- - - - -
- You have defeated Aggressive Rabbit 1-Star - Common.
- Progress on Foraging in the Forest updated:
- Kill 10 common monsters, 9/10
- - - - -
Kya sat back against a tree, feeling its cool bark through her shirt as she watched the 3-foot-tall rabbit dissolve into shadows. Interestingly, she noted an infinitesimally small spark of light at the center of the shadows left behind. It was like the spark of life, fading out so quickly after the smoke that she wasn't even sure it had really been there.
Regardless, this was the second of its kind she had killed. Along with four more of the rats, and two squirrels the size of beagles, she was nearly done. Each monster she had encountered in the forest so far was basically just an overgrown and more aggressive version of the ones with which she was familiar. They had all deposited the same supplies into her spatial bag: a small crystal shard, a gray token, and a crystal vial. She'd built up a small stock of the healing concoctions, as not every small scratch needed immediate medical attention.
Additionally, the first rabbit she'd killed had also provided her with a pleasant surprise:
- - - - -
- Item - Aggressive Rabbit Meat, Raw
- Rarity - Common
- Description - Uncooked meat, harvested from a 1-Star common rabbit. Useful in cooking and alchemy.
- Enchantments - N/A
- Requirements - N/A
- - - - -
That was the second mention of alchemy, after the description of the potion bottles. She made a mental note and stowed that information away for later. If you could make your own potions, she would definitely want to figure out how.
Her clothes were definitely showing signs of wear and tear. Her simple black t-shirt was torn on her side where a squirrel had launched a small acorn and caught her by surprise. While her sweatpants had several holes all along the shins and knees where she'd been bitten at and scratched by the rats and rabbits. She was hoping for a bit of an upgrade by unlocking new quests with further rewards, but so far, she remained with just the two.
That being said, she had grown quite a bit more comfortable with her staff as she'd fought the little beasts. Her current strategy was to pull them towards her and then bat them away like she was playing baseball. The tricky part was maintaining concentration on them. More often than she'd like to admit, they'd be traveling towards her, when she'd falter and let them drop now significantly closer than she would have liked. Several times, they would ambush her from the sides before she even knew what was happening and score some lucky bites and scratches.
But all in all, she felt reasonably confident about facing off against her tenth and final monster.
Reflecting as she walked, she found it interesting how quickly she had adapted to this new environment. She'd always been fantastic at compartmentalizing, sure, but it had been a total of, checking the timer, about five hours since she had received her quest to escape the forest alive.
In that time, she had learned how to manipulate the laws of physics to her will and use them to kill small animals. What's more, she felt very little remorse about those deaths. She would never have called herself cold or calloused before. She hadn't even killed animals, whether hunting or trapping or whatever, that just hadn't ever felt like something she was drawn to do. But now, these creatures had all, each and every one, attacked her and tried to hurt her. She felt comfortable, then, attacking in kind.
Kya left the site of her ninth fight and sought out lucky number ten. She had come to learn that monsters typically had a small territory they marked as their own. At least it seemed that way, as so far, she hadn't encountered a second monster until quite a way away from the previous one. Idly wondering as she walked if this simply happened as beasts grew stronger, she encountered then a seeming refutation.
Crouching down as low as she could against the mossy forest floor, Kya scanned the area trying to locate the sound of furious scraping that had alerted her.
There, about 20 meters away, she saw a massive black and brown... thing tearing through the undergrowth directly towards the sight of her last battle with the aggressive rabbit.
Quickly trying to identify the monster, Kya was puzzled at first, until noticing the slight difference.
- - - - -
- Forest Dweller Rat - 1-Star - Uncommon
- The forest dweller rat can sometimes come in packs of up to a dozen, but they are usually solitary creatures. They will hunt and eat anything they find in their territory that they get into their tiny brains qualifies as food. For this little guy, that includes you!
- - - - -
Understanding dawned on her as she focused on the top part of the description. This was an uncommon rat, and she could clearly see why. This monster was twice as big as its common counterparts. The pink tail was now barbed at the ends, and it moved through the forest like a bat out of hell.
A few more seconds and it was out of sight.
