REAL WORLD – Tokyo, Japan
Launch Day: December 1st, 2025 – 6:15 PM JST
Max sat at the table of his apartment, absently scrolling through his phone. Just then, a smell of ramen and grilled fish drifted through the kitchen making him stomoch rumble with hunger.
Yuki, his mother moved around the small kitchen, preparing for the lunch.
At 52, she still had the energy of someone way younger and only had few white hairs.
"You are not even looking at your food," she said without turning around, that uncanny mom sense detecting his distraction.
Max glanced down at his untouched dinner. "Sorry, Mom. Just... checking something."
"Checking something," His mother repeated, bringing her own plate to the table and sitting opposite from him. Her eyes studied him with that mixture of both love and concern that only mothers could master. "Let me guess. That game."
"Aetheria Online," Max corrected instinctively, then cringed immediately. He sounded like a kid defending his favourite superhero.
Yuki smiled and took a bite of her fish. "The one they are calling a national holiday for. I saw the news. Two billion people, they said?"
"Two point three billion estimated," Max said, his enthusiasm breaking through. "Mom, this isn't just another game. The neural immersion thing alone—"
"Will it pay your rent?" she interrupted gently.
The question hung in the air, demanding answers that were more important than some fairy tales.
Max set his phone down, his eyes meeting his mother's. "I have three month's rent saved. And I'm doing freelance work on the side."
"Freelance web design," Yuki said. "Which you do at three in the morning after spending whole day on games."
"It pays well-"
"Max." She reached across the table and placed her hand over his. Her skin felt warm and little rough from years of her work as a hospital nurse. "I'm not trying to be the villain here. I just worry."
Max squeezed her hand. He understood her concern. "I know."
"You're twenty six. When your father was your age—" She stopped herself, a familiar pain playing across her features.
Max's father had died eight years ago. He had suffered from blood cancer and the medical bills that time had nearly destroyed them.
"When Dad was my age, he was working himself to death at a job he hated," Max said, painfully remembering those days. "I remember, Mom. I remember how tired he always was. How he woud come home and just... sit there. Empty."
Yuki's jaw tightened. "He provided for us."
"I know. And I'm not saying he was wrong. But..." Max struggled for the right words. "This thing I am good at—gaming, strategy—it's not just wasting time anymore. People make life out of this now. Streamers, esports, content creators. They all earn real money."
"And you think you can do that?" There was no mockery in her voice, just genuine curiosity. She wanted to know if her son's path was truly the right one.
"I don't know," Max admitted. "But I want to try. I've been researching this game for months. I've got Discord community of ten thousand people supporting each other. If I can get ahead of the curve, find strategies and build a following..." He trailed off, the words suddenly feeling dull in his own mouth.
His mother was quiet for a long moment, then sighed. "You're so much like him, your father." She smiled sadly. "He wanted to be a musician. Did I ever tell you that?"
Max blinked. "What?"
"Before we married. He played guitar and even wrote songs. He was actually quite good." She stared at her plate. "But his parents convinced him to be 'realistic.' Get a stable job. Earn for the family."
She looked up at Max, her eyes heavy. "He did earn for us. But I watched the music die in him, little by little. And I've always wondered... if I had encouraged him to try, even if it meant struggling more, would he have been happier?"
Max felt his throat tighten.
"So here's what I'll say," Yuki continued, her voice firm. "You have three months saved. That's your runway. Try the game, really try, put everything into it. But if it doesn't work—if you're not making enough to sustain yourself—you promise me you'll look for stable work. Deal?"
"Deal," Max said immediately.
"And eat your dinner before it gets cold," she added, her expression softening. "What time does this game start?"
"Midnight. Five and a half hours."
Yuki shook her head. "Of course it's midnight. And you'll be up all night."
"Probably."
"I'm working the morning shift tomorrow, so I won't be here to judge your terrible sleep schedule," she said, a hint of a smile playing at her lips. "But Max? Promise me one more thing."
"What?"
"Don't forget to live in the real world too. This game, this virtual thing—it's exciting, I can see that. But don't get so lost in it that you forget what actually matters."
Max nodded seriously. "I promise."
They ate in comfortable silence for a few minutes. Then Yuki asked, "So what kind of character are you going to play? One of those warrior types that just hits things?"
Max laughed. "No. I'm going for something called a Soulbinder. It's a unique class that—" He stopped, seeing her tired expression. "It's complicated."
"I'm sure it is," she said warmly. "Just... be careful, okay? I read that these VR things can be very intense. If you feel sick or dizzy—"
"I'll log out immediately," Max finished. "The NeuroSync has safety protocols. I'll be fine."
Yuki stood, collecting their plates. "I know you will. You're smart. Stubborn, but smart." She paused, then leaned down and kissed the top of his head. "Good luck tonight. I hope your... soul binding goes well."
"Thanks, Mom."
As she headed to her room to prepare for her early shift, she called back, "And Max? If you do become some famous gaming person, remember who fed you all those years."
"I'll buy you a house!" he called after her.
"I'll settle for you doing your own laundry!"
Max grinned, returning to his phone. A message from his Discord server:
Velara:5 hours 23 minutes. WHO'S READY TO MAKE HISTORY?>
He typed back: Born ready. See you all in Aetheria.