Game's Avatar Comes to Life
It had happened ten years ago. Back when I entered the Royal Academy at the tender age of ten. The day everything changed.
“Huh?”
While working on a school assignment, I was researching the legendary figure who had ushered in the Golden Age of Magic—**Manuel Lucas**, the Grand Duke. And that’s when I stumbled upon something I never expected.
“What… is this?”
My eyes were drawn to the crest of the Lucas Grand Duchy, but what caught my attention was the strange English word scrawled right beneath it.
“WHY”
Why?
It was written in English.
“Could this guy also be…?”
A short, ominous word that somehow felt loaded with meaning.
I blinked rapidly, half-convinced I was imagining things, then checked it again. And again.
Only when I was certain there was nothing wrong with my eyes did the suspicion creep in.
‘No, I can’t jump to conclusions just yet. It could be pure coincidence.’
I was already shaken, but since I was naturally cautious, I refused to rush to any verdict.
“Hah…”
But soon enough, I had no choice but to accept the truth.
[Her Highness Lady Lucas left behind a final message before her death. “I wanted to walk the California beach with Mary once more.” …]
A place name and a name I had never heard of before. Yet, because it was the story of a great saint, I couldn’t simply ignore it.
That was how the final message of the late Lord Lucas was recorded.
The butler’s meticulous diary entry was irrefutable proof.
Whether he had reincarnated like me or crossed over from some novel, the greatest mage of Rondel had to be from Earth.
Most people paid little heed to the incomprehensible will, but to me it felt like a secret message.
[Prototype of the Aura Condensation Device—Washington]
[The world’s first virtual reality system—Hollywood—blending Ego and Indream with Soul Sharing magic]
Even after that, I became obsessed with Manuel Lucas like someone bewitched. Traces of him being from Earth kept surfacing everywhere.
And that’s when one possibility dawned on me.
‘Perhaps only I can truly understand the great mage.’
The words of the world-shaking Manuel Lucas echoed in my mind.
[I have hidden all my strength, knowledge, and wealth somewhere in this world.]
[Desire. The one who will claim the orphaned Chronicle… might be you.]
No one could ignore the promise of greed hidden in his legacy.
‘Using English words in the family crest, leaving traces of Earth, and publicly revealing the existence of Chronicle—it almost feels like he’s calling out to his kind.’
Of course, he might simply have been unable to forget his homeland the way he mourned Mary.
Yet, even with the entire world hunting his assets, the fact that some remained undiscovered made me wonder what conditions were truly required to claim them.
‘Maybe Earth’s knowledge could prove useful.’
It was impossible for ordinary world-class ability users to reach the Chronicle through sheer force alone. But if my theory held… I would become the one closest to Manuel Lucas’s legacy.
‘I’ve been struggling to build my own path while avoiding Anna’s attention. What if I actually get my hands on the Chronicle of the late Grand Duke Lucas?’
Of course, this was overly optimistic thinking.
Still, once the idea took root, I threw myself into research with all my might.
I studied not only Manuel Lucas but every technology and thesis he had ever developed. During vacations, I even flew to the Brigham Empire, his homeland of magic engineering.
I poked around everywhere, but no one paid any mind to a ten-year-old kid. I was simply dismissed as another follower of the late Grand Duke.
Thanks to their indifference, I managed to gather quite a bit of useful information.
And in the end…
[You have acquired the Chronicle of Manuel Lucas.]
I had done it.
* * *
Earth’s knowledge had been a huge help in finding the Chronicle of the late Grand Duke Lucas.
Of course, even without Earth’s knowledge I had already prepared to reach the Chronicle. But since people like me—the irregulars—existed, competition couldn’t possibly be fair.
[Successor to the Great Mage Manuel Lucas.]
With that title in hand, I no longer needed to cower before threats.
How could a mere baron’s daughter like Anna cause me any trouble?
The power of the late Grand Duke Lucas was enough to topple an entire nation.
My life ahead of me was now paved with smooth roads.
All that remained was to walk the flower path beyond hardship…
—Clack!
“Ouch!”
I thought.
But right after, an unexpected problem struck.
“It hurts like crazy! Damn it all!”
It turned out the real trials had only just begun after I claimed the Chronicle.
**Goblin**
HP: 80/100
A short humanoid monster with green skin.
Goblins could be found all over the Lheinhatz Kingdom, but the fact that their HP was clearly displayed meant we were still inside the virtual world of **Chronicle Online**.
“This is scary. Can I even fight properly?”
Even in virtual reality, games were games. Normally pain was filtered and weakened.
But I was feeling real, agonizing pain and had to flinch.
