A warm sun, a gentle breeze, the feeling of the grass beneath my body...

"The fuck?" Opening my eyes and jumping from the ground I voice the most rhetorical question possible in such a situation.

It took me several minutes to understand what was happening, after all, I was sure that I went to sleep in the 'Suite' kindly provided to me by my Goddess.

It turned out that for some reason she did not wake me before transporting me into my so dreamed fantasy world. Could it be fear of more demands from me? Not wanting to hear my last, at least until I managed to establish her as a goddess, speech? Or simply as a small vengeance because of how I have been acting towards her?

In any case, the reason behind this was unimportant, especially in my situation.

So let's first confirm it before starting to plan what to do. But before...

"SEPYRE!!!! I SINCERELY HOPE YOU FALL INTO SOME KIND OF HEAVENLY SHIT!"

"Haa..." After my vocal exercise, it was time to return to reality.

My status screen worked as intended, and so I instantly found out that there were no health problems and everything about my skills, etc. remained identical as yesterday.

Now I had to understand where I was, so I took my time looking around. My location could be described as a small green hill in a vast plain. Apart from the grass and a few bushes, the hill did not contain anything of interest. As for the grass-covered plain, except for the mountains a pair of km behind me and some kind of forest or group of trees a kilometer to the front, it was absolutely... plain.

With my inventory empty, my current main objective would be to find some food, water, and something to use as cover. With that solved, I should begin my search for civilization.

With the priorities set, I recalled the manner to activate the spell 'Life Radar' and did so.

The spell function was as the name implied akin to a radar, which made me visualize the surroundings as a 2D map and indicated any, bigger than an insect, being imbued with life.

Being a second dimension map, it would be impossible to guess which being was what, but thankfully the 'blips' were different in size according to the amount of life they had. With myself serving as a measure, I found out that there were three small beings a dozen or so meters from me.

I could not see them, so most probably they were either burrowed or so small that the thirty-centimeter grass-covered them.

"Walking barefooted and risking being bitten by something hidden would be dumb, so first I need to find a stone or something... try and scare them out of hiding" As I had no one to speak to, I began mumbling to myself while looking around my feet.

A small pebble was easy enough to find, and so taking it into my hands, I threw it towards the spot indicated by the spell.

*Squee*

An angry squeal was heard right as the pebble landed, and three balls of fur suddenly jumped from the grass, allowing me to catch a glimpse before they fled downhill.

"Rabbits!"

I had no real means to catch them, but at least I found out that there was nothing dangerous around me.

Standing on the spot would be stupid and so after thinking for a few moments, I decided to walk towards the forest I saw in front. My logic was that if there are trees, then there should be water and maybe a few edible plants.

This one-kilometer journey took me about fifteen minutes, during which I, thankfully, did not step on anything except grass.

The more I approached the trees, the more I was amazed by their size. I was not a botanist, but in my mind oaks and the like were hardly taller than 20-30 meters, while the trees in front of me were easily twice that.

The edge of this, now confirmed, the forest was covered in bushes and small plants, making me do walk around until I found a clearing big enough to step inside without the need to break through the dense undergrowth.

Activating the radar again, I found out that there were only a few small blips around me, and so began making my way inside after setting a mark on the nearest tree.

Moving slowly while checking the ground that I trod on, I opened my way amongst the undergrowth. Every 500 or so steps, which should be more or less 250 meters, I stopped to activate the 'Life Radar' to check for any being that could pose danger to me.

Thankfully that did not happen and except for a few small critters, I found no other beings.

Remembering the survival information I read, as well the in-genre games I had played, I managed to find a small stream of water after following a trail made by small animals. And in good time! I had moved only for a pair of kilometers since my awakening, but between my slow speed and pretty hard path, my internal clock told me over three hours had passed.

After making a small hole on one of the stream sides and waiting for it to fill with water, I closed it with a rock and chanted

"Filter"

The amount gathered was about a liter, so less than 2 minutes after, and with my mana decreasing by one, I could drink it.

