Matt slowly opened his eyes, closing them a second later as rays of sunlight hit his–more sensitive to the light than usual–corneas. He used his hand as a shade, which allowed him to finally open them, if only in a squint, the sight of his own hand covered in dried blood greeting him. He had been through a lot, but in that moment all that mattered was what he could see… that he could see. Everything was so bright. So colorful.

  He dove into his soul, and for the first time in what felt like forever, he saw it… [Sense Mana]’s engraving.

  He covered his eyes with his arm once more as he dove out of his soul, chuckling dryly. He should’ve been happy–he was happy, yet in that moment, it wasn’t joy or elation that filled him, but exhaustion. The wave of exhaustion that washes over you after a flood of relief.

  His mind had been working overtime for far too long. Between the fight with the wolves, the emotional turmoil, and altering the engraving–with all the worry and anxiety that came with it–his mind was at its breaking point.

  He couldn’t remember the last time he had had a good night’s sleep, just to rest and recuperate. He doubted that blacking out after utterly draining his mind, body and soul counted as rest either, more like his systems shutting down to avoid dying. Apparently, he couldn’t just keep going endlessly. He needed to click the pause button from time to time to give himself a break. God knows he needed it.

  A loud rumbling came from Matt’s stomach, pulling his attention to another potential issue.

  “Famished, parched and drained. The golden trifecta,” he tried chuckling before going into a coughing fit as his severely dehydrated and dry throat struggled with even those few words.

  “Beat a wolf pack and its alpha, blind, only to die of thirst and hunger,” he whispered, chuckling at the absurdity of the statement, another coughing fit hitting him. You’d think that a guy who had been living alone for the past three years would know how to take better care of himself and his health, a misconception he aimed to prove wrong.

  He started getting up, pulling his leg out of the pool water that was now dark red, bordering on brown. It was in a sorry state that no amount of cleaning would ever fix.

  Obliteration is the only way forward for you, my friend, he thought as he pulled his legs out of the uninviting waters. They came out patchy and wobbly, struggling to even maintain their shape. Saying he had overdone it was an understatement at this point.

  Back on his feet, he almost fell a few times. It felt as if he was learning to walk from scratch. It did take him quite a few tries, but he could finally stand straight and he slowly dragged himself to the nearest restaurant, the one by the pool. Food and drink were his highest priority, and once he was done, he’d find the nearest bed and collapse there, giving his body as much time as it needed to recover. Anything else could wait.

  Matt felt like a zombie dragging itself as he took the few short steps towards the restaurant. [Repair] and [Revitalize] had already restored him to what should’ve been a perfect condition, yet every step was a chore, every movement making his body beg for relief, and every breath coming harder than the last. His resources were… almost full, yet it felt like he was on death’s door. He considered turning off his glove’s boost, just for the novelty of being double weakened, but then questioned his sanity and masochistic tendencies if a thought like that had any rationality to it. It didn’t matter though. It was all a diversion to keep his brain engaged as he made his way to the ever alluring restaurant.

  On the outside, it didn’t look anything special. There was outdoor seating on a slightly raised wooden deck, and floor-to-ceiling glass panels giving the diners a clear view of the pool. A wooden pergola covered the seating area, providing shade and a place to hook the ceiling fans to help with the dry, hot days. It looked cozy, but nothing indicated it was a restaurant. No sign or cooking equipment was placed outside. For all anyone knew, it could’ve just been a cafe, or a patio by the pool, but common sense dictated otherwise, and well… so did the plates of food on the tables.

  Approaching the restaurant, he tried but couldn’t get a good look inside, as all the roller shades were down, completely blocking the view. It had been sunny when the integration had started after all.

  Finally reaching his destination, he pushed the glass door open and was greeted with a rancid stench hitting his nose that caused him to gag as the first problem reared its ugly head. He was in the resort’s main restaurant; its buffet. The food stations, and there were a lot, with their countless food trays, were left unattended for more than two weeks. Bugs, mold, and things he didn’t even know existed, made a home of the place, as they feasted on the literal buffet of food. It was a grim scene. Not only the food but the restaurant in its entirety.

  The restaurant itself looked cozy and modern. Reddish marble countertops spanned the entire place, holding up endless food trays. A marbled countertop in the middle of the restaurant held various salads and appetizers, and even a drinks bar to the side of the room that had a more wooden aesthetic look, rather than marble. Caramel-colored wooden planks covered the restaurant’s floor, giving its ranch-style look its finishing touches.

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  The seating arrangement also appeared varied. Polished wooden tables with glass tabletops were the most common choice, but the variance came from the chairs. Bamboo chairs were used outside, with green butt and back cushions. He had questioned the color choice at the time, feeling it had made no thematic sense, but he digressed. On the inside, there were large cushioned amber colored couches and sofas towards the middle and corners of the restaurant, but for the remainder of the place, which was quite spacious, cushioned wooden chairs were the seating of choice, and not the uncomfortable kind most buffets used, but actual ergonomic chairs with large red cushions and cushioned armrests. They looked comfy, and he bet they felt the same.

