BLAIR | Chapters. 4 to 6 (Patreon)

Chapter. 4: Stat Distribution

The light ball companion ⁠— Glim ⁠— floated by my side as I surveyed my surroundings. Even though I wanted to bombard it with questions, I had to actually make sure I was in a safe place. Strangely enough, the hulking corpse of the Everwood Moose had begun to rot, and the arrows were unsalvageable. Considering the arrows I managed to save, I had about thirty-nine arrows remaining. Well, thirty were from the so-called Archery Basic Kit. Speaking of that, the bow was… odd.

It seemed sturdy and much more advanced than my previous bow, it featured things as three strings and a sort of pulley system, but at the same time I didn’t get a feel for how to aim it or how to even load an arrow. Thankfully Glim noticed my struggle and explained it to me, as well as the historical significance of the bow which I filtered out. Using that time instead to practice a few shots against the grass and other soft targets, I got about an hour of practice before Glim finished. I did not particularly care of its involvement as a tool of war, or the fact that it was nothing more than something for the Initiators to get their foot into The System. Initiator being the term for those new to The System, and Integrated for the more accomplished ones.

The forest seemed much more serene now that the sunlight was up, though part of me believed the sun was simply not real. We were in a completely different space than my planet, and yet the sun was perfect in every way, not too warm but not too cold, it did not hurt my eyes either. The more I thought about it, the more interesting the Skirmish space seemed. Though it didn’t particularly matter to me. Even with the information that had been injected into my being, a lot of things didn’t quite make sense to me. For example, what did NaN mean? What could I use Prime currency for? Yes it was a universal currency, but for what? It was no use to think about it, I hadn’t quite asked enough things to Glim.

I finished looking around before finding another tree to sit on. The bark was still the same texture as the tree from the other day; humid but rough. At the same time, even though I was healed already, I couldn’t help but stare at my clothes. The leather vest that I wore had one of its sides half-torn, and so was the fabric underneath. My leggings were missing chunks starting below the knee. The only thing that had survived were my boots, but I had a feeling those would not last if the trend continued.

A sigh escaped me as I tried to get my questions for Glim in order. Though I guess there was a question I wanted to ask first.

“Glim, the System Knowledge you provided me. Is that everything you are allowed to tell me?”

Glim circled around me rapidly.

[Of course not, Partner,] I shuddered being called that. [I am but a guide, once you’ve received enough guidance I shall leave. It would be pretty boring if you got everything in one go, hence it was nothing but Basic!] It chirped.

“Right.” I nodded. “Don’t call me Partner ever again, refer to me by my name. Then I’ll ask the most important questions; what does NaN stand for, and what is a Feat in the large scheme of things, and what things are you not allowed to tell me?”

Glim paused and bobbed up and down, seemingly processing the information.

[I shall now refer to you as Blair. As for NaN, it simply means Not a Number. The reason empty categories display as such is something I cannot disclose if I don’t want to instantly die! Which trust me, I don’t. Well I doubt if I can even die, but you get the point. Death is bad.]

It circled a bit.

[A Feat can be considered an achievement as you know, they are permanent achievements granted to your very being as part of your history. This history can help mold your Prophecy and how it will impact you in the future. So the more Feats you possess, the better, it can also grant access to certain skills! But Feats are granted upon the minority of the Integrated, so eating won’t do anything. However! Eating a Colossal Worm will!]

[The first Feat to ever exist is⁠—] It paused and shook. [And as such ever since The Beginning, Feats have been an integral part of The System. Ah by the way! The System has existed since The Beginning, you could say it is what marks The Beginning! But unfortunately I do not have access to such information, since the program that runs me dates to⁠—] It trembled again. [When he was granted a⁠—] It paused with yet another tremble. [And as such that is how us Assistants came to be!]

I frowned looking at Glim, it kept trembling and not completing its sentences.

“Why do you keep pausing mid sentences?” I interrupted.

It excitedly moved up and down. [That is because it is classified information. But I am still trying to tease you about it! Am I doing a good job? Are you interested? Ask more! Perhaps I might just tell you something classified on a slip-up!]

“Okay, answer the last question.”

It stopped bobbing. [I am not allowed to disclose anything outside of the Skirmish or that goes past the Integration period. The things I can tell you is that opportunities to acquire a Prophecy will arrive on the fourth day, and perhaps a Prophecy might be the answer to your race problems. Since they are the only known way to evolve your race!]

