Gamer's diaries: on dragons and demons [book 1]

[Alien-Kun]

​

Note to my habitual readers: no, this isn't a new story, I wrote this even before No Future, I'm just reposting this from my FF account 'cause I'm done with the place. If you notice some differences between the two is because I'm forced to redo the formatting from scratch, so I took the chance to do a bit of editing... can't do too much, though, or the story will derail. Well, here's the first chapter of the longest fic I ever wrote.​

---

-?, ?, Daniel's POV-​

"Ugh… I feel like crap…"

My head was swimming, but I could see that I was in some weird place that didn't feel even remotely familiar. I took a minute to steady myself, and when I did, I studied my surroundings. Wherever I was looked barren, just an endless, iridescent void that looked like the cosmos.

I don't know how much time had passed, but I blinked. Once I reopened my eyes, I found myself sitting down at a small table, still in this endless void. I didn't even feel myself moving, so of course that spooked me. Hesitantly, I blinked again. The table was still there, but another being was sitting opposite to me.

Whoever it was, they looked very similar to Tom Hiddleston, just… much more androgynous. It was actually impossible to tell if they were male or female. The being smiled.

"Welcome, child, to the branches of Yggdrasil. We are currently in a branch that is between Midgard, your home, and Asgard, my own home. My name is Loki. I assume you know of me."

As I registered the being's…Loki's words, I felt my mind's gears screech to a halt.

"Huh…" I muttered, "Guess the Norse were right all along…"

Loki had definitely heard what I said, as their smile became more pronounced. "Not only them. All religions are true."

What. Nah, he must've been joking. Right? Right?

Loki said nothing as I panicked, calmly giving me the time to process the info. After a minute or so, I collected back my thoughts well enough to speak again. "Alright, that's a bit of a shock. But there's other things that I'd like to know more, like why am I here?" I gestured all around us, trying to encapsulate the sheer confusion in my mind.

Loki's smile became cold. "I can't answer that yet, I'm afraid. Let's just say that I keep my promises. I was asked by a good friend to help you reach your full potential, and I intend to do just that."

I felt shivers crawl up my back, Loki's stare was burning holes into my own eyes.

After what felt like an eternity, they let up. "Of course, I can't do it without your approval… my friend would go rabid if he found out." Loki snickered to themselves, stretching a hand towards me. "So? Will you accept my help?"

I stared at the offered hand for a minute, running possible doomsday scenarios in my mind, before speaking up. "What will you do if I refuse?"

Loki shrugged nonchalantly. "I'll wipe your memory, wait until you have a son, and then ask him the same question. I did so with your grandfather, your father, and now with you." They gave me a pointed look. "I'm immortal. I have all the time I want."

This time I gave Loki a glare of my own. "And if I agree? What then?"

They scoffed in a very ungodlike manner. "Bah. Power, adventure, women, whatever you want really. Of course, only if you accomplish one certain task for me." They noticed my narrowing eyes. "Oh, don't look at me like that. It's not all that complicated! And, of course, I'll help…to an extent. After all, it is you who must do this."

Seeing that I wasn't convinced yet, they relented a bit. "Oh, fine. I'll make you a promise: if you can reach the peak of human potential, I'll tell you all the details on this task. Then, if you think you can't or don't want to go on, I'll send you back home to when I took you. Deal?"

I gave Loki a textbook deadpan look. "That would take years, decades even. Do you think I'm an idiot?"

They were quick to shoo away my concerns. "Normally, yes, but you do have a god on your side. It would take around a month, with my help. And again, after that little quest I have for you is done, you can keep the power and go home, or do whatever. After that, I have no more business with you."

I sat and pondered for what felt like an eternity...though it was probably closer to ten minutes. In the end, I relented. Loki didn't strike me as actually evil. Mischievous, maybe, but I felt like they would keep their promise. Or at least, that was the best I could hope for.

I shook Loki's hand, and they laughed. It wasn't an evil laugh, but not a mirthful one either. It was…empty, really.

"Good choice, child. Now, off with you."

And just like that, I blacked out.

---

-1st day, Avalar, Daniel's POV-
​

I woke up with a start, and immediately I found myself falling…straight into a river.

"Oh, fuck you Loki!" I screamed in my mind, as I tried to not drown, or to slam into any rocks. It took a while, but after about fifteen minutes of getting washed to and from any direction, I hit land. Literally.

"Ooof!" I grunted, feeling my breath escape my lungs from the impact.

I dragged myself onto the ground proper, and only after I got about three meters away from the edge of the accursed river did I finally let myself relax. Well, more like drop to the ground face down. I just wanted to lay there for however long it would take for the aches to fade, but apparently fate had other ideas for me. Some minutes into my resting, I could hear the foliage around me being disturbed by something.

"An ape? Here? That's absurd…those beasts must be planning something." I could hear someone mutter just loud enough for me to hear, although, that probably that wasn't his intention. He probably thought I was unconscious. Might as well play along.

"Mrgh… Where am I?" I ground out, doing my best to give the impression that I'd just woken up.

Whoever was there did something…from the sound of it I assumed he'd unsheathed a sword. "Who the fuck uses swords anymore?" I wondered to myself.

Only once I had looked in his direction, I realized what I was dealing with: it was a fucking Khajiit! Although it looked kind of wonky, the basis was all there! Feline face, fur all over, looked ready to tear me a new one…the last part wasn't very appreciated. So, back to Cat-man over there, he was holding a sword at my throat, and looked about ready to extend his arm another couple inches.

"Uh…hello?" I said, hoping to defuse the situation. It didn't work.

"Don't play games with me, ape. Your kind are not welcome in these lands, so you'd better tell me what you are planning, before I decide to force the information out of you." He growled out, probably trying to sound intimidating…and successfully doing so.

"Look, man, I have no idea what you're talking about, I literally just woke up in the damn river, and passed out once I got out of it! I haven't the foggiest idea on how I got in there in the first place! You gotta believe me, dude!" Not my proudest moment, admittedly. Still, I was creeped out of my wits, and this furry guy threatening to kill me certainly wasn't helping!

The Cat-man looked at me disdainfully for a while, before snorting and slamming the pommel of his sword in my temple. While I was dazed, he moved behind me and tied my arms behind my back. He then hoisted me up to my feet, and forced me to move forward.

"I'll let the guards deal with you. I've got more important things to deal with." He muttered.

While I was walking, everything became monochrome, and nothing moved. In front of my eyes, a light blue screen popped up with a chime.

I promised I would help, didn't I? Well, here you go! I looked a bit through your memories, and I took something that would let you get powerful without requiring too much meddling on my part! Sooo… here's your very own version of the 'Gamer' ability! I'll be a bit different from the original, but you should be able to figure it out. If you have any questions, the 'help' screen is just a thought away. So, I hope you enjoy your time! -Loki

Well, if that's right… "Status."

