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

Evolving wasn't a matter of days, weeks, or even months. The process would take years. As such, and despite their best efforts, Div and En didn't make any headway on that front in the following week.

They did, however, unlock Facet of the Veil.

Skill Acquired: Inspect – Basic – Lv1

Skill Acquired: Conceal – Basic – Lv1

It wasn't much, but it gave them a sense of security. They didn't want anyone discovering their split-mind condition.

In their inner world, Conceal took the form of engravings appearing on the bark of the tree. Still split in the middle by their Rot Heart, it cut a sorry figure—a few drawings weren't enough to compensate for its unbalanced form.

As for Inspect, it appeared as an empty book lying open on the ground.

Div and En were slightly underwhelmed. But that was fine—they needed the skills to hide. They could always work on how they appeared in their inner garden later.

That was something they'd learned over the week: how they visualized their skills mattered.

It wouldn't make them stronger, but a solid visualization aligned with their personality was essential for evolution.

With how tied to their soul Sundered Mind was, they figured each of their skills would need to be worked on if they wanted to evolve it the way they wanted.

"But since the forest is safest right after a dark day," Vedovessa said, bringing Div and En's attention back to their teacher. "Today is the perfect day for a field trip outside the walls."

The students perked up at those words. The weather was actually decent for once. It was still raining—but only a light drizzle, barely noticeable even without a coat.

"We haven't been allowed outside since Elenvind passed the area this summer!" Segorix said, clearly excited.

"Right, I can't wait to show Diven how it is!" Gennorina added.

"Genno," Ambisena said. "Diven was outside just two weeks ago. That's where Belilamos found him."

"Oh," the young druid said. "Well, it's different this time—we can still show him around."

"I didn't have the opportunity to appreciate the forest last time," Div and En said. "I'm looking forward to it."

[We were a little too busy with survival at the time.]

(Feels like an eternity has passed. But even counting the rift, it's only been a few months.)

[I know.]

"It's good to see you're excited," their teacher continued. "But we're not going out to play. Our goal is to gather wild aretras. Can anyone tell me what those are?"

Lugsellos raised his hand. Vedovesa signaled for him to speak.

"The wild aretra is a flower that blooms in the days following a dark day. It makes them quite rare which is unfortunate since the plant is very useful."

"And what is the use of wild aretras?" Vedovessa asked.

"Eating one raw can lower the threshold for skills to level up," Lugsellos said.

"Yes, well done Lugsellos. Although I must add that it only works for Basic Rank skills. Furthermore, eating one flower will not be enough to level up your skill. You still have to train or use your skill in exceptional situations for it to level up. It's only a little boost.

"Still, it's a good one as the effect lasts for an entire day. I hope we can find one flower each. I have plans for you tomorrow."

Vedovessa handed out weapons to her students before leading the class beyond the wall of trees. They weren't out there to fight, but Vedovessa emphasized the importance of being ready for the worst.

They walked for twenty minutes before coming to a stop in a clearing. Surrounded by old growth oaks, the place felt smaller than it was with the massive trees hiding the sky.

The ground was blanketed in leaves and moss.

There, Vedovessa instructed her students to spread out and begin searching.

Wild aretras were not easy to find. Their petals were brown, blending perfectly with the carpet of dead leaves. To make things worse, wild aretras grew close to the soil, their stems mostly buried.

Div and En joined their friends as they methodically made their way to the edge of the clearing.

"Gennorina," Segorix said. "Can your nature magic help us here?"

"No," Gennorina said, shaking her head. "Nature magic is different from plant magic."

[I don't understand. She was trying to talk with the spirit of the wall of trees. It feels like she should be able to find some flowers.]

(If she says she can't, she can't. What do we know about nature magic?)

Nothing. That was what they knew. Maybe Gennorina wasn't advanced enough to locate specific types of plants with nature magic. Or, as she was saying, it wasn't within its purview.

"Then," Segorix continued. "Does anyone have a skill that would help?"

Everyone shook their heads. Aside from Div and En, the others had only completed a single facet before taking Facet of the Veil—they didn't have many skills. As for Div and En, none of their skills seemed appropriate.

Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

The only perception skill they had was Inspect. But to use it, they needed to see their target, which defeated the purpose.

Thus, the group started searching. Their heads looking at the ground, trying to identify wild aretras.

"It sounds too good to be true," Div and En commented. "Does such a flower really exist?"

"It does," Gennorina said. "But the more you take, the less effective it is. Only the first few really make a noticeable difference. And it has to be eaten when it's fresh, which makes trading them difficult."

"I see. Have you already eaten one?"

"No," she shook her head. "I awakened this year. It would have been a waste."

[Idiot.]

(Sorry, I'm trying to make conversation here.)

"That said," she continued. "I wonder what would happen if someone were to eat one right before awakening. Maybe it would have an effect on their bloodline, but I doubt anyone would be willing to let their children try. The known effects on skills are too good to pass up."

"Interesting idea. But I agree with you, it seems impossible to try."

