“Miss, is your life boring?”

An ordinary office worker living the same day over and over—that was my life as Seo Ji-soo.

Three years into my career. It was the perfect time for the subtly repetitive routine to start getting old. Standing at the crossroads of whether to stay at my company or move on, I was living a tedious existence.

Dead fish eyes were my default state, and I desperately wanted to drop everything and just take off somewhere. I’d even had thoughts about dying.

There wasn’t any particular reason to die—I was just tired of the repetitive life, bored with living, which led me to such extreme thoughts.

I wanted something stimulating to happen. Wasn’t there anything fun?

Did that feeling show on my face? An old woman approached me.

Thinking she was some street peddler, I tried to ignore her, but she forcefully thrust something in front of me.

“Want to play a game? Your life will get interesting.”

What the old woman held out was a gaming device about the size of two palms pressed together. What the h*ll? So she is a peddler. Was she trying to force me to buy a game?

I used to play games frequently, but I’d quit a while back. My interest had waned, and I just didn’t feel drawn to it anymore.

“I’m fine, thanks.”

I forced a smile, declined her offer, and tried to continue on my way, but the old woman followed me persistently.

“It’s written all over your face that you’re bored. I feel bad for you. Don’t you want a stimulating life?”

I’d pass on a tumultuous life, but I did wish something special would happen to break up my boring routine. Still, I doubted playing a game would make the tedium disappear.

“I’m fine as I am.”

“No, you’re not. It’s okay, take it. I’ll give it to you for free. You’ll have a unique experience.”

A unique experience…

I’d tried escape room cafes, exotic animal cafes, all sorts of activities. They were fun at first, but now they all felt stale. I did need some new stimulation.

“Will it relieve the stress of this endlessly dragging life?”

“What’s there to say? Just try it.”

I’m gullible and easily swayed by others’ words. So I felt the urge to accept the old woman’s proposal as it infiltrated my weak heart.

After hesitating briefly, I reached out to take the gaming device. At that exact moment, I realized the old woman’s eyes looked unusual. When she reminded me of a witch from a fairy tale, goosebumps broke out all over my body.

Could she be pretending to give away a free gaming device while actually trying to traffic me? With all the scary stories going around lately, my fear was strong.

“You don’t have to give it to me.”

“It’s fine, I said. Go on, take it.”

I shook off the hand trying to force the gaming device on me and started running. But she ran so fast that the old woman caught up to me in no time.

She looked like an 80-year-old woman on the outside, but she ran like someone in their thirties.

Something’s definitely off.

No matter how well she could run, she shouldn’t be able to keep up with someone in their twenties. I had no choice but to sprint at full speed to prevent the old woman from following me.

I stopped at the apartment entrance. With so many people coming and going, there was no way the old woman could kidnap me here. Catching my breath, I looked around warily.

Fortunately, the old woman was nowhere to be seen. Phew, thank goodness. After breathing a sigh of relief, I finally relaxed and headed home.

I thought I’d never see that old woman again, but what do you know?

The moment I rummaged through my bag to pull out my phone, I found the gaming device inside. I could tell it was the same one the old woman had tried to give me earlier.

“Why is this in here?”

My bag was an eco-bag. I’d fastened it with a snap button, but had the old woman slipped the gaming device through the gap?

Why on earth was she so insistent on giving me this gaming device? The reason was obvious.

“What, did she just dump her trash on me? No wonder…”

I thought it was strange that she’d give away a gaming device for free, and sure enough, there was no way she’d just give it away.

Thinking she’d given me a broken one, I was dumbfounded. I was about to throw it straight in the trash, but just before dropping it in, the old woman’s words suddenly came to mind.

‘You’ll have a unique experience.’

What kind of unique experience could it be? Would it free me from this tedious life?

I could have just ignored it, but it kept bothering me. What kind of game could it be for her to say something like that?

I wasn’t expecting much, but I was curious. So I pressed the power button, thinking I’d at least check if she’d given me a broken device.

After holding it down for about five seconds, the device’s screen turned on, and ba-ba-ra-bam! Cheerful music played as the game start sound rang out.

“Guess it’s not broken.”