Name and Title:	Daniel Samuels	The Gamer
Race:	Human	+1 LUK every level
GP:	0
LV:	1	0/100 XP
HP:	40/40	+0.8 HP/min
MP:	10/10	+1/min
STR:	3
VIT:	4
AGI:	2
DEX:	3
MAG:	1
LUK:	1
Stat Points:	0

"That's…way worse than I'd expected…or maybe humans are way weaker than I expected?" Regardless, I had a mission: to reach the peak of human limits as soon as possible, and get my answers from Loki.

New Quest:	This is what peak performance looks like!
Rank:	C
Objectives:	Reach level 20	+3.750 XP, +250 GP
	Get answers out of Loki
Bonus:	Complete the quest within a week	+1.000 XP, +100 GP
	Complete the quest wihin a month	+500 XP, +50 GP

Well. At least quests were still a thing. I couldn't see any accept/decline button, so I assumed that self-imposed quests would be automatically accepted.

Once I closed that window, the world started flowing again. I mentally berated myself when I realized what I'd thought. "Damn it! I could have made a DIO reference there!"

And with that little thought out of the way, I resumed walking, letting the Cat-man guide me.

It took a while, but we finally stopped for the night. While we walked, I experimented with the system, and found out a couple of important details. Mainly about my skills. Basically, it worked like in Skyrim: different spells don't level up singularly, but their use gives Xp to their own branch. For example:

Skills:
-Magic
-Divine	LV: 3/100	10/225 XP
>Observe	Rank: Novice	1 MP
>Create/Escape ID	Rank: Initiate	25 MP

The Divine branch leveled up a bit since I used Observe here and there whenever I could. It only gained Xp when the spell was successful, though. Each spell was apparently dependent to its branch's level.

Observe	Rank: Novice	1 MP
-Grants information on the target
-Can only scan targets of a level less or equal to Gamer's level + level of Divine magic. Rule doesn't apply to inanimate objects.

So, in other words I could only scan beimgs with a level of 4 or less. Joy.

Actually, the Divine branch was the only one present on my skill list… maybe I had to learn the skills before they would appear? Possible, it would indeed help in keeping things less cluttered.

And finally, we had the Perk screen.

Perks:
Gamer's body	Your body is nigh indestructible so long as you have HP. All damage that would be received will be displayed as a loss of HP or a status effect. Sleep can restore any wound. Bodily needs are dampened.
Gamer's mind	Your mind cannot be altered in any way other than bu the Game itself. Mental fatigue negated. Excessive emotion can be dampened or negated, depending on user's preference.
?	Your ? flows strong.
	-100 REP to all ? aware of this perk
	+100 REP to all ? aware of this perk
	Grants title '?'

Ominous-looking perk, that last one.

Anyways, technical bull-crap and mysterious perks aside, this asshole Cat - which I couldn't Observe, of-fucking-course - decided to tie me to a tree. Without bothering to feed me. I mean sure, Gamer's body helped in making me need way less food, but it's the thought that counts!

Shaking my head, I concentrated on my plan: there was a decently sharp stone near me, so I was going to wait until the wanker was asleep, then take the rock, cut the rope, and bugger off.

It took around an hour or so of waiting, but finally he was deeply asleep. After some maneuvering with my feet, I managed to hold the stone, and slowly but surely the rope was being cut. After a minute or so, the rope was thin enough that I could snap it. A thought popped up into my head, and I tried it out on a whim.

"Inventory." I thought, and sure enough, a window with a massive grid on it popped up. I scrolled the screen with my finger, and watched in fascination as the squares just kept going on and on. Experimentally, I pushed one end of the rope into one of the slots, and with a ripple the rope disappeared into the window.

×2 rope pieces added to inventory

And since I also had a seemingly infinite space, I also put the rock in it.

×1 sharp stone added to inventory

With that done, I decided it was time to high-tail it out of there. At first, I sneaked away, and when I felt like I was far enough, I started jogging away. I didn't really know where I was going, I just thought that the farther I was from the Khajiit-wannabe, the better it was for me.

---

After probably a couple hours, and one extra VIT point, I found myself in a nice little clearing. There was also a river here, probably a branch of the one I fell into, or something.

I inspected the area a bit more carefully, making sure that there were no threats in the immediate vicinity. Once that was done, I allowed myself to rest a bit. I didn't exactly need it, but it still would help.

While I was resting, I decided that it would be a good time as any to start strategizing.

"So, my physical stats are my best trait right now, until I find a way to train my MAG. Of course, I won't be able to create IDs until I increase it, so I'll need to put in a couple points once I level up. The question is, how do I level up? Well, hunting could be a decent strategy for now. I could also just get some skills and level them up, considering that I got some Xp from leveling up my Divine branch… yeah, that'll work."

With my basic strategy hashed out, I decided that first things first, I'd need a weapon. Looking around I found a couple straight branches, looking around two meters long.

×4 long branches added to inventory

A bit of sharpening with my sharp rock, and…

Skill branch gained: Crafting

Skill gained: Weapons

Created: Wooden javelin (Poor, Simple)

I grinned like a loon. I could make weapons, AND level up at the same time? Hell yes!

And with that, I created more javelins. Two more were just the same as the first, each giving 10 Xp to my skill. Then, my luck spiked. A bit.

Created: Wooden javelin (Common, Simple)

It seemed that the Xp gained from the skill increased compared to the rank of the items made…maybe also the complexity. The Common javelin gave 20 Xp, so that was nice. Maybe if I…

"Observe"

Wooden javelin	Common, Simple
Durability:	15/15
DMG:	8
A javelin made by Daniel Samuels. It's not very sturdy, but it can kill something.

Whoa! 40 Xp to Divine magic! So, I could spend my time making weapons, then I'd Observe them, leveling two skills at once! Actually, maybe…

I took one of my Poor javelins, and threw it at a tree around ten meters away from me. I was aiming for the center of the tree, but my aim was off, and I just nicked the side. Still, the effect was what I needed.

Skill branch gained: Combat

Skill gained: Javelins

Yes! So, I could also use the javelins for something! Power leveling, here I come!

---

Er…I may have been wrong on one thing. I needed a fuck ton more javelins before power leveling up. I had broken one, and was halfway through the second one before my Javelin skill leveled up even once, earning me a measly 5 Xp.

And that's how I found myself searching around for more branches. Fuck my life.

Well, for some happiness, I found some berries that my Observe classified as edible, among a bunch of others that were poisonous. Of course, I took several handfuls of both.

Branches found! It took a while, but in the end it was worth it. Of course, I observed everything I put in my Inventory. I didn't get more Xp for Observing the same item, but multiple items that were just the same worked.

After bringing everything to my clearing - well, 'mine' might be pushing it a bit, but for now no one was complaining - I started grinding again my Crafting and Divine branch. I'd rather avoid wasting my javelins to level up my mastery, since I could do that while fighting.

---

-Day 2, Clearing, Daniel's POV-​

"Oh my GOD! This is taking so fucking long! Fuck's sake, It's morning at this point, too!"

