I was awoken by the sounds of birds chirping and the bright sunrise. I emerged from my makeshift tent, disheartened to find my campfire reduced to nothing more than a few embers and a pile of ash.
With determination burning in my veins, I muttered, "MAXIMUM EFFORT." I pushed myself to my feet and stretched my weary body, causing a throbbing sensation in my head that felt eerily like a massive hangover. The pain was so intense that it forced me to double over and vomit into a nearby bush.
STATS:
Name: Miles Egan
Class: Waste of Skin
Health: 5/10
MP: 0/10 (Severely Dehydrated, Mana Exhaustion)
Stamina: 15/15
Partially blinded
***Severely Dehydrated***
Okay I know I was joking earlier but you really need to drink something. You will experience physical pains until you are rehydrated as well as severe Mana depletion.
***Mana Exhaustion***
You let your MP get reduced to zero way to go dumbass. Your MP will regain slowly unless you drink a mana potion or you wait until your MP reaches max again.
"I can't put it off any longer; I need to get something to drink before this headache gets any worse," I muttered, wiping the remnants of vomit from my mouth. Clutching my throbbing head, I stumbled around the campsite in a futile attempt to alleviate the pain.
"I can't take this much longer; I feel like my head is about to explode," I groaned, the agony pushing me to the brink. With every step, it seemed as though my headache was a living, vengeful entity, punishing me for any sudden movement. I collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain, determined to crawl my way to water.
Desperation coursed through me as I scanned the surroundings, searching for a stream, a river, anything with water. And then, I saw it, a puddle of nasty, muddy-looking water.
"Am I above drinking this nasty-looking water?" I wondered aloud, peering down at the unappealing puddle. But without hesitation, my face plunged into the muddy pool, and I savored the cool, earthy water as if it were liquid gold, gulping it down until my parched throat was quenched.
"I don't know why this puddle of water tasted so good, maybe it's because I haven't had anything to drink in a long time, who knows," I mused as I lay on my back, the headache slowly dissipating.
STATS:
Name: Miles Egan
MP: 0/10 (Dehydrated, Mana Exhaustion)
***Severely Dehydrated***
HOORAY!!! You are no longer severely dehydrated, but you still need some more water. Get moving. You will continue to lose MP until your thirst is quenched.
"Ughhh, I never want to feel like this again," I muttered, slowly rising to my feet. My immediate priorities were clear: find a reliable water source and get something to hold water for my inventory. I don’t think I’ll be getting any MP until I get a lot of water, just because dehydration slowly drains my MP and Mana exhaustion causing me to gain MP at a slower rate so now it’s at a standstill. On top of my MP concerns I also had this; I touched my face, which felt warm to the touch, particularly around my swollen shut eye.
"That Ape knocked the shit out of me. I wonder if I can get another health potion to help with this," I pondered, continuing to rub my battered face. Making my way towards the defeated apes seemed like the logical choice; perhaps I could loot their bodies and find another health potion. Gathering my resolve, I set out on a slow, painful journey towards the battleground, memories of the fight flashing through my mind.
"I had no idea I was capable of doing something like that. I mean, there was so much blood; I should have been freaking out," I reflected aloud as the recollections played out in my mind.
"Also, what was with that ape? Can all animals talk in this world? But he did say he was smart, so I guess if a monster is smart enough, they can speak," I continued, shaking my head in bewilderment.
"It's still hard to wrap my head around the fact that animals can talk," I mumbled, holding my throbbing head. My thoughts persisted as I walked until I noticed one of my stone spears lying on the ground.
Stone Spear:
+4ATK, +3HIT, 19/30 Durability
Crude spear made out of wood and stone.
"Thank you, my trusty spear," I expressed gratitude while storing it. My journey continued until I came across one of the Red-Eyed Torment apes.
"I thought it was hard fighting just one of you guys," I said, lowering my hand towards its face.
Would you like to loot the [Red-Eyed Torment Ape]
Yes/No
I clicked on the "yes" icon, and as soon as I did, the glowing red cracks began to spread from the open wounds of the Red-Eyed Torment Ape. They crawled throughout its entire body until it was completely covered in these eerie crimson lines.
