Rob X Punzel ~ Two!

Becca shifted her weight from foot to foot, not allowing herself to stand still long enough for the warmth in her legs to cool down. Even as the apprentice baker casually tossed two loaves of bread on the counter and stared her down, she barely acknowledged his work. Her eyes scanned the street, as always making sure she had her escape routes planned if a brawl broke out. A strand of her golden hair popped out of place, falling across her right cheek, only to be impatiently brushed back behind her ear. 

“It wasn’t even touching my ears this morning; this is starting to get ridiculous,” she groused to herself as she performed the familiar motion, silently wondering when she’d have to cut it yet again. Allowing it to get too long was the same as lighting a beacon for muggers in the harsh, soot and muck covered streets of the Brute Kingdom’s capital. 

For a brief moment, her gaze dropped to the inner portion of her left arm, and a tap at her skin revealed how she’d progressed over the last year. 

Basic Skill: Hair Helper: Level 9/10.

Knots and tangles in your hair will be [Masterfully] smoothed and removed. Hair has a [Masterful] shine added, a continuous [Masterfully] rejuvenation effect is applied. [Masterfully] dries itself when wet, and grows [27] inches per day. A [Masterful] amount of filth is automatically removed.

Requirement to advance: Choose to ignore a life-changing offer in favor of taking care of your hair.

“Do you want the bread or not?” The apprentice baker called out, making Becca draw back with a sharp intake of breath as her eyes jerked to stare at the young man across from her. “If you don't, tell me so I can put it away. No point in letting it get stale for no reason.”

“Yes, I want it. Thanks.” Using some rudimentary sleight of hand to hide the pocket she pulled her coins from, Becca dropped two small copper coins on the counter and scooped the loaves into her arms as the apprentice lunged for the coins. His hand slapped down on the empty counter, and he shot her a mirthless grin as she beat a hasty retreat, knowing he would’ve taken the coins and the bread if she’d been even a heartbeat slower to move.

“Come again soon!” he cheerily called after her, even knowing there was almost no other stall in a morning's walk that would sell to orphans with no one to make them do so.

Becca didn't bother looking back, tucking the bread under one arm and holding it close as she walked with purpose through the all-too-familiar winding streets. She dodged back and forth through the crowd with practiced ease, keeping her eyes open for people staring at her too openly. Pickpockets weren't much of an issue, as theft and the like was punished incredibly harshly—the loss of a hand being the reward for being caught the first time. No, her fear was someone brazenly walking up to her and grabbing the food away, rewarding her with a fist if she protested. 

With a light sigh, she recited what had practically become the mantra those at the orphanage lived by. “Owning any treasure is a crime if you're not strong enough to keep it.”

Finally, she turned one last corner, and the orphanage came into view—a squat, gray stone building. It was built like a fortress and was large enough to be disheartening once its purpose was understood: there had been an epidemic of orphans over the last few years, as the Brute Queen ramped up her strength-building initiatives for the population. 

Even before Becca reached the side door, two small figures darted toward her, practically salivating as they stared at the crust of bread peeking over her thin arms. Johnny and Emma were seven-year-old twins, and though they didn't share the exact same features, today, they both wore the same hungry look. 

Their eyes flicked between the bread and Becca's firm stare, and finally Johnny mustered up the courage to plaster a grin on his face and hold out a hand. Tilting his head back and blinking rapidly, he did his best to look cute. “Big sister Becca! You brought us bread? Is it bought or stolen?” 

“You know I don't steal, Johnny,” Becca replied with a hint of unease. Even though Johnny was younger than her, he had an older brother who’d joined an illegal gang of thieves. Every day, when she returned from whatever odd job an eleven-year-old orphan like her could find, she was waiting to hear that he’d been caught and brought to face the queen's justice.

With barely a hint of hesitation, she broke one of the loaves in half. Keeping only one of the chunks for herself, she handed the rest over to the duo. “This is for your group, but remember, this is all I have for the day. Make sure the younger kids get some, or I'll just have to risk making your brother mad by ignoring you for a week or two.”

“Aw…” Emma complained gently as she took the bread and tucked it away in her shirt. “Food always tastes better when it's stolen.”

“Thanks, Becca!” Johnny called with a brilliantly happy smile. “Hey, my brother wants me to remind you that you'd be really useful as a distraction for the gang if you want to start training. He says you have that ‘innocent look’ that’ll cause hired muscle to pull their punches. He swears they won't hit you nearly as hard. Something to think about.”

“I’d rather not.” Becca replied firmly, as she always did. “I'm happy enough just making sure all my little siblings have a bit more food to eat. I wouldn't want to risk that.”

Emma stepped forward and gave Becca a big hug, whispering in her ear. “Big brother is really nice; don't let Johnny be a butt about this. Thanks for the bread, I'll make sure they all get a slice. The younger kids are on three-quarters portions for food because they couldn't hit the punching dummy hard enough to impress Miss Snooty.”