As one could tell, my day wasn't going that well. All of my crafting and Observing did nothing more than land me at this.

LV: 1

40/100 XP

I wasn't a happy camper. Not by a long shot. So, I thought. How could I speed things up? Well, after some fiddling with my crafting branch, I found that making more complex things would net me more Xp for the respective skill!

Some pondering later, and I got just the right idea: I scoured the plains, and plucked a lot of long grass leaves. Then, I went to the river and picked up a good amount of rocks, mainly those with a more triangular shape. I subsequently went on to smashing the rocks together to find the hardest one. After that, it was a long process of chipping the other rocks until they had a decent edge and point.

Can you guess it already?

I wove together the grass leaves, and made some rope... Shoddy, of course, but it would hold. "Note to self: remember to thank mom for teaching me this."

I also got the skill for making tools, and leveled it up once.

I kept one of the ropes in the stash, you never knew when you would need it, and tied the stones to the javelins, creating…

Rock spear	Common, Medium
Durability:	30/30
DMG:	12
A rudimentary spear made by Daniel Samuels. Better for stabbing than slashing.

Rock spear	Poor, Medium
Durability:	20/20
DMG:	10
A rudimentary spear made by Daniel Samuels. Really brittle. Better for stabbing than slashing.

I had three common spears and a poor one. The quality was probably determined by the quality of the materials I used, since at the end I had to use a poor javelin, having finished my common ones.

And Observing all of these leveled up my Divine magic again! I was finally three quarters of the way through!

…What a drag. But I suppose that such is life for a grinder. Let's be honest: once I could use IDs my level would skyrocket. Little steps, Daniel. Little steps.

Since I had no more materials, I decided to get my new skill out of the way. I positioned myself in the middle of the clearing, and begun stabbing, spinning, and slashing at the air…or at least I tried. Never did I say I was very coordinated. I mean, my AGI was 2 and DEX was 3! Oh, never mind, it was 4. Forgot about the point I got while weaving the ropes.

At least I did get a Spear skill out of it. And, it got a good amount of Xp from my flailing. Guess that I found something I could actually power level other than my Divine magic.

I had to take a rest after reaching level 3 in Spears, but I got a VIT point for the strain. My Hp went up too!

So, I went on, and if I calculated correctly, I should have reached the awaited level 2 just after the next level up of the skill.

Skill: Spears leveled up!

3 -> 4

Daniel leveled up!

1 -> 2

You get 5 Stat Points!

Impatiently, I opened my status, and sure enough…

Name and Title:	Daniel Samuels	The Gamer
Race:	Human	+1 LUK every level
GP:	0
LV:	2	5/200 XP
HP:	60/60	+1.2 HP/min
MP:	10/10	+1 MP/min
STR:	3
VIT:	6
AGI:	2
DEX:	4
MAG:	1
LUK:	2
Stat Points:	5

I wanted to consider carefully the pros and cons of each stat, and possibly come up with a build that could be devastating, but… this level would be used for one thing mainly.

Name and Title:	Daniel Samuels	The Gamer
Race:	Human	+1 LUK every level
GP:	0
LV:	2	5/200 XP
HP:	60/60	+1.2 HP/min
MP:	50/50	+5 MP/min
STR:	3
VIT:	6
AGI:	2 +1	3
DEX:	4
MAG:	1 +4	5
LUK:	2
Stat Points:	0

And that was, increasing my Mp. Plus, MAGIC, BOI!

I could probably go for a mix of physical and magical combat, but for now I just wanted to get a feel for combat, and then see what was meant for me. Plus, I knew only two spells.

And now, finally with enough Mp to try it out, I mimicked the one, the legend: Han Jee-Han.

"ID create!"

And the world rippled around me.

Everything was…empty. There was no sound at all, only pure and utter quiet. It was… kind of creepy. And concerning. I pulled up Create/Escape ID's window to check what I had done.

Create/Escape ID	Rank: Initiate	25 MP
-Allows the caster to create a superimposed copy of the world around them, completely devoid of life other than plants. The higher the Divine skill is, the stronger the beings that the caster can create in the ID can be. -Note: if only "Create ID" is said, then the ID created will automatically be an empty one.
ID available:	Empty
	Zombie (Divine LV 5)

"Oh." Welp, that was easily fixed. I could just wait five minutes for my Mp to recharge enough to try again.

Back to my spear I went.

---

5 minutes, and a new level in Spears - almost two - later, and I could open the zombie ID.

The sky was red, and groans rung out in the distance. I forced away the chill going down my spine, gripped harder one of my spears, and moved into the woods. The Game at least had a minimap for me, although it could only see in a radius of up to ten meters in any direction. After some walking, a red dot popped up on my map, and I could hear some distinct groans and moans from my 2 o'clock.

Pivoting, I made my way carefully, doing my best to not make any noise. It also netted me the Sneak skill, from the Stealth branch. I hid behind a tree, and Observed my opponent.

Zombie	+50% HP, +20% STR & VIT
LV:	3
HP:	50 (75/75)
STR:	7 (8.4)
VIT:	5 (6)
AGI:	2
DEX:	1
MAG:	0
LUK:	0
-A dead body brought back to life. It wants to eat living beings. Doesn't know you're here.

"Well, I'm a bit faster than it, plus my coordination's better, so I should be able to defeat it so long as I stay evasive," I planned. I put away the spear in my inventory and aimed at its head with one of my javelins. My aim was a bit too low, so I hit its throat instead.

The zombie managed to pull the javelin out of its throat, and threw it away, shambling towards me. I kept my distance, throwing two more javelins. Fat load of good it did, as I only managed to nick it. So, I decided to forgo the useless things, and tried stabbing with one of my spears.

While the zombie was stumbling back, I prepared for another hit. I poured all of my power behind my thrust, and managed to score a hit right between the zombie's eyes!

The zombie fell down, but it wasn't dead yet. I could see it twitch still. A stomp to the head fixed that.

Zombie (LV 3) was slain!

You gain 255 XP!

Skill gained: Unarmed

Daniel leveled up!

2 -> 3

You get 5 Stat Points!

Due to your frenetic fighting, you gained 1 AGI!

Name and Title:	Daniel Samuels	The Gamer
Race:	Human	+1 LUK every level
GP:	0
LV:	3	50/300 XP
HP:	60/60	+1.2 HP/min
MP:	50/50	+5 MP/min
STR:	3
VIT:	6
AGI:	4
DEX:	4
MAG:	5
LUK:	3
Stat Points:	5

I could have just kept the points, but… I was way too weak at the moment to be greedy. Once I could comfortably dish out damage, I would start hoarding.

STR:	3 +3	6
VIT:	6
AGI:	4 +1	5
DEX:	4 +1	5
MAG:	5
LUK:	3

I actually felt kind of bad for spending my points, but… oh well. It would be worthless to hoard them for later, if I could barely stay alive now.

And so, my killing of the zombies continued.

