With teeth clenched, and a sweat covered face, Ryan scrambles away from the reach of the slime as fast as he can. While crawling on the ground in retreat, Ryan discovers his inability to get back to his feet, and he turns his head back towards the slime, only to see the slime once again launching itself at him. He rolls himself over to the side, barely dodging the slimes attack, while at the same time scraping his new injury against the rough grass covering the forest floor. A whimper escapes from Ryan's mouth, as the pain has surpassed the point of screams for him, but with shaking hands, he grapples for his staff on his waist in order to defend himself from further injury. After a few tries, he grasps it and clenches it as tightly as he can. Then, with a bit of a stutter, he speaks out the words to his sole spell, but as he has lost the capacity to use the newer utilization of the spell he had created in these moments of anguish, out spurts a stream of flame impacting the rear of the slightly disoriented slime instead.

After a few moments the slime evaporates, leaving nothing behind but the remnant heat from the spell. Ryan, still confined to the forest floor, drags himself over to his crutch that he left behind when retreating, so as to escape from the restrictive grasp of the earth. After a dozen odd seconds of steadily inching forwards, he grabs his crutch and pulls himself back up to his feet. He then hurriedly hobbles over to the river where he dips his left leg into its chilling waters. A sharp gasp of pain escapes from Ryan's mouth, and after a few moments of centering himself, he dips his hands into the waters to clean off whatever remnants are still tainting his wounds. As he cleans his wounds, a red tint colors the nearby water, and haggard breaths flow in and out through his gritted teeth. His fingers grows slowly numb as they touch upon the strong acid-like fluid on his leg, which prompts Ryan to then begin using the last remaining intact cloth strip that is wrapped around his leg as a cleaning cloth, and after a few more minutes of careful scrubbing, the increasing intensity of the pain finally halts, and a relieved expression finally takes hold on Ryan's face.

Shortly after the cleaning of the wound, Ryan removes the other pant leg of his and wraps it around the sloughing, hole riddled, and blood stained skin of his calf. He then hobbles back towards the forest and picks up a pair of sticks off of the ground to re-stint his leg, using the sleeves of his uniform. After finishing tending to his wounds, Ryan finally walks himself back to his next great obstacle, climbing to the top of one of the trees with one disabled leg.

'I don't think I'm going to be able to climb up to the canopy tonight.', Ryan thinks to himself.

"Wait a second...", he says in contemplation.

'What if I do this? Hmm... Yes, that should work.'

Ryan then begins slowly walking around the surrounding area, apparently looking for something, and after a short while he stops in front of a tree with a trunk of a visibly greater thickness than the surrounding ones. A small smirk graces his face as he begins chanting his spell, with his staff pointed directly at the trunk. A thin blade-like stream of fire flows out of the jewel adorning the staff, and cuts into the thick trunk, slicing through it in a matter of seconds, leaving behind a pungent and nose-irritating smell of ash. Ryan stands next to the now sliced through trunk, and pushes on the amputated section of the tree, causing it to slowly tip over and land on the forest floor with a loud bang, followed by the intense rustling of countless leaves and branches.

Ryan walks his way over to the blackened bottom of the tree and once again starts casting his spell, which once again causes a spurt of thin flame to shoot out of the staff, and carve away at the sturdy wood in front of him. After around 15 minutes of slowly burning away the inside of the trunk, a 7 foot deep, 4 foot in diameter, chamber lies inside the toppled tree. Ryan wipes off the buildup of sweat upon his brow, and he walks along the side of the chamber and cuts a thin slit along the side of the trunk, just near the entrance. After finishing that, he walks over to the 2 foot tall remnant stump, and cuts off a thin, about 3 inch thick, slice off the top of it. He then rolls the slightly uneven circular piece of wood back over to the chamber, places it upon the ground, bends down, and with another stream of flame, he cuts a small rectangular handhold near the edge, and a smaller circular peephole near the center. He then walks over the piles of leaves, cluttering the ground from the fall of the tree, and slowly moves them into the chamber inside the tree. After a few more minutes, a comfortable looking nest is formed within the blackened wood chamber. Soon after, with some struggle, Ryan lifts the prepared circle of wood into the thin slit upon the trunk of the tree and it slides directly into it with a loud thump, blocking off its contents to the outside world.

With a wide smile, Ryan says to the empty forest, "Not too shabby if I do say so myself."

