"Wild Transformation: You have mastered the basic skills of a shapeshifter, allowing you to transform into a creature favored by the wilderness without the need for spellcasting or incantations.
You can choose one of the following animals as your wild form:
- Skunk;
- Raven;
- Duglorn."
...
Wild transformation, isn't that a druid's specialty?
Matthew was quite surprised.
This was probably another quirk brought about by the two conflicting game systems.
In the end, Matthew chose the "Raven" as his wild form.
This decision was made to cover his weaknesses.
All three animals were small creatures and didn't hold a high position in the food chain, so their combat abilities were fairly average.
...
The skunk was more agile.
In some complex terrains like mountains or forests, transforming into a skunk might help in escaping, but apart from that, it didn't have many advantages. Matthew couldn't imagine himself transforming into a skunk just to produce musk.
...
The duglorn was a small dragon-like creature with a body resembling that of a hunting dog. However, the dragon lineage in this small creature was even weaker than that of the kobolds. It had no draconic power or magic. The duglorn had a unique ability to store items in its belly, which had a natural dimensional space. The space's size was linked to the duglorn's level. A newly hatched duglorn had one grid of dimensional space, and it increased by one grid with each level. Each grid was about the size of a medium-sized pumpkin and could store quite a lot.
If Matthew were to choose an animal companion, he would undoubtedly choose the duglorn. However, in the context of the wild transformation, turning into a mobile storage space would make him feel less secure.
...
Compared to the other two animals, the advantages of the raven were quite obvious:
It could fly!
And it was fast!
Matthew could see this being valuable not only for travel or escape but also for its exceptional scouting abilities.
The only drawback was its low health.
A raven had only 1 point of health, making it easy to revert to the wild form when detected by enemies with anti-air abilities.
"There's no perfect choice..." Matthew mused.
He was quite satisfied with his new ability.
In his experience, many powerful mages would transform into ravens, which he saw as a good sign.
He checked his quest log.
The "Wild Transformation" reward came from "Subsequent Quest 2: Maintenance is Important!" Apart from the new ability, he also gained 200 experience points. The quest itself hadn't changed, meaning it was a long-term, repeatable task, much like planting trees.
"As long as there's a threat, and I successfully protect the area, I can get a reward. So, can I intentionally attract threats to farm rewards?" Matthew pondered this idea but quickly dismissed it. After all, he couldn't be sure of the system's judgment criteria. Making a mistake would be costly.
In terms of personality, Matthew preferred a peaceful approach, like nurturing trees and passive defense. He was content with harvesting steady happiness.
...
"Chirp chirp!"
The oak tree fairies appeared.
They surrounded Matthew, singing praises loudly, celebrating his heroic act of driving away the arsonists.
The fairies had a strong aversion to the skeleton soldiers, but they held a deep affection for Matthew. Perhaps it was because of Matthew's exceptionally high affinity with nature.
...
"You have received the blessing of the Fairy Princess Lulu!
- You have gained the semi-permanent status: Eye of the Jungle!
- You have gained the semi-permanent status: Wind of the Oak!
...
Eye of the Jungle: When you are in the jungle, your vision is significantly enhanced, allowing you to see things behind you.
Wind of the Oak: When you are in close proximity to an oak tree, it will release its natural power to heal your wounds, soothe your soul, and greatly increase your mana recovery rate.
When an oak tree is inhabited by oak tree fairies, the effect of Wind of the Oak is doubled."
...
Fairy Princess?
Matthew gazed curiously at the pile of fairies.
But all he saw was a shimmering shadow—
Lulu was extremely shy.
Before, Matthew had only heard her name from the other fairies but had never seen her. Even tonight, when Lulu actively appeared to bless him, Matthew couldn't get a clear look at her face.
"Thank you."
Matthew expressed his gratitude in the direction where the white light disappeared.
Both "Eye of the Jungle" and "Wind of the Oak" were very practical statuses. The "semi-permanent" prefix meant that as long as the Fairy Princess Lulu was alive, they would remain in effect. According to Matthew's estimation, Lulu had probably just been promoted to Fairy Princess. She was young and had the opportunity to ascend to become a more powerful Fairy Queen. As long as the oak forest remained safe, these two statuses were essentially permanent.
...
Matthew calmed the frightened fairies and then walked down the hill.
At the edge of the farm, the flames were gradually subsiding. The skeleton soldiers were slowly gathering the bodies of the arsonist and their accomplices.
Peggy was wiping her bone blade.
