I was halfway through slumping back onto the hard gym floor, completely wiped out from hours of training, when a thought smacked me upside the head.
"You still haven't unlocked any upgrades aside from the Comrade System, idiot."
It was true. While the rest of the group had managed to scrape by and activate that system, which was useful for coordinating and fighting together, I still had a long list of upgrades sitting in my system menu, waiting for me to do something about it. And let's face it, I needed all the help I could get.
With my SP (which is going to plummet down now), I could only afford so much. Lucky me—I'd had managed to get quite a lot. I wasn't exactly rolling in SP, but at least I didn't feel completely useless. Time to start cashing in.
"Alright, time to check out what's left in the system store," I muttered to myself, pulling up the interface.
I scrolled through the various upgrades. Comrade System, check. Combat Skills, check—well, half-checked. I still wasn't able to practice dagger arts properly and that damn |Battle Instinct| is not helping either.
I focused on the things that had piqued my curiosity before—like the Dimensional Inventory and System Store. Those were still up for grabs. And judging by how exhausted I felt after training, I wasn't sure if I could make it through another battle without both.
Let's see what we've got here…
I clicked the icon for Dimensional Inventory. The price was steep, but it was doable. 400 SP. It wasn't that bad in the grand scheme of things. I had 1012 SP left after the Comrade system purchase. I clicked "Unlock."
A satisfying chime echoed in my mind.
[Dimensional Inventory Unlocked.]
For the first time in what felt like forever, I could finally store things on me without having to worry about carrying them around in my backpack like some kind of pack mule. Pretty neat, right?
I'd have to test it out later. Maybe I could finally start collecting things like… I don't know, cool rocks, maybe. Whatever. It was time to keep moving.
Next up, System Store. I needed some better tools—dagger upgrades, to be exact. Caleb, the craftsman, could handle it for sure, but that's if I could find some materials in the system store to help him out. I had no clue how much metal would cost and which ones are good, but there had to be something useful in here.
After scrolling for a while, I found a few options that looked like they could help me: some basic iron and steel. Standard stuff. But then, I saw it.
Arkanite Ore.
I didn't even know what it was. It had no description, just the name and the price. 200 SP for 500 grams. Little piece of junk, but it cost more than a whole bunch of iron. And something about it just felt… off. In a good way.
Maybe it was the price. Maybe it was the mystery. Whatever the case, I needed it.
I hit the Buy button. The screen flashed. I'd just dropped 200 SP on a chunk of unrefined ore I knew absolutely nothing about.
But, hey, I had an idea. That ore might be something special. Caleb was a decent enough craftsman. He could probably use it to make something awesome.
I scrolled through the store and grabbed a few more basic materials—some iron, steel, and even a few food ingredients. You know, the essentials. Might as well make use of my points before I ran out. This leaves me with 162 points
I tapped on the Inventory tab, and sure enough, all the stuff I'd just bought was sitting there, ready to be stored in my newly unlocked magical inventory.
"Well, at least now I don't have to carry a bunch of junk around," I muttered, finally feeling a bit lighter. "Now, let's find Caleb."
I pushed myself to my feet and shuffled back into the gym, making my way toward the training area. I wasn't sure what to expect, but the sheer size of the gym never failed to impress me. The place was a monstrous structure—probably big enough to house more than 10,000 people. It was built for efficiency but with a lot of space, like a warehouse with a few fancy decorations thrown in for good measure.
There were tents in the corners, where groups of players hung out and exchanged ideas. Some were busy making defensive measures; others were having casual conversations. In the center, a giant tent was set up where we held our meetings, and on the outskirts, a pantry area provided food for the weaker players. It was a community space, an open layout to make sure no one got left behind.
I spotted a few familiar faces—Ryan, Mia, and Sophia. They were all practicing their skills, getting ready for the next round. I waved at them but didn't stop to chat. I had a more pressing task.
Walking deeper into the gym, I spotted Caleb talking with Alex. They were in the middle of some conversation, but Alex's head jerked up as soon as he noticed me.
"Avi, you're late. You need to pay your fee for the protection," Alex said, his tone matter-of-fact, as if he was some kind of bank teller and not one of my friends.
Right. The protection fee. I had almost forgotten about that, with everything else going on. But, I was on a tight budget now, so I had to get that out of the way.
I reached into my pocket and handed him the money. "Here. Don't spend it all on emergency coffee or whatever it is you do in your downtime."
Alex gave me a grin and then proceed to accept the SP in his system before waving us goodbye.
I turned to Caleb, who was looking at me with that ever-present grin.
"What's up, Avi?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Got a job for you," I said, pulling out the Arkanite ore from my inventory and showing it to him. "I need you to make me some daggers. Think you can handle it?"
Caleb's expression shifted from casual to impressed as his eyes scanned the ore. He put his hand out, almost as if he was feeling the essence of the material.
"Where did you find this?" Caleb asked, his voice softer, almost reverent. "I've never seen this kind of ore before on earth. My scanning skills is basically shouting that it's a good material."
I nodded, not about to get into the details of how I'd spent nearly all my SP on it. "Yeah, I found it in the store. I'm sure it's worth something, but can you use it?"
Caleb was silent for a few moments, then he nodded slowly. "I can work with this. I've got a skill that lets me scan the essence of materials. I can tell you this ore will make for some very sturdy weapons. But I'll need 20 SP for the job. What do you think?"
I was about to say something sarcastic, but then I thought better of it. "Fine, I'll pay you after you're done. Can you handle that?"
Caleb smirked and gave me a thumbs up. "Deal."
I stared at him for a second, then used my Clairvoyance ability to get a clearer look at his stats. Sure enough, I confirmed that he had a skill called Material Scan and a passive skill called Blacksmithing.
"Alright, Caleb. You've got yourself a deal," I said, tapping my foot. "Get to work. I'll catch you later."
With that, I turned and walked off. As I made my way back to the others, I couldn't help but take in the gym's atmosphere. There was a lot of chatter, a lot of discussions happening as players refined their skills. The place was buzzing, a strange combination of intense focus and casual camaraderie. And after the first wave, our numbers grew since some other survivors who are wandering around the school decided to stay in the gym as well.
When I finally reached my friends, they were talking about their own skills, comparing notes and brainstorming.
Ryan looked up from his conversation. "Avi, you got any new upgrades?"
I glanced at the others, knowing they'd want to know what I'd done with my points. "Well, I unlocked the Dimensional Inventory and System Store. Got some materials to upgrade my daggers with Caleb. He's gonna make me some solid weapons if this Arkanite ore is as good as it sounds."
Everyone seemed to perk up at that, intrigued by the mention of the ore.
Sophia raised an eyebrow. "How did you managed to open the Dimensional Inventory and the store?"
"Trade secret," I said, flashing a grin. "But let's just say, these upgrades are gonna make sure we survive—unless, of course, you all want me to carry you through the next fight. I'm good with that too."
They laughed, and we spent the next few minutes discussing the various skills we could improve before the next battle. Everyone had something they wanted to focus on—combat skills, support abilities, crafting. The more I thought about it, the more I realized how crucial it was for us to be ready for what was coming.
This next fight? It was going to be intense.
But, for now, I could at least rest easy knowing that I had a slightly better shot at surviving it.
[27:08:16]