The system sent another message.

"Please choose your survival skill for the next week:

"1. Unlimited supply of metal weapons

"2. A body that is as strong as steel and immune to poison

"3. Short-distance teleportation

"4. Unlimited storage space

"5. Reverse photosynthesis (obtains energy via absorption of water particles in the air)."

The group chat was immediately flooded with messages as everyone debated about the best skill that would allow them to survive the plant apocalypse.

Once again, Riley took the lead and told the male companions to choose the first skill that provided them with an unlimited supply of weapons, explaining that it would increase their chances of protecting her.

Meanwhile, she chose the fourth skill that gave her unlimited storage space. "I'll keep track of the resources for everyone to avoid a fight from breaking out. All of you are my wonderful helpers, after all."

Frank chose the third skill that allowed him to teleport short distances, saying, "I can use my teleportation to save people. Those who are in danger can just contact me."

In the end, I was the only one who chose the fifth skill, reverse photosynthesis.

Once again, the people in the group began mocking me.

"What kind of stupid skill is that? The system probably only added it because it needed to have five options."

"Does Molly have a death wish? Reverse photosynthesis will make her hungry in the sun. She's just accelerating her own death!"

"Maybe she's got some loose screws in her head because she read too many books. Thank goodness I'm not on the same team as her. We'll just be signing our own death sentences."

"A certain someone loved to pretend to be a saint, but she ended up choosing a skill that only benefits herself. She should follow Ms. Johnson's lead and take the greater good of the group into consideration."

I wasn't bothered enough to explain myself to them and let them insult me to their hearts' content.

Meanwhile, Frank sent a private message to me, asking, "What on earth are you doing? You won't be able to survive like this! Are you still angry at me for rejecting your confession? Are you doing this intentionally to make me worry about you?"

I rolled my eyes and blocked Frank's number.

I had learned my lesson after living through my past life.

Once everyone had locked in their selections, a notification popped up.

"Preparation complete. The game will begin shortly. Administrative rights will be revoked on the third day. Players are allowed to freely modify their teams before then.

The safehouses have been deployed. Good luck, everyone."

…

It started drizzling on the first day.

It was silent in my plastic apartment in the middle of the desert except for the sounds of the rain pattering against the windows.

Riley sent a sticker of a woman tossing her hair over her shoulder in the group chat. She tagged everyone and said, "Look, everyone! It's raining! The game definitely has to lower the temperature and moisten the soil before the plant apocalypse can begin. Choosing the island was definitely the correct choice!"

She then tagged me and said, "I bet someone is regretting their decision right now. You should take advantage of the rain and collect some water! Your silly little apartment is going to turn into an oven once the sun rises tomorrow.

"Don't come crying to us about wanting to quit the game tomorrow. That would be so embarrassing."

The colleagues, who had been confused about the sudden rain, immediately began praising Riley for her intelligence. Everyone agreed with her deduction.

Frank suddenly tagged me and asked, "How are you doing, Molly? Do you have any supplies in your safehouse?"

His questions seemed to enrage Riley.

"Why do you keep fretting over her, Mr. Gideon? Why didn't you team up with her if you're so worried about her all the time? Are you feeling bad for her now? If you want to go to her, go ahead and be my guest!"

Riley then sent a string of messages whining about her displeasure.

However, Frank didn't respond to her messages.

The group fell silent for a few seconds.

Riley's number one supporter, William Green, was the one who broke the silence.

"It makes sense that Mr. Gideon is worried about everyone. You're the one who insisted on choosing the desert, Molly. Don't drag him into your bad choices."

"He's right! I get so frustrated just looking at her. Why don't we just ban her from talking? Save ourselves the trouble of listening to her beg for help when she's on the brink of dying. She'll just ruin the mood for everyone. Besides, I bet no one will be willing to save her anyway!"

A few seconds later, a notification popped up in the group chat.

"Administrator William Green has banned Molly Hampton from sending messages."

No one had stood up for me, but I didn't mind at all. On the contrary, I welcomed the silence.

I placed my phone down and began searching the apartment.

It wasn't a spacious place, and the layout was shaped in a square. It was completely empty. I couldn't even find a single breadcrumb on the floor.

I pushed open the balcony door and took a deep breath.

The reverse photosynthesis skill kicked in immediately as the water particles in the air entered my body. The hunger and weakness that I had been feeling earlier disappeared instantly. I felt incredibly refreshed.

With my ability to live just by absorbing the water particles in the air, I was guaranteed to survive the apocalypse.

I boarded up all the windows except for the one near the balcony as a safety precaution. I then picked up the novel I had been reading.

It was part of the resources that I had quickly gathered while everyone was busy fighting over the money and mocking me earlier. I had a few novels, card games, and puzzles. Although they seemed to be useless in a plant apocalypse, they were essential in keeping me sane in an isolated environment.

I tapped into the group chat and skimmed through the flood of messages.

"Lady Luck is smiling down on me!"

"We got a good haul today, everyone! We managed to catch a lot of big fish when we went out to sea. We can have a grilled fish party later!"

Riley had also sent a few photos. Crates of bottled water were stacked on the beach on Seafoam Island. There was also vacuum-packed food, canned food, and a few bottles of red wine. Several male colleagues were gathered around her and fawning over her.

"I really don't know what to do with them. I already told them not to give me so many resources. Fortunately, I have unlimited storage space, so I'll watch over everything for everyone. Make sure to register your resources with me for the sake of fairness."

Everyone in the group chat was praising Riley, hoping to get in her good graces. Only another colleague, Michael Danson, said, "There are so many things. Are you sure you're able to clearly inventory everything? I can't help but feel that it'll turn into a mess…"

Someone immediately retorted, "What are you trying to say, Michael? Are you doubting Riley right now? If you're dissatisfied with how she runs things, you can go ahead and team up with Molly! She doesn't even have a drop of water in that apartment of hers. No one will fight you for it!"

