Farming Against 100 Waves of Death
Prologue
2nd Wave – Megalomania
---------------------------------------------------
All the monsters from the first wave vanished in the blink of an eye.
They didn't just gradually fade away or disappear after Yahrum blinked.
They vanished from his sight while he was looking at them, as if he had been hallucinating.
Now, the light faded on the horizon; the night had fully arrived.
In the sky, there was a fairly large planet. It was reflecting a gentle yellow light from a star.
Yahrum ignored that strange flower and quickly passed through the front door.
[You have failed to clear the first wave.]
[You will receive a random punishment.]
[Punishment for failing the first wave:
All the monsters from the first wave will be added to the second wave.]
When Yahrum looked at the wall to check, he found messages reporting and announcing the punishment, making him frown deeply. His pupils contracted.
"Oi! What's this?!"
He asked with a very displeased tone.
[Well, you didn't kill all the rats in the first wave, did you?]
[Rewards to the best, Punish to the worst.]
[Ain't that the motto for society?.]
The wall slowly revealed three sentences.
"No! I meant the disease that comes with those rats!"
"I've been bitten this badly, where am I supposed to find a vaccine??? If you want me to die that badly, why don't do it right away?!"
Yahrum retorted. Besides needing to find the Rabies vaccine, how would he treat his severely injured right arm?
With only one usable arm, he certainly won't be able to plant enough of those strange flowers to fend off the waves.
[Don't worry. You will get that soon.]
[But before you die, I want to have fun, want to see you suffer.]
...
[About the vaccine and wounds, don't worry. As long as you managed to pass just one wave, the wave's rewards will surely include the healing options.]
The wall displayed sarcastic messages before pausing for a while then revealing a message that made Yahrum feel relieved.
"This disease... I don't know when the symptoms will appear... but the sooner I pass the next wave, the better..."
He thought to himself while beginning to accept his fate in this hell.
"Fine! I'll play your game..."
"I'd like to hear the details of this game again... if you don't mind?"
Yahrum spoke with a softer voice. He thought taking a step back wouldn't hurt his pride much.
If he truly wanted to get out of here, the person behind the wall was the most important key for now, not the trees nor the equipment.
[Night has arrived.]
[I suggest you close the door tightly.... a reward for being so compliant, hahahaha.]
After reading the red messages, Yahrum rushed out to collect the equipment lying outside then hurried back into the shack and closed the door as tightly as possible.
Although there was light from the stars reflecting down, making the inside of the shack somewhat visible, his mind still felt uneasy.
[As I told you before.]
[You must survive through 100 waves of monsters that will come to take your life]
[Once you successfully defeat the 100th wave. I will let you go home.]
[No tricks, for real.]
Yahrum sat down on the wooden floor while holding his right shoulder with his left hand.
The adrenaline was starting to wear off, and the pain was flooding in.
[For every wave you "overcome", you will get to choose one reward from 3 random options]
[But if you cannot defeat a wave, you will be randomly punished....]
[Don't worry, the punishments won't include taking your life...
because that would be too boring, hahahaha.]
[The seeds I gave you earlier are "Snappy".]
[If you want to know more about it, ask later.]
Yahrum sat reading the messages quietly and attentively without any interruption.
[Of course. Nothing is free in this world. Those seeds were just a starting gift.]
[From now on, "Currency" will be involved.]
[You will receive a certain amount of crystals after passing each wave, and may get more from other factors.]
[Those crystals are the currency you use to exchange for items with me.]
[If you want to see the shop, just say "shop" to this wall.]
[A warning. Spend wisely. Hahaha.]
[End of explanation. Any questions?]
The messages on the wall gradually appeared, slow enough for Yahrum to read.
"Yes. Many, in fact. First, what about my living conditions, eating, and relieving myself?!?!"
"Even if you want to see me suffer, you're not psychotic enough to watch me sh*t in the shack, are you?"
After reading all the messages, Yahrum thought about the basic needs and asked while frowning seriously.
[Oh! I forgot!]
[About food, since you know how to grow plants, buy seeds or seedlings from the shop and grow them yourself!]
[As for relieving yourself....]
[I hope you can hold it until the next wave is over! Because you'll have to rely on those rewards. Hahaha!]
"This bastard..."
When Yahrum finished reading the message, he became furious, but tried to control himself. The person behind this wall – he needed to extract as much information from them as possible!
"Speaking of the next wave... you haven't explained when it will come and how many monsters are in each wave?"
"If some escape, do I have to hunt them down myself?"
Yahrum asked seriously.
[Ooh! As expected from someone with second-class honors! Very thorough!]
