Wraithwood Botanist

Chapter 48 - Legacy Options

I thought that the Trial of Worth would end with some grand congratulations, but it didn’t. It started out just as boring as ever.

—---

Neophyte Mira Hill has completed the mandatory quest, "Trial of Worth."

Quest Summary: Surprise, surprise—the gods see no value in people who want to stare at plants all day. If you choose this path to godhood, they demand you prove your resolve the hard way. Use your botany class to survive over the next seven days.

Duration: (1) Week

Quest Value: Prepare for your new world. Provides voluntary missions and resources to test skills. Excellent performance can earn the neophyte subclasses and legacies that provide unique rewards and additional quests.

Notes:

The Trial of Worth is the only mandatory quest. It is given to all classes.

The neophyte’s class type and environment influence the trial’s difficulty.

The more distinguished your performance is when completing missions, the greater chance you have of obtaining a subclass or a legacy.

Unwillingness to participate in the trial, either by not using your class during the trial or giving up, will result in the neophyte being reassigned to a Peaceful Class of the Oracle’s choosing.

You may switch to a Peaceful Class at any time, though the Oracle will assign you to the class of their choosing.

You are in an isolated environment. It could take up to a year to retrieve you without high-level Requests. It is recommended that you participate and earn Requests and Rewards to survive.

—---

"That’s right… it didn’t have rewards," I sighed, running my fingers through my hair. "I know there were missions with rewards, but… still. You’d think there was more than this… Hey, Lithco. Come teach me more about core formation."

Lithco walked out from behind a tree, shoulders slumped as if he were summoned by their boss for another ten hours of work. He turned to me with bleary eyes. "Yes? I know you don’t want core work."

"You’re right," I said. "I’m actually looking for some excitement or something. Can’t you use your augmented reality to make this special?"

Lithco lowered his head, rubbing his eyes. Then he lifted a finger, and party streamers popped from it. "Yay…" he said.

"Ahem!" I said. "You’re not leaving until you make this exciting."

"You’re so petty."

"Damn right I am. After putting me through hell, I deserve some encouragement."

Lithco took a deep breath, exhaled even deeper, then lifted his arms in a Y. The molten skies, still burning from the sunrise, exploded with fireworks, raining down sparks like pixie dust.

"Yay. Go Mira. You did exactly what everyone else did. Have some cookies." He shook his sleeves, and tiny chocolate chip cookies started dropping from them onto the ground. "Satisfied?"

I giggled and smiled. "Yeah."

"Okay. Now that that’s out of the way, close the notification so you can get your congratulations. Idiot."

My smile sharply curved into a frown when he walked behind a tree and disappeared. I closed the notification, which was still up to, and I got another notification proving that I had just jumped the gun. The first was a distinction page that listed everything that I had accomplished, which felt very, very satisfying.

—---

Trial of Worth Review

Class type: Unique

-

Kills:

1st Evolution: 37

2nd Evolution: 217

-

Assisted Kills:

1st Evolution: 44

2nd Evolution: 891

3rd Evolution: 87

-

Alchemic Creations (Including Poisons):

Tier 2: 1

Tier 3: 2

-

Mana Core Strength:

Purity: Peak

Strength: Very High

-

Soul Core Strength:

Purity: High

Strength: High

-

Soul Strength:

Purity: Very High

Strength: Very High

-

Accomplishments

Completed a legacy quest.

Completed multiple legacy requests.

Obtained a blessed subclass offer.

…

—---

I read through the long list of accomplishments with a wicked grin carved into my face. There were dozens. It was vain and satisfying, but what really mattered was the line on the final screen. It read:

—---

These accomplishments will contribute to your Trial of Worth and evolution rewards. The trial is still in session for other participants. It will conclude in two days.

—---

"I like the sound of rewards," I said. I looked down at Kline. "Do you like the sound of rewards?"

Kline looked up and meowed. It was the same as every meow, but it packed a punch of excitement.

Then I physically swiped away the notifications, thinking about what I should do that day—completely forgetting the most important reward of all.

It didn’t let me forget.

I got an insane notification that made me cackle a dark cackle that came from deep within my soul. It read:

—---

You have been offered three legacy rewards. Would you like to choose a legacy now or wait to obtain more offers?

—---

"Now," I said without hesitation. Putting aside the hell I went through for Brindle’s legacy and the insanity of choosing any other, I’d rather lick a cheese grater than do another legacy quest. I had fought soul-eating monsters, sparked murderous orgies, and sent an entire species into a family killing frenzy. Now that I had amazing options, there were no gains worth my life.

Or perhaps there was. The prizes were juicy. That’s why I refused to entertain them and moved on.

The next screen pulled up all three options, ranked by the order I received them. I read them in surprise.

