Chương 27: Chapter 24: Into the Mire

James remained in the eastern basin until morning. Killing the Runebark Behemoth had removed the greatest threat in the region, but victory had left his armor half broken, Julie's scales damaged, and Kevin exhausted from holding together structures that should have torn his silk apart. Walking directly into another Regional Territory in that condition would have been less courage and more stupidity. The stone basin made a decent temporary camp.

Its steep sides blocked most approaches, and the death of the Eastern Seal had silenced the living roots that once carried energy beneath the surrounding forest. Natalie's group built a smoky fire near the fallen Behemoth while James spread every useful material he could harvest across the stone. The boss had left behind more resources than he could possibly carry.

Thick plates of living bark had formed its outer armor, flexible vines had connected those plates across the joints, and the broken antlers still contained channels that had once carried enough nature energy to heal catastrophic wounds. Kevin moved across the harvested pieces with growing interest, his blue markings brightening whenever his silk found a surviving magical pathway. James placed one hand against a thinner piece of bark and activated Workman's Appraisal.

Layers separated inside his perception, revealing a structure far more complicated than ordinary wood. [Runebark Plate] [Uncommon crafting material.] [Naturally formed armor capable of distributing physical force through layered growth channels.] [Runic compatibility: Nature, Structural Foundation, Anchor.]"That'll do," James said as he selected two curved plates and placed them beside his breastplate.

Kevin climbed down from the Behemoth material and inspected the damaged armor with him, while Julie remained near the fire pretending she was not watching.

"Metal would be easier to work with, but I'm starting to appreciate materials that partially understand their own job." His breastplate looked worse once he removed it. One side had been crushed inward by the Behemoth, several bindings had torn completely free, and a long fracture crossed one of the Iron Fox metal plates near his ribs. Kevin's Living Reinforcement had kept the whole thing functional through the fight, but James could see how little physical structure remained after the magic was removed.

He cut one Runebark plate into a curved backing and fitted it beneath the damaged metal. A section of Behemoth vine replaced the worst leather binding, tightening with surprising strength when Kevin threaded Silver Silk through its fibers. James used the narrow side of his hammer to flatten the bent plate with slow controlled strikes before adding a second piece of Runebark across the most vulnerable section. Kevin inserted silk directly into the remaining cracks.

Blue light traveled through the damaged metal while James tightened the new bindings and checked where impact force would move through the repaired layers. The result remained ugly enough that no sane armorer would compliment it, but Workman's Appraisal showed the chest piece could distribute force again without driving a broken edge into his ribs. [Action recorded.] [Rune Carpenter development recognized.] [Compatible monster materials successfully integrated into damaged equipment.] James looked at the notification and then at his armor.

"Apparently making shitty armor slightly less shitty counts as professional development," he said as Kevin tapped the new plate with one leg. The deeper sound of the impact carried through the Runebark instead of concentrating near the crack.

"Finally, a performance review with realistic expectations." Julie sent impatience through their bond. James turned and found her trying to angle the injured side of her body away from him, which would have worked better if their connection did not carry a steady ache from the damaged scales.

"Your turn," James said as he crossed the basin toward her. Julie raised her head with immediate suspicion, and James crouched beside the cracked red-gold scales before she could retreat.

"You can glare all you want. I can literally feel where it hurts." Julie reluctantly rolled enough to expose the worst damage. One large scale had split near the center of her body, while several smaller cracks surrounded it where the Behemoth's magical attacks had overloaded Rune-Touched Scales. The flesh underneath remained intact, though lingering green light still moved faintly beneath the markings. James held a thin piece of flexible Runebark near the injury.

The bark curved toward Julie's body as the stored nature energy touched it. [Compatible material detected.] [Temporary familiar armor repair available.] Kevin immediately climbed onto Julie. He spread silk around the injured scales, attached the bark patch without restricting her movement, and reinforced the edges with several tiny threads. Julie endured the process until the final strand tightened, then twisted around and began trying to scrape the patch against the stone.

"No," James said as he caught her before she reached the wall. Julie gave him a look that carried the emotional weight of a formal grievance.

"It stays until you heal. Kevin just spent five minutes fixing you, and I'm not watching you destroy his work because the patch feels weird." Kevin planted all eight legs firmly on the repair. Julie stopped moving. James felt the argument taking place entirely through their bond and decided he wanted no part of it.

"You two settle that yourselves," he said as he returned toward the fire.

"I'm officially management now. I delegate." Natalie watched the exchange while replacing the wrapping around Tolan's head.

"Do they always understand that much?" she asked as Julie finally accepted the patch and Kevin climbed away with obvious satisfaction. Natalie's own armor had suffered badly during the fight, and her bark shield sat beside her in several pieces.

"More every level," James replied as he picked up the green Anchor Rune Fragment.

