could only ease his passing. He had been forty-eight at the time. Now he was sixteen, reborn in a whole new world with magic and terrifying beasts.

He had loved the concept of magic, beasts, and skills growing up. Heck, he still played tabletop games well into his late thirties. It was probably why he died single and alone. Now he had a second chance at life, one he wasn't about to squander sitting around and playing games. That's when his mind decided to remind him about the task he had been assigned. He groaned, he knew he had to carry it out. Not for any sort of hero complex or anything. No, he needed to repay the kindness of the god that saw fit to save his life and give him this second chance at life. Hell, technically it was his third chance.

It was funny, Chuck never believed in gods back on Earth. Now on... what did they call this world? Oh right, Halcion. And he believed the continent was called Nol... something or other. Not like it mattered. He would ask Erwin if he ever figured out the language. Speaking of Erwin, where was the man. Chuck rapped his head to try and recall last night's festivities. Just then his stomach rumbled, followed by a wave of nausea.

After another round of clearing his stomach, he wiped his mouth clean. He could use some food and water to settle his stomach. He walked back into the bar and up to the counter.

Hamlar looked at the waif as he worked his way over to him, He had already sent the waitress to check his room to see if he needed to collect more coppers. Surprisingly she came back and said it was all good. That surprised him but meant he didn't need to mop up puke today so he couldn't complain.

"What'll it be?" he asked in his northern dialect.

Chuck just stared dumbly as the man asked him something. He mimed food and drink using his hand. He held up his water jug to show him he wanted water instead of alcohol.

Hamlar watched as the boy made odd motions with his hands. They were easy enough to figure out. The boy probably didn't speak any common. Halmar still remembered his first days in the Kingdom of Duluvar, years ago and not knowing the local language. He fished a copper out of his pocket and held up three fingers. Hopefully, the kid could count.

Chuck watched the large bald man hold up the coin and the fingers. Figuring that it was the cost of a meal. He stuck his hand in his bag of holding... 'how cool was that,' and thought three copper. When he pulled his hand out he had three of the copper coins. He handed them to the barkeep, who looked at them oddly but pocketed them anyway. The man waved him to find a seat as he called to the waitress to fetch food.

He was through his second bowl of runny porridge and mug of water when Erin and the rest meandered out from their rooms. He waved to them.

"There he is," Bargo called out.

"Kid has a better constitution than the rest of us if he was up and eating already," Mellas added.

"By the way he acted last night he would have sworn it was Chuck's first time touching drink. Now, looking at him this morning, He would swear the boy had been a seasoned drinker. A boy full of surprises," Erwin added.

They joined Chuck at the table. He was just starting on a third bowl, the others ordering some food as well. Nobody really tried to engage him in conversation this morning. Not like the bits and pieced he remembered from last night. His hangover had subsided quickly when he got some water into his system, perks of a high constitution he thought. His other stats were still recovering slowly. He noticed that it did affect his training speed. He still managed to finish off level three of tracking and level five of light armor while he slept.

He hardly even knew he was wearing the armor anymore, it felt like normal clothing. He decided to look at his skills while the others ate, especially now that he had a new perspective with his old memories.

Light Armor: 5-5

Bladed Weapons: 5-5

Ice Arrow: 520/1600SP to level 5

Multitasking: 8624/20000SP to level 3

Minor Heal: 1-1

Sneaking: 4-5

Short Sword: 8/20TP to level 1

Mana Manipulation: 0-5

Tracking: 3-5

Last night's drinking had cost him so many possible points. It was a good thing he still had skills queued. Which reminded him, he added tracking to his queue after sneaking and mana manipulation. He looked at the bonuses he got for the two skills he trained.

Tracking: You notice tracks and signs of passing easier than before. 100% chance to successfully follow a trail less than a day old. 25% chance to follow a trail over a week old.

Light Armor: Reduces the fatigue and movement speed penalties of wearing light armor by 50%.

