It was a quiet night in the village.
The road was almost empty. A cold wind was blowing slowly, and the sound of dogs barking could be heard from far away.
Rahul was walking alone.
His face looked tired and sad. He had spent the whole day looking for work, but once again, he failed.
Rahul was a poor boy. Life had never been easy for him. His father died many years ago because of illness. Since then, only Rahul and his mother lived in their small house.
His mother worked in other people's houses to earn money. But the money she earned was never enough.
That morning, Rahul went to the market to search for work. He asked many shop owners if they needed help.
But every answer was the same.
"Sorry, we don't need anyone right now."
Some boys at the market even laughed at him.
"Hey Rahul! Still no job?"
"You will stay poor forever!"
Rahul didn't say anything. He just walked away quietly.
Now, while walking home, those words were still echoing in his mind.
He looked at the dark sky above him.
"Why is my life like this?" he whispered.
After some time, he reached his small tin house.
When he entered the room, he saw his mother sleeping. She looked very tired after working the whole day.
Rahul quietly sat down on the floor.
Sometimes he felt like his life had no future.
Just when he was thinking about all this…
Something strange happened.
The air in front of him suddenly shook slightly.
Rahul frowned.
"What was that?"
Then suddenly—
A soft blue light appeared in front of his eyes.
Rahul quickly stood up in shock.
"What is this?!"
The blue light slowly formed into something that looked like a screen.
It looked like a phone screen… but it was floating in the air.
Rahul rubbed his eyes.
But the screen was still there.
Then some words slowly appeared on it.
[System Initializing…]
Rahul's heart started beating faster.
"Am I dreaming?"
A few seconds later, the words changed.
[System Activated]
Another line appeared.
Welcome, Host.
Rahul stared at the screen in confusion.
"Host? Me?"
He tried to touch the screen, but his hand passed right through it.
Suddenly, new words appeared.
[First Mission Available]
Rahul could not believe what he was seeing.
More words appeared on the screen.
Mission: Run 1 Kilometer
Reward: 100 Coins
Rahul blinked.
"Coins? What does that mean?"
Another message appeared.
Time Limit: 30 Minutes
Rahul stood there silently for a moment.
Then he took a deep breath.
"Alright… let's see if this is real."
He quickly ran outside.
The village road was empty and silent.
Rahul started running.
Slowly at first… then faster.
His breathing became heavy.
Five minutes passed.
Ten minutes passed.
Finally, he stopped and bent down, breathing heavily.
At that moment, the blue screen appeared again.
Mission Completed
Rahul's eyes widened.
Then another message appeared.
Reward Granted: 100 Coins
Suddenly his phone vibrated inside his pocket.
Rahul quickly took it out.
When he looked at the screen, he froze.
His digital wallet had just received 100 rupees.
Rahul stared at the phone in disbelief.
"How… how is this possible?"
The blue screen appeared again.
Congratulations, Host.
Your life is about to change.
Rahul slowly looked up at the night sky.
He didn't know it yet…
But this night would become the most important night of his life.
Because from today…
His life would never be the same again.