Edwin M. Griffiths

Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 25,26,27

Chapter 25

Bugs

Through sheer, stubborn focus, Rud spent the rest of his day working on his skills. He was certain he could get Rank 1 within a few days if he just stopped getting distracted. Back on Earth, he was a person of focus. He could dial in on a task and get it done without interruption. But something about taking control of this new body changed the way he thought. Perhaps that was just the wonder he felt in this new world. Magic was real here, after all. So everything...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 70,71,72

Chapter 70

Thomas

Theo was immediately unsure of what to think about Thomas. It was his first true exposure to someone from Bantein, and he hoped not all of them were like this. Still, he was the son of the leader of that nation, and it could be far worse. While the alchemist wasn’t sure where to start, he simply walked the man through the city. The entire time his guest was silent, just taking in the sights. Until he saw the arena.

“What a marvel,” Thomas said, stan...

Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 22,23,24

Chapter 22

Setts

Rud emerged from a bush, brushing the leaves away from his face. He had used Thicket Travel to arrive in a glade to the south. With only a few points of data to go by, he had to do his best to find the source of the various infections. His two-phase plan was fairly simple, but required him to cast Nature’s Banishment enough times to make his head spin. The second phase of the plan was prevention. What good was casting the spell—even if it made the animals mo...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 67,68,69

Chapter 67

Arena Upgrades

Upgrading buildings was always fun. Theo had feared that the size of the building would influence how many Monster Cores it required for an upgrade. But that wasn’t the case. It needed the same amount any other building did, even if it didn’t get as many upgrades since it was an incorporated building. Yet the idea of adding upgrades to a building so large was exciting, so he got to work. Nothing came at Level 5, but at Level 10 three options appeare...

Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 19,20,21

Chapter 19

Blacksmith

Rud shrieked, clawing out at whatever was attacking him. A gruff voice shouted back, screaming with… delight? The druid had been sleeping in his cozy mushroom house, dreaming about growing trees and talking over the radio when he was rudely awakened. His first instinct was to lash out and claw blindly, drawing thin lines over the face of his attacker. His attacker? Who was it?

Rud blinked the sleep away, watching in amazement as Taz—with three thi...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 64,65,66

Chapter 64

Restricted Access

“Under no circumstances is Balkor allowed to use the bridge,” Theo said, placing his hands on his hips as he glared at Uz’Xulven.

The Queen of the Bridge of Shadows looked at Theo with a nasty glare. “What if I don’t wanna?”

“Then I’ll ask the gods to replace you,” Theo said. “If I’m in charge of travel between worlds, I need certain people restricted from using the bridge. I didn’t think you like Balkor.”

...

Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 16,17,18

Chapter 16

Radiant Flowers

Unlike most parties Rud remembered from back on Earth, no one was sluggish the next day. Although he had lost some quality sleep, the druid didn’t feel any worse for it. He woke the next day energized, jumping out of bed and brewing himself a cup of strong tea. Although he had enough rest for the night, there was plenty to do today. It was time to put the gifts from the mortals to work.

“Good morning,” Rud said, entering the longhouse to fi...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 61,62,63

Chapter 61

Adventure in the North

The curtain of reality parted, revealing the space between the mortal plane and the bridge of shadows. A three-masted ship lumbered through that portal, departing from the watery bridge to arrive in icy seas. The crewmen on the deck of the ship released the sails, catching an icy wind that drove the ship forward. Fenian stood on the bow, shielding his eyes from the sun with a broad smile on his face.

Jan vomited over the edge.

“The...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 58,59,60

Chapter 58

Dig In

While Elrin was busy soloing a super-strong dungeon by himself like a badass, Theo spent his time studying the interaction of magical energies. Within a dungeon, things were weird. Early on, the alchemist had observed the interactions between heavenly energies and dungeons. The energies within this dungeon were potent, yet the reagents within didn’t reflect that. They were normal, from what he could tell.

Theo had fun with his studies. He wasn’t certa...

Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 13,14,15

Chapter 13

Delicious Gophers

Influencing elements with mana and doing anything useful with that ability were two things separated by a gulf of skill. Rud didn’t expect to bridge that gap anytime soon, but having his foot in the door made him feel better. Not that he had spent much time wanting to get his foot in that door. But the whims of a druid needed sating, no matter how fleeting those whims might be. Both the nut and berry business would be taking off soon, with or witho...

Quick Update (4-10-2025)

I burned out.

I really didn't think it was possible, but last week I burned out. While I was trying to balance work and working on 3 stories at the same time, I crashed out hard.

Anyway, this is a very short update to let people know I'm out of the comment sections in most places for a while.

None of the schedules are being affected, but I'm dropping down to 2 stories and focusing more on each instead of being so scattered. I'm also working slower with more breaks.

Tha...

Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 10, 11,12

Chapter 10

Bonding

Rud woke the next morning feeling eager to get to work. Under his care, the garden of five plants became ten. Once they had rested enough, it would expand even further. To accomplish the feat of lining the entire road with these plants, he selected a section of the forest to expand his farm. While he had no plans to level it out, it was enough that it was cleared of debris and ready for expansive planting. After that, he grabbed himself some breakfast and prep...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 55,56,57

Chapter 55

Kobold Dungeon

The naturally formed tunnels beneath Broken Tusk were expansive. Standing in the open cavern, Theo and Tresk squinted to see the monsters on the far side of the room. Although the alchemist’s eyes adjusted to the dark, it was still difficult. The light coming from the fungus was faint, barely creating the silhouettes of the foul-smelling creatures. He wasn't sure if they had a plan or if they even needed one. However, figuring out where the monsters c...

Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 7,8,9

Chapter 7

Baths

Rud looked over the work he had done with pride. He etched words into a sign, giving the building a name and setting out the rules for passing mortals. They would need to contact him to fill the baths, and donations were always accepted. With his ten boilers and fireboxes ready to go, he could accept mortals at any time. Nodding at the sign for the Cozy Bear Bathhouse, he fixed a few last things before the building was ready. Benches, chairs, tables, and so on we...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 52,53,54

Chapter 52

Interesting Infusions

In Theo’s time as an alchemist, there had been many potions he deemed too dangerous for the general public. He was reminded of a potion that turned a person into a lich, as well as his explosive potions, which would most likely just kill people. Nothing had appeared quite as dangerous as the Call of the Sea potion. Sometimes the system threw errors that prevented him from seeing certain information, but he couldn’t recall a completed potion t...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 49,50,51

Chapter 49

Arena Construction

The next morning, Theo tested his danger sense some more. He found it extended to actions by non-sapient creatures, including exploding potions.But it wasn’t nearly as helpful as his future sight. That was something he would have to learn to live with. Since a god had told him his ability was too overpowered, there was little he could do about it. Instead of complaining, he would hone this new power until it became second nature to him.

Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 4,5,6

Chapter 4

Cursed Objects or Bones

Rud pressed his hands into the heaving chest of the bear, casting nature’s Restoration. While he could feel the life coming back into the beast, it still seemed a far way off. After getting a good night’s rest, he had focused his attention on making Mint a new blend of tea. This wouldn’t really be chai, but she didn’t need to know that. The system would likely have another name for it. After being presented with the thought of milk in te...

Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 1,2,3

Chapter 1

Golly Gosh!

A bonfire burned the chill of the night away, casting Ban’s clearing in a flicker of orange. Smoke hung heavy in the air, mingling with the scent of roasted meat to sting Rud’s nose. He reclined, leaning back with his hands behind him for support as he looked over the resting figures nearby. The longhouse was more comfortable by far, but there was nothing quite like an open fire on a chilly night. The dwarf on the far side of the fire, licked his lips.<...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 46,47,48

Chapter 46

Approaching the Twin Realms

Theo understood. The key to getting any stonework project done in town was to hook Ziz. Once the half-ogre had his hooks in a project, he wouldn’t let go. All the alchemists had to do was lay the foundation for the new colosseum for him to dive into the deep end. It took him about two days of work to get a basic foundation laid, but there was still much more work to do. He sat at the breakfast table with his companions, picking over fried...

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The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 43,44,45

Chapter 43

A Fight to the Death

As was tradition, breakfast the next morning was more of what they had for dinner. In this case, it wasn't a situation where they had leftovers. Sarisa and Rowan were just so satisfied with what they had made, they wanted it again. Since most Broken Tuskers didn't have a concept of different foods for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, they just made the same thing they had made the previous night.

Theo made absolutely no plans to complain about t...

Gladesbale Grove Book 1 - Chapters 46,47,48,49,50,51

Chapter 46

Trouble on the Western Road

Extra Chapter For Gladesbale

Gladesbale Book 1 is 51 chapters, which is not a multiple of 5! Which means I'm releasing 46-51 this week for third tier patrons!

Huzzah.

Here's the part where I ramble a bit about scheduling for this year:

Newt and Demon Book 7 has about 3 more months of chapters left to run, and Book 8 should take about 7 months to run (unless we take a break). Which means Newt and Demon will be DONE by the end of the year! WOAH!

Gladesbale is now locked in a contract for 4 books! I ...

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 40,41,42

Chapter 40

Unique Magic

Of the many flavors of magic in the world, divine magic held the highest possibility of wide-area effects. Taking Zarali’s buffing powers as an example, she drew on Drogramath’s power to increase the effectiveness of potions for everyone within a town. While she no longer had access to those powers, Theo viewed them as something awaiting him in the system. Perhaps it was arrogance that made him feel as though he could unlock it, but he held onto that ...

Gladesbale Grove Book 1 - Chapters 41,42,43,44,45

Chapter 41

Magical Island

Rud had

Gladesbale Grove Book 1 - Chapters 36,37,38,39,40

Chapter 36

Monsters

Rud woke to t

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 37,38,39

Chapter 37

Baby Duelist

Things had calmed down significantly in Broken Tusk. Rowan, of all people, appreciated how unexciting life had gotten. It was back to the old days of stomping through the swamp, poking turtles, and getting up to trouble as often as possible. That didn’t mean there weren’t important tasks he could ignore, though. Even when he wasn’t serving the archduke, he was often given side-quests. Today was no different.

Shifting from the shadows, Rowan ca...

Gladesbale Grove Book 1 - Chapters 31,32,33,34,35

Chapter 31

The Final Boss

Rud bli

The Newt and Demon - Book 7 Chapters 34,35,36

Chapter 34

The Gangs All Here

The alarm bells rang throughout Broken Tusk. Most members of the local defense force scrambled around, rushing to their stations. Tresk wasn’t sure why. She had reported the dragon Theo saw. It was quite a few miles north of Gronro-dir, so what the hell were they worried about? They might have been worried because everyone knew it was the result of a negative dungeon. Which meant the dragon was an ascendant.

“Hurry and get ba...

Gladesbale Grove Book 1 - Chapters 26,27,28,29,30

Chapter 26

Visitors

The moment Ru