And not far away, a bright blue halo was drifting aimlessly. It was the bewildered spirit of a ghost.
It wasn't until Matthew approached that the ghost's eyes gradually regained their luster.
"Matthew... you helped me."
The ghost realized what had happened.
Matthew raised his gnarled staff, sending a stream of negative energy into the ghost's body. The almost ethereal spirit regained some radiance.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Famar," Matthew sighed lightly.
Famar was the owner of this farm, and he and his family should have all perished at the hands of those thugs. Earlier, when Matthew was planning to chase down the arsonists, he had sensed a strong surge of resentment coming from the direction of the farm. This resentment was growing stronger amidst the raging fire and eventually reached out to Matthew, begging for an opportunity for revenge.
Naturally, Matthew couldn't refuse.
Such a powerful grudge left unattended would undoubtedly give rise to a ruthless vengeful spirit. He used necromantic summoning to answer the plea, ultimately transforming Famar's spirit into a formidable ghost.
The strength of the ghost depended on its own grudge.
After successfully achieving vengeance, Famar's spirit had significantly weakened. If there was no external interference, he would soon fade away.
....
"...Yesterday was Anthony's (Famar's son) birthday, and our whole family went to town for a half-day trip. We bought lots of things the kids liked: sweets, candies, buttered bread, and frosted strawberries..."
"In the morning when we left, I had a bad feeling. Our old dog Hunter kept barking, but I found him annoying and locked him in the barn... I should have known better; Hunter is very intuitive..."
"...Those people stormed in directly. They tied up Lena and Anthony, killed the others, and I only had a pitchfork in my hands. The other men were unprepared, and we tried to hold them off behind the warehouse for a while... I couldn't even buy them enough time to escape to the cellar. I'm so sorry!"
...
Famar spoke on and on, pouring out his heart.
Matthew listened in silence.
This was a responsible middle-aged man. He talked about his family, brothers, and farm workers almost exclusively. His face was filled with affection for life. Even with the infusion of Matthew's negative energy, his existence as a ghostly spirit was coming to an end.
Unless—
"Do you want to continue existing in this form? I can help you," Matthew spoke as Famar's condition worsened.
Famar hesitated for a moment and then shook his head. "No, thank you, Matthew. I appreciate your kindness, but I don't need it. Lena and the children are waiting for me; I should go with them."
With that, he gazed in the direction to the east.
Matthew followed his gaze thoughtfully. Suddenly, his vision turned gray and hazy—
Right outside the burnt stone house, six or seven souls were gathered, gazing affectionately at Famar. They were his family members. Matthew also saw the cute little girl, who looked dazed, as if she didn't understand what had happened.
"I must go, Matthew... In the cellar behind the mill, I have some savings. Please take them."
Famar's figure gradually dissipated.
"I have only one request—don't let our bodies be exposed in the wilderness, okay?"
The gray and hazy view vanished suddenly. Famar and the other souls disappeared instantly, leaving Matthew's temples throbbing intensely.
...
"You have gained a new ability, 'Basic Spirit Sight,' through your encounter and conversation with the spirits.
Basic Spirit Sight: You can glimpse a corner of the spirit world.
Note: Using this ability will consume a significant amount of mental energy."
...
Matthew exhaled deeply.
Normally, only spirits that had transformed into stronger forms like ghosts or vengeful spirits had a chance to be seen by humans. Ordinary spirits were invisible. Necromancers could use the spell 'Spirit Sense' to detect traces of ethereal beings, but it was a third-level spell. Therefore, necromancers below level 8 rarely had ghosts as their summoned creatures.
Famar did have the potential to become a powerful ghost, but his resentment had dissipated too quickly. If Matthew were an evil necromancer, he could have forced Famar to make a contract with him and then deceived him into thinking Blackthorn was still alive, thereby acquiring a formidable ghost.
But even if Matthew were given a thousand chances, he would never do such a thing.
...
The next step was to clean the battlefield and collect the spoils of war.
Matthew first turned his attention to the body of the arsonist, Blackthorn.
He walked over and conducted a thorough, albeit not very dignified, search!
...
"You have obtained loot—
- 400 GP & 80 SC;
- Fire Gel *3 (sets);
- Dragonfire Oil *2 (bottles);
- Molotov Cocktail *1 (bottle);
- Invisibility Ring (unidentified);
- Silver Frost Brotherhood Token *1;
- Secret Message *1;
- Muscle Growth Scroll *6, Height Increase Scroll *10."
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