"...Somehow, I managed to get back huh."

Tim woke up, rubbed his eyes before moving his leg, checking whether or not there was any pain when he moved it... There was none. The wound on his leg already healed.

How long had he been unconscious? Opening his status, he checked the number of his dust. "My dust right now is... 326. This means I have been sleeping for 10 hours..."

What should he do now? He decided he needed to get up. Decided he must manage to clamber out of his bed and another place, the more sustainable place.

Indeed this safe room was a safe place, but it wasn't sustainable enough. His health might be regenerated in this place, but he still needed food and water.

With a groan, Tim raised his body and did some stretch. Arms... nothing wrong. Legs... as good as new, minus the broken shoes. Knife... already chipped but still useable. Gun... out of bullet. Bow... the string is still there so I guess this still good.

For the last time, Tim once again nocked an arrow with care, drew back the bowstring and released it.

An instant later, an arrow cut through the air as it flew straight towards the wall and pierced the wall as if it was getting sucked by it. "...Save the best for the last, right?"

Just to make sure he shot once again. Precise precision might be impossible but at least he could hit his target with a slight error.

After feeling sure and confident with his shooting skill. He took the arrow back. And as he didn’t know what else to check, except the burning throat and rumbling in his stomach, nothing seemed to get wrong.

Taking a deep breath, he went to the storefront and opened the door, this time he had the kitchen knife in his hand.

Just like yesterday, the street was dirty and clearly empty as far as eyes could see. Empty from things that moving and didn't try to kill him. Until he stepped outside and became the only moving thing that didn't have an intention to kill a human.

He shielded his eyes against the sunlight, seeing ahead and carefully creeping under the shadow and moving toward the nearest alleyway.

Unlike yesterday, his objectives this time was gathering as many foods as he could before he ran out of energy to move and immediately went away from this hellhole. He didn't know the reason why he thought that but for now, he'd just assumed it must be because all the apocalypse movie he'd watched.

A bow in one hand, another hand ready at the string.

Kerchak.

Tim heard something from the garbage bin, pulling back the string, he was ready to shot at it.

A shadow leapt at him!... A cat, looking for scraps on the garbage. With a sigh of relief, rather than shot him he shooed him off.

While wondering what the cat thought about this whole incident, he inhaled and exhaled the air, then kept moving while using the wall to hide.

This time, he was making sure to check not only the minimarket or shops but also houses.

Now moving to the first house.

Should I knock or should I just walk in? Tim thought. And decided to lightly knock before he entered.

Knock Knock

.... No one answered, well... of course, no one would answer.

Turning the doorknob, but the inside shows that things were pulled out messily. Perhaps they ran away in panic or this place already looted.

Tim searched for a while, hoping he could find something he could use.... Except for the soap, detergent and blanket, there was nothing else.

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Their fridge was clean... either the owner was the one that took this, or someone else had the same idea as Tim. Well... completely clean wasn't quite the word. As Tim could smell and see the rotting food.

Tim tried to check the other not so destroyed houses for the time being. In turn, knocked, opened the doorknob. There was no reaction in the next house and the one after that. Everyplace in this side was empty.

Went down to the street, when walking in the crossing passageway he somehow felt nervous; unlike yesterday. Today. Tim already knew how hard it was to shake off the pursuing monster. But fully aware of that fact, he still crossed it.

And he might just realize this but the awful sound he thought would come out every time he made a step didn’t come. Perhaps this was the effect of pressure and necessity. Even when he was moving quickly through the street, his step didn’t produce any sound.

Come to think of it, what should I do if someone is in the house? I'm in a very inconspicuous state, right? Well, let's just think that when the time comes.

Knocking each house in this side. No reaction. 

On the last house in the corner. Knocked on. No reaction. Tim turned the doorknob and it opened just like the usual. 

"...Is anyone here?" Tim whispered while watching for the smallest reaction possible. He was waiting... he concluded there was no one in here and began looting the house.

"Hm?"

Someone.... was here. The ice was melting and dripping away from the fridge, flooding on the floor and there were tracks, footsteps. The footsteps were small, not bigger than a child footsteps.

At the next moment.

"Gigiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"

Someone popping out from the back of the room, well Tim didn't sure whether or not called him a person.

Tim hit him with his bow instinctively, shoving him back.

With the stature of a child from elementary grade school, with green skin. Wearing only a dirty loincloth and a small knife in his hand. This was a classic monster in fantasy worlds.

Goblin Lvl 5.

"...Even the official name is goblin, these guys sure are famous huh."

The goblin slowly gazed at him. Its body clearly was much smaller than him. The arms looked underweight and its overall floomy. The feeling of intimidation wasn't frightening.

Either way, it wasn't some fake creature that appeared on screen or in-game or animation. Frightening or not, having a higher level or not, it still could kill Tim if it aimed right at his heart or neck.

With a bow as his main equipment, he was a lot more relaxed than the yesterday, even when he didn’t have enough skill with his bow.

"Leech Seed." Tim shout, creating the green mark on the goblin's body.

The goblin took a little distance and gazed at him. In his little hand, the Goblin clenched his dagger, ready to go at Tim any time! Its expression was just showing that. Was he furious because Tim used majick? 

He prepared his bow too and suddenly turned around with a curl and ran away from the place.

"Giiih!?"

From behind, if Tim could speak goblin language he would say that meant: "Eh? Wait!?"

Then, the Goblin rushed after him and went out of the entrance in the hall. We were doing game cat and mouse for a little while, before the goblin suddenly twitched on the spot and dropped dead as a bud sprouting out from the goblin's body.

Earned 5 Dust.

From what Tim counted, the time Leech Seed needed to kill him was 136 second. And depending on the ticking duration, the goblin's health should be somewhere around 22~24.

And that also meant Tim had a medicine worth of 22~24 health in his hand.

Indeed, he made a deduction everything could be dead if you shot it in the heart or in the head, but there was no wrong from knowing the enemy information, right?

Looting the house and shifting his kitchen knife with the goblin dagger, Tim continued checking the other houses.

Compared to yesterday, the number of a monster encounter he met today was far lower. It might be because he started to raise his awareness and moving stealthily, or the monster decided already moving to another area.

When he checked the houses on his journey, he met the same variety of monster as yesterday, though this time rather than running away he gave himself the trouble to check the monster health.

Just when he entered Lower Manhattan and checking the first houses, he already shot a goblin with his arrow and the goblin was dead after two shots on his body. So each arrow would deal 10~12 damage? On the third goblin he'd meet, he could one shot the goblin... but it seemed like the arrow was piercing right in the middle of the goblin's chest.

Moving forward, after killing six Dogigator with Leech Seed, Tim counted they would be dead after 60~70 seconds, depending on their body sizes, but for now, he assumed their life was somewhere around 11~13.

Shooting with an arrow result was varied but most of the time he could kill it with one shot, depending on where the arrow landed though. The same case happened with the dagger.

Bat-Mon had health somewhere around 20~22, weird, even if their level was higher they still had lower health than the goblins.

It seemed the zombie was a special case... as Tim couldn't kill it no matter how many arrows were piercing its body. But when he let loose another arrow to its head, the zombie instantly dead. 

Continued moving while looting everything he could loot, just when Tim shot another arrow toward a Goblin.

Its body vanished and it dropped a purple shard.