Day VI: Finally Healed

The familiar sphere of light pulsed 16 times.

[1,600]

[1,920]

"Not bad."

I didn't hesitate to heal my leg for 1,000 points. Just imagining how much easier life would be made it an easy decision.

A sudden wave of euphoria washed over me. It was an odd sensation—like the light from the sphere wasn't just touching me but flowing through me, as if I had become part of it for a brief moment.

Then, it was gone. I still stood there, unchanged. It was a fleeting experience, but mesmerizing.

[920]

It was a decent amount of points, but not enough for everything I wanted. I took [Essential Nutrition] for 200 points, though I considered [Good Nutrition] for 300 more. But I knew I had to prioritize stats.

I replayed the battle at the dried-up river in my mind. I had been completely spent by the end. If not for the sword, I would've been too exhausted to fight the last three goblins hand-to-hand. If there had been ten of them? Or worse—an ambush afterward? I would've been dead.

That settled it. Stamina and Dexterity.

I dumped 12 points into Stamina (360 points) and 12 points into Dexterity (360 points).

Now, fights would be easier. My Strength, Constitution, and Mind stats were lagging behind, but as long as nothing hit me, I'd be fine.

[0 points]

'Damn. I'm broke.'

____________________________________

I woke up to the sight of dozens of people surrounding me.

Panic shot through me. I gripped my sword.

"Calm down, man," Marcus said, standing at my feet. Travis was on my right. The sky was streaked with orange—the sun had just risen.

"We were just curious," some random guy spoke up. "Wanted to see how the whole lightbulb-healing thing works while you sleep. Y'know, for research."

"Right…" I muttered. They all dispersed to do their own thing.

I stood up—much easier than last couple of days. My leg had no pain, no swelling. My leg was completely healed. It felt incredible.

What didn't feel incredible? The rest of my body. Now that I knew how a normal knee should feel, every other muscle in my body screamed in protest. Pure exhaustion.

"You didn't have enough points to fix that too, your exhaustion?" Travis asked.

I gave him a blank look.

He smirked. "Lesson learned kid." He strolled off toward the pond.

Marcus' younger brother, Dan, chimed in. "Your leg… it was glowing. Looked like the skin boiled for a second before smoothing out. Even looks healthier than the rest of you."

I nodded, already on my feet. I needed a drink, even if I wasn't thirsty.

The exhaustion was still there, but something felt different. My breathing was steady, and my heart wasn't hammering in my chest like usual. The upgrades were working.

I made a mental note: Next time, invest in Constitution. Maybe it would ease this aching soreness if I cant afford to cure my exhaustion.

At the pond, I barely had time to kneel before Rebecca approached, Carl and that same quiet guy from yesterday trailing behind her.

"You sure you remember the way?" she asked.

I just nodded.

I wasn't in the mood to talk to her after yesterday. Maybe I was just being petty.

Before I could dwell on it, Travis, Marcus, Dan, and six others joined us. Another ten strong-looking guys also approached. We had formed our own little elite group.

They were all looking at me. Expecting me to call the shots.

I frowned. Was it the sword? Did they just assume I was the strongest?

"We should head out," a tall, serious-looking guy said. One of Rebecca's people, but respected even by Travis' crew. His name was Victor—I'd come to learn that soon enough.

"The rest can hunt and level up," Carl added.

"But we're the most experienced. We should stick together and push deeper as a team."

"Agreed," I said. "East past the mountain—toward the sunrise. It took me two days when I woke up at the mountain, but without injuries, we'll move much faster."

I scanned the crowd. No sign of Samuel. Carl noticed my searching and spoke up.

"Some groups left early to hunt."

I nodded, and with that, we set off. Rebecca said she will stay behind for in case new people appeared.

Carl walked beside me at the front, with Travis and a girl I hadn't met yet keeping pace. She kept quiet, and didn't seem part of the Travis crew or the Rebecca crew. She had black hair and shiny blue eyes.

