I'm a Stingray?

Chapter 10: New den

What that eel did was indeed foul but Tim can't exactly do much about it. That enemy is a meter and a half long, has a row of sharp teeth that can kill the boy easily and of course is much faster.

While Tim, well he's just a 30 day old stingray and can't possibly measure forces with a bigger enemy. This specific enemy has a mako shark companion so the odds weigh on the enemy's side, this young stingray is powerless to oppose.

So carrying the hunt he tagged along, Tim made his way out of the coral reef and follows the same path the boy's used to.

One because the 4 other ghost crab carcasses are here and two because he wants to find a new den that's not so far away from his old one.

Reading his mind, the system interrupts with a recommandation. [Don't find a new den that's close to the old one, the eel can find you and eat you.]

Still pissed, especially now with his idea opposed, Tim shouts. "Then what am I supposed to do ha? The crabs I killed are close to the old den and I don't want to come back and forth."

[The crabs were important when you had the den, now make it as a main goal to find a new den. You can stack up other animals in there.]

The system is obviously trying to reason although Tim shares the same intent, but yells it out instead.

But yet, not listening to this system never paid off well so he decided to put rage aside, well more like he decided to filter his rage and turn it into progress.

Taking a moment to calm down, he recalls what trouble holes could bring and therefore questions the system. "Which hole has the least bitty madmen?"

[Upcoming tip, free of charge.]

[Generally, you need to sleep where big predators can't get in. So look for a hole that you have trouble fitting in, it can lead to a good den for low levels like you.]

Dropping the crab after taking a moment to carefully analyze what this lady system said, Tim uses his last few minutes of level 5 speed to rush as far away from the coral reef as possible, although barely taking a moment to look around for potential dens.

His goal right now is to get far away and he even keeps repeating it in his head. "Swim swim swim swim swim..."

His mind enhancing that pure urge of revenge although at the moment the boy's technically fleeing the scene, considering his speed one would think that this little stingray will never return.

But no, either Harold or Drake, they won't taste the opportunity of manipulating or threatening the young Tim, without that taste ending up sour and venomous.

...

About 300 meters from the coral reef now, speeding like a maniac and covering all of that distance in less than a minute thanks to that blessed speed, Tim finally slows down as his stamina can't endure it anymore.

His rage cooled down a bit as speeding to such extent does over work his body. The boy landed on the sand beneath him and took a moment to regain energy.

On the way here he did spot crabs or what look like them, along with a few species of fish but did not want to stop and take a bite out of them, reasons are numerous.

One and primarily, he doesn't want to rely on the reef or anything close to it for food. And two, he feels too full and has to burn down some energy.

It's interesting how he wants to feel hungry now while in the beginning he was suffering with hunger.

As for the reef, it has become a big ego game now. He doesn't even want to swim near it at the moment, not to mention relying on it for food.

Taking a moment to glance at his surroundings while his stamina replenishes, the young stingray spots a slightly narrow hole a few meters in front of him.

The structure of the hole is interesting, as the entrance is supported by a significant nodge up that would make one think the sea surface is behind this nodge.

But no, the entrance is in the middle of a bump, a naturally structured rock that stands out.

But he doesn't want to rush in it although it does look system recommended. Right now, Tim has dug himself in the sand and plans to stalk the den for a good while.

Falling asleep here is not an option, he is especially exposed here where a random animal could be inhabiting the den. A few seconds are required for this situation to turn sour and lead towards Tim getting bitten in half.

A good hour has passed now and Tim hasn't seen any predators or normal fish either go in or out from this hole, from this possible den.

Through this hour, the stalking stingray has even flapped his fins a few times against the sand to attract what could be hiding behind this hole.

But no, nothing came out. And this most definitely can be a good thing, it screams den potential.

Finally deciding to try his luck and swim in, Tim feels his fins squeeze in through the entrance which could be just 10 centimeters across. Small but It's not like Tim is 10 times the size.

Squeezing through just about a meter deep, the young boy finds himself in a bigger opening, it looks more like a ditch.

Ugly, only 4 or so feet across but at this point it's perfect for Tim although less roomy compared to his old den.

The structure of this new den is easy to understand. The exit/entrance is at the top, on the right corner.

The den is about 7 feet deep which gives that ditch vibe, and finally it's just 4 feet wide, almost circular.

There isn't much light here either but that could be because it's becoming dark above the surface's waters. The sun's setting and getting here is a perfect timing as the most dangerous predators roam at night.

"This place is ugly, where are all the colors?" Tim asked himself, not quite used to such an atmosphere.

[You're surrounded by gravel and rock, you have sand at the bottom so it proves perfect as a den for you. In this darkness it's just another layer of camouflage.]

All of that information forced little Tim tad weary but that's not the whole reason, he has been swimming around through most of the times ever since he reincarnated into this body. And yes, that does tend to tire even the toughest stingrays out.

Since this den looks perfect to sleep in without having to worry about getting eaten, the young stingray buries himself in the sand and utters. "Good night system."

[Good night guest.]

...

Rising, thankfully with no predator trying to molest a boy with a kiss, the first thing Tim hears is the system informing. [Sleep bar = 35/35]

But that's not all thankfully, with progress as the sole goal, the lady sounding system specifies. [Locate and kill a sardine.]

[You can get a system point by each sardine you kill.]

[Since it's a system given task, you will earn an additional point.]