A thin young man with a non-athletic body woke up; he had been eating only unhealthy food just to fuel himself for playing Overlord.
The game was famous worldwide, a virtual world designed to create a new generation of electronic games. You could fight, craft swords with your own resources, explore caves, build your kingdom, and choose your profession. There were many professions available in this virtual world.
A young man named Seraphius had sacrificed his health and money just to become strong and make a name for himself in the game. But unfortunately, the game had died because a new game appeared with the same ideas and added loot boxes: you could buy a box, and depending on luck, you might get a sword or clothes.
This idea had destroyed Overlord.
Seraphius said while playing:
"Damn, all my friends left my guild and went to another game… The world is still huge and unexplored. Damn these loot boxes! I spend all this effort gathering resources to craft swords and armor, just to have my advantage in Overlord."
He decided, I'll step out of the game, eat something, and then return.
He removed his VR headset, put on his shoes, and took five dollars with him to buy something to eat, as usual, unhealthy food.
He opened his room door and stepped out. The street was crowded with people and small children.
Seraphius heard one child say:
"Look at this guy, how skinny he is!"
Another child added: "He's autistic, hahaha."
They laughed, but he paid no attention to them.
He arrived at the store. The glass reflected his appearance: messy hair, brown eyes, and faint wrinkles on his face despite being only eighteen.
He entered the store and bought a pack of instant noodles and a juice. When he reached the cashier, he handed her his purchases. She said:
"Seraphius, are you still buying this junk? It will ruin your health."
Seraphius replied:
"I spent all my money, and I still have a little left."
She said:
"Listen, come tomorrow. I'll talk to the store owner to hire you."
He looked into her eyes; she seemed healthy, with beautiful blonde hair, blue eyes, and flawless skin.
Seraphius said:
"Thank you, I'll come tomorrow."
The girl laughed: "Your total is $4.50."
He gave her five dollars. She opened the electronic cash register, took the money, and said:
"Have a nice day."
Seraphius nodded and left the store, carrying his groceries in a white bag, heading home.
He thought to himself:
"Tomorrow I'll work and earn money… I'll sell my Overlord account to survive at least."
He was happy as he opened his door, entered, placed the groceries on the table, and picked up his phone to listen to a voice message from a friend.
He played the message. His friend said:
"Overlord is releasing a new update. I think it's your chance to dominate the game."
Seraphius was shocked. He immediately put on his VR headset.
He entered the game to check, and there were still three minutes left.
Seraphius was thrilled—the news was true, and he could sell his account for a high price and benefit from it.
He opened his inventory, which contained many potions and resources for crafting a sword or armor, and opened his profile:
Name: Seraphius
Level: SS+
Profession: Swordsman
Unique Ability: Shadows
Guild: Swordsmen Kingdom
Guild Leader: Seraphius
Your balance : 500 million
Seraphius said happily:
"I'll sell my account for a good price."
The countdown began: 3… 2… 1…
His profile logo appeared, and he was happy—until his joy turned into shock.
The update was a patch to fix the game's issues.
Seraphius was stunned; something unexpected had happened. The number of players dropped from 500k to only one connected player—Seraphius himself.
He held his head in frustration and anger at the game and its developers.
He opened the settings, intending to log out, but before he could click, another countdown appeared: one minute.
He was shocked to see the player count jump to 1.5 billion.
He said: "Are all of them humans or bots?"
Then his logo appeared with a message:
"Congratulations, you are the only player remaining in the game after its shutdown."
The logo continued:
"A magical box will arrive to reward your great achievement."
The countdown began: 3… 2… 1…
A video showed all VR headsets exploding for every player wearing them, and a voice said:
"All of you are now dead, and your bodies are inside the game… But don't worry, to make the game fair, I will erase all your characters to create your real ones."
Seraphius was terrified. He tried accessing settings but couldn't. He saw his real body inside the game.
A voice continued:
"Good luck in making your history, Overlord players."
Everyone vanished from the waiting area, and even the arena itself was destroyed, leaving only white emptiness.
Seraphius woke up to find himself in the void, in front of a large screen that read:
"Create Your Character."
He was shocked, thinking it was just another update… but he couldn't open the settings. He bit himself in pain, trying to understand why he was trapped in the game.
He calmed down and looked at the large screen:
"No escape… I'll make my character and find a way to survive in this world."
He pressed "Create Character," and a screen appeared to choose a name. He typed: Seraphius.
Another screen appeared: "Choose your combat style."
But there was a problem: the choice was now based on luck.
Seraphius was confused:
"So I have to spin to get my style?"
There was a large spin button, with only three attempts. He pressed it.
The first spin showed:
"Congratulations! Your combat style is: Magic."
He exclaimed: "I don't like fighting with magic."
He pressed it again, and it showed:
"Congratulations! Your combat style is: Swordsman."
Seraphius was ecstatic: "In the second spin, my luck is perfect!"
He pressed "Continue," and another screen appeared: "Choose your unique ability."
There was only one chance left. He feared getting a weak ability, like Fast Cooking or Quick Taming.
He remembered the magical box and shouted:
"Magical box!"
A box appeared before him, opening to grant a Luck Potion for 10 seconds.
He pressed the spin button, and it showed:
"Congratulations! You received: Shadows."
He muttered:
"This is the weakest unique ability… low ranking… but fine, at least I got something usable."
He pressed "Continue," and the next screen asked:
"Do you want to start in a family or begin alone?"
He thought about his past life: no family, left his parents for studies, failed… became a burden, just playing games.
He decided:
"I'll start in a family."
He pressed it. His body disappeared, becoming a sphere, and entered the screen.
Seraphius opened his eyes to find himself lying on a wooden bed in a simple wooden house. He stood up and examined himself: tall, healthy, clothes dirty and too long.
He slowly opened the door of the room.