"Julie is getting close to actual arguments. Kevin mastered silent judgment a while ago." Natalie smiled briefly before looking toward the southern sky. Dark clouds continued spreading above the flooded territory, and green-yellow flashes moved inside them every few minutes.

"You're leaving once you're rested," she said as the storm advanced slowly toward the eastern region.

"The remaining territories are expanding," James replied while turning the fragment between his fingers.

"Every extra day gives the bosses more ground and puts more survivors inside their influence. I'd rather learn what the next one does before it reaches everybody else." Natalie looked toward the other four members of her group. Tolan could barely walk without leaning on his spear, and the others carried enough wounds to make another Regional Boss fight suicidal.

"We're staying here," she said after several seconds.

"We can establish a camp near the basin and start guiding survivors through the eastern region."

"Good," James replied as he looked toward her repaired equipment.

"That helps more people than following me south because you feel obligated. When you're stable, you can decide whether you want another boss fight." Natalie glanced at the wreckage of her shield.

"Think Kevin could make this permanent?" she asked as she lifted one separated bark layer. Kevin immediately turned his entire body away from her. James laughed.

"Apparently he has developed strong opinions about unpaid labor," he said as Natalie lowered the shield again. Kevin's satisfaction traveled through their bond.

"I respect a man with boundaries." They remained in the basin through the night. Julie ate enough Runebark Behemoth meat that James eventually stopped trying to understand where an evolved serpent stored all of it, and Kevin consumed smaller portions before sleeping against the repaired warhammer. James used the quieter hours to study the Anchor Rune Fragment until Workman's Appraisal began separating the incomplete pattern into usable sections. A blue System panel appeared as dawn approached.

[Anchor Rune Fragment studied.] [Temporary Anchor Inlay available.] This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work. [Anchor Inlay] [Fixes a compatible object or structure to a prepared location.] [Current limitations: Short duration. High mana demand. Limited resistance.] James selected a broken section of Behemoth antler and carved a simplified version of the rune near its base.

His first attempt failed immediately because one channel cut too deeply into the material, while the second activated briefly before cracking along a badly aligned corner. The third took longer because James stopped rushing and measured every line with the carpenter's square from his class inheritance. [Anchor Inlay successfully created.] James pressed the antler against the basin floor and supplied mana.

Green light spread from the carving into the stone, and the antler locked in place hard enough that his first pull accomplished nothing. He wrapped both hands around it, planted his boots, and used enough Strength to make the muscles across his shoulders tighten, yet the anchored material remained fixed. Kevin attached silk and pulled as well. Living Reinforcement strengthened the antler and protected the physical structure from breaking, though the rune itself faded after less than half a minute.

The moment the magic ended, James nearly fell backward when the material came loose.

"That's going to be useful as hell," James said as he caught his balance. Kevin examined the darkened rune while James checked for structural damage.

"Short duration means we plan around it. High mana cost means I don't waste it. Everything else is somebody else's problem." He practiced for another hour. Smaller objects required less effort to anchor, while larger or poorly fitted materials resisted the rune and consumed more mana during activation. Kevin could strengthen the physical connection enough to stop an anchored piece from breaking, but Living Reinforcement could not extend the magical duration once the rune began fading.

Julie volunteered herself as the testing equipment. Her version of volunteering involved trying to break everything James anchored. The first branch held through one shove and failed on the second. A stone plate survived several strikes before its connection gave way, and a Behemoth antler remained fixed long enough for Julie to wrap around it and pull with her entire body. She looked far too satisfied every time something broke.

"You're supposed to help me measure strength," James said after she ripped another anchored branch free. Julie raised her crested head while triumph radiated through the bond.

"Breaking my work and looking proud afterward is not a scientific method." Kevin tapped the warhammer twice. James looked toward him.

"Don't encourage her." They left the eastern basin before midday. Natalie's group accompanied them to the first southern trail, where Tolan leaned heavily on his spear and watched James secure the repaired warhammer across one shoulder.

"If you kill the next boss before we reach the swamp, I'm assuming you're doing it specifically to make us look slow," Tolan said as Natalie kept one hand close enough to catch him if his balance failed. The bandage around his head had already begun showing fresh blood.

"You have a concussion and can barely walk," James replied as Julie started down the trail.

"Looking slow is currently pretty far down your list of problems." Natalie gave James a tired smile.

"Try not to drown," she said as Kevin climbed onto the hammerhead.

"I'd rather not spend the next week explaining that the man who killed the first Regional Boss died because he stepped into a bog."

"I'm a contractor," James replied while testing the ground ahead with one boot.

"Recognizing unstable surfaces is basically part of the job." The ground collapsed under his next step. Mud swallowed his boot to the ankle, and James dropped onto one knee before catching himself against the warhammer. Julie's amusement hit him instantly, while Kevin began tapping against the hammerhead with a rhythm far too deliberate to be accidental. James pulled his boot free.

"That looked stable." Natalie covered her mouth with one hand.