[I apologize, my mistake. The time until the next wave arrives will be displayed on the wall.]
When the last message fully appeared, in one corner of the wall, above the sentences, numbers appeared:
[Time before the next wave arrives: 14: 01: 25]
[Don't worry. It will always be displayed.]
[As for the number of monsters in each wave.....]
[I won't tell ya!]
[Yes! If the message reporting you've passed that wave doesn't appear, you'll have to find the remaining monsters yourself!]
[Fun, isn't it? Haha!]
"Son of a b*tch! If I hadn't asked, you wouldn't have shown me the time... and you won't tell me the number either..... What a bastard!"
After reading all the messages, Yahrum cursed in his mind, his eyes glaring at the wall.
Though he was starting to feel drowsy, his anger kept him awake.
[Hey. Don't glare at me like that!]
[I'm sure you're pissed because of the time, aren't you? I already said sorry. People forget things. da!]
Seeing that messages, Yahrum's eyes widened immediately, and he thought of his next question.
"Last question. You, the one I'm talking to right now, are you really the wall or are you just using this wall as a medium?"
[I already told you I'm not the wall, haha?]
[This wall is just a communication medium.
Think of it as a machine that can be interacted.]
[Alright! I've explained everything.]
[I must take my leave and rest!]
[See you tomorrow!]
[Have fun! but for the love of God.]
[Just hurry up and die!]
And the messages ended with that curse. Yahrum felt lost.
He just wanted to go out and buy foods to stock up, but when he woke up, he was already infected with a deadly disease.
"Ah! I forgot to ask where can I get water for the watering can..."
"Come to think of it... that plant... it probably grew because of the water splashed from the can during the fight with those damn rats..."
Yahrum stood up and slowly walked to look at the Snappy plant outside through his broken window, muttering to himself.
".....?"
A moment later, Yahrum thought he saw a vague black shadow in the fog beyond the flower.
"I must be imagining things..."
"Wall, show me the information about this watering can!"
Yahrum thought his eyes were playing tricks due to his injuries, so he shook his head slightly before turning back and speaking to the wall.
[A watering can for watering plants. It can store a certain amount of water, more than regular watering cans.]
"Damn it... Whenever I need to check information or anything important, I have to look at this wall every time..."
Yahrum said wearily. This wall was so inconvenient.
"Show me the information about the seeds in this bag."
He looked at the floor and saw the seeds that had fallen out of the bag scattered around, so he bent down, collect them with his left hand, and put them back into the bag slowly and clumsily.
Then he asked the wall out of great curiosity.
[Seeds of the "Snappy".]
[Snappy has flower with sharp teeth around the petals.]
[This type of plant can help you eliminate the invading monsters.]
[When anything comes close within range,
the vibrations from the ground will signal the flower to snap at that direction.]
[Warning: You may also get snapped by Snappy.]
"So... if a monster is bigger than its flower, it has to tear down the target until they're small enough to swallow..."
Yahrum thought to himself while reading the information on the wall.
[Growing time for Snappy: 1: 20]
[It's a good basic plant, but cannot withstand much heat.]
"Growing time...? ...I see... when I went out to dig, the seeds must have fallen from the bag..
and when they got wet from the watering can, they grew..."
"So this means... in critical times, I can't cheat..."
"I'll need to plan carefully..."
The message stopped, and Yahrum realized why the plant outside had grown.
He now understood that his survival just now was pure luck...
"Haaa...."
When his brain received too much new information, he yawned.
His body was injured all over. He didn't need to use much brain to realize he was now infected.
Although he's too sleepy and exhausted to worry about anything, deep down, he feared the rabies.
"Ah..."
He decided to stop thinking about everything and walked toward the bed.
As he slowly laid down, he groaned in pain.
The adrenaline was wearing off...
No matter what position he took, his whole body ached.
He forced himself to sleep, so that the horrible pain would pass along with the night.
.....
Guk guk guk guk...
The sound of wood being tapped sprouted.
Yahrum was still in deep sleep.
Knock, knock, knock, knock...
Thump thump thump thump
"... Huh...."
In the middle of that night, the sound of knocking on the wooden door gradually grew louder.
Until it sounded like someone was pounding it with their fists, Yahrum startled awake, still groggy.
"Who's knocking? ....."
He tried to open his eyelids, but only managed it for a split second before they shut tightly again.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
The sound of wood being knocked four times exploded once more.
"Huh? ...."
"Someone's really knocking at the door...!"
But before Yahrum could fall back into his slumber the knocking came again, and this time it was louder than the last one.
His tightly closed eyelids were forced to open in surprise.
