Okay, I don't feel drained of every last drop of energy anymore, I'd guess my MP's recovered about halfway? I can't be sure though, my status doesn't actually have a score for it so I'm relying on my gut feeling here. Still, it's been quite quick to come back, which is most likely due to being a Level 1 character with MP reserves to match. Two spells! Two basic spells and I am completely spent. How can this be? I know that half-elves don't get any bonus raw magical power, but shouldn't the largish boost to control make casting more efficient

Unless control affects complexity of the spells I can cast? I don't know, but it's kind of a scary thought - that if I had less control I might have only been able to cast a single spell before insufficient MP struck and rendered me helpless. I would definitely be dead by now, had that been the case. Still, since I have enough MP to use healing magic I'll do that for now. My thigh is covered with dried blood from the wound, and while it's not infected yet the pain is keeping a constant presence at the back of my mind.

For that reason, I'll try diagnosing my injuries first - I've gathered so many that I don't know where to start. Sterilizing to prevent infection? Binding up the wound - and if so which one? Healing a bruise - or could the bone be broken? No, I need to know what I'm facing in order to decide the best course of action. After all there is the ever pressing problem of limited food supplies, I cannot afford to dawdle. Water as well, if the mini-map is accurate, which it has proven to be so far, the nearest source is a few hours brisk walking away. And my condition is hardly good enough to manage a slow limp, much less anything vaguely resembling brisk.

"Magic of the mind, filter through. Behold, body [Diagnose]!"

The feeling is... odd... like being submersed in cold custard, though I've never experienced such a strange thing personally that is the image my imagination conjures up. Stupid over-active imagination. Let's pay attention to more important things, things like the diagnostic screen that has popped up in front of me. With a massive wall of text to read through. Thank goodness there is a filter at the top or I just know I would have struggled to sift the major overload of information to get to the actual important bits. Like the fact that I almost severed an artery in my thigh and should not aggravate it or I will bleed to death in short order.

Other than that I have a badly sprained ankle, bruised rib cage, slightly sprained wrist and so many cuts and scrapes and miscellaneous aches that I gave up halfway through. Since it was ranked by severity of injury I doubt that something that comes after 'minor earache' is worth a mention. Not moving my leg while waiting yet again for replenished MP makes for a pretty dull day. So... Very... Boring...

Finally, I was facing the supremely hard choice of death by boredom or death by movement. Well, the situation wasn't quite that dire, I didn't have a death wish especially after all of the trouble I've been through in order to keep this life of mine! Which I should be prolonging right now with my only healing magic that actually heals. I know, I know, the others provide essential aid for wounds which [Small Heal] can't deal with in one go, but I have already acknowledged the probability that one casting will not be enough. Then it will be back to waiting. Oh joy.

"Vitality and vigor, gather, bend and nurture. Magic restoration [Small Heal]!"

A small glow manifests, giving off a gentle warmth before splitting into sparks which gather all over my body, but particularly at my thigh, chest and ankle. So the case is that the serious stuff is treated first. Good to know, though for now I'm simply content to revel in the absence of the majority of the pain - the sparks having a numbing effect. My breathing is somewhat relaxed now, though it is gradually getting more labored.

As the specks of healing magic exhaust their energy they begin to wink out of existence one by one. And as they vanish so does the painkilling aura they exuded. So, yes, I am still in pain. Less pain than I was experiencing pre-healing, but it still seems pretty bad after a half-minute or so reprieve. Only one thing seems somewhat off- using healing magic was less draining than using wind magic. Not that I'm complaining! Based on the level of magical fatigue I have gained; I'll be facing a half hour before I can repeat the chant. Though that is a slight over-estimate, I want a bit of a safety net just to err on the right side of caution.

And... done! Fully healed except for some minor bruises, and to be honest, I've had worse back home. It still took some time, nothing if compared to natural recuperation, but a good couple of hours’ worth of heal and wait and heal and wait and so on. Halfway through the process I noticed that the vines that had curled in on themselves were glowing slightly. It was unnerving, I was in a pretty bad state and all I could think was that there was some kind of resurrection thing going on.

There wasn't, I'd hardly be alive now if that was the case. But that glow was driving me up the wall, all the having to wait on top of all the really weird stuff and you have a recipe for impatience. I want to know! Well, now I can find out for myself, so I walk over, sword at the ready. Just because one creature is dead doesn't mean another won't come along. Heck, a predator might even be attracted by the dead body! Or the glow for that matter, it's kind of conspicuous. Hesitantly I reach out and try to touch the object, but as soon as I've decided on that course of action the air itself seems to shimmer and before I can fully process this, the remnants have completely vanished.

