After resting for five minutes to regain our [SP], we had to get moving again. Any time the hunters could decide to check what's going on behind the buildings, and once they did, our time-window to get to the food would close.

We were in luck, there still weren't any hunters here. Quickly, we climb out of the window and down the fire escape ladder.

Orienting myself, I look around. "The storeroom should be over there.", I say as I point to the left.

I put my back against the wall and wedge my legs into the ground under the window I indicated and finally fold my hands.

"Come on, get in there."

Quickly, Mary steps with one foot in my hands and from there on my shoulders. I let out a low grunt as I realize that this was a lot harder then tv-shows made it look. You need a lot of strength to stay stable if a grown human stands on your shoulders.

Suddenly, Mary flinched and jumped back. With my shoulders suddenly getting pushed back, I hit my head on the wall and scream out in pain: "Ah, fuck! What the hell was that for?"

"Wrong window, and I think one of them saw me.", Mary answered.

"Shit, let's hope they aren't clever enough to find us here. Let's make this quick."

"This is the right one.", the girl says while standing in front of the window right next to the first.

We repeat the process, and mary stands on my shoulders again. This time being more careful while looking inside. When she saw the storeroom, and that it was still locked, she gave the skylight a strong push. When nothing happened, she tried again stronger, and once more. On the third push, she almost fell backward and took a moment to balance herself, but I could clearly hear the little crack that indicated the window opened.

A few seconds later, I felt the girl's weight lifted from my shoulders.

It didn't take long for the first carton of cereal bars to almost fall on my head. I swiftly put it in the backpack, just in time to catch the next one. Into my backpack they went, one after the other.

Just as I stowed away the seventh carton, I suddenly notice movement in the corner of my eyes.

" Get out, one of them found us.", I exclaim.

I drop everything the moment I see the monster, take my ax in both hands, and get into a batting stance, ready to swing the weapon at my foe.

The monster had only just come around the corner and was still far away, but I had seen before how insanely fast they were. Even with the fence behind the building being barely five meters away, I knew that the hunter would reach me before I managed to get over it.

Running was impossible, so the only choice left was to fight. I hadn't planned to fight strong monsters like them head-on, not until I had gotten stronger at least. But I also didn't know how many more monsters were outside the school and how strong those were. Maybe the hunters were still the weakest of them.

Me and the hunter, for a few seconds, we looked at each other. We were both standing completely still, waiting for the other to make the first move.

Time seemed to slow down as my brain got flooded by adrenalin and the seconds got stretched into small eternities.

The hunter was the first to get impatient. As soon as it moved, time started flowing at normal speeds again.

In just a few seconds, the distance between us had already halved. Panicking, I swing my ax with all my strength in a wide arc at the creature's head.

My reaction had been just barely to slow. Just as the hunter was about to chomp down on my arm, the wooden shaft of my ax hit it in the side of its head, just barely pushing its attack to the side.

The rebound almost tears the weapon out of my hands, but I manage to use the force to swing the ax around and over my head.

Groggily, the hunter shakes its head.

Before it can react, I bring my ax down with all my strength.

In my haste, the ax is positioned a bit off, causing me to hit the monster on its back with the flat side of the ax head.

I hear the crack from a broken bone, and the monster slumps to the ground, screaming in pain.

I take two extra seconds to position myself correctly and deliver a clean strike to the creature's head. With a sickening crunch, It's skull is split apart.

Congratulations!

You have committed a worthy deed!

Level +1

As I free my ax, I heard three objects falling to the ground behind me.

Mary was already picking up the cartons she had just thrown out and put them in a bag she had found somewhere.

"They definitely heard that. Let's get out of here before more of them come.", Mary says while walking over to the fence.

I pick up my backpack and follow her, making to climb over the fence. Seeing how quickly Mary was on the other side, I was reminded of the bridge. Quickly, I put one point into [CONSTITUTION] and the other in [STRENGTH]. Instantly, moving became a bit easier, and I got over as well. Though it still took me a while.

Looking back, I can already see another hunter looking around the corner.

Right behind the fence was only a small ledge and we had to jump down almost two and a half meters. When I land on the ground, I realize for the first time what five points in [STRENGTH] and six in [CONSTITUTION] actually meant.

Before I jumped, I had expected it to hurt quite a bit, two and a half meters are quite high after all. In reality, most of the pain I felt could be attributed to my very clumsy landing and quickly disappeared after my [HP] went down by a single point.

It was just a rough guess, but my stats were probably already as high as someone who regularly made sport.

Without saying a word, we walked along the bottom of the wall, so that nothing that was on the other side of the fence would be able to see us until we left behind the school grounds.

We walk alongside each other for a few minutes until I speak up: "Well then, let's split up here. I have things to do and places to be, and I don't think we will go in the same direction."

"Yes, you are right. We will meet again if the gods allow.", Mary says her goodbyes.

"Ha, you are right. If the gods allow. Good luck."

"You too."

With that, I took a sharp turn and left. I already have a few plans on how to proceed from here on out and know where to go next.

There are a few places where people are likely to gather around my old school.

The first is the university campus only a few minutes away. Because of the way the buildings were made and the large open space, it could be turned into an easily defendable position. Of course under the condition that you had enough people.

