"AHHH!"
In the infirmary tent, Dylan sat up abruptly, clutching his amputated arm in panic, only to realize that his arm was still there.
"How...?" Dylan muttered, staring at his arm in disbelief. He was certain it had been cut off during the war.
"A Healing Potion derived from a Silver Axolotl," explained a young woman sitting three cots away from Dylan.
The girl had dark skin and short white hair, dressed in a red Victorian-style dress. She was inspecting what appeared to be potion bottles before setting them down and walking over toward Dylan.
"A Silver Axolotl potion enables complete regeneration of human limbs—brain tissue included," she explained with a gentle smile, taking Dylan's arm and massaging it lightly. "See? As if you had never lost it."
"I would have preferred never losing it in the first place... but thank you for giving it back," Dylan said gratefully.
"Don't mention it. It's always a pleasure taking care of others—especially handsome ones like you," the girl said with a warm smile. She turned around, bending over to rummage through the drawers of the bedside table next to Dylan's cot. "You know, you're quite different from the other transmigrators. To be honest, it's rather... refreshing."
That sparked Dylan's curiosity. He had heard there were others besides him, but this was his first opportunity to actually ask about them.
Determined, he turned to face the young woman, ready to ask where the others were, only to be met directly with the red fabric of her dress hugging her massive ass as she remained bent over.
"Ah... really? And what are they like, exactly?" Dylan asked, quickly averting his gaze. (God... it's gigantic... what is wrong with the women in this place?!)
"Mmm... let's see. They usually arrive with delusions of grandeur, looking to make a name for themselves or playing the lone wolf—yet always seeking the same things: harems and popularity," the girl explained with a soft chuckle. She stood up holding a fresh set of clothes, placing them on Dylan's bed. "However, from what I heard from your friend Connor, you don't even want to be here."
"You know Connor?" Dylan asked, not denying her statement.
"Of course. He brought you here two days ago at the end of the war, demanding that we reattach your arm. Obviously, we couldn't do that with our current resources, but as a token of gratitude for helping distribute the potions, the Master gifted you an Axolotl Potion," she stated.
Dylan nodded in understanding, but right then, a sudden memory flashed in his mind—the woman who had been beside him during that battle.
"And the woman? What happened to her?" Dylan asked.
"The woman..." The girl's eyes drifted toward one of the cots across the tent.
Lying on the cot was the woman, resting quietly. She was missing her right arm and left leg, with several tubes attached to her abdomen.
"After you lost consciousness, she kept fighting, but she was eventually surrounded... The pig-men dragged her into the depths of the forest. She was found like that yesterday," the girl explained quietly.
Her words formed a heavy knot in Dylan's stomach. He couldn't even bring himself to imagine what they had done to her.
*BAM*
Right at that moment, the door to the infirmary's break room burst open, revealing Connor followed by Robert, the Guild Master.
"See? I told you he'd be awake by now!" Connor exclaimed with a massive grin. "Out of the way, Melissa, let me see my battle partner!"
The young woman, now identified as Melissa, stepped aside with a faint smile.
"Man, you gave us quite a scare two days ago, Dylan!" Connor greeted him, stepping up beside his bed and clapping a hand on his shoulder.
The Guild Master approached as well, letting out a booming laugh upon seeing Dylan up and well.
"That sure was a close call, boys! Why the hell didn't you say you hadn't even taken an Initiation Potion yet?!" the Master asked, still grinning. "To think you spent hours fighting in a war against those beasts as a regular human!"
*BAM* *BAM* *BAM*
"That is your fault, Master!" Melissa barked, striking the Master over the back with a rolled-up newspaper, her gentle demeanor instantly shifting into a fierce glare. "How on the world did you fail to notice he wasn't an adventurer?!"
Melissa berated the Master for several minutes; Dylan hadn't been the only normal human sent out into the war, but he was the only one who had come back alive.
"Alright, alright! We all learned our lesson; just make sure it doesn't happen again," the Master ordered nonchalantly, as if it hadn't been his own fault.
"Shameless..." Melissa huffed.
"Whatever. It's not like I need an Initiation Potion back in my world anyway. Just send me back as soon as possible, please," Dylan said, sitting on the edge of the bed.
