Tristan prowled through the trees, hunting for the remaining item requirements he needed. For the [Dash], he needed a [Minor Air Source], and for the [Simple Rations], another [Minor Earth Source]. Along the way he hunted down some more wolves and squirrels, earning more basic materials.

For the hundredth time, he couldn’t believe how powerful the [New Game Plus] buff really was. But I need it to catch up, he thought, assuming there are other people in this world who are at least Grandmaster.

The thought added some fire to his step. He knew [Minor Earth Sources] liked to congregate around particularly verdant areas, and soon he stumbled upon a stream bustling with flowers and small woodland critters. There, he managed to snag two more for his [Binder]. Unfortunately, he didn’t find a [Minor Water Source]--not enough water to spawn them.

Ultimately, his goal was to recreate his old deck, speccing into a Water offensive and Dark support build with a high focus on Water Field Perks. But that was far away. For now, he needed to set himself up best with what he could get in Great Woods before really rocketing once he left this beginner area. Besides, there were [Perk Reset Cards] in the game; surely there was an equivalent in this new world. If there aren’t, I’ll just have to try a new build.

Though he really didn’t want to do that. Finding a build you enjoyed—truly enjoyed—was a blessing.

Finding the [Minor Air Source] took a while longer. He had to climb up some pretty high trees for him to finally reach the elevation where they spawned. He’d nearly fell reaching out to grab one before it dissipated.

But he got it. Enough time had also passed for him to use six more full casts of a [Healing Berries] for his stomach, as well as use another full cast on his shoulder wound and apply the rest to his cheek wound. The shoulder pain had faded to just a dull ache, his stomach queasy but not violent, and the cheekbone was throbbing but not stabbing.

Overall, not bad.

Finding a small clearing in the forest, he stopped and opened his [Binder]. He looked at the [Blueprints] for the cards he wanted to make and checked each requirement was ticked off.

Now, comes the fun part, he thought dryly. He had to forge four cards, and he had the repeat materials to craft [Simple Rations] and one of the wolf-themed cards twice, having gotten another [Lupine Soul] drop along the way. The [Dash] he only had one shot, having no other [Minor Air Source] and really not wishing to get another one.

Setting his shoulders, Tristan summoned the [Forge] and got to work.

***

The sun was beginning its descent the time he finished. He’d decided to start with the [Simple Rations], figuring he could treat it as a warm-up.

The requirements were fairly straightforward: 1x. [Meat] of any variety, 5x. [Water] of which he had plenty, and 1x. [Minor Earth Source].

He realized that each material used in the forging process had their own little quirks and neuroses, which made the forging that much more difficult.

The [Squirrel Meat] he used for [Simple Rations] heated up much slower than the [Oak Leaves] he used earlier, and thus required more pumping of the bellows. The [Water] as ink was much more liquidy and less sticky than the berries, meaning he had to apply it more with his brush. The [Minor Earth Source] was the same, resisting being trapped by the card.

His first attempt he failed, particularly in the liquid component of forging; that was seeming to be a weak spot for him. The second time worked, thankfully.

You have successfully forged 1x. [Novice/Support/Earth]-- Simple Rations: Create a basic meal bar that will satiate your hunger and thirst by a low amount. (CASTS: 1)

The first thing he did upon completion was use the card. It popped out as a rather unappetizing, brownish-gray bar of indiscriminate material. The taste was earthy and squirrel-y, but after he choked down the last bite, there was an immediate sensation of fullness and being quenched. Not much, but enough.

Revitalized, he set himself to forging [Basic Nightvision], as it was soon going to get dark again. Again, the different materials came with their own set of challenges: the [Wolf Eyes] as the base needed slow, light pumps of the bellows; the [Wolf Blood] was very thick and rich, needing only a few applications of the brush; and, most interestingly, the [Lupine Soul] was much more aggressive in its resistance, and he needed to use both hands to shove it in there.

But he did it.

You have successfully forged 1x. [Novice/Support/Dark]— Basic Nightvision: Improve your ability to see in the dark by a low amount. [CASTS: N/A | CONDITION: REMAINS ACTIVE UNTIL DISMISSED OR SLOTTED OUT.]

Forging his first Dark card was a special moment for him, as that was the build he wanted to go down eventually. The condition for this card meant the card would remain active even if he dismissed his deck, so long as it was still slotted in.

[Dash] and [Hamstring] came next. He managed to successfully complete [Dash], which resulted in a huge sigh of relief considering he didn’t have another [Minor Air Source]. Then he’d failed with [Hamstring] the first time, as by that point he was getting a headache from focusing so hard on forging, but he had the materials for another go and got it done after a quick break of hunting some more monsters.

You have successfully forged 1x. [Novice/Air/Support]-- Dash: Move in a target direction in a burst of speed. (CASTS: 2).

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You have successfully forged 1x [Novice/Dark/Attack]-- Hamstring: Shoot out a slice of dark energy. (CASTS: 5 | CONDITION: APPLIES [SLOW] IF STRUCK ON BACK OF LEG / APPENDAGE.)

He used six more casts of [Healing Berries] by the time he finished and felt fully healed. He now had six total cards, and his deck size at Novice was only five, so for the time being he kept [Basic Nightvision] in the [Binder], deciding to slot it in when it got really dark.

