My release schedule has changed—well, not here, but over on Patreon!
Joining now gets you three chapters a week: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (EDT).
Want more story sooner? Patreon's the place.
Even the $2 Wood Tier gets you 1 extra chapter a week—that's a bonus chapter for less than a cup of coffee ☕😉
(Full Tier details are in the Author's Notes!)
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Further into her journey and closer to the noise, she did indeed find a fair-sized patch of various plants with healing qualities. Her 'inspect' skill sure came in handy, finding her the better quality herbs and roots. She even managed to gather more than necessary, but she was sure she'd probably need more salves eventually.
{Ding! Quests component complete
Gather the required ingredients to make a common healing salve.
Aegis Fern (6/1)
Heartroot (6/1)
Red Leaf Herb (18/3)}
{Ding! Gathering plants has earned you +10xp per type. A total of 30xp}
{Double Double Skill Activated: +30xp}
{Ding! You've Leveled Up! You are now level 3 10/225xp}
{Ding! +2 STP, +1 SKP}
{Double Double Skill Activated: +2 STP, +1 SKP}
"Perfect, and with enough leftovers for two more batches and a level up!." Sam grinned to herself. Now she'd be a little better equipped should she injure herself. The recipe wouldn't be too difficult, just crushing up the root and herb, then spreading it on the ferns and using them as bandages to hold it in place, also providing their own healing benefit.
With no sign of her horse yet, Sam ventured closer to what sounded like the ending point of a beast battle. Keeping herself hidden behind a tree, she spotted a familiar-looking boar. It had numerous claw marks along its sides and was bleeding heavily, clearly nearing the end of its fight. Using inspect on it proved her right.
"Inspect" she thought, activating her new skill.
{Name: Ash Boar (M)
Age: Adult
Species: Boar
Level: 5
Rarity: Common
Tier: Green
HP: 12/130}
She then inspected the wolf, fighting it. It wasn't much better off. Especially being Non-Integrated.
{Name: Forest Wolf (F)
Age: Young Adult
Species: Forest Wolf
Level: Non-Integrated
Integration Progress: 85%
HP: Very Low}
"She's quite the fighter. Shame to let all that progress go to waste." Sam thought, removing her bow and pulling out an arrow. "Let's give her a hand."
{"Ah, a charitable gesture. Assisting a non-integrated beast in offing a boar—a valiant if slightly unconventional choice. I trust this is an elaborate ploy to win over beastly alliances? Either way, I'll make a note: 'Operator exhibits unexpected generosity, possibly increasing future ally recruitment chances.'"}
"Amusing as always Jarvis" Sam said
{"Delighted to hear it, Madam Sam. One must maintain a certain standard of wit and charm—even if it's the only thing keeping you entertained."}
"Ha Ha"
Non-Integrated beasts could evolve to Integrated by consuming beast cores. The experience gained by fighting an integrated beast also assisted but wasn't necessary. Since Integrated creatures disintegrated into mana particles upon death—leaving behind only loot—it wasn't too difficult for opportunistic wildlife to feast on already-butchered remains.
A surprisingly civilized feature of the S.I.S.T.E.M.: no need for butchering, just pick and snack. Sam adjusted her stance, drawing in a slow breath as she lined up the perfect shot. The forest around her was hushed, expectant—oppressively so. Every rustle of leaf or snap of twig sounded too loud.
Deep breath, focus. It's just a boar. With tusks the size of your forearm, sure, but still just a boar. Her fingers loosened. With a quiet thwip, the arrow flew—straight and true—embedding in the creature's eye with a wet thud. It dropped with a final squeal.
{ -25 HP }
{Double Double Skill Activated: -25HP}
{Congratulations. You've slain your first common Integrated Beast. Experience Points will be divided between party members.}
"Oof, forgot about that, extra damage part… probably could have just thrown a rock!. Um.. also…Party members?" Sam muttered, lowering her bow, suspicious.
{"I believe this is the same beast the previous Operator encountered. Since you inflicted the first and final blows, and the wolf aided by, well, not attacking you—it qualifies as a team effort. XP will be split between the two of you."}
"Right. Makes sense… I guess?"
The system logic felt fair—logical even—but some instinctive part of her still balked at being part of a "party" with a half-dead wild animal.
{Ding! You've killed a Level 5 Common Green Ash Boar.}
{+35 XP}
{Double Double Skill Activated: +35 XP}
{"Had you defeated it solo, you'd have received double that. Something to consider."}
"Well, let's hope the wolf is feeling grateful and not peckish," Sam said as she stepped cautiously from the underbrush. "By the way Jarvis, I'm guessing there's some kind of rarity scale these beasts are on? The boar was a common green?
