Ren slept deeply that night, the kind of sleep that felt less like rest and more like a temporary shutting down of everything unnecessary. His body was heavy with the day's labor, his mind quieted by the steady rhythm of physical work. There were no dreams, just a blank, dark stillness.
Then, in the deepest hours of the night, a familiar sensation pulled him from the depths. A soft chime, felt more than heard, echoed somewhere in his mind. Cold, clear light bloomed behind his eyelids. When he opened them, a blue interface hung in the air, silent and unmoving.
> **You have slept. A new ability has been granted.**
> **Basic Plant Identification: Acquired**
He lay there for a moment, blinking slowly. There was no rush of information, no overwhelming flood of knowledge. Instead, it was like a drawer in his mind had been quietly opened and filled. He knew things now. The shape of leaves, the texture of bark, which plants could heal and which could kill. It was practical, immediate, and deeply useful.
He closed the window with a thought. It vanished without a sound.
The system never explained itself. It never gave him a choice. It simply provided, always after sleep, always something grounded. So far, it had never led him wrong.
He sat up, running a hand through his hair. The room was still dark, the inn silent around him. He dressed quietly, washed his face in the basin of cool water, and took a piece of yesterday's bread from his pack. As he ate, he opened his notebook to a fresh page and wrote down the new skill.
He didn't think of them as rewards. They were tools. And he was slowly building a set.
---
Later that morning, Ren returned to the guild hall. The main room was already busy, filled with the low hum of conversation and the clink of gear. He made his way to the reception desk, where a sharp-eyed woman with grey streaks in her hair was sorting through a stack of parchments.
"New face," she said without looking up.
"Ren. Registered a few days ago. Here to check for postings."
She flipped open a heavy ledger, her finger tracing down a list of names. She paused at his. "Ren. North orchard job. Stream clearance. Both logged. No complaints." She looked up, her gaze assessing. "Most new blood goes straight for the beast bounties. You're not interested?"
"Not yet."
She studied him for a beat longer, then gestured toward the job board on the side wall. "Board's fresh. There's a timber hauling request—merchant cart lost a wheel south of here. Three-person job, but one dropped out this morning."
Ren followed her gesture. A few adventurers were still clustered around the board, but most were focused on the more glamorous postings—goblin hunts, wolf culls, escort duties. His eyes found the one she mentioned. A small merchant caravan needed help with a broken wheel and required an escort through a tricky detour near an unstable bridge.
He took the slip and brought it back to the desk.
"This one."
She glanced at it. "Meet the other two at the east gate at noon. Don't be late."
"I won't be."
---
He had some time before he needed to leave. Using his new knowledge, he wandered through the market with a different perspective. Stalls he had passed without a second glance now held meaning. He recognized bundles of goldenroot for reducing fever, waterleaf for staunching bleeding, nethersprout for aiding sleep. He saw one vendor mislabeling a mildly toxic plant as a digestive aid. He didn't correct them. Not yet. Information was currency, and he wasn't ready to spend it.
By the time he reached the east gate, the sun was high and the air was warm. Two people were waiting by the departure board—a young man in worn leather armor and a woman with her hair in tight braids and a well-used carpenter's kit on her back.
"You the third?" the woman asked.
"Ren. I took the job this morning."
"Talia. This is Brann." She nodded toward the young man, who offered a lazy wave.
"You any good in a fight?" Brann asked.
"I can hold my own if I have to," Ren said.
"Good," Talia said. "'Cause we're not here to fight. We're here to fix a cart."
They set off down the south road. Ren walked beside Talia, asking careful questions. She was more open than most, and clearly knew her trade.
"Was a framewright's apprentice near Trenton," she said. "Before the river washed half the town away. Been on the road since."
"You've done cart repairs before?"
"Plenty. Wheels, axles, even rebuilt a full wagon once. It's all about the right wood and the right angle."
Brann, walking ahead, called back over his shoulder. "Bridge near the detour's been shaky since the spring floods. We'll need to take it slow."
Ren pulled out his charcoal and a scrap of paper, sketching a quick diagram of a reinforced wheel brace. "Think we'll need to support the front axle too?"
Talia leaned over to look. "Smart. Yeah, we'll keep that in mind."
They found the merchant's cart a few hours later, tilted awkwardly on a slope. The right rear wheel was splintered, and the axle was knocked out of alignment. The merchant, a thin man with a nervous expression, looked immensely relieved to see them.
"Guild actually came," he muttered.
"What tools do you have?" Talia asked.
"Mallet, some rope, a few wedges. That's it."
Talia sighed. "We'll make it work."
Ren dropped his pack and got to work beside her. Brann kept watch, scanning the tree line. As they worked, Ren felt his new knowledge settling into place. He understood the wood's weaknesses, the way the grain had fractured. He could see where moisture had weakened the axle. When he suggested a thinner wedge, Talia didn't question it.
They braced the wheel with a sturdy branch from a fallen tree. It wasn't pretty, but it was solid. Talia hammered the last wedge into place and stepped back, wiping her forehead.
"Good work," she said. "Better than some journeymen I've known."
Ren just nodded. Praise still felt like a trap. He hadn't earned anything yet.
Brann returned from his scouting with a handful of wild plums. "No signs of trouble, but we should move. Wolves around here don't wait for an invitation."
"The bridge?" Talia asked.
"Water's down. Should be crossable."
The merchant climbed back onto his cart, eyeing their work doubtfully. But when the wheel held, some of the tension left his shoulders.
"Didn't think you'd manage it," he admitted. "Usually the guild sends muscle, not brains."
