For as long as I can remember, I’ve never been particularly sociable. To most people, I was that quiet guy sitting at the back of the classroom, someone few bothered to talk to. It didn’t bother me much. A small circle of close friends was enough to keep my mind from wandering into dark thoughts.

  In all my 19 years, I’d never had any romantic relationships. In high school, my friends would invite me to parties or suggest I try dating apps, but nothing ever came of it.

  A little tired of it all, I decided to gain some experience through Japanese dating sims. I know, it’s a strange method. I thought it would be a fun distraction for a couple of days. But before I knew it, I’d graduated high school, and I’d played through almost thirty of these games. Ironically, after that, my desire to interact with real girls completely vanished, which my friends often teased me about.

  After school, I enrolled in an engineering program at the institute. As I expected, there weren’t any girls in my group. This didn’t upset me, as I was already used to being surrounded by guys. Since I wasn’t very outgoing, it was hard to connect with my classmates, but somehow I ended up in a decent group.

  That’s how my first year at the institute ended, but I didn’t stop playing dating sims. On my 18th birthday, San gave me a disc for an otome game, saying:

  — Well, Anton, you like these girly games, right?

  When I got home, I tossed the disc aside and forgot about it.

  After finishing another game with all its endings, I got bored, and that disc caught my eye again.

  — “The Story of Orsta’s Five Flowers”? What kind of dumb title is that?

  Even without starting the game, I was disappointed. The cover featured a group of five overly sweet-looking guys with rainbow-colored hair and, in the center, a girl with chestnut hair and two small pigtails.

  — Well, I’ve finished everything I planned to this summer anyway. — Saying this, I started the game.

  As I began playing, I realized two things:

  First, this wasn’t just an unpopular dating simulator—it was also a turn-based RPG set in a world of swords and magic.

  And second, it was ridiculously hard. The sneaky Asian who made it clearly wanted people to hate his game from the very prologue. There were so many random ways to die that my first death happened under the wheels of a carriage at the very beginning.

  And the most annoying part—you couldn’t save whenever you wanted, only at specific points. So, between saves, there could be up to four hours of progress, meaning dying in the middle of a chapter could send you back to the beginning. It reminded me of that anime about a Japanese guy who kept returning in time after dying—I’d watched it recently.

  The game’s plot was painfully simple. The main heroine, Maria, was a commoner adopted by a noble family due to her rare talent for holy magic. She enrolls at the Nymphis Academy, where she meets the crown prince and his team. Depending on the route you choose, they defeat the Demon King and live happily ever after with their chosen love interest. As I said, the story wasn’t exactly groundbreaking. But the crafty developer added random events that could trigger with a certain chance, forcing you to play his game over and over again.

  By the end of summer vacation, I managed to finish one of the game’s endings. And after another four months, I completed all of them. I was so happy about it that I accidentally overslept the next school day.

  But what I didn’t expect was that, after finishing my winter exams, I’d see a DLC release for “The Story of Orsta’s Five Flowers: The Great Dungeons of Sin.” Without hesitation, I bought it and dove into the new content. Only now, the already difficult game became even harder.

  It’s a bit disappointing that the last thing I thought about before dying was that very dating sim for girls, jokingly gifted by my close friend. It’s even ironic that my first death in the game was under a carriage, and my real one—under a train.

  — Damn it! — was the only thing that came to mind. I didn’t want to die; there was still so much I wanted to do. But it didn’t matter anymore, because now I was dead.

  My mind felt like it was sinking into an endless sea. I guess this is what death looks like. I sank deeper and deeper until a bright light beneath the impenetrable abyss began to fill everything around me. Blinding me, it consumed everything.

  When I opened my eyes, I saw bright green grass. I was utterly surprised. Raising my head, I saw a calming blue sky.

  — I guess this is the near-death dream I’ve heard about.

  I was on a quiet, completely green meadow surrounded by trees. Trying to walk across it, I suddenly fell.

  — What’s the problem? — I said, not understanding why I’d fallen. — What? What’s wrong with my voice? — Noticing that my voice had changed, I looked around.

  My arms and legs were short, like a child’s.

  — Great, even in my final moments, my brain is playing tricks on me. — I sighed.

  — Ark! Where are you? — an unfamiliar woman’s voice called from behind.

  — Ark! Answer me! — a slightly rough male voice followed.

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  — Ark? Whose voices are these? — Not understanding what was happening, I looked in the direction they were coming from.

  A minute later, a woman with chestnut hair and bright green eyes emerged from the trees.

  — Ark! — Before I could even process it, the woman hugged me. — I was so scared we’d lost you in this forest.

  — Sorry, Mom. — The words slipped out of my mouth uncontrollably.

  — Why did I call her my mother? — I thought, as if my body had reacted on its own.

  I was more and more confused. Soon, the woman released me from her embrace, and I noticed a tall, muscular man in his 30s standing beside her, with short black hair and brown eyes. His expression showed he was worried. A four-year-old boy was perched on his shoulders, holding onto the man’s hair.

  — Why did you run off like that? — the man spoke, setting the boy down.

  — You scared us! — the woman said, still agitated, holding my hand and looking into my eyes.

  Hiding my shocked state, I spoke:

  — Sorry, I just wanted to show you this beautiful meadow.

  — Thank goodness nothing happened to you! — the woman exhaled.

  — Next time, tell us if you want to show us something. — the man said, his voice a mix of relief and reproach.

  — Honey, this place looks so calming, don’t you think? — the woman smiled.

  — It really does. I thought I knew this forest well, but I’ve never seen this spot before.

  The man and woman chatted amiably, giving me time to think about the situation. Either this was a very strange and long near-death dream, or, more bizarrely, I had somehow been reincarnated. Although I’d read novels on this topic, I always found them boring and clichéd.

