Chapter 6: Exclusive Bathroom

Chapter 6: Chapter 6: Exclusive Bathroom

But thankfully, not everyone was so short-sighted.

Seraphina Sinclair soon received a private message.

[Tired to Death]: You need charcoal, right? Food is precious right now, have you really thought this through? We can only open three Supply Boxes a day, and they mostly contain useless materials.

A warmth spread through Seraphina Sinclair’s chest. She sighed, thinking there were still good people out there after all.

The conscience she had just decided to extinguish reared its head again.

[Blacktiger Ford]: That’s right. What do you want?

She stared quietly at the chat box, waiting for the request from this seemingly understanding trading partner.

[Tired to Death]: I only have one piece of charcoal, and it’s a rare commodity right now. Seeing as you’re so sincere about wanting it, how about five bottles of mineral water and ten loaves of bread for one piece of charcoal?

And just like that, the flicker of conscience she’d felt moments ago was instantly extinguished.

Seraphina Sinclair frowned. ’Does this guy think I don’t know the market rates?’

’Even if charcoal is rare right now, what about the price of food? The price of a single loaf of bread is already through the roof!’

’It takes six portions of five basic materials each just to trade for one loaf of bread!’

’No matter how precious charcoal is, it’s definitely not worth that price!’

’Talk about a shameless rip-off.’

Irritated, Seraphina Sinclair closed the private chat window.

’What a buzzkill.’

Seraphina Sinclair sat on the floor. Only after her emotions calmed did she feel the pangs of hunger.

Right now, her food supply consisted of 13 bottles of 500ml mineral water, two compressed biscuits, and ten packages of bread.

Seraphina Sinclair unwrapped a loaf of bread and twisted open a bottle of mineral water, planning to make do for lunch.

The bread looked ordinary, but when she took a bite, the first thing she tasted was a surprisingly pure, milky flavor, followed by the delicate aroma of wheat.

Compared to the bread she had eaten in her previous life, this was countless times more delicious!

Her eyes widened instinctively. She carefully took another bite, and only after confirming it wasn’t her imagination did she frown in thought.

’This isn’t right.’

’What kind of survival game gives players such good food?’

’This doesn’t make any sense!’

Seraphina Sinclair opened the regional channel. It was currently mealtime, and quite a few people were complaining about the food.

"No offense, but this thing from the Supply Box... this is supposed to be bread?! THIS is bread?!"

"BLECH, is this bread made of sawdust? It’s scraping my throat raw! (Image)"

Seraphina Sinclair frowned and clicked on the image to take a closer look. The picture showed a piece of bread that was obviously dark and hard, completely different from the one in her hands.

’That’s so strange.’

She continued to scroll down.

"The guy above should count his blessings. The bread I got was covered in green mold! The system even had a note: ’Slightly spoiled. 30% chance of diarrhea after consumption’!"

"BLECH, seriously, does this thing even deserve to be called bread? I can’t take it anymore! At least your bread has some flour in it, right? Mine feels like chewing on rotten cotton that’s been soaked in seawater. It was so salty I had to chug half a bottle of water!"

"At least you guys can swallow yours. Mine is hard enough to be a brick! This is so fucking ridiculous. If I’d known, I would have traded for compressed biscuits this morning. They might not taste great, but at least you can swallow them! And they fill you up!"

"I suggest soaking it in water to soften it before eating. Don’t ask how I know... I’m in line for the public restroom now. There are 47 people ahead of me, and the system says my estimated wait time is a little over two hours. For those of you who aren’t picky, just find a bottle or a bag or something and take care of business in your room. When you’re done, just open the door and toss it out. There can’t be a penalty for throwing shit out here, right?"

’There’s a public restroom?’

Following the chatter on the regional channel, Seraphina Sinclair found the ’Restroom’ option inside her [Mobile Cabin].

She hesitated for a moment, intending to queue up. To her surprise, a confirmation pop-up appeared the moment she clicked it.

[Bind exclusive Mobile Cabin restroom to Bronze Door Card?]

’A perk like this actually exists?!’

She didn’t rush to click, reading it over again carefully.

After confirming there were no traps—and that this option was only available because her door card was bronze level—she pressed ’Confirm’, reassured.

[Bound.]

[Owner of Facility attached to Bronze Door Card No. 0082: Seraphina Sinclair]

A white light suddenly flashed before Seraphina Sinclair’s eyes. The next moment, she found herself in a fully tiled bathroom.

She was still holding the half-eaten piece of bread, but that was the last thing on her mind.

The bathroom’s decor was extremely simple. There was a sink and a toilet in the outer area, separated by a frosted glass partition. Seraphina Sinclair peeked around it and saw, to her surprise, a shower and a bathtub inside.

’This setup...’

’That Bronze Door Card must be my cheat item!’

Excitement surged through Seraphina Sinclair. Forgetting about her bread, she sealed the bag, stuffed it in her pocket, and decided to wash her hands and try out the facilities before finishing her meal.

She turned on the faucet with anticipation, only to hear a dry "CLICK... CLACK..." sound.

She leaned down to look at the spout but didn’t see a single drop of water.

A bad feeling welled up in Seraphina Sinclair’s heart. The next moment, a system pop-up confirmed her suspicions.

[Detection: Bathroom 0082 is not connected to the water supply. Please collect water and fill the storage tank manually.]

Only then did Seraphina Sinclair notice a translucent plastic tank under the sink, marked with measurement lines on the side. The water level was currently sitting pitifully at the "0L" mark.

Above the tank was a palm-sized inlet with a yellowed instruction sheet pasted next to it:

[Daily Basic Water Consumption: Toilet - 2L/use, Shower - 15L/use, Bathtub - 80L/use (Current Water Storage: 0/200L)]

’It starts at two liters a pop.’

"So the Bronze Door Card is just an entry ticket..." Seraphina Sinclair knocked on the water tank with a wry smile.

’Even though it’s more for show than for use right now, at least I have one.’

’Right?’

’Besides, as long as I can craft a water filter, I can collect rainwater. Using this bathroom is only a matter of time.’

Seraphina Sinclair quickly calmed herself.

’But speaking of which...’

She raised her head and carefully inspected every corner of the ceiling and every tile on the floor. After confirming that the entire place was tiled and equipped with an exhaust fan, a bold idea suddenly occurred to Seraphina Sinclair.

’I can’t burn charcoal in the Mobile Cabin, but I can do it here!’

Her eyes suddenly lit up. The bit of bread she’d eaten had eased her hunger. Burning charcoal would take a while, so she had to get started on it now!

No sooner said than done!

Seraphina Sinclair rolled up her sleeves, returned to the Mobile Cabin, and moved the stones over one by one, stacking them up to create an enclosed space.

Although the gaps between the stones were not small, it would definitely be much better than burning it directly in the open.

Worried the gaps were still too large, she went to the trading channel and exchanged one portion of Metal Fragments for two portions of Earth. She mixed the earth with water and plastered it over the stones. Seraphina Sinclair raised a hand to wipe the thin sheen of sweat from her forehead.

’I’m not tired, just nervous.’

She’d never done this in her past life; the closest she’d come was watching her grandmother do it when she was a child.