Chapter 9: The plot

I stared at the eyes holding my gaze, my breath caught in my throat. It was no more than thirty metres away from me. There were no two ways about it, the thing in front of me could possibly kill me. In fact, I was hundred percent sure of it.

That thing would kill me, given the chance.

Nervously I licked my lips before gulping. It had moved closer to me.

I narrowed the gap between my lips and whispered “Identify” softly and just hoped my one secondary attribute, Perception would be high enough to couple with my Intelligence to be able to fully identify one of the creatures in the biome for the first time.

I held my breath.

Then I saw the words filling out some of the question marks! I wanted to jump in jubilation, but I held it in with every ounce of my ability. If this thing got aggressive and attacked me...

Sweat ran down my forehead. It cooled down considerably on its path, but the sun kept it from freezing this time. Without warning, the creature moved.

I froze, but it quickly bounded away. With a woosh I breathed out in deep relief.

My hand swept away the sweat from my brow and I actually started breathing normally again.

A plan formed in my mind. I could not fight a single thing in this biome with my bare fists or my single Knife and even think of possibly winning. There was just no way. So, I was thinking about creating an elaborate trap for one of the mobs in the biome and use gravity to assist me in slaying a monster.

I thought back to the creature and its beady eyes and anxiousness bubbled up in me. If I miscalculate and the trap did not kill it, then I will be dinner for that thing without a doubt.

I started chopping at a bigger tree in the patch of trees. It still drove the paranoia high in me as the noise rolled out in waves as I worked. But, then minutes later, I scrambled around the tree and watched as it cracked and started to fall.

Then with a surprisingly gentle let down, it fell into the thick snow. Even so, I looked around frantically. But my efforts had only startled a fox. A deadly killer fox… I shook my head.

The tree was big enough that my arms only barely got around it. I started chopping it into large logs used in my trap. What followed was mindless repetition. Yet, it was sooo necessary.

An hour passed when I suddenly got a notification.

Ping!

Muscle Memory + 1

Grip +1

“Nice.” I said and continued working the logs and using the flexible bark to braid together makeshift ropes.

The chopping was probably responsible for two of my secondary attributes going up. Already the swings of my knife felt a little more natural. Grip was a nice one as it meant having a stronger and firmer hold on whatever I was holding or carrying.

At the moment, every little bit extra help was more than welcome. It made me think about not having a class to assist my progress in such a lethal environment. Still, I had a chance. If I could defeat one monster in this biome, it would improve the odds of my getting out of here by more than a hundred fold.

Gladness bubbled up in me that during that mad flight my skinning knife wasn’t pulled away. The only means to I could survive in the cold. Well, with what I had, anyway.

Breathing out, I looked at my handy work.

I now had several ropes tied to two four big pieces of log. Essentially big swinging hammers. I would need as much force as I could muster.

During my time chopping, my exposure bar slowly depleted down from halfway. At least during a sunny day it took a couple of hours instead of minutes for it to go down. There was still no way I could go exploring. I needed to be close to a fire with the clothes I was wearing. But, more, I had no clue what kind of monsters were out there. As if reminding me of the cold, I realized the stinging in my hands had gotten worse, so I stumbled back to my fire and warmed up a bit.

Looking back out over the snow expanse that surrounded my precious clump of trees, I studied the landscapes a bit better for the first time since my mad dash to find a shelter and building a fire.

Apart from the more flat area of snow around my trees, there was a hillside to the direction of the morning sun. Big rocks stood about its face. But, that could mean caves and caves could either mean better shelter or more than likely, instant death.

I would need to be incredibly cautious if I thought about exploring there. I leaned out of my shelter and looked away from where the sun was shining. There was a frozen waterfall that way, and from there clearly a stream that led in a direction away from me. That was an option for water. Eating snow was a last resort sure, as it is fine for drinking water, but it would cool down my core majorly and make my exposure bar plummet.

As my exposure bar reached full capacity, I grabbed a few ropes and went to a tree I felt suitable for my trap. I quickly climbed to a reasonable height, tied a secure knot, and went about setting the scene of my stand.

