The sun was only just cresting the horizon when Kane's strike team emerged from the mist, battered but victorious. The boats cut across the water with a quiet hum, drones gliding overhead in protective formation. Behind them, the city smoldered, a graveyard of collapsed towers and charred mutant flesh.
Reina leaned against Kane's side, fast asleep, her little toy guardian curled protectively around her like a mechanical hound. Maya and Lena sat at the bow, scanning the waters, while the mage—still wide-eyed from the chaos he'd survived—sat in silence, clutching his staff.
When the boats touched the makeshift docks, the island stirred awake. Survivors rushed forward, cheering. Children cried at the sight of parents returned, and the two rescued twins—still fragile, swaddled in blankets—were carried away by the healers.
For a moment, Kane allowed himself a single breath of relief. They made it back. But this was only one battle.
Kane raised his hand, silencing the crowd. His voice carried, steady and iron-clad.
"Today we bled, and today we won. But survival is not enough. If we want to stand against what's coming—we need a fortress, not just an island."
The system responded instantly to his intent, windows opening before each fighter.
[Command: Blueprint Search Activated]– Requirement: Minimum 5,000 coins.– Function: Access system vaults for randomized island defense designs.– Warning: Results scale with rarity of investment.
Each of his team members had earned their share of coins from both the quest and monster kills. Between them, every fighter carried at least 5,000 coins—the exact threshold.
Kane's eyes narrowed. "I don't care for vanity rewards. Don't waste it on skills you don't need. Focus everything on island defense blueprints. Weapons. Barriers. Infrastructure. That is priority one."
One by one, nods rippled across the group. Fingers hovered over their system menus.
As if on cue, the system's interface shimmered before each fighter. It looked like a vault door cracking open, light spilling out in streams of golden data.
[Blueprint Roll: Active]
The results appeared like cascading cards.
Lena: "Defensive Turret Mk I" – autonomous gun towers powered by unlimited energy.
Maya: "Medical Ward (Advanced)" – a healing and recovery hub, capable of accelerating natural regeneration.
The Mage: "Mana Conduit Pillars" – structures that stabilized ambient mana, preventing mutations from growing near the island.
Fighter #1: "Ballistic Barricades" – kinetic walls that could absorb explosive or high-impact damage.
Fighter #2: "Aerial Net Grid" – a perimeter defense that intercepted flying mutants.
One by one, the results kept flooding in, some basic, others remarkable. The island, still crude and fragile, was already beginning to transform in Kane's mind.
Kane kept his arms folded as the reports came in. "Sort them. We'll prioritize based on construction speed and defense value. Turrets and barricades first. Medical and mana conduits second. Everything else after."
Reina, now awake, tugged at his sleeve. Her small voice was barely above a whisper."Big brother… will it be safe now?"
Kane bent down, brushing her hair aside. "It will be. I promise."
Yet deep down, he knew promises alone wouldn't hold against the storm of abominations out there. This was just the beginning. The system had given them the keys to survival, but it would be on him to forge those keys into weapons, walls, and firepower.
The island, once a patchwork of makeshift shelters and scavenged supplies, now echoed with the sound of purpose. Kane stood at the center, drones hovering at his flanks, as the first blueprint was set into motion.
At the edge of the coastline, glowing lattice-work began to assemble as the system's blueprint activated. Shards of crystalized mana rose from the ground, guided by metallic braces and humming coils. The drones carried and fused components with mechanical precision, every strike of their tools leaving trails of blue sparks.
When the final piece clicked into place, a pulse rippled outward—soft at first, then building into a steady thrum.
[Mana Conduit Pillar Constructed]– Function: Stabilizes ambient mana within 2 km radius.– Effect: Mutated growth suppressed. Monster spawn rate drastically reduced near territory.
The effect was immediate. The island's air, once heavy with the metallic tang of corruption, felt cleaner. Survivors who had grown used to the background tension of hostile mutations felt their shoulders loosen, their lungs fill easier.
A cheer rose from the settlement. For the first time, people believed the island could be more than a refuge. It could be a home.
Kane wasted no time."Begin the turret installations. Place them around the landing dock and the northern ridge."
The drones mobilized, parts shifting and unfolding like origami into shape. Twin-barreled turrets locked into reinforced platforms, humming as they drew endless energy from the system. Each pivoted smoothly, scanning the horizon.
A test run confirmed it—the turrets could track, lock, and fire faster than any human hand.
[Defensive Turret Mk I Deployed]– Autonomous targeting.– Unlimited energy and ammunition.– Adjustable fire-modes: suppression / precision / auto-burst.
The sight alone turned dread into hope. Parents pointed them out to children; old men muttered prayers of thanks. With these guns, the nightmares from the sea would no longer seem unstoppable.