"I know what part comes next," I murmured, turning my body away to shield myself from the sight of a monster dissolving into nothingness. Minutes passed, and the unsettling sounds of dissolution ceased. I turned back around to see the familiar black smoke. This time, instead of walking away, I fully embraced it, raising my hand to let the smoke envelop me.
[Ape Hide] x2 has been added to your inventory.
[Ape Bones] x2 has been added to your inventory.
[Ape Meat] x2 has been added to your inventory.
15 [Copper Coin] has been added to your inventory.
2 [Silver Coin] has been added to your inventory.
1 [Gold Coin] has been added to your inventory.
[Soul of Red-Eyed Torment Ape] has been added to your inventory.
[Lesser Health Potion] has been added to your inventory.
Once the black smoke cleared and I closed all the system popups, I immediately accessed my inventory screen and retrieved the Lesser Health Potion. Without hesitation, I removed the cork from the vial and downed the cherry-smelling liquid.
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"Pure nastiness never tasted so good," I remarked, wiping my mouth with a sense of relief.
STATS:
Name: Miles Egan
Class: Waste of Skin
Health: 6/10 ***Recovery Status***
MP: 0/10 (Dehydrated, Mana Exhaustion)
Stamina: 15/15
Partially blinded(Recovering)
***Recovery status***
Due to the lessor potion – 25% Increase in HP recovery rate
I felt my swollen eye, and to my relief, it was gradually becoming less inflamed, allowing me to start seeing out of it again.
"Thank you, health potion," I expressed my gratitude, giving the empty vial a kiss before stowing it in my inventory.
"Alright, that's one ape down, onto the next two," I resolved, heading towards the next Red-Eyed Torment Ape. I noticed that one of my stone spears was still lodged in its face. I pulled it out and placed it back into my inventory. With my spear safely stored away, I reached out and placed my hand on the ape's chest.
Would you like to loot the [Red-Eyed Torment Ape]
Yes/No
Once again, I clicked on the "yes" icon and turned away, avoiding witnessing the dissolving process. The familiar black smoke reappeared and flowed into my hand.
[Ape hide] x2 has been added to your inventory.
[Ape Bones] x2 has been added to your inventory.
[Ape Meat] x2 has been added to your inventory.
15 [Copper Coin] has been added to your inventory.
2 [Silver Coin] has been added to your inventory.
1 [Gold Coins] has been added to your inventory.
[Soul of Red Eyed Torment Ape] has been added to your inventory.
[Lessor health potion] has been added to your inventory.
I cleared all the system popups and made my way towards the last and special ape. I carefully retrieved the three spears lodged in its chest and placed them back into my inventory.
"Now it's your turn, big guy," I said, reaching out to touch the Black-Eyed Torment Ape's chest.
Would you like to loot the [Black-Eyed Torment Ape]
Yes/No
"You were one tough customer," I acknowledged as I clicked the "yes" icon. The looting process began, and I closed my eyes, raising my hands to welcome the black smoke into my being.
MONSTER DATA [BLACK EYED TORMENT APE] has been added to the system info:
Black Eyed Torment Ape
HP: 25/25
MP: 5/5
Stamina: 25/25
ATK: 20
DEF: 15
INT: 3
RES: 3
HIT: 4
SPD: 13
SKILLS
Monster Strength, Monster Speed, Improved Tracking, Boon of Strength, Leadership, Ape knowledge
[Ape hide] x2 has been added to your inventory.
[Ape Bones] x2 has been added to your inventory.
[Ape Meat] x2 has been added to your inventory.
20 [Copper Coin] has been added to your inventory.
5 [Silver Coin] has been added to your inventory.
2 [Gold Coin] has been added to your inventory.
[Soul of Black Eyed Torment Ape] has been added to your inventory.
[Lessor health potion] x 2 has been added to your inventory.
“Leadership and Ape knowledge, I wonder what those two do,” I say as I shrug. Well, now that I got all the looting out of the way I still have some quests to turn in.
Quest Complete:
Emergency quest: [Survive the ape confrontation]
Reward: New skill, and New Crafting Blueprint
Would you like to receive your quest rewards:
Yes/No
“Yes let me see what I got,” I say as I click on the yes icon.
