I reached out and grabbed the Shard.
I hesitantly touched the Shard to the bed.
No
In decided to first check how much the toilet was before deciding what to do.
Okay if I choose the bed, pillow without the pillowcase and the blanket and include the toilet I would have four shards left.
I removed the items to be excluded and touched the shard to the bed and selected ‘Yes’
I sanctioned the toilet as well before I had to use it as a matter of urgency. I was busy finalising everything on the toilet when a message popped up.
Son of a bitch.
It took one of my upgrade shards to sanction the toilet paper and another one to upgrade it to become unlimited.
Later, I sat on my bed, eating dinner while my mind tried to process everything. It was hard to believe it had all happened in just one day.
Only yesterday, I’d gone to work and chatted with my fellow students. The streets had been full of people, lined with trees, the sound of birds in the air and cars driving by like any ordinary day.
I drifted off to sleep while thinking about my parent and my little sister.
It took me a while the next morning to remember everything that had happened. For a moment, I was thinking of getting ready—catching the train, heading to class—before the weight of reality settled over me.
I lay in bed for a while, trying to build up the courage to face another day. There were a few things I needed to take care of before stepping outside again—and if I was being honest, I was probably just stalling.
The first thing I had to do was make use of the hard-earned toilet. A shower was high on the list too—but that would have to wait.
I remembered while trying to fall asleep the night before that I hadn’t used the Repair Token. So, I pulled it from my inventory. It looked a lot like the Home Base Token, except it had a small wrench symbol on it. I pressed it against my pants and was relieved when it worked—the rips vanished in a soft, warm glow.
I have two upgrade shards left. What will happen if I upgrade my clothes
I got one out of my inventory and touch it to my clothes. Nothing happened. I sighed heavily and returned it.
It was worth a try.
I also forgot about the Expansion Shard I got. I retrieved it from my inventory. The blueprint opened again. The green colour from the Expansion Shard filled a bit more than the remaining part of my apartment.
I was very surprised with the green seemed to snap to an apartment downstairs, filling part of it.
The message gave me pause. Did it mean the apartment had just been vacant... or that the person who lived here hadn’t survived? I didn’t want to think too hard about that—not right now.
Yes
A bit disappointing. I was expecting …more
I decided to have my lunch for breakfast. I wanted to start the day strong. I also realised that I missed the XP notification on my Stat Sheet. One Kobold gave five XP, and I needed twenty more XP, so I needed to kill four more Kobolds to reach Level 2.
I could no longer put it off, so I dragged myself to the living room.
“Son of a bitch.”
There was a staircase in my living room. It descended—presumably into the apartment below. I stood there, stunned, for at least a few minutes. I’d seen a lot of strange things lately, but a staircase quietly appearing in my apartment still managed to surprise me.
After collecting myself, I cautiously made my way down the steps. The apartment was empty—thankfully answering my earlier question about whether the renter had died. The extension didn’t cover the entire unit, but it did include the front door—or at least, where the front door should have been. Apparently, a Home Base only needed one.
It was almost noon when I finally killed the four Kobolds needed to reach Level 2. The reason it took so long was because I was cautious like the day before and waited for solo Kobolds.
I figured I would become more daring after I got another spell and levelled up.
I read the description of all the spells. I loved Mana Shield. It would protect me against attacks, but it uses 6 Mana.
Mana Bolt was a lot like Mana Slash but faster to execute and had a further range. I also realised that Mana Slash was intended to be used on multiple monsters, but I was not able to implement that yet. Mana Bolt also required 5 Mana.
Stun would stop the monster for 2 seconds which sounded very short, but I could stun one Kobold and use the Mana Slash on the non-stunned one which would give me time to Slash the second one before it killed me. It also only used 2 Mana.
If I added 2 to Mana, I would have 12, which I could use for 2 Mana Slashes and 1 Stun.
“I choose Stun.”
I focussed on the spell chosen and a coin with a lightning bolt appeared before me. As soon as I touched it, I knew how to use the spell.
This time I remembered to assign my two free points. I did not want to put my life in danger again because I forgot them.
I decided to rest as I waited for the Dome to dissipate. I still needed to hunt some more Kobolds. I had forty-two upgrade shards, but I did not think that would be enough for my shower, towel and maybe some bedding.
Thankfully the loot included a food and water package, so at least I had food for the following day. There was also an enhancement shard. I was not sure what that was, but it sounded promising.
With the dome finally gone, a sigh of relief escaped—but caution remained. A quick scan of the surrounding streets showed the same eerie emptiness as before. Armed with a plan, the search began—specifically for Kobolds moving in pairs.
I tried to stick to a wide circle around Home Base whenever I went out hunting. Spending the night outside because I’d wandered too far? No thanks. The dark never used to bother me—but now, with no lights anywhere, it was like stepping into ink. Thick, silent, and blinding. I couldn’t see a thing, and for all I knew, Kobolds could see just fine in it. I wasn’t about to take that chance. Inside Home Base, at least, I was safe.
With the help of my new mini map, I spotted a group of Kobolds just a few blocks away. They showed up as red dots. I saw other dots too—single ones or pairs—but I was specifically looking for a group of two. I wanted to test out some spell combinations, and two Kobolds felt like the perfect challenge.