{"Ah yes indeed, both items like the rings and beasts have a rarity stat. It goes how you'd think. Common, uncommon, rare, epic, legendary, Divine and mythical."}
"Mythical is the highest? I'd thought Divine would be the highest." Sam asked, confused.
{"Well, that's because Gods are real, not a myth. There are more gods and goddesses than mythical beasts and beings. Since they are rarer then gods…they get the top spot."}
"But…" Sam began before Jarvis interrupted her.
{"Let me stop you there before your mortal brain starts leaking steam. You're about to confuse rarity with tier—and I simply won't have it.
Rarity measures how uncommon something is. That's all. Think of it as a collector's label. A Divine being might be found in every major pantheon across the world. But a Mythical creature? There might be three left. On the entire planet. Hence the name. Rare, but not necessarily powerful.
Tier, however, is where things get interesting. It's not about how hard something is to find… It's about how far it can go. How much power it can develop. What it could become. Potential, in other words.."}
There was a brief pause, then a shimmering S.I.S.T.E.M. overlay appeared in Sam's vision.
{"Tier Classification Overview
Green Tier – Basic Grade
Max Level: 50
Skills: 2 Active, 2 Passive
"Barely above wild critter. Think: raccoons with ambition."
Orange Tier – Low Grade
Max Level: 75
Skills: 3 Active, 3 Passive
"Slightly better raccoons."
Blue Tier – Intermediate Grade
Max Level: 100
Skills: 4 Active, 4 Passive
"Standard adventurer fare. Respectable, but replaceable."
Purple Tier – High Grade
Max Level: 150
Skills: 5 Active, 5 Passive
"Things start getting spicy here."
Red Tier – Elite Grade
Max Level: 200
Skills: 6 Active, 6 Passive
"Strong enough to name your tavern after."
White Tier – Ascendant Grade
Max Level: 500
Skills: 10 Active, 10 Passive
"Breaks mountains. Causes bards to write songs. You get the idea."
Gold Tier – Transcendent Grade
Max Level: ???
Skills: Unlimited
"Theoretical. Possibly exaggerated. Definitely terrifying."}
{"So,"} Jarvis continued smoothly, {"Rarity tells you how hard something is to find. Tier tells you how much it can ruin someone's day. You'd be surprised how many mix those up—and end up very, very dead."}
{"Any other world-shattering questions, or shall we proceed with not dying today?"}
"Uh nope, I'm good. Let's go." Clearing her throat.
The wolf lay slumped near the kill site, its breathing shallow but steady. It watched her approach, eyes sharp with pain and awareness. She knelt slowly, staying within reach of the loot pile. With a quick underhand toss, she lobbed the core toward the beast.
"Consider that a thank-you snack," she said softly.
It snatched the core with surprising speed and bit down. Cracks echoed as mana-laced marrow split beneath its fangs. A glow shimmered along its wounds—some closed, others merely stopped bleeding.
'Poor thing's still halfway to the grave.' Sam frowned. 'Does it even understand what I'm doing? Or is it just reacting?' She glanced down at the herbs in her pouch. 'I can find more.'
She ground the healing plants between her a couple of flat stones, releasing the sharp, bitter smell, then tore a slit in the boar's meat and smeared the mash inside. She tossed the bundle of meat gently toward the wolf, then followed it with half of the remaining meat.
{Ding! Quest Three Complete: Healing Salve}
{Reward: +50 XP}
{Double Double Skill Activated: +50 XP}
{Reward: Your General Skill - Herbology has levels up to LVL 10}
{Double Double Skill Activated: Healing is now LVL 10}
"Fair's fair," she murmured.
She sent the rest of the meat, hide, and tusks to her inventory in a shimmer of light. She even noticed a few extra copper coins added to her inventory. All the while, the wolf never took its eyes off her.
"Hopefully that helps. Please don't eat me." She offered a weak laugh. The wolf snorted, a tired puff of air that somehow carried the distinct vibe of 'I couldn't eat you if I tried.'
Sam tilted her head. It felt like it understood her. And stranger still… she kind of understood it. Shaking her head at the absurdity, she began backing away.
"You wouldn't happen to have seen a horse around here, eh?"
No answer. Of course not.
Until, out of the corner of her eye, she caught movement. The wolf lifted its head, sniffed the air, and nodded—to the right.
She froze. Wait... what?
"Jarvis, am I going insane, or did that wolf just… point me toward my horse?"
{"I believe it did. Your 'All Tongue' skill appears to be more literal than anticipated. Fascinating."}
"Are you saying I can talk to animals now?" Sam laughed. "I'm a regular Dr. Dolittle. Nice."
Still, Dr. Dolittle or not, she didn't plan to test the limits of a wounded wolf's generosity.