Yahrum slowly regained his senses and began to analyze the situation with growing fear.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
The knocking sound came again, but this time it wasn't any louder.
"F**k, f**k, f**k, f**k"
Yahrum's heart began to race as he cursed inwardly with fear. He tried to squint to avoid seeing what shouldn't be seen and to prevent whatever shouldn't be seen from seeing him being awake.
He was trying to deceive himself.
At the same time, he recalled the words of the person behind the wall, who had told him to keep the door tightly shut tonight.
He felt grateful and lucky that he had listened and wasn't so stubborn.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
The four knocks exploded again.
Though one part of him was afraid and told himself to quickly go back to sleep, another part wondered who was knocking or what that sound could be.
"What if it's a thief breaking in? That would be the end for me."
"What thief would knock on the door when there are two broken windows?!"
"Besides, this place is some kind of god-forsaken backwater. How could there be other people?"
"But what if it is a real person? What if they need help?"
"No way, too scary."
"Or maybe it's just the wind or something hitting against the door?"
"I don't want to look...."
In his head, conflicting thoughts argued as if two entities existed within.
His feet were now facing the message wall. If he really wanted to check it, he could pretend to lower his head and peek toward the door.
"I'll take a quick look."
With curiosity outweighing fear, Yahrum tried to fake a change in sleeping position to deceive both himself and whatever was knocking at the door.
He slowly bent his head down and squinted slightly to look toward the door.
[DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR!]
And then Yahrum was startled by what he saw.
What shocked him more than the knocking sound was the message wall, which now displayed large, glowing, crimson letters.
The color was redder than any messages he had seen before, and the letters were so large they filled the entire wall.
guk.....
guk.....
But before he could question what he was seeing, suddenly there was a sound like footsteps on the wooden floor outside the door.
A moment later, Yahrum's heart nearly leapt out of his chest.
He saw a black shadow figure outside the window next to the door.
Despite it being the middle of the night, the light from the stars and from the wall made it possible for him to faintly see its form.
The shadow had the shape of a person, but all that could be seen was a black color that looked like mist or smoke.
The black shadow slowly walked past the window until it disappeared behind the message wall.
However, the sound of footsteps could still be heard.
Guk guk guk...
"It's coming!!"
Listening carefully to the footsteps, Yahrum realized the black shadow was walking around the wall and heading toward his direction.
Being afraid of supernatural things, Yahrum slowly shifted his body off the wooden bed.
He wanted to hide under the bed.....because there was no blanket.....
This bed only had a mattress and a pillow, which was already good enough, but it would be even better if there was a blanket to cover himself and hide from his fear...
He struggled awkwardly to get himself under the bed but soon realized that his right shoulder was injured. Whether he used his hand to support himself or simply dropped his upper body, it would definitely hurt...
And most importantly..... It would make a loud noise!
He didn't know if that black shadow was a ghost or something scarier, but he didn't want to make any noise that might attract it to him...
The reason he wanted to get under the bed was to use it as a shield in case the black shadow came to the window on his right side.
He was lying himself...
"Damn it!!"
He screamed silently when he realized he couldn't get his body under the bed as planned, so he decided to change to lying on his back instead and tightly shut his eyes.
He abandoned that idea. He thought that if the shadow would see him, at least he would be facing the ceiling.
"At least I won't be facing it directly."
Yahrum secretly consoled himself.
Guk….. guk….guk.....
The sound of footsteps from the left grew increasingly closer to his ear.
Then it moved past above his head.
"It's here...."
His heart was still racing wildly. If he got money every time it beat, he'd be rich by now.
Then the footsteps stopped by his right ear, exactly at the window position.
...
....
...
After the footsteps ceased, silence prevailed for a long time.
In this strange hellish place, there were no other sounds to be heard.
No bird songs, not even insects. The dead silence in this place could drive a person insane.
...
"Ha...Ha...Haah....."
After a while, Yahrum seemed to hear soft, faint breathing from the right side.
He instinctively thought it must be coming from that shadow.
But he didn't dare to open his eyes to look at anything, not even moving a bit.
Fortunately, this hellish place had no mosquitoes....
Yahrum had somewhat phasmophobia, and of course, he wouldn't do anything stupid driven by curiosity like characters in those movies.
"Go away, go away, go away, go away, go away, go away, go away, go away, go away"
He prayed in his mind while remained as still as possible.
....
...
The morning light arrived.
"Ah....."
The pain in the right shoulder woke Yahrum up.
Last night, although he couldn't remember when did he fall asleep, but now he was glad it was early morning.
