I am a seed, existed from what was left of me.
I came from nothing, yet I carried everything.
I am a sprout, born into this world.
I saw my eyes how bright and beautiful it was, oblivious to what lies behind the veil of facades.
I am a flower, learning how to bloom into life.
I was exposed to the darkness birthed by a conflict that ran rife.
As I navigate through my growth, questions fill my mind filled with doubts and confusion of thou.
Even if I want to find the answer to my existence, people around me are too conceited, narcissistic, and arrogant to notice me.
I feel the emotions raging inside me.
Yet I could not quell it for I am a nobody fated to fade into a sea of devotees.
However, something within me wants me to challenge the system for equality.
For soon, I will become a tree, standing tall in the field of prejudice and inequity.
----------------------------------------
"Ugh... Ow..." I groaned as I slowly opened my eyes while rubbing the back of my head. "What the hell happened?"
What indeed. I noticed that I was standing for some reason, which was a bit weird and my head was throbbing in pain just before I woke up. But when I opened my eyes, I gasped to see what I just saw.
Corpses. Not from humans. But carcasses of black panthers with bone-like spines on their backs lie in the pool of purple blood below me. I recalled that two of them were trying to eat me, but all I saw were 5 dead panthers along with two burned ones that I almost barely recognized. I quickly looked at my hand next and saw the sword I snatched from a dead soldier earlier, only its blade was covered with the same blood I found from those panthers. Lastly, I felt through my face and found the very blood I feared the moment I saw the carcasses.
Seriously, what the hell happened? I recalled that I was attacked by these demon panthers after I failed to kill one of them. But I never recalled I managed to do so along with attracting more of them. I don't even recall how two of them were almost burned to ashes!
I tried to recall what happened earlier, but no matter what, I couldn't remember them at all.
I groaned in frustration. I'm safe for now, but I felt like I wasn't in control for a while. I need answers. But I couldn't stay here any longer unless those demons would come after me. Not only that, this sword proved useless against them after I attempted to kill that panther. So I'm still in danger...
T...l...t...
Huh? This voice...
Ta...lent...
Talent?
Now that I think about it, I vaguely recalled something about that "feature" on my ring. What if...
"Open [Talent]."
To my surprise, the ring reacted to my command and another gray holographic window appeared right in front of me. Was this the feature it mentioned before? I quickly read through the contents to see what I got from it.
> [Talent]
>
> [Fire] Level 30
>
> [Darkness] Level 30
>
> [Sword] Level 10
>
> [Martial Arts] Level 10
My jaw dropped at what I read. These [Talents] displayed on the window... Are these...skills and spells?
But this was impossible. I knew that I got nothing but a dud skill with question marks from God and...
I quickly reread through the window. Seemed like there was one more [Talent] that I never saw before. I tapped on it out of curiosity and another smaller window appeared.
> [Demon Knowledge] Level 1
>
> [You possess the knowledge of [Demons] within the [Demon Territory].]
The knowledge...of Demons? This sounded like it was too good to be true. While it made sense this one was Level 1, the other Talents seemed too high to a beginner like me. Something's up. I tried to tap on the other Talents when I got another notification.
> [You have one new message.]
Another message. Let's see what it says here.
> [ABOUT YOUR TALENTS]
>
> [Congratulations, Seeker. It seems that you managed to unlock one of the secrets hidden in your [Anima Cecidit Ring].
>
> As long as you wear it, you can access the [Talents] only available in this accessory without any limits shown to you.
>
> There will be no takebacks regarding the levels of the [Talents]. It will remain as they are throughout the rest of your mission.]
In other words, I can use these high-level Talents without any consequences, right? This sounds like an unfair cheat, don't you think? There's got to be a catch behind this.
> [However, you can't use your free [Talents] forever.
>
> Once your mission ends, your [Talents] will be reset and you have to work your way to obtain them.
>
> Think of it as a way to learn how to cast spells and fight in this world.]
So it's like a Tutorial Mode of sorts? Okay, it makes sense. But I'm still concerned about what happens after I complete this so-called mission. Still, it's better than nothing.
> [Lastly, I want to mention [Talents] that you may learn along the way.
>
> I can't say where or when you will learn them, but regardless of their origins, you will start them at [Level 1].]
