“Where the hell am I?” I said allowed, looking from my left to my right. I was in some sort of ally with two duffel bags and my wallet to my side. The sun was setting, and I had a terrible pain in my stomach. Under my shirt was a massive purple bruise spanning across my entire stomach and onto my chest. Trying to stand up felt like getting stabbed all over my body. My father, although not using any ki, definitely hadn’t held back with his punch. A couple bones were definitely broken. I took out my wallet to see five crisp hundred-dollar bills that had to have been placed there after I had fallen unconscious. Taking out my phone and moving to my bank balance there was 715.72$. I only had around 215$ before assignment so my family had certainly kept true to their word. I still had my phone, so they hadn't decided to return that either. “What I really need to focus on is finding a place to sleep,” I was talking to no one in particular, just making noise to clear my head.

After about fifteen minutes of trying to stand up I finally managed to get up onto two feet. A notification rang across my screen, Endurance and Strength increased. Opening my status window, I saw my stats had actually risen by 1.

Name: Donald Parmer

Height: 5’7”

Age: 18

Strength: 8

Defense: 6

Speed: 8

Endurance: 9

Mana: N/A

Ki: N/A

Skills: Parry, Counter

StatLock: Defense

It also made me realize one thing, that despite the unreality of my situation, it had in fact been real. It wasn’t time to dwell, I could do that tonight, right now it was time to plan. The Battle College entrance exams start in about 2 months, which gives me about sixty days to train. Normally I would get help from my parents when it came to training, either they would train me directly or they would hire someone to help but right now I don't have that luxury. Loans can take care of the price of college so I shouldn't count that as a factor for now, I just have to focus on getting into one. Right now, I need to focus on three things, a place to sleep, a place to train and a way to make money. Sleeping can be covered by a cheap capsule hotel; their prices are insanely low. A place to train is harder though. I can try enrolling in a gym, but good ones have insanely high membership costs that I can’t guarantee I'll have enough money for each month. I guess that only leaves one option, it does kill two birds with one stone, but it also has a chance of killing me in the process. I took out my phone and searched for the artificial goblin dungeon maintained by the government. A weekly pass only ran about ten bucks with the stipulation that any collected magic stones be returned to the government free of charge. Applying for the pass within ten seconds a notification popped up in my email with a QR code granting me entry for the week. Training on goblins, goblin shamans and hobgoblins is a good way to increase stats even though it won't be very technically challenging. Plus, I can harvest the teeth of goblins and sell those right outside the dungeon for some profit. It's not an insanely lucrative business but it is business, nonetheless.

With that finished I made my way to the capsule hotel closest to the artificially opened dungeons. It was still about three city blocks away but it would work. “Hi, I’d like to rent a capsule for the week, is that possible?” I asked the woman working at the front deck.

“Do you have a reservation?” She asked. Her voice was higher and more cheerful than I would have expected.

“Um, no I don’t.” I started to stutter over my words, my anxiety starting to plant its roots in my mind.

“Okay then,” she typed something into her computer, “You're in luck you got one of the three last capsules available. Assignment was this week, so people have been flying in from all over and needed cheap rooms to stay in. Lemme see your ID and we can get you all set,” I handed her my ID, and she scanned it. She typed something else in the computer, “Would you like to pay upfront or by the day?”

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“Uh,” I thought for a moment, “I’ll pay upfront, there might be days I won't show up for um, reasons.” She cocked an eyebrow but decided not to press the subject further. I could feel my hands folding over each other, my fingers starting to interlock as I started to wish this conversation over.

“Ok, cash or card?”

“I’ll, um, be paying with a card.” she motioned for me to insert my card into the reader. The total for the week was about two hundred and twenty dollars. Leaving me with about nine hundred for now.

She handed me a key and said, “You are capsule two hundred and seven on the second-floor east wing. Showers are on the first floor and there are bathrooms on either floor separated by gender. If you need any help, you can see me at the front desk. I hope you enjoy your stay.”

“Thanks,” I would have run to my capsule if I was able, but the pain was almost unbearable. After finding the capsule I put my stuff in the overhead compartment separate from the tiny space, taking out only a fresh pair of clothes and the amenities they provided for guests. Heading down to the shower room I saw myself in the mirror, I didn't look bad per se but definitely not proper. My hair was messy, my clothes were dirty, and I noticed that I had been, inadvertently, walking with a hunch to avoid pain. Arriving, I noticed the shower area was small but even still was enough to get the job done.

