I looked down at the scorpion's corpse and began the nasty work of breaking it open. I started by casting my light spell and cutting the scorpion stinger off. I looked at it again and then cut the tail off as well. I wasn't about to risk being poisoned on accident. I then opened the rest of the scorpion. I used my spell like a laser scalpel and after nearly thirty minutes the scorpion's flesh was open to the air. I looked down at it but quickly decided that I wasn't going to eat it. Not unless I could start a proper fire. I placed the armor back over the body and turned back toward the spring. I filled up my skin to replace what I had lost and then I stepped back into the sweltering heat.

I placed a hand in front of my face as I looked up toward the sun. I couldn't be sure what time it was but the sun was starting to set. It looked like it would take between two and four hours before things would get dark. Which meant I had a timetable. I turned and began to march in the same direction as before. I walked for another ten minutes before coming across another scorpion. As the scorpion charged I got an idea. Before I could convince myself not to do something risky I began casting my spell only this time I cast the spell using both hands. It felt like twin twenty-pound weights had been connected to both hands. The casting took twice as long and I felt every second as the pincers of the scorpion bore down on me. Just as the scorpion entered the range of my spell a ray of light reminiscent of every anime I had watched as a child shot out from both palms. I resisted the urge the scream the spell's name as it slammed into the scorpion's face.

The scorpion let out a cry of pain and began snapping at the air desperately. I swayed on my feet as my magic points plummeted. I steeled myself and focused on the scorpion. It hadn't been blinded but its right pincer was mostly ruined. The scorpion gained control of itself a second later. It began to scurry toward me just as the cool-down for Lesser Ray of Light ended. I began dual casting the spell again the scorpion cut the distance between us in half before I was able to unleash the spell. This time something unexpected had happened. The rays of light split into two and both of them carved into the scorpion's eyes. Green blood spilled onto the black sand as the scorpion reared back in pain. The spell ended a moment later but the fight was over. The scorpion's sting began stabbing forward in the air.

I stayed far enough away that the scorpion had no chance of hitting me while I waited the few seconds required for the spell's cool-down to end. I was going to have to get more spells if I was going to be a capable spell caster but for now, this one would do. Once the cool down ended I aimed another two rays into the scorpion. The scorpion collapsed into the sand a moment later. I stared down at the scorpion and decided not to drag it back with me. I didn't have a refrigerator or salt so food storage wasn't possible. Getting water was more important. I couldn't be sure that drinking potions as if they were water would be wise. Some games had potion toxicity, a poison that would hurt you if you drank too many potions. I looked around making sure that there were no enemies before taking a seat in the sand. I opened my notifications and began to read.

You have been awarded 150 experience points for defeating Black Iron Scorpion-Level 3

Congratulations! Your skill Lumos Magic has leveled up. Lumos Magic has reached level 4. You are able to learn additional spells.

Congratulations! You have gained the skill: Dual Casting. Dual casting allows you to cast the same spell simultaneously using both hands. Using this method to cast spells places an additional requirement on your mind. As a result the chances of miscasting multiplies drastically. The damage of the spell multiplies by 200% while the cost multiplies by 300% Each level grants an extra 5% to spell power and decreases extra magic cost by 3%.

Congratulations! Your skill Dual Casting has leveled up. Dual Casting has reached level 2. The spell power increases by 205% and the modified cost is 297%

I checked my experience points and saw that I was one hundred experience points away from level two. That combined with the progress in my skill made me feel pretty good. The only thing I needed to do now was find a way to cook the scorpion meat and I would be set. I stood up and looked around. I got sight of a pair of black and grey stones. I remembered watching a survival series on the internet where a man was able to start a fire by clicking stones together. I shrugged my shoulders and grabbed the stones. I gave the area another scan but couldn't find anything of note. I turned and made my way back to my safe place.

When I arrived at my place I grabbed a pile of grass and other plants. I placed them all together in a pile and began hitting the stones together. It took several minutes before I got the sparks to take. Small embers began to grow while I cupped my hands over it. I couldn't remember if I was supposed to breathe into the fire or protect it from the breeze. I knew that fire needed oxygen so I did a mixture of the two. I gently blew on the fire while using my hands like a wind barrier. At first, the flame shrunk feebly but after a few seconds, it began to grow. I grinned and blew a little bit harder. The flame responded and I had to pull my hand back to avoid the embers. I turned and looked for more plants so I could grow the flame. I found what I needed and watched as the fire grew to the size of a campfire I turned my focus to the scorpion and the happiness I had felt faded slightly. I grabbed a large piece of its chitin and a chunk of meat. I made a makeshift skillet and placed the meat on top. The heat quickly warmed the meat until it gave off a slight sizzle sound. The smell of the meat filled the air and I decided to focus on other things. A glance told me I had a notification.

