I don't even know why I do it, my brain says, because you're not a gamer and they don't have DLC yet and I'm pretty sure they aren't gonna make any in like four months or something, but I can't help myself.

There are two reasons for this—I'M bored as fuck and I wanna play some Cosmos contract.

The second reason is that when you're sitting behind a PC, the first thing your eyes want to do is look back at the screen. It's like staring at an old friend who suddenly appears and makes you feel guilty for missing them for years. You're like, oh yeah, you haven't seen me in years because I was busy being productive. Oh, sorry I didn't notice you. But then, there's a pause where you just stare into nothing, waiting for someone to respond, and finally, you're forced to get out and interact with people, so you start talking, asking questions, and it just feels really good to talk again, and you forget how lonely it felt for so long and you're laughing and joking and getting shit done and you almost wish your parents never adopted you because you'd rather spend your free time playing games with actual friends than being stuck in a stupid house doing chores all day because your parents aren't rich enough to afford to hire an expensive cleaning service. And it feels good knowing there's someone else out here that cares about you, even though that person isn't actually human, but you know what? You know what? That's ok, I guess. Because it's still better than the alternative.

And anyway, you know what else? Before I continue my endless rambling, I might just as well explain certain things about this world.

Syncro-NET allows players to freely choose their avatars' roles within the Cosmos, which are defined by the rules set down by the game company. In addition to this, players can also customize a character's role and create their own adventures based on their preferences. Players can choose whether to use these attributes as the main characters, either solo or as part of group activities such as fighting a monster or traveling with others. Additionally, players can also decide on which attributes a particular character should possess to aid them in PvP situations. Players also have access to several different types of combat tactics available within the Cosmos, including swordplay and shield work, armor crafting, and stealth attacks. These include: invisibility spells, invisibility potions, and a variety of other effects that allow players to blend in with their surroundings while simultaneously staying out of sight.

Of course, all this means there are plenty of benefits to this new and improved version of the game. For instance, players can take advantage of any type of hidden skill, and if they happen to be skilled in a skill-specific field (like spell casting), they can add to their arsenal by using another skill instead. Furthermore, players can choose whether to use certain skills outside of combat in order to help in other areas of gameplay, or they may opt to keep those skills secret unless specifically required. Also, many of the skills listed above can only be activated once they've been used during combat. Thus, players will need to be careful about using skills that would otherwise be unavailable to them.

But you see, twenty years ago, something weird happened and people started awakening their power in real life. I mean, they awakened their avatar's power in real life. Now everyone can kill everyone outside the game, right?

Yup. That's exactly what happened. People with power started killing others in real life to gain exp and skills that's when the Cosmic Force was established by the government. They recruited the top-class players to stop the endless blood flow. And after nearly seven years of endless chaos, peace settled back into the land. Now we live in peace and harmony under the rule of our leaders and we've got the world's biggest economy, thanks to the gaming industry. Sure, we have the most insane monsters crawling out from the woods every few days, but that's just business!

So, yeah. The peace has returned... People have stopped killing other people for now, well, that's only in civilized society...

But outside that, it's a different thing. Every country is now fighting its neighboring countries, and that war will soon end in bloodshed. We're going through an economic depression that has caused the average income for many families to plummet, and people who were born into poverty have gone hungry for years now. Our government is cracking down on crime and crime is escalating everywhere. There's no way we can survive until the next financial crisis hits! The problem is, it's going to go on for at least another eight years before it ends, so it'll still be too late! The government has no choice now, they have to declare martial law and put some sort of limit on the amount of money each individual can earn... That's right, you heard correctly; the government declare martial law. I swear.

It'll take the government at least eighteen months to complete the paperwork and sign off on it. By then, the damage will be already done, because the world has become totally dependent on the money system!

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We'll be living in a world without jobs. No more technology for people to buy food or clothing. No more education. Just survival. So it's time we took care of ourselves, because there's no one else left to do it for us. If you think about it carefully, we'll be lucky if our governments actually enforce the military laws, and honestly, most of them haven't been much more effective at upholding the peace lately. Most times, people just get away with murder, mayhem, and destruction. Not even our politicians bother to protect anyone anymore! And it doesn't matter what kind of government you have! If you have no power, it becomes easy for you to abuse it. Even when you find a nice little government worker or a politician with big shoes to fill, you never have anything to truly worry about!

