Today started with two of my neighbors coming over and sharing their food with my family. Since there were only three of us in the house, the food they gave us was too much to eat in a single sitting.

  Please come again, my kind food source!

  Of course, we accepted their gift with appreciation and a smile—who in their right mind would refuse such a thoughtful offering?

  In the news that day, reports of dungeons spilling out their monsters had increased. Now, there were monsters in nearly every part of the cities and villages across the country.

  On a global scale, the population of animals and monsters had become nearly equal. It felt like the world was suddenly filled with creatures instead of humans. This was due to uncleared dungeons located in the ocean or on uninhabited islands, where monsters had begun to escape and spread into empty spaces.

  Back to me.

  After yesterday’s events, I realized that I still had a lot to learn before I could call myself strong.

  That hit to the back of my head made me realize that I was still a fragile human—not some overpowered fire lord.

  That’s why I decided to start learning martial arts from the videos I downloaded a few days ago.

  At first, I tried to replicate the moves as best as I could. I practiced for about two hours, and I thought I did pretty well. The problem was that the mission to learn a new skill hadn’t triggered again, which meant I hadn’t actually learned a new skill or figured out the right way to do it.

  But if that was the case, why was it so easy to learn magic-based skills before? Were those skills an exception? Or was I missing something?

  After a break for lunch and a few quick mobile games, I tried learning martial arts again. I kept training and training until I was exhausted—but still, I didn’t get the skill.

  Later that night, I lay in bed thinking about what I had done wrong. I had copied the moves as best as I could. I even slowed the video down to replicate the movements in detail, but I still got nothing.

  There had to be something I was missing.

  Today's news is quite concerning if I have to say.

  The government has declared that our nation is no longer safe, and military personnel are not enough to protect everyone everywhere. Because of this, the government has decided to call on everyone living outside major cities to relocate for their safety.

  Regional governments have also been ordered to establish secure borders around the cities to ensure that no hostile monsters can enter. This means that military forces across the nation will now be concentrated in several major cities instead of being spread out evenly for protection.

  It has been almost a month since everyone received the system, and the world has changed for the worse.

  To make matters even worse, my mother’s condition hasn’t improved much since she passed out two days ago while healing my injury. I can only assume it’s because she used too much Mana, draining every last bit of it.

  Unfortunately, since her condition is caused by something completely new, we can’t expect doctors or any medical personnel to help. All we can do is wait and hope for the best.

  My father is the one most affected by my mother’s condition. He seems to blame himself and chooses to stay by her side almost every moment, tending to her and whispering words of love and care all day long.

  I can only see this as a sign of true love—and be grateful for it.

  *****

  Today, I continued my training but with a different approach.

  Instead of focusing on replicating the moves from the video, I shifted my focus to understanding each movement I performed.

  I decided on this approach because it reminded me of how I tried to meditate in the past. The concept of meditation and energy circulation had been something I had thought about for years—back when my mind was more active and filled with fantasies.

  This meant that I already had some understanding of meditation and Mana, even before the system came to me.

  Following that same logic, for the system to register martial arts as a skill, I needed to truly understand martial arts and its movements—not just copy them.

  That led me to another question: how could I deepen my understanding of these moves?

  To find the answer, I decided to go back to how I used to think when I was obsessed with cartoons.

  I picked a few simple punching techniques and attempted to perform them to shoot fire from my fists—just like in the cartoons.

  At first, I simply imagined fire bursting from my punches as I executed the moves. However, after several attempts, I started to notice inconsistencies. It felt like these movements were meant to follow a proper sequence rather than being thrown randomly.

  I paused my training for a few minutes to think and plan out the sequences, but for some reason, my ideas stopped flowing the moment I rested. So, I decided to keep training while thinking.

  As I repeated the punching movements over and over, I began to understand how they should connect. Gradually, I built a fluid sequence of punches—as fluid as I could make them, at least.

  Using the same method, I worked on my kicking techniques until I had two complete sets of moves: one for punches and one for kicks.

  By the time I had finished putting everything together, I realized the day was already ending, and I needed some rest before I could perfect my techniques.

  In the meantime, I had dinner and went to bed early—my body was sore from all the training.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  Today's news reports describe several large cities constructing wire walls to keep monsters away. At the same time, the military is battling monsters that are trying to breach the barriers or cause chaos within the cities.

  Meanwhile, some disgusting, power-hungry humans have taken advantage of the situation to declare their control over certain areas. These people mostly claim empty land to establish their so-called "benevolent kingdoms," but anyone watching the news knows they’re just thugs who have found a new place to serve their own selfish interests.

  Back to me again.

  Today, I spent the entire afternoon and evening training.

  I worked on combining the punching and kicking techniques I developed to create a more complete martial art.

  The real trouble began when I was about to have dinner with my father.

  Some of our neighbors started shouting for us from outside as if a natural disaster was happening right below our house. Both of us rushed out to calm them down, but the moment we saw what they were talking about, my father immediately ran back inside to protect my mother.

  I, on the other hand, could only laugh in excitement.

  Our house was currently being invaded by demonic fireballs—floating flames with twisted, grinning faces that could shoot fire. The people of old called them Banaspati, demonic fire spirits.

  What made me laugh was the fact that these monsters had no idea who they were attacking.

  About ten Banaspati were hovering above my house, and as I laughed like a maniac, they began gathering magical energy inside their bodies, preparing to unleash their fire attacks.

  I spread my Fire Manipulation skill outward, covering all the Banaspati. The moment they shot their fire, I took control of it, gathering it into a single point.

