---

Welp, he found what Guidance was leading him to, and according to his analysis, Jehanne was definitely the best person to help him seek forgiveness for his Taboo sin. Hopefully she wouldn't be too offended by the Demiblin seeking her insight and wisdom as a way to redeem himself, despite being, y'know, a demonic goblin.

Just before he was about to walk back home, however, there was a deer that seemed like it wasn't about to let Digbie pass so easily. It wasn't going to hurt him, as long as Digbie didn't hurt the deer, but the mighty animal seemed to be slightly hurt by a dart or arrow. It was a projectile, for sure. It could certainly use some sort of healing, if anything else, so Digbie felt like it was somewhat his duty. If he was going to go down the path of forgiveness from Jehanne's hand, he needed to start somewhere, and healing the forest's innocent animals was a decent start he felt.

"Hey there... it's gonna be okay... just be calm." Digbie carefully said as he raised both his hands up, lowering one down slowly towards the beast and casting towards it with Minor Heal, as well as analyzing it with a Monster Analysis. Hopefully he could at least provide the beast with a bit of relief, if not complete healing.

After that, Digbie would just start walking back to his base. He kept tabs on where he had to walk, so walking back wouldn't be too much issue. Hopefully he could at least walk while he started his studies into praying to Jehanne for salvation. Maybe he could even hear her if he tried hard enough. It was worth a shot.

"H-hey... Jehanne? Are we able to hear eachother...?"

---

---

Torrent was more than pleased with her system message as she considered how to proceed from where she had gotten to. If she could get these two skills then she'd have three different elements at her disposal.

But what if she made it four? Steam counted as an element, didn't it? Well, it made sense to her and that's all that mattered, right?

She was going to retry those two attempts, though, but she was going to do more. This time she repeated the steps she did for the stream last time. But this time she spent more time trying to condense the water infused mana in her mouth, trying to pack it as solidly as she could before she released it in the stream towards the other side of the stream.

With the second form, she again took more time to prepare. But this time she tried to take the heat that she produced for Fireball and her Explosion to heat up the water in her mouth before she released it.

---

Miiba wasn't sure when she had fallen asleep last night. She remembered Lear reading to them about what seemed to be history, but she was so exhausted by that point she just remembered falling asleep. The pitter-patter of little feet slowly and peacefully woke Miiba, who took her time to open her eyes and then sit up. She yawned and stretched, sitting up in her mat with the cover still half on her. She only then, after silently looking around the room, still half asleep did she realize that she wasn't in the shed, and even had a mat and blanket!

She sat up in the living-room, crossing her legs and her hands clasped and in her lap. She watched the things going on around her in a bit of a morning daze. She was surprised to be in the house still, and wasn't sure what to do. Maybe let someone know she was awake? If they let her sleep, does that mean she would be late with the water? Would Lear be mad that she was just now waking up? Miiba shook her head. They would have woke her if it were time for chores, right? "M-...Mrs. Gwen?" she called from her makeshift bed like a child wearily calling for their mother from their room at night. "Miiba thank for sleep spot. Miiba sleep good! But...where Mr. Lear? Miiba sleep too long? Does Miiba need to get water from the w-" DING! "WHA!" Miiba shrieked as a sudden unexpected dinging noise scared her. She had curled up and hid her face at her knees, covering her head with her arms, unknowingly exiting the menu in her mind in fright. When she realized that she had heard it before, she started to poke her head up again. Her heart was racing from the surprise, but she looked up to Gwen with a sheepish smile. "Miiba dinged! she said excitedly. "Uh.... what Miiba do with ding? Miiba tell Mr. Lear? Ask what do so Miiba be hero?" She was visibly a little confused, and a bit anxious, but after being able to sleep well inside and having put in a good days work and having proper meals yesterday, she felt great and was like a regular happy kid. "Oh...and...may, uh, may Miiba have glass of water?" she also asked. If there was any proof that she could have human child tendencies, it would be all the questions she keeps asking.

Skill Gain: Faster I (0.8) > (1.35)!
Your base physical speed is increased! By gaining the skills Harder, Better, and Stronger, Skill Synergy will occur and you will gain one rank of Physical Conditioning.

Skill Gain: Smash I (0.9) > (1.1)!
A Physical Skill that consumes Stamina instead of MP. One blunt type attack deals increased damage!

Skill Gain: Alert I (0.9) > (1.1)!
Though this skill is limited by the strength of your senses, and does not sharpen your senses on its own, it allows you to become more aware of your surroundings. Without conscious effort, you will pick up on signs in your environment more easily, especially if they present some form of danger to you. Essentially this is an anti-ambush skill.

Skill Rank Up: Stronger I (1.35) > Stronger II (2.0)!
Your base physical strength is further increased! This may boost the effectiveness with certain types of equipment or tools.

You are experiencing a Fast Rate of Skill Progression.
You are experiencing a Fast Rate of Skill Progression.
You are experiencing a Fast Rate of Skill Progression.

LEVEL UP! Your learning experiences have culminated in new power! You are now Level 4! Your maximum Stamina has increased! You gain Skill Points to distribute as you please!

Unspent Skill Points: 15

Current Skills:
Stronger II (2.0)
Muffle I (1.25)
Crafting I (1.5)
Faster I (1.35)
Smash I (1.1)
Alert I (1.1)
<UNUSABLE>
Charisma (0.8)
Charm (0.2)
Pierce Resistance (0.1)
Shield Slam (0.4)
Defender (0.9)
Slash (0.1)
Throw Item (0.2)
Magic Resistance (0.4)
Blunt Resistance (0.4)
Fortify (0.3)
Soil Manipulation (0.3)
Intercept (0.2)
Skewer (0.1)
Warcry (0.2)
Plant Analysis (0.1)
Cleave (0.5)
Use Medium Equipment (0.5)
People Sense (0.3)
Guidance (0.2)
Dextrous (0.5)
Overwork (0.6)

You are Well Rested.
Your HP is Full.
Your MP is Full.
Your Stamina is Full.
You are Peckish.
Your mouth is Dry.

When Femus spoke to Nira, he revealed himself as something more than a Wisp. No other creatures Nira had seen thus far besides the Goblins could speak--and calling the sounds they made "proper" speech was a bit of a stretch. What would they do? Would they form an alliance, or become enemies? Competition to be outdone...or a possible ally to be made, in this new and savage world?

The Dire Rat shook its head, and snarled at both of them. Not willing to fight a battle on two fronts, it turned to run--would they let the kill get away from them? They might not get another chance for a while, as it seemed the majority of the stampede was over. If they let the Rat get away, they would have to hunt in a more typical manner--a lot of tracking, hiding, waiting, ambushing--to get another meal, or more battle experience. That was another question: would this Rat possibly be the source of their next level up?

[[Feel free to post back and forth without an update from me if you're primarily interacting with one another.]]

---

”Watcha need, boss?” Sato grinned while both his hands rested atop his waist as he awaited the goblin boss’ reply.

"Youse's borned..." Lansa counted out ten days on his fingers, then held up two of his toes. "Dis many days ago. Not long time." He put his hands back on his spear, holding it casually...but nonetheless, the weapon still made one feel uncomfortable just by the sight of it. "But I seen yas, youse growin' fast." The Hobgoblin peered at him suspiciously. "And ya does dem funny tings, erry day. Climbin' on trees. Pickin' up heavy tings and puttin' 'em down agin." He looked over towards Ballz Acker, who was now working with Say-Bah to pile up the corpses of all the slain prey. "An' ya da only Gob dum enuff to keep tryin' to arm wrassle Ballz."

