Chapter 1: The Game

João, a 17-year-old Brazilian teenager, loved anime and RPG games. One day, he decided to create his own game, which he called Anime Realm Online (ARM). He dedicated countless hours to the project, working intensely to bring it to life.

João: "Alright, today I’m finally finishing this game. I’m sure that when I share it, it’s going to go viral… or at least I hope so. I’ve spent three weeks of my life on this!"

João sighed, visibly exhausted from the hard work.

João: "I think I’ll test the game now to see how it’s coming along. I just hope the gameplay is good."

He opened the beta version of Anime Realm Online, his eyes heavy with fatigue.

João: "The gameplay isn’t bad at all." (yawns) "I’ve spent almost all my free time working on this game…"

João: "Alright, I created four main classes for the game: Healer, Swordsman, Mage, and finally, Archer. I think I’ll test them one by one."

João selected the first class to test.

João: "First, Healer."

He chose the class and started playing.

João: "Yeah, it’s much easier to control now. I’m sure ARM is going to fill up with players!" (yawns again)

João: "Now I’ll test the oth-"

Before finishing his sentence, fatigue overcame him. João fell asleep in front of the computer.

---

Some time later...

João woke up in a completely unfamiliar place.

João: "Wow, I fell asleep while testing the game. Wait... where am I? Where’s my PC? Where’s my house? My room?!"

He looked around and noticed something unsettling: the environment looked incredibly similar to the game he had created.

João: "Wait a second… what the hell is this? Isn’t this the Mirror Valley?! The beginner’s map from ARM! How did I end up here? Everything feels so real… Am I dreaming?"

Panicked, João began walking around the area.

João: "This all… feels so real. It’s just like my game! I-I’M INSIDE MY OWN GAME??? No way, this is fiction! Why am I here?"

Panic took over João. His body began to sweat, and he breathed heavily.

João: "I want to get out of here… I want to get out of here!!!"

He screamed, but there was no response. After a few minutes, he tried to calm himself.

João: "Alright, breathe, João. Let’s think..."

Looking down, he noticed something strange.

João: "Wait… what’s this? HP: 100?"

He grew even more anxious.

João: "So I ended up in the world of my game, and now I have an HP bar? Wait… there’s something else here. Healing Ability: 20000."

João: "Healing ability? W-what does that mean? Could it be because I chose the Healer class on my computer?!"

He continued looking around, seeing the landscapes he had designed himself: hills, mountains, and forests. A strong sense of déjà vu washed over him.

João: "I created all this… But why is this happening to me? Why was I brought into my own game? Is this still a dream?"

To check, he pinched himself hard.

João: "Ouch! Okay, I guess that answers it."

He tried to collect his thoughts and recall something useful.

João: "Alright… I’m the weakest class in the game, which is Healer. But if I remember correctly, there’s a place nearby where I can get swords. I created it. There should be a stone sword there, which can protect me for a while..."

João began walking. After some time exploring and retrieving the sword, he came across something extremely strange: a giant creature with yellow eyes, crawling like a monstrous centipede.

João: "What the hell is that? I never created this character in the game! What’s going on?!"

The creature turned its gaze toward João and charged at him.

Startled, João managed to dodge the attack.

João: "What is this thing?? Why is it attacking me? I didn’t create this monster for my game!"

João decided to fight the creature.

Raising his sword, João exclaimed:

João: "Then I’ll have to fight!"

He lunged at the creature and managed to land a hit with his sword, but the creature retaliated with an even stronger blow.

João: "Ouch! I-I’m not giving up!!!"

João tried to strike again but ended up being comboed by the monster.

João: "Oww! I’m so weak!" (looks down) "HP: 2/100 WHAT?? I ONLY HAVE 2 HP LEFT?? In my game, if someone dies, they never respawn. What happens if I die here??"

The creature raised its claw to deliver the final blow and kill João.

João: "This is it... I guess I’m going to die..."

Suddenly, someone sliced the creature in half before it could strike João.

It was a female character João had created: Markina.

Markina: "These monsters are always trying to kill people around here. Hey, are you okay? Your HP is really low. It looks like the Julits attacked you a lot."

João: "Huh? Who are y-"

João suddenly realized it was one of the characters he had created.

João: "M-Markina???"

Markina: "Huh? How do you know my name? I’ve never seen you before in my life."

João: "Wait… you have your own consciousness?"

Markina: "Of course, why would you ask that? Everyone has their own life! What a silly question. With all due respect, of course."

João: "And who were those monsters?"

Markina: "From what little I know, they’re the Julits, a race that suddenly invaded this kingdom out of nowhere. We don’t know how they appeared—they just came out of the blue."

João began thinking.

João: "But I never created those monsters in my life! How did they get into my game? Actually, the real question is: why am I even here, considering I’m the one who created this game? And even if I didn’t create it, it still wouldn’t make sense."

Markina: "Well, what’s your name? You don’t look like you’re from around here."

João: "Oh, sorry, my name is João, and I’m 17. Nice to meet you. I already know you, but I’d rather not say how."

END OF CHAPTER 1