"Fixing this would cost you more than buying a new one, ." `Leo told Mrs. Patterson as he wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.

"Mrs. Patterson, How many times have we had this conversation? This thing is twice my age, it’s just too old and outdated." Leo let out an exasperated gasp.

He had already repaired this damn thing fifteen times this year alone.

Fifteen goddamn times.

Every time he fixed it, Mrs. Patterson would still come back dragging this god forsaken mower within a few weeks.

The mower never lasted past 2 months.

He even started having nightmares of Mrs. Patterson dragging that ancient mower toward his forge with a crooked, witch-like grin...

Just remembering those nightmares gave him chills.

He could only quickly shake the image away to clear his mind when meeting Mrs. Patterson.

Like usual, Mrs. Patterson stood across the counter, still wearing that stubborn look that said she wasn’t leaving until he fixed it.

"Dear, I don’t see why it can’t be fixed" Mrs. Patterson remarked with a sad expression across her face as she touched her cheek with a wrinkled hand and continued "Your father could fix anything. A young man like you should not give up so easily."

At the mention of his father, Leo’s wrench froze mid-turn. He felt his chest tightening, hands heavy and the bolt he was turning suddenly felt heavier than usual.

For a moment, the forge fell silent.

He glanced at the old forge which was built by his father, brick by brick.

Every wall and every scar on the anvil reminded him of his father.

He could still remember sitting on that very bench as a boy and watching his father work.

The familiar hammer hitting steel and deep laughs that used to fill the forge. All the memories rushed back like a tide overwhelming him with emotion.

He could almost smell his old man’s pipe tobacco mixed with hot iron, almost feel those thick, calloused hands guiding him on the anvil, and hear his father’s voice calling out to him.

The once lively forge that used to be filled with laughter and stories was now gone.

With only the familiar smell of coal and hot iron left lingering behind.

The memory lingered longer than Leo wanted.

Leo blinked hard and forced his attention back to the engine.

Mrs. Patterson stood by the side, squinting at it as if the engine had offended her somehow.

Leo tightened the last bolt as the machine creaked weakly against his wrench. Despite everything, he had decided not to repair it, and closed it up.

"It’s not that it can’t be fixed, Mrs. Patterson," Leo said, wiping his hands on the old rag—now black with nothing but oil stains. "But you’re better off with a new one. My old man could probably patch this thing back to life... but I’m not him. Sorry, Mrs. Patterson."

The mower might have been worthless, but the money wasn’t.

Leo’s gaze drifted to the bank notice on the counter. Two weeks to pay back everything, or lose the forge his family had built across three generations.

He looked at Mrs. Patterson.

Then back at the engine.

He shook his head, ready to argue again, when—

The ground shook violently without warning.

Tools rattled off the walls.

Leo stumbled out of the workshop, Mrs. Patterson clutching his sleeve in panic, afraid the building would collapse on them.

People were fleeing their houses, filling the main street. The shaking stopped, and a strange silence settled over everything.

A heavy pressure pressed down across the town. All the fires in the forge—and everywhere else—went out at once. Few noticed, since most were already outside.

The panic-stricken crowd quieted under the pressure. The entire town seemed to be holding its breath. No birds chirped. Just silence.

Then the ground once again started to quake, harder than before, accompanied by a deep rumbling sound.

Someone noticed and pointed upward in disbelief. "Look at the sky, everyone!"

Many people looked up and gasped.

Leo followed and turned his gaze skyward and saw it.

The sky was breaking apart.....

Massive spider web-like fractures could be seen across the sky.

Pieces of blue sky seemed to fall apart.

The pressure increased further.

Birds dropped from the sky mid-flight.

For a heartbeat... silence...

Then the street broke into chaos.

Leo stood dazed at the chaos.

Nothing made sense.

Just to make sure he was not dreaming, Leo pinched his right arm.

"Ouch!!"

"The pain is real..., The fucking sky is breaking apart for real." Leo muttered.

