Caelen stared at his chair like it had betrayed him.
"You're great for sitting," he said, rubbing his sore back, "but you're one wrong lean from snapping in half. And I like not falling on my face."
He looked at the floor of his hut. Dirt, grass, one suspicious bug.
"I guess this is my life now."
He sighed and activated Google Brain again.
Search (14/20): How to make a bed
[Answer: 3x Wood Log + 2x Animal Hide or 3x Cloth. Optional: Pillow, if you want to be emotionally stable.]
He stared at the answer.
"Animal hide? At night? are we serious? When I'm definitely the prey."
He looked at his axe. Then at the wall. Then gave up completely and flopped onto the floor like a sad sack of potatoes.
He curled up in the grass, backpack under his head, muttering, "I died from sitting too long. Now I'm gonna die from not sitting enough. Love that for me."
Later that night...
He didn't sleep well. He mostly just rolled around, twitching at every noise and hallucinating wolves out of shadows. But somehow, by the time the sky turned gray, he was still alive.
His eyes blinked open as sunlight snuck through the roof hole and directly into his face like it had an agenda.
"Why is light aggressive here?"
He sat up, stretched, cracked his neck, and checked Google Brain instinctively.
Searches Remaining: 20/20. Reset Complete.
"Oh thank god. Okay. New day, seven less regrets."
He stepped outside, squinting into the morning light. The forest no longer looked like it wanted to eat him. Now it just looked... judgy.
Birds chirped. A bush rustled. Something farted in the distance. Maybe a boar? Maybe a goblin?
No time to ask.
Caelen gripped his axe and Pointy Stick. "Alright. Goals for today: find food, find flint, and get that bed going before I start nesting in leaves like some desperate forest squirrel."
He cracked his knuckles.
Search (1/20): How to find flint
[Answer: Look near riverbeds, rocky cliffs, or gravel patches. Grayish-black stone. Break with pickaxe.]
Search (2/20): How to identify edible berries
[Answer: Avoid bright red ones unless you want explosive regret. Blue = maybe. Yellow = don't. Always test slowly.]
Search (3/20): How to make spear
[Answer: 1x Long Stick + Sharp Rock or Carved Tip. Basic but effective.]
He nodded, already stepping toward the treeline.
"Alright forest. Let's see what you've got."