Kit turned and fled from the bulky flying bug. Kit’s heart started to race in time with his frantic steps. His feet were finding it hard to find traction in the mud. He prayed that he would stay upright. Kit could hear the clicking noise following him. He was too afraid to turn around to look in case he lost his footing in the slippery terrain.

Kit heard a whooshing sound pass by his ear. At the same time intense heat brushed past Kit’s side. Kit’s eyes followed a large ball of flame that flew in front of him. He watched as it exploded on the ground in front of him.

“You have to be kidding me, it can shoot fire.”

Kit started to zig zag in his retreat. If he ran in a straight line, he was sure he would die a gruesome death. ‘Damn it, I need help.’

“TWIX HELP, THE BIG BUG IS SHOOTING FIRE AT ME!”

Kit had no clue where he was even running to, at this point he was just trying not to become a flaming human torch. He desperately hoped his friend would find him soon. Another explosion of flame went off not far from where he was running.

Kit was glad the bug seemed to have terrible aim. He was positive that was the only reason he was alive right now.

“DAMN IT TWIX, HURRY!”

“I’M COMING KIT.”

Kit felt a wash of relief pass over his body at the sound of Twix voice.

Then something terrible happened. Kit felt himself pushed forwards by a bursting sensation on his back. Kit then felt his back turn numb. He could smell burnt hair and flesh. Kit’s eyes instantly went wide. The numbness was starting to turn into a crippling pain.

- 18,500

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Kit screamed and turned his head to a sight he never wanted to see again. His back was on fire!

Kit dropped to the ground and started to roll around. The flames went out when they were smothered in the wet mud. Kit didn’t receive any relief from the pain when the flames were extinguished.

Kit continued to scream. He choked on his screams when a large shadow covered his body. The large beetle was hovering over him. Fear spread over him causing him to freeze with terror. He could only stare as his death loomed closer.

The monster started to produce clicking sounds once again. With each click Kit sunk deeper into a terrorised state. He felt like he was losing his mind waiting for death. With the creature so close to him he could now see how it produced the clicking sound.

It had two large pincers protruding from its mouth. When it rubbed them together the clicking sound emerged.

Kit wished he had never received this information. He knew he was about to die. In between the two pincers a ball of flame was starting to develop.

Kit was panting from pain and fear. He could feel his eyes were about to roll back inside his head. He felt a warm sensation begin to spread across his body, he was in no state to take full account of what the sensation was.

As the ball of fire was about to leave the beetle’s pincers, he saw a flash of lightning collide with the fire ball just before his eyes rolled back and he passed out.

Kit woke to three pairs of worried eyes staring at him. He was still lying in the wet mud, dampness had seeped through his shirt and a cool sensation of wetness could be felt on his back. To his relief there was no pain accompanying his soaked back. He slowly sat up.

“Kit are you alright.”

Twix was gazing at him with tears pooling in his eyes.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t fast enough. Once you get a distance away from the beetle, they usually give up the chase because they have low stamina. That one was like it was enraged by you for some reason. Even when I engaged it in a fight it still tried to target you.”

Kit felt a shiver run down his spine at the mention of the large bug. He never wanted to come across one of those things again. Kit hoped he didn’t develop a fear of bugs after his experience today. Kit looked at Twix and felt a pang of regret for making Twix feel guilty, the worry was plain as day on his face. He knew it had been his fault that he had been hurt by the bug.

“Ahh Twix, I think it was my fault that it chased me so aggressively. I’m pretty sure I took all its food away.”

“Oops, I think it is actually my fault. I forgot to tell you not to collect the red elephant ear without one of us being with you. I apologise Kit, I will make it up to you I promise.”

The old man had a forlorn look on his face at making the mistake. His ears and cheeks were bright red. If Kit still didn’t have some fear lingering, he would laugh at the sight of the old man.

Kit sighed. He had learned a valuable lesson today. The Forsaken state really was a dangerous cesspit. He would have to be careful in the future when he collected ingredients for his creations. He was lucky that he didn’t die. If he hadn’t taken the spiritual moon juice magic before leaving, he would have had to waste a week heading back to Spartan Fire.

He was lucky that it had given him a large boost to his health along with the poison resistance. After experiencing being burnt he really wanted to create a dish that had fire resistance. Thinking of creating a meal brought him back to the present. He still wanted to collect ingredients. Then another thought popped into his head. How was his health restored?

“Grandpa it’s ok, it’s my fault for not checking with you first, and Twix thank you for saving me. I saw a bolt of lightning before I passed out. How am I healed already though?”

