《The Pleasant Potato Inn Co.》 001: (T)obias Tobias stared at the slime. Was this...for real? A talking slime? In all the video games he''d played, he¡¯d never seen a talking slime before. Then again, slimes shouldn¡¯t exist. Giant tortoises with sharp teeth and horns also shouldn¡¯t exist. Or, at least, he didn¡¯t think they did. He wasn¡¯t too caught up with all the weird creatures that inhabited Earth. But still. A talking slime? He vaguely remembered that anime Cassy was obsessed with, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime. He didn¡¯t get anime¨Dall he understood was that guys were freakishly OP and girls had some serious cleavage but mentioning that to Cassidy meant certain death¨Dbut that one was about some guy who had died protecting a coworker or something and was reincarnated as a slime, just like the title said. There was more to it, he was sure, but Tobias wasn¡¯t interested in watching a tiny blue slime go on adventures or whatever. Now, though, he was facing an intelligent monster. One who had killed that freaky tortoise. He didn¡¯t know what to do with it. ¡°A~hem,¡± the slime cleared its throat. (Wait, do slimes have throats?) ¡°Human, are you paying attention?¡± ¡°Oh, uh, y-yeah. Um...what were we talking about again?¡± The slime wriggled indignantly. ¡°I was asking if you liked potatoes.¡± ¡°Potatoes? Um...yeah.¡± The slime rolled back and forth. ¡°Wonderful! It¡¯s tremendously difficult finding a potato adorer such as myself among my monster brethren. Few have the intellectual capacity I possess after consuming a few Intellectus Potatoes. The ones that I find aren¡¯t quite as...adamant as I am.¡± Tobias couldn¡¯t help but stare at the creature. It looked pretty simple; it had a yellowish-brown color (like a potato) and was somewhat roundish when it stood still, but took on an oval shape, kind of like a pill, when it rolled on the ground, the purple grass bending under its weight. Purple grass. Purple grass. Tobias ripped out a handful and stared down at it. After a moment, he looked up at the green sky. This was so weird. ¡°Hey, Mr. Slime?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Where am I?¡± ¡°The Imperial Tortoise Valley. Well, other monsters reside here, but those pesky tortoises are the main bunch. I don¡¯t mind absorbing them but they¡¯re quite-¡± ¡°Um, I meant, like, what planet am I on? The name and stuff?¡± ¡°Hmm...From the few short conversations I¡¯ve had with your kind, I was aware you had some sort of ¡®system¡¯? Does it not tell you important things?¡± ¡°I-¡± Before he could finish, a screen popped up in front of his face.
System Interface Notification: Integration Process [For the integration process to begin, you must complete three tasks: allow voice recognition, facial recognition, and mental recognition.]
¡°Um...what is this?¡± The slime rolled over to my side and peered up at the screen. ¡°Hmm. I¡¯m afraid I have no idea. Perhaps this is part of the system the Humans talked about?¡± Suddenly, the screen flickered and changed.
Voice recognition complete. Prepare for facial recognition...
¡°Hey, I haven¡¯t agreed to¨Dgah!¡± A bright light flashed from the screen, blinding Tobias. He rubbed his eyes and muttered, ¡°Great. Just great.¡± The slime giggled at his annoyance, ¡°How fun! How fun!¡± Ignoring it, Tobias looked back up at the screen.
Facial recognition complete. Prepare for mental recognition¡­
A laser beam shot out from the center of the screen and hit his forehead. Fortunately, for Tobias, it didn¡¯t hurt. If felt pleasant, even. Then a flood of information filled his head. He barely had time to process everything before he passed out.
When Tobias woke up, he was lying in his bed. He felt relieved, thankful that what happened earlier must have been a crazy dream. There was no way he met a talking slime or saw a giant tortoise with horns. The sky wasn''t green and the grass wasn''t purple. And it was perfectly normal to have a video game HUD because that was a thing. Yes, all was perfect and right with the world...wait. Tobias opened his eyes and sat up. A HUD? There were three bars stacked on top of each other in the top left corner: a red HP bar, a blue MP bar, and a green stamina bar. Over in the top right corner was a box showing the date and time: 10:03 AM, 6/07/19. Down in the bottom right corner was a circular map showing my position. I was a white triangle, facing northeast. The space around the triangle was purple, matching the color of the grass. In the bottom, left corner were two faded blue boxes: System Interface and Inventory. ¡°Huh¡­¡± Tobias muttered, staring at the HUD. This...this was real, huh? He looked down and realized he was still lying in the valley, not in his warm, safe bed. Turning, he saw no sign of the slime. He sighed, half-wishing the intelligent, potato-loving monster had stayed. Glancing up, he saw the Sun...um, three Suns, each a varied shade of blue, up high in the sky. Since this was a different world, how did sunsets work? There were three of them. Did they each set in the west or something? Why am I worried about the sky when I¡¯m an open valley filled giant turtles and talking slimes? Tobias thought, shaking his head. I¡¯ll worry about that stuff later. I need to figure out how this system works. He eyes the Interface Menu. Does this just disappear when I close my eyes? He found that it doesn¡¯t. He put his hand in front of his face, but it didn¡¯t obstruct his view. Just like a video game. Alright. Now, how do I access this stuff? Do I touch it or¡­Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Tobias focused on the ¡®System Interface¡¯ box and a screen popped up.
System Interface?????????????????????????????????????????X
Status
Chat
Interface
Notifications
Hmm...This is interesting. So I can just look at it and it pops up? It said mental recognition...Alright, then. ''Status.''
System Interface: Status Menu???????????????????????????????????X
Character:
Name: Tobias Boyde
Species: Human
Essence: Level 1
Experience: 0/100
Character Stats:
(*.*) Total Regen Points
Health 100/100 7/minute 0 Attribute points
Mana 70/70 8/minute 0 Path points
Stamina 100/100 7/minute 0 Tree points
General Resistance -7%
Attributes:
Attributes: Attribute Points (0)
Strength- (Increases Attack Power, Lifting Weight, Stamina Gained Per Level) 8 (+)
Agility- (Increases Speed, Dexterity, Reflexes) 7 (+)
Constitution-(Increases Weight, Density, Hardness, Health Gained Per Level) 6 (+)
Endurance-(Increases Regeneration of Healthand Stamina) 7 (+)
Wisdom-(Increases Mental Resistance, Willpower, Mana Regeneration, Common Cense, and Intuition) 8 (+)
Intelligence-(Increases Memory, Mana Pool) 7 (+)
Charisma-(Increases Charm, Persuasion) 7 (+)
Luck-(Increases Odds in Your Favor) 1 (+)
Perception-(Increases Understanding, Senses, Awareness) 7 (+)
Skills: N/A Paths: N/A Trees: N/A
"Cool," hesaid. "Most of my attributes aren''t bad. I guess my Luck being so low explains a lot of things..." Like how he was stuck here, stranded and alone. He wished he knew where Iggy was so he could punch him. Which reminded him... "Crap. I have no idea where any of those knuckleheads are..." Tobias sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He wasn''t worried his siblings would die. They could take care of themselves. Maybe...He couldn''t count on Cassy. She was the timidest of the bunch. She was put high on his list for who to find first. Then there was Iggy, if only because Tobias justknew his brother would do something stupid if he wasn''t there to rein him in. He struggled with deciding between Penelope and Penn. They would most likely be fine. Penelope was a social butterfly who can mingle with any kind of crown and Penn would probably find somewhere with lots of alcohol and big-breasted women. Sure, that might not be thebest conditions he''d want for his siblings but he was sure they could handle themselves. And that left Odysseia. A cloud passed over his face when he thought of his youngest sister. Scrap the list. He needed to findher first. Every time he let Ody get out of his sight... He shuddered, thinking of that one time his parents had taken them to Paris. Ody wasthis close to burning the entire City of Love down. Standing up, Tobias stretched and studied his surroundings. He spotted another one of those tortoises a few miles away and another pair as well. Frowning, he wondered how he was going to get out of here. And then he heard the familiar squelching sound. "Ah, human! Good! You''re awake!" Tobias turned and looked down at the slime. "Oh, hey...Um, I never caught your name. That is...if you have one?" The slime wriggled indignantly, "But ofcourse I have a name, you insolent fool! You shall call me Lord Weiler!" "Hmm...Okay. Well, Lord Weiler, I''ve got to get out of here. You see, I came here with my siblings and they''re probably scattered around....wherever this place is. Could you help me out?" Weiler stilled for a moment before rolling closer to Tobias. "What shall I get in return?" "Umm...I don''t know. What do you want?" "What do I want? Now, that''s certainly a most interesting inquiry. What do I want...Ah, yes! I would like to build an establishment-an inn is what I believe you humans call it-whereall creatures of Mitochondrian would come far and wide to taste the delicacies made there!" "...This world is called Mitochondrian?" "Yes. What of it?" Tobias felt a smirk forming on his lips. "Is it the powerhouse of anything?" The slime wriggled again and made a disgruntled noise. "And what isthat supposed to mean?" "Er, nothing. I don''t see how I could help you with that...And besides, you''re a monster slime. Who''d want to come to your inn?" "I suppose you have a point...Perhapsyou could be the face of the inn!" "I''m not sure about that...I just want to find my family and get home." "If you do not wish to offer me your services, good luck getting out of here alive," Weiler said with a huff, hopping away. "Getting out of-hey, wait! Come back here!" The slime hopped away, ignoring Tobias'' cries. The young man sighed and folded his arms. What was he going to do now? Help a slime start an inn or find a way to survive amidst giant tortoises and other deadly creatures? He stared at a faraway tortoise. It was huge, probably the size of his parents'' minivan. No way could he fight that. Turning away, he raced after the slime, who hadn''t