Huh. I stared at Glim with a somewhat confused expression. It had actually given me useful information in its totality for once. Normally it rambled on useless things amidst the important information. I was not a fan of that. But thankfully it said something interesting this time around. I vaguely remembered the other term for Prophecy was Class, and it was a feature of The System⁠ ⁠— I did not know what they were, but it seemed to be beneficial to me.

“Glim, alert me when there is such an opportunity.”

[I will! But only if you ask me nicely!]

I sighed. “This is an order.” I stared at the now frozen glowing ball of light. “By the way, is there a way for you to not be a floating beacon of where I am?”

[Fret not! I am only visible to you, and to others with SGAs, however you do not need to worry about it. In the Skirmish there is only⁠—] It shuddered. [That’s why you shouldn’t worry about it, but once there is another SGA user nearby I shall notify you!]

Only visible to me? How did that even work? No, it was something that I didn’t need to concern myself over. If anything my clothes were a bigger concern to me, but I had other things to worry about. Such as eating. I hadn’t eaten anything for well over a day, I had yet to feel hungry but there was no point in waiting to go hunt something. Not when levels could theoretically make me stronger through attributes. Speaking of levels.

Name: Blair | Level: 2

Race: ??? (E-Grade)

Feats: [Lone Survivor]

Basic skills: Universal Understanding (NaN),

Universal Inquiry (NaN)

Free attribute points: 4

VIG: 18 | END: 35 |

STR: 22 | AGI: 39 |

PER: 34 | WIS: 13 |

Attunements: Dark plants (I)

Prime Currency: 100

I had four attribute points to distribute. Oh. I had also gotten stronger from the Feat [Lone Survivor] it gave ten-percent extra? I mentally processed the numbers with slight struggle, before realizing that Agility would equal 39.6, but it seemed to be rounded down instead of up. I frowned ever so slightly but figured it was probably better. I did not want to see an inflated number, it was better to see true strength, rather than something I simply did not have.

I went over the attributes I had, I understood what they did but not how much each number helped.

“Glim, regarding attribute points, is there a point of reference?” I asked upon realizing that I actually had zero clue what the numbers themselves meant.

[Yes there is, I am glad you asked! For example, strength. Generally a unit in strength will increase your capacity by 5kg! Give or take of course, it all depends on the physiology of the being as well as special circumstances. But I assume you want the full course on the stats! So I will start with Vigor⁠—

◇ ◇ ◇

Glim spoke and spoke, and spoke. At first it was easy to understand with strength, I did not understand what Vigor actually did other than make my skin tougher to pierce and give me better vitality. It referred to it as my actual health and what kept me alive. Basically the higher my Vigor was, the harder to kill I was, but I did not understand the units such as. The amount of hits you can take from an electro-suspended rock. Which was well, the number directly correlated to how many hits you could take before eventually dying. If a rock could kill me in eighteen hits then I did not want to be near it.

Endurance was the amount of minutes I could sprint for, divided by two. Which was weird but I accepted it nonetheless. Glim had also mentioned another strange way to measure it one-to-one which I was not interested in. Agility was relatively easier to understand but not quite, simply put I was faster the higher the number went. But supposedly ten units of agility equaled to a sprint speed of 5 m/s depending on race and other factors.

Though there was something strange. According to numbers I could sprint much faster than before coming here. I hadn’t tested it yet, but in theory I had grown stronger simply by getting Initiated into The System. Which I found pleasantly surprising.

Much to my disappointment Wisdom did not make someone much wiser or intelligent. The attribute was much more abstract than what I initially imagined. Wisdom affected the strength of my mana and its capacity. There were other uses such as increasing mana efficiency or assisting in skill acquisition down the road. But overall, it was hard to actually understand the units of its measurement.

Perception was much the same story, but Glim reassured me that I simply needed to understand that it made me considerably more aware. Also, taking the chance to warn me against having too much of it. Apparently some people would go crazy if their other stats could not match their perception. Strangely enough, it was the only stat that Glim warned me about.

But Glim did happen to mention something interesting after the fact. Displayed attributes were different depending on race, but most of them were largely the same. Apparently only the last two attributes changed for the integrated. Namely, Perception and Wisdom in my case. He mentioned an attribute called Intelligence to give me an example, which simply did not exist for me. It was something that interesting but I did not think much of it ⁠— it was something I couldn’t change after all.

Though with all of that in mind, including warnings. I stared at my attributes and the 4 points I could distribute.