"You should probably leave before your professional reputation gets worse."

"Before you go your way, please reach Daniel's camp and explain everything to him. I promised any useful information will get back to him." James said and waved to the group as they marched away. James continued south. The eastern forest changed gradually over the next several hours. Towering trees gave way to twisted trunks with exposed gray roots, patches of standing water appeared between stretches of grass, and the air grew heavy with moisture.

By late afternoon, solid ground had fractured into a maze of muddy islands surrounded by dark pools. Gray mist hovered above the water. Insects with wings longer than James's hand moved among reeds, while broad green plants floated across pools deep enough that he could not see the bottom. Julie stopped suddenly. Heat Sensation found several large bodies beneath the nearest pool. Kevin fired silk into an exposed root and waited for vibrations to return through the thread.

Mud transmitted movement poorly, but something heavy brushed the buried wood beneath the water.

"Three," James said as another ripple moved toward the island. Julie's body tightened beside him, and Kevin adjusted his position on the hammer.

"Maybe four." A long shape passed beneath the green surface growth. Its head emerged thirty feet away. [Acidjaw Crocodile — Level 12] The monster opened its mouth. Yellow liquid gathered between rows of dark teeth.

"Move!" James shouted as the crocodile spat. Julie crossed in front of him before he could pull her away. Rune-Touched Scales ignited as the magical force inside the attack struck her, absorbing part of the energy, but the actual acid splashed across the temporary Runebark patch covering her wounded side. Smoke rose immediately. Julie recoiled. Pain tore through the bond.

"Magic resistance doesn't stop chemistry," James said as he dragged her farther onto the island. The Runebark patch had protected the damaged scale, though part of its outer surface had already begun dissolving.

"That distinction would've been great to learn from a book." Two more crocodiles exploded from the water. The first lunged directly onto the island. James met it with the flat side of the warhammer, slamming the upper jaw closed before another acid spray could escape. The crocodile twisted. Its tail swept James's legs from beneath him. He landed beside the water hard enough to drive mud across his armor, and one rear claw caught the edge of his breastplate.

Kevin fired silk around James's wrist and reinforced the line to the nearest root before the crocodile could pull him into the pool. Julie struck the monster's exposed eye. She released the magical energy absorbed from the acid attack through the bite, sending a violent pulse beneath the armored scales. The crocodile thrashed away from James, giving him enough room to regain his feet and swing. The first strike cracked its skull. The second finished it. [You have slain an Acidjaw Crocodile — Level 12.] [Experience awarded.] The second crocodile climbed onto the island while the first body was still moving. Kevin covered its front legs with silk, but one violent pull tore several strands free. James chose a thick exposed root near the center of the island. He carved the temporary Anchor Inlay into the wood, pressed it deeper into the mud, and activated the rune. Green light spread beneath their feet. The root locked into place.

"Kevin, trap line!" James shouted as Julie moved toward the crocodile's rear flank. Kevin understood immediately and connected a prepared loop of silk around the creature's chest. Julie bit one rear leg and retreated. The crocodile followed. Kevin tightened the loop the moment its body crossed the anchored root. Silver Thread snapped taut around the monster's chest, and Living Reinforcement spread through the connection before the crocodile could tear free.

The creature twisted hard enough to gouge the mud beneath its claws. The Anchor Rune held. James stepped inside the struggling jaws and drove the hooked spike beneath one front leg. He pulled until the crocodile rolled onto its side, exposing the thinner scales below the throat. Julie struck first. James brought the warhammer down immediately afterward. The throat collapsed beneath the blow. [You have slain an Acidjaw Crocodile — Level 12.] [Experience awarded.] The remaining creature stayed beneath the water.

A long ripple moved away from the shrinking island and disappeared into the southern mist. James watched until he could no longer track it.

"Either it has enough survival instinct to run, or it's going to find friends," he said as the temporary Anchor Rune faded behind him. Kevin's web loosened around the dead crocodile.

"Given how this Tutorial works, I'm assuming friends." Julie tasted the humid air. Warm bodies filled the marsh ahead. The water around the island rose suddenly. Mud disappeared beneath the surface, and the two dead crocodiles shifted as the current began pulling them from solid ground. James looked south just as a roar rolled across the swamp. One voice began it. Then the sound split into three. [Southern Regional Territory entered.] [Regional Boss influence detected.] [Warning: Water levels are rising.] The black water climbed another inch around James's boots. A second sound crossed the mire. This one was human. A sharp note cut through the mist and struck something enormous beyond the reeds. Water exploded upward, followed by the screams of several monsters. James turned toward the distant ruins.

"Elizabeth," he said as another wave of controlled sound rolled over the swamp. Julie raised her crested head, and Kevin's threads tightened around the Warpstone Warhammer. James stepped over the dead crocodile and looked toward the rising water. Apparently, they were not the only ones hunting the second Regional Boss.