Learning the Basics.

"No! What are you doing?! If you raise your nail so high you lose your center of balance!"

"This is a nail, not some random piece of metal to whack people with!"

"Ok, just learn these simple sword moves. Just 5 things to learn and practice. Everything else is worthless if you can't at least do these 5 strikes."

During the past hour or so Quirrel had been giving me a nail-wielding for dummies lesson. It appears that what I had been calling a sword all of this time was referred to as a nail in this world. And most travelers had to be at least slightly adept at using a nail if they wanted to survive while wandering around.

I honestly had to be quite thankful to Quirrel for taking the time to teach me the basics. He kept mentioning how he wasn't that good at wielding a nail, but from the way he taught, I could tell he had a lot of experience.

Quirrel's style of fighting seemed to be based on doing a lot of damage with one single fast strike. And with his athletic and slim build, he was able to zoom from one place to another in an instant.

His sword movements were fascinating yet so quick that my eyes could hardly keep up with them.

"Ghost, you are a quick learner. I won't lie, at first I thought you were a lost cause. But as long as you get the hang of the beginner moves I think you will be strong enough to meet me again in the future." Quirrel said as he hung his nail on his side once again.

I put the nail on my back before giving a bow to Quirrel.

"Thank you for teaching me the basics!"

If it wasn't for Quirrel I probably would have gotten caught in a bad position during a fight. The short teaching session was packed full of information that I wasn't aware of. And as long as I kept on practicing what he taught me I was sure I could become somewhat adept at using the nail.

Quirrel let out a slightly awkward laugh before grabbing his things.

"Don't worry about it kid. I am not even that good at fighting to begin with. I am sure you will find a lot of other people who will be able to teach you far more than I have. As for me, I think it is about time I head out.

Adventure is calling me! I have already spent long enough in this temple to know that I won't find any answers by staying here. So I have to go out to find what I am looking for. I think I will be heading to Greenpath next. So if you head there look for me."

Quirrel walked over to the door before turning back and saying.

"Oh, and I might test you in your nail skills next time we meet. So make sure to practice, and make sure to stay alive. You don't want to end up like the husks outside."

With those words, Quirrel left at a leisure pace outside of the temple. Searching for his next big adventure.

As for me, I wasn't sure what I should do.

I had the feeling that I was where I was supposed to be but I wouldn't be able to enter past the locked door on the egg. I had already tried my trusty technique of hitting it as hard as i could with my nail but the door didn't appear to have taken any damage from the attacks.

Reaching once again towards the egg I felt the warmth coming from within.

"Not now… I have to find a way to get in…"

I stepped towards the exit of the temple with one thought in mind.

'I hope I am doing the right thing.'

Continuing to head in the same direction as before I stumble onto a room filled with three husks. Instead this time one of them had a huge horn protruding from his forehead and a shell that covered his face like a mask. Yet even through the shell, I could still see the orange eyes that gave off a slight glow.

Readying the weapon on my back I took the fighting stance and took a deep breath.

I remembered the lists of things that Quirrel told me to keep in mind when fighting. And the next moment I began rushing in the direction of the husks.

Noticing me by the sound that came from my feet hitting the ground as I ran all three of the husks turned and began running in my direction. With the husk with a horn charging at me using its horn as if it were a bull.

Rule Number 1: Always keep your strengths in mind.

One of the first things I noticed since I arrived in this world was my freakish jump height and strength.

While the husks could still fight they were not very dextrous in their movements. So if I used my mobility to my advantage they would not be able to get a chance to even hit me.

We both ran until we were right in front of each other. And as soon as the husks tried to reach their hands to grapple me I jumped. With my strange new body, I could jump four times my height without a problem.

And judging by the movements of the husks jumping was one of the things they would struggle to properly do.

As I felt myself leave the ground I started to do a front flip. And while I was upside down i swung my nail at one of the husks below me hitting it right on its face and sending it tumbling to the ground.

Landing on my feet behind them I swung my nail in a diagonal motion hitting the next husk right on its chest and making it step back and fall down after stumbling on the other fallen husk.

As for the horned husk who had charged at me like a bull, it seemed like it had a bit of a hard time stopping its charge as it continued to run forward even after I had already moved behind them.

Raising my nail above me I quickly hit the two fallen husks in the head killing them instantly. Now the only remaining enemy was the horned husk who finally turned around and faced me before charging at me once again like a bull.

Rule number 2: Use the environment to your advantage.

I had accidentally followed this rule since the corpses of the two husks I had defeated were laying on the floor between me and the horned one. And in its blind charge, the husk stumbled over the other two falling onto the ground right in front of me.

Since these things were practically zombies I continued to treat them that way. And so far it had worked. So in the spirit of this sentiment, I continued to aim for the head.

*Splash*

Though I will admit having heads explode and dirty your clothing is a bit unpleasant.

After wiping the blood from my cloak I continued to move ahead with a smile on my face. I had almost gotten myself killed not so long ago by swinging the nail around without knowing what I was doing and now I just beat up three different enemies without putting myself in harm's way.

Bless whoever gave me the ability to jump ridiculously high. So when push comes to shove I always have an advantage.

Continuing to explore ahead of me I was greeted with a fork in the road. I could continue to head straight or I could head down through what appeared to be more of a cave.

Taking a moment to contemplate my options I noticed something coming from below me. It was extremely faint but I could swear I hear a song in the distance.

Following the sounds of the music, I found myself entering a strange cave with pink crystals scattered all over the place. From the ones growing in the walls to the ones that had already been mined and collected in bundles.

But I could hear someone inside this mine singing a song accompanied by the sounds of metal striking rock.

'Someone must be mining.' I thought before beginning my cautious approach toward the music.