VIG: 18 | END: 35 |

STR: 22 | AGI: 39 |

PER: 34 | WIS: 13 |

It did not take long for me to pick something, which was the lowest practical stat that I could put to use. Vigor. I had almost died against the Everwood Moose, if I hadn’t consumed a potion at that time, I would have certainly just died outright. With that thought in mind, I put all four points into Vigor, bringing the total to⁠— 23?

I frowned unable to comprehend what happened. That was a gain of 5 points, not 4 points. Perhaps it got added to the base? Before the Feat applied, it was 17, if I add four points, it would turn into 21, and ten-percent more would make it 23. That made sense.

I felt a headache growing trying to make sense of the numbers. At least I sort of understood the math that went behind it, however it was still a major time-sink to try to understand every single number in my status. I still had the attunement of Dark Plants to worry about, which I did not even understand how to use. Only that it was a sort of affinity with that type of plant. I shook my head. It wasn’t the time to worry about attributes. I had already distributed my points.

I looked at the forest, at the rustling trees and the rich sunlight that filled it. Then I looked at the top farthest edge of my vision, and saw the timer.

[Incubation Period: 6 days 11 hours 32 minutes]

And finally I looked at Glim who excitedly began to bob from having my attention. I was no longer in Foresia, and I had killed a beast I would have never been able to kill in the past. I could grow stronger. Perhaps it was possible to avenge my family.

[It just occurred to me.] Glim interrupted my thoughts. [But you don't seem to have any active quests! And that is no good! Let's change that right this moment!]

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Chapter. 5: Secrets of Secrets & Broken Promises
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I stared at Glim with confusion. How was it going to change active quests? It bobbed up and down, as I held my gaze on it with a frown. I did not know what an active quest was, even though Glim had indicated that it was an integral part of the system; at least that’s what I had assumed considering the odd things that had happened so far. Potion feeding. My face twisted recalling the horror. Needless to say there was more to anticipate, at the same time, Glim had also mentioned that they hadn’t given me all the information that they could provide.

The ball of light moved up and down for another second or two.

[Tada! I have chosen the most appropriate quests for you!]

Appropriate⁠? ⁠Words of The System entered my mind and floated in my vision.

[Active Quests:

[Land Reconnaissance (Common F): In order to conquer, one must first grow familiar. Reward: Small Territory Claim. Condition: Travel 20km (0/20) (Repeatable)

[Ecology Dissection (Common F): When in a strange land, one must first investigate. Reward: 1 Shard of Ambition. Condition: Kill Beasts of equal or greater level than you. (0/5)

[A Dream Of Stars (Rare D): Once upon a time the stars seemed so distant, but with the Inspiration of the Universe, constellations interconnected to create a unique fate. One to soar above the stars. Reward: Trial Pass. Condition: Claim a Prophecy to call your own. (0/1)]

[Dynamic Quests:

[Visions of Power (Uncommon E): It is said that the peak exists for a reason. Power to overwhelm, power to surpass the peak; Power Overwhelming. Reward: Guidance Of the Stars (10 minutes). Condition: Reach Level 20 before the Incubation period ends. (2/20)

[Chosen Matriarch (Epic C): As the leader of your race it is your job to secure prosperity. Reward: Ownership of the Planet. Condition: Acquiesce the rights from the other Patriarchs and Matriarchs.

[Equilibrium (Mythical A): Equilibrium is the fairest of all desires, it is required for all life to be eternal. Reward: Nothing. Condition: Equilibrium of the New World.

[Final Space (Legacy): At the arch of eternity, far beyond the reaches of the universe and The System, the Final Space awaits its purpose. Reward: The Next Step. Condition: Acquire Seedling]

I stared at the long list, I already had an idea of what most meant due to how The System worked, but it was still slightly overwhelming to see it outright. The first thing I noticed was the fact that there were two types of quests; Active and Dynamic. I did not understand what both terms meant other than it seemed I could make progress in both. Though…

I stared at the Dynamic Quests tab, rapidly realizing that I did not understand half of them, and one was still confusing. As for the rewards of all the quests? I did not understand a single one of the rewards. Well, save the one that gave me literal ownership of the planet. Which granted, I did not understand how someone could own the planet, let alone say they owned it. It was simply given by The System, but even then I still did not particularly understand it. Though there was something that bothered me.

“Glim,” I called. “Why does the Epic quest say I am the leader of my race?”

