Jack blinked, his eyebrows lifting slightly as he processed the notification. “Pottery etching?” he muttered. Of all the things to learn here, an etching recipe was the last thing he expected to find.

  Pottery etching was a skill Jack had learned what felt like an eternity ago while tackling the [Jack of All Trades] quest. It allowed him to engrave beautiful patterns on ceramics. Until now, he had relied on his artistic instincts to create designs ranging from waves, swirls, and simple lines to adding customers' names to pieces.

  The only etching recipe he had was one he’d picked up when he became a handyman: [Rope Etching]. It involved tying a rope to a pot, imprinting the fibers’ pattern onto its surface. Firing the pot with the rope still wrapped around it would burn the rope away, leaving a unique engraved design. The recipe wasn’t anything special—it added no more artistry points than if Jack had created his own patterns. Still, the result was beautiful. But this—drawing an actual image—was a first.

  It reminds me of those vases I saw at the Historical Society, Jack thought, recalling the day he met Professor Grant and Amari. While walking through the exhibit on his way to the professor’s office, a series of vases had captured his attention. They told a story of a blacksmith crafting a sword, climbing a mountain, and placing it in a scabbard of a statue where it was struck by lightning. Back then, Jack had assumed the drawings were clues to some sort of quest. He hadn’t considered that the patterns themselves might be valuable, holding benefits for the pottery pieces engraved with them.

  So far, the only tangible benefit of using the Pottery Etching recipe was gaining artistry stats. Jack had seen that artistry boosted the value of items, though he still didn’t know why. Felix had mentioned that it made a house more versatile, but the details were fuzzy.

  He opened the description of the recipe.

  [The One-Eyes and the Bears]

  Recipe:

  Etching pattern 1: Peace

  Etching pattern 2: Preyed Upon

  Etching pattern 3: Battle

  Etching pattern 4: Retreat

  The description was little more than a copy of the drawings he was seeing on the cave’s wall.

  So, I guess I have to make these four scenes into a pot—or maybe spread them across four pots, like what I saw at the Historical Society.

  Around this time, Jack received a message.

  “I’m already at the peak.”

  Jack messaged back: “There have been some developments.” He attached a brief video he’d recorded of the village and added: “Please stay put. I’ll message you in a moment.”

  “Take your time,” Amari texted back.

  Jack found himself torn. The one-eyed elder was clearly worried about the threat of the bears, but the other drawings on the chamber walls could hold more etching recipes! If they really were as valuable as he suspected, he couldn’t ignore them. His gaze flicked between the carvings and the elder. Finally, unable to resist, Jack gestured toward the nearest set of carvings.

  “Can I take a look?” he asked, glancing at the elder.

  The elder’s chittering grew sharper, their single hand stabbing repeatedly in the direction of the bears. Their one eye narrowed, their expression taut with urgency as they pointed again.

  “I get it,” Jack said, raising his hands. “You want me to get rid of the bears for you. But let me check out the other drawings first. Is that okay?”

  The elder let out a loud, protesting screech, their hand curling into a fist as they pounded it against the ground in frustration. Ears burning, Jack ignored the elder and inspected the carvings nearby.

  The images next to the bears depicted a completely different scene: one-eyed figures helping a goat give birth, milking goats, making cheese, and preparing a feast by slaughtering a goat. Jack leaned in, studying the sequence carefully, his fingertips brushing the rough, timeworn carvings as he waited for a notification.

  Nothing happened.

  I need to have the elder’s blessing to learn it, Jack reasoned. Fair enough. There were ten sets of carvings on the walls, and unlocking them all at once would’ve been a bit overpowered. Jack’s gaze swept over the room again, imagining the secrets these carvings might hold. Would he even have enough time to learn them all before the Breach was over?

  Still, the discovery sent a thrill through him. Pottery had always been his favorite minor—not just because of Felix, though his influence couldn’t be ignored. There was something calming about shaping clay, about turning something raw into something functional and beautiful. The prospect of uncovering a new layer to the craft made his heart beat faster.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  With a sigh, Jack turned his attention back to the bears. The engravings confirmed there was more than one, which meant his previous reward wouldn’t be enough to unlock whatever prize was hidden here. He noticed there were never more than three bears depicted in a single image. Just to be safe, he took screenshots of the carvings, noting their arrangement and any key details.

  Jack thought back to the large bear he’d managed to dislodge from its lair. He’d only succeeded because he had prepared several bombs and Molotov cocktails beforehand and made full use of the terrain. The idea of dealing with two more wasn’t exactly thrilling. Still, Piri wouldn’t place this quest here if it wasn’t doable… right?

  When he was done, Jack gestured to the elder. “I’ll deal with the bears,” he said, pointing at the images and miming a swiping motion across his throat.

  The elder’s chittering shifted to a pleased tone. They banged their fist against the ground once before pointing toward the cave exit with a quick, sweeping motion. Their movements were sharp and deliberate, as if eager for Jack to take action without delay.

  “Fine! Fine! I’m going already.”

  Jack left the village under the wary gaze of the one-eyed figures staring at him from above. As he squeezed through the crack in the wall, a piercing blast of frigid wind slammed into him, biting through his clothes and cutting into his skin. He stumbled forward, looking longingly at the warm village of the One-Eyes.

  “I wish I could hunt the bears from the safety of the village,” Jack muttered, shivering. “It’s really cold up here.”

