When I woke up, I stared blankly ahead at the dimly glowing wall, blinking as the memories of what happened assaulted me. I felt like crying again as I huddled in my bed. The light dimmed itself in response as I sniveled.

After what seemed like hours I finally calmed down, grabbing my daily rations of bread and chewing it before forcibly swallowing it down.

After a few moments, I blearily realized that I had only looked at a few slips of paper, surely they were not all like this? There should be a few easy requests among all of those papers.

I sat there for a few moments, unable to rouse myself to get up. Finally I breathed out, climbing to my feet and slowly walking towards the green door. Stepping out, I glanced around in hopes of a change in the doorways before reluctantly walking through the gray door.

The same giant room awaited me, fluttering pieces of paper gently floating through the air with a quiet whisper as I looked around. I had a thought, the voice could answer some questions for me shouldn't it?

"Are" my voice croaked, I cleared my throat. "Are there easy requests?" I inquired.

"Yes, unless you wish to sort through the requests this function can be purchased through points"

I grimaced.

"What's the minimum payout?" I tried again, are they all going to be high level? Is this information free?

"There is no set minimum payout"

I mentally sneered at the voice, the heck does that even mean. There has to be a minimum payout. Even if its 0.

I already had a feeling what the voice would say, but I still asked. "Can I get more information on each request?"

"The information displayed can be improved through a purchase of points"

"How many points?" I pressed.

"Which aspect would you like more information on"

The voice clearly was smart enough to follow what I'm talking about, so why did it ignore my previous questions? Do I unlock more access to information as time goes on?

"Chances of success" I stated, my major and biggest concern.

The voice paused for a slight second, "3,300,000,000 points"

...

Did it just say 3 billion points?

"Rankings of danger?" I tried.

"Personalized, 3,000,000,000 points. Generic, 2,000 points" the voice replied.

"Generic?" I asked, I knew the word, but.

"The average danger for the request"

I sighed. 3 billion points though, that's basically impossible. Though...

"Can I get a loan?" I tried.

The voice didn't answer. I waited half a minute hoping the voice was just calculating but it just didn't reply. So clearly not a question worth answering.

"What's the smartest thing I can spend my points on?" I tried. Again, no answer.

I recalled that the voice said that 10% of the points would be taken per request, which meant I would likely be spending a minimum of 1 point for a request. I hope it rounded down.

"Can I buy items with my points?" I asked, I can't do the stuff with as I am now. Perhaps I can buy something good? Each point is worth 10% of Earth's life after all.

"The system permits upgrades to the base using your points, you can buy items from other players"

"What if I buy a sword for training" I asked, "Can I take that inside?"

"No"

That's absolutely bullshit. What about the food in my stomach then, is that going to disappear when I go inside a request? For an instant, I felt anger at the stupid system before it died down again. I sighed.

"How do I buy items from other players?"

The voice was silent.

I groaned in frustration.

"Open auction" the voice was silent, "Open shop" the voice was silent, "Buy sword from another player for 1 point" the voice was silent and nothing happened. I then asked about my points to make sure it hadn't gone ahead and purchased something. "How many points do I have"

"You have 10 points"

If I guessed correctly, the voice was silent because this was a community hub thing, and I couldn't access that yet. And I can't buy anything to take inside with me either. I laughed bitterly, it's like this was meant to screw me over.

"How do I get items, without buying them" I asked.

"Bring them from your world, acquire them from the community hub or gain them through the requests" the voice dispassionately replied.

"What if I find a sword inside the request? Do I keep that?" I tried to clarify, would it take that sword?

The voice didn't seem to care as it replied "If it doesn't interfere with the requirements, it will not be taken"

Er. "Can you rephase that?"

"If the item is not bound to the request, it can be taken"

"Rephase?"

"You can take the item if it's not a part of the request"

That makes even less sense.

"Rephase?"

"The item can be taken if the item is not required to complete the request, and is not an item that exists only in the request"

Finally! I can somewhat understand that. But still... "What do you mean, exists only in the request?"

"If the item cannot be taken out of the request"

I sighed, but the voice didn't seem to mind re-explaining things... "Could you give an example?"

The voice paused, perhaps for the first time as it seemingly accessed information. "On earth you have quest items, once the quest finishes; the quest item will be removed from your inventory".

I understood that, but the fundamental problem was still at hand. I still have nothing, and Earth isn't going to be generous to me unless they have no choice. And if I return into a position that they can affect me, they'll have a choice. I still had my fears from before, I'm afraid that they'll find a way to bypass the door's protections.

"Can items pass through the doors?" I asked.

"Yes"

"Am I in danger if I return?" the voice didn't respond. I tried again, "Can they hurt me from outside the doorways?" and again it didn't respond. "Are there dangerous substances inside the room" I tried yet again to no avail. "Can they fire a gun inside the room?" I asked, it was my main concern. And yet, the voice did not respond.

Finally, I tried "Can I pick which items pass through?"

"No"

"Are there limitations on what can pass through?"