He then walks forwards to the "door" of his room for the night, and with a bit of effort, he lifts the shutter-like circular door, and slips into the comforting nest he has made for himself. In his tiny hovel, surrounding him is the smoothed surface of charred wood that carries throughout the small space, a scent similar to a fireplace. He lays himself down on his nest of leaves and after positioning himself in such a way that it feels like he is back in an actual bed, but before going to sleep he opens up his profile one more time.

-General Information- Name: Ryan Mitchel Age: 23 Race: Human Level: 0 Stat Points: 1 Gold: 3 -Stats- Vitality: 9 Health Points(HP): 65/90 Physical Resistance: 0.21% Stamina: 12 Stamina Points(SP): 120/120 Constitution: 11 HP Regeneration: 1.1% per 5 Minutes SP Regeneration: 1.1% per 5 Minutes Intelligence: 13 Mana Points(MP): 7/130 Magical Resistance: 0.28% Wisdom: 15 MP Regeneration: 1.5% per 5 Minutes Luck: 0 Critical Hit: 0% Affliction Resistance: 0.11% -Titles- -Traits- The Curse of Cronus -Skills- Stealth Commands -Afflictions- The Conqueror's Encouragement Sprained Ankle Acid Burn (Small)

"So there's the gold, hmm. Also that was cutting it pretty close on the MP front.", Ryan whispered to himself gently.

"Well let's see what this next thing does; Identify."

Acid Burn (Small) Affliction Rank: D This affliction lowers HP by 15 points which are unable to be regenerated by the body unassisted; it also increases damage received when injured on the same area where this affliction is located, by 50%. This affliction will heal naturally after 36 hours, upon which health can be regenerated as per normal, and the increased damage sustained penalty will disappear. Using healing items or healing spells to fully regenerate the lost HP will immediately dispel this affliction. A small burn sustained from an acid related attack, which, if left uncleaned and/or untreated, will expand in both scale and intensity over time. It will also cause immense pain when touched. Time left until healed: 35:08:23

"Well they did get the bit about the pain right.", Ryan says aloud with a slight tone of playfulness in his voice, while half expecting the mysterious admin to respond, but no response is given.

Ryan then opens up the description of the sprained ankle and sees the timer at just over 9 and a half hours.

"I hope I don't have to hunt for breakfast with a crutch", he mutters to himself.

Then as Ryan turns his eyes back to his profile's information he exclaims, "Oh I almost forgot about the Stat Point."

'Command List'

"Now let's see here... There it is; ' Apply'."

Which Stat would you like to use your Stat Point on?

"Intelligence.", Ryan says after reading the new message in front of him.

Would you like to spend your Stat Point on Intelligence, raising it from 13 to 14. Yes/No

"Yes.", and after a few seconds pass by with his intelligence raised, Ryan's thoughts flow freely from his mouth.

"I don't feel any smarter, but I guess it doesn't matter that much anyway."

After giving his retort to the seemingly automated message, Ryan closes his eyes and begins positioning himself in a good sleeping position when he feels a small lump in his back pocket that he didn't notice before. He reaches back and pulls out the small object from his pocket, and places it in front of his face to try and see what it is in the dim light of his midnight hovel. Reflecting the sparse light in the tree, the small mass of a slime core is positioned in front of his eyes, slightly wriggling.

"I can't believe I almost forgot about you too."

Ryan then places the slime core in his mouth, and his tongue is impacted by that familiar sour taste, making his lips pucker once again.

Congratulations, the slime core has healed you for 1 HP.

"Nice.", Ryan exclaims.

He then opens up the countdown timer on his first injury and it reads at just about 7 hours.

"Now it should be gone by morning.", Ryan says joyfully, and within a few minutes he lies there, asleep, tucked away in a tiny shelter of wood, with a small grin donning his face.

***

A desperate squeal of pain echoes throughout the small hovel, awaking Ryan from his restful sleep. He lets out an extended yawn, and takes in a deep breath of the fresh scent of morning. As his tired eyes slowly open up to observe his surroundings, a ray of light shines through the hole in the doorway causing Ryan to avert his gaze quickly. Suddenly another, almost bloodcurdling squeal of pain rings out, startling Ryan, causing him to jump a little bit in fright, and scrape his injured leg on some of the rougher parts of his "nest". As he grips his calf in pain, coupled with a few sharp exhales through gritted teeth, he works his way over to the peephole in the "door", and he peers out of it.