Thinking quickly, Kya came up with a rough plan. That thing was headed right for her last battle. it must have either smelled the blood or heard the fight or something, but it knew where it was going. If it got there, and got her scent, it would be back for her in a matter of two or three minutes at the speed it was moving.
Kya wasn't confident about fighting something like that in straight one-on-one combat. If it came to it, did she think she could win? Probably. Would it be close and cause a slew of injuries? Also, probably. So then, she needed something to give her an edge.
Taking several things out of her pouch in rapid succession, she began to drop them at her feet. More than two dozen of the dense temple stones were around the same size as her test rock, followed closely by one of the massive banners she had taken as well and laid it out the ground so it looked like a runway directly from her to where she assumed the rat would be.
Keeping about half of the stones at her feet, she then moved to put the other half in a loose circle around her, and running back to the carpet, hefted a stone in one hand and her staff in the other.
And waited.
Kya could hear it before seeing it. The scratching and clawing of the undergrowth made it sound like an all natural wood chipper was hurtling towards her location. Skidding to a halt just outside her loose circle of stones, the massive creature stopped and stared with cold hard eyes at her. it really did seem to her like the lesser rats, but more. Bigger, faster, stronger, spikier for some reason, it was a direct and visible upgrade. She wondered if the same applied to intelligence. Kya knew that rats were relatively smart ordinarily. A rat with magic upgrades might be smarter too.
It turned its head slowly, stopping on each stone she had placed in the circle, and then returned its gaze to her. A high-pitched snarl began in its throat as it slowly started forward. When it was about fifteen meters away, Kya decided to make the first move.
The rat had, wittingly or not, perfectly lined itself up with one of her wayward stones. A swift jerk with the staff, and it began hurtling towards the creature like an arrow from a bow. Turning at the noise of it, and jumping to the side, the rat narrowly avoided her opening attack by actually jumping off of the stone like a springboard.
This meant she now had not only the stone swiftly approaching, but also the thirty-pound ball of aggression in the form of a very screechy rat.
Breaking her connection to the stone, she sidestepped quickly, before launching the stone in her hand directly at the airborne creature. This one was less powerful and less of a surprise to the rat, but as it was stranded midair, had nowhere to go. By the time her first stone landed behind her with a loud thunk, Kya had broken the front arm of the beastly vermin, as well as created a sizable gash along its left side.
Grinning in triumph at what she assumed to be a debilitating blow, Kya was struck dumb at the sight of what happened next. The rat ate its broken limb without a moment's hesitation, and after shrinking in size by a few inches, regrew the arm in a matter of seconds.
Then it promptly screamed (a terrible noise that Kya hoped never in her life to hear again) and resumed charging at her.
Leaping through the air, it landed on her left shin, and dug its yellow fangs deep into her leg, simultaneously using its claws to scratch at anything they could reach.
Then Kya promptly screamed (a terrible noise that Kya hoped never in her life to produce again) and resumed channeling her staff.
Not at a rock this time, no, at the rat directly beneath her. In a moment of clarity, amidst the scorching pain of an unwelcome tibia removal surgery, Kya thought the rat now looked rather funny. Its teeth were buried in her leg, and so deeply, that it allowed the rat to stay in place. The rest of its body? That looked to her as if a giant invisible ball had rolled on top of the creature. It was being forced into the dirt below, forming a crater of distorted flesh and earth, and yet its teeth and face remained buried.
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Kya's eyes began to hurt almost more than her leg, and she couldn't see anything in her periphery. Just those black beads in the skull of the animal under her looking up at her. She was about to call off the spell, sure that amidst the mental, physical, or magical exhaustion, something was about to give... when the rat caved first.
Literally.
Blessedly releasing her leg, it tried to crawl away, out from under the pressure of her staff. The moment it moved slightly In Front of her, however, the force of her magic shot it across the forest floor like a bowling ball.
Kya canceled the spell, falling to all fours as she heaved for breath. She knew she was in bad shape; she couldn't feel anything below her left knee, and reaching up, found blood dripping from her right eye. But she would not let this fucking rat just walk away. Before it was for the quest. Now it was personal.
