Chapter 19- Trade Off
A full minute had finally passed since Yuuta unleashed the tornado spell. The howling winds had faded, and the eerie quiet returned to the canyon. Yuuta lay sprawled on the rocky ground, chest heaving, his wide frog mouth gasping in ragged breaths. His green skin was coated in a layer of gray dust, and small cuts adorned his limbs from earlier dodging and rolling like a possessed acrobat.
"Damn... finally," Yuuta muttered as he pushed himself up on his elbows.
He stood, albeit slowly, and patted off the dust clinging to his back, legs, and arms with his three-fingered frog hands. The fine grit puffed into the air in little clouds. His joints creaked slightly, and a dull ache lingered in his limbs, especially his sore frog butt and raw fingertips. As he dusted himself off, he stretched out his green arms and long legs, groaning.
"Shit... my whole body feels like someone beat me up with a sack of rocks."
He paused for a moment, blinking slowly as a strange sensation rolled over him. The tingling ache in his hands and feet was starting to dull. Not vanish completely—but definitely improve. It wasn’t natural healing, at least not how he’d experienced it back on Earth. This was something else. Something passive, steady. A slow crawl of vitality knitting tissue back together. Yuuta flexed his fingers and watched the thin scabs peel away, revealing fresh green skin underneath.
"Yup... still regenerating," he muttered, rubbing his thumb against his palm. "No clue if it’s from a magic skill card or just some freak perk of this stupid frog body."
He shook his head and let out a dismissive snort. "Whatever. If it keeps patching me up without me keeling over, then I’m not gonna bitch about it."
He turned toward the canyon path. The tornado had done more than just blow away the dust—it had scoured the collapsed cliffside clean. Rubble was tossed around like crumbs on a plate. Some boulders were split. Smaller stones lay everywhere like the aftermath of a bad rockslide. But the best part?
XP orbs and gold coins. Dozens of them... Probably.
Blue and small golden lights shimmered faintly amid the chaotic terrain. Some were stuck under small rocks, others trapped between cracks or nestled on top of flat stones like little glowing treasures. It looked like someone had cracked open a piñata of experience points.
Yuuta’s bulging frog eyes lit up. He practically drooled.