Mike awoke, again. This time he was not nearly as well rested as he had been last time. Standing up, he realized he was in the middle of the clearing, and had just been laying on the floor for at least several hours. He looked around, when he saw Jonas jogging up to him.
“You mentioned spiders before you passed out, what happened?” He said, not wanting to waste a second on chit chat.
“I encountered a cave of spiders, not far from here. They are huge, and hairy.” Mike said, shuddering at the memory.
“What level are they, Jonas asked, worried for the safety of the camp.
“Level 9, though there may be stronger ones deeper into the cave.”
Jonas visibly relaxed at this, then looked confused. “That's nothing we can't deal with, why were you running, and so terrified that you passed out?”
“I didn't pass out from fear,” Mike said, a little embarrassed. “I passed out because my stamina bottomed out, with my mana nearly following it. As for why I was running, let's just say I’m not fond of spiders that reach my waist in height.”
“So we sent the entire outpost on high alert, worried that a threat even you couldn't handle was inbound, just because of a little arachnophobia?”
“Well when you put it like that,” Mike said, remembering the scene he made in front of all his friends before falling asleep. “It sounds kinda bad.”
“Just, don't do something like that again. Please.” Jonas said, exasperated. He called out to the people on top of and around the walls, signaling that there was no longer any threat to the outpost. Everyone relaxed, and looked at Mike with questioning stares. Mike didn't have it in him to meet a single one of the gazes that looked back at him. After a bit more talk, Mike ended up back on tree duty, using his Enhance Self skill to make it a bit easier. He had learned, though by accident, that putting less mana into the skill allowed him to use it for a longer period of time, and allowed him to still get a part of the bonus from the skill. The longer he practiced with it, and the longer he used it, it almost felt as if it got ever so slightly easier and easier to control the flow of mana within him as it swirled around to make him stronger.
In conjunction with his new skill, he also used his Mana Edge skill to make chopping even more effective. The already sharp green ax gained an even more nasty edge as each swing was now able to fell a tree with ease. He had realized he didn't know what the logs were going to be used for, and asked one of the construction workers as he brought in his most recent haul.
“We are making some barracks. Sleeping under the stars is nice and all, but people want a roof over their head.” He had said. Mike could understand the logic, and remembered Jonas talking about how big the need for housing was becoming. He was reminded of something, and after bringing his final haul of wood over, he tried finding Nema. He found her attempting to weave some panther tendons and muscles into a string, which seemed to be finicky at best.
“Hey, I was just wondering if you ever found someone to make the fabric we were after?” Mike asked.
“Yeah, go ask Gary about it, he has been using local plants and fibers to weave into sheets of fabric. You will probably find him doing it as we speak over by the entrance to the cave.”
“Thanks, good luck making that bow.” He said, hearing something break behind him as he walked away, followed by frustrated cursing from Nema.
He walked to the cave entrance, finding the man he was looking for right away. Next to him was a massive pile full of sheets of plant woven fabric. It all had a green tint to it, but looked sturdy nonetheless. The man motioned to the pile without a word, already knowing it would be going towards making beds for everyone.
Mike would need to find somebody else who could help with that, as making over a hundred beds, plus more for the ever increasing population of the outpost, was bound to be a monumental task. He found another crafter who looked to be busy trying to shape a panther bone into what looked like a long handle for something. Mike promised to help the man by teaching him a bit on how to properly cut the bone if he helped to make furniture.
This was how the next 24 hours went for Mike, making cots for the entire population, along with his new “apprentice” Liam. Originally he was going to make beds, but making cots had quickly shown itself to be far more cost effective, and comfortable. Mattresses were still a no go as they had nothing to fill them with. Mike's mind kept wandering back to the spider den, and about how they would likely begin attacking the outpost when they reached the rank of encampment.
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Speaking of which, Mike actually had no idea what the requirement was to reach that rank. It probably had something to do with buildings or population, but might be something entirely different. Mike and Liam slaved away, making the same piece of furniture over and over. Mike didn't get a single level from the ordeal, while Liam had already leveled up three times.