As the Hobgoblin turned back towards Sato, it was clear that gears were turning in his head. He looked at the youngling with suspicion...but also curiosity.

"Youse one o' Granpy Kiri's younglings. Dunno which one was yore muddah, but dey both Gobs. Not Hobs like mines, or Bugbear like Ballz's faddah." He tapped Sato's leg with the butt of his spear. "So how's you gettin' stronk so fast?"

---

Miiba, the little girl goblin, had been having quite the busy few days. Ever since she had escaped from that godawful cave, it had been one disaster after another. Everywhere she went, there had been some creature ready to gobble her up, and all she wanted was to make friends. She had thought she would finally be able to do that, once she came upon a farmstead some miles east of the cave...only to be captured by the humans there and subjected to a terrifying night of interrogation in the woodshed. However, the next morning, she had met Mr. Lear, the farmer--and possibly a former soldier or adventurer of some sort, if the armor hanging in his house was any indication.

To say Lear had accepted her wouldn't be correct. Rather, it seemed Lear had simply been observing her, and giving her a chance to prove that she really wasn't like the other goblins, who did NOT have a good reputation in this world. She still caught distrusting glances and heard disparaging words from the rest of the family, but so far she had only been given orders to do chores and answer questions...Yet at the same time, she had been invited to share their table, and had been given a small place to sleep by the fire. And now she had grown another level.

Lear had told her that it might be possible for her to Transform into something better than a Goblin...maybe not something Humans would be real "friends" with, but at least something they didn't hate so much? It was the only hope she had thus far. The only hope this former 8-year-old little girl, taken from her old world before she had ever really experienced it, could ever have to be a "person" again.

"M-...Mrs. Gwen?" The sound of a spoon tapping the edge of a pot came from the kitchen. The farmer's beautiful wife adjusted the blue apron over her modest, cream-colored dress as she leaned around the corner. "Miiba thank for sleep spot. Miiba sleep good! But...where Mr. Lear? Miiba sleep too long? Does Miiba need to get water from the w-" DING! "WHA!"

Gwen jumped as well at Miiba's surprise, and approached the little goblin warily.

"Dinged? What does that mean?" she asked gently, but Miiba seemed just as confused. When the goblin asked for water, Gwen motioned for her to wait a moment, and returned to the kitchen, her long braid of blonde hair trailing behind her. Soon she came back with a wooden cup of water, and handed it to the goblin.

"Lear said to let you sleep until time for breakfast. But after that you'll have to work again." The woman of the house watched Miiba for a moment. "Miiba. What are you? Where did you come from?"

---

As Ed delivered that earth shaking blow, Asteria fed Mother Rat the other half of the Healing Herb. She would have to hope that would hold the elder rat over until after this could be finished. As the Worker miraculously rose and Ed sank down, her tail wrapped around one of the last herbs and she dashed towards the battle. As the Myrminor raised its clawed forelimbs, the swift Dire Rat charged it down and leaped! Asteria's spring-loaded, furry body collided with the chitinous monster with enough force to push it back, and while its legs braced its weight its claws couldn't reach her. She scrambled onto its back, and repeated her newfound telepathic attack. Just like before, the Myrminor's movements slowed and became jerky, like a remote controlled toy with weak batteries. Biting at the already cracked shell where Ed had struck it, she tore off another piece. The second Healing Herb fluttered down by Ed's feet.

Ed could barely see through the haze covering him, as his muscles cramped and spasmed. But, through sheer force of will, he drove himself to stand, to keep fighting. He grabbed the Herb and barely chewed it on the way down, yet almost immediately felt its healing powers knitting his flesh. From inside his body the healing herb accelerated the regeneration of all his strained organs and muscles, and with the barest hint of renewed vigor he rose and took his cudgel in hand. Though his legs were still heavy and his arms still stiff, he lumbered forward to join his packmate.

The Worker bucked, and began to recover from Asteria's telepathic attack. She bit off another piece of its armored hide, spilling its blood onto the grass below. It tilted itself to one side and shook, trying to scrape her off against the ground. Its antennae twitched and it jerked towards Ed, just as he brought the cudgel down on its maimed head. Once, twice, thrice, and Asteria's claws were still digging at its wounds--

The Myrminor dropped to the ground, and just its back legs twitched as the last vestiges of life bled out.

For several moments, there was nothing but heavy breathing and the rush of adrenaline. Mother Rat pushed herself up on wobbling legs. She still didn't look too good, but she limped her way over to the others. The three dead insects lay there, simply twitching...

The first time the rats had been attacked by a Scout, it had come at them out of the ground. There didn't seem to be any openings or mounds of dirt for these three to have come from--where had they exited their tunnels at? Were there more nearby? If they had come out of their tunnel network somewhere closer to the place Ed and Asteria killed the first scout, then traveled overland, other Myrminor might be further away than they thought. But, these three had obviously tracked down the body of their slain bretheren, and this would be four ants out of...how many? How numerous would these monstrous hives be, and what other subtypes might there be?

The group's sharp ears picked up a new sound.

"--ver there, you think?"

"Might be. Saw it out this direction, but just a glimpse."

Humans! The figures were distant, but stood out over the tops of the grass due to their height. There were two of them, and they were moving in a wide arc--they might miss the rats entirely, or pass far to one side of them, but they also might find a trail of some sort, or the signs of battle...What would the rat pack do!?

---

Skill Gain: Blood Drain I (0.9 > 1.0)!
Through physical contact with whatever body part or orifice the user needs to eat and drink, drain the target's blood through an already open wound. In addition to dealing damage, this skill also restores the user's HP. The amount of HP restored will not be the same as the amount of damage dealt or the same as the amount of blood consumed. Any disease, poison, or other danger contained within the target's blood may also present a threat to this skill's user. At this rank the user is limited in how much blood they can drain and how quickly, as well as the target's defense, healing factor, and other circumstances.

When Jason activated the second rank of Spiritual Awareness, he found its function changed somewhat. Unlike before when he could naturally see other creature's souls, now it took a noticeable effort and the images were not as clear. In addition, the world around himself and the creature he was looking at turned into the monochrome, icy cold, howling Limbo he had seen before. He felt almost as exposed as the creature's spirit he was looking at.

The Four Horned Goat dislodged its horns, but heard Danny begin his chanting above them. It looked up--just in time to get an eyefull of Jason's spit. It reared and kicked its hooves in panic, doing more damage to the tree they were sheltering within. Jason practically fell out of the hollow, crashing into the goat and wrapping around it. It managed to bite him, tearing out a chunk of his membrane that it immediately spat out onto the ground, then began to buck wildly. As Jason tried to wrap himself more tightly, it kicked all the harder.

The Skill [Transparency I] requires increased MP to function due to having a physical body. Your MP is getting Low.

Jason was only able to make the very tip of a pseudopod transparent, but reaching into the goat and deactivating it triggered the same violent rejection effect, creating an area that looked like it had suffered internal trauma on the animal's side in the form of a nasty bruise. Jason began to Mana Drain the creature, while holding on for dear life. The goat bleated and slammed the Necroslime into the tree, hard enough that the already damaged wood began to crack.

