Chương 4: Evolving as a Rock?!

Chapter Four Evolving as a Rock?! The verdant beauty of the forest was replaced with gray muck and mud. The world became somehow even quieter, with not so much as a tadpole for company. Nothing lived within these waters. Eva had even said that once before.

"Eva..." The memory of the ruby assault played over and over in Alice's mind like a broken record. With some difficulty, she stopped [Geological Memory] from showing her the movie of Eva's insanity and Erik's death. The twisted excitement she had felt at the moment faded, and she found herself numb with shock and confusion.

"I leveled up..." Alice said dumbly. After thirteen years, she had finally figured out how to gain experience. All it had taken was for someone to use her like a sledgehammer. Her words vibrated and created several small bubbles. They popped within less than a breath, however, and the semi-transparent screen replaced them. Name: Alice Merryweather Race: Ordinary Rock Class: N/A Level: 4 STR: 0 AGI: 0 VIT: 0 END: 1 4 PER: 0 INT: 0 WIL: 0 Only endurance had increased, not that she felt much hardier.

Her numb thoughts turned to the new skill she had acquired. Passive Skills Earthen Anchor (Rank I): Moss, mu ck, and mu d are more likely to collect around you and bind you to the earth.

"Hah!" Alice's sudden laugh created another small bubble as the air vibrated.

"Erik's death earned me the ability to... attract mud? Talk about an uneven exchange." She looked around for any mention of [Bloodthirsty], but the in-progress skill was conspicuously absent. She tried not to think about it too hard. She did not feel particularly bloodthirsty at the moment. She turned her attention instead to a new section of her stat screen. Unlocked Achievements First Blood! The Patient Hunter (Claim Reward) First Kill! [First Blood!] and [First Kill!] were rather straightforward, but she frowned at [The Patient Hunter] and its promise of a reward. And that was all it took for another window to pop up, hiding the rest of her stats. The Patient Hunter Requirements: Remain undetected for an hour before striking your prey. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. New Skill Unlocked: Stalker I Stalker (Rank I): You move unseen by friend and foe alike. You are slightly harder to detect.

"So achievements can unlock new skills," Alice said as she studied [Stalker I]. She was not sure which was more useless: being able to attract moss or being slightly less noticeable at the bottom of a pond. She closed the pop-up, and her attention turned to the final addition to her stat screen. Statuses Curse of the Innocen t: This object was used to cause a horrible tragedy. M isfortune awaits all who possess it. She frowned as the words brought the red pulp of Erik's face back to the front of her thoughts.

And then, just like with the achievements, another window popped up. Curse of the Innocent Severity: Feeble of Afflicted: 0 Time Until Maturity: 7 Days Alice stared blankly at the pop-up. She had no idea what it meant to be cursed. She supposed it hadn't been particularly lucky to have been thrown into the pond. Was that the misfortune the curse spoke of?

"But I was thrown into the water before I was cursed," Alice reminded herself.

"And time until maturity... That's only a week away." She would have all of eternity to think about what had just happened, so she pushed Erik and Eva as best as she could from her thoughts. And simply waited. A day passed. Three. Six. And then on the seventh day...

"Oh." She had not known what to expect. She certainly had not expected another notification. Curse of the Innocent has not been passed in [7 Days]. The curse strengthens. Severity: Feeble > Weak"So that's what happens," Alice said, not sure how she felt about the curse growing stronger. And that bit about it not having been passed...

"Does that mean if someone catches it, the curse won't get worse?" It was a shame she couldn't ask anyone to explain. Even if she could speak, neither of the two people she knew in this world were in any state to answer. She had avoided thinking about it for a week, but her mind turned back towards Eva's violence. [Geological Memory] transformed the crimson evening into another movie.

She watched and re-watched Erik's death over and over with no more understanding than when Eva had first lifted Alice the Rock into the air.

"That talk about [Magi] and a test..." Alice said, replaying those memories as well.

"And an [Awakening]? How is it they never mentioned any of this on the other days?!" She searched her memories. She had over a decade to explore thanks to [Geological Memory], but none offered a satisfactory answer to her confusion. Erik and Eva had only ever flirted and spoken about stupid things beside the lake. And then... Curse of the Innocent has not been passed in [90 Days]. The curse strengthens. Severity: Weak > Moderate"Eh? Has it already been three months?"

She opened her stat screen and scrolled down to her statuses. Curse of the Innocen t: This object was used to cause a horrible tragedy. Doom radiates from it like a miasma.

"That's not good..." Alice said as she realized the description of the curse had changed. It no longer promised just misfortune.

"Should I be worried...?" She still was not sure if she was affected by the curse. Nothing had happened over the last few months... which she supposed was not all that lucky. She had a feeling the curse had more to do with other people, though. Thankfully, she didn't even have fish for company. And in all the years she had spent by the lake, The Boy and The Girl had been her only visitors.

"And deer and squirrels and rabbits," Alice said as she rattled off the assortment of furry friends who had filled her sunnier days. She quickly realized how lonely she was at the bottom of the pond. She tried to distract herself with the mystery of Eva's violence for several more months, but she came no closer to an answer. Her thoughts drifted left and right, unbothered but also unanchored. And so, after several more months, Alice's thoughts finally turned towards her own family.

It was strange how she had not thought about them in all the years before her watery vacation, though that seemed to be a common enough isekai trope. There was always too much adventure to worry about the Mom and Dad left behind.

"I wonder what happened after I died, though..." Alice said, earning a few short-lived bubbles as the air vibrated around her. She didn't really want Mom to get in trouble, but she had sort of killed Alice. Hadn't she?

"Dad will be upset," Alice said, and she felt funny thinking about him after so long. He had always been her ally. He had always been upset for her when so often it had been easier for Alice just not to care. Her brother, though... Alice found herself remembering Erik's bloody pulp of a head. But it was not Erik's face she saw in her mind's eye. She looked down at Thomas. She watched as Eva smashed Alice the Rock over and over against that... that...

"Stop!" Alice said harshly, shaking away the horrible image. Perhaps she was cursed. To think of something so rotten. Curse of the Innocent has not been passed in [360 Days]. The curse strengthens. Severity: Moderate > Powerful"A year?! I guess time really flies when you're having fun..." She was about to check and see if the curse's description had changed when a second notification brought her thoughts to an abrupt stop. Requirements for evolution have been met. Would you like to evolve? [Y/N]