Cursed Explorer of the Arcana

Dreams… sweet dreams… soft, juicy and crunchy dreams?

There are many prerequisites for a round of snooze to be in the sweet dreams category. Just a little cold in the room and perfectly warm below the blankets, a bed not too hard and not too soft, a full belly, quiet, and an eventful day.

Now, the vague image I have of the events before I hit the ground and things went dark ticks out only two of them, namely the temperature in the room and a hectic day… that’s it. Things don’t add up. And this sweetness… I’m not just imagining it. Wait, I’m awake!

The hard soil beneath me, the breeze making a shiver run down my neck, and… the sound of erratic breaths clearly not matching the movements of my chest. And then there’s the sweetness in my mouth.

My heart falls for a second as my hazy mind puts one and one together.

I throw the cursed fruit away in an instant and try spitting its vile blue flesh from my mouth but it’s… it tastes so good and I’m so incredibly hungry. I inadvertently continue chewing, my mouth rebelling against my mind’s desperate commands while a teardrop rolls down my cheek.

“It’s so good.” I mutter, basically shivering in delight.

And this is not just the hunger speaking. I’m a master at stuffing my face and have cleaned more plates than stars on the boundless sky and yet… this is the best thing I’ve ever eaten. The moment the bite rolls down my throat, the second my body claims the prize along with all its mana an electric buzz rushes through my body.

The surge of energy carries no pain or danger as it snakes from top to bottom leaving only comforting bliss in its wake and letting all my worries turn to dust. Turn out I’ve been overly paranoid all along, simply scared of something new, fearful of the unknown.

Chuckling slightly, I roll over to pick the discarded fruit back up when instead of the fuzzy soft peel my hand finds something else. Something equally fuzzy albeit warm and twitching. My standard reaction would be to yelp and jump out of my skin before burning whatever it is to pieces. After experiencing this eerie, unnatural side of the forest, right now, however… I couldn’t care less.

“Big puppy.” I babble, patting the wolf sleeping right next to me before picking up the fruit.

I already took one bite so what could another hurt?

And so I dig in.

The effects are immediate. Besides feeling my gnawing hunger recede, the sleepiness is also instantly banished from my eyes along with the soreness and tension from my muscles. It’s like a hearty meal combined with a blissful bath and a total day’s rest in a single bite.

“If only I could sell these…” A satisfied sigh escapes my mouth after licking my fingers clean.

No wonder everything in the forest was so calm and happy after the storm’s passing… That harsh weather was nothing but a blessing in disguise. Good thing I stopped for the night instead of leaving something this special behind.

A few more…

My body feels so light when I finally put some weight on my legs that I almost fall over face first. Good thing elves are more agile. It takes me a few seconds to get used to the wonders of the blue fruit before approaching a tree and gathering a small feast.

The more I eat the less I feel like the world is a cruel place. All my worries, burdens, pain, and goals… they’re meaningless.

“Why was I even in a hurry?” My words come out slurred. “What’s to the north anyways? No fruits that’s for sure, hehehe.” And with that, I snuggle back next to the wolf before closing my eyes again.

This is all I need, this is the best.

***

“Hey Eli, dear, you slept in.” Someone gently shakes my shoulder. “You know well that Mr. Rion will deduct your pay if you’re late.” The male voice whispers into my ear with the warm breath tickling my neck.

The voice is comforting, so much so that it almost pulls me back to the realms of dreams if only it wasn’t for the dreadful news. The promise of the old dwarf’s wrath is enough for my eyes to snap open, only to meet Dad’s smirking face.

Still groggy and very much unhappy to be alive I look around, heavily contemplating just digging myself back under my fluffy blanket and letting my future self deal with this.

I’m in my room, lying in my bed and covered with my old blanket as the morning light is seeping through my curtain.

“What is it sweetie, are you not feeling well?” Dad asks, his goody face quickly morphing into one showing real parental concern.

I’m home and I have to go to… work? Right, work… I help with the inscriptions. Grumpy old dwarven blacksmith…

“I’m fine Dad, just not entirely awake yet.” I throw my blanket off at my old man before crawling out of bed to wash my face

Weird, I’m so slow while also really stable. Am I actually sick?

“Have a quick bite before you go, breakfast is on the table.” He puts his boots on while I busy myself getting ready. “I’m gonna be late today but your mother will take care of the cooking while we’re away.” Dad kisses me on the forehead and leaves. “See you at dinner.”

“Bye, love you!” I giggle and throw my nightgown off.

A not-too-loose wool shirt, thick leather pants, leather apron for the tools, boots, and the gloves can wait until we ignite the furnace. The old shorty is gonna be furious, even though he doesn’t start working for like another hour...

“Morning Mom.” I greet the true ruler of the house with a big hug.

She’s cooking… whatever that brown thing is supposed to be, pretending she didn’t hear, feel, smell and just basically sense me coming.

“You’re gonna be late.” This is her way of saying good morning to you too.

I plop down at the table and start gobbling down the bread, cheese, veggies, and ham combo.

“Don't just swallow the food, you glutton!” Comes the unnecessary comment.

I’m in a hurry, woman. I’ve got important…important? Why am I even here?

I’ve got things to do.

She’s the one breaking the convention in the first place, expecting me to speak while stuffing my mouth. I can stay simply quiet and there’s nothing she can do about it. Okay, there are a number of punishments she could smite me with but it wouldn’t be fair. I enjoy family rule immunity.

“Will you be home for lunch?” Mom asks me on my way out.

“I don’t know, maybe. Probably not, old Rion is gonna be livid and drown me with work, knowing his personality.” I shrug, already on my way out.

“He’s a good man, you know, we wouldn’t let you work for him otherwise.” Mom looks over and winks playfully. “That grim outside hides a soft heart.”

