Chapter 8

After about a week, you get used to the loneliness.

Not that you stop feeling lonely, but you just get used to the state of being lonely.

I set up wooden barricades in a circle around the lodge, turning it into a small fortress.

Since one layer wasn’t enough to feel secure, I made them double-layered.

I fixed the replicated horns of the Hornpig to the outside, which should make the monsters hesitate to charge.

If they do, their bodies will be torn to shreds.

I also made long-burning torches using the fat from the Hornpigs and replicated towels.

The smell... well, I’ll endure it. If I had to describe it, it’s like a store that prides itself on its ultra-rich, greasy flavor.

Additionally, I set up an intruder alarm system made of vines and metal pieces—vines that make a rattling sound when caught—around the lodge, so the anti-monster measures are solid.

Finally, I can sleep soundly.

While I was at A University Village, I accumulated so many tasks that my average sleep time was only about four hours, so it felt great to finally get a good night’s rest.

I must have been more tired than I thought.

If the survival life is more relaxed, maybe I’m an outdoor person after all.

So, this morning, I went fishing.

Since there’s a lake, I decided to try my hand at fishing.

The rod material is thin bamboo.

Bamboo is truly resilient; even in a nature park that has been infiltrated by mysterious plants, it stubbornly survived in a corner.

I managed to make the bamboo rod with my experience, but the line was a problem.

I don’t have any fishing line, so I fixed a thin vine to the tip of the rod and started fishing.

The hook is made from a replicated and processed Hornpig horn. It’s large but strong enough.

For bait, I used the damaged meat of the Hornpig. I heard that a strong smell is better, so I went with this.

As expected, I caught nothing, a complete shutout.

It was disappointing, but I enjoyed the peaceful time spent with the line in the water.

Taking it slow is nice. It feels like an ideal life.

I returned to the lodge from the lake before noon.

“Wonder what to have for lunch?”

Basically, I’ve been surviving on replicated bread, mountain vegetables, and the meat of hunted monsters for a week, but I think it’s time to eat the original bread.

Bread has a surprisingly long shelf life, but it’s a humid place, so I might as well eat it today.

Since I caught nothing, there’s no animal protein.

Hmm, I should go hunting after lunch and get some new meat.

It would be great to have a refrigerator.

At A University Village, we used a solar power system to run the huge refrigerators and freezers in the cafeteria.

Replicating solar panels and cables was a good memory.

It’s nostalgic to think about how the engineering students were so lively.

If I had the materials, I could replicate and restart the system, but it would be difficult to find them in the forested city.

While thinking about this, I was walking along when I suddenly felt a gaze.

“—Huh?”

From the dense trees. From the depths of the large forest that grew along the national road, someone seemed to be watching.

I dropped the fishing rod and readied the spear I was holding.

“Who’s there!?”

I called out loudly, but there was no response.

The presence I felt earlier had disappeared.

“...Am I imagining things?”

I cautiously entered the large forest.

No one was there. No monsters either.

I thought it might have been my imagination, but I found footprints.

They were about the size of a palm, belonging to a canine animal.

There shouldn’t be any large canine monsters in this area.

But if I venture a bit further into the outskirts of the city, they nest there.

The wolf-type monsters, Gangwolves, that claim the ancient city as their territory.

“Not good...”

Gangwolves are wolves with sharp fangs and claws.

In the danger ranking, they were supposed to be C-rank individually.

That means they are opponents that “only professional warriors can handle.”

The footprints continued into the depths of the forest. They must be from a scout.

They hunt in groups.

Moreover, they send scouts, detect traps set by humans, and sometimes use decoys to hunt even higher-level monsters.

They are frequently warned about in “All Night Former Japan” and are considered B-rank in overall danger, meaning “only expert warriors can handle them.”

Even the confident Rage said, “I absolutely don’t want to fight them alone,” making them a troublesome opponent.

I need to prepare.

If you thought, “This sounds interesting!” or “I’m looking forward to what happens next!”, changing the ☆☆☆☆☆ to ★★★★★ will make it look like a dark descent.

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