With slow steps, Connor stepped in front of him and placed a hand on Dylan's shoulder, wearing a somewhat mocking smile that boded no good. Behind Connor, Melissa winced with a look of uncomfortable pity.
The Master, on the other hand, held back nothing and let out a derisive laugh. Wearing a grin, he replied, "No."
"What do you mean, no?!" Dylan retorted instantly, slapping Connor's hand away. Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
"Dylan... you see, we don't know how you got here, exactly," Melissa began, feeling she possessed more tact to explain the situation. "Derek has already searched everywhere for any trace of your arrival and how you were transmigrated. The problem is..."
"There's nothing," the Master cut in. "Whatever ritual brought you here was washed away by the rain, and whoever summoned you either died in the war or vanished into thin air. There isn't the slightest trace of your arrival. To us, it's practically as if you materialized out of nowhere."
"That... that means..." Dylan tried to speak, but the words caught in his throat.
"You can't go back," Melissa stated gently.
A hollow, lost look washed over Dylan's face. What was going to happen to his life now? What about his grandmother, whom he had left behind all alone in another world? He was her only remaining family after his parents had passed away.
"And Melissa already administered the Initiation Potion to you while you were asleep," Connor blurted out, earning himself a swift strike to the head from Melissa's newspaper.
"Connor! Now is not the time!" Melissa scolded him.
"What?! He's already processing one thing; he might as well process that he's not human anymore either!" Connor argued, dropping another revelation that hit Dylan like a ton of bricks.
"I'm not human anymore?!" Dylan asked, alarmed.
"No."
"Yes."
"Does it matter?"
He received three conflicting answers simultaneously, leaving him even more confused.
Melissa cast a stern glare at Connor and the Master to shut them up, cleared her throat, and explained.
"You are human... BUT no longer a normal one. Technically, you are now an adventurer—a person possessing capabilities far beyond ordinary mortals."
"But I don't feel any different..." Dylan said, inspecting his own body, unable to find or feel anything unusual.
"That means it worked!" Connor interrupted, grabbing Dylan by the arm, tugging him up, and leading him toward a window. "Don't pay attention to that big-butt over there; she doesn't know what she's talking about—she's just a receptionist. Just look at this view! Are you really telling me you see this and don't want to stay?!"
Through the window, Dylan and Connor watched an adventurer wheeling a handcart loaded with mutilated bodies covered in white sheets.
The sky remained overcast—just like the day Dylan had arrived—without the faintest glint of sunlight. The dirt streets were slightly better illuminated now, revealing unpaved roads lined with houses under construction, while in the distance rose a massive stone wall stretching at least 50 meters into the air.
"No..." Dylan answered in a hollow whisper.
"Yeah... I don't know why I showed you that, honestly. It's an ugly city, ugly as a goblin's ass," Connor confessed, scratching his chin. "But hey! At least you didn't get the short end of the stick. Look at that guy over there."
Connor pointed toward a young individual with long blonde hair, sitting on a cot with a vacant stare, completely unreactive.
"He got hit so hard two days ago that he woke up yesterday claiming he's a girl," Connor commented, surprising Dylan, who had initially assumed the person was indeed a girl.
The Master glanced curiously at the youth, then at Melissa, who shook her head.
"It's true, Master. According to our records, he is young Rosevelle Dawn, who joined our guild a week ago. He hasn't stopped repeating that since yesterday," Melissa confirmed.
At that moment, the blonde youth's eyes welled with tears, and he spun around to face them.
"I... I AM A GIRL! I AM A GIRL! I AM A GIRL!" Rosevelle screamed, leaping to his feet. "My name is Mia, and I'm from Venezuela! I AM NOT A MAN!"
Rosevelle sprinted out of the infirmary tent screaming at the top of his lungs, his short hospital gown fluttering to reveal his lower body completely exposed.
"Sigh... Poor guy. Given his size down there, I suppose I understand," Connor remarked, only to receive another newspaper thrown straight at his face by Melissa.
"Great! I had just managed to calm him down, and now I have to go chase him down again!" Melissa complained angrily.