But from the moment they had seen the monster mammal, Danny had been Focusing and Chanting with a Mana Dart forming between his hands.

"A simple variant of Mana Orb--" His Mana surged, and the Mana Dart glowed brighter. "but holding the promise of more to come." A ring appeared within Danny's hands, like the barrel of a cannon that the Mana Dart was loaded inside. Crackling sparks of energy jumped between the edges of the ring and the Dart like arcs of electricity. "Superior Mana Dart!"

As the goat pulled back to slam Jason again, Danny let loose.

Focus: Increased Power of Mana Dart I. Casting time increased, Mana Cost increased.
The Skill [Spell Chant] is incomplete. Casting time increased, Mana Cost increased, Power Boost Effectiveness decreased by 60%.

You have no MP remaining.

The Mana Dart lunged out of the Poltergeist's hands like a bolt from a crossbow, and struck the goat in the side of the head. Like putting a hammer to a nail, it punched through flesh and bone, and the animal reared up on its hind legs with a scream. Then it fell to the ground, dead, with an open hole revealing its bloodied brain matter. One of its horns had been broken off by the impact, and fell to the ground.

LEVEL UP! Your combat experiences have culminated in new power! You are now Level 7! Your Max MP has increased! You gain Skill Points to distribute as you please!

Unspent Skill Points: 5

Current Skills:
Mana Orb II (2.525)
Lesser Force II (2.9)
Levitation (--)
Monster Analysis II (2.85)
Meditate I (1.45)
Mana Shape I (1.35)
Aqua Sphere I (1.25)
Magic Analysis I (1.75)
Mana Dart I (1.1)
Blunt Resistance I (1.05)
Focus I (1.05)
Faster I (1.1)
Plant Analysis I (1.05)
Mana Vision I (1.1)
Point Strike I (1.05)
Muffle I (1.0)
<UNUSABLE>
Mana Strike (0.5)
Mana Shell (0.1)
Suppress Presence (0.8)
Spell Cancel (0.1)
Aqua Stream (0.2)
Magic Dash (0.2)
Spell Chant (0.4)
Material Analysis (0.6)
Mana Drain (0.1)
Alert (0.2)
Fire Resistance (0.1)
Charisma (0.2)
Spiritual Awareness (0.9)
Stronger (0.1)
Crafting (0.3)
Dextrous (0.2)
Dash Attack (0.1)
Skewer (0.1)
Tremor Sense (0.1)

---

As Ash let a drop of venom fall from her tail into the Mana Orb, it sizzled and turned to a wispy poisonous fume once it made contact with the magical orb. The next drop was much the same, but now the fume cloud became slightly heavier. In the still air of the small, man(monster)-made cavern, it didn't blow away. The Mana Orb began to sizzle. The third drop finally brought with it a change, and it sank through the fumes and the surface of the blue-white light...

Ash saw the outer particles of magic, those squared pseudo-atoms, change color as the drop of venom "bled" into the sphere. Vivid green, golden yellow, light blue, blood red. She could Sense the Mana changing--a sensation like sitting peacefully in the forest, a sensation like firm ground under her feet, the cooling touch of dipping her claw in the stream, the heat of holding her palms to an open flame. From the orbiting cloud, Green and Blue sank first, trickling down towards the nucleus. Gold and red were next--there were significantly fewer particles taking those colors. Then another batch of green, by far the most widespread color...but now it darkened. Gold and Red disappeared, Blue and Green latched onto one another. The lines oscillating around the Mana Orb's core shrank inward, and a new shape appeared more and more often in the rapidly shifting pattern...

Ash's eyes hurt and she had to blink, before she could get an accurate count of the particles or what shape they took. Her Mana Orb had taken on a deep purple hue, the same color as the poison she produced...but when she opened her eyes, before she would likely activate Mana Vision again, she could already see that the Orb was losing cohesion. It was cloudy, almost gaseous, and losing its substance. It lacked the "heft" she needed to "throw" it, she could tell that trying to project it like a normal Mana Orb would likely just see it dissipate in the air. What could she do to make it denser or more compressed? Or did she need to? What was the purpose of this spell she was trying to create, after all? What would--

The orb began to fade away on its own, and the System informed her that she was out of MP. By this point it was nothing a few minutes of Meditation couldn't fix, but maintaining the Mana Orb for so long seemed a bit burdensome.

Now there was also another question--did her Poison, physically produced by her body, also possess these "particles?" She had just seen it seemingly split into its structural components when exposed to magic--was that the magic taking on aspects of the poison, each particle taking on a different composition, or was that the poison itself being broken down by the magic and then reassembled by her will? If the magic could reproduce the poison...could the poison, vice versa, be altered by the magic? And would that mean...?

Skill Rank Up: Venom Shot I > Venom Shot II (1.95 > 2.0)!
Damage increased! Penetration increased!

Meanwhile, Oberon lifted his hand to the sky. As the Mana Orb formed and Oberon extended his senses to the air around him, it seemed that easterly breeze that almost carried Digbie's Yill away was still present at this point. He tried to feel it, to hear it, to draw it in. Catching the wind as it moved past him was easier than trying to do this in still air, although getting it to move another direction was harder. His Mana Orb slowly began to spin, towards the East. If Oberon himself turned, it acted like a sort of gyroscope, always rotating in an easterly direction. As Oberon drew more Mana into the Orb from the environment, the spinning got faster, and the magic started to "inflate." Like the Light Ring it seemed to naturally expand...but also, like the Aqua Sphere, he was losing some of his energy as it spun faster and began to "separate," like...like shreds of paper or something. It seemed like some other force would be necessary to counteract the spin and keep the Orb from tearing itself apart, but how could he apply it? Or...did he need to? The eastern wind began to die down, but the Mana Orb was still spinning. Could he change the direction of the spin? Did he need to find more wind? What needed to happen for this spell to work...and how would Oberon go about doing it?

"System: Show current HP and MP status."

Your HP is Full.
Your MP is Depleting. MP will be empty shortly.

"System: Show current experience or level progress. And show...show my evolution tree."

EXP: 40%

TRANSFORMATION STATUS:
Immature Pixie > Immature Sprite
Known Currently Possible Transformations: 3

1. Adult Sprite*
2. Adolescent Hipixie*
3. Adolescent Imp-

Unknown Currently Possible Transformations: 4

Reading the name of each creature brought back to mind the information and images he had seen when he...when he what? There was a vague memory of...floating? And...Meeting someone? A ring like microphone feedback went through Oberon's head for an instant.

Skill Gain: Aqua Stream I (0.8 > 1.0)!
A low-level Water spell that concentrates water into a pressurized stream. Many basic elements take the form of an orb or bolt to be fired at an opponent, and Aqua Stream does not have as much range as these. Speed and power, however, are both increased, for slightly more Mana. While it does not require ammunition so to speak, this spell works better if there is water in the environment or in heavy humidity. Its nature as a Water spell varies its power based on elemental properties of the target.

Skill Gain: Fog Breath I (0.8 > 1.0)!
A lesser breath power of the Water element. Thickening the vapor one exhales in the breath, the user creates a dense fog. This breath has a much shorter range than others--only 5 feet at the current rank--but can either cover a wide area directly in front of the user, or can create a closer fog cloud 360 degrees around them. It deals no damage, but an enemy entering the fog may suffer decreased visibility equivalent to a Blind status effect. It stays in place for roughly one minute.

