Rot Heart: A LitRPG of Rot Magic in an Ancient World (Book 1 completed)

Dana slumped against the boat's guardrail, barely feeling Gennorina's hand on her shoulder.

"Don't move," the druid said.

"Div…"

"He'll be fine."

"But he—"

"You'll get used to him doing impossible things."

Dana let her head fall back, watching the clouds swirl above her, trying to make sense of what had just happened. Her body ached. Her ribs protested with every breath. But none of it mattered. Not really.

She had died.

Nearly.

She remembered the cold. The emptiness. The snap of something inside her.

And then—him. His voice. His hand dragging her back. Their very souls breathing together.

She turned her head and stared at him. Div lay crumpled not far away, unconscious, breathing softly like a boy who'd just run too hard.

He didn't look like a monster. But something in her recoiled.

"What did he do to me?" she whispered.

"He healed you," Gennorina said, too quickly.

"No. That wasn't healing." Dana paused. "That was… more?"

Gennorina said nothing.

Dana swallowed. "And he's still only learning?"

"Barely scratched the surface," Lugsellos said as he joined them.

Dana looked back at Div. She was still processing everything that just happened.

She wasn't sure what Div had done to heal her, but the experience had been intense.

Too intense.

She looked at Lugsellos and Gennorina. "Did you know he could do that?"

"We knew he had a self-healing skill," Lugsellos said. "With no other option, we pushed him to try and heal you. To be honest, he had no confidence in succeeding. He was even afraid he would make things worse."

"Then?"

Lugsellos shrugged. "He'll tell us when he wakes up. But safe to say, he benefited from this."

Dana wondered how Lugsellos knew, but she didn't question it. The archer was always particularly keen.

Her feelings were a mess. She didn't regret her actions, but she had a hard time coming to terms with what she did.

Betrayal. The hoplites of the Thesios clan were dead, killed by the mountaineers. It was her fault, at least partially.

Perhaps the past few days spent alongside Div had shifted her perspective on Kheiron. She didn't think he deserved exile. Not after the power he displayed.

No, she shook her head. Had Div been powerless, he wouldn't have deserved exile either. Even in the clans of the acropolis, plenty of people never lived up to the glory of their names. It was to be expected.

Was it only his bloodline that had gotten him exiled? It had to be, and yet, it didn't feel right to her.

Her gaze lingered on Div. His chest was heaving up and down.

Who was he?

More importantly, what had he done to her?

Your bloodline has transformed from Steady Hands to Soulguided Hands.

Her inner world had changed since she and Div's souls had touched. Something she didn't even know was possible.

Did Div know? She would have to ask him about it.

Gennorina watched as Dana slowly recovered. She had doubted her. She had been wary, distrustful. Within reason, of course.

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Her views about Kheironites had been shaped by Div, En, and Theaphilia. Those three didn't paint the southern Ameian colony in the best light. For En, it was despite himself, but Div and Theaphilia were level-headed. They talked about the good and bad.

It was just that there were a lot of bad things to say.

Adding to that her own, albeit limited, experience with southerners in Bavacium…

Well, she didn't have the best opinion of them.

It was only natural that she wouldn't trust Dana immediately. An explorer who acted with suspicions toward them, as if they were traversing Ameian lands.

Still, she had held herself back. Even if Div didn't want to show it, he had been happy to meet someone from his hometown. Especially one that wasn't immediately hostile. Dana even seemed to be interested in rot magic.

Gennorina couldn't claim to understand people the same way Lugsellos did. To be fair, he was essentially cheating. But, she prided herself on doing her best.

She didn't regret it.

To be honest, she hadn't thought Dana would side with them when they met the hoplites. She shouldn't have.

But she did, and now Gennorina felt bad for doubting her after she risked her life and future to save them.

She wasn't blind. She knew the woman was mostly doing it for Div. Yet, did it matter?

No. Not really, anyway.

That's why she pushed him to heal her. Despite his hesitations, despite the low chances of success.