The path ahead was quieter—less trampled, more alive. The trees pressed close, shafts of sunlight breaking through in patches. The earthy scent of moss and old wood clung to the air. For a moment, Sam allowed herself to breathe, just breathe. I'm alive. I'm doing this. Actual XP, actual loot... this is real.
Unfortunately, so were the rabbits.
Not the cuddly kind.
These were Swiftbunnies—Level 2 Green-tier creatures with speed and teeth, and a Level 4 Orange-tier leader who looked like a gym rat in rabbit form.
The moment they caught her scent, they charged.
Her arrows flew, guided by instinct and Jarvis's calm alerts. Her boots skidded on wet leaves as she dodged. The rabbits were small but vicious—blurs of fur and flashing teeth. Sam grunted as one grazed her shoulder. Too fast. They're too fast. No—focus.
Minutes later, she stood over their twitching corpses, panting, hands shaking.
"Adorable my ass."
She gathered their meat, hide, and the cores of the beast, breathing heavily. Between the rabbits and the earlier boar, she'd secured enough food for days.
{"I deactivated your notifications during combat to avoid any, shall we say, distracting pop-ups. You may want to check them now,"} Jarvis said, his tone laced with smug amusement.
{"You may be pleasantly surprised."}
Sam opened the notification log, still catching her breath.
{Ding! You've killed a Level 2 Green Tier , Common Swiftbunnie x4}
{+160xp}
{Ding! You've killed a Level 4 Orange Tier, Uncommon Swiftbunnie}
{+80xp}
{Double Double Skill Activated: Total XP Gained: 480xp}
{You've Leveled Up! You are now Level 3 650/225xp}
{You've earned +2 Stat Points, +2 Skill Points}
{Double Double Skill Activated: +2 Stat Points, +2 Skill Points}
{You've Leveled Up! You are now Level 4 425/338xp}
{Ding!You've Leveled Up! You are now Level 5 87/507}
{You may now choose a Support Class.}
{You've earned +10 STP, +10 SKP}
{Double Double Skill Activated: +10 STP, +10 SKP}
{Quest Complete: Main Quest – Reach Level 5}
{Reward: +100 XP}
{Double Double Skill Activated: +100 XP}
{"Impressive, Sam. Your first day as an Integrated and you're level five already! You're now eligible to select a support class. Congratulations."}
{Thanks Jarvis, I'm quite impressed with myself too! Maybe I really can do this.}
For the first time in a long time she was proud of herself. For doing something for herself, and from the sound of it, doing it quite well. That was when she noticed the minor but numerous wounds that the bunnies had inflicted seemed to heal themselves.
The ring only covered minor wounds, and one of those bunnies took a good chunk out of her leg. In a handful of seconds she was in perfect health again. She wasn't even tired.
"Wierd…Jarvis? I'm healed up?...any explanation?" Sam asked looking at herself.
{Ah yes I forgot to mention this, you wouldn't have noticed during your last level up because you weren't wounded. Whenever you level up your body heals whatever harm has come to it. Even if you're at 1%. Granted maybe not quite as fast as this, hours maybe, but reaching a new level does refill your health bar."
"Oh! Awesome, that will come in handy."
Sam smiled, she gathered her numerous loot items and noticed a ring among them.
"Umm Jarvis, I just got a ring…from a rabbit…" Sam said, confused, this world seemed to put her in that state a lot.
{"Ah yes, other that the usual beast loot of meat and hide and the like, you will also receive other items…like rings, pendents, even Armor. Though those usually drop from dungeon monsters. That Double Double Skill is really paying off"}
"Looks like" she said inspecting the ring
{Ring of swiftness
Tier: Orange
Rarity: Uncommon
Quality: Good
Effect: Adds an additional +2 to agility}
Slipping it on she continued on now slightly more agile. Not far from the site of her last battle, Sam spotted movement in the clearing ahead—and froze.
Sunblaze.
The horse stood calmly beneath a low-hanging tree, reins tangled lazily in the branches above her. It didn't seem to bother her in the slightest. She had enough slack to graze contentedly at the grass beneath her hooves.
Sam blinked.
"You've got to be kidding me."
{Ding! Quest Complete: Find Your Horse}
{Reward: +75 XP}
{Double Double Skill Activated: +75 XP}
{Reward: New S.I.S.T.E.M. Feature – Mini-Map Unlocked. Terrain visualization is active. Navigation difficulty is slightly reduced. You're welcome.}
{Double Double Skill Activated: Bonus Unlock – Enhanced Mini-Map Functionality.
Enemy proximity indicators enabled. Red dots will now appear when hostile beasts lurk nearby—consider it your personal, less talkative bodyguard.}