Torrent felt her Mana surging during her last attempts, and though Aqua Stream felt more like when she had formed the Fireball inside her mouth instead of a true Breath Skill, it was functionally the same as spitting water like a kid in the pool--except that water carved out the ground like a high grade power washer. And Fog Breath produced a cloud so thick even the sun became frosty and indistinct when one looked through it.

---

You used Monster Analysis I!
---Bowhorn Deer---
This species of deer has absorbed magical energy from the forest and the plants, causing its horns to become more like saplings than bone. They're still plenty sharp and tough, but have an added flexibility that makes them valuable to bowyers and other craftsmen. As it grows older, sometimes the horns even sprout blooms or fruit of some sort, varying based on the creature's diet and habitat.

When Digbie extended his hand and began to use his magic, the deer suddenly jerked its head up from the water. It prepared to leap over the stream--then stopped as the light green, sparkling energy spread over its wound. It turned its head curiously as the bleeding stopped, and shook its formerly injured leg. With a tilt of its head, it scratched itself with its horn until it managed to dislodge the projectile. The wound hadn't healed completely, but was much smaller than before, and the deer licked at the new, pink skin under the fur. It looked at Digbie for a few moments, twitching its ears...but the next time he moved, it jumped over the stream and went off into the forest.

As Digbie prepared to head back home, he opened the book as he walked along. Its first page read:



Several pages still seemed to be intact, and those that were ripped out weren't all completely destroyed, but between the sticky blood and the beating the book had taken, Digbie might need to be careful while examining it lest he tear a page or get a smudge on it that might make it illegible.

"H-hey... Jehanne? Are we able to hear eachother...?"

He continued to walk along in silence. The only sounds, aside from his feet crunching on the forest floor, were those of the various items he had picked up in his two packs. The clink of the stone axe head, the jingle of the loose coins, and the distinct wooden click of the Maiden's Effigy. It had a solid sound for such a little thing, almost like a knock at one's door.

---

There was definitely something happening - as the first drop of venom fell through the nebulous magical mass, it dissipated. The second hit, and it began to sizzle and steam. The third hit and there was a visible change. The colors of the 'atoms' began changing. The mana itself was changing, she could feel it, but before she could see its transformation in its entirety, she had to blink, missing what was likely the most crucial step in the whole thing.

And then her MP ran out.

Hissing in mild annoyance, Ash hit the rocky ground with her claw, much like a frustrated human slamming a fist onto a desk. At least her Venom Shot leveled up a bit from this. Always useful for that, but what did this information mean? It was certainly changing, thanks to introducing another composition to the spell. She already assumed it was plausible to influence a magical substance with a non-magical one, but perhaps one could also alter non-magical substances with magical substances...alchemy, as one might say. Changing one metal into another via a magical means.

Hm, well, she'd think about it.

For now, Ash meditated, focusing on refilling her MP to max. Once done, She decided to work on another small project she had been wanting too. Vomiting up the Mana Crystal, Ash used Lesser Force to lift it, carrying it along with the Tree Branch she had gathered earlier. Placing them on the ground, Ash looked over the pile of things they had gathered before...hm, yes, those bones would do nicely, for now. She could make something more durable with a rock later once she had a better grasp of what she was doing. The Intestines or Tongue would be good as well for this.

Taking a large leg bone from the pile of Rubber Frog Bones, Ash began using her claws to carve its sides until it reached a fine point, chipping away at it until it was long and sharp enough to be used as a weapon. Next, she grabbed the branch, whittling out a hole in the middle of it, hopefully enough to give the newly made bone blade a tough fit. Lifting it with Lesser Force, she brought the now rounded edge of the bone blade to the newly made hole before she gently wedged it into place, using her claws for a bit more force if needed. Once that was secured, she grabbed the Frog intestines. Low quality, but it would suffice. Quickly flying her way to the stream, with both it and the new spear in her possession, she quickly washed it out, making sure it was thoroughly clean before tying it tightly around the blade, making sure the edges were covered and more secured against possible damage and falling out.

Quickly flying back to the cave, Ash began the second part. She wasn't sure if this would work, but she had read fantasy novels on occasion for leisure, and she did know vaguely that wizards and mage types often used staves to power their magic so using this Mana Crystal for such an endeavor would be fairly useful if she could use it for such a thing.

Briefly considering her options, Ash settled on using her claws to cut a large 'Y' shaped cut into the opposite end until it was deep enough to let her pull the branches apart, though still come back together enough to be snug. Breathing slowly, she lifted the Mana crystal with Lesser Force, carefully lowering it into the space created when she pulled the wood back. Of course, doing so many things would likely cause the base wood of the new spear to be weaker, but she could likely reinforce it with a little creativity later once the base thing was done.

Once it was lodged in the space provided, Ash grabbed the Frog Tongue. She didn't have anything to preserve it with, so using it to help secure the Mana Crystal as it was in its state would have to do for now. Any left over tongue was tossed back into the pile of materials.

Once her creation was done, Ash lifted it in front of her with Lesser Force studying it with Magic, Material, Mana Sense, and Mana Vision.

Although uneasy and intimidated, Sato was genuinely curious on the reason why he was "graced" by the precense and attention of the goblin leader.

"Youse's borned..."

Sato simply nodded his head while maintaining a vacant expression as he had no idea where they were going from here.

"Dis many days ago. Not long time."

He still had no clue on what Lansa's train of thought was, but Sato couldn't help but anxiously stare at the spear that was in front of him. It was one of the many weapons Sato wished he had. Unfortunately, he didn't have the option to simply take it for himself. Well, at least for now.

"But I seen yas, youse growin' fast. And ya does dem funny tings, erry day. Climbin' on trees. Pickin' up heavy tings and puttin' 'em down agin. An' ya da only Gob dum enuff to keep tryin' to arm wrassle Ballz."

Despite the suspiciousness that was being directed at him, Sato remained cool as a cucumber.

"Sore Toe just wanna be strong." Sato plainly said while staring at the goblin leader while embracing his goblin identity.

"Youse one o' Granpy Kiri's younglings. Dunno which one was yore muddah, but dey both Gobs. Not Hobs like mines, or Bugbear like Ballz's faddah."

He tapped Sato's leg with the butt of his spear. "So how's you gettin' stronk so fast?"

Sato flinched and took a step backwards before looking back at Lansa, his facial expression was that of dumbfoundedness.

"Why'd boss hit me?" He thought to himself before answering their leader.

”Dunno, boss. Just wanna be bettah at liftin, climbin, huntin, and fightin. If ya do it nuff times, ya bound to get bettah, right?”

Sato answered with nothing but honestly. The situation didn't call for deceit. Although he couldn't say it out loud, he found the questions being asked to be silly since Lansa already mentioned the training and exercise that he had undergone the last few days.

Was it because Lansa didn't understand the concept of exercise? Was he dumb? Was Sato the smarter one?

Sato realized this and chose to believe he was superior intellectual, and it showed as a massive grin suddenly appeared on his face.

