New World Day 14

When I woke up that next morning and after I checked for any dangerous critters, I used the proper facilities outside for my bodily functions. Following that up, I took the two lanterns out to bask in the dim light of a cloudy sky before making haste back to into the garage. There were a variety of things that were just wrong about the outside environment this morning. All of the blood mosquitoes were gone. They had disappeared like they had never existed at all. I would have doubted that they had ever existed if I hadn’t seen them for myself. That wasn’t even the most disturbing thing that I saw. The goblin tracks were back and the larger creature was with them. I wanted to believe that it was a coincidence that they kept showing up around this area, but I feared that there was more to it than that. I just didn’t know what kept drawing them to the house. If it was me, then I would think that they would have smashed their way into the basement just like they had the upstairs. Something was going on here. I just couldn't put my finger on where the problem lay just yet.

I decided to update my journals on the previous day’s events and lessons once I stopped worrying about the goblins and their leader. I made sure to notate everything I learned about barrier runes from the System and my own practice. I hoped that by writing down everything I could about the runes that someone else could use my notes to learn the skill without spending a crap ton of Title Points to purchase the skill. Such a thing, if it worked, could be of immense use.

I was tempted to continue training the skill today as well, but there were a few things that I had to get done today before I could afford to lose myself in training again. Besides, there were other skills that I needed to work on acquiring. I needed to figure out a proper mana enhancement skill for one thing. The fact that the System hadn’t yet informed me that I had learned such a skill meant that I was doing something wrong or missing a step somewhere. I had an idea about what I was missing, but I needed some time to work it out. Aside from that skill, I had to keep training my footwork and axe skills along with increasing my basic physical abilities as much as possible. There wouldn’t be much point in not spending the bonus stat points if I didn’t train to increase my stats as much as possible.

That was all for later tonight though. I ate a small breakfast of chips and water. Not healthy in the slightest, but still satisfying. I packed a couple of granola bars and a pair of plastic water bottles in my backpack for a trip out to the other houses. I strapped on the pistol, took the shotgun, loaded with slugs instead of birdshot, and grabbed my axe. I didn’t bring any extra ammo with me since I didn’t have much of a supply left. I wanted to keep some of the ammo in reserve in case of an emergency, but I knew that the time where I would have to transition to a more primal combat style was rapidly approaching.

The quarry that I sought today was clothes that might fit me and a replacement axe or two. I kept a keen eye on the nearby trees just in case the shadow trees had returned as I advanced up the driveway towards the front field, but they remained missing in action. I hoped those damn things never returned. I passed through the opening in the tree line and into the front field without any trouble, but I was startled by what I saw when I looked out over the front field. The tall grass grew even taller than before, but what startled me even more was that large sections of it had been trampled. More disconcerting, clumps of the grass near the areas trampled on shone a dull red. There had been a fight here, but I didn’t catch a whiff of the tell-tale stench of decay. Did the fight continue elsewhere or did it not result in any deaths? I approached the scene of the fighting with caution to see if I could find any clues as to who had been fighting. The bent over grass made it impossible for me to use footprints to figure out the fight’s participants, but a calm appraisal of the scene gave me a few hints. I found tufts of green fur along with some scraps of leather hidden among the trampled grasses. I concluded that there had been a fight between goblins and forest coyotes here. That was at least the second time those two groups had clashed. Were the goblins hunting the coyotes for food or vice versa? Well either way, as long as they were busy fighting each other then it would make things easier for me.

I proceeded to the road through one of the holes in the fence and went to the first of the houses. I felt bad rummaging through their things, but I hoped they would understand considering the current state of the world. I was a bit afraid that the System wouldn’t make such a distinction and give me a grave robber or looter title, but I hadn’t received any such title for now at least. The first stop proved to be a bust. I was much too tall for any of the clothes and there was no axe that to be found. I suspected that there might be one in the nearby barn, but I didn’t feel like taking the chance of the barn housing a python like my barn. I walked down the road to inspect the other houses instead.

I noticed three more sites along the way where it looked like the goblins and forest coyotes had fought one another. They must really be going at it. If they were fighting this much then was one side about to crush the other or were they evenly matched? If they were evenly matched, did that mean that there was a forest coyote as strong as the leader of the goblins? I shuddered at the thought of such a dangerous forest coyote. Their numbers were bad enough. If you added in some crazy strong individuals, then they would become an even deadlier threat. I mulled over the possibility of a forest coyote that was a kind of alpha of alphas as I investigated most of the remaining houses. I found two axes that would serve as potential replacements for my current axe. I stashed them in the loops on either side of the backpack. There was one house that had clothing that would fit me. I succeeded in finding four additional pairs of jeans and a dozen shirts. My backpack was overflowing with so much clothing that I had to switch my original axe to the loop on my jeans. It made it a little awkward to walk, but it kept my hands free to hold onto the shotgun in case of trouble as I headed to the last two houses.