"Wow… there’s no sass," I said. "Guess the gods wrote these…."

Kline looked at me blankly.

"Oh… I guess these legacies aren’t yours. Here, I’ll read them. The first one’s from a god named Telgan. It’s very simple. It reads: My name is Telgan, a dryad famed for their weaponization of fungi and plants. If you accept my legacy, I will teach you magic on how to harness the dangerous plants and fungi in the Areswood Forest to kill and threaten and solve most problems. In exchange, I ask that you protect Areswood Forest." I leaned my back against a tree. "That’s kinda interesting," I muttered. "That’s basically what I’ve been doing, but I could use magic…."

This wasn’t a throwaway option. As the incident with the shalks, reapers, and lignans showed, the weaponization of raw plants and fungi alone could cause massacres. If I could use magic to pull poisons out of plants or animate poison brambles to strike something, it would be an undeniable boon.

I would take this one seriously.

"She says that the Tribute is just to protect the forest from invaders. There is no monthly tribute, and we could potentially live here forever without paying tribute, but there is no time or danger threshold if it is invaded." I turned to Kline. "What do you think?"

He slightly shrugged—as cats somehow do—and meowed. "Yeah… it’s not particularly impressive, either, is it?" He meowed again. "Okay… let me read the next one."

Before I read it, the symphony bugs picked up in the area, creating beautiful music as if they were angelic trumpets summoning God’s arrival.

"Okay, this one’s from Elana Saliea… she’s an alchemy god, and she really emphasizes that we’re both human… Oh my…"

I suppressed the word God, thinking, Don’t say it aloud… she might be listening. By "don’t say it aloud," I meant that this lady was an extravagant narcissist who didn’t understand the depth of their narcissism, so offending her would be bad news.

"I’ll just read it," I said. "It says: Dear Mira. Over the last week, I’ve had the divine fortune to watch you and your spirit beast completing trials in the Areswood Forest, and I must say, you have what it takes to be beautiful. A little bit rough, but as your master, I will provide you with the resources to be a goddess that is sought through the cosmos. Believe me. Three millennia ago, humans like us were considered bald animals by the prevailing races. But after my beauty line and rebranding, humans are the hottest breeding species in the Multiverse, and I believe with you, we can solidify our species on top."

I suppressed a desire to roll my eyes. I was dying in a forest, and she was shilling me her beauty line and flattering me. Don’t get me wrong—I liked to look good as much as anyone. If it wasn’t so much damn work, I’d wear makeup every day. Look good, feel good—it’s real. But the same fact was I was on the verge of dying in a fucking forest, and the last thing on my mind was how I could look better.

I thought things would continue down this vain, unnecessary path, but it turned out that Elana was, in fact, a pragmatic god.

"To do that, I believe that you should accept Brindle darling’s legacy and accept my blessed subclass. Then, I can provide you one-on-one tutelage, teaching you how to make life-saving alchemic recipes. My plan will start with health elixirs and balms and anti-toxins, survival recipes that will keep you alive now. Should you lose a limb or be horribly transfigured, I will give you resources and advice to rectify such hideousness. Health. Power. Youth. If you choose my blessed subclass, I will ensure you stay alive, obtain wealth, and reach the pinnacle of fame and beauty in the Multiverse."

Translation: I know you’re going to pick Brindle’s, so pick me next. You’re a bit ugly, but you’re extremely valuable. So I will fix you if you give me your resources… got it.

The message left me with a bittersweet smile. It would be impossible to overstate the value of alchemy. These elixirs and creations have already saved my life and increased my power exponentially. Moreover, Elana was clearly invested in keeping me alive, even if it were to rob me dry. So, unlike the first god, I could see her zealously teaching me—as annoying as it may prove to be.

I looked at Kline, who was eying me suspiciously.

"I know…" I said, reading through the rest of the long-winded business proposal. "But the Tribute isn’t that bad. It’s just to sell requested resources and elixirs during the Black Harvest, and that’s already what I was planning to do anyway. I’ll probably need to take quests to get these ingredients and learn how to make them. It sounds like a pain in the ass. But…." I smiled wryly. "Is there actually a choice here?"

Kline huffed and turned away on principle. He didn’t take kindly to anyone trying to use me, even if it was mutually beneficial. I loved that about him, but it was also a bit childish.

I created a water sphere and splashed it onto my face, running my fingers through my hair. Then I flicked water at Kline, and he hissed, backing up as he brooded.

"Okay, let’s read Brindle’s," I said, chuckling at his reaction. Then I looked at the screen with a wry smile, feeling a knot developing in my intestines. "He writes," I began, "Mira Hill. I do not often interact with others, so I have obtained help with this letter. I hope you will forgive my blunt and apathetic personality, as it is in my nature."