"We're not done yet," Brann reminded him.
The merchant clicked to his donkey, and they started forward.
---
They reached the bridge as the sun began to dip toward the horizon. It was a simple structure—two logs spanning a narrow ravine, with a platform of planks lashed together. One of the supports had been undermined by runoff, leaving the whole thing tilted and unstable.
The donkey balked.
"Smart beast," Talia observed.
Ren moved to the edge, examining the support. The logs were sound, but the cross-brace was rotten. He turned to the merchant. "We need your rope."
They rigged a harness around the axles, tying it off to sturdy trees on either side. If the bridge gave way, the cart wouldn't plummet into the ravine.
"Go slow," Ren instructed. "One wheel at a time. No sudden moves."
"I know how to drive my cart," the merchant snapped.
Ren didn't argue. He just watched as the cart crept onto the bridge. The wood groaned, and the right wheel dipped alarmingly, but it held. They made it across.
Talia let out a slow breath. "Wouldn't want to do that again."
"Let's not," Brann agreed.
---
They made camp on the far side. The merchant had a small tent, but the rest of them slept under the stars. Talia built a small fire and passed around dried meat and hard bread. Brann took first watch, his spear resting across his knees.
Ren sat against a tree, his notebook open. He sketched the repair they'd done, noting the angles and materials. Not because he needed to, but because it helped him think.
Talia glanced over. "You some kind of scribe?"
"No."
"You always carry a book?"
"When I can."
She watched him for a moment, then nodded. "Smart. Most new adventurers come out here with a sword and a death wish. You fix things. You pay attention. You'll last longer than they will."
Ren didn't reply. She wasn't wrong, but she didn't know the half of it.
He still hadn't told anyone about the system. Even now, as he quietly identified the plants around their camp—knowing which were edible, which were medicinal, which were best avoided—no one noticed. To them, he was just quiet. Observant. Maybe a little odd.
To Ren, he was building something, piece by piece. The system didn't give him power. It gave him understanding. What he did with it was up to him.
---
The next morning, the merchant continued on his way. Brann split off near a crossroads, heading to visit family. Talia and Ren walked back together, taking a shorter route through the hills.
"Might stick around a while," Talia said as they walked. "Plenty of repair work. And it's nice working with someone who doesn't need every little thing explained."
"Is that rare?"
"You'd be surprised."
They walked the rest of the way in comfortable silence.
---
They reached town just as the sun was setting. The guards waved them through, and the sounds of the guild district washed over them—voices, laughter, the clang of a smith's hammer.
Before they parted, Talia turned to him. "You're good with your hands. That'll take you farther than a sharp sword ever will. Look me up if you want work on something bigger."
Ren nodded. "I will."
He watched her go, then headed to the guild hall to report.
The clerk at the desk looked up as he approached. "Back already?"
"Job's done. Cart repaired, bridge crossed, merchant on his way."
"Name?"
"Ren Hoshikage."
She made a note. "Talia and Brann already vouched for you. Said you pulled your weight." She handed him a bronze token. "Temporary clearance upgraded. You'll need to pass a proper guild test if you want better jobs."
"What kind of test?"
"Basic skills. Resource management. How you handle pressure. Next one's in three days. Bring your own gear."
He pocketed the token. "I'll be there."
---
Outside, the evening air was cool. Ren avoided the main tavern and headed toward his inn. The owner met him at the door.
"Back in one piece? Someone left a message for you." She handed him a folded piece of parchment.
The message was brief. A farmer north of town needed help with a broken grain sieve. No name, just a direction.
He didn't respond immediately. He went upstairs, cleaned up, and sat by the window, thinking.
---
That night, sleep came quickly. And with it, the system returned.
**Sleep Cycle Complete**
**New Ability Acquired: Fluid Dynamics – Tier I**
**→ You gain an intuitive understanding of how water, oils, and similar fluids behave under pressure, in containers, or through systems. Includes familiarity with flow rates, valve efficiency, filtration, and common pipe structures.
Ren lay still, absorbing the new knowledge. It wasn't flashy. It wasn't magical. But it was useful. He could design a basic irrigation system now. A simple pump. A water filter.
He sat up and opened his notebook, sketching diagrams and notes. His mind was already turning, planning, building.
This was what the system gave him. Not power, but potential. And he intended to use it.
---
By morning, he had a new direction. He would take the guild test—it was the fastest way to gain access to better resources and travel permits. But he also had another project in mind. Farming communities. If he could design a simple, efficient water system, it could change lives.
That was the difference between him and the other adventurers. They sought gold and glory. He sought solutions.
And if he was careful, if he was smart, he could build something that lasted long after he was gone.
---
Later that day, he found himself in a carpenter's workshop, explaining a design for a water filtration barrel.
The carpenter, a older man with sawdust in his beard, looked over the sketches. "This for some noble's project?"
"For whoever needs it," Ren said.
The man studied the drawings for a long time. "This could work. You'll need a fine mesh for the silt."
"I can get it."
"And metal bands for bracing. Rope won't hold under pressure."
"I'll find a smith."
The carpenter looked at him, really looked at him. "You want this built quiet?"
"I want it built right."
The man nodded slowly. "Come back in three days."
---
As Ren walked away, he felt a sense of calm settle over him. He still didn't know why the system had chosen him, or what it wanted. But with each new ability, he gained another tool. Another way to make a mark on this world.
Not with a sword.
Not with spells.
But with understanding.
And in a world that often relied on force, that might be the most powerful thing of all.