Book1, Volume 6

Chapter 56

“Alright then, let's do this!” Before I change my mind Wylla thought as she looked down at the Briar Bloodrose Grimoire on the ground beneath her hands. A musical "tootle-toot-tu" streamed down reminding Wylla that little Ceri was cheering for her from above. “Ooh, that reminds me Ceri, be sure not to get too close okay... just in case things go bang!”

“Tootle-tee-toot!” Little Ceri replied, taking one last corkscrew spin around Wylla before flying high and wide to watch from a safe distance.

“Good girl,” Wylla said with a nod before focusing once more on the Grimoire before her.

Wylla was on her knees, hunched over the Briar Bloodrose Grimoire, her hands pressing down hard on the large book's cover as if giving it CPR.

Her silky hair draped down hiding her face as her brow furrowed and jaw clenched. She sent her oryn energy into the grimoire, triggering the start of the merger as the sounds of pages turning began to echo in her mind and the scent of tainted blood roses filled the air.

The Bloodrose Grimoire began to buck, trying to throw Wylla's hands-off its cover as its shadowy blood-red aura spilled out of its pages.

“Oh no, you don't!” Ethereal golden-green serpenvines shot forth from the center of Wylla's chest, striking the Bloodrose Grimoire and wrapping around it as the severity of its bucking lessened.

“That's a good boy... it'll be over soon. There's nothing to fear... so be calm.” Wylla said, the muscles of her arms a bit strained and a drop of sweat flowing down the side of her scrunched up face.

A green arched door shaped book the size of Wylla's hand flowed out of the center of her chest, revealing itself as the origin of the serpenvines wrapped around the Bloodrose Grimoire.

Wylla's Druic Grimoire fluttered over the bound Bloodrose Grimoire, growing in size, as sounds of flapping pages continued to be heard.

Seeing that her Druic Grimoire seemed to have the Bloodrose Grimoire under control Wylla removed her hands from the Bloodrose Grimoire and leaned back; A sigh escaping her lips as the strain in her muscles melted away.

The Druic Grimoire dipped down, fluttered back up unleashing its golden-green aura, and ... BAM! Slammed down hard on top of the Briar Bloodrose Grimoire sending a kaleidoscope of aura powered flashes into the area and vibrations through the ground.

Wylla's heart thumped hard and her body jumped as she tightly closed her eyes; Anari's mention of a possible explosion springing to mind.

Ah, that was scary. I thought it exploded for a minute there. So happy it didn't! Wylla thought, opening her eyes to see that her Druic Grimoire was fine... in fact, it was better than fine; It was pressing down hard on top of the Bloodrose Grimoire like a car compactor in a junkyard, its golden-green aura blanketing the shadowy blood-red aura as the top half of the Briar Bloodrose Grimoire was already melded into the bottom half of the Druic Grimoire.

Little by little, the Druic Grimoire continued to press down as the Bloodrose Grimoire became smaller and smaller until there was nothing left; An image of a Briar Bloodrose appeared in the cover of the Druic Grimoire as the title of the book began to change.

Wylla's eyes shined as she stared at her new grimoire, a smile on her lips and an [ ding ] in the air.

“Yatta! We did it Ceri!” Wylla joyfully shouted with her fists in the air.

“Tootle-too!” Little Ceri sang out, quickly circling down to land on Wylla's shoulders like a shawl, rubbing her cheek against Wylla's as she looked down at the new Grimoire.

[ Congratulations Wylla! I'm so happy to share that, not only did you complete the grimoire merging, but because you also succeeded in attaining a familiar you have unlocked class evolution! Yay! I just knew you could do it Wylla! ;) ]

“Ah, that sounds awfully exciting Anari but what does it mean?”

[ It means... you're a Druwytch, Wylla! ]

“I'm a what?” Wylla asked, unsure what to make of it.

[ A Druwytch, Wylla. A new unique class that combines the knowledge of jinxes, hexes, and powerful curses with the magic of plants and nature. Incorporating such spell crafting into their Ways.

Which basically means, You now have all the yummy spells of a Druid. And the tasty jinxes, hexes, and curses of a Witch! Just take a look inside your new Druwytch Grimoire and see for yourself. :) ]

Wylla reached out to her new Druwytch Grimoire and opened it up, turning the pages to the spells section. Ah, this opens up new ways to fight... like binding and dotting, then running and spell-gunning. Wylla thought as her eyes scanned her new spells.

