As soon as she clicked the left mouse button, the image on the left instantly disappeared. Now, only that image remained on the screen.
At the same time, several bright red dialog boxes appeared, dripping as if they were soaked in blood.
[Congratulations! You have chosen Kyle Carter.]
[Warning! Please treat your virtual boyfriend well.]
[Once he dies, he cannot be revived!]
Ava stared at these words, finally understanding how this game made money.
But before she could think further, the red text faded, replaced by a slow-emerging black dialog box.
[Please confirm your personal information below:
Region: Planet Earth
Name: Ava Bennett
Gender: Female
Initial Stats:
IQ: 90/100
Appearance: 93/100
Height: 168.9 cm
Weight: 50 kg
Health: 3/100
Warning: Remaining lifespan: 99 Earth days]
At that moment, Ava finally realized something was wrong.
She had only downloaded a computer game—she had never entered any personal information.
Yet, there it was. Her name, boldly displayed on the screen.
And judging by the Health and Remaining Lifespan, there was a good chance these information were real.
Earlier today, the doctor had told her that she only had about three months left to live.
That was around ninety-something days.
She stared at the black dialog box, forcing herself to suppress the chilling feeling rising from within.
Something was definitely wrong with this damn game.
Before, she would have immediately quit in fear, deleted the game at once, and never touched it again.
But now…
What was there to be afraid of?
Even if this game could kill her, what difference did it make?
She had at most ninety days left anyway.
With that thought, her fingers slowly moved toward [Confirm] and clicked.
The dialog box disappeared. The game began loading, and the screen gradually unfolded into a full display.
Ava held her breath in nervous anticipation.
She had expected a horror game setting—dark corridors, eerie whispers, or something unsettling.
But reality was different.
The screen fully expanded, showing the same stone house from the image she had seen earlier.
Now, magnified to fill the entire screen, more details became visible.
Between the rough stones, gaps were apparent.
Outside, a raging storm howled.
Cold winds, mixed with heavy rain, seeped through the cracks into the room.
The stone floor, where the boy was lying, was already soaked.
Ava stared at the boy's frail figure, momentarily at a loss.
This was the beginner's dilemma—an experienced player would have already started searching for hidden clues.
Perhaps the game sensed her inactivity, because soon, several system messages popped up.
[Kyle lacks warm clothing.]
[Kyle has not eaten for two days.]
[Kyle's remaining lifespan: 3 hours.]
As those words appeared, the boy on the screen trembled—perhaps from the cold.
Ava felt a strange tug in her heart.
She had three months left to live.
Even this virtual character she had chosen was barely clinging to life—with only three hours left.
Heh. Life was truly kind to her, wasn't it?
But this game… it was too realistic.
The boy on the screen didn't look like an artificial game character.
He looked real.
It was as if—if she did nothing—he would actually die in three hours.
"I have to save him! But how?"
The moment this thought surfaced in Ava's mind, the game responded as if reading her thoughts.
[Ding! For only $1,000, you can purchase a magical robe!
Warm in winter, cool in summer, waterproof, windproof!]
Ava stared at the text in disbelief.
What? A single piece of clothing… costs HOW much?!
$1,000?!
…Forget it. Not worth it.
It was just a game.
If she wanted to spend money, she'd rather go out and watch a movie.
That would be much cheaper than spending $1,000 on this crazy digital outfit.
Her eyes started scanning the screen for an exit button.
But suddenly, the screen glitched for a moment.
Then, another message appeared.
[Alternatively, you may purchase a puppet to deliver a normal piece of clothing to Kyle.
Puppet: $100
Ordinary clothing: $1]
This time, Ava didn't even bother reading the details.
Her eyes were glued to two specific numbers:
"$100"
"$1"
Hah.
They raised the price by a dollar.
Whatever. She just wouldn't play anymore.
After searching for a while, she finally spotted the tiny, nearly hidden exit button in the bottom-left corner of the screen.
She moved her mouse toward it.
The screen shook again.
The text flickered, and—
She caught another quick glance at the price.
Wait.
"$100"…
She might misread earlier—she thought it was $1,000.
But it was only $100.
At that moment, the boy suddenly moaned softly, whispering, "Mom…"
Ava's hand, hovering over Exit, paused.
$100?
Earlier, she wouldn't have dreamed of spending that much money on a game.
But now…
She was going to die soon anyway.
And this boy—
He looked like an orphan too.
So…
She finally clicked Confirm Purchase.
[Please select a puppet type.]
Two images appeared, one on each side.
On the left: A knight in armor, a long sword at his waist.
On the right: A guy draped in a flowing robe.
Right under the right image, there is a shinning title: magician
As soon as these images loaded, the game screen zoomed out, revealing the area outside the stone house.
Ava suddenly remembered—
Earlier, the game tried to sell her a magic robe for $1,000.
She immediately clicked the right image.
This guy was already wearing a magical robe.
If she could just make him take it off and give it to the boy—
She'd basically get a free robe for only $100!
Ava felt pleased with herself.
How clever she is!
As a fresh new game player, she had just saved $900!