“Are you sure we need this many Rock Snakes?” Clover asked, eyeing the steadily growing pile next to her. She sat primly, both hands neatly folded in her lap, on the main road. Sharp eyes watched my every move, her mace resting inches from her side in case she needed it.

She'd offered to help catch the Rock Snakes with me, but I enjoyed the mini training sessions for my Agility. Maybe I'd try it in my armor for an additional challenge…

Shaking that thought aside, I focused on the dry, flat ground and replied, “We have no idea what level the creatures in the dungeon will be. It's better to be cautious and bring plenty of food, just in case.”

The last thing we needed was to run out at the final level and have to scramble to get more.

It had been years since I'd felt the gnawing pain of hunger and I was in no rush to feel it again. Even if it would only be for a few nights.

A tiny vibration traveled up my legs, jolting me to the present. I braced myself as it slowly inched closer. When it was directly underneath me and still, I jumped back.

Just like the others, the Rock Snake lunged out at me, its head surfacing with its mouth wide open. Only to twist when its attack met nothing but air. I didn't give it time to recover.

With a swing of my sword, it's head fell to the side, and I nodded with satisfaction.

“This should be enough, at least for now.” I deposited the body neatly with the others and sheathed my sword. “That's gotten a lot easier.”

It wasn't necessarily hard at the start, but I'd dealt with enough Rock Snakes by now that hunting them was almost instinctive. Their scales were nearly impossible to cut through with my dull sword, but the junction of their body and head was scale free.

Clover examined one of the bodies and hummed. “You should check your level again. There are quite a few here, and while they don't give much experience, at level two, you don't need much.”

I hadn't thought of that. Pulling out the mirror from my pack, I analyzed myself.

Frederick

Level 3

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Hit Points: 50/50

Mana: 50/50

Status: Healthy

Triumph surged through me, and I closed the menu with a grin.

“Looks like you're right. Now we're both level three!”

It wasn't a massive step, but I'd take every improvement I could get. Besides, it would be harder to progress the further I went. I should enjoy the rush while it came somewhat easily.

Clover nodded, her hands busy preparing the snakes. “That should make fighting through the dungeon a bit easier. If we do run out of provisions, there are several monsters in the area that can be eaten as well.”

I plopped next to her and grabbed a snake to help. “Which ones are they?”

I'd already encountered the Jackalope and Rock Snakes, but there were bound to be more creatures, especially once we started going deeper into the dungeon.

And they wouldn't be as easy to defeat.

She hummed in thought. “There's Giant Spiders and Glowcaps. Technically, Deep Rats are also edible, but they have a chance of carrying diseases, so they're a last resort and nothing else.” She shrugged. “I've only ever scouted the top level, so there's probably more than that as well.”

At least that gave us somewhere to start. I'd never been a fan of mushrooms, but anything was better than being hungry. Though…

“For the sake of my stomach, I hope we don't have to eat spiders,” I muttered, a shudder trailing down my back at the thought.

Clover raised a brow and smiled, the teasing glint from our first meeting back again.

“Not a fan of the creepy crawlies?”

I grimaced and shook my head. “Not at all. If it has more than four legs or eyes, I don't like it.”

Too many passing adventurers had come through Dawncrest mangled by those monsters for me to feel anything but vivid disgust.

And that wasn't getting into the time one cornered Beatrice…

A chill worked down my spine and I shoved the thoughts aside. Not the time.

She reached over to pat my knee with a smile, pulling me back to the present as her eyes brimmed with amusement. “Don't worry, we'll probably have enough food from these snakes. And if not, we'll hunt the Glowcaps. They're living mushrooms, and the smaller ones that spawn on their heads are edible too.”

That was a relief. I forced the thought of spiders aside and nodded. “I'd appreciate that. Are there any materials we should collect from them?”

She paused at that. “I’m not sure, to be honest. I know the Deep Rat Fur is sold at a decent price because it's dark and used in quite a bit of fashion. Their teeth are commonly used for traps too. The sticky web the Giant Spiders spin is another common trap ingredient, though it's also great for binding everyday things together. I'm sure there are more uses for spores and skin, but we would need an alchemist with us to know for sure.”

I nodded, making a mental note. I'd never been interested in alchemy, so I didn't know where to even begin on that front.

Clover finished the last of the Rock Snakes, setting the meat and scales aside, before facing me again. “I do know of an inventor who could help with that, but he's checking a different cave closer to Starkfell. We can pile the monsters off to the side and come back if there are any ingredients he deems important enough.”

With that, she dusted her hands off and stood. “With that out of the way, I believe it's time we got this little adventure started, don't you?”

Excitement jittered through me in a wave of tingles.

It was time.