Before he could do anything else, a sudden DING echoed through the room. A faint yet visible light flickered from the pocket of his pants.
He slipped a hand into his pocket and felt the familiar shape of his mobile phone. Pulling it out, he stared at the device as if it carried more weight than its size should allow.
When he tried to unlock it, he significantly failed because of the passcode. But the next instant, memories of this body showered inside his mind.
Suddenly, he remembered the passcode of this mobile and unlocked it. "This is... this is pretty assuring, haha." A faint chuckle left through his mouth.
But that happiness didn’t remain intact for long; he noticed that the sound that had just come was the notification from the bank.
The moment he read the notification, it felt as though the ground beneath him vanished.
[Reminder: The loan you took of 50,000 is still pending. Please pay at least 5% interest by next Monday.]
His breath caught, the words burning into his mind like chains tightening around him.
Eyes widened instantly, and jaw dropped in sheer disbelief. "What the hell?! This guy had 50k in debt?!" He exclaimed.
He staggered backwards before collapsing onto the couch. The fabric was torn and frayed, cotton spilling out through its seams.
"Now I surely know why he thought about taking his own life." He muttered, still staring at the pop-up.
The moment he finished his words, his gaze swept across to the other side of the room, where a console was kept on the ground.
A small logo of a fire-winged phoenix was imprinted upon it, and just below, the words ’Elysia Online’ gleamed strikingly.
"I don’t have any other choice... the only thing I can rely on now is this gaming console," he muttered calmly, but frustration was audible through his tone.
"If I want to pay off the debt, I have to make a living through it."
Without wasting any other second, he travelled towards it. He slightly leaned in and picked the helmet up in his grasp.
He moved slowly towards the bed, its ragged sheets worn thin from neglect.
Sitting down, he raised the helmet with deliberate care, then lowered it over his head. A breath escaped him as he lay back against the mattress.
Emil took a deep breath before exhaling, and then he gently pressed the button, which was on the right corner of the helmet.
It didn’t take more than a second for the surroundings to disappear from his sight completely. In just a few seconds, he found himself in a space that was completely dark, and the only thing visible to him was his hands.
Without wasting any more time, his gaze swept across the area to find any source of light, but the only thing he noticed was a panel hovering in front of his eyes with bright blue light.
He squinted his eyes and noticed that there were some digits written across it:
[Countdown: 120 Seconds.]
[The user should wait for the given time to log into the game successfully.]
For a while, his eyes remained fixed on the panel, wondering what to do. But right after that, a smirk appeared on his face. "Let’s see what I can manage in this so‑called open reality game everyone praises."
[Countdown: 0 Seconds.]
[User can finally log into the game.]
[Press:]
[Yes: If you want to enter the game.]
[No: If you want to log out of the game.]
He extended his finger slightly towards the options and pressed the yes.