The ground trembled.Not a violent quake, but deep, steady — like something heavy crawling beneath the mud.
The rain had changed. It wasn't just water anymore. The air burned faintly, leaving a metallic taste on the tongue. Every drop hissed when it hit the soil, releasing a thin white mist that carried the smell of rust.
Myaterous didn't flinch.He stood on the edge of his small barricade, watching the mist roll toward him. His two NPCs stayed behind the wall, uneasy.
"Status report," he said.
The cook, a middle-aged woman named Lira, hesitated before speaking.
"Food storage sealed. Water barrels are half full. The guard says the west path collapsed."
The guard added, "And something's moving in the mist."
Myaterous nodded. "Good."
He turned to the system panel hovering in front of him. The usual faint blue glow flickered, unstable — like static.
Event Detected: Acidic Rainfront (Type: Environmental Mutation)Duration: UnknownAdditional Risk: Hostile Entities Emerge in Mist.
He muttered to himself.
"So it's both chemical and biological."
His brain went quiet — the kind of silence that comes when instinct and calculation merge. He drew a line in the mud using his finger, dividing it into three zones. He didn't speak to anyone for a full minute. He was thinking.
Then he gave orders.
"Lira, light the inner torches. Keep smoke low. The mist reacts to heat — I want to test its density.""Joren, get me every piece of metal we scavenged, even the broken ones."
Both moved without question. They had learned his tone. Calm. Certain. That was what loyalty fed on.
When they returned, Myaterous knelt, mixing ash, resin, and thin scraps of wire together.
"Concept: Conduction Field.""Concept: Heat Displacement.""Catalyst: Residual Copper Wire."Synthesize.
The system pulsed.
Result: Crude Electrostatic Veil (Success – 27% Efficiency)
The air shimmered faintly around their camp. The mist rolled closer but stopped short — flickering at the invisible barrier.
Lira's eyes widened. "You… stopped it."
"No," Myaterous said quietly. "I slowed it."
He watched the barrier flicker again. Every pulse drew a small drain from his SP pool. He could see it dropping — 139… 128… 112…
It wouldn't hold for long.
The first shadow moved in the fog. A warped creature — part human, part melted silhouette. The system labeled it Residue Entity – Formed by Unstable Synthesis Failure.
Someone out there had failed badly. Their mistake became a monster.
"So even errors evolve…" he whispered.
He reached for his weapon — not a sword, just a metal pipe sharpened at one end. His eyes stayed locked on the mist. Every second, he was processing, not panicking. Calculating weight, distance, and probability.
"Joren, on my left. If it gets through, don't fight. Stall it.""And you?""I'll test something new."
He raised his hand to the panel.
"Concept: Electric Field Resonance.""Concept: Metallic Rod.""Catalyst: My Remaining SP."Synthesize.
The rod in his hand vibrated. Blue arcs danced along its surface. When the entity lunged through the barrier, Myaterous thrust forward. The air cracked — a sound like thunder tearing fabric. The creature dissolved instantly, leaving behind a faint trace of black dust.
Silence followed.
The system chimed.
Achievement Unlocked: "First Entity Neutralized." Reward: +45 SP, Minor Blueprint (Energy Reaction Type).
He didn't smile. He only stared at the dust, then at his shaking hand.
"Even death gives something back," he muttered. "That's the rule."
The rain kept falling. But now, beneath it, a faint light flickered through the fog — another player's camp, far in the distance. Someone else had survived the same event.
He watched it for a long moment, expression unreadable.
"Maybe it's time," he said softly, "to stop being alone."