Chương 31: XXXI. Level 4 [Acolyte]

Spring 15th, 1380 ASSETS MINTED: 16G 1S 95C UNMINTED: 88g DEBTS NO CHANGE TASKS ROLE QUEST STOCK 30 [Common] [Carrot Seeds] (15x planted, 0 and 15) 01 [Common] [Lettuce Seeds] 27 [Poor] [Carrot] @ 5S = 135S *. 75 = 101.

75S (10G, 1S) 27 [Poor] [Blood Carrot] @ 1g 3 = 81g 135 [Poor] [Blood Carrot] @ 1g 3 = 405g IN FIELD 054 POTATOES (Likely Poor - 27, 27) - Spring 16 135 CARROTS (Poor - 0, 135) - Spring 15 - Harvested 135 CARROTS (Likely Poor - 0, 135) - Spring 16 135 CARROTS (COMMON - 0, 135) - Spring 17 143 GREEN CLOVER (Common, Fixing Soil) CONGRATULATIONS! YOU ARE NOW A LEVEL 4 [ACOLYTE]! I woke up to the hearthfire sputtered out; embers long since cooled.

Amaril was already in the sky – the first time in many long years that I wasn't already awake to greet Him. I yawned, stretching out my arms… and moved the spidersilk tippet. The scent of Ma's cooking wafted from the threads, mixing with the still feeling of freshly fallen snow. I stroked the warm fabric, following it down my… unbruised, unbothered body. There was no scar on my ribcage – Torment, the dress I was wearing was completely repaired!

Her reflection was still in the mirror of course, and the Mortis Agrariae was back to being incomprehensible squiggles. But being near death let me read it… I could figure out if I even wanted to risk that later. I had work to do. ABILITY UNLOCK (1/4) — [BLIGHTED LAND] (PASSIVE) An Acolyte is one with her land. While on a [Blight] she has created, her [Animus] and [Anima] will gradually restore. Her [Minions] will likewise be sustained. The grass below was vibrant and green, and any pasture animal would love it.

But it wasn't exceptionally healthy. The clayfields in front of me rolled onto the horizon; uncleaned, unkept, and of course, underutilized. Beyond that though was Lyrelle Forest, which both had game… and a region I could harvest from. That was slowly becoming a 'now' problem, but I'd need someone to come with me. Addy would immediately put two and two together though, and Elias was a [Vampire Lord] and Jazzy didn't trust him, so neither would I.

I approached the backlot of my farm, nearest to the river and the boundary between my farmlands – where the clover and carrots were growing – and the dark woods of Lyrelle forest. Branches cracked, and a lean, slender quadrupedal form stalked in the darkness. Its fur was either gray, black, or green… maybe brown, but that was likely bark. Its eyes reflected Amaril's Gaze, and its eyes hunted mine. I ducked, closing my eyes and trembling. The leaves rustled, and – it had gone back into the forest.

My shaky legs slowly extended and I tried to laugh, but it sounded stilted even to me.

"Right… I guess I'm a fighter now…" No, we aren't. Blood didn't bother me. Nor did guts or gore. Speaking of which, I had rabbits to distribute. RABBIT A burrowing, sociable creature that eats plants. They are known for their long, floppy ears and contempt for carrots. TYPE: BEAST (CORPSE) CAN BE: SKINNED (HUNTSWOMAN 1), BUTCHERED (HUNTSWOMAN 1 / BUTCHERY 1), BURIED [ANIMA ANALYSIS]"How long is Forever?" Alice asked.

"Sometimes, just one second," the March Hare replied. ANIMA: 50% (10 mL) COMPOST: 10% SOUL QUALITY: UNUSABLE 50%?! It had only been a day! And even the Compost quality dropped! With 135 crops I needed to sustain and just 12 rabbits, I was very much behind. I dropped each corpse and began the process of cutting through them. Rabbit bone was thin and easy to break through, and the desiccated corpses spread among the carrots. Ashley casts [Compost]! | What was given, is taken. What was took, is gave.

