Three days after the incident with the tax collectors, Misaki stood in the Labor Guild's common area with dark circles under his eyes and ink stains on his fingers.
He hadn't slept much. The enormity of his situation had settled over him like a weight—five gold coins in one year. At his current earning rate of roughly thirty copper per day when work was plentiful, he'd need over four hundred days of continuous labor to earn that much. And that was assuming he didn't need to eat, didn't need shelter, didn't need anything for himself.
The math was impossible.
Which meant he needed to change the math.
His engineering background had taught him that when faced with an impossible problem, you didn't try to solve it directly. You changed the parameters. You found leverage. You innovated.
For three nights, Misaki had worked by lamplight in his small, half-finished dwelling, sketching designs and taking measurements. The Rulwood Forest represented M'lod's primary economic resource, but the logging process was brutally inefficient. He'd watched the loggers work—two men with axes, taking hours to fell a single large tree, exhausting themselves in the process.
There had to be a better way.
And then he'd remembered: Japan. The specialized pull saws that could cut through wood with minimal effort compared to Western-style push saws. The genius of the design was in the mechanics—pulling put the blade under tension, preventing buckling, allowing for thinner blades that cut more efficiently.
He'd sketched frantically, adapting the design to what was possible with M'lod's technology and materials. A long, flexible blade. Teeth angled to cut on the pull stroke. Handles on both ends for two-person operation. Simple. Elegant. Revolutionary for a world that apparently had never developed saw technology.
The prototype had taken him two full nights to complete, working in Torran's blacksmith shop. The massive blacksmith had been skeptical at first—"A blade that thin will snap like a twig, boy"—but had let Misaki use the forge anyway, perhaps out of curiosity or pity for the sky-faller's desperate situation.
The blade was far from perfect. Misaki's metalworking skills were rudimentary at best, and the teeth were hand-filed rather than precisely machined. But it was functional. And if it worked even half as well as he hoped...
Now, in the morning light, Misaki hurried through his farm duties. His hands moved with practiced efficiency through the starc fields, harvesting with the speed of someone who'd done this hundreds of times.
"You're getting faster," Millia observed, inspecting his baskets. "And your quality hasn't dropped. Six baskets in half the time it used to take you."
"Practice," Misaki said, slightly breathless.
Millia counted out his payment, but instead of the usual twenty-four copper, she handed him thirty. "I'm raising your rate. One copper more per basket. You've proven you're reliable, and your efficiency saves me time managing the harvest. Don't make me regret it."
[30 copper earned]
[New daily average: 33 copper]
It was a small improvement, but Misaki took it gratefully. Every copper counted now.
He found the logging team at the Labor Guild, gathered around the job board and discussing the day's work assignments. Uyr'khall-tharn, Riyeak, and four other regular loggers turned as Misaki approached carrying a long, cloth-wrapped bundle.
"Sky-faller," Uyr'khall-tharn greeted him. "Heard about your trouble with the tax collectors. Brave. Stupid. But brave."
"I need to show you something," Misaki said, unwrapping the bundle to reveal the saw.
The loggers stared at the strange tool. The blade was roughly four feet long and perhaps two inches wide at its widest point, tapering slightly toward the ends. Wooden handles were attached at each end, and the entire surface was covered in evenly spaced teeth that caught the morning light.
"What is it?" Riyeak asked, reaching out to touch the blade carefully.
"A saw. For cutting wood."
Blank stares.
"A... saw?" Uyr'khall-tharn repeated the unfamiliar word.
Right. They don't have saws here. How do they not have saws?
"It's a cutting tool," Misaki explained. "Like an axe, but it works differently. Instead of chopping, it... well, let me show you. We need a tree."
The group made their way to the forest edge, where several marked Rulwood trees stood ready for harvest. Misaki selected one that was roughly eighteen inches in diameter—large enough to be impressive, small enough to manage safely.
"It looks too thin," one of the loggers said skeptically. "That blade will snap the moment you put pressure on it."
"The trick is you don't push," Misaki explained. "You pull. That puts the blade under tension, which actually makes it stronger and prevents buckling." He positioned himself on one side of the tree and gestured to Uyr'khall-tharn. "Stand on the other side. We're going to work together."
The lead logger shrugged and took the opposite handle. "This better not be a waste of time, sky-faller."
"Press the blade against the trunk, angle it slightly down, and when I pull, you just let it move. Don't fight it. Then when I push it back, you pull. We alternate. Ready?"
Uyr'khall-tharn nodded.
Misaki pulled.
The saw blade bit into the Rulwood bark with a satisfying resistance, teeth catching and cutting as the thin metal flexed under tension. Wood fibers parted cleanly, and pale sawdust began to fall from the cut.
"Now you pull," Misaki instructed, pushing the saw back.
Uyr'khall-tharn pulled, and the blade cut deeper. His eyes widened as he felt the efficiency of the motion—far less effort than swinging an axe, but with continuous cutting action.
They established a rhythm. Pull, push, pull, push. The saw sang through the wood, the sound completely different from the thunk-thunk-thunk of axes. Sawdust piled at their feet. The cut deepened visibly with each stroke.
The other loggers gathered around, watching in amazement as the tree trunk was literally sawed through. The process that would have taken two men with axes over an hour was happening in minutes, and neither Misaki nor Uyr'khall-tharn showed signs of exhaustion.
"By the seven chakras," someone whispered.
