Chapter 1: Trapped Before Launch
"Subject forty-five, injected with Valkyrie solution, survived for three minutes and ten seconds, time of death, 9:39 AM…"
I'm the only one home, who's speaking?
Surya's eyes snapped open, greeted by a blinding white light. The familiar game pod was gone, replaced by a sterile ceiling and cold, metallic walls, radiating a high-tech, clinical atmosphere. He lay on a metal platform, bare upper body connected to several instruments by wires. The cold metal pressed into his back, chilling him to the bone.
Around him, white-coated researchers stared in shock.
"Wasn't I just leveling a client's account, choosing a normal start? Where is this place?" Surya's head throbbed violently. His thoughts were a chaotic mess, like a flood of data forced into his mind. His last memory was accepting a power-leveling order, entering the character creation screen in "Galaxy", and smelling something like burnt protein…
"Quick, notify Ms. Hela, the test subject has come back to life!"
"Call the guards, secure the test subject immediately!"
The researchers shouted in alarm. Surya didn't understand their language fully, but words like "test subject," "survival time," and "guards" made his stomach tighten. Rapid footsteps echoed outside. Someone was coming.
Stay put? Run? Only one choice was logical. Surya ripped the wires off his body, swung his legs over the edge of the platform, and sprinted toward the laboratory door. The researchers scattered instinctively, not trying to stop him.
"Bang!" The door slammed open. A white corridor stretched before him, and at both ends, a dozen guards in black combat uniforms with electric batons blocked his path.
Surya recognized the half-sapling emblem on their uniforms. His heart sank. "The Germination Organization from version 1.0 of Aquamarine Star? Weren't they already wiped out?!"
A guard swung a baton. Surya raised his arm, and electrifying pain shot through his body, sending him staggering. Half his body went numb.
"This pain is at 100%?!" Surya's mind raced. In "Galaxy", the pain limit was 40%. Exceeding it would damage nerves. His system panel should have prevented this…
Wait. System panel?
A dozen guards closed in. Surya was hauled to a small, dark room. The door locked behind him, leaving him alone.
His head pounded, and a torrent of information assaulted him. Slowly, he pieced it together.
"I've transmigrated into… "Galaxy"… before its official launch?"
"Galaxy" was an immersive, full-sensory simulation, still 365 days from public beta. Servers would one day host millions of players, but for now, the galaxy was his alone to explore—or survive in.
The room's dim light revealed his reflection. Roughly twenty years old, his appearance resembled his original self, but this body had endured experimentation. He remembered the doctor's words: injected with the Valkyrie Solution, a risky genetic serum with a 70% mortality rate—but something in him had mutated.
Suddenly, a semi-transparent blue screen flickered into view:
[You have been injected with [Valkyrie Solution], Stamina Potential +1, Acquired Talent — High Focus, Acquired Talent — Low-Level Mental Resilience]
NPC Panel Activated
——
Name: SuryaRace: Carbon-Based Human (Yellow)Template: NPC (Version 1.0 Public Beta Countdown: 348 days, 09 hours, 52 minutes)Total Level: 1Experience: 0Sub-Class: Civilian lv1 (0/50)Main Class: Esper — Absorption Personal Attributes: Strength 3, Agility 2, Stamina 3, Intelligence 3, Mystery 4, Charm 2, Luck 1Free Attribute Points: 0Energy: 0 (lv0)Energy Level: 1~2Tier: F (Mortal)[Combat power is weak, any NPC on the street could take you down!]Health Points: 25/30 (Sprained)Stamina Points: 36/36Talents: High Focus — Increases learning and manufacturing speed by 10%Low-Level Mental Resilience — Grants +3 Willpower checksSkills: NonePotential Points: 0Career Knowledge Tree: Not ActivatedInfluence: NoneLegend: 0Equipment: NoneSpecial Ability: Esper — Absorption (can absorb energy, skills, or abilities from objects or entities)Experience Multiplier: 100x
——
Surya exhaled. The NPC template confirmed what he already suspected: he wasn't a player, but he had all the growth potential of one, amplified by a 100x experience system and the Esper ability: Absorption.
A flicker of recognition crossed his mind. This timeline… he knew what awaited him in later versions. Han Xiao—a name that would become legendary in "Galaxy"—had already left a mark in the original history he'd read. In this pre-launch era, Han Xiao was just beginning his journey, a figure Surya could observe, learn from, or even intersect with. The thought filled him with both anticipation and caution.
This world, though a simulation, was also a battlefield. One wrong step, and death would be real.
His mind raced. How could he leverage his extraordinary abilities? Which powers should he absorb? How could he integrate them to survive—and thrive—in a galaxy governed by six interstellar nations, crawling with hidden threats? Could he even meet or surpass Han Xiao someday?
"Since I'm here, I'll take it one step at a time." Surya flexed his fingers. Survival first. Mastery second.
"Clang!"
The door opened. A backlit figure approached—a woman with long, wine-red curls, wearing a tight black uniform. Even in silhouette, her aura screamed authority and danger.
"How is the experimental subject's condition?" she asked, her husky, lazy voice carrying a subtle threat.
"Out of the manic phase," Lin Weixian replied, eyeing Surya like a prized specimen.
Surya's throat went dry. "Who… who are you?"
"Hmm? Memory deviation?" the woman raised an eyebrow.
"Valkyrie stimulates the brain; memory loss is normal," Lin Weixian added.
Light hit her face. The red-haired woman was beautiful, a dangerous blend of East and West, deadly yet mesmerizing.
"Hela, the supervisor," she commanded. "Take him for a blood test. I want the report immediately!"
Two guards seized Surya's arms. Resistance would be pointless.
He recognized her: Red Serpent Hela, BOSS of the Valkyrie Laboratory challenge. Later, she would become the "Goddess of Death," feared across the Shattered Star Ring.
Surya's lips twitched. Alone, trapped, and armed only with his NPC panel, Esper ability, and knowledge of Han Xiao's eventual rise, he felt the icy reality of the galaxy pressing down on him. Survival was not optional—it was everything.