  I hadn’t noticed at first, but their clothes resembled what peasants wore in the 17th century. This made me think I’d been transported to the past. As absurd as it sounds, I don’t have any other explanations right now.

  A sudden tug on my sleeve snapped me out of my thoughts. Looking down, I saw two small, bright green eyes staring up at me. They seemed to ask, “Are you okay?”

  — Everything’s fine, no need to worry. — I smiled, crouching to his eye level. Strangely, even though I’d never met this boy before, I felt like he wasn’t a stranger to me.

  — Kids, it’s time to go home. — the woman’s gentle voice caught our attention.

  She took my hand, while the boy climbed back onto his father’s shoulders. After leaving the forest, we soon approached large stone walls, and passing through the gates, I entered a bustling city full of life.

  The houses resembled those built in 18th-century Germany, with a touch of 17th-century England. How do I know this? Thanks to my friend Nectar, who’d been telling me about architecture and history since middle school. But the strange feeling that I’d been here before wouldn’t leave me.

  We entered one of the houses, which was their home. Inside, it was a typical commoner’s house. I was excited. Just this morning, I’d been sitting in my apartment playing video games, and now I was in a different era. The feeling was unusual but thrilling.

  Soon, the woman set the table, and we all sat down to eat. Of course, as someone used to eating instant meals or fast food, it was hard to enjoy simple stew and slightly stale bread, but I couldn’t change it, so I ate in silence.

  Four years passed. During that time, I learned a lot. The boy whose body I now inhabited was named Ark, and at the time, he was 8 years old—now he’s 12. The man and woman I lived with were named Greg and Mia—Ark’s biological parents. Greg was now 33, and Mia was 31. The little boy was named Andy, and he was Ark’s younger brother, four years his junior. Greg was a hunter, and Mia occasionally taught cooking classes for locals. Over the past four years, they’d become like second parents to me.

  When I was still Anton, my parents divorced when I was 9, and I stayed with my father. Five years later, he passed away from heart disease, and until I was 16, I lived with my paternal grandparents before moving out and living alone in the apartment I’d shared with my father. Ironically, after the divorce, I never saw my mother again. Maybe that’s why Greg and Mia’s care felt so new to me. Though the thought that I’d essentially “killed” their son and taken his place sometimes weighed on me.

  At 10 years old, as Ark, I overheard something that helped me understand where I was. Every other Saturday, Mia’s friend Chris, who worked at the city’s editorial office, would visit. Waking up a little earlier than usual, I went to the kitchen and eavesdropped on their conversation.

  — It’s chaos at the office right now. Too much work, I’m exhausted. Mia, can I hide here until it’s over?

  — Chris, it’s like this every year. Aren’t you tired of it?

  — I know. But it’s the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Kingdom of Dagen, so something special has to happen at the festival. That’s why the boss wants to leave me in charge while he, the jerk, goes off to have fun. — The woman slammed her hand on the table in frustration.

  — Dagen? Did I hear that right? — Hearing that name, I froze. That’s because the Kingdom of Dagen is the main setting of “The Story of Orsta’s Five Flowers.”

  — I’m in that damn game? But how? Why? Can’t I just die in peace? — My thoughts raced like a storm.

  — Now that I think about it, I did feel like I’d been here before. — Still processing, I realized what I’d heard was true. The city I was in resembled the capital of the kingdom I’d seen so often in the game.

  — 300 years since its founding... If I’m not mistaken, at the start of the game, there’s an event celebrating the 306th anniversary of the kingdom’s founding. That’s when the heroine and her love interest sneak away from the group to watch the fireworks.

  — So, the game’s events start in six years. — Everything was becoming more confusing.

  Remembering all the events in the game, I started preparing just in case. Over the next two years, I studied all the available literature about this world. Even though I knew the game’s lore, things could still be different, and I might have forgotten a lot over time.

  — My goal is the Nymphis Academy.

  Why do I want to enroll in the academy? Because the heroine’s choices can trigger a series of events, from civil war to conflicts with neighboring countries. If war breaks out, my new family could be caught in the crossfire, and I’d like to avoid that. So, I decided to enroll in the academy to guide the heroine toward a route where war doesn’t happen.

  During the day, I helped Greg with hunting, and at night, I secretly read books discarded by the city’s aristocrats. By the time I turned 12, there were only two things left for me to do to enroll:

  First, money. For a commoner to enter the academy, you either need to be incredibly talented or pay an entrance fee of 20 million galls. Converting that to my world’s currency, it’s about $200,000—a huge sum.

  And second, strength. Without it, not only would I fail to enroll, but I’d also die if war broke out. I decided to tackle the second issue right away.

  In “The Story of Orsta’s Five Flowers,” there were several ways to become strong: be born with talent, receive a blessing from the gods, or grow stronger in dungeons. The first option was out of the question, and the second was too problematic for me. The third option suited me.

  A few days ago, I found a dungeon roughly rank E or lower, so I decided to just loot the treasure rooms and escape using a teleportation circle.

  Dungeons of rank E to C don’t need to be fully cleared. If you know the approximate location of the treasure rooms, you can just grab the loot and leave through the teleportation circle set up in one of the dungeon’s rooms. I used to do this often in the early stages of the game to save time farming.

  Most low-rank dungeons have a similar structure, so it wouldn’t be hard for me to pull off what I’d done many times in the game, now in real life.

  Waking up early in the morning, I left a letter for my parents and quietly slipped out of the city.

  Ark (16 years old): A guy with short, wavy chestnut hair, green eyes, and slightly pale skin. He stands at 5'9" (175 cm) and weighs 159 lbs (72 kg).