I crept down the steps as softly as I could, though I doubt they could hear me even if I ran. From all the noise I was hearing, it sounded like they were arguing, and at times fighting. Goblins fighting amongst themselves could only be a good thing, except there were so many. It sounded like there were at least a dozen of them shouting and squealing below.

Skill Improved: Sneak Sneak has reached level 4

I made it to the 40th floor, and I peered over the edge and saw a goblin leaning over the railing two floors below. If he was with the group, they were all on floor 38, just a single floor above my home. I stayed and listened for a while, hoping they would leave.

Skill Improved: Stealth Stealth has reached level 2

I tried to come up with a plan that included both getting to my new soft bed tonight and me not dying, but it seemed hopeless. There were far too many of the beasts below me. I had thought there were a dozen, but at times I heard more voices than that shouting, and still, there was usually one or two goblins standing about quietly by the railing. I figured there were at least twenty, which was far beyond my ability to handle even on a good day, but today wasn’t a good day.

I felt more exhausted than I was after a full 72-hour gaming marathon. Running and then walking up these stairs had completely drained me. I was terrified. I had always been the aggressor, I had always chosen my battles, and the path back to my room had always been clear if I needed to retreat. I was trapped, with an insurmountable enemy between myself and safety.

I had considered creeping through the floor right next to me, but if I ran into a pair or even a lone goblin, I would be in trouble. The only way to go was up. Up above, there were fewer signs of goblins in the stairwell. As long as that meant there were fewer goblins on those floors, I would have a chance.

Somehow, that first step up the flight of stairs to floor 41 felt harder than all the steps before it combined, but what I had to do was clear. I could either collapse here and wait for one of those goblins to wander up and find me, or I could get myself up higher than the goblins lived.

I trudged up the stairs, slowly but steadily. I was utterly spent, but if I stopped, I knew I wouldn't be able to get up again, and I would die. The only break I allowed myself was to lock each door as I passed it.

Base Stat Improved: Endurance Base Endurance has reached level 5

I couldn’t even bring myself to be happy with my progress. Running up here and exhausting myself was the dumbest thing I had done since I got here, but now that I had already screwed up, I might as well lock the doors behind me in case I actually survive. I just had to get higher. No matter what, I had to get higher. As I passed floor 48, even thinking was too much effort to manage. I was a zombie, walking higher and higher. 49, locked. Higher. 50, locked. Higher. 51, locked. Higher. 52, locked. Higher. 53, locked. Higher. 54… and that was as high as I could go. I opened the door, locked it, and collapsed against the door.

My legs were completely numb, and I hated myself for not exercising more before the apocalypse. I was gasping for air and dripping with sweat. I had managed the fights alright because none of them lasted for very long. They were all decisive and quick. I surprised them and butchered them in seconds. Even in my biggest fight, I surprised a few that put up no resistance, chucked a few spears, and then had a face to face engagement that only lasted for a single blow.

As the minutes passed, my breathing began to settle, although my body was still utterly exhausted. I started to look around and spotted a single eye and a bit of green staring at me from around the corner of the hallway to my left. I was being watched by a goblin. I locked eyes with the beast, and it didn’t move. It continued to stare at me silently.

I pulled one of my spears from my pack. I wasn’t ready to rise just yet, but at least now I could fend it off if it decided to attack. My options were limited. I didn’t have the strength to try another floor, my floor key would probably be completely useless here, and I had a goblin watching my every move, which meant there was most likely a pack on this floor as well. I pushed myself up by bracing against the stairwell door and then used my spear to support me like a walking stick.

I had one key that just might work. Luckily, I was on the right side of the building. I hobbled down the corridor towards the watching goblin, but it didn’t react in any way, even when I reached the door that was just 10 feet away from it. I kept my eyes locked on that single eye. Their eyes were a bit too large for their heads. Their pupils were far larger than a human’s, and this one’s pupil was surrounded by a thin ring of green. The beast was squinting in the light of the corridor but hadn’t even blinked once since I had first noticed it.

I fumbled with my keyring without looking down, and I thought I had the right key. It felt right, at least. I put it in, prayed, and turned the lock. It opened, and I slowly walked into the room without ever taking my gaze off the goblin. The instant I lost sight of it, I slammed the door shut, locked it, and sank to the floor.

I was in a perfect copy of the housekeeping supply room on floor 37. The only key I had that could have worked was the housekeeping key. I grabbed a bag of little white cleaning towels to use as a pillow and curled up against the door to brace it just in case something found a way to open it.

I had never felt more vulnerable or alone in my entire life than I did now. Even when my parents kicked me out of the house because they considered my gaming as “wasting my life,” I had friends I could stay with. Even when the literal apocalypse happened, I was still home. I could close my door, keep the blinds shut, and it was like nothing had changed. I had a soft bed, clean clothes, food, water, and electricity. Now, all I had were janitorial supplies and a whole lot of goblins between myself and my food stockpile.

It had seemed so simple. All I had to do was run up the stairs, lock all the doors, and go home and laugh while all the goblins were trapped. The goblins would run out of food on their floors, not be able to access new floors, and likely kill each other off so I wouldn’t have to. I had two months of food, and only half of my floor had been looted.

It was the sort of thing I would do in the game. I can’t even remember how many times I raced around enemy lines to complete an objective in the game. My main character had been a swordsman, and while it was not the fastest class, with the element of surprise on my side, it was an easy thing to simply run past all the enemies, drop poison in a well, burn the command tent, steal a flag, kill the commander, or whatever else was on the agenda. Most often, the rewards for such a dangerous quest or the impact of succeeding in a major campaign’s objective were well worth the death penalty. So while I would make every attempt to escape afterward… it didn’t really matter.

I got one special item that I could abuse to cripple my enemies, and I ran off like it was all a game. I nearly got myself killed today. If this housekeeping key hadn’t worked, there wasn’t anywhere I could have gone to sleep tonight where a goblin wouldn’t have found me. I got lucky this time, but this could never happen again.

After a few hours, I started to doze off. I had left my phone behind, and I had no idea what time it was. I fell asleep, cursing my stupidity, hoping I could make it back alive.