The second place was the supermarket. Very inconvenient to defend with its large window front, but it came with the advantage of an entire warehouse full of food and water.

The third and last position is the hardware store. It has no food, but even a small group would be able to turn it into a fortress with the materials found inside.

For me, those were places to avoid. I don't want to deal with group dynamics until I have gotten capable of surviving on my own, and if there is too little food it could get hard to train my skill more. I have no idea after all how hard or easy it is to get new and better skills.

The place I am aiming for is a small, family-owned minimarket. The ground and first floors are mostly used for food while the second floor holds all kinds of weird stuff. What made the place so special is that everything they deal with is imported, mostly from Asia. None of the things you could get there were things you could get somewhere else.

It was the kind of shop that lived of its regulars, who incidentally were mostly Indian and some Japanese and Chinese who were missing the taste of home.

The good thing is, it's still the beginning of the month, so they are freshly restocked, but when I went there yesterday to get ingredients for curry, I found a note on the door. Supposedly, they had won some kind of Telefon game and are now somewhere in Hawai.

Using that place as my base of operations would give me access to enough food and shelter. In addition, the second floor might hold a few treasures.

I also know already two more places I will have to visit. One is a store for camping supplies, and the other the kiosk at the subway station. If I'm not mistaken, they have a hunting magazine there. No idea what kind of people buy that at a kiosk in the city center, but if I recall correctly, the current issue has an article on dressing and butchering wild game.

I won't be able to survive off the food in the store forever, and I want to test what monsters are edible and which aren't before it runs out. I even know how to make different kinds of preserved meats, especially smoked, thanks to my father's temporary obsession with this kind of thing last summer. But that would become difficult if I can't butcher the monsters correctly.

As I leave the car park behind, I realize that I have o idea where exactly I am. I definitely know the general direction I have to move in, but I have never seen this street before.

With all the caution in the world, I start to move along the street. Whenever I want to cross a street, I hide behind the corner, carefully checking windows, balconies, and side alleys for any and all threats. Whenever I hear a sound, I hide in a house entrance. And whenever I see an animal coming towards me, I chose a different direction. It might just have been running from a predator after all.

As I avoid making any sounds, minutes pass. As I avoid streets that look risky, tens of minutes pass. As I avoid what might or might not have been monsters, hours pass.

By the time I cross a distance that should have taken me fifteen minutes at most, the sky is already starting to turn dark.

When I peeked around the corner and finally saw my goal, I was almost relieved. Until I saw what stood only a few meters away.

It was definitely humanoid but it even dwarfed the 1.95 meters tall, overweight me. It looked to be at least two and a half meters in height, and shoulders twice as broad as my own. Its legs are short and stocky, even a bit shorter than my own but as thick as my waist, and it's arms are muscular and long almost reaching to the ground.

But that wasn't the biggest problem. It is wearing a loincloth. It is also looking around while scratching its head and saying something in a language I don't understand.

It is clearly intelligent and definitely stronger than me. Now the questions were: Just how intelligent it is, and if it is hostile. And of course, why the fuck did it have to stand right in front of the place where I wanted to take residence?

Well, it's already late, I want to sleep and it's not like I have to get to that place just yet. I walk back for about fifty meters and enter a small alleyway. There I climb up a fire-escape, cautious to not make too much noise on the metal construct.

Once I reach the third floor, I climb over the railing and lean outwards. Just barely, I can reach a window ledge with my left hand while my right is still holding the handrail. When I let go with my right, I realize that this idea wasn't as good as it seemed at first.

As soon as my right left the railing, my feet slip off and my body swings against the wall. For a few precarious seconds, I hang with only my left hand from a third-floor window.

Despite barely holding on, I carefully bring up my other hand, not making any hasty movements for fear that I lose my grip.

After almost a minute of just hanging by my arms, I finally manage to pull myself up and drag my tired body into the room on the inside.

When I checked the windows for threats, I had noticed that this one stood open and remembered it.

Now inside the room, I lie sprawled over the ground for a while. Only when the adrenaline stopped working and my heartbeat had calmed down a bit dod I stand up again.

I put down my backpack and ax, and look around the room. I'm in a small bedroom. Most of the space is occupied by a large double bed and a desk full of documents.

I quickly close the window. Then I take my ax up again and cautiously check the other rooms. The bedroom was connected to a small kitchen and the hallway with the entrance door. The hallway was also connected to a small bathroom.

Best of all, it is completely monster free.

I put my ax back down and take off my shoes.

Trying to sleep, I lie down on the bed, but that is when my tummy notifies me that I'm hungry. I hadn't even realized that until now.

At first, I look at my backpack, but then realization hits me and I decide to raid the small fridge in the kitchen.

After a scrumptious meal, I lie back down. I'm exhausted, decidedly not hungry, and lying in a surprisingly comfy bed. Still, I can't sleep, turning myself this way and that.

After a while, I lie on my back and start my relaxation exercise.

I breathe in quickly through the nose, a and slowly out through the mouth.

Every thought that comes to mind, turns into a cloud, and drifts away.

And whenever I breathe out, my body gets heavier and heavier.

Before I realize it, I have already fallen asleep.