CHAPTER 2: DIMENSIONAL MERCHANT

Wade followed Calista out of the room, his footsteps echoing loudly in his ears.

His mind went back to what had just happened a few minutes earlier. He’d pricked his thumb, and stamped the contract with his blood.

It had glowed, magically sealing the contract. He was now an adventurer contracted to the Lion’s Guild. And that meant it was time for his awakening.

He walked behind Calista for a few minutes, passing guards posted at various corridors before they finally arrived at a hall.

The hall was large, with bright light fixed to sconces on the wall, designed to make sure that even a rat had nowhere to hide.

It was chock-full of guards, but the word Wade would better use to describe them was soldiers.

They were in full plate armor, every inch of their body covered. Magic radiated off them in waves so intense, Wade could feel his hair rising as it touched him.

"Halt!" The soldier at the front raised a hand.

Calista stopped immediately, and Wade followed her lead. She presented a badge, and the soldier beckoned her forward.

"We’re here for an awakening." She said.

The soldier collected Wade’s contract, going through it. Satisfied, he handed it back to Calista. But that was just the beginning.

They were then thoroughly searched, each one checked for any contraband. Of course, they found nothing on Wade except more debts.

After more minutes of intense scrutiny, they finally allowed them access.

"Come." Calista beckoned Wade.

Wade followed, trying to keep his calm as the eyes of the soldiers followed them down the length of the hall.

At the other end of the hall, they came to a gate. One of the soldiers posted there pressed a hand on the gate and it clicked open.

With a nod of thanks, Calista walked through, Noah following behind her.

They walked down another straight corridor, before emerging inside a room.

The moment they walked in, Wade felt the change. The air was cool, as if he’d stepped into winter. Torches burned in brackets along the walls, providing light to see by.

At the center of the room floated a cube, each of its faces as smooth as a mirror.

It hovered in the air at chest height, turning on a slow axis, reflecting the room and the people in it from all six sides.

Wade stopped without meaning to. On the surface of the cube was his reflection.

White hair. Purple eyes. Tall, yes, but thin to the point of shame. He looked like a scarecrow dressed in a man’s clothes.

His shirt sagged. His trousers clung to bones instead of muscle. His face looked like it had been drained of muscle, with his skin sitting on just bones. His wrists looked brittle.

’This is what I came with,’ he thought. ’But this is not what I’ll keep.’

"The Awakening Stone." Calista said from beside him, gesturing at the cube.

"It will read your soul and assign your class, and with it your origin skill. Place your hand on the surface and hold it there until the awakening ends."

Wade nodded at her words. His hands shook. He hid them by clasping his fingers, then let them fall loose again.

’Do it,’ he told himself. ’No more fear.’

He stepped closer until the cube’s cold reflection was the only thing within his vision.

He could almost see the pores in his skin. The lines of hunger at the corners of his mouth.

He lifted his right hand and placed his palm flat on the mirrored surface.

It was cool to the touch, almost soothing.

The metal, if it was even metal, did not give.

His breath fogged the face for a second, then cleared.

Ding!

The sound rang in his ears.

Golden letters rose into the air in front of his eyes as if written on the air itself.

[Unawakened detected...]

His chest grew tight.

Another line appeared.

[Cataloging life experience...]

His pulse thudded in his throat. He wanted to swallow but his mouth had gone dry.

The letters shifted again.

[Dimensional soul detected.]

[All requirements met.]

The words vanished. It was as if all sound had been sucked from the room.

Wade blinked. He glanced at Calista.

She watched him with a small smile on her face, saying nothing.

’Was that it?’ Wade thought.

Ding!

He was startled by the sound again.

More text flowed into existence in front of him.

[Class Unlocked: Dimensional Merchant]

[When others fight for scraps, you trade for worlds.]

[Growth Per Level: +5 Stat Points.]

[Bonus: +100 Unassigned Stat Points.]

Wade stared, breath caught halfway.

A hundred unassigned stat points? He had never heard of such a thing.

Not in all the talk this body’s previous occupant had heard about adventurers in the cold alleys.

Ten extra points would be a gift. Twenty would be a legend. A hundred felt like a mistake that might vanish if he blinked too hard.

’Is this good, or am I about to be hunted for it?’ The thought came fast.

The letters faded once more. He did not have time to chase the next thought before new text formed.

[Generating Origin Skill...]

[Please wait...]

A thin ring of light circled his wrist where it touched the cube.

It wasn’t hot. It wasn’t cold. It felt like nothing, which somehow made it more strange.

Ding!

[Origin Skill Acquired: Dimensional Ledger]

[Records all trades made by the user, tallying profit into cosmic value. Profitable exchanges generate rewards in the form of Dimensional Dungeon Keys, granting access to hidden dungeons across various dimensions. Debts or losses increase dungeon difficulty.]

Wade read it twice. Then a third time. The words did not change.

His throat loosened and then tightened again.

He knew what an origin skill meant. Everyone did. It was the one thing no one could take from you. It was the root of your path. Skills you could use without any requirements.

’Trades become keys,’ he thought. ’My own dungeons. Not theirs. Not regulated. Not taxed by Right of First Refusal. Private gates that no guild can lock.’

’If they knew this...’ He did not let the thought finish. He had no wish to see himself dragged into a back room and made to talk.

Or worse, slammed with an even more restrictive contract that would hand his dungeon keys to the guild or something.

But with this origin skill, he was basically a one man guild. He could sell his loot from his personal dungeon and make enough to buy out his contract!

That was when Calista spoke, jarring him out of his thoughts.

"Dimensional Merchant, huh?"