Basic Training was put on hold; the rest of the trip was all about farming XP.

  There were plenty of creatures willing to pick a fight. It seemed that every ten minutes or so they were being ambushed by insanely bloodthirsty deer, rabbits, and even plant life. Even with alike items stacking, she was starting to run short on inventory space.

  “All this fighting is your fault,” Gren informed her as he watched her loot what looked like a venus flytrap the size of a dog. “Creatures this weak usually avoid me, but you're too tempting a target for them to ignore.”

  “Can't complain,” she said cheerfully. “With you here, I can finally get some XP.”

  She was sitting pretty at 210/100 XP already. And while she hadn't had a chance to use any of her healing spells yet, just getting the final blow in was enough to give her enough to level up later, and then some.

  “Io, how does the math work with leveling? Am I right in assuming it will take more than a hundred XP to reach level three?”

  Correct. The amount of XP needed per level is approximately 1.5 times that of what was needed the level before. You are at 210 XP, which means you can level once and then have 110 left over to put towards level three. Level three requires 150 XP. Level four requires 225, and so on and so on.

  “So the higher I try to climb, the harder it will be.”

  True. But remember, you will get an XP boost being in a party later. And fighting monsters that are a higher level than you will also give you more XP, as demonstrated. If these monsters were all at level one like yourself, you'd likely only get a bit over ten XP per creature. If you fight creatures that are lower than you, the XP decreases. If they are too low, you get no XP at all. So do not try to farm level one creatures once you are level ten. It will be a waste of time. XP may also be affected by how difficult the fight is, not just the level, so--

  Gren snapped his fingers a couple times to get her attention. “Hey. Listen up, Hero. We're about to pass through a dangerous part of the woods. Even for me. Normally I'd go around, but we're in a hurry and I think the risk may be worth it to get you more experience.” He pointed ahead with his axe. “There's a clearing not far ahead that usually has a pack of boars resting in it. There will be at least five of them, and they'll probably all be stronger than the creatures we've run across so far. They're territorial, mean, and fast. We can go around. But I assume you have some sort of defensive spell to keep yourself safe if they get past me? This could be your chance to practice.”

  Kate swallowed hard. “I... can cast a shield over myself. The spell's called Deflect. It mitigates damage by twenty-five percent.”

  “Whatever that's supposed to mean. Do you want to risk it or not? I'll do my best to keep them off of you. In fact, it might be best if we tried to sneak in so I can get as many shots in as I can before they're wise to the plan.”

  Kate glanced at her Guardian. “Io?”

  This one can see the high risk of this endeavor, it said slowly. The rewards may be worth it, as is the chance to practice your spells. But it is dangerous. Giving the clearing a wide berth may be the smarter choice.

  Kate looked between Io and Gren, torn. But Gren looked big and capable, and he'd already taken care of all the other monsters without breaking a sweat. And she did want to try out her spells. “I guess I can climb a tree if I have to.”

  “Just stay far back,” Gren warned.

  “I can't stay too far back,” she protested. “My spells have a limited range.”

  “Tough. It's a clearing. If your fall-back plan is to scramble up a tree, you won't be able to do that from the middle of the clearing. So do we go, or not?”

  “Yes,” she said before she could chicken out. “Let's try it.”

  They moved forward slowly and cautiously, and Io began giving nervous rapid-fire advice. Don't forget about your cooldowns. If you try to shield Gren, you will have to wait two minutes to use the spell again, so you won't be able to shield yourself. Also, if you wish to try out your Necrotic Healer spell, its range is extremely limited. This is a good chance to instead learn to use your Replenish ability to regenerate MP.

  She repressed the urge to tell him to shut up. He was making her uptight, but it was good advice, so she let him continue to babble.

  You only have twenty MP, so if your first act is to cast a shield, you must immediately use Replenish if you want to do another spell. Don't be afraid to strike anything coming at you with your gauntlet. Stay back like Gren said. Boars can't climb trees, and he can probably handle the fight on his own.

  “Stay low,” Gren murmured, stooping over and moving even more quietly.

  Kate ducked down, grateful that the odd skin pouch shoes made her steps stealthier, even if she couldn't help but step on the occasional twig. Already she could see more light up ahead; a few moments later they arrived at the edge of the clearing.

  She peered around, too nervous to appreciate the beauty of the little sun-dappled clearing. It wasn't very big, may twenty or thirty feet from one end to the other.

  “Maybe you'd be better off just getting up the tree now,” Gren said grimly.

  Following his stare, she finally spotted what they'd come looking for.

  There were brown lumps gathered together in the middle of the clearing. They must be the boars, napping. And there looked to be about seven of them.

  “I'll try to draw them a little closer so that you can use your spells,” Gren started to say.

  Kate, leaning forward to try and get a better look, stepped on a particularly noisy stick.

  Its crack sounded like a gunshot to her, and she jumped. Seven ugly bristly heads shot up, all staring in her direction with tiny bloodshot eyes.