managed to disappear. "Weiler! Wait! I''ll help you!" The slime stopped and let out a laugh. "Splendid! Well, then, I suppose we have to make a formal agreement to make sure you don''t go back on your word." Tobias huffed. "I''m an honest guy. I wouldn''t do that." "Well, see to it that you don''t change. Now, will you or will you not help me start the inn I desire?" Tobias stared at the slime for a moment before he held out his hand and said, "Deal." The slime wriggled for a long time and part of it started to swell. Tobias'' mouth dropped open and his eyes grew wide.Crap, he thought.Did I do something wrong? But the slime didn''t change into some horrifying monster. Instead,that part stretched up into the air and former an arm with a hand attached to it. "Haha! Witness the power of anEpicGrade, 6th Star Slime! Are you not amazed?" "I''m...a bit creeped out but...This is cool," Tobias replied, gingerly taking the hand. It felt, well, slimy. There wasn''t any other word to describe it. After a brie shake, the two pulled their hands apart. "Okay," Weiler said. "Now, it''s time for us to leave." Tobias nodded. "Do you have some special passageway that''s safe?" The slime chortled and wriggled, forming another arm that grabbed at what must have been its belly. "Ha! What are you expecting, human? To be free of danger once I agreed to take you with me?" "Um...Yeah." Weiler laughed again and another hand slapped the middle of its belly. "Hoho!No! You will need tofight your way out of here! How else will I know you''re competent enough?" The boys face blanched and he helplessly watched as the slime took a chunk of itself, threw it... ...And hit a small tortoise a couple of feet away. It screeched and rushed at Tobias, who was still staring stupidly at the rapidly gaining monster. All he could think was,I''m only seventeen...And I''ve never even touched a girl before...Is this how my pathetic, virgin life ends? And then yet another savior came, flying out of nowhere like Lord Weiler had and landing on the tortoises'' shell. They grabbed its horn and yanked upwards, sending the beast into a screeching halt. It growled as Tobias'' hero yanked even harder and the pulled out a dagger. With one swift movement, they plunged the blade into the eye of the tortoise in a rather gruesome way. It wailed while Tobias felt a little woozy at the sight of blood. Lord Weiler sighed. "Well, aren''t you pathetic, human?" What the slime got in response was the boy''s body collapsing, his weak mind not able to take in the gory sight in front of him. "He''s quite weak...I wish I had killed him...Ah, but no...He likes potatoes...Hmph. I leave him for the adventurer and find him later." With that, the small slime hopped away, unaware of how the adventurer behind it hadher gaze on it. Butshe only shookher head and turned away; she wasn''t eager to start another fight when she as short on time. Going back to the Imperial tortoise, she found it had died rather quickly after a few stabs in the head. It wasrather young; the skin wasn''t thick enough to resist the dagger. Although older Imperial Tortoises wouldn''t fare well with it either. This dagger was special. As the young woman went about looting her kill, a sudden movement caught her eye. It was Tobias. He stirred, groaning and grabbing at his head. "Why does this keep happening to me? And where''s that slime? Don''t tell me it disappearedagain." He''d only been out for a moment but the slime was nowhere to be seen. What he got instead was the women flying at him, dagger in hand. He let out a surprised shout and threw his hands up. "Don''t kill me!" The woman paused and only just managed to stop her knife from slitting the boy''s throat. She stared down at him, looming ominously. All Tobias could see was a face wrapped in cloth. The eyes-the only thing visible-staring down at him gave him the chills but he shakily stood up and offered the woman a smile, holding out his hand. "Thanks for not killing me. My name''s Tobias. And you?" She stared at his hand for a moment before clocking him in the temple, knocking him out cold. The woman gave a satisfied grunt before going back to the tortoise. She collected it''s horn, shell, and meat. After placing the loot in her inventory, she took a step back and watched the rest of the beast dissipate from the magic of the system. Then she turned back to the unconscious boy. She wondered if taking him back to the camp was a good idea. She could always use a partner. Although hehad fainted at the sight of blood... Perhaps he could be useful in other ways? She studied his body and decided it was good enough. Hauling him over her shoulder, she made her way back to camp.
While Tobias was having fun getting knocked unconscious multiple times, his siblings were experiencing their troubles in this strange new world. 002: (P)enn & (Pe)nelope *Penn* While Tobias found himself in a valley filled with monstrous tortoises, talking slimes, and other nerve-wracking things, Penn, the second oldest of the Boyde sextuplets, was teleportedabout a mile away from a bustling city. He was on the side of the road, in a bunch of bushes, safelyaway from the rumbling wagons that passed by him. He paused,wondering what the heck just happened. And then a screen popped up in front of his face.
System Interface Notification:Integration Process [For the integration process to begin, you must complete three tasks: allow voice recognition, facial recognition, and mental recognition.]
Penn didn''t know what this thing wasbut he liked daring to go through the unknown, so he subjected himself to the unpleasant integration process. He liked his HUD and, finding it was easy enough to manage, opened up his status.
System Interface: Status Menu???????????????????????????????????X
Character:
Name: Penn Boyde
Species: Human
Essence: Level 1
Experience: 0/100
Character Stats:
(*.*) Total Regen Points
Health 100/100 7/minute 0 Attribute points
Stamina 100/100 7/minute 0 Path points
Mana 40/40 8/minute 0 Tree points
General Resistance - 7; Mental Resitance - 8
Attributes:
Attributes: Attribute Points (0)
Strength- (Increases Attack Power, Lifting Weight) 7 (+)
Agility- (Increases Speed, Dexterity, Reflexes) 6 (+)
Constitution-(Increases Weight, Density, Hardness, Health Gained Per Level) 6 (+)
Endurance-(Increases Regeneration of Healthand Stamina and General Resistance) 7 (+)
Wisdom-(Increases Mental Resistance, Willpower, Mana Regeneration, Common Cense, and Intuition) 8 (+)
Intelligence-(Increases Memory, Mana Pool) 4 (+)
Charisma-(Increases Charm, Persuasion) 10 (+)
Luck-(Increases Odds in Your Favor) 11 (+)
Perception-(Increases Understanding, Senses, Awareness) 4 (+)
Skills: N/A Paths: N/A Trees: N/A
Penn nodded to himself. This was cool. "A fantasy world, huh?" Penn said to himself, sitting up in the bushes. "And I''m alone..." He eyed the city in the distance and wondered if there was a tavern in it. He could use some booze an a few hook-ups before Tobiasinevitablyfound him. That was how you can sum up Penn''s personality. He was a relatively calm guy, good-looking, always looking for a good drink and pretty ladies. Technically, he was Tobias''s second in command, being the second oldest Boyde. But Penn wasn''t into the whole keeping everyone together thing. That was for Tobias. His big bro always handled everything. Penn stood up and stretched. His head still ached from the mental recognition, but he was doing alright, so he started for the city. On the way, he thought about how much time he had before Tobias dragged him back to the rest of the family. "This is a fantasy world. It oughta be big, I think. Mr. T would have a hard time searching for allfive of us. And he''d probably put us in order of priority. He''d think of Cass first. Then Ignatius, because that idiot was the reason we''re here in the first place. Then it came down to eitherme or Nell..." They were both capable of handling themselves if they were alone.Penelopemore so than Penn because she shouldered most of the responsibility that Tobias couldn''t take. So Penn would be third. He frowned. He''d have to hurry along with his plans then because Tobias surely wouldn''t let him have his way with this world for too long. "Alright, fine. So that leaves...Ody. Okay, scrap the list, she''s first. Cass could probably handle herself for a little while so T can rein that monster in..." Penn shuddered, thinking of the destruction the youngest of his siblings could do. And in a fantasy world, where leveling and getting stronger was possible? Perish the thought! He reminded himself to stop thinking about it and let Tobias handle it. After all, eventhinking about Ody gives her power. Sighing, he sped up, relishing the newfound freedom he had. This was going to be- "Not so fast, Penn." He whirled around, wondering why someone in this strange place would ever know his name. And then he saw Penelope.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. *Penelope* Penelope was sitting in a ditch. She didn''t knowwhy she was sitting in a ditch and that was a problem. She wassure that medallion was just some piece of crap Tobias got from a senile old man. She remembered rolling her eyes whenhe told her and the others about the old man''s warning and was about to tell him her thoughts whenIggy had to go ahead and toss it into his juice. And now, they were here. Or well, she washere. In a ditch. Then, she saw the screen and nearly screamed. But she caught herself when she realized it was only a screen and nothing else. Then she frowned. "What...is this thing?" She gently poked the screen and it flickered before the words ''Voice recognition complete. Prepare for facial recognition'' appeared. Before she could figure out what that meant, the screen flashed, blinding her for a few seconds. She blinked rapidly and then tried to get her bearings. Things were moving a little too fast for her. And then the screen flickered again.
Facial recognition complete. Prepare for mental recognition...
She woke up just a moment later, saw the HUD, and sighed. She half-wished Iggy was here. That bum was a videogame nut and could probably tell her what was going on and how to work this thing. Or not. He was kind of an idiot... Just like her brothers,Penelope figured out how this worked, marveling out how simple yet complex it was.She pulled up her status and felt proud of what she saw.