Windy's Pollen Kiss: The caster sends an unerring pollinated wind kiss towards the target causing red itchy eyes, runny nose, and sneezing for 10 seconds. Cost to Cast Jinx: 3 Oryn Energy Power.

Spirit Leeching Vines: The caster calls forth ghostly Leech Vines from the Netherworld which wraps around the target and drains them of their Oryn energy and stamina causing them to tire. Hex lasts for 5 minutes. Current Drain Strength: Drains 2 Oryn Energy and Stamina from Fatigue Bar every 5 seconds. Cost to Cast Hex: 6 Oryn Energy

“Tootle-too-tee?” Little Ceri asked.

“Yup,” Wylla responded, reaching up and gently scratching under Ceri's cute little chin. “I'm very happy with the results. Not only did I just learn how to jinx and hex but I also learned the Bloodrose Witch's powerful Briar Bloodrose Curse! That means next time we meet I can give her a taste of her own medicine Ahahaha...”

“Well, that's even if we face off again before I leave this zone. After all, I don't know how long it takes for beasties to respawn in this game...”

“Tootle-too-toot-tee-toot?” Little Ceri sang away by her ear; Her sweet breath ruffling Wylla's hair, getting a little too close to Wylla's sensitive inner ear as she quickly, but gently, shifted Ceri's cute little face back towards her new grimoire.

“Ah, let's see... the difference is that Jinxes are light little spells that cause small mishaps and misfortunes... for the most part. As such, they are mostly used for pranks, jokes, and/or to distract the target. Also, they don't last very long but cost little to cast.

Hexes, on the other hand, are medium powered castings which can cause harm as well as misfortune. Hexes can last for minutes and because they are more powerful they cost more Oryn energy to cast. So be careful who you use your Hexes on.

And last is Curses; These are powerful castings that cause both great harm and/or misfortune. As such they not only cost much more to cast but take a lot longer to cast. On the plus side, they last a very long time; Some are even permanent and can only be removed with powerful purification spells or death.

As such I recommend starting the fight with a curse if your opponent doesn't know you're there. But if they do know you're there then use a binding or crowd control type spell first and then curse them! Although, you do have the advantage of flying so keep that in mind when fighting.” Wylla gave Ceri another scratch, finishing her little scholastic lecture as she turned the pages of her grimoire back to the table of contents.

Alright then, let's see if anything else was added to my grimoire. Wylla was just about to read the page but stopped when Anari's new message popped up, happily derailing her train of thought.

[ Ah, before I forget to mention, you should also know that since both your class and your familiar evolved (something which is very rare to do) you've earned 10 more bonus mind attribute points! Yay!

Add that to the 30 points you earned for completing such a splendid Trinity Unity Core and you'll find you have grown wonderfully in this past day. ]

Wylla was quite stunned for a moment... “Huh? I received how many attribute points? Isn't that quite a lot of bonus points Anari? Is it really okay? I mean, I don't want someone from the game company to think I'm cheating or hacking the game and get banned from playing... Hmm, or maybe this is just something everyone else playing the game gets? If so... ”

[ Ahahaha Silly Wylla, do you honestly believe all that you have done is so easily accomplished?

Honestly, you did an amazing job of uniting your trinity cores, learned magic through insight by using your Oryn energy to feel the way the Spriggankin's performed theirs, achieved double evolution, and you even completed the hidden Secrets of the Oryn Tree quest.

I mean, I knew you'd eat the Oryn fruit and drink water from the pool but who would have thought you'd actually eat the tree's sap? Although, your viewers seemed very happy that you did...]

“Ah, please don't remind me about that Anari! So embarrassing... if I had known they were watching...” Wylla said mumbling to herself while shaking her head as her voice faded.

[ So as you can see you totally earned every single bonus point you got! Nothing was freely given okay? So hold your head up high and be proud of your rewards.

As for cheating or hacking... as if anybody could really do that in this 'game'. Anyone caught trying to do so would be in for a HUGE surprise! Ahahaha ]

“Ah, if you say so Anari... Thanks.” Well, then I guess I better assign all those new points!... Right after I finish looking over the grimoire's table of contents.