People want to believe that we're safe because there's nothing worse than the government trying to force you to do everything they say. They want to believe that the government will protect them from all the bad things they hear about on TV and the Internet, that their bosses won't ever touch them, that people won't ever go near them, that they can live peacefully, that they're safe because they belong inside of a protected place. And honestly? It sounds a hell of a lot safer than the alternative. But it isn't true.

If this were an anime, I could probably show all these people that they're wrong. All I'd have to do is write something convincing enough to convince them of the truth, and they'd fall over themselves to agree with me.

You know what? Never mind.

Anyway, as I was saying. The governments of all the nations are using high-class players to fight to take control of the world. But only if it was that easy. Why would a high class player who has superpower would listen to some old coots, right? I mean, what the fuck did they ever do? And even if they did, what makes them special? And how are they any different from everyone else who can just walk up to someone and say 'Hi, my name is Michael and I can turn invisible.' Or maybe, say, I can summon fire from nowhere. Or teleport. That's cool, right? And even if they had powers of those kinds, they wouldn't understand any of it anyway. What's their point?

They'd just use it against each other and eventually, they'd die out. I mean, look at us. Look at us and remember how strong we are? Remember how fast we're learning the basics of swordplay, how fast we're improving our skills? How many people have you met in your life, huh? Have you noticed how quickly most of us are getting faster than the rest of the world? Well, imagine yourself, your whole family, and your entire village suddenly having powers! Then imagine the whole world suddenly disappearing! Yeah, right? What's next? Are you sure there's not just one super powerful ninja among us? Are we not the only ones who have powers? And that super ninja decides that he wants to steal all the powers and stuff from us, leaving us powerless to stop him from doing whatever he wants?! I bet he's just using us to gain his powers. I'm gonna bet that if it weren't for him, none of us would have abilities like we do! What about your mom, your dad, your grandma? Do they also not have any superpowers? Are all these superpowers fake?

Ahem! Sorry for rambling again.

As I was saying, why would someone who has greater power than the government would listen to them? It's kind of suspicious, isn't it? And yet they are following and licking those old coots' asses. Or could it be that they are controlling the government and making them dance on their fingers? Humm... That's it! That's what they are doing, huh?

But what's that gonna do with me?

I will just clean up everything and go to the arcade to play some old repetitive missions, maybe I will create a new avatar and replay the game once again. Hopefully, those devs will release the DLC soon.

"Hey, Dad, pull your legs up," I said while moping the living room's floor.

This middle-aged grey hair man with a big mustache and a glass eye was sitting on the couch watching news and looking at me as he lifted his legs on the sofa.

"So, how's school?" He asked.

That's new, I think this is the first time he asked me about school.

I paused my moping, thinking to myself "What am I supposed to tell him?" And I sighed, "It sucks."

He raised his eyebrows, giving me a look, waiting for me to elaborate further.

"School sucks," I replied simply.

The corner of his mouth quirked upwards slightly as he continued looking at me expectantly.

"But, not to worry. I am not cutting classes. I will pass and will manage to land a job. Besides, I have an avatar too. If I can't land a job, I will just join the Player Organization! Right, Dad?"

My father chuckled slightly to himself, then cleared his throat, "Whatever you do, just be careful not to get dragged into the army. Or, your mom will cry me a river."

Ah, yes. My mother. She's quite the woman too. Strong-willed and always looking out for us. Ever since Sara's accident, she's been a constant pillar of support, even as the hospital bills pile up and the stress weighs heavily on our shoulders.

"I promise, Dad. I won't let that happen," I reassured him, determination gleaming in my eyes. "I'll find a way to take care of everything. And with my avatar in The Cosmos's Contract, I can at least earn some extra money to help with the bills."

He nodded, his eyes filled with a mix of pride and concern. "Just be careful, Jack. The world out there can be a dangerous place. I don't want to see you getting caught up in something you can't handle."

I smiled, grateful for his concern. "Don't worry, Dad. I'll be fine. I've been working at the PC-Cafe for years now, and I've seen enough to know how to handle myself."

As I finished cleaning the living room, I looked out the window and saw the sun setting, casting a warm golden glow over the city. It was a reminder that time was passing, and I needed to make the most of every moment. Well, it's time to hit the arcade.