Capital Town

Finally… light.

At the end of the jungle, I saw it—a town. My lips curled into a smile, and for the first time in days, I felt my chest lighten.

We stood at the edge of a cliff, the whole town stretched out before us like a painting. After surviving that hellish jungle, this sight was heaven.

“Wow… beautiful,” Mira whispered in awe.

Even Shimon, who usually kept his noble face cool and serious, had a faint sparkle in his eyes. Not that he’d ever admit it, of course. He’s too much of a “cool guy” for that. And before you think weird things—no, I wasn’t staring at his eyes like that, alright? I’m not homo, got it?

But just as I was celebrating, a problem popped up in my head: Frost.

Sure, some towns allowed magical beasts as familiars, but come on—our boy Frost wasn’t exactly a “normal” pet. He was huge. Silver fur, fangs longer than my arm… not exactly the kind of thing that screams “harmless.”

I was worrying when Frost gave a small bark—and suddenly shrank. His massive body shimmered, and in seconds he looked more like a large dog than a wolf of death.

“What the—?!” I blinked.

Shimon smirked (of course). “You made a contract with him. He’s tied to your emotions. He sensed your worry and adjusted. That’s how it works.”

Ugh. That smug look on his face—like he already knew everything. Annoying. Also, unfair. Why is he so cool and handsome on top of it? Bet he had a harem back in his noble days.

Anyway, thanks to Frost’s new form, we could approach the town.

At the gate, armored guards stopped us.

“Show me your IDs. Where are you coming from?”

Crap. ID? Yeah, about that—I don’t have one. Why? Because, hello, reincarnation doesn’t come with a passport!

I was ready to be tossed into jail when Shimon casually flashed a crest from under his cloak. The guards froze instantly, bowed, and waved us through.

“Apologies, sir, please enter.”

I shot Shimon a look. “The hell was that?”

“Nothing you need to worry about,” he said with that same annoying noble tone.

The town was alive.

Bustling streets, colorful stalls, merchants shouting about their goods, children running around… Compared to the oppressive silence of the jungle, this place was another world.

Food stalls gave off mouthwatering smells. Blacksmiths hammered away at weapons. Magicians floated their tools with spells. Mira and I couldn’t stop running from stall to stall like kids in a candy shop. Frost, in his smaller form, padded alongside me happily, wagging his tail.

But before playing around, we needed a place to stay. We found a nearby inn, rented three rooms, and finally—finally—I could flop onto a bed. I don’t even remember falling asleep.

When I woke up hours later, there was a knock at my door.

“Come in,” I muttered, rubbing my eyes.

Shimon stepped in, all serious as usual. A few minutes later, Mira joined too.

“We need to talk about our next plan,” Shimon said.

“Plan? What plan?” I asked, half-joking.

Both of them glared at me.

“Hey, relax! I’m kidding,” I raised my hands. “Look, the reason we came here was to find clues, right? So the next step is simple—gather information. We split up, ask around, and regroup.”

Shimon nodded. “Agreed. But first, we need to register at the Adventurers’ Guild. That way, we won’t need to worry about IDs. Plus, we can sell the materials we brought back from the jungle.”

“Sounds good!” Mira clapped her hands.

And so, the next morning, the three of us headed to the guild—with Frost trotting proudly at my side.

The guild was packed. Adventurers everywhere—muscle-bound warriors swinging axes, robed mages with glowing staffs, even some archers showing off their shiny bows. It was like stepping into an RPG lobby.

We walked up to the receptionist, a cheerful girl who greeted us brightly.

“Welcome! You’re here to register, right? Please place your hand on this crystal. It will measure your magical capacity.”

Shimon went first. The crystal glowed white.

“Three elements—fire, wind, and water. Very impressive!” she praised.

Next was Mira. The crystal turned green.

“Oh! Rare affinity—healing magic. Non-combat type, but very valuable.”

Then my turn. I placed my hand on the crystal—

CRACK!

The crystal turned pitch black—then shattered into pieces. The entire guild went silent. All eyes turned to me.

The receptionist stumbled back, pale.

“Y-your affinity is… dark magic. And your capacity… we can’t even measure it.”

Her voice trembled. She looked at me like I was some kind of monster.

Then she whispered the words that made the whole guild freeze.

“W-who… who are you?”