"Why is this happening?"
Apollo said as he looked at the approaching men with guns.
Tears ran down his face as he remembered the sacrifice his parents had made.
Apollo suddenly felt sleepy.
"Fuck… of all times for this to happen."
His scarlet eyes slowly closed as Apollo's feeble fourteen-year-old body collapsed to the ground.
...
He opened his eyes to unfamiliar surroundings—a dark, silent place.
"Where am I?" Apollo said as he scrambled to his feet in panic. He grabbed his white hair, his breathing uneven as he started freaking out.
"Could my life get any fucking worse?" Apollo lamented, his voice trembling.
One could hardly blame him. Ever since he was young, Apollo had suffered from spontaneous sleeping episodes—deep sleeps that could last for weeks before he woke up. Because of this, he had no friends. He couldn't go to school, and he spent most of his life in hospitals.
Then, today, without warning, a group of officers came to his house to take him away for testing.
Apollo's father refused, trying to close the door. Suddenly, they forced their way inside.
Apollo's father, Gabriel, grabbed him, and together with his wife, they ran.
Gabriel looked at his wife. Esther met his gaze. She hugged Apollo tightly, tears streaming down her face. Gabriel ruffled Apollo's hair.
Then both of them ran forward to stop the officers.
Apollo knew what they were doing was stupid—but buying time for their son made it necessary.
Apollo ran through the back door and sprinted across the compound of his father's mansion. The officers stationed outside spotted him immediately and gave chase.
Apollo vaulted over the fence, but landed badly, spraining his ankle. Pain shot through his body, yet he forced himself to keep running.
His ankle couldn't take it anymore.
Apollo collapsed flat on the ground in front of the mansion.
"I'll have my revenge," Apollo swore quietly as his breathing slowed.
Then—
[Welcome to Azure Online]
[Host has reached spawn point]
[Host can view stats]
Apollo stared at the floating screen, utterly confused.
"Azure Online… I think I've seen this before," Apollo muttered as he tried to remember where.
A sudden growl echoed nearby.
Apollo turned and saw a goblin wielding a rusted sword emerge from the shadows.
Shock surged through him, and he ran for his life.
To his horror, the goblin was fast.
"What the actual fuck am I running from?" Apollo shouted as he glanced back—just in time to see the goblin slash toward him.
Apollo dove to the side. The goblin's blade struck a tree instead.
Only then did Apollo realize where he was.
A forest.
"This is a fucking video game," Apollo thought as realization dawned on him.
He remembered now—it was an upcoming VR game that had been extremely popular on the internet.