She couldn't let her friend give up on one of the rare people who saw him for who he was. Not just a mage of rot, but Div. Not after everything he'd done for her.

Watching the river flow behind the stern, on the lookout for pursuers, she regretted not doing the same for En.

Had she convinced him to stay behind, instead of embarking on his senseless quest for Kheiron, she would have had another companion.

But the boy had been even more lost than their band of castaways. Maybe it was for the best.

All Gennorina could hope was that he would find what he was looking for and that they'd meet again soon.

She smiled. Surely, it would be quite the surprise when he would see Suce with her. The earth spirit was quietly resting within its pebble. Lucky for her, he hadn't set its sight on a boulder, it would have been impossible to move.

Through her bond, she could sense that Suce would have preferred something more substantial. The pebble was temporary.

She knew the spirit understood what she had sacrificed to bond with it. To bring it away from the curse.

Gennorina didn't regret it. Even if it hadn't been entirely her choice.

Lugsellos felt pretty good about how things turned out. He could feel that it wasn't the case for the girls, but they would come around eventually.

It was almost tempting to use Empathetic Resonance to ease their worries. But Lugsellos refrained from doing so. Genno and Div had asked not to use it on them without their consent. A reasonable request, by all accounts.

Dana hadn't, but he knew Div and Genno wouldn't be happy if he used his skill on her.

Looking at it from an objective perspective, everything had gone their way.

They had survived the encounter with the Kheironite army, used them to buy some time and distance their pursuers, and Div had progressed beyond what he thought possible.

If it was as he suspected, and his friend had managed to evolve a second skill, it was news that warranted celebrations.

Trabine wasn't too far down the river now, and Lugsellos was already thinking about how they would introduce themselves. They only knew Ilmara and Sernium from the village, and they had only met briefly at the gathering two years prior.

They barely knew each other. But it was better than nothing. At least, they should recognize they were allies.

Dana being there would complicate things. But it was something he would have to deal with when the time came. She stood firmly on their side—mind and actions—so he would do the same for her.

He sighed. Lugsellos didn't like the way he was thinking. He hadn't always been so calculating. Maybe it was his skill and bloodline that changed him. Maybe he was letting it happen because it was more convenient.

Regardless, he wished he could be more like his friends. More genuine.

Somehow, Div and Genno had ended up in similar situations. Unable to return home. Yet, they still managed to trust.

It was almost impossible for him. How could he trust when the truth lay so close within reach? All he needed to do was let his senses tell him if he could believe in someone or not.

Div and Genno, yes. Seg and Ambi, less so. Dana, at first he couldn't, now he could.

It bothered him. If Div hadn't been there. If he hadn't shown interest in Dana, Lugsellos wouldn't have let her come with them.

A mistake, evidently.

But no matter how he turned the events in his head, he didn't know what else he could have done. Back then, her feelings of suspicion and disdain toward them had been clear.

Now these feelings were practically gone.

If she could change this fast, what of the others?

How could he trust anyone if his skill wasn't infallible?

How did he, before he first unlocked Sense Emotions?

"Lugsellos, Gennorina," Dana said, forcing him out of his thoughts. "We should start looking for a place to set camp. The moon isn't going to be out tonight, there's no way we'll have enough light to steer the boat."

Lug gave himself a shake, trying to refocus. "The mountaineers can't be too far behind. Can we afford to stop?"

"We don't really have a choice," Gennorina said.

Lugsellos tried to think of a solution, but the girls were right. If they couldn't see the rocks dotting the meandering river, they would crash before sunrise.

Then they would truly be in trouble.

But…

"I'll stand guard," Div said, having just woken up. "Scrornforged's still powering me up."

"Are you alright?" Lugsellos asked, even if he already knew the answer.

"Yes, I just needed a bit of rest."

"Are you sure?" Dana asked. "Thank you, Div. For everything."

Div stood up and walked toward her. "No, it is I who must thank you, Dana."

He stopped a pace away from her and scanned his friends with his gaze. A sly smile hung on his lips.

"Who wants to hear about my new skill evolution?"