There had to be, the gun was fired at me and yet I was unharmed. But, again, there was no response from the voice.

I gave up.

So the items thing is going to be an issue, which means I should pick the easiest request I could. I believe that once I've done one of these, I can access the community hub.

Looking at the nearby pieces of paper, I began systematically rejecting every request over 10 points. Which was a lot of them.

I had no intentions to play the Game of Doom, didn't care to join a Death Race, don't believe I can outwit the devil, not with a reward of 400 points. The requests varied heavily, but the majority seemed to have a common theme. Death is possible.

Finally I settled on 5 requests, I had a few others but those requests were quickly taken as I continued browsing through them. I even saw a request marked with 0 points, I think. It was taken before it even faded in.

Solve a Puzzle, 5 points

Deliver the Cake, 2 points

Footrace, 2 points entry, 32 points reward

Solve the Mystery, 10 points

Hide and Seek, 1 point entry, 7 points reward

I hadn't yet touched the pieces of paper, I wasn't sure what would happen if I touched the papers and the voice didn't respond when I asked. Instead I remembered each paper's position as I browsed. I looked them over again. The footrace one seemed to be the most popular, but I decided to reject it. Only one entry since I had last looked, and while I do think I'm fast, I have no illusions about myself.

The solve the mystery one was ultimately rejected as well, too much points. The puzzle was rejected too, it gave me a funny feeling, like there's something more behind it. Between the cake and hide and seek, I finally picked the cake.

I don't know what happens to the losers, and I have no idea what the other players are like. I also have zero intentions of joining a potential battle royale. I'd fight if I must, but I choose not to.

Reaching up, I touched the cake request then pulled the paper off the wall.

"You've chosen to Deliver the Cake for a reward of 2 points" the voice said, I knew it was being broadcasted over the world. "One point has been deducted as the price. Nine points remain"

The voice paused, then it continued "Step on the transportation, when ready say 'transport'"

I grimaced, I had hoped it would be rounded down. Which means of the 2 point reward, I'm getting a single point. Just one more week for Earth if I succeed. I reconsidered, maybe I should try do some training before entering.

I thought again about just giving this all up, either returning to Earth or waiting out the timer until Earth falls. Just as quickly I gave up on both ideas.

I know myself, and I knew that if I delayed things that I'd find it hard to gather the courage to approach this room again. Already I was prepared to give up.

My legs shook unsteadily as I breathed harshly, chokingly walking up to the black disk in the room.

Swallowing, I took several deep breaths before whispering "transport", brain screaming at me to stop. To think this over. To take a break, and don't come back.

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

I felt the falling sensation, blinking unwillingly and forcing a sudden change of surroundings to the middle of a rural dirt road.

I looked around, lush plants and trees reared about me with a hard dirt road ahead and behind me. The sun shone down the sky behind me, blinding me momentarily as I blinked and glanced back. Squeezing my eyes with discomfort I looked down, ruts had been worn into the dirt. Bikes? Despite being fresh, the marks didn't appear to be treaded. There was also a small package sitting beside me unassumingly.

Picking it up reluctantly, I could smell a warm sugary aroma. The cake was inside I guessed. But, where the heck am I delivering this? And worst of all, I felt like this place could be hiding any amount of monsters. It reminded me of Earth, I would bet it's Earth. But the plants were not something I recognized, not unless mossy leaves was in and there was no way I'd just be sent back to Earth.

I shivered, the bushes rustled threateningly and the skies seemed to darken momentarily. Sucking in a deep breath, I looked around then did the very first thing I should've done already.

"Where do I deliver the cake?" I questioned out loud, waiting for the voice to respond. "What am I meant to do?"... "What are heroes?" I desperately asked, the voice definitely knew how to respond to this. But... The voice wasn't responding. "Console" I tried, "Server", "Base", "Overlord" and many other variations. I even tried the classical rpg commands. But, the voice ignored me.

My heart sunk a little as I looked at the rough wooden box in my hands, where am I meant to deliver this?

I quickly checked the outside of the box, then looked at the small twine latch. The request didn't say I couldn't open it? The information might be inside...

I told myself this, knowing full well I was probably lying to myself. But two branches of the road stretched out and I would inevitably pick the wrong path. Even if I reached a house, I would never know if I had to deliver it there.

Placing the box on the ground, I carefully unlooped the twine on the latch before slowly and carefully lifting the wooden lid. Nothing happened as I revealed the contents, a plain brown cake, not even iced. I sniffed it experimentally, it didn't smell like anything special. Just the same sugary smell of cake. I expected a chocolate smell at least.

Checking the underside of the lid and the contents carefully without disturbing the cake, I closed and re-latched the box with disappointment. I tried checking my clothes again, checking the surrounding ground. Checking the nearby bushes and even looking down both sides of the track where I had spawned in.

Finally I sat down and thought, how would I know the path to take? It only took a few moments to realize that I had probably been facing the correct direction when I joined the world.

I then struggled to remember which direction I had been facing, I began to panic. Then I remembered that the sun had blinded me when I looked behind. The sun was higher, but I now knew the direction I had been facing.