“Em-ma!” Johnny complained bitterly as his sister stepped away from Becca and swiped the loaf of bread from his hands. “Hey! No! Come back!”

As the twins ran off, deeper into the orphanage, Becca could only roll her eyes and smile at their antics. Her stomach rumbled, reminding her that she hadn't had any food yet today, either, so she chomped into her chunk of bread. Somehow, the morsel vanished in only a few bites, and she was reminded how difficult it was becoming to feed herself.

After getting access to the system, residents of the orphanage were supposed to seek out jobs or apprenticeships based on their classes and skills. To help push them into taking a job as quickly as possible, the free food they were allotted was reduced to half a meal portion, once per day.

Most of Becca's peers were similar to her in stature, but the majority had at least gained useful skills that could translate into a profession of some kind. The luckiest among them gained combat abilities upon system initialization, and were quickly shuffled off to join the city guard or the army of the Brute Kingdom. There, they were guaranteed lodging and food, not to mention clean clothes and training with their skills.

Even though she had a supposed ‘Mythical’ skill and had achieved level nine in it in just over a year, Becca was still stuck accepting any manual labor a petite, malnourished child would be offered. After licking the last few crumbs off her hand, she made a promise to herself—not for the first time. “I'm going to find someone who will hire me long-term. No more six hours of sweeping or organizing just so I can eat half a loaf of bread. I need to make at least enough that I can get my little brothers and sisters some meat every once in a while. I… ugh.”

She turned and started walking, having run out of energy for making grandiose plans. As Becca approached the gate all orphans with a class were supposed to use, her eyes narrowed at the sight of two people quietly speaking with each other. Normally, she would’ve rushed right past them, but they were blocking the door. She stepped back and away, closer to a side street, so she’d have somewhere to run if they turned out to be violent or looking for an easy mark. 

But as she watched them, she noticed the duo were completely out of place. The tall man with graying hair was dressed in extremely well-made clothes, though they seemed rather plain compared to what she’d seen other rich people walking around in. Most noticeably, they were completely clean, gleaming in the weak sunlight that filtered down through the surrounding buildings. The second person, who Becca had originally thought was just a short man, turned out to be a boy nearly her own age. This gave her enough courage to scooch closer, just enough to hear what they were saying.

The boy’s clean face was serious—his slightly rounded cheeks turning the expression cute—but he had a slightly disbelieving look in his eyes as the man gestured toward the orphanage. A small satchel was deposited in the boy’s hand, and the older man went still as he stared at the youngster sternly. 

“Father… why? What's the point of all this? It's just going to go straight into the pocket of whoever gets it anyway. You might as well dump it in your hand and toss it in the air so at least a few people will benefit from it, instead of just one.”

“Which is why it's important to remember who you give it to,” the man calmly explained. “I'd happily spend a little coin to learn who can be trusted to do as I request. If you ask me, knowing from the start who is going to do the right thing is worth the investment. This is why I'm having you start now. So you can learn for yourself. You know how hard it is for me to get away from… work. I can't be here every time.”

Becca's eyes lit up as she realized what she was seeing. The orphanage wasn't exactly a money-making institution, and charity in the Brute Kingdom was actively discouraged. At this point in time, places like this were kept afloat only thanks to hidden benefactors like the man in the nice, clean clothes. Careful not to alert them to her presence, she backed away and took a lap around the city block, hoping they’d be gone by the time she got back.

“If they know I saw their faces, they'd probably be too nervous to bring donations in the future.” Becca reasoned with herself as she hurried down the unfamiliar street. “Hopefully that’ll be enough to make sure everyone has a full portion of food for the next few weeks. Maybe that'll give me enough time to-”

“Hey! You. Blondie!” A rough voice called out to her from an alley as she passed by it. Instead of slowing down, Becca sped up, not quite to a run, as that would possibly entice the man to give chase. “Wait, where are you going? I've got a great career opportunity for you, you just need to-”

“Sorry, I've got to get home and wash my hair!” Becca called over her shoulder, making sure to memorize the man's face and warn the kids at the orphanage away from this street. He stepped farther into the main road, revealing a well-muscled, sweaty frame. The man looked furious at being so casually dismissed, but he didn't give chase when he saw how she turned onto a crowded street.

Now in a familiar location once more, she rushed back to the orphanage, no longer caring if the mysterious benefactors were still blocking the door. Her skin was tingling as adrenaline surged through her, but to her great concern, the tingling only increased over the next few minutes. She rushed through the gate, running past the dormitory and into the washroom.

Just as she closed the door, the tingling converged on her left arm, which suddenly blazed with pearlescent, silvery light that filled the room she was in. Blinking away the afterimages, Becca’s face scrunched in confusion as she realized what had just happened: her Basic Skill had reached Perfection, level ten. 

“What the…? Wasn't I supposed to turn down a life-changing offer in favor of taking care of my hair?” Becca felt an unpleasant tingle race along her spine as she made a realization.

“Oh… it never said it had to be an offer that changed my life for the better.”