If anyone knew this malicious bug was tied to the Chronicle… who would believe me?
—Kieeeeee!
My body stiffened from the agony for a moment.
I gripped the practice sword backward and glared at the goblin.
My left arm was bleeding badly, but I gritted my teeth and prepared for the next strike.
—Whoosh!
I darted forward and thrust my sword at the goblin’s attack.
I dodged it by a hair’s breadth and slammed my sword down with all my strength.
[Critical Hit!]
The goblin’s forehead was pierced clean through. It collapsed with a gurgling sound as its HP hit zero.
Moments later, the corpse vanished in a burst of light, dropping a few coins. A blue light flared around me, and an alert popped up.
[You have reached Level 10.]
[You are now eligible for a class change.]
All injuries vanished thanks to the level-up.
But the fleeting level-up effect lingered, and a new message appeared.
[Quest Stage 1 of the Chronicle has been cleared.]
[You will be teleported to a secret space by Archangel Ariel.]
When I blinked, the gray space around me was now surrounded by marble.
Without any input from me, I had been forcibly teleported.
—Floor 1 of Manuel Lucas’s Magic Tower.
[The next section of the Magic Tower has been opened. Floor 2 of Manuel Lucas’s Magic Tower is now accessible.]
What an unfriendly system.
My opinion was nowhere to be heard in the situation that followed the goblin hunt.
‘Well, as long as I can properly claim the Chronicle, I’ll accept anything.’
Intelligence agencies from every country and countless treasure hunters had scoured the globe for the late Grand Duke Lucas’s legacy.
But the Chronicle had been hidden in a place no one expected—the **online** world, the virtual realm itself.
‘No wonder I couldn’t find it easily.’
When I first claimed the Chronicle, I had assumed I would physically inherit Manuel Lucas’s legacy, maybe through some hidden vault or dungeon coordinates.
But the late Manuel Lucas was far more meticulous than I thought. He had made sure his legacy could not be easily leaked to the outside world.
[The character will now be reset.]
[The character and your real body will synchronize.]
[The abilities of Chronicle Online will be reflected in reality.]
[Intellectual and physical assets will be acquired gradually according to growth.]
Just like that.
Thanks to this, the scout character I had raised inside the game vanished, and I was forced to start over as a beginner.
‘Still… this is ridiculous.’
Powers in the game affecting reality?
Even if I only got the strength of the scout I had raised, it would be impossible to find an equal opponent inside the kingdom.
And with experience on my side, character growth would be much smoother than before. I was actually looking forward to it.
But the moment the game synchronized with my real body, my low physical stats carried over. My body refused to obey my will, and I suffered terribly in the beginning.
On top of that, the heavy weight of my body made every attack send waves of pain. I had no choice but to hunt carefully.
It took quite a long time to reach Level 10—the goal of the first stage of the Chronicle quest.
[Would you like to move to Floor 2 of Manuel Lucas’s Magic Tower?]
A door appeared in the gray space as if it were a mirage.
This object inside the game was the Chronicle itself.
I hesitated for no longer than a second, then grabbed the doorknob and nodded.
“Alright.”
The instant my answer left my lips, I felt another teleport. The scene shifted to a vast space carpeted with a deep red rug.
The difference between Floor 1 and Floor 2 wasn’t just the carpet on the floor.
Floor 1 had been empty gray space, but Floor 2 was now furnished like a grand study.
Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves lined one wall, and in front of them stood a large metal treasure chest.
[Treasure Chest 1]
A helpful message window explained the chest’s purpose.
I opened my eyes wide, swallowed hard, and slowly approached.
[You have acquired 5 billion roots. Please enter the account to which you wish to receive the deposit.]
[You may also receive it as online currency if you wish.]
Finally, the long-awaited reward appeared.
Roots were roughly equivalent to won in Korea, so receiving 5 billion roots was no different from pocket change.
Still, it was a fortune—something a prince’s son could barely afford. It stung a little.
‘At Level 10 in a game where the highest level is 300, I have every right to expect greater rewards ahead.’
But the true value of the Chronicle wasn’t money, was it?
[A 1st Circle has been generated.]
[Your job has been permanently set to Mage.]
[A Circle is being generated in your synchronized body (reality).]
[Do not log out. Forcing a logout will cause your synchronized body severe damage.]
* * *
[REMINDER: All system notifications, comments, letters, status windows, and special in-universe content MUST use styled blocks with inline CSS from the templates. Never output them as plain
text.]
[REMINDER: All system notifications, comments, letters, status windows, and special in-universe content MUST use styled blocks with inline CSS from the templates. Never output them as plain
text.]