I woke up in the most normal circumstances I've had yet.
There was no slime.
There was no ant corpse.
There was no darkness.
The morning sun shone through the cave's entrance, causing a beautiful stream of lights to dance off the cave walls.
I held my hands out in front of me and using earth manipulation, my gauntlets floated up and onto my stone fists.
I reached out to my right side with a gauntleted fist and the shaft of my hamaxe swung up into my hand, I hefted the weapon off the floor and let it rest on my shoulder.
"That probably looked cool as shit."
*giggle*
"Wha-" I spun around on the spot after hearing a small laugh behind me, near the cave entrance, but I saw nothing.
"Who's there! Show yourself!" I shouted, but there was no answer.
Readying my hamaxe, I hopped into the shallow stream and started walking towards the exit. As I blinked into the morning sun, I looked around for the source of the voice.
Still nothing.
"So now I'm hearing things." I might actually be going insane.
I proceeded down the slope, following the stream away from the mountain. I started eating rocks again in hopes of regaining my former height.
'Is there a way to show my height with this sys-'
Current Height: 48cm
'And there it is. Only 140cm to go and I'll be back to normal. Well, normal height.'
As I neared the forest 20 minutes and 4 centimeters later, the first creature I spotted was a small bird sitting on a branch staring at me curiously. The bird looked like a robin, red tuft on the front and everything.
'Target practice.'
I levitated a small stone above my left hand, condensed it into a bullet, and started spinning it. I took my time aiming before carefully firing at the robin from about 8 meters away.
*PLUFF*
There were feathers everywhere. The messy remains of the bird flew and slammed into a tree behind it, before falling to the ground. The stone bullet I fired seems to have impaled itself in the second tree before finally stopping.
'Alright, maybe my weapon won't get as much use as I thought it would. These stone bullets are brutal.'
I walked over to the corpse of the bird, it was about waist high before being turned into a lump of meat and bone.
'I really hope I find a way to make fire soon.' I thought as I hefted my weapon, spun it around to the axe-head, and remove a chunk of the bird.
I shut my eyes, stuffed it in my mouth, and chewed as little as possible before swallowing it down, bits of feather and bone crunching in my teeth.
"blech."
'Robin Redbreast' has been ingested
Due to the Glutton skill, you have gained 1 dexterity
I felt my body become slightly more nimble again. The change this time was far less pronounced than the last but I enjoyed the sensation nonetheless.
I ate a few more pieces of the robin, eating most of the disgusting mess, however, I sadly gained nothing more.
Continuing my walk following the river deeper into the forest, I killed and ate another robin, gaining one more point of dexterity.
'I suppose if the quality is lacking I can just make up for it in quantity.' I thought while aiming at a third bird that happened to land on the ground nearby.
Right as my bullet was about to shoot forth, the robin was suddenly skewered by a green harpoon and dragged into the grass beside it. towards the base of a nearby tree.
"HEY! That's mine you stupid flower." I yelled as I dropped the bullet to the ground and charged forth. Someone is stealing my stats, so, for now, I will ignore the quiet snort followed by soft giggling I heard behind me as I dashed forward.
If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.
There was a small clearing in the grass around the flower as its own personal vines had taken over most of the area. The flower was bright pink, about 75cm tall, and had my meal in its mouth. The vine made an annoyed hissing sound, which disgustingly caused it to gurgle and spit some of the robin's blood out onto the ground.
I fired 2 stone bullets at the creepy flower, blowing some small holes in its-
Face? Lips? Whatever, the center of mass. All that seemed to do was piss it off, however, as several of the vines lining the ground started uprooting to grab me. I swung my hammer at one on my right and smashed it into pulp. Using the momentum of lifting the weapon from the ground, I swung the axe-blade towards a vine on my left, severing it from the main plant.
Then, a harpoon hit me in the torso, causing me to stumble a few steps backwards.
*Grunt*
Apparently, while I was fighting off the vines, the flower had spit out the bird carcass to make way for its viny appendage. I grabbed onto the vine out of reflex, dropping my faithful weapon to the ground with a dull thud. I was then reeled in towards the flowers insides.