Notice! You have learned the skill Cooking. Food is your thing. You are good at making, creating, and critiquing it You can determine when something is a gift from the Gods and when something just ain't right. This is a key skill in the wilderness or when walking across various planes. Each level of this skill increases the taste of food by 2% and increases your chance of creating a meal by 2%

There was a cooking skill? Not only was there a skill for it but I had enough of an affinity for it that I could learn. I quickly pulled up my sheet and grinned. My affinity for Cooking was 92%! I would need to learn more about how food worked but if I assumed it worked like other games I would be able to make food that gave buffs. It would be a good way to make myself stronger especially if I didn't have access to potions. There was also the situation with taste. Good food was something that made life worth it. I turned back to the make-shift make-shift "I seriously doubt this will be good for making quality food." Now that my notifications were taken care of I focused on the meat. The green blood was mostly gone at this point and the smell was pretty good. I grabbed another piece of chitin and used it like a spatula. The process took a bit of effort but I was able to stop it from burning too badly. After another ten minutes, I received, ed a new notification window.

You have found: Black Iron Filet Details: A meal created from the meat of a Black Iron Scorpion.

Item Rarity: Common

Item Quality: Fresh

Weight: 10oz

I carefully moved the chitin away from the flame and into the sand. I received another notification while waiting for the meat to cool down.

Congratulations! Your skill Cooking has leveled up. Cooking has reached level 2. The taste of all dishes you create is improved by 2%. Your success rate of creating a meal has improved by 2%

I smiled and took a seat in the sand next to my meal. Not having any utensils reminded me of being a kid again which was fitting since this was technically my first birthday in this new world. "Happy Birthday to me." I leaned in and began to eat.

After finishing my meal I went hunting to gain the last of the experience points I needed for level two. It took nearly an hour to find another scorpion but after a rather anticlimactic battle the scorpion was dead and I had gained another 150 experience. I waited to reach my glade for the night before sitting down and going through my notifications. The sound of drums filled my ear prompting me to look around as if there was a drum line hidden somewhere nearby. Once I came to my senses I focused on the notification that had appeared.

You have leveled up! You have reached level 2! Hard work, dedication, and luck have guided your steps. Blood, sweat, and tears have forged your path. Grow and strive forward into the horizon. Through the completion of your trials and labors, you have taken another step into the future. Your hard work has earned you the following rewards.

Category Per level Unspent Points Attribute Points Because of your Aetheric nature, your per-level rewards have been modified. You have been awarded 7 Attribute Points to distribute however you like. 7 Skill Progression +25% Progress to any skill of your choice. 25%

The part about my "Aetheric Nature" was weird but seven attribute points were pretty nice. Without knowing the average attributes of other people I couldn't say if it was a good amount or not. The skill progression was interesting. Since I only had three skills and one of them was cooking it wasn't very hard to determine where to put it. My Lumos magic increased by 25% putting it very close to the next level. The attribute points also didn't have a lot to consider. My only weapon was my magic which meant that all seven points went into Intelligence. I pulled up my status screen and looked over everything.

Name: Darterrius Solomon Maximillian

Level:2,.04% Age:26 Species:Altazian(Human) Alignment:Neutral(0/0) Languages: All Renown:Insignificant(0) Characteristics Health: 100 Magic:100

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Regen/min 5 Stamina:100

Regen/min 5 Attributes Agility:10 Charisma:10 Endurance: 10 Intelligence:17 Luck:10 Perception: 10 Strength:10 Vitality:10 Wisdom:10 Skills

(Level, Experience, Affinity) Crafting Skills Cooking 2,5%,92% Magic Skills Dual Casting 2,35%,100% Lumos 4,80%,100% Abilities Arcanum Infinitum: You always have 100% affinity with every magic. You are immune to the adverse effects of casting magic. You can teach any magic that you know.

Eidetic Memory: You have an enhanced memory. The effectiveness of this ability increases with the user's Intelligence attribute.

True Speak: The user can speak and understand any language.