By dusk, the drones had started assembling kinetic barriers—slabs of alloy that shimmered faintly with energy fields. When struck, the barricades absorbed the impact, dispersing the force harmlessly across their structure.
As Kane oversaw the process, one of the survivors—a wiry young man with glasses and ink-stained fingers—approached. His system glow flickered faintly, revealing text only Kane could see.
[Profession Acquired: Researcher (Tinkerer Branch)]– Specialty: Engineering Upgrades.– Passive: Gains experience by researching or enhancing constructs.
Kane raised an eyebrow. "So it's not just combat professions…"
The man swallowed nervously but nodded. "My blueprint suggested… I could modify these barricades. If I succeed, they won't just absorb hits—they'll reflect part of the force back to the attacker. Like… punishment walls."
Kane's lips curved into the faintest grin. "Do it. From now on, this is your domain. Upgrade them until they're more weapon than wall."
The survivor blinked in surprise, then straightened his back. For the first time since arriving, his fear had been replaced with purpose.
As night fell, the pillars glowed softly across the shore, turrets stood like sentinels, and barricades formed an unbroken defensive line. Fires burned in hearths, not in fear but in celebration. Food was shared more freely, laughter carried through the camp, and for the first time since the apocalypse began, the island felt alive.
Kane walked among them silently, Reina clinging to his hand, her toy guardian trailing behind. Survivors bowed their heads or whispered thanks as he passed, but he hardly noticed. His eyes stayed fixed on the defenses, on the future.
This island is no longer a refuge. It's becoming a fortress. And from this fortress, we'll carve a path through the apocalypse.
The last of the barricades locked into place as night fell, the Mana Conduit Pillars humming with steady rhythm, bathing the shoreline in faint blue radiance. Survivors slowly dispersed into their makeshift homes, murmuring about safety, about a tomorrow that might finally exist.
Kane stood for a long time at the ridge, his hand resting on Reina's head as she leaned sleepily against his leg. The hum of drones patrolling above was the lullaby of the island now. For the first time, exhaustion crept into his bones.
Then, the system's chime cut through the quiet.
[Global System Announcement]
Warning: A celestial event has been scheduled.
On the seventh night from now, the Red Moon Eclipse will cast its shadow. During this period:
– Mutant creatures across the globe will receive +3 levels and a temporary surge in strength.– Boss-class and Abomination-class creatures will gain enhanced regeneration and pheromone radius.– Dungeon Gates will emerge worldwide.
Dungeons:– Dungeon interiors contain concentrated resources, system-forged loot, and accelerated exp gain.– Danger rating: Unknown. Progression opportunities: extraordinary.– First-clear rewards will be significant.
Survivors are advised to prepare.
The announcement echoed in every mind on the island. Whispers turned into fearful shouts, then into hurried questions. Some survivors clutched at each other, others scanned the skies as if expecting the eclipse to fall now.
Kane's voice cut through the panic.
"Quiet."
The crowd stilled immediately, eyes turning to him. He stood tall, Reina cradled in his arm, his expression like stone.
"You heard the system. Seven days. That means seven days to grow stronger, to fortify this island, and to prepare for what's coming. From now until then—no slacking. No hesitation. Every hour counts."
His words didn't banish fear, but they gave it direction. Fear became fuel.
Kane raised his wrist console, speaking directly into the drone network.
"All patrol drones: sweep every square mile around the island. Neutralize any hostile creatures you encounter. Expand the perimeter one kilometer every twelve hours. If you detect structures, anomalies, or gates that weren't there before—record, mark, and report immediately."
The swarm buzzed acknowledgement, splitting into formation across the darkened waves. Turrets rotated at the docks, tracking the horizon as though daring the ocean to test them.
But as the drones spread farther, one feed flickered with something unusual. A sharp lens adjustment revealed a scar carved deep into the ocean floor—the crater Kane had created when tearing his mountainside home from the earth and forging it into this island.
Until now, it had been dismissed as just collateral damage.But tonight, it pulsed.
A faint, almost heartbeat-like rhythm of blue light leaked from fissures at its base, shimmering through the dark waters. Strange runic patterns glimmered faintly across the crater walls, too regular to be natural.
The drone's feed recorded it faithfully, storing the file into the network. But Kane didn't see it—he was already dragging himself toward his quarters, Reina curled in his arms, her toy guardian waddling behind like an oversized sentinel.
For the first time in days, he allowed himself to sleep.
Sleep didn't come easy—his mind replayed the day in fragments. The clash with the Flesh Congregant, the synchronized destruction, the construction of a fortress, the shouts of gratitude from survivors, Reina's laugh when he chased her around the camp after dinner.
The weight of it all pressed him down, but not in despair. In purpose.
He slept like a commander whose battlefield was secured, if only for tonight.
And as the drones patrolled under the moonlight, the crater's blue glow pulsed, unacknowledged—for now.