Chapter 4: Survival Methods

Chapter 4: Chapter 4: Survival Methods

"One Daily Summon. I wasn’t expecting to have something like this. It’s quite the luxury."

[1 Summon Available]

[Cost: Free]

[Perform Summon?]

[ Yes ] [ No ]

He had welcomed the morning by challenging the gods, and now he had been rewarded with a free prize. There couldn’t have been a better way to start the day. Putting aside the horrors from a few hours ago that had made him question a few things, he sat down on the tree.

"Do it," he said.

The glowing sphere appeared floating in front of him, slowly changing colors. Gray, blue, purple... gold! Its speed began to decrease, and it seemed like the reward would be gold this time, but...

Gray.

Victor sighed.

"You can’t always have good luck, and considering mine, that’s saying a lot."

[Congratulations!]

[You have obtained: Bag of Potato Chips.]

[Rarity: C]

"At least it’s food, but I can’t settle for this," Victor said, taking the bag of potato chips in his hand. "Starting today, I need to focus on the important things."

The gacha system was one of those things, but before that, he needed to take care of his own safety. As he ate his chips, he thought:

’Let’s see. Humans can survive without water for about three or four days, and considering my situation, that might be the most urgent thing. I’ve already sniffed around the entire area, and the moisture is coming from deeper in the forest, so there’s a good chance I’ll find a river or a lake.’

The problem was that from up there, he could see nothing but an endless number of trees whose canopies blocked his view of the ground below. He would practically be walking blind, but that’s what his sense of smell was for.

What a useful starting skill. Its rarity as a gacha reward was completely justified.

And when it came to gacha rewards, the backpack wasn’t lacking in any way either. It was exactly what he needed for the first few days.

It had everything he needed: two reusable water bottles, a small pot, a survival lighter, an emergency blanket, a waterproof poncho, an inflatable sleeping bag, the rope he had used earlier, a multi-tool knife, and a first-aid kit.

There was also a compass, but...

"This thing is useless," Victor complained.

The compass spun in every direction. That meant there were no opposite poles in this place and that nothing really made sense. I mean, all he had to do was look at the sky to know that.

"Everything else is excellent. I have everything I need until I find a better way to sustain myself."

That and the food he had gathered from the remains of that girl were all he had.

"Although I’d also like to change my clothes."

Torn sportswear... Surprisingly, it wasn’t dirty, but it was exactly what he had been wearing when he died.

"Well, that’ll have to wait. Time to climb down."

Once his feet were on the ground, he hurried to follow the trail of moisture in the air. If he closed his eyes, he could imagine hundreds of blurred lines, representing the different scents surrounding him.

Far away, he could smell blood, so he needed to avoid that area. Farther to the right, he could sense the scent of something moving, although fortunately, it was moving away.

Sometimes, being a coward was what ensured survival, but Victor didn’t want to remain that way because always playing it safe had brought him the opposite results his entire life.

As he continued moving until noon, a powerful explosion echoed across the sky, and a strange, thin black shockwave faded away. Apparently, it had come from somewhere very, very far away.

’The farther I go, the more dangerous it gets. I hope I find water, and fast.’

As a Boy Scout during his childhood, he knew more or less the basic methods of survival. It wasn’t anything to brag about because it was something anyone with access to the internet could easily learn, but it was definitely useful.

Once he was settled, he needed to investigate everything he possibly could about the gacha.

’The gacha system works with currency, but I haven’t found a way to obtain any because so far, the summons have been free.’

Assuming he was going to receive one gacha summon every day, he couldn’t settle for just one a day. He was going to need a lot more to survive, especially more of these skills in case a monster like the one from before showed up again.

At times like this, he would regret his decision to choose the Gacha System Master Path, but thinking about it more carefully, it would benefit him far too much in the long run.

He would just have to avoid dying at all costs until he gathered enough resources and became invincible.

’My Luck Value is also a problem. Damn, I think I have too many things to deal with.’

It was better to take things one at a time.

Later, he finally reached the place he had been searching for. It was a small stream flowing down from a small hill upstream. It was surrounded by trees that blocked the view from outside.

"Perfect. Now we’re getting somewhere."

Smiling in satisfaction, he built a campfire with some dry branches he had gathered along the way and lit it with the help of his survival lighter.

’Shelter, water, fire, food. Everything is ready.’

Sitting in front of the campfire, he said:

"Well, System, now let’s talk about Paths; mine in particular. There are a lot of things I want to know right now."

[Paths: Progression Systems created and sponsored by the gods so that players can become stronger as they advance through their survival. Each Path is unique and different.]

That... was interesting.

"So, is no one else besides me in possession of the gacha system?"

A smile formed on his lips when he saw the System’s answer.

[Yes.]

What pleasant news! Victor crossed his arms, skewering a piece of meat on a branch before placing it over the campfire.

"Good, that’s good. And what about the Gacha System Master Path?"

The System... didn’t answer. Victor frowned.

"Hello?"

[The god who sponsored the Path has forbidden me from answering your question.]

Victor instinctively looked up at the sky.