Sieg is a retired pro-gamer. Due to an unfortunate accident, he had to withdraw from the professional gaming circle.

As a gamer who was quite famous in the past, his income was enough to fulfill his childhood dream, opening a bakery. Apart from when he started, he now lives a leisurely life leaving all work to his subordinates.

So he spends a fair amount of time doing the things he likes, playing games. As he searched for a new recommended game, a notification popped up on his computer, a game ad.

The name of the game is Ellus, a free-to-play RPG game. In short, this game is about you going on a journey to save the world, a classic trope. This game, with its high-end graphics featured in advertisements, captivates the likes of Sieg. A sucker for great art in games.

The game downloaded in seconds, making him worry about the actual quality of the game. Thankfully the graphic quality isn't fake, as the first thing that greets him is a blue-eyed, blonde-haired character that looks so alive, sword in hand and an imposing giant door behind him.

He clicked start, and the game started with a video, an introduction to the game's background story.

Ellus, a vast and beautiful world with its many races and kingdoms. The elves of Yunan forest, the dwarfs of Grahar mountain, the fairies of the Maula plain, the seer of Koja desert, and many more. It is a beautiful world. But not for much longer.

Invaders, they came from another world. They came to attack and enslave. Spirits, guardians of this world, lost and were sealed. But they managed to use their power to slow down the invasion. By creating an enclosed space on land and distorting the rules of the world, they restrict invaders so they could only stay in the specified area.

Of course, this is not a foolproof plan. The invaders soon found a way. By corrupting the crystal that is the source of the space's power and seizing control of it. They will be able to break free and with the world's rules, trapped in another generated enclosed space. The cycle will continue until they occupy every land in this world.

And so, the inhabitants of this world gather, by making a one-way door to the isolated space, their strongest warrior walked into the space. To defeat the invaders and take back their land.

Over time, this place is called...

Arena

A woman's soft voice tells the story along with the many scenes shown in the video. He was very impressed especially with the graphics and the vastness of the world.

The video ends and jumps to the character page. Inside was the same blonde-haired, blue-eyed man. He wears cool black and silver armor with a very chic design, a black cloak on his left shoulder, and a cold-looking sword. Overall, luxurious looking character.

This character's name is Ernest.

___

The light of dawn seeped through the window, revealing a dazed man sitting on his bed. Slowly he came back to his senses.

Looking around him and reaching for the calendar, he took a deep breath. Ecstasy filled him. He's back. Back on graduation day, when his new life begins.

Getting off his bed, he made his way to the window. Below, many students are already up and going.

A peaceful morning. Unlike in later years, now the number of territories occupied by the invaders is still small, and their power is still bearable. The feeling of despair is not as strong. People can still smile and laugh, unlike the empty eyes that he always sees in the future.

Clenching his fists, a ferocious light shone in his eyes. That gloomy sight, he will stop it. This time, he wasn't going to let that happen.

Now, he needs to plan, meet certain people, train, and many other things. Also, the gamers that the spirits speak of, in what ways will they help?

Pssst

A hot feeling suddenly appeared in his hand. Looking down, a pattern was slowly drawn on his hand, with a hint of light escaping from it. Slowly, the pattern was completed and the light dimmed. In his hand was a rather pretty silver in color pattern.

'???'

___

"Done!"

Sieg had just finished the command to create symbols from the game.

[Create patterns that are unique to you, activate connections with characters, and make them your avatar.]

So it's like a tattoo. Having limited creativity, he googled and decided to draw a snowflake tattoo.

He was rather impressed that the game included this DIY aspect.

He chose the back of the character's right hand as a place for his tattoo.

[The character Ernest is now your avatar.]