The room was dark, lit only by the blue glow of a computer screen. Empty soda cans littered the floor. The air was stale.
Skyler hadn't moved in hours.
Click.
Click-click.
Tap-tap-tap.
His fingers flew across the keyboard, guiding his in-game character — a swordsman dressed in black — through the final phase of a raid boss fight. His breathing was shallow, his eyes bloodshot.
> "Come on… Just a few more hits."
A colossal beast roared on screen. One final slash. The health bar hit zero.
> [World First Clear Achieved – Myth Slayer Unlocked]
Skyler leaned back in his chair.
Silence.
No cheering crowd. No celebration. Just the whirring fan of his overheating PC.
He blinked. His chest tightened. His head felt light — like it wasn't fully attached to his body.
> "I should... probably eat something."
He didn't make it.
---
He opened his eyes to smoke and screaming.
The ground was cracked stone. The air stank of ash and blood. Sirens wailed in the distance. The sky above him was red — not sunset red, but deep and violent, like it had been torn open.
Skyler sat up slowly.
> "What… is this?"
A deafening roar snapped his attention to the side. A monster — three heads, claws dripping red — pounced toward a fleeing crowd.
And then —
A silver blur.
A glowing sword.
One clean slash.
The monster dropped dead.
A teenage boy stood over it, calm and battle-ready.
Skyler's eyes locked on him.
He looked familiar.
Too familiar.
> "No way…"
The ground trembled.
Above him, something massive loomed — a floating gate, swirling with darkness.
Skyler clenched his fists.
His head was spinning. His heart wouldn't stop racing. But there was somethin
g else, too.
Something he couldn't explain.
Like he'd seen this all before.