"Oh god, I think I'm about to die."

"Dan..."

"I'm sorry Zeigel, you were right, I shouldn't have been so reckless."

"Dan..."

"I see a light... So bright and warm..."

"Holy shit, Dan! Quit it with the roleplaying already!" Zeigel yelled through his headset. It annoyed him everytime his friend would pretend as if he was inside the games they played.

"I'm just trying to make things more immersive." said Dan. "Crap, the bleed damage killed me."

"Ah whatever. The boss has only half it's health left so this shouldn't take too long."

Zeigel used an ability to stun the boss for a second. He then exploited a bug that allowed him to reset the cooldown of his ability by quickly swapping it back and forth with his other abilities, letting him stun lock the boss while chipping away at its health.

"You're gonna cheat again?" Dan asked with his head resting on his desk. "Don't you find it kinda boring?"

"Oh and letting myself get hit by the same attack ten times in a row would be more fun?" Zeigel shot back.

"I'm just saying, you might find the game more enjoyable if you played it properly instead of mashing the same button over and over again."

"Nah, the only thing I enjoy is winning."

It took five minutes for Zeigel to finally defeat the boss. "Finally!" He threw his arms up in celebration but was quickly met with disappoinment upon seeing the boss drops.

"Seriously? All these drops suck!" He complained. "Isn't this one of the new bosses from the update? Why does it only drop items that I already have? Most of them aren't even rare!"

"What's wrong? I thought you'd enjoy your victory more?"

"Oh shut up, I may have won but the results are awful so of course I'm not happy about it."

"Well I'm gonna log off now." said Dan as he yawned. "Oh right! Since our finals are coming up, I was wondering if you'd wanna join me and my friends for a study session at the library tomorrow."

"Pass." Zeigel immediately shot down the invitation.

"Why not? Don't you think it'll be a good idea to study with us for the finals?"

"I have several notebooks filled out with detailed notes for the finals. I think I'll be able to study on my own."

"Then maybe you can help my friends out instead."

"You can share the notes I gave you with them but whether they pass or fail is not my problem."

Dan let out a dejected sigh. "Don't you think you should try socializing more? I'm your only friend and nowadays you don't even bother talking to any of our classmates." He said with concern in his voice.

Zeigel groaned in annoyance. "Ugh, I don't need you to worry about my social life."

"Well, if you change your mind about the study session, you're always welcomed to join us."

"I'll think about it." Zeigel replied, lying through his teeth. He logged off the game and stood up to stretch.

There's no point in making so many friends. He told himself. The more people I become acquainted with, the more likely I'll have to deal with whatever problems they may have. It'll be a pain in the ass. Worse case scenario, I'll end up dealing with another major incident.

Zeigel pulled his notes out of his bag and grabbed a pen on his desk.

I just need to continue studying hard, keep my head low, and I'll be able to live a quiet and peaceful life free of any problems. I just wish I didn't have heterochromia.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Zeigel's left eye was black while his right eye was a bright orange. He hated how it made him stand out and it annoyed him whenever someone would ask or make comments about his eyes.

Maybe I should get contact lenses.

As Zeigel continued to study, he began to have a strange, uneasy feeling. He decided to ignore it and focus on studying, but the uneasiness would only grow worse by the minute. He would occasionally get up to inspect his room, unsure of what was causing him the uneasy feeling.

Am I missing something important? Or maybe I forgot to do something. Mom didn't ask me to do any chores before she left to go grocery shopping, so why does it feel like something's wrong?

After ten minutes, Zeigel had already stopped studying and began frantically darting around his room, constantly inspecting the area and occasionally peeking through the window or outside his room.

The strange feeling that was bothering him had worsened to the point where it felt like someone or something was out to get him and that he was in danger, making him restless and apprehensive.

Damn it what the hell am I doing! There's no way anything would be after me, so why does it feel like something is wrong! Crap, did I eat something strange earlier? Was it possible that I ate or drank something that was laced with substances? God I hope not.

While lost in his thoughts, Zeigel didn't realize that he was sinking into the floor. He looked down and much to his horror, a portal had opened up below him. He fell through the portal and landed in a forest, stumbling to the ground as he watched the portal above him close up and disappear.

