I was supposed to be relaxing right now, spending an indefinite vacation at my grandma's house. I was supposed to be basking in the warmth of her comfort, forgetting all the sufferings of the world.
But one bad thing happened after the other. I took a wrong turn while driving, lost my car, and now even the bridge back to civilization had vanished. Why was this happening to me?! If this was a dream, please let me wake up now!
I stared at the my smartphone's screen. Gripped the d.a.m.n thing tight.
That voice from before scared me. "Who are you,'" they had said.
I really didn't know how to respond. Yet for some reason, a conversation had stretched between us, and I ended up hearing many outrageous things.
“I still can't believe it. Especially the part where this is a different world."
“There's nothing else you can do but believe it, though."
Soon, the sun would set beyond the horizon. I leaned back against a tree trunk while crouching on the ground, the grip around my cellphone loosened slightly from my bewildered state. Birds that greatly resembled crows cawed in the distance, flying back to their nests.
The main cause of my headache right now was the idea that I was trapped in a "different world."
As if I'd believe such idiotic thing.
However, after spending an hour to explore my surroundings, I started to grow receptive of the words of the so-called G.o.d. Upon closer inspection, this land surrounded by deep valleys seemed slightly different from a typical j.a.panese landscape. Even the crows seemed different, if they were crows at all.
The important part was that it only took me one hour to explore the entire place.
In other words, this world was surprisingly small. Making a round along the perimeter would only take thirty minutes.
“By the way, the border is the river, so no matter what, don't jump in. Even I can't predict where you'll end up after trying to force your way out of this world."
At the sound of those words, my grip on the cellphone once again tightened. I took a moment to compose myself before saying, “Please add guardrails to the bridge, G.o.d."
If I slipped, then there went my life.
But instead of a.s.suaging my worries, the self-proclaimed G.o.d merely said in a carefree manner, “Guardrails can be installed using PT.”
Yes, the most troublesome hurdle was this thing called "PT."
No matter the world, the fundamental human needs would remain the same. For example, I was hungry now, but I didn't have anything to eat. Before my current predicament, I could solve that problem by buying lunch from a neighborhood convenience store.
But there were no convenience stores in this world, and the money I had on me was useless. Instead, the currency used here was "PT," or points.
It seemed I could receive PT as a reward by doing designated "work." By exchanging various things with PT, I could satisfy my basic human needs. It's quite similar to the system in most video games.
Which meant I needed to save PT as best as I could from now on.
Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to get out of here.
“G.o.d… I don't think I can do this alone. How long will it take to save enough PT anyway?” The words came out practiced even when I pled pitifully, as if I'd done this countless times before. Though to be fair, I had.
And G.o.d's answer was merciless as always. “I'm sorry, but when you first crossed through the border, this world had already been booted up. I don't know what will happen if I intervene. In the worst case, the road out of here would distort and disappear… When it's all said and done, you were the one who came here without permission, Minoru."
A wail escaped my lips.
When he put it like that, I couldn't find a good reb.u.t.tal. This was the result of being careless, of relying solely on GPS without contacting my grandma and family first for directions.
But confinement in another world seemed like too big of a price to pay.
"For now, there is only one way to get you out of here. Purchase the bridge with your acc.u.mulated points. As an example, can you pluck some gra.s.s around you?”
I plucked a relatively large weed without another thought.
After pulling a few more weeds under G.o.d's urging, I heard a soft noise. A noise that sounded suspiciously similar to a notification. Checking my phone, I saw that a notification has indeed popped up on the screen.
[Weed Removal Rank C: 5 PT * 1 = 5]
Surprise hit me.
Where did this notification come from? I carefully checked through my phone, catching sight of a dubious application that I didn't remember installing. The icon was a sprout and a fork, the words "Miniature Garden" displayed.