by Elian Tars
After that, I threw a couple more boots, a jacket, some covers and a set of iron utensils into the inventory. I figured that was it as I was carrying as much as I could manage. Now it was definitely time to go visit a village or something. I didn’t want to start with Ekheim. I should go to the nearby village… According to the map, I should make it there by nightfall. Hopefully, I’ll find some kind of a merchant there.
Going down the stairs, I caught myself thinking about whether I was doing the right thing. I had gone into someone else’s house and, to be honest, stole their stuff. Sure, it was a normal thing to do in any game, especially in the early levels. You would end up taking anything that wasn’t nailed to the ground and lugging it around with you. However, everything here was so realistic that I even started feeling ashamed…
“G-r-r-a-a!!!” A deafening roar made me flinch and automatically pull out my pitchfork from the inventory.
“A-a-a!!!” A moment later, mighty claws tore my clothes off, peeling my skin and muscles away all the way down to the ribs, sending me flying. Pressing my head against the wooden wall, I instantly jumped to my feet, feeling as if my side had been eaten away by acid.
About fifteen feet away, blocking the passage with its rotting carcass, a miasma-emitting bear was growling at me. Its skin seemed rotten and ruined; its eyes were covered with a dead shroud, and there was a gaping wound on its forehead, filled with green muck and shaped like a clover.
Old Bear Changed by Decay
Level 25
HP: 847/847
“G-r-r-r!!!” The predator growled at me.
Moving my right hand forward, I sent the black smoke at him. The effect didn’t kick in and the bear appeared in front of me, swinging a rotting paw in my direction. Thanks to the miracle that was agility, I managed to jump back, suddenly turn around, and start to run.
Obviously, I couldn’t escape from the terrible beast, but I just needed to gain a measly couple of seconds.
“G-r-r!!!” The thing practically roared in my ear.
“A-a-a…” I groaned in pain as its claws hit me in the back, and I flew for a couple of meters; I landed on the floor near the front door.
You have received 50 points of damage.
Bastard! Die!
Turning over, I cast my favorite, and only, spell at the bear.
You have used “Tranquility of Darkness” on “Old Bear Changed by Decay”. The effect is blocked. You don’t have enough power of Darkness to influence this creature of Decay.
By just glancing at the lines in the logs, I realized that the battle was over. In a moment, the bear reached my fallen carcass and began to tear into me with its claws, not paying attention to my pathetic attempts to fight back with the pitchfork.
My HP dropped to 1 and my spirit left my body.
You have been defeated by “Old Bear Changed by Decay”.
I saw the creature thrust its claws into my chest and tear it apart like a piece of paper.
You have been killed by “Old Bear Changed by Decay”. You will now be taken to your respawn point.
As soon as the pain and the world around me disappeared, I appeared in the familiar graveyard.
You have been resurrected at your respawn point. You have used 10% of your rebirth energy.
Exhaling wearily, I sat down on the grass in front of the crypt’s door. I’m such an idiot! I planned to be cautious, but I went up the stairs the moment I noticed them, without checking the entire first floor beforehand. If you thought about it, the woman in the house had been trying to get out, meaning that she was fleeing from the living room toward the exit and apparently running from the same bear. How did it get into the house? I was sure it hadn’t been hiding the whole time I was checking the closets. It must have heard me or caught my scent from the street and come in. And it had come in, without a doubt, through the back door… Shit!
Alright, that’s enough whining! Yes, I was an idiot and yes, I had made a mistake. It could’ve happened to anyone. But to avoid being an idiot in the future, I had to draw conclusions and learn from my mistakes. Even if I did die, this death taught me a valuable lesson.
Grunting, I called up the logs and flipped through them to the point before the battle had started.
“Old Bear Changed by Decay” used “Sweeping Claw Strike of Decay”.
You have dealt 72 points of damage.
You have received 72 points of damage (none negated).
The effect of Decay has weakened. You receive 10 points of damage every 5 seconds for the next 30 seconds.
So, I had done the right thing when I spent the skill point gained at level 12 to learn Dark Side of the World. Interesting… If the weakened effect still enhanced the paw strike, and removed about 60 HP, then what could it do at full strength?
However, what kind of phenomenon was this “Decay”? On the map that I had found at the hunter’s house, the dead part of the forest had been marked with the same word.
I took out the rolled up piece of yellow paper from my inventory. If you looked closely at the border of Decay on the map, it was much further from their house than it really was. Was it a mistake or…?
A noise interrupted my train of thought. I instantly jumped to my feet, pressed my back to the wall of the crypt and looked around the corner. A Little Spider Changed by Decay, a creature I was very familiar with, a level 5 one this time, had come out of the woods and was making its way toward me.
I materialized the crossbow and came out of hiding. Would the beast attack me? Or would it be too afraid to do so because of the difference in our levels?
But it wasn’t afraid. As soon as it saw me, the Little Spider threw itself into the fight.
I managed to lift the hand that was holding the crossbow and, aiming hastily, fire.
You have dealt 23 points of damage.