---

Well, that was very productive…and destructive. I broke three of my javelins and two of my spears, but I managed to kill almost thirty of those rotting bastards! The Xp gains were unbelievable for the first few kills, but once I reached a level higher than theirs, the Xp was reduced drastically. Still, fighting them net me another point to VIT and DEX each. Plus, both me and my skills leveled up a bunch of times.

Oh, and when my Spears skill reached level 10 I got a perk!

Spartan I (1/5)

Spears deal 5% more damage

I assumed that all of my skills would do that, so it was another thing on the list of reasons why I was happy. And finally…

Name and Title:	Daniel Samuels	The Gamer
Race:	Human	+1 LUK every level
GP:	0
LV:	10	350/1.000 XP
HP:	70/70	+1.4 HP/min
MP:	50/50	+5 MP/min
STR:	6
VIT:	7
AGI:	5
DEX:	7
MAG:	5
LUK:	10
Stat Points:	35

"Oh my, now that's a lot of points." I thought. I considered how to actually spread my points this time. On one hand, MAG wasn't really used right now. On the other hand, I really wanted to learn magic. On one hand, my fighting style was mostly physical. On the other, MAGIC!

So, I came to a mix of both. I chose to put one point in MAG for every level gained, keep around 10 points for later use, and everything else was fair game.

Name and Title:	Daniel Samuels	The Gamer
Race:	Human	+1 LUK every level
GP:	0
LV:	10	350/1.000 XP
HP:	100/100	+2 HP/min
MP:	120/120	+12 MP/min
STR:	6 +6	12
VIT:	7 +3	10
AGI:	5 +5	10
DEX:	7 +4	11
MAG:	5 + 7	12
LUK:	3
Stat Points:	10

Perfect. The power…was intoxicating. I was already looking much more athletic than I'd ever been before. And the magic…I could feel it coursing in my veins! It was amazing!

Your MAG is over 10! Your magic core has been awakened!

Skill gained: Manipulation

Bringing up Manipulation's skill window, this is what I saw:

Manipulation	LV 1/?	?/? XP
One's ability to manipulate the mana within their body.

"What's up with those question marks? And… Manipulate the mana within me? Hold up, maybe I got it."

I emulated Jee-Han once more, and tried to converge my mana into the palm of my left hand. Key word being 'tried', as I could only feel if wobble at best, before it snapped out of my control.

"The fuck was that?! I can't control my mana?... wait. Maybe that's what the question marks mean. I can't start immediately controlling my mana, since I need to understand how to control it on my own first!"

Skill: Manipulation leveled up!

1 -> 2

"That's the thing? That's what I needed to level it up? Understanding what I had to do?! You asshole! I'm the Gamer! You can't make me learn things like normal people!"

With that little tantrum done, I took a deep breath and calmed down. That was the only skill I got that behaved like that, so maybe it would be the only one ever? I sure hope so.

Before that debacle had happened I'd escaped from the ID, in fear of the boss making an appearance. There was no way that I could fight a Legion Zombie, or whatever other boss this version of the Game concocted, in my current state. I was going to need a proper weapon, some armor, and much better stats.

So, there I was, making my way to the clearing that I started calling my new home. Albeit temporarily, of course. Once I got there, I went to the biggest tree I could find, and started climbing it. I did that both because I wanted to see my body's new limits, and because I was wondering if there was anything of interest in the area. Better be safe than sorry.

Five minutes later, I was sitting on a branch about twenty-five meters up from the ground. Scanning the surroundings revealed a surprising sight; there was a town in the distance.

"Note to self: check out the town tomorrow."

New Quest:	Ally scouter
Rank:	D
Objectives:	Reach the town and study it	+1.500 XP, +100 GP, ?
	Avoid ?
	Meet ?
Bonus:	Befriend ? and ?	+300 XP, 20 GP, ?

Well, I knew what I was going to do tomorrow.

A loud grumble from my stomach reminded me that I did still need to eat occasionally. I'd almost forgotten. "Oh, now I get hungry? After two days of running around, now I get hungry? Bah, at least I have something edible with me." While I ate some of my berries, I thought about the implications of that. "Oh well, even though I'm not completely immortal, my body's needs are incredibly lowered. I've needed to eat only once in two days, after all."

Once I was done with my meal, eating about half of my berries, I found a decently comfy spot between the branches, and went to sleep. Just because I didn't need it, didn't mean I couldn't enjoy it. Plus, old habits die hard.

---

-Day 2, ?, ?'s POV-
​

"What I wouldn't give to be a dragon. Or a cheetah. Hell, I'd even settle for a mole! At least I wouldn't have to listen to that idiot's orders. Let alone his stupid underlings."

The sun was setting, but I knew it wouldn't matter much. Maybe a ten-minute break to eat something, and then we would be back to marching. Gods, did I hate that life.

"Alright, maggots! We're stopping for dinner! Be quick, we're leaving in ten minutes, there's a lot of ground to cover!" The commander barked out. As you probably guessed, I hated him too.

In all honesty, I thought that the whole operation was a suicide mission at best, and an awful idea at worst. If we died, at least Egul would be left with less soldiers, and a bunch of fleas. If it did succeed…he'd still be a fleabag, but he'd be a very powerful fleabag. And if he kept it up, he'd be surrounded by more powerful fleabags. An awful prospect, really.

I actually missed Kheva's reign. Of course, the old coot wasn't all there anymore, but he always had a good heart and thought about his people first. Egul, instead, was just a spoiled brat with an ego bigger than Malefor's mountain. The worst part was that he was an intelligent and cunning brat, too; he, along with some 'friends', and I use that term loosely, convinced the majority of the council that the Apes had a right to rule over everything, and developed a way to actually make it possible.

I feared for the precarious balance of the world, but most importantly I feared for my family. I didn't want them to get involved in that dungpile. My son was near to turning 16, meaning he could get conscripted into the army in times of war. And with that mission, war was a very real possibility.

Two days, and we'd get to that Canaan place. Two days, and a war would break out.

"I feel sorry for that hatchling. I doubt it will survive."

 

[Alien-Kun]

-Day 3, ?, External POV-
​

"Loki, are you sure about doing this? He is but a child, you must reconsider!"

Two figures could be seen, arguing. One lithe and garbed in green, being followed by a more imposing one, covered in armor and with a hammer at their waist.

"I am well aware of what I am doing, brother. I have given him the tools to reach incredible power, and he already is many times more powerful than he was at the beginning."

Loki's brother tried to reason with them, and make them see their point. "He may have power, but all that is useless without discipline! He is naught but a boy, already with the power of a grown man! If he were to reach the level of his ancestor, he could annihilate anything…possibly even Nidhogg!"

Loki's face scrunched, remembering that cursed dragon. It had been a long time ago, but they remembered that fight like it had just ended. Any attack they'd sent at it just made it stronger, to the point only Odin and Frigg's intervention managed to seal away the monster within the roots of Yggdrasil.

And yet, the being was recovering. It was gnawing at the World Tree as they spoke. And yet…the monster was intelligent. Still, Loki was the trickster god for a reason. A plan formed in their mind, to get rid of both of their problems at once.

