Year 2*. The world stands at the pinnacle of technological advancement. Every home, every building, every car, watch, and device—connected. Seamless. Efficient. Life has never been easier… or more dependent.

Then, on an ordinary, beautiful day—

It happened.

Without warning, someone… somewhere…

Hacked everything.

Not just phones or security systems—

Everything.

Gadgets. Infrastructure. Transportation. Entire cities.

No one knows why.

No demands were made. No message was left. No trace was found.

Was it vengeance? A warning? A test? Or something far more complex?

What followed would change the world forever. Systems collapsed. Order unraveled. And from the ashes, a new kind of world began to take shape.

But one question lingers:

Who was behind it?

Are they still out there—watching?

Living among us?

Or did they vanish… or die…

The moment their mission was complete?

No one knows.

But one thing is certain:

The world will never be the same.

I’m Ysa Yamashita, and it’s been three years since our world turned into something out of a fantasy game.

For three years, most of us have learned to cope with this strange new reality. Those who aren’t fond of games chose to live like before—working in offices or running shops, pretending nothing ever happened and picking up where they left off. Others embraced the change, becoming “players” who hunt monsters to gain experience, level up, and earn money from the loot they collect. Some adapted by crafting potions, weapons, and armor—supporting adventurers like me.

I chose to become an adventurer. For me, it was like a dream come true…

But not the kind of dream I ever wanted for the world.

To this day, we still don’t know how this all began—or who did it.

I was a loner in my past life, and I’m still comfortable hunting solo.

The good part of solo adventuring? You don’t have to share your earnings.

The downside? You can’t take on high-level monsters alone—not without risking your life. And here, living in a game-like world doesn’t mean you respawn when your health hits zero. Death is still death. That part hasn’t changed.

Today, I plan to go deeper into the forest.

I try not to think about the worst-case scenario—but if something happens to me, I’ll leave my mother behind in this world. I can’t let that happen.

Still, I need to go further to earn more money. We need supplies at home, and I need a new dagger. The one I’m using is already dull from constant use.

The dagger has a brown wooden handle and a yellowish blade—old, worn, with three small holes near the top as a design.

It’s the dagger my father left me before he died.

I didn’t buy a starter weapon thanks to this, so… thank you, Dad.

Now I’m here. In the forest.

I can’t really explain how I feel every time I enter.

It’s magical and dangerous at the same time.

I start my hunt by killing slimes—they’re the weakest monsters here and the easiest to kill.

It’s also the fastest way to warm up and earn some quick money.

After taking down a few, I feel my body’s ready.

I go deeper.

But then—

I accidentally cross paths with an armored humanoid slime.

A mini-boss of this forest.

Its body is a translucent blue, wearing yellow armor embedded with three gems—one at the chest, and two near the lower part of its torso.

It has a faceless, vaguely human-shaped head, a right arm with three fingers, a left arm that’s more like a tentacle, and a long, snake-like tail.

This… is going to be a long, hellish fight.

Hours have passed.

I’ve already used up all five of my small health potions—the liquid inside each was a glowing red.

I’m exhausted.

But I’ve learned a few things.

Those gems? They’re its weak points.

But breaking them isn’t easy.

Its right hand handles close-range attacks.

Its left—long-range.

That makes it hard to close the distance and target the gems.

I’m not great at ranged combat yet, and the tentacle-whip can easily deflect any dagger I try to throw.

I land hard from my last attack, panting, trying to catch my breath.

I know its pattern now. Every move. Every pause.

This is it.

I dash forward with everything I’ve got.

It lashes out with its tail—I leap.

Air Dash.

I create a foothold mid-air and dodge the incoming strike.

Then—Water Blast!

It fires from its right hand.

I use another Air Dash—blasting forward.

I block the tentacle strike with my left dagger.

Then—I throw.

Passive Skill: Speed Throwing activates.

My dagger spins through the air—

—and lands, piercing the final gem on its armor.

I can finally rest.

A message window pops up, telling me I’ve soloed a mini-boss. My body aches all over. I just lie here for a while to catch my breath. My plan to go deeper into the forest today was a success—and to think I even hit the jackpot by killing a mini-boss. That’s a huge achievement for a solo adventurer like me.

I should head home and invite Mom out for a delicious dinner tonight. I can finally buy some new equipment for myself, too.

“Mom! I’m home!”

“Honey, welcome home,” she says warmly. “Did you get hurt today?”

“I’m okay now, Mom. I healed myself with potions.”

“Mom, let’s eat out in town tonight—and help me pick new equipment, please?”

“I can help you with the equipment,” she replies. “But we can just eat here at home, so you can save more money for your needs.”

“Don’t worry, Mom. I have enough. And I really want us to eat something delicious tonight—please?”

“Alright, alright—you know I can’t resist you, honey.”

“Thank you, Mom!”

Our home is far from the town. Both Mom and I chose this location because we wanted a quiet, peaceful place to live. City life in the past made us crave this kind of serenity—and we’ve never regretted that decision.

We rarely go into town. We grow our own vegetables in the yard, and I usually hunt meat from the forest for our meals. And honestly, Mom’s cooking is the best. We’re happy—just the two of us.

It made me so happy to see my mother enjoying herself. We had so much fun on our night out. I let Mom choose my new equipment.

I needed a new dagger and some armor.

She picked a chain twin dagger as my weapon. The design is simple yet stylish—black handles connected by a chain. The quillons feature a skull at the center, with sharp, pointed edges. The blade is single-edged, with a curved upper part. I loved it instantly.

For my armor, she chose a set of black leather gear. My mother knows me so well—that’s all I can say. I loved everything she picked. It made me excited to go hunting again.

But as much as I’d love to go hunting tomorrow, I can’t.

My mother is an alchemist, and now that I have a little extra money, I told her to choose the herbs she needs for her potions and some seeds we can plant in our yard. That’s what we’ll be doing tomorrow.

She also said she’ll start teaching me how to make basic potions. I may be an adventurer, but that doesn’t mean I’ll only focus on hunting. Learning something like potion-making would be a big help. If I know how to make my own potions, I can save a lot of time and money instead of buying them in town.

Mom doesn’t just know how to make health potions—she can make any kind of potion just by tasting it. All she needs are the materials and the right herbs. I truly admire her for that.

I just hope I can make potions that are even 50% as good as hers—or even 30%.