The last two houses were only a few hills away from the area where I saw the thunder bison and the earth swimmer. I was a bit leery of going too near that area just in case the earth swimmer’s territory had expanded, but I wanted to check the houses out anyways. The second to last house was a double wide mobile home with a faded white exterior. The front screen door had been torn off and lay in the yard just in front of the mobile home. I walked up to the front door and twisted the door handle enough to crack the door and then pushed it the rest of the way open with the shotgun barrel. Inside of the house the initial area was a small family room. There was a hallway to my left that had three doors two on one side and one on the other. The hallway ended in a kitchen area and a door to the side yard. I glanced around the family room to see if there was anything important before I headed down the hallway to inspect the three rooms. The family room looked like some small animals such as raccoons or possums had taken up residence in the area. I hoped that the other rooms weren’t wrecked quite as thoroughly. The house wasn’t this bad the last time I was in here almost two weeks ago.

I looked through the three rooms which turned out to be two bedrooms and a bathroom, but there weren’t any clothes that I could use. There were clean towels and blankets that I would like to bring back to my place, but I didn’t want to overburden myself with such large items until I reached a point that I was confident in defending myself against the dangerous creatures that I knew lurked in the area. I moved on to the kitchen to see if I missed any food that I might be able to use and was rummaging through the kitchen cabinets when I heard the clack of claws on wood. Something was outside on the front porch!

I could see down the hallway into the family room when it entered the house thanks to my current position. The dim sunlight reflected through the broken glass of the family room windows to cast the creature in a mix of shadows and light. It was the leader of the goblins, and it was my first true glimpse of him. He was yellowish green and at least a foot taller than the goblins yet still possessed their characteristic long arms. His facial features and hair were comparable to normal goblin’s, but a pair of small white tusks grew out of the corners of his mouth. His armor and weapons were of a far higher quality than what the other goblins possessed. He had a shiny short sword in his left hand that had fresh blood sliding down the blade to drip onto the floor. His armor was a smooth matching black leather set that consisted of a chest plate, a pair of bracers, shin guards, and a leather kilt.

There was something much more menacing about him than a normal goblin. Something that his larger physique and tusks couldn’t account for. There was an aura of authority and confidence along with a spark of intelligence that I saw only a faint version of in the smaller goblins. After considering it for a few moments, I came to the conclusion that it wasn’t the authority or confidence that made him so menacing, though they certainly helped. No, it was that spark of intelligence. His eyes reminded me of the eyes of the python from the barn despite the intelligence contained within them. It was as if everything in the world except himself was prey for him to hunt down and devour.

I found that gaze terrifying.I was trembling in fear even though it wasn’t directed at me. I had been disappointed in myself when I attacked the first few goblins that I encountered without trying to speak to them peacefully. After getting a good look at their leader, I knew in my mind that it would be useless to try and reason with them. That creature was not someone who could be trusted. Even if he did appear to go along with any talks of peace, he would be the type to stab you in the back as soon as your back was turned. And yet while my head said one thing, my heart said another. My heart said that I had to make the attempt. That I shouldn’t judge beings from another world solely by my world’s standards. That if I didn’t attempt to bridge the gap between species now then I may never be able to gather the courage to make the attempt.

I followed my heart in the end. I started circulating my mana yet lowered my shotgun to point at the floor, gave the creature my friendliest smile, and said, “Hello! I’m not sure you can understand me, but I hope that we can establish friendly relations. We are both stuck in an unfamiliar world, and we are both being forced to face dangers that we should never have had to face. If we cooperate our chances of survival will shoot up.”

He tilted his head and showed me a crooked smile as I lowered my weapon and gave him my pitch. He raised his arms out wide and walked slowly towards me, his blade still dripping blood onto the floor. Drip! Drip! Drip! He took five slow steps towards me before his smile changed to a cruel smirk. He dashed towards me with incredible speed and thrust his blade straight at my chest. I was too slow to avoid the thrust even with my mana already circulating. I twisted to the side just in time to keep the blade from striking my heart. It pierced deep into my side instead. I smashed the shotgun barrel into the creature’s stomach and pulled the trigger as the blade drove itself into my innards. The force of the blast sent both of us reeling backwards. The creature lost its grip on its sword which remained stuck in my side and flailed at me with its right hand as it staggered backwards. Its claws tore off a chunk of my shirt from my left shoulder along with a layer of skin. I stumbled backwards into the center of the kitchen and stretched out my left hand to grab onto a kitchen counter. I used the counter to steady myself and keep from falling over.