Deep down, Yahrum felt excited and enjoyed this deadly game, even though he had nearly died yesterday.
So, after getting up from the bed in pain, he immediately looked toward the wall.
[Time remaining before the next wave arrives: 02: 58: 27]
On the wall, there was only a large message indicating the time.
"Hey! What was that thing last night?"
Yahrum slowly walked toward the wall and spoke with a slightly harsh tone.
..
Almost a minute passed, but no other message appeared on the wall, making Yahrum frown slightly.
"If that guy is really a person, it's still very early right now. I guess the bastard isn't awake yet"
Having concluded that, he looked down at the farming tools scattered on the floor.
He then picked up a spade and slowly pulled the door open.
He looked through the doorway to the left and right with suspicion before poking his head out to thoroughly check outside once more.
Then he slowly walked out.
Yahrum surveyed around his shack and, finding nothing unusual, finally felt at ease.
He then pierce the spade into the ground so it stood firmly before going back into the shack to get the seeds and the can.
".... The hoe is good for digging large holes, but with my arm hurt, I'll have to use the spade for now... As for the rake....."
While holding the seed bag and watering can in his hand, Yahrum looked at the hoe that had saved his life last night and tried to recall his agricultural knowledge from when he was young.
He remembered the functions of only one or two tools before shaking his head slightly in helplessness.
He felt slightly regretful that he didn't have much knowledge in this area, despite being a descendant of farmers.
...
Chik! Chik! Chik! Chik!
On the vast open ground in front of the shack, Yahrum was using a spade to dig into the soil on the opposite side of the strange flower that was now closing its petals.
Although he could use his left arm to thrust the spade into the ground just fine, the force it sends back caused stinging sensations to his whole body's wounds.
This had caused him to thrust the spade sometimes weakly, sometimes missed the target, and the process took longer than normal.
But Yahrum didn't feel angry or reluctant. He just frowned, enduring the pain while hurrying to finish the work before the next wave arrived.
Yahrum dug several holes in a long path. He started from where the rats had swarmed in, digging all the way down until he reached the area not far from the shack's door.
Although he wasn't very experienced in planting, he was smart enough to leave some space for each hole to prevent the plants from growing too close to each other.
He wasn't sure if they would attack each other or not.
The number of seeds he received was limited; while he wanted to test it, the resources weren't charitable.
...
Although his injuries made him sweat more than usual and undermined his morale, he didn't waste even a minute resting.
Gurgle!
His stomach growled. Yahrum felt much hungrier than usual, but he endured it.
After he finished digging holes to his satisfaction, he opened the seed bag, counting the total number of remaining seeds, and found that there were 11 left.
"12? That's quite generous, hah?"
He felt that the one behind the wall was to generous, which made him suspicious for a moment.....
However, a moment later, he remembered something important.
"Wait... If that plant could grow on the surface..... what's the point of the digging tools?"
He looked at the large flower which its petals started to open slightly and frowned.
He wondered if the person behind the wall was messing with him again.
He wanted to test whether plants that grow from the underground and those that don't possess any differences.
But if he really wanted to test that, he would need to position that flower to the very front, which meant he'd have to start digging all over again.
The position of that flower wasn't far from the shack. If he wanted to position new ones, he would have to plant them closer to the shack…
And he didn't think that was a good idea.
Last night that flower nearly bit him; if he planted many of those flowers close to the shack, his escape route would be narrow and much worse.
The wounds and pain made his brain work abnormally....
"D*mn it! My head hurts, my body hurts..... You b*stard!"
"Fighting with monsters isn't enough, now I have to worry about the person behind that wall too!"
He began to feel suspicious of the villain who had brought him to this hell.
...
....
..
Yahrum found himself confused in both thought and emotion; being a little suspicious was good, but too much suspicion would drive him paranoid.
Since arriving here, his nerves had been constantly rattled. If he became paranoid to the point of insanity, he would never escape this place.
Realizing this, Yahrum began to tell himself to relax, stay calm, and plan better before acting.
He picked up the watering can and slowly poured water from the filling hole into his mouth, careful not to spill too much.
Although he could clearly see the amount of water inside, after drinking, he felt that the water level had barely decreased, which was very surprising.
He had no idea if the water in this can was clean or safe or came from something scary, but right now he had lost a lot of sweat. If he didn't rehydrate, he would surely die before the second wave arrived.
There might be clean water for sale in the shop, but right now he had no money.
He willingly took the risk for now and dealt with the consequences later!
With self-awareness of his abnormal state and the cool water from the can, Yahrum began to relax.
When his mind calmed, he realized this was similar to a tower defense game.
