Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World
"There are three ways to survive in a ruined world. I've forgotten a few by now. But one thing is certain.
That you, reading this right now, will survive.
— Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World, The End."
An old smartphone with a web novel platform open seemed to struggle as it scrolled the screen.
Down, then up again. How many times had I repeated that?
"Seriously? This is it?"
No matter how many times I looked again, the final character '完' (The End) was unmistakable.
The novel had ended.
Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World
Author: tls123
Total: 3,149 chapters
A long fantasy series with a staggering 3,149 chapters, Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World.
Nicknamed 'TWotSaRW'.
I had been reading this novel steadily since I was in the third year of middle school.
Even when I was bullied and ostracized by school delinquents.
Even when I failed my college entrance exams and got into a third-rate regional university.
Even when a cruel lottery system sent me to the most dangerous frontline military base.
Even now, working as a contract employee at a conglomerate's affiliate, after hopping between jobs...
Damn it, let's not go there. Anyway.
Author's Note:
Thank you for reading 'TWotSaRW' all this time. I'll see you again in the epilogue!
"Oh... there's still the epilogue. So the next one's really the last."
From the edge of my childhood into adulthood.
A journey spanning ten years.
A mix of hollow emptiness from seeing a world come to an end, and fulfillment from finally witnessing its conclusion.
I opened the comment section of the final chapter and rewrote my sentence over and over.
— Kim Dokja: Thank you so much, author-nim. I'll be looking forward to the epilogue.
It was a heartfelt message.
I wanted to say things like, "This was the novel of my life,"
or, "Even though it wasn't popular, it was the greatest story for me."
But I just couldn't bring myself to write those words.
I was afraid my clumsy expressions might end up hurting the author.
— Average views: 1.9
— Average comments: 1.08
That was the average popularity index of TWotSaRW.
Chapter 1 had about 1,200 views, but by Chapter 10, it dropped to 120.
By Chapter 50, it was down to 12.
And from Chapter 100 onward, it was consistently 1.
View count: 1.
Looking at the endless '1's in the post list filled me with unexpected emotion.
Occasionally, a '2' would appear, but that was probably someone's misclick.
I was grateful.
To have over 3,000 chapters of a novel with just one reader, serialized over 10 years...
This was a story made just for me.
— "Highly recommend this hidden gem!"
I clicked on the [Recommendation Board] and began typing furiously.
It was only fair to write at least one recommendation post for a novel that reached its end, free of charge.
As soon as I clicked 'Post', replies started flooding in.
— "This has to be a new kind of trolling. This guy's ID shows he's recommended the same novel multiple times."
— "I thought self-promotion was against the rules? Author-nim, please don't do this here."
Only then did I remember I had posted a recommendation a few months ago too.
Dozens of comments calling me an 'attention-seeker' or an 'idiot' poured in.
My face flushed red.
The author would definitely see this post, too.
I tried to delete it in a panic, but a message popped up: "This post has been reported and cannot be deleted."
"Dammit..."
The recommendation I had written with such sincerity now seemed to have brought harm to the novel instead.
Why won't anyone read this, when it's so good if you just stick with it?
I even wanted to send the author a donation, but as a salaryman barely scraping by, I couldn't afford it.
That's when the notification popped up: "You've received a message."
— tls123: Thank you.
A message out of nowhere. It took me a second to realize what was going on.
— Kim Dokja: Author-nim?
tls123.
He was the author of Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World.
— tls123: Thanks to you, I was able to finish it. I even won a writing contest.
I couldn't believe it.
A contest? That TWotSaRW?
— Kim Dokja: Congratulations! Which contest was it?
— tls123: It's a small one you probably haven't heard of.
I wondered if he was lying out of embarrassment.
But I wanted it to be true.
You never know—
It might have flopped here, but gone viral somewhere else.
Though I felt a little sad, a good story being shared with more people is a good thing.
— tls123: As a token of gratitude, I'd like to send you a special gift.
— Kim Dokja: A gift?
— tls123: This story could come into the world only because of you.
He asked for my email, and I gave him the one I used the most.
— tls123: Oh, and it's getting monetized soon, too.
— Kim Dokja: Wow, really? When does it start? Honestly, I should've paid from the beginning for a masterpiece like this...
It was a lie. TWotSaRW was updated daily, so reading it for a whole month would cost me 3,000 won.
And 3,000 won—for me, that's a convenience store lunch box.
— tls123: The paid version starts tomorrow.
— Kim Dokja: Then is the epilogue coming tomorrow also going to be paid?
— tls123: Yes, I'm sorry, but I'm planning to release it as paid content.
— Kim Dokja: Of course it should be paid! I'll definitely buy the last chapter!
After that, the author didn't reply.
It looked like he had logged out of the site.
A wave of emptiness hit me.
So now that he's successful, he doesn't even bother replying?
Admiration turned into petty jealousy.
What was I so excited about, anyway?
It's not like I wrote the novel.
"Maybe he'll send me a gift card? A 50,000-won one would be nice."
Naively, that's what I was thinking back then.
With no idea what was about to happen the next day.