With a roar of defiance, she used her staff one more time. Not on the slowly fleeing rat, and not on one of the several stones in the area, but on the meters long banner still laying where she had first stood in the center of her makeshift ambush. Streaming towards her, she lined up the shot. Focusing on the center symbol of the interlocking triangles, Kya launched it out towards the monster.
Less than a heartbeat later, and it was enveloped, wrapped several times over by the slash-resistant fabric. Struggling more and more, and only entangling itself further, it was, momentarily, trapped. Crawling hand over hand towards it, she got shakily to her feet just as its head broke out of the tangle of cloth. For a long moment, neither of them moved. A beam of sunlight (sunslight?) had broken through the canopy of leaves above and now bathed them both in a natural spotlight. They stared at each other, unblinking, until the rat just barely started to growl, and opened its mouth as if to scream.
A clearer sign, Kya did not need.
She brought the butt of her staff down directly into the eye of the creature. It punctured right through the skull, and though she was planning to bring it up and strike down again, her injured leg gave out the moment she heard that familiar, grating, wonderfully condescending voice.
- - - - -
- You have defeated Forest Dweller Rat - 1-Star - Uncommon
- Progress on Foraging in the Forest updated:
- Kill 10 common monsters, 10/10
- - - - -
- QUEST COMPLETED!
You have successfully killed ten of the woodland creatures that, up until now, had been going about their days in the forest undisturbed. But hey, they were malicious assholes, so who can blame you!
- Reward: Boots of the Spatial Mage - 1-Star - Common
- Bonus Reward: Fang of the Feral Rat - 1-Star - Common
- - - - -
- NEW QUEST
Climbing the Ladder: You have discovered that the 1-Star monsters come in multiple varieties. Sure, the discovery nearly lost you your leg, if not your life... but if you don't seek them out, they will seek you out. Seriously, don't make them come to you. It won't. End. Well.
- Objective: Kill 10 1-Star Monsters above common rarity
- Progress: 1/10
- Time Remaining: 47hrs:59min:55sec
- Reward: Gloves of the Spatial Mage - 1-Star - Uncommon
- - - - -
Kya hadn't read these messages. Instead allowing the narrator to simply do it for her as she lay on her back, staring up through the pink and green leaves at the sky above. She didn't know what it was, but that tone truly grated on her every last nerve.
Beside her, the pile of cloth seemed to deflate, as the monster contained within had been taken by the shadows. This finally signaled to Kya to sit up and decide what to do next.
Now, see, Kya had her priorities straight. Her leg was still steadily spilling out blood, the loss of which definitely hadn't affected her judgment. Certainly not. It was absolutely the reasonable move to take out and see the new items she had earned through her hard work, and only drink the healing potion as an afterthought.
Downing the shot of vital energy while identifying the first of her haul from the disastrous encounter, she read silently. A frown creased her face as she realized that even though it only narrated the important notifications, she couldn't help but read every message in that same voice.
- - - - -
- Item - Boots of the Spatial Mage
- Rarity - 1-Star - Common
- Description - Durable traveling boots for a mage on the move. Although they don't seem to boast the sturdiest of construction, they will resist most forms of damage from low level attacks. Additionally, they can enhance any spatial abilities used by the wearer.
- Enchantments - Basic Spatial Affinity, Basic Defense
- Requirements - Spatial Affinity
- - - - -
- Item - Feral Fang of the Rat
- Rarity - 1-Star - Common
- Description - Crafted from the upper and lower fangs of a 1-Star Uncommon Forest Dweller Rat, this dagger is not only incredibly sharp, but incredibly durable as well.
- Enchantments - N/A
- Requirements - N/A
- - - - -
Kya wanted to try on the boots immediately, who wouldn't want to put on their new pair of magic boots but was rather forced to look down and study her leg. The single potion hadn't done as much as she would have hoped. She knew the damage from the bite alone had been extensive, not to mention the clawing and scratching the little gremlin had done. The good news was, it wasn't bleeding anymore, having sealed over somewhat. The bad news was the large dent in the side of her leg where the muscle and fat had been ripped out. She could still move her toes, but flexing her foot caused a bolt of pain to shoot up her spine like lightning.