In those games, monsters would attack from various directions, and players had to place towers to fend off those monsters before they reached the base.
"Usually in games, the base has health, but in this god-forsaken game, I am the base, not that shack!"
Although Yahrum knew this fact well, he thought he shouldn't risk the only structure that might help turn his situation around.
"I've wasted enough time..."
Yahrum shook his head slightly to clear his mind of scattered and useless thoughts.
He took a deep breath before deciding not to perform the test and walked toward the hole he had dug.
...
"... Yesterday's first wave, if I guess correctly, there were probably 100-300 of them... This wave will definitely be over 500... One Snappy's snap can take care around 10 of them at once..."
As he laid seeds into the holes and covered them with soil one by one, Yahrum tried to estimate the number of enemies that would soon arrive.
He had dug 7 holes in total. Together with the last night's, he would have 8 Snappys in total.
"Judging by how fast it attacked yesterday, I'm definitely going to have sore legs again..."
Yahrum didn't know how much time was left before the next wave would arrive, but he thought it wouldn't be long, so he decided to stop at 7 holes for now.
.....
After setting up all 7 of his "turrets," Yahrum sat down to rest on the small steps of the wooden shack while watching his handiwork gradually growing above the soil.
He felt a little proud.
But after smiling faintly for a moment, he quickly got up and went back into the shack to check the time.
[Be early bird like this, now that's what you call being the backbone of the nation!]
The red letters on the wall had changed.
[Time before the next wave arrives: 00:04:27]
However, before Yahrum could respond, he looked toward the upper right corner of the wall to check the time first.
"Last night I encountered a strange dark shadowy figure.... What was that?"
Yahrum asked out of curiosity.
[Oh? That was me! You must have been terrified?]
....
...
After seeing the messages on the wall, Yahrum remained silent without saying anything for nearly half a minute.
Of course, he didn't believe it.
[Well, I thought that was a decent one... Am I really that unbelievable?]
"Oh?! Ha ha, very funny!"
Yahrum laughed dryly with a deadass face after seeing the messages.
[Just kill me instead.]
...
[Hmm... how should I explain it???]
...
[Let's just say they are a wandering spirit!]
The message on the wall paused for a moment before the next sentence appeared causing Yahrum to furrow his brow deeply.
"A spirit?!"
He was stunned and felt slightly afraid.
[That's right! That dark shadowy figure is a pitiful soul.]
[If you had opened the door for them last night, your body would have been possessed by now!]
When the message stopped, Yahrum's skin immediately crawled.
[Some nights spirits like that might appear, or there might be special events instead.]
[Fun, isn't it! Haha!]
"Are you going to warn me every night like you did yesterday?"
Yahrum asked with a serious tone.
[Ha! Now your words are making me laugh!]
[I told you many times, bro. Since you played along, I gave you a hint as a favor!]
[From now on, rely on the rewards after beating each wave!]
Yahrum finished reading the message and frowned.
"Wait a minute... If I remember correctly, when I woke up in the middle of the night, I saw a warning message on the wall..."
"It used the word 'hint'... Does that mean whoever warned me then wasn't this entity?"
"Interesting..."
[Creepy! Are you smiling because you're enjoying the game or because you're going insane?]
[The next wave is coming! May you die horribly!]
The next moment, Yahrum smiled at one corner of his mouth, then stopped smiling because the next wave was about to arrive.
[Time before the next wave arrives: 00:00:27]
Yahrum patted his pants pocket to check the seed bag once more. When he was sure it was still there, he grabbed a sickle for a weapon.
At first, he thought about using the shovel again, but after careful consideration, he chose the smaller sickle instead.
The shovel had the advantage of length, but the sickle's shorter handle made it easier for him to attack than the shovel.
This tool was the best for his current condition.
..
[Time before the next wave arrives: 00:00:00]
[Second Wave: Cockroaches]
[Rabid rats have been added to this wave as a punishment!]
[Time to clear the second wave: 04:59]
"Same duration? Will I make it?"
When he saw the numbers indicating the time limit, Yahrum felt a bit tense.
Same duration, but the monsters might be twice as many as yesterday. If he couldn't clear this wave in time again, he would surely die tomorrow.
While the short-haired man was worrying about the time limit, he didn't realize that these "cockroaches" he was ignoring were not ordinary cockroaches.
Squeak, squeak, squeak
The sound of four-legged creatures, masters of disease carriers, came from the same'ol direction again.
However, when Yahrum turned to check them, he was so shocked that his face nearly turned pale.
"F*ck, f*ck, f*ck, f*ck, f*ck, f*ck!"
"Get away! Get away! Get away! Get away! Get away! Don't come near me!"
