EDIT: Fixed a part where I forgot to mention a major plot point.

EDIT: Fixed some errors that I really should've noticed before now. Also added the song for the music box like I was supposed to.

Well, here it is, finally. Sorry for all the delays, everyone. My interview just kinda swamped me with shtuff to do. I'm also deeply sorry if I get any of the information about leveling up and spending ability points in the Witcher 3 wrong. I've never gotten the chance to play the Witcher 3, you see, so I've had to go off what I can get from the wikis.

Hopefully it all makes sense still!

Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

‘I really hope I find something worthwhile this trip…’

Slicing a low-hanging branch out of my way, I pushed on through the brush of the woods I’d been calling home for the past two and a half months. My thoughts were currently like a bored kid in a store, wandering about despite the fact I was currently having what most kids would consider an adventure.

‘I’ve gotten a lot more platinum and gold and silver, so that’s a plus, I guess.’ I mused, pushing some brush out of the way. ‘Gonna need more potions for the hellevator, though. A lot more. Ammunition, too.’ I sighed after stepping over a log. ‘It’s a good thing the search teams that were in the mines have fucked off. Though I don’t think I should venture into those areas for a while yet still.’

My body went sort of on autopilot for a while after that, thoughts roaming towards the subject of the girls. ‘It’s been nearly two and a half months since I got here now, and it hasn’t really gotten much less lonely. Hell, I’ve even started a fucking journal.’ I sighed, willing my golden axe into my hand and cutting a tree branch too big for my sword down. ‘Tora, Vinyl and Octavia are really the only interaction I’ve had.’ I frowned. ‘Only solace, too, if I’m being honest with myself.’ I grunted. ‘Even if they can be annoying.’

I let my thoughts wander for a while longer, even as I spotted some herbs and plants that would be good for potions and went about picking them. ‘...I hope they’re doing well. With any luck Tora’s sold some of the stuff we found in the mines to sustain herself.’ I shook my head, plucking some Hellebore Petals and some Cortinarius mushrooms. ‘No, I’m sure she’s fine. She seemed pretty smart, and plenty tough. Only real concern is Vinyl.’ I let a smile crack my lips. ‘Octavia at least is smart enough to pull back, but that unicorn just charges right through any problem she finds.’ I sighed, sending the Petals and mushrooms to my Inventory before continuing on my way.

That was when I stumbled on my biggest discovery this whole trip. Snow white silk covered trees for miles on end, looking almost like giant spiders had made nest in a portion of the forest. Sunlight poured through where it could, showering the trees in such a way that it made the strands of white sparkle like they were strands of diamonds instead of silk. An abandoned shack lay at the far end of it all, covered in overgrowth and silk webs.

And among them all were hundreds if not thousands of silkworms, all in different stages of their lives.

“This...This is awesome!” I cheered, a massive grin slapping onto my face. If I took control of this place, I could have a solid and reliable source of silk! I could make more beds, more furniture, the Ancient set, banners, even the Obsidian Silk set once I got the necessary obsidian! Hell, I could finally make Molotovs! I pumped a fist in victory. “Yes! Fuck yes!” I cheered to myself a few more times before a sudden, new revelation hit me. ‘If I take control of this place, that’s one more place to have to clear monsters from…’ I frowned, lowering my fist and starting to think more deeply. ‘I might have to make a tunnel dedicated to running towards here.’ I looked to the shack. ‘Might have to redo that whole building, too, seal it off from the surface.’ My frown deepened, before I shook my head.

“I’ll worry about that soon enough. First, though, I should check that shack for anything valuable,” I reasoned to myself, before trudging over to the shack.

The door was broken, but hadn’t fallen completely to pieces, so I gave it a nudge on it’s way, collapsing it completely. Sadly, that tossed up a torrent of dust, and I had to wave it away as I coughed. “Okay, bad move there, Durin,” I told myself, coughing a few more times before walking inside.

Everything seemed fairly typical for a silkworm farm, just a bunch of cubbies and shelves full of old silken cocoons, though a lot of the shelves were rotting and had collapsed. I grunted at this. Another thing to fix later, I guess.

