Erudition [II]

Lucian left the two corpses on the [Vorikan] Tile and returned to his small shack on the Starter Tile to get oriented. He stood in the center with his [Map] open, examining the Tiles adjacent to him.

Aside from the [Vorikan] Tile that was to his Northwest, there was the [Terrol] Tile to his Northeast, the [Zolith] Tile to his East, [Tuffe] to the Southeast, [Minatan] to the Southwest, and finally, [Orelia] directly to his West.

[Terrol] and [Tuffe] both appeared to be Tiles with an abundance of minerals. The Planet of Terrol was known for its floating rocks, many of which had magnetic properties. Tuffe was known for its lack of light, something that Lucian didn't have the capabilities to contend with yet, but it was supposedly filled with rare minerals.

After marking out those two, the other three options were all viable, but deciding which would be the best for his current needs was difficult. The first was the Planet Minatan.

[Minatan]

[Cost: I]

[Planet Grade: 14]

[An inhabited planet in the Kron Sector. Known for its miniature trees but dense forests. The tiny inhabitants of this land reproduce swiftly and live in the treetops]

"I need wood for fire. I would be able to cook the meat from the tigers I just killed, but that's just a temporary solution," he mumbled. Cooked meat would make for a great meal, but he had no way to preserve it. Even if he could whip up a way to smoke it and make jerky, it would only last a few days.

The Planet Grade being so low managed to make him hesitate. With such a number, it was unlikely to be dangerous. Though that was true, Lucian believed that aside from wood, resources would be scarce.

"How about this Tile to the East?"

[Zolith]

[Cost: I]

[Planet Grade: 41]

[An inhabited planet in the Atlas Sector. Known for its luscious, fast-growing fruits. Many different species of fruit can grow from the same tree, and each fruit is blessed with strange effects from the laws ingrained in the soil. Eating any one of these fruits can unlock the [Initiate] Microlink]

"Such a high Grade!" Lucian exclaimed. "But how much of that number can be given to danger? And what does it mean by unlocking the [Initiate] Microlink?"

[For Host, [Initiate] Microlink was unlocked on teleportation into Nowhere. This is not the case for all contenders]

"Oh?" He wondered on the matter briefly before turning back to the Tile description.

Based on the description, he assumed that a majority of that Grade would be from resources, but he was still on the Starting Tile. He doubted that they would give him such a boon so early into the Tournament.

"Alright, let's take a look at the final one."

[Orelia]

[Cost: I]

[Planet Grade: 36]

[An inhabited planet in the Horace Sector. Known for its many beautiful springs. Bathing in these springs over time can cleanse impurities and allow one to unlock the [Initiate] Microlink]

"I see," Lucian muttered. "So these were placed to drive contestants toward one another. They want the contestants to choose these to unlock the Microlink page and take a step closer to another contender. How cunning."

He stared at the [Map] for some time. Lucian didn't want to play into the hands of the people watching and go directly toward another contestant, but...

"If my theory is correct, they wouldn't want contestants to die on their first move," He sighed, looking between the two Tiles. One held a source of clean water, and the other an almost permanent source of food. Water was more important, but the other Tile would grant him both food and hopefully a source of kindling.

Lucian focused on the [Zolith] Tile until it started flashing. The last psyon that he had on the upper corner of the screen turned to pixels and floated down onto the designated Tile. The shadowy wall began to shimmer, and Lucian gripped his dagger tightly, just in case. His heart beat faster as the wall started to collapse, and his muscles tensed as he prepared for another fight.

Lucian heard the soft patter of creatures moving on the other side as the wall continued to fade from existence. He moved behind a tree near the edge of the Tile, peeking around the edge of the tree and hoping he could catch the monsters by surprise. The wall continued to turn to pixels, and when it finally vanished...

"Bunnies?!"

Lucian almost fell from his hiding place. Tens of small, rabbit-like creatures were bouncing around the newly unobstructed Tile. Many of the critters hopped to the edge and were sniffing his Starting Tile curiously.

They weren't the same rabbits he knew from Earth, but they were close. Each of the creatures had long, floppy ears and a cute, fluffy body. Their shapes were identical to rabbits, with only two noticeable differences separating the two species. None of these beast's furs were the same color, and they each had tiny jewels embedded in their foreheads.

"Psst, Ed!" Lucian whispered. "Can these rabbits kill me?"

[Error]

"Fucking useless," He grumbled.

He looked away from the floating words and back toward the new lifeforms. At that moment, his eyes met with one of the little rabbits. The gem on its forehead began to glow, and Lucian took a giant step back. It didn't chase after him, but the jewel on the beast next to it began to shine, and its eyes turned toward Lucian as well.

One by one, all of the rabbits that were visible on the new Tile turned to look at him. The bizarre gemstones embedded in their heads were glowing brightly. Lucian's heart began to race. Even if they were just rabbits, there was no way he could kill so many at once. There were almost fifty of them!

He slowly backed toward his shack, holding his dagger in front of him just in case the rabbits decided to make a move. One step... Two...

By his third step, the light in the creatures' heads disappeared, and they all looked away as if nothing had happened. The rabbits continued sniffing the ground, some nibbling on and spitting out the purple, elastic leaves as they hopped into Lucian's territory. He sighed in relief. It didn't look like they had any interest in him.

"But what was that strange light?"

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Wanted to give a shoutout to SaintMRP as my first Patron! He's been following my writing for many months, and It's awesome to see that he's still supporting me after all this time. I hope you keep enjoying it, man! Stay cool!

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