The ceiling fan creaked as it spun lazily, pushing around the stale air of the cramped apartment. The light above Noah Graves' head flickered for the fifth time that evening, threatening to burn out. He sat at the battered wooden table, his elbows pressed into its scarred surface, staring at the eviction notice spread out in front of him.
FINAL WARNING. The red letters bled into his vision. Three days left. Three days before he and his little sister were thrown onto the streets.
Noah exhaled sharply, running his hands through his unkempt black hair. His stomach growled, but the only food left in the apartment was half a loaf of stale bread and a nearly empty jar of peanut butter. He'd saved it for her—he always saved it for her.
From the bedroom, a soft cough echoed.
Emily.
Noah pushed himself up and walked quietly to the room. His 12-year-old sister lay curled under a thin blanket on the old couch they'd dragged in here months ago. Her frame was frail, her cheeks too pale, and her breaths came shallow, uneven.
Noah crouched beside her, brushing a strand of brown hair away from her forehead. "You okay, Em?"
Her eyelids fluttered, and she managed a faint smile. "Just tired. Did you eat?"
He forced a grin he didn't feel. "Of course. I'm stuffed."
She frowned—she always saw through his lies—but said nothing. Her eyes closed again, and soon her breathing evened out into a fragile rhythm.
Noah stayed crouched for a while, listening to her breathing, fighting the burning in his throat. She deserves so much better than this.
He went back to the kitchen and picked up the eviction notice again. He'd tried everything—part-time jobs, tutoring, deliveries, even some shady gigs he didn't want to think about. But no matter how much he worked, the debt kept swallowing him whole.
And then there was Eternum Online.
Noah's gaze shifted to the sleek VR pod shoved into the corner of the room. The thing looked so out of place in their rundown apartment it was almost laughable. He'd gotten it through a trial program—one of the few bright spots of luck in his otherwise cursed life. The company had offered it as part of a promotion for the game's launch.
For most, Eternum Online was entertainment. For Noah, it was a gamble with everything on the line. The game had already made headlines: its economy was fully tied to the real world. Rare items, powerful weapons, and even land inside the game could be sold for actual money. For those skilled enough, rich enough, or lucky enough, fortunes could be made.
And Noah wasn't going in blind.
He knew things others didn't.
Memories flickered at the edge of his mind—memories of another life. Another world where he had played Eternum Online before. In that life, he had struggled, clawed his way up, only to be crushed under the boots of corporate guilds and professional players. He had died forgotten, his sister gone long before, and his regrets buried with him.
But fate—or something darker—had given him another chance.
This time, he had been sent back. Back to the launch. Back to the beginning. Back before it all went wrong.
Noah clenched his fists. "Not this time. Not again."
He looked at Emily's room one more time before moving to the VR pod. The glossy black surface hummed faintly as he slid the lid open and climbed inside. The cushions adjusted to his body, sensors lighting up.
The pod recognized him instantly.
[Welcome, User: Noah Graves]
[Please confirm: Log into Eternum Online Beta Launch?]
His heart hammered in his chest. This was it. His second life. His only chance to change their fate.
"Yes," he whispered.
The lid hissed shut, plunging him into darkness.
A rush of warmth spread through his body as the neural link engaged, and suddenly the world dissolved into white light.
---
Initialization Complete.
Welcome to Eternum Online.
The voice was soft, ethereal, echoing in his mind. The blinding light faded, replaced by a vast marble hall filled with floating windows. Blue holographic screens hovered before him, listing options.
[Create Character]
[Randomize]
[Confirm Login]
Noah exhaled slowly. He knew this place—every detail. He had seen it before in his past life.
"Character creation," he muttered, selecting the first option.
A humanoid figure appeared before him, blank and featureless. Panels of customization options unfolded—height, build, hair, eyes. Noah worked quickly, shaping his avatar to resemble himself. Tall, lean, dark hair and sharp gray eyes. He didn't care to hide who he was. This was more than a game. This was war.
When it came to class selection, he paused. Rows of familiar choices stretched before him: Warrior, Mage, Archer, Priest, Assassin…
But Noah ignored them.
He scrolled past, deeper, to the section most players never touched. Hidden classes. Unorthodox paths.
There it was.
[Shadow Reaver — Locked]
The class that had once been dismissed as trash. Weak. Unstable. No pro player had touched it in the early years. But Noah knew the truth. He knew the hidden quests, the rare skills, the broken potential buried in this path. In his past life, he had discovered it too late. Now, he had the chance to claim it from the very beginning.
"Unlock."
[Warning: Shadow Reaver is an unstable class path. Progression is difficult. Are you sure?]
"Yes."
The screen flickered.
[Class Acquired: Shadow Reaver]
[Starting Skill: Umbral Step]
[Starting Passive: Hunger of the Void]
A shiver ran down Noah's spine. His shadow stretched unnaturally across the marble floor, writhing faintly, alive.
He smirked. "Perfect."
The hall dissolved, replaced by a sprawling landscape. A medieval-style city rose in the distance, banners fluttering over high stone walls. Players spawned all around him, blinking in confusion, gasping at the realism.
Noah's lips curved into a thin smile. He had been here before. He knew every street, every dungeon, every hidden corner of this world.
The others were tourists. He was a predator.
And this time, nothing would stop him