The Master watched the interaction, falling silent for a moment. According to Derek's reports, Rosevelle had fallen during the initial clash against the pig-men.
"Take Dylan out for a walk, then report to the guild hall. There's plenty to be done," the Master ordered, returning to his usual grin before heading out after Melissa and Rosevelle.
"You heard the man!" Connor exclaimed happily.
Dylan understood immediately: he wasn't being given a choice. He was an adventurer now, and though no one had explicitly stated it, he was apparently part of the guild.
Dylan stepped out of the infirmary alongside Connor. He was wearing the fresh set of clothes Melissa had provided, identical to the attire he wore when he first arrived in this world.
The moment he stepped outside, he was met by the unpaved dirt roads he had seen through the window. Most of the houses were still under construction, standing in stark contrast to the massive stone wall looming in the distance.
The wall was colossal and visibly far better maintained than the structures on this side, making Dylan wonder what lay beyond it.
"The nobles," Connor remarked, gazing at the wall as well. He knew exactly what Dylan was thinking.
"Nobles?" Dylan asked.
"Yeah, nobles. The bastards hide behind those walls inside a gorgeous city filled with luxuries, and right at the center of that city stands another wall, enclosing the royalty," Connor revealed.
With a light nudge of his elbow, Connor gestured for Dylan to follow him along the dirt streets.
The townsfolk looked haggard and exhausted; these wars were sadly nothing new to them. Some wept beside the corpses of their children or partners, while others grieved over bloodstained garments, lacking even a body to recover.
Connor walked past the citizens undisturbed. As a native of this world, he had witnessed such scenes hundreds of times, even within his own family.
"You get used to it eventually," Connor commented.
"The problem is, I don't want to get used to it," Dylan whispered in response. Normalizing grief and death felt entirely wrong to him.
The two continued on their way. Dylan noticed that the locals seemed to return to their daily routines surprisingly fast, seemingly unafraid of another immediate pig-man assault.
As they walked around exploring the area, Dylan caught sight of the Master and Melissa talking to a gagged Rosevelle. Rather than heading toward them, he veered off with Connor toward an open field where several adventurers lay sleeping on the ground.
"What is this place?" Dylan asked.
"According to my research, it's home for homeless adventurers," Connor answered.
"You're joking, right?" Dylan asked in disbelief.
"Nope. As I understand it, the adventurer dormitories haven't been built yet, so people sleep wherever they can," Connor revealed.
"So from now on, we're..."
"Hoboes," Connor answered with a broad smile. He had slept outdoors for extended periods before and was more than accustomed to it.
(I want to go back to my world...) Dylan complained internally. (Is this the fantasy people wished for?! It's... it's... IT'S A PIECE OF SHIT!) As the seconds ticked by, Dylan's expression shifted from grief and sorrow to sheer resentment and rage.
Who had dared to summon him here, and why?! By what right?! He had a comfortable life back in his world; he was about to start college to pursue a career as a historian and archaeologist, just as his parents had done before him.
And now? Now he was forced to live on the streets, eat god-knows-what, and take on likely dangerous, lethal quests. He genuinely couldn't believe it—was this the grand fantasy that so many fantasy fans longed for?!
"Alright, I think that wraps up our tour. These are the places you'll be visiting the most over the coming years," Connor stated with utter confidence.
"What about the city beyond the wall?" Dylan asked curiously.
"Not a chance. Only nobles and major merchants get in there—not folks like us. I told you that earlier, didn't I?" Connor replied instantly.
"Seriously, no one else gets in?" Dylan pressed again.
"Well, high-ranking adventurers too—only those at Rank B and above," Connor replied.
"What a load of shit..." Dylan blurted out instinctively, drawing a laugh from Connor.
"Well, this is your new life!" Connor teased.
With a nod from Connor, the two sat down on the street beside a sleeping adventurer, chatting to pass the time.
Adventurers came and went, taking on quests either within or outside the city limits. By 3 p.m., Connor decided it was time to report to the guild to see what was happening there. Naturally, Dylan didn't object; he had nothing better to do.
"The guild hall is located near the edge of the city—on the boundary, actually," Connor remarked.
"I hope it's better than our open-air 'dormitories,'" Dylan replied.