System Interface:Status Menu???????????????????????????????????X
Character:
Name: Penelope Boyde
Species: Human
Essence: Level 1
Experience: 0/100
Character Stats:
(^.^) Total Regen Points
Health 100/100 10/minute 0 Attribute points
Mana 80/80 11/minute 0 Path points
Stamina 110/110 10/minute 0 Tree points
General Resistance - 10; Mental Resistance - 11
Attributes:
Attributes: Attribute Points (0)
Strength- (Increases Attack Power, Lifting Weight) 9 (+)
Agility- (Increases Speed, Dexterity, Reflexes) 8 (+)
Constitution-(Increases Weight, Density, Hardness, Health Gained Per Level) 5 (+)
Endurance-(Increases Regeneration of Healthand Stamina and General Resistance) 10 (+)
Wisdom-(Increases Mental Resistance, Willpower, Mana Regeneration, Common Cense, and Intuition) 11 (+)
Intelligence-(Increases Memory, Mana Pool) 8 (+)
Charisma-(Increases Charm, Persuasion) 12 (+)
Luck-(Increases Odds in Your Favor) 5 (+)
Perception-(Increases Understanding, Senses, Awareness) 7 (+)
Skills: N/A Paths: N/A Trees: N/A
Penelope had been a cheerleader back home. Strength, endurance, agility, willpower, and charisma were a given. She did pretty well in school, bringing home A''s and B''s, so the intelligence was expected. Perception because shealways had to be aware of what was happening at home. She was Tobias''s eyes and ears whenever he wasn''t around, sobeing able to keep him updated was a must. Which was how she noticed a familiar someone walking by her ditch, a big smile on his face. Penn. Penelope was all for helping Tobias keep the younger three of their siblings in line and away from harm. But Penn? That lazy bum couldn''t care less. And Penelope justknew that wherever he was headed, it probably wouldn''t help the Boyde Bunch¨Dyes, she thought of that name and she was proud of it, although her siblings never identified themselves as a part of it. So, she climbed out of the ditch, which was hard to do with a long skirt and slippers, and marched up to her brother. "Not so fast, Penn," she called. He spun, turning to face her. He was confused for a moment until he saw her face. "Oh...Nell. Um, hi?" Penelope felt a scowl forming on her face and snapped, "Were you worried about any of us after whatever just happened? Or did you just wanna find the nearest ass and stick yourlittle friend in it?" "First off, I don''t like the emphasis onlittle. Second, I''d buy her dinner first. Andthird, well, you''re fine!" "I just woke up in a ditch," she deadpanned, giving him a flat stare. "How was I supposed to know that?" "You-ugh, nevermind. Come on, we need to find the others." She grabbed him and started pulling him away from his destination. "Now, wait a minute-" "I''m not waiting, Penn! We don''t know where any of them are! They could be hurt or worse! Why aren''t you worried about this?" "I-look out!" He yanked her back, pulling her out of the way of a carriage pulled by two majestic horses. The driver shot her a look and shouted something she couldn''t understand. Penelopepressed her back against Penn''s chest. Her heart pounded fiercely in her chest and her knees shook. She''d beenthis close to getting run over but the driver didn''t even offer up the smallest of apologies! Penn squeezed her shoulders and whispered, "News flash, Nell, but you should start paying attention where you''re going." Her eyes widened when she realized she''d almost walked on to a busy road, bustling with traffic. Wagons and carriagesdominated the unpaved path, but she saw clusters of people hurrying along, trying to avoid cranky drivers and nasty horses. "Look there," Penn muttered, twisting Penelope''s body so she could see the city behind them. She sighed. "So much for 7 Perception..." Penn grunted and then dug around in his pants, pulling out his wallet. "I say we go into the city and-" "How do you know the others will be there?" "How do you know they won''t be?" They started arguing, with Penelope against going and Penn all for it. Penelope wanted to take control but Penn refused to back down. The fight for dominance ended when Penn said, "I''m eight minutes older. The oldest makes the decision right?" She would''ve argued that Penn had no right to make that claim because he never helped in makingany decision, but arguing wasn''t going to get them anywhere. And besides, it was starting to get dark. The three suns-yeah, that had shocked Penelope when she''d first seen them-were spreading further apart. The darkest blue one went towards the west and the lightest blue one headed towards the east. The one in the middle seemed to be staying where it was, but it was rapidly changing colors. "That''s nice," she muttered, watching the sky as she followed behind Penn. He glanced up too and shot her a smile. "Mom would''ve loved to paint this." Her heart ached as she nodded. "Yeah..." Reaching out, Penn grabbed her hand and pulled her closer. Together, holding hands, they marched towards the city, ready for whatever was waiting for them. 003: (I)gnatius/(C)assiopeia >Ignatius POV< When Iggy found himself standing next to a slow-moving river, he knew he messed up. Big time. To make matters worse, he''d brought Cassie with him. He turned to find her staring at the river, breathing heavily and trembling, a tell-tale sign she was about to have a panic attack. Before she could, though, they integrated with the system and passed out. They woke up, experienced the HUD and their status, and then amonster that resembled a baby cow with brown-spotted wings, sharp teeth, and two tails attacked them. It charged at Cassie and she froze, staring in horror at the abomination in front of her. Iggyrecovered first and managed tohalt its charge. He grabbed its head, desperately trying to keep its gaping jaw away from his body. He had yelled at Cassie to get so safety, but she kept staring. Only when the calf took a bite out of Iggy''s side and then knocked him aside with a swift bump of its head did she move. With a strangeness, she stepped forward, her eyes burning with fire, unlike her passive, anxious nature. Holding out a hand, she said one word. "Stop." The monsterpaused and then took a hesitant step toward her. "Stop."She said it with a bit more force in her words, eyes narrowing. This time, it held still, looking utterly terrified by the odd power behind her words. "Sit,"she said, pointing down. The calf immediately sat, bending its knees as it lowered itself to the ground. Cassie smiled,ready to give another order when she looked at Iggy, barely conscious and bleeding out a rapid pace. The last thing he heard was her scream and then the darkness came for him.
Iggy woke up in a cave. He didn''t quite remember what had happened or why he was in the said cave, but he accepted that he was here without a doubt. Taking a glimpse around the cavern, he found it wasn''t all that large, around the size of a large master bedroom. Smooth, hard material with a whitish-blue coloring made up the cave''s interior. The only light came from the mouth of the cave, which was quite small despite the size of the interior.Iggy was roughly5''4, give or take, but even he would have to crouch down low to get into the cave. And then he saw a calf''s head poke into the entrance and everything came rushing back.He scrambled to his feet, ready for a fight. But a familiar voice shouted, "Don''t hurt him!" Iggy faltered as a pair of hands gripped his arm and pulled him back. "Uh, Cassie?" She was staring at him, both fear and determination displayed clearly on her face. "That''s N¨¡ga. Youcan''thurt him." "...Did you name that monster? She hesitated and then nodded, going over to calm to the growling abomination. "Yes, I did. He...he''s my pet now, I guess." "Yeah, but...he bit me!" "You''re healed now." "I''m-what?" He looked down at his right side and saw his torn shirt.The skin, however, wasperfectly fine except for a small scar. Gingerly, he touched the area where the calf had bit him and it felt completely fine. Cassie was watching him carefully and he noticed she looked tense, with one hand clutching the hair on the calf''s head tightly. He could tell she was afraid he would make her send that beast away. Sighing, he said, "Alright, fine. It''s forgiven." "He. And thank you." She smiled at him and began fussing over the calf, which eagerly soaked up all the attention. Iggy ignored her and focused on his HUD. The bars indicating his health(red), stamina (yellow), and mana (blue) were full. He opened his status, wondering if something had changed from the last time he saw it.
System Interface:Status Menu???????????????????????????????????X
Character Profile:
Name: Ignatius Boyde
Species: Human
Essence: Level 1
Experience: 0/100
Character Stats:
(*.*) Total Regen Points
Health 100/100 2/minute 0 Attribute points
Mana 30/30 4/minute 0 Path points
Stamina 40/40 2/minute 0 Tree points
General Resistance - 2; Mental Resistance - 4
Attributes:
Attributes: Attribute Points (0)
Strength- (Increases Attack Power, Lifting Weight) 3 (+)
Agility- (Increases Speed, Dexterity, Reflexes) 2 (+)
Constitution-(Increases Weight, Density, Hardness, Health Gained Per Level) 1 (+)
Endurance-(Increases Regeneration of Healthand Stamina and General Resistance) 2 (+)
Wisdom-(Increases Mental Resistance, Willpower, Mana Regeneration, Common Sense, and Intuition) 4 (+)
Intelligence-(Increases Memory, Mana Pool) 3 (+)
Charisma-(Increases Charm, Persuasion) 3 (+)
Luck-(Increases Odds in Your Favor) 7 (+)
Perception-(Increases Understanding, Senses, Awareness) 5 (+)
Skills: N/A Paths: N/A Trees: N/AA case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Everything was normal. Ignatius was slightly disappointed after hoping that his short battle with Naga had earned him something. Then again, he had no idea how this system worked. "Iggy," Cassie called, "I need to tell you something." "Hmm?" "I got this skill..." "Huh? How? What is it?" Her face flushed and she gave him an irritated glare. "Can you let me finish?" "Yeah, sorry." "It came after you had passed out. I ordered Naga to go and find something that could help you and he brought back this healing potion. I got you healed and then told him to find someplace where we could rest. He brought us here, which I''m thinking is his nest." She pointed toward a space in the back, where a hoard ofshiny things glittered in the darkness. "Winged Cowtaurs like shiny things. They''re like magpies; they steal anything that is remotely shiny." "Uh-huh...so the skill?" "Oh, yeah.As I was ordering Naga around I got this skill called ''Way With Beasts'' which lets me tame beasts, give them commands, and even name them!" "Mmm...So you just...did something and you got a skill for it?" Cass nodded and then blushed. "I...got another one, too." Pulling up her status menu, she showed him the skill.
Character Profile:
Name: CassiopeiaBoyde
Species: Human
Essence: Level 1
Experience: 0/100
Character Stats:
(~.~) Total Regen Points
Health 100/100 2/minute 0 Attribute points
Mana 50/50 1/minute 2 Path points
Stamina 10/10 2/minute 0 Tree Points
General Resistance - 2; Mental Resistance - 1
Attributes:
Attributes: Attribute Points (0)
Strength- (Increases Attack Power, Lifting Weight) 1 (+)
Agility- (Increases Speed, Dexterity, Reflexes) 5 (+)
Constitution-(Increases Weight, Density, Hardness, Health Gained Per Level) 1 (+)
Endurance-(Increases Regeneration of Healthand Stamina and General Resistance) 2 (+)
Wisdom-(Increases Mental Resistance, Willpower, Mana Regeneration, Common Sense, and Intuition) 1 (+)
Intelligence-(Increases Memory, Mana Pool) 5 (+)
Charisma-(Increases Charm, Persuasion) 2 (+)
Luck-(Increases Odds in Your Favor) 2 (+)
Perception-(Increases Understanding, Senses, Awareness) 8 (+)
Skills: Way With Beasts(Level 1)-Skill allows 10% more ease in charming Beasts into becoming a pet, 10% more ease in commanding multiple pets, assigning a hierarchy among pets, and giving them names.Effectiveness increases by 1% with each skill level. Fearful Cry(Level 1)-Skill allows for any ally within a ten-mile radius to pinpoint the cry''s owner location as well asa 1% chance of instilling the''Fear'' effectinto enemies for 1 minute. Effectiveness increases by 1% with each skill level. Paths: N/A Trees: N/A
"Fearful Cry...sounds useful." Cass shrugged. "I guess...I''ve got two Path Points, too. Does that give me a path or something?" Iggy sighed. "Yeah.Maybe. I don''t know how this world''s system works. I just...I wish there was a help menu or something." Cassie shrugged and suggested that she try and spenda point to find out what they did. Iggy hesitated but then agreed, deciding there was no other way to find out then to do. >Cassiopeia''s POV< After Iggy''s approval, Cassie set about finding a way to spend her tree points. After a bit of struggle, Iggy said: "Why don''t you just think ''Paths'' and see what happens?" To her surprise, it worked.