Made sure they were alone—no surprises this time. Fighting more than two Kobolds at once wasn’t on the agenda, especially since I didn’t fully trust the mini map yet. Once I was sure, I followed them quietly, keeping to the shadows, and crept up from behind.
I cast the stun spell, hitting the furthest Kobold square in the back. I didn’t dare waste a second—the other one had already turned and was charging straight at me. A quick Mana Slash dropped it instantly. But there was no time to celebrate. The stun was already wearing off on Kobold number one.
I fired off another Mana Slash. It hit the Kobold, but this time it wasn’t enough to kill it. It went down—wounded, not dead. I had to use my staff to kill it.
I stook looking at the dead Kobolds. I was just about to loot them when it hit me. I had gotten used to killing. They were monsters, but still… When did I became so used to taking life?
Reality and the possibility of other Kobolds finding me, urged me to get on with it and take my reward. I pushed my thoughts back, to be handled later.
The XP needed to reach Level 3 was honestly shocking. I knew it would increase, but I hadn’t expected it to jump that much. And of course, reaching Level 4 would mean an even steeper climb.
I followed the Mini Map to two Kobolds. One of the of the red dots was darker and bigger and it only made sense when I saw them. The one Kobold was bigger and looked more dangerous.
Fighting both would’ve been unwise—and by that, I mean I’d probably die. So, I quietly backed off and went looking for easier prey. Eventually, I found two ‘normal’ Kobolds and took them down, earning myself some more loot.
With eighty-eight Upgrade Shards in my pocket, I figured my shower was finally paid for. On the careful walk back to Home Base, I spotted a lone Non-Normal Kobold. Curiosity got the better of me—and I decided to take it on.
The element of surprise was my best advantage, especially since I had no idea how fast or strong this new Kobold might be.
My stun spell hit it square in the back.
Yeah—I’m not a warrior. I don’t have the strength to take on a Kobold head-on.
I followed up the stun with a Mana Slash to the back of its head. That should’ve killed a normal Kobold—but this one only staggered. Blood poured from the wound, running down its neck... and still, it kept coming. Still moving. Still coming straight for me.
I released a second Mana Slash, catching him across the neck. It slowed him down — made him stagger, sway — but it didn’t stop him. Nothing seemed to stop him.
I sidestepped its charge — barely. The only reason I pulled it off was because the spells had already weakened it. I swung the staff down hard, catching the back of its head. The Kobold stumbled, dropped to its knees, then finally fell forward. Not dead. Not yet.
In desperation, I kept beating down on it. I didn’t stop. Not until I was sure it was dead.
I immediately noticed that a Level 2 Kobold gave 10 XP. The Free Points Token also was very intriguing. Free Points were always welcome. Some of my stats were lagging a lot, as I always needed more points for Mana.
I was in a hurry to get back to my apartment, but I still had to be careful. I’d had my fill of Kobolds for one day and just wanted to end my second day with some relative peace.
Reaching my destination without incident was a relief. With so much to do, I paused just inside the apartment, trying to figure out what to tackle first.
The smell of my unwashed body forced my hand. I walked to my bathroom, planning to sanction the shower before scrubbing my body clean.
“Yes.”
I knew from experience to also sanction the bodywash, scrunchie and towel. They were only twelve shards, and I used an extra one to make the bodywash unlimited.
I still had enough shards to upgrade the rest of my bedding and enough left over to maybe upgrade or sanction, to be more accurate, something else.
The Shower just washed the stress and smell away, and I felt like a new man afterwards.
While towelling dry, I considered what to do next. It was the promise of more points that made the decision for me. I would first use the Free Points Token.
I sat on my bed, as my chair was still unsanctioned, and retrieved the Token. As soon as my fingers touched the token a message popped up.
Chance? I normally don’t like to gamble but I think in this new world, you must take chances to get ahead.
“Chance.”
A multi-sided die appeared in front of me, hovering in the air. I reached out, grabbed it, and gave it a closer look. It looked like something straight out of Dungeons & Dragons—but instead of just numbers, it also had a few strange symbols etched into its faces.
I decided to roll the dice on the floor. I did not want to cause any problems rolling on a soft surface.
It rolled and ended on ten. Chance was on my side that time, but I was not na?ve enough to think that I would always come out ahead.
Point allocation could wait until after handling the rest of the rewards. Besides, there wasn’t a clear plan yet for how to distribute them anyway.
The dice disappeared into my Inventory, and I did check to make sure it was there.
The Enhancement Shard was the first thing to come out of my inventory.
My eyes travelled to the objects around me and by chance the Shard touched my pants.
I read through the options trying to decide. Muted Weave sounded good, because I usually used the element of surprise to my advantage when fighting, but agility would also be welcome.
I ended up choosing Roughcut Resistance and Muted Weave. Maybe later, I’d add more enhancements. The expansion could wait until morning.
As I ate my rations, also known as dinner it reminded me—again—just how quickly the food was getting dull.
With the sheet and pillowcase finally sanctioned, bed called. Sleep came before the last of the snacks were even finished.
A full day of fighting for my life had clearly taken its toll.
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first Royal Road chapter of each pair. The second one won’t have pictures. If you want to see all the art together (or earlier), it’s on Patreon with the combined chapters!