The armored people fled in a hurry from the destroyed part of the forest, it was as if they had seen some kind of unforeseeable danger. None of them looked back, and the one with the cloak seemed to be on high alert, scanning their surroundings before delving into the sea of trees, going back to where they came from. Did they find another Knell Boar? I took a deep breath and waited a few seconds but nothing came. Minutes passed and there was no movement. Perhaps it had given up?
I shook my head and decided I too had to leave, they had found some type of danger. And as much as I would’ve liked to try to kill this ‘danger’ I knew better now. The armored people looked strong, and if they had to flee from such a thing, then it was probably for the best that I didn’t go looking for it either. I double checked to make sure I wasn't missing anything, and started to go down from the tree, in that brief period of time taking note of the places I had been to.
The people had fled south, so that was a no go. West was where the destruction of the forest occurred, and east — where I was — also held the level 20 Rime worm. It was a point of interest but it was best to avoid it for now. That left me with going north; the mountains of snow. Though I doubted I’d reach them, it was still my best option.
I made up my mind as I reached the ground, I was going to travel north and kill things? I had to be careful, but I also had to be stronger— strong enough to not die to a Knell Boar, strong enough to not need a health potion to stay alive. I didn’t know where I could get more— I stared at Glim who was silent by my side.
“Glim, where can I get more potions?”
[That is… a difficult question. You can always try to manufacture them if you are proficient enough in magical medicine, but otherwise… Your only option would be a city shop— which well… cities kind of don’t… exist in the Skirmish. Well, there are other ways, but I cannot speak of them.]
I sighed. “I see, thanks.” Well so much for hope and for Glim's usefulness. “So once this Skirmish is done, do all cities have them?”
[I cannot answer that.] Glim said.
Well that was disappointing. At least I knew that my last potion was something that had to be used sparingly. I thought about my remaining 6 attribute points, but decided against using them in Vigor. Putting them on Wisdom would allow me to have more mana, which based on the things that were currently happening it seemed to be the case. Just taking a closer look at the mana in my body, I could tell it was regenerating, but I also knew that if I used Explosive Shot once more I would be completely spent.
I headed towards the north, as I pondered about the best uses of my attribute points. I was nearing the level of the Knell Boar, and had already surpassed the Everwood Moose, and yet— I wasn’t nearly as tough as either of them? That didn’t quite make sense to me, the Everwood Moose wasn’t a different grade, and yet it was… Well— stronger than me? There was no doubt in my mind I’d be able to kill it now without problem, but it would still take me a few arrows according to my calculations.
A frown formed the more I pondered. I wasn’t growing nearly as strong as I had hoped. If I put all my points into Strength… It wouldn’t help at all… What was I supposed to do with my points? I thought about the bow on my back, it was much better than my first bow that I had abandoned. But… Was it great? What if I encountered something tougher than the Knell Boar, what then? It just felt as if it was going to get old fast. And that thought was… worrisome. Part of me felt anxious simply thinking about it.
[You have completed — Land Reconnaissance (Common F) —
I ignored the notification, promptly saying yes to the rewards only to not get anything.
[Would you like to repeat — Land Reconnaissance (Common F) —
Yes. Just like that the quest was re-accepted. It also gave the notification of acceptance which I ignored. I was too occupied wondering what I was going to do in the future. I had Explosive Shot, a powerful skill but… My arrows would just… My arrows would vanish from existence after every use. Moreover, based on my current mana I estimated I could use the skill twice before I was too exhausted to use it again. That said—
Didn’t the Knell Boar and Everwood Moose use skills too? I vividly remembered mana gathering in their extremities. I looked at my hand as I traversed, somewhat playing with the mana inside my body and bringing it to my fingertips. They shone in a slight green. In comparison to the Everwood Moose that was a mystical blue, or the Knell Boar whose mana was a bright orange. Mine was green. I didn’t know what that meant, but perhaps everyone had a unique type of mana. Though that also didn’t sound right either, did the mana I was regenerating inside of my body came from me? It felt odd to try to sense it.
[It comes from the ambient, and you!] Glim chirped. [Meaning that if there is no ambient mana you would still gain some mana at the cost of your nutrients.]
I nodded. That was useful.
[Hey you should thank me at least a bit! Who knows what you would be doing without me!]
“Right,” I took a breath. “Thanks Glim.”
It bobbed up and down. [Now you’re making me feel as if I guilted you into it!]
