Endless Leveling Done Right!

Chapter 2: The Protagonist Of My Own Story

My name is Alex.

Twenty-one years old, single and not ready to mingle.

Iʼm your typical otaku who doesnʼt touch grass and likes to play games, watch anime, and read ReadNovelFulls.

It might seem like I have no life, but Iʼm actually a pretty amazing person, you know? In the game Iʼm currently playing, Iʼm even in the Top 69 of the Global Rankings... And it pays. Yes. Money. The true winner in life is me.

Though Iʼm not sure how long that will last.

You see, I am currently in a very tricky situation.

What kind? Tied reaaally tight from top to bottom, squeezed inside a giant cannon aimed at outer space.

Are you wondering how I found myself in such a predicament?

Frankly, I also want to know! Desperately!

Hereʼs what happened...

After finishing the tutorial quest in the game I play—which took a year, by the way—I went to the convenience store to buy snacks.

As I left the store, a little girl wearing an oddly familiar Red Riding Hood cosplay approached me.

Thinking that a little kid shouldnʼt be wandering the streets alone at midnight, I decided to be a good samaritan and ask her where her parents were.

But she told me she had no parents, so I felt bad for her. Out of guilt, I offered to escort her back to wherever she was staying.

Besides, it was dangerous to walk alone at night, even more so for someone as young as her.

It didnʼt take me long to realize that she looked like one of the mascots of the game that I played, Endless Leveling Online.

The one I had played for half an hour before going to the convenience store.

There had been quite an unexpected surprise in the end—a very amazing cinematic scene, which ended with the God of Games inviting me to go to the world of Arcana to forge my own destiny.

As an orphan, I didnʼt hesitate to click yes, even hoping Iʼd get hit by a truck and be truly taken to a fantasy world, like those main characters in the stories I read and games I played.

As expected, after clicking the ʼYESʼ option, I was still in my chair.

And on the screen, the God of Games only smirked and said...

”Iʼll send someone to pick you up, so just wait.”

After that, I was involuntarily logged out of the game.

Thinking it might just be some bug, I tried to log in again, but it wouldnʼt work, and I almost flipped my table in frustration.

Damn those devs. Did they make the tutorial quest nearly impossible to clear because they were too lazy to fix a bug?

I was ready to go to the world of Arcana, and become an isekai protagonist. Unfortunately, it seemed that the developers of the game had had fun writing the script and decided to mess around.

If this had been one of those isekai novel stories like, No Game No Waifu, I might have already been sent to Arcana, where I wished to transmigrate or reincarnate as the Protagonist of my dreams.

With these thoughts swirling inside my head, I walked down the familiar streets of the small town where I grew up.

Iʼd lived here all my life, and because of this brief moment of nostalgia, I couldnʼt help but think of the future.

I had been playing ELO for the past six years, and although I still loved playing it, I knew that nothing would change if I just remained inside my rented apartment, following the same routine over and over again.

While I was deep in thought, the little girl who looked very much like the gameʼs mascot character, Lily, turned around and eyed me with a smile.

”Big Brother, youʼre a good person,” she began, ”but didnʼt anyone tell you not to talk to strangers?”

Frankly, I found her statement quite cute.

I was confident that, unlike a helpless little girl like her, I could handle any ordinary street thug because I had trained in boxing.

”But arenʼt you also talking to a stranger?” I asked back, lightly patting her head. ”Enough talk. Letʼs just go to your home. Itʼs already late, and itʼs dangerous out here in the streets, especially at night.”

”Youʼre right, Big Brother.” The little girl giggled. ”It is indeed very dangerous at night.”

She then started to hum as she walked toward the park near my apartment building.

Thinking she wanted to play on the swings for a while, I decided to follow her for a bit.

But when we entered the park, she turned around and asked me another question.

”Dear traveler, if you were given one wish, and one wish only, what would you wish for?”

For a brief moment, I remembered that one scene in the game.