As they hashed out the details, a malicious grin formed on their face. "I believe I may have found a solution to both our problems, brother. I shall need your help, along with father and mother…and maybe also Heimdallr, but it should work."

---

-Day 3, Clearing, Daniel's POV-
​

I woke up, and within a second all of the tiredness faded from my mind. It felt…alien, in a way. Yet, it was definitely helpful. Had I not woken up, I would have probably forgot I was on a tree in the first place.

Fall and pain avoided, I carefully made my way down.

I remembered the quest I gained yesterday evening, so I chose to complete it early in the morning. It was just a class D quest, no?

So, there I was, walking through the forest in the direction of the town. About five minutes in, a sound caught my attention. I hid under a tree's canopy just in time to not get spotted by whatever was causing the wingbeats. Once I heard the sound leave, I looked out, almost pissing myself at what I saw.

Dragons.

Motherfucking dragons.

Five of them, flying in a V formation, and garbed in armor. The latter indicated a presence of higher thought and civilization. They'd also come from the direction of the town…could that be a town inhabited by dragons?

Only one way to find out.

I set out again, closing down on the edge of the forest. A lush grassland extended around and beyond the town, with mountains in the distance. I'd already seen all of those before from my tree, but being so close was absolutely breathtaking.

I shook my head. I hadn't come to admire the scenery. I had a job to do! So, I glued my gaze back to the town…not that I could see much. There was a palisade all around. At least, I could see a couple of roofs, and the guards at the front. The roofs were made of stone at least, although, they looked very rustic. So, that said they had either a quarry or imports. Both indicated a circulating economy…and decent masonry, from what I could tell.

A good amount of dragons were flying around, mostly ones in armor like the ones I saw earlier, but there was the odd one out every now and then. The guards at the front gate were also dragons. At least they were close enough that I could see them distinctly.

Their armor was of good quality, at least in my opinion. I was a nerd, but a metalwork expert I wasn't. Still, it seemed good enough to offer a degree of protection, and I couldn't see any glaring flaws.

Hold up.

I smacked my forehead. Why observe them, when I could Observe them? Hopefully they weren't too powerful for me…

Target's level is too high to observe.

"Ah, dammit." I got an idea. If I got a look at their armor, maybe I could glimpse a bit of their combat ability.

Steel chestplate: Dragon	Uncommon, Medium
Durability:	43/50
Protection:	15
A chestplate made of steel, made to fit an adult dragon. It is of decently good quality. It has seen a couple fights.

"Hmm…that's the first item I've seen that has a rarity higher than common. Then again, I don't know the full scale, so it might be either amazing, or nothing important. They don't have weapons, but I guess they don't really need them. I should go back, better be careful."

With my analysis of the town complete, I headed back, making sure to not cause any noise.

---

-Five minutes ago, Canaan, Tundra's POV-​

"Come ooon! You promised!" groaned my sister.

I didn't bother looking up to answer. "I know that. I promised I'd play with you once I was done studying for the day. And as you can see—" I gestured to the pile of books next to me "—I'm not done yet."

Had I looked up, I would have noticed the mischievous grin on my sister's muzzle. But as it stands, the only thing I saw was the book that I was currently reading disappear in a second. I swiveled my head, and spotted Star standing outside my room, holding my book in her mouth.

"If yoo wanf if, cmend get if!" She taunted. We'd played that whole song and dance so many times that I understood her plan perfectly.

"Star, I won't follow you outside just because you stole one of my books." With that, I turned back to my pile- wait.

I turned to look back, and noticed just which book she was holding; it was the third volume to "Advanced elemental theory"! I couldn't continue anything without it!

Star must have seen the panic in my eyes, as she slowly was inching away, taunting me to take a step. I obliged.

I'll be the first to admit that I was slower than most dragons my age; staying inside to study most of the time would do that to you. But Star…she was on a while other level. Her speed was on par with dragons several years her seniors, to the point of outrunning even an adult! Well, Vulcan wasn't exactly built for speed, being a blacksmith and all, but the point still stands!

So it wasn't much of a surprise that she managed to evade all of my attempts as easily as breathing. Still, she managed to lead me all the way outside. Then to the gates.

As we passed by Mr. Sun, one of the guards posted there and Pyra's, one of our friends, father, noticed us. "Still getting manipulated by your sister, Tundra? Heh, just don't go too deep. The patrol is returning soon, and I'd rather your father finds you home when he's back. Else, he'd get mad at me again."

With a quick nod to Mr. Sun, I moved as fast as I could to catch up to Star. She might be fast enough to run away from danger, but she's just as fast at running towards it.

It took a lot of circling, backtracking and stops to catch my breath, but finally Star had enough of humiliating me, and we both stopped in a clearing we knew ever since she was a hatchling. It was a quaint little place, with a small river at the side and a good amount of open space. Star finally relented and let me take back my book…after cleaning it of her slobber.

So we relaxed, her sleeping on my side, and me studying up on some interesting elemental techniques. They might be way out of a teen's range, but what I lacked in the physical department, I more than made up for in smarts and raw magical ability.

*crack*
*thud*

A sudden sound made me snap to attention. I swiveled my head around, trying to see what could have caused the noise.

"Oh, fuck my life…" someone groaned from my left. I got up, and woke Star up.

I whispered to her "I heard someone close. I'll check it out. If it's dangerous, I'll try to stun it. Be ready to run."

Getting a nod from her, I moved quietly to the edge of the clearing, trying to not get spotted by whoever was there.

Now, I don't know what caused it; coincidence, dumb luck, the ancestors willed it, or whatever else. Fact is, the same moment I peeked out of the bush, the being on the other side decided to do the same, resulting in our faces being mere centimeters apart.

"Aaah!" We shouted, both jumping backwards away from each other.

As I recovered from the scare, I studied the being before me; it was biped, like a cheetah, and also had the physical build of one…albeit a bit shorter, and with differently jointed legs. Its face was flat, and it only had hair on the top of its head.

I assumed it was analyzing me too, as its eyes were stuck on me. I saw its eyes widen for a second, before they returned to how they were before. I was sure though…for a second there, I could see fear.

---

-Day 3, Clearing, Daniel's POV-​

Target's level is too high to observe.

"Oh, for fuck's sake! This one should be around my age, if dragons age like humans, and you tell me he's over level 16?!"

Yeah, I had leveled up Divine magic while I wandered back, taking the chance to gather some more grass, sticks and stones. Never enough ammo.

That still didn't change the fact that I had a dragon with a level much higher than mine watching me carefully, as if daring me to make a move.

"Alright, think Daniel. He's much stronger than me. If I try to fight him, I'm dead. What to do, what to do…I got it!"

I started crawling back slowly, picking up speed little by little. The dragon moved towards me, but I sprung to my feet and started running. I tried something, hoping that I didn't need to yell.

"Create ID!"

The magical drain was bigger than expected, probably because of the silent casting, but I did manage to escape into an ID.