[Well you’re the last one, no? Therefore leader!]

I felt my mood crash down in an instant at Glim’s merciless remark. I simply bit my lip suppressing my memories. “Right.”

[Oh no! I am sorry!] It bobbed up and down in a hurry. [That was a mean thing to say wasn’t it? I promise it wasn’t on purpose! I truly promise! I simply blurted it out in the heat of the moment! Sorry Blair! Please forgive me Blair! I’ll⁠— I’ll make it up to you! I’ll tell you a secret!]

I scoffed at Glim and its way of being, somehow not screaming at it, but my ears did twitch upon hearing its last sentence. “What secret?”

[Promise you’re not mad?] Glim asked with apparent anxiousness.

“I am not mad,” I sighed. “I promise…”

[Okay, okay, you see. The secret is that secrets stop being secrets when they are told!] It chirped.

At that moment, I felt my body drain itself of energy and simply stared at the sky. Lots of things floated in my mind as the birds flew across the azure landscape. But one thing that remained was the regret of even trying to listen to Glim. I closed my eyes and saw the quests in my memory, and even though I was already planning on doing some of the more reasonable ones. The idea of just doing them seemed much more appealing. If I was being honest with myself, anything aside from talking to Glim simply seemed more appealing.

[I can’t help but detect that you’re thinking ill of me!]

I snorted. It was part of The System, Glim being able to sense my scorn for it wasn’t going to change anything. But the idea was somewhat revolting. Alas, I felt like I had no choice than to know that Glim ⁠— my trusty System Generated Assistant, could read my mind.

“Anyway, explain to me the difference between the Dynamic and Active quests.” I got up from the tree branch and jumped down to the ground. My feet padded the landing as the shock traveled through my legs, but… It wasn’t that painful?

I gave the grass an odd look, I still remembered how much it hurt last time I had jumped down from the tree⁠— or fallen? Perhaps it was due to being prepared for the fall, or perhaps it was due to the increase in vigor, it had gone up by six points since I fought the Everwood Moose, which thinking about it made me feel great. It was a sense of accomplishment and progression I had never felt before.

Glim descended like a feather to my side, serving as a reminder that I had stood still for too long. The first thing I did was look for the first two active quests in my memory.

[Land Reconnaissance (Common F): In order to conquer, one must first grow familiar. Reward: Small Territory Claim. Condition: Travel 20km (0/20) (Repeatable)

[Ecology Dissection (Common F): When in a strange land, one must first investigate. Reward: 1 Shard of Ambition. Condition: Kill Beasts of equal or greater Level. (0/5)

The first one was somewhat annoying, but it also served to compare what I was capable of. If I wasn’t wrong, it meant that I had grown stronger simply from getting Initiated into The System which was great. But it also gave me mixed feelings now. Certain concerns floated in my mind, such as if the power I had obtained was something I deserved, or whether it was a common phenomenon or not. Asking Glim? I did not want to ask too much for now.

I decided to pick the second quest as my main focus. I was going to do my best to find Beasts to hunt and hopefully the first quest would complete by itself while doing so. WIth that in mind, I began walking in a random direction; the sea of trees did not look any different no matter the direction.

[Are you listening?] Glim asked, annoyed. I shook my head, making it sigh. [I was saying that Active quests are quests that are active, meaning that unlike Dynamic quests which exist passively and can be failed without repercussions, active quests have actual consequences.]

I paused.

“You’re saying that if I fail the Active quests I’ll be punished?” I frowned. “But I did not even have a choice.”

[I accepted them for you! Yes you can be punished, but do not worry, I made sure to choose the best quests that align with your goals. A Prophecy is necessary for your ambition and goal, otherwise you will certainly die! I cannot be one of the billions of SGAs that have had their companion die! That would be awful!]

I rolled my eyes but accepted the explanation regarding the Prophecy, which I still did not understand what it actually was. “So, what about the other two quests?”

[Right, I was getting to that! Reconnaissance does not have a fail penalty, and Dissection is something you need to be stronger. But if you’d like we can change Dissection for Investigation, which requires you to eat and sample different plants across the forest! Here, I’ll change it right now⁠—]

“No need,” I shook my head. It seemed that Glim was competent in some aspects, even if its way of being bothered me. At least, judging by the common names I wasn’t alone.

[Thanks for the praise.]

I sighed. “Glim, do you happen to know the best place to progress the Dissection quest?”

