Chapter 1 - Prologue

Ark Fantasy Online. That is the name of the most played and most famous game today.

Ark Fantasy Online is a VRMMORPG (Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game). A game that makes a person becomes an extraordinary figure in the Digital World, in the man-made world.

In the digital world, a person or we can call them a Player, can do things beyond reason. Things that can never be done in the real world. Things like winning against Monsters, using magic, or battling using a giant sword.

Ark Fantasy Online is a real dream for gamers.

To play this popular game, one is required to use hardware called Dream Caster.

That tool, Dream Caster, will connect one's consciousness to the Digital World. It makes someone sleep and they'll dream of a challenging, thrilling, moving, or even comedic adventure.

This game, Ark Fantasy Online is so enchanting.

And I... I was also captivated by its charm.

Eight years have passed since the first time I played Ark Fantasy Online. In that period, I've done and completed all kinds of adventures beyond my imagination.

Blood, tears, and sweat poured out when- okay! Blood, tears, and sweat may not count, it's in the digital world and there's no way anyone can let out various kinds of body fluids there. But, the point is, I've fought all those adventures.

Yes, I played Ark Fantasy Online. Unfortunately, I'm not a pro gamer, I'm just a national elite gamer. The ability I have cannot be compared to those who play at the international level. But, I can say, I played pretty well and I wasn't too bad.

I'm not in the Top 100 Players Around the World rankings. But, I ranked 666th on the list of 1,000 Top Players Around the World.

As I said earlier, I'm not good at it and I'm not too bad.

The title of elite gamers - one level below Pro Gamers - I got one year ago. After the Familia that I and six of my friends made, completed a Hidden Quest.

Hidden Quest's rewards made us famous and stronger. And thanks to it, we're recognized as one of the Elite Gamers in our nation.

Our Familia is called Estoque. It's not a fancy name but it has a good tone when being said.

The reason why our Familia was formed is arguably from such a simple source, which is so basic, and so marketable. The reason six of my friends and I made this Familia is...

Money.

The work we do in the real world is not particularly promising. We knew we couldn't have a future if we continued to depend on our job. On the other hand, we know that wealth can be gained by playing Ark Fantasy Online.

Faced with the choice - working hard then earning a little wage and get a lot of salary in a fun way - of course, we took the second.

Therefore, we decided to left our old job and focus on playing Ark Fantasy Online.

The regular salaryman that I work for can only make me live day by day. There's no chance for me to set something aside. There's no money to be saved and no money spent on entertainment. That limitation made me able to see and realize, I won't have a future.

Besides all of that, I also have problems at the workplace that I want to stay away from.

A job that has small wages and an unpleasant workplace. It deserves to be abandoned.

So, in Ark Fantasy Online, I do a trade. Buying and selling items in the game gave me the promise of a future.

I am an elite gamer, this is where I am.

In the digital world.

Right now, I stand in the arena of the largest Coliseum in Dueling City Erletta.

I took part in a tournament to promote our Estoque Familia. And of course, winning the tournaments and obtaining the first prize is our biggest priority.

To get more customers for our shops, we had to make Estoque Familia to be known. Long story short, we want popularity.

An ad is mandatory when someone opens a business. All of which makes the Grade Nine - World-Class PvP Tournament so valuable for an advertising campaign.

Who am I? Right...

My real name is Giselle, Giselle Gibson. A twenty-eight years old modest woman. I'm a former regular office worker. I love games. And so, I decided to become an elite gamer. Lastly, I'm single.

That's right, I'm not married. In fact, for the last few years, I've never been in romantic touch with the opposite sex. I'm so pity... Ehem! I'm just a woman who loves to play games.

In the game, Ark Fantasy Online, I use an avatar that has the figure of a handsome young man. The dashing avatar has short golden hair and blue eyes. And Vier - a word that has a meaning of four in German - is my Avatar's name.

Why would I use a man Avatar when I'm a woman?

I'll give you a bitter smile before answering that question.

First, I have no desire to do cross-dressing, roleplaying, and I'm not a tomboy.

I want to live like a woman should be.

Last, errors that appear in dream caster are the main cause of me using a man Avatar.

Dream Caster has a function to accurately determine a person's gender. And because I knew that fact, I became so shocked by what happened. Tears welled up when I made my avatar. Honestly, I said, I cried in the end.

Why did that error occur?

To answer that question, I had to tell you about my in the real world.

In the real world, I... I'm a woman who is arguably unique.

Because I joined a martial arts club in high school and do some intense training, I have a pretty big, muscular body. And the lack of assets I have makes me look like a man. And my face which is quite masculine makes this problem get worse.

The combination of all those things made me truly look like a man. I suspect those traits become the source of error that made Dream Caster mis-guessed my gender.

Then, with anger and sadness, I reported this error to the company that released Dream Caster.

And I got an explanation. They tell me that my case was an unlucky one. Dream Caster has a 0,0001% percentage of an error to determine someone's gender. And by chance, I just got it.

My anger rose tenfold! I gave them very, very long, annoying complaints. And in the end, they gave me an apology and a new Dream Caster. But, they didn't solve my problem! My gender in the digital world is still a man.

My brain wave and data have been permanently recorded on their main server. They cannot delete or reset the data because the technology they use is a new experimental technology.

And yes, the technology is stable and safe. That was techno version 1.0.0 that will continue to grow and becomes much better. But… eight years already passed and version 3.9.5 still couldn't solve my problem!

I cried in this unfair world.

Why do I look like a man!

Because of this figure of mine, some people think of me as a sissy. A man wearing women's clothing.

The bad experience of being considered a sissy made me decide to wear men's clothes.

Yes... I'm so aware that I hate being treated as a man. But, to be honest, I assume, wearing men's clothes and being treated as a man is better than being ridiculed as a sissy.

And that's right. That way of life makes men never come to flirt with me. On the contrary, sometimes, some women come to me to confess their love.

Sadly... They mis-guessed my gender.

At first, I hated it when a woman convey their love to me. But, as time went on and the absence of a man next to me, a change appeared in my heart.

Slowly, I began to like the idea of having a romantic relationship with a woman. And at twenty-four, I dated a woman.

We love each other, we have many good times, and we have a thousand incredible memories.

But…

Unfortunately, our relationship had to end after four years had passed. My girlfriend married a man. And it doesn't need to be said that my girlfriend and that guy work in the same place as me.

I opened up my old wound, it's complicated, and I felt like this was enough. So... Let's forget about my sad past. Now...

"I have to focus on this final round! I have to beat Herman!"