Chapter 1

Before entering the café where my close friend, Reina, and I were meeting, I texted her to let her know I had arrived. When I walked inside the café, the message I had sent was quickly read.

"Yumi!"

A familiar voice called, and I jerked my head up from my phone and looked around the café for my friend.

I eventually noticed her waving to get my attention while smiling brightly. I approached her with a light huff and a smile and soon sat next to her.

Today was a wonderful day for Reina since she'd be meeting her favorite K-pop idol, Arkane, in a meet and greet.

"I see you arrived early; you must adore that group to be this excited," I said as she giggled.

"Who wouldn't be excited to meet the idol you've idolized since their debut?" she asked, passing me an iced coffee.

"I'm glad I could go with someone; I apologize for reaching out to you at the last hour."

"Don't mention it; I couldn't say no to something given away for free," I said.

Originally, Reina was supposed to attend the event with our other friend, Akari, but she caught a fever this morning, so I've come to take her place.

Although I'm not a great fan of the Korean group Arkane, I do recognize them and know enough about them thanks to Reina and Akari. So I'll be able to recognize their faces and know who is who, and I won't be deemed impolite during the event.

***

When we got to the location of the event, there were already hundreds of people in line. I had no idea the group was so popular, so seeing how many people showed up at the event surprised me.

We promptly formed a line to enter the venue. It didn't take long for us to enter, and I was excited while waiting. Even though I wasn't a big fan, I listened to some of their music and added a couple of songs to my favorite song playlist.

As I already stated, I knew very little about the K-pop group. Arkane, commonly known as Ark.E. for short, is a thirteen-member group. Two members are from North America; another two are from China; and the rest are Koreans. Their fans are known as ArkAngels, or Angels for short.

They were all attractive, so when the event began, all of the Ark Angels went berserk! The one thing I dislike about occasions like this, especially when it involves my best friend's favorite band, is that they would absolutely slap the crap out of me from all the giddiness, which hurts a lot.

I tried not to snap from the anguish Reina gave, keeping my cool throughout the group's introduction. Finally, the greeting with the boys began.

As the fans filed onto the stage, one by one, to speak with their idols, I found myself feeling scared. It could have been because this was my first meet-and-greet, but my heart couldn't stop racing.

It was my turn after a few minutes of waiting, and before climbing the stairs, Reina wished me luck. I took a deep breath and sat in front of the first member, the group's leader, Seongho.

"Hello!" he said enthusiastically as I bowed and greeted him nervously. He sensed I was apprehensive and innocently worsened it by holding my hand tightly as he sweetly gazed at me. I knew he was doing it to help me feel better, but it felt like he was trying to kill me with his fan service.

Although his wholesomeness made me grin as I watched him autograph the book in front of me, his hand appeared to be muscular and large. Despite its imposing appearance, it felt warm and put me at ease. I'm curious if he noticed how cold my hand was because of how anxious I was.

Jun was the second member in line, and when I sat in front of him, he smiled warmly.

"Hi! How are you?" he said, and I responded with the same enthusiasm. Jun was one of the Chinese members, and because I knew that, I decided to speak the language of his birthplace and surprise him as well as the other Chinese member who was seated beside him, Yutong, aka Yuto for short.

After meeting them both, Joseph was the next in line, and he instantly complimented my ability to speak another language. I startled him even more when I spoke English, the language of his birthplace, Canada.

I then explained that I had started learning other languages as a child because I thought mastering multiple languages would make me cool. In addition, I could use my talent to get a job and earn a lot of money to help me stay financially stable.

Seungjae was the next person in line after Joseph, and he welcomed me in Japanese with a bright smile.

"Wow, you're very beautiful!"

His unexpected praise surprised me, and I didn't know what to say, so I just snickered shyly while thanking him.

"You're handsome as well!" I replied, which made the man smile giddily as he cupped his cheek and flicked his hand on the other.

"Oh, stop it!" He then handed the book he had autographed to Milton, the next person in line.

Milton grinned and greeted me as he signed the book in front of him, and I greeted him back. I then remembered my gifts and distributed them to Milton, Yejoon, and Sujin. These three members are pizza junkies; therefore, I thought a pizza bar coupon would be an ideal gift for them and the other members. It was a small present from me to them to enjoy while they were in Japan to make their stay even more enjoyable.

Minjoon came up next. And when I met him, he was one of the members who truly drew my interest. He was very attractive. And then, like a domino effect, I met the most beautiful person I'd ever encountered. Jaeseong, known as Jae, had a mullet and looked stunning with it. He spotted me staring and chuckled at my reaction.

I'd never been this star-struck before, and being caught was embarrassing. Jiwoo next door laughed as well at my reaction. As if I wasn't already humiliated enough, I wanted to excuse myself and return to my seat in the middle of the hall.