Level three of tracking was a big boost, it was immediately noticeable in the small signs he was able to pick up, even in the bar. Looked like light armor was a ten percent boost across each level, nothing groundbreaking there but still nice to have. He couldn't wait to see what the mana manipulation skill was capable of, just not enough to pause level five of ice arrow. He wanted his only ranged attack to be maxed as soon as possible it had come in quite handy. He also noticed his constitution and dexterity had gone up a point, bringing them both to fourteen.

When he opened his eyes he saw Erwin looking at him with a small smirk. He recalled that smirk and it didn't make him feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Chuck was learning to trust his instincts. After they finished eating Erwin motioned for him to follow. The group headed towards an open area behind the stables where a few targets were set up. Erwin said something, then pointed to the target as he released his fire spell. Chuck decided that firebolt fit the description. Erwin then turned to him and flashed fifteen fingers.

Chuck shook his head, showing five fingers. Erwin nodded and flashed fifteen again followed up by some words he didn't understand.

"Alright Chuck, I want you to practice until you can reliably fire fifteen of your ice arrow spells. I have the feeling that might take a while."

Well seems like he wants me to train... my mana pool? Sure, let's call it that. Can't hurt to be able to cast more spells. Chuck started forming the spell in his mind, letting it fire off as soon as it formed. He did this five more times, alternating between calling out the spell name and casting without it. After the sixth arrow, he started to feel light-headed and had to sit down.

Erwin walked up and tapped his sword. Chuck groaned but got back up to practice his sword skills.

This went on for a few hours, Chuck alternating between casting spells and practicing with the sword while his mana refilled. He was up to eight casts of ice arrow now before he was too drained to continue. He only passed out once, good thing Erwin was there to douse him with a bucket of water. The others laughed but they too were practicing, as well as a few other people from the village. Although nobody was going at it as strenuously as Chuck.

Eventually, Chuck couldn't lift his arms anymore, they were so sore. The group headed back to the tavern to eat and rest. While this was painful and exhausting Chuck had never been happier. Erwin felt like a big brother more than some taskmaster or father figure. It was good. Chuck had grown up an only child in his other life so he never got to experience having a sibling. He also didn't have many close friends, preferring his introverted lifestyle. In this world it was different. Something about being able to see your growth spurred him on.

Over lunch, the guys tried to teach him a few words, simple things like a spoon or bowl or cup. He would repeat the word while holding up the item. Either they would laugh at his horrible pronunciation or clap him on the back. He didn't mind.

The after-lunch conversation was much more subdued as Erwin talked with the others.

"The guard captain wants us to head to Lionoss to alert the guild there about the basilisk."

"Of course that lazy turd would," Bargo added.

"Not like we have much of a choice," Mellas said.

The others nodded, the outpost was privately run and if they desired it they could kick their crew out and bar them from re-entry. Then they would need to locate another outpost in the wilds or camp in the open and return to the city every time they ran out of supplies. No, they needed to play nice.

Erwin spoke up, "We will leave in the morning."

"What about the kid?" Ricardo asked.

"He's coming with us."

"I don't mean to second guess you, boss, but the kid is a liability. With Sha dead, it will be dangerous enough for the four of us to traverse the wilds back to Lionoss without having to protect the boy."

"Normally I would agree, but you watched the boy this morning. He managed to go from casting five spells to eight. I would be impressed if he could cast seven at his age."

"He is probably a lost noble's kid," Mellas added.

Erwin shook his head. "No, I don't think so. If he were he would have gotten more training before he awakened. Like you said he had soft hands. Likely never held a sword or worked in his life. My guess is he was a street urchin. How he got his hands on fitted armor, a spellbook, and that sword is beyond me. You all noticed he also managed to find a dagger somewhere?"

They all nodded.

"Good. To address your concerns, Ricardo, we will train him all day today. Maybe he will even get his first level with his blade. That should at least make him less of a danger to the rest of us. It will also be handy to have another spell user in the group."

Ricardo nodded reluctantly. He wouldn't hesitate to leave the kid behind though.