@Zeroth

@Stabby@Zeroth

Femus stopped for a moment, just stopped. It was the first time he had heard human level speech in his new body. He felt tingles rush over his surface. His mind went into overdrive as his body began levitating as swiftly as possible after the fleeing rat, trying to stay in range as he focused on rapidly casting Mana Orb 2 without hitting his new acquaintance. He hadn't realized that he would actually miss human interaction to such an extent that he could have a physical response to getting it back.

"Just try to keep it predictable and I'll do the rest!" The yellowish green wisp said forcefully.

He unconsciously raised the importance of making an ally of this pixie by several ticks on his priority list. He also used Monster Analysis on the dire rat, determined to use his understanding of anatomy to discover any additional weak points as well as using his knowledge of its body to predict its most likely movements.

His first lvl 2 Mana Orb was simply targeted to land another body hit, he wasn't picky. It would probably knock the rat down, giving him a brief window of opportunity. In the instant that it fell, he would hit it again. But, this followup spell would be aimed at where the rat's head was most likely to be. Femus would only stop the combo mid-way if the rat clearly suffered immediately terminal damage from the first Mana Orb 2.

---

At normal strength and with the help of Asteria, Ed would have dealt with the bug in a couple of swings. But this was not the case. He was beyond the point of exhaustion and while his body no longer cried in pain at every movement, his body and limbs still felt like they were completely made of lead. Each strike was a feeble strike compared to his average and it took the young ratman a total of ten strikes to finally bring down the giant insect.

It was only after it died that Ed allowed his body to fall flat onto the blood stained grass beneath him. Ed finally earned a few moments of respite after a hard fought battle that demanded his 100% and then some. His heavy breathing caused the blades of grass in front of his muzzle to violently flutter back and forth against his ragged and labored breaths. He would have died then and there if Asteria was not there to help. He should thank her properly for that in the future, though for now he would hold his tongue and simply enjoy this brief few moments of placidity. In the passing of a few more moments, Ed was able to regain control of his breathing and regain a small fraction of his stamina back. It was in that span that Ed realized something terrible.

This wasn't a chance encounter.

These things were like the ants back in his native Earth. They followed the trail of pheromones left behind by the one they killed yesterday. If they killed them, even more would just come after. If these bugs were anything like the ants, they would number by the THOUSANDS...and those were just workers. A chance thought passed his mind: 'Things couldn't get any worse, can it?' And on cue, his ears swiveled and picked up the conversation between two individuals. Villagers most likely due to their fight not being the most discreet of fights. The young ratman closes his eyes for a brief moment and lets out a tired, weary sigh before slowly pushing himself up from the ground. 'Ain't no rest for the wicked, huh?' He mentally gripes to himself.

It take a herculean effort to lift himself off the ground and onto a sitting position. He began thinking of the possible solutions to their predicament. Escape was out of the question; Mother Rat had an observable limp and even if they could, his body still felt like it was made of lead. Fighting them, even at their peak state, was outright suicide. That only left one option...stealth and subterfuge. "Asteria. There are some villagers are closing in on us. I-I think they saw the bug I sent flying when I punched it. Place what you can in the Den, and hide with Mother Rat." Ed was still unsure on what he was going to do, but he had to try. Ed collects the discarded Flint and Striker and places it inside of the Den. He then approaches the bloodstained great club and tucks it underneath the grass, obscuring the weapon completely. Finally, Ed smears blood and dirt all over his body. Making sure that his slightly healed ass wound stayed clean before he lies near the three corpses and plays dead.

If he was lucky, the villagers would just put it off as monsters killing one another; leave it at that and go away. If not, nothing short of a miracle can save him as if they got close enough, they would see that he was still very much alive and breathing.

---

Torrent cheered as she completed her spells, her tail swishing back and forth before she settled down to Meditate to regain her MP. A thought occurred to her, however, so she waited a bit longer Meditating to try and see if she couldn't surpass her "full" limit or if it would just overflow like a bucket in the rain.

When either nothing happened or something did, she turned her attention to what she wanted to do next. Immediately there were two more spells she wanted to try, because they made the most sense given what she already knew. She could do water and fire, create a fog to hide in, and she knew Digbie could control the earth, so....

What about the air? And what about the other part of water, ice?

She thought about how she had made the water stream, taking a deep breath and working to infuse mana into the air in her mouth. When she felt like she couldn't hold her breath anymore she explosively expelled the air as forcefully as she could, trying to make it like a blast as best she could imagine. She tried this a few times, trying to hold her breath as long as she could each time and trying to be as forceful with the release as she could before she decided to move on and come back to it if needed.

For the ice she had in mind, she again filled her mouth most of the way with water and sat. Instead of pulling on the heat within her to make fire, she instead pulled on that empty part that was always with her. Of cold winter nights on the streets, of snow falling, of being so alone that she felt cold inside. She pulled on these feelings as she tried to pull the warmth from the water while she infused it with mana. In her mind she imagined this working like her Poison Breath had, where it would spread out like a breath attack. But this time it would be icy, right?

When she released it she did so much in the same way she used to do Poison Breath before she sacrificed the skill.

@Guy0fV4lor

Focus: Increased Power of Mana Dart I. Casting time increased, Mana Cost increased.
The Skill [Spell Chant] is incomplete. Casting time increased, Mana Cost increased, Power Boost Effectiveness decreased by 60%.

At first Danny wondered why he got a message saying his Chant skill was still incomplete as well as disappointed by it being incomplete, but he quickly changed his mind how powerful it made his Mana Dart. Sure Jason helped but assuming the deer was roughly as strong as the Frog Mana Dart could be even more powerful than Mana Orb II, something he would have to try it. "I'm gonna have to update the Chant to make it reflect Superior Mana Dart's appearance more." Just as he was hoping that with the Goat, the Frog, and the Beetle they had enough food for both him and Jason he got another surprise he had leveled up again.

The Poltergeist wondered how to spend his points, putting them all into Crafting seemed like a waste since he was gonna make it usable anyway and he would train it by working with the Beetle, on the other hand the higher his skill-level was the better the odds of making something food. Eventually he decided that making his new armor as good as possible would have the most advantages. "I hope I won't regret this but put everything into crafting. After her finished allocating his skill points he analyzed the corpse of the goat and tried to inspect the horns to try and see if they might be useful tools for his project, before turning to Jason with a question. "Do you think you could help make the Beetle into an armor of some kind?

---

@Zeroth@Duthguy

As the Goat went down, Jason wasted no time utilizing his new [Blood Drain] to suck the corpse dry. The fact that he hadn't leveled from that fight was a bit annoying honestly-- and so, for the sake of good measure, Jason lobbed a ball of acid at a nearby tree in an attempt to get [Acid Spit] to finish ticking over. However, as Danny spoke he turned to his friend, "Of course Danny, I've already got something in mind if you're willing to help me."

Then the two began their work on Danny's new suit of beetle and goat garb.

[Z has been PMd the crafting methodology]

---

"Dinged, Miiba dinged again, words and numbers pop up. Surprise Miiba, no expect it." Miiba explained to Gwen when she asked about the ding. Miiba thought anyone could hear it, after all, she had heard it so everyone else must have, right? Miiba took the cup gratefully and smiled, "Thank you," she said before she drank from it.

