The system waited until everyone was standing again.
Then the floor lit up.
A circular pattern spread beneath their feet, thin white lines connecting each person into a closed loop.
[Group Formation Detected]
Participants: 7
Status: Mandatory
"Mandatory?" Ethan muttered.
No one laughed.
The system continued.
[First Cooperative Task Initiated]
Objective: Stabilize the Zone
Time Limit: 18 minutes
A timer appeared above them, already counting down.
"What does 'stabilize' even mean?" someone asked.
The answer came as the walls flickered.
The room fractured into overlapping images—past and present layered together. Cracks of static ran through the air, buzzing like exposed wires.
Ethan felt dizzy.
"This zone is unstable," the woman said quickly. "If it collapses, we all pay."
"How much?" Ethan asked.
She hesitated.
"Last time I saw a collapse," she said, "the system charged everyone equally."
The timer ticked.
17:12.
A panel unfolded in the center of the circle.
[Cost Distribution Interface]
– Equal Split (Default)
– Weighted Contribution
– Single Bearer
"What the hell is single bearer?" the short-haired woman asked.
Everyone already knew.
One person pays everything.
In time.
In years.
In whatever the system decided.
"No," the man who had been punished earlier said immediately. "I'm not doing that again."
The system highlighted Equal Split.
[Default Selection in 30 seconds]
Ethan's mind raced.
"If we split it evenly," he said, "we all lose something. But if the task fails, the loss increases."
The woman nodded. "Correct."
"So weighted contribution," Ethan said. "We assign cost based on participation."
"And who decides participation?" someone snapped.
The circle pulsed.
The timer dropped to 16:08.
The system intervened.
[Manual Allocation Required]
Failure to decide = Escalated Equal Split
That word again.
Escalated.
Ethan stepped forward.
"I'll take more," he said.
Every head turned.
"You're insane," the short-haired woman said.
"Maybe," Ethan replied. "But I learn fast. And if this is about stabilizing the zone, someone has to move."
He selected Weighted Contribution.
A slider appeared next to each name.
Ethan dragged his higher than the others.
Not to the maximum.
Just enough to shift the balance.
The system paused.
[Allocation Registered]
Primary Contributor: Ethan Carter
Risk Share: 42%
The circle loosened slightly.
The static in the walls dimmed.
"It responded," the woman whispered.
"So that's it?" the punished man asked. "We just stand here?"
"No," Ethan said. "Now we work."
Symbols began appearing along the cracks in the room—flickering markers that stabilized when someone focused on them.
"Anchor points," Ethan said. "The system wants attention. Observation."
He moved toward one.
The moment he touched it, a sharp pain shot through his chest.
Not physical.
Temporal.
A notice burned into his vision.
[Contribution Acknowledged]
Cost Accrued: 7 months, 3 days
Ethan staggered but stayed upright.
The crack sealed.
One down.
"Damn it…" he breathed.
The others followed.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Each sealed crack dimmed the room's instability.
The timer hit 02:41 when the last anchor locked into place.
The circle vanished.
Silence fell.
Then—
[Task Completed]
Zone Stability: Restored
Everyone exhaled at once.
Ethan checked his status.
A new line had appeared.
[Cumulative Loss Updated]
Total: 3 years, 1 month, 14 days
He stared at it.
Not in horror.
In calculation.
The woman stepped beside him.
"You volunteered," she said quietly. "The system noticed."
Ethan nodded.
"I know."
Another private message appeared.
[Evaluation Pending]
Potential Rank Adjustment: Under Review
He didn't smile.
This wasn't a reward system.
It was a ledger.
And every action added a line.