It bobbed up and down seemingly not having a response. I guess I was expecting too much, still the quests were enough help⁠—

[I know just the place. It’s quite a walk away, but I promise it’s completely worth it.]

My ears slightly perked up in interest. “Lead the way then.” Glim, hearing my command excitedly circled me before beginning his guidance. Perhaps it wasn’t so bad?

◇ ◇ ◇

We stood before a gaping hole inside the ground, an endless supply of cold air seemed to exit its dirt-ridden entrance, there was a thin layer of frost coating its sides. It was as if an animal had dug out a cave inside the grass of the forest, except said animal was multiple meters wide, and also happened to change the environment in its nesting area.

“What is this?” I asked with confusion.

[It's the hideout of a very powerful Beast of course! Level 20 Rime Worm, killing it, completes the quest and grants you Three Shards of Ambition! It might also give you a Feat!]

I stared at the floating ball of light that was my companion.

“Do you seriously think I can kill a level 20 Beast?”

[You asked for the best place to do the quest, not the place in which you can hunt level 2 or higher beasts!]

I stared at the time.

[Incubation Period: 6 days 9 hours 54 minutes]

Great, just like that Glim had used about two hours of time for nothing. Still, the trek was incredibly long, so it had progressed my quest by a large margin, almost completing it. At the same time, there was a lake on the way to the worm’s hideout, which I had committed to memory since I first saw it.

[Land Reconnaissance (Common F): In order to conquer, one must first grow familiar. Reward: Small Territory Claim. Condition: Travel 20km (17.5/20) (Repeatable)

I mentally made a plan for myself that did not involve trusting Glim, and began my journey back to the river to hunt for some food. Signs of hunger had begun to appear.

◇ ◇ ◇

The rocks creaked under my feet, as the wind blew through the trees behind me. I took a deep breath hearing the slight clicking of the bow’s string. I let go of the arrow, the string zipped past my fingers with burning pain and the arrow whistled through the wind. In less than a second the water splashed and the arrow nestled itself deep inside the underwater bed.

The fish squirmed under the water for a few seconds before it finally died. A sigh left me as sweat trickled down my forehead.

[You have killed: (F) Everclear Carp. Lvl 1.] I noted in my mind that the Everclear Carp was an F-grade beast. Finding it interesting that the Everwood Moose was E-grade. So there were different grades?

[Nice shot! Why did you keep trying to start a fire that way? You know, you could’ve just asked me! Maybe even I could have started it for you! You know how useful I was by pointing out the alloy of the bow, right?] I sighed and walked into the shallow waters of the lake to get my food and retrieve the arrow, not having the energy to deal with Glim.

After so much effort I could finally eat, starting a fire was surprisingly hard. But thanks to Glim ⁠— who pointed out that there was a fire starter rod inside the string stopped of the bow  ⁠— I was able to start it without too much trouble. Thanks to that I didn’t need to keep trying to grind wood against each other. Apparently it was a type of alloy according to Glim, he told me to inspect it, but I ignored it. By that point I was too tired.

[Land Reconnaissance (Common F): In order to conquer, one must first grow familiar. Reward: Small Territory Claim. Condition: Travel 20km (3/20) (Repeatable)

I had completed the quest once and it simply reset itself after asking me if I’d like to repeat it. Glim claimed the reward would be available once the Incubation period ended, but at that point I was too tired to care. I simply sat by the bonfire; composed of dead branches and stones. I set the fish down using one of the metal arrows as a kind of stick, and simply waited as it cooked.

As time ticked by, I stared at the sky and wondered how big the skirmish space was. I hadn’t encountered any other being at this point. Well not counting the occasional beast. Part of me wondered if I was progressing faster or worse than the average. I had wasted a few hours fainted, and another few following after Glim.

I switched to looking at the crackling fire, the refractive blueish white scales of the fish glistened under the sun, but my mind was elsewhere. Instead, a resolve was forming inside my head. I did not know how high levels could go, but if I had learnt anything. It was that even level 20 monsters existed here, and it wasn’t particularly hard to find based on the route I had taken. If level 20 wasn’t rare here, then. How strong would the world outside be?

Therefore, I was done wasting time. I had to grow stronger.

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Chapter. 6: Awakening from Delusion
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The fish tasted of charcoal, its scales adhered to my mouth like honeydew to leaves. It slid across my teeth but never away from them. The constant cartilage coming from the fish-meat was annoying to remove, but at least it satiated me. I stared at my surroundings, at the now dying bonfire ⁠— its crackling branches with billowing smoke that rose up high into the clouds ⁠— at the calm lake and its swimming fish schools, and finally at the quiet forest behind me. My vision trailed across the horizon line, and saw nothing in the distance.

