As I was running for

  my life, I tried to open the box icon containing my Afterlife

  Achievements, looking for anything that offered me a useful reward.

  Instead, it flashed me the following message:

  [You cannot open the achievement menu nor can you claim achievements during an combat encounter.]

  "What the fuck! Why does this world have this rule?" This was

  ridiculous. I wasn’t some warrior or athlete—I was average at best. And

  if goblins were the first thing this "Wave" had to offer, then it meant

  they were the weakest of what's to come. They were small, sure. I could

  probably kick one of their heads across the street if I got the chance

  to do so, but I was more likely to get stabbed by their rust-covered

  blades and die from tetanus infection. I wasn't taking that chance.

  I also had no clue how long I’d been running. Three minutes? Five?

  All I knew was that my legs were starting to feel heavy. On the other

  hand, those crazed green bastards weren't showing any signs of

  exhaustion.

  As I was running, I saw a metal fire escape ladder attached to one of

  the apartment buildings a few buildings away from me. It didn't go all

  the way down, which meant that if I timed it right, one good leap could

  send me up that ladder while the other goblins could go fuck themselves.

  But when I got closer, the bottom bar of the ladder was higher than I’d

  expected. Too high for a standing jump.

  I had no other option but to try. I locked my eyes on the wall,

  gritted my teeth, and poured everything I had into a sprint. The moment I

  hit the building, I planted a foot against the wall and kicked off,

  pushing myself upward with all the momentum I’d built. That first push

  off the wall propelled me upwards. Then, I pulled off a second step to

  further push me up. My fingers shot out, stretching for the ladder.

  And I caught it. Barely.

  My grip slipped for a second before I tightened my hold. I scrambled

  up, feet scraping the wall, pulling myself up the ladder until I got

  both hands firmly around the next rung. I kept climbing without

  stopping. When I took a peek down, the goblins below were desperately

  trying to pull off that move I just did, but they idiotically ended up

  smashing their faces on the wall. Some threw their knives and clubs to

  no avail as the metal cage around the ladder guarded me from it.

  Eventually, I hauled myself over the ledge and rolled onto the

  rooftop of the five-story building. I laid there for a moment, chest

  heaving, sweat dripping off my forehead.

  I was safe... for now.

  [EVENT: Wave Tutorial (1/5)]

  0:31:33 Remaining

  0/25 Monsters Killed

  Almost half an hour has passed since I last escaped the goblins. I

  was still lying across the cemented rooftop, staring at the transparent

  purple dome that enclosed this entire area. I wanted to move but every

  time I even thought about going back down to complete my quest, my legs

  threatened to give out. My experience in that void struck a number on

  me. For once, I felt truly afraid of dying.

  I don’t want to die again.

  Contrary to that thought, I kept telling myself. Nothing ever seemed to work out for me. What difference will it make if I try?

  The timer at the top of my vision kept ticking. I didn’t need the rules to know what that timer meant.

  If I don’t kill 25 monsters before it hits zero, I’m dead anyway.

  I sat up. The apartment rooftop was overlooking nearly the entire city, and I was bewildered at the sight that beheld me.

  There were dozens of enclosed domes stretching across the city. If

  people had partied up during the introductory phase, then it was

  entirely possible that they were on the other domes outside here. It was

  also entirely possible I was the only person inside this dome.

  I have to do this alone.

  I took a deep breath. I needed to calm down. Too much had happened

  too fast—from dying, to being transported to this world then this

  encountering these goblins... I was barely keeping it together. The pain

  in my bitten tongue was still there, the faint taste of blood grounding

  me just enough to keep the adrenaline pumping.

  Stop pushing yourself down, Devon. Focus on what you have now.

  Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

  I leaned against the metal railing and pulled out my inbox full of my

  Afterlife Achievements. If I was going to survive this Wave Tutorial, I

  needed anything that could help.

  [Afterlife Achievement unlocked: (A-Tier) Thievery]

  You stole at least a single item

  from a parent, relative, business, or a friend. Shame on you. I love

  people like that in this world!

  Reward: +1 conversation starter.

  [Afterlife Achievement unlocked: (A-Tier) Workaholic Drunkard]

  You went to work hungover and your

  boss never noticed it. You might be a really adaptable drunkard or your

  boss is blind as fuck. If they were actually blind or in any way disabled, or if you were the fat-ass boss in question, I refuse to apologize.

  Reward: +1 unpaid day off.

  The System’s descriptions were... something else. Occasionally witty,

  but mostly annoying and straight-up cringey. Honestly, I had every

  reason to stop reading and just mass-claim the whole inbox.