“Huh, No Way!?!” Wylla read and re-read the same line twice and then quickly turned the pages of the book, landing on the section titled: Alchemy.

Yes, I can learn Alchemy! Her eyes jolting left to right, taking in the information, widening in disbelief as they scanned the list of recipes. "Huh, they actually have that in there... but how?" Wylla muttered, sitting up straight while staring at a certain pair of recipes, feeling greatly puzzled.

"How can this be? Those pills are... are from my imagination... something I 100% made up and even joked about with Aiden and Thomas when we were talking about alchemy in all those stories we've read... so how can they be in this game?" Wylla said, tapping the page in the book with her finger.

“I can understand Medylixr being in here and the Orynlixr since all games have health potions and mana, well in this case Oryn Energy potions. Even the Refuelixr which regens Fatigue and the Porcu Skunkreed Bomb makes sense... which saves me a lot of trouble because I was thinking to make a bomb out of those Skunkreeds myself so this saves me time and effort.” Wylla said, tapping each recipe in her grimoire as she went over them.

And then stopping on the last two which read:

Tutt-Tutt Pill: A once a day pill to help with digestion ensuring the regularity of bowel movements in the form of round pellets like rabbits and hares. Also, eliminates diarrhea.

Tuttle Pill: A once a day pill with all the benefits of the Tutt-Tutt pill plus increases the metabolism for weight loss and increases the absorption of vital nutrients received through the consumption of foods and drinks.

“But these two... how Anari?” Wylla asked, looking up with brows furrowed and lips pressed.

[ How what Wylla? ]

“How are Tutt-Tutt and Tuttle Pills in my grimoire... in the game? They were pills I made up when reading stories about an alchemist. I always thought such beginner pills would be a great way for an alchemist MC to make money at the start of a book.

Such recipes that those around him would laugh and ridicule him about only to have to swallow their words when they discover all the money he makes from selling them.

Heck, even my best friends, Aiden and Thomas, laughed at me when I first mentioned it. And then the more they thought about it, the more they thought that such pills would be a goldmine. But other than them, I never told anyone else about it so how are they even in the game?” Wylla asked once again, double-tapping the recipes. “I mean, they're even made from the same tree I made up... from Tuttle Trees... Wait, does that mean there's Tuttle Trees in the game too?”

[Yes there is Wylla. As for why they're in the 'game' it's because they came from you during the 'character creation' process.

Hmmm... If I'm not mistaken, and I know I'm not, you thought up these pills while you were at home sick after getting a touch of food poisoning at school. You were reading a book, trying to forget about the embarrassing 'incident' that happened in class, and wishing that alchemy was real; That you could make pills that would eliminate diarrhea so that 'incident' would have never happened and that you could poop like a rabbit saving loads of toilet paper.

I guess that 'incident' greatly affected you because it's pretty prominent in your memories. Once your divine mother, the Goddess Sylvenori, found out about how important such pills would be to you, she created the Tuttle Trees making the pill recipes a reality.

And now you have the recipes and can make your dreams come true! So Happy Tuttle Day Wylla! Yay! :) ]

Wylla's reddened face was hidden behind her hands which were hidden behind her draping hair as she was looking down, shaking her head side to side, trying to forget all about the 'incident' that led to the imaginary creation of the Tuttle Tree and its pills.

And if the Tuttle Tree was anything like the one she thought of then that means its big roundish leaves could be used as soft but sturdy wet napkins eliminating the need for toilet paper.

[ Ah, there's nothing to be embarrassed about Wylla. Bowel movements are a natural part of life. Everyo... ]

“Okay, okay Anari. I get it... no need to continue talking about this... instead I got a better idea like never talking about this again... as such let's close the book on Alchemy for now.” Wylla said, closing her grimoire and sending it back into her Trinity Core.

“Instead, let's see... oh ya, you mentioned I earned loads of new attribute points so this seems like a good time to go ahead and assign them since it looks like there's still over 7 hours before I can summon my Soulryn.”

[ In that case, I have even more good news for you Wylla. All your attribute points have been reset (except for one special attribute) and the restriction of only being able to put 1 stat point in an attribute per tier up has been removed.

This is a special one time deal that all 'players' receive once they advance to Rank 1. A kind of graduation gift you receive as you go from being a newbie to being a Senkin. ]

“Senkin... what's that Anari?”