Picking up the box, I tucked it beneath an arm and started walking.

An hour passed, two. The same track lay before me. Three hours, four. On the fourth hour the first sign of life was revealed to me, a man dragging a small wheeled cart behind him. What made my brow crinkle was the roughness of his clothing.

"Ahoy" he called, raising an arm in greeting. I halfheartedly returned the greeting, staring at him and the poor quality goods on his cart. He didn't say a word as he passed me, and I didn't know what to ask him.

A few minutes later I belatedly hit myself, I should've asked him where I am. I resolved to ask the next person I saw, which happened to be another hour later.

I had already taken two breaks at this point, the constant walking having worn me out. While I was sitting on my third break another man and a boy approached. Seeing that I was taking a break, they followed my example and sat next to me.

"Είναι μια ωραία στιγμή για να ταξιδέψετε" he greeted me, I didn't understand a single freaking word he was saying. I politely smiled and nodded, then closed my eyes.

Sensing my desire for quietness, he didn't say anything. Minutes passed before I finally grabbed the box and left, still not having said a word to them. I knew they wouldn't understand English, I knew that this had to be another world. Another world, where I can't understand the language. I'd argue for a third world country, but the people were white and didn't seem foreign, the products they were wearing all looked rough. Not produced by companies.

The requests didn't sound like I'll be sent back to Earth either. So with that logic, I reached my conclusion. This is obviously and definitely not Earth.

I silently swore to myself as I continued walking, leaving the man and boy behind. Not knowing anything was one problem, entirely another problem when you can't even communicate. I already know my clothes must stand out, it was of better quality than theirs. I had no intentions of standing out further by opening my mouth.

Ahead of me the track lead into a small village, at the end of the small village I could see a larger house than the others. They were all constructed of rough wood but the larger house seemed to have been painted a pale white. As I walked closer to the village I could see more people, but my footsteps finally stuttered to a halt when I saw someone standing in front of the white house.

I was close enough that I could see her clothes were made from beastskins, nothing like the rougher woven clothes of everyone else. The toned woman also seemed fierce, her brown hair dirty and a bad scar running down her cheek.

But what really made me stop was the way she was grinning fiercely and unfriendly at me, and how her eyes were fixated on my box. Now, call me stupid but the way she was treating me really made me think she wasn't here to accept delivery.

This also made me remember the one request I had seen. "Assassinate the Guards". I knew there were requests that other players could participate in, but that request had another beside it. "Defend the King".

So really, my first thought was that she's here to kill me. And seeing her eyes fixate on the box, she was most definitely here for the cake. The long white bone knife she had taken from her belt as she slowly stalked her way to me, her movements reading of readiness to begin running also made up my mind for me.

Quickly placing the box on the ground, I began rapidly stepping away with my hands in the air. "I give up!" I repeatably and desperately began to yell. Feeling mildly ashamed at myself for doing so. But she definitely knew how to fight, and I had no weapon. She paused and watched me, her brows raised and mouth slowly forming into a smirk. But she didn't continue to approach me or the box, just standing with a grin watching as I backed up.

I continued moving away carefully as she watched me without comment. With only occasional glances when I finally turned around to try express as obviously as I could through body language that I was giving up, I sighed with relief when it appeared she wouldn't be following. She wants to have the freaking cake? Take it. I bet it doesn't even taste good.

Entering the path, I finally felt safe enough to start running away. I ran until I was exhausted, then broke into the surrounding vegetarian and hid.

20 minutes must have passed by before my vision flickered again. The voice announced over the world "Deliver the Cake has failed"

I sat there on the black circle, shaking in the same position I had been hiding. That girl had no qualms about fighting, that's what made up my mind. Her knife looked sharp, it also had a faint edge of pink on it that clearly wasn't washing off. I had no illusions that she was fully prepared to end me.

What's worse, I still didn't have a weapon. I would've broken off a stick from a tree if I knew I was safe to make noise, but so great was my fear that I dared not to. Idly I wondered if I could use the hole to sharpen it for me.

I sighed, finally unfurling and climbing to my feet. Leaving the gray room, I returned to my quarters and sat down on my thin mattress. The half eaten loaf of bread was where I left it, I munched and drank water as I considered things.

For a measly two point reward, I still had someone fully prepared to kill me. It wasn't someone I was confident of beating either, that girl was toned.

The skins she wore were tightly wrapped, leaving her soles, hands, elbows, face and knees bare. It screamed of a professional job, and the confident way she drew that knife told me she's used to killing. I doubt I ever had a chance to defeat her.

I mused though, my earlier assumption that she was also on a request still struck true to me. The other people in the world were giving her glances, staring at her. A few looked at me, but their interest moved on faster than it did for her.

How many points was she promised?

Taking deep breaths, I finally entered the bathroom and washed myself down. Standing far away from the hole as I slowly dried in the warm air.

Retreating to my bed, I decided to go to bed early, my body was sore and my mind was stressed. I was in no further condition to play around today.