I set about drawing a pocket-sized bow and a small bag of smaller arrows to go with it. They were important, but that was not the main item I wanted in my arsenal. The archery set was just a smaller version of my gift for Kaelen. I had decided that my class Skills, together with my newly gained control over shadow essence and the capabilities of my battle partners, should be enough to defeat most enemies for now. Thus, if I really needed another weapon to support me and help me out, it probably meant that the opponent is many times stronger than me and would be able to keep me from using normal attacks like shooting an arrow or swinging a blade. It meant that I needed to escape instead of engaging further.

However, since the hypothetically powerful enemy would be able to easily block all my strikes, I would have to use more hidden methods of attack if I wanted to distract them for long enough to run away with Kaelen and Elias.

The pocket-sized bow would be easy to draw and shoot, with three slots for more arrows to be released at the same time. The arrows themselves would be fast and lightweight, easy to nock and quick in flight. They would not be my preferred choice of weaponry, but I was preparing for a desperate surprise attack. It was not something I would use in every battle.

That was not all, though. I had received quite a few poisonous and venomous loot drops from my previous battle with the bees and the recent one against the pythons. Most games I had played so far had a crafting feature hidden somewhere in them, so I figured that it would not hurt to try and make my own poison. I could potentially use Artist to bring out a kind of poison deadly to any and every creature the System had ever seen, but that would be risking it with my current Mana reserves. Another time, perhaps, when I have a higher Magic stat and a larger Mana pool to draw from.

Once the tiny bow and the pouch of tinier arrows were out in the real world with all the properties I had chosen to give them, I suppressed a growing headache and opened my Inventory, attempting to store them in it.

It worked, and they were safely in the storage area with all my hard-earned loot items.

I relaxed a little now that I was almost done, and began my little poison project. I pulled out all the items that had some kind of connection to toxins. That came up to twenty items in total: eight Stingers and ten Worker Bee Venom Sac from the bees, as well as two Python Fangs (Venomous) from the two snakes I had slain on the way back from fighting the shadow owl and the skeleton. I called for the items' descriptions, hoping that it would also show me an option to mix and combine them. Instead of getting their information though, the small blue screen that popped up in front of me was filled with instructions on how to create poison. It was as if the System had figured out what I actually wanted to do.

It was convenient, but it also raised a few worries within me about the omnipotence of the System.

It would be a problem for future me, when I became a lot more powerful. There was no use getting anxious over that now. With that thought in mind, I began following the steps clearly listed out on the translucent cyan screen hovering before my eyes. It was less expensive to craft in terms of material than I had expected, costing me only one Stinger and two Venom Sacs to create a small dish of pitch black liquid. It was contained in a small transparent box with a plastic-like texture that had appeared out of nowhere.

Despite the absence of light - the moon had risen, but it was temporarily hidden by the clouds that had drifted over it -, the pool of poison glowed like obsidian placed under the sun. It barely had an aura, unlike most other magical items I had encountered so far, but the small pulses I felt from it was so horrifying that I could feel hair stand up at the back of my neck. I pulled an arrow out from my Inventory and dipped the needle-thin item carefully into the black, lethal substance. It triggered a small ripple, but the tiny wave was not tall enough to reach my finger and injure me.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

When I pulled the arrow back out, its tip glowed in the same color as the venom that it was submerged in, and it gave off a faint ripple of the same dangerous energy. I stored it in my Inventory again, and this time, it had a different item name: "Lightweight Arrow (Bee Poison-tipped)". It was only one arrow out of the 50 I had created for the first batch, but it was enough for me to prove to myself that this plan of surprise attack could actually work. Judging by how little of the poison my needle-thin test subject had absorbed, I could probably use this small container to taint all the other fourty-nine and still have some left over.

Plus, the amount of Stingers and Worker Bee Venom Sacs would also give me enough materials for four more batches of toxins. I smirked and sent a short recap of what I did to Hydra, who was still awake. He grudgingly approved, 'That was not a bad idea for a hatchling. You could use it in battle against other humans, but monster hide is tough. They also have quick reflexes, so they would be able to dodge easier than you think... Also, you should rest soon, birdie. A tired bird is a easy snack.'

I nodded, ignoring his last remark, 'There is just one more thing that I need to do.'

I pulled up another Story Weaver page and started drawing a dagger, one of the weapon ideas I had in mind. I wanted to test a theory out. From my previous creations, I had learnt that simply drawing something would not cost any of my mana - they were taken away when I was in the visualizing and the final generation phases. Therefore, I could just store all these ideas on paper, and materialize them when I had enough mana and needed them in battle. That would allow me to fight back more efficiently than furiously drawing in the midst of a battle.

However, that was only a theory. The paper I was using was special - they were part of another Skill. There was no guarantee that when I called the papers out again the next time I needed them, the sketches I had made would still be there. All my hard work might simply disappear when I put the pieces away. I really hoped that this would work the way I wanted it to.

Ten minutes later, I was finally done drawing the dagger. It did not have much detail, but it would be enough for me to visualize it clearly in my head. Then, I deactivated Story Weaver, allowing the sheet of paper to fade into nothing and lay back against Hydra's outstretched wing. He opened a single eye, but did not say anything.

I waited for a few minutes just to be sure. Then, with much anticipation in my heart, I called out the piece of paper and the pen with the Skill. The first side was empty. I tensed and flipped the paper to the other side, preparing for disappointmen, but there it was. My art was right there, and it looked exactly the same as it did when I had stored the paper. I grinned proudly as I imagined all the different ways I could use this shortcut. The sides of my mouth curved sharper when I pictured the shock on my enemies' faces when I whipped out a bag of homing throwing knives to fling at them.

It would save me so much time and bring my Skill up to another level. I wanted to explore my other two Skills too, but like Hydra said, the first watch was almost over, and I was tired. I stood up and gently shook Kaelen awake. She groaned and rubbed her eyes, before shooting up with a fearful expression and surveying our surroundings for danger.

I soothed her, "Don't worry, Kaelen, it's just me."

"Oh," her face reddened and she calmed down, "It's my turn?"

I nodded, "Yes, but before I sleep, there's something I want to show you."

Her eyes lit with interest and I pointed towards the archery set that I had placed nearby with a smug smile, "That is for you. I created it using my creation Skill while the two of you were sleeping. I would have made one for Elias too but I don't know what he needs. I'll tell you what it does tomorrow."

Kaelen shook my arm and thanked me sincerely, "Thank you, Terra! I've been hoping to get a long-ranged weapon for a while!"

I smiled slightly, acknowledging her. She let go and took up her position while I rested my head on Hydra's leathery wing again.

Sleep came easily.