Second Life's launch

After parting with Leo, Finn started walking home.

It was already evening by the time he got home, but his parents were still not home yet. He checked his phone to see if they had sent him a text, and sure enough, there was one.

"Finn, your dad is in an operation room because there is a tumor in his stomach, but you don't have to worry. The doctors said that because the tumor in his body was discovered early and is still extremely small, they will be able to help him. He will have to rest after the operation, and I will stay here with him. There are some ingredients in the fridge, so make yourself something for dinner. We will be back tomorrow morning."

After reading the text, Finn sent his mom a quick message to tell her he had arrived home safely so she wouldn't worry about him and made himself an omelet for dinner.

A lot had happened on his first day, so he went to his room and laid down in his bed. Before he fell asleep, though, he remembered he wanted to ask Loki something.

"What do you even do all day? Isn't it boring just watching me, living my life through my eyes?"

'Not really. Anything beats being locked up for so long and having to either sleep or stare into darkness. Also, by occasionally helping you, I feel like I'm also living this life, and sharing a life with someone I chose to be my champion is enough for me.'

"For a god, you are pretty… hmm… human-like? I mean, I expected a god to be more-"

'Arrogant? Yeah, I used to be, but being locked up for so long can change you. The other gods are not like me, though. Most of them are arrogant, so don't mistakenly create a stereotype based on me.'

Loki created a soft, luxurious bed inside Finn's consciousness and tucked himself in. With his curiosity quenched, Finn also closed his eyes and drifted off to dreamland.

---

Finn woke up when he heard a noise coming from downstairs. He got dressed and walked towards the noise.

His mom was making breakfast while his dad was lying on the sofa watching TV, still looking a little dazed.

When she saw Finn, she rushed to hug him.

"Thank you, my little angel! The doctors said that your father had a tumor in his stomach, but thanks to you persuading him to go to the hospital, it was found in time and your father could get it removed."

Finn already knew about the tumor, but he still acted surprised to not make his parents suspicious.

When he finished hugging his mom, he walked up to his dad to check on him. His dad sat up with slight difficulty and looked at him.

"Thank you, Finn. Only after the operation did I realize how stubborn I had been. If you ever want something, don't be afraid to ask us."

"Dad, I didn't persuade you so that I could get something. I did it so that you can be healthy."

Finn sighed and shook his head.

"I know and I'm happy to hear you say that, but my offer still stands, so don't be afraid to ask if you need something."

'Even after you just said that you know you have been stubborn, you act like this.'

He chuckled to himself and smiled at his dad.

"Sure, thanks dad."

---

2 days later.

On his way to school, Finn met up with Leo and James so that they could go together.

Josh was already dealt with, but they didn't know if he would try to seek revenge, so they decided to stick with James every time they walked to and from school.

"I appreciate you trying to protect me, guys, but everything is going to be alright now."

James looked at his friends with a confident look on his face, which made Finn become confused.

"What happened for you to be this confident?"

"These days my parents have been busy taking care of those guys and their parents. After Josh's father was arrested for tax evasion, Josh's mom and the rest of the parents took their children and ran overseas after my parents made them go almost bankrupt by dragging them into trial after trial."

This shocked Finn and Leo. They talked to James a lot these last two days and found out that his parents were lawyers. But they would have never guessed that lawyers could be this scary.

They both swore not to anger him, lest he send his parents at them.

Clueless about Leo's and Finn's thoughts, James kept humming a melody while walking to school because he has become a lot happier these days.

On the first day of walking to school with his new friends, he received looks of envy and disgust from the girls because they didn't want him to associate with Leo and Finn.

They felt like he wasn't worthy of being their friend, but when he cut his bangs, they all changed their opinions.

With a new haircut, his cute round face was revealed, and he looked like a lovable, small teddy bear.

That day Finn's group became even more popular, with all three of them being good-looking.

Leo was tall and muscular. Finn was handsome and smart, and James was small and cute. It was like no matter what type of boy a girl preferred, she could choose one out of those three.

Finn and Leo, already used to the looks, couldn't care less, and James was just happy that people stopped badmouthing and ostracizing him.

---

They sat down at their usual table on lunch break, and while James had just a small portion that he kept nibbling on like a small squirrel, Leo had a mountain of food that he kept devouring.

Finn looked at them, slightly amused by the different sight.

"You guys know that spring break is next week, right? I was thinking that we could buy a capsule that will be released this Sunday so we could all play the new game Second Life."

After telling them about SL, he also started eating his food, which consisted of hard, almost raw potatoes and a miniscule amount of meat.

"Game? *munch* I don't… *munch* like games. I would much rather train in my free time."

Leo rejected Finn without stopping his eating spree because he always hated video games.

For starters, he wasn't very good at them, and second, the time he spent playing video games could have been spent on training, which would actually benefit him rather than being a waste of his time.

"You also want to play?! I always loved games, and when I heard about Second Life, I instantly preordered the capsule!"

James was excited to know that Finn shared the same hobby as him.

When James was being bullied, he had no one to turn to, so to cope with his loneliness, he turned to games.

He spent most of his time playing different kinds of games, so when he heard about Second Life, he knew he had to try it.

Finn already knew he would get rejected by Leo, but he was pleasantly surprised to hear that James was also planning on playing SL.

"Leo, this game is going to be a VR game where you feel like you are lucid dreaming. Meaning you can fight strong opponents and learn new techniques. It will feel just like a reality, so it can help you in real life too."

He said his prepared line to persuade Leo into playing SL, which made Leo stop eating and think about it.

If Leo could fight others from around the world and get stronger by playing the game, he could finally defeat his father and show that old man who the boss of the family really was.

"Okay! I will get this game and fight everyone I meet. That way, I will have fun fighting and get stronger."

Finn knew that some people playing the game would be a lot stronger than Leo, but he didn't want to burst his bubble, so he smiled and then turned to look at James, who was talking about all the leaks he found online and what they should expect.

Knowing that this game was created by gods to entertain them and gain control of the Earth, Finn was certain that there was no such thing as "leaks", it was most likely just rumors started by someone hoping to gain some clout by sharing made-up things.

"The only thing we know for sure is that it is going to be a massively multiplayer online role-playing fantasy game with a medieval-like setting. I always loved these types of games the most, so I was already hyped up, but now that I know you guys will also play SL, I can't wait for it to be Sunday already!"

James was excitedly talking as he kept imagining his adventures through the world of Second Life.

---

4 days later.

It was Sunday, and everyone was looking forward to the launch of SL.

Finn asked his parents for a capsule and got it installed in his room that morning, receiving Second Life with it for free.

The capsule was made affordable to all Earthlings because the gods couldn't care less about human money.

In their eyes, all they needed were strong people, so if the capsule was cheap, there would be more people playing SL, which would also give them more champions to choose from.

Finn kept waiting in his room for the clock to hit 13 p.m. so he could start the game. It was currently 12:58, and he was in a group chat with his friends.

James kept spamming emojis as he tried to release his excitement by typing. Leo was stretching his body so he could fight the first person he would see once he entered, and Finn was looking at the time.

When the clock hit 13 o'clock, all three of them entered their capsules and let their minds drift off.

Finn woke up standing on a water surface that had slight ripples coming from where he was standing.

The water surface stretched so far out that he couldn't see the end, and above him was a cloudless blue sky.

Already prepared for what was to come, Finn heard a robotic female voice in his head as a blue, floating screen appeared before him.

[A new player has been detected. Welcome to the world of Second Life!]