He came back to his senses and searched for the old woman.

"Mrs. Patterson—"

Leo found her near the edge of the street, Mrs. Patterson was on her knees, letting out choked sobs. She had her head pressed against the pavement and was frantically muttering "Lord Jesus, have mercy on us..##***###...."

"—this is the end. The end is here...."

....

She kept chanting, mixing different gods together.

Just as it seemed liked everything was about to spiral out of hand, a blinding white light tore through the sky and drowned everything on the planet.

But, just as quickly as the light came, it also receded quickly.

Everybody soon got their vision back and the pressure lifted.

The cracks in the sky also began to mend themselves. The sky finally returned to its previous state but a colossal timer had appeared, glowing blood-red in the sky.

Days: 07 | Hours: 24 | Minutes: 58 | Seconds: 21

Below the timer, strange symbols shimmered into existence. They felt alien, ancient, yet somehow understandable.

[MYTH ONLINE]

Enter the world of GODS

Connect your consciousness.

Think or speak: "CONNECT"

Leo was stunned upon understanding the weird unrecognizable characters.

He unconsciously followed the instruction and tried it: "CONNECT."

Nothing happened.

He tried again, louder. Still nothing.

Similar scenes played out across the streets.

Leo pulled out his phone with shaky hands. The internet was exploding with the same news. Every feed, every channel, every news outlet was showing and talking about the same thing: the broken sky.

It wasn’t just here. Everyone on the planet had witnessed it.

The next few days were crazier. Fighter jets screamed across the sky, hunting the projected timer. Governments scrambled for answers. Scientists panicked, offering no explanation.

Crowds rioted. Cults sprang up overnight. Religious zealots filled the streets screaming about the end times. Others whispered about alien invasions. The conspiracy theories went on and on.

Meanwhile, Leo tried to ignore it. There was nothing he could do, and it wouldn’t help him pay his debt. So he kept his head down and fixed whatever work came his way.

But on the fourth day, new news began trending. People claimed they had entered the game—Myth Online. The same name hanging in the sky. They called themselves beta testers. They said the world felt real: you could eat, bleed, smell, and feel pain.

One guy went viral after describing how he died to a boar-like monster, only to wake up in his apartment. He re-entered the next day just by thinking "connect." Leo read these stories and tried to connect again.

Nothing.

"Scammers," Leo muttered, tossing his phone onto the workbench.

But deep down, he knew something bigger was happening.

By the final day of the countdown, the whole world seemed to hold its breath.

People feared the sky would crack open again. Military nuclear weapons and fighter jets stood by, waiting for an invasion.

Leo sat on an old wooden stool behind the counter of his empty smithy, staring at the countdown.

0 Days: 0 Hours: 47 Minutes: 19 Seconds

He felt that when it hit zero, everyone would be able to connect.

He looked around the smithy. The fire had died down. This forge was built by his father, but now it was drowning in debt—$12,000—due in two weeks, or the bank would take the forge.

Leo didn’t see how he could raise $12,000 in two weeks. "I guess the legacy of this forge ends with me," he thought.

As he sat in his gloom, the bell above the door rang.

Leo looked up, expecting old man Hargrove coming to threaten him over the unpaid rent. Instead, he saw a sharp-looking guy in a crisp navy suit—too clean-cut to be from around here.

"Leo Stone?" the man asked.

"Yes. Who’s asking?"

The stranger smiled. "You can call me Paul. I represent some interested parties. We’re looking for people with real-world skills, especially craftsmen." He looked around the dusty smithy. "We think you have great potential in Myth Online."

"Potential?" Leo asked, confused.

Paul explained, "Real-world skills carry over into the game. The world there is no different from this one, except it has countless possibilities."

Leo leaned back, arms crossed. "And what do you want from me in return?"

Paul chuckled. "Straight to the point—I like that. So here it is."