The Goddess, Lily, who looked exactly like the little girl before me, had asked me this question after I had created my character in ELO.

My wish back then was...

”I wish I could—”

”I wish I could be the Protagonist of my own story,” the little girl answered before I could finish my sentence. ”Big Brother, this is your wish, right?”

”Eh? How did you know?” I asked in confusion. ”Is my wish too common?”

”Not at all,” the little girl replied. ”But itʼs the wish of many people who are unsatisfied with their current lives. However, Big Brother, I think you and everyone else are having a very big misunderstanding. All of you are already the Protagonists of your own stories.”

A sigh escaped my lips before I looked at the stars in the sky.

”Whatʼs the point of living this sh*tty life story of mine?” I asked, raising my hand to reach out toward the distant sky. ”I want to start over in a fantasy world where I can really be the Protagonist. Start an exciting adventure as I travel the world. Just like a player traveling the world of Arcana.”

”Is that what you really want, Big Brother?”

”Yes. Thatʼs what I want.”

”Then, in that case, I will grant your wish.”

”Really?” I asked as I lowered my gaze to look at the little girl.

She was now holding a baseball bat from god knows where, and it looked like it would really hurt if it hit someone.

”Really,” the little girl replied cutely.

Before I could react, she smacked me with the wooden bat. I collapsed on the ground in disbelief because I never expected something like that to happen to me.

Just as my consciousness was about to fade, I saw a little angel appear beside the little girl, holding a bow and an arrow.

”Lily, this is my first time kidnapping someone,” the little angel said. ”It feels so exciting!”

”I know, right?” the little girl named Lily replied, high-fiving the angel as if they had done something good.

That was the last scene I remembered before I found myself in this tricky situation that I was talking about earlier.

”Big Brother, do you have any last words?” Lily asked as she peered down the muzzle of the cannon to look at me.

”Mmh! Mmmmhh!! Mphhh!” I tried to shout, but my lips were covered with duct tape, preventing me from saying anything.

”Heʼs probably thanking us for helping him grant his wish,” commented Cupid, who also peered into the muzzle. ”Heʼs such a nice guy even after we kidnapped him.”

”I see!” Lily nodded with a smile. ”Well, then, Big Brother. I hope you enjoy your new life! See you soon!”

”Mppphhh!! Mmphgghhh!”

My protests fell on deaf ears, but something caught my attention.

Rows of text appeared in front of me, and a lively AI Voice spoke inside of my head.

[Retrieving Character Data...]

[Character Data retrieved...]

[Character name ”Alex Stratos”.]

[Resetting Stats...]

[Resetting Skills...]

[Resetting Job Class...]

[Character Reset Complete!]

[Loading Story Mode...]

[Story Mode Loading Complete!]

[Choose your Level of Difficulty]

< EASY >

< NORMAL >

< HARD >

< NIGHTMARE >

< HELL >

[YOU HAVE FIVE SECONDS TO COMPLY!]

Although I was still confused, I knew that making a choice was very important.

With every bone in my body, I shouted my answer to make my intentions known.

”Mehhzee!”

”Mehhzee!”

”Mehhzee!”

[Um? I canʼt understand you. Can you repeat it?]

If not for the fact that I was tied up, I would have definitely face palmed because the AI voice sounded as if it was talking to an idiot who couldnʼt even speak properly.

”Mehhzee!”

”Mehhzee!”

”Mehhzee!”

[Hard Mode, right? Understood!]

This damned F*cker!

”Mach yuu!”

”Mach yuu!”

”Mach yuu!”

[I changed my mind. Hell Mode it is!]

As I was internally cursing the AI, which I believe to be a SYSTEM given to players as their guide in the game, the sound of a countdown reached my ears.

”5, 4, 3, 2, 1...”

[SIMP CANNON VERSION 2. FIRING!]

A moment later, I felt myself being launched from the cannon.

And then... there was no then.

Everything around me turned black as I fainted for the second time, not knowing if I would be able to open my eyes ever again.