Chapter 1:Late Return, and Encountering the Sequential Game

A City.

On a drizzly and chilly evening, in a neon-bright modern metropolis, people and vehicles bustled by.

It was already 8:30 in the evening, well past the typical end of work hours.

Puddles on the ground reflected the weary faces of office workers, stylish advertisements on commercial buildings, and the bustling city lights of this nonstop city.

Alister stood at the entrance of a commercial building, gazing at the rain curtain outside, and then opened his nylon umbrella.

"Are you still outside?"

But before he took a step, Alister pulled out his phone and saw a chat message on the screen.

The sender was Yumikou, someone he had a good relationship with and who was also attractive, almost flawless.

Of course, Alister was good-looking as well, and passersby would often give him a second glance.

He used his fingerprint to unlock the phone and opened the chat interface, skillfully typing a reply with one hand.

"Yeah, is there something you need from me?"

"No, it's raining heavily. It's easy to catch a cold. Go home and rest early."

"I'm on my way home (with a picture)."

"Watch out for slippery roads. See you at 9 tomorrow (being cute)."

"Okay."

After that, Yumikou didn't send any more messages. She seemed to be busy all the time and rarely had time to chat with Alister.

Although the conversation was brief, Yumikou's concern slightly eased Alister's mood, making it not as bad as when he was looking up at the rain earlier.

It's heartwarming to have someone care about you when you're walking alone at night, isn't it?

Alister put away his phone, opened his nylon umbrella, and walked through the rain curtain of the night along with the bustling office workers.

As he passed various traffic signs, he listened to the pitter-patter sound of raindrops hitting his umbrella.

Then, when he passed by a subway station, a cacophony of noise came from inside.

"Hmm?" Alister turned his gaze.

Through the crowd of people who had stopped simultaneously, through the drizzling rain, he could see the exit of the subway station...

"Miss, watch out for slippery roads."

A group of neatly dressed security personnel in black suits, wearing sunglasses, walked with umbrellas, observing their surroundings.

They were escorting a young girl with black hair and red eyes.

The girl's long eyelashes trembled lightly, and those crimson eyes seemed to easily pierce through the hearts of onlookers.

She was obviously the heiress of some major corporation, but why did she come out of the subway station?

It would have been more convenient to have a private car escort...

At this moment, the sound of rain and car horns, the buzz of crowds gathering, camera sounds, and discussions...

The girl caused quite a commotion.

Just as Alister was deep in thought, the girl exuding an aura of importance had already left the hustle and bustle behind and was gradually moving away...

The gathering crowd gradually obscured the girl's figure.

"Let it go..."

Why think so much...

Alister sighed inwardly, retracted his gaze, and no longer paid attention to the commotion there, continuing his solitary journey home.

Because no matter how much he thought or sought...

Alister raised his head, and the street lamp on the side of the road flickered for a moment, the rain reflecting the dazzling neon lights behind it.

...that world would always remain parallel to his own.

...

...

There was still a distance to go before reaching home.

Alister was somewhat bored, so he took out his phone again, unlocked the screen, and swiped his finger, browsing the virtual world on the internet.

The first thing that appeared in the system's data push was...

"The strongest anime of the month, Reply of the Sorcerer's Reboot... If I were..."

"If you had ten million, how would you most efficiently..."

"Tsundere or aloof beauty, which one would you choose..."

And then he looked at the comments on the videos...

"I am Qin Shi Huang, deduct one letter and you become the king, a hundred thousand soldiers protect you as you conquer all four corners (dog head emoji)."

"I am from the Space-Time Management Bureau, like this to receive a free time-traveling opportunity (dog head emoji)."

He spent quite some time browsing like this.

Alister fell silent, put his phone back in his pocket, and stopped looking.

Then he sighed, "As expected, no time travel..."

Five minutes ago, Alister, with a curious mindset, had liked the comment from the person claiming to be from the Space-Time Management Bureau.

And now.

As expected, there were no good things like time travel in the world, and even if there were, he wouldn't be the one to experience it.

It was just everyone's fantasy about things that didn't exist...

Alister continued to walk in the rain, skirting the puddles, the surrounding buildings receding as if going back in time, the rain slightly slanted.

His phone in his pocket vibrated slightly, indicating that there was a new message notification.

Alister turned his head and keenly observed the bookstore across the street, the anime merchandise, and the trendy game advertisements on the giant screens.

...Not only the videos and comments, but the entire world was filled with fantasies, he thought.

For example, urban legends like Sadako, Yuki-onna, and the legendary truck that transports people to another world...

For example, serialized manga with heroic and heartwarming daily lives, trendy games with collection and open-world elements...

Or novels based on systems, fantasy, time travel, and romance...

"Meow~"

A black cat approached nearby, seemingly seeking shelter from the rain, and Alister knew it wouldn't turn into a cat-eared girl.

All of these are people's fantasies about things that don't exist, their dissatisfaction with and longing for their current lives.

Alister squatted down, stroking the smooth fur of the black cat, thinking of a well-known anime character.

"If only you could transform."

People fantasized, how good it would be if it really existed.

If only they could be part of those fantasies...

The so-called sense of immersion...

"Meow meow meow~"

"Goodbye."

After petting the black cat, Alister bid it farewell, crossed the zebra crossing, and reached the other side of the street.

In other words, the birth of the term "sense of immersion" is because people want to be the protagonist, to participate in this series of fantasy events.

There's nothing strange about that.

The prosperity of A City reflected in Alister's clear black eyes.

Even if modern science proves that humans are the accidental products of the vast universe, people still prefer to believe that they were created by advanced civilizations, fate, divine order, or supreme beings.

That's how people long for fantasies.

People passed by Alister, looking at their phones, some reading current news, some sharing gossip with each other, some discussing the truth behind hot topics.

"Did you hear? There are strange rumors again in the coastal area."

"It doesn't matter, I'll take care of it."

People expect hidden hands behind the world's dark side, they long to get involved in grand power struggles, and they hope to find meaning in their mundane lives...

"Six, do you really think you're the emperor?"

...They long to shed their ordinary lives and become the remarkable figures that everyone gazes upon.

Alister stopped his steps, gazing up at A City, which seemed to be a dark purple night curtain, his black eyes becoming even more profound.

The moon had long been obscured by the night and the rain.

"Ah..."

Alister sighed and continued walking on his way home.

But fantasies are ultimately fantasies, the opposite of reality, things that can never exist.

Forever.

That's what Alister had always believed.

And he would continue to believe so in the future—

"Hmm?" Alister's train of thought halted.

"Player qualification granted. You will participate in the Sequence Game."

"Field of view unblocked. You will see the real world."

"Player ability extraction in progress..."

—If this light blue interface hadn't appeared before his eyes.

In the rainy night, Alister once again stopped, doubting if he was hallucinating.

"...Sequence Game?"

"Ability extraction complete. Please confirm."

The clear and ethereal sound of the system's prompt resounded again, causing Alister to reexamine reality.

"Could it be..."

At this moment, the hustle and bustle of the rainy night world seemed to fade away.

Alister held his breath, focused his attention, and lightly touched the screen, confirming the "accept" option.

"Your ability is—"