The rabbitflesh dissolved into the soil and barely adjusted anything. This was another lousy harvest, but it was still a harvest. I plucked all 135 of them and added them to my inventory; I would have to off-load at Madeleine's soon. I wiped my brow, but the clovers were growing nicely… ABILITY UNLOCK (2/4) — [ANIMATE BONES] By investing in a bone weapon, and providing it [Anima], an acolyte can leave simple instructions that the vessel will follow.

These commands must be simple in nature and can only be a sentence long ("Attack anyone that comes through here that is not me"). That had so much potential. However, what I needed right now was a shovel, and that wasn't something I made. Likewise, going into the forest to hunt a creature just to make a singular shovel seemed incredibly wasteful, when I had a good spade myself. The area had to be tilled though, so I could begin to work on my harder task…. Maybe my tools could clear the way?

I pulled out my Scythe, Axe, and Hammer and laid them in front of me. I crossed my legs, raising my hand towards the bones. I closed my eyes… Winter winds spilled out of my fingers and towards the tools I created. They danced over the polished bone, leaking into every pore and crevice. The pale-blue became dark-green, animating the three tools. They hovered in the air with their Symphonic Aura, and regarded me curiously.

"Clear the fields," I said. The three tools hovered in place.

"... Hello? Can you hear me? Can you clear the fields?" I said again, approaching the axe. None of them did anything. They bobbed in place, their sharp bits acknowledging me. The bone axe's blade was still sharp, but slicing my other finger was just a waste of good anima.

"... Drop to the ground?" The three tools fell to the ground, but their symphonic auras were still illuminating them green.

"... Must be really simple, then." I said. In the distance, there was a small rock and a twig.

"Go smash that rock," I said, pointing at the stone. All three of them flew forward and whacked it – the Axe and Scythe bouncing off, but the hammer breaking it. Good. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

"Hammer, break every rock in this field." The hammer did not move.

"... Break every rock around me?" Still nothing.

"Break every rock in this line?" I tried. It still did nothing. I groaned, and inspected it. BONE HAMMER A hammer made of bone. Equivalent to an [Iron Hammer]. Can be further enhanced by a [Necromancer]. QUALITY: Common INVESTED: Yes [INVESTMENT MENU] ANIMUS: [NONE] CONTROL: SIMPLE VARIABLES: NONE ALLOWED ANIMA: 99% Variables? Marcellus mentioned that to me in his gearwork engineering. It was, as he described, a placeholder for a condition. And… without an [Animus], it would not have one.

He said dumb machines just did one task… so…

"Hammer, smack everything in this line," I said, and the Hammer obeyed. There were no variables if I just used my Anima… I would need Animus. And the only Animus I had was that of the bear, and putting that into my hammer felt like a waste. I rubbed my head, and looked at the Scythe and Axe.

"Cut everything in a line, and… harvest everything in a line," I told them both, and they went off – striking everything, which most of the time was dead air. But that gave me time to work on what I really wanted to do, and if It was that simple, I'd be talking more than working, and Pa always said you didn't need to be chatterin' away when you was workin'. Though, It didn't stop Addy and I. He was always hopeless with replanting seeds though, but he would help. But then he'd burn me alive for making blood crops.

I wiped my brow, pulled out my spade, and began to move the clover from one tile to another. ABILITY UNLOCK (3/4) — [FAMILIAR'S BOND] (PASSIVE) Any ability that targets'self' may target your familiar instead. Any ability that requires'touch' or'line of sight' can be done through a familiar. A Familiar can command all members, tools, and objects they are authorized to command. I held the clover in my hands as dirt poured between my fingers.

"Mirchie! Come here," I shouted. The wind whistled, and the fuzzy little twerp didn't even chirp in acknowledgement. I should have gotten a dog. Addy likes dogs. Mirchie arrived after I had transplanted more than half the clover to the poor tiles the blood carrots were once on. Her beady black eyes stared at me, and she leaned down and ate one of the clover plants! She chewed loudly at me, buckteeth opening and closing and most of the clover ending up as mixed greens at her feet. I swear, I saw that bunny smile.

