Chapter 1: Rebirth in Code
Kei Arclight stood in front of the massive monitor wall in his dark office. Lines of code scrolled down the screen, reflecting in his tired eyes. He hadn't slept in days. After seven years of development, Eternal War Online—his life's greatest work—was finally finished.
"This is it," Kei whispered, pressing the final command.
The world's first fully immersive, AI-driven MMORPG would launch tomorrow. It had everything—dozens of classes, endless quests, living NPCs, dynamic wars. He poured his soul into the code. He knew the game better than anyone. After all, he built it from scratch.
As he stretched his arms, his vision blurred. His head throbbed. His body felt cold.
Then... darkness.
Kei collapsed onto his keyboard.
---
Kei's eyes snapped open.
But he wasn't in his office.
He was in a forest.
Sunlight streamed through the thick leaves above. Birds chirped. A breeze carried the scent of pine.
"What…?" he muttered. He looked at his hands. They were glowing faintly, and his skin looked smoother, younger.
Then a screen popped into view.
> Welcome to Eternal War Online
Character: [System Master] Kei Arclight
Level: ∞
Authority: Root Access
Status: GODMODE – Active
Kei froze.
"This… this is my game interface." He reached out instinctively and opened the system menu with a swipe.
All the familiar tabs were there: Inventory, Map, Skills, World Edit, Debug Mode. Every developer tool.
But something was off.
"This isn't a simulation. The air, the smell, the feeling... This is real."
His heart raced.
He wasn't testing the game.
He was inside it.
Reincarnated.
"No way… I died?" Kei whispered.
Suddenly, a scream echoed from the forest.
Kei turned his head sharply. His senses were heightened—he could hear the sound of swords clashing, flames roaring, and someone begging for help.
He dashed toward the noise.
In a small clearing, a young girl in a blue cloak was surrounded by wolf-like monsters—Feral Direfangs. Kei recognized them instantly. He designed these creatures as starter zone enemies. There were five of them. Too many for a beginner.
"Help me!" she cried, backing into a tree.
Kei's eyes narrowed. Time to test something.
"Open System Command," he said.
A glowing keyboard appeared in front of him.
> Command: Create Skill [Heavenbreaker Sword] – Max Level
A golden blade formed in his hand, shining like the sun.
"Let's see if this works…"
He stepped into the clearing.
The Direfangs noticed him. One lunged.
Kei moved like lightning. One slash.
BOOM!
The monster exploded into dust.
The others growled and attacked.
Kei didn't even blink.
"[Heavenbreaker Combo] – Execute."
He disappeared, reappearing behind each wolf. With each strike, the world shook slightly.
In seconds, all five monsters were gone.
The girl stared at him, wide-eyed.
"You… What level are you?" she asked, voice trembling.
Kei looked at her status window:
> Name: Lira
Class: Apprentice Mage
Level: 3
Status: Wounded
He smiled gently. "Let's just say I'm… special."
She blinked. "Are you one of the Guardians?"
Kei laughed. "You could say I made the Guardians."
He reached into the system and selected:
> Command: Heal Target – Lira
Command: Grant Item – Beginner Robe +10, Mana Potion x5
Command: Add Gold – 500
Lira gasped as her wounds healed instantly and items appeared in her bag.
"W-Who are you?" she whispered.
Kei looked toward the sky, where the artificial sun hung like a god's eye.
"My name is Kei. And I created this world."
---
Later, as they walked together toward the nearby starter town, Kei opened the debug map.
He frowned.
In the far north, near the Abyssal Gate dungeon, a red zone was glowing. That area should've been locked—no content was finished there yet.
> Error: Unauthorized Entity Detected
Coordinates: Abyssal Gate – Level ???
"What the hell…?" Kei muttered.
He tapped into the logs.
> Entity: [???]
Authority: Unknown
Origin: Not in Source Code
His blood ran cold.
Someone—or something—was inside the game.
And it wasn't made by him.
He had full control, infinite power, admin rights.
But this… this was outside his system.
A glitch?
No.
A threat.
Someone else had entered the world of Eternal War—something he didn't create.
And it was in a place that should not exist.
Kei clenched his fist. "So I'm not alone here…"
Lira looked up at him. "Is something wrong?"
Kei shook his head and smiled. "No. But something just got interesting."
For now, he would act as a player. Explore the world he built. Find out what went wrong.
And if something dared to challenge the god of the system...
It would be deleted.
---
End of Chapter 1