When Gwen asked her about who she was and where she was from, Miiba's happy demeanor seemed to fade a little. "Miiba...Miiba from somewhere else, not here, but no know how got here. Miiba from place where no magics or monsters. Miiba sees this world like fairy tale from home. But.... here much scarier... and Miiba remember being person. Miiba have momma and papa, no brothers n' sisters. was about to to be big girl and turn eight! ....but....then end up here. Miiba thought was in dream, and don't remember growing up a goblin, but... just be one all sudden. Everyone say impossible...but, Miiba don't feel like belong as goblin, and Miiba know what Miiba used to be, but can no prove, so no one believe. Miiba is person... or...was. Miiba can even remember, live in town, lotsa houses. Go to school, and play with other kids. Miiba even talk funny now! Miiba try talk normal, just no come out right. Miiba name not even Miiba! Was M-I-N-A, Miiba!" she finished, a little flustered spelling out her name but still unable to say it right, even after spelling it.

She sighed as it seemed she drooped down even more, even her ears seemed to dip down now. She curled up in place drawing her knees up to her as her arms wrapped around them. "Miiba try make friends... but Miiba only get hurt for it. Miiba not wanted by goblins, goblins to mean and scary, no want be friends with goblins." She let her legs down back to being cross legged as she continued. "Here are first people Miiba find, and was scarred when first met... still scarred of some, but... Miiba more happy. Miiba find place to help. And Mr. Lear help Miiba be something people no attack, so maybe Miiba can at least find place to be. Miiba don't think can be here. Miiba would like to, but Miiba here make people scared and angry....so...maybe Miiba should no stay long? Though..." she rotated the cup between hands in front of her and looked at it as she finished. "Miiba no know where else to go. Miiba only found here when follow big white bird..."

---

---

The Worker finally died, but now humans – two of them, by the sounds of it – were approaching. Damn. Always all the misfortune...Consequences, consequences. Even if Ed and Mother rat were in no state for it, Asteria would suggest relocating if it weren’t for that. As it was, she’d prioritize healing Mother rat. “Yes, I’ve heard,” she replied distractedly to Ed in a whisper. Asteria ushered mother rat into the dug out hole, then stuffed all their items next to her; the jar, hatchet, Bloodinglfy stinger, the last healing herb, the left-over Medicinal salve on the stone, and even the other things Ed had on him. “I hope you don’t mind,” she muttered. “Wouldn’t want them looting you if they find you…On that note, I’m going to try and find some Nullven. It’s part of the recipe for Antidotal salve. Just in case something happens, this is the recipe,” she swiftly, accurately, and in a hushed tone recounted to Ed the ingredients and the method for making it, all the while keeping an ear out for the approaching humans.

“And if something happens on your end, give a shout, and I’ll come running,” she ended with that instruction. Then, wary of where the humans were, she sneaked out into the field, keeping down, her steps silent, her senses fully alert. She used her Mana Sense, focusing on the burning sensation she remembered to be indicative of the Nullven. She also sharpened her eyesight, on the look-out for Nullven’s purple petals. She remained sneaking, but was of a mind that if the humans did see them, she’d lure them away from Ed and Mother rat with a squeak or two. Actually, if she happened to hear the humans going to where she knew her companions were, she’d imitate some sort of a growl or something.

Hmm, well that was less useful than expected; Oberon had been hoping to see his total health and mana supply in numerical terms, not just ‘full’ and ‘depleting’, but he supposed it was better than nothing. The fact that he was already 40% of the way towards his next level was a surprise; either the Giant Slime had been worth a lot more than he had expected, or his experiments helped to increase his total experience points while also building towards new skills. He would have to monitor that metric more closely in the future so that he could figure out what did and didn’t contribute.

His evolution tree was somewhat enlightening as well. To be honest, the Sprite hadn’t expected anything to appear so even a little information was more than he had hoped for; three known evolutions and four unknown, making for seven overall. The three he knew were in line with the options he had been given when he had evolved before while the other four must be species he was unfamiliar with. The stars or dashes must denote compatibility; he remembered something like that being shown for his options last time.

Oberon shook his head to rid it of the ringing in his ears. Reading this information… and thinking about his last evolution… it reminded him of something. Floating. Seeing things from above. He’d been speaking to someone, back in the cave… he couldn’t remember who though, or what they had been saying.

Another shake and the ringing stopped, Oberon turning back to the rapidly deteriorating Mana Orb in his hand. He dismissed it, the Mana dissipating and blowing away on the last of the easterly wind as the Sprite crossed his arms and began to think.

The spell hadn’t worked first try, which was to be expected. It had spread out like before, beginning to spin, only to break apart as it increased in speed; like with the Aqua Orb he had lost energy to the process but rather than being washed away by the current or carried away by the wind, it simply felt like it was falling apart.

Before he tried anything else he would need to recover his lost Mana. He needed to think so Meditation wouldn’t work, so instead he moved into an area where a beam of sunlight pierced the veil of leaves above his head and activated Gather Light, basking in the ray’s warmth as he turned his mind to the current problem.

The issue was that the Mana spread itself out too much as it spun, breaking apart and flying away like petals shed from a tree in a breeze, degrading further and further as it increased its rotational speed. So, why not stop it from spinning? If he counteracted the spin, worked to keep the Orb together and stable, would the spell hold? He could create a solid bubble, like the Aqua Sphere but filled with air instead of water. He couldn’t imagine that such a spell would do much damage, unless he compressed it down enough that it could punch a hole in something, but it might be useful for knocking an opponent down or back.

That solution didn’t feel right however. It would mean fighting what the Mana was trying to do naturally, forcing it to do what he wanted; it might work and he might produce a new spell as a result, but he felt like it wouldn’t be the Wind Break spell. It wanted to spin for a reason, just like the Light Ring wanted to flatten out and become a halo that was thrown, it was trying to do something, achieve some shape or form that it felt was natural. Maybe he should lean into that, instead of trying to fight it?

It spun and then it broke apart… but it didn’t fade away. The Mana separated into smaller pieces, like petals as he had described them earlier, like little bits of paper caught in the wind; it was only after it separated into these small pieces that it began to flutter away, each shred escaping his control as it left the main Orb. What if that was the spells final form? Those little petals of wind-infused Mana? Instead of trying to prevent that breakdown he should let it happen but try to hold on to the pieces before they could fly away.

Once his Mana had fully recovered Oberon tried again with this new strategy in mind. He created another Mana Orb, floating above his outstretched palm, and closed his eyes. He drew the surrounding air into the Orb, feeling it begin to spin once more, faster and faster, as it began to inflate with the air it was drawing in. As the first fleck of Mana began to separate from the whole he tried to expand his senses, tried to grab the petal before it could escape and bring it into the orbit of the spinning Mana Orb. As more and more pieces began to break away he tried to do the same, holding on to each shred as he envisioned the spinning Mana Orb gradually breaking down and becoming a swirling mass of these individual pieces instead.



@Zeroth

Nira's wings fluttered as she dashed through the air to try and cut the Dire Rat off. The creature's ears twitched as she approached, and it turned around with a hiss. She darted about it, staying out of reach as it snapped at her. With the rodent pulled up short, Femus took his chance and charged up his Mana Orb's second rank version. With a brighter flash than before, the magical blast took shape in front of the Wisp--it almost looked like he had duplicated himself. Then the spell took off, just as the Rat prepared to spring at Nira when she came just a bit too close.