That would explain why my [Demon Knowledge] was Level 1, which I have no idea where I got it anyway. Still, it's a good start.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
> [After that, how you will use them is up to you. Please keep in mind the consequences when using them.
>
> With that, I wish you luck, Seeker.]
Unlike the previous email, this one was surprisingly informative. They might be temporary, but at least I have something to defend myself with. However, that doesn't mean I'm still safe.
For some reason, I didn't feel hungry anymore and other than a few bruises on my arms and head, there were no signs of grave wounds around my body. While it was a bit strange, this could give me a chance to find that safe haven I've been desperately finding right now. First things first, I have to get out of this death forest before those demons...
CRAWWWW!!!
Find me first... Dammit...
No time to ponder. I have to run now!
----------------------------------------
Hmmm... What is this?
> [??? used [Detect].]
Mana? But that's odd... Nobody has been in this territory for many years now.
Unless...
----------------------------------------
As I panted while running through this dark, eerie forest, my mind was raising at the thought of more demons coming after me. The humanoid and panther ones were bad enough, but what if there were any more variants than them? I know most of my [Talents] were high-level, but there was no way I could survive if I face a stronger demon than those two if I don't use them right.
Eventually, I found myself out of the forest and gasped at what I saw right before me. I was standing near a cliff and there, I saw the wide purple sky where a red half-moon shone like a star despite I saw no stars there. Below me seemed like a wasteland with a large ravine and a bedrock nearby. There didn't seem to have water flowing into it and jumping into the ravine was like a death sentence to me. I wished that there was another way out of the forest, but...
GRRRR...
At this rate, I won't able to avoid a battle for long. I have to act fast and get as far away from this hellhole as possible!
CRAWWWWW!!!
That cry again. And it's coming closer!
I tried to back away, hoping it won't get to me from the cliff. But when it came, I stopped as if my fear went away for a while. Looking closer at my potential enemy, I saw it was a large bird the size of a car, which was a mix of an eagle and a sparrow. It also has those bony spikes on its back and red eyes, yet it didn't seem hostile as I watched it spin around the area while ignoring me. I was still safe. But when I looked at the demon bird, an evil thought came into my head.
Jump.
That's what I heard. Am I crazy enough to jump onto this demon so I could get away from that death forest? Honestly, I'm very desperate right now, so I need to act fast if I want to get away from here.
Hang on... I did have that [Fire Talent], right? So maybe, it should help me survive this crazy plan I conducted. The real question in my mind right now was this: Would this spell work if I use it this way? Either way, I don't have much of a choice right now.
"Alright. You can do this, me," I muttered as I assumed my position by placing both hands on my back before I start running to the edge of the cliff. If this doesn't work, I have to say goodbye to my good back and hands forever. "[Fire Stream]!"
As the name said, I let streams of flames release from the palms of my hands as soon as I jumped from the cliff. Before long, I found myself in the air, flying towards the demon bird as expected. I never thought it would work. I was literally screaming off my head, thinking this was my last hour in this world again. But I did it. Once the spell wore off, I quickly jumped onto the bird's back and started riding it like I was on a hoverbike. This guy wasn't very tamed, but I had to make some improvisations. My life is on the line here!
I then grabbed two of the bird's feathers and used them as a bridle to guide the bird onto the ground below me. Again, this was reckless of me. I'm trying to control an untameable demon here and I'm trying to run away from more demons, not taming them! And as expected, treating this demon bird as a flying horse was proven difficult as it started shaking and spinning around just to get me off from its back.
"Damn it, you oversized eagle! Work with me here!" I screamed as I tried to hang on while trying to navigate this dumb bird away from the forest. "Seriously, how can I calm it down without dropping me off to my death? Come on, I know there is something in one of my [Talents] that can help me here!"
I closed my eyes, trying to get through the [Talent] menu without uttering the command. If I say that command again, I might accidentally bite my tongue from the bird's flailing. So if the video-game-like system in my ring can respond through verbal commands, then what about mental commands?
To my surprise, it suddenly appeared as soon as I thought of it. And to my relief, I could navigate the window with only my mind acting as a cursor. Now that I think about it, that [Demon Knowledge Talent] thing might have something to help me, so I checked what it has available as a Level 1 [Talent].
