The Protectorate [LitRPG Apocalypse Empire Builder Book 2 complete]

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

When the Systems hit Earth, Ben was alone in the mountains. After becoming the first human to clear a dungeon, he was given the choice: seize power only for himself, or build a future for his family, his friends, his community. He chose the latter. But opportunity comes with obligations. Now, this former lumberjack, still recovering from a life-changing accident, must transform a remote logging camp into a thriving city, powered by dungeons and home to millions. He must lead, fight, and become one of the strongest on Earth—not for glory, but to protect the people who rely on him. Empire-building, dungeon crawling, and combat collide in this LitRPG apocalypse series with meaningful progression, slice-of-life moments, and a community worth fighting for. 150+ chapters written.Volume 1 & 2 complete. Volume 3 ongoing;Patreon20 chapters ahead! NOTICE: This is The Protectorate by @SKBwrites on RoyalRoad.com! If you’re reading this message on another website, my work has been reproduced without permission. Please support the original work on RoyalRoad, or on Patreon for advanced chapters. That's the best way to make sure this fiction continues.

Information

Status: Ongoing
Year: 2025
Author: SKBwrites

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.4/ 5.0
Followers: 1,489
Views: 377,715

Chapters(139 total)

What readers say about The Protectorate [LitRPG Apocalypse Empire Builder Book 2 complete]

“The story follows Ben and the community he founds through their growth under the new System. You get to see his personal growth and how that’s reflected in the growth of the settlement, its laws and norms. The author does a good job of chronicling what it w…”
November WoodRoyal Road5.0 / 5
“The story had a good mix of adventure, world-building, and settlement building. The pacing is strong, and the flow between the story threads works well. It also feels realistic without being too grim, which I appreciate. Some strong characters and dialogue,…”
Justin MarksRoyal Road5.0 / 5

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Community Reviews(10)

November WoodRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
The story follows Ben and the community he founds through their growth under the new System. You get to see his personal growth and how that’s reflected in the growth of the settlement, its laws and norms. The author does a good job of chronicling what it would be like to shape a new society like this, including politics, economics and infrastructure, not just food and shelter. A well-crafted universe with solid logic to the system.
Justin MarksRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
The story had a good mix of adventure, world-building, and settlement building. The pacing is strong, and the flow between the story threads works well. It also feels realistic without being too grim, which I appreciate. Some strong characters and dialogue, though there are enough people that it can get a bit rough to track everyone when reading each chapter as it's released. Overall, a strong story and a fun read.
Monroe7of9Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Seriously cool book. I love that the MC is vulnerable and yet fierce as freak. He protects those he loves and opens his world up to those who need a place to go after the system turns the world on its head. The dynamics of this story are really exciting and have so many possibilities.
Shard WitchRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I really enjoy this story so far. Ben is an ordinary guy, but his bravery and kindness shine through in every chapter. I love stories that highlight the decent side of humanity and show good people struggling through bad situations, and this one does exactly that. It genuinely gives me hope for humanity. The plot feels like it’s building toward something very intriguing, and I’m excited to see where the story goes next.
ThatHydeKidRoyal Road
★★★★ 4.0
This is a fun story I just started reading. It shows lots of promise and some characters that might actually have depth and reality. It will be good to see how it develops. Not everyone is an OP monster or hero, flaws a plenty but hopefully real people. Some develop, without too much boring detailed description.
Jana CarolRoyal Road
★★★★ 4.0
I like the characters and the world you are building. Everyone is just a bit too polite though. I am also getting vibes that you are a small company manager and are incorporating some of your training into the story. Keep up the good job I look forward to seeing how things turn out.
Kyrian ClawraitheRoyal Road
★★★ 3.0
This story is decently well written and has a really fun premise, but it's very clear that the focus is on what would be cool for the MC and not what's good for the story and especially not for the worldbuilding. A good example is how the Mine dungeon, the third dungeon detailed, was cleared in one go despite members of the party being significantly injured just getting through the dungeon's regular encounters, which was handwaved away with them having a couple healing potions and spending a full day in the dungeon. This trip was also done right after the settlement was constructed and wasn't properly protected which was even demonstrated by introducing a character as having died while they were in the dungeon as a way of showing readers "See! Life is totally dangerous right now." (Nevermind the fact that the MC literally passed out several times due to injury while he was by himself and that having been waved off as just being painful for a short while.)This also demonstrates the clear lack of balance given to events and challenges in the story, with progression almost solely relying on the Rule of Cool and the MC being uniquely powerful - but definitely in a way that makes sense and has clear limits!!! It's also pretty much stated that people won't survive without a system sanctioned settlement long and also implied that the MC's is the only one that exists on Earth. A safe and sustainable planet a single city does not make, nor a single planet spanning empire if it goes that way instead, and it's directly stated that the purpose of the System is to help humanity survive. Right now it's looking like the System actually exists only to prop up the MC, especially with it being implied that he's the only person who can actually communicate and demand things from them.
KoboldPatrolRoyal Road
★★★ 3.0
It's a system apocalypse LitRPG and the MC hit the jackpot while walking through the woods. Special class, special abilities, excellent starting location, loyal friends who are not afraid of danger but roll up their sleeves to help. Now he has to take his woodcutter's axe and carve out a safe haven for the masses of weakling people to save our civilization, because there are monsters spawning everywhere and the unstable mana is trying to eradicate humanity.
The prose is easy to read. Grammar and word choice are fine. World building is a bit feeble, there are many interesting ideas but in the end the area the story takes place in just isn't that big. Seeing the base/kingdom be built and grow better and stronger is nice.
The two biggest weaknesses of this story are ones that are common here on RoyalRoad: First, every important action is done by the MC, he personally saves everybody again and again, and all other people can't function without him even though they are described as strong and competent. And second, each course of action turns out to be the best choice with the best rewards in the end, no matter how illogical it was at the time (especially the naïve treatment of hardened criminals and murder attempts) and how many objectively better options were ignored.
The MC, Ben, is a great guy with strong morals and takes it on himself to save Earth. He's presented as growing through hardship but still placing humanity first. That could be awesome, but it's a bit boring because he succeeds in everything. The author is doing a good job with the side characters all having their own special characteristics; but then they just are good minions to the MC, not equals, regardless of the author's intent.
All in all, this is not a bad story, but it leans heavily into special-snowflake power-fantasy territory. If you are into that, great. If you need a story to run on logic and believable human actions, it can be a bit tedious.
Bookwizard1457Royal Road
★★★ 3.0
I really liked this story overall, the premise is good, but I do think I'll end up dropping it, mostly because of the dialogue, I find it very stiff and not very natural.
The dialogue is always very polite and direct, and every character we met talks the same way, there might be some variation but not much. Some people might talk like that, but I don't think it's that common. The time it was most jarring for me was when a biker said 'cannot', I haven't met many bikers but I'm pretty that they're not the most polite, especially in a situation where they're hostile.
Plot wise it's pretty good, although I do think there are inconsistencies, like how Ben seems to have the only Protectorate on Earth, I feel like he wouldn't have been the only one to manage to make one, but that's more of a pet peeve for me.
Overall I would say it's pretty good, with the biggest flaw for me being the dialogue, but if that doesn't bother the person reading it, I think it can be an enjoyable read.
hamed743Royal Road
★★★ 2.5
The story is set in a lumberjack camp that the author tries to present as one big family, but this never comes through in the actual character interactions. Instead, everyone talks to each other like polite strangers. The relationships are mechanical and lack any believable emotional connection, and the dialogue is stiff and overly formal.
The main character, Ben, supposedly shares a deep bond with his best friend, who even abandons his city job to support Ben after a spinal injury. However, when they speak, there’s no warmth or familiarity—it feels like two people meeting for the first time, not lifelong friends.
Another major issue is that everything in the story seems orchestrated to benefit Ben. New characters and teammates conveniently complement him, creating a perfect group setup—tank, scout, crowd controller, and so on—which feels artificial and predictable.
What frustrates me most is Ben’s pompous and unnatural dialogue. Every time he speaks, it’s like he’s delivering a speech rather than having a real conversation. Combined with the flat relationships, this makes the story feel forced and emotionally hollow.
Overall, the setting has potential, but the lack of authentic interaction and shallow character writing make it hard to care about the story. 2.5 out of 5.