Chapter 98: Changes

    It was with more than a little trepidation that Leif deactivated [Tree of Respite], allowing him to slip from the trunk like a stone breaking the surface of a pond. Light and sound and smell all struck him at once, the clarity of his post evolution senses striking him all at once. He knew that [Intelligence] increased one''s ability to process stimuli, and [Spirit] strengthened perception though in ways he wasn’t too sure about. But this was a bigger increase than his admittedly vast increase to his attributes could explain. There was a qualitative difference between what he could hear and smell, as if up until this point his senses were being smothered.

    He had closed his eyes while he adjusted to his improved perception, the process feeling more tangible than it ever had before. Leif was pretty sure he still didn’t technically have eyeballs, but there now seemed to be a more physical mechanism in play. The same was true, he realised, for his mouth. He had a jaw now, and actual muscles in his face. The range of movement wasn’t good, but he could now open and close his mouth.

    It was hard to describe the sheer joy of regaining something so simple, but so fundamental to what every human could do. Leif opened his eyes, amber light igniting within his face as he took in the suddenly more colourful world. He stretched his arms and legs, feeling the newfound strength and flexibility each possessed. Then he realised something that brought him up short.

    He was taller, significantly so. It was hard to judge without directly measuring himself but Leif suspected he was a foot, maybe two taller. His limbs were longer, and as he studied them he noticed the difference in their shape and structure. Before, his body had several jagged protrusions and small branches jutting off in different directions. Crimson leaves had grown from these places in small clumps, the leaves were still present, but the jagged parts of his body had been significantly smoothened out.

    And though the leaves persisted after the evolution, they now possessed an almost metallic, golden tint that reflected the sunlight shining down from above. He raised his arms, noting how the small gaps and divots were less prominent, though a faint amber glow still emanated from within the largest of them. Finally he noticed his hands, four fingers and a thumb. For what felt like an eternity he stood in wonder, though due to his new class perk he knew it had only been a few minutes, staring at his hands.

    His digits were long and slender, their tips still ended with sharpened claws, but it hardly mattered. Such a simple change left him speechless, a giddy, childlike excitement bubbling within his chest. He reached up and touched his face, feeling tears building up as he did so. He pushed them down and explored the structure of his head. No longer was it a featureless plane of wood, while it was still mostly flat and mask-like, there were now several bits of detail etched into the wooden surface.

    He explored the top of his head, and to his surprise found a considerable number of leaves that sprouted from his scalp only to flow down the back of his head almost reaching his shoulders. Leif could feel them growing at an accelerated rate, quickly becoming a thick mane of red faux hair. And that wasn’t the only change, the structure of his head was different in several ways, the most significant being that what was once a series of several small protrusions jutting from the crown of his head were absent. Instead they seemed to have morphed together and smoothed out, appearing more like a diadem woven into his forehead.

    Leif walked around, testing the range of movement in his limbs. It was slightly disorientating seeing the world from a higher vantage, his stride was longer and his reach further. If he was being honest with himself, he was probably too tall. Back when he had travelled with the expedition he had been of similar height with the largest humans, but now he would tower over them. For another, while his body was definitely stronger than before, his centre of gravity felt slightly off, as if he couldn’t quite move in the ways he wanted.

    As Leif made practising strides around the bluff he also noticed that he now weighed quite a bit more, but that weight was distributed across his larger frame. The not quite spriggan reached out with his mind to the remains of what had once been a wooden building, fresh shoots now grew from the wood and moss covered most of the structure. He activated [Wood Manipulation] and watched in fascination as the organic structure rippled and parted with comparable ease.

    The amount of control he could now utilise while using the skill was like night and day. He gestured, and a tendril of wood grew from the wall, it twisted as it approached him becoming screw shaped. Leif detached the bit off wood and experimented with his new capabilities, he morphed the wood into a ball, then a cube, then he compressed it down as much as he could. To his excitement the process of compression was far easier than it had ever been before, the wood’s structure was likewise significantly more stable.