It took me two more hours to tie together all the ropes and add the manual trigger, which was me. But, just to be sure I tied a second trap with a lot of sharp pointy sticks on them. A ball of, do not mess with me.

Ping!

Skill gained.

Trap Maker II [Novice]

Having made big strides in functional traps, you now have higher percentage damage when setting up an ambush and resetting your traps.

+ 5 % Surprise attack damage

+ 20 % Chance to quickly reset a sprung trap.

The skill gain did not surprise me as much. I had it before while at my much higher level. Just the thought of the game nerfing me made me want to wrestle a bear again.

I sat up.

My sword was inside Mr. Scary Bear’s leg! That got me thinking, if I could go in the direction of where I saw the bear land, I might get my sword back! But... that would mean making a big trek over dangerous lands with just a knife and in clothes ill equipped for being outside too long. And what of the bear was still alive!? It out levelled me by a very very big margin.

“Ughhh!” I threw up my hands in frustration. That was a pipe dream. A very ambitious pipe dream.

I sighed and rubbed my temples to soothe my overworked brain. Now was not the time for crazy schemes. First plan had to be first.

I eased back, with my hand on the first trap’s rope. I would wait. The fire crackled behind me, giving me much needed heat as I hoped one of the smaller creatures would approach first. Bigger now meant me running away like a wild pig screaming for my life. Not many mucho points in that, but eh, I needed to survive to help other people. As I sat there reciting the quite considerable list of people at the dome that got struck by the Surge while in game. I needed to remember their in game names to recognize the ones that were in the most immediate danger.

I sighed. I was in immediate danger hanging around in this high-level biome… Shaking it off, I kept my focus as best as I could.

My eyes started dipping as I waited. The wind only gushed enough to shake me a bit more alert and it only happened now and then. But, luckily, no bigger creatures approached my trees. Yet.

Small snowflakes drifted down, it was like a gentle lullaby…

I started awake. The sun was almost completely below the tree line.

Whoa. I had nodded of for quite a while.

My eyes drifted down and immediately my entire gut turned to a knot. There sat my quarry. No more than fifteen metres from me. I dared not make any fast movements as I double-checked if my trap would go off in the right location.

I gulped. It had been my plan to let the furthest traps start the process, but now only the closest two had any chance of hitting the beast.

“Identify.” I said softly. I had to be sure this one was still in my reading bracket.

Dire Ermine

[Monster] Level 30

Ermines are normally peaceful critters that are well suited for the snowy landscape. With their elongated bodies they are able to squeeze into smaller tunnels to hunt their favourite prey, the giant moles. Their pelts, though sleek are excellent to keep the cold out. Little is known about what set about the change to the Dire version of the species. It is, however, known that they have outgrown most of their own kind. Known to attack much larger prey even without provocation, they are best handled with caution.

[Extra Info]

??

[Dangerous]

The monster licked its lips. And I was almost certain that it thought I would make a yummy snack.

“You will have to fight for it.” I said and gripped the rope to the trap closest to it.

It was a little bigger as a house cat. But one thing was definitely certain, I was not going to underestimate a Level 30 monster, no matter how cute or cuddly it looked. The fact that it didn’t have the Critter or the Animal tag, just made me really cautious of the thing.

I waited for it to inch closer. Yup it was definitely up to something.

My knuckles tightened around the rope. Every muscle in me was ready to spring. Though, a smile did tug at my lips. The scene had to look super weird. Me being tensed like a knot while I waited to ambush something that looked like a big fluffy wiener dog mixed with a fox. But, I had little time to enjoy the absurd situation.

I was ready-

A white flash jumped from the side. I recoiled and glanced to the side. A second Dire Ermine came running towards me from the left.

“Agh!”

Instinct made me pull my second rope sending the closest spiked trap tumbling down in a swinging arc. It hit the new Dire Ermine and disappeared to the side with thing squealing. I had no time to see what happened. The first Dire Ermine had launched the moment I tugged at the other rope. I scrambled to grab the first rope and pull just in the nick of time. A whoosh sound filled the air and then a loud crash as two of my hammer traps collided.

