> One good thing about the System is that it is not that hard to identify threats. There's usually a greenish glow surrounding the point of interest, or a notification pops up, or both. However, you have to stay vigilant. Until you get stronger, you are never truly safe. But the Universe welcomes the strong, so make sure to become one of them.

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> Excerpt SYBI, Chapter 2: Staying Alive When The World Wants You Dead

Over the next few days, Laura and I took several more excursions into the forest to gather wood and forage. We encountered the spider once more, and the System let us know that it was a level 2 Venomweaver. I somehow managed to kill it before Laura could freak the fuck out again. It was not an easy kill because the little bugger was as quick as the wind. But I was getting much better at wielding my whip, while Laura peppered it with pellets from her slingshot. Looting the body produced a vial of glowing sun-yellow venom and a couple of credits.

My foraging skill increased by a level once we stripped a blackberry bush clean. Later that day we ate all of them, making all three of us positively ill. I swore I wouldn't eat another blackberry for years. But I ate some the next day anyway. The fruit really helped break the monotony of those snack packs we now had to eat for every meal.

We still had flour, salt, oil, and sugar in the kitchen but we decided to keep until we were in dire circumstances because it didn't go off.

Laura and I were growing more confident with each trip outside our safety cocoon, and I figured we would soon expand our area of exploration. She had also started planning the ring of traps that she would place around our home.

"Can we place the blueprint now, Dee?" Tobi asked me after a very sad lunch.

"Sure," I said and the four of us walked to the newly expanded area on the side of the cabin. I wasn't sure how this was going to work.

When we purchased the blueprint for Cloud's barn, it popped into existence in my Blueprints tab I tried pulling it out and only received a prompt back.

Barn (Small)

A housing unit suitable for different species of domesticated animals

Place Blueprint Now? Yes/No

I accepted the prompt and I found myself looking down at the cabin from a bird's eye view, just like when I used the land claim token. It was disorienting for a hot minute. I heard Tobi and Laura saying something but it was like they were talking behind a wall of water.

I quickly realised I made a mistake in expanding our land. I kept it too close to the cabin and now the new barn would have to be built with little space between the two structures. It was dumb and short-sighted. But it was something to think about the next time we decided to expand. Just because the blueprint asked for 50 square meters of land didn't mean that we should only add 50 square meters to our total claim.

Sighing deeply, I played around with the positioning of the barn. At least we didn't have a bunch of animals that would stink up the place. Cloud was a suspiciously odourless alien sheep, which was a relief.

I confirmed the placement and I was back in my body in a blink of an eye.

"Dee, are you okay?" Laura was holding my arm, concern clear on her face. "You went completely blank on us just then."

"I'm fine.

"Look!" Tobi called out for our attention. In the space where I positioned the blueprint there was a hologram of the barn we were going to build, in the usual System green. As I focused on it, a description box appeared.

Barn (Small)

A housing unit suitable for different species of domesticated animals.

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

Resources needed: 566 planks, 625 roof tiles, 4100 nails

Energy: 5271

My heart sank as I read the material and Energy requirements to build this structure. We were going to spend so much on it. Without even considering the amount of Energy we would need to make all the items, it would take us 45 days of dumping our full reservoirs once a day. It was a staggering amount.

The mother and son duo probably came to the same conclusion, if their faces were any indication of what was going to be necessary. As it were, I was the only one able to make planks and nails from wood resources that I pulled from the trees. This was a nightmare.

"Well, we better get started!" I said with a hollow excitement in my voice. Nobody bought it.

"I think we should add more to the garden first," Laura said and we all turned to the rows of raised beds where our little vegetables grew. I raised my hand to send the Energy I had banked, even though it wasn't strictly necessary. All we really had to do was intend our energy to go to the garden and it would just go there. Anything to make the veggies grow a tiny bit faster.

Cloud must have sensed our disappointment because he bleeped at us and nudged Tobi in the side. His fur did that strange shifty dance and fell on the floor in a pile that just begged to be spun into thread.

"Good for you to finally contribute!" I chastised the alien and gave his bug-eyed head a pet.

"Thanks!" Tobi said, his mood shifting significantly upwards. "I can finally try out my skills!"

"What skills did you get, Tobi?" I asked.

The boy blushed and looked to the side.

"I have Spinning, Dyeing, Weaving, Knitting, and Sewing."

"Those are all good skills," his mother said carefully. She was likely still upset that the kid didn't tell us his Class options but didn't want to start an argument. Tobi seemed to be a flight risk, escaping whenever he thought there might be an argument or chastisement.

I just figured he would tell us whenever he was ready. We all experienced more than our fair share of traumatic experiences since the Integration. It would make anyone

Tobi picked up the hue-shifting wool off the floor and left it on the porch table.

"I am going to look for a spindle in the Shop. Is that okay?"

"How many credits do we have left?" I asked.

"We have 2743. I checked this morning, " Laura said.

"Then go for it."

He shot off inside the cabin and came back with a small wooden object in his hand. He sat down on the chair and started working. He took a handful of Clouds wool and gently pulled on it to separate the fibre.

I walked up to him and he gave me a shy smile. Laura went back behind the cabin, probably to fetch some water from the well. We always needed more water.

"I have some idea how this works, but I think I will have to practice a lot."

I eyed the wool that the sheep graciously decided to bestow upon us.

"So, what are the steps? I've never seen it done. I don't think a whole lot of people know how to do it."

"To spin yarn?" he paused uncertainly. "Well, I think there are a few steps that I won't have to do because Cloud's wool seems processed somehow. I don't know how to explain it. Just watch, okay?"

I nodded and sat next to him.

He took a small piece of fibre and carefully hooked it onto the spindle's metal hook, giving it a gentle twist to secure it. Holding the fibre steady in one hand, he spun the spindle with the other, setting it into motion. As the spindle spun, he slowly let the fibre slip between his fingers, allowing the twist to work its way up, transforming the loose wool into a fine strand of yarn. With a slightly awkward drop, the spindle spun toward the ground, leaving behind a small length of iridescent, newly spun yarn.

"That's awesome, Tobi!" I said.

"I think I will get better as I go on."

"Dee, you have to see this," Laura's voice took our attention away. She walked hurriedly onto the porch.

"What's up?" I asked.

"I think it is better if you come in the back and take a look."

Tobi and I followed her behind the cabin. I surveyed clearing but I could only see scorched remains of Vineslashers that I didn't really care to clean up yet.

"There," she pointed to the woods. A blue haze was coming through the trees, pulsing in intensity like a heartbeat. It had a rather ominous quality to it.

"What the hell?" Tobi said.

"Language!" his mother chided him. The kid had the decency to look somewhat chastised.

I sighed.

"You know what this looks like?"

Both of them gave me one of their signature looks.

"It looks like we're going out on a little mission."

Name: Diana Mond

Age: 25

Class: Homesteader

Level: 2, 58/300 exp

Strength: 4

Constitution: 6

Intelligence: 6

Wisdom: 4

HP: 60/60

Energy: 4/60