Oviraptor Mechanic
Rangga immediately walked up to the Mahogany Tree. Without wasting any time, he raised his stone axe to shoulder height.
Thud!
The axe struck the trunk, but Rangga suddenly stopped.
"...Huh?"
He stepped closer and examined the cut. There was only a shallow scratch on the surface of the trunk. Nothing like the deep marks he was used to seeing.
Rangga frowned.
"Huh..." He looked at his stone axe. "Is this thing even gonna hold up?"
Up until now, one or two swings had always left deep cuts in ordinary trees. But this Mahogany was unbelievably hard.
Since he had no better axe, Rangga could only sigh.
"Whatever... I'll just keep chopping."
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The sound of the axe echoed throughout the forest. Every swing felt much heavier than cutting down ordinary trees.
Several minutes later, the Mahogany trunk finally began to crack.
Craaack...
The massive tree slowly toppled over.
Boom!
The moment it hit the ground, its trunk dissolved into light. When the light faded, three pieces of Hardwood lay on the ground.
Rangga smiled in satisfaction.
"Nice... Three pieces from just one tree."
He quickly stored them inside the ship's inventory.
Ship Inventory: 3/150
Afterward, he looked around again. Not far away stood another large tree of similar size.
The golden screen appeared once more.
Damar Tree
Description: A large tropical tree with a straight trunk and high-quality timber. Hardened resin can often be found naturally forming on sections of its bark.
Weakness: Can be chopped down using an axe. Hardened resin can be harvested with a knife.
Rangga slowly read the description.
"...Resin?"
He looked at the clear lumps attached to the trunk.
"Hmm..."
A few seconds later, he shook his head.
"Later... I need Hardwood right now."
Ignoring the resin, Rangga raised his axe once more.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
The sound of chopping echoed through the forest once again, marking the beginning of Rangga's search for another material necessary to continue developing his island.
Rangga decided to stay near the shoreline. He had no intention of venturing deep into the forest before understanding what this two-star island was like.
As long as there were trees that produced Hardwood, that was enough for now.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
The axe rang out once more. One Mahogany Tree after another. One Damar Tree after another.
Each fell and transformed into bundles of Hardwood, which Rangga immediately stored inside his ship's inventory.
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Little by little, the inventory count increased.
Ship Inventory: 6/150
...
Ship Inventory: 9/150
...
Ship Inventory: 12/150
Just as Rangga swung his axe at another tree—
CRACK!
The handle snapped cleanly in half and Rangga froze.
"Huh?"
He stared at the broken axe in his hand.
"Damn... It broke that fast?"
Then he looked at the amount of Hardwood he had collected.
"That's barely anything... How many axes am I supposed to bring if I wanna farm this stuff?"
With a resigned expression, Rangga tossed the broken axe into the bushes.
"Whatever."
He pulled out the spare stone axe hanging from his belt.
"Let's keep going."
The chopping resumed.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
Several more trees fell and more Hardwood entered the inventory.
Ship Inventory: 18/150
...
Ship Inventory: 22/150
...
Ship Inventory: 25/150
But not long afterward—
CRACK!
The second stone axe snapped as well. This time, Rangga didn't even react.
He simply stared blankly at the broken handle for several seconds.
"..."
Without saying a word, he casually flicked his arm.
Whoosh!
The broken axe disappeared deep into the bushes and Rangga let out a long sigh.
Now he was completely out of axes. He looked toward the dense forest ahead. Then back toward the beach.
"...So what am I supposed to do now?"
He still had his bow, spear, stone knife, and two pickaxes. But as far as gathering Hardwood went, he was finished.
Standing still, Rangga slowly swept his gaze across the surrounding area, searching for anything else worth collecting before returning to his home island.
In the end, Rangga decided to head deeper into the forest. His axes were gone. So he might as well go hunting.
He gripped his Composite Alloy Bow once again..An alloy arrow was already nocked.
Moving cautiously, Rangga advanced deeper into the tropical forest.
His eyes constantly scanned his surroundings. Listening. Watching. Stopping every time a bush rustled.
Before long, a faint smile appeared.
Behind one bush, a Mechanical Compsognathus wandered casually, occasionally sniffing at the ground.
"There you are..."
Rangga slowly raised his bow. The arrow tip lined up perfectly with the Compy's optical sensor.
He inhaled then released.
Whoosh!