After my shower I felt much better, the pain had started to die down ever so slightly, and walking became that much easier. Walking out of the hotel, being careful to avoid eye contact with the desk clerk, I made my way to one of the many hunter stores that line the streets. Entering one called “Johnson Families Hunters Market”. It was a small store, but you never would have been able to tell just by looking at the sheer number of items. Weapons, armor and potions of all sorts were present. Immediately I started moving to the potion section. There were potions of all kinds that lined the walls. Healing potions, otherwise known as elixirs of life, were usually identified by being a blood red in color. The darker the red, the more potent the potion. The worst of the potions, pink in color, was still enough to heal broken bones over the course of a good night's sleep and would heal minor cuts and bruises almost immediately. The most potent of the potions was able to reattach limbs almost instantly and bring people back from the brink of death if need be. Corporations would get more potent potions and dilute them to mass produce weaker but more affordable elixirs. Grabbing the pink potions, each one about twenty dollars, a relatively good deal. There were about forty-five potions currently on the shelf. Grabbing one of the carrying bags on the right of the shelf I started packing as many as I could. Hunting by myself is dangerous and, other than finding someone else to hunt with me, the only way to lessen the risk is to buy as many as possible. I ended up fitting about 25 in the bag, just as many as I planned to and carried them to the front desk.

“You find everything okay?” The store clerk asked me. He was old, not old enough to likely be someone's grandpa but old enough to have some gray hairs. His beard is hazel brown and his eyes bright blue. He was most likely around the age of thirty-five, maybe approaching forty, and his voice very scruffy.

“Yes sir,” I said, trying my best to act confident, “everything was pretty easy to find.”

“Glad to hear it,” he started scanning the potions, “most people get sidetracked looking for their items. I will admit I've been slacking when it comes to the weapons sections. Tough to keep everything sorted over there.” He looked to me for confirmation, and I nodded in return.

“Is everything priced including tax?” The government recommended that shops, especially family owned, include tax in their prices but it was far from mandatory.

“Yep, everything you see is tax-included don't worry.” Scanning the last potion it came to exactly five hundred dollars. “Will you be paying the cash or credit?”

“Cash,” I said, already reaching for my wallet. Taking out all five, hundred dollar bills I put them into the cashier's outstretched hand. He looked over them and even held them to the light in the room to check for authenticity. After a couple seconds with each bill, he seemed satisfied and shoved the money in the cash register.

“You want your receipt?” The cashier asked.

“Uh, no, I’m okay.”

“Ok then,” the receipt machine had already finished printing the receipt which he promptly grabbed and threw away. “Have a good day sir, hope to see you again.”

“Yeah, you too,” I replied, grabbing my potion bag and making my way out of the store.

After making my way back to the hotel the woman at the front desk raised an eyebrow at the bag full of potions but decided it better not to ask. Taking the lid off of one potion the familiar smell of strawberries filled my nostrils. Downing the potion, I could feel as the effects spread through my body. I felt warmer, more full of energy than ever before. The wound on my stomach was already starting to heal, it wouldn't fully heal before a night's rest, but it was certainly a start. Grabbing another five potions and putting them in one of my duffel bags alongside a singular change of clothes, I left the hotel. The last thing I needed to do before entering the dungeon was to get a weapon. I worked best with one handed broadswords as great swords tended to be too heavy and smaller swords like rapiers required a lot more skill and dedication to wield properly.

As I approached the shop attached to the goblin dungeon more and more people dressed in armor started to come into view. Everything from plate mail to Kevlar vests were present as friends started to form groups and guilds started to coordinate. A bell sounded as I entered, drawing the attention of an already busy store clerk. He was shorter than average, well built with large circular glasses. After a brief second of eye contact, I managed to make my way through the people to the repurposed weapons section. Often when a monster is killed, their carcass is brought along with any weaponry they may have had to a shop so the hunters can get reimbursed for their troubles. Repurposed weapons of all varieties were displayed across the wall, scimitars, rapiers, longswords, broadswords and even flails. Grabbing a sturdy broadsword from the wall, priced at about 300$, I swung it a couple times. The weight distribution was slightly off but nothing I couldn't get over and the sword was sturdy enough to last a couple months. Satisfied I brought the sword to the counter, having to wait in line always sucked but it was never a dealbreaker. Thirty or so minutes later I was out of the store in front of the gate. The process of getting authorization to enter the gate was easier than entering. Normally taking a step would be easy, but it was a step that could very well lead to my death. Steeling my nerves, I took a step forward and with a blinding flash of light I was transported to an open field with a bright blue sky.