Episode 5
The way it said there were no living beings, as if it were no big deal, was even scarier.
Donghee felt like she had stepped into a scene from a horror movie.
[System Message]
Your Earth is currently undergoing !@#$%@#$^$@%&%^ due to !@#%^&!@#$^&)^((^&%$%$#^%.*
On top of that, the system window contained incomprehensible words mixed in between. She stared intently at the screen, wondering if she had misheard, but the text was full of unrecognizable characters.
“It doesn’t look like a code… What does this even mean?”
[System Message]
Your Earth is currently undergoing !@#$%@#$^$@%&%^ due to !@#%^&!@#$^&)^((^&%$%$#^%.*
But the window just kept repeating the same sentence. She wanted to question it word for word, but her fear hadn’t subsided yet, so she decided to let it go for now.
“…It means I’m safe, right?”
Donghee mustered up a pea-sized amount of courage and slowly walked toward the convenience store in front of her.
The fog lined both sides of the street like rows of trees. It touched her skin but didn’t feel damp. Rather, it was warm and comforting, enough to relax her tense nerves.
As she walked, she glanced to the side just in case—but there was nothing but fog.
The phrase “no other living beings exist here” kept ringing in her ears, sending chills down her spine.
The wall of fog extended infinitely up and outwards, beyond where her eyes could reach. It was so vast that she couldn’t even guess where it ended.
‘It’s scary after all.’
Donghee quickened her steps as she glanced nervously from side to side. The store was right in front of her, yet it strangely felt far away.
When she finally arrived, she quickly pressed the automatic door button and glanced around.
It felt like a horror movie scene, as if an alien creature would leap out of the fog, bite her neck, and lay eggs inside her.
“Hurry, hurry!”
She was worried the door might not open, but with a mechanical zzzing sound, the door slid open.
In the complete silence, that door sound felt unusually loud.
It was something she saw every day, but she flinched and instinctively took a step back.
While she hesitated, the automatic door began to close again.
“No, no!”
Snapping back to her senses, Donghee pressed the button again and safely entered the store.
It was just a regular door anyone could open, yet being inside the building gave her a huge sense of relief.
Everything was just as it had been during her part-time shifts.
The lights were bright, the coolers were fully stocked with ready-made food and drinks arranged neatly, and the shelves were filled with snacks and ramen.
“Boss?”
Donghee cautiously poked her head toward the counter and called out softly, just in case.
[System Message]
There are no other living beings in this space besides you, User. Are you stupid?
The system window popped up again, quietly displaying a sentence. The last sentence, ending in a question mark, appeared noticeably smaller.
What the? What’s with the tiny font?
Did it think I wouldn’t notice?
“I’m not stupid, okay? I just called out once, that’s all!”
At Donghee’s words, the tiny text was hurriedly erased.
Even though she tried to act tough, the fear began creeping back in as she realized she was truly alone here.
Still, she couldn’t just leave after coming all the way, so she summoned her inventory.
The inventory, which she had emptied before coming here, was completely blank. She thought it might turn back into a bag form, but it didn’t.
She picked up a choco roll cake from the shelf and held it up to the empty inventory slot.
Whoosh! With a sound, the bread disappeared from her hand and appeared as a faint image inside the inventory.
“No matter how many times I see it, it’s fascinating. But… is this really okay?”
Just as she started to feel guilty about stealing for the first time in her life, the roll cake she had put in the inventory suddenly reappeared on the shelf like nothing had happened.
“Huh? Did I not take it?”
Thinking it was a nervous mistake, Donghee picked up the roll cake again.
“It’s in there though?”
But the choco roll cake was clearly already inside the inventory.
“What?! Why is it still there?!”
The cake she had taken was back on the shelf, as if no one had touched it. The wrapper was pristine, without a single crease.
“No way. That’s nuts!”
She couldn’t believe her eyes and put the roll cake back into her inventory.
It reappeared again.
Donghee, now more alert, placed the cake in the inventory even faster and stared hard at the empty spot. But this time, it didn’t reappear.
“Is there a limit to how many times it can respawn?”
