Evil had come to Oakvale. Bandits wielding torches and steel, slaying and burning all in their path.
Blood-red flames lit the night as the villagers screamed and begged for mercy, and soon their bodies filled the streets.
Then the raiders reached the last house, where the boy and his family lived. It was they who had slaughtered so many to find.
The father fought to protect his kin, but he was no warrior and fell mortally wounded.
The bandits ripped the house apart but could not find the boy.
Through torture and threats, his mother and sister remained silent, and their furious attackers took them both.
From the nearby woods, the boy watched as all he knew was taken away, and his whole life was crushed to ashes. He was alone.
The sun sets at a slow pace. When night fell, Archimedes stood in the darkness of the forest as he watched the village being burned by the residual flames and the bandits walk away with the spoils.
In the darkness, afraid and hungry, he was forced to go to the village. Archimedes walked through the streets, passing corpses and avoiding the fires that were burning all the houses.
Archimedes ran home to find his father lying in front of his burning house. There was a huge pool of blood beneath the body from the hole in the stomach. He had died with his eyes open.
As he approached, Archimedes couldn't help but start trembling. His hand brushed across the man's face, and he closed his eyes.
Although they had only interacted for a single day, Archimedes had all the memories of the last nine years. Tears formed in the corners of his eyes.
"The boss is right. The rat was going to come out of hiding one day."
Archimedes jumped to his feet when he heard a voice behind him.
"RAAAAH!" The bandit shouted as he ran towards him.
Before the bandit could get too close, Archimedes saw a bolt of blue lightning cover his attacker entirely. The bandit's lifeless body fell to the ground, and smoke and the smell of burning flesh rose into the air.
Behind the bandit was a man who scared Archimedes to the bone. Something like a blue tattoo glowed on the man's face, he wore clothes that looked straight out of a fantasy world, like a wizard.
"They're all dead. You don't want to join them, do you?" Looking around, the mysterious wizard commented.
Archimedes shook his head negatively.
"Then give me your hand." He said, holding out his hand to the trembling boy.
If he were in a normal situation, Archimedes would never have done that. His parents had taught him never to trust strangers, but given the critical situation, it seemed the best option.
When Archimedes touched the man's hand, he could see him take a strange insignia out of his pocket. The object glowed, causing both of them to be covered in light.
A magic circle formed on the ground around them, and Archimedes saw the landscape around them suddenly change.
A dizziness and sensation overtook him, causing Archimedes to vomit the contents of his stomach.
"Hmmm...I thought you'd have a stronger stomach than that."
"Give me a break, old man, I don't even have anything in my stomach to throw up anyway." Punctuating his words, Archimedes' stomach rumbled at that very moment.
"Come with me." Maze spoke before walking away up a hill, as Archimedes ran up to catch up with him.
"Never mind that, who are you and how did you do that?" Archimedes could vividly remember the bandit being struck by lightning, if it wasn't enough to have been teleported away from Oakvale in a magic circle.
"My name is Maze, a prestigious Will user, and I am head of the Guild of Heroes. You must have heard of it."
"I know a little." Archimedes searched his memories and remembered that his mother had spoken a little about this place.
"You'll find nowhere safer in all of Albion. Nor a better place to call your home." As if punctuating his words, Maze arrived at the top of the hill, allowing Archimedes to see the splendor of the Guild's construction.
"Whoooa!" Archimedes stared in amazement at the enormous building. The building was reminiscent of a medieval castle, yet it boasted opulent and stately features.
"And if it's revenge you want, you'll need the training that only we can offer," Maze pushed open the large double doors, revealing the even more elegant interior. "Here we are. I'll introduce you to the Guild Master. He'll be your guide from now on."
Upon entering the Guild, they entered a spacious room illuminated by a large chandelier attached to the ceiling. In the middle was a round table with a map of the whole of Albion and two curved staircases at the sides of the room that led up to the second floor.
"Hey kid, don't just stand there, come here." Maze snapped Archimedes out of his reverie. approaching, he realized that Maze was talking to someone else.
Maze was talking to an old man with a white moustache as the only hair on his head, and he had a tattoo on his forehead similar to the insignia that Maze used to teleport.
"I have a new student for you, put him in the dorm upstairs with the girl."
"You don't look like Hero material to me, but Maze knows what he's doing, I suppose." The old man glanced down, and seeing the small, thin stature, he chuckled.
"Good sir, I'm starving here, how am I going to look strong?" Archimedes tried to flex his biceps, but they felt like a deflated balloon.
"Hahaha, it's true, how could I not have noticed? Maybe it's old age making me blind." Clapping his hands, a servant appeared.
"Bring something for our new student to eat. What will the people of Albion think if they see our heroes looking like sticks!"
The servant leaned over, and soon a tray of fruit and bread returned.
