Magic and the Depressing Salad

Ryuji was settled by now with his new body. He can't be picky right now and blame the gods. They were magnanimous enough to let him live and give a chance to see his family again. Besides, he usually chooses non-human creatures before in games. Non-humans usually have the rare menacing armors, he thought it to be cool.

He stood up and looked around to survey his surroundings. A peculiar looking bag caught his attention and picked it up. He saw a scroll and opened it. It was written in roman alphabet. He read the scroll which seemed to be exquisite, but the letters are in Times New Roman which he suspects this item came from the Divine Realm.

***

Takeda Ryuji

If you are reading this, this is to inform you that you have become a Goblin because of a mutation. Don't worry we are investigating the matter, but we are afraid that you need to get used to your body because once you materialize your physical body there, we won't be able to do changes on your race. Maybe next reincarnation we will make amends.

We have sent you some basics on this bag, so check the other scrolls. Also practice your prayer skill so that we can converse in real time.

Your brother is in Valereth, an elven settlement at the northwest of the forest.

Good Luck!

Yubis

PS: this papyrus is printed in Times New Roman font size 12, I was not sure if you can read the alphabet we use here.

***

Ryuji rummaged into the bag and saw the scroll for magic basics, information of the area and a basic document about the writing and language. All of them are printed with the same font. Ryuji is dumbfounded, the jackal god has some tacky choice of font. He gave out a sigh. He has no qualms about being a goblin but still disappointed that it was not his choice. 'This should be enough.' He looked at the sun and its already mid-day and he needs to set up his base soon.

"I need to set up a base, near a river would be better." Ryuji thought. He himself is not fond of camping. His brother was more suited for these activities but reading those novels is where some protagonist would set his base within the forest. "I do plan to move soon but it would be better to make a shelter before I can move around the forest." Ryuji planned his journey. It seems Yubis forgot to provide him a map. He would need a larger map about the Valley of Ono or anything that can allow him to navigate the forest. Based on the information, he is at the southern part of the forest based on the basic info. There is a nearby hunter's settlement, but it would be difficult to interact with humans with his form. He would be killed without hesitation.

He walked along a small clearing beside a cliff. It has a small cave beside the falls which is a good spot to be in. he tried to check if there are any animals or monsters. The cave is small so there are no tunnels on the inner cave, only mushrooms and glowing moss inside it. He prioritized his need. Shelter, food, and water. While he has two, he needs food. He wondered if he could identify the moss and mushrooms and if it is edible. He checked the magic scroll. It mentions the basic properties of magic, how can it be used, it explains about the mana within the body and how the phenomenon works.

<The soul is divided into energies, the spirit energy which is the one that resonates with the living essence. Then magic which is the one resonates with the non-living essences. Magic and spirit manifests through concentration, will and emotions. Elements are tied up with emotions, but little study was conducted. One study from a human kingdom said that based on varying emotions it was conducted to invoke varying magic, but little was confirmed. Also, the experiments done were humans and some demi humans like elves. Apparently, elves have more affinity with natural phenomenon like water, earth, and wind elements. Monsters are rarely experimented because they do not have ample control and make them an uncontrolled variable but there is a bit more information on demons as they are usually tied with void and dark elements.>

Reading the scroll is like reading an elementary book, but Ryuji sensed a bit of discomfort on how it was phrased. It looked like someone had dabbled into unethical practice to perform such results in experiments. It reminded about animals being used as testers back at his previous world. Probably if he came across one, he would stop it however it is more important to find his brother.

Some of the listed skills are spells <Identify - Neutral>, <Ignite - Fire>, <Aero – Wind>, <Aqua shot – Water>, <Illuminate – Light>, <Heal – Light>, <Earth Wall - Earth> and <Status – Neutral>

Simple spells, some are used for offense and some are used for defense. However, it is mentioned on the scroll that magic can manifest depending on the will of the user, so spells are used for guiding magic users to see the phenomena. How it will manifest will depend on the user's imagination and desire.

Ryuji understood the simple explanation from the magic scroll but putting it for a practical test will be different. He picked up using his moss-colored hands the glowing moss and mushrooms that he picked from the cave. He placed the glowing moss on the ground and placed his hands over it. He attempted to manifest and imagine how he needs the details from it. He felt his hand drawing some extension of his body. 'This must be the mana.' He thought. He concentrated on his will to probe more on what item is he touching and imagined the idea of knowing what it is. the silence engulfed him and then a voice from his consciousness spoke <Glowing moss - edible…> then it continued speaking <… it can regenerate a little bit of health. Used for treating superficial wounds and its paste can be used for treating rashes from poisonous plants. Toxic to most of the birds and similar life forms.>

"Hoho…" Ryuji wiped his filthy sweat. "So that's how magic works. Let us see…" He quickly looked to the mushroom but this time he did not touch it. He pictured it in his mind and imagined his mana move to extend his energy to the mushroom. After a few minutes nothing happened. He tried extending his hand but did not touch the mushroom, his mind he tried to imagine the same thing. <spri-> but it cut off. Nothing happened afterwards and when he attempted again. He tried it again then subconsciously muttered "… Identify."

After a few seconds, the voice came up again <Spring Spore – a fungus only found in Beginning Spring, restores mana and health.>. Ryuji was successful. He was baffled at first. He touched the moss and with a word, it managed to identify. He did not raise his hand, it failed. He raised his hand, it seemed to work but it failed. He had to say the spell name, it worked. It seems magic has some form that needed to concentrate on. Based on his experiment, it is understood some gestures seemed to be part of the will. He attempted to skim on the magic scroll, but no details came up to explain. He can only rely on

"I have a long way ahead." Ryuji sighed. Then his stomach growled. He still has not had his lunch. He decided to eat on the two edible things that he had. He set it on a pile and looked like an alien salad. It looked dreary because of the glowing moss and way sadder than the ones ordered back from Earth. His first meal in a new world was depressing.

The moss was bland, and he got more from the cave. He alternated it with the mushroom. The mushroom is similar to a button mushroom back on Earth. It was much juicier and has a slight minty aftertaste. It seems to alleviate his hunger more rather than the bland moss. He would probably collect more of this later. He finished what he could just to satisfy his hunger.

He stood up and looked at the area. The sun is still high, but it looks like it will be dark soon. It would be best to gather some materials so he could stay for the night in this small cave.