◇ ◇ ◇
I traveled for an hour, and eventually saw some variety in the forest, the trees started to change and the terrain became considerably more rocky and clearer. Though the tallest trees remained, there was also a new type of tree whose tree bark was considerably drier— though it was still almost as tall as the other type. Approaching a small hill, I noticed movement and paused going on guard instantly.
Glim hadn’t warned me. I grabbed my bow and an arrow from my waist, promptly nocking it. The grass rustled as a bushy tail popped up, and soon it peaked its head looking around, but it failed to see me.
[Loa Vulpe. Lvl 3.]
Oh, this was perfect. I drew the bow back, and then paused— I untensed the string and gathered the mana that was inside me towards my left hand, the one that held onto the bow. My mana had somewhat recovered but not by a whole lot. The mana traveled through my arm and into my bow, I felt an odd sensation as what remained of my mana began to slowly travel onto the bow. Though I noticed no difference, I could feel it inside the bow traveling towards its string.
I pulled— the string wouldn’t bulge. No matter how hard I pulled my fingers simply ached, and eventually the Loa Vulpe ran away, though that didn’t matter. Why had the bow become so much harder to pull? I took my mana back into my body and tried to pull the string again; it felt the same as always, offering relatively good resistance but eventually conceding to my strength.
If I put all my points into Strength… Didn’t I have the same thought not too long ago? But this time it seemed much more… convincing? I took a deep breath.
If I put all my points into Strength, then my mana situation would have to wait. At the same time, I also felt that I had misused some of my mana into other things such as the quiver, and for the skill as well. If I managed it better, then not having mana wasn’t an immediate issue. My Vigor was… alright. I knew it helped in the fight with the Knell Boar, but I was unsure about placing all my points into it now.
Agility was my highest stat and I did not feel as if I needed it. Perception was— I did not need Perception for now, and my Endurance was just fine. I took a deep breath.
Perhaps it was going to be stupid, perhaps i was going to regret it. But I wanted to do it, something told me it was right. If I could draw the bow… I opened my status and placed all my points into Strength.
Name: Blair | Level: 6
Race: ??? (E-Grade)
Feats: [Lone Survivor], [Bottomless Ambition]
Basic skills: Universal Understanding (NaN),
Universal Inquiry (NaN)
Free attribute points: 0
VIG: 31 | END: 36 |
STR: 30 | AGI: 41 |
PER: 35 | WIS: 13 |
Skills: [Proficient Archery (Passive Uncommon)], [Explosive Shot (Rare)]
Attunements: Dark plants (I)
Prime Currency: 100
My Strength had gone from 23 all the way to 30. Maybe now… I took a deep breath and held onto my bow, pouring my mana into it. The bow lit a dim green and it traveled to its string. I felt uncertain but nocked an arrow regardless and pulled— the string bulged but I felt as if my arm was screaming in pain as the arrow was tensed back. What kind of strength did i need to pull this—
I untensed the bow with a deep sigh. No good, huh? My ears dropped.
[How about you use less mana in the bow?] Glim asked.
“Less mana?”
[I can’t help but notice you try to use it all on the bow, how about just giving it a slight amount?]
A slight amount? That made sense. If I used less mana perhaps the effects would be much less pronounced, and the bow would be usable to me. I nocked an arrow and concentrated on the warmth at the center of my body, guiding it slowly to my arm and into the bow, however this time I did not try to overflow the bow with it. But rather in a gentle and controlled manner. In nothing but a few seconds I began to frown.
It was hard. Mana was like water, it wouldn’t stop flowing, it would either come back into my body or go all into the bow.
◇ ◇ ◇
The warmth left my hand and went into my bow, all of it was greedily absorbed by the string as it shone in a green light. I pulled the arrow back and my hand trembled with all its might, but the bow had been drawn to its full length. I smiled in between struggling to not let go of the arrow and quickly took my mana back.
It was still hard, but… I took a deep breath feeling the warmth inside my body, and the mana present on my arm, before eventually returning it to the core. The center of my body was like a lake, only a lake would stand still, the rivers would be everflowing. All I could do to control the flow of mana was limit the initial quantity I guided. It was hard to get a good estimate of how much mana I was guiding, but after a few hours of doing nothing but that I was beginning to get used to it.
I smiled to myself and put my arrow and bow away before continuing forward. My destination was still to simply go north, but I had gotten distracted by learning mana. I didn’t want to try it on a tree however, nor on the grass. I wanted to test my new-found discovery on a beast. With that in mind I had no choice but to simply continue my trek.