Just a few feet away, Ryan sees a pair of slimes huddled around a certain area. As he looks through their translucent bodies, he sees the remains of a rabbit slowly being dissolved away; first the fur bubbling away into a goop of white before disappearing altogether, followed by the skin, revealing the muscles, veins, arteries, and organs, excreting the blood contained within them to the grasp of whatever digestive means the slimes use to consume. They then start dissolving the skeleton left behind, although it is at a slower rate than before. Ryan then slowly lifts the door in front of him, and places it down as softly as he can, and begins chanting his spell in as small a voice as possible, so as not to alert the still "eating" slimes. A great ball of fire, about 3 feet in diameter, forms in front of him after a few seconds, using twice the amount of mana needed to kill one slime. Ryan then wills it forwards and it impacts the two, still eating, slimes directly, condemning the pair to a fate of evaporation, with all that is left behind being a slime core and a golden coin.

Coupled with the death of his enemies in front of him, a window appears in front of Ryan displaying a brief congratulations to him.

Congratulations, your skill, "Fire Creation", has leveled up to level 4.

Ryan then walks forwards and collects his spoils of battle, which he quickly uses. First the gold coin which brings his counter up to four, and with bated breath, he swallows the slime core, which as he had dreaded, did nothing once again. With a downcast expression, Ryan walks towards the river where he cleans his face of both, the buildup of dirt, and his current negative expression. He then glances down at his left leg and realizes that he had no need for his splint anymore He begins carefully untying it, making sure to avoid the other injury his leg has, leaving only the wrappings for the acid burn around his calf.

"That feels better.", Ryan says aloud while lightly rubbing the marks left behind by the splint.

Ryan then stands back to his feet after taking a few sips of water, but immediately after rising to his feet, a loud rumbling sound coming from his stomach quickly grabs his attention.

'I should probably find something to eat soon.'

Ryan then begins searching the nearby area in earnest to see if he can find more of those berries from earlier, but unluckily for him, after around half an hour of searching no sign of them can be found. Although unlucky in his search for the berries he had fortunately found himself the tracks of a wild animal.

"Bingo.", Ryan says with a wide smirk on his face, after which he begins following the tracks into the depths of the forest.

***

Some time later, Ryan, now with a decent buildup of sweat upon his forehead, crouches in the shallow brush as he gazes upon a three-ish foot boar. Although looking a little young, the boar still wields a fearsome looking pair of tusks. As it sniffs around the ground looking for food, Ryan, still hiding, begins chanting his spell the moment the boar looks away from his hiding spot. Soon the enormous fireball that he has been using consistently so far appears in front of him, but given he doesn't know the HP of the enemy in front of him, he pours in around 30 MP into it, before shooting it off at the beast's behind.

The boar then turns around suddenly, as if it had noticed the great foe lying in wait behind, but it was all too late for it, as the fireball was already flying directly towards it, and it directly impacted boar's face. A deafening squeal in pain echoes throughout the nearby forest, as the now deformed boar rampages blindly, trying to rid itself of the being who harmed it. Ryan, a bit surprised at the boar surviving from that hit, prepares another fireball in front of him with a chant, but the boar, still searching for its enemy, charges towards Ryan when hearing the magical phrase escape from his mouth. He then panickingly dashes to the side to avoid the reckless charge of the boar, and the boar, unable to see in front of itself anymore after being blinded, rams into the sturdy trunk of a nearby tree, resulting in its tusks being lodged in its rigid wood.

Ryan, sighing in relief of his luck, quickly begins another chant as the creaking from the struggle the wood of the trunk is enduring begins to intensify in volume. Shortly after, a 20 MP ball of fire impacts the behind of the immobile beast, spelling its death, and with it, the savory scent of cooked bacon escapes from its charred rear end.

Taking a deep breath of the alluring scent hanging in the air, Ryan's mouth begins drooling heavily as he walks towards the corpse of the animal. Over the next couple of dozen minutes, with a strenuous effort, Ryan brings his spoils of battle back with him to the shore, where he drains the blood of the boar as best as he can recall from what he had read, and seen in movies and in tv when he was younger. He then begins his novice attempt at removing the edible parts of the boar and placing them aside while leaving behind the inedible bits, but as one can expect, a lot of waste comes with this without the aid of an experienced teacher.