Mike was a touch jealous, but didn't let it get to him. He had also leveled pretty quickly in his profession, but not through mass production. He wondered what kind of professional variants Liam would get if he focused on mass production over making high quality items. Honestly, after Mike spent an hour showing Liam how to work the material of the panther bones, he thought that maybe making powerful weapons or unbreakable armors wasn't exactly going to be the boy's thing.
As he had been making the cots, several barracks were finished being made, with 20 cots each. Overall, the construction workers were able to make 10 buildings, and certainly showed the worth of their newfound strength as the group of 20 men and 3 women managed to put together so many in such a short timeframe.
Once night fell, Mike and a few others sat around the fire, eating Otto's excellent cooking and chatting, when a notification appeared in the view of every individual part of the outpost, or more accurately, former outpost.
*Congratulations, due to having successfully housed 100 residents, this outpost has earned the rank of encampment. Benefits of this upgrade include higher ambient mana, access to a city management system, and access to having a system recognized leader. Beware of nightly raids that are soon to come. Naming of this encampment will become available once a leader is selected.*
Well, that settles the question on what makes an encampment. It was fairly obvious to just about everyone who had spent more than a day in the camp who the leader was going to be. The next morning, thankfully with no raid that night, after everyone was awake, a vote was held. By overwhelming majority, Jonas was elected as the leader of the settlement, which was still yet to be named, as nobody could agree on one.
A group of some of the strongest in the settlement, including Mike, set out to the spider's den shortly after the ceremony, if it could be called that. Jonas had just stood on an elevated surface, thanking everyone and promising to keep the camp safe. The group that Mike had left with included Nema, Vladimir, from the group of mages who had helped him infuse the wall, Aaron, who had finally gotten the courage to leave the settlement now that there were enough healers that he wouldn’t be needed, and a rouge whom Mike had never met before.
The rogue dual wielded a pair of uncommon daggers Mike had made in his crafting Frenzy to reach level 9, and wore a dark cloak that looked like it had been made from the fur of a night stalker. It also had the same properties as Mike’s own armor, making him stealthier than the others. Not sneakier than Mike, of course, who was covered head to toe in night stalker armor.
They crept through the cave, going at a slow pace, so as to not alert a potential horde of enemies, if there were any in the shadows. The only ones who were able to create light for everyone to see with were Mike, Vladimir, and Aaron. Aaron conserved his mana by relying on the light of the other two, and the rogue and Nema used their high perception to see with the dim lights. Overall, they were a well balanced team, with Mike leading to take any hits that might come unexpectedly. The first sign of opposition came in the same way as last time, with a single tarantula slinking out of the shadows to pounce them.
Mike was going to dispatch it swiftly, but instead just knocked it over, allowing the others to attack and get the levels for themselves. He had killed a hundred of these, and gotten one level. It was unlikely they would contribute further to his growth. They continued for hours, keeping a slow, steady pace to not alert a swarm like Mike had when he came down for the first time.
The tarantulas were weak, particularly so for being level 9. Mike assumed it was due to the sheer amount of numbers they had, and the “swarmer” part of their name. Even so, the others had managed to level up, with Aaron reaching level 10 in his class thanks to Vladimir taking a bite to his leg. It had taken a few minutes for Aaron to work the toxin out of his body, and he had been handsomely rewarded for doing so. By 6 hours into the cave dive, Mike had finally found something that could put up a half decent fight for the team, if he stood to the side for it.
Tarantula Worker (level 11)
It wouldn’t be difficult for him to take down, but for the others, this was a step above what they had fought before. Nema had taken down a panther alpha, however, which Mike guessed was still stronger than this worker. Mike watched as the team took a serious fight for the first time since entering the cave. It had been a tough fight, with him almost stepping in, but in the end they killed it, earning everyone level 10 in their classes.
He had been content to watch from the side, but it was time for him to get some action. Mike sent the group off, back towards the surface. They needed to work on their professions and evolve, then they could regroup and come back down to finish off the nest. For now, Mike was going to get a lay of the land. He fought a couple of workers, not feeling challenged by the fights. The biggest hurdle he was facing was getting over his nerves.
Being alone fighting spiders was a whole different ball game than having people around to talk to and ignore the fear. Mike was just about fed up, ready to head to the surface, when he finally found something worth his time.
Tarantula Guard (level 15)
“Oh hell yeah.” Mike said, before running at the spider, hammer at the ready.