"What the-?"

Although upon further investigation it seems that something has been left behind. A lump of some wobbly substance the size of my fist. Is it jelly? No, it's too tough for that, it doesn't really have much give either when I test it. Maybe rubber then? I think I read something about rubber being harvested from vines in the olden days. That means this is the equivalent of a monster drop item, I wonder how much it'll fetch. It was a pretty tough battle, though that could be purely down to my inexperience in fighting, in addition to my low level. Now, what's that alert flashing up in the corner of my eye? Have I levelled up! At long last!

Log Updated: Scroll Down for Further Information

So no level up. Great, I just defeated a seriously tricky opponent, most likely equivalent to several times my meagre level 1, and I don't get anything out of it. I could have done with more points too. I'd really like to get some sort of appraisal skill. Then maybe I wouldn't be walking blindly into life-threatening situations. So what did I get, apart from a fistful of rubber.

Toltec Rubber Vine: Level 1: Defeated

You have gained [Low Quality Tough Rubber] x1

You have gained 20XP

You have gained 0.01 Character Points

I get character points from defeating monsters? Okay, so right now calling it that is misleading. Revised mental exclamation: I get miniscule fractions of character points from defeating monsters, and if I live long enough I might just get to accumulate a sufficient quantity of them to form a whole one? Yeah, that sounds a lot more realistic. Depositing the rubber inside my inventory, I pressed yes when the option came up to add the newly named Toltec Rubber Vine to my Bestiary. No new information added, just a lot of question marks, oh, and the fact that Low Quality Tough Rubber was one of its many drops. A pity it's probably not worth a lot, it is a common item according to this.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

I did pick up the white flower bud, and put it in an inventory slot. All I got was a long line of gibberish. I guess I'll keep it for now, it can't harm me if it’s in an alternate dimension. Maybe I can get it appraised when I reach Yarrow? And, speaking of which, I really need to set off on the next leg of my journey, my water gourd is drained dry of every last drop. Going without food for a day is barely tolerable, but I would take that over a day without water any time. So let's get to that stream.

Ah, so refreshing, I even got to rinse the dirt off my face as well as gulp sweet, sweet water to my heart’s content. It was a sunny day so it really was too hot to be travelling without water. The upside is that since my clothes will dry quickly under the sun's rays I can give them a wash as well. Maybe then the smell of constant wear will decrease a bit. Can't help the creasing though, I'd air them as a substitute for ironing, but they are all I have to cover myself with - I only rinsed them briefly downstream under cover of some trees in order to minimize chance of discovery.

No-one came along, which is sort of strange after all this time. Even if this is really out of the way shouldn't there have been a merchant, or peddler, or even a fellow traveler to cross paths with? I mean, it's good that there's no bandits but, I don't know, something about this doesn't sit right with me. Erm... I think I've gone and jinxed myself. Just as I seriously think about the prospect of some hidden danger - guess what? Danger, that's what. Improving my Luck stats score has just jumped up the priority list. Because I do not see how yet another vine shooting tendrils at me out of nowhere is in any way 'lucky'.

Carefully noting the location of the heavily fanged hole that was waiting to swallow me, I jumped backwards, and not a second too late. There was a pile of something at the bottom that I really did not want to join. As it was I gained a thin cut on my cheek from a vine which was covered in thorns. I would have sworn that the previous vine was lacking that particular nasty addition. So a partially unknown opponent then, perfect.

Duck, then dodge to the right, bend over backwards as if doing the limbo and yes, I have managed to keep my head on my shoulders, barely. Though said head is pounding, either from sheer adrenaline or from dizziness, hopefully the former. And please oh please don't let it be the mind affecting substance that played havoc with my brain in the previous fight. No, calm down, I can manage a coherent thought without getting distracted right now, so I am doing better in that respect. And, maybe because I have some battle experience against a similar opponent I'm actually settling into a defensive rhythm of a sort. And so I am able to say a key phrase in between gasps for air.

The wind arrow lands a successful hit, but due to some difficulties in multitasking casting and parrying it ends up only destroying half of the mouth. The other half remains untouched. Hence why I'm being attacked much more now, I know that it's simply a matter of time until the withering tendrils completely lose strength and the monster dies, but my enemy knows that as well. Hence the lack of caution as it slashes at me again and again.