Even though it was exhausting at the end, I had a good time, and as I exited the stage, I received a message on my phone. I initially assumed it was Akari asking questions regarding what transpired during the greet and meet, but I was mistaken.

It's from the app 'G.A.M.E.S.,' which I only recently discovered. What's strange about this is that I had no recollection of downloading it the first time I had it on my phone.

I wasn't interested in online games, and I needed to focus on my job to survive and earn money, so I deleted it. But when I arrived home, the same app had reappeared. Despite what happened, I'm addicted to playing it now.

Heric: 'There are new missions available for us. Want to do one together? '

I replied with a smile.

Yumi: 'Sure, but not the goblins; their blood stinks, and I'm allergic to them in game.'

While I was responding, Reina became intrigued by what I was doing and peeked around my back at my phone.

"Who are you messaging?" she inquired.

"A friend."

Her jaw dropped open in disbelief when she realized it was from the game I was playing. "That game again?" She asked.

"You sure are addicted to that. Anyway, how did your meet and greet go?"

"It wasn't that bad; I had fun!"

"Ooh, is Yumi finally a fan of Arkane?" she said, drawing an eye roll from me.

"Not quite there yet." I chuckled. "And I’m guessing you had fun?"

"It was amazing, as always! All of them are just so handsome, and Jeongmin held my hand!" she squealed.

I grinned as I listened to her fangirling and sharing what happened. I was just thrilled that she had a good time at the event. It had also been a long time since I had gone out for reasons other than work, and it felt amazing, which surprised me. I'm not a big K-pop fan in general, so it was good for a K-pop group to help me relax and deal with my anxiety and stress.

***

We went back to my place after the event for a sleepover. For dinner, we ordered chicken, and I prepared some side dishes and rice. As we ate, Reina decided for us to watch Arkane's show on YouTube.

"Arkane? Again?" I inquired. As you can tell from my tone, I was already sick of the group.

"Because they're amazing," she explained, as if it were obvious. "From night to day, I'll be playing Ark.E.-related shows!"

I left her be as we watched whatever she wanted until Midnight. I never expected to appreciate their content so much. With each episode of their YouTube show, they made me laugh and be intrigued until the end.

I turned to see Reina fast asleep after hearing her snort. When I looked at the clock, it was already 11pm I decided to finish the day by cleaning the living room table and placing Reina on the couch with a pillow to lay on and a blanket to keep her warm.

Despite the fact that it was late, it was the ideal time to play some games. I cleaned the plates and utensils before logging in, and when I was finished, I checked to see if Reina was entirely asleep before heading to the bedroom.

Allow me to further explain. This G.A.M.E.S. phone app is not your typical online game. It's an app that, when you log in, transports you to a different realm where you can play the game.

I've been keeping it a secret, and I haven't told anyone about it, not even Reina and Akari. Even if I try to explain it to them, they will never believe that something like this could ever happen.

As I logged in, a strange light flashed from my phone screen, transporting me inside the game and changing my attire.

I was now inside a cabin in the game where I live. A loud knock was heard from the front door seconds later.

As I replied, I opened it. "Yes?"

"Hey, let's go!" exclaimed a tall, distinguished gentleman.

He is known as Heric Freeman. He is a game friend who suffers the same fate as me. We were both brought here by the app, and during my first visit, I was terrified because I didn't know what to do. I was in a different realm. Anyone who has been through what I have would react just the same way: with fear.

"Sure, just give me a minute to change. Come in!" I said as I moved towards my room while Heric waited in the living area while we resumed our chat.

"The Guild has some great missions for level 2 users like us!"

The Adventurer's Guild is where we obtain our tasks and are paid when we finish them, where we level up as a result of the missions we do, and where we acquire our traveler's card, which represents every adventurer's identity.

"Don't tell me. Killing a horde of goblins? No thank you!" I decline as I put on a brown cape and shoes.

"Nope! I knew you wouldn't like that, so instead I got us some Tigders to kill!"

I shuddered. "As much as I despise spiders, it pays well."

A Tigder is a monster with the skin and face of a tiger and the body of a tarantula. It is my biggest nightmare.

"You know what they say: you have to face your fear in order to achieve your goal," he shrugged.

After we've gathered our weapons and pouches, we make our way through the forest to the cave where the Tigders were spotted. As we got closer to our location, I could feel my heart racing nervously and my body becoming chilly. Every stride we take sends shivers down my spine, making me dread the upcoming fight.

"Are we there yet?" I asked him.

"According to my navigator device, it's just behind that huge tree!" he said, pointing ahead of us.

We both examined the massive tree from bottom to top, spotting four tiny Tigders and one adult Tigder perched on a tree branch.

Another shudder ran down my spine as I saw those creepy monsters. Their razor-sharp fangs, circular, hairy bodies, and eight arms disgust me.

