Elania gathered and crafted more spears to replace her broken one, and upon leveling [Improved Crafting] to level 10, she got an [Improved Makeshift Fungal Wood Spear], which seemed to be slightly more sturdy.

Then she started using the smaller lengths of wood to work on something new. After numerous tries with the remaining torn fabric, she was able to tie together a [Woven Fungal Wood Shield] that seemed sturdy enough to protect her while giving her the chance to maybe stab something back.

Other than the wood, there wasn't much else for her to use in the small grotto, and she had already used up most of the workable lengths. It was time to move on.

Hunting Darkwalkers had proven much more complicated than Elania first imagined. She half-expected to be able to find a field of them, conveniently located nearby with them spread out far enough for her to deal with one at a time, regroup herself, then move to the next.

The next cavern reminded her that she wasn't living in a game world. The smell of a rotted Ralfot carcass greeted her long before it came into sight. Small bugs and things that looked like worms wiggled, making their way out of the rot. Immediately, Elania dismissed the thought of getting near enough to touch it to see if she could still absorb anything.

Elania quickly realized that there weren't many caverns that were as highly populated as the Mushroohum one with the Elnats and Ralfots. 

'Probably because things in the open, like me, get eaten...'

After that, she tried her best to stay between depressions in the rock or go through a more shaded area. She wasn't sure how much it would help her to actually be stealthy, but at least she wouldn't be silhouetted against the bright mossy ceiling.

 

[You have gained a level in Stealth!]

 

Elania wandered through several more caverns before her first encounter. The entrance to the cavern had her on a raised ledge that overlooked a small pool of water. A group of something that looked like the Ralfots was congregated, most of them head down while they drank.

 

[Ralfot]

 

The [System] called them Ralfots as well, but these seemed larger and more weathered. Taking another look, she concluded that the horns made all the difference. They were thick curved curls that looked like they'd make a good battering ram.

Despite their dangerous number, she realized they'd have a hard time going around the cavern to reach her elevated position. She was in a perfect spot for ambushing them with her javelins.

Elania had made a ‘lot’ of javelins. Some as practice, but also because she had no idea how many she'd need. The Mushroohums carried one to three each, but since there had been a bunch of them chasing her, she’d made a dozen for herself even if it had seemed a bit excessive.

Setting her shield, spear, and the bundle of javelins quietly on the ground, she untied the small scrap of cloth she had used to tie them together. A little shred of guilt had her pause, but a thought overcame it.

'You've never been a vegetarian, Elania! The supermarket only lets you pretend you were. These are just juicy hamburgers with giant fucking horns that'll crush you if you're not careful.'

She took up a javelin in each hand and carefully picked her target: a smaller [Ralfot] that was close to her position. Although she'd never thrown anything as a weapon before, she knew the basics. More distance meant less accuracy. She should start off easy.

Excitement coursed through her body as she tossed the first javelin through the air. 

 

[You have gained a level in Throwing Weapons!]

 

Almost immediately, Elania could see that the throw wasn’t going to land anywhere near her target. Disappointment flashed, but she moved the second javelin to her main hand and tossed again before scooping up two more projectiles.

 

[You have gained a level in Throwing Weapons!]

 

The first javelin landed well past the herd of wild Ralfots, and their reaction was immediate. The whole herd let out angry cries and advanced toward the ledge she was on. That movement caused the second throw to miss a once stationary target.

On the bright side, the sound had misdirected the herd which had thought that the danger was elsewhere. In reality, though, they actually moved closer to her!

Not wanting to give up her chance, she tossed the rest of the spears in quick succession.

 

[You have gained a level in Throwing Weapons!]

[You have gained a level in Throwing Weapons!]

[You have gained a level in Throwing Weapons!]

[You have gained a level in Throwing Weapons!]

[You have gained a level in Throwing Weapons!]

 

She gained a level for each throw at first, although that quickly dropped down to multiple throws per level. Her accuracy didn't seem to improve much, and Elania found herself thinking that levels weren't all that great, even if they were easy to gain.

She managed to get two hits on the same Ralfot. That was her only success as the herd stampeded out of the cavern with the one she injured following, although at a slightly slower pace.

"Shit!" 

She hadn't expected to hit something and it not actually die right away! She only had one javelin and her main spear left. She definitely wouldn't be able to take on the whole herd, especially if she didn't maintain the ledge advantage. 

Still... Elania didn't want to just give up. The [Ralfot] was wounded, and as she made her way to the lower area, she noticed a significant trail of blood. Leaving the thing to suffer with her two javelins lodged in it seemed cruel as well. 

She decided to follow after them, albeit stealthy as she could, and see if she could find another opportunity. The exit formed into an unfamiliar type of terrain. It was a long and wide tubular tunnel with impossibly smooth walls. The lack of rocks and fungal growth had her feeling exposed.

It led to a cavern highlighted in a completely different color scheme than what she had seen before. The ceiling was yellow, with hints of deep reds coming off the fungus. Elania blinked several times and rubbed her eyes as her vision adjusted to the brighter and more saturated colors. She found it easier to see, but everything was so vibrant it almost hurt to look at the cave flora.

It also made it harder to spot the trail of red blood. 

 

[You have gained a level in Tracking!]

[You have gained a level in Stealth!]

 

Elania was racking up new skills and levels at a rapid pace, but it was hard to feel accomplished when they didn't seem to do much. Maybe she had set her expectations too high for the [System] to make things easy on her.

 

---

 

'How far does the stupid thing have to run? Why don't you just bleed the fuck out already?'

She followed the blood trail for a half dozen caverns and for what felt like hours. While pretty, the new caves seemed just as sparsely populated as the other areas she'd wandered through except for the Mushroohum cavern.

As she turned into the next cave, she finally ran into something which released Elania's worry that she'd never catch up to her wounded prey. 

"Yes!"

The [Ralfot] was no longer moving, lying on its side near an incline up to another cavern entrance. Giving up her pretension of stealth, she broke into a jog to her prize. Except a loud "Glua-Glaa?" erupted as soon as she made a bit of noise, and Elania was sent scurrying for cover behind a rock.

 

[You have gained a level in Stealth!]

 

Taking a closer look, she cursed under her breath. A Mushroom Man had found her quarry, too. He was looking in her direction, sitting on a stone beside the wild Ralfot, a sharp-looking knife in one hand and a pile of skin at his feet. 

Without wasting any time, he started skinning her kill! That angered Elania. She had worked so hard to bring it down. Looking back the way she came, she confirmed she hadn't been followed. That would give her an escape route if her new impulse led to 'Bad things.'

She broke out of cover and approached the Mushroom Man with spear and shield in hand. He didn't notice her at first. Was she moving that quietly with her increased stealth skill? Still, there was a limit, and when she entered a brightly-lit area, the Mushroom Man looked up and let out a familiar exclamation, immediately reaching for its own weapon.

Elania stopped and scanned the area, confirming there weren't any more Mushroom Men present. Then, she confidently pointed at the carcass.

"Mine!"

Rather than threaten her, it responded, although it still seemed wary of her. 

"Glua-glaa?"

Unfortunately, her breakthrough in interspecies communication with the strange Mushroom Man was interrupted by one of the Darkwalkers pouncing from the shadows onto her conversation partner's back.