Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint Chapter 0

Prologue – There exist three distinct methods to survive within a ruined world.

[There are three ways to survive in a ruined world. While I may have forgotten a few, one truth remains absolute: you, the individual reading these words right now, shall survive.]

-Three ways to survive in a ruined world]

My aging smartphone screen was occupied by the interface of a web novel platform. My thumb swiped down, then back up again, repeating an action I had performed countless times.

“For real? This is the conclusion?”

I scrutinized the screen once more, and the label marked ‘complete’ was undeniably visible.

The entire saga had reached its end.

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[Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World]

Author: tls123

3,149 chapters.

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‘Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World’ was a massive fantasy epic spanning 3,149 chapters, frequently referred to simply as ‘Ways of Survival.’

Ever since my third year of middle school, I had been a devoted reader of this story.

During those years when I suffered under school bullies, when my entrance exams resulted in a mediocre local university, when the military draft fate placed me in a dangerous frontline unit, and now, as I toil as a contract employee for a massive corporation’s affiliate—well, let’s leave those grim details behind.

Regardless...

「Author’s note: Thank you immensely for following ‘Ways of Survival’ until this point. I shall return shortly with the epilogue!]

“Wait... the epilogue is still left. So this truly isn’t the final chapter.”

Spanning a full decade, from my youth into adulthood, this story had been a constant presence. A heavy melancholy for the passing of this world mingled with a lingering sense of satisfaction.

I accessed the comment section of the final post and carefully edited my message before sending it.

-Kim Dokja: Writer, thank you for everything you have created. I am eagerly awaiting the epilogue.

These words were spoken with complete sincerity. ‘Ways of Survival’ was the novel of my life. It may not have enjoyed mass appeal, but it was the greatest story for me.

So many thoughts remained unsaid because I dared not speak them. I feared that even a stray word from me might inadvertently wound the author.

-Average of 1.9 views per chapter.

-Average of 1.08 comments per chapter.

Such was the humble popularity of ‘Ways of Survival.’

While the first chapter garnered 12,000 views, the numbers plummeted—120 for the 10th chapter, dropping to just 12 by the 50th. By the time I reached chapter 100, the count was merely 1.

Hits = 1.

Seeing that solitary ‘1’ next to the chapter list stirred a deep, complicated emotion within me. Occasionally, a ‘2’ would appear, though I suspected that was merely someone clicking the wrong link.

‘Thank you.’

For ten years, the author persisted in uploading a 3,000-chapter novel with essentially only one reader. It was, in every sense, a story written solely for me.

I navigated to the ‘Recommendation Board’ and tapped away at the keys: -I am here to recommend a truly addictive novel.

Since the author had gifted me an entire completed novel for free, the least I could do was offer a recommendation. After I hit the ‘complete’ button, comments sprouted almost instantly.

–Looks like a new bot. I checked their user history, they keep recommending the same novel.

–Why isn’t his account banned? The author needs to stop spamming this board.

I realized then that I had posted a similar recommendation months ago. In an instant, dozens of inquisitive ‘spectators’ descended upon my post. Heat rose to my face as I felt mortified.

Knowing the author would likely see this, I frantically tried to delete the message, but it had already been reported, locking it in place.

“What is this...”

It was heartbreaking to see my heartfelt recommendation met with5 such hostility.

Why wouldn’t anyone pause, just for a moment, to read this incredible story? I longed to support the writer with a donation, but as a low-level worker barely scraping by, such a thing was impossible.

Then, a notification pinged: ‘A message has arrived.’

A message appeared out of nowhere. It took several moments for my brain to process the event.

-tls123: Because of your support, I was able to see the end. I also won a competition.

I sat in disbelief.

‘Ways of Survival’ actually won a contest?

I wondered if the author was just being polite to save face, yet I desperately wanted it to be the truth. Perhaps I had simply been unaware of its success on other platforms. While a part of me felt a twinge of sadness, I was ultimately happy that such a masterpiece was being discovered.

As requested, I forwarded my email address to the author.

It was all a lie, of course. ‘Ways of Survival’ was a daily updated series, meaning it would cost 3,000 won a month to read—the price of a single convenience store lunch for someone in my position.

No further messages arrived from the author. I logged out of the site, and a wave of pessimism began to settle over me.

The author vanished without a word after finding success...? My admiration soured into a spike of petty resentment. Why was I so excited in the first place? In the end, it was never really my novel.

“Will he actually send a gift certificate? Maybe 50,000 won would be nice.”

I thought with naive simplicity at the time. I was entirely unaware of how the world would change the very next day.