A sigh left me, it wasn’t there anymore. It truly was a different world. The World Tree was gone. And it had been gone for quite some time. I felt detached towards it even though it was technically the highest form of authority in nature, or my planet rather. The System made everything look like a joke in comparison. The ability to become stronger by killing other beings seemed ridiculous to me, and yet. It was happening.

I shook my head and grabbed my bow from the ground, all my other possessions were neatly arranged around my belt. The quiver being the exception, like any other archer, it was perched on my back. The lake was tempting to me, feeling the grime and leftover blood on my body, but I didn’t wash myself ⁠— not when I did not have a safe place. I stared at Glim, it was silently floating after I asked it to let me eat in peace. Which it dutifully complied. Though at that moment, Glim began to bob up and down rapidly, it shook and jumped. I raised my brow. Did it want to say something?

“Glim, you can speak now.”

It shook in acknowledgement. [Enemies nearby, get away from the campfire!]

I drew a sharp breath. “Get away, where? How many?”

[Climb a tree, I don’t know! Just any place away from the smoke!] Glim said in a hurry. [Actually, just follow me instead! You will run into them!]

After he said that Glim flew away, and I followed after it in a light jog. At that moment, my ears twitched and I heard the distant rustling of the forest. The sound of branches breaking echoed in the distance, a march of rhythmic steps resounded distantly in my ears. I didn’t know what thing was coming closer, or if there was more than one thing. But the sounds gave me a sense of foreboding. It reminded me of the Everwood Moose from last night. With that unpleasant memory, I upped the pace and began to sprint.

The rocks of the lake’s shoreline crackled after every step, in nothing but a few seconds we had crossed the entire body of water and entered the grassy entrance to the forest. Glim floated up on a tree bobbing in the process. The tree seemed normal to me but I wasted no time and climbed it with the same struggle as always. It was simply too thick, but with the growing familiarity of the process, I reached the lowest branch faster than ever before.

As soon as I could catch my breath, I looked at Glim with a frown.

“Why didn’t you alert me sooner?” I asked in a hush.

[Because I cannot disobey commands!] It pleaded. [Look, they are coming out!] My mind turned to look in the direction that Glim pointed at. It wasn’t pointing so much so as a sense of where to look.

Three shadows left the forest. One was much bigger than the other two and walked in front towards the campsite. Its body was massive, just as big as the Moose from before. But it had thick fur and a snout with tusks in its front, and yet it seemed to have paws instead of hooves. The other two were mammals, elongated ones that walked close to the ground. They had bushy tails that were as long as their body. The biggest one sniffed the ground and traced along until it eventually reached the campfire. It walked around and when its eyes finally landed on the smoke. The fur around its forelegs began to glow on an orange color, and in an instant it pounced.

The ground rumbled, and its two companions tensed and stepped back. A cloud of dust exploded from the campfire as rocks and rubble flew through the air. At that moment I felt a cold chill run through my neck, and rapidly drew my bow. One shot through its eyes⁠— if it went through its skull⁠—

[Wait, wait!] Glim interrupted. [Use inquiry. You know, the intrinsic skill you have. That every initiated being has! Universal inquiry⁠— it’s not a foe you can face!]

Universal inquiry? “How?” I asked in a hushed voice.

[Just think that you want to know more about them! It’s like an instinct of curiosity and desire, try to peer past their being. Well that’s how someone else described it⁠— point being is that it lets you know more about your opponent!]

I nodded and stared at the two companions. What were they? I stared with the intent of trying to know about them. What level were they? What was their race grade?

[Loa Vulpe. Lvl. 4]

[Loa Vulpe. Lvl. 3]

Oh, that was useful, though it didn’t tell me their grade. The two beasts were something that I could deal with. But Glim seemed overly concerned, so I turned to look at the hulking thing that was at the campsite. It sniffed the air and at the broken stones and charcoal. Dust still floated all around the air. Just what was it?

[Knell Boar. Lvl. 7]

My heart skipped a beat. It was higher level than the Everwood Moose, but for some reason I wasn’t afraid of it. No, it was a different feeling to fear. Curiosity? I did not know, but even though my knowledge was limited. I wanted to fight it, I was level 2, but there was a level 20 not too far away from here. There was a being much stronger than that not too far away from here. I didn’t know what race grade it was ⁠— fully knowing that it meant a difference in strength, even if I didn’t quite know what was the difference between grades was ⁠— I drew my bow against Glim’s protests. Then I paused.