  “Get up a damned tree,” Gren snapped, hastily nocking an arrow to his bow and taking aim.

  The boars bounced to their feet, and Kate's nerve nearly deserted her completely. Even the smallest of them was the size of the Prairie Wolves that had first attacked her. Looking around quickly, she sprinted for the nearest tree with low branches and began hauling herself up. The shoes immediately proved to be a detriment, slipping against the bark and making her ascent difficult.

  One of the boars let out a deafening squeal, and at once they all began thundering across the clearing with a terrifying turn of speed.

  Gren's bowstring went thwap against the bracer on his forearm, and the smallest boar went spinning head over heels. He fired twice more in quick succession, but the big boar he'd hit continued onward, squealing maddeningly with both arrows bobbing about in its thick hide.

  Kate tore her eyes away and looked upwards, reaching for the next branch. A few seconds later something collided with the tree hard enough to almost shake her loose. She cried out, hugging the trunk and twisting her head around to see two boars throwing themselves at the base of the tree as if they could knock it down. Gren couldn't get over to help; he had swapped to his axe and was swinging it in wide arcs to keep the other four at a distance.

  “Shield!” Kate shouted, pointing at him and mentally reaching for her Deflect spell.

  A mostly translucent orb surrounded Gren at once, but she had no time to be impressed with herself. One of the boars attacking her tree was enormous, and it almost rattled her loose again as it hurled its weight at the trunk.

  You're out of MP! Io warned stridently. Quick, quick, use your Necrotic Healer ability!

  In her panic the name of the spell escaped her, so she dug into the tree with her fingers and blurted the first word that popped into her head. “Recharge!”

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  The answering sensation made her gasp. She could actually feel the lifesource being sucked out of the tree into the palms of her hands and then spreading through her body in a warm wave. A quick glance to her lower left showed that her MP was back up to twenty. There was something else. Being connected to the tree, she could somehow sense how much lifesource was there for the taking. It was a shocking amount. She'd barely dented it just filling up her pitiful MP pool. Was it because the tree was so big and old?

  Focus, Kate!

  She snapped her attention back to the battle. Gren had actually managed to kill one of the boars and the others were clearly injured. They squealed angrily as they circled him, darting in now and then as they tried to get a hit in under his swinging axe. Their levels ranged from six to eight. A bit too close to Gren's level for comfort.

  “If he kills them all, I won't get any XP,” Kate heard herself say.

  He will leave one or two for you. Making sure you both live through this encounter is your priority. Remember, you are the Support. Keep your eye on Gren's status. Your shield has protected him from some of the damage, but he has still been injured.

  He'd lost some HP, she realized with a start.

  Gren – Giltarian – Lvl 9

  HP: 121/210

  Guilt rushed up, helping ease back some of her fear. She was safe enough in the tree. What kind of healer was she to forget to keep an eye on her damage dealer?

  If he dies, you are doomed, Io pointed out.

  “I know that,” she snapped, pointing down at Gren. “He--” At the last second she remembered she'd already designated 'heal' as the activation word for Heal Self. “Help!”

  His health immediately jumped up by twenty-five.

  Interesting word choice.

  “Shut up, I panicked!”

  Gren seemed to rally with the sudden burst in health. With a roar, he rushed the nearest boar, taking it off guard and swinging his axe right into its face. One of the others took advantage of the distraction and darted forward, plunging one six-inch tusk right under his ribs.

  With a grunt of pain, Gren shoved the boar away and rewarded it with a swipe of the axe that sliced through its throat, sending it staggering away as it bled its life all over the ground. That left one more for him to fight as well as the two still attacking the tree.

  He and the big boar circled each other warily.

  Kate pointed again. “Help!” Nothing happened. She'd forgotten about the one minute cooldown. How long had it been? Twenty seconds? Thirty? Fifty-nine? "Help!" She waited a few more seconds, then tried again. "Help!" This time she felt the spell leave her.

  No more MP. And your Replenish is still on cooldown.

  Shit.

  But the spell had done the trick and at least partially healed Gren's wound. He straightened up and began swinging wildly at the boar, forcing it to fall back.

  Glancing down, Kate realized one of the boars had given up on her as a lost cause and was eyeing Gren.

  “Look out!” she called right as it dug its hooves into the dirt and rushed at Gren's exposed back.

  Gren leapt away, barely getting out of the way in time. Even as the boar rushed past, he brought his axe down in a hard blow that broke its back and laid it out flat.

  Kate, Kate, what are you doing?!

  Kate had started sliding back down the tree, ignoring the new scrapes she was getting. The second boar below her had turned and also looked ready to charge at Gren. It was noticeably smaller than the one he was facing off against. She stopped on the branch right above it. It hadn't noticed her descent, but it was so close she could see every bristly brown hair standing up on its back. Its tail shot up in the air as it prepared to charge. Without giving herself time to think better of it, she reached down with her gauntleted hand and seized the tail, yanking as hard as she could.