PathMenu: Current Paths available-2 Tamer Path Fearful Warrior Path
Cassiopeia scowled when she saw the Fearful Warrior tree option. Her anxiety was bad enough. Why have something that might make it worse? Iggy seemed to disagree when she told him about it. "Fearful Cry seemed pretty dang useful," he argued. "It lets your friends know where you are and makes your enemies feel fear. That''s an awesome skill." At his urging, she picked the path and flinched when another screen popped up in front of her face. She dreaded the sudden flash of light that appeared whenever she did something with the system interface;it always caught her off guard, even when she was expecting it.
Fearful Warrior Path: Most warriors are known for their bravery, daring to go into the darkness and face monsters to horrible to look upon. You are the opposite; you are fighter known for their paralyzing fear and gut-wrenching anxiety. You capitalize on this, using it to your advantage and force your terror onto your foes. Before you are many paths leading you to victory, and with them come skills of great caliber. Finishing the path will give you access to the Fearful Warrior Skill Tree and bonus attributes. Current Path Points: 1/20
Oh, so now there was a skill tree?Just great. She regretted choosing this path. She wished Iggy felt that way, too, but he was ecstatic to hear the news. "We need to figure out a way to get Path Points so you can get to the skill tree," he said. "Anything to help in battle." Cassie frowned. "But..." "But?" "It just...it makes me feel stupid, having access to this stuff..." Understanding flashed in his eyes and then a sheepish look passed over his face. "Oh. I''m sorry, I didn''t mean to force it on you. I should''ve known how you felt about it..." "It''s okay." They sat in silence beforeIggy spoke up. "So you got these skills just by doing stuff?" "Um...I think it might be a little deeper than that, but yeah, I guess." He stared intently at Naga long enough that it made her little beastie a bit skittish as he ducked behind her. She glared at Iggy "Stop that. You''re scaring him." He shook his head, muttering, "I don''t understand why you''re so attached to that thing." "He''s cute!" "Whatever. Going back to how skills are created..." He started muttering to himself and rubbing his chin. Cassie felt miffed at his blatant dismissal of her affection for her pet. He was the only one who told her that he found her obsession withstrange animals weird and stupid and that hurt. Well, Odysseia said it, too, but Cassie was convinced her sister had very little emotions, if any at all, and found no joy in the world whatsoever. Iggy was different. Out of all their six siblings, she and Iggy were the closest and were rather distant from the others. Not to say they weren''t all close, but the two had a special connection. Tobias was the leader, Penn the smooth talker, and Penelope was the second mother to them all. Odysseia was...Cassie wasn''t sure what benefit she added to the Boyde Bunch¨Dyes, Cassie was the only other one besides Penelope to use that term¨Dbut she had a feeling her sister did certain things that were best left unmentioned. But her and Iggy? The rest of the world considered them to be useless and, even though they didn''t admit it, the others probably thought so, too, especially Tobias. Even though he constantly got on Penn for not helping out when he needed to, Penn was stillimportant. He could talk his way out of everything that Tobias couldn''twith silver-coated words and a honeyed voice. Meanwhile, Iggy got in trouble way too often and Cassie was always one second away from being reduced to a trembling ball of fright. They stuck together and generally understood each other and their motivations. When Iggy did stupid things, she was the first one to forgive him and help appease the other''s anger and annoyance. If Cassie was having one of her attacks, Iggy always knew what had triggered her and was quick to remove it and comfort her. But people had flaws and Iggy''s was he couldn''t understandeverything about her. So she sulked and petted Naga, wishing she had the skill to make her brother see what she saw in her new pet. Then she heard the scream from outside the cave. 004: (O)ddyssia A general description of Odyssia would be this: she was impassive and cold to those around her, no matter how deep their relationship went. Do note that she cared very little about anything if it was impractical, which she deemed to be a waste of her time. And Odyssia Boyde did not like to waste time. She only paused when she teleported to this strange world, allowing herself a brief moment to go over what had happened. Tobias had come home with the medallion, Ignatius had taken it, and now she was here. Her understanding of the past events coming to an end, she moved on. There was no reason to focus onwhy she was here. Only that shewas and she needed to do something about it. Her quick but precise observation of her surroundings told her she was in a desert. She paused, again, because the sand was reddish-pink. She thought to herself,Interesting and moved on once more. She noticed the sky was a faded green and the suns-ah, yes, there were three of them-were odd shades of blue.In front of herwas a cactus and a large animal slept by its side.It resembled a dog, albeit a very big one, with sleek black fur and large, pointed ears, like a wolf. Its paws were the size of dinner plates and its tail was very long, like a hose.It also had a big enough maw to bite her head off in one bite. Odyssia considered this fact and then decided that botheringit would not be in her best interests, so she turned her focus away. Observations done, she thought about what else needed to be done. And then the system interface came, integrated with her, and in a few moments, she woke up. She noted that the animal was still in its original position and still dozing. Words drifted above its head that hadn''t been there before:Legendary Grade, 7-Star Spike-Tailed Canooth.The suns had shifted a bit and with their movement came a slight increase in heat.She thought about taking her shirt off, but that would mean risking a sunburn, which wouldn''t help her in the slightest. Odyssia noticed the floating boxes in front of her face and did not waste time putting her hands in front of them, wondering what would happen. She remembered from one of the times Ignatius had tried to explain video games to her and that what she was seeing was called a HUD. Again, she thought,Interesting. And then she set about finding how it worked. Thinking back to the ''mental recognition'' screen and thoughtInventory. She was in a desert and supplies came first; she could worry about the system later. To her mild disappointment, she found nothing of use in her inventory. She closed it and brought up the system interface. She mulled over the options before selecting the interface option.
System Interface:
The Basics of Essence
HUD/Status Options
World Guide
Hmm. The basics of Essence, messing with my status, or looking through the world guide? Learning about where I am is more important right now.World Guide.
System Interface: World Guide
World Geography
Beasts
Governments, Rebel Agencies, and More
The Stars and Beyond
Hmm, hmm, hmm. All very interesting. Let''s see...World Geography.
System Interface:World Guide: World Geography
Important Landmarks on Mitochondrian
Civilization
Jungles
Deserts
Seas/Oceans
Mountains
Valleys/Plains/Plateus/et cetera
Odyssia silently relished the chance to learn more about this world. If there was one thing she loved more then sending popular cities into anarchy and training in the way of the sword, it was learning. She held off on picking ''Important Landmarks'' as she wasn''t sure there anything vaguely important about this desert. Aside from the fact I''m in it, she thought. She grimaced, chiding herself from spending too much time in Penn''s company. He was so utterlyfull of himself and it was starting to rub off on her. Thinking about Penn brought an unexpected pang to Odyssia''s chest. Yes, she was an emotionless being who wanted nothing more than to show the world its place beneath her feet, but there wassomething in her that cared about her family, even if she refused to show it. It made her wonder where they were right now... And then that brought thoughts of Tobias. They had a very complicated relationship. She admired him for his leadership and hated him because he thought it his responsibility to keep an eye on her every move. It was annoyingly frustrating, yet somewhat endearing knowing that her brother cared enough about her to keep her from harming herself. Or the rest of the world. She let herself have that smug thought before she delved into the bountiful info on the deserts of this world called Mitochondrian. A small part of her brain thought about the endless jokes Tobias would make as she read and she let it stay there.
The heat was getting worse as time went on. Odyssia kept having to get up and walk as the hot sand made sitting a nightmare; it was good fortune that she''d been wearing slippers before the teleportation. So far, she''d learned of the five prominent deserts¨Dthere were plenty more but Odyssia had skipped them has they were unimportant¨Dthe Red Desert, the Blue Desert, the Yellow Desert, the White Desert, and the Black Desert. Uncreative names aside, they were all vastly different. The Red Desert was the hottest and stayed hot, no matter what. The Blue Desert wasan odd phenomenon; the dark blue sand resembled an ocean, as the farther you walked, the deeper you sunk in and only a pair of special shoes called ''Wave-Walkers'' could keep you from drowning-no,suffocating in the mass of sand. Then there was the Yellow Desert where everything was yellow and gave off this supposed ''cheery'' vibe that gave you a sense of unease the longer you walked through the desert. Large, deadly, andsmiling monsters roamed that place so it was best left alone. The White Desert was a winter wonderland with cacti and similar desert plants, which, she guessed, was the reason it was called a desert. She didn''t get much information about the Black Desert, only that if someone ever saw a vast plain of black sand, turn back immediately. Odyssia was in the Red Desert, where it was hot all year round.The guide gave a few tips. A) the cacti held water that wouldn''t turn her brain into mush, unlike the ones on Earth. B) food was always there for those willing to burn their hands digging a few feet in the sand where edible plants and small animals lay. C) bandits and other less pleasurable company laid their claims in the desert, so if she saw anyone, she should most likely avoid them. D) the monsters there are relatively harmless although there are a few high grades/star gems she needed to be wary of. She looked at the Spike-Tailed Canooth and wondered what would happen if it woke up. She was strong, but not invincible and theLegendary Grade title above its head made her doubt her chances of winning a fight. I need to get stronger, she thought, clenching her fist.To die by the hands of some unthinking beast would be humiliating. With that in mind, she finally looked at her status.