The Mana Orb collided with its side, trailing the smell of ozone and burning fur. The Rat squealed as it was bowled over...then hit the ground and went still.

Femus, however, felt a sudden exhaustion settle over him, and he began drifting down to the ground...

You have no MP remaining.

He had already fired a first-rank Mana Orb, and in his training experience he could usually get three of them off before he ran out of power. The second rank, however, cost a good bit more--he could usually only fire one, then he would have to Meditate to recover enough MP to cast either version of the spell. So using both of them back to back, even though he had a little extra MP thanks to his earlier meditation, had completely drained him.

He had extended a hand to someone else, but now the talking Wisp was incredibly vulnerable...what would the strange Pixie do now...?

---

When Sato explained his reason for training, Lansa tilted his head. It seemed Sato knew something these goblins didn't, and the idea made him grin. The Boss narrowed his eyes at this and loomed a little more forcefully over the younger goblin.

"So youse be sayin', doin' all dat stuff makes ya stronker?" Lansa glanced around. Say-Bah was a fair distance away, having delivered the bowhorn carcass and now off to do something else. Ass Slashin was nowhere to be seen. Ballz was sitting on a bundle of tree roots, just...staring angrily into the distance. Ahcha was over near the lean-tos, ordering a bunch of the younger goblins around for something or other. The Hobgoblin returned his icy gaze to Sato. "Alright, Sore-Toe. If yas tell me how dat stuff work, den I gives ya sumtin' good. But ya don't tells nobody else, got it?!"

---

"Ah, so you've...I think Adventurers usually call it Leveling Up?" The farmer's wife nodded as Miiba took the cup. "I was always told that they were messages from the Maker, and the Spirits." As the little goblin explained her circumstances, the woman's expression changed to one of curiosity, then one of surprise, then suspicion, then concern...fear flashed over her face when Miiba yelled. But she stood her ground, and even knelt down to be closer to Miiba's level. The green girl curled up, and stared into her water. Gwen bit her lip...then she reached out and drew Miiba into a hug.

"I'm so sorry, Miiba." she said softly. "I don't know who you are, or where you're from. I don't know if you're telling the truth, but I want to believe you are. And I do know, you're different from any Goblin I've ever seen or heard of, and I want to give you a chance. And I wish I could comfort you more." Slowly, the mother and housewife pulled away, but she held Miiba gently by the shoulders. "As long as you can convince my husband that you can earn your keep, I don't have any problem letting you stay here for a little while longer. I'll see what I can do to help you, and I'll try to make everyone else be nice, okay?" Taking her hands away from the goblin girl, Gwen stood and brushed off her apron. When Miiba told the story of the bird, her face lit up with realization.

"Ah, that's a Guildhawk! They're specially bred messenger birds, used by Adventurers and the Guild to send information and keep track of Quests!" She seemed proud of herself for remembering that, and explained it like a teacher with her pointer finger extended. "My Lear used to be a hot-shot Adventurer, you know! And he helps novices, like Geir and Mirabelle, get work experience and training. I bet with some of his Guild contacts, he could find out more that would help you!"

Just then, outside the window, a mountain exploded.

From this far away they could barely see the blue flash in the sky, and the actual mountaintop was hidden from view by the thick trees of the forest. But they definitely heard and felt the blast, and saw the massive column of smoke rise into the air. Gwen screamed and jumped in surprise, and from outside there were shouts from the others. The children, still in the house, came running to their mother with wide eyes. The eldest girl, Clarice, was holding the baby who had begun crying for all he was worth.

What had happened?!

---

As Asura surged forward, he transformed an extended limb into a needle-like point. The leaping frog lost sight of the red slime under its own inflated bulk, but it felt exactly where he stabbed it. His attack went in deep--and the frog screeched in agony as its body began to deflate, the rapidly escaping air making a sound like a wet fart as split flesh flapped rapidly back and forth. It fell to the ground on its side, bleeding heavily from the wound and kicking its feet.

It was just one thing after another this morning, wasn't it!? Ardur had barely put his stuff down when the frogs came hurtling out of the woods, and while Asura rushed to attack the Hipixie put his hands out in front of himself and began to take aim.

"Feel the Sun King's wrath, and burn to ash!" he chanted, and this time instead of the glowing veins spreading up his forearms, a red ring began to form in the air in front of his hands. Before he could question what had caused that difference, he had to finish the spell. "Fireball!"

The Fireball formed within the circle, which had formed a secondary ring as well and now looked like some kind of planetary model. Then it blasted forward, flaring brightly as it impacted one of the other frogs just as it began to inflate. It let out the air it had been sucking in surprise, and the flames spread hungrily over its body. The creature began to flop back and forth with panicked screams.

Momma Slime rolled and bounced along, and her massive bulk crashed into the equally-sized third frog head-on. She had actual mass behind her size, however, and the inflated amphibian merely bounced off with a distinctive sproing sound straight out of a videogame. It hit a tree and ricocheted back, crashing into Momma again with enough force to budge her backwards just slightly. But Steve scuttled over the blue slime's membrane, then jumped off her "head" to land on the frog's snout and sink both fangs into it. The animal croaked and shook to try and get the spider off, but Steve's large eye on her abdomen flashed. From her position on its flat nose, she was eye-to-eye with the frog. It suddenly stopped moving, and the two seemed to be in some kind of staring contest...then it tipped over, in slow motion, while still inflated. It had completely lost consciousness, despite not really being wounded...

It looked like they would be able to make short work of these creatures--but then, the frog Ardur had cast his spell on managed to right itself. It was still burning. As it opened its mouth, a long tongue shot out, and though Ardur tried to block it the massive muscle seemed to be coated with a sticky slime. Unable to free himself, the Hipixie planted his feet and pulled with his considerable muscle--but it seemed like he might still get pulled in! Would Asura finish off his current target, or help his allies? And which of the other two battles would he assist with?

---

Ed and Asteria dashed around in a panic. Mother Rat instinctively understood the need to hide; she couldn't understand the humans' speech, but her ears were sharp enough to pick it up. Limping, she had almost made it back to the den even before Asteria shoved her inside along with all of their loot. By this time Ed had hidden or given Asteria most of his own belongings, along with the stolen items, and flopped over the ground in what he desperately hoped was a convincing imitation of death.

As the female Dire Rat sneaked away through the grass, Ed could hear larger footsteps coming close.

"Describe it again?"

"It was like...I dunno, I could just barely see a piece of wood or something sticking up out of the grass, moving around like something carrying it. When we checked the shed I thought some stuff was out of place, but I don't know what all was in there."

"You think it had anything to do with whatever that was, jumping out of the grass?"

"I think that was...a bug monster of some kind. But that's Oldstone's shed, him or his boy can tell us if anything was taken. What could've gotten that close without us spotting it?"

"I don't think a monster bug would've taken wood, if it took anything. Wasn't any food in there as far as I know. But Goblins can be pretty sneaky."

"We'd have seen Goblins coming, they'd never get near the village without a big raiding party. They're cowardly, but as dumb as they are they know it takes at least three of 'em to bring down a proper warrior."

The footsteps stopped.

"Hey, look at that!"

Ed dared to barely breathe. One of the voices whistled.

"Myrminors. Shit. If they're sending Scouts this close to the village, then we'll start seeing them in a couple days."