Thankfully, it managed to slam into the first enemy. I watched it fall over. A dazed icon appeared above its head.

I reached for my knife.

A bloody streak came barrelling into me. I rolled with the Dire Ermine out of the heat from my fire. Almost immediately, I had to block the Ermine from biting me in the face. My forearm trembled as even its much smaller body was already close to overpowering my feeble level 1 strength. I could only hold it of for a couple of seconds more. I had to get to my knife. It was the only way.

As it pressed, I used its strength against it and just let it come, but deflecting the bite at the last second. With a deep breath, I flung the body of the Dire Ermine over my shoulder and jumped into motion. I got my knee under me and sprang forward, stumbling as I grabbed my knife. With my momentum, I was sent past my shelter towards the first trap that have gone off. I spun around, ready to finish off the one Dire Ermine.

Yet, when I looked, I could see a limping but definitely awake Dire Ermine and the bloody Dire Ermine stalking towards me.

Uh-oh.

I strode back, keeping my muscles tense. This was trouble. The first Dire Ermine looked about half health, and the bloody Dire Ermine looked about quarter of its health left. I squinted above them and could see I was right. Their health bars echoed my guess. Still… the skull next to it did little to comfort me. These things were waaaay way above my ability.

I was anxious about taking on the crippled one alone… never mind the half health one.

I shook my head. The situation wasn’t going to change with worrying. I had to out think them.

As we moved, I studied my options with mere glances, never fully taking my gaze away from my two adversaries.

There was the fire. But, that was to the right and enclosed in my shelter. The two un-triggered traps were still in play, but their ropes were behind the Dire Ermines. I bit my lip. My options weren’t good. The knife would only hold off the one for a few moments at best. If only the other Dire Ermine was still dazed.

Then something painfully pinched my calve, I shot my eyes back to see the spike trap right there.

“Okay, let’s dance.” I said, as I lifted my knife to a ready position. I made a mock jerk towards the one with more health, hoping it would come jumping first.

Luckily, my plan worked, and as it sailed through the air towards me, I jumped to the side. I heard a yelp, followed by silence. I rolled up just in time to see the bloody Dire Ermine right there fangs gaping.

I fell back into the snow and held up my knife.

The next moment, the Dire Ermine’s fang caught my arm and I could see an icon flashing.

Critical Strike!

My health bar went from fifty to ten in a single moment.

I cringed, expecting the second attack to surely finish me off. Nothing came…

Opening my eyes, I looked at the defeated Dire Ermine on my knife, its tooth still on my arm. Without waiting, I threw it off and stared to the spike trap. My breath caught as I saw the second one hanging there without movement.

My breath gushed out and I stood up glancing into the now darkness around. No movement presented itself.

Ping!

I ignored it as a flashing bar caught my attention. I gasped. My exposure was a sliver from being depleted! I ran towards the fire, but made sure to quickly grab both the bodies of the Dire Ermines. There was no way I was going to leave anything to chance. Though a despawn that quick was highly unlikely, after the Surge I wasn’t sure what glitches roamed the game.

Just in time I reached the fire, my exposure bar had depleted a moment before. But before my little health could whittle down even more, the exposure started evening out again.

I breathed heavily after my fight, glad I had come out on top when the odds were completely stacked against me. Luck had played quite the role.

My hands shook as I closed my shelter to the outside world. As I sat down, I tapped the closest Dire Ermine, the one that had ambushed me from the side.

Dire Ermine

[Monster] Level 32

Hmm it was two levels higher than the other one…

I scanned past the info I have already seen and saw what I was looking for

[Search Loot]

Average Dire Ermine pelt[Crafting Material]

Three Dire Ermine Fangs[Crafting Material]

Raw Meat x2

I tapped loot all and watched as the body turned to dust and only the loot remaining. I grabbed the Raw Meat and stuck it on a stick over the fire. I was hungry and I needed the extra health regen from the food.

