"Dude, I am warning you! I will whack you in the gut, I swear! My punches are stronger than a meteor strike, for real!!"
The guy behind Kai said this while pushing his glasses up on his fat, ugly face.
Kai frowned. The fuck was this dipshit saying..
"Are you buying or not?" the bored game shop employee in her mid-30s called out.
Kai just stared at her for a few seconds before transferring 5,000 Exelon from his wrist communicator. The hologram displayed an animation of a little green tick as Kai grabbed the small, square-boxed copy of the damned game—the same game he had spent most of his life fighting for survival in.
Hurriedly exiting the shop, he walked swiftly into a nearby alley and just stared at the cover, thousands of untold emotions surging through his pitch-dark eyes.
He was back. Truly back. Back to his world.. Back on Earth..
Before everything went to shit. The exact day the game was first released.
His hands trembled as he tightened his grip on the game case.
***
The Epic Nyxfall Series's Final Conclusion..
NYXFALL 7: THE VEILBREAKERS
"Step into the Future—Be Among the First to Rewrite Reality!"
"First Day Edition"
"World's First Ever Truly Immersive VIRTUAL REALITY Experience.."
Compatibility : [VR Full dive logo]
***
"Bastards!"
Kai checked his communicator again, even surfing the web. The time and date were the same—December 12, 3011.
That day, he had bought only one game. But.. something was wrong.
He had waited all winter for this game. His first memory of buying it and admiring the cover was etched into his brain. So..
Why does it say 7..? The game I bought today was Nyxfall 6: Dark End..
How the hell did this happen? How was he still alive? Was this another sick trick of those Beyonders? An illusion?
No.. even they shouldn't be able to reverse time. At least, they shouldn't have.
Was everyone back? All his friends?
Kai immediately tried searching for their names, but as his hand reached the communicator's search icon, he hesitated. He barely knew anyone's real name. He only knew their gaming IDs—half of which shouldn't even exist yet.
He searched for those he did know, but nothing conclusive showed up. None of them were in recent news or famous enough to be on the front page. And even if they were, he had never seen most of their real faces, so recognizing them would be nearly impossible.
Should he go to the police? Would anyone even believe him?
No!
Those bastards had observed them for years before the game. He couldn't leave any digital footprint of.. of the future.
After the 10,000-event winner invitation and meeting other species in real life, they had learned just how much influence the Beyonders had on civilizations across the galaxy.
They knew everything.
At least, that's how it felt after listening to all the stories. But that wasn't entirely true. Many players from different species had confirmed that only technology was fully in their control.
Even the Beyonders couldn't reach everywhere on a planet as vast as theirs—not if there were no electronic devices or technological web networks in the vicinity.
But in his time, humans without access to technology simply didn't exist. Even the poorest cities had the fastest computers and the strongest internet of the century.
That was why their game had been chosen.
Riddled with disbelief, confusion, and the gnawing question of what to do—if he was truly back—Kai walked home, guided purely by muscle memory. He ignored every person who passed him on the street.
Only when he saw the familiar black gate of their small house—and the bonnet of their Faryu TX09—did it hit him.
Home.
His home.
After seven long years, he was standing in front of it again.
The old, decrepit, colorless house had never looked so beautiful.
He gently pushed open the black gate, took a few steps toward the house, reached for the handle—
And stopped.
"We used to run through neon streets,
Chasing echoes of electric dreams.
Silver skies and midnight scenes,
Falling fast through faded screens."
"Do you still hear that melody?
Playing soft on old machines…"
Someone was humming inside.
Kai twisted the handle hurriedly. His movements became erratic as he struggled to get inside as fast as possible.
The old door creaked open, silencing the sweet hum.
And then, she stepped out of the kitchen.
There she was.
A ladle in one hand, the other resting on her hip, his mother stared at him with an annoyed expression.
"Seriously, another game, Kai? Standing in line for hours? In this cold? When will you start eating and sleeping properly? You've been doing this—"
Before she could finish, Kai ran toward her so fast he knocked over a vase—but he didn't even notice.
His arms wrapped around her tightly.
God, he had missed her.
She felt like home. She was his only home.
"Kai.. Sweetie, are you okay?" his mother muttered hesitantly, holding him as she patted his head.
Kai let her go, but before she could step back, a few drops of his tears fell onto her hand.
She looked up at him hurriedly.
But Kai didn't meet her gaze.
He didn't want her to see his face—his crying face.
God.. he hadn't cried since..
Since junior school.
"It's okay, Kai. There's nothing to worry about," she said, her voice soft and soothing.
