The Fisher walked around. Its massive body left deep marks on the ruined earth as it moved. It approached the window where Faust was watching. At that moment, Faust stood completely still—he didn't even breathe.
The creature moved its tentacles, touching the wall and the window. Then it turned around and approached the place where the dead bodies of the 'Spikes' lay. It leaned in close, and as one of its tentacles touched the corpses, they were slowly wrapped up and pulled in. One of the bodies moved slightly as it was absorbed into the tentacle.
From outside, Faust could see the tentacle twitching like a throat. The monster was eating it.
He wouldn't let that happen.
Faust instantly detonated all the leftover runes he had set in the camp. One explosion partially destroyed one of the tentacles. The monster jerked back, unsettled. It dropped one of the 'Spikes' while fleeing with the other. It vanished from Faust's view—it was fast. Far faster than him.
His prey had been stolen before his eyes, and he hadn't acted due to having no guarantee of victory. He was angry, both at the creature and at himself, for being weak enough to let it happen.
To think I still fear a dog… I have a long way to go.
He stepped outside, retrieved the remaining body, and returned inside.
As he examined the creature's body, his curiosity grew. The spiky carapace wasn't actually hard—it was more like gelatin. If he touched it gently, it felt soft. But if struck with force, it would harden. Fascinating.
Due to this nature, dismantling the creature was not difficult. Without its shell, it looked like a maggot. It had no eyes, no ears, and no limbs—just a plump, round body.
Its skin was soft and odorless. Faust cut it open with his sword. Inside, there were no organs—only a thick liquid. He stored this liquid in the empty shell he had removed.
Making fire is too dangerous… I'll have to eat it raw.
Bracing himself, he took a piece of the meat and ate it. To his surprise, it wasn't bad, quite the opposite actually, it was sour, with a sweet aftertaste. The texture was tender, with some crunchy bits. Having eaten maggots in the forest before, he didn't hesitate. Still, he ate only a small piece first and waited to see if it had any toxic effects.
Nothing happened.
He ate more.
He divided the single body into three meals. Eating one every two days meant he could survive six days. He had already eaten one. If the Fisher hadn't robbed him, he could've survived nearly twenty days on the 'Spikes' alone.
I'll remember that. I definitely will.
The thought made him more anxious. Now, he needed another source of food. Maybe another area would have more of these creatures? He hoped so. Now that he understood their weakness—blindness and a shell that was soft when approached gently—he could be more efficient. If he could sneak up and stab one softly, he wouldn't even need to use runes.
After finishing his meal, he grabbed his sword and headed to the central area of the settlement. Upon arrival, he explored a bit. Most of the houses were destroyed; only two remained, and they were even smaller than the one he had stayed in. One was completely empty, not even furniture.
Eventually, he found the settlement's main entrance. The "gate" was blocked by debris—dark wood, stone, and anything else the locals had on hand.
Hm… That didn't help much, did it?
Faust found it almost funny. They had fortified one side heavily, yet the wall on the opposite side had been destroyed.
But he wasn't laughing.
He didn't find any more of the 'Spikes'. That meant no more easy food. He needed a new source—and quickly.
After weighing his options, he decided to try his luck at the river. If he saw the tentacled wolf again—the Fisher—he'd leave the area.
But… what if he could kill it?
The creature didn't seem particularly tough, since one explosion had damaged its tentacle. But it was fast, much faster than him. Still, the thought lingered.
He wouldn't act recklessly, but the more he considered it, the more he believed it was possible. If he let fear of an oversized dog stop him, how could he ever reach the absolute? He might as well give up now.
One of those Fisher wolves could feed him for weeks. But runes alone likely wouldn't be enough. He needed a real strategy. Trapping it would be ideal, but in his current condition, it was nearly impossible.
So, fishing it was. At least for now.
He scavenged some dark wood from the ruins and began sharpening it into javelins, wrapping strands of leather around them for retrieval. After hours of work, he had a few crude weapons ready—but he feared they were too weak to be effective.
Still, he had no other choice. Wasting time imagining "what if" instead of acting was not his way. Food was scarce. He had to act.
He moved to the deep blue river and began fishing. The clear water let him see easily. He waited… and waited… until he saw movement. He threw a javelin.
The creature darted away, effortlessly avoiding the attack.
He retrieved the javelin and waited again. More time passed. Another movement, another miss.
"This isn't very efficient… Since water muffles sound, I could try using runes. I doubt they'd attract other creatures. But the explosion's effect will be reduced… I still have to land the hit."
He carved detonation runes onto a javelin, powered them, and waited. Another movement, another miss.
Three days passed like that.
Though he failed, each attempt brought him closer. His reaction time improved with every throw.
Finally, he struck something. As the javelin touched the fish, he detonated it.
The javelin shattered. Water erupted as a muffled boom echoed beneath the surface. Faust waited, watching intently.
Gradually, a body surfaced. It had fins, dark purple scales, and a face that resembled an ugly bat. Part of it's scales were broken, revealing flesh.
Finally!
Faust threw another javelin nearby and used it to pull the creature toward him. After some effort, he managed to retrieve it.
Victory. A small step, but a critical one.
Back at the house, he dismantled the fish. Its scales were soft, but the flesh beneath looked revolting—dark and foul-smelling.
He wouldn't risk making fire. The houses were wooden and highly flammable, and doing it outside might attract monsters. It wasn't worth it, not at the moment.
Well…hm…
He stared at the ugly, smelly meat, then closed his eyes and took a bite.
The taste was horrible. Even with his dulled senses, it was likely the worst thing he'd ever eaten.
Still, he swallowed it.
Hours passed. No adverse reaction.
The fish wasn't toxic. He rationed it into meals and committed to fishing more. He would continue until food was no longer a concern.
Once again, he stood by the deep blue river, fishing. This time, he was far more efficient thanks to the detonating rune strategy, and after just a few days, he had enough fish to last at least two months if rationed correctly.
There were several types of fish besides the purple one. A gray fish resembled an ordinary specimen but had no eyes. A mud-colored one was larger than the others but otherwise appeared normal. Then there was a striped fish, it was red and black with two protruding fangs on its head.
This striped fish caught his interest. When Faust touched its scales, his hand began to go numb. After dismantling it, he noticed that up close, the scales were covered in countless tiny needles and they were likely venomous. He was curious about the meat. Was it toxic too? He sliced off a tiny portion and tasted it. Minutes later, he vomited violently.
Still, he kept the fish. Why? Because it had properties similar to the Huntress' Luck herb he used to make poison back in the forest—minus the vomiting. That part was just the fish. But if he could find a way to turn it into poison, he might be able to hunt the Fisher wolf.
At the very least, it was worth a try. But he needed fire to combine materials, and for now, he didn't want to risk it. Instead, he had food, an almost enclosed shelter, and few choices he could take.
He decided to focus on increasing his mana and training with the Executioner sword. He had failed to remove the shackles so far, but that could be a benefit—he could use them as extra weight for training.
But before that, he needed to turn his almost closed space into a truly closed one. He began gathering every piece of rubble he could find in the settlement, stacking them into the broken wall until it could actually function as a true barrier. As it was, monsters could still invade his space. He had already experienced that once and didn't intend to let it happen again.