The trees always looked the same, but that didn’t daunt me. As a Dark Elf I was simply used to such things — the monotony of the forest and its beauty, admittedly I never admired plants nor ever cared to learn what a lot of the more common ones were. But my natural affinity was still there— granted it was Dark plants, which I still did not understand what it meant.
“Glim, why is my affinity for Dark plants?”
[Well some beings are born with affinities, these are largely influenced by race, that’s about it really. Now if you are asking me what Dark plant affinity does, it is something I cannot answer. I can at least tell you the hint, that those who possess affinities always learn to use it. And I too hold hope that you will learn to use it.]
I frowned, “I don’t see a way to use it.”
[Skills or Prophecies help with that.] Glim said but didn’t elaborate.
I nodded and simply thought that I would figure it out later. A few more minutes of walking and I spotted a prey. The animal prowled atop a small hill looking for something, its tail laid low on the ground and it seemed to be sniffing, its bright fur glistened under the sunlight, it was almost tantalizing.
[Loa Vulpe. Lvl 4.]
I grabbed my bow and an arrow, before nocking it, not daring to even breathe I began the process of enhancing the bow. I felt the mana at the center of my body and tried to guide a small amount of it towards my arm, slightly less than last time. Some more tried to follow after it, but with nothing but focus it was subdued.
The mana reached my bow, and eventually its string. I smiled and pulled back the now dimly lit string, creaking after every centimeter that it went back. My arm began to shake from the strength I was using. I took a breath and aimed at the Loa Vulpe, my face began to feel heated as sweat began to form, and finally I lined up the shot. It turned towards me and its tail shot up, but it was too late. The arrow was fired, and in an instant it came face to face with the animal. Its beady eyes stared, I didn’t know if I saw panic or a resolution to die, but it didn’t flinch, it simply watched.
The arrow hit its snout, It pierced into its skull, and— kept going. The arrow and the animal went flying through the air from sheer momentum, hitting a tree with a dull echo. The wind howled and there was only silence. The corpse of the Loa Vulpe dangled lifelessly from the tree trunk that seemed to be at least 30 meters away. The hill was relatively close, and yet the arrow with only its strength had sent it flying three times the distance. Moreover it had enough energy to still embed itself into the tree.
What?
[You have killed: (E) Loa Vulpe. Lvl 4.]
The armored people fled in a hurry from the destroyed part of the forest, it was as if they had seen some kind of unforeseeable danger. None of them looked back, and the one with the cloak seemed to be on high alert, scanning their surroundings before delving into the sea of trees, going back to where they came from. Did they find another Knell Boar? I took a deep breath and waited a few seconds but nothing came. Minutes passed and there was no movement. Perhaps it had given up?
I shook my head and decided I too had to leave, they had found some type of danger. And as much as I would’ve liked to try to kill this ‘danger’ I knew better now. The armored people looked strong, and if they had to flee from such a thing, then it was probably for the best that I didn’t go looking for it either. I double checked to make sure I wasn't missing anything, and started to go down from the tree, in that brief period of time taking note of the places I had been to.
The people had fled south, so that was a no go. West was where the destruction of the forest occurred, and east — where I was — also held the level 20 Rime worm. It was a point of interest but it was best to avoid it for now. That left me with going north; the mountains of snow. Though I doubted I’d reach them, it was still my best option.
I made up my mind as I reached the ground, I was going to travel north and kill things? I had to be careful, but I also had to be stronger— strong enough to not die to a Knell Boar, strong enough to not need a health potion to stay alive. I didn’t know where I could get more— I stared at Glim who was silent by my side.
“Glim, where can I get more potions?”
[That is… a difficult question. You can always try to manufacture them if you are proficient enough in magical medicine, but otherwise… Your only option would be a city shop— which well… cities kind of don’t… exist in the Skirmish. Well, there are other ways, but I cannot speak of them.]
I sighed. “I see, thanks.” Well so much for hope and for Glim's usefulness. “So once this Skirmish is done, do all cities have them?”
[I cannot answer that.] Glim said.
Well that was disappointing. At least I knew that my last potion was something that had to be used sparingly. I thought about my remaining 6 attribute points, but decided against using them in Vigor. Putting them on Wisdom would allow me to have more mana, which based on the things that were currently happening it seemed to be the case. Just taking a closer look at the mana in my body, I could tell it was regenerating, but I also knew that if I used Explosive Shot once more I would be completely spent.