He also focused on the [Slow] keyword in the description, curious about how it worked in this world.

[Slow] - PVE: When a monster is afflicted with [Slow], their movements are impaired for one minute. Duration of [Slow] increases with each stack applied. Effectiveness of [Slow] is proportionate to the card or [Perk] that applies the effect.

[Slow] - PVP: When a cardbearer is afflicted with [Slow], their next three cards are cast at reduced speed. Number of affected cards increases with each stack applied. Effectiveness of [Slow] is proportionate to the rank of the card or [Perk] that applies the effect and the target's rank.

He nodded to himself, reading the descriptions. This was the same in the game. It was good to know that had carried over.

He dismissed the messages and stood up with a satisfied sigh, making a big stretch. He squinted at the sky; the sun was dipping behind the trees now. It was a little shocking how quickly light faded in forests, but it made sense when he considered the height of the canopy around him.

But now that I have [Basic Nightvision], light isn’t an issue anymore.

Tristan set off, plunging deeper into the woods. He had a general idea of where he was going; head towards the Great Oak, find stronger opponents.

Soon, as the trees around him grew higher, becoming less natural and more titanic, less brown bark and more slate-gray, he ran into his first new monster:

[Apprentice | Low] - Lesser Wood Golem

A squat, stump-like creature stared at him with swirling whorls for eyes. It was shorter than him, which was saying something, and bulky; literally a stump with thick legs to hoist its weight and two stubby arms.

Tristan frowned. Something was wrong about this encounter. From what he could remember, he wasn’t deep enough in the forest to be seeing an Apprentice-rank monster yet. Not that I’m complaining, he thought with an eager smile. That just means I get my Advancement that much sooner.

He summoned his deck, now five cards in front of him.

With a sound of creaking wood, the stump stomped its feet, and a sudden rumbling in the ground beneath him alerted him to an attack. Quickly, he grabbed [Dash] and cast it, pointing the card to the side.

The card activated, and he was pulled a few meters in the direction he pointed at in a burst of speed right as a small but deadly spike of earth erupted from the ground.

Right, Apprentice monsters can use skills. It’d been a while since he fought one of these. [Dash] disappeared from his hand, returning back to his deck.

The Golem charged at him. For its weight—every step slightly shook the ground—the damn thing was fast. Tristan ran off at an angle, barely avoiding a heavy swing of its arm; he pivoted, drew [Hamstring] and cast it right at the back of its exposed leg, followed up by a cast of [Earth Bolt].

Both cards flew true. [Hamstring] shot through the air, the card transitioning into a sickle of dark, crackling energy that sliced right into the Golem’s leg.

A spray of splinters and sap burst outward from the wound, nearly slicing it two; then, the [Earth Bolt] struck and blew the leg clean off, dropping it to the ground. Dark energy drooped around the Golem, making it move sluggishly as it attempted to right itself. The [Slow] from his [Hamstring] proccing.

The monster stomped its arm on the ground this time, but Tristan was ready; he manually dodged away from the patch of rumbling earth beneath him, not wanting to use his last cast of [Dash].

That saved his life. The earth spike didn’t come from the patch of rumbling earth; it shot out from his new position, stabbing through his foot before crumbling to dirt. Tristan shouted, pain flaring bright, but he had the presence of mind to notice the Golem lifting its other arm at him. He used his last cast of [Dash], dragging him behind the immobilized Golem as the arm rocketed forward from the monster’s body, smashing into a tree.

The card grayed out in his deck, indicating it could no longer be used for the rest of this fight.

Snarling, Tristan used the [Hamstring] and [Earth Bolt] combo on its other leg, breaking that one off too. The [Slow] of [Hamstring] re-applied, and the Golem slumped on the ground, unable to easily turn with its empty arm socket still reforming.

Tristan limped up to its back, pulled [Earth Bolt] and slammed the card against its body and cast. The card blew a hole right into its body, and the Golem fell forward, dead.

You have defeated 1x. Lesser Wood Golem.

You have acquired 3x. Hardened Bark, 1x. Wooden Sap, 1x. Minor Earth Source, 1x. [Wooden Shell Blueprint] acquired.

You are unable to acquire [Perkshards] are you are too low rank.

“Shit,” he mumbled, dropping to the ground. He quickly pulled [Healing Berries] and smushed it onto the wound in his feet twice. The effect was immediate; the hole stopped bleeding and the pain faded somewhat.

Tristan cursed. He’d let his guard down and gotten cocky. He may have the knowledge and the overpowered buff, but he didn’t have the skill yet, not in this game turned real. Those instincts were there inside him, but he needed to reclaim them. He didn’t know if he had the safety of respawning, nor did he currently have any equipment to provide him with [Armor].

It was do or die. He felt the lesson searing into his body, riding along waves of pain emanating from his new wound. The third he’d gotten since arriving here a day ago, the fourth if he included the dirty water. For the first Transcendent player, he was doing terribly. Shame and anger ran through him. He was aiming to reach Divine, and here he was almost dying to Apprentice monsters?

A creaking sound drew him from his self-loathing. Two more [Lesser Wood Golems] stumbled in from the nearby trees.

Fire burned in his belly. Despite his wound, despite his shaken nerves, Tristan stood up.

He’d learned a valuable lesson from these monsters; now it was time to teach them one.