A Changed World
"Ugh..."
Gripping my throbbing head, I barely managed to stand. My vision spun wildly. Closing my trembling eyelids and counting to a few seconds, thankfully it soon returned to normal.
"What the hell happened...?"
I must have blacked out for a moment. Or was it more than a moment? The sky visible through the window was bright. That meant I'd been out for at least from dawn until now.
"Hoo..."
Calming my mind and sitting up, something felt off about the sensation. My body was light. Incredibly so. As if all my body weight had been stripped away. And I knew this feeling all too well.
"My power... it's back?"
I flexed my small fist experimentally. Even that simple motion let me feel it. The tremendous flow of energy circulating through my entire body. After centuries rolling on battlefields building that overwhelming omnipotence, the inexplicable sensation manifesting on Earth made my heart soar even as confusion swirled within.
I drew up the mana, familiar yet awkward, and soon tilted my head.
...Something's a bit different?
My power had indeed returned, but it wasn't mine. This was... what? It felt like wielding an entirely new force? A more stable, refined, meticulously honed unknown power pulsed from my heart, coursing through my veins to every limb.
The sense of incongruity wasn't just that.
Did my hair used to reach my waist?
Silver-white locks swayed as usual. Spreading my palm and lifting a handful, they slipped through my fingers like rippling waves. The tips were blood-red, like spilled blood.
And the clothes I wore had changed too. No longer a loose white tee, but a sleeveless dress blending jewel-like white with blood-red patterns.
I swallowed dryly. Hurrying from my seat, I rushed to the full-length mirror in the master bedroom.
"Ah..."
A short sigh escaped as I cautiously stroked my cheek. It was definitely my face. Exactly mine. Save for the slightly longer hair with its blood-red gradient tips.
"Why did this happen...?"
Something was wrong. That instinct pierced my mind the moment—
BOOM!
A distant roar echoed from the heart of the city. I dashed to the window.
"Wh-what...?"
Peering out, I lost my words at the sight. Pandemonium. Black smoke billowed between Seoul's buildings. Cars that had been peacefully cruising the roads had all crashed into something and halted. The half-destroyed Seongsu Bridge swayed perilously, on the verge of collapse. As if swept by war's barrage.
A cracked sky spat fragments like shattered space, pitch-black monsters flapping wings as they poured out. Non-human aberrations rampaged down the streets.
Kieeeek!
Accompanied by ear-grating shrieks that wrinkled my nose instinctively.
"Why does this look so familiar...?"
A scene I'd grown sick of in Pandela. But this wasn't Pandela—it was Earth. A world where magic beasts shouldn't exist.
First, I needed to grasp the situation more precisely. Picking up my now-familiar smartphone, my small fingers danced busily. It didn't take long to find what I sought.
Disaster Advisory Text. Notification from the Republic of Korea's Ministry of the Interior and Safety!
Astrius Online players have suddenly transformed into their in-game characters overnight.
Monsters presumed to be from Astrius Online are attacking citizens. For safety, do not leave your homes...
In summary, that was it. The game had become reality.
But... I never played this game?
According to the advisory, non-players hadn't changed. So why had I turned out like this...? Similar to before, but undeniably altered.
Approaching the full-length mirror again, I toyed with the swaying strands. Diamond-like sparkling silver sheen. Sunlight piercing the dense locks shattered into rippling waves. The blood-red deepened toward the tips. The dress, like finely ground crystal, evoked spirit wings.
"Hm..."
For now, only conjecture was possible. To pinpoint the cause, I decided to search for Astrius Online info—just in case.
*
"Sertina...?"
It was my name. But also, another entity's. The smiling girl character on this tiny screen I peered into.
World Boss of Astrius Online
Epithet: The End of Life
I didn't know what a world boss was, but one thing was clear. She looked exactly like me. Body proportions, features, every detail. The only differences were clothes and hair.
No, now even those match.
With such an exquisite alignment, denial was impossible. I, Sertina, had been reborn as Astrius Online's world boss, Sertina.
"Why?"
Disbelief spilled from my lips.
"I never even played the game?"
Was watching the update anniversary stream the trigger? No, probably not. Too many overlaps: name, appearance, even the inexplicable aura.
"Hm..."
Just a hunch, though. Tapping my soft cheek thoughtfully, I glanced out the window. Monsters still roamed the city. My honed battle instincts screamed to charge out, but first, I needed to learn what a world boss was—and what this Sertina entailed.
After all, I hadn't become a "player's character." Rashly venturing out might spell trouble. Somehow, despite the looks, I seemed treated as a monster.
Furrowing my brow, I expanded my search diligently.
Meanwhile, SNS and communities exploded from user surges. The cause: a mysterious global phenomenon.
The realization of Astrius Online. In just one day, its aftermath shook the world unprecedentedly. Curiously, the official homepage and sites vanished. Employees left no trace, as if they'd never existed.
Cities crumbled, monsters rampaged. Society ground to a halt. Governments and media faltered. Information lagged. In this unprecedented crisis, people flocked to communities for swift intel.
Astrius Online communities burned hottest.