Sehyun first moved toward the student who was sobbing uncontrollably. On the chest of his school uniform jacket, along with a nametag, was the character for “middle” (중).
“My name… is Do Sehyun. Want to talk with me for a bit…?”
Hiding the tremor in his voice, Sehyun spoke as gently as he could. The boy, lips pressed tight as he hiccupped, lifted tear-filled eyes toward Sehyun, then gave a small nod.
Sehyun sat back down on the ground, lowering himself to the boy’s eye level, and continued in as calm a tone as possible.
“What’s your name…?”
“Hic… it’s Lee Jaeyoung….”
“When did you wake up? I just came to, so I don’t know how long this has been going on.”
“Snff… t-two hours… hic… maybe….”
Sehyun’s eyes fell on the boy’s wristwatch. The ticking hand moved steadily, giving him a strange sense of dissonance. Even here, time was still flowing.
“Do you remember anything about coming here?”
The boy scrubbed at his swollen eyes with his sleeve and shook his head. Seeing how red and puffy they were made Sehyun’s chest tighten with sympathy.
“It’s okay, don’t cry. I’ll… I’ll stay here with you.”
“I was waiting for the game… hic… but after that… I can’t remember….”
“Game?”
“Elix. The official server, hic… it was less than five minutes away… sob….”
The launch of the official Elix server. Sehyun knew that all too well. From the day the announcement dropped, it had dominated search rankings and the entire internet buzzed with nothing but that. It was impossible not to know.
His gaze shifted to a man lying unconscious nearby. Korean, like himself. Sehyun could tell because of the documents clutched to his chest, printed in Korean.
The others around them sat crouched and lifeless, eyes fixed to the ground. If someone had woken first, how many hours had already passed since they were brought here?
“H-hyung… we can go home, right…?”
“…It’s okay. Don’t cry.”
Patting Lee Jaeyoung’s back as the boy clung to his sleeve, Sehyun said it to himself as much as to him. Whether they could go back was unknown. They didn’t even understand what had caused this, let alone what would happen next.
And Sehyun couldn’t find a single thing everyone here had in common. Men vastly outnumbered women, most in their twenties to maybe late forties or early fifties. Children were nearly nonexistent—aside from Jaeyoung, Sehyun hadn’t seen anyone younger.
Was there any common thread at all?
While searching for one—age, gender, nationality, anything—a commotion erupted nearby. A shout, almost like a scream, drew every gaze at once. Sehyun’s too.
“This is all because of Elix! I swear it! Right before I collapsed, I saw it! Light, or maybe fire, flashing across the screen—‘Entering the Official Server,’ it said! I saw it with my own eyes!”
No one listened. What shocked them more was that the man was a foreigner, yet they understood him perfectly. Though bewildered, no one spoke. Maybe they all wanted to avoid facing reality.
One by one, people ignored him, and Sehyun did the same. He knew Elix, of course. But the last time he’d played was two months ago. No—that wasn’t quite right. He had quit.
Unlike Sehyun, Lee Jaeyoung seemed shaken, taking the words to heart. Leaving the boy dazed and lost, Sehyun’s gaze returned to the unconscious man gripping his documents.
“It’s true! You played Elix too, didn’t you? Huh? Say it! You, you played too, right? See! Everyone did!”
His enraged shouts tore through the murmuring crowd. Sehyun squeezed the boy’s hand tight as Jaeyoung clutched his clothes, waiting for time to pass. And then, two hours later—
The angry man’s claims proved true when the unconscious one finally opened his eyes.
Or more precisely, when the man clutching the papers regained consciousness and awareness of his surroundings.
The moment their eyes met, someone screamed. And that was when the anomaly began.
It started with the appearance of a massive circular mirror, so vast it stole the breath. Then, within the boundless void, countless circles began to form—large and small—multiplying into hundreds, then thousands, accompanied by an incomprehensible sound that drilled into their skulls. People clutched their heads, shrieking, writhing on the floor.
When the endless sound finally ceased, silence fell. Not even breath was audible. Only eyes, wide and horrified, turned upward.
Surrounding them on every side were portals—just like the ones from Elix, glowing brilliantly. People stared at them, stunned, helpless.
[So you’ve finally come to your senses.]
The alien voice rang through the stillness, echoing across the void. Every eye turned to the massive mirror suspended above.
There, half his torso jutting out, was a man in formal dress. Light glinted off his monocle as he peered down. After surveying the crowd, he stepped free of the portal and floated into the air.
[I am Billwill, your guide in this place. I thank you all for the hardships you endured in coming this far.]
With elegant poise, Billwill removed his hat and bowed gracefully. Yet no one answered. Not a single soul returned the greeting. If anything, terror only deepened.
Sehyun gripped his trembling hands tight to steady them. He couldn’t tell if this was dream or reality. The countless people, the eerie man hovering in the void—
None of it made sense.
[From Sector 481’s Earth, you were chosen and brought here, to the planet Elix. You are what we call ‘Road Players.’ Though belated, allow me to welcome you to Elix.]
Elix—planet? The words struck Sehyun like a hammer. Murmurs burst out everywhere. Few remained calm; most reeled with horror and fury.
The crowd teetered on the brink of riot.
[Everyone here has connected to Elix at least once. Regardless of time or frequency, if you completed the aptitude test and entered, you were deemed qualified. All of you have the right to challenge Achievements.]
“Cut the bullshit!”
“Send us back! Please, we’re begging you!”
“Fuck your choices, just send us all back! Now!”
[From this point, you will begin loading play here on Elix, pursuing the Achievements you could not reach during the Beta. I will now guide you through the process. First—]
Snap!
At the light flick of Billwill’s fingers, warped images appeared beyond the portals surrounding them. Unclear at first, but each different—villages, castles, empires.
“Empires…”
A spark lit Sehyun’s eyes. The radiant portals seemed to show the empires players had built. The warped reflections grew clearer, sharp as if seen in a mirror.
[Official server play is much the same as before. You will return to your empires as kings, nurture them, and strive toward new Achievements. Achievements… ah, not yet visible. Let’s see… ah, there we are. Once you complete your ‘Awakening,’ they will appear. Above all, survival is paramount.]
The instant Billwill finished speaking, a blue window flashed before Sehyun’s eyes. A familiar system window, just like in the game.
[Do you wish to Awaken as a Road Player? Upon Awakening, you will inherit the data of your previously played race.]
Road Player. The word made people gasp all around. Sehyun too. Cold sweat ran down as his throat tightened, choking his breath.
Below the prompt, two choices appeared: “Yes.” “No.”
[Regrettably, your previous levels will reset. Now then, a quiz. In the Beta, if your king died, it was game over. If you die now, connected to the official server, what will happen to you—and your empire?]
Billwill’s red eyes curved chillingly as he looked down. A ripple of despair spread through the crowd. Everyone already knew the answer. Or rather, the voice itself was carving it into their minds.
That all of them would die.