Looking around, we all looked ridiculous in our sleepwear, barefoot, bruises and bloodstains. We all had a sweaty stench too.

"So, you call it a 'Sphere,' huh?" Carl asked. "And you call the rewards 'points'?"

I nodded.

He hummed. "Everyone's been debating what the hell this thing is. But your explanation makes the most sense."

Marcus called out from behind us. "No fair! Dan and I called them points first!"

A guy further back chimed in. "I think of it like XP. Makes more sense that way."

That kicked off an entire discussion. Who had the most points? How did the Sphere work?

The chatter gave me time to think.

This whole thing was insane. I hadn't really processed it because I had been too busy trying to survive. But now? Walking with this group, hearing them talk about stats, points, almost like a game—

It hit me.

The only real way to understand the Sphere was buying that damn tome.

Someone from the group spoke up, pulling me from my thoughts.

"Do you think we all share the same Sphere? Like, one giant system that just syncs with each of us?"

If that was true… would upgrading mine upgrade theirs too?

I hated that idea. My hard work, just to give them free benefits? No way.

'Survival of the fittest,' I reminded myself.

We encountered several small groups of goblins along the way. Only a handful had clubs or branches.

Everyone took turns killing them for points.

I killed two. Some of the others watched me closely, envious of how easy it was with a proper weapon. Others got excited and picked up the pace.

By nightfall, we set up camp, without any tents or sleeping bags or anything other than our sleepwear.

Travis and Carl organized the night watch, but I lucked out—I wasn't on shift.

We collapsed in a rough circle, exhausted from walking all day. Even Travis were sweating.

"How much further?" Dan asked, his tone lighter than earlier as he was between me and Marcus. His black eyes and damp black hair made him look like the second protagonist in this story.

I glanced at him. I had enjoyed walking with him and Marcus. Down-to-earth guys.

"If we keep this pace, we'll get there before midday," I said.

That got a few murmurs of approval. Everyone was eager to get real weapons—efficient goblin-killing tools.

A guy near the fire turned to me. "Is it true you killed sixteen goblins yesterday?"

Several girls nearby perked up, eyes gleaming.

I smirked. "Had a lot of help. Carl and Marcus took a serious beating to protect me. Travis? He had to run for his life."

That got some laughs. It wasn't often people associated weakness with Travis. The guy was pure willpower in human form. Off course, it was a joke, but some of his crew members didn't take it that way.

As the fire crackled, the conversation drifted toward lighter topics.

Dan, stretching his sore legs, let out a sigh. "Man, I can't wait to get back to camp. That pond is gonna feel amazing."

One of the girls, a brunette named Leah, glanced at him. "You mean to drink from?"

Dan didn't hesitate at all. "Yeah, but I was actually thinking about bathing."

That got a few raised eyebrows.

Another girl, Tessa, smirked. "So, you wanna wash up in the same water everyone's been drinking from?"

Dan shrugged. "Hey, we're all sweaty and covered in goblin grime. A rinse wouldn't hurt."

Marcus, sitting beside him, suddenly chuckled. "Yeah, riiight. You just happen to be thinking about bathing—when all the girls are around to hear it."

Dan shot him a look. "What? No! I just meant—"

"Oh, we know what you meant." Marcus leaned closer, grinning.

"My little brother, already plotting how to 'accidentally' be at the pond at the right time."

Leah laughed. "Sounds like someone's hoping for a co-ed bathhouse situation."

Dan's face turned red. "That's not—! I didn't mean—! You guys are impossible."

Tessa grinned. "Hey, no judgment. A bath does sound nice. Just gotta figure out a way to make sure no one's peeping."

Dan groaned. "I hate all of you."

Marcus clapped him on the back.

"Nah, you just hate getting caught."

Laughter rippled through the group as the moon looked down from above, the long day finally winding down.

And just like that, the long day came to an end.

0 points to spare.

Two goblin kills.