Ryu's eyes always carried a strange emptiness. Victory or defeat—for him, both were just two different words telling the same story. There was a time when he gave up sleep at night, living only for new raids and bosses, but now the word "Victory" didn't stir his heart at all.
His room was a mirror of his life—small, messy. Empty coffee mugs scattered everywhere, old game manuals, and a dust-covered keyboard. The blue glow of the monitor fell across his thin, tired face. Heavy eyes, and a habitual smile on his lips—neither of joy, nor of pain.
He spoke softly,
"Maybe clearing everything was my biggest mistake… now there's no challenge left."
His words echoed in the silence, returning only to him. He gave a faint smile, but it died halfway.
Just then, a new notification flashed on his monitor—
[Eternum Online: Hardcore Mode – Only for True Kings]
A faint light flickered across Ryu's weary face. For a moment, the old fire he had buried for years stirred again in his heart. He let out a small laugh,
"Alright… one more round. Maybe this time… I'll feel something."
He picked up the headset and slowly placed it over his head. The monitor's blue light filled the small room, pixels raining down the screen like drops of water. His heart raced for an instant—perhaps this was his last intoxication, his final chance to feel something, in the virtual or the real world.
On the login screen, his avatar gleamed—the same legendary avatar the gaming world knew as the Game Emperor. Golden armor blazed like sunlight, and his eyes looked calm yet terrifying, like a frozen sea. The status window screamed—
Level 9999 | Max Skills | Max Gear
Ryu smiled at himself, like a king looking at his crown—but behind that smile was only emptiness.
"One more game… one more victory… and one more empty night."
But this time, something was different. The screen suddenly began to glitch, pixels shattering like falling stars. Then, a mechanical voice echoed inside his headset—
[Welcome, True King. Log-out option is permanently disabled until the story ends.]
Ryu's heart stopped for a moment. He tried to remove the headset, but his body felt bound, as if someone had locked it in place.
"What the hell is this?!"
He tried to scream, but no sound came out. Darkness swallowed everything.
And when he opened his eyes… a new world stretched before him. A wide blue sky, sunlight spilling through drifting clouds, a cool breeze brushing against his face. These weren't graphics—this was real. He looked at his hands—golden gauntlets glimmering in the sunlight.
He inhaled deeply, and this time a genuine smile touched his lips—like the fragrance of an old memory.
"Seems like… this world feels real. Maybe now I won't be bored."
The status window appeared before him—
[Level: 9999 | HP: Infinite | MP: Infinite]
He looked up at the sunlit sky. Like a weary king who has set aside his crown just to look at the world as an ordinary man. With a soft chuckle, Ryu spoke—
"Let's begin the sightseeing."
Golden boots shimmered in the sunlight as he stepped onto the grass. In the distance, mountains, greenery, and the murmur of rivers stretched far. Everything felt so real that he bent down, touched the soil, and his expression hardened.
"Hmph… not graphics. This is real."
Then another system notice appeared before him—
[System Notice: You cannot log out until all world events are cleared… or you die.]
A bitter yet arrogant smile curved on Ryu's lips.
"Die? Me? At Level 9999? Lol… what a joke."
He moved on. A short distance away, three adventurers were struggling against a goblin—one swordsman trying to distract it, a healer chanting through tears, and an archer firing useless arrows.
Ryu glanced at them and murmured with a faint smile,
"Noobs."
The goblin suddenly leapt at the swordsman, and the healer screamed—
"Help!"
Ryu simply snapped his fingers. A small blue spark flared near the goblin's head, and in the next instant it flew through the air, slamming into the ground with force.
The adventurers stared at him, shocked.
"Wh-what was that?" the archer stammered.
Ryu dipped his head casually, replying,
"Oh, just a greeting. You all enjoy yourselves—I don't want my sightseeing disturbed."
And he walked on, cloak swaying behind him.
"Is… is he a legendary hero?" the healer whispered.
Ryu chuckled,
"A tourist… not a hero."
In the distance, a village appeared, smoke rising, people fleeing. His eyes lit with mild curiosity,
"Ah… looks like sightseeing just got interesting."
The village was chaos. Small monsters tearing through homes, people screaming as they fled. Ryu raised his hand for a moment—a golden wave spread, freezing all the monsters in place before reducing them to dust in seconds.
Villagers swarmed around him, eyes filled with both gratitude and fear.
"You saved us!" an old man bowed. "You must be a holy warrior!"
Ryu gave a faintly sarcastic smile,
"Holy? No… just a tired tourist."
The people stared with reverence, some even bowing, but Ryu only lifted his hand dismissively,
"Relax. I didn't do anything special. And don't worship me—it gets boring."
A small girl clung to his side, whispering softly,
"Big brother… where did you come from?"
Ryu ruffled her hair with a smile,
"From far away… very far away."
And then, another system window opened before him—
[Warning: Unknown High-Level Entity Detected Nearby]
Ryu narrowed his eyes toward the horizon—dark smoke rising between distant mountains, slowly creeping toward the village. His smile sharpened.
"Now this will be fun… sightseeing over, hunting begins."
---
TO BE CONTINUED…