He saw countless dark brown cockroaches rushing toward him along with the rats.
However, those roaches were as big as the rats!
Some were even bigger!
He cursed inwardly in panic.
Although he wasn't particularly afraid of cockroaches, if Peter started spreading them wings and flying, he would feel a bit apprehensive.
And those Peters were almost as big as his shin!
At this size, they didn't even need wings. Just coming close would made every hair on his body stand right up!
All 8 Snappys began to snap the preys that was running toward them. The squeaking sounds of the rats wailing cycled.
When they bit down on the ground, more than ten rats and cockroaches were swallowed into the core of the flowers.
Although the Snappy plants seemed to be working beautifully in Yahrum's eyes, his mind was still in considerable panic.
He didn't have the courage to open the door to fight or to lure those monsters...
Disease-carrying rats crawling on his neck he could barely tolerate, but if it were cockroaches with spiky legs....
Just touching his neck, his entire body would probably collapse right down to the floor, so Yahrum decided not to open the door under any circumstances!
"...Wait!"
"Both windows are already broken! Sh*t!!!"
At first, he thought the cockroaches couldn't break through the wood like the rats could.
If only rats invaded, he could handle them easily.
But he forgot that all the glass window were already broken!
With no other choice, he quickly opened the door and stepped outside with his leg hair began to rise.
"Damn it!"
As he stepped out of the shack, he immediately knew his fate was to run around the shack again, waiting for the Snappys to take care of the monsters.
But what if Peter decided to use their wings?
He felt bitter inside.
This wave wasn't meant to kill him!
He was already infected he would die regardless if he didn't win!
That bastard probably just wanted to mess with him!
Yahrum had no more time to think. He gritted his teeth and started running around the shack again.
Whoosh!
However, when he got to the back of the shack, he heard a sound from above.
The cockroaches were using their wings to fly up onto his shack....
Normally, cockroaches only use their wings to fly when necessary.
But this place was hell incarnate! If rats could dare to bite wood without giving anything to its pain, why couldn't cockroaches use their wings to chase and kill him!
"Get awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!"
Yahrum increased his speed even more, though it looked clumsy because he kept looking back and had to wrap his hand around the right shoulder to keep it from shaking too much.
"Sh*t!"
When he reached the left side of the shack, he found some cockroaches blocking him in front.
He was surrounded on all sides and cursed in panic.
In that split second deciding life or death, he gritted his teeth and chose to run through them.
He didn't even think about using the sickle to cut them.
His instinct told him to just run away.
He didn't know if the cockroaches could harm his body
And he didn't know if his sickle could cut through their shells.
Right now, all he thought about was running to those flowers!
As he ran through the cockroaches, he tried to avoid stepping on them as much as possible.
He didn't want their remains to splatter on him....
But that was just a shallow thought that popped up because of his panic.
Although he managed to place his feet on the ground sometimes, mostly he stepped on the legs and heads of the roaches.
Even though they didn't explode, he still felt disgusted.
Of course, his legs inevitably came into contact with them.
The spikes on their legs and the antennae from their heads made his skin crawl, causing both his hands and legs to shake.
But he tried to overcome that feeling of disgust because death was approaching!
"Huff, huff, huff, huff...."
And finally, his body demanded its toll.
This somewhat-healthy looking man had wounds all over his body since yesterday.
Worse still, his right arm had a severe gash running almost to his hand.
Plus, he had just used a lot of energy digging so many holes.
The fact that he had enough strength to run almost a full lap was already a miracle his body could provide.
Yahrum could only run for a few moments before his whole body began to numb.
Both calves tightened to the point where he could barely take another step. His arms and fingers had a numbing, tingling sensation, causing the sickle in his hand to fall because he no longer had the strength to grip it.
His breathing was unusually rapid.
The nearest Snappy was only 5-6 steps away, but he couldn't run anymore. He couldn't even walk no more.
Thud!
He managed only two more steps before his knees gave up and collapsed to the ground.
In that moment, Yahrum had no thoughts whatsoever. His body was in a completely frozen state for a brief moment.
The rats began to bite through his shoes, but Yahrum didn't even have the strength to cry out.
The cockroaches started swarming up above his body.
Just as his brain was about to process and tell him that he wasn't going to make it, at that very moment—
Gulp!
The snapping sound of that Snappy took more than 10 cockroaches and rats in front of him down into its stem.
Yahrum, in his exhausted state, saw that and a memory flashed in his mind.
[When anything comes close within range, the vibrations from the ground will signal the flower to snap at that direction.]
