Hammer Lizard

After collecting the Heartstones left behind by the Horn Rabbits I’d killed, I started fishing. The catch was excellent: sixteen horse mackerel and three largescale blackfish measuring about forty centimeters each. Just as I’d finished cleaning the fish and was preparing to leave, a flock of birds suddenly took flight from the eastern forest near the pier.

What was going on? Don’t tell me that thing was approaching!

I hurriedly hid behind a large boulder. As I watched from my hiding place, the Minotaur emerged from the forest. The bull-headed creature wandered around the beach as though searching for something before eventually returning to the forest.

“Is that thing wandering around looking for enemies?”

If so, that was absolutely terrifying. Fighting the Minotaur wasn’t even an option in my mind, because I couldn’t imagine being able to defeat it.

I carried my catch back to the air-raid shelter. I started grilling one largescale blackfish and two horse mackerel. It was a simple meal seasoned with nothing but salt. I felt like sighing, but I wasn’t exactly in a position to complain about the food.

After eating the grilled fish, I hung the remaining fish to dry in a well-ventilated spot. I used the thread I’d created with Heartstone Processing Technique to hang them.

Afterward, I practiced Throwing Technique. I repeatedly threw stones near the air-raid shelter, training my body to remember the proper techniques. Then I tested what I’d learned in actual combat against Horn Rabbits, repeating the process over and over.

Once my injured leg had healed, I also began practicing Axe Technique.

A month passed without any rescue arriving. Incidentally, I’d tried building a raft using materials other than bamboo, but it hadn’t worked. The island’s owner seemed to have thoroughly cleared away any driftwood, plastic, and other debris. I’d also attempted to cut down trees with my hatchet, but that had proven impossible.

Apparently, bamboo really was my only option for building a raft.

Over the course of that month, my status had improved a little.

My level had risen from 02 to 05, and several new skills had become available for selection: Cooking, Sewing, Fishing, and Presence Detection☆. From the available skills, I chose and acquired Mental Resistance and Presence Detection.

That was when I discovered something. Among the selectable skills displayed in my mind, one had a star symbol beside its name. That skill was Presence Detection. After acquiring those two skills, my Skill Points had decreased by four.

Apparently, skills marked with a star required more points to acquire than ordinary skills.

Until then, I’d assumed that every skill cost only one point. However, that clearly wasn’t the case. That meant I might eventually find myself unable to acquire a skill I really wanted because I didn’t have enough points.

Perhaps I needed to acquire only the skills I truly needed and save my remaining Skill Points. Anyway, after a month on the island, my current status looked like this.

The skills that had improved were Throwing Technique and Axe Technique, both of which I’d practiced almost every day. My stone-throwing attacks had become powerful enough to kill a Horn Rabbit with a single hit. However, I couldn’t seem to increase their power any further. Even when a stone struck its target, the stone itself would shatter.

My Axe Technique had only improved to the point where my hatchet swings were starting to look reasonably competent, so I still needed more practice. When my Heartstone Processing Technique reached the next skill level, I became capable of producing iron ingots in addition to thread and cloth.

However, I had no idea what use those iron ingots would be. Each was merely an iron bar weighing about two hundred grams, hardly suitable as either a weapon or a tool.

Physical Resistance and Poison Resistance had also increased in level. My Physical Resistance had probably improved because of all the fighting I’d done against Horn Rabbits. However, I couldn’t understand why Poison Resistance had increased. I couldn’t remember eating anything poisonous.

The newly acquired Presence Detection skill allowed me to process changes in sound, light, wind, and other environmental factors inside my head, almost like a radar system. However, at skill level 1, its detection range was only about ten meters, so it didn’t seem particularly useful.

After checking my status, I realized that I lacked offensive power. My offensive skills were Throwing Technique and Axe Technique. However, since I didn’t actually have an axe, I couldn’t say I was making effective use of Axe Technique.

I searched through my available skills for something I could use to attack. There were a few skills whose functions I didn’t understand, but none were clearly offensive skills.

“This Lesser Heavenly Circuit is the only one I still know nothing about. Should I give it a try?”

Without giving it much thought, I selected Lesser Heavenly Circuit. However, it turned out to be something outrageous. The instant I selected the skill, I experienced excruciating pain, as though my body were being forcibly modified from the inside.

The pain felt as though an entirely new network of blood vessels was being woven throughout my body, and I genuinely thought I might die. Afterward, knowledge concerning Lesser Heavenly Circuit flowed into my mind.

Apparently, Lesser Heavenly Circuit was related to the qigong practices often depicted in kung fu movies and martial arts dramas. The knowledge etched into my brain concerned breathing techniques and methods for circulating internal energy, so there was little doubt about it.

I found myself reluctant to use the Lesser Heavenly Circuit skill. I was afraid that activating it might cause that excruciating pain to return, and I doubted I could endure it mentally.

After reviewing my status and skills, I decided to test my current abilities. I was considering challenging the Hammer Lizard once again.

I headed toward the bamboo grove. Along the way, I encountered a Horn Rabbit, but I killed it without difficulty by throwing a stone. When I was about five meters from the bamboo grove, I encountered a Hammer Lizard.