    Back when he had first chosen the skill, one of his reasons for doing so had been the potential of changing the shape, and potentially size of his body. And while he had become significantly more practised with [Wood Manipulation] since, Leif had always felt like his control was too inexpert to work on his own body. But that no longer felt like the case, he would have to take his time, experiment with the possibilities and feel out the limits and potential risks.

    He had a plan of sorts, just how much stronger could he become if he increased his density by compressing more wood into a smaller body? Mass was a large part of the amount of physical force he could put behind any given blow, but with an expert use of [Wood Manipulation] Leif thought he could become far stronger, at least physically.

    ===

    As he had changed, so too had the world around him. Death no longer hung in the air like a foul miasma, and the domain that emanated from the domain tree had started making sweeping changes to the environment atop the bluff. It seemed that the domain had spent most of its energy fighting away the grasping hands of undeath, but now unchained from that task flowers bloomed, plants grew and mosses spread to cover everything in a carpet of vibrant greenery.

    Leif turned his attention to where the natural stone bridge had once connected both bluffs. As it was currently, it would be difficult for people to reach the elevated position in which the domain tree was located. He felt the strong and healthy roots of ivory white beneath his feet twitch as he brushed against them with [Wood Manipulation]. He needed more practice, so why not make a bridge? What about a stairway that would allow for easier access to his bluff?

    The plant monster stood, and got to work.

    ===

    The journey to the western coast had been a scramble to stay ahead of the undead that rampaged through the wilderness. Kala was old, even if she would smack anyone who told her that, and the continuous high speed travelling had done more to worsen her health than she would like to admit.

    Even as a healer, there were limits to what ailments and injuries she could treat and mend, the water aspected skills she possessed helped ease aches and chase away pain, but at her age there was no such thing as unlimited stamina. And that wasn’t to mention the fact that with every year that passed, her connection to the skills that nested deep within her soul grew fainter, more distant as her life slowly drew to its conclusion.

    Getting older wasn’t easy, but that part of it was easily the worst. She could ignore the tweak in her back, shrug off the weight that pressed down on her shoulders and power through the shaking in her legs. But the skills she had dedicated much of her younger life to honing and growing slipping from her grasp was terrifying. Not that she would admit that, not even to the two people she loved the most in her life. She shared the yak pulled cart with three beings, one was her youngest grandchild, the other two... weren’t exactly human.

    If Kala had been told forty years ago she would have taught arithmetic to a deer and scolded another for eating its way through an entire laundry day''s worth of socks she would have laughed the story away, it was simply too silly to believe. She gazed lovingly at Han, the young boy sprawled over the sleeping forms of two evolved deer as the three of them slept the day away.

    The wagon jostled to a stop, and she heard voices calling out from outside. As she was reaching for the latch to the exit the door swung open revealing a wide eyed man whose eyes and hair reminded Kala so much of her daughter. She scowled at the spear he had slung over one shoulder and cocked an eyebrow at the boy. He noticed her expression and slightly smirked, though the cheeky brat tried to hide it.

    “What is it, boy?” She asked, allowing herself to be helped down to the ground.

    “We’re not sure.” Samil said, steadying her with a gentle hand. The boy was so clearly made to be a healer, it baffled her daily that he had chosen the path of a warrior. The two made their way towards the front of the nomads convoy, on their way they passed a group of evolved hogs, the beasts letting out excited squeals as they ran around in circles. Kala frowned, trying to figure out the source of their jubilation. Then, as she stepped around the hulking form of a yak, she saw something that made her mouth drop open in astonishment.

    Unlike the dour surroundings they had been travelling through for the past several weeks, the landscape before them was lush and green. Life bloomed from the husks of what had been deceased and dying trees, the grasses springing from the earth as if a drowning man gasping for air. And as Kala stared, her constant companion of pains and aches began to fade away.