Chapter 3

Title: Check Out the Red Boom Elixir~[13]

Hello, neighbors~

The wind’s been chilly these days, hasn’t it~?

How are you all managing your health~~?

Today, I want to talk about Red Boom (which they also call the Red Explosion).

(Here’s a photo of me holding the Red Boom in one hand)

It’s such a thin, metallic object~ but the main feature is what’s inside!

Drinking this gives you a burst of strength! (Isn’t it a bizarre feeling to suddenly feel enormous power?!)

If you thought you were at your end, this gives you another chance for a comeback!

(A meme of a mountain made of monster corpses)

This was what I learned about the Red Boom elixir.

(A photo of Lime making a cheesy thumbs-up expression)

“Nah, what the heck is this?”

“I thought it was an informational post, but why does it look like a diary entry?”

“I’m just scared of this guy…”

“With those creepy vibes and photos dripping with blood, it’s practically Jason!”

“Mom, I’m scared.”

A day passed. Were it one day or two, I couldn’t tell.

The only thing I’m sure of is that even after being reincarnated, I’m diligently continuing my gallery activities.

“…Is this a side effect of the Red Boom?”

While browsing through the Red Boom effects post, I stumbled upon a text that subtly hinted at madness.

“Well, the reactions are explosive.”

Contrary to my fear of it being unpopular, the responses were indeed clear.

– Please sell more, pretty please!

– What’s the original below? Sounds like there are other flavors too, delicious!

– Hey, head of the gallery, listen up! If you don’t sell an additional thousand Red Booms, I swear I’ll take a dump right here!

“Why would you do that, you crazy person?”

Already over a hundred cans were sold additionally, yet requests for more flooded in.

But there was one big problem.

[Current Mana Pills: 500]

“So how do I deal with this?”

Selling them would return profits that were pretty much useless.

Unless it was immersed in civilization, I couldn’t determine the usefulness of mana pills during this isolation.

I’d only gathered that they had vague monetary use while lurking in the gallery.

“…Well, they’ll be useful someday.”

Initially, it was easy to accumulate points, so I didn’t feel too distressed.

As I was casually reading new posts, strange bait started circulating in the gallery.

– So, what’s the race of the head of the gallery?[5]

– The reason why the head of the gallery is an elf…jpg[3]

– Forget the race; is it a girl?

At first, I thought it was just another common bait in the gallery.

We had strange bait circling around in the gallery more than once.

★ – Why the head of the gallery can only be a beautiful elf[75]

“What in the world is this?”

Yet, this bait felt unusual.

(Verification photo of the head of the gallery buying bottled water)

First, look carefully at this photo.

The quality is awful, but if you look closely, you can see the ring and pinky fingers, right?

Even accounting for the shake, you can tell the fingers are slender.

If I roughly trace over the photo and eliminate the shaking, it would look something like this.

(Drawing of the imagined fingers of the head of the gallery)

If you look closely here, the skin is very pale, right?

This wouldn’t be possible unless staying cooped up at home all the time, or through genetics.

However, living cooped up in a fallen world means death.

That means having inherently white and beautiful fingers, and such a race only exists one way.

Elves.

Thus, it’s definitely a charming elf girl.

“What the heck is this?”

In an instant, I was caught between believing a crazy person or a charming elf girl, and I was left dumbfounded.

Could there really be people who believe this?

But this was the gallery.

A world where the normal is abnormal.

“Oh, that sounds plausible.”

“What’s this? Is the head of the gallery an elf girl?”

“Wasn’t the head of the gallery a half-elf beauty?”

“Yeah, let’s just say it’s a girl.”

“[Author] Not that, but sure, it’s definitely true.”

“Yeah, yeah, it seems so, but isn’t there no evidence they’re an elf? Why are you so sure?”

“[Author] Because I want to!”

“??”

“[Author] I can’t resist the charming and pretty, pure white elf girl head of the gallery.”

“I thought you were a fallen noble’s daughter, but if that’s not the case, I’m disappointed, head of the gallery.”

“[Head of the Gallery☆] Want to find out if it really fell?”

“Oops.”

I’d had my hand over a 999-day ban, but I was quick on the uptake.

Moreover, the speculations didn’t stop there.

There were crazed phrases about me being an elf or a dragon in disguise.

Ignoring most of those statements, I was searching for other posts that would give me a dopamine rush.

-(Help Request) Monsters appearing in the Antares Mountain Range wave

A serious post popped up.

*

Dwarves were the blacksmiths of the continent.

The extraordinary weapons of most heroes came from their hands, and incredible constructions were also forged by dwarves.

However, after the Great War, the dwarves took refuge underground to defend themselves from monsters, and that’s where we find ourselves today.

…or at least that’s what the information post said.

Title: Antares Mountain Range / Iron City Kilgroth / Requesting Help for Area 1 Recapture

Category: Help Request

(A photo of dwarves defending against monsters at the second wall of the Kilgroth Kingdom)

The first wall collapsed yesterday.

