03 - I Am Broke

Jason looked at his small room. 

There was a small window, his bed, and a closet. It wasn’t much with the worn-out paints on the walls and dusty ceiling, but he was happy. He had his own room for the first time in his life. 

He stretched on the bed, hoping it would bring some comfort to his battered mind. 

‘Sigh. I can’t avoid it, I guess.’

By no means does this sudden change of events be comforting to him. He saw too many deaths and lost many things during the twenty years of war. He had his own demons. 

He took out his phone and opened the browser. He tried to type two words, but he stopped himself with shaking hands. 

‘I hope it was just a nightmare.’

He thought about how it all happened.

If this was truly his return to the past, everything would happen in another five years. September 2030. A couple of months before that fateful day, governments all around the world announced a piece of shocking news. 

The world, the earth, would end on the 1st of September 2030. The people of the Earth would be moved to a new planet called Yuriel, and the planet would be similar to the world of the VR game named the Endless. 

On that day, he and everyone else saw a white light coming toward them from the sky, and the next thing they knew was that they were in this unknown world. For five years, until 2035, from the Earth’s calendar, Jason lived in this world, trying to adapt and survive. 

However, everything changed after five years of their arrival on the Yuriel. An alien race called Cervians invaded the planet, killing and enslaving the habitants of Yuriel. 

They brought advanced technologies that could easily rival the Magic and combat powers of the people of Yuriel. 

In the end, after twenty-five years of war, the last human city on the Yuriel fell, and he was among the last few survivors.

However, the end of humankind had nothing to do with the Cervians. A moment before that massive attack landed on the last city, they sent distress signals to outer space. He was among the group that prepared the communication. 

That attack was the result of their begging for help. A swift death was the answer they received.

He hoped this all would be a dream. 

…

His face sank when he saw the first news. His nightmare wasn’t a nightmare. 

The first article he saw was something he should have learned in another year or so.

The US was calling back the armies from the middle east and other parts of the world. 

It wasn’t the end. Two major countries that crashed in eastern Europe had taken a step back. The major Asian countries were also suddenly taking a neutral stance in their conflicts. 

This was what happened when the governments decided that they had no way to develop further on the earth.

‘Is this just a coincidence? But isn’t it just too much?’

His heart sank even further as he scrolled further. 

The next big news was about two of America's largest, and the world’s largest space corporations trying to focus on another project for the next five years. One of the celebrity entrepreneurs stated that his company would focus on something more beneficial for humans.

Of course, there was enough influence for these large corporations and billionaires to receive the news from various government channels. 

He finally closed the news and covered his face.

‘I guess there is no other choice.’

He finally typed the two words that started changing everything.

“The Endless.”

The game that introduced worldwide in 2025.

The people who played the game The Endless had the most advantage on Yuriel. They knew the people of planet Yuriel. Because these people were the NCPs of the game The Endless.

They also carried the skills and abilities they gained through playing the game, giving them an advantage in this magical world. Sadly, he never played this game before.

He had a feeling he was going to see the results. As expected, several results popped up in a fraction of a second. 

“Sigh.”

He took a deep breath, looking at the announcement of the upcoming massive online VR game. 

‘Did I die and return to the past? Isn’t that supposed to happen only in fiction?’

He clicked the first promotion video and a visual similar to the real world appeared on the screen. He saw countless comments praising the game developers for realism, while some claimed this was fake. Some people were saying it was bait to bring players. 

However, Jason had a completely different thought in his mind. 

His eyes became red, and he clenched his teeth. All these sceneries that looked like a video were familiar to him. All of those sceneries were famous places and cities of the planet Yuriel. His emotions rose when he looked at the places he travelled, and places he used to hide.

Everything in this promotional video was a part of the Yuriel. 

He was sure no normal person would know this truth, except for him. However, he was sure various governments and some powerful factions in this world knew the truth. There was a reason for them to play this game for five long years. 

‘But it shouldn’t be this simple.’

If the Endless gave them a cheat-like ability, the war with the Cervians wouldn’t have ended like that. Even after thirty years since the launch of The Endless, no person from the earth reached the level of Grand Wizard. 

He never played the Endless, so he only knew what people he met on the Yuriel said. 

First, he knew most government factions, rich organisations, and military groups would enter this game. However, he knew none of them was able to monopolise this game even after five years.

They couldn’t even directly influence the sales of VR cabins. It was all in the hands of the developers; The World Builders. 

Jason knew how powerful a Grand Wizard from Yuriel was. They could create floods, erupt volcanoes, bring earthquakes and many more, yet they lost to the Cervians. 

He couldn’t imagine how powerful a group that could lead them into another world of magic and even sent an entire world there.

What he knew was that this group related to the World Builders had something to do with the last attack on the Yuriel. 

‘What am I supposed to do?’

He suddenly felt it was difficult to breathe.

“Huff… Huff.”

He tried his best to calm his mind by taking a few deep breaths. There was a feeling of something pricking inside his chest.

“Cough! Cough!”

The next moment, he broke into a violent cough, and Jason tasted some blood in his mouth.

He immediately held his breath and focused on some other matters, letting his body handle the breathing for him. After a couple of seconds, the prickling feeling disappears. 

“This must be a joke.”

He instinctively used Mana breathing and accidentally touched the first magical node in his body. 

It was a basic technique to absorb and circulate the magic power in the air. However, he realised the reason for his pain. There was no magical energy on earth. It meant the Mana breathing couldn’t unlock the nodes in the body, but it was working. 

‘So, this must be why none of the players who played The Endless was able to bring magic into this world. But… What about physical strength?’

He had too many unknown points about this game, and he had so many things he couldn’t change about the future.

He couldn’t just walk out and tell the people the truth. Many would see him as a lunatic, and soon he would be on the missing person list. Besides, he wanted to act naturally in front of the cautious eyes of the World Builders. A group that could be much more dangerous than what they showed.  

‘I guess… I can only try to survive.’

He should enter the Endless and learn the truth behind the game. If possible, he should get stronger. He used a sword in his previous life, but a Grandmaster-level swordsman was like an infant in front of a Grand Wizard. Helpless and powerless. 

‘I should play the Endless. But where am I going to get thirty-thousand dollars? I am Broke.’