In which my routine is broken by deadly rain, the prospect of humanity, and I stop fence-sitting.
The sun beat down with near-tangible force and extremely tangible heat. What areas of me faced it head on crisped, and what areas hid beneath too-thin fabric baked like a Japanese jiggle cake.
The first few days of farming had been difficult, even with small sips of the healing potion at the end of the day. But now that I had been clearing the land for a month, I was able to ignore the pain. Skin cancer isn't a thing when you can regrow limbs with a sip of sour juice.
I hope.
But the work needed doing and the crops I already had weren't going to cut it for long. Long, weedy things with diminutive edibility. Already, the first plot was getting close to blooming. Things in this world seemed to grow extraordinarily fast. I focused on planting potatoes (thanking the people at Food Theory for the grocery store episode) and was now clearing more land for potatoes.
Crack!
The small boulder split apart, crumbling after my third swing. That was another thing I had noticed. Everything in this world was weak. Things broke like plastic left too long in the sun, the sun took hours to burn me when it usually rotisseried me in minutes, and even gravity itself seemed to have a tenuous grasp on this reality. I'd pick up enormous branches and launch them into the wood pile from an acre away. Life would almost be on easy mode if it wasn't for-
Base Shield Health 999968/1,000,000 Light Attack
There was no sound, just the Shield Health popping up. Time to handle the pests.
It was goblins again, almost twice my size and viciously snarling as they attacked the shield. There was nothing to distract them, so they had nothing to do but attack. I had long gotten over whether Goblins were sentient or not, chittered language or no. I wasn't going to eat them, and that's all their intelligence status mattered for when they were trying to kill me.
"First ones of the day," I said, jogging up to the house and leaning the pickaxe against it, then grabbing the spear, "Who wants to die first?"
There was no answer, and part of me twinged in sadness about that. I hadn't seen anyone for a month. Even though I was usually alone in my other world, this was pushing it. Heck, I was nearly off the edge. But the Inheritance process was a long way from finished, and the forest was full of monsters.
"It's okay," I said, walking up to the goblins, "I know I'm ugly. You're not much of a looker yourself. I don't have the hump anymore though. Pretty cool, right?"
"AeURRga!"
"I didn't think so," I sighed, then lunged with the spear. "Of course, I also haven't seen a mirror in a month and a half."
The goblin slumped on the end of my spear, weakly grasping at the crossguard. I ripped the spear away, catching a hand and tearing it off. Like plastic left in the sun.
"What do you think?" I said, turning to the next one, "You've noticed how much weight I've lost, right? I'm almost back to how I was when I came here. Still don't know how that worked. I might fit through the portal soon. Get back to civilization."
Another thrust, another sigh, "Ah, well. I really wish that I could speed up this inheritance thing. I may be spending summer break here, but I'm worried about the house being foreclosed. It's not like I have the money to pay the bills, but the water leak must have rotted the kitchen by now. That sink will need immediate attention. I'll have to remodel. What do you think? I've been thinking of painting it white…"
I kept talking as I dispatched them, feeling villainous but refreshed. I needed to find some people, even if they attacked me as well.
There was a ding as I finished the last goblin off, and I felt a thrill as I opened my menu. This "ding" was the sound of a new skill being acquired, and I hadn't gotten one in ages. The last skill I got was 'Bane of Stones', which gave me extra damage while hitting rocks smaller than me for ten minutes.
"Huh," I said as I scrolled through my skills, "I don't see it…"
I checked again and frowned. Had I been hearing things? That wasn't uncommon these days. Maybe there were skills somewhere else?
"That can't be right," I said, navigating through the familiar menu. There were a few dead ends in the menu that I couldn't get through, but there was nothing else to do. I'd spent hours navigating as I tried to fall asleep. Was I missing something?
"Wait a second," I said, looking at my spear, "I don't have any skills regarding you besides my basic attacks for any weapon. That…I'm talking to my spear."
I held up the spear in front of my face and said, "Spear status? Analyze properties?"
The familiar text box opened, showing that I was (drumroll) holding a spear! Very useful. Even at "Analyze Level 4", it hadn't cracked the asterisk for this spear.
"Figures," I sighed, closing the Analyze window, "Let's see. Analyz- no. Show Spear Properties?"
Still nothing.
"What the heck?" I said, looking at the spear, "Is there really nothing here? I'm focusing on it, you'd think that the system would know- oh! Of course. How is the system supposed to know what I'm specifically talking about if I don't name it? I won't always be looking directly at it."
I held the spear up as I said, "Name Spear!"
The text window that showed up was just a floating keyboard and a place to name it.
"Awesome," I said, reaching for the keyboard, "what do I call you?"
I plucked out several names on the keyboard, toying with the name. I might be able to change it later, but I might not. This should mean something to me.
"Deathbringer and that kind of stuff is too meaningless," I mused, "Too corny. It's my spear, though…but this is from my grandpa. I'll name other weapons cool names. This needs…meaning."
What did I want to be? A hero? Not really. I wanted friends as well, but I couldn't envision myself wielding the power of friendship. How about…yes.
"There we go," I said as I plugged the name in.
I looked around, embarrassed, and raised the spear to the sky and said, "I dub thee 'Champion'!"
