In the Bathroom

  Jason Williams leaned back into the bathtub, eyes closed in blissful relaxation. The hot water washed away the grime and lingering scent of violence from the Escape World.

  "Oh, right, my Dungeon rewards."

  He reached for his system interface, still half-submerged in the water, and claimed his spoils.

  Second place on the leaderboard earned him six E-Rank Attribute Orbs, one D-Rank Orb, and a 2-Star Equipment piece.

  Jason had a surplus of Attribute Orbs, so he was most interested in the equipment. 1-Star gear offered D-Rank stat boosts, so 2-Star items likely provided C-Rank enhancements. He was eager to see what the system had in store.

  A pair of boots that increased speed would be a godsend, potentially pushing his D+ Speed to C-. Or maybe a sharper weapon, as his current Wooden Spear was becoming increasingly inadequate.

  The rewards materialized: seven shimmering orbs and a black hoodie.

  "A hoodie?"

  A wave of disappointment washed over him. Not a weapon, not boots.

  [Hoodie] 2-Star Equipment: Enhances Constitution and provides moderate defensive capabilities.

  The hoodie's properties were underwhelming. It would boost his Constitution to D+, but he needed something more. Still, his current clothes were bloodstained, so it was worth it to change.

  He absorbed the D-Rank Attribute Orb, channeling it into his Spirit. The remaining six E-Rank Orbs went to Kira, who was just finishing her shower and settling into the tub. With the orbs, her stats will reach E+ Rank.

  Currently Jason’s stats are at D Rank

  Name: Jason Williams

  Strength: D-Rank

  Speed: D+ Rank

  Constitution: D- Rank

  Spirit: D- Rank

  Skills: None

  Escape Coins: 12062

  Overall Rating: D-Rank

  Just as Jason was reviewing his stats, Ellie sent him a friend request. He had forgotten to add her. He accepted, and she immediately sent a gift. A book appeared in his hand.

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  "A Skill Book?"

  [Shadow Clone]: Summons a physical clone with equal stats at the cost of large amounts of Spirit and Stamina.

  Note: The Shadow Clone shares consciousness, making it difficult to control.

  Jason's eyes lit up. This was perfect for him. His advantage was his high stats. A clone with equal strength would be a force to be reckoned with. The only downside was the difficulty of controlling it. He'd need to be able to multitask.

  He decided to message Ellie before learning the skill.

  "Hey, Jason, the Shadow Clone skill takes a lot of Spirit. It's not a good fit for me, so I figured you could use it." Ellie's powers revolved around controlling swarms of bees. If she used a skill that drained her Spirit, the swarms would become uncontrollable.

  Jason didn't hesitate to ask her about the 2-Star gear she got. She revealed it was a necklace that boosted Spirit and provided some protection against mental attacks. Jason didn't ask for it. If it had been a melee weapon, he would have taken it, but a Spirit necklace was better off with Ellie.

  "Learn the Shadow Clone skill already, and see if you can send the clone over to keep me company through the system."

  Jason was stunned. He never thought of using the clone like that. It was a crazy idea, but it made sense. The system couldn't transfer living things, but the clone wasn't alive. It was just a manifestation of Spirit and Stamina.

  Jason immediately learned the Shadow Clone skill. As the skill book vanished, he gained the new ability. He focused, channeling his Stamina and Spirit. They began to drain rapidly. The rate of depletion determined how long the clone could last, but it would cost him at least half his reserves. He could only summon one clone. Summoning two would leave him unconscious. Unless he had some potions to replenish his reserves, he was stuck with one.

  Suddenly, a dark figure materialized in the tub. Kira, who had been relaxing nearby, screamed and dove for cover.

  "Ah!"

  In the kitchen, Chloe, Ellie and Jenna were chatting and cooking when they heard the scream. They looked at each other, worried.

  "What was that?" Ellie and Jenna looked nervous.

  Chloe quickly shook off the nasty images in her head, grabbed two glasses, and began to fill with some ice-cold orange juice to Ellie.

  "Ellie, you’re not really helping in the kitchen, take these to them and see what is going on in the bathroom."

  Ellie thinking she was being helpful, grabbed two glasses of ice-cold orange juice and ran over to the bathroom.

  Back in the bathroom

  Jason Williams explained to Kira what had happened, which made Kira breath a sigh of relief.

  The Shadow Clone was just a product of Jason’s stamina and spirit, in essence, it isn’t really a living creature.

  Jason looked at his shadow clone carefully, the shadow clone was condensed into one form, it had the basic features, but no one could tell who it was.

  Having one consciousness controlling two bodies, made Jason feel very uncomfortable.

  Jason could not control both bodies, so he just let his main body close its eyes, and let his consciousness take control of the shadow clone.

  Afterwards, Jason tried giving the shadow clone to Ellie.

  Shockingly, it worked!

  Jason scratched his head, right when he was about to move the consciousness to the shadow clone, the bathroom door suddenly opened.

  Creak

  Ellie poked half of her head in, sneakily observing what had happened in the bathroom.

  “Ellie, what are you peeking at?”

  Jason and Kira looked at the door speechlessly.

  Ellie’s pigtails were obviously outside of the door, it was hard to not notice.

  “Umm… I am here to bring some orange juice” Ellie said as she rushed into the bathroom, placed two glasses of orange juice in front of them, and ran back into the kitchen.

  Jason and Kira looked at each other and laughed

  Sometimes Ellie can be really cute.

  After Ellie left, Jason told Kira to take care of his main body, and to make sure he doesn’t drown in the bathtub, and then he transferred the consciousness to the shadow clone…