Prelude

「 Congratulations 」

「 You've completed the Main Quest: See this world to it's desired ending 」

「 Entering your achievement in the Hall of Fame 」

"I…did it."

I bit back some tears as I read the screen popups. My screen displayed two words in gold:

YOU WIN.

"Five years."

That's how long it took for me to clear this game. 

[Lesselhia Chronicles]

It was an action RPG that came out five years ago. When it first dropped, it was all anyone could talk about. Everyone dove in, eager to prove their skills. The game's worldbuilding and power systems were intricate and the quests were challenging. 

But, after a while, the initial excitement gave way to frustration. The game was so brutally difficult that a lot of players ended up rage-quitting. 

And me, a hardcore gamer, spent five long years clearing it on , the most difficult setting the developers had ever created. 

"I had a good time."

I said out loud, and looked over to my camera that's been recording me for the stream. I watched as hundreds of comments sped above, one after the other. 

"I won, everyone," I smiled at my fans, who were nice enough to donate and support me all these years. "We won."

ㄴ Man, you worked hard. Well deserved!

ㄴ Congrats! I will soon join you!

ㄴ Hall of Fame? That's crazy cool!

ㄴ You're so handsome, Tokki! Send me a heart~!

ㄴ I'm crying, damn. This is awesome dude!

ㄴ Whoa, my man out here proving those fake gamers wrong!

"Haha," I laughed, feeling silly at the enthusiasm of the comments. "To be honest, they weren't wrong. The game was definitely hard, but it's thanks to everyone here that I could finally win."

ㄴ You're too humble dude!

ㄴ Right? Brag a little, Tokki

ㄴ You're sooo cute~! 

ㄴ I chose the right fandom lol

ㄴ It was fun! But what game are you playing next?

"Next game, huh…" I read out the comment, uncertain. "I'm not sure. I want to take a break for now."

I had dedicated my time, and my redundant health points in reality to make it to the end of this. Now that it's over, it feels bittersweet. Though I had initially started my streams playing small, indie games, once I joined [Lesselhia Chronicles], everything changed. 

ㄴ We'll wait for you if that's the case 

ㄴ Eh, right. I agree!

ㄴ You definitely need a break

ㄴ Then…I won't be able to see you T^T

ㄴ You deserve some time off dude

"Haha, I knew it," I winked at the camera. "My fans are definitely the best."

ㄴ Kyaa~~!! You're so handsome~~!!

ㄴ Man, don't wink like that. 

ㄴ You're too good looking to be a gamer!

I giggled at the comments. In my otherwise meager life, these people, whom I've never seen or met, were the light that illuminated this damp world. 

To prove my sentiment, I heard a knock on my bedroom door. My fingers immediately tapped the microphone off as I turned. 

"You bastard!" My dad yelled from the outside. "Open the door!"

"I'm coming," I said, and the noise stopped. "Haa…"

There it is. The cause of my dampness. 

I turned back, facing the camera, a smile plastered on my face. The audio was back, and I breathed in twice, before I talked.

"Guys, something came up," I waved at my fans, who were worried about me suddenly pausing. "I'm closing the stream for today, so—"

Just then, the YOU WIN on my screen was replaced by three new messages.

〔 Congratulations, TokkiTokkiBun 〕

〔 As a special reward, you've unlocked a new patch we've developed! 〕

〔 Would you like to accept it? 〕

〔 Yes 〕 〔 No 〕

"Huh?"

A new patch…has been developed? 

I titled my head, confused. 

A special reward…

Is this something like a special privilege for ones who enter the Hall of Fame? I have never heard of it before, but…

A small smile crept on my face. 

ㄴ Tokki, why are you smiling like that?

ㄴ Kyaa~~!! So beautiful~~!!

ㄴ What happened, Tokki? Tell us!

"Guys, I…think I know what I'm going to play next."

If this is a new patch, it means it's a new challenge. The game that I had devoted my past years of life to was offering me a chance to rejuvenate from this bittersweet ending. 

I stared at the message once more. 

〔 Would you like to accept it? 〕

"Of course," I half-whispered, smiling to myself. "It's a 'Yes'."

Once I chose the option, it was replaced by an empty screen with black background that had just one word written on it: LOADING…

'It's going to take a while to download, I guess.'

I stretched my hands. I'll have to play this tomorrow. For now, I'll keep it a surprise from my fans. 

"Guys," I said again, turning. "It's late. I'll be leaving now. See you again, tomorrow!"