I headed towards the north, as I pondered about the best uses of my attribute points. I was nearing the level of the Knell Boar, and had already surpassed the Everwood Moose, and yet— I wasn’t nearly as tough as either of them? That didn’t quite make sense to me, the Everwood Moose wasn’t a different grade, and yet it was… Well— stronger than me? There was no doubt in my mind I’d be able to kill it now without problem, but it would still take me a few arrows according to my calculations.
A frown formed the more I pondered. I wasn’t growing nearly as strong as I had hoped. If I put all my points into Strength… It wouldn’t help at all… What was I supposed to do with my points? I thought about the bow on my back, it was much better than my first bow that I had abandoned. But… Was it great? What if I encountered something tougher than the Knell Boar, what then? It just felt as if it was going to get old fast. And that thought was… worrisome. Part of me felt anxious simply thinking about it.
[You have completed — Land Reconnaissance (Common F) —
I ignored the notification, promptly saying yes to the rewards only to not get anything.
[Would you like to repeat — Land Reconnaissance (Common F) —
Yes. Just like that the quest was re-accepted. It also gave the notification of acceptance which I ignored. I was too occupied wondering what I was going to do in the future. I had Explosive Shot, a powerful skill but… My arrows would just… My arrows would vanish from existence after every use. Moreover, based on my current mana I estimated I could use the skill twice before I was too exhausted to use it again. That said—
Didn’t the Knell Boar and Everwood Moose use skills too? I vividly remembered mana gathering in their extremities. I looked at my hand as I traversed, somewhat playing with the mana inside my body and bringing it to my fingertips. They shone in a slight green. In comparison to the Everwood Moose that was a mystical blue, or the Knell Boar whose mana was a bright orange. Mine was green. I didn’t know what that meant, but perhaps everyone had a unique type of mana. Though that also didn’t sound right either, did the mana I was regenerating inside of my body came from me? It felt odd to try to sense it.
[It comes from the ambient, and you!] Glim chirped. [Meaning that if there is no ambient mana you would still gain some mana at the cost of your nutrients.]
I nodded. That was useful.
[Hey you should thank me at least a bit! Who knows what you would be doing without me!]
“Right,” I took a breath. “Thanks Glim.”
It bobbed up and down. [Now you’re making me feel as if I guilted you into it!]
◇ ◇ ◇
I traveled for an hour, and eventually saw some variety in the forest, the trees started to change and the terrain became considerably more rocky and clearer. Though the tallest trees remained, there was also a new type of tree whose tree bark was considerably drier— though it was still almost as tall as the other type. Approaching a small hill, I noticed movement and paused going on guard instantly.
Glim hadn’t warned me. I grabbed my bow and an arrow from my waist, promptly nocking it. The grass rustled as a bushy tail popped up, and soon it peaked its head looking around, but it failed to see me.
[Loa Vulpe. Lvl 3.]
Oh, this was perfect. I drew the bow back, and then paused— I untensed the string and gathered the mana that was inside me towards my left hand, the one that held onto the bow. My mana had somewhat recovered but not by a whole lot. The mana traveled through my arm and into my bow, I felt an odd sensation as what remained of my mana began to slowly travel onto the bow. Though I noticed no difference, I could feel it inside the bow traveling towards its string.
I pulled— the string wouldn’t bulge. No matter how hard I pulled my fingers simply ached, and eventually the Loa Vulpe ran away, though that didn’t matter. Why had the bow become so much harder to pull? I took my mana back into my body and tried to pull the string again; it felt the same as always, offering relatively good resistance but eventually conceding to my strength.
If I put all my points into Strength… Didn’t I have the same thought not too long ago? But this time it seemed much more… convincing? I took a deep breath.
If I put all my points into Strength, then my mana situation would have to wait. At the same time, I also felt that I had misused some of my mana into other things such as the quiver, and for the skill as well. If I managed it better, then not having mana wasn’t an immediate issue. My Vigor was… alright. I knew it helped in the fight with the Knell Boar, but I was unsure about placing all my points into it now.
Agility was my highest stat and I did not feel as if I needed it. Perception was— I did not need Perception for now, and my Endurance was just fine. I took a deep breath.
Perhaps it was going to be stupid, perhaps i was going to regret it. But I wanted to do it, something told me it was right. If I could draw the bow… I opened my status and placed all my points into Strength.