I was getting stronger but even the scorpions were at a higher level. There was also the need to get out of the desert. This spring was a safe place but I couldn't stay here forever. I had to find other living breathing people and ideally find a place to stock up on things. Hopefully, I could find a quest or something to do as well. I waived my status screen away and settled into the sand. I closed my eyes and was fast asleep within moments.

When I next woke up the sun was rising over the horizon. I got to my feet and stretched my muscles. Sleeping in warm sand wasn't exactly comfortable but it wasn't as bad as it could have been. I looked over at the scorpion carcass and considered what to do with it. Keeping the meat for another day was too big a risk. I wasn't going to risk getting sick from spoiled food, especially spoiled poisonous animals. A different idea came to me and I began carrying the scorpion across the threshold. I pulled for nearly half an hour before stopping and running a hundred feet away. I had never been interested in hunting before but other animals should smell the dead and come running. I ducked behind a large stone and waited. I sat there in the baking sun for an hour before an animal appeared. It was a hyena the size of a lion. The hyena pushed its snout against the scorpion and when the carcass failed to move the hyena dug in.

I took the chance to begin casting. I chose to dual cast since leveling both skills together was much more efficient. A moment later the twin rays of light shot forward and slammed into the hyena's head. The hyena let out a howl of pain before orienting on my position. I watched the countdown timer for my spell's cool-down drop. The hyena howled and rushed forward. Just as the hyena was close enough for me to see the whites of its eyes the timer hit zero and I began casting. The hyena leaped into the air ready to rip my throat out just as I shouted the words of power. This time two rays of light barely split from one another before slamming into the hyena's throat. The light shot through the hyena and out the other side. The hyena collapsed bonelessly to the ground. I moved forward slowly part of me expecting the hyena to get back up but it didn't. The blinking notification in my vision told me that the battle was won. I pulled up the experience notification while dragging the hyena's corpse over to the scorpion.

You have been awarded 150 experience points for defeating Dire Hyena level 3.

It looked like he got fifty experience points per level of creature. Assuming that stayed true I would only need to kill another seven creatures. I looked down at the makeshift lure I had created and grinned. This was going to be an epic day. I settled into my position, lying down like a sniper on top of the rock. If things went well being on the rock would make it harder for things to attack me. I checked around me one last time before settling in for the wait.

I made my way back to my haven with the body of a particularly large Dire Hyena. Altogether the hunt took the entire day. The sun had set nearly an hour ago and the desert was starting to get cold. The loose-fitting robes that I had spawned in were not good for keeping the cold away. When I stepped across the invisible barrier the temperature-controlled environment felt wonderful. I left the body of the hyena on the ground before heading over to the spring. I refilled my water skin and then drank deeply from the spring. I didn't need recovery but the liquid felt like heaven down my throat. Once I was ready I sat up and went through my notifications. I condensed the experience point notifications into messages and began to read.

You have been awarded 150 experience points from defeating Dire Hyena level 3 times seven. You have been awarded 1050 experience points.

You have leveled up! You have reached level 2! Hard work, dedication, and luck have guided your steps. Blood, sweat, and tears have forged your path. Grow and strive forward into the horizon. Through the completion of your trials and labors, you have taken another step into the future. Your hard work has earned you the following rewards.

Category Per level Unspent Points Attribute Points Because of your Aetheric nature, your per-level rewards have been modified. You have been awarded 7 Attribute Points to distribute however you like. 7 Skill Progression +25% Progress to any skill of your choice. 25%

Three points went into intelligence and then four went into Wisdom. It boosted my total magic to two hundred and my magic regeneration up to 7 per minute. I placed the skill progression into Lumos magic. I was feeling pretty good about myself which meant that tomorrow it was time to range further away from my haven. Hopefully, I will find other people but if not then I should at least gain some more experience. I turned my focus to the rest of my notifications.

Congratulations! Your skill Lumos Magic has leveled up. Lumos Magic has reached levels 5 and 6. You can learn additional spells.

Congratulations! Your skill Dual Casting has leveled up. Dual Casting has reached level 3. The spell power increases by 210% and the modified cost is 294%

My skills were developing nicely but I needed to get some more of them. It would suck if I came across an enemy that was immune to light. Granted if this world worked like other games I had played Light immunity would be pretty rare. Since I had no plans of going into a light dungeon or a world made out of light it probably wasn't going to be a big deal. I waived the screen away and let out a sigh. There was nothing I could do about it right now and I had other business to tend to. I turned and looked at the corpse of the hyena. I was about to get a lot of precision practice with my light magic. I stood up and got to work.