  Her pitiful strength stat made itself known as the boar jumped in surprise and nearly pulled her out of the tree. She screamed as she slid sideways, but managed to lock her legs around the branch so that she was hanging upside down for it.

  At perfect goring height, she thought dazedly.

  But the boar, instead of turning to finish her off, leapt forward to dislodge her. She only managed to keep her grip for a second, then she was yanked from the branch and hit the ground hard.

  Fear overtook her and she managed to stagger to her feet in record time even as she wheezed for breath, her whole body sore. The boar halted its flight and spun in place, kicking up dirt.

  It squealed angrily and charged at her.

  There was a hiss of air, then an arrow seemed to sprout right out of its right eye. The boar slammed into the dirt and slid to a stop inches from her feet, already dead.

  “Are you out of your mind?” Gren thundered.

  Kate slid down with her back against the tree, her legs too wobbly to support herself. She tore her wide-eyed stare from the boar up to Gren. Chest heaving, surrounded by dead boars, he lowered his bow, glaring at her.

  “What the hell were you thinking?”

  “I just... wanted to distract it for a second so you could finish off the other one first.”

  “That was an idiotic thing to do.”

  “Maybe. But I was out of MP, so I couldn't risk it getting you from behind.” She forced herself to her feet, clinging to the tree for support.

  Gren glared at her, but didn't respond.

  You probably saved his life-- and thus yours –by distracting the boar, Io admitted quietly. But he's right, it was foolhardy in the extreme. Your life is more valuable than his. You can heal. There are many that would benefit from your talents. More than that, you are a Hero. It is your responsibility to save this world. Keeping yourself alive is in everyone's best interest.

  Its words rankled her. A part of her knew it was right. But it still didn't sit well with her that she was supposed to put her life above Gren's just because he was technically an NPC. “Come here,” she managed to say. “I'll take care of your wounds.”

  “You said you were out of MP.”

  Kate drew in a breath and held it a moment, debating whether or not to let him in on her secret.

  Do not, Io warned. This one told you what Giltarians think of Necrotic Healers. Even assuming he has never heard of one, he may not react well to the sight of you pulling life from something else in order to heal him. He may understandably be unnerved.

  Kate hesitated, lifting her eyes over Gren's head.

  Gren – Giltarian – Lvl 9

  HP: 135/210

  “Do Giltarians have the ability to regenerate health like I do?”

  Io didn't answer at first, and she had to turn and glare at it before it did. Only in the sense that your body could recover itself back in your world, it admitted slowly. With time and mending.

  Kate directed her next question towards Gren. “Are there any other creatures that might put up a fight like this? On the way to your neighbors, I mean.”

  “Possibly.” He eyed her with a bit of suspicion. “Why?”

  Kate, it isn't worth it. Your mana will fully replenish itself soon enough outside of battle. Within minutes you will have all of your MP back.

  Kate sighed quietly. Maybe it was right. She could just wait until then and cast a regular Heal on him. “Never mind. We just... may want to avoid fights like this until I get my MP back, that's all.”

  Gren studied her a moment longer, then turned away with a shake of his head. “Just don't pull any more stunts like you did with that last boar.” He gestured at the bodies with his axe. “Sorry; looks like you won't be getting any XP from this fight after all.”

  You did perhaps one damage to that last one by yanking its tail, Io said quickly, seeming relieved that she had decided not to disclose her secondary class. You should have gained XP for that kill, at least. And it was four levels above you.

  Kate pulled up her window to check. It was right; she had gained fifty more XP. If her math was right, that meant she finally had enough to level up twice. Her elation was short lived. If she hadn't tugged on that boar's tail, she wouldn't have gotten the XP for that horrible fight at all.

  “If I'm not expected to fight, how am I going to gain much XP even in a party?”

  With Hero parties it's different. You and Gren are not partied, so you only get XP for the kills you had a hand in. But in a party, just healing your party members in a fight will count towards participation for each kill.

  “Good.” She leaned over and looted the corpse, then went around looting the others. “Oops. My inventory is full.”

  You can discard certain things like eyes and tusks. Those are crafting materials, and you are not a potion maker or an armorer. The skins, at least, you can sell to most anybody.

  With a wince she willed the various eyes, claws, teeth, tusks, and other bits out of her inventory, moving her hands aside quickly so that they all fell to the ground in a disgusting heap. “Ick.”

  “Let's get out of this clearing and find somewhere to rest,” Gren suggested, sounding tired for the first time. “We can eat something while we wait for your mana to replenish itself.”

  With a nod, Kate stepped over the fading bodies of the monsters. She turned her head once and glanced up at the tree, searching for the branch she'd been seated on. There on the bark was a stark white hand print where she'd siphoned away a bit of its lifesource.

  So it leaves a mark behind. I'll have to be careful not to let anyone see it in the future, she noted to herself. Turning her back on the bloodstained battleground, she wearily followed Gren across the clearing.