So Yahrum gathered what little strength he had left, using his one remaining arm to drag his body to the middle of all 8 Snappy!
By now, not just his ankles, but his legs, back, and neck had been bitten by the rats to the point the wounds were gaping.
But even so, he didn't stop!
The Snappy didn't stop snapping them either!
Although dragging himself on the ground sent vibrations to the Snappys, since the animals moved more aggressively and faster than him, the Snappys chose to bite them instead.
But even so... Yahrum's body wasn't completely spared.
Both his back and calves were damaged by the force of the Snappy's bite until his clothes and flesh were torn.
But still, he wouldn't stop!
Until finally, he reached the center position of the Snappy grove!
When he was digging holes to plant them, he thought that planting them directly on the path that the monsters took to invade probably wouldn't be a good idea.
The rats might bite the stems causing them to die sooner than they should.
And according to the principles of Tower Defense games, no one puts towers directly in the path of the monsters, causing the towers to be destroyed quickly.
So he chose to plant them on the sides, to the left and right of the path instead.
And now his body lay motionless on that path, while all 8 Snappy plants were frantically devouring the monsters.
....
....
...
..
"Ah....."
Yahrum slowly opened his eyes with a groan of exhaustion like someone dying.
"Did I survive...?"
"No...wa…it...?"
He was now lying face down on the ground. He tried to lift his head, but the pain forced him to back down with his face against the ground.
He couldn't see or feel anything on his back, so he thought he must have won the second wave.
But soon, he remembered that if the time ran out, the monsters would also disappear too, so he still didn't feel at ease.
Right now, his entire body was in pain.
He wanted to try standing up, but his senses told him he wasn't ready yet.
...
After about 3 minutes, he felt like he might be able to sit up now.
Yahrum slowly turned his body to the left.
"Arghh!"
He cried out loudly.
This pain came from both his legs.
He slowly supported himself up to sit on the ground and found that the path where he had dragged himself to here, there was a long trail of blood.
Both his legs were covered in flowing blood. His back was also in burning pain.
When his eyes saw both his legs that looked like chunks of meat gnawed ugly by wild animals, he trembled with fear.
His tears flowed.
"F*cker!"
He cursed inwardly due to his resentment.
What had he done to deserve such hell?
He tried to recall his entire life since birth, but couldn't imagine anyone being this cruel.
He sat crying for about a minute and a half before stopping.
Although he was somewhat antisocial, he had never felt such disgust and resentment before.
These negative emotions made his body scream for survival, to escape this place and find whoever had condemned him to this hell.
He wanted to kill them with his own hands!
He raised his head and looked at the wooden shack with a determined gaze.
He had made his decision!
Not only must he escape from this place...
After he escapes, he would do everything to find this wretched animal!
Even if they were a god, he wouldn't be afraid!
Yahrum shifted to his left before leaning his entire body forward.
Using his left arm, which was nearly as injured as his right shoulder, he dragged himself back toward the hut.
He suffered throughout those 5 minutes, but didn't give up even a little.
His anger prevented him from noticing that the Snappys had all closed their petals.
If they had still been blooming, he definitely wouldn't have reached the hut.
...
Upon reaching the small 3-4 step wooden staircase, Yahrum struggled with all his might to pull himself up with his arms.
Fortunately, the door was still open, otherwise he would have been even more injured.
He crawled through the wooden door.
[Congratulations! You've passed the second wave!]
[Reward for passing the second wave: 200 Crystals and a random reward from 3 options.]
[Please choose your reward.]
[200 Crystals.]
[Fully repair your shack as good as new!]
[Heal you back to healthy!]
After Yahrum managed to prop himself up against the wooden door, he looked at the wall.
He saw blood-red text announcing his victory and three bubbles floating in front of the wall, just like yesterday.
Except this time, the bubbles seemed to contain different items.
The first bubble had an image of bright white crystals with the number 200.
The second bubble showed his wooden shack with a sparkling effect.
The third bubble had a human silhouette that was completely black with the same sparkling effect as the second bubble.
He smiled slightly with joy, but his eyes still held vengeful hatred.
[Fun, wasn't it?! Surviving a life-or-death situation is an unforgettable experience!!]
The message on the wall changed again, but the three bubbles remained.
"Go F*ck yourself!"
Yahrum cursed with an expressionless face and an exhausted voice.
[Hahaha! That's the spirit! That's a real man! From now on, things are going to get exciting!]
New red text appeared on the wall again.
"Open shop!"
Yahrum commanded sternly, and the text on the wall disappeared.
What replaced the red text was images of various items with numbers to their right.