***

Around 45 minutes later, resting in front of Ryan is the small flame of a fresh fire and roasting near it are a few rough cuts of meat placed upon a few sharpened sticks. A sweet scent roams around the surrounding area beckoning those who are lucky enough to catch a whiff of its delectable scent, to partake in consuming it. Nearby sits Ryan, drool leaking from one of the corners of his mouth, as he turns the meat over, making sure that it is cooked evenly. After a few more minutes of holding himself back, the mouthwatering meat from the boar, dripping with juices and sporting a healthy char, is finally done. Ryan then anxiously grabs one of the sticks, and he ravenously begins devouring the deliciousness resting on it. After just a few bites, what can only be described as an expression of pure ecstasy makes its home on Ryan's face. He then works his way through nearly half of the rest of the meat in only a few short minutes, before slowing down his pace somewhat, and in the end, leaving behind 3 skewers for later.

With a full stomach, and a tattered orange uniform with a few new stains upon it, Ryan sets himself back on his journey, carrying his remaining skewers for lunch later in the day.

***

After a few more hours of walking, and finishing his remaining food during that time, Ryan finally arrives at the end of the river, just a couple dozen or so feet away from that shadowy building he set as his goal. A dense fog surrounds the building, seemingly building up an atmosphere of uneasiness for the coming area. As he continues walking forwards, slowly, details of the building ahead begin to reveal themselves from behind the fog. A pile of rubble here, a vine riddled stone wall there, and a large door lying on the ground over there. After tens of steps, the fog suddenly clears and the ruins of what seemed to be a once majestic castle display themselves proudly in front of Ryan.

With a mouth agape at the sight in front of him, Ryan mutters aloud, "Haven't seen anything like this before.", after which he calms himself and prepares for the challenge he is about to face.

Through the open doorway of the towering building before him -- a three story castle made of a sturdy looking black stone, unfamiliar to Ryan, covered with numerous overgrown vines creeping along the ridges and cracks decorating its walls -- a small cluster of slimes can be seen wandering through the sprawling courtyard, a mere dozen or so feet through the doorway. Ryan glances around and sees the set of thick, possibly bronze doors that now lie on the ground just in front of the doorway, which have succumbed to the grasp of nature, as only a remnant glimmer of their once bright metal can be seen from beneath the grass encompassing them.

Ryan then observes the group of slimes and counts a full five slimes, a number that he isn't too sure of being able to defeat as he stands now. He then stealthily inches backwards into the fog, where he won't be accidentally seen by the group, and he begins thinking of a plan of action.

'I won't be able to deal with five whole slimes at once, when it takes a couple of seconds just to gather the MP needed to one-shot one of them.'

"Hmm."

"I didn't want to have to do this again, but I guess I have no choice... It's time to learn another spell.", says Ryan, followed by a depressed sigh.

'Skill Tree.'

As he examines the skill tree he thinks of what spell he should acquire from it.

'So there are three spells I can get now, one that seems to be a defensive spell, one that seems to be something like my ball of fire I made, and the last one a multi-target spell. Well there really is no back and forth needed about what skill to get here. Learn.'

Would you like to learn the skill, "Multiple Fire Arrows". Upon acquiring the skill, there will be an influx of information into your mind detailing how to use the skill. During this influx of information, you will be able to observe and comprehend the perfect way of executing the skill. The more you comprehend the higher the level the skill will start at; the default level of all skills is level 1. Be warned that all skill acquisitions are final, and there is no undoing one. Yes/No

'I really didn't want to experience that sensation again, but I guess I don't really have much of a choice when confronted with that many enemies. Well here goes.'

Ryan then sits himself down on the ground, and bites down on a stick he grabs off of the nearby grass in preparation for what is to come. Then, through gritted teeth, he mutters, "Yes."

A nearly endless stream of information detailing every bit of information concerning the spell he is learning, down to the exact temperature of the flame created, flows into Ryan's head, and symptoms similar to a seizure quickly appear across his body. After a few dozen seconds, the flow stops, and Ryan collapses onto his back in exhaustion.

"I don't think I'm ever going to get used to that.", Ryan says through quickened breaths, and at the same time a new window appears in front of him.

Congratulations on acquiring the skill, "Multiple Fire Arrows". The starting level of this skill is level 2.

A few seconds later, after calming himself down from that unpleasant experience, Ryan opens up his profile and identifies his new skill.

Multiple Fire Arrows Skill Rank: E Grants the user the ability to create multiple arrows of fire that can either target one enemy or many. Creates one arrow per 20 MP inputted into the skill up to a maximum of 3. Currently each arrow created does 16 damage. A novice fire magic spell, specialized in dealing with multiple enemies, although it is still effective when facing a sole enemy.

Skill Level: 2

Ryan then slowly gets back to his feet, wields his staff, and begins walking back through the fog, determined to survive the perilous battle in front of him.