[Transfer Complete!]
[Sync Complete!]
[Player #7923100263 Caleb Harlow is now online.]
[Class Determined: Oasis Owner (SSS)]
These were all texts that just appeared in front of his eyes. It was big enough to read without effort, but small enough —and located at the bottom of his field of vision— to ensure that it did not hinder his sight as much.
It looked a lot like the text boxes in those MMORPG games he had seen kids play, adding to the game-like experience.
However, he also knew he was not in a game. His body hurt too much. His instincts also told him so, and he always trusted his instincts.
Unexpectedly, other than those texts, he also started to hear things, too!
{Welcome to the fallen planet of Mephos, Owner! Please activate the Oasis System to claim your land.}
{Please make a decision within ten minutes.}
"What do you mean?" he asked, feeling a deep foreboding in his stomach. He had an idea what was going on at the back of his mind, but everything else was in disagreement.
"Hey, what does it mean? What happens in ten minutes?" he repeated, but there was no answer. He vaguely felt that it was also getting hard to breathe, and he wondered if it was because of his shock, or was the temperature so bad that his body was reacting like this?
In the end, he looked around for a while, deciding to maximize the so-called ten minutes the voice gave him to look around. The more he looked, the more his stomach dropped.
What was he looking at?
Nothing.
Literally nothing.
Just an endless expanse of reddish-grey soil, charcoal-like trees, and powdery skies.
It was not quite a desert, but the flaking soil underneath his slippers told him it wasn't too far from it.
He went further uphill in an attempt to see more. The elevation wasn't that different; it was a gentle hill at most, but he'd take what he could.
Sadly, he couldn't see well. His vision was a bit blurred, likely due to the dust particles everywhere, hindering his sight.
He also patted his chest repeatedly as he moved, feeling that it was increasingly getting harder to breathe. The damned ambient heat was not helping either.
"Fuck," he cursed.
Was he already tired after a few minutes of walking? While he had indeed been neglecting his exercise, especially after discovering the game, his stamina couldn't be this bad, right?
Right?
"HELLLLOOO!??" he yelled, losing patience. "WHERE AMMM AYYYEEE?"
No answer.
Worst, it made it even harder to breathe. When did he start gasping for air? He didn't know.
At this point, he didn't have much of a choice now, did he?
He irritably ruffled his blonde hair and, with gritted teeth, he uttered out the words. "Activate."
Ding!
Immediately after that, the childish voice echoed in his mind again, followed by a string of texts that was a bit difficult to follow in his dizzied state.
{Thank you for activating the Oasis System, Owner!}
[Activating Oasis System!]
[Initiating…]
[Now available! Main building (Lv1) x 1, Barrier (Lv1) x 1, Water Fountain (Lv1) x 1]
[Newbie Bonus: Building construction is temporarily free of charge!]
[Oasis Status]
Name: Unnamed
Level: 1
Barrier Coverage: 50 meters radius | 7,854 sqm
Scope of Influence: 100 meters radius | 15,708 sqm
Buildings: None
Current Occupancy: 1%
Rules: Not Set
[End of Status]
{Please watch your purchases and activation, Owner, as each item has accompanying maintenance costs, charged at midnight.}
{Inability to pay will cause penalties and interest.}
{Inability to pay on time will cause the item to be confiscated. Recovery is estimated to be 10x that of the original costs.}
It felt like he could breathe again all of a sudden. It was still hot, and it was still not as 'fresh' as back on Earth, but he at least had his brain back, at least before it got completely fried or died due to asphyxiation.
It was here that Caleb realized there were a few icons in his peripheral vision. They were semi-transluscent, but clear enough to see. There was a human silhouette at the top, followed by a house, a bag, a flag, a stall, and a signal icon similar to the WiFi logo.
At this time, the second from the top logo, the image of a house, was pulsating, as if asking him to use it.
When he clicked on it, the aforementioned item names appeared, and he knew he'd just have to select them and they'd be purchased.
Caleb paused for a moment, still absorbing everything that had happened so far. Should he really make a purchase? This would totally count as an impulsive purchase, right? As a miser who had a hard life, it was a bit of a difficult for him to buy recklessly.
[Ten minutes have ended]
He did not have to wonder what would happen after the ten minutes was up because the change was instantaneous.
He soon heard the ominous uneven scraping of many legs, combined with a layer of buzzing that distorted the air. It was not yet close, but close enough, and soon, his eyes landed on a group of creepy crawlies approaching him.
It was a group of black beetle-like things, and the scraping sound was made by their sharpened legs that created scratches on their path. Each one was about the size of a basketball and could definitely eat up an arm without effort,
They looked a little familiar, but he wasn't in the mood to reminisce right now. He was just terrified.
"W-W-What…"
He raised his hand to click on the Oasis Building tab, and then clicked [Barrier] to activate it. Even when the system acknowledged his orders, he still pressed on it over and over as if pressing on an elevator button.
[Barrier (Lv1) is active]
[Daily Maintenance Fee: 100 credits]