Archimedes wasn't polite and devoured everything on the tray. It had been several hours since his last meal.
"Now, I think it's appropriate for our 'hero project' to say its name." The old man nodded, pleased with the boy's appetite. Good nutrition is one of the requirements for creating strong Heroes.
"My name is Archimedes Goldvain, sir. And who are you?"
"Hmm... A wise name indeed. This old man here is called Weaver, and I'm the Guild Master of this prestigious Guild of Heroes." Weaver said proudly as he stroked his beard.
"Now that your stomach has been filled and introductions have been made, head to your quarters." Weaver turned and began to climb the stairs without difficulty, given his apparent advanced age.
Archimedes followed behind, stopping in front of the third door in the corridor. Weaver took out a key ring with countless keys and picked up the right one.
It was a small room with two beds with a chest next to each bed, a table with a lamp and a chair, and a bookcase. There was also a door to the bathroom
"You'll be sharing this room with Whisper, one of our brightest young pupils." Weaver handed the key to Archimedes.
"She's playing in the woods right now, but you'll meet her in the morning. For now, you should get some sleep. Your training starts tomorrow." Weaver left the room.
Silence fell over the room. With some quiet time at last, Archimedes smiled as he remembered the scene of the bandit.
"Magic is real in this world!" Archimedes was very excited and just wanted to eat up the knowledge in the books on the bookshelf like a moth.
He thought he had transmigrated into some medieval world, which would be a real bitch. But a medieval fantasy world was a win-win situation! He always imagined himself becoming a great wizard living in a magical tower.
And throwing bullshit with his hands and flying through the sky on a magic sword, and used herbs to grow strong and get high to reach enlightenment while entering secret realms, and also slapped noblemen in the face and stole their daughters, wives and even grandmothers.
Ops...
He's just confused the worlds.
Archimedes shook his head, coming out of his deep thoughts, he went to the chest on his bed and saw that there were some clothes inside. They all looked too big on him, but it was better than wearing the clothes now tattered by the branches of the forest.
But first, he went to the bathroom, which was very simple: a big bucket full of water with a container to catch the water and a latrine. There was a hook where towels and clothes could be hung.
Archimedes could only grit his teeth as the water rushed over the cuts and bruises, creating a burning sensation. He picked up the black soap; it smelled rather good, even if its appearance wasn't so attractive.
Finishing his shower, he put on his baggy clothes, a simple white shirt, and pants that he had to fold a few times to stop them dragging on the floor.
Lying down on the bed, Archimedes relaxed and began to organize his memories.
His past life wasn't great; he only studied high school and had to drop out of university to work.
He just couldn't say how he ended up in Albion; the memories of the last few moments were hazy.
He also didn't remember reading or playing anything that looked like Albion, so he had no idea about his future.
Now, about his new life, he was on the continent of Albion, born in Oakvale. It was now late spring, May of the year 1267. His father's name was Brom Goldvain, and his mother was Scarlet Robe.
The most important thing was that he could read and write thanks to his mother, who bought books and personally taught him and his sister. He didn't know much about her, as she only appeared on certain occasions, but she was responsible for the noble life he and his sister led.
Archimedes ended up falling asleep while recalling all the important information. He had been through a lot in a single day, and it had all accumulated.
_____
"It's time to wake up!"
Archimedes felt someone nudge him. Opening his eyes, he got out of bed with a yawn. He saw a black girl with black dreadlocks. She was certainly his roommate, Whisper. Clearly, a few years older than he is due to her height.
"You must be my roommate. Hmm. Shorter than I expected."
"So what? You're big but you're not two, I'm small but I'm not half!" A vein burst in Archimedes' forehead. "Just wait for me to have my growth spurt, and we'll see who the little one will be."
"Quite temperamental too, I see."
"My name's Whisper. I've been here for a month. Had the room to myself 'til now, too. But that's all right. You know, you talk in your sleep? Sounded like a bad nightmare."
"Something about jade beauties, young masters, and courting death."
"Anyway, the Guildmaster is waiting for us in the Map Room, you don't want to be late on your first day. Follow me!" Whisper left the room with hurried steps.
Archimedes jumped out of bed, following right behind. He went downstairs to the lobby, where Whisper was waiting for him.
"Hmmm, looks like the Guildmaster got tired of waiting for you, he's probably at the training ground across the river, let's go!"
Whisper made her way to the training ground. Halfway there, they stopped at a hall with a large rectangular table in the center.
"This is where we hold all our meals. Since you missed out on breakfast, you will have to wait till lunch."
"Great, I'm not even really hungry." Archimedes shrugged and walked on.
"Hey, Whisper, I got you that staff and some equipment you wanted. Come and see when the training is over."
"All right, I'll come back later." Whisper nodded to the man, and she turned and said to Archimedes. "That's Dylan, the Guild merchant. If you need anything, he'll find a way to get it for you."