Name: Blair | Level: 6
Race: ??? (E-Grade)
Feats: [Lone Survivor], [Bottomless Ambition]
Basic skills: Universal Understanding (NaN),
Universal Inquiry (NaN)
Free attribute points: 0
VIG: 31 | END: 36 |
STR: 30 | AGI: 41 |
PER: 35 | WIS: 13 |
Skills: [Proficient Archery (Passive Uncommon)], [Explosive Shot (Rare)]
Attunements: Dark plants (I)
Prime Currency: 100
My Strength had gone from 23 all the way to 30. Maybe now… I took a deep breath and held onto my bow, pouring my mana into it. The bow lit a dim green and it traveled to its string. I felt uncertain but nocked an arrow regardless and pulled— the string bulged but I felt as if my arm was screaming in pain as the arrow was tensed back. What kind of strength did i need to pull this—
I untensed the bow with a deep sigh. No good, huh? My ears dropped.
[How about you use less mana in the bow?] Glim asked.
“Less mana?”
[I can’t help but notice you try to use it all on the bow, how about just giving it a slight amount?]
A slight amount? That made sense. If I used less mana perhaps the effects would be much less pronounced, and the bow would be usable to me. I nocked an arrow and concentrated on the warmth at the center of my body, guiding it slowly to my arm and into the bow, however this time I did not try to overflow the bow with it. But rather in a gentle and controlled manner. In nothing but a few seconds I began to frown.
It was hard. Mana was like water, it wouldn’t stop flowing, it would either come back into my body or go all into the bow.
◇ ◇ ◇
The warmth left my hand and went into my bow, all of it was greedily absorbed by the string as it shone in a green light. I pulled the arrow back and my hand trembled with all its might, but the bow had been drawn to its full length. I smiled in between struggling to not let go of the arrow and quickly took my mana back.
It was still hard, but… I took a deep breath feeling the warmth inside my body, and the mana present on my arm, before eventually returning it to the core. The center of my body was like a lake, only a lake would stand still, the rivers would be everflowing. All I could do to control the flow of mana was limit the initial quantity I guided. It was hard to get a good estimate of how much mana I was guiding, but after a few hours of doing nothing but that I was beginning to get used to it.
I smiled to myself and put my arrow and bow away before continuing forward. My destination was still to simply go north, but I had gotten distracted by learning mana. I didn’t want to try it on a tree however, nor on the grass. I wanted to test my new-found discovery on a beast. With that in mind I had no choice but to simply continue my trek.
The trees always looked the same, but that didn’t daunt me. As a Dark Elf I was simply used to such things — the monotony of the forest and its beauty, admittedly I never admired plants nor ever cared to learn what a lot of the more common ones were. But my natural affinity was still there— granted it was Dark plants, which I still did not understand what it meant.
“Glim, why is my affinity for Dark plants?”
[Well some beings are born with affinities, these are largely influenced by race, that’s about it really. Now if you are asking me what Dark plant affinity does, it is something I cannot answer. I can at least tell you the hint, that those who possess affinities always learn to use it. And I too hold hope that you will learn to use it.]
I frowned, “I don’t see a way to use it.”
[Skills or Prophecies help with that.] Glim said but didn’t elaborate.
I nodded and simply thought that I would figure it out later. A few more minutes of walking and I spotted a prey. The animal prowled atop a small hill looking for something, its tail laid low on the ground and it seemed to be sniffing, its bright fur glistened under the sunlight, it was almost tantalizing.
[Loa Vulpe. Lvl 4.]
I grabbed my bow and an arrow, before nocking it, not daring to even breathe I began the process of enhancing the bow. I felt the mana at the center of my body and tried to guide a small amount of it towards my arm, slightly less than last time. Some more tried to follow after it, but with nothing but focus it was subdued.
The mana reached my bow, and eventually its string. I smiled and pulled back the now dimly lit string, creaking after every centimeter that it went back. My arm began to shake from the strength I was using. I took a breath and aimed at the Loa Vulpe, my face began to feel heated as sweat began to form, and finally I lined up the shot. It turned towards me and its tail shot up, but it was too late. The arrow was fired, and in an instant it came face to face with the animal. Its beady eyes stared, I didn’t know if I saw panic or a resolution to die, but it didn’t flinch, it simply watched.
The arrow hit its snout, It pierced into its skull, and— kept going. The arrow and the animal went flying through the air from sheer momentum, hitting a tree with a dull echo. The wind howled and there was only silence. The corpse of the Loa Vulpe dangled lifelessly from the tree trunk that seemed to be at least 30 meters away. The hill was relatively close, and yet the arrow with only its strength had sent it flying three times the distance. Moreover it had enough energy to still embed itself into the tree.
What?
[You have killed: (E) Loa Vulpe. Lvl 4.]
