One morning, you were awakened by an unsettling dream, only to realize you were trapped in a small room.
A room just barely large enough for one person to lie down in and stretch their limbs.
Unfortunately for you, however, there were no doors, windows, or anything else that could connect you to the outside world. The only objects inside were a desk, a chair, and a computer.
You cried out in panic, but no answer ever came.
Even as you scoured the room in search of an escape route, you found nothing—let alone a hidden door.
As you tried to piece together how you ended up in such a situation, the first thing that came to mind was the content of your most recent dream.
You died in that dream. And it was by no means a pleasant death—you met a gruesome end and the original form of your corpse would surely have been unrecognizable.
Dreams about death weren’t particularly rare.
But what if what you just experienced wasn’t a dream?
What if all your experiences were real, and you had already died—wandering the afterlife?
Strangely, you felt little fear or confusion. You felt far too detached from reality after all.
Perhaps your thoughts of wandering the afterlife were mere speculation, or maybe you simply hadn’t woken from your dream yet.
Scratching your head, you decide to at least try using the computer.
Whether it was a dream or the afterlife, you figured you might as well do something.
The feel of the chair against your back, the height of the desk, the shape of the mouse and keyboard—all of these things were strikingly familiar to you.
Unfortunately, the computer had only one program installed.
When you clicked on the icon that blended the colors of black and grey, the screen was filled with what looked like a game interface, followed by what seemed to be an opening sequence.
「Once upon a time, long, long ago, there was a knight.」
「The knight was incredibly strong, brave, and fiercely loyal.」
「But no matter how exceptional, the knight was still only human.」
「Fatigue, injuries, aging—many limitations held the knight back.」
「To continue fighting for what he held dear, the knight gradually began replacing parts of his body.」
「His arms could no longer feel human warmth. His legs took on a metallic sheen and even his fiery heart yielded its place to something else.」
「Though the knight's body was no longer human, his soul remained as proud as ever.」
「His lord, pitying the knight, told him it was alright for him to rest, but the stubborn knight shook his head.」
「As time passed, fewer and fewer people remembered the knight as he once was.」
「The knight's devotion, pride, and loyalty were reduced to mere words in records—forgotten in the hearts of people.」
「And so, many years passed.」
「The knight's body had deteriorated beyond comparison to its prime, and his soul had reached its limit.」
「Like his story—now only passed down as an old fairy tale—the knight was left to rust in a storage room.」
「It was an end far too pitiful for a proud hero, yet the knight had no regrets.」
「This was the path the knight had chosen—he was the one who rejected his lord’s pleas, fully aware of the fate that would befall him.」
「As the knight awaited his final moment, a young girl came to him.」
「The girl dusted off the knight's body and used magic to remove the rust.」
「The knight soon realized that this girl was a distant descendant of his lord.」
「A legacy of what he had once protected long ago. An achievement more precious and beautiful than any treasure.」
「Living proof that the life he led hadn’t been wrong was, as if by a cruel twist of fate, seeking the knight's aid once again.」
「The soul he thought had been completely worn away was filled with joy, accompanied by an equally strong sorrow.」
「The knight was but a remnant.」
「He no longer had the strength to take the girl’s outstretched hand.」
「As the knight's soul grieved its inability to protect the one in front of it, the knight sensed another soul.」
「This soul was a stranger, unrelated to his tale.」
「Unlike the knight whose story had concluded, this soul brimmed with infinite possibilities.」
「To this stranger, to this unfamiliar soul, yes, to none other than 'you', the knight makes a request.」
「You can choose to accept the knight's request and write a new story, or ignore it and refuse.」
「So, what will you do?」
「1. Begin the story.」
You stared blankly at the two choices displayed on the screen.
Your deliberation wasn’t long.
You made your choice.
「1. Begin the story.」 ←