I weigh a lot more than a small bird so the fight turned into a game of tug-o-war, unfortunately, it was a game the plant was slowly winning.
Right before I was pulled into the gaping maw, I stopped pulling and leapt forwards, bypassing the snapping teeth completely. Inside the flower, there was a coil of vines attached to the harpoon still lodged in my torso. There was also a hanging uvula-like appendage that seemed to be dripping some sort of digestive fluid if the half-corroded bones in the bottom of the liquid had anything to say about it.
So I punched the bastard plant straight in the dangly bit, spiked gauntlet digging deeply and shredding chunks of green flesh and yellowish goop. The teeth re-opened and the creature screeched and hissed, right before the coil I was still attached to started to tighten.
"Nonononononono"
*Thunk*
I was launched out of the flower much faster than I was pulled inside, making a low arc through the air and slammed into a tree. My health dropping to around 30%. The harpoon through my gut was now lodged in the tree, but the flower seemed to be trying to reel it back again.
I lifted one of my gauntlets, turned the hardened stone into a small saw-blade and started working on the vine. I did not want to go for another ride and hope I could avoid the teeth a second time.
The bark behind me started to splinter, but I won the race. The vine came free of the harpoon, and so did I, as I was still holding onto it. I was launched at the plant and I could swear the thing was surprised as I shot straight through the creature and rolled out the other side.
'10% health left.'
Vines started reaching up on both sides of me, but I firmly planted both hands on the ground, infusing it with as much of my mana as I could spare.
*THUNK*
*SCREEEEEeeeeeeeeee*
The plant was crucified on a spike of earth, now floating over a meter in the air. Bits of green plant matter, pink flower, and an enormous amount of yellow fluid were splattered all over the spike. The vines around me, now separated from their source, fell down to the ground.
You have gained the skill: Novice Two-Handed Weapon Mastery
Passive: Damage increased while wielding a two-handed weapon
damage increased by 5% for each level in this skill while wielding a two-handed weapon
Due to constant use, Novice Hand to Hand Fighting has increased by 1 level
Due to constant use, Novice Earth Manipulation has increased by 1 level
"huff, huff, damned overgrown weed."
I used some of my remaining mana to take a chunk out of the spike so it would fall over. Walking over to the plant, I really hoped nearly dying again was worth it. I started tearing off chunks of the plant and gorging myself on it.
'Carnivorous toothpick flower' has been ingested
Due to the Glutton skill, you have gained
1 strength 1 vitality 1 dexterity 2 intelligence 1 wisdom
3 levels in Photosynthesis
"Well, I'll be damned." The sudden increase in stats almost caused me to trip over my own feet as I walked to my discarded earthen weapon. "Wait what do you mean toothpick!? That harpoon is as long as I am tall!" I grumbled while picking my weapon up off the ground.
"Yea, but you aren't that tall." (???)
"AH!" I screamed and swung my axe at the voice behind me.
"AH," the voice screamed back and raised its hands.
'Is that a fairy?' was my last thought before my axe hit an invisible barrier, bounced back and smashed into my own face, hammer first.
*THUD*
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There, in a small clearing in a forest was a fairy, a collapsed earth elemental, and a strange weapon.
"Oops?" (???)
"Well, let's get you home, and tomorrow you will be right as rain. No no, don't thank me, it was partially my fault after all." (???)
The fairy flew over to the crumbled remains of the earth elemental and pulled the core out of the center of the chest. It then flew over to the weapon and examined it for a short while, before placing one hand on the weapons head, causing the weapon to disappear before the fairy began flying off upriver.
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Name Raak Race Earth Elemental Str 5 Vit 6 Dex 4 Int 5 Wis 9 Hp 85 MP 115
Skill List - Passive level Glutton 1(max) Crystal Core 1(max) Photosynthesis 4 Novice Hand to Hand Fighting 2 Novice Two-Handed Weapon Mastery 1
Skill List - Active level Glow 1(max) Novice Earth Manipulation 8