The sun hung high, blazingly hot.
On the endless surface of the sea, a small wooden boat drifted aimlessly. Upon closer inspection, one could see a person with a faint, weak breath lying face down on the deck.
She held a wooden stick in her hand, the other end submerged in the water. With the rhythmic, tired swaying of her arms, the wooden boat moved forward at a snail’s pace.
“System, how much longer?”
Su Su’s lips were cracked and dry; her sweat had soaked through her clothes and hair. She hadn’t had a drop of water all day, and under the exposure of such intense sunlight, she was reaching her limit.
Who could have imagined that just over a day ago, she had been sitting in her rental apartment, eating takeout in the comfort of the air conditioning? Life had been so pleasant.
—Host, just work a little harder. You’re almost there.
The lively, youthful electronic voice rang in Su Su’s ear. Instead of comforting her, it only made her angrier.
“Work harder? System, do you have any idea how many times you’ve said that?”
—Host, please don’t be angry. I swear we really are almost there this time.
The System’s voice sounded like a five- or six-year-old child, currently pleading for mercy in a pitiful tone. Su Su felt a fire of frustration burning in her chest, but she had no choice but to trust the System.
Finally, after another hour of exposure to the scorching sun, the System, which had been playing dead and fearing to make a sound, suddenly shouted in excitement.
—Host, we’re here! We’re here! The lighthouse is right ahead!
Due to dehydration, Su Su looked nearly ten years older than she had the day before. Hearing the System’s words, she forced herself to lift her head.
A lighthouse, roughly ten meters tall, appeared not far ahead of her.
Thank goodness, she was saved!
Su Su was twenty-three years old, a hardworking soul who had been in the workforce for less than a year. Her greatest hobbies were eating while browsing the internet, playing games, and reading novels. While reading a sea survival novel, she had jokingly remarked that since work was so exhausting every day, it would be nice to transmigrate there with a “gold finger.” Then, she actually transmigrated.
And she did indeed bring a gold finger: the Post-Apocalyptic Management System.
According to the System, this world had been struck by a comet five years ago. The initial impact wasn’t devastating, only leaving a massive crater on the planet’s surface. Just as people thought the crisis had passed, the entire planet was gradually overtaken by the ocean within a year. All land disappeared, and even peaks nearly ten thousand meters high were submerged in the vast deep.
All surviving humans were forced to begin a life of sea survival.
To start her management journey, she first had to find a business location. When she first arrived, she had blindly trusted the System’s words and assumed she would reach the destination quickly, so she finished her only bottle of water early on. By the end, she was relying entirely on willpower to keep going.
Another half hour passed before Su Su finally managed to board the lighthouse with great difficulty. Drenched in sweat, she collapsed directly onto the concrete platform the moment she climbed up.
—Congratulations to the Host for reaching the designated location. Do you wish to officially begin management?
“Yes, yes, yes.”
Su Su didn’t hesitate for a second as she lay on the ground.
—Understood. Congratulations to the Host for completing the main quest. Reward: One Everlasting Lamp and one Primitive Inn.
—The Primitive Inn includes: a Lobby, a Cashier Desk, one Exchange Machine, one Bathroom, one Employee Dormitory, and two Single Rooms.
As it finished speaking, the System even set off a celebratory firework effect. Sparks crackled and flashed before Su Su’s eyes.
“System, is there food and water in the inn? I’m about to die of thirst and hunger.”
After boarding the lighthouse, the surrounding temperature dropped several degrees. After resting for a moment, Su Su stood up and began to observe her surroundings.
The entire lighthouse was a cylinder, estimated to be over eight meters high excluding the base. The red paint on the surface had been eroded by time, leaving only mottled remnants; it had clearly been abandoned for a long time.
—There is! I have some good news for the Host: all food inside the inn is provided to the Host in unlimited supply. You can eat as much as you want.
“At least you’re somewhat useful.”
The lighthouse in its initial state was pitifully small. Su Su took a quick look around before pushing open the dilapidated iron door and stepping inside.
It was decayed and ruined. Her footsteps caused the floorboards to creak loudly, and the air was thick with dust and the smell of mold.
The first-floor lobby was not large, about ten-plus square meters. Directly facing the door was a two-meter-long wooden cashier desk. To the left were two room doors, and to the right was a spiral staircase leading upward. On one side of the stairs were two more doors—one for the bathroom and one for the employee dormitory.
“Isn’t this inn a bit too broken?”
