Inside the game!

The top floor office sat in complete darkness. No lights, no sounds except for the soft clicking of keyboard keys. A man hunched over his desk, the glow from his computer screen painting his face in pale blue light.

Dark circles ringed his eyes like bruises. His cheeks had hollowed out from too many skipped meals. But his fingers kept moving across the keys, never stopping, never slowing down.

Almost done, Dante told himself. Just fix this last bug and I can finally rest.

He squinted at the code on his screen, hunting for errors in the game he'd been working on for weeks. Dante worked for Doomsday Games, one of the top ten gaming companies in the world. They made the most popular MMORPG games, and everyone wanted to work for them.

Two years ago, Dante had been young and eager. Doomsday was just starting out then, and when they offered him a job, he jumped at the chance. He didn't even read the contract properly. Why would he? He'd never heard anything bad about them.

The first year was good. He did small tasks, went home every night, had weekends off. But slowly, things changed. The work got harder. The hours got longer. Soon he was sleeping on the office couch more nights than in his own bed.

Now he felt like a puppet. His boss pulled the strings, and Dante danced. He hated it, but what choice did he have? He needed the job.

"Time to test it," Dante mumbled, clicking on the game file.

He stared at the loading screen with tired eyes. When it finally opened, big letters appeared: EMPIRE ONLINE.

"Right, Empire Online," he remembered. "Started as a web novel. Fans demanded a game version, so here we are."

He logged in and checked the opening sequence. No bugs so far. Good.

"Let's run a full test."

The character selection screen popped up. Since this was just a test, it didn't matter which character he picked. He clicked on one at random.

Ding!

The computer chimed as the game began loading. Dante waited, but his eyelids felt heavy. The room spun slightly.

"I have to finish this," he whispered.

Then everything went dark. His head dropped forward onto the keyboard.

Somewhere else entirely, a boy lay sprawled across a massive bed. The bed could easily fit five people, with silk sheets and gold-trimmed pillows. The whole room screamed wealth – marble floors, crystal chandeliers, furniture that cost more than most people's cars.

The boy stirred, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand. He blinked up at the ceiling, which was painted with elaborate designs of angels and clouds.

"What the hell?" he muttered.

This wasn't his cramped office. This wasn't his uncomfortable couch. The bed beneath him felt like sleeping on a cloud. Confused, he sat up and looked around.

Everything was wrong. The room was huge and fancy. Golden curtains hung from tall windows. A table beside the bed looked like it was made of solid gold.

Wait. Something else was wrong. His voice sounded different. Higher. Younger.

He looked down at his hands. They were smaller than before, with smooth skin instead of the rough, work-worn hands he remembered.

Panic rising in his chest, he jumped up and ran to what looked like a bathroom door. Inside, he found a mirror and froze.

The face staring back at him wasn't his own.

He looked about thirteen years old, with sharp, handsome features and black hair that fell over his left eye. But it was his eyes that made him gasp – they were bright purple, cold and piercing.

"This is Lux d'Branmere," he whispered, touching his new face.

This has to be a dream. It has to be.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "Profile," he said aloud.

A purple screen appeared in the air in front of him, glowing like a hologram.

[Name: Lux d'Branmere | Age: 13]

[Job: None]

[Title: Bastard Son of the Marquis, Last Born]

[Traits: Cold-hearted, Fragile, Failed Genius, Cursed Physique, God of War, Cursed Fate]

[Popularity: -70 (Defamed!)]

[Strength: 1]

[Agility: 3]

[Stamina: 2]

[Endurance: 1]

[Luck: 5]

[Affinities: Darkness, Fire, Ice, Wind]

[Skills: None]

Dante stared at the screen, his heart sinking. He knew this character. Lux d'Branmere was the villain from Empire Online – the stepping stone character who existed just to make the main character look good.

And now, somehow, he was trapped inside this character's body.

He focused on the curse traits, and more information appeared:

[Cursed Physique (S-Rank)]

Your body is weak and hard to heal. Physical training is nearly impossible, and healing magic barely works. You take more damage than normal and recover slowly.

Note: Breaking curse will grant permanent boost in strength and endurance.

[Cursed Fate (S-Rank)]

You were born under a doomed fate, destined to be killed by the Hero. No matter what path you take, your death is "fated." Events may turn against you without warning.

Note: Breaking curse will create a new story line and grant you a S ranked skill.

[Fragile (A-Rank)]

Your body breaks easily. You have low health and defense, and injuries affect you more severely.

Note: Removing this curse will significantly boost your durability and unlock physical skill options.

[Failed Genius (A-Rank)]

You were once a genius, but something broke you. Learning skills is now harder and slower. Sometimes, flashes of insight appear during stressful moments.

Note: If this curse is removed, your full intelligence and talent will return, unlocking unique skills and traits.

Great, Dante thought bitterly. Not only am I stuck as the villain, but I'm cursed too.

He looked back at his reflection in the mirror. Purple eyes stared back at him, cold and calculating.

This was real. Somehow, impossibly, he was now living inside the game he'd been testing. And he was playing as the character everyone was supposed to hate.