"Right? Imagine if it doesn't work…"

Div, En and Gennorina had distanced themselves from the rest of the group as they scrutinized the ground, looking for a sign of the precious flower.

"Diven, look!" Gennorina called, her voice low.

Thinking she had found an aretras, Div and En raised their head. But Gennorina was pointing at a tree. More specifically, she was pointing at one of its branches.

"Yes?" They asked. "What about this tree?"

"Use Inspect on this branch."

Puzzled, Div and En followed her instructions. It was a good opportunity to use their new skill on something else than their training partners.

Soon, they found a very weak concealment barrier surrounding the branch. They infiltrated it.

Species: Silvan Maw

Skills:

Mimic Branch

Constrict

"What is that?" They asked.

"Silvan Maws are predators disguised as tree branches to catch small birds and rodents. Don't worry, they're not dangerous for humans. Unless they evolve of course."

(Can you imagine how many such creatures we've passed by without noticing.)

[I don't want to think about it.]

"Should we kill it?" Div and En asked.

"No, they're harmless," Gennorina explained. "They're part of nature, there's no reason to harm them."

"Do you not hunt monsters lurking around the village?"

"We do, but only if they're a threat. Monsters that don't endanger our safety are best left alone so they can be a nuisance to actual dangers."

Div and En were starting to see where she was getting at. To her Nature wasn't something to conquer—it was a system, and some monsters were better left alone within it.

It didn't work like that in Kheiron. But the city wasn't located deep in the Wildlands, maybe there was so sense to the druid's approach.

They made sure not to approach the Silvan Maw and kept searching for the elusive flowers. So far, none of the students had found any, and the search was slowly turning into a competition.

"Come on Lug, Ambi," Segorix exhorted. "We'll be the first to find an aretras!"

When the other students heard this, they doubled their effort.

"Don't let him get to you, Diven," Gennorina said. "We're almost there. I'm sure."

"It's all about patience—we can't rush it," Div and En agreed.

Going too fast could cause them to miss a flower. Wild aretras were hard to spot, they needed to be thorough.

Crouching, they surveyed the area in detail. It wasn't comfortable, but they endured.

"Brown petals, no apparent stem," Div and En repeated, making sure they were looking for the right flower.

Sometimes, they went as far as to move the dead leaves to the side to see if there wasn't a flower growing underneath.

"I have one!" Gennorina shouted, drawing everyone's attention.

Div and En stood up and walked closer to her. On the ground, in front of her was a very small flower, smaller than a coin. With five brown petals, just on the ground surface, it was indeed a wild aretra.

"Well done," they said.

"We did it!" Gennorina said, going for a high five. Div and En took an awkwardly long time raising their hand to meet hers.

Moments later, Vedovessa was there. She inspected the plant and confirmed it was the one they were looking for. Then, she collected it herself. Precise motions were needed to make sure the flower wasn't damaged.

Now that she had shown them how to do it, Diven and Gennorina were allowed to pick them on their own.

Grinning, the two returned to their search while the others, disappointed, crouched back and continued looking.

Still, they had to keep going. They'd only found a single flower so far, and Vedovessa had asked for one per student.

"There's no way she lets us rest before we have enough," Gennorina explained. "We need twenty-two more."

It was hard work. But soon, others started to have luck on their side. First Lugsellos, then a girl called Tistal, as Gennorina reminded Div and En.

Soon, they collectively had found fifteen flowers. Div and En were growing frustrated that they hadn't found any themselves. Especially when Gennorina found the sixteenth, making it her second find.

Their friend was reassuring them, telling them it was fine if they didn't get any. After all, with everyone looking somewhere different, it was mostly on luck. Besides, even clearing areas without finding anything was helping.

But Div and En were not content with that. They wanted to find a flower. They wanted to show everyone that they were useful. They wanted to earn their place in Camboaci.

With growing restlessness as the tally of collected flowers grew to seventeen, then eighteen, Div and En started to lose patience. No longer did they meticulously check under every leaf. Instead, they were moving faster, trying to cover as much ground as they could.

Someone found the nineteenth wild aretra.

"Slow down, Diven," Gennorina warned them. With how small the flowers were, finding one was all about searching scrupulously. Haste wasn't just useless—it was detrimental.

Twenty flowers. Three left.

Their eyes scanned the ground as fast as they could.

[It's not going to work.]

(It's the only chance we have!)

Two flowers left.

Div and En started pushing leaves aside with force, trying to reveal an aretra.

Only one flower left. Just one.

[Calm down. En. Let's calm down.]

(You're right, slowly but steadily.)

Div and En crouched back and resumed the search as they did before they panicked. Leaf after leaf, they examined the ground in search of the precious plant.

They would find one.

"Oh!" Gennorina said. "Here it is. Diven, I found another one."

Div and En deflated. It was over. They hadn't found a single wild aretra.

They were useless.

"Good job, Gennorina," Vedovessa said. "Since we have one for each of you, you can stop looking for now. It's about time for your lunch break."

[At least, it's her who found it.]

(I guess…)

Div and En stood still for a moment, looking down at the forest floor. Still no aretra in sight.