Blood poured out from my right side and flooded down my right leg to pool on the kitchen floor. Even the tiniest of movements sent a torrent of pain through my body. The creature wasn’t in any better shape. The slug blasted apart the chest armor, and there was a deep hole in the center of its chest. The slug failed to pass all the way through its body. The creature’s own skin and muscle was enough to stop the slug. The creature covered its stomach wound with its left hand to staunch the bleeding and gazed at me with eyes full of malevolent intent. White energy visible to the naked eye leaked from its body and the wound in its chest started to close with incredible speed. I let go of the kitchen counter and pumped the shotgun to load the next round. Bang! Pump! Bang! Pump! Bang! Three more shots tore new holes in the creature’s body and sent it careening backwards into the family room. The white light leaking from its body strengthened for a moment before it began to rapidly dim. It must take a lot out of him to heal a wound that quickly.

The creature gave me one last glare before it stumbled out of the house into the front yard. That bastard wasn’t getting away that easily. I gritted my teeth, held the sword in my side steady with my right hand, and chased after the creature. The handle of the axe stuck in the loop of my jeans smacked against the side of my left leg with each hard fought step. I reached the door to the front yard just in time to see a goblin sitting astride a large forest coyote pull the creature up onto the forest coyote’s back. Once the creature was up on the forest coyote’s back, the goblin kicked the side of the forest coyote and it sprinted down the nearby hill into the forest. The creature curled its right hand into a fist and shook it at me as it escaped into the distance. There was an odd smile on its face even as its eyes promised retribution. The only thing I could think of as it escaped was the thought that the damn goblins hadn’t been killing the forest coyotes. They had been taming them!

Survivor (B) * leveled up!

Fool (B) * leveled up!

Risk Taker (B) * leveled up!

Risk Taker (B) * leveled up!

Compassionate Fool ( C ) * leveled up!

Compassionate Fool ( C ) * leveled up!

Compassionate Fool ( C ) * leveled up!

Compassionate Fool ( C ) * leveled up!

Curious Fool ( C ) * leveled up!

Stupid Fool ( C ) * leveled up!

Extremely Stubborn Fool ( C ) ** leveled up!

Name: Jason Silver

Job Name: N/A

LVL: 8 48%

Job LVL: N/A 0%

Job Points:

N/A

N/A

N/A

Titles:

Survivor (B) LVL 9 76%

Fool (B) LVL 9 80%

Swarm Killer (B) LVL 9 31%

Beast Killer (B) LVL 9 49%

Risk Taker (B) LVL 8 31%

Repeated Risk Taker ( C ) LVL 7 15%

Compassionate Fool ( C ) LVL 5 26%

Curious Fool ( C ) LVL 4 92%

Stupid Fool ( C ) LVL 5 57%

Extremely Stubborn Fool ( C ) LVL 4 70%

Greater Mana Wielder ® LVL N/A

Title Points:

*

*

**

*

*

*

*

*

*

**

*****

5

Stats:

HP:

MP:

Mana Regen:

Endurance:

Strength:

Speed:

Spirit

Bonus Points:

42/135

20/46

12 per min (-2.75)

15

10

11

8

28

Status Effects:

Regen, Spirit Regen, Disease Resist, Parasite Resist,

Poison Resist, Large Stab Wound,

Bleeding x2, Internal Bleeding x4

Skills:

Basic Axe Mastery (B) LVL 8 66%

Basic Gun Mastery (B) LVL 5 61%

Minor Regen (Passive) ( C ) LVL 8 41%

Minor Spirit Regen (Passive) ( C ) LVL 2 40%

Basic Disease Resist (Passive) (B) LVL 9 78%

Basic Parasite Resist (Passive) (B) LVL 9 83%

Basic Poison Resist (Passive) (B) LVL 8 96%

Minor Mana Control ( C ) LVL 5 84%

Greater Mana Vein (Passive) ( R ) LVL 1 0%

Flexible Mana Lake (Passive) (B) LVL 1 0%

Pain Control (B) LVL 3 77%

Basic Close Combat Footwork (Active) (B) LVL 3 44%

Basic Ranged Combat Footwork (Active) (B) LVL 3 59%

Basic Barrier Runes (Active) (B) LVL 4 19%

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*****

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