[Snappy seed x 1 10 Crystals]
[Spearot seed x 1 25 Crystals]
[Bottle of clean water x1 30 Crystals]
[First aid kit x1 120 Crystals]
[Fertilized egg x 1 30 Crystals]
...
Yahrum scanned the items listed on the wall, but when he saw "First aid kit," he immediately stopped looking.
"I knew the shop would have one!"
"120 for a first aid kit?! Will it heal me instantly or what?!"
He frowned slightly before asking the person behind the wall in a sarcastic tone.
[No! Only rewards from winning provide miraculous effects as if bestowed by gods!]
[Items in the shop, except for the mutated seeds, are ordinary items!]
[I recommend choosing the healing option, otherwise you won't survive until the next wave! Haha!]
Red text gradually appeared on the wall.
Yahrum read it and remained silent, but various thoughts were already forming in his mind.
"Then… I choose the third reward. Heal me back to healthy."
"I don't want to die from rabies either!"
Yahrum spoke in a calm voice despite being on the verge of death.
But his choice seemed to give the person behind the wall a sense of satisfaction.
[Your chosen reward is: Heal you back to healthy!]
...
A moment later, before any mockery could begin, Yahrum's body felt as if a strong wind was blowing from above him.
However, it wasn't actually wind. He could feel that it was some kind of indescribable power flowing down through his body.
And in the next moment, all of Yahrum's wounds vanished as if they were illusions.
All the pain was gone. He slowly stood up as his pupils contracted.
"What...?"
The mysterious power that healed his body astonished him, momentarily making him forget his resentment.
[Congratulations on passing the second wave!]
[And now your body is back to normal! You should have enough strength to face the next wave!]
The message on the wall changed again, but Yahrum didn't feel happy about those words at all.
[.......]
[Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha]
The previous two messages faded away and were replaced by a message showing several dots followed by what seemed to be the person behind the wall reveling in something.
"What's so f*cking funny?!"
He cursed rudely out of annoyance, but his face remained expressionless.
[Nothing! I'm just entertained by your decision!]
At last, the person behind the wall openly mocked Yahrum.
"What do you mean?"
..
"Are you telling me you lied about the first aid kit?!"
Yahrum frowned before speaking loudly.
[Hahahahahahahahaha.]
[I didn't lie! It's not about that!]
When another message of satisfaction appeared, Yahrum didn't respond this time, but frowned even more.
[Even though your body is healed...]
[The disease hasn't disappeared, eh?!]
[Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.]
..
"Didn't you say you would heal me back to healthy?!"
After almost half a minute, Yahrum asked in a stern voice.
[I did heal you back to healthy, didn't I? Where did I break my word?!]
[You're healthy now, but the disease hasn't gone away!]
[The reward stated "heal to healthy," not "heal everything" or "cure your disease"]
[Don't you understand it?! Hahahahahahaha.]
Yahrum's gaze grew more vengeful with each new message he read.
"MotherF*cker!"
Finally, he spat out a vulgar word. His voice sounded vengeful as he gritted his teeth.
He tried to control his expression to avoid showing signs of losing his mind.
[Oh ho? How vulgar! Coming from a low-life family so you have to act like one?]
[Don't worry! You and I will have plenty of fun together!]
[Keep winning! Eventually, you might get a vaccine or the cure!]
[Hahahahaha, if you get one, that is! Exciting, isn't it!]
The message on the wall showed the utmost contempt, causing Yahrum to lower his head slightly to look at the floor while placing one hand on his forehead.
...
...
..
However... what the person behind the wall didn't know...
In that silence, only the wooden floor of the shack could see Yahrum's expressionless, almost emotionless face.
Actually, he had already guessed that the healing reward probably wouldn't cure his disease.
But he didn't think the other rewards would be better than healing his body either.
Although he had just displayed anger, he didn't feel as hot-tempered as before.
At this moment, he was more curious about the actions and words of the person behind the wall.
"First, they willingly told me about the first aid kit directly. If they truly intended to trick me or wanted me to die, they could have lied and tricked me into wasting those 120 crystals...
Second, they dared to say that all other items except the strange seeds were ordinary.
Even though they once said they wanted me to appreciate the value of farmers, judging from those contemptuous words and their personality, they probably prefer me to die quickly. There's no way they wouldn't do anything to trick me and speed up my demise.
This third point is the most important.... Sometimes, their way of speaking feels strange..."
After filtering through his thoughts, Yahrum discovered that the person behind the wall could have chosen to ignore him, but still answered his questions.
Whether what they said was true or false, he could verify later.
But what intrigued him most wasn't that.
"This means one thing...."
"It feels like there are two of them..?"