"That's a Ratman, ain't it? Eugh." Something stiff, probably the end of a wooden weapon, poked Ed's leg. He couldn't even risk opening his eyes. "I think that answers your question of what was in the shed."

"Ratmen. Double shit. But there must have been more than one of them, if they killed three of these bugs. Where do you think they headed?" Rustling in the grass--were the humans looking for the missing items? Would they find Mother Rat in the den? What if they found the Greatclub, and just for funsies decided to make Ed's skull go splat...

"Look, out that way. Wasn't that where that fire was last night?"

"Sure was. Think the Ratmen caused it?"

"They might have, or whatever caused it might have chased them out of the forest. Maybe they headed back there with their loot...Do Goblins and Ratmen trade?"

"I don't know." More rustling...in the opposite direction! One of the humans was leaving! "But whatever it was, it's driven Monsters towards us. We need to report the Myrminors for sure, we'll need to put out some poison or do something to keep them from digging tunnels under the village. Then--"

The mountain exploded.

Asteria had just found two Nullven plants, but just as she plucked them she saw the blue light flash through the sky. It looked like a shooting star, only it traveled in the wrong direction, up towards the heavens...then it struck the distant mountain's peak. The explosion sent billowing smoke, still flashing with the aftershock of that blast's blue flames and black lightning, high into the air. Ed could hear it, could feel it making the earth tremble, but he couldn't see...whatever that was. Was it coming towards him? What had caused it? Where were the humans!?

---

"No response. Alright. Seems like he'd probably have to really get into the meat and topapoes of the book in order to understand what his path to redemption was... or even what his path in general was. What was it gonna be anyway? Was he too far down the road to being a Demiblin that he couldn't change the rules up and go down another path? Would being a Demiblin forgo his chances of reaching redemption? The questions spun around in his head for a moment.

Finally, he figured that he could ask something in order to figure things out. He was a little wary at first, but then he decided to just go ahead and do it.

"System... uh... Character Overview? Skills in progress, current status, evolutionary paths?"

Whether or not the System wanted to tell him anything, Digbie would look back down to the book he was currently reading in order to press forward in it. He wanted to figure things out on his own without any interruptions right now. He wasn't gonna get much more secluded than this. Once he got back to base he could ask for some help learning how to Dual Cast.

... and just so he could devote time to reading, he activated Tremor Sense III passively. It was always kinda active, but he made sure that his senses were heightened for this walk, at least for a little while. Earth Vein would keep him from running out of MP super quick, too, so he could probably make the hike back safely.

---

Asura was both surprised, and very disappointed, when his skewers punctured the frogs skin with ease, making its croaker deflate like a wet fart. That must have hurt, all that broken skin flapping about. Before he decided to finish it he looked it over carefully, taking in its rubbery hide, the strong frog legs, the fact it could inflate to the size of Mother Slime. He'd examine it even more fully later on, right now he looked to the others.

Mother Slime and Steve were easily taking care of the other Frog. It seemed to be unconscious after Steve stared at it enough with that big eyeball. They could handle an unconscious opponent. "Mother Slime, try turning a limb into a blade on your next strike." He called over, showing her himself. His limbs fused into one great blade that was brought down on the Frog's tongue that was attacking Ardur. It was impossible to miss considering Ardur kept his footing and the Frog was pulling. A tug of war ended via a bladed limb.

Said limb rose up as he tried to cut into the frog. Trying to channel energy into the blade like he did with his Smashes. If there was a Smash, there Must be a Slash or Thrust type as well! System, Show Skill List. He thought as he watched the Frog he was attacking.

Honestly, Sato was no idiot, but a goblin's little brain probably had its limits as the weight behind the information he was slowly accumulating became more significant. Hobgoblins, Bugbears, Bowhorn Deers, Pixies, Slimes, Fanged Lizards, and Dire Rats; all were new to Sato and it took him a good amount of effort to remember them and it was fair to assume that this was barely a quarter of what else he could learn in this new world.

Anyway, while his thoughts drifted, the goblin leader's interest in Sato became much more apparent.

"So youse be sayin', doin' all dat stuff makes ya stronker?" Lansa cautiously took note of his surroundings before continuing to take to Sato.

"Alright, Sore-Toe. If yas tell me how dat stuff work, den I gives ya sumtin' good. But ya don't tells nobody else, got it?!"

It took a while for Sato to answer given the simplicity of what was being asked of him. Lansa, the goblin leader, was asking Sato, the plucky fledgeling goblin, on how to exercise to be stronger. It was definitely strange and Sato's blank stares said it all.

"What was the catch?" Sato doubtingly thought to himself. Or maybe there was no catch at all and he was simply overthinking it. That could be it, but even so, what would he get if he did cater to his boss' request, what was in it form him aside from getting on his good side? Although he wasn't that great of a businessman in his previous life, Sato could smell opportunity when he sees it. It's just like an opening when fighting, but with more thinking and less punching.

Sato had decided that he needed to make the most out of the situation. Whether or not him taking several minutes to come to this conclusion would affect Lansa's offer was up in the air though.

"Aye, no worries boss! We gotta deal!" Sato said while reflexively stretching his an open hand to the goblin leader. Were handshakes a thing here?

"So where ya wanna start boss?" the young goblin asked while pondering what he was getting in return. A shiny trinket would be nice, or one of their tribes better weapons, and maybe some clothes would be great. More meat also sounded good. Or something that'll completely catch him off guard. The possibilities were endless.

@Zeroth

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Well shit.

The villagers had actually seen him not only carrying the great club away earlier, they also managed to see the bug he walloped too. For Chrissake. It was like a malevolent and omnipotent god took massive amounts of sadistic glee from his suffering. As if to turn up the heat, the ratman heard the duo spot him. His body went completely rigid as he dared not move a muscle or even breathe that hard. His heart raced so fast in his chest that it could put a F1 race car's engine to shame. The sweat that had slowly accumulated on his skin, just hidden by his bloody and muddy fur, felt like droplets of pure ice. 'Calm down, Ed. Calm down. If you break the ruse now, you'll be dead for real...AGAIN.' He tried to convince himself as he felt something poke his leg. As fate would have it, hope was dangled before him yet again as the sounds of rustling going the opposite direction alerted him that one of the humans were going away.

Then a sudden and tremendous explosion filled the air as the ground itself shook.

'HOLY FUCK!'

Holy Fuck indeed. Unwitnessed by the ratman playing dead, the very peak of the distant mountain was completely and utterly eradicated by God knows what; but to Ed, it was just a really loud explosion and sensation. He was panicking, his body had briefly jolted in natural reaction to the sudden and extremely loud sound. He had hoped that whatever caused that explosion and tremor had distracted the villager as well. But he had to repair the facade again. So Ed then visualized himself back in 3rd grade. It was the day for the big class play and he hadn't even bothered to read the script. No matter now and the show must go on! He wore his costume with what confidence that he could wing it and not screw up. He need only to focus only on his role.

On that day, there was no Edward Marsh. The only son of Aaron and Katherine Marsh was never on stage. There was only grass that day on the stage.

His superior acting method had emulated the very being of grass. Even to the point that he even accidentally caused a number of his classmates to trip over him as even they, his peers and friends, failed to detect that it was actually Edward in that costume. To everyone present.

There was only grass.

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