Chapter 4
Chapter 4: Question Ticket
Looking at the Community, I could feel a vast spectrum of humanity gathered there.
The majority consisted of those begging to be saved, and those asking for someone to pass on their last words before they died soon.
Beyond that, almost everyone else was flaunting their own abilities.
And a small minority were making guesses as to why this situation had occurred.
Reading it would only give me a headache, so this time I entered not [Republic of Korea] but the [World] server.
"…America, Japan, China, France…have people from every country been summoned?"
All of humanity from around the world had been summoned.
This was no simple summoning.
"There may be a way to return."
Thinking that, I closed out of the Community for now.
It would be fine to kill time there when bored, but now was not the time.
First, there was the Random Trait Draw Ticket I'd received for accessing the Community.
And the one I'd earned before that for clearing Wave Stage 6—a total of 2 traits obtained.
The traits I received were [Overload] and [Command].
[Trait: Overload]
[Overload a designated target.]
[Trait: Command]
[Units under your command can move more actively.]
"Good. These are the best possible for the current situation."
“Use Overload to buff them and Command to make them move.”
"Phew…well, there's nothing else to do, so should I check the Community a bit?"
Of course, I won't be writing any posts.
I wasn't sure if lurking worked here too, but it was probably better to do it anyway.
That said, there seemed to be quite a few capable people in the Republic of Korea server.
A nation of gamers, and the obesity rate in Korea is so low you could barely call it obesity—so there aren't that many heavily overweight people.
Since it's a country where being fat gets you shamed, the majority of people had been maintaining their bodies to some degree, and many were sharing their situations with one another.
“Is this that Korean sense of community?”
I closed the Community with that trivial thought.
"Phew. Still, it was more useful than expected."
The time remaining was a mere 40 minutes.
"Summon."
This time, all Low-Grade.
Low-Grade Combatants, Gatherers, Mechanics, Engineers and the like began appearing.
True to form, they were more crisp and efficient than the Lowest-Grade units.
A whopping 5 times the point cost difference, but the best efficiency.
Since I knew that for Mid-Grade—outside of Combatants—everything could honestly be solved with numbers, I pulled Low-Grade first.
The ordinary ground with weeds—not the reddened earth—began to fill up with machines.
"You, go over there."
I placed 1 Lowest-Grade ant Gatherer onto the red earth.
And then.
<Zz..zzzzzt..>
Boom!
"What the—"
The Lowest-Grade Gatherer burst apart on the spot.
I watched that quietly and resolved to never set foot there.
And one thought came to mind.
Now that I thought about it, their gate had been summoned from the ground here, but it had also spawned from that red earth over there.
So what would happen if, when a gate spawned on the red earth, I threw the Lowest-Grade units in there?
"Ah…then they wouldn't be able to gather."
Unfortunately, it seemed I'd have to save this for enemies I truly couldn't defeat otherwise.
Thinking that, this place was feeling far too bare, and my back and hips were starting to ache.
I immediately called over the idle Engineers.
"Just build me a house I can live in. How many coins do you need?"
The units went silent for a moment, then a stream of thoughts flowed in.
They requested various materials—lumber, nails, and more—all of which were completely impossible at my current level.
So I asked them to scale it down, and they proposed something that felt like a cabin.
"Okay. Let's go with that. It'll probably be doable by Stage 10. Get to building."
With that, I gave them all the coins I had—minus the ones for food I'd buy for myself.
Honestly, I hadn't forgotten about swords and armor…
"I'm already too strong to be buying those right now."
So I'd have them conserve as much as possible, but honestly, I wasn't filming a survival show here, so I figured this much leeway was fine.
Watching the cute little units busily clunking away, I opened the Community again.
In a world void of dopamine, the Community was like a single ray of light.
Rumbleeeeee—
The goblins finally began to emerge.
"Are these guys insane?"
A whopping 10 goblin warriors and 30 ordinary goblins.
The silver lining—no goblin archers?
Just as I was clicking my tongue and about to issue commands, I found myself instinctively knowing how to make use of them.
"Raptors 1, 4, 5, 6—Overload. Low-Grade 4, 5, 6, 7, 8—Overload. All Overloaded units engage the warriors. The remaining Lowest-Grade hold the line so no more goblins can advance. The rest—"
As if possessed by something, the units began moving like pieces in a game.
Crunch.
"Kieeeeeeeeek!"
All around, there was nothing to hear but the sound of goblins writhing in agony.
And not long after.
[You have survived Wave Stage 7.]
[Trialseeker HP: 100%]
[Crystal Orb Durability: 100%]
[Reward: Question Ticket (1)]
"…A Question Ticket?"
Unbelievable.
A Question Ticket!
My breathing actually quickened—was this real?
First, I left the Gatherers behind as they began gnawing at the goblin corpses, and sat down on a small rock jutting out from beneath the Crystal Orb.
"…Still, I'd better say it."
It might just be a delusion, but I was probably the strongest one here.
At least within the Republic of Korea server.
[Sharing Wave Stage 7 info.] Author: Mechanic
Wave Stage 7: Goblin Warriors ×10.
Ordinary Goblins ×30.
No archers.
Wishing everyone luck.
Not long after posting that, comments started piling up.
Naturally, the main reactions were: how are you already on Stage 7; stop lying; and the like.
Well, they'll figure it out in time.
The author 777, who was a former special forces soldier, was about to enter Stage 7 soon too.
[777: Thank you. I will verify this myself.]
I looked at his comment for a moment, then closed it.
From here on, I had to think about what question to ask.
***
I deliberated for a full hour.
"If I were to set the order of questions I need to ask right now, it'd be like this."
Isn't that about the best it gets?
"I'll use the Question Ticket. Tell me the method to return to Earth."
[We will inform you of the method to return to Earth.]
[The method to return is to use the Return Stone, obtainable every 10 Wave Stages. The duration of return varies by stage. Thank you.]
"…What the—?"
So that meant I could have found out just by surviving 3 more stages.
"Haaa…what a joke!"
I was furious, but there was nothing to be done.
Still, I was just too curious.
Honestly, the thought of having to live here forever among machines for the rest of my life had been giving me anxiety and restlessness.
In the midst of that, a post I'd seen in the Community came to mind.
Someone saying they'd rather die than live like this.
And not long after, that poster's nickname had turned gray.
A wave of mourning flowed through the comments.
"…Should I still share it though."
Honestly, in a novel, sharing something like this for free might get you called a troll and cursed at…well, this is reality.
If there's someone destined to be the main character, maybe hearing my words will help them steel their resolve even more.
I entered the Community to write the post, and the Republic of Korea server was in an uproar.
[Was Mechanic for real? How'd he get all the way to Stage 7?]
[The reason Mechanic is actually the GOAT.]
[777 confirmed it. Mechanic was a god.]
[What's Stage 6 like, guys?]
Those were the posts making up the majority.
Among them, the one getting the most attention:
[Mechanic's words were correct.] Author: 777
10 goblin warriors appeared, after which 30 goblins appeared from behind.
This I have confirmed myself, so please stop the insults and reckless slander directed at Mechanic.
Mechanic, thank you sincerely. I believed there would be no archers and took the gamble—it paid off, and I am alive right now.
"Ha…what a guy."
It seemed he had written it the moment the wave ended.
My standing in the Community right now was sky-high.
In that situation, I tossed up one post.
[Found out the method to return to Earth.] Author: Mechanic
Just use the Return Stone you can get every 10 stages.
And the Return Stones you get each stage have different return durations.
Stage 20 is probably longer.
The way I found out was by using a Question Ticket.
The Community exploded.