"Go over there and watch the tools. They need to clear out the fields," I told her. She stared right at me.

"What do you mean you don't want to? You literally just woke up!" Mirchie's ears flopped to the side.

"No, I don't want to hear your plans about how to maximize the leafiness of clover. Clover isn't a crop we're selling. No, we don't need a house just for you, what's wrong with the bedroom?!" She leaned down and tore out a second clover plant! She chewed slowly, watching me.

"Good Protector, if you have time to chatter this much, you have time to work, Mirch. It's not even har– Fine! You can have a carro… yes, they're poor carro… you want three? Damn extortionist you are. Go deal with the tools – " Mirchie flopped to her side, feet kicking the dirt in refusal.

"FINE! You can have three carrots after you're done. Flora's Piss, you – DON'T YOU DARE. I SOUND NOTHIN' LIKE 'IM. WHA' D'YA MEAN IM DOIN' – I am speaking out of turn, Mirchie. Please, be a dear and do what I say." She bounced up and smirked at me. The rabbit smirked at me and hopped off to the tools. Good Protector, who in Torment would want to deal with that all day. I got back to work until all 143 clovers were replanted. Then came the easy part… and the annoying.

I planted all 135 carrot seeds in the freshly restored soil. Carrots were soil-takers though, and while this was common now, it wasn't exactly a sure thing. Sure, a carrot didn't eat as much as a potato, tomato, or – Flora Forbid – corn, but it still ate it. I'd have to compost or trade it out eventually, but I didn't have that kind of money. Nor time. I had woken up late, and this entire process meant I had missed breakfast and lunch.

Nana would personally come here and drag me to the Gryphon if I didn't come for Supper, but there was still so much more to do. ABILITY UNLOCK (4/4) — [ANIMATE DEAD] An Acolyte, under The Dead Mother's Guidance, may raise the dead. A complete skeleton is required, and both [Anima] and [Animus] must be used. Warning: Souls may retain fragments of will. My legs locked, my arms froze, and the sweat on my brow felt miniscule in comparison.

The birds were chirping too loudly, and every so often the hammer would actually hit a rock or the axe would break a twig. They were exactly – Focus. I forced myself to stare at the tips. It was pretty language, but… ✟ ANIMA ✟ [THE HART STOP] ——— ⸸ ——— My Blood Alone remains; Take it, but do not let me suffer too long. See Also: [Vitae], [Blood] ✟ ANIMUS ✟ [THE HART STOP] ——— ⸸ ——— For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

See Also: [Soul], [Spirit] I stared forward. A laugh came from my… stomach? Heart? Somewhere, and it reached my lips. It did escape, but my eyes were locked in place, and the laughter felt unnatural even to me. Weren't we just saying a Bear's Soul is too valuable for a tool? A tool breaks. That is a taboo. And? A Dead Body being made into a hammer and axe infused with a soul is different from a dead body just made to work, how? It was once a person? So were our tools. You know that's different. Is it?

Besides, we're willing to use their blood and body. Might as well add bones to the mix. And their souls. Then we should release that bear soul we have. I closed my eyes. I could deal with that la– ASCENSION QUEST UNLOCKED NECROMANCER ——— ❦ ———"There was once this little girl, who thought she could conquer death.

'What separates us from them, save that we draw breath?' She asked Dear Mother, who pondered far too much. Dear Mother smiled, then said 'My Dear, come feel my touch.'" ——— ❦ ——— ☐ Acquire 0/6 [Night-Thing] ☐ Create 0/5 Lesser [Night-Thing] with [Animate Dead] ☐ Acquire 0/1 Advanced [Night-Thing] The crops were planted and the crops were growing. There was only one – no two – people I felt comfortable talking to about this, and who even knew what followed then.