"Damn, that was too close. I really need to increase my stats, and learn to control my magic. Better get to it. At least, I'll have something to do while I wait for that dragon to leave."

With that, I set off. Pull-ups on the branches, running from tree to tree, and a whole load of other training.

It was nearing noon before I thought that it was quite enough. At the end, I'd gained 2 STR, 3 VIT, 1 DEX and 2 AGI. A decent gain, all in all. Next on the list, Manipulation. I really needed to understand how it worked.

For that reason, I decided to analyze one of the spells I already had, hoping that I could get anything from it. I sat down cross-legged, and tried to concentrate on the energy within me. It felt like currents of plasma through my entire body. I focused on the flow of my mana through my body, committing it to memory.

Skill: Manipulation leveled up!

2 –> 3

I ignored the notification, and kept up my experimentation. At least, I knew I was going in the right direction. With my study of the basic flow done, I used Observe on a tree and tried to feel for any changes in my flow. I almost missed it, but the flow sped up in certain zones, while in others it slowed down, converging to my eyes for a split-second. I felt something leave me through my pupils, and the usual screen popped up.

Oak tree	common, plant
Just a random plant like any other. You can make things out of it. 35 years old.

Skill: Manipulation leveled up!

3 –> 4

So that was how spells worked. I had to converge the mana in a spot and eject it, but I couldn't do it all willy-nilly. I had to respect the mana's flow.

Armed with that knowledge, I tried to replicate the same effect, but this time on my own. I slowed down my mana, and made it rush to my eyes. The problem was that while the converging was successful, the effect wasn't what I desired.

Spell created:

Torch eye

Torch eye	Novice	1 Mp/sec
Causes the caster's eyes to light up in the same color as their mana. Useful at night, but not really that much.

I found a puddle nearby, and went to look at myself. My eyes were indeed glowing light blue, but other than that, it felt like nothing was different.

Skill: Manipulation leveled up!

4 –> 5

At least there was that. Although, I felt like I had hit a snag in my experimentation. Shrugging, I decided to do like any scientist when faced with a new concept; try stuff with it and see what works.

That resulted, a couple hours later, in creating multiple spells…some more useful that others. Most were variations of the Torch spell, which all merged into...

Human torch	Novice	1 Mp/sec/dm2
Allows the caster to make certain parts of their body light upin the same color as their mana. Can be useful at night, if you don't mind being a literal beacon.

Yeah, that one was useless. Fortunately, I realized that changing the speed at which my mana flowed would change the effect, along with my intent, of course.

Power burst	Novice	5 Mp/sec
Mana converges into the muscles, forcing them to be faster, stronger, and tougher.
+15% STR, VIT, AGI

Overdrive	Novice	10 Mp/sec
Mana converges into the brain, making it work overtime.
+20% DEX

With my Mp I could keep Overdrive up for about 12 seconds, Power burst for 25 seconds, and both up for 8 seconds before I was drained. At least, all the magic training increased my MAG by one, and Manipulation by another one. Seemingly not much, but all progress is good.

It was late in the afternoon by then, so I decided that I might as well go and kill an extra couple zombies. It should be easier with my bonuses, even if I could only use them for a couple of seconds at best in combat.

I moved a good distance away from the clearing, exited the ID and made a new one in record time.

After many zombies I reached level 12, and found something new.

Zombie dreadnaught	+50% Hp, +30% STR and VIT
LV:	8
HP:	140 (210/210)
MP:	N/A
STR:	12 (15.6)
VIT:	14 (18.2)
AGI:	8
DEX:	6
MAG:	0
LUK:	0
A revived knight. It wanders around, looking for a challenge.	Boss rank: 3

While I had no idea about the boss rank, I knew one thing; that fucker was strong, but slow. I was going to have to use that to my advantage. Fortunately, its armor was very rusty, so as long as I aimed correctly, I should have been able to deal at least some damage.
As it was habit at that point, I aimed as best as I could, trying to catch its nape. I would've gone for the head, but it was covered. With Overdrive on to boost my ranged damage I threw the javelin, and I got lucky.

The javelin pierced through the nape, and embedded itself right in its neck. Wasting no time, I rushed in, ripped the now broken javelin out, and jammed my spear in.

And with that it was at less than 100 Hp. Great way to begin a surprise attack.
It wasn't meant to be, though, as it managed to turnaround and slam the blunt part of its halberd into my side.

I bit back a hiss of pain. It didn't hurt too much, at least. I shuddered to think what would happen if I got hit with the blade. I was forced to roll away from the dreadnaught when it tried to cleave me in half, and while it pulled its halberd out of the ground, I got up.

We circled each other carefully. It seems that it kept some sort of intelligence even after being dead. But not much, as it charged at me impatiently. Overdrive allowed me to jump close enough that the halberd would be downright useless, and brought out a new creation of mine.

Stone knife	Common, Medium
Durability:	19/25
DMG:	10
A stone knife made by Daniel Samuels. It can stab pretty deep.

I jumped up, and stabbed the knife as deep as I could in the unprotected part of the neck, trying to reach the brain. It gurgled out something intelligible as I pushed it away. The dreadnaught stumbled backwards, and fell down. I took its halberd as it spasmed on the ground, and spared it an Observe.

Zombie halberd	Rare, Intricate
Durability:	65/70
DMG:	20
A halberd wielded by a powerful knight. Its user became an undead, coating this weapon in its aura.
+10% damage to holy, life, and light-attuned beings.

A strong weapon, definitely. I decided to keep it in case I met some enemies with those elements.

I turned back to the dreadnaught, and in one quick swing, I decapitated it.

Mini-boss killed!	Zombie dreadnaught (LV 8)
Loot:	1.000 XP
	160 GP
	Zombie halberd

Daniel leveled up!

12 -> 13

You gained 5 Stat Points!

One step closer to my goal. I also managed to gain some Gp. Nice. I wasn't entirely sure what they meant, though. Possibly money, but if so why did I only get any by killing bosses and quests?

No matter, it was time for me to leave the dungeon. The dreadnought was only a mini-boss, and I didn't want to know what the actual boss would be. Plus, it was sunset, so I hoped that the dragon would have left.

I went to the edge of the clearing, and hid up on the tallest tree, and once I was sure that I wouldn't be seen, I dropped the ID.

The dragon was still here, along with a yellow, smaller one. They seemed to be leaving. I took the chance, and tried to Observe them, as my level was higher, allowing me to Observe anyone up to level 19.

Name and title:	Tundra Polar	The Brain (+25% MAG and MP)
Race:	Dragon	+1 STR every 2 levels
LV:	19
HP:	100/100
MP:	310 (387/387)
STR:	13 (22)
VIT:	10
AGI:	14
DEX:	18
MAG:	25 (31)
LUK:	15
Age:	16
Tundra Polar is the older brother of Star Polar. He is a very serious and diligent dragon and is also very studious when it comes to his learning. He can almost always be found by the side of his sister, being extremely protective of her as he strives to become the best at the magical arts.

