I Spammed the 500-Million-Year Button

I picked up a button that deposits 500 million won into my account every time I press it, no strings attached. But the catch was that five seconds after pressing it, I'd get dropped into another dimension where I'd have to survive for 500 million years, and upon return, all memories from there would be erased. The time dilation... I don't remember the exact ratio, but anyway, surviving 500 million years there amounted to about two weeks on Earth.

I didn't hesitate. Thinking of my beloved VTuber, I spammed it right away. With five seconds before transport, I had plenty of time, so I mashed it like a game arcade button. Whether it would stack or not, I didn't know—if it did, great; if not, I'd just press it again after coming back. Plus, with memories erased, there was no guarantee I wouldn't press it again anyway. What if I ended up pressing buttons my whole life...? The thought crossed my mind, but at the time, the 500 million and my VTuber's smile mattered more.

And so I fell into that other dimension, and time passed. When the marks I left on the ground surpassed 500 million, I realized it: spamming the button had worked, and this would stretch on for a long, long time.

I didn't despair. I'd found something to do here. And so time flowed again. It flowed, flowed some more, flowed endlessly.

"Ehehehe."

I have no idea how much time passed exactly. The ground was covered in marks numbering around 3 billion, but I'd endured about ten times longer than that. Maybe even more. After so long, the concept of time lost all meaning, so I just lived without tracking it.

"Ehhehehe..."

But now, that's over. Spending eons in a place like this naturally reveals certain truths. Like return timing, for one...

"It's ending..."

In 3 minutes and 32.72 seconds, I'll return to the bustling Earth with its mornings and nights. Earth should be about five years further along, right? My beloved VTuber... who was it again? I can't recall the name now, but anyway, thinking of sponsoring her made my heart ache sweetly. Though she might've graduated after three years. Or maybe become a mega-corp? She had that talent, and as a company VTuber...

"First thing, sponsor 10 million won to each member, then get a sandwich with triple egg mayo. Ah, but with memories wiped, will I even want a sandwich?"

Who knows. Earth's food barely comes to mind ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠anymore, but remembering sandwiches means they were probably my favorite. "Ugh... tteokbokki? Yeah, gotta try tteokbokki and mala tang too."

Girls love tteokbokki or mala tang, and after pressing the button, this body turned into a girl's, so maybe it'll like that stuff. Mala-rose-tteokbokki-tang-tanghulu. Mixing it all might taste even better.

"Huh? But with memories erased, these thoughts are pointless anyway?"

A bitter taste lingered. Still, no regrets. Here, I learned so much, mastered it, grew immensely—became ridiculously powerful—but absolutely no regrets. Using what I gained here on Earth would shatter the planet. Of what I have, only the money's usable there. Luckily, it'd piled up enormously. At least 30 billion? Even at 2% bank interest, that's 600 million a year. 50 million a month...

"Just the monthly interest could sponsor a bunch of song requests..."

Plotting schemes in my head, I sprang up. Time's up. No more plans—they'd be meaningless with memories gone. But this tiny body will remain the same. No gender swap back. TS genre-wise, male regression's a crime... nah, that's nonsense; I just know. Eons teach you everything, let you do everything. Now, it's faster to list what I can't do.

"Body, return!"

At the center of a crumbling sky and blood-soaked earth, the girl beamed. Light flooded the world.

Looking up, a pristine blue sky stretches unbroken. The ground underfoot is dry and firm, not a drop of blood. Dense buildings and apartments crowd ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠around, people bustling clearly visible...

"Uh..."

Back on Earth. Definitely Earth. Five years, one month, and twenty days later, but Earth all the same.

Yet no beaming smile came. Per my original plan, I'd turn on my phone, sponsor 10 million to the VTuber, then grab a sandwich. That plan's crystal clear in my head. Meaning memories aren't erased.

"Why?!"

The message before boarding the Earth pathway. All the chaos I caused made it impossible, it said. Who wrote that? Nothing alive should've remained 'there.' Was there a higher dimension?

"I trusted you...!"

Then handle things properly! I pressed boldly because of the memory wipe promise—what's this?

"This is betrayal!"

Go back? Have a chat? As the girl pondered, sirens wailed everywhere.

"Gate?"

"Hunter... Huh. I know this."

Soon, Management Bureau staff will swarm. A pretty noona will show up, dazzle with her looks, give candy, pat me down, and drag me off. Can't let that happen. Getting nabbed means annoying jobs or weird experiments.

"No way...!"

Absolutely not. I wanna hole up, munch chicken, watch streams. Live like that forever. With my money, anything's possible.

'Before they grab me, better move...'

Time to dodge. As that inner thought formed, boom—the ground shook. Eyes wide, the girl whipped around.

"Oing?"

"Krreuk..."

A blue pillar denser than the sky linked ground to heavens—the gate. Its source stood on four legs inside, rumbling the earth. Tiger-headed like a costume, lion-bodied, snake-tailed, demon-winged. And huge—nearby 20-story apartments looked puny.

"You?"

"Krreuk...?"

The girl knew this beast. One from far past, often met hiking Eden. King of land beasts among sea, sky, land—Behemoth.

"Pposik, is that you?"

"Kruk?"

Behemoth's yellow eyes fixed on her. Thrashing tail froze stiff. Ferocious maw clamped shut, slit pupils rounded. Yep, confirmed. Only the Behemoth she'd eaten before made that face.

Reunited with an old tie in familiar lands, her face bloomed into a smile.

"It is you, Pposik! Pposik! Why're you here?"

"Kkaeng! Kkiing..."

But it wasn't. Hunching, it spun and fled into the blue pillar. Soon, with a tzzt, the pillar vanished.

"The twin?"

I ate the original Pposik in Eden—how's this one alive? Muttering, she headed there. But couldn't get close. Before her steps reached, dozens swarmed from all sides.

Glancing over, she sensed: 'Those are Hunters, huh.'

Hunters. Not new to her, but Earth changed a lot. Plus gazes from above watching...

'No VTuber streams anymore?'

Webnovels said Hunters dominate airwaves, bankrupting other broadcasters.

'Home first.'

Time to relocate. No way she'll get caught for hassle. World's changes? Google it.

"H-Hey! Kid!"

Ignoring the call, she snapped her fingers. Her form vanished cleanly.

The watching woman gawked, scanning around.

"Wha...? What? What! Jinhyuk sunbae! You saw that girl too, right? She just vanished!"

Saw it. Impossible not to. Lone girl before Disaster Gate, white hair shining, amethyst purple eyes.

Rubbing his brow, Jinhyuk ground his teeth.

"...Dunno what she is, but we gotta find her fast, Sera. Looked like she came from that gate... It's Disaster-Grade. No find, no going home. Hell, Seoul might blow—we're fucked."

"Eek..."

Sera's legs wobbled, flashbacks of past hell hitting.

"Wh-What about the Constellations? Can't they track her...?"

"...Sponsorship's busted."

"Huh? It can break?"

"Dunno. News to me..."

"This is bad... Got it, I'll search."

"Head back to guild, report, then join. Don't go far. Spot her, radio—don't fight. Like last time, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠solo charge and you're dead. Got it?"

"Even I'm not crazy enough for Disaster solo. S-ranks can't even. Hurry back, sunbae."

"Yeah."

After Jinhyuk left, Sera stared long at the gate site, sighing deeply.

'A Constellation could've stalled at least...'

Rose to B-rank sans sponsorship. Joined famed Stella Guild. With a high-tier Constellation...

'Pointless thought.'

Shaking it off, she moved to find the escaped girl... or monster.