The translucent blue panel hovered calmly in front of him.
[Weapon Tuning]
Nathan lowered himself onto a wooden cube he had summoned earlier — roughly half a meter (1'6") tall — using it as a chair. The surface was smooth and surprisingly comfortable for something that had existed as an imposing tree not too long ago.
He leaned forward, elbows resting on his thighs, while staring at the interface with beaming eyes like a kid on Christmas morning.
"I hope this is as exciting as I imagined," he said.
He mentally tapped the prompt.
The screen shifted instantly. A clean interface appeared — minimalistic and almost clinical.
At the center floated an empty slot labeled:
[Select a weapon you want to modify]
Nathan blinked.
"…Okay. Straightforward enough."
He followed the instruction, and a new window overlapped the screen, displaying items from his storage inventory.
Which was… a very short list.
Only one entry appeared under the weapon category.
[Handgun — The Revenant]
Nathan sighed.
"Ah, yes. My entire arsenal."
He mentally dragged the pistol into the slot.
The interface responded immediately.
A rotating illustration of the handgun appeared, slowly spinning in midair like a showroom display. Around it, glowing nodes illuminated across different sections of the weapon.
Upgrade categories unfolded one by one.
Nathan leaned closer.
"Ohoho… this is so cool."
[Barrel Upgrade — Lv.3
• Increases optimal combat range and bullet velocity.]
A small note appeared beneath it:
[Current Status: Lv.2 Barrel
• Allows installation of muzzle attachments.]
Nathan nodded proudly.
"Nice. The starter pack was generous enough to give me an upgraded gun."
[Sight Upgrade
• Increases accuracy and optimal combat range]
A preview displayed a sleek red dot sight appearing atop the pistol.
Nathan's eyes sparkled.
"Ooooh…!"
[Grip Upgrade
• Improves handling and stability.]
[Magazine Upgrade
• Increases ammunition capacity.]
…And some other neat upgrades.
He examined each option carefully, excitement rising with every description.
Then he noticed the prices — his smile faltered… then died completely.
"Huh…?"
He leaned closer.
Grip Upgrade — the cheapest upgrade available — displayed: [Cost: 80 SC]
Nathan froze.
He checked his balance.
[SC: 100]
Silence filled the wooden fortress.
A long, heavy silence.
"…I'm poor."
He leaned back dramatically, resting his hands on the wooden cube.
"Is this how adults feel about monthly bills?" his gaze drifted skyward, as if searching for sympathy from up above. "No wonder my parents looked tired at the end of every month…"
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"…Okay. Important question — how do I even get this SC thing?"
He reopened the system menu and skimmed through options.
"Status… skills… storage… quest… nope… nope…"
Then he paused.
"Ah… the shop?" Nathan narrowed his eyes. "That sounds promising."
He opened it.
Two options appeared: [Buy] [Sell]
His curiosity immediately chose the later.
"Sell."
The interface flickered.
Then his lips slowly curved upward as a smirk formed.
Displayed clearly at the top of the list was:
[Wood — Sell Price: 3 SC / 1 m³]
He stared.
Then stared harder.
Then slowly stood up.
"…You're telling me…"
He turned toward the wooden cube behind him.
"…I've been 'sitting' on a money-making opportunity this entire time? No pun intended."
He climbed a ladder he had created using his no-collision storage technique — two wooden beams of equal length placed upright, with evenly spaced footholds embedded directly into them one by one.
Without nails. Without ropes. Just appropriate items retrieval positioning.
Nathan climbed the wall then pulled the ladder, placed it outside before climbing down.
Now he was outside, looking toward the forest.
A dangerous grin spread across his face.
"I hope my greed doesn't trigger a landslide or drought for the population of this world…" He paused. "…Assuming there is a population."
Earlier today, he had climbed one of the tallest trees nearby. As far as he could see stretched endless treetops, dense foliage, and a massive mountain range far along the horizon.
No signs of civilization. No human activity whatsoever.
He clapped his hands once.
"Entering Phase Two — Capitalism Meets Deforestation!"
• × • × • × •
Nathan resumed work with renewed motivation.
Trees vanished one after another.
"Store."
"Store!"
"Store!!"
The clearing expanded rapidly.
What had once been a thirty by thirty meter area gradually widened into a roughly fifty by fifty meter (54 × 54 yd) open field.
An entire section of forest simply ceased to exist. Birds circled overhead in what felt suspiciously like some form of environmental protests.
Nathan placed his hands on his hips proudly.
"Isekai method of logging is kinda scary."
He opened his inventory.
[Wood — 220 m³]
His eyebrows rose.
"Okay, honestly… I might've gone overboard, just a little — considering I almost emptied my entire stock on that improvised fortress just earlier."
He noticed the sun lowering and checked the system clock.
[04:03 PM]
His stomach tightened.
Less than two hours remained before rumored monster spawning began.
"…Right." reality settled in quietly. "I can make more money later. Survival comes first."
Nathan returned to the fortress and placed the ladder back inside the imposing wall.
Zombie-resistant… Maybe… Probably…
Hopefully…
He reopened the shop.
"Sell one hundred cubic meters of wood."
The system processed instantly.
[+300 SC]
His balance updated.
[SC: 400]
Nathan inhaled sharply.
"We're rich, boys!"
A pause.
"Well… for now."
He immediately navigated back to Weapon Tuning.
The pistol illustration appeared again.
His attention locked onto the option that had captured him from the beginning.
[Suppressor Upgrade
• Reduces firing sound, muzzle flash, and recoil.
• Increases optimal combat range.]
[Cost: 300 SC]
Nathan's eyes shone.
Why suppressor you ask?
Because suppressors were cool!
Because stealth was cool.
Because he vividly remembered that one scene from J*hn Wick where two assassins casually shot at each other among oblivious civilians.
He imagined himself calmly firing through hordes of zombies.
*Phew.*
*Phew.*
*Phew.*
Zombies dropping one by one without knowing what hit them.
Nathan nodded approvingly, grinning like an idiot. "Gwehehe…"
No hesitation.
No financial planning.
No long-term consideration.
A confirmation window appeared.
[Proceed with Suppressor Upgrade?]
[Yes] [No]
He selected Yes without blinking.
The system chimed softly.
[Lv.1 Suppressor Added
• Reduces firing sound, muzzle flash, and recoil.
• Increases optimal combat range.]
A sleek cylindrical suppressor appeared on the pistol illustration.
Nathan's grin stretched wide — slightly sloppy, but entirely genuine.
He retrieved the pistol from storage. It materialized in his grip, now fitted with the dark suppressor.
"Hohoho… how beautiful."
He rotated it slowly, admiring the weapon like a collector studying museum-worthy art.
Excitement bubbled inside him.
A lifelong fantasy felt within reach.
I'm going to shoot zombies, he thought.
He always wanted to be the calm, capable survivor.
Something akin to a protagonist.
The one who survives every odds.
Unbeknownst to him—
He had not yet learned the most important difference.
The difference between fantasy…
…and reality.