Name and title:	Star Polar	The Brawn (+25% AGI, DEX and HP)
Race:	Dragon	+1 STR every 2 levels
LV:	17
HP:	100 (125/125)
MP:	170/170
STR:	9 (17)
VIT:	10
AGI:	16 (20)
DEX:	19 (24)
MAG:	17
LUK:	14
Age:	13
Star Polar, the younger sister of Tundra Polar, is a stubborn dragoness, but is equally fun-loving due to her extroverted nature. She loves to teaseand distract her brother from his studies whenever she has the chance but will always let him get back to them. Eventually. She does this out of the love she has for him, wishing him to always be happy.

Well, I was just right on the limit, it seemed. They were both younger than me, too. Well, Tundra by one year, but still. Fucking dragons, I swear. Powerhouses, the lot of them. Also, my Divine skill gained more Xp if I Observed higher level beings, meaning that with those two kicked it from level 6 straight into 8, almost 9. That was a cap of 21, right there. Useful as fuck.

Nonetheless, once they left, a new screen popped up in front of me.

Quest complete:	Ally scouter
Rank:	D
Objectives:	Reach the town and study it	OK
	Avoid the patrol	OK
	Meet Tundra	OK
Bonus:	Befriend Tundra and Star	FAIL
Loot:	+1.500 XP
	+100 GP
	+2 Skill token

Daniel leveled up!

13 -> 14

You gained 5 Stat points!

And here came another level. But what was the skill token?

+2 Skill token	N/A, N/A
Use the token on a skill to increase its level by 2

"Oh, so basically a rare candy for skills. Cool. Should I..? Maybe it's best to keep it…"

I debated with myself for a while, but finally, I just decided to use it on the one skill that I couldn't level up by normal means. I had a feeling that I would get more of those tokens in the future, anyway.

Skill: Manipulation leveled up!

6 –> 8

The knowledge flew into my head, and I immediately understood why I couldn't expel mana out of my body easily; it was the way that I collected it. You see, when using a spell like Observe, the mana is condensed into a very small point before being released, allowing it to reach its intended target without dispersing. I, on the other hand, was keeping my mana diluted, causing it to evaporate almost instantly.

With this new knowledge, I tried to create an offensive spell. First, converge the mana. Then, compress it. Aim. Now, release.

A small sphere of mana left my hand, hitting the ground under me. It caused a small, smoking indent, but it wasn't strong enough for my tastes.

Mana blast	Novice	10 MP
A small sphere of concentrated mana hits the target, causing a small amount of damage.
DMG:	(MAG/2)+Manipulation

Even though it was a weak spell, I was weak even moreso, and to use even that spell along with my boosts I needed to train, hard. Either until I had enough Mp for all of those, or until I was so powerful I didn't need the boosts anymore.

I took a deep breath, preparing myself for a night of training.

---

-Day 4, Clearing, Daniel's POV-
​

"98… 99… 100!" I grunted out, and let myself fall from the branch I was hanging on to.

"Ooof!" Maybe just letting go wasn't the best choice, considering that I fell on my ass.

Due to your insane training, you gained 1 STR!

Another one done. During the whole night, I trained like an absolute madman. Along with the point I just got, I managed to obtain 4 STR, 5 VIT, 3 AGI, 4 DEX and 3 MAG. Running from one tree to another helps a lot with co-ordination, plus I discovered that in order to increase MAG I just had to drain my reserves over and over. Probably because it conditioned whatever made my mana to make more due to the constant stress. Like muscles, really.

I had taken to keep Overdrive on for as much as possible, to continuously burn trough my Mp. I'd also tried to create some new spells, but my ability with mana wasn't yet enough to actively influence the world around me. In other words, no elemental magic for me just yet.

After all that training I was left bored out of my mind, trying to decide on what to do next. The best choice would be to do some skill training. My weapons were kinda lagging behind.

And back to it I went, doing my best to bring up both Unarmed and Halberd up to 10 at least. Javelins had become obsolete with the possibility to use magic at a distance. Plus, I dealt much better damage up close.

"Zombies, here I come again!"

It didn't go as expected. I was a bit too strong, so the zombies now crumbled after one or two good hits. That meant that I couldn't grind as much as I wanted. At least now I was at level 15. My Unarmed was at level 5, and Halberd was at 4… I needed better opponents.

Cue the ID grinding.

Finally, around noon, I managed to get my Divine to level 10, netting me a new ID! The 'Ape' ID. I wasn't really sure about it, but I felt like I should at least try it out.

In this one, the sky was normal, except for the abnormal amount of dark green clouds. Yep, same old, same old. Thus, I set out to see what exactly those 'apes' were. I managed to find one quite easily.

Ape infantry	+10% STR, +15% AGI/DEX
LV:	10
HP:	120/120
MP:	N/A
STR:	12 (13,2)
VIT:	12
AGI:	14 (16,1)
DEX:	11 (12,6)
MAG:	0
LUK:	1
A random ape soldier. Uses a sword. Kinda dumb.

I decided on my game plan immediately; throw a spear at it, and when it's distracted turn it into a paste.

...


"Well, that was easy. It was down with one good whack. Then again, I did split its head apart with my halberd. Am I getting too strong? Nah, there's much stronger beings out there."

Then, with one extra level under my belt, I went around, killing more apes. "By this pace, I'll be done with this quest within the day!"

---

I'd found some different types apes, like lancers and archers. Even one shaman. All the same level, though.

Those things made my level skyrocket again. I reached level 18 after just seven of those things. Unfortunately, the shaman managed to rough me up a bit, before I dispatched him. The good thing, though, is that I got something off of him too!

Voodoo cloak	Rare, Intricate
Durability:	50/50
A cloak lined with powdered bones. It hides the user's face, and increases their affinity for the dark arts.
+15% DMG to Dark, Shadow and Death-elemental spells

While the effects were nothing short of edgy, I couldn't deny its usefulness. That thing allowed me to finally hide myself! Well, maybe people wouldn't take too kindly to the cloak itself, but at least it allowed me to not be pestered about my species.

I was about to jump back in and go commit genocide of more apes, but…things sometimes take an unexpected development.

Case in point, I heard yelling, demented laughter, and the sounds of a fight coming from the direction of the usual clearing. Why was stuff always going down over there? I didn't know. Still, I moved as fast as I could to see who deserved some ass-kicking, and found myself staring at a most concerning sight.

Tundra, Star, and another little dragon, who my Observe identified as Pyra were surrounded by a small group of apes. They numbered eight in total, with their levels varying between 9 to 12, with the leader at 14.

Tundra was doing all he could, spraying frost and ice spikes left, right and center, but most often than not his shots either were avoided or too weak to do anything. He was running low on Mp, so that was most definitely the reason. He had also a cut on his shoulder, and multiple bruises. Star and Pyra had less, but were obviously in pain.

