Ace woke up in a cold sweat. Having gotten very little sleep because of recurring nightmares, he rose from the bed and readjusted the bandages. Once that was done, he got fully clothed and was about to head out when he heard soft breathing. At first, he mistook it for some animal but shortly after noticed Sage sleeping on the couch in front of the fireplace.
"I guess Avery didn't let her in?" He thought. Not that it mattered to him where she slept. He went up to her and put the blanket which had fallen halfway to the floor back over her. Taking one last look at Sage, he left.
"It truly was a wonder how attractive the elf race was." Even Ace himself had admired his own appearance. It was one thing to see it from the outside perspective when creating the character, but actually becoming the attractive person is a whole other thing.
At first when Ace had become one with his created character, his movements felt awkward and as if he was controlling a flesh suit. But the more time he spent doing things, like when he hunted koboary, the more used he became to the new feeling. Now however, he didn't feel a thing.
Feeling recuperated, he moved with hasty steps towards the village elder's building. Yesterday had given him more than enough time to think over what needed to be done. Now with less people than he previously planned, things had to change.
Approaching the village elder's building, Ace noticed a fancy looking carriage being parked on the road. It was decorated in gold colored frames and white walls. Large black horses that to stare into nothingness. Ignoring the carriage and going for the door, he was stopped by Goren, the guard meant to protect the village elder.
"I'm sorry Ace but no one is currently allowed to enter the building." Ace noticed the seriousness in his voice and facial expression and sensed trouble. Something felt off.
"What's the matter? Can I know why?" He asked, hoping to god that no more trouble has occurred. They were already lacking in terms of forces as things stood. Anything more and protecting the village would seem like a pipedream.
"Village elder is currently receiving a very important guest and I recommend that you return later." Goren showed his left hand, guiding Ace away from the premise. That's when he heard laughter from inside the building. He didn't recognize the laugh but it sounded hearty and from the stomach. The individual in question seemed larger than your average joe.
"Alright. I'll come by later in the afternoon."
"Thank you for understanding." Goren seemed to breath out a sigh of relief.
Leaving his visit to elder for a later time, he moved on to the second matter he had planned. Walking around the streets, he finally found Jude sitting inside a building by the window. Taking a closer look, it was the village's library. Entering the small building, he was greeted by a lady in fine clothing and a smile. Ace nodded and smiled back to then turn to Jude.
"Hey, Jude!" Approaching Jude, Ace got a better look at his appearance. A young elf with decently long blonde hair. Ace got the feeling that he was constantly grinning but jested it up to be because of the character creation choices Jude made. For clothes, he wore a brown robe that looked to have seen worse days together with simple black pants and leather shoes.
"Oh hi. You seem to be feeling better?"
"A lot better. Though, something seems off with my body." Jude's smile twisted and turned to a worried expression.
"That doesn't sound good. Could you tell me what it is? I chose priest because I often helped my parents working in their local clinic before we were sent here."
Ace told him about the missing sense of touch. They went over a few different hypothesis but every time they seemed to be getting close to an answer, Ace said something that made Jude change his mind. After spending the better part of an hour working out what could be the possible reason, Jude suddenly said, "I'm sorry Ace, I can't help you. If I had the tools and machines I usually have, this wouldn't be a problem but sadly, we're working with possibilities and it's just too soon and we lack too much information to come to a proper conclusion. And that's just if we were humans. Now we're these alien creatures which we have no real information about." Jude looked bewildered the more he spoke.
"It's fine. I'm about to go speak with elder about some stuff. Maybe he knows something about the elves' anatomy that we don't."
"I just feel bad not being able to give you a proper answer.
"What you've told me is plenty. And if it weren't thanks to you saving my life, I wouldn't even be talking to you right now so don't worry about it!" Shortly after, they said their goodbyes. Walking towards the elder's building, he greeted a lot of the groups who were heading in to the dungeon. It was also when he realized that he hadn't seen Asher since the orc incident.
"Considering what I've heard, I wouldn't be surprised if he actually just left. He was brave to start with either way - good riddance."
Now in front of the building, he saw the elder and a tall and slim man exit through the front door. The elder, who usually acted with little care for his image, was now showing outmost respect and expression. Ace rubbed his eyes in shock.
The tall man said goodbye and walked towards the carriage that stood behind Ace. Looking into his eyes, Ace felt a sudden chill run up his spine and jumped, unconsciously blocking his view from the tall man with his arms.
"Hahaha. Well aren't you interesting." The man stopped in front of the carriage. "What's your name?" He asked.
"I'm Ace." He couldn't figure out why his throat was dry all of a sudden but whoever this man was, they were bad news. Wanting to see elder's reaction, he tried to turn to him but his body wouldn't listen to him.
"What the hell is happening?"
The tall man who had been grinning saw the confused look on Ace's face. "You seem quite fascinated by my sight. Though I am afraid I have to disappoint you, I prefer cute girls over handsome boys."
"Wha-" Ace was now not only confused but also weirded out. "What the hell is this man talking about? What is this situation?" He thought.
The tall man looked up to where the elder was standing and nodded.
"Sorry. I'll stop now. However, I am quite interested in who you are considering your abilities."
"I-I am Ace?" Still trying to work out the situation, he just repeated his name.
"Well yes, I do know that. But how long has it been since you awakened your rogue class?"
"How do you know that I'm a rogue?" Ace exclaimed. Ace was wearing nothing to show his class. The only thing to go off was his anatomy and even by that, it shouldn't be enough to discern which class he was.