In the middle of the night, a cheerful shout of celebration can be heard inside the room 201. "Yes! Finally! Let's GO!" his voice echoing in the dimly lit room. After dedicating Nineteen years of playing, he finally conquered it, Dark Ascension RPG - a game he'd started on a whim, dismissing it at first as an outdated game made over a century ago.
Its ever-changing world, filled with intricate details and overly merciless difficulty, had drawn him in like no other. Idle curiosity turned into a relentless quest, testing his skills, patience, and perseverance, of course he only started playing after his siblings could stand on their own, he was able to raise them in place of his late parents, he completed his responsibility as the eldest in the family, and now he'd like to enjoy his time doing what he want.
Now, at long last, he stood victorious. As his in-game character, battered but triumphant, had traversed sprawling landscapes, survived countless duels, escaped troublesome scenarios, and faced challenges so merciless they seemed designed to break him. But tonight he'd overcome them all, and it's time to celebrate his personal achievement.
It was a monumental achievement, a milestone in his years-long journey. He could hardly contain his excitement as he was preparing to call Jackson, his childhood friend, and a gamer at heart. Jackson had always cheered him on, although he kept asking him to play VR instead of playing in this fossilized relic of a computer. But still there is no one else he wanted to share this moment with but his bro.
Just as he was about to reach for his phone, something unexpected happened. A notification popped up on the computer screen, its sudden appearance cutting him off. His hand froze mid-reach, his heart skipping a beat as he turned back to the glowing monitor.
"H-huh? What... is this?" he murmured, his excitement was replaced by confusion.
Ping~
A notification flashed on screen accompanied by a sharp computerized Ping~ sound "Notice! The player has achieved the impossible. You're eligible for the ultimate reward. Choose your path:
Convert current character to another race/class (maxed out).
Retain current race/class and synchronize existence for continuation in another realm."
"What the... synchronize existence?" he mumbled those words his brow furrowing. He rubbed his eyes convinced he was misreading the text. "Whatever. I'll keep my current character."
He clicked the 'Retain current character' option. The screen responded with a mechanical "Ping-ping~" as another notification flashed:
"Notice! Confirm your selection. Do you accept full alignment with your avatar for seamless integration? Yes or No."
"Full alignment? Seamless integration? What kind of weird ass phrasing is this?" he grumbled, shrugged and clicked 'Yes'. "Alright I'll just accept everything, this might be a hidden quest or something."
The screen flickered and the next message appeared with a distorted chime "Ping~... whirrrrr...":
"Notice! Selection confirmed. Initiating preparation. Transfer will proceed under defined parameters. Current progress: 50%. Requirement not yet met. Synchronization pending. System adjustments in progress..."
"What the hell does 'synchronization pending' even mean?" he muttered rubbing his temples. Words on the screen swam in his vision and an inexplicable heaviness settled in his head.
"Ugh... my head feels weird, shit my head is spinning... Maybe I overdid it, I should've drank my vitamins earlier…ughh" he groaned swaying as a wave of exhaustion surged through him. His legs buckled and he stumbled toward his bed.
"Ah crap, forget this... I'll deal with it tomorrow..." he muttered weakly collapsing onto his bed.
As sleep claimed him the faint glow of the monitor illuminated the cryptic text still lingering on the screen:
"Transfer process initiated. Awaiting condition for synchronization. Standby…"
On the next day, the early light of dawn filtered through his partially closed curtains and brushed against the man's face, his alarm blared yanking him from his restless slumber, he lied sprawled across the bed and his disheveled appearance mirrored the exhaustion of playing all night.
Eventually the persistent sound broke through and finally reached his ears, with a groan he sluggishly pushed himself upright.
"Ugh what happened?" he muttered his voice was thick with fatigue as he rubbed his temples "I blacked out for some reason last night..."
Fragments of the previous evening slowly surfaced.
"I remember playing all night and finally finishing the game, and after that, everything's just a blur, what the heck happened? I wasn't even able to call Jackson to celebrate..." his brow furrowed as he tried to piece the missing moments together.
"Am I getting too old for this?... Ah right, I am old" he wondered aloud grimacing "well maybe it's just my age, I should probably get checked out, should I ask Jackson to drive me there? Yeah nah, he'd call me an old man for even saying that, and we're the same age, but he looks younger, that lucky bastard!"