  Now, the question was—where should I store all this fire?

  Then, I remembered the red stone I had obtained from the Lava Snail dungeon. Quickly, I ran to my room while maintaining my control over the flames. Once I returned, I gathered all the fire and funneled it into the red stone.

  As the flames entered the stone, my Fire Manipulation skill reacted, and I could feel the fire now stored inside. There were now two distinct types of fire within the stone—the demonic fire from the Banaspati and the monster fire from the Lava Snail.

  The Banaspati growled in excitement the moment they saw the red stone in my hand. Their faces no longer looked ghostly; instead, they resembled ravenous beasts. Was this stone the reason they had come here in the first place?

  With eerie howls, the Banaspati charged at me, desperate to snatch the red stone away.

  Unfortunately for them, I still had my Fire Manipulation skill active. Without hesitation, I took control of their demonic fire, pulling it straight out of their bodies.

  As expected, the demonic fire instantly left their forms, leaving behind nothing but empty skeletal husks that quickly turned to dust. I gathered the flames into the red stone and placed my hand over it, trying to feel the energy within.

  Now, two nearly equal amounts of fire resided inside the red stone—demonic fire and monster fire. The two flames didn’t mix, nor did they oppose each other. They simply coexisted, side by side.

  Out of curiosity, I summoned my own fire and placed it inside the red stone to see what would happen.

  To my surprise, my fire entered smoothly and settled between the monster fire and demonic fire, as if it had its own designated space. The three flames refused to merge, behaving more like oil and water inside a glass rather than fire.

  I spent the rest of the night playing with the red stone—pulling the flames in and out as if it were some kind of puzzle box. No matter how many times I tried, the three types of fire refused to blend, each remaining distinct.

  As exhaustion overtook me, I set the red stone aside, my mind drifting with one final thought—what should I do with this fire?

  Could I eat it?

  Would that even be safe?

  Today’s big news is about someone named Claire Winmaker, who has created an organization called Item Master. This group focuses on discovering, analyzing, and sharing information about magical items found when people kill monsters.

  In the news, she revealed several items she has already uncovered. One of them is called Basic Sword, a simple blade infused with a small amount of magical energy. Another is the Ring of Power, which grants its wearer an increase in Strength.

  Claire Winmaker is inviting others with similar skills to join her organization, promising a good working environment and competitive salaries. It seems like the job market is finally starting to change, adapting to the new system that has taken over the world.

  Today, my mother finally woke up, and she looked like a mess. The last thing she remembered was me getting hit from behind with a pole, and she immediately assumed the attackers were still around.

  It took my father an hour to calm her down before she could finally sort out her thoughts. Afterward, he helped her take a bath and freshen up. When she finally appeared in the kitchen, she looked much better—clean, refreshed, and beautiful as always.

  Speaking of my parents, they both chose support-type skills when the system arrived. My mother took Healing, but she hasn’t explored her abilities much.

  My father, on the other hand, chose a skill called Soothing Voice. This ability allows him to calm people just by speaking, easing their minds and even lulling them into a near-sleep state. He said he liked the skill because it made his already "magnificent" voice even more impactful.

  I know he used to be a singer in his youth, but with a skill like that, I can’t help but think he’d make a great evil hypnotist.

  I encouraged my parents to explore their skills further—to be creative and find ways to strengthen them. But when they asked me how to do that, I simply shut my mouth and walked back to my room, ignoring their angry stares.

  Today, I decided to spend some time outside. It had been a while since I left home, and with the world changing so rapidly, I wanted to see what had—and hadn’t—changed.

  The first place I visited was my old school, where I cleared my first dungeon. The school was now completely abandoned, but when I peeked through the gate, I saw a lot of people inside. Some looked like students, but many were random individuals carrying weapons. A few of them even wore pieces of armor, similar to those seen in fantasy games and movies.

  It seemed like the school had transformed into a battle training ground.

  Leaving the school behind, I headed to the clearing where I first tested my skills. When I arrived, I saw that people had already repurposed the area into some kind of fortress. Tall walls now surrounded the clearing, with several dozen houses built inside. Guards stood on the walls, aiming their hands outward as if preparing to fire energy blasts.

  I guess some of them do have skills like Energy Blast.

  After that, I made my way to another location—a train station about two hours away.

  This train station used to be the busiest place in the city since trains were the primary mode of public transportation, especially for those working in nearby cities.

  Now, it was abandoned.

  Trains sat lifeless on the tracks, most of them severely damaged—likely from monster attacks. I hadn’t heard anything about this in the news, but judging by the claw marks and dents on the train bodies, the destruction had clearly been caused by monsters.

  I entered the station and wandered around, reminiscing about the times I used to commute to work. It had always been hectic and uncomfortable, but somehow, I found myself missing it.

  Eventually, I went to the platform and examined one of the wrecked trains up close. Inside, there were traces of blood and gore, but no bodies remained. This meant that whatever happened inside had been cleaned up before the train was abandoned.

  I sat on one of the dusty old seats, letting the memories wash over me.

  For about an hour, I just stared at the empty seat across from me, lost in thought.

  Then, I got up and left the station.

  As I walked away, I heard the distant roars of monsters echoing from the far end of the station. It was likely a group of creatures that had claimed the area as their nest.

  Not wanting to start an unnecessary battle, I picked up my pace and left as quickly as possible.

  Two hours later, I returned home, a little tired but mostly satisfied.

  The world has changed drastically, and I can only hope that most people have managed to survive.

  Otherwise, things will become far too quiet.