Morning sunlight began to slip through the leaves, warming a world still damp with night dew.

Beneath a shady tree, Ren's body lay curled up.

He slept hugging himself, like a kitten seeking warmth in the cold dawn air.

A gentle morning breeze played with the strands of his messy black hair.

His eyelids slowly opened, revealing tired, red-tinged eyes.

Dark circles hung heavily beneath them, making him look like a panda coming home from a night shift.

He groaned softly, stretching as he wiped his face with one hand.

“Ugh... I didn’t sleep well at all… it was freezing,” he muttered hoarsely.

His body still felt stiff and slightly shivering, as if the night’s chill had clung to his skin.

He sat up, leaning against the tree trunk, pulling his knees to his chest while watching the morning light reflect off the sea.

Though his body hadn’t fully recovered, he knew—a new day had begun.

This strange world wouldn’t show mercy to anyone.

Ren ate the leftover food he had: a piece of dry bread and a sip of water from last night’s bottle.

It didn’t fill his stomach, but at least it was enough to stave off the hunger for a while.

He stood up slowly, stretching his cramped limbs after sleeping curled up all night.

Ren opened his system panel and tapped on the Main Menu.

With a single finger press, he selected the option:

[Regional Chat]

A new panel immediately appeared, and rows of messages from others scrolled by rapidly.

The texts flowed fast, full of complaints, confusion, and fear.

[User043]: “It was so cold last night, I swear I almost froze to death.”

[User0178]: “Can’t you make a fire? Pathetic.”

[User067]: “Hey, don’t you guys ever pick up the floating trash in the ocean? I found a blanket in a wooden barrel!”

[User0008]: “Damn! You got a blanket? I only found some dude’s underwear in mine!”

[Usser221]: “What are you guys even talking about? Picking up trash from the ocean? Why?!”

Ren read through them, eyebrows furrowed.

There was a strange sense of relief—he wasn’t the only one who had suffered through the freezing night.

At the same time, he felt a twinge of envy toward the lucky guy who found a blanket.

But something more serious also stood out: if everyone was already this desperate on Day Two,

how long could they survive?

Thinking about it, Ren just shook his head.

“I shouldn’t worry about others. I should focus on myself.”

As Ren stood to check on his automatic trash collector by the beach,

a mysterious white panel suddenly appeared—

completely different from the black stone system panel.

[Congratulations to the Host for surviving Day 1]

[Host has earned 1 Upgrade Point!]

Ren stared at the words, eyes widening.

“...Host?” he muttered.

This panel felt different. Not from the central black stone on the island.

He didn’t rush to find out its full purpose.

Instead, with some hesitation, he checked both Regional and Global Chat again, scanning messages.

Had anyone else experienced something like this?

After a while of digging, Ren found no mention of any other mysterious panel.

Only more whining, frustration, and hopeless talk.

At that moment, Ren came to a quiet realization.

“Is it just me? Is this... a cheat?”

He had wild guesses forming in his head, but none solid enough to confirm.

After thinking for a while, he let out a sigh.

“I’m overthinking it. Right now, what matters most is surviving... and improving my living conditions.”

With slow steps, Ren walked to his trash collector by the beach.

There were some resources caught in the net:

Wood pieces (+4)

Plastic bottles (+7)

Plant fibers (+5)

Wooden barrel (+1)

The corner of Ren’s mouth twitched. Honestly, the result wasn’t worth the resources he invested.

Luckily, the wooden barrel somewhat made up for it.

Usually, these barrels contained random items—some useful, some utterly useless.

If unlucky, someone might only get a broken watch.

If lucky, maybe food or something precious.

It was all up to luck.

Curious, Ren opened the wooden barrel and found:

Blueprint: Chair (1/3)

Plastic bottles (+3)

Plant fibers (+8)

Frankly, Ren felt a bit unlucky.

With no better options, he opened his Inventory and pulled out his Fishing Rod.

It was back to being a trash fisherman in order to survive another day.

But as soon as he grabbed the rod, a new white message flickered in the air:

[Crude Fishing Rod – requires 1 Upgrade Point to enhance]

[Would the Host like to upgrade?]

[Y/N]

Seeing this, Ren blinked in surprise.

He squinted slightly, hesitating—but curiosity won over.

He pressed Yes.

The moment he did, the fishing rod in his hand began to glow with a white light.

Gradually, as the light faded, the rod had completely changed.

It used to be a piece of scrap metal tied to a stick with rough plant string.

Rust covered its surface, and using it always made Ren’s hand itch or bleed from the sharp metal edges.

It felt like a broken toy forced into the role of a survival tool.

But now...

The fishing rod looked solid and clean.

There was no more annoying rust on the hook.

The previously bent and wobbly shaft now stood straight and firm.

The line looked more flexible and durable—not easily tangled like before.

“Whoa… now this is a real fishing rod,” Ren whispered, staring at it in disbelief.

He gave it a small swing, feeling the improved balance and weight.

It still wasn’t professional-grade, but the difference was like a plastic spoon vs a steel one.

“If it’s like this, catching things should be a lot easier, right?”

A small smile formed on his face—for the first time that morning.

But then, his eyes shifted back to the mysterious panel still hovering.

[Upgrade Points: 0]

Now Ren understood what the white panel's upgrade points were for.

But the question remained: how to earn more?

All he knew so far was that one point had come from simply surviving.

He stared at the glowing panel, murmuring softly:

"What... are you, really?"

......

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