  I hate whoever wrote these descriptions,

  I sighed. And yet, some of them made me chuckle. Not because they were

  funny, but because they dragged up pieces of my past I hadn’t thought

  about in years.

  Like the time I stole a pack of canned food. Twelve dollars, just a

  few tins to get me through the next three days until payday. It wasn’t

  out of greed, you know. I was starving. The choice back then was simple:

  steal and show up to work looking slightly less like a walking corpse,

  or don’t eat, get sick, and lose the job altogether.

  Each of these achievements all told me something about me and my

  life. While it was surprising that the System managed to discover my

  past, remembering those tiny moments comforted me with nostalgia. I

  almost felt grateful to the System... if it hadn’t dropped me into this

  survival death game.

  Once I got past the mostly useless achievements, only four

  achievements were left unclaimed in my inbox. I inspected them

  one-by-one.

  [Achievement unlocked: (C-Tier) Above Average IQ]

  At your prime body of twenty years

  old, the system automatically performed a standardized test for IQ and

  you are, on average, smarter than 80 people in a room with 100 people in

  it.

  You don't need any more intelligence, babe. But if you really do insist, then...

  Random Reward: (B-Tier Item) Ammonium Nitrate Cube

  Reward: (C-Tier Skill) Overpower

  "I don't believe I'm that smart..." I muttered. From how the System

  computed my stats, I got a base INT stat of ten. I had to admit that it

  was pretty high compared to my other stats.

  [Achievement unlocked: (C-Tier) Wizard]

  30-year-old-plus virgins do turn

  into a wizard! This is intended to make fun of you, but the GREED System

  regrettably does not understand Earth humor.

  Reward: +2 to all stats.

  Reward: (A-Tier Skill) Conjure Fireball

  Reward: (B-Tier Potion) Potion of Lesser Healing

  I groaned. The flavor text was pure garbage, but this achievement was actually useful. My first offensive skill, finally!

  The +2 to all stats was a nice bonus too. The tiering felt off, though.

  Why was the skill only an A-Tier when the achievement itself was

  C-Tier? Maybe the stat boosts were the main reward.

  I shoved that question aside for now, because the next one paled in comparison from the others.

  [Achievement Unlocked: (V-Tier) Sacrificial Angel]

  You successfully sacrificed

  yourself for someone without obligation. You didn't die as a police

  officer shielding someone from gunfire, or a firefighter getting trapped

  in a burning house. You just thought, "I'll save them." and you did so

  without hesitation. Well done.

  Reward: +3 to all stats.

  Reward: (V-Tier Skill) Forced Casting

  Reward: (V-Tier Artifact) Angelic Halo Bracelet

  I stared at the achievement panel. You successfully sacrificed yourself for someone without obligation. Well done.

  My mind went back to the time I saw that kid’s horrified face,

  staring at my half-dead body. I exhaled, “I hope he’s okay. Along with

  Harvey.”

  I wore the V-Tier Artifact into my hand and opened its informational panel.

  [(V-Tier Artifact) Angelic Halo Bracelet]

  (Indestructible) This item cannot be destroyed.

  When inflicted by a lethal attack,

  that attack will not hit and instead be deflected onto the attacker.

  The wearer is healed to full health and all negative status effects are

  removed. Afterwards, this item will be destroyed regardless of its

  modifiers.

  Forged from a thousand fragments

  of angelic beasts, this bracelet (not a bangle—fuck you if you say

  otherwise) grants its wearer a moment to reflect on their stupidity:

  namely, getting themselves killed.

  Much to the System's insistence of this item being a bracelet, this

  V-Tier artifact looked like a thin, featureless bangle, made with what

  felt ceramic. Smooth and glossy to the touch, its surface shimmered like

  space dust glinting off concrete at just the right angle. This item

  essentially gave me an extra life. What an appropriate reward for my

  achievement.

  A life for a life, I thought. This System was twisted beyond reason, but it at least understood good karma.

  There was still one last achievement left to claim. Now that I was

  past the V-Tiers, I figured whatever came next should be completely

  overpowered. I hoped it was something that was much better than my

  extra-life bangle—enough to let me cruise through the rest of this city

  and the world outside.

  I scrolled down…

  And my smile faded.

  [Achievement Unlocked: (Z-Tier) Soulbound]

  Holy gods, you managed to enter into a Soulbound Contract. Is whatever you're doing worth it?

  That was it. There were no rewards this time, not even a comeback or a

  witty remark. Just a question that felt more ominous than it was

  rhetorical. I repeated the last sentence of the panel in my mind.

  Is whatever you're doing worth it?