With eight hours until he was planning on grinding his fire mana again Adam quickly linked with each of the vermite and then checked through his notifications. There was sixty exp to collect for unlocking Elemental manipulation; five for Pa's hut; another four because both Ti and Rai had found ten fruit trees; two for Ti completely exploring the Orchard and a final two more for Rai defeating two level one foxes. He was glad Ma had been around to ensure Ti had been safe, without a weapon or additional skill he had no idea if she could survive an encounter with a level one fox alone. As a result of their adventures both Ti and Rai had levelled up. A check on Sharky showed he had recovered from the day before and was heading back to the sunken ship.
He reflected on the day before. It was clear that to progress with any pace he would need to push himself harder. The each follower providing a few exp was nothing compared to the sixty for completing his quest or the even larger amount gained from clearing the mine. Adam checked his quest list:
Quests:
Quests Complete? Exp Explore Forest, outer 0% 50 Explore Mountain, slope 1% 100 Convert vermite 66% 30 Explore sunken ship, eliminate threat, don't die 30% 120 Use fire mana 20% 100 Explore Mine, upper 0% 100 Collect exp Y/N
Great, he could see his progress on unlocking fire mana. At that rate he could grind twice today and tomorrow he would have something to show for it. With seventy-three exp at the moment and needing another 147 to reach level four he had two options. He could wait until tomorrow; practice and convert the remaining two vermite - his followers providing the remaining few exp. Or he could head to the forest. Maybe against his better judgement he packed his bag and headed out of camp.
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He chose to run alongside the river down towards the forest. Only Inspect and the slight sensation of pressure in his head informing him he had crossed from the Forest, edge to Forest, outer area. As in the mine he activated stealth and had his staff in hand with his hatchet strapped across his back. While he knew the danger level had increased there was little to prove this as he continued to follow the river deeper into the forest. The birds were still tweeting in the trees and wind blowing the odd leaf down from the branches above. Worried any movement signalled a threat Adam had slowed to a walk; more confident here than the mine that at least he could run away if attacked.
Adam realised as he went that the river was changing course; turning towards the coast after it had entered the forest properly. It also grew wider and slower with the bank becoming less well defined as large trees identified as mangroves hugged the shoreline. The mud and roots at the base of the mangroves pushed Adam deeper into the trees. A splash in the water seen through the trees and quick pulse of Discern revealed Crocodile - level 3. Semi-aquatic reptile. Live in brackish water. Having identified one Adam concentrated to find that there were several of these creatures in the nearby water.
Rather than carry on at this point. He cut back up towards his camp angling his return journey to complete as much of the map as possible. He had completed 30% of the exploration task by the time he returned to the edge of the forest. Adam sat; took a drink from his bottle and had a break from his task. Rather than head back in to the depths of the forest he explored parallel to the edge of the forest and towards the coast. He reached the coast without seeing anything more interesting than a few game trails leading deeper into the forest.
Mirroring the tactic of exploring down the river; Adam headed down the coast in an attempt to outline the area he was exploring. Before long a pressure built in his head signalling an increase in danger. Looking around for the potential cause he still could see nothing moving in the trees. As he progressed Inspect revealed that it was due to a change of area to Forest, coast - level 3-5; medium threat. He backtracked and could now tell where the area changed; his new course pushing him inland. Throwing caution to the wind and with plenty of time remaining on stealth Adam made his way back towards the mangroves from a different direction. Once outlined, the area was roughly triangular in shape. Adam stood with his back to the river, facing the long edge that marked the transition to Forest, edge. Choosing to walk back up the side nearer the river Adam noted that all the larger game trails were leading towards the only area he had not yet ventured into.
Eighty percent of the area had been explored by the time Adam had reached the Forest, edge once more. There remained a small triangular shape not completed on his map; probably not a coincidence that the stream led straight through it. Zooming in confirmed his suspicion that this was where all the game trails led. It was clear this was where he should head next. His walk changed to a creep as he moved. Adam had moved to the side of the game trail, hampering his progress but sure this would be preferable to being out in the open. So absorbed with making no sound he was almost in the clearing before he realised that the trees had been thinning out.