It approached while swinging its vicious tail around. Whoa, this thing was terrifying! Remembering the last time it had injured me, I felt fear welling up inside me. I drew my hatchet with my left hand and held a small stone in my right.

First, I tried throwing the stone. It flew at considerable speed and struck the Hammer Lizard’s head, shattering on impact. The giant lizard paused for just a moment before immediately resuming its advance.

“Just as I thought. That won’t work.”

I transferred the hatchet to my right hand and readied myself. The creature lunged at me with its mouth full of sharp fangs, attempting to bite me. I jumped sideways to avoid it. The next instant, the Hammer Lizard spun its entire body around. It was attacking with its tail.

I leaped into the air, avoiding the spiked iron ball. Upon landing, I stepped on the creature’s tail to pin it down and brought my hatchet crashing down. The blade cut halfway through the tail. Apparently, my increased Axe Technique skill level had also improved the power of my attacks. Last time, my hatchet hadn’t been able to penetrate its hide, but this time, the blade sank in with a satisfying crunch. I swung the hatchet again and completely severed the tail.

“All right!”

The moment I shouted in triumph, the Hammer Lizard turned and lunged at me. I jumped sideways to dodge, then kicked upward into its belly. The giant lizard flipped over, exposing its stomach. This was my chance. I brought my hatchet down toward its neck. The blade carved a deep wound into its flesh.

I swung my hatchet a second time, then a third. The Hammer Lizard stopped moving. Its body then shattered into countless particles, which gathered and condensed into a Heartstone.

The Hammer Lizard’s Heartstone was also black. However, it was approximately twice the size of the ones dropped by Horn Rabbits.

The mysterious voice echoed inside my head. Apparently, my Axe Technique had reached skill level 3. Would that increase the power of my hatchet attacks even further? I certainly hoped so.

After resting for a while, I cut down two bamboo stalks, removed their branches, and carried them back to the air-raid shelter.

“How many of these am I going to need?”

I decided to gather about ten bamboo stalks. Since I hadn’t actually decided what kind of raft I wanted to build, ten seemed like a reasonable number based on a very rough guess.

My parents had often told me that I lacked planning skills, but I was the type who preferred acting before thinking. Besides, I’d once watched a television program where comedians built a raft and escaped from a deserted island.

If comedians who weren’t survival experts or professional craftsmen could build one, surely I could too. I headed back toward the bamboo grove. While I was chopping through a bamboo stalk with my hatchet, another Hammer Lizard appeared.

“Again? Just how many freaking monsters are on this island?”

I spat out the words bitterly and readied my hatchet. This Hammer Lizard began swinging its tail around right from the start. I dodged its attacks while looking for an opportunity to kick it in the belly.

Growing irritated that its tail attacks kept missing, the Hammer Lizard lunged forward to bite me. I quickly dodged, moved around to its side, and kicked upward into its stomach.

The giant lizard flipped over. Seeing my opportunity, I prepared to bring my hatchet down on its neck. However, just as I raised my weapon, its tail launched an attack from my blind spot.

My Presence Detection skill sensed the attack. I forcibly twisted my body to avoid the spiked iron ball. It passed right in front of my nose. Holy crap, that was close! I’d almost been killed!

I changed my target and decided to sever the tail first. I pinned it down with my right foot and brought my hatchet down. After cutting off the tail, I finished off the Hammer Lizard.

“Phew… As long as they’ve still got their tails, I can’t let my guard down. From now on, I’ll prioritize cutting those off.”

Biting attacks came from the front, making them relatively easy to dodge, but tail attacks were troublesome because they could come from blind spots. I picked up the Heartstone and put it in my pocket.

After cutting down two bamboo stalks, I encountered a large rat while carrying them back to the air-raid shelter. It was about the size of a cat.

“So this is the thing Mika-san made such a fuss about seeing.”

According to my knowledge of aberrant beasts, this monster was called a Bad Rat.

I kicked the attacking giant rat into the air, sending it crashing against a tree trunk. Then I picked up a small stone and hurled it at the creature. The stone crushed the Bad Rat’s head. It was hardly a challenging opponent. However, the Heartstone left behind by the Bad Rat was red. Apparently, it was a fire-attribute Heartstone.

Among the materials that could be created from Heartstones, certain ones could only be produced using stones with specific attributes. One material that could be produced from fire-attribute Heartstones was Insulating Cloth. Apparently, this fabric had the ability to block heat transfer and prevent warmth from escaping.

Ordinary cloth could also be produced from fire-attribute Heartstones, but Insulating Cloth was another possibility. If I obtained an earth-attribute Heartstone, I would also be able to create Cut-Resistant Cloth.

I began preparing to build my raft near the air-raid shelter. Although the actual construction would take place on the beach, I cut the bamboo stalks to equal lengths to serve as the raft’s main components and also made a paddle out of bamboo.

I decided to use the ropes from the tents to bind the bamboo together.

I carried the raft materials down to the beach. Then I began assembling the raft using the ropes. When I’d completed about forty percent of it, I was about to take a short break when I detected the Minotaur’s presence.

I abandoned the raft and fled toward the air-raid shelter as fast as I could.