Perry's eyelids trembled slightly, and he slowly opened his eyes. His vision blurred for a while, and gradually focused on a small blue basketball-like light floating above his head. It was his system assistant. The light swayed gently in the air, as if waiting for him to wake up.
[You woke up. ] The voice of the system sounded in his mind, with a hint of ridicule.
"What time is it now?" Perry frowned, feeling heavy, but a little better. He turned his head to look outside the cave, the afterglow of the sunset sprinkled into the cave, and the sky outside the cave was already stained with the color of dusk.
He suddenly noticed that he was covered with a black cloak. He pulled the cloak open and slowly stood up. His body was still a little stiff, but much more flexible than before. He lowered his head and took a closer look at the pattern of the cloak, and found that it was embroidered with an abstract pattern of a sun and a tree, and a sense of familiarity instantly surged into his heart.
"Whose cloak is this?" Perry touched the cloak in confusion and felt that it looked familiar.
[It is five o'clock in the afternoon. ]The system's voice sounded again, [You have slept for six and a half hours. This cloak belongs to Rufus. He and Larkin came down about three hours ago and saw you resting, so he left the cloak to you. ]
"Six and a half hours?" Perry opened his eyes wide in surprise and looked down at his once stiff body. Indeed, he had been recovering deeply during this period. "It seems that I am really tired. This pattern... I have seen it somewhere. It turned out to be Rufus' cloak."
He stood at the entrance of the cave and looked out. The rain had stopped. The light of the setting sun shone through the cave, reflecting a peaceful scene. There was a thick rope hanging in front of the cave entrance, which was obviously used when they came down from above.
"Where did they go?" Perry looked around. There was no one in the cave. He scratched his head, a little confused.
[They went deep into the cave. Larkin was looking for her Mushcat with matches hidden. They had been in for a while and had not returned. ]The system explained.
"Inside the cave?" Perry frowned even more. He looked into the depths of the cave, thinking of his previous experience, and felt that the situation might not be good. "Where did they go? Are they in danger?"
He decided not to hesitate any longer, turned around and walked back to the depths of the cave, following the path they might have taken. As he walked, he shouted their names loudly: "Rufus! Larkin! Where are you?"
The cave was silent, with only his own footsteps echoing. Soon, he noticed the fluorescent mark left by Rufus on the cave wall. Perry breathed a sigh of relief, at least he had a clue.
Following the guidance of the mark, Perry came to a fork. He stopped to think for a while, and saw that the mark pointed to another fork, and it was obvious that Rufus and Larkin went that way.
"It seems that they took this road." Perry continued to move forward along the mark, but his inner vigilance never relaxed. As he walked, he began to consider the current situation.
Suddenly, he realized that his weapon was missing. "Wait a minute, where's the knife Rufus gave me? I remember I brought it with me." He touched his waist, but found it empty.
"Did Rufus take it back?" Perry frowned, which meant that he had no self-defense weapons now, and rashly entering the depths of the cave to look for them was simply asking for trouble. "It's too dangerous to go in like this."
He made a quick decision, "I'd better go back to the cave entrance and wait for them." Perry didn't want to take risks without any weapons.
After returning to the cave entrance, he sat on the ground, thinking about his mission in his mind. Since he had completed the task of killing the pink striped spider, the system's reward should be ready.
"System, where is my reward?" He asked the blue basketball.
[This is your reward, Basic Recipe 01. The host can view the contents. ] The system interface popped up immediately, showing a list of recipes.
Perry clicked on this so-called "basic recipe", but he didn't expect that all five recipes in it were related to the pink striped spider.
"Ah? This thing can be eaten?" Perry looked at the recipes with disbelief on his face. The recipes mentioned strange names such as "Pink-striped spider stew" and "Spider leg pancakes", and he immediately felt his stomach churning. "This is too... hard to accept."
[Pink-striped spiders are rich in nutrients and can enhance the body's immunity and recovery. Although the appearance is not pleasing, the taste is said to be quite delicious. ] The system explained, as if it noticed Perry's resistance.
Perry listened to the system's explanation, and his expression became more complicated. "No matter how it tastes, I really can't imagine eating these things... But maybe these recipes will come in handy in a critical situation." He sighed and turned off the system interface.
The sunset gradually sank below the horizon, and the light in the cave began to dim. Perry still sat quietly in front of the cave entrance, waiting for Rufus and Larkin to return. Although he had recovered a lot, he felt a faint sense of uneasiness in his heart. He looked up at the last afterglow in the sky, and silently prayed that the two could return safely.