"…"

I can't help wincing as a stinging pain hits my shoulder hard, that it is my left shoulder is a small mercy. If it had been my right one I would have lost the ability to wield my sword, and poor as I am at swordsmanship I would be a hundred times worse when using my non-dominant hand to hold the blade. Though instead of relief, I'm confused as anything. There was no way a tendril could have attacked me from that angle, I've been meticulous about keeping track of the thorn-covered vines and... oh... no. A twist to the side neatly avoids a large black needle that shoots past me to embed itself deep within a tree trunk. A needle larger than, but otherwise utterly identical to the one that is sticking out of my left shoulder.

Ranged attacks are bad, very bad. I immediately go even further on the defensive. While before I was trying to conserve my limited stamina, now I cannot afford even that small luxury. The only good news in this bleak situation is that each vine can only shoot one needle before it loses energy for a while. And that results in a crucial opening! Taking a deep breath, I rush a huddle of exhausted tendrils and behead them with two swipes.

It was relatively easy to cut through the width of the vines, but that was not the oddest occurrence. The question I should be asking is why was it so easy to take that many out of the equation, without any opposition. The answer; it was a trap. When I craned my head I could see every last tendril preparing to send a storm of needles at me. That was when I released the breath I had been holding in a jumble of words - not of panic, but of magic.

"Magic might, infuse the air and dance deliverance [Divert Projectile]!"

The air around me feels like its adhered to my skin, running a constant stream of wind in the opposite direction. Then it curves around me and I can hear the soft thud of the large needles, though to be honest they are better suited to represent dagger blades than an innocuous sewing tool, as they drop in a circle just a half meter away from my feet.

"What an obvious trap!"

I taunt the monster slightly, but it doesn't respond in anyway. Well that much is good, I'd be worried if it came down to killing a fully sentient being. I do take into account the fact that it could just be unable to move after such an all-out attack. But it's unlikely, the mouth is still full of bared fangs. It's wary, ready to bite down, and yet I would be a complete and utter fool if I did not take advantage of the temporary lull in attack to finish it off. I'm not going to get another chance like this, where I have a total reprieve from the giant needles.

I don't have sufficient magic left to use wind arrow, so cold hard steel will have to do. Upon my approach something resembling drool drips from the fangs, only to be quickly shaken off when I swipe at it. I was over confident, or so it seems. Beheading the vines was not hard, simply aim for the gaps between the thorns and they were within the bounds of an ordinary person to chop. But while they are of identical thickness to each other, the fangs seem to be made out of a much harder material. My sword wasn't stuck, but it took a whole lot of pressure to sever one fang. Using both hands for the blow could have let me hack straight through, but my left shoulder's still injured to the point that the pain would be a major distraction should I use it.

I'm fighting with my last reserves of energy now, fatigue has well and truly settled in. But if I rest now, if the plant monster recovers in that time then I am doomed. Since my life is now equivalent to a role playing game it is probably accurate to compare my current actions to a player spamming their avatars attack button. No finesse, no particular accuracy, just hacking and slashing any undamaged part of the plant I can reach. It's working, repetitive blows from a sharp sword will chip steadily at an unarmored enemy’s health, but it seems like an age before the same glow appears around the remains.

Directly after casting the healing spell on my shoulder I sprawl out on the grass bordering the dirt track, body somewhat on edge, my heart rate still accelerated. But mentally I feel languid, peaceful and above all satisfied that I am safe for now. Gesturing towards the glow, and mentally noting to pick up the dropped item in a minute or so, it comes as something of a surprise when the mass of limp vines vanishes revealing a small spool of white thread. It works just on thought? That's good... though it doesn't automatically enter my inventory. That, I have to do manually. Since I'm not in the mood to play a guessing game about the threads identity I bring up the log.

Thornstorm Rubber Vine: Level 1: Defeated

You have gained [Normal Quality Elastic] x1

You have gained 20XP

You have gained 0.01 Character Points

Pretty much the same as last time, eh? Only 98 more monsters to defeat in order to get a character point. Just... don't let me encounter anymore until after I've acclimated to this world better. There's only so much I can take. Like how I am studiously avoiding the fact that common Level 1 monsters are this strong. Somehow I doubt I'll be seeing a passer-by soon. Unless they're a battle addict, in which case I'm better off steering clear of them.

Let’s think of happier thoughts. Like setting off on the journey again and the prospect of a warm meal and bath, and a soft bed for the night. It's only two days until the nearest Inn! Though I don't think only is the right word. Gah, it was supposed to build morale, not make me depressed. Okay, no more thinking about this, get going and... I don’t suppose I could wait a bit and use healing magic on my blisters? I'd forgotten how sore they can be after bursting.