John sighed as he closed the notebook, receiving five points in a new skill, along with points in Cooking for having brewed the tea.

  Cooking (+5): lvl 1 (5 / 100)

  Journaling (+5): lvl 1 (5 / 100)

  Feeling beyond exhausted, but in a good way, John set the journal down and cozied up in his sleeping bag. He closed his eyes, expecting to pass out immediately. But his mind raced with excitement over what he could do and explore tomorrow in this endless, fantasy frontier.

  5

  FISH OUT OF WATER

  John had never slept so heavily in his life.

  The labor of chopping trees and his first full day in Meadowreach Valley had weighed on him like a boulder pressing on his chest through the night. His sleep was deep, filled with flashes of a golden elf smiling as she ran through the forest. She was beyond beautiful, and the sight of her filled him with a strange sense of peace.

  When he woke the next morning, that image lingered in his mind.

  Groaning softly, John sat up in his sleeping bag and stared out at the pale morning light spilling across Meadowreach Valley. Mist clung to the grass, and the stream murmured nearby.

  He took the scene in for a moment. Then his stomach growled.

  John checked his status.

  Hunger: 10 / 100

  “I should probably eat more than just berries,” he said, scratching his messy dark hair.

  Thinking about the fishing line reward from the previous day, he decided to try actual fishing this morning instead of stabbing fish with a spear.

  After stretching and giving himself a moment to wake up, John stood and pulled on his lumberjack clothes. He had left them beside the fire to dry, and thankfully, they were dry now.

  The fire pit itself had burned down to embers.

  He considered leaving it alone, but if he caught fish this morning, he would need a fire to cook them. He was not particularly interested in eating raw fish, though he occasionally enjoyed sushi.

  So he grabbed one piece of firewood. That left him with only four logs.

  He placed the wood in the fire pit, added a few smaller sticks, and leaned down to blow gently into the embers. Slowly, the fire began to grow again.

  Hearthcraft (+5): lvl 1 (15 / 100)

  The warmth quickly eased the goosebumps on his arms.

  John spent a few minutes quietly waking up, watching the trees rustle in the wind, and listening to the steady sound of the stream.

  Eventually, his gaze drifted to the spear lying beside his bedroll.

  He briefly considered turning the spear into a fishing pole. But after thinking about it, he decided it would be better to find another flexible sapling branch. That way, he could keep both a spear and a fishing rod.

  Decision made, John stepped away from the camp.

  He relieved himself near the shrubs, feeling a little awkward about it, in case any elves or other creatures were watching him that he couldn’t see. Afterwards, he splashed cold water on his face and drank from the stream. Feeling refreshed, he set off to search for a suitable branch in the cool, crisp morning air.

  As John walked into the nearby woods, it didn’t take him long to find a couple of branches to test out. He found about three of them that looked roughly the same size and durability as his spear, bending each of them on his knee and listening for any stress cracks. He chose the one that felt the strongest and had just enough spring to it.

  Turning around, he heard something rustle in the thick underbrush of the trees behind him. He turned, frowning as he held the stick, which really wouldn’t be able to do much. His eyes scanned his surroundings, but he saw nothing.

  I wonder how big this place is, John thought to himself as he returned to his campfire. He sat down and began stripping the bark away with his ax until it was pale and smooth.

  He had heard conflicting reports on the news that there was more than just one environment. He’d heard rumors from journalists of parts of Meadowreach that hung suspended in the air like islands that floated, along with places made entirely of crystal, strange towers, and forests of fungus. It was hard to tell what was real and what was fake on the internet.

  Perhaps the number of settlers had come here and gone to those locations instead, or the meadow-y part of Meadowreach was just much larger than he expected. After all, he hadn’t explored much yet, as survival was a necessity.

  But he comforted himself not to worry about it as he focused on the simple process of carving the bark off the sapling with his cold fingers. The blade slipped once as his mind drifted. Once it was decently stripped, he checked the manual for how to construct a basic fishing rod, which advised finding a large thorn. Thankfully, there were plenty of bushes nearby in the surrounding forest. He found one that pricked his finger, causing a little bit of blood to spill.

  He carefully sharpened it into a small hook, then attached it to the string and the string to the branch, knotting the thorn hook at the end and testing the line’s tension. The pole bent slightly, but it held.

  The entire thing was ugly, but it looked usable, which the system confirmed by giving him points in his Woodcraft skill.

  Woodcraft (+10): lvl 1 (50 / 100)

  He even received a basic item description of the pole as well.

  Handcrafted Fishing Pole (Common) - A simple settler-made fishing pole carved from flexible sapling wood and tied with basic fishing string. Crude but functional. Suitable for catching small stream fish.

  John looked with pride at the pole, whisking the little hook around.

  “All right,” he said, taking a deep breath and wading into the waters. “Time to test this thing.”