Further down the small hallway was a number of old troughs with what I imagined were where the worms originally fed on mulberry leaves. I glanced out of the windows to see a number of worms munching on the leaves of...whatever kind of trees were outside. They certainly didn’t look like mulberries to me, so I don’t know where the old farmers got the leaves...if they even fed them mulberry. I frowned, realizing that in this world it was definitely possible for little things like the preferred foods of silkworms to be different, and soon after realizing again that I wasn’t home anymore.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts before they turned any more somber, then looked to the back of the shack, and walked over. There, I found a trapdoor, which I opened to find a ladder which led down into a basement. Raising a brow, I climbed down the ladder and found something particularly strange.

The room was all made of old, mossy cobblestone, and basically devoid of, well, anything, save for a golden chest at the end of the room and a single, solitary pony skeleton, a small box in it’s hoof.

Walking over to the skeleton, I frowned. “...May you rest in peace.” I uttered, before looking to the box. I made to reach for it, then stopped and looked up at the skeleton, as if asking it if it was okay to take the box. Slowly, however, I took it, and opened it up to find a music box mechanism, and a very familiar song which soon began to play.

The song brought back many memories...painful, memories, now. Gritting my teeth, I furiously wiped at the single tear that ran down my cheek before stowing the box in my Inventory. “...I promise, guys...I’ll find a way to see you all again…”

Taking a deep, shuddering breath, I looked to the chest, walked over, and opened it. My eyes swiftly widened as I saw what was inside it.

A unique hammer, a schematic for something called, ‘Hero Runes’ and a fucking vial with a Red Mutagen. Pulling the hammer out and into my hand, I read it’s name aloud.

“Silken Hook Hammer?” I looked to the heavy silk rope, and the hook attached to it, then back to the gilded, white hammer. “Huh. Lives up to its name, at least.” Sending it to my Inventory as well and pocketing the schematic for when I got home, I picked up the Red Mutagen and immediately saw a screen pop up in my vision, different from the typical Terraria ones.

It was the Abilities/Character Screen from the Witcher 3. Most of it was black, though the edges were lined in blue vines. Four columns of three square slots covered one side of the screen, with four diamond slots to the side of each. I recognized the columns as being for abilities, and the solitary diamond slots as being for mutagens. Oddly enough, instead of five, there was six, with one being filled with a mutagen simply labeled, '??????? Mutagen.' I shook my head at that. Something to ponder later.

To the left of the screen was the four tabs of different skill lists/trees. Red for Combat, blue for Signs, green for Alchemy, and brown for General. I glanced to the upper-rightmost corner and gawked. “I’m at level 26?!”

I quickly looked to the tabs, and started to feel giddy. Naturally, I went for the balanced approach to be safest, putting four points in the Muscle Memory skill to increase my fast attack damage and my adrenaline point gain, along with two more into Strength Training to increase my strong attack damage.

Dragging my finger over to the Signs tab, I looked to the Quen Sign and put three points each into both Exploding Shield and Melt Armor, to make my Quen shield push anyone back when it breaks along with doing damage and knockback, and to make my Igni permanently weaken armor by, well, melting it.

I then opened the Alchemy tab and instantly put five points into Heightened Tolerance to increase my overdose threshold by 25% as well as the duration of my potions by 25%, followed by putting one point into Poisoned Blades to let my oils have a chance of poisoning whatever my blades hit.

Finally, I decided to put the next four points into the General section, increasing all kinds of things, and saved the other four points for later.

After that, I put everything in their slots, and finally the mutagen. As soon as a I closed the screen, however, I screamed. My blood and veins felt like they were on fire. EVERYTHING did. Collapsing hard to the floor, I thrashed, feeling my whole body shift, and despite how small each shift was, they happened everywhere, and painfully so. My muscles were what shifted the most, and I was easily able to feel them fucking pulsate as they changed.

Finally, after what felt like hours of pain and torture, the changes ended, and I groaned as I slowly, painfully sat up.

“Fuuuck…” I groaned again. “Note to self, Witcher 3 Ability Screen changes cause immense bodily pain.” Shaking myself, I stood up, only for new text to appear in my vision.

The realm has become more treacherous…

I felt my heart stop dead for a moment at that, and even felt all the blood retreat from my face.

“...FUCK!”