> [Demon Knowledge Skills]
>
> [Demon's Eye] Level 1
>
> [Basic Demon Knowledge] Level 1 Passive
[Demon's Eye]? Well, it sounded terrifying, but I had no time to be picky about it, so...
"[Demon's Eye]!"
All of the sudden, my vision turned dark for some reason. I thought that skill somehow blinded me. But then, I looked at the demon bird's head right in front of me.
> [Dark Preying Spargle] Level 20
>
> [Reaction: Panicked]
Interesting. So it's like those games where you can see the names of the monsters with a skill. However, I noticed that this one has a unique feature called a [Reaction] underneath it. Was this supposed to be the monster's current emotions and feelings? If so, I can tell that it was really panicking right now. But what was more interesting was that along with the analyze-like skill, I was able to see some sort of orange aura around it. Maybe it's connected to that [Reaction] feature and if so, how would it help me to calm it down?
Now that I think about it, this [Dark Preying Spargle] started to panic the moment I grabbed its large feathers to act as a bridle. So was touching them cause it to go berserk? Honestly, I didn't care since it was still a demon. But part of me felt bad and it would spell my death if I continue to manhandle this demon. I'm very conflicted about this, but I can't just sit around and let it throw me off like a ragdoll!
Taking a deep breath, I released my grip from the feathers and started to gently stroke the chin under the bird's large head and beak. This was way embarrassing, but at least I was alone and had no one to witness my impending, but embarrassing death. Yet for some reason, the bird suddenly liked it and before long, it landed gently on the ground without any issue.
That...was surprisingly uneventful. I expected it to rampage, but who knew a single gesture like that was able to calm it down? Regardless, I'm far away from that death forest and I'm safe for now. Just in case, I checked on the Spargle with my [Demon's Eye] again.
> [Dark Preying Spargle] Level 20
>
> [Reaction: Playful]
Wait, "playful"?! What the hell did it mean by that? Don't tell me it suddenly became attracted because I rubbed its chin. Man, demon animals were too confusing to understand. Then again, not all demons were hostile and hungry.
Wait, what am I saying?! I can't be sure of that fact! This demon helped me, that's all. Besides, with how it managed to help me out of the forest, I might as well spare it for now.
"Uh... Thanks for the help and sorry for pulling your feathers. You can go now."
I was expecting it to leave after that. But it was still staring at me with those red eyes like a puppy. What did it want from me? Food? Cause I don't have one with me and I rather not offer myself up as a meal.
> [Reaction: Grateful]
Grateful? That was a sudden change in mood. I wanted to ask about it, but the bird suddenly flew up and left. Huh. Guess it wanted to spare me, too. That's okay. At least I'm out of the woods for now.
I will be back and help you again. Thank you for the rubs!
Huh? What was that? "Thank you for the rubs"? Did the voice come from that bird?
PING!
Huh?! What now?
> [You have learned the [Familiar Taming Talent].]
[Familiar Taming]? Not "Taming"? What the hell was this?
> [Familiar Taming] Level 1
>
> [You possess the talent to befriend animalistic [Demons] who will turn into your fellow [Familiars].]
Wait, taming demons?! Was it because I only rubbed the demon bird's chin? Damn, the system in this world was confusing as hell.
Honestly, I'm exhausted to think at this point. All I could do was start running into the ravine in front of me and try to hide and gather supplies to ensure my survival. I need to find a nearby shelter right now before those demons could find me. I have to survive and I'm not stopping until I'm out of this territory for good!
----------------------------------------
The Demon Preying Spargle was happy. They never thought they would get a relaxing rub from that strange man that was trying to ride them. They were angry at first, but they forgive them as he only wanted to escape the forest. They couldn't blame him. That forest was the worse, especially to demon avians like them. They hoped to meet the strange man again to get more chin rubs, maybe even a belly rub! Oh, maybe they would give him a gift when they meet him again!
Excuse me, young Spargle.
The Spargle stopped as soon as they heard a voice. They turned and upon seeing the source of it, they cried in shock.
Would you mind sharing what you know about that man? I assure you, I'm merely curious about him and your interaction.
> [Demon Preying Spargle] Level 20
>
> [Reaction: Fearful]
----------------------------------------
[??? Check: 8%]
[??? Check: 92%]