Logging Into the Past

After a grueling negotiation, I successfully managed to borrow five thousand won—enough for three hours of playtime. As Yujeong turned to leave, I repeatedly assured her that I would absolutely pay her back. Her resigned expression made it clear she didn't quite believe me, but... I would just have to prove it through my actions. And so, with Yujeong's financial backing, I finally arrived at the Capsule Room.

"Whoa..."

The moment I stepped inside, a soft exclamation escaped my lips. This place was reminiscent of the PC bangs in my memory, yet fundamentally different. The capsules currently in use had their lids closed, glowing with a soft light that indicated they were active. The idle capsules had their lids popped open, revealing empty interiors. They were lined up with slight gaps between them, their backs connected to a complex web of cables. It looked exactly like a high-tech laboratory straight out of a sci-fi movie.

"What should I play first?"

I lay down in the capsule's seat, pondering which game to choose. As if resolving my dilemma, the games sorted themselves automatically by popularity. So this was the recommended list.

'First place: The World of Asteria. Second place... Wait, Asteria?'

My eyes widened as I scanned the recommended list. The name of the top game was far too familiar.

'The Continent of Asteria...'

That was the name of the world I had been summoned to—and now, it was the name of the game shimmering right before my eyes.

When I clicked on the game, a voice flowed out, and the screen before me began to ripple, displaying scenes from the game.

Lush green mountains, vast blue seas, and a pristine sky. Monster territories where wyverns soared through the air. It was a typical fantasy setting, but I could feel it. The world inside this game and the alternate world where I had fought as a Hero were one and the same.

'How is this possible?'

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Curiosity gripped me. What on earth was going on? But staring at the screen wasn't going to give me any answers. The only way to solve this mystery was...

"I'll just have to play it."

To experience the game myself.

Along with the system voice, my consciousness drifted. When I finally opened my eyes, a brand-new world unfolded before me.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

When I came to, I found myself in a space that felt profoundly sacred. A brilliant, pure white light filled the area. Gradually, the light subsided, revealing the surroundings.

'A temple?'

This place was incredibly familiar to me. In the past, the Saintess of my party used to frequent a temple exactly like this one. The people of Asteria worshipped only one deity. If my hunch was correct and this game shared the same lore as the world I had lived in, then the name of that deity would be...

'Asteria.'

The same as the name of this game.

As I organized my thoughts, someone emerged from the light.

She was a holy-looking woman, bathed in a gentle halo of light. This had to be the Goddess Asteria herself. It seemed she was acting as a tutorial NPC. While a common trope in games, it felt remarkably fresh to me. Back when I was actually active as a Hero in a world where a goddess supposedly existed, I had never once laid eyes on her. This was my first time seeing the famous goddess in person—though I wasn't sure if seeing a mere game character counted as the real thing.

'This is a world of difference from when I was first summoned as a Hero.'

The greeting itself was similar. Both then and now, the first things I heard were along the lines of "Welcome, Hero." But the person delivering it was entirely different. Back then, the first person I saw upon being summoned was a decrepit old king. Now, upon launching the game, I was welcomed by a goddess. Even if I was called a "Hero" in both instances, there was a stark contrast.

"So I have to make a nickname first."

I wanted to try talking to the Goddess, but as expected of a game, it immediately transitioned to the next step. It was time to choose the name I would use in this world—my username. This was a step where most players probably spent a significant amount of time. A nickname in a game was like a real name; it was the first thing people used to address you. In short, a nickname represented the gamer, and it shaped their first impression. Players who craved attention often went out of their way to make theirs unique.

Under normal circumstances, I would have put a lot of effort into crafting a nickname too. But now that I knew this game was identical to, or at least heavily based on, the world I once knew, my choice was already made.

"Jungwoo."

It was my original name, the one I had lost. Even during my time as a Hero, I had insisted on using my real name. The residents of that fantasy world, accustomed to Western-style names, found it incredibly awkward, but I didn't care. The king had even asked if I would change it to something more common ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠so the people could feel closer to their Hero, but I refused. Back then, having been summoned right after losing my family and living like a hollow shell, I clung fiercely to the name my parents had given me. Using any other name was simply unthinkable.

Though my existence had been forcibly swapped and my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠name changed in this new life... my nickname here would be my familiar original name. My real name, "Jungwoo."

"Hmm."

A problem I had anticipated reared its head. "Jungwoo" was a very common name, after all. It was highly likely someone else had already claimed it.

In that case, would this work?

"Park Jungwoo."

Wasn't Park the third most common surname in Korea? Of course it wouldn't work.

Then let's try twisting it a bit.

"Park Jung Woo."

"Jungwoo Park."

"Are there really this many Park Jungwoos in Korea...?"

I tried adding my surname, using English, removing the surname, and swapping the order, but the system only repeated the same rejection. Yet, I couldn't bring myself to abandon my name. After countless attempts...

"..."

To be honest, I didn't really like this one either. *Jjungwoo*. Didn't it sound like I was trying to act cute? Not that the pronunciation was entirely foreign to me; back when I was a Hero, people who couldn't pronounce my name properly often called me "Jjungwoo." Still, it wasn't a nickname that particularly appealed to me.

But... I couldn't afford to waste any more time.

"Phew..."

Though it was virtual reality and physically impossible, I felt as if cold sweat were trickling down my forehead. To think a mere nickname would drain me this much. I had just learned the trivial and utterly useless fact that there were an awful lot of people named Park Jungwoo in this world.

As I nodded silently, the Goddess's dialogue script advanced, and the scene began to shift.

With a praying gesture from the Goddess, my character was transported once again. I went from the temple I had been standing in to a vast, open meadow.

"Is it really different from reality?"

It wasn't an unreasonable warning. This was, after all, a *virtual* reality. There were bound to be differences from the real world. I slowly moved my body to test it out.

And I understood immediately.

It was definitely different from the real world. It felt as if there was a subtle resistance to my movements. Yet, the more I moved, the wider my grin became.

Because this very "resistance" was incredibly familiar to me.

"It's exactly the same as the real Asteria."

The environment of the game's Asteria was identical to the environment of the Asteria I had been summoned to. The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hypothesis that this game might somehow be connected to that other world gained significant weight. Now, I had an even greater reason to play.

Compared to Earth, many things were different in the world of Asteria. Practically everything was different, but the most prominent difference was the air. The air itself was fundamentally different. To borrow the words of the kingdom's Grand Mage, mana flowed through the very atmosphere. The mana concentration was different, the density was different, the atmospheric pressure was different... As a non-expert, I couldn't explain it scientifically, but that was what I had been told.

Because of that, I had a terribly hard time adjusting when I was first summoned. Would you believe me if I said that simply swinging my arms or running was an exhausting ordeal back then? By the end of my time there, I had actually grown so accustomed to it that Earth's air felt strange. Moving on Earth felt so effortless, almost as if I were about to float away.

'In any case, this is a good thing.'

I had been worried about whether I could adapt to a virtual reality game for the first time, but it seemed I would actually be able to play far more skillfully than anyone else.

'Now, let's begin.'

Time to play.

With a tense but eager expression, I stepped forward into the world of Asteria, wondering what kind of world awaited me this time.