Prologue
"Hoo…."
Just like always, I sighed as I hammered away at the computer.
It was raining.
Or more precisely, it was purified wastewater that looked like rainwater. Liquid trickling down from the purification systems up on the higher floors of the buildings glittered purple under the neon lights as it fell.
The streets shone like wet glass, and electric motorcycles glided silently across them.
If I poked my head out the window, I'd see drones buzzing overhead. "New artificial retinas, 20% off with today's contract." Holographic ads floated in the air, blocking people's views. Giant corporate logos replaced the night sky, and no stars were visible.
Yeah, this world was definitely cyberpunk.
But my life in it was shockingly boring.
I leaned against the window of my one-room apartment at the end of the alley, reinforced with metal plating, gazing down at the street below. The window was made of bulletproof glass etched with a megacorp logo. It had an option to lock automatically if you missed rent.
"Another day begins."
My mumbling voice was dry.
"What the hell is wrong with this world that it's so goddamn boring…."
In my previous life, I'd been a game developer. Not one of those internet myths raking in eight-figure salaries—just your average dev at a mediocre game company that jumped in to make games and ended up tanking.
We'd shouted about 'innovation' until we burned through the investment cash, users never showed up, and in the end, we shut down with a single server closure notice.
"Those fucking bosses…."
No, the more I thought about it, the more ridiculous it got.
Why dump their lightning-bolt karma on us just because the CEO kept tweaking the game to suit his tastes and it bombed? Suddenly guilty by association with a psycho boss, my team and I got laid off overnight.
And then I died. Incredibly pointlessly.
I could vaguely guess the cause.
Everything I'd poured my life into crumbled in an instant—that shock had me pounding alcohol for days, and my last memory was that. Probably my liver, tortured by the hangover, just hit the self-destruct button.
Anyway, after drowning in booze and my consciousness sinking into the depths…
When I opened my eyes again, I was in this city.
At first, I was excited. A cyberpunk world! Cyborgs, hackers, advanced tech!
And yeah, a bit scary, but corporate wars, street shootouts. I imagined stuff like that.
But reality was different.
I was just a low-level data clerk in the slums. All day, every day: auditing corporate log files, deleting illegal access records, reporting suspicious accounts.
No guns, no implants, no flashy tech. Just endless keyboard clacks and silent people.
And the most infuriating part….
"Why—why the hell are there no games?!"
This world straight-up had no games.
I mean, it looked like you could dive into some VR murder sim without batting an eye, so what nonsense was this?
And when I'd ask…
"Leisure? Why would we need that? It doesn't boost work efficiency at all."
"You really think that? Just inject one vial from Deus Ex, and all your fatigue vanishes."
All I'd get were deranged responses like that, so I eventually gave up. In a culture where leisure or rest was taboo, even I ended up hooked on company products.
"If I could, I'd just make one myself…."
Impossible.
Games were way beyond what one person could whip up on a whim. And in a society where all you knew was work, the workload on a single person was no joke.
Couldn't even squeeze in time for coffee at a café—when would I make a game?
"Hoo…."
Anyway, for those reasons, my life here was just a cog in the machine for society. Nothing more, nothing less.
Even in my past life, it'd been similar, but this was too much.
Was it overdeveloped science and tech? Experiencing the grim cyberpunk vibe for real stirred something indescribable deep inside.
"Argh, fuck! You idiots don't even know the beauty of art!"
I yelled once for good measure, then flopped onto the bed.
Not like it'd change anything—it was just self-satisfaction.
Synchronization Complete
"…What?"
That was before a bizarre blue window popped up in front of my eyes.
Incarnation Registration Confirmed
Would you like to activate the Status Window?
"…Huh?"
My heart skipped a beat.
I reached out, but my hand passed right through the window. It just trembled faintly, like it was made of light.
Incarnation? Status Window?
This world wasn't a game. At least, that's what I'd believed.
"What the hell is this…."
The data streams on my monitor overlapped with the transparent window in front of me. The city's neon signs reflected off it, rippling blue.
The dull world of steel and neon signs began to crack, ever so slightly.
Slowly, I moved my finger toward the invisible button.
"Activate."
The moment I did—
My vision flashed, and text exploded into view.
Arts and Culture Preservation Program activated
'Muses' entering.
And just like that, my boring life finally got some proper 'service' for the first time.