Thomas felt like he was hit by a truck. The summer heat made it worse. Noticing that he was laying on a bed, he tried to get up.

"Ray! You are awake!" A melodious feminine voice cried out in joy.

Ray? Who is Ray? Where is this? What's happening?!

Thomas opened his eyes and saw a woman in mid-thirties standing up from her chair. Her golden hair a mess, her pale pretty face not a hint of blood, she seemed really tired.

It was late at night, but the tiny room was lit up by a candle on the table.

She walked over and stared at Thomas' bare upper body. A rather scary scar stretched from his left shoulder to right hip.

"The wound has healed." The woman choked in tears. "My son. promise me you won't scare me like that again. Why did you challenge that level 15 warrior to a duel? There are plenty of girls in the world..."

Holding his mother's trembling hands, Thomas sweated like crazy. Da heck is that? Where is the beginner's village? What kind of game begins like this?

"Yes mother..." Thomas pretended to be sorry.

The woman froze for a moment in surprise. Clearly, she expected some resistance.

"Get some rest alright? Let me make you some soup. I know you are meek on the outside, but stubborn within... Don't do anything crazy while I'm gone alright?" She wiped away her tears and walked out.

Thomas sighed. Of course he wasn't going to kill himself. He just got there.

What could he do? Tell the woman that he is not her son? Mr. Tragedy is actually dead? He would probably be sent to an asylum at best. Most likely, the town would treat him as an undead and behead him at town square.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Thomas looked around. It was a rather small room. A small table right beside the single bed, a chair, and a chest. On the table was a mirror, a candle, and a copper chip. Under his pillow was a diary. Ah, at least he could get some clues from here.

Training, training, training... The first 99% of the diary was all about training. Apparently Mr. Tragedy was also a shut in, and training was his equivalent of video gaming.

On the last record a week ago, Mr. Tragedy went shopping for heavier weights and met his crush. He planned to challenge this other pursuer, and that should explain everything. Well, gotta complement Mr. Tragedy's bravery, challenging someone 14 levels higher than him and all.

In this game, everyone wanted to be an adventurer. Not only there was a talent activation, only adventurers could level up by killing other species. Higher levels meant more lifespan and more power.

Thomas grabbed the mirror. His avatar looked like himself in the real world. Brown eyes, brown hair, average looking face, pimples there and here, and not one bit of facial hair. Thomas would get an avatar with a beard if he had the choice.

Thomas then grabbed the copper chip. Instantly, it radiated a warm light. The darkness of the night suddenly faded and the outside looked like noon.

Thomas ran outside. An orange sun hang in the sky and slowly dimmed until it merged harmoniously with the other stars. Thomas was a little speechless. He silently prayed that it was not because of him.

A hologram screen popped up from the copper chip.

Name: Ray Mund. Level: 1. Class: Arch-mage. Talent: Deception. Stats:...

Most of his stats ranged from 5 to 7. The only exceptions were 15 for strength and 124 for intelligence. Bug. This was definitely a bug. But of course he was not going to report it.

[Deception: You are a terrible person who is incapable of honesty. You should be ashamed of yourself]

Well, that was a little harsh and unhelpful. Besides, Thomas felt that he was honest most of the time... sometimes...

Before understanding the situation, Thomas decided to lay low. Using the [Deception] talent, he wiped the 124 on the screen and changed it to 10. Arch-mage became Beginner. Then he disguised the deception talent.

[Gamer: You are an amazing player who has a specialization on Dating Sims]

"Ray! You managed to activate the adventurer's dog tag. I'm not dreaming right? I knew you are not a loser. I knew you could succeed. Your dad and I were both adventurers. You definitely had it in your blood. I'm so happy~" his mother appeared by the door. "Maybe the heavenly sign helped you... sob sob..."

Ray was a little speechless...