  Walking into the shallow pools of the stream, he carefully stepped on the smooth river stones so he wouldn’t reenact his slip from yesterday. He cast the crude fishing line into the water. Unfortunately, it was not like the movies, where he caught a giant monster of a fish within a minute or two. The minutes stretched endlessly on with nothing taking advantage of his hook.

  As he waited, and waited, and waited some more, he took his time studying the riverbank. His heart nearly stopped as he looked at the bank across from him. There were tracks in the mud—large paw prints reminding him of a wolf, with narrow pads and faint claw marks.

  The sudden jump in anxiety was kept at bay by the steady stream of water around him.

  It probably just came here to drink some water, he told himself. After all, the forest was very, very alive—not only with strange animals and creatures, but native inhabitants who so far seemed kind to him. Kind enough to leave him alone, at least.

  Eventually, John’s line trembled.

  He froze when it did, his eyes darting back to where the line tugged ahead of him. Carefully, in an effort not to break the line, he began pulling it upward.

  A small fish broke the surface, glowing faintly like burning embers.

  For a moment, John just stared at the little fish with warm orange light flickering along its scales. It flopped weakly on the hook as he held it before him.

  “I actually did it,” he said aloud.

  The fish also looked surprised. Its orange eyes widened as he held it.

  Fishing (+5): lvl 1 (10 / 100)

  Feeling elated, John brought the flopping fish to the shore near the fire, laying it gently on the grass. As it flipped around, trying desperately to get back to the water, John hesitated for a moment, feeling the guilt flood through him.

  “Sorry, buddy,” he said, his stomach growling again, before he quickly dispatched it.

  Once that dirty business was done, he brought the fish over near the fire and placed it on the metal grill that was scorching hot to the touch. Immediately, the fish began to sizzle, the skin becoming crisp.

  Before long, a slight smoky aroma filled the air, causing John’s mouth to water. All he could do was stare at it as it cooked, longing for the second that it was done.

  When it looked cooked enough, which he was really just guessing at this point, he picked it up, noticing the item description of the Emberfish.

  Emberfish (Common) - A small glowing freshwater fish found in Meadowreach streams. Its warm flesh provides nourishment and a subtle heat when consumed. Possible glowing side effects included.

  Without much decorum, John devoured the fish. He felt a bit like a savage eating the whole thing, but he was starving, nearly eating everything except the face, which continued to stare at him with wide eyes.

  After he was done, he placed the fish head on a patch of grass a bit far from the tent. He licked his fingers when he finished, suddenly wishing that he had caught ten more fish.

  He did increase in his cooking skill, however.

  Cooking (+5): lvl 1 (10 / 100)

  As John watched the system message vanish, he placed both hands on his hips, looking to the river, the stream again.

  There’s got to be another way to get more food faster, he told himself.

  As he went back to his tent and checked the survival guide again, for what felt like the millionth time, he thumbed through the pages with his greasy fingers until he found a section about hunting and trapping. There was a part about how to build a basic snare trap, which, now that he thought about it, would be an excellent idea given the amount of life that roamed in the forest, including rabbits that he had seen.

  It didn’t seem too hard. At least that’s what he told himself, as it only required the cordage from the Portal Co. starter bundle, along with a young sapling branch for tension.

  Given his success at fishing and his incredible progress from stabbing at the water to catching a fish, he felt encouraged to try setting a trap. Something larger, like a bunny, would be more sufficient for a meal than just a scaly fish.

  Taking the manual with him along with his axe, he departed from his tent, walking a short distance still within sight of the stream but a little farther away from the tent. Ahead of him stretched the endless, sprawling meadow of flowers of Meadow Reach, just beyond the forest and away from the mountain.

  As he walked, he noticed a narrow animal trail through the grass, the ground slightly pressed down. His book said that it was a perfect place to lay a trap.

  As he lowered himself down, he found rabbit droppings. At least he thought so. He wasn’t really an expert on poop. Neither did he want to be.

  Seeing no other good place, he pulled out the survival guide again and looked at the diagram. It seemed simple enough.

  He found a young, flexible tree nearby—a thin sapling about shoulder height after a few minutes of searching. He grabbed it with both hands and pulled it downward. It bent easily, just as the manual suggested.

  “That should work,” he said, excitement rippling through him.

  He pulled a length of cordage from the Portal Co. bundle, which was rough and fibrous in his hands. He cut off a piece using the edge of his axe and tied one end to the bent sapling. With the other end of the cord, he tried to form a loop snare.

  The idea was that it was supposed to tighten when the animal walked through it, but when he tried to copy the diagram, his cold fingers felt clumsy. For some reason, the knot didn’t sit quite right.

  I think this is it?

  He bent the sapling down again, trying to hook it into a trigger stick pushed into the ground so that when an animal touched the loop, the sapling would snap upright and tighten the cord.

  But after he finished and stepped back to examine it, it just looked off. The loop hung awkwardly.

  If John were a rabbit, he would most definitely avoid it.