"No matter what it is, we can handle it together. I'm here, baby."
It was a voice she rarely used—the same one she had spoken in when his father died. When they had to sell their home and move into this smaller house, the only way to make ends meet. The voice she used to give him courage on his darkest days, even when she was the one who needed it the most.
Kai had calmed down. Holding a cup of hot coffee, he sat on the couch while his mother rested in the sofa chair across from him. She didn't rush him, just waited patiently as he gathered himself.
That was another thing he loved about her—she always knew when to get angry, when to hold him, and when to laugh his worries away. Back when he was first invited to the 10000-winner event, he hadn't known many people. Only now, after meeting all kinds of individuals, did he truly understand just how wonderful and amazing she was as a person.
"Now, tell me what happened.. Take your time."
Setting the empty mug aside, Kai hesitated, his gaze dropping to the floor. Slowly, he raised his hands and began to sign. "It was nothing," he insisted, though his movements were stiff. His fingers shifted, painting a picture of what had happened. "I just saw some lady and a kid in the park.." His hands faltered midair, a deep breath catching in his chest before he finished, "..and emotions just took over."
They were surrounded by technology—electronic devices, cameras, networks. He didn't want to say anything that those bastards could hear or see. Even if he could, would she even believe him? Maybe his knowledge of the future would be convincing enough. But this wasn't the time. And he had no idea if there ever would be a good time.
Maybe this was all just a fever dream—his dying mind weaving one last illusion before the end?
His mother watched him, her expression softening. She didn't respond right away, letting the silence settle between them. Then, she simply nodded.
Even with the weight of the past—or the future—pressing down on him, his mood had improved tenfold just by seeing her. She could see it in his face and decided the matter wasn't urgent. Instead, she changed the subject.
"So, last week of winter holidays.. You really just want to stay in your room all day and play your games? Even Mimi was complaining yesterday on the phone that you don't spend enough time with her."
For a second, Kai blanked out. Mimi.. right. She was still his girlfriend. Well, technically. They had never really been a couple—just childhood friends. Then, one day, she had somehow ended up proposing to him. If he was being honest, it felt like she had just pitied his situation more than anything.
Not being able to speak was genetic. He had learned to live with it early on, but every now and then, someone or something would remind him of what he lacked. Mimi had always been there through those moments. More than a friend, she was kind of his self-appointed caretaker. He had tried to be a good friend in return, but his situation had left much to be desired.
Money had always been tight. His mother had found work as a cook at a nearby restaurant, managing to put him through junior and middle school. Kai had been smarter than most kids—by the time he reached middle school, he was already buying simple, cheap games and speedrunning them. He recorded his playthroughs, uploaded them online, and found an audience. It was the simplest way he could think of to make money using his skills, without it being too physically demanding.
His mother hadn't allowed him to do anything else. When he suggested taking odd jobs online or freelancing as an editor, she had strictly forbidden it and told him to focus on his studies.
It had taken a couple of years, but his channel had finally taken off. He had played games day and night, balancing them with school, clearing title after title, and building his reputation. The day he earned real money and showed it to his mother, asking her to enter her bank details, the look on her face had been unforgettable.
She hadn't been angry. She had understood.
They used the money to pay off debts and buy better kitchen equipment so his mother could cook from home and hire a delivery person. There were plenty of food delivery services, and with her talent, it hadn't taken long for her business to take off.
Kai had kept playing, kept saving, ensuring they had enough in case something happened. They had always talked about buying a bigger house—while their little home was full of memories, it had its issues. It was getting harder to live in.
Now, in his third year of high school, most of their financial struggles were gone. Even his mother only cooked on certain days—he had nagged her to take breaks, and she had finally agreed. They had enough savings to breathe a little easier.
That was when the game had been released.
He had bought a new VR set and had been eager to make his name in this game, too. His followers had been demanding he try a VRMMO.
There were already many popular VRMMORPGs, but none stood out as the best—each had its strengths and weaknesses. Then, Nyxfall had dropped its trailers, showcasing gameplay that had shaken the internet. It had set a new standard for VR gaming. Half the world had been waiting for its launch. It wasn't like traditional VRMMORPGs, but the trailers hinted at MMO elements blended with survival mechanics and an immersive, thrilling Nyxfall story.
And now, the game was in his hands.
He knew every city, every spell, every technique from Nyxfall 6. But what the hell was this 7th installment?
Did they clear Nyxfall 6 by defeating the Deimos Imperium?
Was Phoenix_resurrect here, too?