Light crept in between the cracks of the wooden walls in the morning. Caelen slowly got up, wiping his eyes. The air was a bit cool, and dew covered the lawn outside. He got up and walked over to the little spot of farmland.
He stooped beside the corn and inspected it closely. The leaves were more green than before. He stroked one with his fingers.
"Still 50%. halfway," he said softly.
He sighed. "This is gonna take days. Farming's not a ga of speed, huh."
He got up, stretched his arms, and headed in the direction of the mines. Might as well finish up so work while the crops take their ti.
At the mine entrance, he inspected the drill he had stationed there before. It was still rotating, steam hissing quietly. It had penetrated so layers, but not much.
He looked at the depth counter.
"Still 90 ters remaining. Bloody hell, that mythril's thick."
He mopped his brow with the back of his hand. "Coal fired's quicker than steam, but even that takes its ti."
Coming back out again, Caelen paced over toward the clearing beside his hut. He sat on a tree stump and sipped from a wooden mug.
His brain was racing.
I need to beco stronger. That mythril could be crucial... but I can't just depend on equipnt. I need sothing else.
He stared at his hand. He thought about the mysterious artifact—the ring he'd picked up in the mine. Wearing it since, he'd felt... changed. Like there was sothing new opened up inside him.
"I should practice my magic," he muttered to himself.
He considered for a mont.
"Google, how do I learn more about earth magic?"
A shock to his mind. He stood there, blinking hard as information flooded in like a torrent. Words, symbols, and odd sensations ca, too quickly to define. His knees trembled as he clutched his head.
"Whoa—" he gasped. Then it subsided.
— — —
[System: Earth Magic Identified]
[New Spells Available]
[Earth Bullet]
★ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Fires a small piece of stone at high velocity.
[Earth Shards]
★ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Shoots sharp stone shrapnel forward.
[Earth/Stone Shield]
★★ ☆ ☆ ☆
Puts up a stone barrier wall.
[Fertility of the Land]
★★ ☆ ☆ ☆
Enhances growth of plants in an area.
[Mountain Endurance]
★★ ☆ ☆ ☆
Gives temporary defense and toughness.
[Earth Quake]
★★★ ☆ ☆
Causes violent ground shaking in an area.
[Creation: Golem]
★★★ ☆ ☆
Creates an assistant out of earth, stone, or tal.
— — —
Caelen whistled softly. "That's. a lot. It's like a skill tree in a ga, but it's real."
He stood up and held up his hand. "Let's try it."
"Earth Bullet," he said.
A boulder detached from the ground and shot at a tree. It struck the bark with a muted crack.
"Not bad."
He attempted it again, concentrating harder this ti.
"Earth Shards."
Three jagged rocks whirred up from the ground and blazed out in a spray. They bit into the dirt in front of them.
Caelen nodded. "Could be handy for defense."
Then he pushed a hand to the earth and breathed softly, "Fertility of the Land."
The earth glowed softly. Grass rippled, and the corn field stood a hair taller, leaves quivering.
"Does that on plants too. Good."
He experinted with "Mountain Endurance" next. A restful peace flooded his body. His muscles did not increase, but he weighed more—solid, like a rock.
"Could be helpful in a fight."
He took a step back, then raised his arm and shouted, "Earth Shield!"
A solid wall of stone erupted out of the ground in front of him, broad enough to conceal himself behind. It held up for a few seconds before collapsing.
Caelen smiled. "Now we're talking."
He hesitated over "Earth Quake." "Maybe not now... don't wanna destroy my own ho."
At last, he raised both hands. "Creation: Golem."
The earth shook, but nothing arose. Too little raw material within range.
"Have to have more earth or tal to form," he grunted.
He dropped back onto his seat, breathing a trifle harder. "Magic leaches energy. need to control it."
He sat out a hand snack from his pack—toughened at and so sliver of flatbread. Between bites, he gazed out at the patch of corn.
"I can speed that up using magic now," he said to himself. "That'll feed us."
He settled back, fingers behind head.
"However, this world is nuts. I've got drills, magic, goblins, and Google. If I described any of this to people back on Earth..."
He laughed quietly. "They'd think I'm lost."
Yet within him burned another feeling. An odd enthusiasm. This was no longer simply surviving. He was learning, adapting, creating.
And he wasn't alone.
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