“And hides it very well.” I mutter.

“Have a nice day and don't do anything stupid.” Mom bids me farewell.

“I value the trust Mom, love you too.” I hold back the snarkier comments and just suck it up.

Be mouthy with your parents and bear the consequences, a rule as old as time itself. Especially when they’re the ones feeding you.

Good thing Mom is an expert when it comes to the feeding part with her chef Class Conductor of the Kitchen.. or something like that. Yeah and Dark Needle, her… spatula?

Man, just what did I eat last night to be so out of touch today? Or is it the lack of sleep?

The weather is nice, the streets are not too congested this early in the morning, and even last night’s stench is gone… If only I could just stay home and sleep.

On my way to work, I catch a glimpse of Jappo at the edge of the market in a heated discussion with a merchant. Heated as in fast and using a lot of hand gestures, no aggression involved.

When our eyes meet the boy flashes one of those infamous gnomish smiles with a glint playing in his eyes promising minor financial loss at best.

He quickly shakes off the man he’s been trying to do business with before walking approach me to my great dismay. “Hey Eli, how are you doing on this fine day? Can you take a look at our kettle in the afternoon?” He asks and pats my shoulder, tiptoeing.

There it is, I knew he looked too friendly. What better way to have something fixed than for free?

“Again? Jappo you could just take it to the shop and I'd give you a discount.” I flick my money-grubber friend on the forehead.

“C’mon now, it’s just a few minutes of your time. I can’t even warm a cup of water at home for tea.” He whines with his high-pitched gnomish voice.

“A little fire is all you need, it’s not witchcraft.” I shake my head and snap my finger to make a small flame.

Nothing.

“Huh?”

I blink like a newborn lamb before giving it another shot.

Fire. Air. Lightning! WATER!

“Are you okay?” Jappo snaps me out of my downward spiral of confusion.

“I- I think so.” I rub my head. “I have to go, I'm late for work.”

“About the kettle?” Jappo asks shamelessly.

What are friends for, huh?

“Sure, come by in the evening,” I yell and step onto the main road. “And bring some-”

“Watch out!”

My reflexes are spot on and I whip my head to the side just in time to come face to face with an Oxbear. My movements however feel sluggish, and my body is hardly responsive despite the years of training…

Training?

Then everything turns dark as the massive beast tramples over me.

***

I bolt up like never before as the panic and confusion just seconds before the collision rush through me soon followed by something else. A piercing sense of pain radiates from my calf and spreads through my body as if my muscles were on fire.

I’m in the grass, on the ground, still in the forest… and with a root wrapped around my leg.

Then as if someone dunked a bucket of cold water on the fire that is the alarms ringing in my head things quiet down. The pain pulls back, the shock and my fighting instincts get muddled… Everything will be fine, this forest is a good place, safe and full of delicious fruits.

It was all just a dream and even now this root around my leg and the blood pouring from the wound where it’s digging into my flesh is nothing more than… Right, it’s just a coincidence.

To fix my issue I reach for my magic, relying on both Arcane Focus and Serene Spellcrafting I find it hard to concentrate, and all of a sudden the veil on my mind is lifted ever so slightly. My senses feel sharper, my thoughts louder and the pain more realistic than before.

[The Class Skill [Arcane Focus] has reached lvl 64.]

[The general Skill [Serene Spellcrafting] has reached lvl 53.]

In this moment of clarity and absolute fury flames erupt from my injured calf and engulf the root in their blue embrace. The plant doesn’t last long in the face of its natural enemy but as soon as I relinquish control over my magic I begin to feel sluggish again.

“Damn it!” Realization is quick to hit me.

I need to keep those two Skills running to preserve my sanity.

Since it’s still very much summer and the temperature during the day can be quite unbreakable I elect to simply cool the air around me a little, using as little mana as I can.

This would be the perfect time to assess what happened if not for another radicle creeping toward my leg or more accurately the blood seeping from the wound. But the secret of the trees turns out to be much more vile than I first thought.

The wolf I foolishly huddled up to in my moment of utter foolishness is now entangled by the very same tree I picked the blue fruits from. The vines and roots are snaking up and down the beast's body, piercing the flesh and running under the skin as they slowly eat the creature from the inside.

It’s a repulsing sight made only worse due to my curiosity…

[Wolf lvl 95]

It’s still alive. The tree is draining the blood from its body and eating its flesh minute by minute while the beast is still breathing, locked in the world of its dreams.

“Maybe I should burn this forest to the ground.” The simple cooling magic around me quickly morphs into uncontrolled heat before flaring up into furious flames.

There’s a chance I’ll fall to the temptation again even after seeing this… abhorrent sight. The disgustingly sweet smell lingering in the air could drag me down again, especially after experiencing the happiness every bite of the fruit promises. All it takes is a moment of weakness…

“I refuse to die like that.” I hiss and command my flames to do their thing. “The wind has turned, it’s moving north now. Good.”

That way I won’t piss off Big Fluff.

The trees in this forest are obviously not your usual plants, more resistant and as it turns out slightly evil by nature, so they’re not so easy to incinerate as normal firewood. Add to that the massive storm that passed just about two days ago and the amount of life juice some of these bloodsuckers have consumed and any tiny flame in a forest this massive would stand little chance to devour to its heart’s content.

Almost any flame.

The red and orange tint, only able to slowly gnaw away at the tough bark and resistant fibers seemingly takes a deep breath before flaring up. A hoarse otherworldly howl accompanies the spectacle of the flames competing for the title of brightest with Solaire himself, turning white as the first snow and marking the start of the inferno I envisioned.

“Now, let the fire clear my path.” I mutter as my work blooms.

Should I be concerned about the size of the smile on my face?