Attempt number five hundred and ninety-nine.


    You got this, Marisol.


    knew


    hard


    … I don’t get it.


    Are my glaives just not sharp enough or what?


    [Your glaives are more than sharp enough,] [If you were to simply stand here and saw your glaives back and forth, you would eventually be able to cut down this tree. The problem, then, has nothing to do with its sharpness.]


    …


    did


    melting


    too


    How’d you do it, mama?


    I’ve slain a leviathan, I’ve skated through a storm, I’ve outrun crab bandits on giant roots, and a simple Sand-Dancer’s double spin is what I’m really afraid of?


    ...


    was


    had


    Lunch first.


    Then, I guess I’ll… get back to falling on my ass over and over again.


    little


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    Striding Glaives


    Ripple SensorsHydrofuge Spines


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    [Your attribute levels are already plenty high enough for the enemies you are facing,] [There is such a thing as bloating and overloading on Hexichor, even for people with systems who can convert that Hexichor into points. Simply put, how many points you can gain depends on how much insect flesh you can stuff in your belly, and at your current rate, it is quite… bad. You will get sick. Keep this up for a day or two longer, and there will be severe side effects.]


    I’d like to stop eating too, but–


    [It is not about points and attribute levels, nor about your unknown Hexichor Art, nor about any of the other tier two mutations you can choose to unlock. Even if you were to discover your Hexichor Art right now, it would not help you overcome this obstacle,] [It is fear. You are afraid. If you cannot conquer fear with your own heart, it does not matter how many points you put into strength and speed and toughness. Your mind will unconsciously limit your power output and make it so it is as though you did not increase your attribute levels at all.]


    … But what other choice do I have?


    If I can’t even chop that tree down, I won’t be able to get home to mama in time.


    [...]


    What’s he trying to do now?


    tad


    What?


    Waitwaitwaitwaitwait–


    …


    hard


    [… Some groups of people have higher tolerance level when it comes to resisting the mutations brought about by eating insect flesh and consuming Hexichor,] [A lot of factors go into determining Hexichor tolerant levels—genetics, upbringing, strength of will, et cetera—but if the boy has been consistent eating small bites of crabs since he was a young child, it would explain how he possesses inhuman strength and toughness while maintaining most of his human form on the surface. His Hexichor tolerance level is naturally higher than most other people.]


    [Even if you had not caught him, I believe he would have been fine. His muscle strands are a lot tougher than yours.]


    [... Perhaps it is not about the amount of time he has spent with you,] [To him, the only remaining tribesman on this island, you are the only one he can trust, and trust may not always have anything to do with how much time one physically spends with another.]


    If it ain’t about time, then what is ‘trust’ built on? We’ve only met a few days ago as well—do you trust me with everything you have?


    [Yes.]


    … Why?


    [Because I am integrated with your cervical spine, and I ‘feel’ as though I have been with you in spirit for aeons. I trust you very much so, and thus, I can claim I will follow you without any fear.]


    [Even if you have only known the exact technique of the War Jump for three days, has it really only been three days, Marisol?]


    They found us?


    How?


    [... Into the forest, Marisol,] [You must defeat them there, or die trying.]


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