Then why did she try to give me the gaming device? Did she really want me to have a special experience? The moment I had that thought, the game’s introduction text appeared.

[Welcome to the Empire of Elado.]

[From now on, you will become the game’s protagonist and take on a mission to steal an object from a villain.]

There was only one game on the device, and the setting was a Western-style romantic fantasy. It seemed to be a story featuring princes, princesses, and nobles.

I’d played a similar game before, and the setting didn’t look much different. However, the content wasn’t particularly interesting, so I tried to turn off the device again.

I pressed the power button, but the game wouldn’t turn off. Instead, it progressed on its own.

[Please set your name.]

“What name am I supposed to set when I said I’m not playing?”

I grumbled and repeatedly pressed the power button, but it showed no signs of turning off. Instead, the music got louder and louder until it was deafeningly loud.

“What’s wrong with this thing? It is defective. That’s it. Why won’t this turn off?”

I pressed the button with all my strength, but it was useless. The device kept repeating the same message, seemingly determined not to turn off unless I did what it wanted.

[Please set your name.]

“I said no. Just turn off already!”

[Name.]

[Name.]

[Name.]

When the device kept demanding I enter a name, seemingly glitching, I was the first to surrender. If I left it like this, my eardrums really would burst, so I reluctantly entered a name.

The name that came to mind was Angela. I didn’t know why this name suddenly popped up, but somehow it felt familiar.

[Angela.]

[Your name has been entered. Congratulations. You can now participate in the game.]

The music started to fade. Thinking I could finally quit the game, the moment I touched the button, the device flashed with light.

A brilliant light so intense I couldn’t see began to envelop my body. And the moment that light swallowed me whole, it vanished instantly.

At the same time, I was also sucked into the light. When all the light disappeared, only the gaming device lay alone on the floor in the empty room.

* * *

“Ugh, mmm.”

Warm sunlight streaming through the window shone on me. I turned my head, shifting position to avoid the sunlight beating down on my face.

My body should have felt heavy, exhausted from daily sleep deprivation and fatigue, but it didn’t. For some reason, my body felt light.

Did I take vitamins yesterday?

Just as I was thinking that, I realized the alarm hadn’t gone off. There was no way the sunlight would be this strong in the early morning. So was I late?

Startled, I immediately opened my eyes wide. Jumping up hastily to get ready for work, an absurd scene unfolded before my eyes.

In the center hung a magnificent chandelier, expensive-looking ornaments, and luxurious furniture and bedding—it was a noble’s room you’d only see in Europe.

“Is this a dream…?”

I rubbed my eyes and looked again, but nothing changed. Should I pinch my cheek? Just as I was thinking that, someone spoke to me.

“Miss, are you awake?”

A woman dressed as a maid addressed me. I was about to think this really was a dream, but when I heard the name that came from her mouth, I couldn’t.

“Miss Angela, shall I bring you a meal, or would you like to wash up first?”

Angela?

Wasn’t that the name I used when the gaming device told me to enter a name? But why was this woman calling me Angela?

Just as I was about to look at the woman with a puzzled expression, suddenly a status window appeared floating in the air.

[System: Are you tired of your monotonous and tedious daily life? We invite you to the Empire of Elado, filled with fantasy and adventure.]

Along with the invitation, at that moment, information about the game’s settings gradually entered my mind.

What on earth is happening?

The situation was so unbelievable that I read the status window with a bewildered expression.

My name was Angela Richmond. The setting was that I was the daughter of the Count Richmond family.

It would be nice if I were an ordinary noble lady, but I wasn’t. The Count Richmond family was an assassin household, and they were the Emperor’s assassination squad.

Whether direct or collateral lineage, everyone was an assassin, so Angela also had to carry out missions as an assassin.

Before being pulled into this game, I had wondered what it meant when it said to become the protagonist and steal an object from a villain. Did it mean I was supposed to play the role of an assassin?

At least the good news was that I only had to steal objects, not kill anyone. But still, I wasn’t thrilled about it.

I don’t even like these kinds of games. And what is this nonsense?

Desperately hoping it was all just a dream, I pinched my cheek—hard. The sharp pain told me otherwise, and the scenery before my eyes remained completely unchanged.

This is real? Not a dream? That can’t be possible!