Rubbing his nose absentmindedly, Sage closed the Guild doors behind him. He stretched briefly before turning right down the road.
A smile spread across his face as he hummed a cheerful tune, his steps light as if he were floating. The wind brushed against his skin, causing his short hair to flutter gently.
After navigating a few corners, he arrived at a medium-sized stall where an enticing aroma wafted through the air.
A few tables and chairs were set up; half of them were already occupied by customers enjoying their meals with smiles on their faces.
Most of them were Warriors clad in various types of gear from different races,humans, elves, dwarves, orcs,all gathered together.
Among them were three individuals who stood out with their deep emerald-green skin adorned with leaf-like patterns that shimmered in the sunlight.
This race was known as Verdanti; they thrived in deep forests and shared a kinship with elves, both disliking conflict.
Sage found himself captivated by their unique appearance but quickly restrained himself from reaching outto touch their beautiful skin patterns,he didn't want to come off as creepy or perverted.
"Oh... look who's here! Sage! How have you been?" A middle-aged woman with rosy cheeks and kind eyes greeted him warmly as he approached her stall.
"Good morning, Mama Arya! How's business?" Sage waved back at her.
"As usual," she chuckled softly before asking, "Do you want your usual meal?"
"Yeah, just like always." Sage nodded with a soft smile while Mama Arya began preparing his food.
As he watched her work, memories flooded back into his mind,images of another figure overlapping with Mama Arya's familiar presence stirred feelings within him.
A bittersweet smile crept onto his lips. "I wonder how Mama Maria is doing? I hope she's okay… I bet she must be heartbroken over my death. And old Henry too,I hope he can talk to his children."
"Here's your food, Sage." Mama Arya's voice broke through his reverie just then.
Shaking off his thoughts, Sage accepted the paper bag and handed her a gold coin. "This will cover my debt and pay for my meal; keep the change and buy something nice for Elira."
Without waiting for Mama Arya to respond, he turned and walked away, fearing she might reject his gesture.
As Sage's retreating figure disappeared from view, the middle-aged woman shook her head with a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "What a kind young man," she mused.
Sage strolled down the road, a paper bag in hand, his thoughts drifting back to his previous life on Earth. It was neither a source of joy nor sorrow; it was simply ordinary, much like himself.
He had been born into a low-income family as the third child among two older sisters. Growing up in an unremarkable house nestled in an average neighborhood, he followed the typical path: school, high school, then college.
When he entered college, he became fully independent, renting an apartment nearby and juggling three part-time jobs to support himself.
Tragedy struck during his final year when both of his parents passed away within months of each other. His sisters married and moved to different countries, leading their own lives.
The last time he saw them was at their mother's funeral; their conversations reduced to brief phone calls that barely scratched the surface of their shared history.
As if fate weren't already cruel enough, one of his sisters was diagnosed with a brain tumor that went unnoticed until it was too late. She fought valiantly for a year before succumbing to the illness.
He couldn't even attend her funeral,just sent flowers and a card. Many might label him selfish for this distance from family, but every story has its reasons.
After that loss, communication with his second sister dwindled further until they were practically strangers.
Did he miss his family? Yes, he did long for that sense of belonging,the warmth of having loved ones around him. But life marched on; he graduated successfully and found a modest job in a small company without major worries weighing him down.
Friends? He had a few acquaintances scattered here and there but none who would stand by him through thick and thin,a far cry from deep friendships where one would go to great lengths for another's sake.
As for romance? That seemed out of reach; any girl who glanced his way quickly lost interest. Eventually, he stopped trying altogether because he cherished his simple and laid-back lifestyle.
His existence felt like the quintessential tale of an isekai protagonist,utterly ordinary inside and out. The only people who could be considered family were Mama Maria and Old Henry; they had been part of his life's later chapters before it all ended.
Now thrust into this unfamiliar world, Sage discovered that the original owner's life trajectory had been even more tragic than his own back on Earth.
Alone in this new realm,no friends or family,he found himself accompanied only by a cold mechanical voice echoing in his mind.
"What a twist of fate, huh?" Sage chuckled softly, his gaze drifting up to the clouds lazily floating overhead. He longed for that same sense of ease, but it always felt just out of reach, as if some cosmic force had other plans for him.
The body he now inhabited had known nothing but rejection and hunger, a short, brutal life ended by a act of casual cruelty in a back alley.
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he refocused and made his way back to the Adventurer Guild. The familiar building loomed ahead, a comforting sight in the distance.
A smile crept across his face. "You know, this place will probably be with me until the very end of my journey."
The thought was so grand and yet so simple that it pulled him from his melancholy. He let out a laugh that caught the attention of passersby, who turned to look at him with curious expressions.
"Ugh! Look who's here." His eyebrow arched as he spotted an old man pacing nervously at the entrance of the Guild.
Sage shook his head knowingly; he could already guess what was on the old man's mind. Rubbing his nose thoughtfully, he strode over to him.
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