As Oliver and I trudged through plains and forests, I clutched my bleeding stomach, trying to stay upright. That's when it hit me-
"I DIDN'T USE MY DAMN AWKWARNESS MANIPULATION SKILL!"
Oliver glanced at me, his face pale, his voice barely a whisper. "What's... wrong with you? Why're you... crying? And... when are we getting there? I think I'm gonna... pass out."
"Nothing," I muttered, trying to sound reassuring despite the blood dripping from my lips. "Don't worry... I just... Khee!" I coughed violently, blood spraying with every breath. My words grew fainter with every step. My legs trembled; I could barely keep my balance.
"We need... to find shelter," I managed to say, my voice shaking. We kept moving forward, my condition worsening by the second. The blood loss debuff was taking its toll, and the sun was starting to set. The sky turned darker with every passing moment.
Please... a house. I don't want to die here.
Then, on the horizon, I saw it-a small house, its windows glowing faintly in the growing dusk.
"There's a house..." I whispered weakly, my voice trembling. "Oliver, a house!"
He laughed softly, the sound tinged with exhaustion and relief. "I knew... we wouldn't die out here... Hahaha-ahh, that hurts."
As we got closer, the house came into focus. It was a small wooden cottage surrounded by a rickety fence. Inside the yard, various plants grew: cucumbers, tomatoes, herbs, and more. A massive tree stood nearby, half-chopped, as if someone had given up halfway.
Reaching the door, I knocked weakly. "Knock, knock," I muttered, my strength fading.
When the door creaked open on its own, I thought, It must've been left unlocked. But I was too far gone to care. We stumbled inside.
The interior was modest-a table, a chair, a dresser. As I stepped forward, blood dripped from me, pooling onto the wooden floor. I lowered Oliver onto the bed and then staggered to the dresser, pulling open a drawer.
The first drawer held a book, a few torn pages, and three pens. Useless. I yanked open the second drawer. There, finally-a roll of bandages. Without hesitation, I grabbed them and began wrapping my bleeding stomach.
SYSTEM: The bleeding effect has ended.
"Ahh... That's so much better," I sighed, though the pain was still excruciating. Collapsing onto the bed, I stared up at the wooden ceiling. "When did my life get so messed up...?"
I turned my head toward Oliver, watching him silently. Why is he even here with me? I wondered. Is he just an NPC? Or... do other players in this world look and act like real people?
Then, a terrifying thought struck me. Is this... Hardcore mode?
If it was, then dying here wouldn't just mean losing gear. In Hardcore, death was final. Players couldn't respawn, and if you wanted to return, you'd have to buy the game again-for a whopping 12,499 yen-and start from scratch. That's why I had always played Normal mode, where death just meant losing items. Normal was basically a demo version of the game, lacking the brutal stakes of Hardcore.
"I need to check," I muttered, lifting my trembling left hand to open my inventory. From there, I navigated to the settings. My eyes scanned the screen until I spotted it, hidden in the corner in the tiniest font imaginable.
"YOUR SERVER MODE: HARDCORE"
"Are you f***ing kidding me?" I whispered, my voice breaking.
My hands shot to my head, clutching it as panic set in. "No. No! This can't be happening. How?! She wasn't joking... That girl wasn't joking. You really can't die here." My whole body shuddered as the realization sank in.
"And I was so close... so damn close..." A chill ran through me, leaving me frozen in place.
Exhaustion took over, and I passed out.
The Next Day
When I woke, the room felt eerily quiet. The walls, made entirely of wooden planks, gave the place a rustic charm, but something about it felt unsettling. I groaned, rubbing my head as I sat up.
"Huh... Oliver..." I murmured groggily, turning to the bed.
Oliver was gone.
"Oliver? Where are you?" I called out, panic rising in my chest. My stomach still throbbed, the bandage wrapped around me soaked in blood. "Don't mess with me, man! This isn't funny!"
I staggered to the doorway, but before I could step outside, a translucent screen materialized before me.
SYSTEM: LIVELINK ACTIVATED!
The words glowed faintly:
"You are now live streaming."
Viewers: 0.
"What the-?!" I stumbled back, knocking into a chair and falling onto the floor. "Why am I streaming?! I didn't turn this on!" My voice trembled with disbelief as I climbed to my feet, heading outside in search of Oliver.
"OLIVER! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!" I shouted into the morning air.
"Calm down, I'm right here," came his voice. He stepped around the corner, holding a hoe. "Don't tell me you thought I ran off."
"Sorry," I sighed, relief flooding over me. "I'm just glad you're still here. Hahaha!"
"Yeah, yeah, save it," he muttered, tossing me a sack.
I caught it, confused. "Uh, thanks? What's in here?"
SYSTEM: You received 3x Cucumbers, 9x Tomatoes, 5x Tea Leaves (Common).
"Food! Hell yeah!" I grinned, lightly punching his shoulder.
"You'd better eat something," Oliver said. "You were out cold for so long I thought you were dead. Think you can whip us up something?"
"Of course! Let me check the kitchen."
I walked back into the house, my mind racing. Livelink... Maybe I'll stream while cooking. Let's see if anyone actually watches this.
The first thing I checked was the breadbox. "What've we got here?" I muttered, opening it to find three slices of bread.
"Perfect!" I said aloud, grinning.
Suddenly, another notification appeared.
SYSTEM: Viewer count increased to 3.
"Three?" I froze. "What the hell? I completely forgot-I'm not streaming on my own account. Great. Just great."
Still, I couldn't help but feel a flicker of hope. Three viewers... That's not bad for a start.
Oliver appeared behind me, holding up a small bundle. "Found some dried meat. Want it?"
"Definitely! Hand it over!" I said, grabbing it eagerly. Returning to the table, I laid out the ingredients. Oliver stepped outside again, leaving me to work.
Staring at the meager supplies, I smirked.
"LIVE ON!" I shouted dramatically. "Hello, everyone! I'm Drakin, and this is my first-ever...
