There are around 16 floors in the giant tree and in-game, this thing was considered as a type of dungeon complete with its own bosses, music, and unique loot. If it was developed even further, I'm pretty sure this thing would have been a DLC all on its own.

  I'm not sure if it's because it's been years since I've been here or what but I notice no changes to the first floor: plants that grow on the walls? Check, harmless lichen worms with scale-like mold growing on their tubular bodies? Also check.

  "Everything is the same?" I was in disbelief, this didn't make sense. There wasn't a Warped outside the tree in the game so I expected something to be different inside as well. "How does this make sense?"

  What happened to the original tree? Who the hell kills a Warped and then proceeds to leave the loot it's protecting alone? Why did they kill it? That's the better question isn't it? Why? At the top of my head, I'm assuming that the killer wanted the diabolical core inside the monster.

  That just makes me ask more questions though, like why would they want a diabolical core? A high end material that can either create legendary weapons— the kind with will and can choose their wielder, like a hero's sword. — or change someone into an Inhuman.

  Wielding enough power to kill a Warped means that they probably have no need for the mender's cloak, which is fairly weak unless you have the full set. See, the thing is, if someone can kill a Warped then they should be able to find the rest of the mender's set with ease.

  "It's their loss, whoever they are." I point my dagger forward, the pointed tip aimed directly in front of me. I'm tensely waiting for an enemy and I probably look stupid all bent over like this, trying to look sneaky. "Where the hell?.."

  Great, guess the monsters around here decided to take a vacation as well. How does that even work? Where did the monsters come from? Outside?

  Wait no... It's the Warped! The giant monster has been preventing the rest of its kind from getting in here, it was killed in the game and that's how this tree became infested with monsters!

  This place is safe and that changes everything, with no one to stop me, I rush through the floors, running up the stairs and scaling the tower like a caffeinated monkey.

  With my speed and previous life's memories of the tree's layout, it didn't take me long to reach the top and find the mender's cloak.

  Like most things that belong to the mender, the cloak looked uncannily identical to its game counterpart: a long, thick coat of fiber in a bell shape and a hoodie on top of that. Externally, the cloak had the color of a healthy leaf while its internal layer is more of a light green.

  Markings that resemble leaves but are actually carefully designed runes trail the cloak's surface, their iconic green glow thrumming with hidden power.

  Getting close to it, I notice a detail I haven't seen before, and one that I think is only possible because Firelight Chronicles has become my reality: the cloak is made up of plant fiber and was most likely shaped using chloro-kinesis.

  This is a clue to the mender's power set, actually, everything that I've seen so far about her is a clue, the giant trees? Cottages made of wood? Plants manipulated into becoming clothing? It seems that besides her healing ability, she could also manipulate plant life with her will.

  Was that her main class? Some kind of plant mage?

  How'd she get it I wonder? Mage classes are already difficult to get, one that specializes in plant life will be even harder. Bordering on impossible actually.

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  Well, whatever it is, I don't care, I already have my main class and there's no way to change something like that so I should just move on from this hypothetical and grab the cloak.

  Which I did, I took the cloak from its podium— it's made of stone weirdly enough, I've always wondered how long it took for this to be brought here. — and started making my way out of the tree.

  I stopped short of the entrance, beyond this sits an angered Warped, I've managed to damage one of its eyes so there's now a blind spot in its otherwise overwhelming senses. Moving along the side where it's missing an eye will make it difficult for the Warped to track me.

  "That's easier said than done though..." I peek out of the entrance and scan the area outside, the first thing I see is the giant, snout-shaped canyon that's now on the right side of the tree. "Calling them walking disasters isn't inaccurate, really."

  Besides that, the Warped is nowhere to be seen, it's difficult to spot it unless I go near the tree as well, for something so large, it sure knows how to hide.

  Regardless if it shows up or not, I still need to leave this place.

  Carefully, I step out of the tree and back into the snowy wasteland outside. My head constantly looks back and forth, when is it gonna show up?

  ... Now, I guess.

  My body tenses as the ground begins to shake, another quake moves through the earth, it reaches me and wakes me up. I pull on the hood of my cloak and start running, a shadow looms over the land, the creature that made it is so tall, so titanic, that the world turns pitch black.

  How close am I to the Warped right now?

  I grit my teeth and kick off, if it does another slam attack then I'm dead, I don't think I'll be able to survive it while standing at the epicenter.

  Am I fast enough to escape it though?

  Do I even have a choice?

  Everything turns into a blur as I put more strength into running, my lungs start to burn as my breathing struggles to keep up.

  My instincts scream at me, warning of incoming danger, I know that it's about to do another slam attack, the earth is gonna split again, and this time, I'm going to be close to the point of impact.

  Will jumping to a tree work this time as well or do I have to hope for the best?

  No one answered me, first because I'm too panicked to really think and second, the hoof has struck the ground before I can reasonably come up with anything.

  A loud crash, then powerful gusts of wind, and after that everything starts flying, myself included.

  The next few seconds became a blur, I wasn't sure what happened, I simply braced my arms, covered my head, and curled into a fetal position mid air.

  Pain strikes at my broken leg as I hit the ground like a cannonball, my body twists and the side of my head meets the earth, the concussion makes my head spin and bile rises up my throat.

  Puke coats my arm, it mixes with my tears, then my disgust gets replaced by pain, another wave of bile rushes out my mouth and I jump up in the air for the second time before finally stopping.

  My arm strikes out and I press the flat of my palm against the dirt, with whatever strength I have remaining, I push myself up. The shaking in my legs wouldn't stop as I stand straight, I can hear my prosthetic whine from the damage it received earlier, and my remaining leg is even worse.

  Everything turns dark as I close my eyes, I start to think.

  There's two choices for me here: either I remove my prosthetic, chant a healing spell, and then run for my life with a pair of slightly broken legs or I... Accept my death.

  Putting it like that, I realize that I'm stupid, this shouldn't even be a choice.

  With a press of a button, the prosthetic falls apart and I remove it from my leg. There's no turning back now, I gather mana in my throat and chant out two words in Pricorian.

  "[Minor Heal]." Green light comes down from the skies and suffuses my body the moment I finish the chant, despite the amazing visuals though, the effects are so minor that I barely noticed it.

  Still, I'm able to stand up thanks to it, I lean against a fallen tree and glare at the Warped. When it's this close, I can see why some people mistake these things for gods, it's so tall that I can't even see the eye I damaged.

  "God I'm so stupid." My entire body shudders as I push off the tree and stand on my own strength. "Well, since I'm so stupid anyway I might as well do this,"

  Buffs existed in this world, they mostly came from spells and with how easy it is for me to speak Pricorian, I can technically translate the English spells I know and I should be able to cast them.

  All the spells I know of? I can cast them.

  The only problem is that doing this is borderline suicidal, if I use magic that's beyond my current level I risk corruption.

  If I had any other choice, I wouldn't do this.

  "[Maximum Physical Boost]." I scream as pain surges through me, I cough out blood as I open my mouth for another spell, "[Maximum Dexterity Boost]."