They noticed our presence as we stared at them, so the four baby Tigders jumped off the tree, blocking our way from every angle and trapping us in the midst.

They roared, exposing their razor-sharp teeth in an attempt to frighten us. As much as I wanted to flee and escape, we were here for them, and bringing back a failed mission would result in our Adventurer's Card being withdrawn.

Heric drew his enormous katana sword as I charged my powers, which surged throughout my entire body in preparation for the combat.

Just as we were about to lunge at them, the adult tigder leaped on top of us, separating us. It moved Heric to the left as I dodged to the right.

As I charged my powers within, my brown pupils transformed into rainbows, and I hit both of the babies with a water bubble spell, drowning them inside the bubble.

The adult tigder was about to attack in my direction when we both heard the slashing sound of a sword from behind the monster.

The adult tigder turned to face Heric and watched the little ones chopped into tiny pieces.

"Hey, if you want to make money, don't ruin their fur!"

"At least we have their meat." He then faces the monster, "and this adult's heart."

He runs towards it, and the monster does the same, jumping on top of him. But Heric was able to bend his knees as he slid beneath the tigder with his back arched, slicing the monster's stomach. This caused it to lose its balance and tumble to the ground, where it bled.

"Is it dead?" I wondered as I took the little tigders out of the water bubble.

"I think so; it's not moving."

But the creature sprang to his feet and pounced on Heric. "Watch out!" I screamed as I slashed its head off with the force of the wind, sparing the lad from harm.

"You said not to destroy the fur!" he scolded.

"I didn't destroy it?" I insisted. "This monster's head would sell a lot, plus the meat and fur on both sides aren't damaged."

"I just hope the heart isn't damaged," he remarked.

One way to gain money in this world is to be an adventurer, whose main job is to hunt, kill, and survive in battle.

These monsters have varying levels, and the higher the level, the more expensive they are.

In this world, each monster serves a variety of functions for humanity. The fur of the monsters can be used for clothing and equipment; the head and weapons (if they possess them) can be utilized for adornment; and the meat can be used for food, which is actually rather tasty.

The heart, which Heric bemoans, is the most expensive part of the monster. When these monsters die, their hearts turn into real-life diamonds. And their sizes and hues vary according to their level.

It's been how many days since I played this game, and this is why I've become addicted to it. In this game, you don't truly die; you have infinite lives. I've only died once, but Heric has died a lot. And, despite being Death's favorite, he managed to survive and live.

We went to the Adventurer's Guild once Heric finished assembling the monster's fur, heart, and head to sell these items to upgrade our Travelers' Card. Every monster we killed is documented inside our travelers' card, along with some of our information. Our rank and, most significantly, our wealth.

"Do you think we'll make a lot of money off of these?" Heric inquired.

"Of course, either way, at least we're getting paid." I shrugged.

"Hmm, you're right."

When we arrived at the Adventurer's Guild, we handed up our loot to a member of the staff.

"Are you out for some kills again, Heric?" Inquired a beautiful woman.

Her name is Angela York, and she is a friend of Heric's and mine. She is a staff member of the Adventurer's Guild, taking care of the treasures; she also shares the same fate as us but chose to work in business rather than hunting.

"Again? You mean he went hunting before I joined him?" I asked in surprise.

"Before this pair-hunt with you, He had four solo hunts," she explained.

"Damn! Are you short on cash or something?"

"No, I was just bored, and I needed some exercise," he stated as he handed Angela the treats. "So, how much money did we make with those Tigders?"

"Because you both submitted four small tigders and one large tigder, you both receive two gold coins!" she calculated.

"Heck yeah!" I exclaimed joyfully.

"That's enough hunting for me today!" exclaimed Heric.

"Oh, really? Are you sure you don't want to go on another pair hunt with me?"

"I have something really important to do later, and I promised my pal that I would join him on the double date he set up for me."

"Oh! Is Heric about to be in a relationship?" I joked.

"Ooh la la!" Angela playfully joined in.

"Not happening." He refused. "Besides, I'm far too busy hunting in this realm to be looking for a relationship."

Angela and I exchanged puzzled stares before returning our attention to Heric.

"And this is why you're still single," Angela sighed.

"Don't come to me if you regret that decision," I told him.

"Ditto."

"And you both consider yourselves to be my close friends?" Heric grumbled.

"Being someone's therapist isn't my thing; I'll see you tomorrow!" I remarked as I waved goodbye and walked back to my cabin.

This realm has felt like a second home to me—a place where I don't have to worry about being broke all the time. But, of course, I should not become accustomed to this gaming lifestyle.

Although living in the G.A.M.E.S. realm is a privilege, it will make me greedy. Which is not what I want, knowing that I don't belong here and that I need to return to my reality.

Reality is the Earth dimension.

I logged out, and as soon as I got back, I slept on my bed as if nothing had ever happened.