  As Jack walked out of the narrow passage, he realized he wasn’t alone. A ninja dressed like one of the zookeepers in Embersgate leaned comfortably against the rock. His braids and black skin were covered in frost, glittering faintly under the light, but he seemed unaffected.

  “Hi, Jack!”

  “Hi, Amari! Thank you for coming.”

  Jack placed his hand on Amari’s shoulder.

  Fat Insulation!

  10x[Roach Fat] consumed from inventory.

  +10 cold resistance to NinjaAmari.

  Amari blinked as the buff activated, flexing his fingers experimentally. “Oh? Neat skill. Thanks, Jack.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “Is the cute furry creatures’ village there?” Amari asked, flashing Jack a grin.

  “They’re called One-Eyes, and I wouldn’t exactly call them cute. But yeah, it is,” Jack said.

  Amari practically bounced on his heels, his grin splitting wider. “Man, this adventure of yours, combined with the one I just finished with the archer, is shaping up to make some really interesting content!”

  “I’m glad,” Jack said.

  “By the way, have you watched the videos I sent you?” Amari tilted his head, his bright eyes searching for approval.

  Jack shook his head, a wry grin tugging at his lips. “Sorry, I’ve been a bit busy—trying to survive bear attacks, getting kidnapped, and being thrown around by this piercing cold. Haven’t had the chance.”

  Amari laughed, his breath misting in the cold air. “Well, they’re doing well. We’re already getting positive comments. A lot of people enjoyed seeing you become part of our team. I’m feeling confident about the crafting series.”

  “Really?” Jack asked, his eyebrows rising.

  “Oh yeah. We already have 2,000 views between the two videos. It’s pretty good.”

  Jack’s jaw dropped, his breath fogging in the cold air. “Two thousand? That’s… incredible,” he said, struggling to wrap his head around the numbers. If he added up the total views from every video he’d ever made, they still wouldn’t come close.

  “That’s amazing. I’m really glad, Amari,” Jack said sincerely.

  Amari nudged him playfully, his grin softening. “Anyway, I digress. Let’s focus on this package. What can you tell me about it?”

  Jack quickly navigated the menu, selected the photos he’d taken of the cave wall, and sent them to Amari.

  Amari studied the images, leaning closer to the interface. His brow furrowed, and his lips pressed into a tight line as his eyes darted across the carvings.

  “So, as far as I can tell, there are maybe three short-faced bears hanging around the peak. I mean… it’s only a guess based on the hieroglyphs in the village. The number might not mean anything,” Jack said.

  “It very likely does,” Amari agreed. “In many of the pyramid’s mazes, the number of things in the drawings is usually a relevant clue. Since the pyramid is involved, logic would suggest there’s a strong possibility that there are three.”

  Jack straightened instinctively, his shoulders pulling back. Hearing Amari agree with his assessment felt like a small victory. “In that case, I’ve already dealt with one of them,” he said, his voice carrying a touch of pride. Taking down a level 35 creature on his own wasn’t a small feat. But as he thought of the challenges ahead, his chest deflated slightly. “But there seem to be two more out there. My guess is that if we find a way to deal with the other two, we’ll unlock some sort of mega package.”

  Amari nodded, a pleased smile spreading across his face. “This is great work, Jack. It wouldn’t be unprecedented, either. I’ve seen videos from one of the streamers I follow—after they worked through four hidden packages, they unlocked an upgrade that tied them all together.”

  “Really?” Jack asked, his curiosity piqued.

  “Oh yeah.”

  “So, what are we waiting for? Let’s go bear hunting!”

  Amari chuckled. “I’d love to do that, but Horace and Marie really need you back. They’re running low on rations. If you don’t return with supplies, they’ll be in trouble.”

  “Okay, but we can’t just leave this unfinished. What do we do?” Jack asked, concerned.

  Amari scratched his chin, his expression thoughtful. “Since you found a short-faced bear on one of the routes leading to the mountain, it stands to reason that the spot I marked on the way out could be the lair of another bear.”

  Jack nodded. “Do you remember if it’s a cave?”

  “I think so, yes,” Amari said after some thought. “And it could very well be the spot. Why don’t we start heading back along the other route? We should still have time to deal with that bear as we make our way back to the others.”

  “What about the third one?”

  “Did you see anything while you were up here exploring?”

  “No, not really. And I did roam a lot.”

  Amari bit his lip. “On my way here, and during my first pass-through, I didn’t spot anything either. Maybe there’s some trick to finding the last bear.”

  “So what’s the plan?” Jack asked, realizing that he was starting to act like Horace and Marie—looking to Amari to make the calls.

  “I think we have no choice but to come back later.”

  “I wish we could just finish this now. The two of us are here, after all.”

  “Do you have a better idea?” Amari asked.

  Jack strained to think of a solution.

  A rustling sound and a bleat broke the silence. Jack and Amari froze, their eyes snapping toward the source. The rustling grew louder, followed by the crunch of footsteps in the snow. Moments later, a line of One-Eyes emerged from the crack in the wall, leading a goat. Some carried spears, others shovels, and bundles of nets rested on the goat’s back. Jack tensed, watching the group pass. They barely acknowledged him and Amari before starting to march away.

  Seeing them, Jack slapped his forehead. “Amari! I know how to find the third bear!”