The leader of the apes stepped forward. "You're too tired to do anything, dragon. Why don't you just give up? Someone with your talents would be useful to us. We only need the red one, but I'm sure we can also use the yellow one for something…" The tone in which the finished his line was accompanied by the other ape's demented laughter. Well, all except one.

Name and Title:	Zilan Astaroth	The outlier (increased REP to 'Nutral'-aligned beings, lower REP with 'Evil'-aligned beings
Race:	Ape	+1 DEX/AGI every 2 levels
LV:	11
HP:	135/140
MP:	30/30 (locked)
STR:	13
VIT:	14
AGI:	11 (16)
DEX:	10 (15)
MAG:	3
LUK:	4
Age:	39
Zilan appears to have never really cared for fighting or the orders he carries out in any way, the latter of which he seems to have a burning hatred for. He only fights because he must in order to safeguard those closest to him. They are all he ever cares about and has no plans on letting that change any time soon. Unlike most apes, he is rather patient and logical, however, he retains the typical streak of rudeness most apes have, mostly if he doesn't like you.

"Wow, laying it thick, ain't cha game?" That guy was just someone looking out for his family. I could respect that. The others instead… they could perish.

I didn't bother listening to Tundra's response, as I had sprung into action already. I shot a Mana Blast into the weakest one's back. It didn't really do much damage, but it brought him low enough for me to jam a spear into another Ape's eye. It died instantly.

I turned around, and sidestepped a downward slash. I slammed the blunt end of my spear into the ape's face, and kicked at its kneecap with all my power. It burst completely, bending it unnaturally.

Six left. Tundra took the chance, and tore another ape's neck open, leaving it to drown in its own blood.

Five. I kicked one in the nards, took out my halberd, and spun, beheading another.

Four. Star threw out a lightning bolt to the one who's leg I busted, whom was trying to stab me in the back. It didn't get up.

Tundra managed to get the drop on another ape, slamming into its back and breaking it with his weight. I could hear the crunching bones.

Zilan had moved away from the fighting, thankfully. I didn't have to kill him. Plus, I could get some answers out of him.

I threw more Mana Blasts to distract the apes, and I moved in. Just as I was about to get to them, a torrent of fire appeared and burned one of the two apes to a crisp. The leader was just about dead too, so I did what I do best and stabbed him in the throat.

I turned to the three dragons, worried. Fortunately, they didn't seem to have gotten anymore wounds. They were all scared, Pyra was shell-shocked, but they were physically fine. I moved to them.

"Are you all in good enough condition to walk?" "Way to sound like a nice person, dumbass."

Tundra shook his head, doing his best to not look at the corpses that littered the place. "Yeah, I think so. Might have to carry Pyra for a bit, but we're relatively fine. You really saved us back there. Thanks."

I nodded. "You're welcome. Now you need to move. Get to safety. One of them managed to leave. I'll follow it." With that, I left in the direction where I'd seen Zilan leaving.

*3 Apes slain!

You gained 1.500 XP!

Daniel leveled up!

18 -> 19

You gained 5 Stat Points!

One more level and I also get my answers from Loki. But for now…

My minimap could also put a marker on people, as long as I had Observed them. Or maybe it was just people who I met? The line was kinda blurry. Still, no matter. I managed to reach Zilan, and jumped right into his path.

He stumbled back, obviously scared shitless. I did nothing for a few seconds, allowing him to calm down.

"What are you waiting for? We both know what you're here for. Just be quick about it."

I allowed myself a humored smile. Not like he could see it. "No, you're wrong. I'm not here to kill you. You see, Zilan, I can learn a lot from others by just a look. You weren't in that group because you wanted to, were you?" He shook his head. "Of course. You see, I want some answers from you. You just have to tell me who told you to attack a bunch of children, and why they'd have you do that. If you comply, I will let you go."

He stayed silent for a while, but in the end relented. "Bah, what do I have to lose. If you can stop that idiot, then good. Even if you kill me. If you're honest…might as well." He sat up straighter, and I went down as well. "Here's the thing; our new king, Egul, managed to find a way to extract a dragon's magical core, and add it to someone else's. He has been targeting younger dragons since their cores are more pliable, or something. I'm not an expert. What I can tell you is that his goal is to get a whole army of magical apes to destroy the dragons, and eventually rule everything."

I mulled over his words. "That is definitely cause for concern. Pray tell, what would happen to a dragon subjected to this treatment?"

He grimaced. "The weaker ones will die, no questions asked. Some, though… the stronger, more resilient ones manage to hold onto their life, but they're basically cripples. They have very low energy, their scales turn grey, and they start deteriorating quickly. The longest a dragon managed to survive without his core was a bit less than a month. And it was agonizing, I can tell you. I saw that poor sod every day, and you could just feel the aura of suffering around him. Really, a quick death is the best choice here."

I grit my teeth at the sheer cruelty. How could someone condemn a child to death to satisfy their own delusions of grandeur?!

"How many?"

"Wha—"

"HOW MANY CHILDREN DID YOU BASTARDS KILL?!"

He was taken aback by my outburst, but answered nonetheless. "A-Around a dozen!"

I was seething, but Gamer's Mind wouldn't allow me to lose myself in my rage.

"But, if I may say something—" I nodded slowly, not trusting my voice. "—I believe that you shouldn't be getting angry at me, but the direct responsible. As in, Egul. Also, I suggest telling the dragons what I told you. If you're so adamant about this, that would be your best bet to stop it. At least this way it'd be over soon."

I almost didn't catch the last part, as he had whispered it.

"I could do as you say, that is true. But I have an additional idea." I remembered the message Loki had sent me, and I tried to emulate it. Thankfully, the 'help' screen was actually helpful, and I found out how to send messages to others, as long as I knew their names.

From:	Anonymous
To:	Zilan Astaroth
What do you say about doing some spy work? Just warn me of whatever info you can find, troop movements, etcetera. This method should be untraceable.

Zilan looked at the screen, astonished. He then looked back to me. Then back to the screen. He tried swiping it away, and it disappeared.

"So? Are you up to this?"

He gave me a skeptical look. "And why should I be 'up to this'? What reason would I have to agree to this?"

I grinned. "First, you'd be able to help stop the impeding war before too many innocents die. Secondly, you'd help get rid of that sorry excuse of a king. I can tell that you don't like him. Thirdly, if the war is stopped early, less people will suffer, including whatever family or loved ones you have."

He carefully processed my proposal. "So be it. You do raise some good points."

With that, we got up and shook hands.

"I'd personally prefer if you tell your superiors that you were wiped out by an actual ambush, rather than one random bloke and three children."

He grimaced again, thinking back to how easily we had destroyed them, most likely. "Yeah, I should do that. How do I even use that weird spell?"

"Oh, it's pretty simple. Just think 'mail' with the intent of contacting me. It will do all the work as it's already attached to you. If you want to read again something I sent you, just think 'mail log'. Alright—" I patted his back "—get out before we're found."

With that, I left him, headed towards the dragon town. I had had quite enough of living in a forest.