Character:
Name: OdyssiaBoyde
Species: Human
Essence: Level 1
Status: Copper, Rank 1
Class: (Copper Status, Rank 5 needed)
Experience: 0/100
Character Stats:
(?.?) Total Regen Points
Health (+15) 100/100 36/minute 0 Attribute points
Stamina (+39) 100/100 36/minute 0 Path points
Mana 560/560 7/minute 0 Tree points
General Resistance - 36; Mental Resistance - 34
Attributes:
Attributes: Attribute Points (0)
Strength- (Increases Attack Power, Lifting Weight, Stamina Gained Per Level) 39 (+)
Agility- (Increases Speed, Dexterity, Reflexes) 40 (+)
Constitution-(Increases Weight, Density, Hardness, Health Gained Per Level) 15 (+)
Endurance-(Increases Regeneration of Healthand Stamina and General Resistance) 36 (+)
Wisdom-(Increases Mental Resistance, Willpower, Mana Regeneration, Common Sense, and Intuition) 34 (+)
Intelligence-(Increases Memory, Mana Pool) 56 (+)
Charisma-(Increases Charm, Persuasion) 1 (+)
Luck-(Increases Odds in Your Favor) 5 (+)
Perception-(Increases Understanding, Senses, Awareness) 34 (+)
Skills: N/A Paths: N/A Trees: N/A
Odyssia felt pleased seeing her attributes. Yes, her training over the years had paid off. Honing her body until was a lethal killing machine and her mind to be a vast compendium of all types of knowledge had come to this very moment where even asystem could understand her greatness. She let herself bask in a moment of self-worth until she chided herself for thinking in that arrogant manner. Yes, she was great but there was always a way to bebetter. What she shouldtake pride inwas having the right mindset tosee she could be better. Odyssia decided to take a break from looking at her status; the heat was starting to get to her. Playing with the system could come later; right now, she needed to findfood and water. Eyeing the Canooth, she cautiously walked over to the cactus. 5-inch long spikes covered the entire plant; there was no way she could get to the water inside without pricking her finger. I should be fine, as long as the spikes aren''t poisonous. The guide never said anything about poisonous cacti. And I can always use my shirt as a bandage...But how would I cut the cactus? Perhaps I could pull a spike off... "Human." The deep, gravelly voice shocked Odyssia out of her thoughts and she spun around to face the beast. It had one eye open and was staring at her with what looked like amusement. "What do you think you''re doing?" Odyssia felt the urge to ask the gigantic dog why it talked, but that would be stupid and focus on unnecessary things. It didn''t matterwhy just that itdid. And so she answered. "I''m trying to find a way to open up the cactus." It nodded and lifted its tail. It was around8 feet in length and puffed out in the end; the puff was riddled with spikes, true to the beasts'' name. "This," it said, "is very helpful with opening up cacti." The tail moved so fast she could hardly see it, even with her high Perception. One moment the cactus was whole, the next, the top half was flying in the air. The bottom half shuddered and stilled after a moment. Odyssia stared in wonder at the split plant and whispered, "Awesome." Then she dunked her head into the cactus water and drank with abandon, ignoring the way the spikes poked thin holes into her hands. When Odyssia finally got herself under control, her thirst was sated and she felt a little bit better. The beast grinned. "I''ve taken a liking to you, human. What is your name?" She inclined her head. "Odyssia Boyde. And yours?" "My masters call me Durmyo." "Durmyo...Thank you. For helping me with the cactus." The beast grunted as it stood and stretched. It was around 7 feet tall on all fours. Odyssia felt a little jealous at its massive frame; she was only 5''3 and she didn''t have any hope of getting any taller. "Come, human. I wish to introduce you to my masters. They are not too far away." Odyssia wondered if that was a good idea. The guide told her to avoid anybody who was in the desert, butwas that right? Anybody who could tame Durmyo is powerful, she mused.I wonder what I could learn from them... "Can I ride you?" she asked,wiping some sweat off of her forehead. It only smiled and kept walking.
By the time she and the beast reached wherever his masters were, Odyssia was drenched in sweat. She was quite athletic, but the three suns sent their unrelenting heat down upon the desert. Odyssia was convinced she would be cooked alive until she gained the skillHeat Resistance. It gave her a tree point, which was interesting. It also leveled five times, which gave her attribute points. Shehesitated to put them into Endurance, thinking that she might need something else along the way. She was not idle while she walked. She had dived into the world guide, seeking to gain as much information about this world and its system as she could.
System Interface:The Basics of Essence
What is Essence? Our Essence is not a soul, as some might believe. It is apart of our souls. A part that levels and grows stronger. Health, Stamina, and Mana our are sub-Essences. Attributesare another type of sub-Essence, which have the ability to affect other subs or be affected by others. How do we strengthen our Essence? To strengthen our Essence''s level, we must absorb it from others or by Beast cores. Killing sentient beings to obtain strength is looked down upon by most peoples of the world, but moral issues are a grey area in this world. The system only cares for the strong, so do what you must. How do Statuses work? AStatus is determined by the strength of your Essence. A higher level of Essence means you have a higher Status. There are eight Statuses: Copper, Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Diamond, Platinum, and Deity (Diety isn''t limited by 10 ranks; it goes on nearly infintely). Each Status has ten Ranks. Each Rank has a requirement of 10 levels to reach before you move on to the next one. Each Status has a requirement of 50 levels to reach before you move on to the next one.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.
System Interface:World Guide: Beasts
What are Beasts? Beasts are mutated animals with cores inside them. Each of the four continents contain a different kind of Beast, although one remains present: Goblins. Goblins are little more than pests and any able-bodied and somewhat skilled fighter or mage could handle them. Unfortunately, when the little buggers gather into a Goblin Army, only the most skilled-or the most determined-people can stop them. Besides Goblins, there are two types of Beasts: Passive and Lethal. Passive Beasts would only attack if you do something to aggrevate them, such as disturbing their nest. Lethal Beasts, however, will attack as soon as they set their sights on you. One thing to note is that most Beasts, whether they be Passive or Lethal, are non-sentient. Exceptions are Goblins and their variants¨DOrcs, Hobs, and the like¨Das well as any Beast with anEpic Grade or higher. How are Beasts ranked? Beasts are ranked by Grades and Stars. There are 7 Grade (Common, Uncommon, Rare, Elite, Epic, Legendary, and Diving) as well as 7 stars for each. Beasts consume Essence just as people do, although some do at a much faster rate. A Common Grade, 1 Star Goblin could quickly become an Uncommon Grade, 1 Star Goblin in just a few months. Meanwhile, for a Blue Jumping Whaleg, going from Common Grade, 1 Star monster to a Common Grade, 2 Star monster would take months, at best. Unfortunately, they''re giving a higher power boost for each Grade/Star they move up in. Although this is so, exterminating rapid growth Beasts, such as Goblins, are a higher priority. Beast Types:
Water
Jungle/Forest
Desert
Plains
Mountain/Tundra
Volcano
Swamp
Cave/Subterranean
There were a lot of desert Beasts, but the only ones she thought she''d have any trouble with were the Arid Harpies, Sandy Selkies, and Root Worms. The harpies and the selkies roamed in packs and, at the moment, she didn''t want to deal with multiple enemies. The Root Worms were a pain because they tend to live neara plant called the Mystic Bean Plant. Said plantgrew ''magic beans'' that helped fight the overpowering heat of the sun and replenished health and stamina. When Odyssia tried to harvest the plants, the worms wriggling around the roots shot out and bit her hands. By the time she managed to kill all six of them, her hands were riddled with shallow bite marks that stung badly. Luckily, the beans healed them rather quickly. They were worth the painful ordeal. She noted that she also got Essence from the Root Worms and money; the currency here was called ''credits'' and each of the worms gave her five Coppers. Pleased by this, she went out of her way to collect the Mystic Beans and kill the worms. Four worms gave her loot after her last dive and each one was a masterpiece.
The Reaver, Divine Grade EssenceWeapon-Shifter The Reaver is aweapon-shifter created by an unknown Essence Smith who used threeDivine Grade materials during the forging process: Insernum, Cloudight, and Caelium. Like many weapon-shifters, the Reaver can change from one weapon to another. Unlike other weapon-shifters, this one can copy weapons with upgraded attributes and skills. Attributes: Durability: 10,00,000/10,00,000 (All Weapons) Damage: (Min) 200,900,00 - (Max) 555,000,000 +9,500,600 Strength (ALL Swords, Halberds, Axes, Hammers) +9,500,700 Agility (Short swords, Staffs, Daggers) +9,500,500 Intelligence (Wands) Skills: Invisible Severance -Weapon can turn invisible and reach up to 15 feet to cut an enemy (ALL swords, Halberds, Axes) Blade of Sure Fate - 100% chance of landing a critical blow on an enemy. Every five strikes will deal double the damage. (All Weapons) Touchy Tendrils of Doom - With a quick flick of the wrist, invisible tendrils will shoot out up to 20 feet and yank the target into the blade. (ALL blade weapons) Razzle Dazzle- 96% chance of shocking an opponent when hit. (All weapons, excluding Wands) Enhanced Electric Magic - Skill allows for greater ease when conducting electricity magic. (All weapons) Blood Ownership - TheEssence Stone inserted into the weapon-shifter the owner of the Reaver to form a blood bond with it. (All weapons) Requirements for Use: Status -Diety, Rank 10 Attributes - Strength (6,500,000), Agility (6,500,000), Constitution (6,000,000), Endurance (7,000,000), Wisdom (6,500,000), Intelligence (7,000,000), Charisma (5,000,000), Luck (5,500,000), Perception (6,500,000)
Handguards of Electium, Divine Grade Essence Gauntlets A master Essence Smith, Thazzolian Steelhead, painstakingly crafted these gauntlets from aDivine Gradematerial of unknown origins: Electium. Not only are the gauntlets of the most superior craftmanship, but the dwarf also embedded Essence Stones into the gauntlet, giving it 5 additional attributes. Attributes: Durability: 9,500,500/9,500,500 +6,500,000 Strength +6,500,000 Constitution +5,000,000 Agility Skills: Flawless Flexibility - Allows the wearer the same amount of fine motor skills they would have without wearing armor. Crushing Grip - With increased Strength, Damage dealt with the Handguards of Electium is increased by5,000. Shocking Bite - The wearer will produce deadly bolts of lightning at will at the cost of 100 mana per second. Simple Disguise - At the wearer''s will, the gauntlets will turn into simple gloves with half the amount of attributes. Blood Ownership - TheEssence Stone inserted in the middle of the gauntlet allows the owner of the Reaver to form a blood bond with it. Requirements for Use: Status -Diety, Rank 10 Attributes - Strength (6,500,000), Agility (6,500,000), Constitution (6,000,000), Endurance (7,000,000), Wisdom (6,500,000), Intelligence (7,000,000), Charisma (5,000,000), Luck (5,500,000), Perception (6,500,000)
Greatcloak of Hammers, Divine Grade Essence Cloak The Greatcloak of Hammers was sewn by a master Essence Seamstress, who effortlessly used the wool of Hardwood Goat to craft something so stylish. Not only is it fashionable, but it''ll save you from nearly everything with its many an Essence Stones sewn in its fabric. Attributes: Durability: 10,500,000/10,500,000 Damage Reduction: 9,000,000 +5,000,000 Agility +5,000,000 Constitution Skills: Hammer Blow - When something hits you with the cloak on, it is rebounded with the strength of a Great Warhammer. Deals 30,000,000 damage. Light as a Feather - When falling from a great distance, the effect ''Feathfalling'' is applied. -40,000,000 Damage is taken when landing. Weather Resistant - The wearer is protected from all kinds of weather, from extreme heat to cold. Element Resistant - 99% Water Magic Resistance, 99% Fire Magic Resistance,99%Earth Magic Resistance, 99% Air Magic Resistance Invisibility - Invisible effect applied to the wearer when the great cloak''s hood is pulled up. Blood Ownership -TheEssence Stoneinserted in the top button allows the wearer to form a blood bond with the Greatcloak of Hammers. Requirements for Use: Status -Diety, Rank 10 Attributes - Strength (6,500,000), Agility (6,500,000), Constitution (6,000,000), Endurance (7,000,000), Wisdom (6,500,000), Intelligence (7,000,000), Charisma (5,000,000), Luck (5,500,000), Perception (6,500,000)
Rocket Boots, Divine Grade Essence Boots The Essence Smith, Juccouse Hamstring, designed these magnificent boots. They let the wearer fly fast, kick hard, and look good while doing it. Attributes: Durability: 10,500,000/10,500,000 Damage Reduction: 9,000,000 Essence Stone Mana: 10,000,000/10,000,000 +5,000,000 Agility +5,000,000 Constitution Skills: Light as a Feather - When falling from a great distance, the effect ''Feathfalling'' is applied. -40,000,000 Damage is taken when landing. Speedster- The wearer is propelled into the wair with bursts of Air Mana contained in the Essence Stones embedded in the boots. Element Resistant - 99% Water Magic Resistance, 99% Fire Magic Resistance,99%Earth Magic Resistance, 99% Air Magic Resistance Blood Ownership -TheEssence Stoneinserted in the top button allows the wearer to form a blood bond with the Greatcloak of Hammers. Requirements for Use: Status -Diety, Rank 10 Attributes - Strength (6,500,000), Agility (6,500,000), Constitution (6,000,000), Endurance (7,000,000), Wisdom (6,500,000), Intelligence (7,000,000), Charisma (5,000,000), Luck (5,500,000), Perception (6,500,000)
Odyssia was amazed by the strength of her newfound items. Unfortunately, she''d have to reach Deity Status, Rank 10. She resolved to reach that level of power as soon as she could. "Odyssia," Durmyo called, trotting over. "Durmyo!" she exclaimed, genuinely excited for the first time in months. "Look what I found!" The beast leaned down and sniffed the Reaver which was currently in the form of a katana. He recoiled and took a step back. "These are very powerful weapons! I have only seen one item of this caliber one before; in the hands of my master, facing off a great army." Durmyo looked Odyssia in the eye and said gravely, "People would kill to have these weapons, girl. Hide them in your inventory and let no one know you have them." She stared back. "Will you tell your master?" He thought for a moment before turning around. "You are interesting, Odyssia. I find that you aren''t all that you seem; I want to see you go far. If my master does not inquire anything specific from me, I will not tell them." Nodding, she put the items into her inventory and followed him. She wasn''t sure she could fully trust him, but he hadn''t killed her so far, so she would take him for his word.