Six minutes after they'd started, the tree gave a warning crack. Misaki and Uyr'khall-tharn stepped back as the massive Rulwood tilted and fell with a ground-shaking crash, landing exactly where the loggers had cleared space for it.
Silence.
Then Riyeak let out a whoop of excitement. "That was AMAZING! We weren't even tired! Misaki, this is—this is going to change everything!"
The loggers crowded around the fallen tree, examining the clean, straight cut that had been made by the saw. No splintering, no jagged edges, just a smooth surface that would require minimal finishing.
"How much?" Uyr'khall-tharn asked, running his finger along the saw blade with newfound respect. "How much do you want for this?"
"It's not for sale," Misaki said, and watched their faces fall. "But I'm willing to rent it. Three copper per hour."
The lead logger's expression shifted from disappointment to calculation. "Three copper per hour... if we can fell trees four times as fast with half the effort, we can do a full day's work in six hours instead of twelve. That's six hours of saved labor for eighteen copper. We'd still come out ahead even after paying you."
"And," another logger added, "we could take on more contracts. The royal merchants always want more timber than we can provide. With this tool, we could actually meet demand."
"I want one," Riyeak declared. "How much to have you make me my own?"
"Twenty copper for materials, plus two days of labor," Misaki said, the numbers coming to him quickly. "Call it thirty-five copper total for a custom saw."
"Done!" Riyeak grinned. "I'll pay you by the end of the week."
Several other loggers immediately placed orders as well. Within ten minutes, Misaki had commitments for six custom saws at thirty-five copper each, plus rental fees that would start generating income immediately.
[Potential earnings: 210 copper from custom orders]
[Estimated rental income: 15-20 copper per day]
It wasn't five gold. Not even close. But it was a start. A real start.
As the loggers dispersed to begin their day's work—with Uyr'khall-tharn carrying the prototype saw like a treasured artifact—Misaki felt a hand on his shoulder.
Lyria stood behind him, her amber eyes reflecting something that might have been pride. "That was clever. Using your otherworld knowledge to solve a local problem."
"It's not enough," Misaki said quietly. "Even if I rent the saw every day and sell a dozen more, I'll still fall short of five gold in a year."
"I know." Lyria gestured for him to walk with her, away from the Labor Guild toward the quieter edge of the village. "Which is why I wanted to talk to you about an opportunity. A dangerous one, but potentially very profitable."
"I'm listening."
They stopped near the temple, where the morning meditation session was just beginning. Lyria's expression grew serious.
"Every year, for fifteen days during the month of Myrshade, something happens in this region. The dungeons open."
Misaki's attention sharpened. He'd read about dungeons in the lexicon—mysterious underground structures that spawned monsters and contained treasures. But the book had been vague on details.
"What do you mean, open?"
"Normally, dungeons are sealed. Inaccessible. The entrances exist but they're blocked by magical barriers that nothing can penetrate. But once a year, during Myrshade when certain planetary alignments occur, those barriers drop for exactly fifteen days. During that window, adventurers can enter the dungeons to hunt beasts and recover artifacts."
"And these artifacts are valuable?"
"Extremely. A single dungeon core can sell for two gold. Rare beast hides fetch fifty copper to one gold depending on quality. Magical items, skill crystals, ancient weapons—all of it commands premium prices from the royal merchants." Lyria's voice dropped. "It's also extremely dangerous. Dungeon beasts are stronger than their forest cousins. The deeper levels contain creatures that can kill experienced hunters in seconds. Every year, we lose people to the dungeons."
Misaki's mind was already calculating. "When does Myrshade start?"
"Twelve days from now. Chief Shy'yao organizes official expeditions—mixed teams of combat and support classes to maximize survival and profit sharing. This year, given your... situation, he'd likely approve your inclusion in a team."
"I need to talk to him. Now."
Chief Shy'yao was in the council hall, reviewing supply manifests with two village elders. He looked up as Misaki entered, his weathered face showing no surprise.
"I wondered when you'd come asking about the dungeons," the old chief said.
"I need the income. I'll do whatever it takes."
"Even risk your life?"
"I've already got a death sentence hanging over me. At least in a dungeon, I can fight back."
Shy'yao studied him for a long moment, then nodded. "Very well. I'm assembling several teams. You'll go with Team Seven: Vellin as scout and team leader, Deylos as ranged support, Riyeak as front-line defense, and you as... what, exactly? What role can a Jack-class fill in dungeon delving?"
"Utility," Misaki said. "Problem-solving. Adaptation. I can carry supplies, identify materials, support whoever needs it, and handle unexpected situations."
"A jack of all trades in a dungeon of specialization requirements." The chief's expression was unreadable. "This will either prove the value of your class or demonstrate why most consider it worthless. Team Seven departs in three days. Prepare yourself. And Misaki—" the chief's voice hardened, "—don't die in there. The village invested in your recovery. I'd like to see some return on that investment."
Three days.
Misaki left the council hall with his heart pounding and his mind already racing through preparation lists. He needed equipment. He needed to study dungeon layouts and beast patterns. He needed to train harder than he ever had.
But for the first time since the tax collectors had left him with an impossible debt, Misaki felt something other than despair.
He felt hope.
[New Quest: Dungeon Delving]
[Objective: Survive the 15-day dungeon expedition]
[Secondary Objective: Earn substantial income toward debt repayment]
[Warning: Dungeon mortality rate for inexperienced delvers: 34%]