Drip.
A single droplet hit the surface of water.
The ripples spread endlessly, echoing into nothing.
Then came the light.
Soft at first — like dawn breaking through a fog.
It felt warm. Peaceful.
Was this heaven?
Han Jaeho floated in that warmth, weightless and unburdened.
There was no pain. No noise. No laughter mocking him.
Just quiet.
For the first time in years, he felt… calm.
Maybe this was fine.
If this was death, it wasn't so bad.
No more failure. No more trying.
He could rest.
"...Young master. Wake up, please."
A voice.
It was faint at first, carried like a breeze through his thoughts.
Sweet. Feminine. Concerned.
"Mm…" He groaned softly. "Heaven has maids now…? Figures…"
"YOUNG MASTER LEON!"
SMACK!
A sharp sting exploded across his cheek.
His eyes flew open.
He wasn't in heaven.
He was staring up at a ceiling — high and painted white with gold lining.
Sunlight streamed through tall windows, brushing over expensive curtains and polished floors.
"What the…"
A girl stood beside his bed, hands on her hips, cheeks puffed with annoyance.
Her uniform was straight out of a fantasy novel — a crisp maid's dress, apron tied neatly, and ribbons in her hair.
"You're finally awake! I've been calling you for five minutes!" she scolded, crossing her arms. "Breakfast will get cold!"
Jaeho blinked.
Then blinked again.
He slowly looked around.
The bed beneath him wasn't his broken gaming chair. It was a mountain of silk and velvet.
The air didn't smell like dust and instant noodles — it smelled like roses and sunlight.
And his hands…
Small. Soft.
He froze.
He turned them over, palms trembling.
These weren't his hands.
His heart began to race. He shot up from bed, stumbling toward the mirror across the room.
The reflection staring back wasn't Han Jaeho — not the tired, pale streamer he knew.
It was a young boy. Maybe twelve or thirteen.
Messy blonde hair. Emerald-green eyes.
A face that belonged on a painting, not a livestream.
"…What the hell."
He reached out to touch the mirror. The boy did the same.
It wasn't an illusion.
"Y-young master?" The maid's voice softened, confusion mixing with worry. "Are you all right?"
He turned slowly. "Where… where am I?"
She tilted her head. "The Von Heirn estate, of course. Did you hit your head again?"
Von Heirn.
That name hit him like lightning.
He'd heard it before.
His mind scrambled to connect the dots —
the manor, the uniform, the golden crest embroidered on her apron —
No way.
He staggered backward, clutching his head.
This can't be…
Because Von Heirn wasn't a real family.
It was the name of a noble house in Eternal Abyss.
The same world he spent years trapped in through a screen.
The same game that had ruined his life.
The maid sighed and began straightening his bedsheets. "You really mustn't stay up late reading those adventure books, young master. You always look dazed the next morning."
She gave a polite curtsy and headed for the door. "Please come down for breakfast soon."
The door clicked shut.
Silence returned.
Jaeho sat down on the edge of the bed, breathing shakily.
He pinched his arm.
Hard.
"Ow—!"
So it wasn't a dream.
He stood and moved toward the window. Outside stretched rolling green fields and distant mountains the same scenery that greeted players on the first open-world map of Eternal Abyss.
The same one he had memorized pixel by pixel.
He stared, jaw slack.
The wind moved the trees.
Birds flew across the sky.
Everything was… alive.
"Am I… in the game?"
His voice trembled.
He looked down at his reflection in the glass again the blonde hair, the noble clothes.
"Leon Von Heirn…" he whispered the name slowly, letting it sink in.
The game's lore came flooding back Leon was the youngest son of the Von Heirn family, a minor noble line known for their connection to magic academies.
He remembered reading the codex.
Leon was a minor NPC. Barely relevant.
A tutorial character.
A boy destined to die in the early chapters.
"Of course," he muttered bitterly. "Even in another world, I'm the guy who dies early."
His laugh came out shaky, bordering on madness.
But as the wind brushed his face, he realized something strange.
He could feel it.
The warmth of the sunlight. The scent of flowers. The sound of distant chatter below.
Everything felt real.
He took a step back, heart pounding.
"This isn't a dream."
It wasn't a game anymore.
It was a world — vivid, tangible, alive.
And he was inside it.
A sudden knock came from the door.
"Young master Leon!" a deep voice boomed. "Your father is waiting downstairs!"
Jaeho froze.
Father.
In the game, the head of the Von Heirn family was Darius Von Heirn, a stern noble with strict discipline and high expectations.
The kind of man whose words could chill an entire room.
He hesitated, then answered weakly, "R-right, I'll be there."
He forced himself to walk toward the door, his steps clumsy.
His body was lighter. Smaller. But strangely strong like it had been trained.
The grand staircase greeted him as he stepped out. Marble floors. Massive chandeliers. Servants lined along the hall, bowing as he passed.
He descended slowly, his mind a whirlwind.
This can't be real.
This can't
But then he saw them.
At the end of the long dining table sat a tall, broad-shouldered man with graying hair Darius Von Heirn.
Beside him, a graceful woman with gentle eyes the Duchess.
And across from them, three young men his supposed brothers.
The air was heavy with quiet authority.
Jaeho swallowed hard and took his seat awkwardly.
The maid from earlier placed a silver tray before him. Steam rose from the food real food. Rich, fragrant, perfect.
His stomach growled embarrassingly loud.
"Eat," the Duke said, not looking up from his newspaper. His voice carried the weight of command.
"Y-yes, Father."
He picked up his fork, hand trembling slightly.
The clinking of silverware filled the silence.
Then—
"How are the preparations for the Academy?" Darius asked suddenly, eyes shifting toward the eldest brother.
Jaeho froze mid-bite.
The eldest responded calmly, "They're nearly complete. The entrance ceremony begins next week, at Eternal Academy."
The words hit him like a dagger.
Solheim.
The legendary institution where the most powerful nobles and mages of the empire were trained.
In the game, it was the central hub of every major event where heroes rose, villains plotted, and fate began to unravel.
He gripped his fork tightly, knuckles pale.
It was real.
All of it.
And somehow, the world that had killed him…
was giving him another chance.