Her eyes started to sting from not blinking. The moment she blinked, the roll cake reappeared.
It was like a reflex game—nothing would happen while she stared, but the instant she blinked, the empty space was magically refilled.
She tried putting strawberry bread and cream roll cake into the inventory too. In the blink of an eye, the empty shelves were once again filled like before.
“Wow…”
As she was marveling at this bizarre system, the system window appeared again.
[Status Window]
Username: Chloe Grace
Job: Part-timer / Lord of Grace Territory
Abilities: 0 (means you have none)
Activity Range: 2 (Basement studio, Convenience Store)
Traits: 0 (Dirt-poor territory. ★Tends to obsess over choco roll cakes)
Information updated.
“My activity range changed to 2.”
Apparently, it increased from 1 to 2 after adding the convenience store to her original basement studio.
She wondered how far these numbers could go. As she reread everything to make sure she missed nothing, her eyes landed on the trait section—particularly the sentence with a star.
“Obsesses over choco roll cakes? Me?”
It must’ve been added because she kept picking the same item in awe.
No, that’s a misunderstanding. I’m not obsessed with choco roll cakes.
Donghee shook her head desperately, then realized it was a meaningless gesture and stepped outside the store.
“Well, at least I won’t starve.”
Taking food with long expiration dates felt odd, especially without paying.
She glanced back at the counter out of guilt. As always, it was empty—only the tacky, blue part-timer vest she had worn was hanging there.
“Lord, what is all this?”
Delma had returned to the room and was wide-eyed at the pile of bread on the bed.
“Huh? Oh… it’s nothing. Want to try one?”
Before Delma could ask where the bread came from, Donghee quickly unwrapped a choco roll cake and held it out to her. The sweet scent spread instantly.
Delma instinctively swallowed her saliva and reached out before stepping back in surprise.
“You’re offering something this precious to me? I can’t possibly accept.”
She shook her head but couldn’t take her eyes off the dark brown roll cake.
“It’s not that precious, there’s a lot. Besides, even if it was, I’d still give some to you!”
Delma looked touched, her sparse eyebrows drooping with emotion as tears welled up in her eyes.
“My lord…”
“Go ahead, have some. Yeah?”
She pushed the cake a bit closer. Delma hesitated for a moment, then politely accepted it with both hands, glancing at Donghee as if asking for final permission.
Donghee smiled brightly and nodded. Only then did Delma take a bite.
Her eyes widened twice as much the moment it entered her mouth.
“This is the most delicious bread I’ve ever had in my life! It’s so soft!”
After saying that, she took another bite. Her cheeks puffed out from chewing, and when they returned to normal, she spoke again with awe.
“So sweet!”
Tears welled in Delma’s eyes as she took another bite.
Seeing Delma so moved by a 2,000-won cake made Donghee feel strangely emotional.
She felt like she was someone amazing.
“It’s divine!”
After finishing the whole thing in just four bites, Delma closed her eyes tightly and spoke as if in prayer.
Feeling oddly sympathetic, Donghee handed her one choco, one strawberry, and one cream roll cake.
“Have these too.”
Delma looked absolutely delighted with the extra bread. Then it happened.
A small red heart, about the size of a 500-won coin, popped up over her head and burst like a soap bubble.
Huh? What was that?
Donghee quickly pulled up her status window to check the townspeople’s favorability.
[System Message]
Current favorability of residents: –189,490
Her favorability had increased by 10 points.
It had happened so quickly she thought she might’ve imagined it, but apparently not.
The cute little heart must’ve been a sign that favorability increased.
She had figured out how to raise it—but the road ahead still looked long.
So giving tasty gifts works best?
But if four pieces of bread only raised it by 10 points… the efficiency seemed pretty low.
“My lord.”
While she was deep in thought about how to raise favorability quickly, Delma spoke up timidly.
“Yeah?”
“Would it be alright to share this bread with others?”
“Of course! It’s yours. Oh! Then take these too and share them.”
Donghee pulled out a few more bread rolls from her inventory and handed them to Delma. Another heart popped above her head and burst with a pop!
This time, the heart was twice as big as before.