Kit thought about the amount of health he had lost. Even with the boost to his health, Kit thought it was a miracle he was already cured. He patted his body down to make sure it really was all better. As his hands made contact with his shirt, it fell from his body.

“Ahh I guess the shirt was not as lucky as me.”

Kit held the tattered remains in his hands. Grandpa chuckled at Kit staring at the ruined scrap.

“Kit, you didn’t think I would take you lot out without any health potions, did you? Unfortunately, I couldn’t save your shirt.”

Kit blinked at Grandpa then smiled.

“Thanks Grandpa, the shirt doesn’t matter.”

“I think I am done with training for today though.”

“Ok we can finish for today. You’ll need to get back on the horse tomorrow and start training again. If we leave it too long, I’m worried you won’t start again. I know today was tough but it’s important to keep going.” Grandpa’s face was twisted with concern.

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“It’s ok Grandpa, I know that raising my level will come with dangers. I wasn’t planning on skipping tomorrow.”

Even though he was now terrified of the bug it wouldn’t stop him from raising his level. His will to raise his level was high than his fear right now.

“That’s good news, I was worried the trauma from today would put you off. You are more resilient than I gave you credit for. Kit, I have another question. The pink dress where did you get it? Can I get one for my grandson?”

Kit felt all the colour drain from his face. How does Grandpa know about the dress? Kit went back over his memory of the incident and could not remember the dress appearing on his body. Kit’s mind then went to the last moment before he passed out and the warm sensation he felt.

‘Ahh cold cucumbers! Will everyone see me in that damn dress.’ Kit’s face became hot when he thought about wearing that dress again. At least he had not been awake for it this time.

“Ahh that, I don’t think I can get you one Grandpa I sorry. The dress is special.”

Kit could picture his sister laughing right now. She would be so pleased that someone else wanted one of the dresses.

“What a shame, I thought as much though. That dress has great defence capabilities. It put up a defence wall around you while the beetle and Twix fought right over the top of you. You didn’t receive a single scratch after it went up.”

Kit’s eyes went wide at hearing that, he was astonished that the dress could defend him as well as help settle his mind. Kit had an idea of why the dress activated now. He was so terrified when the beetle was hovering over him, that it triggered the dress’s defence mechanisms to shield his mind. It shielding his body has been a bonus.

Kit was going to have to thank Kat for the bracelet once again. Kit was pulled back to the present by Mars.

“Kit before we go, I found some more plants not too far from here that I think you would like. Do you have enough energy to collect some before we head back?”

Mars was grinning at Kit as if he already knew the answer. Kit chuckled at his friend.

“I have enough left in the tank to get some plants.”

Kit stood on shaky legs with the help of Mars. Then they headed towards the plants Mars had found. Kit found himself standing in front of some more red elephant ears. A spike of adrenaline pulsed through his body at the sight.

Kit shook his head to dispel his body’s reaction to flee at the sight. Not far away from the large red plants were clusters of stems with like thin tubular leaves that were around 1.5 meters in height. Kit left the elephant ears to the others and headed over to the new species.

Kit used identify on the new plant.

[Water sweet nut]

The water sweet nut despite its name is a vegetable. The round corms have a sweet and crunchy taste.

Kit felt a thrill race through his body. He had found another vegetable to experiment with. He had gained three ingredients from his adventures this morning. Kit started to harvest the plants while humming a tune.

Kit heard a rumble and turned to see what was happening. He was worried another blood bug had arrived. When he turned around his mouth fell open. He had only collected a handful of the water sweet nut’s but the entire field of red elephant ears were all gone.

“What happened?”

Kit heard a chuckle from Grandpa. The old man was laughing at him.

“Kit I’m an earth elementalist. Collecting plants is a piece of cake. Come here I will harvest the rest of the plants for you.”

Kit went to stand next to Grandpa. The old man lifted his staff and pointed it towards the clusters of water sweet nut’s. The ground shook and Kit heard the familiar rumble once again. The green plants lifted from the ground without any resistance. The next moment the flew over to grandpa and sat in a pile in front of him.

Kit could only stare in open wonder.

“I should have become an earth elimentalist. Harvesting would be a so easy then. Grandpa you are amazing. I need to take you with me every time to harvest.”

Kit turned his gaze to Grandpa with a look of worship. The old man’s eyes crinkled at the sight of Kit.

“Kit if you complement me like that, I’ll have no choice but to accompany you. Plus, it will mean I get free food if I help right?”

Kit decided he really loved people that were foodies. Just giving them some free food, he could get some help in return. It was very profitable for him. Kit smiled at the gluttonous old man. Then he thought about all the help he had received from the kind old man. Even if he didn’t help harvesting plants Kit would give him free meals.