  Most hotels used sturdy but slightly uncomfortable chairs in their buffets and avoided couches or sofas like the plague. It was by choice since the restaurant typically could only serve a limited number of guests of the hotel’s total, and if comfortable seating was provided, or a sofa where you could just chill and forget about the world, a lot of people would opt to live in the buffet. The staff couldn’t really kick you out if you were eating and minding your own business–time limit wasn’t really a constraint in resort buffets–so to prevent guests from prolonging their stay at the restaurant, slightly uncomfortable chairs were used where staying seated for an extended period would start becoming more and more unbearable.

  This resort, though, definitely missed the memo, choosing comfy elegance throughout the entire place, and if this was how the buffet looked, then the specialty restaurants must be on a whole different level.

  The grim scene, however, was something else entirely. The integration seemed to have happened during lunchtime, and the scene in front of him visualized it perfectly. A few chairs scattered on the wooden floor, a couple of flipped tables, spilled drinks and broken glass were some of what could be seen. But what stood out the most were the plates.

  Plates of half-eaten food littered the tables, flawlessly depicting each guest’s story. Like the one directly to his left as he entered.

  Two sets of chairs to either side of the table, with a moldy bread basket and a plate of rotten green salad in the middle, for the entire table to share. Each chair had a dried bowl of what used to be soup in front of it, with the exception of one that also had a small serving of shriveled-up fries next to the soup bowl. A straightforward story, yet no less haunting.

  A family that had decided to start light with some appetizers, but their youngest couldn’t wait to get their hands on some fries. Someone at the table had probably tried to snatch a few, which caused the kid to pull the plate closer to them and away from the rest, an understandable sentiment.

  The knocked-down chair opposite the child filled in the rest. The system notification must’ve startled someone, causing them to either fall with the chair–if they were leaning backwards–or to quickly get up in alarm, knocking it down in the process.

  It was hauntingly beautiful, yet dreadful at the same time. A family enjoying lunch together on a vacation they had most likely been planning for a while, everyone enjoying their afternoon, ready to tackle the day, only for a weird message to pop up, turning their whole world upside down. Some would argue it’s a tale of hope, presenting endless opportunities for the family to be whatever their hearts desired, but to him, it was one of tragedy.

  A perfectly content family, enjoying the best life had to offer, getting thrown into the deep end, while away from friends and loved ones. And what hurt the most was the fact that children were involved. He didn’t know what role children would have in this new reality, but he doubted it would be as safe and nurturing as on Earth. Monsters that could run cities over, or maniacs throwing catastrophic level spells around with little to no regard for the damage caused were only the tip of the iceberg.

  Life on Earth wasn’t perfect, and those in power almost always skirted the rules, yet most people lived in harmony. Homes felt safe, a refuge to return to after a long day’s work, and children felt protected, maybe even overly so. Yet now, everything would have to be rewritten. The rules, the maps, the accepted norms, it was like being plunged back into the dark ages. He just hoped common sense and basic human decency would prevail in the end, or humanity would be in for a rough few years.

  Matt sighed, shifting his gaze to the next table over, one that told an entirely different story.

  Two chairs, one plate setting, or well, a plate and a spoon, as the fork and knife were nowhere to be found. The main plate held a hefty portion of food. Different cuts of meat that were now unrecognizable, rice, something that was once potatoes or lasagna, along with three smaller sized plates furnishing the rest of the table. One had what appeared to be a salad, but not the healthy kind. The one where mayo was the predominant ingredient. Another plate was for cold cuts, a variety of them, deli meats, cheeses, and some sauce cups. The last plate was a sizable serving of red sauce pasta with little cut-up hotdogs, most likely from the pasta station. On-demand fresh pasta was always a hit at buffets.

  The filled plates indicated that the person was just getting started, and the way both chairs were tucked in implied that whoever was at the table hadn’t cared for the notification or the commotion much, continuing with their crusade against food. It was impressive in its own right, seeing a notification pop up out of nowhere followed by a full on panic and yet continuing the meal, unabated, probably even with fork and knife still in hand as they got teleported. It was comedic in a way, like a scene from a cartoon where a character sat in front of a meal they’ve been thinking about for days or preparing for hours, and when they’re finally ready to feast, fork in hand, a bite of steak making its way towards their salivating mouth, disaster struck, taking everything with it. And while cartoons’ ridiculous nature was what made them funny, this was nothing but a tragedy.

  It was eye-opening. He had always seen things from his perspective, forgetting one simple fact: that eight billion other humans were in a situation no different from his. They were all snatched from a life of normalcy and thrown instead into mayhem, where monsters, magic, and countless dangers were the norm. They did have the tutorial to prepare them for what was coming, but thinking about it, was it really better than his current situation? Was it safer?

  For all he knew, they could be wishing they were back on Earth, the same way he had wished he would’ve been part of the tutorial.

  It was human nature in all its glory, you never knew how good you had it until it was taken from you. A displeasure that every person had probably experienced at one time or the other, and a reality he hoped he’d never have to face again.

  Patreon. The next chapter, which should come out on Monday, will be the finale, so if you're curious you might wanna check it out.