Speaking of mana, I knew that all the utility spells except the ones improved under Sepyre's instruction used it, but it was not until now that I fully understood the system. After all, during my stay in her controlled space, my mana had not decreased even once while learning the spells.

Single-use spells like the radar, that activated and then disappeared by themselves used a point of mana per activation. While spells that could remain active would consume a point of mana each minute or effect instance. In the case of 'Filter', it was the latter, with a mana point consumed for each liter of water purified.

Speaking of which, I had already used up a point for a mark and activated 'Life Radar' five times, meaning I was down by 7 mana. It would recuperate naturally, but only while resting... Something that I could not do yet, as I had to solve at least my basic needs first.

Looking around the stream, I found a few small bushes filled up with berries. I could not recognize them, but after judging that the animals would have eaten them if safe... I decided to don't test my luck either. This left me with a single way to solve my food issue - hunting.

I had no tools or weapons, but between the utility spells I had learned, there were two that could serve me as both. Still, my mana was finite, and so for a task that could take more than a few minutes like hunting, it was better to get at least something provisional.

Thinking like this, I picked a few rocks and stored them in my inventory. Afterward, I chose a straight, 2 meters long, branch from a nearby sycamore-like tree for the next part.

The branch was about a meter and a half from the ground, and so by bending my legs while hanging on it, I managed to apply my entire weight to the branch.

*Squeak*

Seeing that it still resisted, I began swinging.

*Squeak* *Squeak* *CRUNCH*

In the end, my 80 kg of weight won over the branch and it snapped.

*Thump*

I also managed to land on my feet, a great achievement!

After examining the almost two-meter branch in my hands, I conjured a small, thin, blade made of mana and quickly began using it to sharpen the end of the branch.

"Cut"

The point was about five cm thick, and 15 cm thick at the base where I had broken it, so in less than a pair of minutes, I finished sharpening the point into something that could, barely, pass as a wooden spear.

Now the issue was how to use this spear to hunt something, but thankfully a few tips about it were also included in the survival books I read. Practically all animals drank water and judging from the trail I followed, this stream was the place they did so.

The tips also explained that animals would avoid coming if they smelled something unusual, so I should remain both hidden and upwind from them for a successful ambush.

"Hmm..." I could not sense any air currents, even so, I decided that some altitude would help me with both tasks and so climbed the tree that kindly provided me with my new spear.

Two hours later, I was getting tired of laying on a branch three meters over the stream without seeing any animal. Still, activating 'Life Radar' indicated that a few small animals were nearby, so I did not allow myself to move.

It turned out to be the correct decision, as not more than five minutes one of the bushes nearest to the stream rustled and a brown, furry head poked out.

Funnily moving its whiskers while sniffing around, the animal took its time to check the situation before judging it safe and fully coming out.

I could not name it at glance, but somehow it reminded me of a capybara. Brown, with short fur, small ears, pointed head, and a rounded body.

Trying to not even breathe, I slowly waited for it to begin drinking.

And as soon it did so, silently as I could, I dropped down while aiming the makeshift spear to its back.

*Tear* *Slam*

"Ghhh" I groaned while standing up. Not only did the spear successfully penetrate its hide, but my... awesome plan also allowed me to land right on top of it. So I can not assure what killed the animal my weight, the spear, or the surprise of seeing a naked idiot jumping down on it, but the result was clear... I had successfully hunted down my first prey.

Even more, except for a pair of bruises and scrapes, I was more or less intact!

Storing the capybara (as I decided to call it for now) into my inventory, I quickly returned to the outskirts of the forest where my mark was. The survival book explained the process of field-dressing, skinning, and butchering prey as well said that it was better to do it in a place that you would leave afterward. Mainly because the guts and blood may attract predators later on.

Having decided to use the outskirts as my base, again because I read that staying too close to a place where animals watered could lead to encountering a predator, I returned to the hill for the butchering process.