Archimedes nodded. It was good information, even though he didn't have any money.
Leaving the Guild building, they arrived outside, a large space with fences, bushes, a fountain with some tombs around it, and the bridge, which they crossed, arriving at the training ground.
"So you finally pried yourself from your pillow, I see," Weaver commented reproachfully.
Archimedes scratched the back of his head, a little embarrassed.
"Sigh... All right, lad, it's time to see if you've any potential. Get in the ring."
Archimedes entered the circular ring and approached a practice mannequin with a target on its chest and face.
"Now then, I want you to hit that dummy as hard as you can, just keep going 'til I tell you to stop."
Archimedes shrugged and got into combat position, lowering his center of gravity. He launched several blows, putting his weight on his body for greater impact.
"You can't do much damage, can you? Well, now try this, just be careful not to cut yourself." Despite his words, Weaver seemed satisfied with the ferocity of the blows, so he threw a bastard sword into the ring.
"I prefer a spear, Guild Master."
"The sword is the standard weapon of a Hero. You'll be able to choose another type of weapon when you grow up, but for now, you'll have a sword as your base."
Archimedes looked at the sword on the ground. The steel shone in the morning sun, highlighting the sharp edge. Things seemed to have escalated very quickly; until yesterday, the sharpest thing he had held was a kitchen knife.
Bending down, he picks up the handle of the dark leather sword with both hands. Taking a few swings in the air, Archimedes gets used to the weight.
Archimedes had a vague idea that a bastard sword should weigh around three to five pounds, but it wasn't that heavy for him. He seemed to be stronger than he looked for a nine-year-old, but he put it down to the fact that he was in a fantasy world.
Archimedes turned to the mannequin. Raising his sword, he descended on the dummy, using gravity to help. The sword sinks a few centimeters, but ends up stopping halfway. Archimedes pulls the sword out with some effort.
"Use your legs too and your waist, not just your arms." Weaver said, crossing his arms as he watched from the side of the ring.
Archimedes nodded. He adjusted his stance. Feet stable. Hips turned. He let the weight of the blade carry his movement, and this time, he added the twist of his body.
Without him realizing it, his body unconsciously moved, fixing the error in his posture and tensing the right muscles.
Swooosh
The blow was so fast that it not only cut through the wind, but the strike was clean, a sharp horizontal cut. The wooden dummy's head flew off cleanly, landing with a thud outside the ring.
"Good! good! It seems you have talent in the Heroic Discipline of Strength." Weaver's eyebrows jumped in surprise. It seemed that Maze had found a boy with the blood of a Hero.
Archimedes' head tilted. Weaver spoke as if he had some superpower, he had only swung a sword.
"I think I'm missing something here. They keep saying hero this, hero that." Archimedes muttered as he left the ring, leaving his sword behind.
"Come on, kid, we still have to see if you have the talent for Skill and Will," Weaver called out to him as he made his way to another training area. Archimedes finally noticed Whisper's absence.
"Let's continue our training with the bow." The Guild Master spoke up, handing Archimedes a yew longbow and three arrows.
"To begin with, see if you can hit the three fixed targets. The longer you pull the bowstring back, the stronger the blow will be, but also the strength needed to maintain it."
Archimedes weighed the bow in his hands. It was beautiful and dense, the yew wood warm under his fingers.
He nocked an arrow and drew.
The bow creaked under the tension, his arms shaking a little as the strength in the string pushed back. He aimed at the nearest target straw dummy painted and released the string.
Twang.
The arrow zipped forward and struck the target off-center. Not a bullseye, but not a miss either.
Archimedes took a deep breath and nocked another arrow.
He pulled the rope slowly, and without realizing it, that strange phenomenon happened again.
His shoulders rotated slightly, his elbows went back, while his posture tilted subtly to the left. Muscles in his back and abdomen contracted at the same time, stabilizing his aim with precision.
His pupil dilated, focusing intensely on the exact center of the medium-distance target.
Twang.
The arrow cut through the air with a sharp, clean sound, like a musical note. The arrow stuck right in the center of the target. A perfect shot.
Even the Guild Master was silent now, watching as the boy drew his bow again and released the last arrow, which, unsurprisingly, hit the target perfectly.
Archimedes stood still with his arm outstretched, as if trapped in a trance.
Weaver approached, putting his hand on the boy's shoulder, his narrowed eyes watching him more closely now.
"Excellent, you seem to have a talent for the Discipline Skill. Having two disciplines is quite rare."
"Now let's see if your blood also carries Will's gift."
Archimedes smiled when he heard the word Will. He remembered that Theresa had talked about Will in Oakvale.
Weaver took him to a secluded spot, a small island close to two waterfalls. A great place to connect with nature.