Chương 17: Not Enough

Mark looked through his inventory. He needed something to eat and some time to think things through. The stoneback fish looked inviting. He did not want to eat fish by itself, though. Pulling out the root vegetables, he looked them over. They looked like they would work. Pulling out his stone knife, he peeled and diced the vegetables up. Then he set them aside and started the fire. When the fire was ready, he put his cooking rock on it and added the stoneback fish.

When the fish was mostly cooked, he added his vegetables. Once added, he stirred it around. He wanted the veggies tender but not burnt. He really regretted that he had no seasonings and would need to add looking for seasonings to his list. He ate his food slowly, thinking over his new trap and his new adversary. The vegetables were amazing even without seasonings; the flavor was great. The fish was better cooked this time as compared to last time. Mark wondered if it was the skill or just better fish.

He was slowly getting used to the idea of cooking on a rock. After his long delay of eating a meal, it was finally time to check his traps. He took his time, not wanting to rush. As he went, he looked at and examined every trap. Making sure each one was in the correct spot. Checking that the lines were tight and the materials strong. He made sure to replace anything that looked worn or that might break soon. While he went, he found a new bird in one of the traps.

[Brush Grouse — Level 2] He received 7 XP, 2 meat, and 6 feathers from it. It looked similar to the bush hen but was a little bigger. Mark finally arrived at his deadfall trap. He approached slowly. To his dismay, the log was hanging in the middle of the path. Did he get it? Looking closer, he saw nothing. There was no way that didn't work. As he walked over, he could see his log just hanging there. No prey. He could see tracks, so it must have been tripped. He wondered if his trap moved too slow.

Looking closer, he could see blood on the end, which meant it should have hit it. Then he saw that the bushes just past the impact point had been smashed down. Looking at where it must have landed, he saw stomp marks. So it must have hit it hard. He could see it in the broken brush. He could see it in the blood on the ground. It should have been enough. But somehow it had just walked away. If that log had hit him, he would have been dead. His grip tightened slightly.

If it had been him, he wouldn't have gotten back up. So why did this thing get up? Mark let out a long sigh. Looking at the new tracks, he could see where they went back and forth, like it had stomped around some. And then it had just continued down the trail like nothing was wrong. Mark then received a system message. [Trap Effectiveness: Insufficient]"Really," Mark thought. The system just kicked him while he was already down. Mark then dismantled his trap and set the log to the side of the path.

He then opened his status screen again and saw that control had dropped. So his failures counted against him. It did not just depend on what he built. It also depended on what he failed to hold onto. He spent the next half hour following the tracks. Just in case maybe it had died after all. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. He finally stopped when he heard a sound. Peeking from behind a tree, he saw it again. The same thick hide, layered like bark.

It was moving without hesitation. There was no limp, no weakness, or signs that anything had slowed it down. Nothing at all. His jaw tightened. It had survived; it hadn't even cared. Then he received a new system message. [Threat Assessment Updated] Target: Unknown Status: Unharmed He finally turned away and returned to the spot where he had built the deadfall trap; he looked it over again. This really was the best spot. Mark crouched near the impact point. Maybe the angle was wrong?

Maybe the trap was set too high. Or was the log swinging too slowly? It had hit it, just not where it needed to. The thing had just kept moving, no stopping, no hesitation. Mark realized one thing: he did not need to hit it. He needed to hold it. Mark pulled out a shovel and looked at the path. If he dug a hole for it to fall in, that would keep it from getting away. The ground was harder than expected, and he only got a little bit out of each shovelful.

He had to take breaks often because of fatigue but was surprised that he could work longer and harder than before he wonderd if that was because of the stats or just being in this different world. By the time he was done, he was still sore, stats or not. His arms ached, his back ached, and his legs ached. The pit he created was not perfect. But it was built; he hoped it was deep enough. Mark then went and gathered some straight limbs, as he planned to place them as spears at the bottom of the pit.

He used a rock to sharpen the ends and cut off any extra leaves sticking to the limb. Mark placed them in the pit, adjusting them until they looked right. Climbing out of the pit, he looked down at it. It was maybe four feet deep, or just a little more. Was that enough? It didn't feel like it was enough. But it was what he could manage for now. Looking at the spikes, they looked sharp but not perfect. Not strong enough to go deep, but it should hurt. But would it stop it? That was the question.

Gathering some limbs, he started to place them over the pit. Adding dirt and grass to it to help camouflage it. Making sure it was sturdy enough to hold but weak enough that the beast would fall into it. This should work, but he did not feel convinced. He worried about the trap and all that he had done, but it was everything that he could think of to do. He hoped it would work this time. Then a system message appeared.

[New Craft Discovered: Shallow Pit Trap] He looked over his new trap and then at what the system had called it. Then he wondered what would make it better. Different materials, placement, or maybe both. Mark turned and headed south through the forest. He continued to check over his other traps. He found a trap. [Field Mouse Level 1] He looted the meat and skin and sighed over the lack of XP. He eventually got to the southern border of his area. Again, he felt the weird feeling as he approached the border.

When the system message announced he was leaving the zone, he turned around and went back. When he made it back to his camp, he sat down to think. He pulled out a stick and his knife and started to whittle as the sun set. His goal was to make a spoon, but he was not having success. He finally set it down in disgust and got a system message. [New Craft Discovered: Crude Spork] This system just hated him. Mark looked out into the trees. Toward the path that led to his traps. Then toward where the pit trap waited.

Next time it was not walking away.