A pair of hours later, and having spent all of my mana except a single point, I returned to my 'Base' location.

Gathering some dry branches and leaves, I started a small campfire by using the last mana on 'Flint'.

Then using my 'spear' as a skewer, I grilled a few pieces of meat. There was about three kg of meat in total, but thankfully things in the inventory would not spoil, so I had no issues with leaving some for later.

With my main needs solved, I began to think about what to do next.

Deciding that I would spend a pair of days preparing provisions, my later plan will be to follow the stream current and see where it would lead me. I wasn't sure that it would be as my game and book knowledge implied, leading me towards more water, but at least it was a direction.

"Well, for provisions I need to somehow store water... Let's see, maybe I can dry the skin and use it as a water bag?" Being illuminated by such an idea, I immediately began remembering everything I could about the process. If I was not mistaken, the skin needed to be cleaned and then placed to dry on a plain surface. I could not nail it to a board (as I did not have either a board or nails), but I should be able to use a few stones as weight and make it remain still on a more or less plain rock.

"Mmm, it's decided then"

Finishing with the skin, I also rested enough for a pair of mana points to recover, allowing me to make a journey towards the stream again. There, after purifying and drinking some water, I decided to test a sudden idea. If the inventory could store anything that was not alive and maintain its properties (like freshness and form), maybe it could store water directly?

"Storage" I chanted while thinking about the remaining clean water in the hole I had made.

"It works!" I almost exclaimed as the water disappeared and I sensed it appearing in my inventory. Deciding to test what would happen after taking it out, I carefully marked the hole as the destination (objects from the storage can be recalled or placed at a small distance from the caster) and chanted again "Storage".

*Splash*

Again, it worked and the water fell into the hole. Regretfully I did not think that the motion would make it dirty from mixing with the earth inside, forcing me to spend my last mana point on 'Filter'.

Anyway, I found out that I can store water, even without having any container for it!

The question of what into recall it got actual, but hopefully that will be easier to solve than getting enough containers in case I needed to move away from the stream and did not find another source.

Having a few hours of daylight left, I decided to look around for anything that may help me. In this case, what I most wanted to find was some kind of plant that could be woven into a makeshift rope. Luckily for me, I managed to find some plants that fulfilled such a role after looking amongst the undergrowth and roots. It was vine-like, with small leaves and strong enough as to resist my attempts to tear it. The size of each plant was only about a meter long, but still, with three or four of them woven together, I at least had a small bundle of rope to use.

The reason for this search? Having no way to remain awake during the night, no defense, and not wanting to attract attention with a big campfire my only real option was to sleep on a tree. But! I was not someone used to doing it, so I needed something to secure myself with.

When the sun began setting down, I returned to my base location and selected a tree. It was a 40 meter or so tall oak, with the lowest branches being almost 1.5 meters over the ground. These branches were also wide enough for me to lay down, which I did after eating another piece of meat and burrowing the remains of the campfire.

After somehow tying myself to the branch as to at least avoid falling, I decided to 'Record' all that happened today. I also decided to check my spells, stats, and the like, noting that there were a few changes... Which I also noted down for future reference.

NAME BEFORE → NOW DESCRIPTION (NEW) NOTES Mana 17/?→18/? - Seemingly the maximum amount of mana is/can be increased by use. Note, I spent 26 mana points in total today. Hunting 0/100→1/100 Ability to track, hunt, and process prey. Thank you capybara! Terrain: Forest 0/100→1/100 How well one can understand the environment (Forest). Do other places have a similar skill? And what does it serve for? Filter 1/10→2/10 Separating dirt and impurities from any liquid substance. Mastery affects speed (90 seconds per liter). A ten-second decrease may not seem like much, but at least it's something. Life-Radar 1/100→2/100 Sense living beings in a zone. Mastery affects the zone's size (600 mt). A 100 mt increase, great!

And so... My first day on ?????? was finished.

Good things, I am alive and at have what to eat.

Bad things, I remain naked and crave a cigarette.