After an hour of walking, the pair finally reached their destination, which was a small village with a grove of tall trees. The sight of them shocked Odyssia; she hadn''t seen any type of vegetation other than the occasional Mystical Bean Plant and the ever-present cactus. When she asked Durmyo about this, he muttered something about a little mage who''s worth nothing but mana and the thin meat on his bones. She didn''t know what that meant, but she took it that the mage had nature magic. Given that most of her items worked better with electricity magic, she wondered if she could find him and mak-er,ask him to teach her. Durmyo let her take a small rest on a hill a few miles away from the village. He told her it was a ''military'' camp of sorts. She studied the camp during the short reprieve.It was a cluster of squat buildings surrounding a much taller structure. There was a mess hall to the west side of the cluster with what she guessed was the training grounds to the east. She noted that there was a small hut separate from the rest of the camp, but not too far off. Durmyo noticed her staring and told her, "That''s where the mage resides. He''s allowed his own house because he''s free of the Red Army." "Red Army?" "What those crotch-suckers up north like to call us.They''re not very creative when it comes to names. Ourofficial name is the Red Legacy." "Much better," Odyssia said drily. "And crotch-suckers?" The beast made a shrugging motion and flicked his tail towards the village. "The humans have inspired me to call them as such." "Delightful. They sound like lovely people." Ignoring her sarcasm, Durmyo straightened his shoulders and started toward the camp. "Come, Odyssia Boyde. It is time for you to meet my masters." Odyssia had expectedthere to be some fanfare when she entered, but the people milling about spared her little more than a glance. She was relieved as this gave her time to study every crucial detail about them. They looked to be Middle Eastern,though there were a few with much darker skin tones. She couldn''t spot a single overweight person among them. She''d lived in America for seven years and was accustomed to seeing the odd rotund man or woman roaming the streets. Of course,she wasn''t expecting the natives hereto be obese, but they all lookedthin. Not malnourished; she spotted many people munching down on what looked to be glazed sticks of bread. No, they were fit, muscular, and well-built, like soldiers. Itwas a military camp, after all. Her observations made one fact clear: Odyssia stood out like a diamond glittering among dusty coals. She was half German and Scottish,complete with pale skin, auburn hair, green eyes, and freckles. She was also short for her age, just barely reaching 4''11. One could easily mistake her for a little girl, especially with her lack of breasts and youthful appearance if not for her well-defined muscles hidden underneath baggy sweaters and a powerful strideshe''d formed while trying to match her much taller brothers'' gaits. It hadn''t worked as their legs only seemed to grow longer, which frustrated Odyssia to no end. But for some odd reason, the natives hardly took notice of her. It was only when she neared the tallest building around, which Durmyo had dubbed the Pillar that her presence caused a reaction. A small group of five individuals approached her and Durmyo. She expected the beast to growl like he''d done when some people had gotten too close, but he only gave the group a dismissive glance and paused before the giant doors of the building. The leader of the group was the first to catch Odyssia''s eye and keep it on him. The young man was around Tobias''s height, a little over 6 foot 7¨Dshe''d gotten used to determining peoples'' heights by measuring them with her mental image of her brother who never seemed to stop growing. And he was gorgeous. That is to say, whoever designed this creature of elegance and perfection knew exactly what they were doing. It would be a disservice to try and describe the fine specimen before her as words could do him no justice. But onewere to try, they would say his cheeks are chiseled like a finely-carved Michelangelo statue. His nose is perfectly symmetrical. His lips are full; the kind that ends in a cute little smirk at the corners. The rays of sun highlight the dimples in his cheeks and chin. Of course, that''s just the best answer on Yahoo as nothing could everreally come close. But this man...this beautiful mancaptured the essence of what it meant to be tall, dark, and handsome. Odyssia had never felt arousal before. Yes, she was a teenager and hormones and blah blah blah. But just howgood someone looked never really filtered in with how she perceived them. That all changed today. He smiled at Odyssia and she felt like her heart might explode from the sheerjoy that it felt. It was...an amazing feeling to be smiled at. To see his perfect lips curve upwards, flashing brilliant, white teeth. And those dimples. Oh, God, thosedimples- Stop. That one word snapped her out of her daze, one small part of her consciousness realizing that something was amiss. Blinking, she tore her gaze away from his face andobserved the rest of his companions. There were two other men with him along with two women. One man, in particular, was huge, like a linebacker. The other one was smaller, albeit justas hardy as the former. The woman, she noticed, had slim figures and reminded her strongly of Penelope, with their elegance and beauty. She couldn''t say she was jealous¨Dwho had the time to be envious of something as arbitrary asappearance. And besides, being around Penelope desensitized her to such fruitless competitions. Dimples clapped his hands together, drawing her attention back to him. He said something in another language to Durmyo who responded in kind.His smile grew wider and he drew closer to Odyssia, holding out his hand. "Allo, gorgien, mo nym av Aestas. Un ya?" The only word she understood in that garbled language was ''Aestas'', which meant summer in Latin. Frowning, she reluctantly shook his hand and said, "Odyssia." He tilted his head to the side and said, "Yar accue av dreccar. Mi I aque wai ya''r from?" Odyssia scrambled to put together the words he was saying. The words sounded vaguely familiar with English, which made it somewhat easier.Hmm. That last part was a question...He said ''from'' so that''s something. ''Yar'' kind sounds like ''your'', just a bit. Mi I...That should be ''May I''. Perhaps...he''s asking where I''m from. Yes, that must be it. "...Far away." She couldn''t trust these people just yet; she had no idea what they''re motives might be and how they''d treat her if they knew she was from another world. It might''ve been a bad idea to come in the first place, but it was better than dying of thirst out in the desert. When she spoke, he raised his eyebrows and repeated her words with an okay pronunciation. "Far...away. I do ny no thim wir. Durmyo, wai di ya frut har?" The beast slapped his tail to the ground and growled something. Dimples raised his hands in surrender and backed away, that sly smile still on his face. Glaring at him, Durmyo snarled, "Come, Odyssia. We have no time to dilly-dally." With another glance at Dimples and his posse, she entered the Pillar with Durmyo.
