Chapter 1 — World Theater
Anshul Giri had always believed that the internet contained every kind of strange thing imaginable.
But even he was not prepared for what he was about to find that night.
It was late evening in Pune. Rain had started around sunset and had not stopped since. The quiet sound of raindrops tapping against the window filled Anshul's small apartment.
He had just finished completing an assignment for his engineering class.
At nineteen years old, Anshul was currently studying mechanical engineering at a university in Pune. His parents were both lawyers and had always expected him to become a successful professional someday.
But if Anshul was honest with himself, engineering had never been his true interest.
Movies were.
Not simply watching them like ordinary people, but studying them.
While most viewers paid attention to action scenes or romance, Anshul focused on the structure of the story. He liked analyzing how events connected, how characters made decisions, and how different choices could have changed the outcome of the plot.
Because of this unusual habit, he remembered the details of many films extremely well.
After finishing his assignment, Anshul stretched his arms and opened his laptop.
"Maybe I'll watch something before sleeping," he murmured.
He began browsing through several websites.
After scrolling through a few pages of recommendations, he accidentally clicked a strange link.
A new website opened.
The design immediately caught his attention.
The page was completely black.
No advertisements.
No banners.
No video previews.
Only two words appeared in the center of the screen.
World Theater.
Anshul frowned slightly.
"That's a strange name."
Below the title was a list of worlds.
They looked similar to movie titles, but the names were slightly different.
He read them carefully.
Traveler Level: 1
Available Level-1 Worlds
Limitless Mind
The Princess Diary
Princess Diary: Royal Engagement
Ella the Enchanted
Monte Carlo Journey
The Fashion Intern
Catch Me If You Dare
Money Game
Social Network Era
Elysium Station (Abnormal)
Anshul leaned closer to the screen.
"Level-1 worlds?"
Next to each title was a small symbol that looked like a progress indicator.
Curious, he moved the cursor over the first world.
Limitless Mind.
A small window appeared.
Traveler System Initialization
Worlds are classified by combat power and danger level.
Current traveler level: Level 1.
To unlock Level 2, the traveler must complete 10 Level-1 worlds.
Warning: Time will pass normally in your original world.
Anshul blinked.
"Traveler system?"
It sounded like something from a video game.
Another message appeared beneath the first.
Select a world to enter.
Anshul chuckled quietly.
"Interesting concept."
He assumed the website was some kind of experimental simulation or interactive story.
The idea was surprisingly creative.
Without thinking too much about it, he clicked the first option.
Limitless Mind.
For a moment nothing happened.
Then suddenly the laptop screen turned completely white.
The brightness became so intense that Anshul instinctively covered his eyes.
"What the—"
Before he could finish speaking, the light spread beyond the screen.
The entire room began glowing.
At the same time, a strange dizziness struck him.
The walls of the apartment started to distort.
The desk.
The chair.
Even the floor beneath his feet.
Everything twisted as if reality itself had become unstable.
Anshul tried to grab the edge of the table.
But the next moment his body felt completely weightless.
It was as if he had fallen into a deep tunnel.
Then everything went dark.
Several seconds later, Anshul slowly opened his eyes.
He was no longer inside his apartment.
Instead, he was standing on a crowded subway platform.
People walked past him while speaking English.
A train rushed through the station with a loud roar.
Anshul looked up at the large sign hanging above the platform.
57th Street Station.
He froze.
"…New York?"
After a moment of silence, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.
The same strange website was still open.
But now the first world on the list was glowing faintly.
Below it appeared a message.
World Entered
World: Limitless Mind
Level: 1
Anshul slowly looked around the unfamiliar environment.
Although the system had slightly changed the name, he immediately recognized the world.
It was the story about a mysterious pill capable of unlocking the full potential of the human brain.
In that story, the pills originally belonged to a man who would soon be killed by criminals searching for them.
Which meant that very soon…
A large supply of those pills would become unclaimed.
Anshul stood quietly for several seconds.
Then a faint smile appeared on his face.
"Well…"
"If this world really follows the same story…"
"…then I already know where the opportunity is."
He slipped the phone back into his pocket and walked toward the exit of the subway station.
Because somewhere in this city, a bag containing dozens of genius-enhancing pills was waiting to be discovered.
And Anshul Giri intended to find it first.