It took him a moment to process what just happened, and when he did, he was in complete shock.

"OH GOD WHAT THE HELL!" He screamed in horror. He sprung back up onto his feet and whipped his head around, finding nothing but trees and vegetation surrounding him. "WHAT THE FUCK! WHERE AM I?"

He frantically flailed about, still trying to figure what just happened.

This can't be real! There's no way what I'm seeing is real! I must've been drugged! Maybe someone who has a grudge on me drugged me somehow! None of this is real!

A roar coming from above him caused Zeigel to lose his train of thought. He looked up to see where the roar came from, and his heart dropped.

A wyvern about the size of a car with tree bark like skin and a body covered in vegetation was staring down at Zeigel while perched atop a tree. It looked more like a wyvern shaped plant than an actual wyvern.

What do I do, What do I do? Do I run? Does it only see me if I move? Can I even outrun it?

His mind was racing and his eyes were focused on the wyvern, praying that it doesn't come down. His heart pounded in his chest like a deafening drum and his body was trembling so much that he wasn't sure if he could even run.

Unfortunately for him, the wyvern hopped off the tree and descended right in front of him, causing his soul to leave his body as he stumbled backwards.

"STAYAWAYSTAYAWAY!" He begged while crawling away from the wyvern that was slowly approaching him. He wanted to run but his legs had turned into jelly, leaving him unable to even stand up.

"Helloooo! Anyone there?" A voice called out from behind him. "I'm pretty sure I heard someone screaming."

"HELP!" Zeigel cried out at the top of his lungs. He forced himself onto his feet and stumbled his way towards the voice as the wyvern continued to approach him slowly.

A girl around his age came running towards him. She wore a purple hoodie and beige shorts, both of which were covered in dirt and grass. She had long messy purple hair and her face was covered by an orange mask with a poorly drawn smiley face drawn on it.

"Oh hey, I heard someone screaming, was that you?" The girl asked.

"HELP THERE A MONSTER PLEASE!" Zeigel begged. He threw himself behind the girl, hoping that she would somehow stop the wyvern or at least distract it long enough for him to escape.

Upon seeing the wyvern, the girl let out a gasp. "Is that a gardvern?" She asked enthusiastically, but was surprised to see Zeigel cowering behind her.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"THERE IS A MONSTER ABOUT TO EAT US!"

"Gardverns don't eat people silly!" The girl laughed.

"Wait what?"

Upon closer inspection, Zeigel realized that the wyvern didn't seem aggressive or hostile. Instead, it was looking at him with curiosity.

"I've always wanted to have one of these as a pet!" The girl embraced the wyvern's head, petting it and cuddling it as it enjoys her affection.

"Oh hey! We can ride the gardvern back to Mezio. I'm pretty sure it can support both of us."

"What?"

"Mezio's borders shouldn't be too far from here, I think. You are heading to Mezio right?"

"...What?"

Zeigel was trying to process everything that just happened. He fell into a portal and wound up in a forest where a strange girl is talking about a place called Mezio while petting a wyvern.

Oh god, this can't be real. Did I just get sent into another world? This can't be happening! Maybe this is a dream! I'm probably passed out in my room and this is all part of a dream! That's it!

"Hello? You okay?" The girl poked Zeigel's face as he spaced out. "Helloooo." She continued poking his face harder and faster until he swatted her finger away.

"Quit it!"

"Oh good, you're awake."

This isn't a dream. Why isn't this a dream? What did I do to deserve this! I know I'm no saint but I wouldn't consider myself to be a bad person either, so why the hell did this have to happen to me! The life I had is gone because of that fucking portal! Where the hell did it even come from!

"I think he's mad that I poked his face too hard." The girl muttered to herself. "There there, no need to get so angry." She patted his head, much to his displeasure.

"Quit touching me already! I'm not in the mood!" He snapped.

"Geez, no need to be so grumpy."

"Do you have any idea what just happened to me? Do you know what I've just lost?"

"I do actually." The girl replied confidently. "I even know why you're here in the first place."