Surprisingly, I got it, although I didn’t understand if I had hit it by myself or had the system helped. But I had no time to figure that out. I swapped the crossbow for the regular pitchfork, and then began circling around the pest, stabbing it and sending black smoke at it. Same as with the bear, neither Tranquility nor Horror affected this creature of Decay. To be honest, I was hoping that my magic could slay such a trivial foe.
So, I had to dodge and prick him with my pitchfork, activating Power Strike periodically. In the end, I had to avoid getting hit with a Web of Decay again.
I didn’t kill the creature as I didn’t want to ruin my unique achievement. I accelerated my regeneration and took a final look at the cemetery. I saw nothing new or unusual; I hoped I wouldn’t be coming back here again.
And with that thought, I started walking down the familiar road toward the village of ashes. Why not? Since the bear’s claws had thrown me back to the beginning of things, why not visit my father’s house? I had accumulated too many doubts lately.
Chapter 8
Eyes in the Dark
To be honest, after all that had happened, I had one doubt, and it was a big one. I doubted that Bon’s father had only hidden the money, the ring and the book away. He had been preparing to run, and had, therefore, surely expected something terrible. What could’ve been worse in this situation than an army of level 50 fighters in a location where it seemed like Jason had had the highest level? Why had he been expecting it? What could the villagers have done to incur such a punishment? Or had the chief been the only guilty party? Una seemed very suspicious to me, as though she knew something. Or was the healer the chief’s accomplice?
The most disgusting thing was that, if I find anything unusual in the burned village, my suspicions would be confirmed. But if I don’t find anything, it wouldn’t mean a thing. There might be no “evidence” at all because Una had already taken it, or maybe I missed something before…
As I thought things over, I didn’t forget to keep looking around. Even though the village has almost completely burned down, my past experience had taught me that you should never let your guard down. Maybe that’s why I notice
d a man walking through the ashes before he noticed me, and immediately slipped into the tall grass.
“Who is that?” I mentally asked the system.
Guardsman John
Level 49
HP: 980/980
Hm, a “guardsman”? I remembered that when I looked at the Iron Faced, I only saw their names, without any definitions. Those two had had higher levels and HP. Plus, this man looked different. His armor, as far as I could tell, was made out of leather, as was his helmet that only covered his head and nose, leaving his face unprotected. There was a shield on his back, and a sword on his belt. I wondered why he wasn’t carrying it in his inventory. Maybe the NPCs don’t know how?
The guardsman walked around the ashes and sat down on a thick log in the center of what used to be a village. He took a piece of wood from his inventory and started to methodically craft something.
If you took a closer look, it became apparent that the things here had been partially organized after the fire. In the space occupied by the burned down houses, someone had cleared away the charred boards and collected the garbage into numerous heaps on the perimeter of each spot. John couldn’t have done all of that by himself in just a few days. It was as if a whole squad had worked on this. They were looking for something as well! But did they find anything after they had cleaned up the burned down village? And why did they put a guard here? Who were they trying to catch?
Unfortunately, he was sitting just a short distance from the former chief’s home. Of course, I could’ve approached it from behind, and if he turned around, I could’ve switched on Blind Eye… But I had already done enough stupid things for the day. There was no sense in rushing things, I would just wait.
And I was rewarded for my prudence. A few minutes later, John was approached by a second man.
Guardsman Lerk
Level 51
HP: 950/950
Dressed in exactly the same armor as the first guardsman, instead of a sword and a shield, this newcomer had a bow and a quiver. I figured that the reason why Lark had less HP than John even though he had passed level 50 was because he had invested in agility.
I had no proof, only my own observations, but as I understood it, damage caused by ranged weapons depended only on the characteristics of the weapon itself. In close combat, for example, the indicator of strength would be added; there was no such thing in ranged combat.
My theory needed further testing, and that was exactly what I planned to do with the crossbow in the near future. But… I think that I’m absolutely right. For ranged fighting, you only need to have the minimum of stats to use the weapon itself.
Then why did the archer upgrade his agility, and not, for example, his strength? It was all very simple — critical damage and faster shooting. Besides, agility might’ve also affected his precision.
I noticed that a lot of things in this game depended on one’s skills and reactions. Of course, stats also played a significant role. Upgrading them, you could feel your body became stronger, faster, and quicker. And if my own skills affected my thinking speed and evaluation, then stats also affected the body’s capabilities.
Thinking about it, I continued to watch the guards. Unfortunately, from where I was hiding, I couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but I didn’t dare to come any closer. That’s how I spent about forty minutes, until my feet began to feel numb from sitting in an uncomfortable position.
I didn’t dare risk going into the ashes now, in broad daylight, so I carefully turned around and headed toward the forest. Once I was far enough from the village, I stood up and continued to walk much more cheerfully. I stopped once to check the map and then continued on my way.
I had some advantages, so why not use them? One was the ability to see in the dark, which could be upgraded to level two. To do this, I needed a skill point; therefore, I had to level up.