Distributing Rewards:
Reward 1: New Skill Acquired: (First Aid)
Reward 2: New Crafting Blueprint: (MP Firearm)
***First Aid***
MP Cost: 1
Heal the target for 3HP until you target someone else or are attacked.
“That would have been helpful during the fight," I sighed. "And what's with this new blueprint? Is that like a magic gun or something? I guess I won't know until I craft it," I speculated, eager to unravel the secrets of this newfound blueprint.
Weapons:
MP Flintlock Pistol (MP Firearm Blueprint):
0/5 Steel Ore
0/2 Magic Ore
4/3 Monster Soul
MP Flintlock Rifle (MP Firearm Blueprint):
0/10 Steel Ore
0/5 Magic Ore
4/5 Monster Soul
MP Cannon (MP Firearm Blueprint):
0/50 Steel Ore
0/30 Magic Ore
4/20 Monster Soul
"Ahh man, I knew it wouldn't be stuff that I could easily get, but steel ore and magic ore? I wouldn't even know where to start," I exclaimed, frustration evident in my voice as I tugged at my blonde hair.
"Well, I should probably get started with exploring the island more now that it's daylight, and who knows, maybe I'll get lucky and find that water source I desperately need," I reasoned with a sigh. "But first, now that I have some new hides, I should make some more armor pieces, and it wouldn't hurt to make some more weapons just in case." I was determined to prepare myself as best as possible for the challenges ahead.
Crafting:
Ape Mask:
6/1 Ape Hide
0/1 Binding
Ape Leg Piece:
6/2 Ape Hide
0/1 Binding
Ape Chest Piece:
6/2 Ape Hide
0/2 Binding
Bone Axe:
38/2 Basic Rock
6/1 Ape Bone
0/1 Binding
"Shit, fucking bindings. Where are some palm tree leaves?" I muttered, frustration mounting as I scanned the area in search of fallen leaves instead of having to climb the trees to obtain them. After a few moments of searching, I spotted what I needed next to one of the bloody stains on the ground where the ape had previously been.
[Palm tree leaves] x20 has been added to your inventory.
"That should be enough for now," I decided, converting the 20 tree leaves into 10 pieces of bindings to aid in my crafting efforts.
Crafting:
Ape Mask:
6/1 Ape Hide
10/1 Binding
Ape Leg Piece:
6/2 Ape Hide
10/1 Binding
Ape Chest Piece:
6/2 Ape Hide
10/2 Binding
Bone Axe:
38/2 Basic Rock
6/1 Ape Bone
10/1 Binding
"That's more like it," I said with satisfaction as I clicked on each armor piece and crafted six bone axes. "Can never have enough bone axes," I mused, placing the familiar weapons into my inventory before reviewing the new armor pieces.
Ape Chest Piece:
+5DEF, +3RES
Chest piece obtained from the flesh of a Red-Eyed Torment Ape.
Ape Leg Piece:
+3DEF, +1RES
Leg piece obtained from the flesh of a Red-Eyed Torment Ape.
"To say these are leg pieces is weird; they look just like brown leather pants," I remarked, removing my old, muddy, partially destroyed PJ bottoms and slipping on the new pants.
"They are surprisingly breathable, though," I noted, performing a few lunges to ensure they were properly stretched and comfortable. After I am satisfying with the pants, I examined the Ape Chest Piece.
"This looks more like a brown leather coat, and not really a chest piece," I said, tilting my head in confusion.
Ape Chest Piece:
Ape Coat:
+5DEF, +3RES
Chest piece Coat obtained from the flesh of a Red-Eyed Torment Ape.
Are you Happy now
"Yes, I am. Thank you, all-powerful system, for fixing your mistake," I said with a hint of sarcasm, performing a little bow before slipping on the coat. I was pleasantly surprised by how warm it felt on the inside.
"This feels nice; I no longer feel like I'm on an episode of Naked and Afraid," I joked, patting myself all over.
"Alright, now let's get exploring this place. Hopefully, I'll find this gold the ape was talking about, and if there are any more of those damn apes, I feel more confident that I can take them out," I concluded, ready to face the challenges that awaited me on the island.