The second wall won’t hold long either.

If we fall, you will too.

The monsters are relentlessly digging into Kilgroth, so we’re requesting help.

We’ve run out of food during the defense process.

If we can receive food supplies, we won’t forget to repay you for your assistance.

“…Seeing it like this, it really hits hard.”

The world in the photo was pure despair.

Thousands of monsters were breaching the towering walls like a mountain.

And armored dwarves were toting hammers and spears, bringing down the monsters just their size.

Even so, the dwarves were slowly being pushed back.

“The food issue, huh?”

The dwarves in the photo looked so thin and haggard.

There was a stark difference between them and the dwarves I knew.

“Oh wow, it’s been ages since I saw a help request.”

“Wait, are the dwarves really asking for help?”

“Dude, they look so thin.”

“If they’re struggling, what are we supposed to do?”

“Damn, I want to kill those ugly monsters!”

Seeing that scene, it was only natural that the reactions in the gallery flared up.

Most of all, I had never seen a help request post before.

“There’re categories, but the posts aren’t even generating!”

I heard that when the Great War was in full swing, there were plenty of help requests.

But now, one by one, those brave enough to either die or be defeated had reduced into mere shadows, clutching onto their own survival.

No one had the strength left to give or receive help, so the category had been silenced.

Of course, unlike the gallery’s fury, there was no way to assist them.

“Watching something like that is just awful.”

“It’s really destroyed, you know? Our humans aren’t far off from it either.”

“Even if they’re our enemies, I didn’t wish for their destruction.”

“Truly powerless. It’s frustrating.”

Other races were already in a struggle for survival as extinction loomed over them.

I felt that helplessness too, but then, a lightbulb moment hit me.

“No, I have so many things I can do.”

The shop, and the marketplace.

I had a strength unmatched by anything in this world.

[Welcome to the Shop.]

[What items would you like to purchase?]

*

[Available points: 525]

“Thank goodness, I have enough points.”

I had been holed up in an underground storeroom for so long.

The only thing I could do during that time was hang out in the gallery, and I had gathered plenty of points.

It may not give out points as generously as when I had banned a user for the first time, but 525 is enough for me to do something.

“Now, how do I send this?”

[Items can be delivered once monthly under help request categories.]

“Oh.”

Fortunately, the system had no limitations.

*Food

[Tuna Can] – 1 point

[Vegetable Tuna Can] – 1 point

[Spicy Tuna Can] – 2 points

[Water 250ml] – 1 point

…

…

…

[250 Tuna Cans] purchased successfully!

[250 Water 250ml] purchased successfully!

Remaining points: 25

“Should I just send the rest in tuna cans?”

But I changed my mind.

Instead, images of everyone in the gallery missing alcohol came to mind, leading me to the liquor section.

*By country

Brand/General

Ale/Lager/Other Liquor

“What’s this? Isn’t beer just draft or stout?”

I had no clue what any of it was.

The deeper I delved into the categories, the more complex it became, making me fearful to click around.

However, amidst this, I discovered the clearest labeling.

Discount![Draft Beer 500cc] – 3 points→1 point

“This is it.”

I ordered 25 servings of 500cc draft beer.

*

“Surely, no help would come.”

The dwarf warrior Taldru sighed while looking at the gallery.

It had already been half a day since he wrote his help post, and yet no one had responded.

In truth, he knew it too.

It was impossible to secretly bring food supplies into such winding mountains.

It was just a desperate last-ditch effort to survive.

“There are a ton of disgusting bugs out there.”

Even in the harsh snowy mountains, monsters were plentiful.

Though there was a brief lull in their activity, if they charged once more, there would be no way to win.

Even one dwarf warrior is no match without sufficient food and a place to rest.

He was preparing for noble combat, tightening his grip on the hammer when…

[‘Head of the Gallery’ has responded to the help request.]

“Huh?”

With the unexpected fanfare, the gallery’s line appeared.

Around him, the dwarf warriors who were resting suddenly directed their attention.

[Taldru: What’s going on, head of the gallery?]

[Head of the Gallery: Just asking, you wrote a support request, right?]

[Taldru: ??]

[Either way, I felt like helping, so just take it!]

Bam!

[Items have been safely delivered!]

Along with a cheerful voice, boxes of packages arrived.

“What’s this?”

“Where did this come from?”

“Is this paper? You use paper for such large packaging?”

As soon as the curious dwarves began to open the boxes, one thing caught their eye.

“It’s alcohol?”

“What the…”

Beautiful brown beer contained in perfectly crafted glass.

At the voice of one astonished dwarf, the others popped their heads up like meerkats.

“Alcohol?”

“Lifeline?”

“Everything in my life?”

A roar!

After a brief moment of stillness, hundreds of dwarves began to rush towards Taldru on the wall.