I turned to the other Dire Ermine and tapped the body.

Dire Ermine

[Monster] Level 30

….

….

[Search Loot]

Good Dire Ermine pelt[Crafting Material]

Four Dire Ermine Fangs[Crafting Material]

Raw Meat x 2

I tapped the loot all and repeated the process with getting the meat over the fire. The adrenaline of the fight left me and I felt like I had run ten kilometres. I sat back and twisted a fang in my hand. Then I remembered the system prompts!

I tapped my status and was bombarded with messages.

[Perceived an ambush of a monster 20 levels higher]

+2 Perception

XP gained 300

[Sprung a trap successfully for the first time]

+1 Wildcraft

XP Gained 170

[Survive a brawl with a monster or NPC of 20 levels or higher]

+ 1 Toughness

+1 Grip

XP gained 500

[Tricks up your sleeves: Adapt to your combat situation and lure your adversary into unperceived harms way]

+1 Insight

XP gained 480

Defeated Dire Ermine Level 30

XP gained 200+ Level difference = 2280

[Survived a direct attack from a monster or NPC 20 levels or higher]

+1 Toughness

+1 Body

XP gained 880

Defeated Dire Ermine Level 32

XP gained 220+ Level difference = 2500

Level up!

I gasped. That was something! Quickly I tapped my Character Status on the right.

Wil Stormchild

Race: Norskai

Level: 1 + 5

________ [Primary Class][Search for a main class tree in game.]

________ [Secondary Class][Explore and find your first sub class tree in the world] world]

Health: 40

Energy Bar: 50 [Tier 0 accessible]

Armor Class: 12

…

…

[...]

[Attributes]

Choose the Attributes you wish to increase. This will affect your character.

[Points to allocate=15]

Strength 11

Vitality 11

Agility 10

Willpower 10

Intelligence 10

Acrobatics 10

Luck 12

[Race Attributes]

The Norskai is a hardy people from the cold north. They have survived through severe weather conditions their entire lives. Where others would have quickly perished, they remained and so they have gained firsthand knowledge how to endure and stand fast in times when storms would hit at a moment’s notice.

Endurance 1

Survival 3

I allocated the points without waiting and checked again.

Wil Stormchild

Race: Norskai

Level: 6

________ [Primary Class][Search for a main class tree in game.]

________ [Secondary Class][Explore and find your first sub class tree in the world]

Health: 85

Energy Bar: 80 [Tier 0 accessible]

Armor Class: 12

>Equipped Weapons and Runes:

Skinning Knife []

>Equipped Armor and Runes:

Stout Shirt {little to no shielding against the elements}

Stout Pants {ittle to no shielding against the elements}

Etched Silver Gauntlet -single- [Stone body II-Rune][Missing second gauntlet _ effectiveness halved.]

>Equiped Trinkets:

Shadow Veil Ring [Stealth +10%]

[...]

[Attributes]

Choose the Attributes you wish to increase. This will affect your character.

[Points to allocate=0]

Strength 15

Vitality 15

Agility 11

Willpower 13

Intelligence 10

Acrobatics 10

Luck 13

[Race Attributes]

Endurance 1

Survival 4

My body slumped in relief. In one attack, my chances went from very very very very low, to just very very low. It gave me somewhat of a fighting chance in such a high level biome.

My head pressed against one of the support beams of my makeshift shelter. Sleep was high up on my list of things to do. But, looking down to my bare feet, there was no doubt that it had to wait. If it had been the real world, frostbite would have started to set in ages ago. That in part was lucky. Still, it didn’t make situation any less dire. I had zero confidence of being able to explore the woods and the rocky hillside in the direction of where my flight through the sky took me. Stuff in there was going to rip me apart even at level 6. And actually seeing the levels of the Dire Ermines made me guess this was at least a level 35-40 zone. Just my luck...

It complicated matters utterly, especially with me missing my classes.

Yet, it couldn’t be helped, I made the choice of stabbing that bear mid flight to escape being thrown into an incredibly long winded tutorial.