“That’s right Grandpa. The more we collect, the more dishes I can create. I would be feeding you for free for the rest of your life Grandpa, even if you didn’t help. You are more like family now anyway.”

A gleam entered Grandpa’s eyes. While the old man was thinking of food Kit pocketed all the water sweet nuts into his pouch.

“Grandpa do you know if there are any more species of plants in this swamp?”

“Kit there is plenty in here. There is moss, flowers, trees, and shrubs. I’m not quite sure what you’re looking for though.”

“Do you know if there is anything else edible inside the swap. If not, then something that will add stats?”

“Hmm, there are some trees at the edge of the swap in the less wet part that produce fruit. I also know of some flowers that grow which are used in healing potions will that help?”

Kit felt a jolt of joy at hearing about the flower. He didn’t have a health stats meal that he could sell yet. He felt a building excitement at the thought of creating something that could replenish his health. He had the spiritual moon juice magic to raise his health but nothing to replenish it if he lost health. A replenishing stats dish would save him money on potions in the future.

“Let’s go. Led the way Grandpa.”

The group made a chorus of squelching sounds as they made their way to the trees. As the ground started to become more firm Kit could see the trees up ahead. This part of the swamp was bordering on a forest. Behind the fruit trees were densely packed trees. The fog was starting to thin the closer they got to the tall trees.

Kit stood underneath a large tree with fruit that had a similar shape to apples adorning the branches. The fruit was a bright red with flecks of silver scattered all over the skin. Kit’s eyes shone with glee at the sight.

“Grandpa can you collect the fruits for me.”

Grandpa smiled at Kit’s joyful face.

“Come stand over here with me so you don’t get hit from them when they fall.”

Kit obediently stood by Grandpa’s side.

“Twix, you gather them as they fall.”

Twix nodded in understanding. Grandpa and Twix raised their staffs. The pair worked seamlessly together. Grandpa manipulated the tree to shake and Twix collected the fruits from the air before they hit the ground. Soon a mountain of fruit was in front of them. Magic really was the best!

Kit and Mars started to fill their pouches. Soon all the trees in the area were picked bare. Kit was practically bouncing with happiness from the mornings harvest. He couldn’t wait to head back to the restaurant to start experimenting with all the new food.

“Kit, do you want mushrooms?”

Kit jerked his head to look at Mars. He was squatting on the ground at the edge of the forest. Kit walked over to him with hurried steps. He looked down to see what Mars had found. A group of yellow mushrooms with green dots covering the cap were nestled on the forest floor.

Kit squatted down next to Mars and used identify.

[Muddy yellow swap mushroom]

Found on the edges of a swap that boarder a forest. Warning! Toxic when consumed raw.

Kit’s eyes glowed at the sight. He had two ingredients that had a warning attached. He wondered what would happen if he combined them. An itchy feeling to return immediately to his restaurant consumed him. Kit tried to calm his growing restlessness. He needed to collect the mushrooms first.

“I definitely want these Mars. I think I can create something with these and the elephant ears.”

Grandpa and Twix had followed Kit. He heard an intake of breath from all three of them. Kit had a feeling they were all excited about the prospect of a new dish.

“Right let’s get to work. Kit needs some mushrooms.”

Grandpa had a serious look on his face as he spoke. Kit lifted his eyebrows in response. The three immediately scattered to find mushrooms after Grandpa spoke. Kit could only chuckle at their antics. Having foodies come along with him really was great.

Once Kit had a good supply of the mushrooms, he asked Grandpa about the flowers.

“They are found on the way back so we can collect them on the way.”

The party slogged their way through the mud once again. Grandpa brought them to a large patch of colourful flowers. Kit could see three kinds of flowers amongst the display of blooming petals. Grandpa went over to a soft blue coloured flower. The flower was a round ball of petals giving it a fluffy appearance.

He handed the flower to Kit.

“This is the one I was taking about.”

Kit held the flower gently in his hand, so he did not damage it. He used identify.

[Soft blue ball]

A beautiful flower found amongst a muddy swamp. The flower adds colour to a murky swamp.

The description gave no indication that the flower could be used as part of a health potion. He really needed to upgrade his identify. He could miss out on important ingredients if he wasn’t careful. Kit looked at the other flowers and decided to collect all of them just in case they would become useful as well. He asked grandpa just to harvest all the flowers to be safe.

Grandpa complied with his request. Once they had collected all the flowers the party headed back to Spartan Fire. Kit was happy with the days outcome even though he had been a human fire torch at one point. He had raised his swords man level two times, he was now sitting on level 20. Now he just needed to work on raising his chef level and creating new dishes in the afternoon. Kit thought this was a good division of his day.