He paused, adjusted his tie, and continued. "We provide materials, protection, and funding. In exchange, you become our exclusive blacksmith. Everything you craft gets sold to us first. We’ll help with your current debt in the real world. Profit split is 40% to you, 60% to us."

Leo stayed quiet, jaw tight. Forty percent of something was far better than 100% of nothing in his current situation. The bank notice flashed through his mind. The $12,000. Their offer to help with the debt.

It was tempting. Dangerously tempting.

Still, Leo felt something was off. This guy had done his homework—too much homework, as he knew too much. They were not offering a partnership; they wanted control over him.

"I appreciate the offer," Leo said. "But I want to try things my own way first in the new world. If I can’t make it, maybe I’ll contact you."

The confident smile on Paul’s face stiffened upon hearing the rejection. "The 60-40 split is valid only for this deal, so it might get worse if you come later, you are not the only candidate we have, so we might not even need you if you come late."

"That’s not a problem, Mr. Paul, I understand. but we can talk about it when the time comes."

Leo pointed upwards and continued, "The countdown is almost over, so if you could please step out? I need to close the shop and prepare to log in to this new game world."

Paul studied Leo for a moment and nodded. "It turns out you are a stubborn Person, Leo Stone. I respect that. For now..... But the world is crueler than it appears Mr. Stone."

He walked toward the door, then paused and added. "Just so you know, Stubborn people often find themselves cornered fast and get buried even faster. Good luck with your adventure in the new world."

0 Days: 0 Hours: 02 Minutes: 47 Seconds

Leo watched the numbers tick down. 3... 2... 1...

A deep voice spoke straight into his head—and everyone else’s on the planet.

[System is now Online...]

[All humans may connect to Myth Online.]

[To enter, think or speak: ’Connect.’]

[ALL THE BEST.]

Leo closed his eyes. He pictured his father’s rough hands guiding his own on the anvil. All the failures. All the unpaid bills. All the nights wondering if he was the reason the Stone name would die out.

He focused and muttered the word.

"CONNECT."

This time it worked. His vision shifted.

He felt himself falling unconscious, then being pulled apart, cloned, digitized.

When he came to his senses and opened his eyes, he stood in a place called "NEXUS."

NEXUS was a vast plain with a white background stretching to infinity. Pure white in every direction. In this void stood seven doors—different colors, carved with different patterns, radiating ancient energy.

Leo walked toward a gray iron door. A panel appeared.

[Iron Gate- The Mortal Path]

The path of common heroes and self-made legends. No pantheon shall claim you. You walk alone, forging your own destiny with blood, sweat, and steel.

Compatibility: 100%

He turned and walked toward a stone door.

Another panel appeared.

[Frostfang Gate]

The path of warriors bound by fate and glory. Odin, Thor, and the Valkyries watch. Battle and honor await, but so does Ragnarök.

Compatibility: 89%

He checked another.

[Eternal Nile Gate]

The path of judgment and eternity. Death is not the end—it is the doorway.

Compatibility: 72%

He checked the rest. The door carved with a lotus [Karmic Lotus Gate] showed 61%. The dragon-carved door [Celestial Dragon Gate] showed 68%.

The [shadow Veil Gate] and [Hero’s gate] showed 60% Compatibility.

Only the Iron Gate showed 100% compatibility.

He made his choice. He pushed the Iron gate open and was teleported.

Leo found himself standing on a grassy plain under a blue sky straight out of a dream. A dirt road led toward a small town ahead. Stone houses with thatched roofs, windmills turning across the plains, smoke rising from chimneys.

As he headed toward the town, a window appeared in front of him.

["Welcome to Myth Online."]

[You have entered the Common World.

Region: The Verdant Valley

Settlement: Ironhaven (ahead)

Current Status: Classless]

[Speak to the Town Registrar to choose your starting class.]

Leo flexed his fingers, a grin breaking across his face.

"Alright," he muttered. "Let’s see what this world has to offer."

He started walking.