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He stopped; noise coming from both sides. A snuffling and rustling broke the silence. Backing up to the nearest tree hoping it would hide him better Adam glanced around to find the source. A boar trotted into sight sniffing at the ground. He didn't need Discern to identify the animal but used it to gain more information. Boar - level 3. Expanding the skill he could now sense several of the creatures in the nearby wood ranging between level 2 and 3. Looking at the sturdy body and two thick tusks curling out from the lower jaw there was no way he was going to try attacking them with his staff. He was more worried about how to get away given that on four legs they would likely be quicker than him too. Adam was suprised to note that the boar in front of him seemed unaware of his presence despite having a clear line of sight. Not previously having the opportunity to experiment; Adam put stealth to the test.
He skirted around the boar in front of him. Noticing that it only seemed aware of his presence when he came within a ten metre radius. Testing further he stooped to pick up a stone off the forest floor. He watched as the boar turned to investigate the noise created by throwing the stone against a tree behind it. More confident in his ability to avoid detection Adam picked up a few more stones to act as decoys and skirted around away from the stream to finish his exploration.
His confidence in stealth improved as he cleared the rest of the area. Adam was worried at one point that he would have to enter the clearing to complete but had discovered a rise in the landscape as he circled that gave an overview. He was stood on this promontory overlooking the clearing. It was mainly an area of low grass but held several mounds of longer grass that the boars had left. From each of these small groups of piglets were weaving in and out. He had checked and these did not have a level, unlike their grown-up counterparts. As well as this there was a clear alpha male boar that was meandering slowly through the clearing. He was larger than all the other boars; thick wiry hair formed in clumps around his shoulders and a broken left tusk. Discern revealed Razorback - level 5. This was definitely a creature to avoid thought Adam.
Stopping in relative safety with stealth activated and holding Discern to ensure he was well away from any individual boars Adam noticed a clear pattern to their activities in the wood. While most would slowly circle the area where the trees thinned out around the clearing the occasional boar would head off along a trail before returning to the clearing a short time later, mostly by the same trail but sometimes by another. It must have been pure chance that meant he had not encountered a boar earlier outside the clearing. He was absorbed in trying to determine their fixed routes when the alarm went off on his watch.
Silencing it almost immediately Adam could sense three of the boar turning in his direction. Trusting in stealth he threw a stone at a nearby tree while creeping away slowly. He held his breath as the nearest boar came well within the ten metre safety zone he had been establishing. His anxiety seemed unfounded as the boar continued past him without any hint that stealth had been breached. Once the boar had moved on and was ten metres away again Adam continued to retreat out of the area. He reached a game trail that he now knew would be empty progressing quickly back to the Forest, edge.
Back at the rocks where the water forming the stream started Adam checked his map. The area had been completely explored exposing two new areas that neighboured it. Forest, coast and Mangroves. Both were level 3-5. Before closing his map he noticed some new markings in the Orchard area. Zooming in he saw that three vermite burrows had been marked by Ti when she had been exploring. He filed this information for later.
Having checked his quest was complete, Adam collected the fifty exp making his current total 123. He spent sixty straight away to level Elemental manipulation twice. The gain in level was noticeable instantly as he started the process of pushing the fire mana around his body and down the channels in his left arm. Not only was the process easier but the fire mana seemed more compliant. By the end he could feel the heat it was generating in his hand; the fire mana collecting before quickly disappearing once leaving his body. It was only after completing his practice that he thought to check his skill table once more.
Individual Skill Menu: Elemental manipulation
Elemental manipulation The ability to use mana to control the elements Level Additional features 1 Gives control over Fire element 2 Pick additional basic element to control: Water; Air; Earth; Metal 3 Pick additional basic element to control: Water; Air; Earth; Metal increase level to add additional elemental control and conceptual elements
He hadn't even started to wield Fire and already he could pick two more elements? Metal had been next on his list so he selected it and turned his focus inward to see the change. Even without mana points to do anything he could still sense the warm yellow orange that represented the fire mana. Another layer was now visible; a dark grey shining and flecked with gold, silver and bronze. There was no doubt this was the metal mana. Adam couldn't wait to see how this responded to manipulation and considered whether he would save the experimenting until after developing his fire mana. He smiled, knowing the answer.
His exploring may not have been as fruitful as the mine but had sparked a thought in his head. As bad as it felt to think through - the piglets had made him hungry for something other than fruit. His imagination got a little carried away as he considered a plate of sausages and bacon with some fried eggs mopped up with a thick slice of bread. Hours of documentaries and videos on the internet meant he had learned at one point how to butcher a pig. His intellect stat meaning he remembered all the details. Not sure where he would get the eggs or bread he slowly concocted a plan on getting the piglet. With stealth having drained all his SP it would have to wait for today.