Wiggling my toes, I sat up and decided to do something about my cold feet. If I succeeded, it would increase my time able to brave the area away from my fire. I grabbed the Dire Ermine pelts.

I laid them out before me and was happy that they were more than big enough to cover my feet and my ankles. I took my skinning knife and carved both pelts in half, using the better pelt for my actual feet and the average pelt for going around my ankles. Wrapping the better pelts around my feet, I used the knife to make small incisions to make the fit better. Next, I picked up the flexible bark strips. An idea popped into my head and wondered if it would work I said,

“Identify.”

Maple Inner Bark

The Maple tree’s inner bark is flexible and strong. Can be used for crafting and weaving. Also a little known fact, it is edible.

??

[Extra Info]

Crafting material

Fibre

Raw Food

??

My eyes widened. I did not know that! It made me wonder what the hidden properties of it were.

I turned around and tapped a log of the same tree but was surprised.

Maple Sap

This sweet sap is edible.

??

[Extra Info]

Cooking ingredient

Alchemical ingredient

??

I looked down and saw the sap that I had tapped on. It made me want to hit myself of playing this game without actually observing the world. It actually made me wonder. I hadn’t heard any of the players talk about hidden properties of things in the wild. Was it new? Or did no one ever bothered to identify normally boring stuff. A good question to be sure. At the very least, I now knew that there were far more to any biome than just different roaming monsters. I actually tapped the wood from the log next.

Maple Tree Wood

Excellent use for crafting and quite flammable.

[Extra Info]

Crafting material

Wood

Nodding I looked back to the pelts I was busy shaping for my feet when I received a notification.

Ping!

[Paying close to the nature around you have detected several hidden properties.]

+2 Insight

+1 Perception

Skill gained!

Herbalism I[Novice]

You have gained an eye to spot natural materials that can be used for various purposes.

+1 Wildcraft

+1 Scavenge

Flabbergasted, I tapped on my Character Status and scrolled down to my Skills for the first time since being plunged into this zone. Surprise struck me straight in the middle of my forehead.

[Skills]:

Monster Wrestler I [Advance]

You have wrestled valiantly against

monsters of all sizes, and have even discriminated against

the peaceful monster bears of the Hem Iree Woods.

With it, you have gained extra bonus strength when you attempt a grapple while unarmed.

Strength +5 while grappling.

Bears will be even more wary of you

Wilderness Skill I [Novice] (+1)

You gained awareness of the natural compounds around you.

With a bit of focus you can spot and use naturally occurring materials to survive.

+2 Perception

Patient Endurance I [Novice] (+1)

When pressure is high and most would start to panic, you have learned how to keep focus on the critical task at hand.

+2 Patience

Trap Maker II [Novice] (+2)

Having made big strides in functional traps, you now have higher percentage damage when setting up an ambush and resetting your traps.

+ 5 % Surprise attack damage

+ 20 % Chance to quickly reset a sprung trap.

Herbalism I[Novice]

You have gained an eye to spot natural materials that can be used for various purposes.

+1 Wildcraft

+1 Scavenge

No way! I kept my Monster Wrestler skill? That was amazing! No wonder I could hold out a bit when that Dire Ermine jumped me. It made me think. I had extra points to allocate when the game dropped me in the snow. Which meant the new level and the new skill had stayed untouched. It never finished completely dragging me back to a complete rookie. And I was extremely glad it hadn’t. But, the herbalism was a surprise too, I never had it at my previous level. It wasn’t added with the patch, that much was sure, I had heard people talk of it before. But, I thought it was a Sub class they had found in the level 5-10 zone. Now, it made wonder what kind of other skills I had missed while busy playing the enforcer. If I had to guess one, it would be alchemy. If I could perceive the Maple sap as an Alchemical ingredient, it meant it probably wasn’t a class. Through and through, I was sure I would be looking out for hidden skills from now on.

While pondering the this whole new part of the game, I went back weaving the inner bark strips through little holes I made with the skinning knife. Some boots would be nice.