His musings were interrupted by a flicker of movement in the corner of his vision his old computer caught his attention.
"Wait, it's still on? did I forgot to turn it off?" a chill ran down his spine as fragments of last night flashed through his mind he never forgot to save his game or shut down his computer no matter how exhausted or tired he may be, as it might mess up everything, rising from the bed he hesitated before approaching the desk.
Staring at the blank screen he whispered "…I could've sworn there was a notification last night…" his mind churned trying to remember but the details eluded him leaving only a gnawing sense of unease.
"Nah I must've been so tired I started imagining things sigh… I'd better call Jackson and start packing for the move to City J."
Bzzt-bzzt-bzzt~
The vibration of his wrist phone interrupted his thoughts glancing down he saw the translucent device flashing with an incoming call the caller ID read Julie.
Answering the call he raised his wrist and a small holographic projection flickered to life revealing his youngest sibling.
"Kuya! How are you? Are you okay? How's your health? Did you find a wife yet? You haven't called me or Ate in forever!" Julie's voice was a rapid-fire of mixed concern and exasperation.
He chuckled, shaking his head. "Alright, alright, calm down! One question at a time, okay?"
Walking to his desk, he grabbed a small circular device with four sturdy bases, then he headed to the kitchen. Julie's voice continued in the background, but he only half-listened while smiling at her familiar tone.
Placing the circular device on top of the water dispenser, he swiped his wrist phone, transferring Julie's hologram to the larger device. Her projection shimmered above it, arms crossed and lips pursed.
"Hey! Kuya, are you even listening to me? Hmph!" she huffed, her frustration is obvious.
'ah yes, she's doing it again, this lil brat'
Despite his busy life, he was close to his siblings, particularly Julie. Their parents had died in a monster outbreak years ago, leaving him as a father figure for her.
"I'm listening, I'm listening," he said with a smile as he cracked eggs into a bowl. Adding a pinch of salt and freshly chopped spring onions, he set some aside for his fried rice. Grabbing the leftover rice and , he mixed it with fried garlic, soy sauce, and MSG and some salt preparing it.
Julie watched him cooked silently for a while before breaking the quiet. "Kuya, Ate Bridget, Kuya Ben, and Ate Lany want you to come to Mom and Dad's anniversary on Sunday."
The sound of sizzling food filled the room as he contemplated. "…Sure. Tell them I'll be there. Oh, and let them know I'm moving to City J, District 12."
"What? Why not move here with me? It's just me here, you know!" Julie countered.
He smirked. "What? So I can do all your chores? No way, kiddo. You're on your own."
Blushing, she shot back, "No way! Like I'd let you. Besides, you're too old to handle chores now. You'd probably faint after sweeping the floor!"
He laughed. "Oh yes, says the spoiled brat I raised! Feels like yesterday I was changing your diapers!"
Her face in the hologram turned red. "That was 18 years ago! Why'd you have to bring that up?"
"Because I'm the oldest. Now hush and let me eat my breakfast," he said, grinning.
Placing the hologram device on the table, he chatted with her while eating. They reminisced and joked until Julie eventually said, "That's a promise, alright?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'll go this year. I promise," he reassured her.
"Alright, Kuya. Bye! See you then and don't forget alright," Julie said, her hologram fading.
Leaning back in his chair, he sighed. "It's been a while. It's not that I don't want to go… it's just…" His thoughts trailed off as guilt crept in. His siblings were successful in life, and he was proud of them, but compared to them, he felt like a failure.
By midday, he finished packing and waited for the moving crew. Jackson had already arranged for the movers, they plan to celebrate in his new place.
Stepping outside his apartment, Room 201 on the second floor, he climbed the stairs to the rooftop, he come here to wind down from time to time. The late afternoon sun cast a warm glow over him, and he sat on a bench, leaning back and closing his eyes, a relaxing cool air brushed against him, as there is nothing more relaxing than just sitting in a quiet place on a random day.
He opened his eyes again and looked at the sky, he let the moment linger and relished it. For now, he didn't want to think about anything else.
"In this game called life, it's important to take time to unwind and have fun. And right now… I'm really having a great time." as he spoke these words, a small smile crossed his face as he soaked in the relaxing peace of the moment.
End of chapter