I couldn’t kill the Knell Boar. I had no idea how strong it was, but part of me simply knew I could not kill it. It was simple instinct. Moreover, even if I had a better bow this wasn’t the same beast as the one from last night. I was sure I could slay the Everwood Moose no problem, but this one? It could probably knock down the tree with a few hits. I took a deep breath and tried to decide what to do. I couldn’t keep wasting time, and part of me felt that not doing anything right now was wasting time. I closed my eyes, and at the very corner of my mind I saw familiar words. The quests.

[Ecology Dissection (Common F): When in a strange land, one must first investigate. Reward: 1 Shard of Ambition. Condition: Kill Beasts of equal or greater level than you. (0/5)

I stared back at the beasts by the campsite. We were perhaps about 40 meters away from the campsite. There were two beasts that I could reasonably kill to progress my quest. Moreover, I would gain experience from doing so. I smiled to myself and switched to a metal arrow before redrawing the bow with utmost strength. This time aiming at the level 3 Loa Vulpe. It was perhaps the longest shot I had done yet, but with the new bow and its power I felt confident. I carefully aimed accounting for the light breeze, and took a final deep breath.

The bow stabilized. My fingers let go with a flare of pain as the string pushed forth. The arrow whispered along with the wind and turned into nothing more than a gray streak. A yelp came as the arrow hit its bushy ear, and with a crack it impaled the beast into the ground with force I had never seen before. Its body flailed around throwing rocks and dust into the air, it spasmed and soon a weird white foam started to come from its mouth.

In the meantime I had already nocked another arrow and aimed at the level 4 Loa Vulpe. I took yet another deep breath, and a second later I let go of the arrow as the beast stood frozen from the dying throes of its companion. Its fur stood on end, as the deadly whisper of the wind came. It backed off, and at that moment the arrow connected with its neck. It whimpered from the sudden pain and rolled on the ground.

I fired another arrow, this time hitting its head and killing it instantly.

[You have killed: (E) Loa Vulpe. Lvl 3.]

[You have killed: (E) Loa Vulpe. Lvl 4.]

I smiled to myself as the sweet voice came.

[Level up: You have achieved level 3.]

“Victory,” I mused, self satisfied with the shots I had achieved.

[Ecology Dissection (Common F): When in a strange land, one must first investigate. Reward: 1 Shard of Ambition. Condition: Kill Beasts of equal or greater level than you. (2/5)

But aside from quest progress, something else happened.

[Skill Learned ⁠— Proficient Archery (Passive Uncommon) ⁠— You have displayed superb skill with a bow, but your path is just beginning. Small perception and accuracy bonus based on your agility.]

My eyes widened with small surprise upon learning I had earned a skill. It was said that The World Tree had blessed all of its children with great archery skills, but it seemed that it wasn’t pure rumors after all. Still, even if it was perhaps not an impressive skill, I was still overjoyed. I couldn’t help but grin to myself. My first skill, a passive skill.

Name: Blair | Level: 3

Race: ??? (E-Grade)

Feats: [Lone Survivor]

Basic skills: Universal Understanding (NaN),

Universal Inquiry (NaN)

Free attribute points: 2

VIG: 23 | END: 35 |

STR: 22 | AGI: 39 |

PER: 34 | WIS: 13 |

Skills: [Proficient Archery (Passive Uncommon)]

Attunements: Dark plants (I)

Prime Currency: 100

I took a deep breath trying to erase my grin from my face, before putting the two attribute points into Vigor once again, bringing it to 25. Wisdom, even if it was my lowest stat, was of no use to me at the moment. I barely understood what mana was, let alone being able to use it⁠— Dark Elves were never known for having a lot of shamans, which used mana.

In my self absorption, I did not hear Glim screaming at me until it was too late. I felt the tree shake, nearly throwing me off the branch. I awakened from my reverie and looked down, only to see the Knell Boar staring right at me, its eyes were a crimson red and its paws were coated in an orange glow. It pounced on the tree once again, tree bark flew through the air. At that moment, cold water poured down, and I realized what I had just done.

I was too greedy. I nocked an arrow and braced myself for a fight, a fight that I could’ve avoided had I just… backed away.