Chapter 14 Shelter

After an hour of experimenting, Daniel had gained some familiarity with it. Even though he still felt strange walking with the floating tablet and numbers in front of him, he knew he needed to adapt to it as quickly as possible.

He adjusted something on the system, then closed it off and headed toward the tree to shelter from the sun. He took a seat and selected fruit out of his inventory. He put it in his mouth and started munching it while staring at the whirling scenery in the distance due to the heat.

He finished his meal and retrieved a coconut from his inventory. But if one examined it closely, they would notice that this coconut was actually filled with fresh river water rather than nourishment. Daniel held it levelly in his mouth and drank it.

After he finished his breakfast, he brushed the remaining litter from his body and stood up. He stretched his bones as he mumbled, "time to get a muscle ache again."

After he finished his preparation, he began to advance under the burning wrath of the sun. As night fell steadily, Daniel sat beside the river. He was grinning broadly as he fixed his attention on the mini-map. "Nice, the last day of mapping is tomorrow."

It was obvious that the night had just elapsed, but Daniel didn't want to travel any further since the muscle pain had grown intolerable; if he persisted, there was a good chance that he wouldn't be able to walk for a few days.

As Daniel relaxed his body an unpleasant odor suddenly assaulted his nostrils, making him frown. After a few seconds, Daniel realized that the smell came from him. "Damn, I stink too much, well good timing though."

He walked in the direction of the river. He softly tapped his foot at the water as he got there, making him shudder. Before stepping into the freezing water once again he huffed heavily. He trembled in the coldness but was relieved since he could sense the ache in his muscles fading.

The brisk stream of the water washed the dust out of his body. Daniel rubbed the dust by himself and didn't depend much on the water. After he cleaned his body he laid down in the water while having enough space for him to prevent getting drowned or being dragged by the water.

He lay there, savoring the tranquil atmosphere all around him. After he felt refreshed, he stood up and walked towards the forest, splashing water every time he stamped his foot against the ground.

He removed his shirt and dried it off by laying it on the tree branches. He then went to sleep.

After opening his drowsy eyes, Daniel got to his feet and went toward the river. When he got arrived, he knelt and drank some water. He grabbed his shirt and wore it. He advanced once more after stretching his muscles and finishing his daily routine.

After four hours of advancing, Daniel unexpectedly bumped into something even though there was nothing in his front. He was confused so he glanced at the mini-map, he noticed that he already mapped all across the inner part of the barrier except the center of the forest.

He scratched his head in perplexity. Once more cautiously extending his arm in front of him, he sensed a massive, transparent object in his path. In an effort to locate a path, he tapped a few spots. He kept patting, until he unexpectedly slipped forward, forcing him to enter.

His face clattered against the pavement as he slid forward. In pain, he groaned loudly before slowly raising to his feet and glancing around. The first thing that caught his eyes was the house in front of him.

The house had only one floor that had a huge cavity throughout its canopy. Moss and vines that would eventually consume the house were creeping over its corners. Large shrubs that had half of Daniel's size were draped across the area leading up to the residence.

He accessed the system inventory and drew out his sword. He approached the house with caution, swinging his sword to cut the shrubs as he remained vigilant for possible attacks. Up until he got to the residence, he had no issues. He gripped his finger at the rusty doorknob and slowly pushed it as it made a creaking sound.

As soon as he walked indoors, he was immediately struck by the dusty atmosphere. Daniel wandered around the house scrutinizing it while the unwelcoming wood flooring creaked loudly. He noticed a couch with a vintage design and other antique appliances, but none of the two appliance conditions were usable: since it was either too old to function or it had already been destroyed.

The big cavity in the canopy, together with a neatly sliced wall and pavement, was his only concrete indication of why the owner of this property had abandoned it. He kneeled and gave the slice a deeper examination. "So, there was a fight here."

He tried to piece together the two clues and imagine what happened here, but due to his limited knowledge of this world he was left failed.

Daniel wandered once more in search of additional clues. After some time, his eyes spotted a tiny doorknob on the edge of the house. If one didn't pay too much attention Daniel was sure that they would miss it.

When he opened the door, he discovered that the room was barren except for a table and a chair that stood at the room's edge. When he reached the table, he glanced into it and noticed that there was a torn notebook and ink on the surface.

He gingerly scooped up the notebook and attempted to read, but Daniel had never seen or recognized the way it had been written in Joel's recollection. He didn't give it much thought, because earth had many different languages and was even smaller than this planet, therefore it wasn't strange that this world had more languages than earth.

Since he was unable to read the article in the book, he stored it inside his inventory since he felt this might be useful someday. He calmly left the room and sighed. "I acquired a home, but it was defective."

He shook his head. "At least this is much better than sleeping outside."

As Daniel made a plan on how to renovate the house a dazzling light suddenly erupted outside. He dashed outside and saw the barrier he slipped into earlier slowly lost its color.

He quickly asked the system if it knew what was happening.

[Don't worry host, the barrier only reached its end.]

"So it only reached its time limit?"

[Yes.]

Daniel nodded insignificantly and resumed watching the barrier deteriorate. The barrier eventually became translucent to the point where Daniel could no longer even see it. Then there was a huge boom that rocked the forest and scattered numerous branches and leaves.

Daniel stumbled as he witnessed the situation. There was now no trace of something outside the barrier, which previously had been shrouded with trees. Since the barrier slashed everything 50 meters in front of it.

Daniel couldn't utter a single word for a while. "System what was that?"

[That was the barrier's final defense. Each barrier had a final counter, and this one did as well.]

Daniel could only nod his head. He was astonished for a few hours and had decided not to attack a barrier when he finally stood up and swept the dust from his body. He took a quick look at the mini-map to discover that he had gone through the entire region.

The news he had just heard swiftly dispelled the fear he had previously felt. "Finally!" he exclaimed while grinning.

End of the chapter.

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XP.

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