Carving a rod for fishing turned out fairly simple and using plaited thread from the discarded, bloodstained robes for string meant he had the bones of a fishing rod. Creating a hook proved more difficult, but in the end he found a simple hair pin hidden in the corner of the chest and bent it to an acceptable shape. It was a bit light, but he added a couple of charms for good fortune to add a small amount of weight. He tried not to hurl as he pierced a small beetle onto the hook and made an attempt at fishing.
The first two fish got away and the third was so small he felt guilty for capturing it and let it go, hoping it survived. The fourth and fifth fish were not particularly well sized, but enough to provide something different for his stomach. He felt this whole thing had taken far too long so gave up trying anymore, instead taking his booty home to cook.
As he walked home, he noticed a large patch of small flowering plants that seemed familiar, but he couldn't think why, so didn't dwell on it. Instead, he gathered an amount of wood that he knew would burn on route. He swept away an area of dead leaves and dug a small hole, which he lined with stones and pottery shards, creating a fire pit that hopefully would contain the fire he needed. There was no kitchen in the hut or fireplace. It seemed students usually ate in a large hall at the central compound and used furs and blankets to keep warm in cooler months.
Leon didn't feel like returning to a place that had turned on the original student, so had been seeking edible plants and things in the forest. It seemed the original student had made notes of things he had found that could be eaten when he moved out here, in case he need food to hand when he was creating large batches of pills. The fruit in the barrel was from a harvest made just two days before he died. Leon had found some tubers and large roots both edible and poisonous and a patch of delicious wild berries. He also had seen some wild fowl, but he had nothing to hunt with. He did notice that the season was beginning to change, so he needed to increase his supplies soon, even if it meant returning to the compound sooner than he wished.
Using a flint and tinder, he carefully watched the fire spark, feeding it dry grasses and wood shavings until the firewood caught nicely. Then he slowly added some more wood, before skewering his catch and slowly roasting it over the fire. When he was sure it was done, he let the fire die down and tossed a tuber into its embers to slowly roast.
While he ate his well deserved meal, he slowly reread one of the diaries; there wasn't exactly much entertainment out here after all.
He had lived here now for a week, or rather seven days, he wasn't entirely sure how time was divided here, except that people still aged in years. His injuries had healed quickly, too quickly making him realise he had been fed a basic level two blood pill. This pill aided the healing of internal injuries and helped strengthen the flow of blood. Normally, it would only do this for an hour or two, but it was enough for this body to jumpstart it's own processes. The writer had made a lot of these and had even begun speculations of how to improve the recipe.
Leon turned the page and took a close look at the herb drawn on it. It looked the same as the wild plants he saw earlier! According to the description, it was sweet sunclover, a very common plant that grew fairly fast and quickly spread. It was used in many basic recipes as it had detoxifying qualities in the leaves meaning that impurities in the pills that could build within the body due to the overuse, were lessened. It was also the main ingredient, when flowering, for the basic purifying potion. This potion could break down those some of the impurities in the body, but drinking more than one of these potions a week could be harmful. Still, it was a very common potion of choice amongst the martial artists, who often relied on various pills.
Seeing as there was still some time until dusk, Leon picked up an old pot, a basket and a shovel and wandered back over to where he had seen the herbs. If he was fortunate to find these growing wild, what else could he find here? He would have to investigate both the surrounding woods and the diaries again, sure that the writer would not have left out details such as where the plants grew.
Leon had never harvested anything before, he had never had a garden, so he could only hope that he didn't kill the whole patch. Fortunately for him, sweet sunclover was a known weed, hardy and self seeding. It would take a lot more than an ignorant gardener to kill it off! He dug up one batch of clover, dirt, roots and all and 'plonked' it into the pot. He then harvested half of the flowering plant, leaving the roots in the ground. Upon the wild patch, he felt compelled to leave behind a talisman of good health behind, before scooping up the basket, tool and pot and returning home.
Leon spent the following day creating an area beside his home to become a garden. He tilled the soil until loose then used scrap pieces of wood, from the small open shed beside the hut, to border several patches. In one of these patches, he transplanted the wild herb and in another he planted seeds he had obtained from wild berries. He could not do much beyond this at that point for he lacked what he needed to create a garden of substance. He decided that he should probably visit the library soon. One of the early diaries contained a map and he had already identified a route that he could take and not be spotted by others.
Sadly, even if he wished to avoid other students, it seemed other students did not wish to avoid him.
"I don't remember it being so difficult to find," a boy with a substantial girth complained, as he approached. Leon found his body beginning to shake and could only assume that it had memory of this fellow, even if Leon himself did not.
"We have not been here in awhile," a tall, blond haired boy reminded him. There was a third boy, short and sly following the pair.
Was eight days really so short a time, Leon wondered, his body still paralysed, even though his mind had quickly identified the trio. They were those who had left this body near to death. He assumed the fat boy, who wore robes not much different from his own, but cut from better cloth and pristine not a speck of dirt upon them, was Caprian. He also had an elegant hair pin and crown securing his dark hair into a topknot upon his round head. That would make the tall one Tor, he may have saved Leon by feeding him the pill, but his demeanor seemed as if he was cut from ice. Though he had not caught the name of the third, the diary had mentioned the short lackey as being called Virgal. He was a bootlicker and underhanded. He had probably acted as lookout that day, so he could claim his hands were clean.
"Ah, Leo, you still live then,"Virgal snickered as he saw Leon watering the transplanted herb. Leon felt his muscles unfurl and placed the bucket and ladle down, less he drown the plant before it could grow. He stored the fact that this body held a name similar to his own to the back of his mind.
"Why are y-you h-here," he found himself stuttering. He could not tell whether this was from fear or a physical quirk. He had not spoken a word since arriving in this body.
Caprian frowned. "Did the last beating ruin your brains?" He sneered. "You know why we are here!" Leon shook his head though he could guess. They were after more pills and potions. His fingers nervously grasped and pulled at each other, his bones cracking. "Don't just stand there, hand over the pills you've made this week!"
"C-c-can't," Leon said, honestly. Caprian took great strides over to him and grabbed his collar. Leon squealed and instantly felt ashamed by his reaction. He was a grown man, surely he should not be so fearful of this brat! But his body did not agree and began to tremble. "D-don't have any! I have n-no m-m-more herbs!"
"Pfft, what a joke," Virgal laughed. "Poor excuse, you would have restocked from the seniors by now!"
Leon shook his head. "N-needed to heal!" He said, not pointing out that such was their fault. "B-besides, I h-have no more p-pills to swap for h-herbs."
Tor placed his hand on Caprian's shoulder. "We did take all of his pills, so that is probably not a lie."
The fat boy tossed Leon backwards, causing him to trip over his bucket and spill its contents over the skirt of his robes. He then turned to look at Virgal. "Go get him some herbs!" He demanded of the boy.
"Hey, why mine?" The sly boy argued, but scampered off when he saw the angered look upon Caprian's face.
"I will be back in three days!" The bully said, before he and Tor walked back towards the compound.
A large bundle of herbs were thrust into Leon's arms later that day. But Leon did not attempt to create pills, for one thing, he did not know how. Instead he spent the whole night making talismans and charms in order to calm his frazzled nerves.
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GOT IT