Looks like he got a lot of help, I silently mused, easing up my stress. This reads like an intern wrote it.

I looked at Kline to see if I was the only one and found him staring at me with a creepy smile. I cupped my hands over my mouth, trying not to laugh. It was funny, but it wasn’t. There was a firm chance that this offer would sound magical, only to later learn he was a ruthless god. That sobered me up.

"My name is Brindle Grask, a druid that lived in Areswood for over sixty millennia. The books in the Guides library are my own, so I am best suited to be your guide and mentor. With my aid, you will receive access to sacred locations, be warned of those yet dangerous, and learn of important resources in each ring. As you are a botanist, I can also teach you of the many plants of this forest and their uses."

I nodded. This was the reason, more than any other, that I wanted to accept Brindle’s legacy. It was practical and awarded me more information on my chosen study. I read on.

"My soulmancy legacy grants its wielder the potential for immense power, allowing them to refine soul force, impress their will on the world, and gives them the ability to birth life into inanimate objects, including plants, and turning them into weapons. By pursuing this art within the Forest of Souls you will gain dominion over the land and achieve control and protection beyond any one skill."

I smiled wryly, expecting the catch, and it came swift and hard.

"That said," I whispered hesitantly, "the art of manipulating the souls and consciousness of living creatures is considered blasphemous by countless religions and organizations. Should people learn that you have accepted my legacy, you will be shunned by many societies in the Multiverse and hunted down by zealots. Thus, to accept my legacy, you must commit yourself to a life of power."

I pressed my fingers against my eyelids, holding my breath for a few seconds before exhaling and releasing them. I wanted to say, Sure, whatevs, it’s no biggie. It’s not like anyone’s gonna meet me in person. Besides, haven’t you seen me? I can slow time. You think I need soul plants to kill some second evolution assholes? What a joke. Unfortunately, I couldn’t say that. Gods would know that I accepted Brindle’s legacy—God knows narcissists like Elana can’t shut the fuck up to save their lives, so I was sure that my name would be broadcasted as a "Beauty in the Making" or something.

I looked to the sky, wondering what I’d have to do to mitigate these risks. I was strong enough to protect my family—but I was nowhere near them—and leaving the forest meant forgoing Tribute to Elana if not Brindle as well. I would need to ask questions and make arrangements.

"Given your situation," I read, "there’s far more advantages to accepting my legacy than otherwise, and I have presented you with a subclass option to feed your other passions. Should you need additional aid, I will endeavor to help you. You have a great opportunity here—but there is a cost."

Those last five words sleeved my arms with gooseflesh, prickling and sensitive to the morning air.

"I have offered this legacy because Yakana has shown favor to you," I read. "This is a rarity, a showcase that your intentions toward the forest are pure and devoid of desires for financial gains or power. If you accept my legacy, I require you to prove your resolve, paying me Tribute by protecting this forest from invasion, should the need arise, and not threatening the forest with your actions. That includes exercising prudence when selling alchemic resources in creations. Break any of these, and I will be as much your enemy as jealous alchemists, zealots, and thieves. So compose yourself."

Brindle’s words were depressingly reasonable. I say depressingly because they didn’t seem reasonable at all. It was like he was offering me the carrot and the stick, but the stick was a club, and he was actively beating me with it. That said, accepting Elana’s legacy would put me in the crosshairs of every alchemy god and business within Elana’s network. Soon, people would be currying favors with my family for resources if they found out about them or tried to take them hostage for leverage. Therefore, I needed to protect my family somehow. That’s why Brindle’s requests were reasonable: it said that I won’t tread on you so long as you don’t tread on me. The rest was quite involuntary…

What a nightmare. What happened to living a simple life studying plants?

That question wasn’t fair. I was offered a full-time tutor at will, all the recorded knowledge on plants accessible to mortals, rewards that transcended my wildest dreams, magic, immortality, power, and almost all the time I wanted to hike around, make cool creations, and conduct experiments. Once I had enough power to be on the top of the food chain again, this would be a dream life—far better than the mundane internship I was destined for on Earth. It was a good deal, so complaining that I had to accept some minor responsibilities like a modern adult felt petty. Right or wrong, that’s how I personally felt about it, and I was satisfied with the outcome.

"Guess that’s it," I said. It felt like I was supposed to answer without hesitation here, but I had an important question that I needed answers to before I accepted any of these requests. "Hey, Lithco. How in the hell am I gonna protect my family after this?"

Lithco walked out from behind the tree that he escaped in, correctly assuming that I wanted to see his face for the conversation about protecting my family. He sat down in front of me, taking his time to settle in and then matching my intense gaze.

"I wish that I could tell you that this would be easy, that all you had to do is throw down a free request to suppress all information on them and everything would be solved," he said. "But unfortunately, things are long past that."