Taking out another healing potion, she was about to down it as well when a feeling in her stomach made her almost retch. It was like she had smelled a gallon of milk left forgotten in the sun for a couple of months, and then used it to collect dog poop for good measure. It was purely revolting, and her body would not allow her to drink it no matter what else was happening.
Recoiling and throwing the vial to the ground, spilling its contents, she was stuck wondering what the hell was wrong with it. They had always tasted sort of bland, like warm water with a bit of lemon or something, but never... that.
An idea striking Kya, she waited several minutes, before pulling out a second vial and hesitantly bringing it to her nose. She took a skeptical inhale and, to her intense relief, smelled only that faint scent of citrus. Downing it immediately, Kya nodded to herself in confirmation.
The logic behind it was completely beyond her, but she supposed it made some kind of sense. Potions had a cooldown timer of sorts, meaning she couldn't take five in the span of a couple seconds. Handy information to have, she thought.
The pain in her leg subsided as the potion took effect, then with a groan, Kya felt her leg muscles reattach and regrow, looking like snakes wriggling under her skin. Even a second potion wasn't enough to correct the damage a hundred percent, as she still had a large scar from the bite, and smaller scratches on various other places, it was good enough for her that she could now stand without pain.
Eagerly, she kicked off the torn up and broken-down fuzzy slippers she had been calling footwear up until now, thanked them for their service, and stored them away in her pouch before finally putting on her boots.
From the outside, they seemed truly nothing special. They were a dark gray, with the look of soft leather. They went up about half of Kya's shin, just covering her newfound scar. They had a half inch heel on the back, and... well, that was about it. However, the moment she stood in them, Kya was almost brought to tears.
They were comfortable. Transcendently, inexplicably, magically comfortable. It was like literally walking on a silk road, or a marshmallow cloud, or... Kya was at a loss. These boots would stay with her for the rest of her life. However long, however short, she would suffer no other footwear than these.
Collecting her materials before leaving the clearing, she first began walking... then jogging... then full-on sprinting back towards the abandoned temple in which she'd awoken. Although she had spent several hours wandering the woods, she had stayed within about a mile of the structure, using it as her one and only true landmark for navigation.
Kya was tired. She had just been through a taxing fight with a crazy Rat-demon and spent most of the day snacking on nuts and berries she could scrounge that her skill told her weren't going to kill her if eaten raw. But caught up in the sheer wonder of stepping down in her god-tier boots as opposed to the slippers, she made it back to the temple in a matter of only a few minutes.
Recalling survival training she'd had with the military, Kya took out her dagger, and used it to first cut several branches from the nearby overgrowth. Then shaving the bark off each into a small pile of scraps at her feet, she combined it with some dry grass and dead leaves that had been in the sun all day and struck a nearby stone with her blade to make sparks.
Within an hour of her return to the courtyard, she was sitting on the stone bench by the remains of the fountain, eating a juicy, albeit unseasoned, kebab of aggressive rabbit meat.
As she watched the suns begin their slow descent in the, presumably, western sky, she reflected on what she had learned in her first day here in this chaos. She had been delighted to find that the uncommon rat had provided quite the donation to her storage pouch in and of itself. Where the lesser variants provided a crystal, a token, and sometimes a healing potion, the growth seemed to be multiplicative as she went up in scale. She had received two crystal shards, an uncommon token, and four total healing potions. Which made her think...
Kya pulled up the text of her new quest Climbing the Ladder to be sure. She had been laying on the ground half-conscious after all, and wanted to make sure she wasn't simply misremembering. But no, the objective was clear. She wasn't asked to hunt down ten uncommon monsters, but just ones that were above common rarity. She had assumed the bonus reward of her last quest was because she killed something stronger than was expected. So then...
Part of her wondered why she was so excited to go out on the hunt. Twenty-four hours ago, she was grading papers and sipping a homemade cocktail. But at that moment, watching the setting of unfamiliar suns, she was filled with anticipation. She knew today had been bad, almost killing her, and proving just how unprepared she really was. But at the same time, it had been so damn exhilarating. Therefore, when she thought about the fact that she would probably get even more, learn even more, and achieve even more from going after a rare monster... Kya couldn't help but eagerly await the next morning.