"HOW DO YOU KNOW MY NAME?!" I shouted, panic rising in my chest.
A low chuckle echoed through the darkness.
"Mere human… how could you forget your own character?"
My breath caught.
"M-My own character…? What do you mean by that…?"
"Oh, you know," the voice replied casually. "A Broken Fighter."
The words hit me like a physical blow.
There was only one being who would say that.
"…Are you… Akyros[1]?" I asked slowly.
"That's right. It's me!" the entity laughed, clearly amused.
My mind spun.
This didn't make sense.
How could I be here? Inside a world I created? Inside a story I had finished writing with my own hands? Was I pulled into the novel… or was the novel becoming reality?
I didn't know.
All I knew was that I wanted to go home.
I wanted my bed. My room. My normal life.
I wanted to sleep and wake up like nothing had happened.
"What do you want?" I asked, forcing confidence into my voice. "Just say it."
"Oh, nothing much. Just become ■■■" Akyros said lightly, before pausing. "Ah… right. I can't say that to you yet."
I frowned. "If you can't even state your terms, then I'm not agreeing to anything."
Another chuckle echoed.
"You're right… but who exactly is going to let you leave this world otherwise?"
I could practically feel him smirking in the darkness.
I exhaled slowly. "…Then what am I supposed to do here? This void is just… weird. Floating around like this feels wrong."
The moment I finished speaking, something solid appeared beneath my feet.
Ground.
I blinked.
"O-Oh. That worked."
"Isn't it fun?" Akyros said cheerfully. "An empty world where you can do anything you want."
"Maybe for an entity like you," I muttered. "Not for a human."
"So what do I even do here if there's nothing?"
A brief silence followed.
Then Akyros spoke again, his tone calmer now.
"You have to help Zolch wake up."
My heart skipped.
Zolch.
The protagonist of my novel.
Am I really… inside my own story?
"How is that even scientifically possible…?" I whispered, more to myself than him.
"Alright," I said after a moment. "If that's what you want, I'll do it. But once I'm done, you take me back home."
"Deal." Akyros replied immediately.
"Also, hand me some mo—"
The world vanished.
I landed in the middle of Dymland.
The only city in the entire novel where magic saturated the air itself.
And, unfortunately, one of the worst places I could have appeared at that exact moment.
A crowd had gathered in the central square. Soldiers lined the streets, banners lowered in mourning.
A royal announcer stood on a raised platform.
"Citizens of Dymland!" he declared loudly. "I hereby announce that the Lord has passed away! The one who shall inherit the throne will be his son, the great Mytoldir!"
My stomach sank.
"…This is the worst possible timing," I muttered.
If the succession event was happening now, the political chaos would begin soon. Which meant assassinations, faction conflicts, and surveillance everywhere.
I needed to leave the city fast.
I walked calmly through the streets until I reached a run-down shop with a crooked wooden sign.
Mythyr's Shop.
I stepped inside.
A short, wrinkled old man wearing a torn pointed hat looked up at me.
He looked exactly how I had described him when writing.
"May I help you, sir?" he asked politely.
"I'm looking for something," I said casually, scanning the shelves. "The Elixir of the Undead."
The old man froze.
"…How do you know about that?" he asked carefully.
"Oh," I shrugged. "I just do."
In truth, I knew every item in this shop.
I wrote them.
After a short conversation, he handed me the potion — for free.
Apparently, he never wanted it in the first place and had only acquired it during a trade for health potions.
Not that I knew the real reason behind that decision yet.
I stepped back outside and headed toward the main street, planning to find a weapon shop next.
That's when two guards stopped me.
"Where are you from?" one asked.
My brain stalled for half a second.
I couldn't tell them the truth.
"…Melibias" I said.
Melibias, the City of Fortune.
A place where, according to the lore I wrote, anyone born there was considered wealthy by default.
At least… that's what I remembered writing.
Who knows how much of this world had changed.
After leaving the guards behind, I searched for a place to stay and eventually found a small inn. The owner greeted me warmly... just as I had designed his personality.
I almost felt guilty.
I knew what would happen to some of these people.
And they had no idea.
I rented a room and began planning.
Tomorrow, I would leave for Lomij... a quieter city where I could gather resources safely.
"I really suck at naming cities," I muttered before lying down.
Exhaustion hit instantly.
I fell asleep.
When I opened my eyes again, everything was black.
"…The void again?"
"Akyros?" I called out.
No answer.
"…Guess he's busy."
"Wussup, old man."
A voice spoke right behind me.
I nearly jumped out of my skin.
"You scared me!" I snapped, turning around. "Why am I here? Also Im not old! I am only 23!"
"Well… I got bored" Akyros said casually.
"…WHAT. WHY. DID. YOU. CALL. ME. HERE. JUST. FOR. THAT?!" I shouted.
He pouted.
"Idk, dad. Can't you play with me for a bit? You're sleeping peacefully over there anyway. And you can't get tired here. You know that."
Dad?
Since when was I his father?
"I was also going to explain your abilities," he added dramatically. "but now… I don't think that's necessary. Since you shouted at your own child."
"WAIT WAIT I'M SORRY," I said immediately. "I'm sorry, my child."
Why am I apologizing to my own fictional character?
"So," I sighed. "When does the first scenario start? You should know. You're the one who drops them for entertainment."
"Tomorrow" he replied cheerfully.
My brain froze.
Tomorrow?!
"WHAT?!" I shouted. "You can't slow things down?! I just got here!"
"If I could," he said with a smirk, "I would have done that years ago."
…Fair point.
I opened my eyes again back in the inn room.
I would never get used to being dragged into the void during sleep.
Morning came quickly.
I left the inn and headed toward a healing shop to prepare for whatever scenario would appear.
If this followed my original story logic, the first scenario should be relatively easy.
While I was buying potions, a translucent window suddenly appeared in front of my face.
A familiar system interface.
■■■ Scenario
Objective: Kill the Duke
Reward: 1000 Coins
My hands went cold.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
[1] The name of a null character with no definite body.