  Another faint rustle sounded to his right.

  He glanced in its direction, surprised to see a small rabbit-like creature a few yards away with long ears but, strangely, a small set of antlers as if it were part deer. Its eyes were bright and curious, tilting its head as it watched him.

  John chuckled. “You’re probably the one I’m trying to catch, aren’t you?”

  The rabbit flicked its ears and hopped away into the brush, its antlers scraping against the trees.

  John turned back to his attempt at a trap, feeling just like the first time he fished—or tried fishing: somewhat defeated.

  The system, though, never failing, gave him points for trying.

  Hunting (+5): lvl 1 (5 / 100)

  John shrugged. “Well, at least it’s something.”

  He left the snare behind just in case the cute little bunny rabbit happened to test its luck.

  As John came back to his camp, following along the stream, he glanced up after sensing a shadow roll over him. Above him, dark clouds began to roll over the foothills.

  A purple-gray storm front gathered quickly.

  The wind began rushing through the valley, cold air sweeping down from the mountains, smelling of rain and stone.

  It would have been pleasant had John not checked his status.

  Warmth: 60 / 100

  The cold wind bit through his clothes. Looking at his little tent, he realized he would probably be freezing tonight if this storm front came in.

  Thankfully, the system prompted him with a quest.

  New Objective: Shelter from the Wind

  Task:

  Construct a Basic Windbreak

  John was tempted to say that it won’t be that hard, but then he stopped himself as he remembered his fishing attempt and trying to set up a snare. However, he was determined to build a windbreak, even if it was hard. He was especially encouraged to do so as the wind cutting through the camp caused the little fire that he created to struggle to stay lit. Thankfully, as John thumbed through the pages on how to build one, the wood that he chopped earlier suddenly became very useful.

  All he had to do was assemble it, like Legos.

  John got started by grabbing one of the short logs and dragging it across the grass and setting it down facing the wind, as the guide suggested, which was coming from the mountain. He then did it again, and again.

  It wasn’t anything too fancy, as all he did was simply drag three logs into a rough line facing the wind. Then, with the last two of the five, he rolled them behind them and leaned them forward, creating a low, crooked wedge.

  In between the seams, he packed them with leaves and brush, throwing as many sticks into it as he could to create some insulation.

  When another gust of wind pressed against his small windbreak, causing some of the logs to shift slightly, he wedged smaller sticks underneath them to keep them upright, pressing them tighter together. Slowly but surely, as he added more to it, it became more stable.

  When it seemed stable enough, he stepped back, taking a look at his masterpiece. Sure, leaves were spilling out from some of the seams, and like his snare, it was ugly, but it just might have worked.

  He wiped the sweat from his forehead and turned to look at the campfire that it sheltered. Now, as a powerful gust of wind swept through the mountains, causing the trees to bend and the grass to ripple across the meadow, even knocking down some of the flowers, it did not smother his fire, nor did it cause him to freeze.

  When he crouched down behind the windbreak and pulled his knees close, the wind slammed against the log wall and went over him, removing the bite from the cold. Even the tent had less of a hard time, though he would need a bigger windbreak or even walls to help with avoiding the wind entirely.

  The system confirmed his hard work had paid off.

  [ HOMESTEAD ]

  Name: Meadowreach Homestead

  Tier: Common

  Homestead: lvl 1 (20 / 100 XP)

  — CONDITION —

  Structural Integrity: 5 / 100

  Insulation: 5 / 100

  Weather Resistance: 5 / 100

  Storage Capacity: 0 / 100

  Land Stability: 0 / 100

  — STATUS —

  Firewood: 0 Days

  Food Stores: Minimal

  Snow Load: None

  Perimeter Activity: Unknown

  Could I even build a log house? John asked himself, staring at the tent and wondering what it could become. He thumbed through the survival guide again, finding advice on how to build a basic one, but there was nothing beyond that. He knew that systems could grant crafting recipes from completed quests.

  So maybe if he completed enough of them and threw himself into his little homestead, he could build beyond what the basic survival manual offered.

  John exhaled slowly, his shoulders relaxing as he leaned back and enjoyed the fire, thankful for the protection.

  Objective Complete: Shelter from the Wind

  Rewards:

  +25 XP

  Recipe Unlocked: Wood Pile Rack — A simple rack that keeps chopped wood off the damp ground.

  Recipe Unlocked: Insulated Windbreak Upgrade — A thicker version of the crude windbreak packed tightly with insulating material

  “Speaking of which,” John said to himself, pleasantly surprised at the two recipes that he unlocked, “that would be very helpful.”

  Given that he had been working with wood, his Woodcraft skill increased by 10 points this time since it was much more significant.

  Woodcraft (+10): lvl 1 (60 / 100)

  Though his excitement at the recipes and getting better at his Woodcraft skill was dwarfed by his new level.

  Level (+1:) 2 (15 / 150)