[ It means you are now officially a beginner Wylla. As such, you should have a good grasp of your 'play' style and which attributes you should place emphasis on without becoming a glass cannon. After all, you don't want to be so fragile that you'd die just because a boss sneezed your way... right Wylla? ]

“Yup, yup. I 100% agree with you Anari. I've never been good with glass cannon builds anyway so I'm not about to start now. Especially in a game that looks and feels so lifelike...”

“Tootle-too-too!” Ceri sang out, prompting Wylla to pet and scratch behind her long fluffy ear.

“Ah, that reminds me Ceri, since I'm going to be busy here setting up my stats, brewing some potions, and if time allows, practicing my new spells this would be a good time for you to explore the Desparu Swamp and see if you can find your family to spend some time with them,” Wylla said, creating a pair of Memory Rosebud Orbs.

One of the orbs was filled with memories of her time in the swamp, focusing on the dangers. And the other was filled with images of Ceri's family, including her father who passed away, so she could know them by sight.

“There you go Ceri. Be sure to touch both memory orbs and remember, when traveling in the Desparu Swamp keep your camouflage on and stay aware of your surroundings, both below and above you okay. Also, if you get into trouble just run... well, in your case fly! Okay?” Wylla asked, hugging Ceri in her arms.

“Tootle-tee”

“That's a good girl.” Wylla smiled, releasing little Ceri into the air. She touched both orbs, flew back to Wylla to rub cheeks with her one more time, and then sped off into the air towards the Desparu Swamp in search of her family as Wylla shouted out behind her “Try to be back in 7 hours if you'd like to see the hatching of the new member of our family!”

“Tootle-too-too!...” Ceri's musical voice echoed back as Wylla waved goodbye.

“Alright, let's start with getting my attributes all straightened out; Show Status!” Wylla's grimoire drifted out of her chest, floating in front of her as it opened up to her Status section. Her eyes moved left to right, taking note of her new Druwytch class which brought a smile to her face and then at her attributes which all read zero with the exception of one:

Body

Strength: 0???? Athletic: 0???? Constitution: 0

Bonus Attribute - Charisma: 20

Mind

Intellect: 0???? Wisdom: 0???? Focus: 0

Soul

Faith: 0???? Will: 0???? Aura: 0

Unassigned Attribute Points: 245

“Oh wow, that's a lot of unassigned stat points! I better make sure I allocate them properly since I won't be able to reset them again. Now let's see, my main playstyle will be Way of the Orchid Butterfly which means spell-slinging so mind stats are my main priority... and those attributes in bold will always automatically receive 1 stat point each time I tier up so...” Wylla sat there, carefully going over her abilities and her divine blessings, paying attention to the synergies they had with her attributes like her Way of the Spirin Syldrake which swapped her body stats with her mind stats, turning her into a powerful melee fighter.

And after what felt like a long time, Wylla nodded to herself, took a deep breath and started assigning stat points...

Body

Strength: 20???? Athletic: 20???? Constitution: 20

Bonus Attribute - Charisma: 20

Mind

Intellect: 40???? Wisdom: 35???? Focus: 35

Soul

Faith: 20???? Will: 25???? Aura: 30

Unassigned Attribute Points: 245-195= 50-25=25-10=15-15=0

[ Would you like to submit and implement your new stat point allocations Wylla? Y/N ]

"Hmm... yup... looks good to me so Yes Anari! ]

[ Answer received and confirmed. Changes now implemented. ]

"Thanks, Anari."

[ You're Welcome Wylla :) ]

“Yosh! Now that I have my status all set and looking good, it's time to unlock Alchemy." Wylla clapped her hands and summoned her Bloodrose Cauldron...

Storymask

Little Ceri is off to find her family and Wylla is busy putting the finishing touches on her stats before moving onto unlocking Alchemy while the timer ticks down to zero... coming up next Chapter 57: Enter Soulryn!

Side Note: Okay... I know this chapter was supposed to be her Soulryn summoning chapter but I switched it around and had her class evolution, stats reset, and part alchemy discovery happen first since it just flowed better that way. Anyways, the next chapter is absolutely now her Soulryn summoning (for sure... I think) and then a little bit Slice of Life before heading out to face the guardian blocking her way out of the starter zone.