With every two steps Su Su took, she worried she might step right through the floorboards.
—Would the Host like to give the Lighthouse Inn a catchy name?
The System’s voice was high-pitched. As soon as Su Su heard it, she knew this was another quest that likely came with a reward.
“I’ll name it. Call it ‘The Ground.’ The Ground Inn.”
Having drifted at sea for over a day, Su Su had never missed solid ground so much. The feeling of being like a solitary leaf on a boat, drifting and unstable, was truly terrible. She figured humans who had lived at sea for several years probably craved the feeling of being on solid ground even more than she did.
—Understood. Congratulations to the Host for successfully naming the Lighthouse Inn. Reward: One Basic Renovation.
As the voice faded, the air distorted for a moment. When her vision cleared, everything had changed.
The decayed, broken floorboards had turned into solid concrete. The mottled, moldy walls were now brand new, and even the iron door was free of rust. In the blink of an eye, the entire first-floor lobby had transformed. Although it was simple and rustic, it was at least clean and tidy.
Su Su began to check the rooms one by one.
She first pushed open a Single Room. The wooden door swung outward easily, revealing a room that was shockingly small with very few items inside. Aside from a single bed less than a meter wide, there was only a curved wooden desk built along the shape of the wall. Under the desk were a chair and a plastic trash can, and a few hangers hung on the wall opposite the bed. That was the entirety of the room.
She backed out and opened the one next to it; the two rooms were identical.
After observing the guest rooms, Su Su turned and crossed the lobby to the other side, where there were two more doors.
Pushing open the bathroom door, she first saw a simple sink with an A3-sized mirror above it. Further inside were two toilet stalls with doors, one on the left and one on the right. Because of the renovation, the bathroom’s facilities were simple but very clean.
After visiting the rest, Su Su finally opened the employee dormitory.
As the door opened, Su Su’s brow twitched.
“System, what is this about?”
—Host, please don’t be angry. All difficulties are temporary. As long as the Host manages diligently, once the inn reaches Level 1, the Host can have a private room.
The System was acting pitiful and cute again. Su Su ignored it and walked into the room.
The employee dormitory was a simple four-person room with two iron bunk beds. There was less than a meter of space between them, occupied by a long wooden table. To the right of the entrance was a cabinet over a meter wide and two meters high, divided equally into four lockers.
As the manager, Su Su had thought her room would be at least better than a single room. Now, it looked like they were about the same. However, after more than a day of drifting at sea, having a place on solid ground where she could sleep without worrying about falling into the ocean was good enough. She even suspected the System had dropped her so far from the lighthouse specifically because it was worried she wouldn’t accept the conditions.
Only the cashier desk remained to be checked. Su Su had no luggage to unpack, so she pushed the door open and walked back out. Just as she closed the door, she heard the System scream in her ear.
—Host, please get ready! Our inn is about to have guests!
So soon?
Su Su walked straight outside, pushing open the iron door to reach the platform.
Less than fifty meters away from the lighthouse, a small boat about three meters long was heading her way. A small canopy had been built over the boat. Su Su saw a hand, tanned dark by the sun, pull back the curtain of the canopy. A person stepped out and their eyes met hers.
“Mom, look! That lighthouse is real! Someone just came out!”
Seeing Su Su, the person became extremely excited, pulled the curtain back, and ducked back into the canopy. A moment later, she emerged with an older, middle-aged woman. They stared at the lighthouse and Su Su with intense, burning eyes.
“Hello! Excuse me, can we come up to the lighthouse?”
The younger girl cupped her hands around her mouth like a megaphone and shouted at Su Su.
“Yes! Lock your boat to the chains; there’s a ladder over there!”
Where the lighthouse met the sea, there were about ten iron chains used to secure vessels. After climbing a stone staircase less than four meters high, one could reach the platform.
Hearing Su Su’s answer, the two were thrilled. They sped up the boat, and soon the two of them walked up the stone steps and climbed onto the platform.
“Mom, Mom, this lighthouse is actually real! This is great!”
“Good, good, good.”
The mother and daughter first jumped up and down on the gray ground to confirm it was solid and wouldn’t move. Finally, they couldn’t help but hug each other and weep.
Su Su stood by and watched for five minutes before the two regained their composure, wiped their tears, and looked at her.
“Sorry, we were just too excited.”
The two looked at Su Su with deeply apologetic expressions.
“It’s fine. A guest is a guest. Are you two looking to stay at the inn?”
“Huh??”