"Perhaps it's time to check what recipes he has unlocked and see if anything will help"
Harry leaned against the crafting table, the faint glow of the torches casting warm light across the rough stone. The silence that followed his narrow escape still felt heavy, pressing at the edges of his thoughts.
He needed to get stronger.
Opening the crafting menu, he scrolled through the faint grid of icons and numbers that floated before him. New shapes had appeared since his last session in the block world — outlines of armor pieces, and another odd item that looked a lot like a shield.
He tapped on it, reading the small description [durability 336 crouch to block]
Harry's eyes narrowed. That could help against the skeleton. He scrolled down further, checking the armor sets — helmets, chestplates, leggings, boots — all made from iron. His inventory showed he had only 2 ingots left, even the boots the lowest costing armor piece costed 4 ingots.
Then his eyes caught something. The shield he had been looking at only costed 1 ingot. But would making a shield be the best idea with his limited resources, then the memory of the skeleton how it never missed flashed in his mind.
He selected the shield recipe, watching as a soft outline formed: one iron ingot, six wooden planks. He dragged the materials into place and the crafting table shimmered softly. A new item appeared — a wooden shield, reinforced with a dull strip of metal down the center.
Harry gripped it experimentally. It felt heavier than he expected, but he also felt it would not hinder his movement. This time he wasn't going to be caught off guard this time.
With one last glance at the barrier, he took a steadying breath and began removing the planks. Each thunk of wood breaking echoed through the cave. The soft clack of distant bones answered in return.
Torchlight flickered ahead. The air felt colder now.
Harry raised his shield, pressing forward. The further he went, the more familiar the tunnels became — and soon he reached the place where he had died before. The skeleton stood further down the path this time, bow lowered but waiting, as if frozen until he approached.
There was no point in trying to sneak. It had sensed him before. This time, he would strike first.
He braced his shield and charged. His shoes thudded against the stone. The skeleton reacted instantly, bow rising with mechanical precision — fthunk! The arrow flew straight toward him.
Quickly crouching and pulling the shield infront of him, the arrow struck the shield with a sharp clunk, bouncing harmlessly away before landing in a stone block a small distance away.
Harry immediately charged forward. He closed the distance in seconds and swung his sword in a wide arc. The blade connected with the skeleton's ribs, scattering small fragments of bone with a brittle snap!
The creature staggered but didn't fall. It drew another arrow — faster this time — but Harry was ready.
The arrow slammed against his shield and ricocheted backward. The skeleton staggered back as the arrow it had fired buried itself deep in its chest. It froze for a moment, and Harry capitalized on that jumping and slamming his sword down, the skeleton burst apart into a small cloud of white smoke before vanishing completely.
As harry recovered from the fish from the fight. The air shimmered faintly as a small item dropped to the stone — a bow, faintly glowing, though its string looked frayed and weak. A low durability bow probably only a few shots before breaking but still a bow.
A grin tugged at Harry's lips. He now had a ranged weapon even if it only had a few shots left.
For a moment, he simply examined the bow he now had, he estimated it probably had 5 shots before it broke. After his examination he got to work.
Torch by torch, he lit the rest of the tunnel, driving back the darkness until every shadow was pushed to the edges. The flickering orange light revealed new veins of ore in the walls — dull gray iron and flashes of yellow-gold glimmering in the stone.
He smiled faintly, settling his pickaxe in his hands he swung. Each swing echoed with purpose, sharp and steady. Every strike bringing him new resources and strength. As Harry returned and started sorting his inventory, far from the cave, far from the glow of torchlight and even far from the world itself other sounds stirred.
Outside the old factory, several figures cloaked in traveling robes moved through the overgrown field. Their wands were drawn, light from their tips cutting through the dusk as they approached the rusted doors.
A voice spoke softly, muffled by the wind. "This is where the trace led, right?"
Another nodded. "It's faint, but yes. Be cautious — if he's here, he's not alone."
The group advanced carefully, boots crunching over gravel and glass. The structure loomed before them, its tall windows shattered, its interior hidden in shadow.
The sound of the Order's footsteps echoed through the hall. As they got closer to the main floor, a sudden crunch rang out — one of them had stepped on a cracked glass panel left forgotten on the floor. The crunching sound echoed loudly through the hall and into the main floor.
Harry's eyes snapped open with suspicion and anticipation.