"Ohh! Where am I?"

As I opened my eyes, I saw a ceiling made of wood. Confused, I sat up and looked around. The furniture was old-fashioned, there was no fan, no A.C, not even a single bulb or switchboard.

"What kind of place is this?" I thought, glancing around. The entire room looked like it belonged to some medieval era.

I spotted a mirror in the corner and decided to check my reflection since I felt... different—lighter, even. But the moment I looked into the mirror—

"WHAT?! This can't be! I’m... Ronan?!"

I shouted, stumbling back in shock. My face had completely changed!

"Okay, okay. Calm down. Let's think." I took a deep breath and sat on the bed, trying to piece everything together.

As far as I remember, I was in my room last night, working on the final part of my game— Aiental’s World. I distinctly recall typing the last line before going to bed—Ronan teams up with the prince and defeats the dragon.

Aiental’s World

A game created by my company—our final project. I wrote the story myself. It was about an orphan named Ronan, a weak commoner striving to achieve respect in the world. Depending on the player's choices, Ronan’s future could either bloom or be doomed.

Last night, I finished the story and mailed it to the development team. Then, I went to bed.

And now... I'm inside the game?!

Wait. If my memory is correct, this room is the starting area where players begin the game. That means… I’m playing as Ronan?

Which also means that in just a few minutes—

"Thud! Thudum! Thub!"

Ah. Of course. The moment I think about it, it happens.

I sighed, rubbing my temples. This must be the tutorial sequence. In the game, Ronan helps the villagers fend off a bunch of low-level bandits to learn the basics of combat.

I walked to the window and peeked outside.

"Yup. Bandits."

A group of them had just arrived, causing a ruckus in the village.

Before stepping outside, I decided to check something.

“Status!”

A blue translucent screen popped up in front of me. Of course, it works. This really is a game, huh?

I scrolled through my stats and skills. In the game, players could activate skills by clicking a button, but how was I supposed to do that in real life? Yell the skill name like an anime protagonist? Wave my hands dramatically? Well, only one way to find out.

Skills:

1. Sword Play – The most basic sword skill that literally anyone could have. Ronan learned it just by swinging a sword desperately to survive. Great. I have the combat prowess of a random NPC.
2. Mana Sphere – Allows me to create a bullet of mana and shoot it at enemies. One at a time, with a 3-second cooldown. Wow. One whole attack every three seconds. Truly, I am overpowered.
3. Absolute Eyes – This one was interesting. It lets me see everything—stats, weaknesses, hidden objects, even through walls. A completely broken skill for a protagonist, but very useful for me right now.

"Alright, let's do this."

I pushed the door open and stepped outside.

The Bandit Fight

The village was already in chaos. A group of dirty, scruffy-looking men wielding crude swords and clubs were harassing the villagers. A few carts had been overturned, and one bandit was busy stuffing bread into his mouth like it was his last meal.

"Oi! Hand over your valuables, and maybe we won’t burn this place to the ground!" one of them shouted, waving his sword.

Oh wow. Classic generic villain dialogue. I must have written this guy at 2 AM.

One of the bandits noticed me. "Hah! Looks like we got ourselves a hero!" he sneered, cracking his knuckles.

I sighed. Here we go.

He lunged at me with his club, swinging wildly. I barely dodged, tripping over my own feet in the process. Wow, okay. Fighting in real life is harder than clicking buttons.

I grabbed the nearest weapon—a rusty old sword—and barely managed to block the next attack. The impact sent vibrations up my arm.

"Alright, let's test these skills."

"Mana Sphere!"

A small glowing blue orb formed in my palm. I flicked my wrist, and the sphere slowly floated toward the enemy.

The bandit tilted his head. "What the—?"

Boom!

The mana sphere exploded right in his face. He went flying backward, crashing into a pile of crates.

Oh. That was stronger than I expected.

The other bandits froze for a second before one of them growled. "You little—get him!"

Two of them rushed at me. I quickly activated Absolute Eyes, and suddenly, glowing weak points appeared on their bodies.

"Bingo."

I dodged the first attack, sidestepped the second, and slashed at the back of one bandit's knee. He collapsed like a sack of potatoes. The second guy swung his sword at me—I barely ducked in time, feeling the air whoosh past my head.

"Mana Sphere!"

I launched another one straight at his chest. Boom! He went tumbling backward, groaning in pain.

The last bandit—the one still eating bread—stared at me, then at his fallen comrades. He slowly put the bread down, raised his hands, and bolted.

"Smart choice."

The remaining bandits, groaning and defeated, struggled to get up. One of the villagers, an old man, cautiously stepped forward. "Th-Thank you, traveler! You saved us!"

I stood there, catching my breath, my hands still shaking.

"Okay. That was way more intense than I expected. But hey, at least I won."

Suddenly, a new pop-up appeared in front of me.

[Tutorial Complete!]
+10 EXP
+1 Rusty Sword (You’re still stuck with this junk.)

I sighed. Yep. This is definitely my game.