Chương 16: Hunting Big Game

Mark woke up to another day. He felt warm and secure. Getting out of his lean-to, he looked around his camp. Today he was going to work on gaining some control. He walked through the forest and reviewed what he had. Each trap he passed, he stopped and looked at its placement. Finding one, he found there were no tracks or activity near it. It was in the wrong place, so he stored it and continued to the next trap. He found another that was tripped, but there was nothing there.

He looked closer and he realized it had some cracked wood and was not built well enough. He got some more sturdy wood and rebuilt it. He also replaced the fiber cords with some that were stronger but a little more flexible. He also saw that it had been dragged some, so he decided to anchor it down also. The next few traps had nothing until he found something new. [Spined Forager — Level 2] It looked less aggressive than the razor rabbit, which was of a similar level. Looking over the trap, it had worked well.

It was a clean catch. He killed and looted it, receiving 6 XP, 2 meat, and some spines, which was a new thing for him. He looked into his inventory at the odd items he had. He would have to figure out a use for some of it soon. When he got to the river, he saw something new. [River Burrower — Level 3] It was playing in the water near his fish trap. It was fast and water-based. His current traps would not catch something like that. He would have to look into possible traps to catch it.

After a while of watching the burrower, he left and headed upstream to check his fish traps. The smaller one had nothing today, but looking closer, he realized one of his rocks had shifted where his catch would have slipped through and gotten away. He adjusted the trap, not just fixing it but improving it. Moving to the newer trap, he was delighted to find something new. It was fast and darting back and forth. But it was stuck. Using his spear, he caught it.

[You have caught: Stoneback River Fish (Level 2)] He received 6 XP and looted three fish meat and a rigid fish spine. Nice, another new item he could try to use. Looking past the stream, Mark looked into the forest. He wondered where the boundary was. Mark crossed the stream and made it about thirty feet and felt that feeling again. A ways further, and he got the system message. He thought about where his camp was and where he currently was. Yesterday he had gone north and found the end of his area.

He began to map out his area in his mind. He still needed to find the east and south borders of his area. But that would have to wait for another day. It was now time to look for the creature he found yesterday. Mark returned to where he had found the tracks before. He followed them, making sure to stay back so as not to be noticed. He eventually found it. It was following the same path it had followed yesterday. That would make things a lot easier for him.

It was huge, bigger than the other animals his current traps would catch. There was no way to build a snare big enough to catch it. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Watching it go through the forest, following the same path, gave him an idea. He followed the path, knowing it would eventually bring the creature back through this area. He needed something to hit it hard. Looking at his bow, he just shrugged. Not strong enough to take him down with it.

He looked around in the forest and found many dead trees. He could build something to swing and hit the thing hard. Mark found the perfect tree about six feet long and a foot in diameter. Using his axe, he trimmed off all the dead limbs. Then he cut it down to just a little over three feet long, then picked it up and stored it in his inventory. He instantly had a bloated feeling, and then he received a system message.

[Encumbrance Increased] Carry Weight: 68 / 50 Status: Overloaded Mark said, "So much for my endless pockets." he then pulled the log back out, and it thumped to the ground. He then started to gather fibers; he would need a lot of them. He started to make a fiber cord. Mark looked at his fiber cord and then at his log. This would not be strong enough to hold the log.

He puzzled over his problem for a minute, then decided he could make a better and stronger material and took three lengths of his fiber cords and started to braid them together. When done, he received a new system message. [New Craft Discovered: Fiber Rope] The system apparently agreed with his idea, so he made more rope. He first had to get his log where he wanted it. Tying a rope to one end, he made a loop on the other end. He looped it over his head.

He then pulled it back to the path where he planned to build his new trap. He then tied a rope to each end of the log and threw the other end of the rope over a limb above; he lifted it off the ground about a foot. He then did the same thing to the other end of the log and ended up with what looked like a very large wooden swing. Using another rope, he pulled one end of the log back to the trunk of the tree. Letting go, it swung across the path.

About halfway across, one of the ropes broke, and it crashed to the ground. Looking at the rope, he saw that he was a little sloppy when he was making it, and it had broken with the weight of the log. After repairing it, he tried again. The log worked exactly how he envisioned it, and he tested it a couple more times to be sure. He then built a trip wire across the path and connected it to the rope on the tree.

The plan was that when triggered, the log would swing down and hit the creature from the side, killing it. After looking over his trap and adjusting a few things here and there until it was exactly how he wanted it, he stepped back. Using a stick to hit the tripwire, he watched it swing down and across exactly how he had planned. He then stepped back and got a new system message. [New Craft Discovered: Improved Deadfall Trap] Mark stepped back and studied the trap.

The log hung in place, held by the rope that creaked slightly under its weight. The trip line stretched clean across the path. Everything was set exactly where it needed to be. He picked up the stick and triggered it another time. The line snapped free; the log swung hard across the path. It was solid, fast, and heavy. He reset the trap again, making sure every knot held and every line was tight. When he was done, he stood there for a moment looking down the trail the creature always followed.

That should be enough. But even as he thought that he wasn't sure. Mark finally turned and headed back to camp.

"Let's see if you come back."