Thuk!
The arrow pierced straight through the Compy's head. The tiny machine collapsed instantly before dissolving into light.
Rangga chuckled.
"Getting used to this now."
He casually walked over as the loot began appearing. Mechanical Radar. Synthetic Fiber.
"Jackpot..."
Just as he bent down to pick them up—
Rustle...
The sound of bushes moving from the opposite side made Rangga freeze. Instinctively, he looked up.
A different mechanical dinosaur slowly emerged from the foliage.
Its body reached almost to Rangga's chest. Far larger than a Compy. It had a long neck..A sharp beak. Its forearms ended in three agile claws.
Rangga immediately stiffened.
"...Crap... Not a Compy."
A golden screen immediately appeared.
Mechanical Oviraptor
Description: A medium-sized mechanical dinosaur that inhabits tropical forests. Highly intelligent and instinctively collects objects it considers valuable. Frequently carries useful materials back to its nest for storage.
Weakness: The joint at the base of its tail serves as its center of balance. Damaging this point disrupts its movement and prevents it from running.
Drops:
Mechanical Gyroscope
Alloy Servo Joint
Blueprint
Rangga remained frozen. The Mechanical Oviraptor stopped as well. The two stared at each other for several seconds.
Then as casually as if nothing were wrong, The Oviraptor walked straight toward Rangga's loot.
"...Huh?"
It pecked up the Mechanical Radar with its beak. Then grabbed the Synthetic Fiber.
Without paying Rangga the slightest attention, it turned around and calmly trotted away into the forest carrying all of Rangga's loot.
Rangga blinked twice. His brain seemed several seconds behind reality.
"...Huh?"
A moment later, his eyes shot wide open.
"HEY!! You damn thief! That's mine!!"
Without thinking, Rangga immediately charged after the Mechanical Oviraptor as it casually disappeared deeper into the forest carrying off his hard-earned loot.
Rangga sprinted with all his strength.
"HEY!!.GIVE IT BACK!!"
The Mechanical Oviraptor merely glanced over its shoulder before—
Tap tap tap tap!
It accelerated.
"...What?!"
Rangga ran even faster. Yet the distance between them only kept growing.
"Damn it... It's so freaking fast!"
The Oviraptor leaped over tree roots. Slipped effortlessly between bushes. Occasionally flapping its forelimbs to maintain balance.
Still, Rangga refused to give up. His breathing became ragged.
"HEY!! THAT'S MY MECHANICAL RADAR!! GIVE IT BACK!!"
The creature completely ignored him. Within seconds, it grew smaller... Smaller... Until it disappeared behind the dense trees.
Rangga continued running for several more meters. Finally, he stopped..Both hands rested on his knees.
"Hah..."
"Hah..."
After catching his breath, he stared in the direction where the Oviraptor had vanished.
A vein bulged on his temple. With an irritated grunt, he kicked the ground.
Thud!
"Damn it!"
Then punched the nearby tree.
Bang!
"You dinosaur thief! Give me back my loot!!"
Rangga grabbed his own hair in frustration.
"This is the first time... I've ever had my loot stolen!"
Back on Earth, millions of viewers who had been holding their breath when the new mechanical dinosaur appeared had expected a massive battle.
The Mechanical Oviraptor was clearly much larger than either the Compy or the Morganucodon.
For a few tense seconds, everyone prepared for an epic fight.
Instead the Oviraptor calmly stole Rangga's loot and ran away. Followed by Rangga screaming while chasing after it.
The entire comment section exploded.
"HAHAHAHA! THIEF DINO!"
"I thought it was a predator... it's a pickpocket!"
"It stole his Mechanical Radar!"
"Bro, call the forest police!"
"Rangga looks genuinely pissed!"
"I was expecting a boss fight, not a mugging!"
"Oviraptor is officially a loot goblin!"
"Poor guy... worked hard killing that Compy just to get robbed."
"Kleptomaniac dino!"
"This is the first time I've ever seen someone get mugged by a dinosaur."
Inside the military dormitory, Putri laughed so hard she had to hold her stomach.
"Mas... Why are you chasing it?!"
Even the female officer beside her couldn't hold back her laughter.
Meanwhile, in countries all around the world, the tension from only moments earlier dissolved into laughter.
No one had expected humanity's first encounter with a Mechanical Oviraptor to begin with it stealing Rangga's loot.