I closed the group chat and fell asleep to the sound of the rain.

The next day, magnets began to rain down from the sky.

At first, the magnets were small and scattered, but it didn't take long before they began to rain down more frequently. Countless bits of black metal rained down from the sky, battering the tops of buildings, the roads, and the cars with low but chilling thuds.

I lived on the 20th floor of the apartment. The sounds of the magnets hitting the balcony railing became a constant.

The magnets began attracting everything around them the moment they hit whatever surface they landed on. The metal parts of streetlights, barricades, cars, and billboards groaned as they were pulled toward the magnets.

Many cars on the streets contorted into strange shapes as their metal parts were pulled toward the magnets.

I stood barefoot by the entrance of the balcony, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath.

It was still relatively safe, so I took the opportunity to fortify the balcony door. I also removed all the metallic parts from the doorframe, replacing them with plastic parts I had prepared beforehand.

The door would stay intact as long as there weren't any metallic parts that the magnets could attract.

After I was done, I tapped into the group chat.

As expected, it was utter chaos.

"Oh, God! The magnets are all stuck on my plant racks! They collapsed under their own weight!"

"We're in even bigger trouble over here on Seafoam Island! The magnets attracted the metallic skeleton in the tents! The campsite is in complete ruins!"

"The metal weapons skill that I chose is utterly useless in this situation!"

Someone tagged Riley and asked, "Didn't you say that this skill will save our lives? What should we do now?"

The people who had been orbiting Riley immediately changed their tune now that the circumstances were not in their favor. Everyone began criticizing her.

Furious, Riley sent a string of question marks.

"Why are you blaming me for that? You're the one who was rushing to choose the metal weapons skill in the first place. Did I threaten you to pick that skill with a knife to your neck? Why are you blaming me now that things are going awry?"

Frank tried to get the situation back under control, but it was obvious that his words were colored with panic.

"Calm down, everyone. It's not the time to fight among ourselves now. Didn't you stock a lot of resources in your storage space, Riley? You should distribute it now so that everyone can weather this crisis."

"Why should I do that? I poured my blood, sweat, and tears into gathering those resources! Besides, I'm not done inventorying everything yet! The resources will be extremely important if the situation worsens!"

Riley's message immediately enraged everyone in the group chat.

"Now isn't the time to worry about the inventory anymore!"

"Are you planning to use the resources as leverage against us by hoarding them for yourself?"

"Say something, Mr. Gideon!"

The argument in the group continued to escalate.

Just then, Frank suddenly tagged me. "Your safehouse is in the desert, Molly. There aren't a lot of metal objects there, so the damage should be less severe. Send your location to me. I'll teleport everyone there to weather this crisis."

Riley's temper exploded. "Why do you keep seeking her out, Mr. Gideon? Do you like her or something? I disagree! Anyone who dares look for Molly can kiss my resources goodbye forever!"

Frank's words were laced with helplessness when he replied, "Stop causing a fuss, Riley. Our lives are on the line here."

"Causing a fuss? Don't you need my unlimited storage space? Swear to me that you'll never contact Molly again. I'll let you enter my storage space to survive the disaster if you do."

Everyone's attention instantly returned to Riley after she made her declaration. Once again, they tossed me aside in favor of begging her for her resources.

I picked up my tablet and leaned against the couch, quietly watching the commotion unfold.

…

The scale of the magnet storm increased on the third day.

It was almost as if the sky had split apart as massive, black metal objects descended from the clouds. The apartment would shake slightly every time they crashed on the ground.

The roads had been reduced to a complete mess. Cars were stuck together thanks to the magnets, creating a twisted mountain of metal. The streetlights and barricades had collapsed and constantly emitted ear-piercing screeches.

I didn't need to stand on the balcony anymore. I just slowly absorbed the remaining water particles to gain energy, lying on the bed.

The people in the group chat had stopped arguing with one another. Their messages were colored with fear.

"The windows are covered with magnets! The glass is about to break soon!"

"The campsite's metal racks are gone… It's over…"

"The raid shelter's door is sealed tight because of the magnets. We can't open it!"

"The entire metal fence has collapsed!"

Someone tagged Frank and exclaimed, "Save us, Mr. Gideon! Teleport to us and take us away! Anywhere will do!"

Frank sent a string of ellipses in response.

His teleportation skill used up a lot of his energy. With the constant rain of metal objects outside, there was a chance that he might enter a danger zone every time he teleported. He didn't have the capacity to worry about anyone else.

Just then, Riley sent a message. Her tone was as stubborn and arrogant as ever as she asked, "Why are all of you panicking? Calm down. The extreme weather is on a rotation. The plant storm will start after this magnet one is over.

"How will you protect me if you can't keep your wits about you? Get your act together, everyone!"

Even Riley's biggest supporter had grown tired of her antics.

"You're the one who needs to wake up, Riley! There are only ruins left outside!"

"Still acting like a princess at this time? Do you have some loose screws in your head?"

"Aren't you hoarding a huge haul of resources? Hurry and distribute them to us now! We're not going to make it if you don't!"

"Why should I share my resources with trash like you?" Riley retorted. "Once the plants start raining down, you'll—"

Riley's words died on her tongue when a notification popped up on everyone's screens.

"All bans in the game have been lifted.

"Administrator Riley Johnson's rights have been revoked.

"Administrator Frank Gideon's rights have been revoked.

"Administrator William Green's rights have been revoked.

"The game has been renamed from 'War of the Plants' to 'Magnet Apocalypse'."