Then I pressed accept on the name box, and it vanished.
"All right," I said, "Open Champion's properties."
A new screen flashed, metallic rather than blue. A whole slew of new information boxes and pictures of the locked icon assaulted me. I walked away from the fence and settled in some shade to read it, taking a sip from my healing potion for my sunburn.
Champion - LV 240
Type: Comfortable Spear
Description: Although there are many more powerful spears in the world, they all require change and sacrifice on the part of the wielder. A Comfortable Spear is a weapon that adapts to its user only, although others can use it for normal and heavy attacks. The Comfortable Spear creates special moves according to their wielder's fighting style and adapts them intelligently, creating names when none are provided.
"WOAH!" I said, staring at the level, "That must have been from grandpa. This must be part of the inheritance process. It didn't inherit the name though. Maybe grandpa removed his data and just left the power. How would you remove levels anyways?"
I opened the special skills category and saw only two flashing 'New' items. So it didn't gain skills as quickly as I did. Good, I could barely keep track of my own. I pressed the first one.
Special UltraHeavy Attack - Level 1 - Dead-Weight Drop: Once per day, the Wielder may position themselves above an enemy and perform an S Class piercing attack. Can crit on a 1.2% chance, or if the wielder hits a sensitive target like a head or eye. Crit Chance and Damage go up with levels.
"Hah!" I said, "So I did get a skill from that! Can I change the name? Something like 'Fallen Angel'?"
Nothing happened when I tried, and I sighed. Stuck with 'dead-weight drop'. On an S-ranked attack as well. I backed out and clicked the second skill.
Special Light Attack - Level 1 - Jibe Jab: The wielder can perform a light attack with doubled crit chances if the wielder speaks to the target first. Understanding is not necessary, but full insults will be required for higher-level abilities.
"Okay," I said, looking at the disintegrating goblin bodies, "I get how this one developed. But why now? The first one only took one time. Is it the amount of damage needed to be dealt by the move? But I didn't have the move yet, so does the damage from my attacks become moves when they're not just normal?"
I sighed. Sometimes I wished for a fraction of an explanation. I couldn't game a system I didn't understand. Did other people in this world have to deal with this? I wanted to ask someone anything. Anyone something.
People. Conversation. Contact.
I looked longingly towards the forest. If only I had some armor…but I didn't. I had a gun and a spear that wouldn't come back. I could heal, but…
I rubbed my leg where that smiling shadow had snatched my leg clean off. I hadn't found my leg when I thought to check, and now that the monster had a taste of me…I couldn't risk it. I couldn't drink a potion without a head. It wasn't worth it-
Then I heard the scream.
It wasn't a human sound, no damsel in distress. Shame. I could have really gone for some 'damsel in distress' shenanigans.
It was a sound I was familiar with. A goblin death scream. But this time it was coming from above me.
I looked up to see a goblin falling through the air, frantically clawing at the air as it fell. It hit the top of the shield, which bent and softened the fall. Then the goblin slid slowly down the side before plopping on the ground.
I jogged up and called, "What ho? What news?"
No reply, of course. It looked at me with disoriented rage and lashed out, hitting the shield. I sighed. I could test out Jibe Jab now at least-
The goblin's eyes cleared, and it howled a familiar war cry. Then it ran away.
That's new.
"Hello?" I said, "I thought that they couldn't stop themselves from attacking. Unless there's something else it was in the middle of fight- The goblin was fighting someone. Someone who threw the goblin to land here!"
(I will admit, this was a bit of a leap in logic. But a month and a half in solitary freedom did things to a man.)
I stood, frozen. There was someone else in this forest. A person?! And they were close.
"Open Status," I said, watching the menu open before me.
I had 'leveled up' repeatedly since coming to this world. Back then, I was level 1 with only fifteen health that drained alarmingly fast. I still didn't understand how these numbers worked, but I was now level twelve.
With an HP of 180, I could theoretically tank twelve times more damage. Most of that was XP was from killing the giant, but I didn't know how to use it yet. In the system I was working with, once I gained XP it was stored rather than automatically increasing my level. Like Skyrim.
My stats like strength and speed increased with levels at a flat rate as well, but I could tell that there was more to the system. Portions of my leveling menu that weren't loading right, probably due to the Inheritance process being unfinished.
I can't keep talking to my spear, I thought, This is the closest anyone has been in a month and a half. I've seen how far this forest goes. There's no one closer. It might be…forever.
I gripped my spear and said, "I won't get killed in one hit anymore. Not by goblins at least. That shadow doesn't seem to be around, and these folks might need my help-"
Another goblin screamed and fell nearby, missing the shield and splatting.
"Or they may not," I said, feeling my gut churn, "They seem to have things under control. I could just stay in here. Safe. Alone."
My courage had grown in the past month, but the thought of leaving shook me. I could die out there. But I could die any day, especially with my cholesterol. I doubted that the healing potion stripped the fat from my veins.
I was mortal. This wasn't a game. And because it was real, I would be missing out on much more if I didn't try. Because it was real, I would have to live with the regret.
I looked at my spear. Champion.
"All right, Grandpa," I looked to the house, "You put me up to this. You better watch over me as I do this."