ㄴ Yeah Tokki, it's pretty late here too

ㄴ Aww I'll miss you~~ T^T

ㄴ See ya!

ㄴ Good night, Tokki!

ㄴ I'll dream of you tonight too~~ T^T

ㄴ Man, I'm going to get some sleep too

With one last smile, I turned off my camera and closed the stream. 

"Haa…" I yawned. "That was a long day."

I took a look at the time on my watch. 

11:35 PM

It's hard to notice the time flying when you do things you genuinely enjoy. 

I got up from my seat, and made my way to the door to open it. My dad must be upset, but thankfully, he didn't pester me again. He used to be a lot more impatient a year ago, but all that alcohol must have suppressed a tiny portion of it. 

Creak.

I slowly opened the door, taking a peek at our small, living room, where my dad stayed asleep on the floor at the center, with empty alcohol bottles and beer cans all over the place. 

"Haa…"

He has drunk himself to sleep again. It hasn't even been twenty minutes since he knocked on my door, but he's knocked out already. 

Sighing, I made my way back into my bedroom and collapsed on my bed. 

My room was small, but in this apartment that we stayed, it was the biggest one, according to the landlady. She sure had a silver tongue for lying, but I didn't care too much about it. I felt comfortable in this place. 

It is better than what I was going through five years back when everything had come crashing down on my family. 

Five years. 

A lot could change in that time. And yet, some things stayed the same. 

Like the hole my mother left behind when she died in that accident. 

I still remember the day like it was yesterday. It was the last year of middle school. One phone call and the world flipped on its head. Mom had been gone in an instant. 

But the debts she left behind? Those clung to us like a curse. My father and I had no idea she'd secretly borrowed money, and for gambling of all things. 

It was also when my father, who used to be a construction worker, had to take up different jobs to repay the debt, but all to no avail. The sum was too large for us to afford, so dad ended up turning to loan sharks. 

Desperation makes you do stupid things. And we were desperate.

But, what he didn't see coming was the sketchy means the loan sharks used to sign a contract with him for the loans. Soon, after two tragedies were over, a third one surfaced and he was thrown into chaos again. 

I could only watch as my dad descended into madness and quit working entirely and ran away from the city we lived, only to end up in this remote place with barely enough people.

Right after I entered high school that same year I graduated, I started playing free games that were popular at the time as an escape. I discovered [Lesselhia Chronicles], and did the gameplay right after, since it was the hot issue. 

Then, I blew up. I started earning an income. People, most of them who are still my fans, joined and donated to me whenever they could. And, in the past five years, I had accumulated enough to pay off the loan sharks. 

"The money…I can finally give it to dad tomorrow."

I had been saving up everything for my birthday so I could surprise him. Though our relationship has been strained these past years, he was still someone who once loved me, and my only family. 

"Haa…" I stretched my arms again, staring at the low and gray ceiling. "I'm so tired…"

I was streaming since the afternoon, and it was finally getting to me. My body was cramped up from being in the same seated position, and the exhaustion had caught up.

"Mhm…"

My eyes drooped slowly and then, fully shut out, blinding me to darkness. 

…

Creak.

"Mhm…" I half-groaned, as I heard my door open. "Who…"

My eyes were refusing to open and it hurt to try, so I just lay there, as I felt a shadow loom over me.

"Who is it…?" 

I asked, half-unconscious, and my voice raspy. Before I could process what was going on, something was pressed onto my face. 

Hm…? It's soft…a pillow…? 

"Mhmph—!"

The pillow was suddenly slammed down over my mouth and nose, cutting off all my air. Panic flooded my chest as I gasped instinctively, only to get nothing. My eyes shot open, but all I saw was suffocating darkness.

"Mhmph—! Mhmph—!"

My body jolted in terror. I thrashed wildly, arms flailing, legs kicking, but it was no use. The weight over my face was relentless, the pressure overwhelming, sealing off every last bit of air.

My lungs screamed for oxygen, but nothing came. The more I fought, the heavier the darkness pressed in, wrapping around me like a vice. I tried to cry out, but only muffled sounds escaped as I clawed desperately at the pillow, my fingers trembling.

"Mhmph…!"

Tears streamed uncontrollably from my eyes, blurring what little remained of my vision. Each second stretched into eternity, my limbs weakening with every futile attempt.

"Mhmph…"

My body finally gave in, collapsing beneath the crushing weight. 

In my fading consciousness, I could only make out a few words.

"If I don't do this…they'll kill me…"

Who…

Then my world went dark. 

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