I walked to the place where I had camped overnight with Una and the rest of the villagers that I had saved, but who had left me behind to get eaten by wolves. I checked the map once more and turned slightly to the left, toward another part of the forest, where I knew there were still some predators left that I hadn’t “calmed” down yet.
I was only done leveling by the time the sun set. I reached level 14 and. along the way, received the achievement I had been expecting: Halfway to the Light. It was all the same, only now, according to the system, I was pissing myself off 50%.
Misfires when I activated Tranquility of Darkness began to happen more often. Thank God that it didn’t happen every second time, as the title had suggested; otherwise, I would have indeed had to slaughter some kind of a wolf. Again and again, casting the black smoke at the predators, I wondered whether to continue along this path. I decided that I should continue until it turns critical. It was a pity that no bonuses had been issued yet. I guessed that they would appear when the amount of creatures I hadn’t killed reaches a hundred. Will I have enough time until then to understand what to do about the clash of Light and Darkness inside me? I really hoped so. Or maybe, by then, the senile voice that had given me the pep talk before the start of the game would consider me a grown up and join me for a serious conversation? As he had expected, I already had a lot of questions for him.
When I was finished with the wolves, I climbed a tree, ate some meat and cheese, put the skill point into intelligence and improved the needed skill.
Eyes in the Dark
Level 2
Passive skill
Allows you to see in the dark as well as during the day. Allows you to see things that are somewhat hidden in the dark.
The description had changed just a little, but my vision definitely improved. Although what I saw varied from when it had been light out and was dominated by gray tones, it still looked pretty clear. Perhaps I could read under the moonlight, without using a candle.
Hmm, the system wasn’t offering me a chance to level it further; same applied to Tranquility of Darkness. I hoped I could do so in the future.
Thus, I now had two level 2 skills and a heap of level 1 skills. Out of those, the third skill — and the last one for today — from the abilities of Darkness that were available to me was my next priority. It was a pity that skill points were given so rarely — only three every five levels.
Having finished all of my preparations, I returned to the village after a meal. John was still sitting on the same spot and Lerk was nowhere to be seen. Carefully bypassing the village, I noticed a small tent near the northern border. I crept closer and, activating Blind Eye, cautiously looked inside. The archer was sleeping like a baby.
Trying to walk silently, I went around and froze sixty feet from the chief’s burned down house. Now it looked like a cleared up area with a hole dug in the middle. Everything had burned away cleanly, even the beams that had supported the cellar’s roof. What remained after the fire had been meticulously collected by the guards, and then tossed into a pile of garbage.
What was I supposed to do here? I was glad that I hadn’t walked all the way here from the decayed forest but got teleported thanks to the bear. Although, can you ever really be delighted about your own death?
But, in any case, to calm myself down, I had to get into the pit. And then what? Sort through the piles of garbage, hoping that the guardsmen had missed something?
Either way, I didn’t regret my decision to return home at all. This trip had certainly not been in vain as I had already learned something new. I really hoped that the fact that the guards were also interested in the burned village wouldn’t be the only useful piece of information I would gain today.
I turned my eyes toward John. He was still sitting with his back to me; just in case, I activated Blind Eye and quietly crept up to the former cellar. I gripped the edge with my fingers, the ground crumbled under my weight and I quickly landed at the bottom of the pit. It all happened pretty quietly, and it was unlikely that the guardsman on duty heard anything. I looked up at the dark rectangle of the sky. A distance of a
bout seven feet separated me from it; there were no stairs. However, I had figured out a way to get out in advance and I could only hope that it will work.
I looked around inside the cellar. It was a hole, about nine by seven feet, with nothing but earthen walls. I began methodically probing each wall. Actually, there were three options: first, I was a complete idiot and there had been nothing here from the very beginning; second, the guardsmen found everything that could’ve been found; and third, I would get lucky! In any case, I couldn’t do anything else; I always had to make sure of everything personally.
However, sometimes life punished me for this habit. Like now, for example; there were no suspicious bumps or cracks, nothing unusual at all. Only bare walls. Had I really done all this for nothing? Ouch! And what’s this?
Suddenly, it got darker. And in the darkness, on one of the walls, a small firefly seemed to have lit up. Round, translucent, dim light was flickering either in front of the wall or inside it. Maybe if it had been darker, it would’ve burned brighter. But getting out now, walking up to John, and putting out his torch would be equal to suicide.
Instead, I approached the light and reached out to it. Suddenly, the firefly disappeared and the world was illuminated by moonlight.
I came up with a pretty crazy idea. I got the bedspread which I found in the hunter’s house out of my inventory and placed half of it on top of my head. The other half I pinned close to the wall.
It worked! In this artificial darkness, I saw the firefly again, right in front of my nose. It flickered much more clearly and looked like some kind of a marker.
I suppose it would help me “see things that are somewhat hidden in the dark”.
Without wasting time, I materialized a knife in my hand and began to dig with the blade toward the light. I had to go slow, silently dumping the dirt under my feet. However, after five minutes of digging, the blade hit something much more solid than plain dirt.