A lot of things happened in the ten minutes Durmyo had led her through the building and to his Masters, a group of eight people who ran the Red Legacy. It happened like this: How Odyssia Managed to Offend a Group of Insanely Powerful Individuals in Just 10 Steps 1.) She entereda meeting room with Durmyo. The present Masters, only 3 of the 8, were sitting a round table with a hole in the middle. 2.) He told her to bow. She did so. 3.) The man sitting at the head of the table asked her something. She answered to the best of her ability; that is to say, she said nothing at all and stared blankly at him. 4.) Durmyo growled and told her to say something. When she kept quiet, the man spoke up again, in a slow, patronizing voice. 5.) Odyssia had scowled at him and said some horribly rude things she wasn''t sure they fully understood but certainly got the meaning. 6.) The man got upset and said something equally rude. When Odyssia responded in kind, ignoring Durmyo''s warning, she was dragged out of the Pillar and to the training grounds. 7.) An obscenely overweight man, the first she''d seen, who was called the Second Master, declared her guilty of slandering the Red Masters name in front of a large crowd, including Dimples and co. (Translation provided by Durmyo.) 8.) Odyssia, in a rare bout of impulsiveness, called them even more names and declared the whole thing utterly ridiculous. 9.) A woman, the Third Master, spoke up and said she''d best keep her mouth shut or bad things might happen. 10.) Odyssiadared that thing to come foreward. And, just like that, Odyssia found herself facing off against four individuals in what they called the Trial of Arrogance. They were the same folks who''d been walking with Dimples. According to Durmyo, they were the newest recruits but, in his opinion, still enough to beat the crap out of Odyssia. She was handed (see: rudely thrown at) a staff taller than her and told to prepare herself for what was to come. For the first time in a long time, Odyssia smiled.Truly smiled. A group of so-called ''worthy'' opponents was in front of her. She had a decent weapon in her hands. She was going tofight. And best of all? Tobias was nowhere in sight. This was going to be fun. 005: T ... ... ... Tobias opened his eyes and found himself in a deserted campsite. It was getting dark and he couldn''t see much, but he could make out a few things. He was in a sleeping bag next to an unlit fire. Across the campfire was a log with some cooking supplies perched next to it; pots, those big spoons he never knew the name of, and what looked like spices. He groaned and crawled out of the sleeping bag, only to hurry back in when a gust of wind touched his bare skin. Where are my clothes?he thought, shivering.And where am I? He was rubbing his chest when he felt bandages on his lower abdomen. "What the...when was I injured?" All he remembered was seeing the monster tortoise rush him and then some mysterious being coming to save his life. He couldn''t recall anything after that, so he must have passed out again. Good going, Tobias. Passing out multiple times in an unknown world where there are freakingmonsters everywhere. Speaking of monsters...He hunched down in the sleeping bag, glancing around to see if anything was coming. Buttheclearing he was in was still. For the moment. Hmm. Maybe whoever rescued me brought me here? That doesn''t explain why I don''t have my clothes on...At least I''ve still got my boxers and I''m relatively unharmed. My head does hurt, though, but I''ve been knocked out so many times it''s probably from a concussion... He wished he knew what was happening. Things kept coming at him without giving him a break. First, the transportation, then the slime and now this... It was all too much. All Tobias wanted to do was go home and curl up in his bed. He didn''t want to deal with the rest of the world. Not right now. He just wanted to sleep- Footsteps made him jerk back awake and he fumbled around in his sleeping back, looking for the source of the sound. It was his savior! He vaguely recognized their get up from the brief moment he''d laid his eyes on them. They were wearing fitted leather armor, shoes that looked like combat boots and a mask. He saw something trailing out from behind them and thought,That kind looks like a tail... But he dismissed that thought because humans don''thave tails. And slimes don''t talk, monsters don''t exist, and the sky isn''t green.Maybe they''re not human. A pang of fear crept into Tobias''s heart as the possibly non-human got closer. He tried to force it down and think about what he should and decided he should just pretend like he was sleeping. He closed his eyes and forced his body to relax, breathing slowly. He didn''t know how good of an actor he was, but he hoped it was working. Just as the footsteps were about to pass him, they paused. He heard a growling sound coming from above him and something sharp poked him in the back, but he stayed still and quiet. Another growl, another poke. Still ''sleeping''. Finally, they gave up and moved away. He heard them moving about the camp, rustling with the pans. He heard them say something in that growling language and heat flared up. "Raksha" was the word and it had started a fire. He cracked one eye open, just enough that he could see what was happening. Sure he enough, a fire as going strong. He spotted the possible non-human standing by the fire, basking in its warmth. Yup. That''s a tail. Wow, this is freaky... The now-definitely-a-non-human started taking off their armor, starting with the chest plate. The shirt underneath was tight, giving a clear picture of their upper body. Female, with, ah, rather impressive assets...Nell would be jealous. Tobias felt his mind wandering and turned back to studying the woman. She was wearing a short-sleeved shirt, letting him see what made her non-human. Her arms were like regular humans, but instead of skin, she had scales and fur. The outside of her arms and the majority of her upper arms were covered in reddish-brown fur, while the insides, most of her forearms and hands had scales the color of bronze. Her hands, which were surprisingly large for a woman, ended in long, sharp claws. Oddly enough, burn marks and thick, jagged scars littered her arms. He watched as she tossed aside the armor and unclasped her masks, revealing a striking face. Not strikingly beautiful just...striking. The fur ended where her neck and head connected while the scales covered most of her face. What part wasn''t covered in scales was burned. I couldn''t tell if she had hair or not since a scarf covered the top of her head. She had a vaguely human face, but there were key differences. For one, her ears resembled a wolf''s in shape and size. Her nose was sharper than normal and pretty big, too. The main thing that stood out was her eyes; theywere like a crocodile; thin black slits and a golden yellow sclera''s. They looked glassy at the moment as if she was looking at something far away. And then she looked at Tobias, catching him staring in wonder at her facial features. He froze when their eyes met and mentally kicked himself for being so careless. She bared her teeth, revealing canines way too sharp for Tobias'' comfort. He saw her tail move and grab something in behind her. He tensed, waiting for something sharp to be thrown at him. But it was only a book. She tossed it to him and said, "Use that."She had a gruff, raspy voice as if she didn''t talk all that often. It didn''t sound all that feminine, butTobias thought it kind of suited her, what with her scarred appearance. He blinked and caught the book, staring down at it and then her. "You speak English?" "I speak many languages, human," she said, her eyes narrowing. "Though I prefer to use my native one. So, you will use that book and spare me the discomfort of dirtying my tongue in yours." He frowned. "Why should I?" "Because I said so." "That doesn''t-" The tip of her tail was pressed against his throat before he finished talking. It was very, very pointy and very, very close to cutting his throat. Keeping his eyes pinned on the tip, he said cautiously, "How do I use it?" She let out a slight growl of satisfaction as her tail rubbed the bottom of his chin affectionately as if he''d something good to deserve petting. "Intent. Think about using the book and a screen will appear in front of you."
System Interface: Skill Book: Language Would you like to learn the way of Ignis Lupus communication? Yes or No?
He selected yes and felt a flood of information fill his head. He knew that by ''way of communication'' didn''t mean only ''words'', but body language, growls, and facial expressions telling how one another felt. He looked at the woman and could tell she felt anxious from the way hertail twisted around itself and her body was tense, ready for anything. But something was...off about her. He didn''t know what it was until she growled at him; it wasn''t areal growl, more like an imitation of someone trying their hardest to sound like itwas real. ''Did you use-'' ''Not a real wolf,'' he blurted, the growl coming out before he could stop it. He saw her eyes widen and the tailswinging toward him. Years of playing soccer had hard-wired moves into his body and he was ducking just seconds before it slammed into him. He looked back up to see her form blur and all of a sudden he felt claws digging into his chest. He was yanked out of the sleeping back and tossed a few feet away. Before he could even try to process what just happened, the tail came back down. This time, the pain slowed his reaction time and everything went dark. ~~~ Tobias wasn''t dead. He knew that for a fact, mainly because he was in pain. Serious pain. His chest and head hurt like hell and he felt sore all over. He idly wondered what had happened when the memories came rushing back to him. He rolled over onto his back and gingerly touched his chest. He winced as he pulled his hand away. Did shehave to hurt him so badly? Those clawshurt! But then he remembered why she attacked him and any feeling of anger vanished.You''re not a real wolf. Who was he to decide what she was and what she wasn''t? He didn''t even know her name; he had no right to say that to her. Yes, he was pissed off because she''d forced him to use the skill book and that comment about dirtying her tongue by speaking English was unnecessary, but he hadn''t needed to retaliate. And now he was naked, injured, and alone in a world he knew nothing about. Yup. That''s 1 Luck for ya, he thought bitterly.Way to go, T-man. Just as he was about to drown in self-pity, he heard a familiar squelching sound. Sitting up, he saw Lord Weiler hopping towards him. "There you are, human.The halfling didquite the number on you." "...Halfling?" "Yes, the one who''s half Wolfbeast and Phoenix Crocodilus. The one you were with while I was away. I will have you know that I did give proper retribution for her actions." "What?" It wriggled and hopped closer. "You don''t sound very pleased. Don''t humans like it when those who harm them face consequences?"Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. "Um, well, I guess but...did you kill her?" "Wouldthat would be the proper consequence?" "No! That''s not..." Tobias sighed. "I think...we got off on the wrong foot. I don''t want her todie." "How peculiar." Tobias shivered as the wind brushed passed him. "Um, can you take me to her? She has my clothes..." "Hmph! Follow me!"
