August 24th, 2125
In front of the Silverhorn estate stretched a silent front yard.
A single tree stood there — bare, without a single leaf, as if it had forgotten life itself.
A low wall, barely a meter high, separated it from the street — a simple, unpaved walkway.
Beyond that street lay a wide meadow that stretched all the way to the horizon.
But on this day, everything was shrouded in a dull gray. The sky hung heavy, and even the grass had lost its green hue — as if the world itself had forgotten how to breathe.
// Shit... where are we? //
Blank frowned.
// I don't know this place... and this "Silverhorn" estate... either. Maybe it's a new update. We're probably still in the game... Solo Nexus Online 2. //
He stood with his arms crossed at the front door, his back leaning against the wood, then turned slightly inward.
The inside of the estate looked strangely familiar — almost identical to the apartment he shared with his sister, Misa.
Only one detail was different: at the end of the hallway, a staircase led upward. Blank wondered where it went.
As the lamp above him flickered on, his vision was briefly blinded, and somewhere in the house he could hear the faint hum of Misa's PC.
"So... there's power here too," Blank muttered painfully.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a transparent, hand-sized device — his CAD-Phone.
With a quick press of the power button, the screen lit up. A holographic interface appeared before his eyes, filled with floating icons.
// Good. The CAD-Phone works. Power's running. That means I can call the Support Help Assistant and log us out... I've got work tomorrow morning, after all. //
He sighed in relief.
At first, he had feared being trapped in one of those typical VR tragedies — like in all those anime that always ended the same way.
But no. Blank was sure: he wasn't trapped. Just a player — in a game that looked too real.
He opened his contact list and called the Support Help Assistant.
It was a neurotech service team, available 24 hours a day, specialized in solving problems involving nanotechnology.
By the 22nd century, that was standard: nanotechnology connected mind and machine.
Everyone was implanted with a tiny chip at birth — to prevent or detect diseases early.
Through this chip, one could also communicate.
The CAD-Phone synchronized via special Bluetooth with the implant and projected information directly into the user's consciousness.
The signal went through. It rang. Blank exhaled.
// Perfect... I'm almost out. //
But at that very moment —
B O O M!
A deafening explosion shook the entire estate.
Blank spun around in shock. His CAD-Phone slipped from his hand and hit the floor with a shattering crash.
The tree in the front yard — the only tree — had fallen. Just like that.
It now lay sprawled across the street.
// What the... was that an earthquake? //
"Ooooh, awesome! I can actually use magic!"
The voice came from outside — bright, cheeky, and far too familiar.
Blank blinked.
There stood Misa. Smoke rose from her hands.
// ...Did that girl just use magic? //
Before he could even say anything, she bolted — straight across the yard, over the street, out onto the endless meadow.
There she stopped, raised her right hand to the sky, and shouted loudly:
"Weather Magic — Golden Sunrise!"
Above them, the sky opened.
A gigantic golden hexagon appeared, slowly rotating, casting blinding light over the world.
Blank just stood there — mouth open, unable to swallow.
Drool dripped from his lip as he stared blankly at the miracle before him.
The gray faded.
The sky turned orange, like the sunset of a warm day.
The grass began to glow — lush, vibrant, and strong.
Within moments, the gloomy autumn day transformed into a radiant spring.
And in that golden light stood Misa — her silhouette shimmering like the heroine from another game.
Misa turned toward the estate, where she saw her younger stepbrother.
"Blank! The magic from Solo Nexus Online works! Isn't that crazy?!"
she shouted excitedly.
Blank was so stunned and horrified that he couldn't utter a single word. From afar, Misa noticed his speechless silence.
// What's wrong now? Can he not talk anymore... did I accidentally cast a spell on him? //
Blank shook his head, and Misa ran over to him.
"Are you okay?"
"Are you asking if I'm okay...? Uh, yeah, I'm fine — except for the part where we just got isekai'd, have debts to pay, our apartment suddenly changed, and you randomly activated a level-10 spell — yeah, totally fine!"
Misa smiled in relief.
"That's good to hear."
"No!" Blank yelled.
"Damn it, Misa! You can't just use Weather Magic! You could attract enemies — we're already knee-deep in trouble as it is!"
"Huh? You're overreacting! I'm level 100 with insane offensive skills! Nobody can beat us!"
Blank sighed.
"That may be true... but you seem to have forgotten that you just used about 70% of your MP for that spell. If someone finds and attacks us now, we'll be easy prey."
Misa scratched her ear awkwardly, her sparkling eyes shifting to the side.
// Ugh... he's always nagging and criticizing. Can't he just be happy for once? Is he scared or what? Tsk... what enemy could possibly defeat you, the World Champion? //
Misa grinned at the thought.
In Solo Nexus Online, the title World Champion was one of the highest honors — only nine players in the world held it. Blank was one of them.
Blank possessed skills with the potential to crash entire servers. Misa knew that, which was why she didn't take his warning too seriously.
// Oh man... Misa's gonna be the end of me. She used Weather Magic: Golden Sunrise — normally, that spell should make the sun rise, but instead, it made it set. Apparently, the effect depends on the time of day and light conditions... hmm, really interesting. But at least now I know that magic works. //
"Hello... hello... is anyone there?"
An unfamiliar voice snapped Blank out of his thoughts. He turned to Misa.
"Did you say something?" he asked.
Misa shook her head.
"Hey, are you kidding me? You called someone — pick up!"
Then Blank remembered that he had made a CAD call to the Support Help Assistant earlier.
"Uh, hello? This is Blank Tempest. I called because I think I'm stuck in the game?"
The unfamiliar voice replied,
"Argh... so, you too?"
"Uh, what?" Blank asked, confused.
Misa looked at him blankly — she didn't even know the CAD-Phone was working.
"Look, you've been gammed... wait, let me check... five... seven... ten... along with ten million other people."
"Whaaaat?! Ten million people?! Excuse me?! What exactly happened?!" Blank shouted in panic.
The man on the line answered calmly,
"No idea. Figure it out yourself. As for me, I'm gonna beat the game. I hated my old life — in this one, I'll become Darth Vader... or maybe Darth Jar Jar!"
"Hey, cut it out! This is a serious problem!" Blank yelled.
"Oi, chill out! You're so selfish. Ten million people are trapped here — show a little empathy, or you'll never be popular."
"Are you even taking this seriously?!"
"Hey, does your CAD-Phone actually work, Blank?" Misa interrupted.
Blank ignored her for now and focused on the caller.
"Of course I'm not taking it seriously," came the mocking reply.
"Look, I've got debts — 9.6 million credits to some Royal Guard!" Blank explained.
"I can understand that..."
Blank sighed in relief — finally, the support guy seemed to take the situation seriously.
"But..."
That "but" made Blank freeze.
"It's not my problem if you don't have the cash. Guess you're cooked then. I wish you a pleasant days Bye."
He hung up.
Blank stared blankly at the device, Misa looked confused — and the weather was far too pleasant to actually cool the situation down.
To be continued