Keiko''s POV Pain. That was all Keiko could register. Every fiber of her being, every bone in her body was inpain. After disposing of the human boy''s body, she''d made her way back to camp, only to be attacked by a high-grade slime. Luckily, she''d managed to escape, but had not come out unscathed. She was missing a piece of her left arm, from the elbow and down. The nerves in her right leg were also severely damaged, leaving it nearly useless. If it was anything other than an acid slime, she might''ve fared better. But alas, fate was not kind to her. But then again, it never had been. Currently, Keiko was sprawled out on her sleeping bag, panting from the long, arduous journey from the tree she''d hidden in. The shock from the blood loss was slowly wearing off and sleep came to claim her. She struggled against it; if she ever closed her eyes, she''d never opened them again. But she was losing the fight, she could feel it. Her heart grew tired and the pain was just too much. In a last-ditch effort, she emptied everything from her inventory: loot from the Imperial Tortoises, the human''s clothes, some food, and, ah! Bandages! She reached for them, but her arm could barely lift off the ground. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn''t reach it. Eventually, she gave up. There was no use in fighting. No one was coming to save her. Not her ''tribe'', not some random adventurer wandering through the forest. She was completely and utterly a- "Oh, God! Weiler, what did youdo to her?" A familiar voice shouted somewhere off to her left. Or was it her right? She was too tired to care. Then she heard the tell-tale squelching sound of an incoming slime and hissed, wasting what precious energy was left her body. She struggled to turn, to give that wretched slime one last glare before she entered the Void. And then she saw him. The human she''d ''killed''. A rush of emotions flashed through her as he ran towards her. Anger, guilt, relief. Anger, because of their last encounter. Guilt, because she''d nearly killed him. Relief...because shehadn''t. Keiko was many things, but she was not a murderer. No matter how many times she might wish death on someone, she''d never commit the crime herself. No, she hadn''t fallenthat deeply. Yet. The human was at her side a moment later, looking shocked and anxious. He''d probably never seen an injury so severe as hers. Weak, she thought.I''ve seen worse when I was barely a cub. She would''ve continued to mentally berate the boy but he shook himself and dropped to his knees by her side. "Okay, okay. Uh, okay, I need to fix this...somehow. And wow, that''s a lot of blood. Yuck." She growled softly as he processed her injuries, snapping him out of his daze. "You''re conscious? That''s good, I think. Nothing blocking your airflow, you''re still breathing. Duh. Um...I''ve got to clear the wound. I need...water. Yes, water. Where''s..." He looked around wildly, searching for something. Keiko tried to open her mouth, tried to tell him that there was a stream just a few miles west, but nothing came out. She wanted to lash her tail in frustration, but all she could manage was a small twitch. "Huh. Alright, no water. I''ll have to clean it with some type of cloth. Um...my clothes! Ah...that should work. Let me just..." He grabbed his shirt and began tearing it in strips. Gently, he picked up her stump of an arm and pressed a strip against it. The pain from the simple touch was excruciating. She wanted toscream at him for doing something so stupid, but she could only manage a few choked gasps and moans, wasting even more energy. "I know, I know. It hurts, I''m sorry. It''ll be over soon, just let me wrap it up...There." It still hurt, but the pain was somewhat tolerable. "Alright, let''s see your leg. Wow." He blinked rapidly at the mess that was her leg. He held strips of cloth in his hands but had seemingly no idea what to do with them. Keiko growled again, hoping to get him moving before she lost too much blood.Just wrap it, she mentally yelled at him.And hurry up about it, fool! The human took a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves. "Calm down, Tobias. It''s just a screwed up leg. You can fix this. It''s not rocket science..." As he started wrapping up her leg, he muttered about how he wished he paid more attention in Health class. It was, after all, more than just sex jokes and awkward questions about the human body. "She''s not human, so does it matter? Maybe not, but it would be nice to have something to base it off of. What am I talking about? I just need to wrap it up carefully; I can''t do surgery or anything...And this is a world based on a game! She should be fine in a few hours...Probably. Hopefully. Yeah, better to be optimistic. She''ll be fine as long as she doesn''t get an infection. Do infections exist in this world? Well, there are giant tortoises, so there are probably a bunch of deadly diseases, too. I''ve got to find some water to..." She drifted off to sleep, listening to him ramble on absentmindedly. ~~~ When Keiko woke up again, she was tucked in her sleeping bag and something smelled...like food. It wasn''t bad, but it didn''t smellgood. She heard footsteps and turned her head to see the human¨Dno,Tobias, walking towards her. He was wearing only a pair of dark blue pants and odd shoes that were bright red on top and white on the bottom. Seeing him shirtless sent another rush of emotions through her, this time mostly guilt. She saw the scars that decorated his chest; he must not have fully healed. Tobias knelt by her, holding a bowl in his hands. He spoke in a soft growl. ''Food. Not good, but can eat.'' Keiko noted that although he didn''t have a proper grip on the language of her kind, he seemed to have the basics of growling down. She managed a weak nod and reached to take it with her left hand... ...Which wasn''t there anymore. Grimacing, she pulled it back and tried to reach it with her other arm, but he pushed it down and growled. "I feed you. Still.'' ''I am not helpless,'' she growled back, slapping her tail threateningly against the ground. Unfortunately, in the sleeping bag, it didn''t have the same effect she wanted it to. The human smirked slightly. ''Too weak. Need to be helped,'' he pointed out as he reached to put his hand under her head. She tried to bite him, out of spite, but only managed a pitiful nibble that would''ve taken his entire hand off if she''d been at full strength. But it still hurt him. He let out a slight hiss and jerked his arm away from her mouth. The small wound slowly closed as he regenerated health. He glared at her and reached for her head again. She bared her fangs but he ignored that, quickly sliding his hand under her head and angling it away from her mouth. She growled and tried to pull away from him, but he easily overpowered her and pulled her gently into his lap. Fuming, she looked around for a place to bite him that would cause the most pain. Between his legs. Unfortunately, he put the bowl there and said, "I''m not going to feed you if you keep trying to bite me." "I don''tneed you to feed me, human. I am nothelpless." He snorted and plucked a wooden spoon out of his inventory. "Could''ve fooled me with all that blood and passing out you were doing." "You-" He shoved a spoonful of stew into her mouth. It tasted disgusting. She turned her head and spat it out before glaring at him. "What was that?" "My attempts at making turtle stew," he muttered, staring at the garbage she''d just spat out. "You are a bad cook." "This world just has crappy ingredients," he snapped back. "I''m agreat cook. Now, eat this and go back to sleep. I don''t wanna talk to you anymore." She clamped her mouth shut as he tried to shove another spoonful in. He narrowed his eyes and put one hand on her side. "Open your mouth." She kept one eye on his hand as she sternly shook her head no. "Do you want to starve? You don''t have a way to feed yourself!" Thinking for a moment she raised her tail and deftly scooped the bowl away from him. He frowned before pushing her back onto the sleeping bag and stomping back over to the log. It was a small victory, but it made her proud nonetheless. She ate his disgusting stew as fast as she could before heading back into dreamland. ~~~ Keiko woke uplate the next day, around noon. She tried to sit up, but she was too weak so she lay back down. Taking a glance at her health bar showed just a little less than a third was remaining. Her stamina wasn''t much better. She should be healing, but high-grade acid slimes were notorious for secreting a type of acid that slowed down regeneration to almost nothing. She wondered how long it would take her to get better. Idly, she also wondered where the human was. Turning her head, she saw him sitting on the log, skinning a Horned Rabbit. She noted that there were another three he hadn''t touched and that his calf and stomach were bandaged. She stared at the boy, reassessing her image of him. She''d assumed him to be weak, but he carried five Horned Rabbits in his hands, something a wolf cub could only do after months of extensive training. She had no way of knowing how old the human was; she didn''t spend much time around humans to know when they grew out of their youth stage. He was tall and muscular so he must''ve been older than 18. But he had a somewhat boyish face, with reddish hair that curled around his ears and soft eyes. ''Human,'' she growled. He looked up, saw her, and his face morphed between a scowl and a smile. "You''re awake. Great. I''ve got some more stew for you." He came over, bowl in hands. It smelled only marginally better than the last time. After setting the bowl down, he turned to leave but she grabbed his ankle and tugged gently. ''Did you kill the rabbits?'' "Hmm? Oh, yeah. Nasty little buggers. Nearly took my leg before I could kill them. Big, sharp stones work wonders against them. Might make rabbit stew next..." She ignored him as he muttered to himself and ate the stew. It was still disgusting. She wondered if he''d gained the cooking skill and if he had, what good it was doing him.
Tobias''s POV "I don''t understand why you insist on keeping the halfling around," Weiler complained. Tobias glanced up at the sleeping woman a few feet away from him. He didn''t know why either but he refused to let Weiler kill her. Itwouldn''t sit right with him, knowing that her life was in his hands and yet tossing it away like it was nothing. Maybe he was being too nice. Shehad tried to kill him before. But he still couldn''t bring himself to give the bloodthirsty slime the go-ahead to finish her off. "We talked about this, Weiler," he chided the little monster. "You can''t just kill people for no reason." "She had tried to killyou." "We... disagreed on something and it got out of hand." "She offers you nothing in return for keeping her alive! What use would you have for her?" Tobias didn''t answer and returned to his stew. "Hmm...I see. You''re being secretive. From what I know of human males, they have incredible sex drives. Do you intend to use her for pleasure?" Tobias choked and sputtered. "What? Where did you getthat from?" "Why else would you keep her around?" "I-I''m not gonna dothat. I have morals!" The slime wriggled indignantly. "So what of morals? We all have needs, human, and one of them is to procreate. I would not suggest a halfling as your first choice, but as there''s nothing better around..." "I''m onlyseventeen!" "So?" Tobias scoffed and ignored the slime. He would''ve never considered using her for such nefarious purposes. And besides, the few interactions he''d had with her were tense and always ended with her growling at him and waving her tail threateningly; there was noway she''d let it happen. You could probably overpower her, the dark side of him offered.She''s weakened; she won''t be able to fight back. He forced that part of him deep in the back of his mind. He wasn''t going to become a monster just because he was horny. That wasn''t going to happen. Shooting the unconscious woman one last glance, he got up to head to the stream he''d found a few days ago and almost tripped on something. It was a bag he hadn''topened yet. Curious, he set the bowl down and picked it up. Then he nearly dropped it shocked when he saw what was inside. Skill books! Was this for real? The world is based on a game. Ofcourse, there''d be skill books. He wanted to use them immediately but he stopped. The bag didn''t belong to him; it was the halflings. He considered asking her for them until he realized he didn''t even know her name. Tobias sighed as he considered his options. Did he use them in secret or try to kiss up to her until she agreed to let him use them? Weiler hopped over to him. "What have you there, human?" "A bag full of skill books?" "Really? Why aren''t you using them? They could help with the inn!" "They''re not mine, they''re hers." "So sheis a liability keeping you from growing..." "No," he said quickly, following the slime''s train of thought. "She''s not." "So why don''t you use them?" "...I''m going to." "Really?" Tobias gritted his teeth. Stealing was wrong; his mother had instilled that into him over the years with fierce determination. He didn''twant to use the skill books without her permission but if Weiler threatened to kill her because he wouldn''t... He pulled the first book out. \|/ I''m not happy. I can''t tell you why other than the fact that something about this story has caught my ire and due to that, I no longer wish to continue working on. I had ''plans'' for TPPICO, but the way it''s written doesn''t...satisfy me. Which is a shame because I liked the story premise. The one thing I can explain to you is I should have planned the story better. Created an outline or something, despite how utterly terrifying that sounds. There''s also the system. The system really did it in for me. In hindsight, I probably shouldn''t have made it so complicated. But, again, I had ''plans'' which, of course, didn''t work out how I wanted it to. I''m sorry that the story is being dropped when it''s only, what, 5 or 6 chapters in? I loved the enthusiasm you guys gave me, especially about Odyssia.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. It pains me to cut their tales so short but I can''t promise I can make anything good if I''m not interested. I don''t like giving half-assed work. Or, well, scratch that, I don''t like giving half-assed work on something I enjoy doing, such as writing. Of course, this might not be the last you''ll see of the Boyde Bunch. I am considering working on a new story, which I will ''properly'' outline to the best of my ability (see: until I give up and start doing the actual writing). I''m calling it ''Of Potatoes and Men''. Because a) I like the way it sounds and b) I don''t wish to face the retribution of the Holy Order of Potatoes. So, I''m trading one potato story for another. And this time, the story is not a spur of the moment idea with something I have hardly any interest in writing about, such as an inn. Anywho, I don''t know when this new story will come up. School is hard, outlines are blegh, and I''m lazy. But know this! I won''t leave you guys hanging this time. I''ll work on scheduling chapters, doing a backlog or something. To keep you entertained while I''m busy (see: being extremely lazy despite the number of responsibilities I''ve stacked up on my plate) Ah, life is good when you have a plan. Which is definitely what ''Of Potatoes and Men'' will have. I promise. I''ll see you around. Probably.